Especially in the last decade, efforts have been made in developing the sustainable building assessment tools, which are usually performed based on fundamentals of the First Law of Thermodynamics. However, this approach does not provide a faithful thermodynamic evaluation of the overall energy...

This paper introduces designs, technologies, and best practices aimed at reducing the cooling energy demand in buildings. It covers the basic principles of why occupants need cooling to meet thermal comfort requirements and how heat is transferred into buildings from the outdoor environment....

The major environmental and economic burdens occurring from the high-energy consumption of buildings led to energy performance being a critical aspect for green building rating systems. Building energy codes play an important role for such performances through establishing the baseline...

This paper establishes a simple theoretical framework which comprises key forces that shape the structure and interrelation of cities to study the interdependencies between urban evolution and the environment. We focus on the potential of the unfettered market forces to economize on emissions. A...