bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comprehensive technology study of radiation hard LGADs
Authors: Gkougkousis E - L , Garcia L. Castillo , Grinstein S. , Coco V.
Published: December 2022

Towards radiation tolerant sensors for pico-second timing, several dopants are explored. Using a common mask, CNM produced LGADs with boron, boron + carbon and gallium gain layers are studied, under neutron and proton irradiation. With fluences ranging from 1014
to 6 × 1015 neq/cm2
on both particle species, results focus on acceptor removal, gain reduction via electrical characterization, timing performance and charge collection. An emphasis is placed on stability via dark rate and operating voltage studies.
A Large Area GEMPix detector for treatment plan verification in hadron therapy
Authors: Oliveira Andreia Maia , Akkerman Hylke B. , Braccini Saverio , van Breemen Albert J.J.M. , Manzano Lucia Gallego , Heracleous Natalie , Katsouras Ilias , Leidner Johannes , Murtas Fabrizio , Peeters Bart , Silari Marco
Published: December 2022

Quality Assurance in hadron therapy is crucial to ensure a safe and accurate dose delivery to the patients. This requires fast and reliable detectors with high spatial resolution. A first LaGEMPix prototype that combines a triple Gas Electron Multiplier and a highly pixelated readout based on a matrix of organic photodiodes coated on an oxide thin film transistor backplane has been built. The first version of the LaGEMPix has proven to have a limited spatial resolution, mainly attributed to the isotropic emission of the scintillation photons within the GEM holes. To improve the spatial resolution and confirm our predictions of the role of the photons, we built a new version of the detector with a reduced gap between the last GEM foil and the readout. Experimental results acquired using different methods and experimental set-ups show that the spatial resolution significantly improved with the new design.
Low gas consumption in tracking detectors for outdoor applications
Authors: Nyitrai G , Hamar G , Varga D
Published: December 2022

Gaseous detectors are one of the popular particle tracking technologies in high energy physics, and there are multiple applications where the detectors must tolerate outdoor conditions, e.g. in the emerging field of muography. Gaseous tracking detectors are attractive choices due to their high efficiency, good resolution and large sensitive area at a reasonable cost and low weight, but to achieve these, the gas system is usually not sealed. Continuous gas flow results gas consumption and thus regular gas cylinder replacement which limits applicability. In this paper we present a practical solution to reduce gas flow to a negligible level, keeping the construction cost-efficient and low weight, by a properly chosen buffer tube at the end of the gas line, which makes the system able to withstand large temperature and pressure fluctuations.
Optical fibre array detector to monitor irradiations for medical radioisotope production
Authors: Usherovich Samuel , Penner Crystal , Hodgson Geoff , Thoeng Edward , Dehnel Morgan , Hoehr Cornelia
Published: December 2022

Low-energy cyclotrons are in use worldwide to produce medical radioisotopes for nuclear medicine. Beam monitoring during the irradiation of targets is difficult due to the high-power density of low-energy protons, space limitations, and interference with beam delivery. Doped silica fibres are sensitive to prompt ionizing radiation from the bombarded target, and produce radiation induced luminescence (RIL) when exposed. The fibres can be attached to the outside of the target in a low-profile fibre array, ensuring efficient and safe operation. Here, we present the results from our prototype of such a fibre array. It consists of four Ce-doped fibres with a diameter of 200 μm and has been installed at the TR13 medical cyclotron at TRIUMF where it has been tested at different irradiation conditions.
Gaseous tracking detectors at the Sakurajima Muography Observatory
Authors: Hamar G , Tanaka H K M , Oláh L , Varga D , Nyitrai G , Balogh Sz J , Gera Á
Published: December 2022

Muography is a novel imaging technology to reveal density structure of hill-sized objects. The cosmic muons predictably lose their energy and penetrate hundreds of meters into the ground, thus their differential local flux correlates with the crossed density-length. The Sakurajima Muography Observatory in Kagoshima, Japan, is the largest muography experiment targeting an active volcano. A set of multilayered gaseous detectors are used to reconstruct the muon tracks, thus by measuring the flux, imaging of the inner part of the volcano become possible. The paper focuses on the technical challenges of such a particle tracking system, the designed multi-wire proportional chambers, and the recent results from the measurements.
The MURAVES muon telescope: a low power consumption muon tracker for muon radiography applications
Authors: D’Errico M. , Ambrosino F. , Baccani G. , Bonechi L. , Bongi M. , Bross A. , Ciaranfi R. , Cimmino L. , Ciulli V. , D’Alessandro R. , Giudicepietro F. , Gonzi S. , Macedonio G. , Masone V. , Melon B. , Mori N. , Orazi M. , Passeggio G. , Peluso R. , Pla-Dalmau A. , Saracino G. , Scarpato G. , Strolin P. , Vertechi E. , Viliani L.
Published: December 2022

Muon Radiography or muography is based on the measurement of the absorption or scattering of cosmic muons, as they pass through the interior of large scale bodies, In particular, absorption muography has been applied to investigate the presence of hidden cavities inside the pyramids or underground, as well as the interior of volcanoes’ edifices. The MURAVES project has the challenging aim of investigating the density distribution inside the summit of Mt. Vesuvius. The information, together with that coming from gravimetric measurements, is useful as input to models, to predict how an eruption may develop. The MURAVES apparatus is a robust and low power consumption muon telescope consisting of an array of three identical and independent muon trackers, which provide in a modular way a total sensitive area of three square meters. Each tracker consists of four doublets of planes of plastic scintillator bars with orthogonal orientation, optically coupled to Silicon photomultipliers for the readout of the signal. The muon telescope has been installed on the slope of the volcano and has collected a first set of data, which are being analyzed.
A method for locating abnormal sound in transmission line channels based on time delay estimation and equipment coordinates
Authors: Sun Xiaobin , Cai Fudong , Yang Jie , Guo Guoxin , Liu Huanyun , Liu Xiaoqing , Kong Zhiqiang , Lv Changfeng
Published: December 2022

To get rid of the current transmission line visual monitoring device which only relies on a single photo-monitoring method, this paper proposes a method based on time-delay estimation and equipment coordinates to locate abnormal sound in the transmission line channel. Firstly, the audio-visual equipment is selected to collect the abnormal sound information of any transmission line as the reference warning record, and the relative time difference between other warning records and the reference warning record is determined. Then, the corresponding audio-visual equipment of the reference alarm record is used as a reference point to set up a Cartesian coordinate system, obtain the GPS information of other audio-visual equipment, unify the GPS information, and get the coordinates of other audio-visual equipment; finally, based on the reference point coordinates, other audio-visual equipment coordinates, and the relative time difference, the transmission channel abnormal sound source coordinates are obtained. Through the experiment of firecracker sound, we can get the firecracker sound within 2km in the open environment, which proves that the location method can effectively enhance the monitoring effect of the transmission channel.
Research on the construction scheme of the emergency communication link in electric power system without public network signals
Authors: Meng Zijian , Hu Ming , Fang Shuang , Wang Zhigang , Wu Qing , Zhao Xunwei , Liu Di
Published: December 2022

Recently, natural disasters have occurred frequently which usually cause great damage to communication links. Emergency communication technology is the key technology to connecting the emergency site and the command center under the condition of communication system collapse, and it plays an extremely important role in the process of emergency rescue. Based on the disaster scene of the electric power system, this paper fully considers the extreme conditions of power outages, network disconnection, and traffic interruption at the emergency site, and proposes an emergency communication link construction scheme. After the pilot test, the scheme proposed in this paper can quickly restore the network signal coverage of the emergency site, and establish the communication link between the command center and the emergency site which can provide a reliable communication guarantee for power emergency rescue operations.
Open-set HRRP recognition method based on joint sparse representation
Authors: Qu Shuang , Liu Shengqi , Fu Qiang
Published: December 2022

Aiming at the problem of multi-view high-resolution range profile (HRRP) target recognition under open set conditions, we proposed an open set recognition method based on joint sparse representation (JSR), which solves the problem of low recognition rate of traditional methods under open set conditions. This method is applied to the background of radar single-station observation. JSR is used to solve the reconstruction error of multi-view HRRP by the over-complete dictionary, while extreme value theory (EVT) is used to model the reconstruction error tailing of matching and non-matching categories and transform the open set identification problem into a hypothesis testing problem. During recognition, we use the reconstruction error to determine the candidate class, the scores of the matching class and non-matching class are obtained according to the confidence of tail distribution, and the weighted sum of the two is used as the category criterion to finally determine the target or candidate class outside the library. This method can effectively use the relevant information between multi-view HRRPs to improve the performance of HRRP recognition under open set conditions. The algorithm is tested with HRRP data generated from MSTAR inversion, and the results show that the performance of the proposed method is better than the mainstream open set recognition method.
A Kind of Antenna Array Based on Dielectric Antenna with Small Size
Authors: Zhou Chang , Xia Jing , Li Yaohua , Wang Nan
Published: December 2022

Based on the antenna array design method, a new antenna array is designed in this paper. The optimization design results show that the existence of dielectric materials can effectively compress the electromagnetic field, which could greatly reduce the antenna size. The design results show that the size of this type of antenna array is 126mm * 126mm, which is only 70% of the conventional antenna array, the working frequency is 2.4GHz, the return loss is not more than -10dB, the gain is not less than 12dBi, the half power beam width is not more than 40 degrees and the design results show that the dielectric antenna array has excellent performance and good application prospect in the modern communication system.
Research on Transmission Characteristics of 5G Signal for Indoor Substation Based on Ray Tracing
Authors: Huang Chengbin , Huang Wei , Jiang Hua , Li Jia , cong Li , Tian Xiaoyan
Published: December 2022

The 5G networks can be used to enhance the transmission ability of substation power services. However, because of the complex and diverse environment of substations, such as the presence of a large number of obstacles of different materials and electrical equipment indoors, we need to conduct wireless coverage modeling and transmission quality assessment. In this paper, the 5G signal transmission characteristics in the indoor environment of substations for the established indoor environment and equipment layout are analyzed using methods such as road loss statistical analysis and 3D ray tracing. It can quickly evaluate the 5G indoor coverage quality of substations and provide technical support for planning a reasonable and efficient 5G network.
Low profile filtering antenna with high selectivity without extra circuit
Authors: Li Weishan , Zang Yiping , Ma Jie , Yang Jiangjun , Xiong Wenjun
Published: December 2022

A novel microstrip filtering antenna with high selectivity is presented. A shorting SIR stub and a square patch with a rectangular ring slot are designed to produce a couple of radiation nulls near the passband, respectively. The bandwidth (3.44GHz-3.94GHz) is wider than that in a traditional antenna. In the presented antenna, the selectivity of the right side of passband is 30.3 dB, and the selectivity of the left side of passband is 18.2dB without an extra circuit. The proposed antenna consists of three layers of stacking structure connected tightly up and down, so it has an easy fabrication structure. Flat gain, compact size 0.49λ*0.49λ*0.07λ, and higher front and back ratio (>20dB) are obtained than the conventional antenna.
Distributed power supply and energy storage configuration method in the active power distribution network
Authors: Zhao Lu , Peng Zhaozhao , Ni Wenbin
Published: December 2022

Distributed energy access and energy storage configuration are important links in the design of an active distribution network, and research on their design methods is essential to support the scientific development of an active distribution network. Therefore, on the basis of full research and demonstration, the content of the scheme design of the active distribution network and the technical principle of the overall design of the active distribution network are first determined, so that they can play the role of macro instruction in the scheme design. In addition, this paper deeply studies the capacity allocation of distributed generation and energy storage systems in the active distribution network, puts forward a general method for optimal allocation of distributed generation access and energy storage capacity, and provides design information and technical support for the active distribution network method.
Improvement on the DV-hop localization algorithm based on average hop distance optimization
Authors: Xu Jia , Tian Yue , Wang Xianling , Zhu Chen
Published: December 2022

Wireless sensor networks, which have numerous uses in numerous industries, have attracted more attention over the past few years. Node localization is one of the gordian technology to locate in it. This research sought to address the low precision of the classic DV-hop algorithm in the context of wireless sensor networks. This novel DV-hop localization algorithm is given some practical solutions in this paper. The results of the simulations demonstrate that the new method can improve accuracy and increase communication range. First of all, the least squares method is applied to correct the average length of each hop between beacon nodes. In addition, an error distance matrix is defined as an intermediate variable to reckon the average length between the unknown node and the beacon node for each jump and select the minor error distance matrix. Finally, this improved algorithm chooses the minimum error distance matrix from the previous steps and modifies it. Simulation consequences reveal that this modified algorithm can better enhance the accuracy and extend the communication range.
Preparing potassium fulvic acid based on lignite from different regions of China
Authors: Gong Qi , Wang Lele , Tang Kexin , Han Shuo , Wu Guochao , Hu Zunfu
Published: December 2022

China is the world’s biggest coal producer and is rich in coal resources. But lignite is one of the coal resources with a lower utilization rate and added value. How to improve its utilization rate and added value has drawn great interest among researchers. Potassium fulvic acid is successfully extracted from 29 lignites collected from different regions of the country, and treated with alkali and sulfonation. The results show that the yield of potassium fulvic acid from lignite from Xinjiang coal mines is relatively high, while from Yunnan coal mines are relatively low. After the orthogonal experiment, the order of the influencing factors of this experiment is explored as follows: potassium hydroxide>formaldehyde>temperature>sodium sulfite>time. The best process conditions are 13% potassium hydroxide, 70°C, 2 h, 6 % formaldehyde, and 17% sodium sulfite.
Design of an Aptasensor Based on AuNPs@Fc-rGO for Detection of GPC3
Authors: Wu Guangxiong , Liu Liyu , Zhou Zhide , Yao Xiaoqing
Published: December 2022

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the cancers with a high incidence and mortality rate.. Its existence poses a great threat to people’s life and health. Recently, Glypican-3 (GPC3) has became one of the valuable markers for the diagnosis of HCC. In this study, a GPC3 aptasensor was constructed based on AuNPs@Fc-rGO and the specific recognition of GPC3 aptamer. AuNPs@Fc-rGO had electrochemical activity, signal amplification and biocompatibility. Under the optimized conditions, the value of peak current correlate linearly with the concentration of GPC3 from 0.01 to 10.0 μg/mL, the linear equation was Y = 6.8223-0.3225X with R2 = 0.9925, and the LOD was 3.16 ng/mL. In addition, the experimental results show that the sensor has excellent stability and specificity. It provides a simple detection method for patients with early HCC.
Andesite tailings and municipal solid waste incineration fly ash based glass ceramics
Authors: Huang Xinyi , Li Jiali , Dai Wenjie , Chen Ying , Wang YongYa
Published: December 2022

To realize the utilization of andesite tailings and solve the environmental problems caused by municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) fly ash, both of them were selectively used as raw materials to prepare glass ceramics by sintering process. The effects of components on the properties of glass ceramics were analyzed. The results showed that glass-ceramic sample 21 prepared from andesite tailings and MSWI fly ash had the best performance, the bending strength was 94.8Mpa. At the same time, its acid and alkali resistance were the best, while the thermal conductivity was the lowest. The leaching of heavy metal elements in all the samples met the Chinese national standard. These results will provide some reference for the resource utilization of andesite tailings and MSWI fly ash.
Relativistic density functional investigation of the mono-lanthanum silicide clusters LaSin (n=1-6): geometries, electronic properties and IR spectra
Authors: Yang Aping , Tian Shanshan , Guo Ping
Published: December 2022

The mono-lanthanum silicide clusters LaSin (n=1-6) have been studied adopting the relativistic density functional calculation with generalized gradient approximation. Considering different spin configurations, we calculated and discussed the equilibrium geometries, charge populations, the HOMO-LUMO gaps, as well as infrared (IR) absorption spectra of LaSin (n=1-6) clusters. It is found that: the lowest-lying LaSin (n=1-6) clusters basically maintain a similar framework to the low-lying Sin+1 clusters, and the La atoms prefer the surface sites. The relative stabilities are investigated based on the calculation of fragmentation energies and, showing that LaSi2, LaSi4, and LaSi5 clusters have enhanced stabilities. Charge populations analysis shows that the charges transfer from La atom to Sin framework and the La atom acts as an electron donor. HOMO-LUMO gaps indicate that LaSi2 and LaSi5 clusters have higher chemical stabilities. IR absorption spectrum and vibrational mode analysis show that the highest frequency absorption peaks all correspond to the breathing mode of the silicon framework, and the characteristic infrared absorption peaks caused by La atom vibration, except for LaSi dimer, all appeared in the low-frequency region.
Study on Silica Aerogel Modified by Trimethylchlorosilane
Authors: Ren Longfang , Sun Shibing , Dong Quanxiao , Wang Hao
Published: December 2022

The mechanical properties of SiO2 aerogel prepared under atmospheric pressure are poor, so it is difficult to prepare large pieces of materials for practical engineering. In this paper, trimethylchlorosilane (TMCS) was used as a surface modifier to transform hydrophilic substances with higher surface activity into hydrophobic groups, to improve the network strength of SiO2 aerogel. Super-hydrophobic SiO2 aerogel was prepared by the sol-gel method under atmospheric pressure. The effects of trimethylchlorosilane on the structure and properties of SiO2 aerogel were characterized by a specific surface area analyzer, Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, thermal conductivity meter, static contact angle meter, and scanning electron microscope. The results show that the SiO2 aerogel prepared when n (Si):n (TMCS) is 1 has the best performance. Its density is as low as 0.0759 g/cm3, the porosity is as high as 96.5%, the specific surface area is as high as 723.08 m2/g, and the contact angle is 163.8°. It has good hydrophobic properties.
Preparation and Properties Evaluation of Photocatalytic Self-Cleaning Aramid Fabric Based on SiO2-TiO2-Fe Composite Aerogels
Authors: Wei Yuhui , Zheng Chen , Cheng Ersu , Zhao Shuhan
Published: December 2022

Because of the fire scene belonging to the coexistence of mud, ash, oil, and other stains, fire clothing is easy to stain, and frequent washing also reduces the protective performance of clothing and even shortens service life. To improve the self-cleaning properties of aramid fabric, N,N-dimethyl hexamide (DMAC), butyl titanate, tetraethoxysilane, butyl ferrate, polydimethylsiloxane, and N-hexane were prepared and mixed on the surface of the fabric. And the surface morphology, self-cleaning, and flame retardancy of fabric before and after treatment were systematically investigated. The results showed that compared with the untreated fabric, the surface of the treated fabric had a rough microstructure; PDMS/SIO2-TIO2-Fe composite was uniformly coated on the surface of the aramid fabric by the one-step spraying method. The flame retardancy decreased slightly but remained within the standard requirement of the B1 grade. The self-cleaning and anti-fouling properties of the finished aramid fabric were improved obviously. The results provided a theoretical basis for the preparation of high-performance fire-fighting fabrics with the advantages of water-saving, energy-saving, reducing the amount of chemical detergent and being friendly to the environment. The utility model reduced the economic loss and the waste of resources because of the decrease in the function of the fire-fighting clothing caused by the washing and the elimination to a certain extent.
Design of Online Detection System of Boiler Water Quality Based on STM32
Authors: Hu Weipeng , Wei Zhenshun , Shi Qiulin , Miao Xueyan , Li Shenghao , Liang Jintao
Published: December 2022

Industrial boilers have strict requirements for water quality. It is necessary to adjust water treatment measures and regular blowdown according to the monitoring of phosphate and soluble silica content in boiler water to avoid boiler scaling, corrosion, and deterioration of steam quality, and prevent major accidents. The traditional boiler water quality detection technology has a strong lag and long detection time, which cannot meet real-time online detection. Aiming at the requirement of detection of phosphate radical and soluble silica content in boiler water quality, a portable and low-cost online detection system of boiler water quality based on STM32 was studied. The pump valve flow path is constructed with a syringe pump equipped with a syringe and a distribution valve, LED and silicon photocell are used for the light source and detector of the system respectively, and the photoelectric detection part is composed of a designed Z-shaped flow cell, which reduces the experimental cost; Design a data acquisition circuit based on STM32 microcontroller and a 16-bit high-precision analogy-to-digital converter, as well as a constant-current drive circuit for driving LED light sources, to improve the stability and high precision of the automatic measuring instrument. The system test results show that the boiler water quality online detection system based on STM32 can accurately detect the phosphate and soluble silica concentrations in boiler water quality.
Effect of Low Temperature on Electrochemical Performance of Polyanion Battery Material
Authors: He Rui , Wei Aijia , Bai Xue , Li Xiaohui , Mu Jinping , Liu Peng , Liu Zhenfa , Zhang Lihui
Published: December 2022

In this paper, we prepared LiFePO4/C by the solid-state method. For the sake of discussing the function of low temperature on material performance, we analyzed the microstructure of materials using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Also, we conducted charge/discharge tests, rate performance, and electrochemical impedance performance to study the electrochemical performances. Our conclusion revealed that the charge transfer impedance increases obviously when the temperature drops, this will leads to a sharp decline in the electrochemical performance of the material.
Umbilical cord derived mesenchymal stem cell-GelMA microspheres for accelerated wound healing
Authors: Li Yanqun , Liu Dongyu , Tan Fengming , Yin Wenling , Li Zhihuan
Published: December 2022

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are an ideal seed cell for tissue engineering and stem cell transplantation. MSCs combined with biological scaffolds play an important role in promoting the repair of cutaneous wound. However, direct administration of MSCs is challenging for MSCs survival and integration into tissues. Providing MSCs with a biocompatible scaffold can improve MSCs survival, but the effect of gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) loaded MSCs from umbilical cord MSCs (UC-MSCs) in wound healing remains unknown. Here, we investigated the ability of GelMA with UC-MSCs complexes to promote migration and proliferation and the effect on wound healing in mouse models. We discovered that UC-MSCs attached to GelMA and promoted the proliferation and migration of fibroblasts. Both UC-MSCs and UC-MSCs-derived extracellular vesicles accelerated wound healing. MSC + Gelatin methacrylate microspheres (GMs) application decreased expression of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and Type III collagen (Col3) in vivo, leading to new collagen deposition and angiogenesis, and accelerate wound healing and skin tissue regeneration. Taken together, these findings indicate MSC + GMs can promote wound healing by regulating wound healing-related factors in the paracrine. Therefore, our research proves that GelMA is an ideal scaffold for the top management of UC-MSCs in wound healing medical practice.
Uncertainty relations for the support of quantum states
Authors: Fiorentino Vincenzo , Weigert Stefan
Published: December 2022

Given a narrow signal over the real line, there is a limit to the localisation of its Fourier transform. In spaces of prime dimensions, Tao derived a sharp state-independent uncertainty relation which holds for the support sizes of a pure qudit state in two bases related by a discrete Fourier transform. We generalise Tao’s uncertainty relation to complete sets of mutually unbiased (MU) bases in spaces of prime dimensions. The bound we obtain appears to be sharp for dimension three only. Analytic and numerical results for prime dimensions up to nineteen suggest that the bound cannot be saturated in general. For prime dimensions two to seven we construct sharp bounds on the support sizes in

(
d
+
1
)

MU bases and identify some of the states achieving them.
Preface: CIB World Building Congress 2022
Authors: Behm Michael , Aranda-Mena Guillermo , Wakefield Ron , Mellencamp Erin
Published: December 2022

1. World Building Congress 2022 Overview

The International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB) World Building Congress (WBC) 2022 ‘Building Our Future: Informing Practice to Enhance the Lives of Current and Future Generations’ was held from 27 to 30 June 2022 at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia and online. The WBC is a triennial event bringing together the global scientific community to share ideas about cutting-edge research affecting the built environment. The inaugural WBC was held in Rotterdam, The Netherlands in 1959. CIB (Conseil International du Bâtiment) is a member-driven platform to provide a network for international collaboration in building and construction research and innovation.

List of WBC 2022 Scientific Committee, W078 Scientific Committee are available in this pdf.
An artificial neural network analysis of rework in sustainable buildings
Authors: Olanrewaju Abdul Lateef
Published: December 2022

Sustainable buildings were introduced to lessen the negative impact of buildings on their users, occupants, communities, and the environment, and to increase contractors’ productivity and profit margins. However, despite the prospects and benefits of sustainable buildings, instances of reworking in buildings have been recorded by construction companies. This research developed a questionnaire instrument that included 20 determinants of rework in sustainable buildings, measured on a 5-point Likert scale. An artificial neural network model was used to predict the determinants of rework in sustainable buildings. The data revealed that sustainable buildings are delayed by more than 15% and cost overrun by more than 20%. Rework in sustainable buildings is about 15%. The correlation results revealed that rework will increase project costs by up to 29% and completion time by about 27%. The model revealed that lack of performance specification; lack of skilled workers with green materials and components; poor application of industrialised building systems; lack of project governance; absence of sustainable construction managers; poor welfare; and poor adoption of building information modelling are the main predictors of reworks. The research will provide references for all stakeholders involved in the procurement of sustainable buildings. This study is foremost to examine reworks in sustainable buildings, as its findings hold critical theoretical and practical implications for future research on the sustainable building market.
Urban resilience actions in the built environment: an analysis of the city of Salvador – Bahia - Brazil
Authors: Rodrigues Prado Angélica Fabíola , Varela Alberte Elaine Pinto , Ventura Andréa Cardoso , Iglesias Ventin Jadi Tosta
Published: December 2022

Urban resilience is the ability of a city to return or maintain its full functioning in the face of some unexpected or usual disruption. Several cities around the world have sought to achieve urban resilience considering a scenario of several challenges related to climate change and the growing population demand. The built environment needs to adapt and innovate its way of building in order to absorb the concepts of resilience and to produce changes in the current production model of construction. In addition, it is important to evaluate the urban context of each city, since urban resilience strategies adopted in a given place do not necessarily meet the needs of other places. Therefore, this work aims to analyse urban resilience actions applied and applicable to the built environment of the city of Salvador - Bahia - Brazil, in view of studies and practices identified in the world. To this end, a systematic literature review, a documental analysis, and semi-structured interviews with agents of academia, industry, and local government were carried out. As a result, actions at the local and global levels were identified and categorized. Then, these actions were analysed based on the perception and experience of the interviewees. Finally, a current overview of particularities, difficulties, and opportunities for improvement on the urban resilience actions applied and applicable to the built environment of the city of Salvador was obtained, to better direct the actions of the regional construction industry.
Urban biodiversity and carbon sinks – do they overlap? Case study of Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Finland.
Authors: Kinnunen A , Lampinen J
Published: December 2022

Amongst the greatest global environmental challenges of our time are climate change and biodiversity loss. Feedback mechanisms associated with warming climate could also lead to large-scale biodiversity losses worldwide and it would therefore be logical to seek mitigation methods beneficial for both impact categories. However, research on the topic remains relatively scarce. Our study focuses on two key aspects of environmental sustainability, carbon storage capacity and species biodiversity, to determine whether these correlate at different levels of urban density. GIS-datasets are utilized to estimate the carbon storage potential and species diversity across the urban landscape as well as their association at different levels of urban land use intensity. The results highlight the importance of small green spaces at dense urban cores, indicating that in environments where green infrastructure is limited high species diversity and carbon storage are more likely to overlap, whereas at urban fringe the observed relationship is weaker and divergence of the two impact categories becomes more probable. The study draws attention to the role fragmented, limited green spaces play at establishing functioning ecosystems at local scale and provides new information to support the development of sustainable planning and management practices across the urban land use gradient.
Energy-as-a-service: A new business model for the built environment?
Authors: Muthumala H S , Eves C , Oswald D , Halvitigala D
Published: December 2022

The energy landscape in Australian built environment is becoming more complex, with traditional utility consumption declines and the rise of renewable energy sources, meaning buildings are able to generate, monitor and store their own energy. These energy transitions are impacting upon the stability of traditional business models. Energy-as-a-service (EaaS) as an emerging business model has shown potential under this complex energy transition. However, with limited studies into this business model, there is a research gap in understanding of how EaaS can facilitate a successful energy transition. In addressing such research gap, this study investigates about potential pathways to establish EaaS from an industry perspective. A generic qualitative research design within a constructivist paradigm was adopted in this exploratory study with twenty-nine semi-structured interviews. The study revealed four recommended directions EaaS could be practically established for improving energy transition within the built environment. This study contributes by providing research-based evidence into new, emerging, and innovative business models within the built environment.
A Holistic Framework for Determining the Trade-off between Embodied and Operational Carbon Emissions of High-rise Residential Buildings
Authors: Pan Wei , Teng Yue , Bai Yefei , Yu Cong , Xu Jiayi
Published: December 2022

Buildings’ carbon emissions consist of embodied carbon (EC) associated with the production and transportation of materials and operational carbon (OC) generated from consumed energy during daily use. However, previous studies concentrated on either EC or OC but ignored an integrated analysis of their relationships. Therefore, this paper aims to explore appropriate building envelope design solutions by examining the trade-off between EC and OC of high-rise residential buildings. To achieve this aim, the life cycle assessment method was used to evaluate the EC and OC of the residential buildings using SimaPro and DesignBuilder software. A building information modelling (BIM) model was developed to extract the geometric data and material consumption. A typical 30-story public residential building in Hong Kong was examined. The EC and OC of the case building were calculated as 561 kg CO2e/m2 and 50.18 kg CO2e/m2/yr, respectively. Different low carbon design scenarios were identified from the literature review and the semi-structured interviews with designers and contractors. Results indicate that low carbon concrete is an effective approach for not only reducing the EC by 5%-15%, but saving a mild percentage of OC, and is therefore encouraged. However, changing the thickness of external walls leads to a very limited life cycle carbon reduction (0.99%). Lower U-value of envelopes is recommended as 2.84% and 2.89% life cycle carbon is reduced when adopting insulations for external walls and triple-glazing windows. The findings are valuable for examining the relationships between EC and OC and can support low carbon building decision-making.
Evaluating the impact of building material selection on the life cycle carbon emissions of South African affordable housing
Authors: Moghayedi A , Massyn M , Le Jeune K , Michell K
Published: December 2022

This study evaluated the life cycle carbon emissions of the two most common affordable housing designs primarily used in South Africa. It examined the impact of conventional, alternative and green building materials on life cycle carbon emissions of five main building components: building envelope, internal walls, flooring, windows, and roof systems. The EDGE application modelling software was used to estimate the life cycle carbon emissions of the various building materials and the overall houses. The comparison between the resulting carbon emissions of the three scenarios proved that modifying the building materials from conventional to alternative and green materials is able to reduce ~55% and ~75% of carbon emission of the construction phase, respectively and overall ~10% of life cycle carbon emission of the house. The findings, however, indicated that a change in building material has a more significant impact on the carbon emission in the construction phase than the operational phase. The results, therefore, confirmed the critical role of material selection in affordable housing as the main contributor to the life cycle carbon emissions, given the absence of heating and cooling systems in these housing types. Finally, the finding led to the conclusion that a change in material used for affordable housing alters the method of construction for the proposed materials and consequently lowers the lifecycle carbon emissions produced by the construction industry and improves the sustainability of houses and the housing sector in general.
Bio-concretes and GHG emissions reduction: what the scientific literature says?
Authors: Siqueira T P L , Sá T S W , Caldas L R , Hasparyk N P , Toledo Filho R D
Published: December 2022

Bio-concretes incorporates several types of biomaterials, and they emerge as a sustainable alternative to traditional concrete. In this context, the use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to evaluate the environmental performance of these materials becomes fundamental in order to identify the main points for improvement. Therefore, this study performed a Systematic Literature Review, analysing the published works about LCA of the different types of bio-concretes, identifying the limitations and possible improvements for future studies. Because bio-concrete is a relatively new material, only 16 articles were found about this topic; however, it was observed a trend towards awareness of the relevance of performing LCA to evaluate the material’s performance. Furthermore, there is no standardisation about the functional unit studied and the possibilities of bio-concretes end-of-life, showing the need of evaluating these variables in future studies. The hempcrete was the type of bio-concrete most evaluated. Moreover, the Global warming potential was the most studied impact category, and binder production was the main contributor for the CO2 emissions. When compared with conventional building materials, bio-concretes can have great GHG emissions reduction. It was verified that the biogenic carbon has a big influence in the GWP results of bio-concretes and must be addressed correctly.
Climate-adaptive housing for the elderly: A preliminary study in New Zealand
Authors: Rañeses M K , Chang-Richards A , Wang K I-K , Dirks K N
Published: December 2022

A changing climate requires our built environment to be adaptable to better serve the communities for which it was intended. However, little is known about how climate change, especially rising temperatures, will impact housing and thus affect at-risk populations. This study was conducted as a preliminary study to develop and validate a research instrument (questionnaire survey) to be used in investigating the potential effects of rising temperatures on the elderly in Auckland, the largest city of New Zealand, and the role they perceive housing plays in reducing these effects. Prior to conducting more comprehensive full-scale research, the development and validation of the questionnaire survey was deemed vital to ensure the quality of the research instrument to be used. Assessment from experts and participants were used to revise the questionnaire. From this phase, the authors were able to execute the following: 1) made improvements to the research instrument such as modification of questions for better understanding of the participants, addition of relevant items, removal of unnecessary items, revision of terms to accommodate common understanding, and enhancement of question presentation (e.g., from tick box or open-ended to Likert scale); 2) checked the viability of the data collection process; and (3) planned for data coding scheme, processing, and analysis techniques. This study demonstrated that the proposed research instrument to be used in conducting the comprehensive research is feasible.
Impact of technology developments on multicriteria performances of BIPV in non-domestic buildings
Authors: Weerasinghe R P N P , Yang R J
Published: December 2022

Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) which can be applied to various parts of the building envelope such as walls, roofs, windows, and facades provides untapped opportunities to produce green energy even to meet total building’s energy need. Although, there are buildings with successful applications, the growth of the BIPV among both PV and building industries is inadequate due to various reasons particularly technical complexities. However, currently, many technological advancements have been emerged meeting market expectations, eliminating the current obstacles. System performances always lead to the decision of BIPV adoption are varied continuously. This paper aims to investigate the impact of technology developments on the multiple performances: economic; structural substitutable; environmental of 46 BIPV projects in non-domestic buildings in western countries using levelised cost of energy, net present value, material offset and greenhouse gas emission savings. Sensitivity analysis identifies generate four scenarios i) capital cost, 2) electricity conversion efficiency, 3) share of grid supply and 4) lifetime. The results revealed that capital cost has substantial influence than others to uplift the performances. It is significant to optimise the share of grid supply and onsite consumption for favourable performances. The outcome empowers stakeholders to explore the significance of technology deployment.
Policy interventions for disaster-related internal displacement in Australia
Authors: Mortimer Anastasia , Egbelakin Temitope , Sher Willy
Published: December 2022

It is projected that internal displacement of populations in the aftermath of natural hazards will occur more frequently due to climate change [1]. However, to date, 35 nations have implemented policy or legal protections at a national level to plan for displacement or to protect the rights of internally displaced people (IDPs) [2]. While no cohesive national strategy for internal displacement has been developed in Australia, a thematic analysis of climate change, disasters, and emergency management policies was conducted to determine if Australian policy acknowledges the issue of internal displacement or plans for its effects. The study found that Australian policy fails to recognise the needs of IDPs and the threat of displacement risk. The failure of national governments to implement policy and legislation on internal displacement has the potential to undermine the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and stifle the progression of international initiatives such as the Sendai Framework and the Paris Climate Agreement. Furthermore, the lack of recognition for the issue at the governmental level contributes to disaster displacement risk creation, placing vulnerable populations at risk of displacement and associated stressors. As displacement governance is an integral part of addressing the human impacts of climate change and natural hazards [3], this research suggests how displacement risk could be reduced in Australia through national-level policy interventions.
Sustainability Indicators in Building Construction Projects through the Lens of Project Delivery Elements
Authors: Moradi Sina , Kähkönen Kalle
Published: December 2022

Sustainability indicators have been developed since 1990s to be utilized in construction projects as tools and instruments for achieving higher level sustainability. Achieving sustainability goals in construction projects can be affected by the delivery model in place in a positive or negative manner, as it accounts for accomplishing project definition, design, planning, and execution phases. With any construction project we can recognize three main delivery elements which are project organization, contractual relationships, and operational system. This study aims to address the role of these project delivery elements in the application of sustainability indicators in building construction projects. To do so, a literature study was carried out and qualitative analysis of the relevant studies led to the identification of sustainability indicators, barriers, and enablers in building construction. Then, these indicators, barriers, and enablers were analysed and structured within a model based on their relation to the elements of construction project delivery. The findings present a sustainability model for building construction, revealing the connection between the project delivery elements and the identified barriers and enablers for the application of the sustainability indicators. These findings contribute toward facilitating sustainable construction through project delivery and provide a frame of reference for the future studies.
Women’s Empowerment in Post-Conflict Housing Reconstruction in Palestine
Authors: Saleh N , Enshassi A , Sundermeier M
Published: December 2022

The occurrence of disasters, especially in the post disaster phase, could be an opportunity to empower women in housing reconstruction. Despite that the disasters are on increase globally; they affect women and men differently. Women are still passive in disaster management and they have been found more vulnerable to disasters than men. This study provides insights into the experiences of women empowerment in post disaster housing reconstruction (PDHR) in the Gaza Strip-Palestine. The study used a questionnaire survey to obtain data from women who had been involved in post conflict housing reconstruction. The results indicated that, five of nine practices of women empowerment were determined statistically significant. The findings showed that, the top three practices for women empowerment are: ensuring rights of land titles for female-headed households in the PDHR, equal distribution of financial assistance to both men and women, and equal access to resources and information related to reconstruction. Gaza Strip lacks researches regarding women empowerment in general and in PDHR in particular. This study fills the knowledge gap relating to women empowerment in post conflict housing reconstruction. The study results established a basis for better understanding of the women empowerment and could minimize their vulnerabilities to future disasters.