TECHNICAL SESSIONS ASHRAE WINTER CONFERENCE
‘Low impact’ building design in Africa
In a session on sustainable development in Africa, Dunstan Macauley of TAI Engineers looked at how the traditional designs of African buildings and the historic technologies coupled with modern construction techniques can steer the development of future buildings with less environmental impact. He identified that this was a critical period as the next quarter century will see extensive growth in African consumption. Currently the largest proportion of African energy is used in industry, with very little residential and even smaller commercial energy use.
The African ‘middle class’ is expected to double in the next 20 years, and with it exploitation of massive African natural resources is also predicted to soar, with the
accompanying CO2 emissions. Current building trends largely follow ‘western’ design styles that are not necessarily appropriate for the climate. Dunstan showed examples of indigenous building techniques, including adobe construction, double-skin façades, natural ventilation, careful orientation, shading and vegetation solar control.
He showed examples of modern schools, where traditional applications of techniques such as high-pitched roofs and skylights/ openings helped promote natural ventilation, while maintaining moderate internal temperatures. He was clear that the input of international professional skills was needed to enable real opportunity for sustainable development in Africa.
Renewable biogas in Africa
NIST tested the build up of VOCs in an airtight home
Software for apps
Richard Sydlowski of the Center for Energy and Environment, Minneapolis, looked at software developments for smartphones and tablets. He said that for building professionals it may not be possible for apps to be continuously connected to the net (for example in plantrooms) but that users would want to be able to upload/ update data on return to an office. He illustrated the potential of using an app to assess a domestic building asset rating and highlighted attributes that were important when designing the usability of such a survey app: Common user-interface on phones/tablets Scalable user interface for different size devices Simple user input – tick boxes or select lists Ability to include photos or sketches Allowing user to follow a nonlinear workflow Integration with existing apps to utilise best available resources
Opportunity to display output quickly Sydlowski said there were plenty of software tools and standard protocols to assist developers but cautioned that significant investment in training was required to produce a meaningful app: he said it had taken 18 months to develop the skills in his small organisation. An evaluation of the development of the app as part of the Home Energy Score Project can be downloaded from
mncee.org
www.cibsejournal.com
A presentation on renewables in Africa was given by NG Bailey’s Kayley Lockhead, the winner of a CIBSE Ken Dale Travel Bursary in 2013. Lockhead highlighted both current and future energy, challenges in Africa, where a population of 1bn is likely to double within the next 35 years. Lockhead said that while many Africans had leap-frogged the evolution of communications technology with the massive uptake of mobile phones, the continent had the least reliable grid electricity in the world. She also highlighted the reliance on kerosene for lighting by millions of Africans. Traditionally the affordable way of providing light for things like children’s homework, this can lead to devastating fires and severe health problems from fumes. She considered a number of renewable energy solutions, many being developments of extant
African methods such as biomass, biogas, micro-hydro and charcoal production. She highlighted the local production of biogas using small biodigester systems fed by household and animal waste. These could be built with a 15 to 20 year life using local skills and materials for about £3,600. They could supply energy for a household (cooking, lighting and potentially refrigeration) as well as provide a slurry that would fertilize the land that would – in part – be recycled to create more biogas. Apart from providing a source of energy this reduces methane that would otherwise be released into the environment.
Kayleys’ Ken Dale report is available from the CIBSE web site at
bit.ly/1e58eua
See Lockhead’s drawing of a biolatrine on the web optimised version of at
cibsejournal.com
Biodigester system at community school run by the Good Sheppard Community on Homia Road in Uganda
March 2014 CIBSE Journal 47
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT WORK’
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80