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- All Subjects: 19765
- All Subjects: Commercial buildings
- Creators: Bryan, Harvey
Description
This study examines the applicability of high dynamic range (HDR) imagery as a diagnostic tool for studying lighting quality in interior environments. It originates from the limitations in lighting quality assessments, particularly from the problematic nature of measuring luminance contrast--a significant lighting quality definer. In this research, HDR imaging method is studied systematically and in detail via extensive camera calibration tests considering the effect of lens and light source geometry (i.e. vignetting, point spread and modulation transfer functions), in-camera variables (i.e. spectral response, sensor sensitivity, metering mode,), and environmental variables (i.e. ambient light level, surface color and reflectance, light source spectral power distribution) on the accuracy of HDR-image-derived luminance data. The calibration test findings are used to create camera setup and calibration guidelines for future research, especially to help minimize errors in image extracted lighting data. The findings are also utilized to demonstrate the viability of the tool in a real world setting--an office environment combining vertical and horizontal tasks. Via the quasi-experimental setup, the relationship between line of sight and perceived luminance contrast ratios are studied using HDR images. Future research can benefit from the calibration guidelines to minimize HDR-based luminance estimation errors. The proposed tool can be used and tested in different contexts and tasks with varying user groups for revising the former luminance-contrast guidelines as well as surface reflectance recommendations.
ContributorsTural, Mehmedalp (Author) / Bryan, Harvey (Thesis advisor) / Kroelinger, Michael D. (Committee member) / Ozel, Filiz (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, commercial buildings represent about 40% of the United State's energy consumption of which office buildings consume a major portion. Gauging the extent to which an individual building consumes energy in excess of its peers is the first step in initiating energy efficiency improvement. Energy Benchmarking offers initial building energy performance assessment without rigorous evaluation. Energy benchmarking tools based on the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) database are investigated in this thesis. This study proposes a new benchmarking methodology based on decision trees, where a relationship between the energy use intensities (EUI) and building parameters (continuous and categorical) is developed for different building types. This methodology was applied to medium office and school building types contained in the CBECS database. The Random Forest technique was used to find the most influential parameters that impact building energy use intensities. Subsequently, correlations which were significant were identified between EUIs and CBECS variables. Other than floor area, some of the important variables were number of workers, location, number of PCs and main cooling equipment. The coefficient of variation was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the new model. The customization technique proposed in this thesis was compared with another benchmarking model that is widely used by building owners and designers namely, the ENERGY STAR's Portfolio Manager. This tool relies on the standard Linear Regression methods which is only able to handle continuous variables. The model proposed uses data mining technique and was found to perform slightly better than the Portfolio Manager. The broader impacts of the new benchmarking methodology proposed is that it allows for identifying important categorical variables, and then incorporating them in a local, as against a global, model framework for EUI pertinent to the building type. The ability to identify and rank the important variables is of great importance in practical implementation of the benchmarking tools which rely on query-based building and HVAC variable filters specified by the user.
ContributorsKaskhedikar, Apoorva Prakash (Author) / Reddy, T. Agami (Thesis advisor) / Bryan, Harvey (Committee member) / Runger, George C. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
A major problem faced by electric utilities is the need to meet electric loads during certain times of peak demand. One of the widely adopted and promising programs is demand response (DR) where building owners are encouraged, by way of financial incentives, to reduce their electric loads during a few hours of the day when the electric utility is likely to encounter peak loads. In this thesis, we investigate the effect of various DR measures and their resulting indoor occupant comfort implications, on two prototype commercial buildings in the hot and dry climate of Phoenix, AZ. The focus of this study is commercial buildings during peak hours and peak days. Two types of office buildings are modeled using a detailed building energy simulation program (EnergyPlus V6.0.0): medium size office building (53,600 sq. ft.) and large size office building (498,600 sq. ft.). The two prototype buildings selected are those advocated by the Department of Energy and adopted by ASHRAE in the framework of ongoing work on ASHRAE standard 90.1 which reflect 80% of the commercial buildings in the US. After due diligence, the peak time window is selected to be 12:00-18:00 PM (6 hour window). The days when utility companies require demand reduction mostly fall during hot summer days. Therefore, two days, the summer high-peak (15th July) and the mid-peak (29th June) days are selected to perform our investigations. The impact of building thermal mass as well as several other measures such as reducing lighting levels, increasing thermostat set points, adjusting supply air temperature, resetting chilled water temperature are studied using the EnergyPlus building energy simulation program. Subsequently the simulation results are summarized in tabular form so as to provide practical guidance and recommendations of which DR measures are appropriate for different levels of DR reductions and the associated percentage values of people dissatisfied (PPD). This type of tabular recommendations is of direct usefulness to the building owners and operators contemplating DR response. The methodology can be extended to other building types and climates as needed.
ContributorsKhanolkar, Amruta (Author) / Reddy, T Agami (Thesis advisor) / Addison, Marlin (Committee member) / Bryan, Harvey (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Due to the lack of understanding of soil thermal behavior, rules-of-thumb and generalized procedures are typically used to guide building professionals in the design of ground coupled heat pump systems. This is especially true when sizing the ground heat exchanger (GHE) loop. Unfortunately, these generalized procedures often encourage building engineers to adopt a conservative design approach resulting in the gross over-sizing of the GHE, thus drastically increasing their installation cost. This conservative design approach is particularly prevalent for buildings located in hot and arid climates, where the soils are often granular and where the water table tends to exist deep below the soil surface. These adverse soil conditions reduce the heat dissipation efficiency of the GHE and have hindered the adoption of ground coupled heat pump systems in such climates. During cooling mode operation, heat is extracted from the building and rejected into the ground via the GHE. Prolonged heat dissipation into the ground can result in a coupled flow of both heat and moisture, causing the moisture to migrate away from the GHE piping. This coupled flow phenomenon causes the soil near the GHE to dry out and results in the degradation of the GHE heat dissipation capacity. Although relatively simple techniques of backfilling the GHE have been used in practice to mitigate such coupled effects, methods of improving the thermal behavior of the backfill region around the GHE, especially in horizontal systems, have not been extensively studied. This thesis presents an experimental study of heat dissipation from a horizontal GHE, buried in two backfill materials: (1) dry sand, and (2) wax-sand composite mixture. The HYDRUS software was then used to numerically model the temperature profiles associated with the aforementioned backfill conditions, and the influence of the contact resistance at the GHE-backfill interface was studied. The modeling strategy developed in HYDRUS was proven to be adequate in predicting the thermal performance of GHE buried in dry sand. However, when predicting the GHE heat dissipation in the wax-sand backfill, significant discrepancies between model prediction and experimental results still exist even after calibrating the model by including a term for the contact resistance. Overall, the thermal properties of the backfill were determined to be a key determinant of the GHE heat dissipation capacity. In particular, the wax-sand backfill was estimated to dissipate 50-60% more heat than dry sand backfill.
ContributorsDAngelo, Kurtis (Author) / Reddy, T Agami (Thesis advisor) / Bryan, Harvey (Committee member) / Kavazanjian, Edward (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
The aim of this research study is to develop a passive architectural design morphology, tuned to the Sonoran Desert, which redefines Desert Modernism and integrates: (a) mitigation of heat transfer through the exterior envelope, and (b) use of daylight to inform appropriate architectural massing. The research investigation was delimited to mid-nineteenth century European modernist examples, and ends with mid-twentieth century modern architecture in the southwestern United States as viewed through the lens of environmental design. The specific focus was on Desert Modernism, a quasi-architectural movement, which purportedly had its beginnings in 1923 with the Coachella Valley, Popinoe Desert Cabin.
A mixed-method research strategy comprised of interpretive-historical research, virtual simulation/modeling analysis and logical argumentation is used. Succinct discussions on desert vernacular design, Modernism’s global propagation, and the International Style reinterpretations were illustrated to introduce the possibility of a relationship between Modernism and the vernacular. A directed examination of climatic responses included within examples of California Modernism, the Case Study Houses and Desert Modernism follows. Three case studies: a) the Frey House II, b) the Triad Apartments, and c) the Analemma House were assessed using virtual simulation and mathematical calculations, to provide conclusive results on the relevance of regionally tuned exterior envelope design and planning tactics for the Phoenix, Arizona area. Together, these findings suggest a correlation between environmental design principles, vernacular architecture, and Modernism.
A mixed-method research strategy comprised of interpretive-historical research, virtual simulation/modeling analysis and logical argumentation is used. Succinct discussions on desert vernacular design, Modernism’s global propagation, and the International Style reinterpretations were illustrated to introduce the possibility of a relationship between Modernism and the vernacular. A directed examination of climatic responses included within examples of California Modernism, the Case Study Houses and Desert Modernism follows. Three case studies: a) the Frey House II, b) the Triad Apartments, and c) the Analemma House were assessed using virtual simulation and mathematical calculations, to provide conclusive results on the relevance of regionally tuned exterior envelope design and planning tactics for the Phoenix, Arizona area. Together, these findings suggest a correlation between environmental design principles, vernacular architecture, and Modernism.
ContributorsSoltero, Ed (Author) / Zygas, Kestutis (Thesis advisor) / Bryan, Harvey (Thesis advisor) / Domin, Christopher (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
The building sector is one of the main energy consumers within the USA. Energy demand by this sector continues to increase because new buildings are being constructed faster than older ones are retired. Increase in energy demand, in addition to a number of other factors such as the finite nature of fossil fuels, population growth, building impact on global climate change, and energy insecurity and independence has led to the increase in awareness towards conservation through the design of energy efficient buildings. Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB), a highly efficient building that produces as much renewable energy as it consumes annually, provides an effective solution to this global concern. The intent of this thesis is to investigate the relationship of an important factor that has a direct impact on NZEB: Floor / Area Ratio (FAR). Investigating this relationship will help to answer a very important question in establishing NZEB in hot-arid climates such as Phoenix, Arizona. The question this thesis presents is: “How big can a building be and still be Net Zero?” When does this concept start to flip and buildings become unable to generate the required renewable energy to achieve energy balance? The investigation process starts with the analysis of a local NZEB, DPR Construction Office, to evaluate the potential increase in building footprint and FAR with respect to the current annual Energy Use Intensity (EUI). Through the detailed analysis of the local NZEB, in addition to the knowledge gained through research, this thesis will offer an FAR calculator tool that can be used by design teams to help assess the net zero potential of their project. The tool analyzes a number of elements within the project such as total building footprint, available surface area for photovoltaic (PV) installation, outdoor circulation and landscape area, parking area and potential parking spots, potential building area in regards to FAR, number of floors based on the building footprint, FAR, required area for photovoltaic installation, photovoltaic system size, and annual energy production, in addition to the maximum potential FAR their project can reach and still be Net Zero.
ContributorsBen Salamah, Fahad (Author) / Bryan, Harvey (Thesis advisor) / Reddy, T. Agami (Committee member) / Ramalingam, Muthukumar (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
Rapid urbanization in Phoenix, Arizona has increased the nighttime temperature by 5°C (9 °F), and the average daily temperatures by 3.1°C (5.6 °F) (Baker et al 2002). On the macro scale, the energy balance of urban surface paving materials is the main contributor to the phenomenon of the Urban Heat Island effect (UHI). On the micro scale, it results in a negative effect on the pedestrian thermal comfort environment. In their efforts to revitalize Downtown Phoenix, pedestrian thermal comfort improvements became one of the main aims for City planners. There has been an effort in reformulating City zoning standards and building codes with the goal of developing a pedestrian friendly civic environment. Much of the literature dealing with mitigating UHI effects recommends extensive tree planting as the chief strategy for reducing the UHI and improving outdoor human thermal comfort. On the pedestrian scale, vegetation plays a significant role in modifying the microclimate by providing shade and aiding the human thermal comfort via evapotranspiration. However, while the extensive tree canopy is beneficial in providing daytime shade for pedestrians, it may reduce the pavement surfaces' sky-view factor during the night, thereby reducing the rate of nighttime radiation to the sky and trapping the heat gained within the urban materials. This study strives to extend the understanding, and optimize the recommendations for the use of landscape in the urban context of Phoenix, Arizona for effectiveness in both improving the human thermal comfort and in mitigating the urban heat island effect.
ContributorsRosheidat, Akram (Author) / Bryan, Harvey (Thesis advisor) / Lee, Taewoo (Committee member) / Chalfoun, Nader (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014