Winner of Choice Magazine - Outstanding Academic Titles for 2007 Buildings account for over one third of global energy use and associated greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Reducing energy use by buildings is therefore an essential part of any strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and thereby lessen the likelihood of potentially catastrophic climate change. Bringing together a wealth of hard-to-obtain information on energy use and energy efficiency in buildings at a level which can be easily digested and applied, Danny Harvey offers a comprehensive, objective and critical sourcebook on low-energy buildings. Topics covered include: thermal envelopes, heating, cooling, heat pumps, HVAC systems, hot water, lighting, solar energy, appliances and office equipment, embodied energy, buildings as systems and community-integrated energy systems (cogeneration, district heating, and district cooling). The book includes exemplary buildings and techniques from North America, Europe and Asia, and combines a broad, holistic perspective with technical detail in an accessible and insightful manner.

Winner of Choice Magazine - Outstanding Academic Titles for 2007 Buildings account for over one third of global energy use and associated greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Reducing energy use by buildings is therefore an essential part of any strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and thereby lessen the likelihood of potentially catastrophic climate change. Bringing together a wealth of hard-to-obtain information on energy use and energy efficiency in buildings at a level which can be easily digested and applied, Danny Harvey offers a comprehensive, objective and critical sourcebook on low-energy buildings. Topics covered include: thermal envelopes, heating, cooling, heat pumps, HVAC systems, hot water, lighting, solar energy, appliances and office equipment, embodied energy, buildings as systems and community-integrated energy systems (cogeneration, district heating, and district cooling). The book includes exemplary buildings and techniques from North America, Europe and Asia, and combines a broad, holistic perspective with technical detail in an accessible and insightful manner.

This long-awaited reference guide provides a complete overview of low energy cooling systems for buildings, covering a wide range of existing and emerging sustainable energy technologies in one comprehensive volume. An excellent data source on cooling performance, such as building loads or solar thermal chiller efficiencies, it is essential reading for building services and renewable energy engineers and researchers covering sustainable design. The book is unique in including a large set of experimental results from years of monitoring actual building and energy plants, as well as detailed laboratory and simulation analyses. These demonstrate which systems really work in buildings, what the real costs are and how operation can be optimized – crucial information for planners, builders and architects to gain confidence in applying new technologies in the building sector. Inside you will find valuable insights into: the energy demand of residential and office buildings; facades and summer performance of buildings; passive cooling strategies; geothermal cooling; active thermal cooling technologies, including absorption cooling, desiccant cooling and new developments in low power chillers; sustainable building operation using simulation. Supporting case study material makes this a useful text for senior undergraduate students on renewable and sustainable energy courses. Practical and informative, it is the best up-to-date volume on the important and rapidly growing area of cooling.

This handbook provides a comprehensive summary on the energy systems used in green buildings, with a particular focus on solar energy - the most common renewable energy source applied in this field. With the growing concern about environmental protections, the concepts of green building have been widely promoted and implemented in nowadays building designs and constructions. Among all, sustainable energy systems, including energy harvesting, conversion, and storage, is one of most important design factors in green buildings. Unlike traditional energy systems which highly rely on fossil fuel, green buildings utilize renewable energy source or high efficient energy systems, or both, to provide environmental friendly, low carbon waste energy. The most updated concepts, designs, technologies developed and implemented in heat pumps, cooling systems, power systems, and energy storage will be discussed here in details. This handbook is subdivided into 7-9 main sections to provide an in-depth discussion from foundational principles to practical techniques. In addition, different cases about green energy systems implemented in global will be discussed. The book will be structured easy-to-read, to make it more accessible to graduate students and professionals in diverse scientific and engineering communities, including applied physics, civil engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, material engineering, and chemical engineering.

Optimal Design and Retrofit of Energy Efficient Buildings, Communities, and Urban Centers presents current techniques and technologies for energy efficiency in buildings. Cases introduce and demonstrate applications in both the design of new buildings and retrofit of existing structures. The book begins with an introduction that includes energy consumption statistics, building energy efficiency codes, and standards and labels from around the world. It then highlights the need for integrated and comprehensive energy analysis approaches. Subsequent sections present an overview of advanced energy efficiency technologies for buildings, including dynamic insulation materials, phase change materials, LED lighting and daylight controls, Life Cycle Analysis, and more. This book provides researchers and professionals with a coherent set of tools and techniques for enhancing energy efficiency in new and existing buildings. The case studies presented help practitioners implement the techniques and technologies in their own projects. - Introduces a holistic analysis approach to energy efficiency for buildings using the concept of energy productivity - Provides coverage of individual buildings, communities and urban centers - Includes both the design of new buildings and retrofitting of existing structures to improve energy efficiency - Describes state-of-the-art energy efficiency technologies - Presents several cases studies and examples that illustrate the analysis techniques and impact of energy efficiency technologies and controls

Low-Temperature Energy Systems with Applications of Renewable Energy investigates a wide variety of low-temperature energy applications in residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial areas. It addresses the basic principles that form the groundwork for more efficient energy conversion processes and includes detailed practical methods for carrying out these critical processes. This work considers new directions in the engineering use of technical thermodynamics and energy, including more in-depth studies of the use of renewable sources, and includes worked numerical examples, review questions, and practice problems to allow readers to test their own comprehension of the material. With detailed explanations, methods, models, and algorithms, Low-Temperature Energy Systems with Applications of Renewable Energy is a valuable reference for engineers and scientists in the field of renewable energy, as well as energy researchers and academics. - Features end-of chapter review sections with questions and exercises for practical study and utilization. - Presents methods for a great variety of energy applications to improve their energy operations. - Applies real-world data to demonstrate the impact of low-temperature energy systems on renewable energy use today.