Dada a pertinência da eficiência energética, novas tecnologias e processos têm surgido para auxil... more Dada a pertinência da eficiência energética, novas tecnologias e processos têm surgido para auxiliar as equipas de projeto a melhorar o desempenho energético dos edifícios. De entre elas, destaca-se o Building Information Modelling (BIM), que proporciona aos projetistas novas oportunidades, desafios e apoio na otimização energética dos seus projetos
The design of a hospital environment involves many concerns related to the satisfaction and well-... more The design of a hospital environment involves many concerns related to the satisfaction and well-being of the medical personnel, patients, and administrators, and at the same time requires strong social responsibility and has a high impact on a city. Currently, it seems that the majority of this type of building is not designed or used in a sustainable way, although some tools have already been developed to support decision-making to optimize building sustainability. Based on this context, the aim of this article is to discuss the barriers to the dissemination of sustainable practices in healthcare buildings, and to propose the structure of a methodology that facilitates the incorporation of sustainability principles during the different life-cycle stages of a hospital building while overcoming some of the identified barriers. The structure presented is oriented to the Portuguese context and is based on the work done to date by the ISO and CEN organizations and other international s...
ABSTRACT: The Portuguese housing sector experienced a significant growth throughout the 20 centur... more ABSTRACT: The Portuguese housing sector experienced a significant growth throughout the 20 century, particularly in the last quarter, after the democratic revolution in 1974. In fact, the number of buildings built between 1970 and 1990 ismore than one third of the buildings actually existing in Portugal. Therefore most of them were built before the publication of the first regulation concerning the energy efficiency in buildings. Regarding this scenario, it would be expected that rehabilitation activities would represent most of the current construction activities. However, given some remaining barriers from old social policies, this situation is not observed; actually building retrofitting is the least significant sector, accentuating the degradation level of major part of the Portuguese housing stock. Several studies show that the main problems are found in the building’s envelope elements, such as roofs and facades. Based on this context, the aim of this paper is to introduce som...
Knowing the properties of vernacular materials is crucial to heritage conservation and to develop... more Knowing the properties of vernacular materials is crucial to heritage conservation and to develop innovative solutions. Reed, considered to be a carbon-neutral and a carbon dioxide sink material, has been used for centuries for diverse uses. Its high availability and properties made it a popular building material, including in Portuguese vernacular architecture. An experimental investigation was conducted to evaluate the physical performance, thermal performance, and durability of the reed found in Portugal since the characterisation of this material was not found in previous studies. The influence of geometric characteristics and the presence of nodes on these properties were also analysed, and the results showed that they are irrelevant. The studied reeds were found to have an adequate thermal performance to be used as thermal insulation. Their thermal resistance (1.8 m2·°C/W) and thermal conductivity (0.06 W/m·°C) are under the requirements defined by Portuguese regulations on th...
The management of urban environment, together with the preservation of the natural environment an... more The management of urban environment, together with the preservation of the natural environment and the creation of a sustainable built environment, is a complex challenge for contemporary societies. In the name of progress, cities are contributing for the degradation of all surrounding ecosystems. Therefore there is an arising demand for developing new strategies and a new urban development paradigm settled in the search for the equilibrium between natural and built environments and efficient use of resources. The objective of this paper is to analyse how the urban expansion of the city of Estarreja took place in relation to the land use, based on the land capability classification maps of the area. Based in the results some sustainable development strategies that might be applied to the city are discussed. The obtained results demonstrate that the city has been growing faster than its population, consuming vast portions of land, since its growth has been occurring in a linear form....
Buildings are responsible for several negative impacts on the environment, most of them related t... more Buildings are responsible for several negative impacts on the environment, most of them related to nonrenewable energy consumption, increasing the concern regarding buildings energy efficiency. In this context, computer software has been used to estimate the energy needs of the built environment, and the Building Information Modelling (BIM) methodology can be used to simplify this process. This study aims to validate a BIM-based framework to streamline the energy analysis of Portuguese buildings, based on the method of the national regulation for the thermal performance of residential buildings. Currently, designers need to spend considerable time assessing all the building characteristics and performing the mandatory calculations for energy performance analysis. It is also intended to link the results of the energy simulation with a Building Sustainability Assessment method—SBToolPT-H. The purpose is to demonstrate how it is possible to benefit from this approach to simultaneously ...
The palafitic timber constructions of the central Portuguese coastline are an example of the adap... more The palafitic timber constructions of the central Portuguese coastline are an example of the adaptation to site-specific conditions (climate and sand landscape morphodynamics) using the available endogenous resources. Thus, in a context of environmental awareness and climate change, it is relevant to understand their features/strategies and how they perform. This work analyses the energy performance and thermal condition evaluation of a vernacular timber building–palheiro–from Praia de Mira, through in situ measurements, subjective analysis and energy simulation provided by DesignBuilder/EnergyPlus. The results show a good or satisfactory thermal performance during most of the seasons by passive means only. Despite, it was not possible to guarantee thermal comfort conditions for the occupants during winter. In the energy performance analysis, five scenarios, with different external walls, were compared. In the two scenarios that satisfy the maximum U-value for the climate zone, the ...
The present research is focused on an experimental investigation to evaluate the mechanical, dura... more The present research is focused on an experimental investigation to evaluate the mechanical, durability, and thermal performance of compressed earth blocks (CEBs) produced in Portugal. CEBs were analysed in terms of electrical resistivity, ultrasonic pulse velocity, compressive strength, total water absorption, water absorption by capillarity, accelerated erosion test, and thermal transmittance evaluated in a guarded hotbox setup apparatus. Overall, the results showed that compressed earth blocks presented good mechanical and durability properties. Still, they had some issues in terms of porosity due to the particle size distribution of soil used for their production. The compressive strength value obtained was 9 MPa, which is considerably higher than the minimum requirements for compressed earth blocks. Moreover, they presented a heat transfer coefficient of 2.66 W/(m2·K). This heat transfer coefficient means that this type of masonry unit cannot be used in the building envelope wi...
ABSTRACT The few available sustainability assessment tools applicable in Portugal are oriented fo... more ABSTRACT The few available sustainability assessment tools applicable in Portugal are oriented for residential buildings. Nevertheless, the impacts of office buildings have been rising mainly due to an increase in the energy consumption for cooling and heating. This way, due to the growing environmental impact of office buildings, the development of Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) tools to assess the sustainability of this type of buildings is necessary and important to guide and to boost the construction sector towards sustainable development. The main objective of this work was to develop a sustainability assessment tool aimed at office buildings based in SBToolPT-H. The work includes the definition of the tool's framework and assessment method, as well as the Portuguese benchmarks and weighting system used in the aggregation. In order to promote the practical use of this tool, an evaluation guide was also developed in which there is detailed information about calculation methods and aggregation models. The methodology presented in this paper is based on a list of indicators that are assessed by comparison with Portuguese reference practices (benchmarks).
ABSTRACT In this article, the sustainability assessment of land use efficiency of buildings is su... more ABSTRACT In this article, the sustainability assessment of land use efficiency of buildings is subject to a critical study. Several building sustainability assessment (BSA) tools were analyzed, finding that the impacts of this criterion are not correctly assessed in current methodologies and some even ignore its importance. Some existing assessment methods and corresponding indexes were used in four virtual buildings to evaluate the effectiveness of each calculation method. It was concluded that the existing methods do not provide correct assessments and can promote unsustainable practices. It was also proved that it is necessary to include the implantation index, spatial efficiency, and occupational efficiency for correct assessments complementary to the use of the gross floor area index or development density. Due to difficulties in the weighting of the four complementary indexes, a single index was developed to perform the calculations using five main variables. The new index was tested in seven virtual buildings for internal validation and to two real buildings, providing good assessment results regarding the expected performance of buildings and proving to be better than other indexes that are currently used in BSA tools to assess land use efficiency. Considerations are also made for the development of regional benchmarks for the new index and the possibility of using it in regulations at a municipal and national scale to promote land use efficiency.
Dada a pertinência da eficiência energética, novas tecnologias e processos têm surgido para auxil... more Dada a pertinência da eficiência energética, novas tecnologias e processos têm surgido para auxiliar as equipas de projeto a melhorar o desempenho energético dos edifícios. De entre elas, destaca-se o Building Information Modelling (BIM), que proporciona aos projetistas novas oportunidades, desafios e apoio na otimização energética dos seus projetos
The design of a hospital environment involves many concerns related to the satisfaction and well-... more The design of a hospital environment involves many concerns related to the satisfaction and well-being of the medical personnel, patients, and administrators, and at the same time requires strong social responsibility and has a high impact on a city. Currently, it seems that the majority of this type of building is not designed or used in a sustainable way, although some tools have already been developed to support decision-making to optimize building sustainability. Based on this context, the aim of this article is to discuss the barriers to the dissemination of sustainable practices in healthcare buildings, and to propose the structure of a methodology that facilitates the incorporation of sustainability principles during the different life-cycle stages of a hospital building while overcoming some of the identified barriers. The structure presented is oriented to the Portuguese context and is based on the work done to date by the ISO and CEN organizations and other international s...
ABSTRACT: The Portuguese housing sector experienced a significant growth throughout the 20 centur... more ABSTRACT: The Portuguese housing sector experienced a significant growth throughout the 20 century, particularly in the last quarter, after the democratic revolution in 1974. In fact, the number of buildings built between 1970 and 1990 ismore than one third of the buildings actually existing in Portugal. Therefore most of them were built before the publication of the first regulation concerning the energy efficiency in buildings. Regarding this scenario, it would be expected that rehabilitation activities would represent most of the current construction activities. However, given some remaining barriers from old social policies, this situation is not observed; actually building retrofitting is the least significant sector, accentuating the degradation level of major part of the Portuguese housing stock. Several studies show that the main problems are found in the building’s envelope elements, such as roofs and facades. Based on this context, the aim of this paper is to introduce som...
Knowing the properties of vernacular materials is crucial to heritage conservation and to develop... more Knowing the properties of vernacular materials is crucial to heritage conservation and to develop innovative solutions. Reed, considered to be a carbon-neutral and a carbon dioxide sink material, has been used for centuries for diverse uses. Its high availability and properties made it a popular building material, including in Portuguese vernacular architecture. An experimental investigation was conducted to evaluate the physical performance, thermal performance, and durability of the reed found in Portugal since the characterisation of this material was not found in previous studies. The influence of geometric characteristics and the presence of nodes on these properties were also analysed, and the results showed that they are irrelevant. The studied reeds were found to have an adequate thermal performance to be used as thermal insulation. Their thermal resistance (1.8 m2·°C/W) and thermal conductivity (0.06 W/m·°C) are under the requirements defined by Portuguese regulations on th...
The management of urban environment, together with the preservation of the natural environment an... more The management of urban environment, together with the preservation of the natural environment and the creation of a sustainable built environment, is a complex challenge for contemporary societies. In the name of progress, cities are contributing for the degradation of all surrounding ecosystems. Therefore there is an arising demand for developing new strategies and a new urban development paradigm settled in the search for the equilibrium between natural and built environments and efficient use of resources. The objective of this paper is to analyse how the urban expansion of the city of Estarreja took place in relation to the land use, based on the land capability classification maps of the area. Based in the results some sustainable development strategies that might be applied to the city are discussed. The obtained results demonstrate that the city has been growing faster than its population, consuming vast portions of land, since its growth has been occurring in a linear form....
Buildings are responsible for several negative impacts on the environment, most of them related t... more Buildings are responsible for several negative impacts on the environment, most of them related to nonrenewable energy consumption, increasing the concern regarding buildings energy efficiency. In this context, computer software has been used to estimate the energy needs of the built environment, and the Building Information Modelling (BIM) methodology can be used to simplify this process. This study aims to validate a BIM-based framework to streamline the energy analysis of Portuguese buildings, based on the method of the national regulation for the thermal performance of residential buildings. Currently, designers need to spend considerable time assessing all the building characteristics and performing the mandatory calculations for energy performance analysis. It is also intended to link the results of the energy simulation with a Building Sustainability Assessment method—SBToolPT-H. The purpose is to demonstrate how it is possible to benefit from this approach to simultaneously ...
The palafitic timber constructions of the central Portuguese coastline are an example of the adap... more The palafitic timber constructions of the central Portuguese coastline are an example of the adaptation to site-specific conditions (climate and sand landscape morphodynamics) using the available endogenous resources. Thus, in a context of environmental awareness and climate change, it is relevant to understand their features/strategies and how they perform. This work analyses the energy performance and thermal condition evaluation of a vernacular timber building–palheiro–from Praia de Mira, through in situ measurements, subjective analysis and energy simulation provided by DesignBuilder/EnergyPlus. The results show a good or satisfactory thermal performance during most of the seasons by passive means only. Despite, it was not possible to guarantee thermal comfort conditions for the occupants during winter. In the energy performance analysis, five scenarios, with different external walls, were compared. In the two scenarios that satisfy the maximum U-value for the climate zone, the ...
The present research is focused on an experimental investigation to evaluate the mechanical, dura... more The present research is focused on an experimental investigation to evaluate the mechanical, durability, and thermal performance of compressed earth blocks (CEBs) produced in Portugal. CEBs were analysed in terms of electrical resistivity, ultrasonic pulse velocity, compressive strength, total water absorption, water absorption by capillarity, accelerated erosion test, and thermal transmittance evaluated in a guarded hotbox setup apparatus. Overall, the results showed that compressed earth blocks presented good mechanical and durability properties. Still, they had some issues in terms of porosity due to the particle size distribution of soil used for their production. The compressive strength value obtained was 9 MPa, which is considerably higher than the minimum requirements for compressed earth blocks. Moreover, they presented a heat transfer coefficient of 2.66 W/(m2·K). This heat transfer coefficient means that this type of masonry unit cannot be used in the building envelope wi...
ABSTRACT The few available sustainability assessment tools applicable in Portugal are oriented fo... more ABSTRACT The few available sustainability assessment tools applicable in Portugal are oriented for residential buildings. Nevertheless, the impacts of office buildings have been rising mainly due to an increase in the energy consumption for cooling and heating. This way, due to the growing environmental impact of office buildings, the development of Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) tools to assess the sustainability of this type of buildings is necessary and important to guide and to boost the construction sector towards sustainable development. The main objective of this work was to develop a sustainability assessment tool aimed at office buildings based in SBToolPT-H. The work includes the definition of the tool's framework and assessment method, as well as the Portuguese benchmarks and weighting system used in the aggregation. In order to promote the practical use of this tool, an evaluation guide was also developed in which there is detailed information about calculation methods and aggregation models. The methodology presented in this paper is based on a list of indicators that are assessed by comparison with Portuguese reference practices (benchmarks).
ABSTRACT In this article, the sustainability assessment of land use efficiency of buildings is su... more ABSTRACT In this article, the sustainability assessment of land use efficiency of buildings is subject to a critical study. Several building sustainability assessment (BSA) tools were analyzed, finding that the impacts of this criterion are not correctly assessed in current methodologies and some even ignore its importance. Some existing assessment methods and corresponding indexes were used in four virtual buildings to evaluate the effectiveness of each calculation method. It was concluded that the existing methods do not provide correct assessments and can promote unsustainable practices. It was also proved that it is necessary to include the implantation index, spatial efficiency, and occupational efficiency for correct assessments complementary to the use of the gross floor area index or development density. Due to difficulties in the weighting of the four complementary indexes, a single index was developed to perform the calculations using five main variables. The new index was tested in seven virtual buildings for internal validation and to two real buildings, providing good assessment results regarding the expected performance of buildings and proving to be better than other indexes that are currently used in BSA tools to assess land use efficiency. Considerations are also made for the development of regional benchmarks for the new index and the possibility of using it in regulations at a municipal and national scale to promote land use efficiency.
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Papers by Ricardo Mateus