Adaptive Building Research Articles

Adaptive Robust Data-Driven Building Control via Bilevel Reformulation: An Experimental Result

Data-driven control approaches for the minimization of energy consumption of buildings have the potential to significantly reduce deployment costs and increase the uptake of advanced control in this sector. A number of recent approaches based on the application of Willems’ fundamental lemma for data-driven controller design from input/output measurements are very promising for deterministic linear time-invariant (LTI) systems. This article proposes a systematic way to handle unknown measurement noise and measurable process noise, and extends these data-driven control schemes to adaptive building control via a robust bilevel formulation, whose upper level ensures robustness and whose lower level guarantees prediction quality. Corresponding numerical improvements and an active excitation mechanism are proposed to enable a computationally efficient reliable operation. The efficacy of the proposed scheme is validated by a multizone building simulation and a real-world experiment on a single-zone conference building on the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) campus. The real-world experiment includes a 20-day nonstop test, where, without extra modeling effort, our proposed controller improves 18.4% energy efficiency against an industry-standard controller while also robustly ensuring occupant comfort.

Tourists’ Revisit Intention and Electronic Word-of-Mouth at Adaptive Reuse Building in Batavia Jakarta Heritage

This study aims to analyze the impact of perceived price, experience quality, perceived authenticity, prior knowledge, and social influence on electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) and revisit intention at Batavia Jakarta Heritage, with perceived value and revisit intention serving as the mediating variables. Batavia Jakarta Heritage is a tourism destination located in the old town of Jakarta, known for its cultural heritage buildings that have been adaptively reused since the colonial era. Furthermore, to gather relevant data on the tested variables, a questionnaire was distributed to 409 tourists who visited the destination. The primary data were analyzed using partial-least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with the assistance of SmartPLS v.3.2.9 software, and the obtained results showed that not all of the proposed hypotheses were accepted. Specifically, perceived price and perceived authenticity did not directly have an impact on revisit intention or eWOM, even when mediated. This study also proposed several recommendations for destination managers, stakeholders, and future study endeavors.

Comparing Design Features of Campus Buildings with Adaptation/Demolition Outcomes

Adaptable buildings are a vital part of circularity in the built environment. With long-term owners, defined sustainability goals, and frequently shifting programmatic and organizational needs, college campus buildings are positioned to be at the forefront of this movement. Many Design for Adaptability (DfA) strategies are published, but there is a scarcity of empirical evidence showing that they work. This study investigated whether these DfA features in US college campus buildings led to more adaptation and reuse. Data were collected on 26 adapted or demolished buildings and were analyzed using logistic analysis. The results suggest that DfA features lead to more adaptations, providing evidence for campus decision-makers that these strategies work.

Large-scale comparison and demonstration of continual learning for adaptive data-driven building energy prediction

Data-driven models have been increasingly employed in smart building energy management. To avoid performance degradation over time, data-driven models need to be continually updated to adapt to the changes in building operations. However, several critical issues in the model update process raised wide concerns, especially the concept drift and catastrophic forgetting issues. The concept drift issue happens when the statistical properties of target variable change over time in unforeseen ways. The catastrophic forgetting issue refers to the process that the previously learnt knowledge or patterns may be diluted and eventually lost in model update. Although a few model update methods were proposed, there is a lack of comprehensive comparison of the methods for adaptive data-driven building energy prediction. This paper conducted a comprehensive investigation on the performance of three conventional model update methods and five emerging continual learning methods using 2-year data of 100 buildings extracted from an open-source dataset. The results show that continual learning methods are more effective in ensuring long-term accuracy while cutting down on computation time and data storage expenses. The CV-RMSE of Elastic weight consolidation and Gradient episodic memory decreased by around 14% and 8% on average compared with static model and accumulative learning. The comparison results are valuable to the development of adaptive data-driven building energy prediction models which are more reliable over time and robust against changing operation conditions, thus more practically applicable in smart building energy management.

An innovative multifunctional biomimetic adaptive building envelope based on a novel integrated methodology of merging biological mechanisms

Architectural envelopes have a key role in reducing a building's energy consumption and achieving thermal comfort. Many adaptive building envelopes are developed through synthesis with biomimetics for increased performance, but most adapt to a single environmental factor, while living organisms evolved several adaptation solutions that are high-response and multi-functional. However, existing methodologies to develop biomimetic adaptive building envelopes focus on monofunctional systems, which are limited in addressing multifunctional. This paper proposes a novel integrated methodology to develop the design of a multi-functional biomimetic adaptive building envelope by transforming the biological adaptation systems in nature into bio-inspired adaptation mechanisms and merging them into one technical system hosting multiple functions. The merging process is conducted based on the various static and dynamic biological mechanisms' sizes, forms, processes, and functions. The methodology is demonstrated through the MBio-ABE case study, which results from the merging process of different biological mechanisms for Mimosa pudica, Cactus (Echinocactus grusonii), and Stone Plant (Lithops salicola). Thereafter, building performance simulation using EnergyPlus is conducted and the results are evaluated through an optimization process using an algorithm based on Python software to measure the thermal comfort level. The results showed a considerable improvement in the thermal performance of the multi-functional biomimetic adaptive building envelope, which decreased the temperature inside by 3 °C through only natural ventilation. Additionally, the average thermal comfort conditions over the year increased by 11.3%. Obviously, the merging process plays a significant role in achieving multifunctionality in the biomimetic adaptive building envelope to improve the performance of traditional building envelopes.

Analysis of Operational Energy between Adaptive Reuse Historic Buildings (ARHB) and Modern Office Buildings: A Case Study in Sri Lanka

Adaptive Reuse of Historic Buildings (ARHB) is a new concept in developing countries like Sri Lanka. One of the main concerns for the intendancy of decision makers to ARHB is the operational energy. This paper analyzes the research gap of reusing historical buildings as office spaces by utilizing their structural and architectural designs and preserving the buildings’ authenticity for the future. It further aims to protect energy-efficient historical buildings from getting demolished and replaced with new modern buildings. A set of operational energy variables of modern office buildings and the potential historic buildings that can be reused as office spaces was established. During the early 1990s, old Dutch-era buildings in the country were mainly used as government office buildings. Three Dutch-era buildings in Galle Fort and three modern buildings in Colombo City have been selected as the case studies. Design-Builder (DB) software was used to comprehensively analyze sets of operational energy consumption variables. Selected historic buildings in Galle consumed 143.74 kWh/m2, 156.34 kWh/m2, and 209.39 kWh/m2 while modern buildings consumed 337.29 kWh/m2, 210.99 kWh/m2, and 382.57 kWh/m2 as operational energy, respectively. According to the analysis, the operational energy requirement of ARHB is comparatively lesser than that of modern buildings. This study, therefore, mainly concludes that the historical buildings saved more operational energy than the modern building envelopes while considerably reducing environmental impacts and saving the building energy cost.

What should an adaptable building look like?

Current building design practices largely focus on operational efficiency and initial material optimisation in the pursuit of sustainable construction. These short-term carbon savings are potentially detrimental to the long-term futureproofing of a building. As such, the suggestion to design buildings for adaptability has gained traction in recent years. An adaptable building is one that could be easily modified to suit its changing requirements, allowing it to avoid premature demolition and reconstruction, and the associated carbon emissions. This paper explores what is meant by adaptability in the built environment, suggestions for design strategies and the benefits and drawbacks of each. The paper expressly emphasises the importance of balancing the needs of the present day, through upfront carbon reductions, with the consequences in the long-term, through accelerated building obsolescence, demolition and rebuild. The paper concludes with the recommendation that further research is needed into the true benefits of adaptability design strategies, factoring in the uncertainty of future predictions and the time-value of carbon.

An ontology-based innovative energy modeling framework for scalable and adaptable building digital twins

Digitalization of buildings and the use of IoT sensing and metering devices are steadily increasing, offering new opportunities for more autonomous, efficient, and flexible buildings. As part of this transformation and inspired by the added value demonstrated in other domains, the concept of a building digital twin that can monitor, simulate, manage, and optimize building operation has received increased interest. To aid such digital twin implementations, accurate and adaptable simulation models are required, which can effectively integrate and utilize the available data. However, traditional building modeling and digital practices, such as Building Information Modeling and white-box modeling tools, are not easily compatible with these requirements. This work presents an innovative and flexible energy modeling framework based on the SAREF ontology. With a basis in the SAREF4BLDG extension for buildings and the defined classes, different models are presented for a selection of typical systems and devices such as spaces, space heaters, dampers, coils, etc. Using the generic semantics and relations of the SAREF4SYST extension, a method for linking and simulating component models is then presented. A proof-of-concept of the modeling framework is provided, showing its application and feasibility to provide a dynamic simulation of the different systems and devices included in a demonstration case. Finally, a future line of work is identified considering the implementation of the modeling framework in an actual building case study, including integration with actual sensing equipment to demonstrate different digital twin services such as performance monitoring, strategy planning, and operational optimization.

Adaptive dynamic building envelope integrated with phase change material to enhance the heat storage and release efficiency: A state-of-the-art review

the research of PCMs in the field of building energy efficiency has developed rapidly over the past decade. The static PCM-built envelopes cannot flexibly adjust their heat storage and release according to the changes in weather conditions and occupants’ demands, resulting in low heat storage and release efficiency. The application of the adaptive dynamic building envelope integrated with PCM (ADBEIPCM) addresses this problem. This paper systematically reviewed the ADBEIPCMs for the first time, including their system configuration, working principles, control strategies, and system performance. The research methods and the PCM properties were also well summarized. The results show that the ADBEIPCM can store solar energy and release heat in time to reduce building load and improve comfort mainly by rotating, moving, flipping, and controlling the state of vents. This review divided the ADBEIPCMs into two categories: opaque envelopes and transparent envelopes. The experiment studies and simulation studies accounted for 15.28% and 84.62% of the research on opaque envelopes, and each accounted for 50% of the research on transparent envelopes. But onsite monitoring studies on transparent envelopes only accounted for 25%. In the design of ADBEIPCM, the main encapsulation method of PCM was macro-encapsulation, and the type of PCM was mainly organic. This review analyzed the shortcomings of existing studies and gave recommendations for engineers, architects, and scholars. Future research should focus on the development of novel PCMs with high strength and stability, the development of artificial intelligence-based short-term control strategies, and the development of ADBEIPCM based on bionic technology and powered by renewable energies.

Facade Design Strategies to utilize Daylight in Composite Climate

Abstract: An overview of the building envelopes and shading techniques utilised in composite climates to make advantage of solar radiation and daylight in modern architecture is provided in this study. It provides an examination of various methodologies and a concise analysis of illustrative case studies. As it has an impact on a building's energy usage, daylighting plays a significant part in sustainable architecture. By encouraging excellent human health, well-being, and user comfort, daylight not only lessens the need on artificial lighting but also serves to increase job productivity. This paper involves both passive strategies as well as adaptive facades that can be used in composite climate. Due to their capacity to alter their behaviour in real time in response to interior and outdoor conditions through the use of materials, components, and systems, adaptive building envelopes can enhance a building's energy efficiency and economics. Several various kinds of adaptable facades have already been created, and more cutting-edge developments are likely to follow soon. Various strategies and literature studies already existing are discussed in this paper.

Determinants of the choice of adaptation strategies to climate variability and extremes among pastoralist and agro-pastoralist households in Yabello and Arero Districts, Southeast Ethiopia

Climate variability and extremes adversely affect the livestock sector by reducing pasture availability, polluting and depleting water resources, aggravating livestock diseases, and distorting the production systems. The cumulative effect of climate variability undermines the adaptive capacity of pastoralists and worsens food insecurity. This study assesses the impact of climate variability and the determinants of pastoralists and agro-pastoralists adaptation strategies in Yabello and Arero Districts, southern Ethiopia. Accordingly, data were collected from randomly selected 296 sample households using a questionnaire survey. Data were also gathered from a purposively selected key informants and focus group discussion participants. Areal gridded dikadal rainfall and temperature data were collected from the National Meteorological Institute. Descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression data analysis methods were used. The results show that all seasons were significantly warming, while rainfall declined at various degrees and the distribution was highly variable across the study period. The ever rising minimum and maximum temperature and the erratic nature of rainfall has undermined the availability of pasture and water resources, especially during drought years resulting in the prevalence of livestock diseases. The age of the household head, poor access to information, lack of credit and saving services, limited knowledge, and erratic rainfall were found to be the determinant factors in the choice of adaptation options to climate variability and extremes. The study also found that lack of appropriate intervention and support mechanisms by government and non-government actors as well as the reluctance of pastoralists and agro-pastoralists to accept the stakeholders’ advice were the barriers to climate variability adaptation. Thus, it is clear that pastoralists’ and agro-pastoralists’ livelihood is at risk for climate variability and extremes and hence, requires context specific adaptive capacity building intervention that ranges from awareness creation to strengthening basic infrastructures and rangeland management.

Computational Design of Multi-State Lattice Structures With Finite Mechanisms for Shape Morphing

AbstractShape-morphing structures are beneficial for applications in aerospace, automotive, and architecture since they allow structures to adapt to changing environmental conditions. Finding structural configurations with intrinsic shape-morphing capabilities is, however, difficult due to the complexity of enabling and controlling target deformations while at the same time maintaining structural integrity. Existing solutions are often unstable, hard to fabricate, or limited to a single target state. Here, we show how lattice structures can be designed that morph from an initial state to one or multiple target states with a single kinematic degrees-of-freedom. Thus, the deformations of a structure can be fully controlled by controlling a single input node for every state. Since the structures are designed at the verge of kinematic determinacy, they become statically and kinematically determinate and hence load-carrying upon fixing the actuation node. As all deformations are described by inextensional mechanism modes, the kinematic and mechanical performance of the structures are decoupled and can be tuned individually. We further show that not only the target shape of a structure can be controlled, but also the kinematic path of a target node between its initial and its final position. The results are verified by fabricating the designs using multi-material 3D printing that enables direct fabrication of complex joints. Our work combines advantages of load-carrying lattice structures and distinct topological and geometric design to generate integrated kinematic solutions for a wide range of applications such as morphing wings, robotic grippers, and adaptive building facades.

MOISTURE-HARVESTING LIZARD SKINS AS AN INSPIRATON FOR PERFORMATIVE BUILDING ENVELOPES IN ARID CLIMATES

Research on shape-shifting adaptive architectural skins has recently focused on bio-inspired programmable materials. Only a few studies however examine the microstructure of living organisms, especially in terms of morphological adaptation in harsh climatic conditions. This paper explores the microstructure of moisture-harvesting lizard skins, specifically the Trapelus species of the Agamidae family in North-East Africa, as an inspiration for programmable materials in adaptive building skins in the arid climate of Egypt. The paper investigates the ability to improve the durability and morphological capabilities of programmable materials based on surface formation, utilizing digital fabrication techniques. A series of physical experiments were conducted on different samples of 3D printed wood filament under several humidity conditions, as a single layer, with textured patterns, and with the addition of potassium chloride as a moisture-harvesting chemical composite. The paper concluded that materials composed of textured patterns and moisture-harvesting chemical composites exhibited the highest moisture retention, therefore leading to advantages in its use in adaptive building skins in arid climates, through a wide variety of design possibilities for performative building envelopes.

Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Direct Reductive Amination of Carbonyl Compounds for the Synthesis of Amines: An Overview

AbstractReductive amination is a valuable method for amine synthesis that has been the topic of a century‘s worth of in‐depth study in both academia and industry. Amines and their derivatives serve as incredibly adaptable building blocks for a broad array of organic substrates and are significant precursors for a myriad of advanced chemicals, physiologically active compounds, agrochemicals, biomolecules, pharmaceuticals, and polymers. The creation of innovative catalytic processes for the long‐term and selective synthesis of amines from readily accessible and environmentally benign reagents remains a top priority in chemical research. Both heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysts have been designed with success to enable these reactions to explore new amines. Ruthenium catalysts are employed in reductive amination owing to their stability, selectivity, versatility, low toxicity, and high efficiency. This review comprehensively overviews the Ru‐catalyzed reductive amination processes and includes the literature from 2009 to 2022.

Implementation of ISO/DIS 52016-3 for adaptive façades: A case study of an office building

Adaptive building envelope technologies can increase the energy efficiency of buildings. Adaptive facades can be controlled automatically and respond to environmental changes. There is no standard method for evaluating control strategies for adaptive façade elements, particularly for dynamic shadings. Therefore, the ISO/DIS 52016–3 recommended different default control strategies to compare the energy use of various building variants. ISO/DIS 52016–3 presents the procedures for considering the effect of adaptive building envelope elements in calculating the energy needs for heating, cooling, internal temperatures, and sensible and latent heat loads. This paper presents a comprehensive study of the impacts of the newly published ISO/DIS 52016–3 on energy performances and thermal comfort in office buildings with adaptive facades. The simulations were performed for an office room in Brussels with four scenarios: no shading and fixed shading (fixed horizontal louvers) with static control, external roller blinds, and Venetian blinds employing automatic control strategies suggested by ISO/DIS 52016–3. Energy Management Systems (EMS) as a user-customized coding plugin in EnergyPlus was utilized for implementation of each control strategy algorithm. The findings indicated that in the case of roller blinds, the energy performance of the selected office was improved by 19.47% compared to the fixed shading. This study shows that the chosen roller blinds performed the best in decreasing the annual cooling loads with a value of 63.9%, 44.12%, and 8.2% compared to scenarios of no shading, fixed shading, and Venetian blind, respectively. Furthermore, the results showed that the fixed shading would occasionally outperform automated Venetian blinds.

Multi-performative façade systems: The case of real-time adaptive BIPV shading systems to enhance energy generation potential and visual comfort

Building envelopes invariably tend to be static systems that encounter various performance limitations such as inefficient illuminance admittance, and heat and moisture transmission owing to their non-responsiveness towards environmental fluctuations. In contrast to such façade solutions, responsive façade systems with embedded sensing, actuation, and control systems have been proven to perform with up to 65% higher efficiency by being able to adapt their physical characters, such as orientation, and material property in real-time as a response to fluctuating environmental conditions (visual and thermal) and user preferences. Advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning processes further aid such responsive façade systems to optimize multiple parameters such as illuminance level and the associated lighting energy, visual discomfort caused by solar glare, solar heat gain, thermal resistance (heating energy and comfort level), and natural ventilation simultaneously. This research investigates the case of a real-time adaptive Building Integrated Photo Voltaic (BIPV) shading system and its ability (in comparison with traditional static building integrated photo voltaic façade systems) to perform as regards visual comfort and energy generation potential simultaneously within the humid subtropical climate of Sydney, Australia. A simulated case scenario wherein a real-time adaptive building integrated photo voltaic shading systems is deployed on a typical multistorey building façade in Sydney, Australia is accordingly presented. The conducted simulation considers the responsive building integrated photo voltaic system as a double-skin façade system and uses multi-objective evolutionary computing principles to decipher its integrability potential. A comparative analysis between traditional static mounted Photo Voltaic (PV) systems as opposed to multi-objective optimization driven real-time adaptive building integrated photo voltaic shading configurations is subsequently presented. The ability to maximize generated energy, while simultaneously maintaining visual comfort is thus a unique proposition of this research.

Costs of Implementing Design for Adaptability Strategies in Wood-Framed Multifamily Housing

Owners, occupants, and society are constantly changing the demands and expectations placed on buildings. Design for adaptability (DfA) provides one approach for delivering buildings that serve current needs and that can be readily adapted to meet future demands. The benefits and strategies of DfA have been widely reported; however, there is a dearth of information on the costs of implementing DfA. This paper presents a case study evaluating the economic costs of applying select DfA strategies to a wood-framed multifamily residential building in Atlanta. Comparisons are made between the construction costs of a baseline non-DfA building and a series of adaptable buildings. DfA strategies in the adaptable buildings include increased floor live load, increased floor-to-floor height, and the use of post-and-beam framing instead of interior structural walls. When all three of these strategies were implemented in the same design, the estimated building construction cost increased by 14%. The cost increase ranged from 1% to 7% when only one of the DfA strategies was implemented in a design. These comparisons are intended to facilitate cost–benefit analyses by designers, owners, and contractors interested in intentionally designed adaptable buildings.

Amphibious Technology with Adaptive Buildings in Tambakrejo for the Application of Resilience Architecture

The tidal flooding that occurred on the coast of North Semarang has become commonplace and always appears regularly in people's lives, such as in the Tambakrejo area. Technological advances in architecture respond to this natural condition with "Amphibious Building Systems" technology which allows buildings to float following the water level during tidal flooding. The research purpose is that buildings on the coast can apply this amphibious structural system and technology to minimise the negative impact of the tidal flood itself, and the community can adapt to natural coastal conditions. The research methods are; 1) Resilience Architecture; 2) Amphibious Technology; 3) Materials & Tools. The conclusion is that this amphibious structure and technology system can be a solution in dealing with ecological changes and natural activities on the coast. The findings of this Amphibious technology are expected to help the community stabilise the economy by providing jobs that follow the area's potential, namely pond cultivation.
 

Adaptive Dynamic Building Envelopes with Solar Power Components: Annual Performance Assessment for Two Pilot Sites

Energy consumption reduction and thermal quality improvement constitute two major aspects of building design and/or retrofitting. Following the current energy transition trends, a state-of-the-art solution is the implementation of Adaptive Dynamic Building Envelopes (ADBEs), which are capable of integrating different technologies and components. The purpose of this investigation is to assess the annual performance improvement of two actual building spaces retrofitted with ADBEs, consisting of Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPVs), additional thermal insulation, mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery, and solar air heaters (SAHs). Both buildings are pilot sites for the EU Horizon 2020 Plug-n-Harvest project and are located in two rather different climate zones, i.e., Cardiff, Wales, and Grevena, Greece. Moreover, through detailed dynamic modeling with the use of Modelica language, this study attempts to accurately capture all interactions between buildings and all the aforementioned ADBE components. The simulations compared the energy performance and indoor temperature levels in each space before and after the installation of the ADBEs. The results showed that the harvesting of renewable energy through the ADBE system could potentially contribute 60% and 21.8% to the annual electricity and heating load of the space in Cardiff, respectively, and 43.5% to the annual electricity load of the building space in Grevena.

Be prepared! Local politicians’ proclivity for local government adaptive capacity building in response to COVID-19: the role of risk perceptions

ABSTRACT Although it is argued that organizational leaders’ perceptions of external shocks determine organizations’ willingness to prepare for future shocks, insights on the sensemaking processes leading local politicians to invest in adaptive capacity building after a crisis are scarce. Therefore, this study examines how politicians’ COVID-19 risk perceptions relate to their proclivity to invest in organizational adaptive capacity building. Results, based on data from 710 local Flemish politicians, confirm that perceived severity of COVID-19 relates to politicians’ willingness to invest in adaptive capacity building, while sociodemographic and event-related variables as well as socio-political attitudes are relevant predictors of politicians’ risk perceptions.