ENVIRONMENTAL

STUDIES

CHINMAYEE SARANGI
SR NO-75
SUSTAINABLE ROLL NO-150101
DYPCA

BUILDINGS
SUSTAINABLE
BUILDINGS

INTRODUCTION

Sustainable building is a building that seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of
buildings by efficiency and moderation in the use of materials, energy, and development space and
the ecosystem at large. Sustainable architecture uses a conscious approach to energy and ecological
conservation in the design of the built environment.

The idea of sustainability, or ecological design, is to ensure that our use of presently available
resources does not end up having detrimental effects to our collective well-being or making it
impossible to obtain resources for other applications in the long run.

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WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT?

Sustainability in development that satisfies the needs of the present without compromising the
capacity of future generations, guaranteeing the balance between economic growth, care for the
environment and social well-being. Sustainable development is a concept that appeared for the first
time in 1987 with the publication of the Brundtland Report, warning of the negative environmental
consequences of economic growth and globalization, which tried to find possible solutions to the
problems caused by industrialization and population growth. Sustainable
architecture is architecture that seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of buildings by
efficiency and moderation in the use of materials, energy, and development space and the ecosystem
at large.

1. Energy efficiency
Over the entire life cycle of a building is the most important goal of sustainable
architecture. Architects use many different passive and active techniques to reduce the energy needs
of buildings and increase their ability to capture or generate their own energy. One of the keys to
exploit local environmental resources and influence energy-related factors such as daylight, solar
heat gains and ventilation is the use of site analysis.

2.Heating, ventilation and cooling system efficiency

Numerous passive architectural strategies have been developed over time. Examples of such
strategies include the arrangement of rooms or the sizing and orientation of windows in a
building, and the orientation of facades and streets or the ratio between building heights and street
widths for urban planning. An important and cost-effective element of an efficient heating,
ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) system is a well-insulated building. A more efficient
building requires less heat generating or dissipating power, but may require more ventilation capacity
to expel polluted indoor air.

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3.Sustainable building materials:
 Recycled materials
Sustainable architecture often incorporates the use of recycled or second hand materials, such
as reclaimed lumber and recycled copper. The reduction in use of new materials creates a
corresponding reduction in embodied energy (energy used in the production of materials). Often
sustainable architects attempt to retrofit old structures to serve new needs in order to avoid
unnecessary development.

Figure 1 Governors house in Netherlands, made of recycled

brings and rubbles

 Lower volatile organic compounds

Low-impact building materials are used wherever feasible: for example, insulation may be made
from low VOC (volatile organic compound)-emitting materials such as recycled denim or cellulose
insulation, rather than the building insulation materials that may contain carcinogenic or toxic
materials such as formaldehyde.

 Materials sustainability standards

There is little coherence in the measurement and assessment of materials sustainability attributes,
resulting in a landscape today that is littered with hundreds of competing, inconsistent and often
imprecise eco-labels, standards and certifications.

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2. Waste management
Waste takes the form of spent or useless materials generated from households and businesses,
construction and demolition processes, and manufacturing and agricultural industries.

3. Building placement
One central and often ignored aspect of sustainable architecture is building placement. Although the
ideal environmental home or office structure is often envisioned as an isolated place, this kind of
placement is usually detrimental to the environment

Figure 2 building layout showing building orientation according to

cross ventilation effect

5.Sustainable building consulting

A sustainable building consultant may be engaged early in the design process, to forecast the
sustainability implications of building materials, orientation, glazing and other physical factors, so as
to identify a sustainable approach that meets the specific requirements of a project.

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 WHAT IS GREEN BUILDING?
Green building is the practice of creating structures and using processes that are environmentally
responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's life-cycle from siting to design,
construction, operation, maintenance, renovation and deconstruction. This practice expands and
complements the classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort.
Green building is also known as a sustainable or high performance building. This requires close
cooperation of the contractor, the architects, the engineers, and the client at all project stages. The
Green Building practice expands and complements the classical building design concerns of
economy, utility, durability, and comfort.

The common objective of green buildings is to reduce the overall impact of the built environment on
human health and the natural environment by:

 Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources

 Protecting occupant health and improving employee productivity [see healthy building]
 Reducing waste, pollution and environmental degradation

Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment is an act started by government, which states the
different criteria’s laid by government to make a building green, it also rates the building according
to criteria it fulfills.
Following are some part of procedure followed for making a building green:

Reducing environmental impact:The building sector has the greatest potential to deliver significant
cuts in emissions at little or no cost. Green building practices aim to reduce the environmental
impact of building. Since construction almost always degrades a building site, not building at all is
preferable to green building, in terms of reducing environmental impact, also green building act
states to not contribute to sprawl, even if the most energy-efficient, environmentally sound methods
are used in design and construction

. Use of vertical gardens to reduce envoi. Impact

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  Cost payoff:

The most criticized issue about constructing environmentally friendly buildings is the price. Photo-
voltaic, new appliances, and modern technologies tend to cost more money. Most green buildings
cost a premium of <2%, but yield 10 times as much over the entire life of the building. Numerous
studies have shown the measurable benefit of green building initiatives on worker productivity.

 Regulation and operations:

As a result of the increased interest in green building concepts and practices, a number of
organizations have developed standards, codes and rating systems that let government regulators,
building professionals and consumers embrace green building with confidence.

Green building rating systems such as BREEAM (United Kingdom), LEED (United States and
Canada), DGNB (Germany), CASBEE (Japan), and VERDEGBCe (Spain), GRIHA (India) help
consumers determine a structure’s level of environmental performance. They award credits for
optional building features that support green design in categories such as location and maintenance
of building site, conservation of water, energy, and building materials, and occupant comfort and
health.

Use of vertical gardens to reduce envoi. Impact

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 Goals of green building:
Green building brings together a vast array of practices, techniques, and skills to reduce and
ultimately eliminate the impacts of buildings on the environment and human health. It often
emphasizes taking advantage of renewable resources.

1. Energy efficiency:
To reduce energy consumption from the process of transport of materials to procedure of
construction.

2. Water efficiency
Using of collected water which can be reused, as well as provision of dual pumping system for the
better maintenance of the building.

3. Materials efficiency
 The material is certified to a third-party forest standard, rapidly renewable plant materials like
bamboo and straw, recycled stone, recycled metal and other products that are non-toxic,
reusable, renewable, and/or recyclable. Roman self-healing concrete is available.
 Indoor air quality can be achieved by orientation of of building, cross ventilated rooms, it ca
also be maintained by artificial means like HVAC.:
 Building maintenance come into consideration after the user uses it, Goal of waste reduction
may be applied during the design, construction and demolition phases of a building's life-
cycle, and it is in the O&M phase that green practices such as recycling and air quality
enhancement take place

4.Waste reduction
Green architecture also seeks to reduce waste of energy, water and materials used during
construction. For example, in California nearly 60% of the state's waste comes from commercial
buildings.

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FEATURES OF GREEN BUILDING

A green building incorporates environmental considerations into every stage of the building
construction and focuses on the design, construction, operation and maintenance phases. Green
buildings typically incorporate superior air quality, abundant natural light, and access to views and
noise control which benefits building occupants, making these building better places to work or live.

The major considerations taken into account are the lot design and development efficiency, energy and
water efficiency, resource efficiency, indoor environmental quality and the building’s overall impact
on the environment.

An integral characteristic of a green building is its stress on protecting existing ecologies, and
improving ecologies that may have been damaged in the past. Green buildings are usually constructed
on environmentally sensitive lands or previously developed property, with measures taken to restore
plant life. Green buildings also utilize fewer materials, through efficient design and elimination of
unnecessary finish materials.

In addition, green building operations promote material as well as water recycling in their operation.
Energy efficiency is one of the most important factors in almost all green building programs. Careful
window selection, building envelope air sealing, duct sealing, proper placement of air and vapour
barriers, use of clean energy-powered heating/cooling systems contribute towards an energy efficient
building. Use of renewable energy, such as solar, wind or biomass energy, to meet energy requirements
can significantly reduce carbon footprints of such buildings.

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Some other salient fatures:

 Green Building reduces operational costs, enhances building marketability, increases worker
productivity, improves indoor environment quality, and reduces potential liability resulting
from indoor air quality problems.
 Green Buildings consumes about 25% less energy than conventional buildings.
 In Green Buildings interiors are done with low V.O.C. (volatile organic compounds) content
materials, adhesives, sealants, paints and carpets, which reduces allergies and illness.
 Site Development—Protect & Restore habitat—Maximize Open space
 Heat Island Effect—Roof & Non Roof
 Storm water design— Quality & Quantity control
 Water Efficiency
 Innovative waste water technologies
 Gray water treatment
 Water Use reduction
 Ground water recharge
 Rain water harvesting
 Energy Efficiency Passive Cooling System
 Passive ventilation System
 Minimum Energy Performance
 Building Integrated renewable Energy technologies
 Materials & Resources Storage & Collection of Recyclables
 Building Reuse
 Construction Waste management
 Rapidly renewable Materials
 Outdoor Air Delivery Monitoring
 Increased Ventilation
 Low Emitting Building Materials
 Control ability of Systems—Light & Thermal Comfort

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BENEFITS OF GREEN BUILDING:

With new technologies constantly being developed to complement current practices in creating
greener structures, the benefits of green building can range from environmental to economic to
social. By adopting greener practices, we can take maximum advantage of environmental and
economic performance. Green construction methods when integrated while design and construction
provide most significant benefits. Benefits of green building include:

1. Low Maintenance and Operation Cost

 Green buildings incorporate unique construction features that ensure efficient use of
resources such water and energy.
 For example, by using task lighting strategy and a lot of daylight, green buildings vastly
reduce the amount of power used in lighting systems; this allows users to save as much as a
third of their water and energy bills.
 Even though constructing a green building may be slightly more expensive than their non-
green counterparts, the reduced operation and maintenance costs of green buildings make
them much cheaper in the long term.

2. Energy Efficiency

 Reducing the dependency on energy from non-renewable sources such as coal.

 Installation of solar panels to make use of energy from the sun, and design windows in a way
that allows as much natural light as possible and, therefore, reduces the use of artificial light;
these and other methods ensure that the building uses energy in an efficient manner.
 Energy efficiency is essential not only for the user but also for the entire world because non-
renewable energy sources are expensive and pollute the environment.

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3,Enhances Indoor Environment Quality

 Indoor environment quality depends on conditions inside a building and how they affect the
occupants of the building. These conditions include lighting, ergonomics, thermal conditions
and air quality.
 Good indoor environment quality is the one that protects the health of the building’s
occupants, reduces stress and improves their quality of life.

 4. Water Efficiency
 Water efficiency involves using water resources in a manner that saves water and ensures that
today and future generations enjoy a reliable supply of clean water.
 Green building allows for the use of alternative sources of water such as rainwater, reducing
water waste through the installation of plumbing fixtures that are efficient and reducing the
strain on shared water resources by installing systems that purify water and enable recycling.

5. Better Health

 People who live in green buildings enjoy many health benefits because of the safety of
materials used in the construction of such buildings.
 For instance, eco-friendly construction companies avoid using plastic by-products that have
been found to release toxic materials.

7.Material Efficiency

 Material efficiency involves the use of physical process and materials in a manner that allows
for the minimum use of materials without compromising the quality of the outcome; also, the
processes should generate as little waste as possible.
 To achieve material efficiency, green building companies use materials that are long lasting,
recycle and reuse some products, design buildings in a manner that allow for the use of fewer
materials and employ processes that use less water, raw materials, and energy. All these help
achieve material efficiency.

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7.Better Environment

 By reducing usage of energy sources that pollute the environment such as coal, green
buildings contribute to keeping the environment clean.
 In addition, by reducing the levels of carbon oxide emitted to the atmosphere, they help to
lessen the pace of climate change.

8. Reduces Strain on Local Resources

 As population increases, local shared resources such as water and energy come under
considerable pressure.
 Through the use of technologies and processes that increase water and energy efficiency,
green buildings can reduce this strain.

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DIFFERENT RATING SYSTEMS OF GREEN BUILDING:

Whether Green buildings are really green is to be decided against the predefined rating systems. There
are three primary Rating systems in India.

1. GRIHA
2. IGBC
3. BEE

Green rating for integrated habitat assessment (GRIHA)

GRIHA is an acronym for Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment developed by TERI and
the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India. GRIHA is a Sanskrit word meaning
– ‘Abode’. Human Habitats (buildings) interact with the environment in various ways. Throughout
their life cycles, from construction to operation and then demolition, they consume resources in the
form of energy, water, materials, etc. and emit wastes either directly in the form of municipal wastes
or indirectly as emissions from electricity generation. GRIHA attempts to minimize a building’s
resource consumption, waste generation, and overall ecological impact to within certain nationally
acceptable limits / benchmarks.

Going by the old adage ‘what gets measured, gets managed’, GRIHA attempts to quantify aspects
such as energy consumption, waste generation, renewable energy adoption, etc. so as to manage,
control and reduce the same to the best possible extent.

GRIHA is a rating tool that helps people assesses the performance of their building against certain
nationally acceptable benchmarks. It evaluates the environmental performance of a building
holistically over its entire life cycle, thereby providing a definitive standard for what constitutes a
‘green building’. The rating system, based on accepted energy and environmental principles, will
seek to strike a balance between the established practices and emerging concepts, both national and
international.

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It is a green building design evaluation system where buildings are rated in a three-tier process. The
process initiates with the online submission of documents as per the prescribed criteria followed by on
site visit and evaluation of the building by a team of professionals and experts from GRIHA
Secretariat. GRIHA rating system consists of 34 criteria categorised in four different sections. Some
of them are –
(1) Site selection and site planning,
(2) Conservation and efficient utilization of resources,
(3) Building operation and maintenance, and
(4) Innovation.

Commonwealth Games Village, New Delhi, Fortis Hospital, New Delhi, CESE (Centre for
Environmental Sciences & Engineering) Building, IIT Kanpur, Suzlon One Earth, Pune and many
other buildings has received GRIHA rating.

The basic features of GRIHA

On a broader scale, this system, along with the activities and processes that lead up to it, will benefit
the community at large with the improvement in the environment by reducing GHG (greenhouse gas)
emissions, reducing energy consumption and the stress on natural resources.

Some of the benefits of a green design to a building owner, user, and the society as a whole are as
follows:

 Reduced energy consumption without sacrificing the comfort levels

 Reduced destruction of natural areas, habitats, and biodiversity, and reduced soil loss from
erosion etc.

 Reduced air and water pollution (with direct health benefits)



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 

 Reduced water consumption

 Limited waste generation due to recycling and reuse

 Reduced pollution loads

 Increased user productivity

 Enhanced image and marketability

Indian green building council (IGBC)

Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) Green Factory Buildings is the first rating programme
developed in India, exclusively for the industrial sector. It is based on accepted energy and
environmental principles and strikes a balance between known established practices and emerging
concepts. The system is designed to be comprehensive in scope, yet simple in operation. This rating
system would address the factory buildings and not the processes. It would be applicable to all
sectors of industry and for all climatic zones of India.

The Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) is the rating system developed for
certifying Green Buildings. LEED is developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the
organization promoting sustainability through Green Buildings. LEED is a framework for assessing
building performance against set criteria and standard points of references. The benchmarks for the
LEED Green Building Rating System were developed in year 2000 and are currently available for
new and existing constructions.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) formed the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) in
year 2001. IGBC is the non-profit research institution having its offices in CII-Sohrabji Godrej
Green Business Centre, which is itself a LEED certified Green building. Indian Green Building
Council (IGBC) has licensed the LEED Green Building Standard from the USGBC. IGBC facilitates
Indian green structures to become one of the green buildings.

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IGBC has developed the following green building rating systems for different types of building in
line and conformity with US Green Building Council. Till date, following Green Building rating
systems are available under IGBC.

1. LEED India for New Construction

2. LEED India for Core and Shell
3. IGBC Green Homes
4. IGBC Green Factory Building
5. IGBC Green SEZ
6. IGBC Green Townships

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Features
 IGBC Green Factory Building Rating System is a voluntary and consensus based programme.
The rating system has been developed based on materials and technologies that are currently
available.
 This rating system would facilitate the development of energy efficient, water efficient,
healthy, more productive, environmentally friendly factories.
 The rating system evaluates certain credit points using a prescriptive approach and other
credits on a performance-based approach. The rating system is evolved so as to be
comprehensive and at the same time user-friendly.
 The programme is fundamentally designed to address national priorities and quality of life for
factory workmen.
 The rating programme uses well accepted national standards and wherever local or national
standards are not available, appropriate international benchmarks have been considered.

Benefits

Green Existing Buildings can have tremendous benefits, both tangible and intangible.

Tangible benefits

 Energy savings: 30 - 40%

 Water savings: 20 - 30%

Intangible benefits

 Enhanced indoor air quality

 Good day lighting
 Health & wellbeing of the occupants
 Safety of the workmen

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IGBC Green Factory Buildings rating system addresses green features under the following
categories:

 Site Selection and Planning

 Water Conservation
 Energy Conservation
 Materials Conservation
 Indoor Environmental Quality and Occupational Health
 Innovation & Design Process

The rating system is valid for 3 years. On completion of 3 years, projects can validate /renew based
on the prevailing latest version.

Bureau of energy efficiency (BEE)

BEE developed its own rating system for the buildings based on a 1 to 5-star scale. More stars mean
more energy efficiency. BEE has developed the Energy Performance Index (EPI). The unit of Kilo
watt hours per square meter per year is considered for rating the building and especially targets air
conditioned and non-air-conditioned office buildings. The Reserve Bank of India’s buildings in Delhi
and Bhubaneshwar, the CII Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre and many other buildings have
received BEE 5-star ratings.
Indians were aware of Green Building concepts from the beginning. Conventional homes with baked
red colour roof tiles and clay made walls is a really good example of energy efficient structures that
are used to keep cool during summers and warm during the winters. Most of rural India is still attached
to this building technology with naturally available materials like clay, wood, jute ropes, etc. Today
we have advanced technologies that create smarter systems to control inside temperature, lighting
systems, power and water supply and waste generation. Green buildings might be a bit heavy on the
purse but are good for the environment. In this rapidly changing world, we should adopt the technology
that helps us to save precious natural resources. This would lead us to true sustainable development.

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The broad objectives of BEE are as under:

 To exert leadership and provide policy recommendation and direction to national energy
conservation and efficiency efforts and programs.
 To coordinate energy efficiency and conservation policies and programs and take it to the
stakeholders
 To establish systems and procedures to measure, monitor and verify energy efficiency results in
individual sectors as well as at a macro level.
 To leverage multi-lateral and bi-lateral and private sector support in implementation of Energy
Conservation Act and efficient use of energy and its conservation programs.
 To demonstrate delivery of energy efficiency services as mandated in the EC bill through
private-public partnerships.
 To interpret, plan and manage energy conservation programs as envisaged in the Energy
Conservation Act.

Objectives

 Provide a policy recommendation and direction to national energy conservation activities

 Coordinate policies and programmes on efficient use of energy with shareholders
 Establish systems and procedures to verify, measure and monitor Energy Efficiency (EE)
improvements
 Leverage multilateral, bilateral and private sector support to implement the EC Act '01
 Demonstrate EE delivery systems through public-private partnerships

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SUSTAINIBILITY WITH RESPECT TO NBC

 Approach to sustainability
 Siting, form and design
 External development and landscape
 Envelope optimization
 Materials
 Water waste management
 Building services optimization
 Constructional practices
 Commissioning, operation, maintenance and building
 Performance tracking
 Design strategies as per climate zones for various .
 Seasons
 Prescriptive method for envelope optimization
 Trade-off method for envelope optimization
 Whole building analysis method for envelope
 Optimization

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Approach to sustainability

Building construction, occupancy and additions/alterations including preventive and remedial

maintenance are always energy and material intensive. These elements and their use are inter-
dependent. There is need for integrated approach of considering them all together in general design
development and construction practice. It is necessary to assess the association of various factors
involved, rationalizing the impact of construction on neighbourhood and/or building micro-
climatic conditions to discern sustainability in the built environment.

Elements of Sustainability
 Higher design parameters
 Basic performance requirements adaptable to climatic zones
 Human comfort in building
 Ensure sustainability lasts in future
 Use of traditional wisdom in design
 Assess new materials and technologies for their long-term impact in the context of the
country.

Technology Options
 Encouraging and harnessing building materials
 Encouraging indigenous environment-friendly
 Identifying and encouraging appropriate technologies
 Making building construction moreindigenous, more adaptable to local climatic.

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 Siting, form and design

To evaluate all the passive design options to take advantage of local site and climatic
conditions,occupant requirements. Passive techniques are very cost effective, climate responsive and
energy efficient and help a building integrate better with its immediate environment and most
importantly do not create any negative impact on the environment unlike active systems that may
cause various negative impacts including ozone depletion, global warming and environmental
disruptions. The objective, therefore, is site design and development.

Site Assessment Prior to Design

 Establish,protected areas such as floodplains; forest department areas; water bodies.
Available onsite and surrounding areas and Ensure optimum utilization of the same in
Construction and post occupancy. Building Form, Orientation and Shading.

Building form, Orientation and shading:

 To prevent direct solar radiation and glare due to low altitude sun angles, specifically on the
eastern and western facades.
 The building is oriented optimally based on sun-path and engineering analysis

There is adequate protection for the building envelope against thermal losses, drafts and degradation
by natural elements such as wind,dust, sand, snow, rainwater, hail, etc

Thermal massing

 Building thermal massing studies to evaluate the impact on thermal mass on the
consequent thermal transmittance and energy performance of the building based on the sun-
path analysis and local/equivalent weather data.

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Optimum building volume
 For air conditioned buildings, efforts shall be made in design to reduce building volume by
reducing floor to floor and floor to ceiling height without compromising the utility and
functional efficiency of the building.
 For natural ventilated buildings or mixed mode ventilated building, the optimum building
volume and floor to floor heights to be ascertained and a report on the design and justification
of the same shall be prepared.
Form Development Plan
 The plan shall be in line with the decision making process of the project team and a narrative
shall be prepared briefly mentioning the justification behind the selected building form and
orientation of the building and shading devices to ensure that the final design meets with the
intent of this Part.
Natural Ventilation, Cooling and Wind Effects
 A report illustrating the evaluation of the various natural ventilation and cooling studies to
maximize natural ventilation or mixed mode ventilation based on adaptive thermal comfort
criteria for the project, shall be prepared. In addition, for high rise buildings, wind shall be
carried out to evaluate the impact of wind movement and natural air flow changes because of
the new building proposed to be erected.
Optimal Daylighting
 A day lighting analysis study based on the proposed form of the building for the project shall
be carried out and a report thereof prepared.
 It shall be demonstrated of the building achieve sufficient day lighting with minimum day
lighting factor of 2 percent or as described .

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External development and landscape:
Landscape Design
 Proper landscaping helps in maintaining natural capacity of site for stormwater management,
filtration, groundwater recharge and maintenance of soil structure thereby contributing to soil
organic matter, and preventing erosion.
 It helps in moderating microclimate through evaporation, transpiration and the uptake and
storage of carbon in trees and other vegetation.
Microclimatic conditions
 Microclimatic conditions play an important role in landscape design and in working out
irrigation requirements, as it accounts for the environmental conditions specific to the
landscape, including temperature, wind and humidity.
Heat island effect and parking design
 The heat island effect raises the localized temperature, impacting local climate/microclimate.
Plants and animals that are sensitive to large fluctuations in day time and night time
temperatures may not thrive in areas affected by heat island.
Vertical landscaping and roof gardens
 Roof garden and/or green walls or vertical landscaping may be provided as it helps in
conserving energy by providing shading, reduces heat island effect, helps (specially in dense
areas) in maintaining a certain biomass critical for human health and also helps in reducing
storm water flow rates through bio-retention.
Long term Public and Private Transportation Plan
The long term public and private transportation plan shall take care of the following considerations:
a) Incorporating urban transportation as an important parameter at the urban planning stage rather
han being a consequential requirement;
b) Encouraging integrated land use and transport planning in cities so that travel distances are
minimised and access to livelihoods, education, and other social needs, especially for the marginal
segments of the urban population is improved;
c) Improving access of business to markets and the various factors of production;
d) Bringing about a more equitable allocation of road space with people, rather than vehicles,
as its main focus;

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Envelope optimization:
 The building envelope acts as the interface between indoor and external climatic conditions. It
potentially Regulates the building climatic response.

 The building envelope should be designed to conserve energy substantially.

 Well designed building envelope maximizes daylight, natural ventilation (access to fresh air) and
views to the exterior, and enables to modulate solar heat gain and control/reduce noise.

 The building envelope may also be designed to integrate systems for renewable energy and
rainwater harvesting

Walls

 Enhancement oƒ thermal perƒormance oƒ walls

 Rigid or semi rigid blocks and boards (such as, mineral wool,
expanded polystyrene boards);
 Boards with impact or weather resistant surfaces suitable as exterior
grade material;
 Loose fill (such as, cellulose, fibre glass);
 Foam and dry spray (such as, polyurethane or polyisocyanurate); and
 Blankets, felts or sheets (such as, fibre glass, mineral wool, closed cell
flexible elastomeric foam).

Roofs

 The roofs of buildings receive most of heat throughout the day.

 Predominantly used construction practices in the country especially in urban areas, mainly involve
reinforced cement concrete (RCC) as the roofing element, which has high thermal conductivity.

 If the roof is exposed to solar heat, the temperature inside will also rise as the day progresses.

 When buildings are air conditioned, the purpose of the system is to maintain inside the building, a
lower temperature than the ambient. .

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 Envelope Optimization Methods for Energy Efficiency
 Prescriptive method — This method specifies a set of prescriptive requirements for building
systems and components. Compliance with these requirements can be achieved by meeting
or exceeding the specific levels described for each individual element of the building systems.
 Trade-off method — This is a systems-based approach, where the thermal performance of
individual envelope components can be reduced, if compensated by higher efficiency in other
building components
 Whole building analysis method — This method models the thermal, lighting,
ventilation occupancy, and other energy- consuming processes taking place within the building
to simulate and predict its energy performance.

Environmental Concerns and Human Health and Safety Aspects Related to Building Materials

 Increased demand for building materials creates a major and diversified impact on the environment.
 Excessive extraction of raw material diminishes non-renewable natural resources very rapidly.
 Even during some extraction process, waste is generated whose disposal may pose problems
 . Sometimes extraction processes may also affect the wildlife. Transportation of building materials
from one place to another is also a major indirect factor leading to harmful effects.
 During manufacturing or processing of some materials like plastic, harmful gases are generated,
which are dangerous for human health and environment.
 There are many frequently used building materials like reconstituted wood products, paints, glues,
carpet and upholstery, which may release gases, fumes, etc, from the chemical components used, even long
after the installation

Minimizing Green House Gas (GHG) Emission

 Construction sector in the country is a major consumer of energy resulting in the

largest share of CO 2me issions in the atmosphere.

 Cement, steel and bricks, the largest and bulk consumption items in the
construction

REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS 26

Materials:
An ideal sustainable building material is not only environment friendly, causes no adverse impact on
health of occupants, is readily available, can be reclaimed, can be recycled and is made from renewable raw
material, but also uses predominantly renewable energy in its extraction, production, transportation, fixing
and ultimate disposal. Practically, this kind of ideal material may not be available, hence when selecting
sustainable materials, it may be best to choose materials which fulfill most of these criteria

Building Fenestration and Detailing

Glazing -Glass is a high embodied energy mineral material. Its usage is in skylights, windows,
glazing systems, flooring, infill panels for doors. Glass helps to get in natural daylight to interior
spaces and provides views. Glazing, if not chosen and positioned in a building properly, may lead to
lot of heat ingress/egress.

Door and window ƒrames- Frames made of stone, wood, steel, aluminium, reinforced concrete and
UPVC are generally used for building construction. Use of stone frame should be preferred in the area where
they are locally available as they provide an economical, durable, and termite proof frame. Likewise
precast RCC door/window frames are another durable, economical and termite proof alternative.
Wooden frames provide better insulation than metal frames.

Climatic Control Materials-Climatic changes is the prime factor affecting longevity of the building,
maintenance of a safe and eco-friendly environment and durability of building materials. There are several
historic buildings which have existed for centuries due to the reason that they were built with durable
materials to withstand different climatic conditions of the places in which these were built.

Thermal insulation materials-The thermal insulation of walls and roof shall be done in accordance with
8.1.1 and 8.1.2. Thermal insulation materials are used for making a building resistant to heat ingress and
egress. A thermal insulator is a poor conductor of heat and has low thermal conductivity.

Moisture and air regulating materials-Moisture and air regulation in sustainable building is essential to
get better indoor environmental quality as well as to protect building and building components from damage.
Insulation and other components aimed at controlling seepage of moisture and air to and from building shall be
included in the building envelope design.

REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS 27

 Water and Waste Management:
The country has been well endowed with large freshwater reserves. However, with the increasing
population, industrial activity and pollution, surface and groundwater resources have been overexploited and
severely polluted during the past few decades. As a result, the country is faced with immense water scarcity

Conceptualization, planning and design stage — Water is essential to create liveable neighbourhoods
and public spaces. The function of a water supply system is to provide water from a source identified
through considered selection, treat the same to render it suitable for its intended use, and deliver it to the user
at the time and in the quantity prescribed.

Construction stage -Objective of construction stage is to create the built facility. The concerns of efficient
water use and waste have a potential to be ignored. It is essential to establish systems for water and waste
management so that the project teams monitor water consumption, control wastes and disposal in an
environmentally appropriate manner.

Perƒormance during use and corrective action -Building projects are planned, designed and
executed in accordance with the anticipated functional use. However, it is reasonable to expect some
variance during use.

Planning and Design of Water Supply System

Planning and design process begins with use analysis for demand assessment, identification of project
constraints and water sourcing. Inputs on these parameters are critical design brief contents. Hot water
systems are energy intensive building component. Opportunities for waste recovery, temperature setting and
selection of technologies that use clean fuels such as solar water heaters need to be included in the planning
and design approach for hot water systems.

Planning and Design of Waste Water System

This involves, quantity and quality assessment study, study of domestic water use-profile and scope of
recycled water use, system conceptualization and integration with other water systems; planning for
collection, treatment systems.

REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS 28

Water Use During Construction
Water from only authorized sources should be used for construction. Use of potable water for construction
should be avoided unless required for specific purposes. It is suggested to consider use of treated waste water from
appropriate sources with quality of treated waste water parameters confirming the quality required for use in
construction activity. Water quality for concreting work shall be in accordance to Part 6 ‘Structural Design, Section
5 Concrete’ of the Code

Management of Waste Water

Construction sites may have a constraint of not having a waste-water disposal, hence, the arrangements have to be
made within the construction site. It is imperative that the opportunities are identified to reduce the water
consumption and re-use treated waste-water. In the absence of appropriate waste-water disposal facilities,
unhygienic and unsightly conditions may prevail which may cause water borne diseases and act as
breeding ground for mosquitoes and develops unhealthy environment with bad odour and flies.

Planning and Design of Solid Waste Management System

10.2.1 Solid waste generated in buildings, if not managed properly may result in
unhygienic conditions, spread of foul smell, unsightly conditions and hazards such as
fire within the buildings, and hindrance in productive use of building. The solid
waste has also bearing on the functional planning of buildings. Collection and
movement of solid waste often overlaps with building circulation and, hence can cause
interference with the use that may be prohibited in occupancies such as hospitals
and hotels. Thus, the interventions during planning and design are critical for
solid waste management.

Design Detailing of Solid Waste System Elements

Design of solid waste system shall coincide with detailed architectural and engineering design. While
physical space requirements are necessary for the architectural design, design calculations for engineering
services requires inputs from various elements of waste management. Design detailing should be adequate to
ensure information needed for vendor selection and tender action.

REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS 29

Building services optimization:
In addition to achieving the optimum energy performance, the building should also provide the
desirable thermal and visual comfort to its occupants.

Solar passive techniques that can be adopted in different climate zones of India are,

a) landscaping (to reduce heat island effect);

b) optimum building orientation;
c) arrangement and shape of buildings;
d) effective surface to volume ratio;
e) location and size of openings on building facade and other elevation;
f) glazing type and performance; and
shading devices on windows and judicious selection of building materials

Natural and Mechanical Ventilation Strategies

Stack effect — Convective air currents may be induced in a building by exploiting temperature
difference between a space and the environment adjacent to it as the lighter warm air rises to be
replaced by cooler air. This phenomenon may be especially useful for ventilation in tall buildings,
vertical passages such as stairwells, elevators, and shafts. This helps in reducing the fan power
energy demand.

Wind-induced pressure differences -Wind pressure on a building depends on wind direction,

speed, shape of the building and location of its openings. The spatial cooling techniques may be
explored through windows/ openings to induce airflow from the windward side and outflow on the
leeward side. This is especially suited for tall buildings.

Night purging -Night purging takes advantage of the diurnal variation in temperatures
to lower the cooling demand of the space. In regions, where a significant difference exists
between day and night temperatures, this technique is useful for dissipating heat by flushing the
indoor space through ambient cool air.

REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS 30

Wind towers - Use of wind towers may be explored in hot and dry climates for cooling. The
function of this tower is to catch cooler breeze that prevail at a higher level above the ground and
direct it into the interior of the buildings. Wind towers operate in many ways depending on the
time of day and wind availability.

Passive Heating Techniques

Passive heating is the spontaneous warming effect resulting from the absorption of solar radiation
wherein solar energy is exploited to induce heat flow from the affected surface to indoor air, as well as
promote heat storage within the building structure. In the climatic zones requiring indoor space
heating, it may be explored to use the following strategies

a) Direct gain method-Controlled sun may be permitted into the habitable spaces through an opening
to directly heat the floor, walls or other internal components and objects, which, in turn, heat the air
within the room. Some examples of building materials that enable direct solar gain by acting as
thermal storage mass are concrete, bricks, stone and water. The high thermal mass is usually located
in the internal or external walls, floors or other built- in structures that receive sun directly.

b) Indirect gain - A thermal storage wall may be placed between the glazing and habitable space
which prevents solar radiation from directly entering the living space. The solar energy incident
on wall is absorbed by the wall and then indirectly transmitted to the habitable space over a longer
time.

c) Trombe wall -It is a thick solid wall with vents at its lower and upper ends. This wall may be
placed directly behind the glazing with an air gap in between. The vents act as inlets of warm air into
the room and as outlets for flushing out cool air from the room.

d) Solar chimneys - This system is a kind of modified trombe wall that is incorporated into the roof.
A solar chimney is essentially a collector panel with minimum thermal inertia on the south facade
of the building.

REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS 31