A Simulation-based Optimisation Tool for the Minimisation of Building Carbon Emissions and Water Usage

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Title
A Simulation-based Optimisation Tool for the Minimisation of Building Carbon Emissions and Water Usage

CoPED ID
0c991e14-fbbe-42a0-8180-1eaa066b7e03

Status
Closed

Funders

Value
£362,332

Start Date
Aug. 26, 2010

End Date
Aug. 25, 2012

Description

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Contemporary building simulation tools enable building designers to evaluate the performance of user-defined design solutions (for a given building form, choice of construction materials, HVAC system type and control strategy, etc). However, for even the experienced designer, the exploration of alternative design solutions in the multi-parameter building design space is highly demanding, and can result in design solutions that do not truly minimise the buildings carbon emissions, capital costs, or water usage. This project aims to provide designers with automatically generated design solutions that minimise the carbon emissions, capital costs, and water usage of a building. It also aims to provide designers with information on the sensitivity of these design goals to changes in the design parameters. This information will give designers confidence that their decisions do not lead to unforeseen and negative consequences associated with the energy performance of buildings, and in particular, low carbon buildings. The design solutions will be generated through an innovative design process and associated software tool that is based on the integration of an established building performance simulation and an evolutionary optimisation method, previous research having demonstrated that such an approach can produce designs that have up to 32% lower energy use than those resulting from contemporary design practice. The new design workflow process and software tool will provide designers with alternative design solutions on which to base their design decisions, this ultimately leading to a new way of working across the building industry. The innovative approach will be applicable at every design stage, with the most significant gains in building performance being through its application to the concept design stage (during which there is the greatest potential to explore alternative design solutions).

Subjects by relevance
  1. Planning and design
  2. Design (artistic creation)
  3. Buildings
  4. Energy efficiency
  5. Construction
  6. Industrial design
  7. Construction design
  8. Simulation
  9. Industrial buildings
  10. Heating (spaces)
  11. Sustainable development
  12. Software design
  13. Architecture
  14. Emissions
  15. Optimisation
  16. Costs

Extracted key phrases
  1. Parameter building design space
  2. Contemporary building simulation tool
  3. Alternative design solution
  4. Building performance simulation
  5. New design workflow process
  6. Contemporary design practice
  7. Innovative design process
  8. Concept design stage
  9. Design parameter
  10. Design decision
  11. Design goal
  12. Building carbon emission
  13. Low carbon building
  14. Building form
  15. Building industry

Related Pages

UKRI project entry

UK Project Locations