Sustainable Facades: Design Methods for High-Performance Building Envelopes

From the Author: Inspirations for the Book

The inspirations for this book came from several different sources. First and foremost, the architectural and design community is currently faced with a difficult challenge to design environmentally sensitive, high-performance buildings that significantly reduce our energy consumption and improve occupants satisfaction. Since facades are one of the most significant contributors to the energy budget and the comfort parameters of any building, their designs and performance are an essential factor.

I see similar types of questions being asked over and over again regarding the best design methods for improving facade performance on different architectural projects, such as:

• What are the appropriate design strategies for different climate types?
• How to choose facade types and materials to improve their performance?
• How to treat different building orientations?
• What are the best passive design methods for improving the performance?
• What are the best methods for daylighting?
• How to balance opaque and glazed areas of the facade?
• What are the emerging technologies and materials for facades?

The main reason why I decided to write this book is that comprehensive guidelines which address these and other questions are currently not available. The inspiration came partially from a number of different design projects located across the world that considered these aspects, and partially from my extensive research work focusing on advanced building technologies and facade designs. I realized that a systematic set of design and technical guidelines, differentiated by climate type, location and type of building envelope would be valuable to the architectural/engineering/construction community. And therefore, the writing and preparation of this book began.

What did I consider and include? The book starts with the introduction to different climate classification systems, climate-based design strategies for facades, and review of energy code recommendations for building envelopes. Then the characteristics of sustainable, high-performance facades are discussed, and the guidelines for minimizing energy consumption associated with facade designs. A part of the book focuses on methods for improving occupants comfort (thermal, visual and acoustic). Emerging facade technologies and advanced materials are also discussed, since innovative design approaches can be used to improve facade performance.

The distinctive feature of this book is that scientific and technical principles are discussed and presented, while also specific case studies are used to demonstrate and illustrate how these principles have been applied to actual buildings. The case studies include different building types (educational facilities, laboratory buildings, mixed commercial and residential buildings) located in different climates, and cover both mid-rise and high-rise buildings.

What I hope is that this book will provide guidance to readers and help them in decision-making when considering appropriate methods for the design of high-performance facades.