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Exploring synergies with innovative Green Technologies for Advanced Renovation: Redefining a Bioclimatic approach for multi residential and office buildings in warmer climates. Building energy consumption accounts for nearly 27% of all energy related greenhouse gas emissions. By 2010, emissions' from buildings is estimated to increase by 48% above 1990 levels. This projected trend is alarming given that Australia's obligation under the Kyoto Protocol is only 8% above 1990 levels. Renovation of e ....Exploring synergies with innovative Green Technologies for Advanced Renovation: Redefining a Bioclimatic approach for multi residential and office buildings in warmer climates. Building energy consumption accounts for nearly 27% of all energy related greenhouse gas emissions. By 2010, emissions' from buildings is estimated to increase by 48% above 1990 levels. This projected trend is alarming given that Australia's obligation under the Kyoto Protocol is only 8% above 1990 levels. Renovation of existing buildings is necessary to achieve this target. Research will address this problem by providing principles, strategies and solutions demostrating improvement of environmental performance and cost benefits. The application of new principles will assist with transforming the building industry to meet Kyoto targets.Read moreRead less
Towards a Quality of Life Model for Sustainable Housing in South East Queensland. Current reports, on Quality of Life in South East Queensland and the Queensland Governments State of the Environment demonstrate a paradox, - high quality of life but also increasing environmental impact. How to address this paradox is a major research question addressed in this project. Through examining examples of best practice sustainable housing it is possible to address this question. The key factors of quali ....Towards a Quality of Life Model for Sustainable Housing in South East Queensland. Current reports, on Quality of Life in South East Queensland and the Queensland Governments State of the Environment demonstrate a paradox, - high quality of life but also increasing environmental impact. How to address this paradox is a major research question addressed in this project. Through examining examples of best practice sustainable housing it is possible to address this question. The key factors of quality of life will be identified for housing, which will assist policy makers plan for a sustainable future. Read moreRead less
Advancing the Thermal Insulation Performance of Australian Roofing Systems. To reduce the environmental impact of houses, state governments have mandated performance requirements on the energy efficiency of buildings. This research will develop advanced design techniques for the application of insulation in buildings, improving their performance. This will increase the effficiency of new buildings reducing Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, the peak power demand from residenti ....Advancing the Thermal Insulation Performance of Australian Roofing Systems. To reduce the environmental impact of houses, state governments have mandated performance requirements on the energy efficiency of buildings. This research will develop advanced design techniques for the application of insulation in buildings, improving their performance. This will increase the effficiency of new buildings reducing Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, the peak power demand from residential buildings will reduce, decreasing the need to upgrade our electrical infrastructure. The research will enable more cost effective insulation solutions to be developed in the building industry and increase employment in the insulation industry.Read moreRead less
Performance of Centrifugal Chillers using Hydrocarbons. Centrifugal chillers cool most large buildings. Their energy consumption and fluorocarbon emissions are a global environmental concern. A 40% increase in rotational speed and replacement of the fluorocarbon refrigerant by a hydrocarbon is proposed. Over 4% energy savings with no performance changes is predicted. The aims are to prepare a conversion protocol, measure chiller performance before and after conversion, develop a new model of ....Performance of Centrifugal Chillers using Hydrocarbons. Centrifugal chillers cool most large buildings. Their energy consumption and fluorocarbon emissions are a global environmental concern. A 40% increase in rotational speed and replacement of the fluorocarbon refrigerant by a hydrocarbon is proposed. Over 4% energy savings with no performance changes is predicted. The aims are to prepare a conversion protocol, measure chiller performance before and after conversion, develop a new model of evaporator heat transfer and correlate the model with chiller measurements. The capital cost of compliance with the Montreal Protocol for a large building will be reduced by $10,000 with about $5,000 in annual energy cost savings.Read moreRead less
Development of novel roofing panels integrating solar heat collection and phase change storage. The provision of comfort heating for domestic and commercial buildings contributes significantly to Australia's energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. The project aims to develop a new roofing product which will collect and store solar energy for heating. The product integrates conventional roofing products into a solar collector and a heat store. Materials that melt/freeze at suitable temperatures ....Development of novel roofing panels integrating solar heat collection and phase change storage. The provision of comfort heating for domestic and commercial buildings contributes significantly to Australia's energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. The project aims to develop a new roofing product which will collect and store solar energy for heating. The product integrates conventional roofing products into a solar collector and a heat store. Materials that melt/freeze at suitable temperatures will be used for heat storage. The project involves developing a mathematical model and a prototype design. In addition to fulfilling the conventional function of roofing products including thermal and sound insulation, the prototype is intended to be aesthetically acceptable and easily compatible with current building practices.Read moreRead less
Performance Characteristics of an Innovative Structural System - Compound Curved Sandwich Shell Structure. An innovative structural system utilising sandwich panel technology and shell action has recently emerged. These aesthetically pleasing curved structures are durable and spacious with fast construction time. They have residential and commercial applications and have attracted considerable local and overseas interest. There are no definitive procedures for their analysis and design and thei ....Performance Characteristics of an Innovative Structural System - Compound Curved Sandwich Shell Structure. An innovative structural system utilising sandwich panel technology and shell action has recently emerged. These aesthetically pleasing curved structures are durable and spacious with fast construction time. They have residential and commercial applications and have attracted considerable local and overseas interest. There are no definitive procedures for their analysis and design and their behaviour is complex involving many variables such as sandwich layer interaction, shape, openings, structural action, etc. This project will generate fundamental knowledge on their behaviour over a range of properties and operating conditions and develop guidelines to ensure safe and economical design, bringing economic benefits to Australia.Read moreRead less
Multilevel converters. Until recently the vast majority of power electronic applications have been to low voltage systems. However, developments in high voltage semiconductor switches in the last decade have generated significant activity in high voltage power electronic applications.
Traditional two level converters have significant problems in high voltage applications - high output dv/dt damages insulation and motor bearings, and the semiconductor switches have high switching losses.
Mu ....Multilevel converters. Until recently the vast majority of power electronic applications have been to low voltage systems. However, developments in high voltage semiconductor switches in the last decade have generated significant activity in high voltage power electronic applications.
Traditional two level converters have significant problems in high voltage applications - high output dv/dt damages insulation and motor bearings, and the semiconductor switches have high switching losses.
Multilevel converters hold the promise of alleviating these problems. This project will research and develop multilevel converter technology for static VAR compensators and medium voltage drives, initially targeted at mining applications.Read moreRead less
Design and Optimisation of Novel Enthalpy Heat Exchangers. This project deals with the thermal design and optimisation of a novel type of latent energy heat exchanger. This new heat exchanger overcomes the practical implementation problems of previous latent energy heat exchangers such as heat-wheels. The main application of this innovative heat exchanger will be to improve the capacity and efficiency of air conditioning systems. As the new heat exchanger is very compact it will be ideally sui ....Design and Optimisation of Novel Enthalpy Heat Exchangers. This project deals with the thermal design and optimisation of a novel type of latent energy heat exchanger. This new heat exchanger overcomes the practical implementation problems of previous latent energy heat exchangers such as heat-wheels. The main application of this innovative heat exchanger will be to improve the capacity and efficiency of air conditioning systems. As the new heat exchanger is very compact it will be ideally suited for integration with air conditioning coils. Existing latent heat wheels are very bulky and are difficult to integrate into standard air conditioner installations.Read moreRead less
Occupant comfort in naturally ventilated and mixed-mode spaces within air-conditioned offices. The Australian Greenhouse Office indicates that air conditioning is responsible for most of the greenhouse gas emissions attributable to Australia's commercial sector. The sector's uptake of energy efficient strategies and sustainable design will depend on post-occupancy evaluated exemplars that have been demonstrated to enhance, rather than detract from, workplace amenity, worker satisfaction and prod ....Occupant comfort in naturally ventilated and mixed-mode spaces within air-conditioned offices. The Australian Greenhouse Office indicates that air conditioning is responsible for most of the greenhouse gas emissions attributable to Australia's commercial sector. The sector's uptake of energy efficient strategies and sustainable design will depend on post-occupancy evaluated exemplars that have been demonstrated to enhance, rather than detract from, workplace amenity, worker satisfaction and productivity. Naturally ventilated spaces within air-conditioned offices can readily be designed into new buildings, and retrofitted to many existing buildings. This project will document how such spaces are used, and interpret their costs/benefits to workers, organisations and environment.
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The performance of environmentally sustainable design features in commercial buildings. Two office buildings are to be analysed in respect of environmental performance both technically and in terms of the building occupants. The buildings are similar in location, use, quality and materials. One building contains several environmentally sustainable design features and it is expected that improvements in environmental outcomes will be observed when compared with the other building. The results ....The performance of environmentally sustainable design features in commercial buildings. Two office buildings are to be analysed in respect of environmental performance both technically and in terms of the building occupants. The buildings are similar in location, use, quality and materials. One building contains several environmentally sustainable design features and it is expected that improvements in environmental outcomes will be observed when compared with the other building. The results will provide a useful benchmark and a guide to the potential of environmentally sustainable property development.Read moreRead less