CS计算机代考程序代写 scheme DO NOT TURN OVER THE PAGE UNTIL YOU ARE TOLD TO DO SO

DO NOT TURN OVER THE PAGE UNTIL YOU ARE TOLD TO DO SO

THE HONG KONG POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY

Department of Building Services Engineering

Subject : Sustainability and the Built Environment (BSE5518)

Level : 5

Session : 2016/2017 Semester 1

Date : 13 December 2016

Time : 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Time Allowed : 3 hours

This question paper has 11 pages.

Instructions to Candidates:

1. This is a closed book examination.
2. Answer any 3 questions out of 5.
3. All questions carry equal marks.

Recommended list of materials allowed to be taken into the examination venue:

1. Electronic calculator.

lbsys
Text Box
Programme : MSc in High Performance Building (04001)

Q1. In building environmental performance assessment for residential buildings, credits are

given for energy use reduction. The performance is assessed by the percentage

reduction in energy use relative to the average energy use per floor area per year (= 80

kWh/m
2
per year). The credit scale for this criterion is given in Table Q1.1.

Table Q1.1 Credit scale for energy use performance

% Reduction in Energy Use

(%)

No. of Credit(s)

>= 10 0

>= 15 1

>= 20 2

>= 25 4

>= 30 7

A residential building consisting of units of 40m
2
(3 persons per unit) is submitted for

building environmental performance assessment.

Cost and technical details of the energy saving measures are summarized in Table

Q1.2.

Table Q1.2 Cost and details of energy saving measures

Energy saving measure
% of energy

saved

Cost (x1000 HK$/unit)

Capital
Annual

Maintenance

1. Ordinary design 0 200 1.5

2. Vertical greenery system 20 210 3.5

3. Double-glazed window 30 215 2.5

(a) Additional life cycle cost in present value (LCCio) of a measure for 10 years can
be determined by Equation (Q1.1):

14.6MCLCC ioioio  (Q1.1)

Where Cio and Mio are the additional capital cost and annual maintenance cost of a

measure. All costs are in HK$/unit.

Determine:

(i) the additional life cycle cost in present value (HK$/unit) for scoring 2 and 7
credits;

(ii) the annual energy bill per unit (HK$/unit) for different designs;

(iii) the life cycle saving in energy bill in present value to score 2 and 7 credits
(HK$/unit). The energy tariff, which consists of 4 tiers, is summarized in

Table Q1.3; and

(iv) the benefit and cost (B/C) ratios for scoring 2 and 7 credits.
(12 marks)

(b) Discuss if the B/C ratios will increase or decrease if there are 4 people per unit.

(3 marks)

(c) Based on the results in (a), discuss which energy saving measure (measures (2) or
(3)) is more worthwhile to invest if the main concern is:

(i) cost effectiveness

(ii) environmental benefits

(iii) cost per credit

(4 marks)

(d) On assessment approach, it is noted that energy use is assessed using the absolute
approach and a non-linear crediting scale, discuss if

(i) the use of relative approach is needed; and

(ii) the non-linear crediting scale is acceptable.

(6 marks)

(e) Besides the two energy saving measures suggested in Table Q1.2, propose with
explanations two other building envelope-related measures to reduce energy use

in residential buildings.

(4 marks)

(f) Besides the adoption of energy saving measures, discuss other measures that can
be introduced at the design, construction, testing and commissioning, and

operation and maintenance stages of a residential development to achieve energy

efficiency.

(4 marks)

Table Q1.3 Energy tariff (on annual basis)

Tier Consumption Level (kWh/m
2
) Charge (HK$/kWh)

First <=40 1.3 Second >40 and <=60 1.4 Third > 60 and <=75 1.5 Fourth > 75 1.6

Q2. (a) To respond to the global agenda on carbon emission reductions, the Hong Kong

SAR Government recently put in place new policy measures to promote a quality

and sustainable built environment. Under this policy statement, new buildings

developments or redevelopments seeking for gross floor area (GFA) concessions
1

should be subject to Building Environmental Assessment Method (BEAM) Plus

Assessment and the estimation of energy consumption to demonstrate the

sustainable qualities of the proposed development. A package of other measures is

also proposed for implementation in the long run.

Based on the above information, answer the following questions:

(i) Discuss if overseas building environmental assessment schemes (e.g. LEED,
CASBEE, etc) should be recognized as an approved equivalent to BEAM

Plus Assessment in the above exercise.

(4 marks)

(ii) A measure proposed for implementation in the long run is to mandate the
provision of greenery for large sites at roof levels (i.e. green roofs). Discuss

the benefits of green roofs.

(4 marks)

(iii) In estimation of energy consumption, simulation tool is often used. Discuss
the advantages of using simulation tools in the design stage.

(4 marks)

(b) Because of the link of electricity generation with carbon emissions, the HKSAR

Government is considering the introduction of a carbon tax in a 4-tier system as

shown in Table Q2.1. You are given the carbon emission factor (CEF) of

electricity is 0.22 kgCO2 per kWh and the energy use life-cycle cost curve for an

analysis period of 10 years is shown in Figure Q2.1 (a duplicate copy of this

Figure is attached in Appendix A of this exam paper for facilitate the submission

of your answer script). Determine:

(i) the percentage increase in tariff for a commercial building (Building A)
with annual electricity consumption at 130 kWh/m

2
, assuming the current

tariff is HK$1.3/kWh;

(4 marks)

1
GFA concessions refer to a certain percentage of area that is exempted from GFA calculations. GFA of a site is

often governed by plot ratio of the site (i.e. total floor area for the building / total area of the site).

(ii) the carbon tax-adjusted energy use life-cycle cost curve if the life-cycle
carbon tax (LCCTAX) is determined by Equation (Q2.1); and

14.6TAXLCC
Tax

 (Q2.1)

Where TAX is the annual carbon tax rate in HK$

(7 marks)

(iii) the impact on the optimal energy use for the introduction of carbon tax.

(4 marks)

measure to reduce carbon emissions. Discuss which measure is preferred from the

point of view of:

(i) building owners

(ii) policy makers

(6 marks)

Table Q2.1 4-tier carbon tax system

Tier Consumption Level (kWh/m
2
) Carbon Tax (HK$/ kgCO2)

First <=80 - Second >80 and <=90 5000 Third > 90 and <=100 6800 Fourth > 100 8500

BSE 5518 Sustainability and the Built Environment

Student Name ______________________ Student ID _______________________

Figure Q2.1 Energy use life-cycle cost curve

(Please submit with your answer book)

Q3. (a) In her book The Death and Life of Great American Cities, the planning guru Jane

Jacobs criticized the city planning practice adopted during 60s in the US. Four

planning principles were advocated for resolving the city planning problems,

which include the need for mixed primary uses and the need for concentration.

Discuss how these two planning principles can help improve the sustainability of

a city.

(12 marks)

(b) (i) Figure Q3.1 shows the existing building configuration on a heavy trafficked

trunk road located in the downtown center of a compact city. This type of

building and road configuration is not recommended as it causes many

different local environmental problems. Discuss what are the potential local

environmental problems.

(6 marks)

Figure Q3.1 Existing road and building configuration

(ii) It is proposed to plant a row of deciduous trees along the footpaths on both

sides of the existing road. Discuss whether you agree to this proposal.

(6 marks)

(iii) Suggest three practical ways of improvements that can be introduced to the

existing roads shown in Figure Q3.1 to enhance the walking activity levels

of elderly people.

(3 marks)

(iv) In order to improve the air quality inside the existing road, it is planned to
replace some of the existing buildings by new buildings on both sides of the

road. The new building design on each side of the road will contain an

opening of building permeability of 10%. However, the effectiveness of

openings in air quality improvement also depends on their location. Suggest

where the openings should be located and illustrate with simple sketches

how this can help improve the air quality.

(6 marks)

Q4. Outdoor air and noise pollution have always been regarded as ongoing important

environmental issues confronting many city dwellers and governments in both

developed and developing nations.

(a) Briefly outline different types of adverse impacts imposed by outdoor air and

noise pollution on city dwellers and city government respectively. In your opinion,

which type of pollution should deserve more attention from city government?

(8 marks)

(b) Identify the major similarities and differences in the rationales of control policies

between outdoor air quality and outdoor noise by resorting to the basic physical

properties of air quality and sound.

(8 marks)

levels of noise sources. However, some scientists advocated using the new

‘soundscape’ approach. What is ‘soundscape’ approach? Outline the major

differences between these two approaches.

(6 marks)

(d) It is always argued that ‘air quality standards should be best linked to health risks

rather than concentrations of air pollutants’.

(i) Discuss whether you agree to this statement.

(4 marks)

(ii) During high pollution episodes, elderly is advised to stay home or indoors.
With aid of the data given in Tables Q4.1, Q4.2 and Q4.3, estimate the

change in health outcomes as a result of adopting such a self-defense

strategy by elderly. List all the major assumptions that you have made.

(7 marks)

Table Q4.1 Average time activity patterns for an elderly person

before and after adopting the self-defense strategy

Micro-environment

Time spent for an

elderly person before

adopting the self-

defense strategy (hour)

Time spent for an

elderly person after

adopting the self-

defense strategy (hour)

Home 12 15

Shopping mall/market 2 2

Restaurant 3 5

Transit 2 2

Outdoor 5 0

Total 24

Table Q4.2 Average PM10 concentrations for different types of

micro-environments

Micro-environment
Average PM10 concentration

(in μg/m
3
)

Home 60

Shopping mall/market 45

Restaurant 50

Transit 40

Outdoor at high episodes 110

Table Q4.3 Increase in health outcomes per 100,000 persons induced by an increase of

10 μg/m
3
in PM10

No. of hospital admissions No. of deaths

Cardiovascular

diseases

Respiratory

diseases

Cardiovascular

diseases

Respiratory

diseases

Elderly 1.6 3.9 0.16 0.15

Q5. The Government in Hong Kong SAR had commissioned a sustainability consultant to

develop a decision making model to assist local building contractors in the selection of

sustainable building materials. The consultant proposed a decision making model with

two tiers of important weightings to make the material selection process more objective

and transparent for contractors.

The details of the proposed two-tier important weighting system are as follows:

The first tier of weights deals with ten environmental issues so as to allow a single Life

Cycle Assessment (LCA) score to be determined. The ten environmental issues are

abiotic depletion, global warming, ozone layer depletion, human toxicity, fresh water

aquatic eco-toxicity, marine aquatic eco-toxicity, terrestrial eco-toxicity, photochemical

oxidation, acidification, and eutrophication. The second tier of importance weights are

for combining the LCA result and the Life Cycle Costing (LCC) result to yield a single

LCA/LCC score to facilitate decision making. A fundamental requirement is that the set

of weightings should be a good reflection of local people’s judgment on the relative

importance of the issues.

Overall Score for

Decision –making

Financial

Performance

LCC

Environmental

Performance

LCA Score

Acidifica
-tion

Ozone

Depletion

Eco-
toxicity

Tier 1

Tier 2

Figure Q5.1 Two tiers of importance weights for the proposed LCA/LCC model

(a) How do you define sustainable building materials? Suggest why the government
is interested in promoting sustainable building materials.

(5 marks)

(b) Briefly explain the similarities and differences between Life Cycle Assessment
and Life Cycle Costing.

(6 marks)

(c) What are the major difficulties encountered during the formulation of a set of
relative importance weights for the ten environmental issues?

(8 marks)

(d) Briefly explain what are the adverse impacts brought by buildings on abiotic
depletion, global warming and ozone depletion.

(6 marks)

(e) Suppose that the Government is considering of setting up a LCA/LCC benchmark
score for all building materials to comply. Do you agree to this proposition? Why?

(8 marks)

Appendix A

BSE 5518 Sustainability and the Built Environment

Student Name ______________________ Student ID _______________________

Figure Q2.1 Energy use life-cycle cost curve

(Please submit with your answer book)

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