Floor Area Research Articles

Operative generative design using non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II)

Massing studies during the early stages of architectural design play an essential role in determining the final building’s performance across design objectives. This paper aims to answer the question: How can early-stage architectural design workflows be translated into a generative design process to create valuable massing solutions? In response, a new application of the Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) using the Pymoo framework is proposed for the field of Operative Design. Nine experiments are discussed that test the algorithm’s geometry optimization capabilities based on objective functions reflecting common architectural design goals, including Floor Area Ratio (FAR), Non-Passive Zone (NPZ), Roofs and Best Oriented Surfaces (RBOS), and Usable Open Space (UOS). Selected cases are visualized among non-dominated solutions in each experiment demonstrating the trade-offs between different objectives while programmatically generating successful building designs. In the future, the proposed generative design workflow can be implemented to run optimizations independently from other software within immersive environments.

Air pollutant dispersion around high-rise building cluster forms: the case of Port City, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Air quality in dense urban environments is a growing concern, especially in rapidly developing cities. In the face of growing traffic associated with urbanisation, there is evidence for high levels of pollutant concentration at street level which is influenced by building forms. In this paper, we examine the potential effects of high-rise, cluster developments permitted by the local planning authorities in the newly established Port City development in Colombo, Sri Lanka. We designed possible building forms based on specific guidelines for the development in terms of plot coverage, floor area ratio, and maximum height. The three-dimensional building clusters were simulated using the RANS RNG k-epsilon turbulence model, to determine pollutant dispersion of a complex street formation in a high-dense high-rise building cluster, within the development and the surrounding context (existing Colombo). Results show that while increased porosity within the built fabric facilitates better pollution dispersion, a low correlation was seen between wind velocity and pollution concentration, especially in deep narrow high-rise canyons. Dispersion patterns at street level and at the urban canopy differed with each built form and are dependent on each canyon geometry. Thus, the study highlights the need for building regulations to take a holistic approach to capture the various elements of a complex urban cluster rather than the current two-dimensional parameters proposed for Port City, Colombo.

Development of a micro-scale heat island (MHI) model to assess the thermal environment in urban street canyons

The urban thermal environment has a direct impact on the outdoor thermal comfort of city dwellers and pedestrians, which can have negative effects on their health and overall quality of life. Therefore, it is crucial to estimate the influence of the thermal environment in micro-scale urban spaces. Previous studies have used estimation models that only consider a limited number of meteorological elements and urban geometry. This study developed a new model that incorporates the concept of micro-scale heat islands (MHIs) using field measurements to estimate the micro-scale thermal environment in urban spaces. The study found that factors such as sky view factor (SVF), floor area ratio (FAR), and building coverage ratio (BCR) have a significant impact on the thermal environment of urban street canyons. Based on these results, an MHI model was developed and tested. In this process, the aspect ratio (H/W) concept was extended to a three-dimensional perspective and used to calculate the amount of heat contained in the air volume in a street canyon. This study applied a method of maximizing the use of data collected in the study area using a mobile weather station. SVF, air temperature, and surface temperature were reflected in calculating the net radiation and sensible heat flux. The MHI model showed 86.19% explanatory power in estimating the thermal environment of urban canyons. The model would benefit from further refinement by incorporating data from various cities and reflecting the characteristics of different climatic regions and urban forms.

Influence of Urban Spatial Structure on the Spatial Distribution of Gaseous Pollutants

The spatial distribution pattern of urban spatial structure affects air flow and local meteorological conditions, which in turn influence the diffusion of air pollutants. This study built the urban spatial structure index system based on DEM, urban road networks, and big data. The ordinary kriging interpolation method was used to analyze the spatial distribution of gaseous pollutant concentrations in Jinan City. Correlation analysis, stepwise regression analysis, and bivariate global spatial autocorrelation analysis were used to study the influence of the urban spatial structure index on the spatial distribution of gaseous pollutant concentration. The main conclusions were as follows: (1) Evident spatial and temporal differences were observed in the concentration distribution of gaseous pollutants in Jinan. The spatial distribution of NO2 and CO concentrations showed a gradual decrease from north to south. Spatial heterogeneity was observed in the distribution of SO2 and O3 concentrations. (2) The urban spatial structure indicators had varying effects on the spatial distribution of different gaseous pollutant concentrations. The important factors that influenced the spatial distribution of urban gaseous pollutant concentrations included terrain elevation, building density, building volume, and floor area ratio. The greater the terrain undulation, the denser the building distribution, the greater the difference in building volume, and the greater the plot ratio, the greater the impact on the diffusion and spatial distribution of urban gaseous pollutants. (3) The spatial distribution of urban gaseous pollutant concentrations was significantly affected by the urban spatial structure indicators in the surrounding areas. Furthermore, the spatial distributions of NO2, SO2, CO, and O3 concentrations had a significant negative spatial correlation with the average DEM and standard deviation of the surrounding adjacent areas and a significant positive spatial correlation with the average and standard deviation of building height, standard deviation of building area, and building density in the surrounding adjacent areas (in June).

Usulan Rancangan Layout Gudang Menggunakan Metode Shared Storage pada PT. XYZ

The company has a raw material warehouse to carry out its production process, but the warehouse needs to be optimized because employees experience limited access to raw materials and the current warehouse layout is still not optimal. This research was conducted to find out the proposed improvements to the raw material warehouse layout so that the company can optimize the function of the existing raw material warehouse within the company. The Shared Storage Method can be used in layout design by arranging storage areas according to the condition of the warehouse floor area. The shared storage method assists in optimizing product storage time so that you can find out when the product will enter and leave the warehouse storage area. The proposals obtained influenced increasing the previous warehouse capacity. There was an increase in capacity of 21.5%. The proposals obtained influenced increasing the previous warehouse capacity. The results of the research on the application of the design for the new layout, at one level, have a warehouse capacity of 33 pallets with ± 14 tons of product. However, by optimizing warehouse capacity by adding one level above it, the warehouse capacity can be doubled, namely 66 pallets with 28 tons of product with product placement between the first and second levels of the same level. The use of warehouse layouts is intended for new image layouts from this study.

Up on the roof: a review of design, construction, and technology trends in vertical extensions

New spaces to accommodate growing urban populations should be created in a way that also reduces building lifecycle carbon emissions. In this context, the vertical extension (VE) has emerged as a novel building typology that can increase space in cities through the construction of additional floor area atop existing base buildings. This paper presents a review of 172 VE projects worldwide to provide an understanding of their design and construction trends, and to classify the technologies applied. Results show that VE construction has accelerated significantly over the past decade. Although most VEs consist of only small vertical additions, often one to two storeys, higher VEs can be built with innovative structural strategies and lightweight materials. Industrial buildings are often found to provide significant opportunities for VE due to their higher structural capacity. By comparing the characteristics and design of VEs, typologies based on architectural, structural, and construction technologies are presented.

Study on the Correlation Analysis between Urban Morphological Factors and Microclimate Based on Empirical Methods on a University Campus in a Hot-Summer–Cold-Winter Region

With the continuous progress of urbanization, contemporary scholars are increasingly focusing their attention on the study of urban microclimates. This research aims to investigate the relationship between urban morphology and microclimates in regions characterized by hot summers and cold winters. Environmental meteorological data, including temperature, solar radiation, and wind speed during the spring and summer seasons, were collected through on-site monitoring in a specific area of Shanghai. Various methods, such as on-site surveys and drone photography, were employed to obtain and analyze a range of urban morphological parameters, including floor area ratio (FAR) and greenery ratio (GnPR). The sky view factor (SVF) was determined using a fisheye lens technique. Subsequently, the collected datasets were analyzed to assess the varying impact of distinct urban morphological factors on microclimates. The findings indicate a significant correlation between different building morphology factors and temperature and solar radiation during spring, while their associations with wind speed become more prominent in summer. Notably, greenery and pavement demonstrate stronger correlations with temperature and radiation in summer, aligning with the seasonal growth patterns of plants. These research findings provide both a theoretical foundation and practical guidelines for the urban design of environmental microclimates.

Microbe-driven elemental cycling enables microbial adaptation to deep-sea ferromanganese nodule sediment fields

BackgroundFerromanganese nodule-bearing deep-sea sediments cover vast areas of the ocean floor, representing a distinctive habitat in the abyss. These sediments harbor unique conditions characterized by high iron concentration and low degradable nutrient levels, which pose challenges to the survival and growth of most microorganisms. While the microbial diversity in ferromanganese nodule-associated sediments has been surveyed several times, little is known about the functional capacities of the communities adapted to these unique habitats.ResultsSeven sediment samples collected adjacent to ferromanganese nodules from the Clarion–Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCFZ) in the eastern Pacific Ocean were subjected to metagenomic analysis. As a result, 179 high-quality metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) were reconstructed and assigned to 21 bacterial phyla and 1 archaeal phylum, with 88.8% of the MAGs remaining unclassified at the species level. The main mechanisms of resistance to heavy metals for microorganisms in sediments included oxidation (Mn), reduction (Cr and Hg), efflux (Pb), synergy of reduction and efflux (As), and synergy of oxidation and efflux (Cu). Iron, which had the highest content among all metallic elements, may occur mainly as Fe(III) that potentially functioned as an electron acceptor. We found that microorganisms with a diverse array of CAZymes did not exhibit higher community abundance. Instead, microorganisms mainly obtained energy from oxidation of metal (e.g., Mn(II)) and sulfur compounds using oxygen or nitrate as an electron acceptor. Chemolithoautotrophic organisms (Thaumarchaeota and Nitrospirota phyla) were found to be potential manganese oxidizers. The functional profile analysis of the dominant microorganisms further indicated that utilization of inorganic nutrients by redox reactions (rather than organic nutrient metabolism) is a major adaptive strategy used by microorganisms to support their survival in the ferromanganese nodule sediments.ConclusionsThis study provides a comprehensive metagenomic analysis of microbes inhabiting metal-rich ferromanganese nodule sediments. Our results reveal extensive redundancy across taxa for pathways of metal resistance and transformation, the highly diverse mechanisms used by microbes to obtain nutrition, and their participation in various element cycles in these unique environments.7UX-FAbsHcrvGN6PxGni8JVideo

The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the fundamental urban mobility theories using transit data from Singapore

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes in urban mobility patterns due to the temporary movement restrictive policies imposed by local governments and the long-term hybrid work arrangements adapted by companies. This study re-examines the fundamental theories of human mobility in Singapore at the pre-pandemic, pandemic and endemic stages. In particular, we estimated three well-established mobility models in complexity science: gravity model, radiation model and visitation law for investigating the effects of COVID-19 pandemic in different stages, using the transit Origin-Destination (O-D) data collected in Singapore. Overall, the results show that the three mobility theories remain valid throughout the different periods with visitation law outperforming the gravity and the radiation models. At the pre-pandemic stage, the performance of the gravity and radiation models were comparable. The performance of the gravity model has improved compared to its pre-pandemic performance, showing 6–18% improvement at the pandemic stage and 9–15% improvement at the post pandemic stage, whereas the performance of the radiation model hasn’t changed much, making gravity model a better-performing model than the radiation model for these periods. Our results also show that in the gravity and radiation models, gross floor area is a better predictor for transit flows than the population, whereas in the visitation law use of population variable results in better predictions. Our study is a first attempt in providing a revised understanding of the performance of the fundamental human mobility laws in the post-pandemic world.

Feasibility of achieving net-zero energy performance in high-rise buildings using solar energy

As part of a broad strategy to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and limit global warming, many countries are requiring all new buildings to have net-zero energy use. This requires that on-site energy use not exceed on-site generation of renewable energy (taken here to be solar energy), or equivalently, that the building Energy Use Intensity (EUI, kWh/m2a) not exceed the supply of on-site solar energy (electricity and heat) per m2 of floor area per year. On this basis, we find that achieving net-zero energy performance in an archetype 40-story square building in 16 different cities of North America requires EUI of 17–24 kWh/m2a using PV panels, and 19–28 kWh/m2a using PVT collectors. Changing building orientation to a non-square floor shape can improve maximum permitted EUI by up to 50% in PV and 60% in PVT case. Conversely, the best-performing residential and commercial buildings have EUIs of 50–75 kWh/m2a. Only if building heights are limited to 5–10 floors does the available solar energy, and thus the permitted EUI, reach 50–75 kWh/m2a. Therefore, we recommend that policymakers not require high-rise buildings to be net-zero energy, unless they are prepared to limit building heights to 5–10 floors.

Construction Projects’ Waste Prevention and Expected Minimization of Cost and Environmental Impacts through Adopting a Comprehensive System for Document Management

Waste originating from construction projects is the major source of pollution amongst all industrial sectors in the European Union (EU) as well as globally. It is estimated that more than 35% of all disposed waste in the EU has been a by-product of building activity. This significant loss of materials hinders project profitability, reduces competitiveness of companies involved in such projects and causes considerable environmental burden. An acceptable level of waste is inevitable; however, there are possibilities to minimize the waste through amendments of reducing problematic executive procedures. One of the most important reported factors that increase waste is ineffective document management that may lead to inadequate communication throughout the construction project. As such, the present paper focuses on estimating the possible environmental and economic benefits if a proper document management system is applied on construction projects. The research steps include the approximate calculation of the operational project cost, the volume of material waste related to inadequate information systems based on statistical data and the calculation of benefits from the establishment of adequate information systems using measurable indices. The findings suggest that significant waste reductions are feasible and that the volume of solid construction debris that usually ends up in landfills can be greatly reduced. The actual debris in every skip bin could be reduced to approximately two-thirds of the currently produced volume, for every 100 square meters (m2) of an industrial building floor area. Besides, the debris volume in a skip bin could be reduced to more than half of the currently produced volume for every 100 m2 of public and commercial retail building floor area.

Performance assessment of active insulation systems in residential buildings for energy savings and peak demand reduction

Active insulation systems (AISs) in buildings are envelopes that integrate thermal insulation, thermal energy storage, and controls. Although different designs for AISs have been proposed in the literature, a comprehensive analysis of feasible AISs is lacking. This paper discusses the energy performance, peak demand reduction potential, and performance characteristics of an AIS that uses a concrete wall as thermal mass sandwiched between two solid-state thermal switches (STSs). These STSs change their thermal conductivity using an on/off metal switch to create or break a thermal bridge across the STS. This paper first describes the experimental setup, used to determine the ratio of thermal resistance during R-high (low thermal conductivity) and R-low (high thermal conductivity) states of the STSs. This ratio was then used in whole-building energy simulations to evaluate the performance of AIS walls across different climate zones with/without a freeze timer of 60 min. The timer was added to reduce the number of switches of STSs from one state to another, and hence the energy needed for these switches. Analysis of the switching frequency and interval of STSs, thermal conductivity of walls, impact of wall orientation, and heat transfer through the wall from the use of AIS at different climate zones/locations were performed. The simulation results show that the AIS can achieve energy savings ranging from ∼ 980 to 2,290 kWh in a single-family home with a floor area of ∼ 220 m2 compared with an IECC 2018 baseline. The energy savings was higher in dry climate zones which represent 17% of residential buildings in the United States, compared to humid or marine climate.

Joint influence of architectural and spatiotemporal factors on the presence of Aedes aegypti in urban environments.

Urbanization has led to the proliferation of high-rise buildings, which have substantially influenced the distribution of dengue vectors, such as Aedes aegypti (L.). However, knowledge gaps exist regarding the individual and combined effects of architectural and spatiotemporal factors on dengue vector. This study investigated the interrelationship between Ae. aegypti presence, building architectural features, and spatiotemporal factors in urban environments. The mosquito Ae. aegypti presence varied by location and seasons, being higher in outdoor environments than in indoor environments. Lingya (Kaohsiung City, Taiwan) had the highest mosquito numbers, particularly in basement and first floor areas. Ae. aegypti was found on multiple floors within buildings, and their presence was greater in summer and autumn. The XGBoost model revealed that height within a building, temperature, humidity, resident density, and rainfall were key factors influencing mosquito presence, whereas openness had a relatively minor impact. To effectively address the problems caused by urbanization, the three-dimensional distribution of Ae. aegypti, including their spatial distribution across heights and areas within the urban environment, must be considered. By incorporating these multiple factors, this approach provides valuable insights for those responsible for urban planning and disease management strategies. Understanding the interplay between architectural features, environmental conditions, and the presence of Ae. aegypti is essential for developing targeted interventions and mitigating the adverse impacts of urbanization on public health. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Life Cycle Assessment of Residential Building Envelopes

The building industry consumes a significant amount of energy due to various factors such as building facade, floor area, energy resource demand, temperature variability, and construction and usage practices. Construction envelopes and the efficiency of building energy demand and equipment contribute to increased energy consumption. Different envelope materials are available, each with different environmental impacts. This research aims to establish a decision-making framework for selecting appropriate building envelopematerials. This paper focuses on conducting a life-cycle assessment (LCA) over a 50-year period for two envelope systems in Indian cities. It considers factors affecting the life cycle assessment of residential buildings, including construction, maintenance, and operational aspects of the building envelope systems. Evaluating building envelope performance is essential for reducing residential energy consumption and maximizing the quality of envelope materials through the application of LCA. The research outlines a comprehensive and systematic approach for selecting building envelopes, providing valuable insights for decision-making regarding envelope materialswith maximumefficiency for residential construction.

Carbon Emissions during the Building Construction Phase: A Comprehensive Case Study of Construction Sites in Denmark

Buildings are major contributors of carbon emissions and related global warming. Emissions occur along all building stages, from a whole-life perspective, including material production, construction processes, building operations, maintenance and end-of-life processes. Upfront emissions include processes before building operations. They can be influenced immediately and will have a positive effect today. However, mitigation potentials during the construction stage are often overseen in research. This study presents an analysis of the carbon emissions of 61 Danish construction sites based on their energy consumption, waste production (module A5) and transport to site (A4). The results show carbon emissions for A4 of 0.28 and for A5 of 1.00 kgCO2e/m2 gross floor area per year over 50 years. This is 13.47% of the Danish whole-life carbon reference of 9.50 kgCO2e/m2y, which includes the product stage (A1–3), replacements (B4), operational energy use (B6) and waste processes and disposal (C3–4). Almost half of the emissions are related to construction waste followed by electricity, heat and fuel. Floor area and building use have not shown to be influential for carbon emissions, suggesting other parameters are more important. The significance of modules A4 and A5 suggests implementing them in future whole-life carbon assessments and related policies. This paper also demonstrates the development of generic emission coefficients, which are suited to increase the feasibility for application in the building industry. Finally, the usability of module A4 and A5 in environmental product declarations is discussed.

The Influence of Building Form Compactness on Energy Efficiency in Accommodation Structures: The Case of Türkiye

Based on the information found in the literature, which suggests that "more compact forms closer to squares are preferred in building designs in cold climate regions," this study investigates to what extent the existing theoretical knowledge of compactness is practically followed in the shaping of winter tourism accommodation structures and how the differences in building form based on regions affect the amount of energy consumption. Cold climate region structures were preferred because compactness is more comparable in terms of form and provides a constraining plane. In this study, 50 accommodation structures in different regions that are most preferred for winter tourism were evaluated based on compactness. The existing and compact projections of the selected structures were measured, and then these plan projections were superimposed to obtain compactness ratios. Additionally, the structures were 3D modeled in both the existing and compact forms, and the energy consumption amounts for both forms were measured using the “Energy Plus” energy simulation engine with the assistance of the "Ladybug" plugin, which operates in the Rhinoceros3D/Grasshopper3D environment. Furthermore, data such as the facade opening ratio, main facade direction, and number of floors were determined and compiled into a table. As a result, it was found that increasing the surface area significantly affects the compactness ratio in accommodation structures with relatively small floor areas. There is a linear relationship between the increase in floor area and the number of floors. It was determined that there is no specialized building form or main facade direction for any region. In regional evaluations, it was observed that the difference in projection is low in regions where the difference in energy consumption between the existing and compact forms is also low.

Application and testing of RFID Software-Based Shielding in real fashion retail stores

PURPOSE: The present paper investigates the real performances of Software-Based Shielding (SBS) in two different stores of fashion retailers located in Northern Italy. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The study is based on a double case study analysis. Six different factors have been chosen, with two levels each. Namely, we investigated two different (i) stores; (ii) reader models; (iii) power levels; (iv) classification methods; (v) training data sets and (vi) settings of reference tags. The results have been evaluated in terms of overall and specific accuracies, and in percentage of false front (i.e., tags wrongly located in the sales floor area). FINDINGS: SBS proves to be a sound method for classifying tags’ location during normal operations in real-life stores, with overall accuracy up to 0.95. Of the two readers, reader A shows better results in terms of both overall and front accuracy, whereas reader B performs better in terms of rear accuracy and percentage of false front. With respect to the classification method, the combination of Neural Network with reads from reader A provides the best results. With respect to the training data, the use of front and back reads for training performs mostly better than the training with sole front data. ORIGINALITY: We are not aware of any other study that performed and reported results of SBS testing under normal operations in real stores. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first one to report such results. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS: Main limitations of our research are the limited set of factors and levels, and the specific Logistic Regression and Neural Network methods that we used. Also, we did not consider tags disposition and density in our study. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: We prove that SBS is a feasible option that could replace physical shielding in retail stores. We call to action for further research on this topic, and for retailers to test it in different store locations.

New Olimycins from a Cold-Seep-Derived Streptomyces olivaceus.

Cold-seeps are areas of the ocean floor in which hydrogen sulfide and methane are released into the open water. The cold-seep microbes are an emerging source of novel bioactive natural products. Four new ansa-ring opened linear ansamycin analogues, named olimycins E-H (1-4) were isolated from the cold-seep-derived Streptomyces olivaceus OUCLQ19-3. The planar and stereochemical structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated based on extensive MS and NMR spectroscopic analyses together with ECD calculations.

Research on the Impact of Carbon Emissions and Spatial Form of Town Construction Land: A Study of Macheng, China

In the context of low-carbon construction, reducing carbon dioxide emissions from town construction land is the key to mitigating the problems caused by global warming. The influence of spatial form on carbon emissions has been generally recognized, but its influence at the level of town construction land is less explored. Therefore, in this study, in order to investigate the relationship between the spatial form of town construction land and carbon emissions, the relationship between them was analyzed, taking Macheng town of Bengbu city as the research object, selecting spatial form elements and quantifying them, and characterizing and accounting for the carbon emissions from the town construction land by each building’s energy consumption. The study demonstrates that the spatial form elements such as building area and building storeys are important factors affecting the carbon emissions of residential land. Likewise, the building area, building shape coefficient, and floor area ratio are crucial factors impacting the carbon emissions of public lands. This research offers spatial form optimization strategies from a carbon reduction perspective by delving into the inherent relationship between spatial form and carbon emissions in town construction land. Consequently, it provides valuable scientific guidance for quantifying spatial planning and formulating carbon reduction strategies within a low-carbon framework.

STUDY RECOMMENDATIONS TO ACHIEVE THERMAL COMFORT IN AN EDUCATIONAL BUILDING

This paper evaluates natural ventilation effectiveness in one fully dependent Air Conditioned-Educational Building in Depok to recommend potential passive cooling approaches toward user thermal comfort. This study involves building surveys to measure the temperature and humidity of three selected classrooms, A, B, and C, with varying configurations and capacities. Airflow simulation using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is done under two conditions: open and closed doors. A set of parameters, which are room configuration, type of window, and ventilation strategy, are set to evaluate natural ventilation aspects. The site survey indicates that only one classroom with an area of 92 sqm facing to the southside is classified as efficiently warm (Room A). The simulation demonstrates that cross-ventilation only occurs when the door is opened. The parameters indicating shape, dimension, type, and area of natural ventilation matter, show that the building’s natural ventilation is ineffective in providing thermal comfort. This study recommends that the building’s natural ventilation be placed according to the direction of the airflow, adding vertical fin elements, and increasing the openings by more than 5% area from the floor area.