Sustainability

Question 1

What areas of construction could you consider sustainbility?

Answer 1

Need to consider both embodied and operational carbon…

Site - creation of green space, cycle lanes

Location - public transport, brownfield, solar gain

MMC - reduced waste

Materials - CLT, recycled aggregate, steel

Lighting - LED, PIR and LUX level sensors, use of daylight

Ventilation, heating: photovoltaic, GSHP, ASHP, district heating

Water and drainage: rainwater harvesting, reedbed filtration, SUD’s

Adaptable design principles

Question 2

What is the circular economy?

Answer 2

Ina circular economy there is no such thing as waste, because every residual stream can be used to make a new product. In this system, materials should not be simply recycled but products, components and raw materials remain of high quality.

It required the end of life of the product to be considered at the start. In this way a city would become a materials bank. Buildings would be disassembled and not demolished.

Question 3

What is combined heat and power and how does it work?

Answer 3

Combined heat and power (CHP), also known as co-generation, is the simultaneous generation of both usable heat and electrical power from the same source.

Question 4

What are the benefits and limitations of combined heat and power?

Answer 4

Benefit

• Provides simultaneous electricity and heat
• Increased fuel efficiency due to harnessing by-product of heat
• Waste can be used to power cogeneration resulting in less waste to landfills

Limitations

• Requires predictable loads for optimum performance
• Upfront installation costs
• Heating demand must be continuous

Question 5

What is solar water heating and how does it work?

Answer 5

Solar water heating uses the energy from the sun to heat water, using a collector that is usually mounted on a roof in which fluid is heated by the sun. The fluid is used to heat water that is stored in a separate hot water cylinder.

Question 6

What are the benefits and limitations of solar water heating?

Answer 6

Benefits

• Low maintenance
• Environmentally friendly
• Cheap energy source

Limitations

• Upfront installation costs
• Dependent on climate / weather
• Space required for hot water cylinder

Question 7

What photovoltaic panels and how do they work?

Answer 7

PV modules convert sunlight directly to DC electricity. The solar cells consist of a thin piece of semiconductor material, in most cases silicon. The current then passes through an inverter to convert it to AC so that it can be used in the property.