Achieving Building Comfort by Natural Means

Achieving Building Comfort by Natural Means explores examples of green building designs and methods that are currently being used around the world to achieve human comfort in buildings. The operation of buildings accounts for more than 40% of total energy use and is a major source of carbon emissions. It is imperative that this consumption be substantially decreased and that energy needed for building comfort is obtained from renewable and environmentally friendly sources. This book brings together a global group of contributors who look at factors such as location, climate, building materials, energy management, ventilation, thermal environmental conditions, shading, lighting, acoustics, and more that are critical for achieving buildings that are more sustainable. - Highlights methods of achieving building comfort through green design; - Examines the impact of excessive electricity and fossil fuel-based energy use during a building's lifecycle; - Includes contributions and case studies from varied geographical regions. Chapter 18 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.