COMFORT ANALYSIS OF EXISTING NATURALLY VENTILATED BUILDINGS LOCATED IN MILD CLIMATES, SUCH AS THE ONES IN THE MEDITERRANEAN ZONES, OFFER ROOM FOR A REDUCTION IN THE PRESENT AND FUTURE ENERGY CONSUMPTION. REGARDING SPAIN, MOST OF THE PRESENT BUILDING STOCK WAS BUILT BEFORE ENERGY STANDARDS WERE MANDATORY, LET ALONE CONSIDERATIONS ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING OR ADAPTIVE COMFORT. IN THIS CONTEXT, THIS RESEARCH AIMS AT ASSESSING ADAPTIVE THERMAL COMFORT OF INHABITANTS OF EXTANT APARTMENTS BUILDING IN THE SOUTH OF SPAIN PER EN 15251:2007 AND ASHRAE 55-2013. THE CASE STUDY IS STATISTICALLY REPRESENTATIVE HOUSING BUILT IN 1973. ON-SITE MONITORING OF COMFORT CONDITIONS AND COMPUTER SIMULATIONS FOR PRESENT CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN CARRIED OUT, CLARIFYING THE DEGREE OF ADAPTIVE COMFORT AT PRESENT TIME. AFTER THAT, ADDITIONAL SIMULATIONS FOR 2020, 2050, AND 2080 ARE PERFORMED TO CHECK WHETHER THIS DWELLING WILL BE ABLE TO PROVIDE COMFORT CONSIDERING A CHANGE IN CLIMATE CONDITIONS. AS A RESULT, THE STUDY CONCLUDES THAT LEVELS OF ADAPTIVE COMFORT CAN BE CONSIDERED SATISFACTORY AT PRESENT TIME IN THESE DWELLINGS, BUT NOT IN THE FUTURE, WHEN DISCOMFORT ASSOCIATED WITH HOT CONDITIONS WILL BE RECURRENT. THESE RESULTS PROVIDE A HINT TO FORESEE HOW EXTANT DWELLINGS, AND ALSO DWELLERS, SHOULD ADAPT TO A CHANGE IN ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS.

CURRENTLY, ENERGY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS FOR BUILDINGS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE PRIMARY ENERGY SOURCE CONSUMPTION, CO2 EMISSIONS OR NET ENERGY DISTRIBUTION, WHICH TOGETHER SET THE BUILDING?S ENERGY EFFICIENCY. THE EVALUATION IS FREQUENTLY BASED ON SETPOINT TEMPERATURES AND HOURS OF OPERATION. HOWEVER, THESE FIXED PARAMETERS ARE NOT SUITABLE FOR SOCIAL HOUSING SIMULATION AS THEIR PERFORMANCE TENDS TO BE IN FREE RUNNING, EXCLUDING EXTREMELY COLD OR WARM CONDITIONS. THEREFORE, A MORE SUCCESSFUL ASSESSMENT FOR THE EFFICIENCY OF THESE BUILDINGS IS THE USERS? CAPABILITY TO LIVE WITHIN ADAPTIVE COMFORT RANGES WITHOUT AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEMS. THE AIM OF THIS RESEARCH IS TO ANALYZE NEW CHILEAN STANDARDS FOR SUSTAINABLE SOCIAL HOUSING IN THE CONTEXT OF CLIMATE CHANGE USING THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT APPROACH ADDRESSED IN EN 15251:2007. USING ENERGYPLUS SIMULATION SOFTWARE, 16 PARAMETRIC SERIES ARE ANALYZED FOR CURRENT CONDITIONS AND VALIDATED AGAINST ON-SITE MEASUREMENTS. MEANWHILE, A PREDICTION FOR THE CLIMATE IN 2050 HAS ALSO BEEN TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. THE CASE STUDY IS THE MOST WIDESPREAD LOW COST DWELLING MODEL. THE STUDY DEMONSTRATES THAT THE PERIOD OF TIME WITHIN THERMAL COMFORT CONDITIONS VARIES SUBSTANTIALLY IF ANALYSIS IS DONE USING THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT STANDARD OR THE SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION CODE (CCS) FOR CHILEAN HOUSING. CONSIDERING CLIMATE CHANGE, THE PERCENTAGE OF TIME FLUCTUATES FROM ?19.00% TO 24.30%. CONCLUDING THAT THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODEL HAS A GREATER CAPACITY TO POSITIVELY ASSESS INDOOR TEMPERATURES FOR SOCIAL HOUSING IN CENTRAL-SOUTHERN CHILE. THIS RESEARCH ALSO ESTABLISHES THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO PROVIDE HOMES WHERE STANDARDS ARE IMPROVED WITHIN COMFORT CONDITIONS WITHOUT USING ARTIFICIAL MEANS, 99.67% OF THE TIME CURRENTLY AND 88.89% IN THE FUTURE.

FUEL POVERTY IS A PERTINENT ISSUE FOR VULNERABLE HOUSEHOLDS BOTH IN INDUSTRIALIZED AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, WHICH IS RELATED TO ENERGY PRICES AND ACCESSIBILITY OF ENERGY SERVICES. THIS RESEARCH EXPLORES THE FEASIBILITY OF PREDICTIVE MODELS TO PREVENT FUEL POVERTY THROUGH THE FUEL POVERTY POTENTIAL RISK INDEX (FPPRI). TWO STATISTICAL MODELS, MULTIPLE LINEAR REGRESSION (MLR) AND ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS (ANN), HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED AND APPLIED TO PREDICT THE PROBABILITY OF LOW-INCOME HOUSEHOLDS FALLING INTO FUEL POVERTY WHEN BEING ALLOCATED A SOCIAL DWELLING. THE CASE STUDY USED TO VALIDATE THE MODEL IS LOCATED IN THE BIO-BIO REGION OF CHILE AND THE HOUSEHOLDS CONSIDERED BELONG TO THE MOST VULNERABLE SOCIAL STRATA. THE MODELS HAVE CONSIDERED THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTIVE FEATURES OF COMMON TYPOLOGIES OF CHILEAN SOCIAL DWELLINGS, FAMILY INCOME LEVELS, CHANGES IN ENERGY USAGE PATTERNS AND ENERGY PRICES. THROUGH EXTENSIVE SIMULATION AND TESTING, ANNS HAVE BEEN FOUND TO BE MORE ACCURATE THAN MLRS FOR ALL SITUATIONS, WITH A R2 COEFFICIENT ABOVE 99.6% AND 80.7% RESPECTIVELY, DESPITE THEIR GREATER COMPLEXITY. THE RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH CAN BE USEFUL IN PROVIDING TOOLS TO FAIRLY AND ACCURATELY ASSIGN SOCIAL DWELLINGS TO VULNERABLE HOUSEHOLDS TO PREVENT THEM FROM FALLING INTO FUEL POVERTY.

17TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE COMPUTATIONAL AND MATHEMATICAL METHODS IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING. COSTA BALLENA, ROTA (CÁDIZ), ESPAÑA

AN ATTEMPT HAS BEEN MADE TO DEVELOP LINEAR REGRESSION MODELS AND ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS (ANN) TO PREDICT THE HEATING AND COOLING ENERGY DEMANDS, ENERGY CONSUMPTIONS AND CO2 EMISSIONS OF OFFICE BUILDINGS IN CHILE. THE CALCULATION OF DEPENDENT VARIABLES TO CALIBRATE AND EVALUATE THE MODELS HAS BEEN DETERMINED STARTING FROM THE ISO 13790:2008 STANDARD, ASSIGNING CONSTRUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS TO EACH OF THE GEOMETRIES STUDIED BASED ON THE CHILEAN STANDARDS, STUDYING 77,000 CASES. A TOTAL OF 8 FUNDAMENTAL VARIABLES HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED TO COVER THE DESIGN PARAMETERS. IN ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND CO2 EMISSIONS CASES, THE LINEAR REGRESSION MODELS THAT OFFER A BETTER PERFORMANCE ARE THOSE WHERE THE PREDICTIVE VARIABLES HAVE BEEN TRANSFORMED. WHEREAS, THE MULTILAYER PERCEPTRON ADJUSTED OVER THE VARIABLES WITHOUT BEING TRANSFORMED, PROVIDES GREATER ACCURACY IN THE DETERMINATION OF THE DEMAND, CONSUMPTION AND CO2 EMISSIONS BOTH FOR HEATING AND COOLING, OFFERING ECM VALUES CLOSER TO 0, WITH AN R2 COEFFICIENT ABOVE 99%. IT IS FORESEEN THAT THE MODELS DEVELOPED CAN BE USED TO ESTIMATE THE ENERGY SAVING BETWEEN DIFFERENT DESIGN OUTLINES DURING THE PROJECT PHASES WHEN THE CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS, SYSTEMS AND INTERNAL LOADS ARE DEFINED.

THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IS EXPERIENCING CHANGES IN ITS PROCESSES AND WORK METHODS, AND THE ADVANCEMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES IN RECENT DECADES HAS LED TO A NEW CONCEPT KNOWN AS CONSTRUCTION 4.0, COINED IN 2016 IN GERMANY. SINCE ITS DEFINITION IS STILL DIFFUSE, IT WAS DEEMED NECESSARY TO CONDUCT A REVIEW ON THE PUBLICATIONS IN THIS FIELD TO GRASP HOW THIS CONCEPT IS BEING UNDERSTOOD. FOR THAT PURPOSE, A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED AMONG 260 RESEARCH ARTICLES USING SEVEN KEYWORDS. THE RESULTS REVEAL THAT THE NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS GROWING EXPONENTIALLY, WITH THE USA, THE UK, AND CHINA BEING LEADERS IN THIS FIELD; BESIDES, FOUR TECHNOLOGIES ARE ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTAND CONSTRUCTION 4.0 AT PRESENT TIME: 3D PRINTING, BIG DATA, VIRTUAL REALITY, AND INTERNET OF THINGS. THE RESULTS OF THIS REVIEW SUGGEST THAT FURTHER REVIEWS SHOULD BE CONDUCTED EVERY 3 YEARS TO GRASP THE RAPID EVOLUTION OF CONSTRUCTION 4.0.

ADAPTIVE COMFORT PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN DEFINING COMFORT STANDARDS WHEN CONSIDERING COMFORT IN BUILDINGS IN FREE-RUNNING MODE, INCLUDING ADAPTATION TO EXTERNAL TEMPERATURES, OPENING WINDOWS AND CHANGING CLOTHING. IN THIS REGARD, TWO INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS PROVIDE THE FUNDAMENTAL BASIS TO MODEL THE NECESSARY EQUATIONS: EN 16798 (FORMERLY 15251) AND ASHRAE 55?2017. THIS RESEARCH INTENDS ON ASSESSING THE FEASIBILITY OF APPLYING THESE STANDARDS TO THE CHILEAN CONTEXT, WHERE A LEGAL FRAMEWORK HAS BEGUN TO BE IMPLEMENTED TO REGULATE THE OCCUPANT?S COMFORT IN SOCIAL HOUSING. EXTENSIVE MONITORING OF INHABITANTS IN EXISTING UNITS UNDER FREE-RUNNING MODE HAS BEEN UNDERTAKEN IN SEVERAL SOCIAL HOUSING PROJECTS IN THE CITY OF CONCEPCIÓN (CHILE) AND THE COLLECTED DATA HAS BEEN CONTRASTED AGAINST THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS. RESULTS SHOW THAT USERS IN THESE HOUSES SHOW MORE TOLERANCE TO COLD TEMPERATURES, THUS, DESPITE BEING ALLOCATED BELOW THE STANDARDS? LOWER LIMITS, THEY ARE CONSIDERED TO BE IN THERMAL COMFORT. AS A RESULT, THE OUTCOMES OF THIS RESEARCH CAN SHED LIGHT ON THE FEASIBILITY OF APPLYING INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS TO SOCIAL HOUSING AND LOW-INCOME FAMILIES IN CHILE. THE STUDY PRESENTS A PROPOSAL FOR A NOVEL ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODEL FOR CHILE. THE NEW MODEL PROPOSES ADAPTING THE THERMAL COMFORT THRESHOLD?S LOWER LIMIT IN ORDER TO DEVELOP A NATIONAL STANDARD THAT BETTER REFLECTS THE INHABITANTS? NEEDS AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC CULTURE. THE STUDY DEMONSTRATES HOW THE PROPOSED MODEL BEST FITS THE THERMAL COMFORT CONDITIONS IN SOCIAL HOUSING IN CHILE.

FUEL POVERTY IS COMMONLY ASSOCIATED WITH FUEL PRICE, ENERGY CONSUMPTION, INCOME AND BUILDING FEATURES TO MAINTAIN COMFORTABLE CONDITIONS. MOST STUDIES ARE BASED ON EXISTING CONDITIONS WITH FUTURE MACRO LEVEL PREDICTIONS. THEREFORE, THERE ARE A LACK OF MICRO SCALE POLICIES AND FURTHER IN-DEPTH RESEARCH IS NEEDED BASED ON THE MULTIVARIABLE COMPLEXITY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE. IN THIS CONTEXT, PUBLIC HOUSING POLICIES HAVE A CHALLENGE IN ORDER TO MEET NOT ONLY THE RIGHT TO HOUSING BUT ALSO AN AFFORDABLE AND COMFORTABLE USE. THE INTENTION OF THIS RESEARCH IS TO DEVELOP AN INDEX TO HELP THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS IN THE EARLY STAGES OF SOCIAL HOUSING ALLOCATION. THE ANALYSES WERE BASED ON THE APPLICABILITY OF ADAPTIVE COMFORT, URBAN CONTEXT AND BUILDING FEATURES, CONSIDERING ENERGY USE AND THE ABILITY TO PAY UTILITY BILLS. BY MEANS OF THESE FACTORS, THE FP POTENTIAL RISK WAS SET AS CRUCIAL IN PUBLIC BUILDING SECTOR DECISION-MAKING AND HOUSING ALLOCATION. METHODOLOGIES BASED ON DYNAMIC SIMULATIONS AND CURRENT ADAPTIVE COMFORT STANDARDS WERE APPLIED TO SOCIAL HOUSING IN THE CENTRAL-SOUTH OF CHILE. RESULTS REVEAL THAT WITHIN THE URBAN CONTEXT, ENERGY CONSUMPTION DIFFERS SIGNIFICANTLY DUE TO BOUNDARY CONDITIONS, WITH FUEL POVERTY POTENTIAL RISK INDEX BEING AN EFFECTIVE INDEX TO ALLOCATE APPROPRIATE HOUSING FOR THE MOST DISADVANTAGED AND VULNERABLE SEGMENTS OF SOCIETY.

EDITORIAL SPRINGER, SUIZA

THE BUILDING SECTOR IS AMONG THE MAIN ENERGY USERS IN THE WORLD, AND ITS CONSUMPTION PATTERNS ARE STRONGLY AFFECTED BY CHANGES IN CLIMATE CONDITIONS. THE CONSUMPTION PREDICTION IN FUTURE SCENARIOS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST CHALLENGES. THE APPLICATION OF RECENT TECHNIQUES, SUCH AS ADAPTIVE THERMAL COMFORT STRATEGIES, CONSTITUTES AN OPPORTUNITY TO REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTION. THIS STUDY AIMS AT CLARIFYING THEIR WORLDWIDE APPLICATION POTENTIAL IN TWO SCENARIOS, CURRENT AND 2050, LINKING IT TO PREDICTIONS ON WORLD POPULATION DISTRIBUTION AND ON THE DEVELOPMENT LEVEL OF COUNTRIES. BY INTERPOLATING 15,897 METEOROLOGICAL DATABASE, WORLDWIDE MAPS WERE MADE TO QUANTIFY THE APPLICABILITY OF THE MODEL AND TO SHOW THAT SUCH APPLICABILITY WOULD LARGELY BENEFIT BOTH DEVELOPING COUNTRIES AND MOST WORLD POPULATION.

BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING (BIM) HAS EMERGED AS A DIGITAL PLATFORM FOR BUILDING PROJECTS, WHICH FACILITATES COOPERATION BETWEEN SPECIALTIES. ON THE OTHER HAND, EXTREME COLLABORATION IS A METHODOLOGY, ARISING IN THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY, FOR JOINT WORK AMONG PROFESSIONALS. THIS ARTICLE PRESENTS AN EXPERIMENTAL INITIATIVE WITH ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING STUDENTS TO EVALUATE THESE CAPABILITIES IN BUILDING PROJECTS. THIS WAS DONE BY MEANS OF AN INTENSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF A CAR EXHIBITION PAVILION; ELABORATING THE DESIGN AND PRESENTATION OF 1 UNIVERSIDAD DEL BÍO-BÍO

PUBLIC HOUSING POLICIES FACE A CHALLENGE IN ORDER TO MEET NOT ONLY THE RIGHT TO HOUSING, BUT ALSO AN AFFORDABLE AND COMFORTABLE USE FOR THEM. IN THIS CONTEXT, MOST OF THE STUDIES RELATED TO FUEL POVERTY ARE BASED ON A DIAGNOSIS OF EXISTING CONDITIONS, BUT THERE IS A LACK OF INFORMATION FOCUSING ON HOW TO PREDICT THE RISK OF FUEL POVERTY IN FUTURE DWELLINGS CONSIDERING A CONTEXT OF CLIMATE CHANGE. THIS RESEARCH DEVELOPS AN INDEX TO ASSIST POLICYMAKERS IN THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS DURING THE EARLY STAGES OF SOCIAL HOUSING ALLOCATION. THE ANALYSIS IS BASED ON THE APPLICABILITY OF ADAPTIVE COMFORT, THE INFLUENCE OF CLIMATE CHANGE, THE URBAN CONTEXT AND THE BUILDING FEATURES. ENERGY USE PATTERNS AND THE ABILITY TO PAY UTILITY BILLS HAVE BEEN ALSO CONSIDERED FOR SOCIAL HOUSING IN THE CENTRAL-SOUTH OF CHILE. AFTER THAT, SEVERAL FUTURE SCENARIOS ARE DISCUSSED CONSIDERING THE PROBABLE INCOME AND ENERGY INFLATION RATES. THE POTENTIAL RISK VARIABLES THAT INFLUENCE THE EARLY STAGES OF DESIGN ARE ALSO DISCUSSED. THE RESULTS REVEAL THAT THE FUEL POVERTY POTENTIAL RISK INDEX IS AN EFFECTIVE TOOL TO SELECT APPROPRIATE HOUSING FOR THE MOST DISADVANTAGED AND VULNERABLE SEGMENTS OF SOCIETY, CONSIDERING THE FUTURE CLIMATE, INCOME AND ENERGY PRICE TRENDS.

THE EVALUATION OF CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS USING ADAPTIVE THERMAL COMFORT MODELS HAS A GREAT IMPACT ON ENERGY CONSUMPTION. THE ANALYSIS OF A USER?S CLIMATE ADAPTATION MUST BE ONE OF THE FIRST STEPS IN THE SEARCH FOR NEARLY/NET ZERO ENERGY BUILDINGS (NZEB). THE GOAL OF THIS WORK IS TO ANALYZE THE STANDARDS RECOMMENDED BY THE CHILE?S CONSTRUCTION WITH SUSTAINABILITY CRITERIA FOR THE BUILDING OF HOUSING, APPLYING THE ASHRAE 55-2017 AND EN 15251:2007 ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODELS IN SOCIAL HOUSING. THE STUDY PRODUCES CONCRETE RECOMMENDATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH CONSTRUCTION STRATEGIES, TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF HOURS THE USER FINDS THEMSELVES WITH ACCEPTABLE THERMAL COMFORT LEVELS, WITHOUT REPERCUSSIONS FOR ENERGY CONSUMPTION. SIXTEEN PARAMETRIC SERIES WERE EVALUATED WITH A DYNAMIC SIMULATION OF THE MOST COMMON PROTOTYPE OF SOCIAL HOUSING IN THE BIO-BIO REGION. THE STUDY SHOWS THAT THERMAL COMFORT CONDITIONS CAN BE INCREASED THROUGH A COMBINATION OF IMPROVEMENT MEASURES COMPARED TO THE ECCS STANDARD (CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS WITH SUSTAINABILITY CRITERIA): 27.52% IN THE CASE OF APPLYING EN 15251:2007 AND 24.04% IN THE CASE OF ASHRAE 55-2017.

ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODELS HAVE EMERGED AS A SUSTAINABLE WAY OF PROVIDING COMFORT IN CONNECTION WITH LOCAL CLIMATE. ADDITIONALLY, CLIMATE CHANGE HAS POSED AN ADDITIONAL CHALLENGE. IN PREVIOUS STUDIES, THE AUTHORS CLARIFIED HOW CLIMATE CHANGE WOULD AFFECT THE FEASIBILITY OF THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODEL AT A WORLDWIDE SCALE, BUT LOCAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR SOME COUNTRIES REMAINED UNSOLVED. THIS STUDY PRESENTS THE FIRST COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH ON THE APPLICABILITY OF THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODEL IN JAPAN NOT ONLY FOR CURRENT, BUT ALSO FOR FUTURE SCENARIOS CONSIDERING THE CLIMATE CHANGE. REMARKABLE DIFFERENCES ACROSS JAPANESE REGIONS WERE FOUND, ESPECIALLY BETWEEN THE NORTHERN UNDERPOPULATED REGIONS OF HOKKAID? AND T?HOKU AND THE CITIES THAT BELONG TO THE TAIHEIY? BELT. IN GENERAL, THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODEL WILL FIND APPLICATION BOTH IN CURRENT AND FUTURE SCENARIOS, BUT NATURAL VENTILATION WILL NOT PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE. SPECIAL ATTENTION SHOULD BE DRAWN TO THE POTENTIALS SAVING OF COOLING DEGREES THAT CAN BE ACHIEVED IF ADAPTIVE SETPOINT TEMPERATURES BECOME COMMONPLACE IN THE FUTURE IN THE KANT? REGION. THESE RESULTS PAVE THE WAY FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF THE ADAPTIVE COMFORT MODEL AS A RESILIENT STRATEGY TO ADAPT TO THE FUTURE CHANGES IN CLIMATE SCENARIOS FOR THE BUILDING INDUSTRY.

THIS RESEARCH AIMS AT CLARIFYING THE INFLUENCE OF THE GRANULOMETRY OF EXPANDED PERLITE, ON THE THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY, STRUCTURAL STRENGTH, DENSITY, AND WATER ABSORPTION OF LIGHTWEIGHT MORTARS. THREE ORIGINAL PERLITE GRADATIONS HAVE BEEN OBTAINED AND THREE PAIRS OF TWIN TEST MORTARS HAVE BEEN TESTED WITH THOSE GRADATIONS. SEM TESTS HAVE ALSO BEEN RUN TO CLARIFY THE INTERACTION, AT A MICROSCOPIC LEVEL, BETWEEN THE EXPANDED PERLITE AND THE CEMENT GROUTING. THE RESULTS INDICATE THAT THE MERE MANIPULATION OF THE GRANULOMETRY MAY HAVE A CONSIDERABLE AND VERY BENEFICIAL EFFECT ON THE MIXTURES PROPERTIES, SUCH AS THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY AND WATER ABSORPTION.

IN RECENT YEARS CLIMATE CHANGE HAS BROUGHT TO LIGHT A RISING INTEREST ON ITS POTENTIAL IMPACT AMONGST THE VARIOUS HUMAN ACTIVITIES, IN WHICH BUILDING SECTOR IS INCLUDED. LOCAL CLIMATE DETERMINES THE EXTERNAL CONDITIONS THAT BUILDINGS HAVE TO ADAPT TO, HAVING A DIRECT INFLUENCE ON THEIR ENERGY DEMAND FOR HEATING AND COOLING. IN THIS CONTEXT, COMPUTER AIDED SIMULATION PROVIDES WITH HANDY TOOLS THAT HELP IN ASSESSING THIS IMPACT. THIS RESEARCH INVESTIGATES HOW A CHANGE IN CLIMATE DATA FOR FUTURE SCENARIOS WILL AFFECT ENERGY DEMAND IN OFFICE BUILDINGS IN THE CITY OF SANTIAGO (CHILE). CLIMATE DATA HAS BEEN GENERATED FOR THE YEARS 2020, 2050 AND 2080, FOLLOWING THE ACKNOWLEDGED A2 ?MEDIUM-HIGH? EMISSIONS GREENHOUSE GASES GHG SCENARIO, ACCORDING TO INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE IPCC. PREDICTED ENERGY DEMAND FOR BUILDINGS IS CALCULATED BY MEANS OF AN IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CALCULATION PROCEDURE OF ISO-13790:2008, TAKING AS EXTERNAL CONDITIONS THE THREE AFOREMENTIONED SCENARIOS. FINALLY, THE EFFECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE ENERGY DEMAND FOR OFFICE BUILDINGS IS CLARIFIED AND THEN OPTIMIZED, BASED ON ITERATIONS OF ITS ENVELOPE AND FORM. AS A RESULT, THIS RESEARCH CLARIFIES HOW FUTURE CLIMATE SCENARIOS WILL AFFECT ENERGY DEMAND FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF OFFICE BUILDINGS AND HOW THEIR SHAPE AND ENCLOSURE CAN BE OPTIMIZED TO COUNTERACT THIS EFFECT.

MANY HISTORICAL EUROPEAN CITIES ARE HOME TO HOUSES OF GREAT HERITAGE VALUE. THESE STRUCTURES HAVE BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE COMFORT THROUGHOUT HISTORY WITHOUT THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL CONDITIONING SYSTEMS. EVEN THOUGH SUCH DWELLINGS WERE INFLUENCED BY ACADEMIC STYLES, BY CONTRADICTING VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE, THEIR ADAPTATION TO LOCAL CLIMATE IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE THERMAL COMFORT IS COMMONPLACE. THEY WERE MOSTLY BUILT WITHIN COMPACT URBAN TISSUES, MAKING USE OF LOCAL MATERIALS, WORKFORCE AND CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGIES. LEARNING FROM THE PAST KNOWLEDGE OF THESE DESIGN STRATEGIES THAT ARE SPECIFICALLY ADAPTED TO SPECIFIC CLIMATES CAN PLAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN REDUCING THE ENERGY DEMAND OF EXTANT BUILDINGS (...)