Browsing by Subject "LEED"
Now showing 1 - 15 of 15
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Building green in Austin : meeting your desired bottom line(2008-12) Bean, David Lawrence; Paterson, Robert G.During the past couple of decades, developing buildings that are actually sensitive to the needs of the environment has started to be a common trend. Today, the green building movement has reached all corners of the United States and even the world. The United States Green Building Council formed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system to serve as a guideline for measuring the degree to which a building is considered to be environmentally friendly and “green”. The LEED system outlines a number of requirements necessary to achieve one of four different certification levels: Platinum, Gold, Silver or Certified. Each of these levels requires a different number of points awarded based on achievement of various credits during the design and construction phases of a building project. The purpose of this study is two-fold. First, it is to explore the green building movement and discuss the overall benefits of building green. Included in this is a discussion of what it actually means to develop a LEED Certified building, and what a building’s certification status means for both short and long-term costs and benefits toward meeting a developer’s desired bottom line. Secondly, building on that investigation, a determination will be made as to whether or not it is financially viable for a developer to construct a LEED Certified building in Austin, Texas and still achieve his or her desired bottom line as it relates to his or her profit margin.Item Correlation between Median Household Income and LEED Sustainable Site Criteria for Public Transportation Access and a Regression Model Predicting Appraised Unit Value of Unimproved Parcels in Houston, Texas(2010-07-14) Ji, QundiThe Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System provides third-party verification for environmentally sustainable construction. LEED certified buildings often provide healthier work and living environments, however, it does not provide any direct economic incentives to the owners and developers. An early research suggested that there was a significant correlation between appraised unit value of a parcel and LEED sustainable site criteria for public transportation access. Moreover, the regression model for predicting appraised unit value of a parcel suggested that the coefficient of Number of Light Rail Stations was positive, while the coefficient of Number of Bus Stops was negative. This result contradicted our original expectation that both number of bus stops and light rail stations could have a positive effect on the appraised unit value. Hence it becomes important to conduct further research to explain this phenomenon. In this research, Pearson correlation was examined to determine whether there is a significant correlation between median household income and the number of bus stops and light rail stations for a given parcel that meet LEED sustainable site criteria for public transportation access. After confirming no significant correlation exists, multiple regression analysis was applied to establish a regression model for predicting unit value of a given parcel using number of bus stops and light rail stations for a given parcel that meet LEED sustainable site criteria for public transportation access, median household income and parcel area as the independent variables. Result of Pearson correlation indicated that there was no significant correlation exists between median household income and the number of bus stops and light rail stations for a given parcel which met LEED sustainable site criteria for public transportation access. Findings of multiple regression analysis suggested that all independent variables were significant predictors for unit value of a parcel. Besides, this regression model had a higher adjusted R- square value than that of the model which was established by Bhagyashri Joshi. It means that this regression model could better predict appraised unit value of an unimproved parcel.Item Designing for disasters : incorporating hazard mitigation methods into the LEED for new construction and major renovations framework(2010-05) Gray, Meredith Eileen, 1984-; Paterson, Robert G.; Lang, Werner X.; Zarnikau, JayGreen buildings are increasingly in demand yet current green building practices often do not consider hazard mitigation. High-performance buildings that can withstand hazards, protect residents, and do not need to be rebuilt following a disaster are truly sustainable buildings. This report focuses on current hazard mitigation and disaster resilience standards for wildfires and earthquakes through an in-depth analysis of case studies and best practices for these hazards. The U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) framework is the ideal vehicle to incorporate hazard mitigation methods into official green building certification. Language for a new LEED Hazard Mitigation and Resilience credit area is established using guidelines for hazard mitigation for wildfires and earthquakes.Item Electrodeposition of ultrathin Pd, Co and Bi films on well-defined noble-metal electrodes: studies by ultrahigh vacuum-electrochemistry (UHV-EC)(Texas A&M University, 2006-10-30) Baricuatro, Jack Hess LThree illustrative cases involving the electrodeposition of ultrathin metal films of varying reactivities onto noble-metal substrates were investigated: (i) Pd on Pt(111), a noble admetal on a noble-metal surface; (ii) Bi on Pd(111), a less noble admetal on a noble-metal surface; and (iii) Co on polycrystalline Pd and Pd(111), a reactive metal on a noble-metal surface. The interfacial electrochemistry of these prototypical systems was characterized using a combination of electrochemical methods (voltammetry and coulometry) and ultrahigh vacuum electron spectroscopies (Auger electron spectroscopy, AES; low energy electron diffraction, LEED; and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, XPS). Potential-controlled adsorption-desorption cycles of aqueous bromide exerted surface smoothening effects on ultrathin Pd films with defect sites (steps). This procedure, dubbed as electrochemical (EC) annealing, constituted a nonthermal analogue to conventional annealing. EC-annealed ultrathin Pd films exhibited long-range surface order and remained free of oxygen adspecies. Pdadatoms occupying step-sites were selectively dissolved and/or rearranged to assume equilibrium positions in a well-ordered (1x1) film. Electrodeposition of Co was found to be highly surface-structuresensitive. While virtually no Co electrodeposition transpired on a clean Pd(111) surface, Co was voltammetrically deposited on (i) a Pd(111) electrode roughened by oxidation-reduction cycles; and (ii) thermally annealed polycrystalline Pd, which is a composite of the (111) and (100) facets. Electrodeposition of Co was also observed to be kinetically hindered and slow potential scan rates (0.1 mV/s) were required. Well-defined ultrathin Bi films were potentiostatically electrodeposited onto Pd(111); a Stranski-Krastanov growth mode was indicated. The electrochemical reactivity of ultrathin Bi films was characterized using two surface probes: aqueous iodide and D-glucose. (i) Exposure of the prepared Bi adlayers (????Bi 0.33) to aqueous iodide gave rise to (??????3x??????7) I-on-Bi superlattice. The same superlattice was obtained if Bi was electrodeposited onto Pd(111)(??????3x??????3)R30o-I. (ii) With respect to electrooxidation of D-glucose on Pd(111), the presence of Bi adlayers inhibited the by-product-induced "surface poisoning" of Pd(111) but reduced its electrocatalytic efficiency.Item Exploring the Effectiveness of LEED Certification in LEED Certified Healthcare Settings in Climate Zone 2 and 3(2012-10-19) Xuan, XiaodongMost LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified buildings are commercial office buildings and multi-use buildings. As of October 2009, 35,000 projects were registered in the LEED system, "comprising over 4.5 billion square feet of construction space in all 50 states and 91 countries." However, as of April 30, 2009, only 43 healthcare projects had achieved LEED certification. Currently, most studies focus on the economic benefits and energy consumption of LEED certified buildings, rather than human factors. A small gain in productivity can result in a heftier financial gain. Even modest improvements in productivity and absenteeism can substantially outweigh the energy cost. This study surveyed 164 staff in the two healthcare settings for case study, and 146 staff in the six LEED certified healthcare settings for the main study in climate zone 2 and 3. Telephone interviews with the six facility managers were used to verify the survey results and further examine the healthcare facilities? performance and the effectiveness of the LEED strategies from facility managers' perspectives. Independent t-test was used to examine the difference between the LEED and Non-LEED hospitals in one healthcare system and results showed that building performance were rated higher by staff in LEED certified hospital than Non-LEED hospital. MANOVA was conducted to compare the staff's ratings between Silver and Gold certification levels, male and female, and also explore the possibility of interaction effect. Multilevel regression modeling was used to test how the building performance variables affect the overall comfort and productivity. Study results showed that staff in the Gold certified hospital had significant higher ratings in most the performance variables. Gold certified healthcare settings were significant better in rated building overall, overall comfort and controllability than Silver certified healthcare settings. And males felt more comfortable in temperature than females in healthcare facilities. Regarding the overall comfort and productivity, building design, efficiency of the space use, temperature comfort and controllability over building system were significant predictors for staff overall comfort; and lighting comfort, temperature comfort and controllability over building system had significant positive relationship with perceived productivity. LEED certified healthcare settings appear to have a good environment and building performance for occupants. Controllability, lighting, temperature, use of space, building design were important factors in staff comfort and productivity.Item LEED and historic preservation : a study of USGBC’s LEED rating system for new construction and major renovations as it pertains to historic building renovations(2012-05) Hamilton, Andreea Maura Monica 1973-; Holleran, Michael; Gale, Frances R.This thesis discusses the United States Green Building Council’s proposed changes in the LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Rating System for New Construction and Major Renovations from the current 2009 version to the proposed 2012 version, as they pertain to historic building renovation projects. The comparison is aimed at determining whether the proposed changes to the rating system are becoming more favorable to historic preservation, promoting the rehabilitation and reuse of historic buildings as environmentally responsible practices. The discussion is taken a step further by proposing potential modifications and metrics that could be implemented into the LEED® Rating System in order to help advance historic preservation by recognizing the many inherent sustainable qualities of historic buildings, such as regional climate-adaptive features, durable materials and skilled craftsmanship. The upcoming renovation of Battle Hall and West Mall Building, two buildings that are part of the School of Architecture complex at the University of Texas at Austin, serves as case study of historic buildings undergoing major renovations to which both the LEED 2009 and LEED 2012 Draft Rating Systems for New Construction and Major Renovations are applied. An analysis of the results informs the comparison between the two versions of the rating system. The results of the comparison indicate that changes in the LEED® rating system for New Construction and Major Renovation from the 2009 to the 2012 version are favorable for historic preservation. The USGBC is advancing in the right direction with establishing more credits for historic preservation projects. The 2012 3rd Public Comment Draft rating system introduces the notion of “historic building” and that of “historic district” for the first time, in credits that address infill within a historic district and reuse of a historic building, with work performed in accordance with The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties. This represents a step forward toward integrating historic preservation and building reuse in the vocabulary of sustainability.Item Mold susceptibility of rapidly renewable materials used in wall construction(2009-05-15) Cooper, Aaron McGillSince 1998, the United States Green Building Council, via the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, has established the premiere set of guidelines for construction ethics from the standpoint of eco-friendliness and occupant safety and health in the U.S. and around the world. These guidelines are skyrocketing in use due in part to two reasons: ? increased awareness of a need for reducing, reusing, and recycling in order to save resources and natural areas for future generations; and, ? increased amount of time spent indoors in work places and homes. The LEED guidelines encourage sustainable and responsible use of land, water, energy, and materials, and promote a safe and healthy environment through use of innovative designs and technology. As part of the responsible use of materials, the LEED guidelines encourage the use of rapidly renewable materials such as cotton, straw, wool, and cork as insulation products. Although these products can be produced naturally and quickly from nature, they are also cellulose or carbohydrate based products. Cellulose and carbohydrate based materials are typically optimal food sources for mold in the presence of moisture, ironically destroying facilities and creating poor living and work environments. Samples of wool, cork, straw, and cotton--rapidly renewable materials used as exterior wall insulation products--were exposed to different moisture amounts in an encapsulated environment, representing the environment within a wall cavity when exposed to water from pipes, leaks, condensation and absorption, or from initial construction. The samples were monitored over time for mold growth. The data logged from the samples were analyzed to determine the degree of mold susceptibility of each material. In addition, samples with increased amounts of moisture were examined to determine increased promotion of mold growth. The results from this study showed that all of the above mentioned materials were highly susceptible to mold growth and that the moisture amount did not increase the rate of mold growth. Based on the data collected from this study, recommendations were made to review the current use of rapidly renewable and other cellulose and carbohydrate based materials in wall construction.Item Occupant Evaluation of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certified Health Centers(2010-01-14) Hill, Anorea M.Globally, concern for natural resource depletion is growing. The healthcare industry is looking to improve healthcare environments by improving design and using better resources. The U.S. Green Building Council has created the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard that gives suggestions on how to best use energy, water, land, materials and provide a comfortable indoor environment. Many health centers have used this standard to build new health facilities. It is important that the LEED standards benefit the environment as well as healthcare staff. This study presents four case studies of LEED health centers whose medical staff and administrators evaluate the perceivable green building features applied to their facility. All facilities were given the Occupant Evaluation of LEED Certified Health Centers Survey. The Patrick Dollard Discovery Health Center, the Richard J. Lacks Cancer Center, the Angel Harvey Infant Welfare of Chicago, and the Pearland Pediatric centers received overall satisfactory scores from the occupants. Within the case studies variations in satisfaction occurred where LEED points were not received. There is no evidence that perceivable features used in the design and construction of LEED certified health centers decrease occupant satisfaction.Item Pilot Study for Quantifying LEED Energy & Atmosphere Operational Savings in Healthcare Facilities(2012-10-19) Daniels, Patrick RudolphOwner groups and Facility Managers of health care facilities interested in reducing operation and maintenance (O&M) expenses for new facilities have often been placed in the difficult position of making cost-benefit assessments without a complete understanding of the cumulative impact of building systems selection on their internal rate of return. This is particularly true when owners are evaluating the initial cost and operational benefit (if any) of obtaining various levels of "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design" (LEED) certifications for their buildings. Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning, and Lighting (HVAC&L) loads comprise 51% of the total energy demand in the typical outpatient facility; however, in order to estimate the likelihood of achieving a particular LEED rating for a new building, a "Whole Building Energy Simulation" is necessary to evaluate HVAC&L system performance. The conventional of requiring a design upon which to base an analysis presents owner operators attempting to perform a Lifecycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) early in the concept phase with two unique problems - how to estimate energy use without an actual "design" to model, and how to estimate a system's first cost without knowing its performance requirements. This study outlines a process by which existing energy metrics from the Department of Energy (DOE), Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS), and Energy Star, can be made early during the developer's pro forma phase - without the need for a building design. Furthermore, preliminary business decisions targeted at determining the likelihood of obtaining a particular LEED rating, and specifying the corresponding building systems, can be estimated without the cost required to employ an Architect and Engineer (A&E) team, or the time necessary to develop a design. This paper concludes that regional factors can dramatically affect a building's required level of energy performance, and that the highest performing HVAC&L system, irrespective of cost, will not always provide the best return on investment. Accordingly, the national averages utilized to establish LEED EA1 thresholds do not reflect the cost particularities owners may encounter when developing in various climate zones, and therefor may be less relevant to lifecycle considerations that previously believed.Item Predicting the Appraised Unit Value of Unimproved Parcels in San Francisco, CA Using LEED Sustainable Site Credit Criteria, Parcel area, Zoning, and Population Density(2012-10-19) Cho, Hyun JeongNowadays many people recognize the need for sustainable development more than ever because of improper urban sprawl, rapid exhaustion of natural resources, and serious environmental problems. Emission of carbon dioxide from transportation sources causes severe air contamination, and this will increase due to the continued use of private vehicles. Thus, local governments are trying to keep public transit on a satisfactory level due to rising commuting time for cities. The U.S. Census shows that the majority of people would prefer to use their private automobile rather than utilize existing mass transit systems. Therefore, it is up to local governments to consider setting up more efficient alternative mass transit systems to deal with the increasing pollution caused by automobiles. Organizations adopt certain environmental standards for many different reasons, such as commitment to environmental issues affecting their industry. Other organizations could also benefit, both economically and environmentally, by utilizing such standards. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system is one of the more commonly-used environmental standards which presents guidelines for making decisions regarding land development while preserving the environment. However, only a few studies have attempted to evaluate this voluntary rating system which makes it difficult to justify the motivation of organizations that have adopted such voluntary standards. In this respect, this research primarily aims to explore the economic influence on the market value of undeveloped land through an analysis of public transportation in San Francisco, CA. Population density and area of each parcel are the factors considered to make the predictive model more powerful. Findings in this study show that LEED PTA (Public Transportation Accessibility) criteria, and population density significantly affect the appraised land unit value in specific purposed zones. Particularly, the economic impact of public transportation accessibility tended to be positive. With these findings, the statistical model for predicting land value was created. The result of this research can assist developers to make better site selections to accelerate the growth of sustainable construction.Item Predicting the Unit Appraisal Value of the Unimproved and Private Land in the City of Houston by LEED Sustainable Site Credits(2011-02-22) Park, Young JunThe primary objectives of this research are to identify the relation between Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) criteria regarding sustainable site credits and the appraised value of land parcels in the City of Houston, and additionally to analyze the effects of detail components which leverage the sustainable credits regarding the Public Transportation Access (PTA) in terms of economic issues. To accomplish these objectives, the approach to estimate sustainable ratings of specific parcels using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) was established. Green construction must be one of the most powerful trends in the construction industry. One of the main concepts to underlie the basis of this green construction is sustainability. This sustainability has to be considered in the process of the site selection prior to the actual activities to construct a building. Recently, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has suggested the modified guideline with "LEED 2009 for New Construction and Major Renovations". According to this metric, it is clear that this principle endeavors to block environmental abuses related to land development or restoration projects. On the other hand, it is not easy to check the serviceability of these rules to guarantee continuous economic merit through sustainable land development or restoration encouraged by these criteria. The criteria regarding the sustainable site selection in this LEED metric are Sustainable Site Credit (SSC) #1: Site Selection, SSC #3: Brownfield, and SSC #4.1: Public Transportation Access. Linear regression methods were used for predictive analysis. In this model, the unit appraisal value of the land was used as the dependent variable to reflect the economic values of the land, and LEED-sustainable-site criteria were used as the categorical independent variables. According to statistical results, the models to predict the appraisal parcel value using sustainable site components have relatively low R-square. Moreover, SSC #1 and SSC #3 were not significant factors affecting the unit value of land. This outcome means that there are no statistically significant effects of SSC #1 and SSC #3 on parcel value. On the other hand, SSC #4.1 was highly significant. Furthermore, the detail components of SSC #4.1 regarding the bus stops and railroad stations were also significant. These results can lead to improved environmental preservation by avoiding development which is far from the PTA as well as increasing economic value while enhancing the development density near the PTA corridors. Finally, GIS was used to determine the LEED ratings of individual parcels. The methods established to do this can be applied to other projects for the other regions, or the same region at different times.Item Refining building energy modeling through aggregate analysis and probabilistic methods associated with occupant presence(2013-08) Stoppel, Christopher Michael; Leite, FernandaThe building sector represents the largest energy consumer among the United States' end use sectors. As a result, the public and private sector will continue to place great emphasis on designing energy efficient buildings that minimize operating costs while maintaining a healthy environment for its occupants. Creating design-phase building energy models can facilitate the process of selecting life-cycle appropriate design strategies aimed at maximizing building energy efficiency. The primary objective of this research study is to gain greater insight into likely causes of variation between energy predictions derived from building energy models and building energy performance during post-occupancy. Identifying sources of error can be used to improve future modeling efforts that can potentially lead to greater accuracy and better decisions made during the building's design phase. My research approach is to develop a method for conducting retrospective analysis of building energy models in the areas that affect the building's predicted and actual energy consumption. This entails collecting pre-construction and post-occupancy related data from various entities that exhibit influence on the building's energy performance. The method is then applied to recently-constructed military dormitory buildings that utilized building energy modeling and now have actual, metered building energy consumption data. The study also examines how building occupancy impacts energy performance. The value of this work will provide additional insight to future building energy modeling efforts.Item Tailoring nanoscale metallic heterostructures with novel quantum properties(2013-05) Sanders, Charlotte E.; Shih, Chih-Kang; Raizen, Mark G.Silver (Ag) is an ideal low-loss platform for plasmonic applications, but from a materials standpoint it presents challenges. Development of plasmonic devices based on Ag thin film has been hindered both by the dificulty of fabricating such film and by its fragility out of vacuum. Silver is non-wetting on semiconducting and insulating substrates, but on certain semiconductors and insulators can adopt a metastable atomically at epitaxial film morphology if it is deposited using the "two-step" growth method. This method consists of deposition at low temperature and annealing to room temperature. However, epitaxial Ag is metastable, and dewets out of vacuum. The mechanisms of dewetting in this system remain little understood. The fragility of Ag film presents a particular problem for the engineering of plasmonic devices, which are predicted to have important industrial applications if robust low-loss platforms can be developed. This dissertation presents two sets of experiments. In the first set, scanning probe techniques and low energy electron microscopy have been used to characterize Ag(111) growth and dewetting on two orientations of silicon (Si), Si(111) and Si(100). These studies reveal that multiple mechanisms contribute to Ag film dewetting. Film stability is observed to increase with thickness, and thickness to play a decisive role in determining dewetting processes. A method has been developed to cap Ag film with germanium (Ge) to stabilize it against dewetting. The second set of experiments consists of optical studies that focus on the plasmonic properties of epitaxial Ag film. Because of the problems posed until now by epitaxial Ag growth and stabilization, research and development in the area of plasmonics has been limited to devices based on rough, thermally evaporated Ag film, which is robust and simple to produce. However, plasmonic damping in such film is higher than in epitaxial film. The optical studies presented here establish that Ag film can now be stabilized sufficiently to allow optical probing and device applications out of vacuum. Furthermore, they demonstrate the superiority of epitaxial Ag film relative to thermally evaporated film as a low-loss platform for plasmonic devices spanning the visible and infrared regimes.Item The effects of the implementation of grey water reuse systems on construction cost and project schedule(2009-05-15) Kaduvinal Varghese, JeslinOne of the factors emphasized by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a national consensus-based standard under the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) for developing sustainable or high performance buildings, is water efficiency. A LEED registered project can attain up to five points under water efficiency upon successful integration of various techniques to conserve water. Many techniques are available to conserve water and grey water reuse is one option considered by many LEED registered projects. In spite of widespread popularity, some of the sustainable techniques including grey water reuse, which is recommended by the USGBC and various agencies engaged in green building constructions, are not viable in many parts of the United States due to their effects on construction cost and project schedules. Even though a project could get one or multiple points upon successful implementation of a grey water reuse system and conserving potable water, the following factors may have a positive or negative effect on the design team?s decision to implement a grey water reuse system: capital cost, maintenance cost, LEED credits, local plumbing codes, project schedule, local water conservation issues, complexity of the system, etc. Implementation of a grey water reuse system has a significant effect on the capital cost of a project. The increase in cost may be attributed to dual sanitary and grey water distribution piping which doubles construction piping costs. Disinfection treatment, filtration, overflow protection, grey water storage tanks, etc. also add to the cost of construction. Ninety percent of the projects claim that project schedule is not affected by the implementation of a grey water reuse system in a green building project. The factors which prevent the project team from implementing a grey water reuse system include capital cost, maintenance cost, local plumbing codes, local water conservation issues, complexity of the system, etc. LEED credits and the spirit of sustainability are the factors which have a positive effect on the design team?s decision to implement a grey water reuse system.Item Towards a culture of sustainable preservation : sustainable design, historic preservation, and cultures of building(2009-05) Kleon, Meghan F.; Moore, Steven A., 1945-; Holleran, MichaelThe growing sustainable design movement in the United States focuses almost exclusively on the construction of new buildings, largely ignoring the existing and historic building stock that constitutes the majority of our built environment. Historic preservation, a discipline that deals exclusively with the existing building stock and puts an emphasis on long-term management of the built environment, would seem to be an ideal partner for the sustainable design movement as it begins to address existing buildings. The practice and goals of the two fields, however, are currently perceived to be in opposition to one another by the building community and the general public. This thesis argues that sustainable design and historic preservation represent two unique and distinctive building subcultures – distinct subsets of the larger building culture of which they are a part, and that the opposition between the two disciplines stems from not only their historically distinct discourses, but also from cultural and ideological conflicts between the two fields. Different languages, code typologies, cultural identities, and conflicting attitudes toward the use of technology in contemporary building practice all stand as barriers to a significant partnership between the two disciplines. This thesis explores the cultures of sustainable design and of historic preservation in order to provide a view for practitioners in both fields into the culture of the other, and ultimately proposes a path towards developing shared cultural understandings by placing a new emphasis in both fields on social sustainability.