The benchmarking of hotel energy use comprehensively identifies the controllable and uncontrollable factors affecting energy performance, including building characteristics, management strategies, operations, and maintenance systems. Other factors include climatic conditions, floor areas, operating hours, occupancy rates, and guest populations. A benchmarking study on energy consumption patterns in significant hotels (each with less than 100 rooms and an average staff strength of 40 employees), situated in the university town of Nsukka (longitude 7⁰ 23' E, latitude 6⁰ 52' N), Nigeria, was performed using the data envelopment analysis (DEA) methodology. DEA, a linear programming technique that measures the relative performances of units, was chosen as a benchmarking methodology due to its ability to handle multiple inputs and outputs. Following a correlation test, energy use intensity, diesel consumption, and the number of employees were selected as the analysis inputs, while the occupancy rate was chosen as the output variable. Data on these variables spanning 12 months were collected using questionnaires, interviews, site visits, and oral conversations with hotel managers to ensure validity. Grid-supplied electricity accounted for most of the hotels' energy needs, followed by diesel used in generators. More than 70% of the electricity use was for HVAC. From the DEA, Hotel 3 (DMU H3) had a technical efficiency score of 1, whereas adjustments were recommended for improving the efficiency scores of the other hotels, which were deemed inefficient. DMU H7 had the lowest efficiency score (0.474) and the highest identified savings for electricity and diesel. The analysis also revealed that occupancy rates were generally low in the months of June and July, coinciding with the high rainfall season with its accompanying decline in outdoor activities. Consistent with this, electricity consumption was highest in the Christmas and Easter holiday months of December, January, and April following increased travel-related activities.

In this study, a typical house was extensively monitored to measure the actual consumption of each active system, i.e., each air-conditioner system, lighting system, hot water boiler, plug load, and other sources of the house energy consumption. In addition, the indoor environment was also monitored by recording the temperature, relative humidity, light intensity, and carbon dioxide. Moreover, the envelope was subject to thermography analysis to assess the envelope's performance.

The extensive instrumentation (energy meters and data loggers) installed in the house for data collection and monitoring precisely identified many energy consumption components. The data collected from each component of the building can be divided into either deterministic or indeterministic components. For instance, a lighting energy meter is referred to a part of the building that can be directly measured; however, measuring the air-conditioning energy consumption implicates many other components, such as building envelopes, fenestration, and air-conditioning system performances. We sought to reduce the unknown variables that affect the energy meter, and the remaining implicit variables were verified through sensitivity analysis. The data collection found that the Energy Use Intensity (EUI) was 184 kWh/m² per year, which could be dramatically reduced by feasible retrofitting strategies.

The UN World Population Prospect 2022 predicts significant global population growth by 2050. This year marks a milestone in the Paris Agreement's decarbonization goals. In this context, the construction sector plays a key role, but conventional design approaches may not meet environmental objectives. Therefore, a paradigm shift towards sustainable design is necessary to construct buildings that meet diverse user needs. This new design paradigm should follow the Triple Bottom Line approach to sustainability, offering environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable architectural and technological solutions. To address these problems, it could be necessary to minimize the use of resources, simplify the building design and seek the buildings' longest durability. These concepts are the basis of an emerging technological paradigm called frugal innovation, which aims to foster innovation in a resource-constrained scenario. To date, this is still relatively unexplored in the building and construction sector as a formalized paradigm. However, frugality is a concept that has been associated with architecture for centuries, and there are many frugal architectures built using local materials, local workers, and creative low-technology design solutions to allow for self-construction and self-maintenance. Furthermore, often, these architectures naturally feature flexibility, adaptability, and sometimes disassemblability. These features are increasingly recognized as enablers of a more circular and sustainable industry. This paper aims to investigate the role of creative frugality in sustainable constructions to meet the growing housing demand. The methodology involves studying frugal architecture, focusing on resource optimization as well as flexibility, adaptability, and disassemblability strategies. Additionally, case studies of frugal architectures are analyzed to showcase technological systems and material choices. The key research findings include the importance of establishing sustainable circular practices in low-technology buildings enabled by the concepts of flexibility, adaptability, and disassemblability. Enabling such practices can extend a building's lifespan and reduce costs over its operational lifetime.

In the United States, approximately 10 billion gallons of mixing water is required annually to produce close to 400 million cubic yards of concrete. In response to the declining supply of freshwater in some locations and with the goal of decreasing the environmental footprint of the concrete industry, there is current interest in either full or partial replacement of fresh water with seawater in concrete mixtures. Research indicates that the early-age strength of seawater concrete is typically higher than that of normal concrete, but that the long-term strength is affected less.

This study investigates the early-age properties of seawater concrete by measuring its ultrasonic pulse velocity. This nondestructive test method is commonly used to assess the quality of concrete, and its value correlates well with the compressive strength. Neat cement paste specimens were prepared at several water–cement ratios using either fresh water or salt water at various salinities (36, 24, and 12 g/L). The highest salinity of 36 g/L was chosen because it is the approximate salinity of the ocean, while 24 and 12 g/L represent either brackish water or seawater that has been mixed with freshwater. The ultrasonic pulse velocity of the specimens was measured at various points in time until 28 days. Additionally, the compressive strength was measured at both 7 and 28 days. By comparing the evolution of the ultrasonic pulse velocity and the compressive strength between the various mixtures, the effect of seawater on the early-age properties of seawater concrete can be better understood.

Safeguarding infrastructures from ballistic and blast fragment impacts requires a series of tests that are both expensive and time-consuming. Considering the magnitude of such events, this article aims to propose cost-effective assumptions that still hold their relevance in the face of moderate costs. In other words, the objective is to develop a methodology and set of criteria that strike a balance between accuracy and resource efficiency, enabling a practical yet reliable solution to protect infrastructures against potential ballistic and blast threats.

Recent advancements in numerical codes using the Finite Elements methodology have paved the way for more intricate models, yielding highly precise results. In this context, the authors present a practical approach that streamlines the determination of constitutive model parameters, which govern the behavior of key structural materials, such as clay or concrete.

To achieve this goal, the authors center around interpolating the parameters of the material under investigation. The interpolation process is based on ballistics tests conducted on the aforementioned relevant materials, and the results are then compared with existing data from the literature. By leveraging this methodology, a more efficient characterization of the target material can be attained.

The presented results comprise ballistics curves for materials, utilizing the interpolated parameters, which demonstrate their consistency with other well-established materials of similar nature. These ballistics curves serve as evidence indicating that the proposed methodology effectively captures and represents the behavior of the target material in line with well-known characteristics of similar materials.

In conclusion, for researchers whose primary focus is not centered on material characterization, this methodology offers a valuable opportunity to access reliable material properties. By adopting this approach, researchers can obtain accurate material parameters without being extensively engaged in the detailed characterization process. This empowers them to confidently incorporate material data into their studies and simulations, facilitating robust analyses.

This work presents a study of the design, environment, energy and comfort in buildings equipped with a PMV-controlled HVAC system. This control system, based on the three categories of the international standard, ISO 7730, employs the level of thermal comfort instead of the traditional control of the air temperature. In this type of control, using the PMV index, the average air temperature, average air relative humidity, average radiant temperature, average air velocity, level of clothing and level of physical activity are considered. The four initial parameters are associated with environmental ones and the last two are associated with personal ones. The simulation is carried out using a simulator of the dynamic thermal response of buildings and the thermophysiology of the occupants. The simulator considers energy and mass balance integral equations. This equation system is generated, by the simulator, based on the building design. In this study, three cases are performed, categories A, B and C. According to the results obtained, it is possible to verify that it takes some time to achieve acceptable comfort conditions when the HVAC system is connected. However, after the conditions are achieved, the system guarantees acceptable conditions during the occupancy time. Category A provides higher levels of energy consumption than Category B and C.

In today's world, GHG emissions, especially CO2, drive rapid global warming. Construction significantly contributes to this by emitting CO2. Plants have long been recognized for their role in mitigating climate change through CO2 absorption, enhancing both climate control and environmental beauty. Thus the aim is to assess plants' CO2 absorption potential, focusing on recent articles from reputable journals in the past decade. First, we delve into the primary causes of global warming. Next, we explore the philosophy of CO2 emissions in construction from inception to completion. Finally, CO2 emission control through plantation is examined, exploring the potential of organic and genetically modified plants for real-world applications.

Research conducted by Energy Efficiency and Conservation Clearing House Indonesia (EECCHI) in 2012 showed that the building sector contributes 40% of carbon emissions to the atmosphere. Several studies show that designing high-performance buildings contributes to reducing carbon emissions and preventing global warming. Other studies posit that good educational building design can contribute to a maximum learning atmosphere. This study discusses the evaluation of natural lighting in educational buildings, namely the Cimahi City MAN building. The research was conducted using field survey methods by measuring the volume and recording the use of materials in buildings. After the visit, depictions and simulations were carried out on the building using Sefaira to determine the distribution of natural lighting in the building. Then, simulations were carried out on design changes that contributed to natural lighting in the building. The simulation results show that natural lighting in the Cimahi City MAN building has not met the educational building lumination standard of 250–300 lx (SNI, 2000). This article concludes that the addition of dimensions to the roof overhang, the area of openings, additional elements of the façade, and shading strategies are factors that affect natural lighting in MAN Kota Cimahi buildings. Thus, changes to these architectural elements are expected to maximize thermal comfort, which affects student performance. In conclusion, the design change improves the energy efficiency such that the buildings conform to Indonesian National Standards.

The demand of PV on roof installation in household sector is increasing. In this paper, an investigation into optimizing the energy performance of PV on housing roof is conducted. Three housing roof designs found in Gorontalo city are selected as the mounting planes for PV on roof. The designs represent a stacked gable roof, a complex gable roof, and a complex hip roof. The purpose of the research is to find which roof shape is better for PV mounting in terms of sun radiation gain and access, mountable spaces, and orientation flexibility. This research employs Rhinoceros 3D to model the three roofs. The models are designed to face 12 directions from 0⁰ to 330⁰. Radiation analysis using Ladybug is utilized to study the roof performance in obtaining solar radiation in all the 12 directions. It is found that the complex hip roof has more evenly distributed solar radiation on the roof planes, flexible for PV mounting in any orientation, but fewer mountable spaces. The stacked gable roof has two out of four suitable planes to gain solar radiation, but they are spacious. The complex gable roof has only one suitable plane since the other surfaces are prone to self-shading. Overall, a stacked gable roof provides a better option for PV installation compared to the other roof shapes.

Recent research emphasizes the urgent need to improve affordable housing accessibility, safety, and quality while addressing poverty and economic mobility. However, there is a lack of comprehensive studies on US affordable housing construction. Our study focused on barriers and enablers of affordable housing construction in Upstate New York through interviews with ten construction industry professionals. We identified obstacles like funding shortages, regulatory complexities, and administrative hurdles. Enablers included increased advocacy, strategic tax credit use, and reduced zoning restrictions. Although a housing supply-demand imbalance persists, emerging solutions and collaborative efforts signal a promising, equitable, and sustainable future.