Procedia environmental sciences最新文献

The Byzantine Building Codes aimed at defining in a very precise manner the way in which settlements and towns were built within the boundaries of the Byzantine Empire. Consequently, they contained rules that defined the front, side and rear distances between buildings of different uses, the number and dimensions of the windows, the depth and distances of the projections, etc. Many of these limitations and rules were mainly derived from issues of sanitation, privacy and views. Nevertheless, in many parts of the Codes, there is reference to the achievement of acceptable daylighting and ventilation conditions.

This primary aim of this paper is to investigate the bioclimatic performance of the built environment, which was shaped based on these building codes, in terms of insolation, shading and daylighting, as well as air circulation and ventilation. The findings of the study will provide information concerning the bioclimatic performance of both the urban open spaces and the interior living spaces of buildings in Byzantine towns and settlements, whose form derived from Byzantine Building Codes.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performances of iron and manganese-coated pumice from Sungai Pasak, West Sumatera, Indonesia as the adsorbents for removal of Fe (II) and Mn (II) from aqueous solutions. The effect of soaking time for iron and manganese coating was evaluated and as comparison, the adsorption of Fe (II) and Mn (II) using uncoated pumice was conducted. The experiments were performed in batch mode at room temperature (20-25̊C), pH 7; 10 g/L of adsorbent dose; 0.30-0.50 mm of adsorbent diameters; 100 rpm of agitation speed and 90 minutes of contact time. In addition, the desorption process of Fe (II) and Mn (II) from the three kinds of adsorbent was also investigated. The results showed that the optimum soaking time for iron and manganese coating for removal of Fe (II) and Mn (II) were 100 and 48 hours, respectively. Iron-coated pumice showed to have high removal efficiencies of two ions compared to uncoated and manganese-coated pumice. More than 84% of Fe(II) and 72% of Mn(II) with initial concentration of 15 and 5 mg/L, respectively, were removed by 10 g/L iron-coated pumice, while by using uncoated and manganese-coated pumice, the removal efficiencies were less than 75% for the two ions. The desorption study noticed that up to 20% of Fe (II) and 100% of Mn (II) were recovered from the three kinds of pumice adsorbent. Overall study indicated that pumice from Sungai Pasak may be a promising adsorbent for iron and manganese removal from water and wastewater.

This article addresses the city form as way to ease urban mobility, with a case study in the city of Brasilia, symbol of modern urbanism. Identifies the characteristics of the area that attributes mobility to the urban space and how these elements are shown in Brasilia, while exploring the possibilities in intervening the heritage city as a way to enhance mobility to pedestrian. As conceptual bases the characteristics of compact and dispersed cities and their influences over the levels of mobility blend in to four aspects: high density, usage of mixed soil, continuity of the urban mesh and continuity of elements of composition of public spaces are utilized as reference. The fundamentals of modern urbanism and how their characteristics, shown in Brasilia, are analyzed to verify the possibilities of intervention. The empirical study falls upon the connection between public spaces and the “superquadras”, residential areas that utilized spatial analysis, by a composition of elements that structures public spaces, to analyze their presence in the studied area. Found that the city space was treated continually where: access, tours, meeting points, barriers and urban furniture does not have attributes such as safety, comfort and amenity. The results points to connectivity as a characteristic of urban form with the biggest viability to suffer interventions in consonance with the heritage, for not to talk about, necessarily, the characteristics of modern urbanism were recommended interventions to improve low connectivity between buildings, bus stop points, car parks with rides and interconnection access, removing barriers, creating meeting places and street furniture to facilitate the mobility of pedestrians.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the unique ways in which a group of Clemson University students and faculty achieved the design and construction of a net zero energy house for the 2015 U.S. Solar Decathlon competition. This paper will describe not only the role of the competition but also the foundation of the team's research and ultimate goal of realizing a holistic view of energy use. Furthermore, this paper will detail the unique materials, systems, and strategies successfully employed by the team in the Indigo Pine solar house, their measured performance, and their future applications.

Excessive exposure to UVR is known to cause skin cancer, cataracts, and damage to the DNA^1,2. In recent years, many skyscrapers have been built in urban areas, and these buildings use energy conscious glasses such as low-e glass and heat reflecting glass to block heat from the outside. Furthermore, unlike common glass, some high-performance glasses reflect not only infrared radiation but also UVR. Therefore, urban streets flanked with office buildings might induce a condition of high UVR exposure. In this paper, the UVR environment of urban streets with office buildings in Tokyo and Singapore was observed. The amount of UVR exposure at a street block was investigated by determining the radiant quantities of the radiation reflected from four directions using UVR and visible radiation sensors. In the results, UVR correlates roughly with sky view factor. However, the coefficient of variation among UV radiation values for the four directions was lower than that for visible radiation because UVR has a high scattering property³ Therefore, it is important to reduce the doses of UVR on urban streets by implementing strategies such as shielding with plant canopies, shade structures attached to building facades, and grass.

Seismic risk assessment and loss estimation are of major importance for decision-making with respect to the reduction of earthquake-induced losses in large urban areas. However, the methodological chain of seismic risk assessment, from seismic hazard assessment to evaluation of potential losses, encompasses both aleatory and epistemic uncertainties associated with different sources. The present study aims to give an insight into epistemic uncertainties in seismic risk assessment at urban scale when applying the Capacity Spectrum Method (CSM), using the city of Thessaloniki, Greece as a case study. Quantification of uncertainties related to structural capacity and fragility curves parameters was performed using a logic tree approach. A sensitivity analysis of the computed seismic risk results was also performed in order to determine which input parameters have the greatest impact on the output. For the considered set of input parameters, it was found that the epistemic uncertainties related to damage states thresholds of the fragility curves are the most significant ones, while those associated with the capacity curve parameters may also be substantial. On the contrary, the sensitivity of computed seismic risk on CSM parameters a1, a2 and γ appears to be negligible. The results highlight the critical points to which special attention should be paid when implementing the Capacity Spectrum Method for seismic risk assessment.

Starting from the definitions of illegal building and synthesizing the historical roots of the phenomenon in Italy, this contribution identifies three types of illegal building and traces the development of the regulations that have characterized this problem. The proposal of a reading methodology is described through its application to the case-study of the municipality of Dragoni (Ce) in Campania Region. After proposing a distinction between illegal building and unauthorized urban-planning and recognizing three approaches to solving the problem: repression, amnesty and mitigation, the paper reflects on the latter since it addresses redevelopment with an urban vision and not exclusively a building one. After a brief analysis of national and regional legislation, where it is possible to resort to the Recovery of Illegal Building Plans, even through variants to the municipal general planning instruments, follows the highlighting of the main objectives and guidelines in reference to the preparation of specific implementation planning instruments.

Improvement of living standards and increased demand for consumer goods have as consequence the increase of energy and water consumption. At the same time, increasing awareness of the respective environmental impact has prompted the European Union (E.U.) to issue a list of Directives for the Member States that promote conservation of natural resources. Moreover, this environment-friendly attitude may alleviate the impact of the economic crisis, since energy and water savings result in saving money.

In the present paper, some ways toimprove sustainability of swimming pools through reducing energy and water consumption, are analyzed and compared.An open municipal swimming pool in Thessaloniki, Greece, is used as case study. Research is focused on heating energy, where more savings can be achieved. Especially, installation of solar thermal collectors, geothermal heat pumps, or photovoltaic panels and construction of a light roof are analyzed. Moreover, some recommendations are made, concerning the general improvement of a swimming pool and its surroundings. The goal is to reduce the operation expensesof the pool and, if possible, to increase the income, so that it can be economically viable throughout the year.

Finally, several suggestions are evaluated by means of the RETScreen software, in order to find out which investments are reasonable. For the evaluation a Cost – Benefit Analysis has been carried out, using the Net Present Value criterion, the Internal Rate of Return criterion and the Benefit – Cost ratio. Finally, a SWOT analysis is performed and a policy is suggested, which should be followed by the administration of the swimming pool.

Urban sprawl and the increase of the built-up area have a major impact on land use. Buildings are responsible for two types of land use interventions: primary land use, i.e. the building footprint and secondary land use, associated with the resource extraction, production, transport and end-of-life treatment of construction products. However the environmental impact related to the primary land use is mostly not considered in current Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies of the built environment.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the environmental impact of primary land use in neighbourhoods, considering not only the footprint of buildings but also the footprint of infrastructure and open spaces. Impacts related to land occupation and transformation are evaluated based on the impact assessment methods soil organic matter (SOM) (i.e. impact on soil quality) and Eco-indicator 99 (i.e. impact on biodiversity).

An LCA study of neighbourhood models with diverse built densities, i.e. consisting of detached houses, semi-detached houses, terraced houses to compact apartment blocks, is performed. Moreover, buildings are simulated using combinations of building elements, from solid to timber frame structure.

The results reveal the high contribution of primary land use to the neighbourhood life cycle environmental impacts, especially in low built density neighbourhoods. Furthermore, the environmental impact of primary land use is in most cases higher than secondary land use. Based on this analysis, it is recommended to include the assessment of primary land use in neighbourhood LCA, especially in studies comparing different built densities.

Streets deserve respect, they shape the form of the city and how we move through it. They accommodate buildings, people, vehicles, utilities, vegetation, signage, street furniture and lighting. Streets make up the majority of the public realm in our towns and cities. There is a strong relationship between urban design and sustainability, which led to the development in the compact city and street. Sustainable streets can defined as multimodal rights of way designed and operated to create benefits relating to movement, ecology and community that together support a broad sustainability agenda embracing the three E's: environment, equity and economy, and implementing sustainable urban streets can create more livable communities.

The aim of this paper is to identify an approach for applying sustainable design criteria for urban streets. By defining sustainability in a broader context a case will be made for enhancing the sustainability of urban streets. Considering and assessing sustainable principles will enable urban streets to function in a manner that is more beneficial to people, communities, the economy and the environment. Through these sustainable street design criteria, analyzing the development of El-Moaz Ldin Allah Elfatimy street in Cairo, Egypt. Hence, a comprehensive improvement of the streets is certainly needed to ensure a successful sustainable street design. The paper concludes some recommendations to develop the main components of sustainable streets that are derived from the theoretical study in order to well design a sustainable street for a liveable communities