Sustainable refurbishment, the Glossary

Table of Contents

1. 82 relations: Air pollution, Air source heat pump, Architectural acoustics, Architectural engineering, BREEAM, Building envelope, Building insulation, Building insulation material, Building material, Building science, Climate change, Climate change mitigation, Deconstruction, Deep energy retrofit, Demolition, Do it yourself, Duct (flow), Efficient energy use, Electrical ballast, Embodied energy, Energy consumption, Environmental degradation, Environmental design, Environmental issues, Environmental justice, Environmental Product Declaration, Environmentally friendly, Global warming potential, Green Building Initiative, Green roof, Greenhouse gas, Greening, Healthy building, Heat, Heat recovery ventilation, Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, HOME STAR, Hydronics, Indoor air quality, Insulated glazing, Integrated design, LEED, Life-cycle assessment, Lighting, List of low-energy building techniques, Living Building Challenge, Low emissivity, Low-energy house, Minimum energy performance standard, Net zero emissions, ... Expand index (32 more) »

Air pollution

Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances called pollutants in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials.

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Air source heat pump

An air source heat pump (ASHP) is a heat pump that can absorb heat from air outside a building and release it inside; it uses the same vapor-compression refrigeration process and much the same equipment as an air conditioner, but in the opposite direction.

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Architectural acoustics

Architectural acoustics (also known as building acoustics) is the science and engineering of achieving a good sound within a building and is a branch of acoustical engineering.

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Architectural engineering

Architectural engineering or architecture engineering, also known as building engineering, is a discipline that deals with the engineering and construction of buildings, such as environmental, structural, mechanical, electrical, computational, embeddable, and other research domains.

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BREEAM

BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method), first published by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) in 1990, is the world's longest established method of assessing, rating, and certifying the sustainability of buildings.

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Building envelope

A building envelope or building enclosure is the physical separator between the conditioned and unconditioned environment of a building, including the resistance to air, water, heat, light, and noiseSyed, Asif.

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Building insulation

Building insulation is material used in a building (specifically the building envelope) to reduce the flow of thermal energy. Sustainable refurbishment and building insulation are sustainable building.

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Building insulation material

Building insulation materials are the building materials that form the thermal envelope of a building or otherwise reduce heat transfer.

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Building material

Building material is material used for construction.

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Building science

Building science is the science and technology-driven collection of knowledge in order to provide better indoor environmental quality (IEQ), energy-efficient built environments, and occupant comfort and satisfaction.

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Climate change

In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system.

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Climate change mitigation

Climate change mitigation (or decarbonisation) is action to limit the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that cause climate change.

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Deconstruction

Deconstruction is a loosely-defined set of approaches to understanding the relationship between text and meaning.

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Deep energy retrofit

A Deep energy retrofit (abbreviated as DER) can be broadly categorized as an energy conservation measure in an existing building also leading to an overall improvement in the building performance. Sustainable refurbishment and Deep energy retrofit are low-energy building.

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Demolition

Demolition (also known as razing, cartage, and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down buildings and other artificial structures.

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Do it yourself

"Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts.

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Duct (flow)

Ducts are conduits or passages used in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) to deliver and remove air.

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Efficient energy use

Efficient energy use, or energy efficiency, is the process of reducing the amount of energy required to provide products and services.

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Electrical ballast

An electrical ballast is a device placed in series with a load to limit the amount of current in an electrical circuit.

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Embodied energy

Embodied energy is the sum of all the energy required to produce any goods or services, considered as if that energy were incorporated or 'embodied' in the product itself.

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Energy consumption

Energy consumption is the amount of energy used.

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Environmental degradation

Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as quality of air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystems; habitat destruction; the extinction of wildlife; and pollution.

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Environmental design

Environmental design is the process of addressing surrounding environmental parameters when devising plans, programs, policies, buildings, or products.

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Environmental issues

Environmental issues are disruptions in the usual function of ecosystems.

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Environmental justice

Environmental justice or eco-justice, is a social movement to address environmental injustice, which occurs when poor or marginalized communities are harmed by hazardous waste, resource extraction, and other land uses from which they do not benefit. Sustainable refurbishment and environmental justice are environmental social science concepts.

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Environmental Product Declaration

An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is a Type III environmental declaration that quantifies environmental information about the life cycle of a product.

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Environmentally friendly

Environment friendly processes, or environmental-friendly processes (also referred to as eco-friendly, nature-friendly, and green), are sustainability and marketing terms referring to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies that claim reduced, minimal, or no harm upon ecosystems or the environment.

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Global warming potential

Global warming potential (GWP) is an index to measure how much infrared thermal radiation a greenhouse gas would absorb over a given time frame after it has been added to the atmosphere (or emitted to the atmosphere).

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Green Building Initiative

The Green Building Initiative (GBI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that owns and administers the Green Globes green building assessment and certification in the United States and Canada.

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Green roof

A green roof or living roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane. Sustainable refurbishment and green roof are sustainable architecture and sustainable building.

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Greenhouse gas

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are the gases in the atmosphere that raise the surface temperature of planets such as the Earth.

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Greening

Greening is the process of transforming living environments, and also artifacts such as a space, a lifestyle or a brand image, into a more environmentally friendly version (i.e. 'greening your home' or 'greening your office'). Sustainable refurbishment and Greening are sustainable architecture.

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Healthy building

Healthy building refers to an emerging area of interest that supports the physical, psychological, and social health and well-being of people in buildings and the built environment. Sustainable refurbishment and healthy building are sustainable building.

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Heat

In thermodynamics, heat is the thermal energy transferred between systems due to a temperature difference.

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Heat recovery ventilation

Heat recovery ventilation (HRV), also known as mechanical ventilation heat recovery (MVHR) or energy recovery ventilation (ERV), is a ventilation system that recovers energy by operating between two air sources at different temperatures. Sustainable refurbishment and heat recovery ventilation are low-energy building and sustainable building.

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Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning

Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) is the use of various technologies to control the temperature, humidity, and purity of the air in an enclosed space.

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HOME STAR

HOME STAR, (also spelled HOMESTAR), informally known as Cash for Caulkers, is a United States government program proposed in November 2009 to encourage economic growth by offering incentives to homeowners and retailers for improving the energy efficiency of existing homes. Sustainable refurbishment and HOME STAR are sustainable building.

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Hydronics

Hydronics is the use of liquid water or gaseous water (steam) or a water solution (usually glycol with water) as a heat-transfer medium in heating and cooling systems.

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Indoor air quality

Indoor air quality (IAQ) is the air quality within buildings and structures.

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Insulated glazing

Insulating glass (IG) consists of two or more glass window panes separated by a space to reduce heat transfer across a part of the building envelope. Sustainable refurbishment and Insulated glazing are low-energy building.

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Integrated design

Integrated design is a comprehensive holistic approach to design which brings together specialisms usually considered separately.

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LEED

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building certification program used worldwide.

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Life-cycle assessment

Life cycle assessment (LCA), also known as life cycle analysis, is a methodology for assessing environmental impacts associated with all the stages of the life cycle of a commercial product, process, or service.

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Lighting

Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects.

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List of low-energy building techniques

Low-energy buildings, which include zero-energy buildings, passive houses and green buildings, may use any of a large number of techniques to lower energy use. Sustainable refurbishment and List of low-energy building techniques are low-energy building and sustainable building.

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Living Building Challenge

The Living Building Challenge is an international sustainable building certification program created in 2006 by the non-profit International Living Future Institute. Sustainable refurbishment and Living Building Challenge are sustainable building.

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Low emissivity

Low emissivity (low e or low thermal emissivity) refers to a surface condition that emits low levels of radiant thermal (heat) energy.

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Low-energy house

A low-energy house is characterized by an energy-efficient design and technical features which enable it to provide high living standards and comfort with low energy consumption and carbon emissions. Sustainable refurbishment and low-energy house are low-energy building, sustainable architecture and sustainable building.

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Minimum energy performance standard

A minimum energy performance standard (MEPS) is a specification, containing a number of performance requirements for an energy-using device, that effectively limits the maximum amount of energy that may be consumed by a product in performing a specified task.

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Net zero emissions

Global net zero emissions describes the state where emissions of greenhouse gases due to human activities, and removals of these gases, are in balance over a given period.

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PACE financing

PACE financing (property assessed clean energy financing) is a means used in the United States of America of financing energy efficiency upgrades, disaster resiliency improvements, water conservation measures, or renewable energy installations in existing or new construction of residential, commercial, and industrial property owners.

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Passive house

Passive house (Passivhaus) is a voluntary standard for energy efficiency in a building, which reduces the building's carbon footprint. Sustainable refurbishment and Passive house are low-energy building and sustainable building.

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Photovoltaics

Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry.

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R-value (insulation)

In the context of construction, the R-value is a measure of how well a two-dimensional barrier, such as a layer of insulation, a window or a complete wall or ceiling, resists the conductive flow of heat.

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Recycling

Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects.

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Renewable energy

Renewable energy (or green energy) is energy from renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human timescale.

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Renovation

Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures.

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Retrofitting

Retrofitting is the addition of new technology or features to older systems.

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Reuse

Reuse is the action or practice of using an item, whether for its original purpose (conventional reuse) or to fulfill a different function (creative reuse or repurposing).

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Sick building syndrome

Sick building syndrome (SBS) is a condition in which people develop symptoms of illness or become infected with chronic disease from the building in which they work or reside.

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Soil quality

Soil quality refers to the condition of soil based on its capacity to perform ecosystem services that meet the needs of human and non-human life.

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Solar gain

Solar gain (also known as solar heat gain or passive solar gain) is the increase in thermal energy of a space, object or structure as it absorbs incident solar radiation. Sustainable refurbishment and solar gain are low-energy building.

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Solar water heating

Solar water heating (SWH) is heating water by sunlight, using a solar thermal collector. Sustainable refurbishment and solar water heating are sustainable building.

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Surface runoff

Surface runoff (also known as overland flow or terrestrial runoff) is the unconfined flow of water over the ground surface, in contrast to channel runoff (or stream flow).

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Sustainable architecture

Sustainable architecture is architecture that seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of buildings through improved efficiency and moderation in the use of materials, energy, development space and the ecosystem at large. Sustainable refurbishment and Sustainable architecture are low-energy building and sustainable building.

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Sustainable design

Environmentally sustainable design (also called environmentally conscious design, eco-design, etc.) is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of ecological sustainability and also aimed at improving the health and comfort of occupants in a building.

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Sustainable development

Sustainable development is an approach to growth and human development that aims to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable refurbishment and Sustainable development are environmental social science concepts and sustainable building.

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Sustainable energy

Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." Definitions of sustainable energy usually look at its effects on the environment, the economy and society.

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Sustainable materials management

Sustainable Materials Management is a systemic approach to using and reusing materials more productively over their entire lifecycles.

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Sustainable refurbishment

Sustainable refurbishment describes working on existing buildings to improve their environmental performance using sustainable methods and materials. Sustainable refurbishment and sustainable refurbishment are environmental social science concepts, low-energy building, sustainable architecture and sustainable building.

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Thermal insulation

Thermal insulation is the reduction of heat transfer (i.e., the transfer of thermal energy between objects of differing temperature) between objects in thermal contact or in range of radiative influence.

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U.S. Green Building Council

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), founded in 1993, is a private 501(c)3, membership-based non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in building design, construction, and operation.

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United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is the UN process for negotiating an agreement to limit dangerous climate change.

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United States

The United States of America (USA or U.S.A.), commonly known as the United States (US or U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America.

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Urban heat island

Urban areas usually experience the urban heat island (UHI) effect, that is, they are significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas.

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Waste

Waste (or wastes) are unwanted or unusable materials.

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A water footprint shows the extent of water use in relation to consumption by people.

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Waterfall model

The waterfall model is a breakdown of development activities into linear sequential phases, meaning they are passed down onto each other, where each phase depends on the deliverables of the previous one and corresponds to a specialization of tasks.

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Window

A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof, or vehicle that allows the exchange of light and may also allow the passage of sound and sometimes air.

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World energy supply and consumption

World energy supply and consumption refers to the global supply of energy resources and its consumption.

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Zero heating building

Zero-heating building or nearly zero-heating building (nZHB) is a building having essentially zero heating demand, defined as having heating demand, Q’NH, less than 3 kWh/(m2a). Sustainable refurbishment and zero heating building are low-energy building.

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Zero-energy building

A Zero-Energy Building (ZEB), also known as a Net Zero-Energy (NZE) building, is a building with net zero energy consumption, meaning the total amount of energy used by the building on an annual basis is equal to the amount of renewable energy created on the site or in other definitions by renewable energy sources offsite, using technology such as heat pumps, high efficiency windows and insulation, and solar panels. Sustainable refurbishment and zero-energy building are low-energy building, sustainable architecture and sustainable building.

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References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_refurbishment

Also known as Energy retrofit, Green retrofit, Home energy retrofit, Home performance retrofit, Home retrofit.

, PACE financing, Passive house, Photovoltaics, R-value (insulation), Recycling, Renewable energy, Renovation, Retrofitting, Reuse, Sick building syndrome, Soil quality, Solar gain, Solar water heating, Surface runoff, Sustainable architecture, Sustainable design, Sustainable development, Sustainable energy, Sustainable materials management, Sustainable refurbishment, Thermal insulation, U.S. Green Building Council, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, United States, Urban heat island, Waste, Water footprint, Waterfall model, Window, World energy supply and consumption, Zero heating building, Zero-energy building.