Sustainable Architecture

SUSTAINABLE
ARCHITECTURE FOR A
SUSTAINED FUTURE
Written By
H.J.R.K.Jayasinghe
1
SUSTAINABLE
ARCHITECTURE FOR A
SUSTAINED FUTURE
Written By
H.J.R.K.Jayasinghe
(17 June 17, 2010)
2
Learn more about building constructions visit http://www.helpmydegree.info
The sustainable city is developed to respect and make the
most of natural environmental aspects, to conserve
resource use and to minimize impacts on the local and
wider natural environment.
The sustainable city is a regional and global city: no matter
how small or how large, its responsibilities stretch beyond
the city boundaries.
The sustainable city involves a broadly based, participatory
program of radical change, where individuals are
encouraged to take on more responsibility for the ways in
which their cities are run.
The sustainable city requires that environmental assets and
impacts are distributed more equitably than at present.
The sustainable city is a learning city, a sharing city, an
internationally networked city.
The sustainable city is not rooted in an idealized version of
past settlements, nor is it one given to a radical casting-off
from its own particular cultural, economic and physical
identity in the name of the latest passing fad for wholesale
urban change.
The sustainable city will seek to conserve, enhance and
promote its assets in terms of natural, built and cultural
environments.
The sustainable city presents tremendous opportunities for
enhancing environmental quality at local, regional and
global scales.
(Haughton and Hunter, 1994)
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Executive summery
Sustainable architecture is a profound subject and use of this subject in the field
is also cover very large area, therefore it is difficult to discuss all the subject
matters and their practice in the field, using a report like this. However this is
most sought after topic to discuss, therefore it has been selected few major
areas where sustainable architecture is necessary to use. And this report is being
discussed more on the selected areas and practical usage.
In earlier days when it is being needed to prepare a site for a house or any kind
of building it was doing with the help of the labors and they didn’t do a
considerable change to the site and they just construct their buildings in respect
to the site that means they construct their building according to the site
conditions there for the stability, aesthetic and contextual response was great
for those buildings, however today this site preparation procedure is doing with
heavy machinery and drilling , blasting also can be taken a place when it is
necessary, today what the people doing is they are preparing the site according
to their need, this procedure may loose the stability, aesthetic and contextual
response of the building
Respect for site means to respect for the nature therefore it is need to
concentrate on following factors before constrictions is taking a place Will any
natural spaces or wilderness be developed?, Will buildings be expanded into
protected natural areas? Is an Environmental Impact Assessment needed and
has it been prepared? What steps have been taken to protect natural spaces,
habitats or species? What restorative or rehabilitative measures will be taken?
Will any habitat or species be harmed or eliminated so that it cannot be
remedied? Will any significant cultural site be affected? What steps have been
taken to protect such cultural site(s)? Have energy and water conservation
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technologies, waste management measures and energy-efficient principles and
building technology guided the design process in a meaningful way?
Under the sustainable architecture it is being discussed a need of constructing a

house which need least possible power specially through (fossil fuels) to heat or
cool the interior. When designing energy conserving house the following fact
must be considered
The use and cost of energy in buildings on a long-term basis,
The climatic characteristics in terms of solar radiation, temperature,
humidity and wind
Thermal comfort of the occupants
Architectural guidelines for effective solar design
The building envelope: Mass, glazing, day lighting, insulation, ventilation
and systems.
User control mechanisms
The incorporation of renewable fuels into building design
Good design can greatly reduce our energy problems. Use correct building
orientation, appropriate amount of glass, window placement, size of roof
overhang, etc, insulated homes: insulated walls, ceilings, floors and foundations,
energy-efficient windows, insulated window coverings, window shades,
insulated doors, insulated hot water lines, weather sealing
Energy-efficient appliances and fixtures such as compact fluorescent light bulbs,
proper hot water heaters, energy-efficient heating systems, fans, including
whole-house fans, air-to-air exchangers, And proper use of these things is the
way of energy conservation
Some techniques of using alternative energy are very simple and those are well-
proven solutions, most of which are totally simple to implement, but it is a fact
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to be really surprised because no country has been given a substantial
consideration about this
Solar heating is a good and reliable way of providing sustainable electricity for
any use. Sun is being a place where it generates power without diminutive and
most of the places in the world having direct sun light which is enough to
generate power by using photovoltaic panels this must be the best way of
generating power. Roofs are often angled toward the sun to allow photovoltaic
panels to collect at maximum efficiency, electricity gain through the photovoltaic
panels can be used for any usage, water heating is one of the major power
consume procedure in the house, this solar heating can be used to water heating
for zero cost therefore it will be a good practice if people can use solar heating to
at least to heat water
Wind is another kind of power generating source we can use free of charge, if
the building site situated in a area where it is normally having good wind
conditions we can use this system, under the sustainable architecture here it will
be discussed how this is been operate cheaply, because actually if a domestic
user select this system sometimes this may not cheep system to gain electricity
for him, advantages and disadvantages are common to this system also and
under any circumstances the user cant operate a system like this
This report is providing the information about what are the eligible places to
operate a system like this and, it will be discussed the advantages and
disadvantages
This is also another good way for alternating power, this is actually good way of
generating power for specially countries which is situated near the Pacific Ocean,
because it has found that those areas are the most efficient for geothermal
energy
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Later part of this report has been discussed Sustainable architecture and
construction it has been discussed about creating a healthy built environment
using resource efficient
Conservation supports the principles of sustainability; it is minimize the resource

consumption, resent past years it has been used materials without any
conservation usually for reasons of short-term economic advantage and to day it
has led to a panic situation of shortage of material in the world and some
countries have to import necessary materials from other countries for
constructions hence under this ground the cost of the materials is sky rocketing
therefore it is need to manage the resource consumption
Another side of sustainability is avoid and reduce wastage whenever it is possible

to reuse a building it should be considered and if the building can not be reused
then it should go to refurbishment, like wise as much as possible building should
be maintain and used, if the refurbishment doesn’t safe and it is not eligible to
reuse then only it should go to demolition, there are building elements like
windows, tile, wooden material etc, which is potential for reuse therefore it
should be careful to remove those elements safely before being demolished
In any where of this world we can find natural resources that can be used for our
purposes, it is need a very little processing effort to convert them into materials
that we want, most commonly found resources are, rock, sand, trees, clay,
limestone are some of them actually if someone need to build a house these
things are enough for it, and a house which is being made with local materials,
will give a good natural and interesting look, hence before going to artificial or
imported material it is wise to consider about local material which is cheap
economically.
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A building, which is being made with naturally made materials, is better to live
with. as an example a floor which is being made by using wood is very
comfortable compared with cement or tile floor and just because of the resilient
characteristic of the wood it would not give hurt when someone fall down on it.
Also choosing natural materials will reduce the pollution often associated with
their manufacture process for every ton of portland cement that is
manufactured, an equal amount of carbon dioxide is released into the air. And
then there is the matter of health, natural materials are much less likely to
adversely affect your health
Using renewable material or recyclable material will reduced the necessity of
reproducing and also keeping them out of the landfill, not only that producing a
material means not a simple process which sometimes use heavy machinery,
labor, fuel etc, reusing a product means we reserve those things to future.
Population is increasing day by day, and increasing population means that the
increasing of the need of the people, they need food, transport, buildings, etc.
Increasing these needs means that it is increasing the people’s involvement with
the nature therefore we should follow a sustainable procedure to protect the
natural environment.
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Acknowledgement
This report has being prepared as the final individual project for the higher
national diploma in quantity surveying at the International College of Business
and Technology Campus, Kandy.Sri Lanka
At the beginning of the project I had not a good idea about selecting a proper
topic for the project. I read few books and few articles which had published on
the internet and that led me to choose this topic, therefore I would like to thanks
those wise persons who wrote those books and published those articles on the
internet.
The knowledge that I gained from the lectures was a great help for me to think
within the construction industry and write this report successfully, therefore I
acknowledge all our lecturers kind dedication to teach us the relevant subjects.
And also I would like to extend my gratitude to my friends those who help and
encourage me to complete this report
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Contents
INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 12
SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE FOR A SUSTAINED FUTURE ................................ 14
WHY NEED OF SUSTAINABILITY? ........................................................................ 15
1. SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE WITH SITE, CLIMATE AND SIZE OF THE BUILDING ............... 17
1.1. Respect for site .................................................................................... 17
1.2. Working with the climate, ................................................................... 20
1.3. Size of the buildings and sustainability ................................................ 23
2. ENERGY CONSERVATION AND USE OF RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCES ......................... 25
2.1. Heating, Ventilation and Cooling System Efficiency ............................. 30
2.2. Passive solar building design ............................................................... 30
2.3. Alternative energy and their use .......................................................... 32
2.3.1.1.SOLAR WATER HEATING ......................................................................... 35
2.3.2. WIND POWER.......................................................................................... 35
2.3.2.1.F LOATING WIND FARMS ........................................................................ 38
2.4. Geothermal energy .............................................................................. 40
2.5. Tidal Power .......................................................................................... 42
2.5.1.1.TIDAL BARRAGES ................................................................................... 43
2.5.1.2.TIDAL REEF ........................................................................................... 43
2.5.1.3.OFFSHORE TURBINES............................................................................... 44
3. SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE AND CONSTRUCTION ................................................. 46
3.1.Minimize resource consumption - conserve and reduce use of resources46
3.2. Maximize resource reuse - avoid and reduce waste. ............................ 49
3.3. Use local material ................................................................................ 51
3.4. Use Natural material ........................................................................... 54
3.5. Use renewable or recyclable resources. ............................................... 56
3.6. Protect the natural environment.......................................................... 56
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CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................... 57
CASE STUDY 1 ..................................................................................................... 61
CONSTRUCTING A HOUSE AND USE OF SUSTAINABILITY.................................................... 61

1. Place .................................................................................................... 61
2. Foundation .......................................................................................... 62
3. Walls.................................................................................................... 63
4. Roofs ................................................................................................... 67
5. Finishes ................................................................................................ 68
CASE STUDY 2 ..................................................................................................... 70
DESIGN A LIGHT SYSTEM FOR A SELECTED AREA ............................................................. 70

APPENDIX ........................................................................................................... 74
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE ................................................................................... 74

REFERENCE ......................................................................................................... 75
REFERENCE OF FIGURES ..................................................................................... 76
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Introduction
Sustainable architecture is simply means that environmentally friendly design
techniques in the field of architecture, Sustainable Architecture shows systems
approach to design and construction in which the various components such as
alternative power recourses (passive solar techniques, wind power, geothermal
energy etc), proper use of site, proper use of materials, earth air conditioning,
vapor-permeable ceilings, and cellulose insulation, health and safety, aesthetic
appearance, contextual responsiveness etc, operate wisely to achieve
environmental goals ( Please note that in this report it has been concentrate
mostly about use of the sustainable architecture in Sri Lanka, and construction
of residencies)
Different countries have different cultures and way of designing buildings are in
relevance with their cultures, in early days constructions were link with nature
and most of the time materials, that used for constructions, were selections of
the nature, at that time there were not any environmental problem or any
material problem owing to those buildings (domestic houses ) were tally with the
environment and the material also was renewable however with the time this
has been changed and in present situation cultural oriented and environmentally
friendly houses, buildings are being disappearing.
In the present day early situation has been drastically changed and terms like
cost management, resources management, safety, optimum use of energy,
environmental impact etc, are arising and it has create a negative impact on the
survival of people and the industry.
Sustainable architecture seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of
buildings by enhancing efficiency and moderation in the use of materials, energy,
resources and development space
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We need to live more lightly on the earth, because the degeneration of our
environment is affecting not only our survival, but the survival of other living
beings on the planet. We can not ignore the impact we have on the earth's
ecosystems. The way of people are living, the choices of them providing for their
needs, will have an enormous influence on the quality of life of every living
being. Now is the time to take responsibility for the consequences of our life
styles, we are the people who are representing the construction industry,
therefore it is our responsibility to show the correct path to people
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Sustainable Architecture For A Sustained Future
Sustainable architecture is a profound subject and use of this subject in the field
is also cover very large area, therefore it is difficult to discuss all the subject
matters and there practice in the field, using a report like this. However this is
most sought after topic to discuss, therefore it has been selected few major
areas where sustainable architecture is necessary to use.
Sustainable architecture is looking for identify the needs of the people and
execute these needs without affecting the future. People has being used to
fulfilling their needs with narrow economical advantages and has forget the
word sustainability, this situation has led the world for many a difficulties. Who
responsible for those problems is the question, every people are responsible but
lions share must own for the people who involving in the construction industry,
because in most of the times there is a responsible person who know the
sustainability, but in the past time they have forgotten about sustainability for
narrow economics profits. Population growth and increasing consumption are
reasons in the depletion of some environmental assets as example
deforestation, architectures and responsible persons of the construction industry
must take an early action to stop this depletion of environmental and other
assets and they must proceed with these in mind. Implementation of
sustainability would necessitate establishing goals of protection of the resources,
and consumption of the resources while conserving is important. Earlier it was
giving priority to economic optimization (this is the way that most of the writers
had introduced this but in my opinion this is expectation of narrow economic
profits) therefore while introducing sustainability we have to face some
problems which occur due to this expectation of narrow economics profits.
As an example
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It is being considered to supply electric power for a selected area of the country.
solar power is one of the best alternative power source that we can use it as Sri
Lankans because Sri Lanka is a country which gains sunlight through out the
almost 365 days of the year, someone’s opinion may be this is not economically
good choice, but what are the other options Sri Lanka can go, sure they will go
for a Hydroelectric (Hydro electric also a alternative power that we can use but
constructing a hydroelectric water tank will considerably effect on the natural
resources and it is reduced the lands of the country that can be used for many a
needs of people, etc ) or they can go for a generate power using coal, but in
these procedures value of the effect of environment and people may greater
than the value of introducing solar power because introducing solar power will
never effect on the environment or people.
Why need of sustainability?
‘Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of

the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs”
(Brundtland Report of the World Commission on the Environment and

Development in 1987)
Narrow economic clouds have lead the world in to a danger situation, Therefore
the time has come to think something more than narrow economics profits, if we
fail to convert our self-destroying economy into one that is environmentally
sustainable, future generations will have to face some problems like following
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Threatens biodiversity, desertification and deforestation
Changes in global and regional climate, greater weather instability, rise in
sea levels
Air, water, land pollution
Inappropriate aid for developing countries, deprivation of indigenous
people of their homes and means of living, obliterating scarce fertile
agricultural land
Harmful side effects of modern technology, including biotechnology
Material depletion
Fuel depletion
Depletion of lands that can be used for agriculture
Therefore we need to think in sustainable way to eschew future generations

from those problems
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1. Sustainable Architecture with Site, Climate and Size of the building
1.1. Respect for site

In earlier days when it is being needed to prepare a site for a house or any
kind of building it was doing with the help of the labors and they didn’t do
a considerable change to the site and they just construct their buildings in
respect to the site that means they construct their building according to
the site conditions there for the stability, aesthetic and contextual
response was great for those buildings, however today this site
preparation procedure is doing with heavy machinery and drilling ,
blasting also can be taken a place when it is necessary, today what the
people are doing is they are preparing the site according to their need,
this procedure may loose the stability, aesthetic and contextual response
of the building
Respect for site means to respect for the nature therefore it is need to
concentrate on following factors before constrictions is taking a place
Will any natural spaces or wilderness be destroyed?
Will buildings be expanded into protected natural areas?
Is an Environmental Impact Assessment needed and has it been
prepared?
What steps have been taken to protect natural spaces, habitats or
species?
What restorative or rehabilitative measures will be taken?
Will any habitat or species be harmed or eliminated so that it
cannot be remedied?
Will any significant cultural site be affected?
What steps have been taken to protect such cultural site(s)?
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Have energy and water conservation technologies, waste
management measures and energy-efficient principles and building
technology guided the design process in a meaningful way?
Above are the some factors that we must consider before start a construction on
a site, if any natural spaces( sanctuary, forest, a stream, lake etc) or wild life in
danger due to the construction we must take an early action to avoid from that
site, we must prepare an environmental impact assessment and if that shows the
impact of the environment is considerable indeed we have to go for an another
site it is because, at the moment in this world we have remaining few
environmental resources that is striving to hold the equilibrium of this world,
and if we lost them means that we have to face some deadly consequences,
If the site is situated near to any kind of natural resources we must consider area
of the land is sufficient for a future need of extensions of buildings, this early
consideration will be help to go for an another site without effect later on the
relevant natural resources, If it is an unavoidable occasion and a construction is
going on near an any kind of natural resources, steps have to be taken to protect
natural spaces, habitats or species.
Ay kind of cultural site should be avoided; because cultural heritage is an
invaluable a country owned assets, these cultural sites can be any religion places,
historical places, etc those should not be destroyed or any kind of constructions
is going near a culturally valuable site precautions must be taken to protect
them, therefore protecting those places means protecting one’s own culture and
it is our obligation to protect them
And also it is very important aspect to used to avoiding in constructions in the

places where we can cultivate because now it has reduced the space
considerably the places where we can cultivate due to the constructions in any
place, therefore we should used to avoiding such sites and select places for
constructions where we cannot cultivate like, rock, hilly areas etc ( see picture 1)
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Most of the time respect for the site means, in one hand protect the
environment and biodiversity and cultural values, on the other hand build the
buildings in relevant to the shape of the site and building should show respect
for the architectural character of the context and for the preservation of
important archaeological and natural imprints.
Figure 1
(The village of Caramany, Rousillon district, France: Occupying
In rocky site, thereby leaving the best soils to cultivation)
(Derek Thomas2002, Architecture and the urban environment, a vision for the
new age)
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1.2. Working with the climate,
Working with Climate (geophysical, ecological) is an important thing our ancient
ancestors also had recognized the importance of the regional climatic adaptation
as an essential principle in the creation of architecture therefore we could have
seen different characteristics of different ages buildings, our country also we can
clearly identify this by looking at a building of Anuradapura age and Polonaruwa
age and also when we comes to Nuwara age we can see the differences and their
geological, ecological response if it is not so the contextual response are great,
those buildings and shapes materials which had used are greatly match with
those climates
Ancient architectures used geological shapes for building houses, as an example
they had used the natural shapes (caves) of the rocks to find a building, most of
the temples have build up adjacent to rocks and had used face of the rock as a
wall to cover the building as an example world famous temples like Isurumnniya
and Dambulla temples have build up using the natural caves of the rock
Anuradapura age
Figure1 .1
(Temple of
Isurumunia,
it has used
the natural
cave to build
the temple)
20
Anuradapura and the plonnaruwa are normally areas where there are hot
climatic conditions through out the year, so the ancient architectures had made
their buildings with thick brick walls or they have used rocks, secret of using
these thick brick layers for wall is control the temperature within the buildings (
see figure 1.2, 1.3)
Figure 1.2
(Ancient
temple in
Anuradapura)
Figure 1.3
(Temple in
Polonnaruwa,
it has used
thick brick
layers for
walls)
21

In addition to these thick brick layers and rock to construct buildings they have
used to construct buildings using clay walls and thatches using straws or coconut
leaves,
What we can learn from these things is we don’t need to go for the higher price
building materials to construct buildings and installing heating ventilation and
air conditioning systems in building is not the one and only way of regulating the
heating, ventilations and air conditions of a buildings, these ancient architects
show us using the locally available materials and constructing buildings in
keeping with the climatic conditions of the area we can achieve the level of
comfort that we need.
Using the climatic conditions of the site a designer can design a building with
great contextual response. the shape of the land does not need to change and
sometimes it can be an added advantage to give a good aesthetic appearance to
the building and not only that comfort of the occupants can be preserved with
good designing this means a climatically responsive building can enhance the
occupants’ well-being, while enabling them to experience the external climate of
the place , hope of the climatically responsive building is actually to be close with
the environment and take advantage of the climate.
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Figure 1.4
Nakhla, near El Oued,
Algeria: Desert
Durable and suitable
constructions to desert
climate where it is often
affected by the sand
storms
new age)
1.3. Size of the buildings and sustainability
Resent time most of the people have used to build the large houses more than
they need, sometimes there are around ten numbers of rooms but may be there
are living only two , three people and this trend is really a waste of money,
material etc, Large houses generally use a tremendous amount of energy to heat
and cool and the maintenance cost may be very high, therefore people should
understand that it is unnecessary to build bulky houses actually a small house
can be beautiful and cozy. A home should be just the right size for its occupants
and their activities. And such a small house can be manage very easily and
construction cost may reduced and economically will be cheap for people,
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Today world is facing for sever struggle of lacking suitable lands facilities
therefore people are used to deforesting for their land needs and also they have
been used carried out constructions on lands which can be used to cultivation
therefore now world is facing many problems such as bad repercussions of
deforesting like exhausting water springs, desertification and depletion of lands
for cultivation etc, it is of course the extravagant and unnecessary needs of the
people have blind their eyes and they are in the mind of filling lands with
unnecessary buildings as a good example there are buildings, which constructed
by the government for various purposes, have left without any use, and when
people are constructing houses they are used to filed with the land by their
houses, sometimes they haven’t any ample space at least to play a badminton
game, this situation have been lead them to bad health conditions such as
obesity. All those things emphasize that our need of the building size should be
very convenient for us and of course if we can left a place from our land it is just
not only helping as a play ground but we can grow vegetable for our
consumption and we can have fresh vegetables
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2. Energy conservation and use of renewable energy resources
Sustainably architecture is something we need to talk more in the field of energy

conservation. How can we design our buildings to use less energy? Solar power is
one thing and most of the people in Sri Lanka can used to using the optimum
advantage of solar power ( not only in our country but also most of the other
countries can use solar power) , but houses can be heated through sunlight, can
make the most of natural daylight and natural ventilation. The techniques
already exist; they just need to be adopted as soon as possible.
Under the sustainable architecture it is being discussed a need of constructing a

house which need least possible power specially through (fossil fuels) to heat or
cool the interior. When designing energy conserving house the following fact
must be considered
The use and cost of energy in buildings on a long-term basis,
The climatic characteristics in terms of solar radiation, temperature,
humidity and wind
Thermal comfort of the occupants
Architectural guidelines for effective solar design
The building envelope: Mass, glazing, day lighting, insulation, ventilation
and systems.
User control mechanisms
The incorporation of renewable fuels into building design
overhang, etc, insulated homes: insulated walls, ceilings, floors and
foundations, energy-efficient windows, insulated window coverings, window
shades, insulated doors, insulated hot water lines, weather sealing
25

Energy-efficient appliances and fixtures such as compact fluorescent light
bulbs, proper hot water heaters, energy-efficient heating systems, fans,
including whole-house fans, air-to-air exchangers, And proper use of these
things is the way of energy conservation
Heat in large buildings accumulates mainly from internal sources, such as the
heat from people or the building mass, this situation can be turned in to an
advantage. By storing excess daytime heat and using it to warm the building
during the night. If we can use a system to store that heat and use it at night that
will be a significant cost saving way.
In some developed countries such as the USA where consumption of energy is a
major national (in fact global) issue and the most use of energy is served for
domestic purposes
Figure 2.1
(This shows normal energy usage

of USA, and major energy
consumer is buildings those use
energy for running of buildings –
lights, heating and cooling, hot water
systems and so on. )
The problem with buildings is that they don’t change. It is estimated that the
transport industry in the US replaces itself every 12 years – so in 12 years time,
hybrids and electric cars may have largely replaced the ones we have now. Not
so with buildings. They’re built for the long haul. This is as an example and this
situation is not only prevailing in the USA but most of the other countries,
26

therefore the terms of energy conservation, and energy-efficient buildings have
the value more than it is meaning.
The procedures that we can follow to reduce the energy usage of buildings
1. Reduction in artificial lighting needs by supplementing with natural light.
Day lighting can reduce lighting bills by up to 15 % in commercial buildings.
Passive solar design for day lighting and space heating (use correct
building orientation, appropriate amount of glass, window placement, size
of roof overhang, etc.); solar hot water; solar wall ovens; photovoltaic
panels.
2. Provide smaller double glazed fenestration.
3. Provide efficient insulation of the interior from the exterior.
4. Install automated lighting and thermostatic controls. Systems operated by
photocells and controlled by microprocessors will activate dimmers in
proportion to the amount of daylight present and provide even lighting
throughout the building.
5. Use super insulated homes means highly insulated walls, ceilings, floors
and foundations, energy efficient windows, insulated window coverings,
window shades, insulated doors, insulated hot water lines, weather
sealing etc
6. Use of Energy-efficient appliances and fixtures such as compact
fluorescent light bulbs, on-demand hot water heaters, energy-efficient
heating systems, set-back (clock) thermostats, Energy-efficient fans,
including whole-house fans, air-to-air exchangers
7. Use of Energy-efficient house designs, when design a house as energy
efficient is not an unreachable target today with the new technologies,
therefore it should be considered such as more efficient building shapes ,
better site selection; appropriate level of thermal mass inside the
insulated envelope (mass floors and interior walls, thick plaster, built-in
benches), cool pantries; attached greenhouses; night venting when
27
appropriate; open layout to enhance air circulation; open layout and light-
colored interior walls and ceilings to enhance day lighting; efficient use of
space, cross ventilation; natural convention; lower ceilings in cold
climates; sleeping lofts in cold climates; light colored roofs in hot climates;
roof vents; privacy walls to block the wind; planting trees and plants for
shade and to block wind; outdoor living space etc can be used
8. Lifestyle changes for conservation such as minimize the number of
appliance use ( we can reduce the lamps that we use) use them only when
it is necessary, when we use lamps and HVAC systems close off in unused
rooms, turn off computers, at night etc we can follow as conservations
habits
(In addition to these procedure in this report it has been discussed the
procedures that can be followed to reduce the energy usage of buildings,
under the Passive solar building design)
28

Figure 2.2
Kuala Lumpur, 1992: Menara Mesiniaga, (IBM) Tower, energy-conscious
design
new age)
29

2.1. Heating, Ventilation and Cooling System Efficiency
This area is one of the most important area where design considerations
should have been followed carefully because the amount of energy use for
the purpose of heating ventilation and cooling system is comparatively high
rather than the energy use of other needs, this situation economically
affected to house holders, A well insulated building is the most effective an
economical remedy for reduce this unnecessary energy consumption. A
building should have qualities of less heat generating and power consumption
and require more ventilation capacity to expel polluted indoor air for the
efficiency of heating ventilation and cooling systems,
overhang, etc, insulated homes: insulated walls, ceilings, floors and
foundations, energy-efficient windows, insulated window coverings, window
shades, insulated doors, insulated hot water lines, weather sealing
2.2. Passive solar building design
These buildings give users to use the optimum usage of the energy of the sun
without using active solar mechanism such as photoelectric cells or water
heating solar panels, in these types of buildings the main target is retain the
heat effectively within the building using high thermal mass and strong heat
insulations to prevent the heat escape
Figure 2.3
(Passive solar
building,
optimum use of
sunlight)
30
Use well designed shutters, blinds, solar shadings to relieve the excessive
heat while the periods of direct sunlight and reduce the use of artificial
cooling mediums such as HVAC systems,, placing windows in the relevant
places where sunlight can be gain through out the day is impotent and also
design the windows with good characteristics to prevent escaping the heat
gain into the building through glasses is involving in designing passive solar
buildings certain windows like double or triple glassed insulated windows
with gas filled spaces will provide better insulation qualities than the single
pane glass widows. Prevention of excessive sunlight gain in hot climatic
conditions is also important because that will reduce the need of going for
the artificial cooling systems, to achieve this target we can grows trees
around the building specially near windows but should be maintain properly
to gain the enough sunlight through out the day.
Specially in the areas where there is a clear seasonal change the architectures
use planting deciduous trees (trees those leaves are falling in winter but other
seasons) near the windows, thus those trees are blocked excessive sun light
in summer with their leaves and in winter allow sunlight to come falling their
leaves
Heating systems of buildings are primarily focus on sustainable architecture
because they are the largest energy consumers in the buildings specially in
cold climates, in warm climatic conditions cooling is take place, using masonry
building materials with high thermal mass are very valuable because they can
retain the cool temperature of buildings and also main consideration should
be given in designing buildings( placing windows), there are natural channels
of flowing winds, designer should be able to catch those like wise if there is a
water stream or any lake near to the buildings, should be design to catch cool
natural winds from them to be cool free of charge ( See figure 2.4)
31

Figure 2.4
Use natural water stream to cool the home
2.3. Alternative energy and their use

Some techniques of using alternative energy are very simple and those are
well-proven solutions, most of which are totally simple to implement, but
it is a fact to be really surprised because no country has been given a
substantial consideration about this, here in this report mainly it has been
given the consideration about the alternative resources that it can be used
in our country, alternative energy resources means that the resources
which can be used as energy generating resource alternative to fossil fuels,
hydro electric is of course a good method that can be used as a alternative
energy resource, but here in this report it has not been considered about
32

hydro-electric, because here in Sri Lanka this is being used as one of the
main power generating method.
2.3.1. SOLAR HEATING

Solar heating is a good and reliable way of providing sustainable
electricity for any use. Sun is being a place where it generates power
without diminutive and most of the places in the world having direct
sun light which is enough to generate power by using photovoltaic
panels this must be the best way of generating power. Roofs are
often angled toward the sun to allow photovoltaic panels to collect at
maximum efficiency; electricity gain through the photovoltaic panels
can be used for any usage, Therefore solar power is now becoming a
very real prospect. Many people use solar power to heat their homes
and to run different appliances. It is an economical and
environmentally-friendly way to bring power into the home.
There are a number of ways we can use solar power in our houses.
Some homes in other countries like USA, they use solar power to
achieve there almost every power needs. There are houses called
zero-energy homes and they have cut power consumption by 50 to
70%. Once implemented in the home, solar power can be used to
heat the home especially for the people live in the areas where there
are cold climates. And not only we can achieve our power needs using
solar power but also we added some extra value to our house.
33

Picture 2.5
(Roof mounted
solar panel
system)
The most basic technology used in solar power is the solar electric
panel. These panels are called as photovoltaic (PV) panels and that
can be free standing rigid sheets used to gain the sun’s energy. These
panels can also be set into the roof, or any other convenient place to
which sun light directly falling in most of the time through out the day
using these photovoltaic panels the sun’s energy is converted to
electricity through a system. Except to this converting system other
electricity conveying system is the same system that we used
normally.
When we use solar power in our homes, it is capable of storing

energy. If there is a surplus of energy, it can be used at a later time to
our needs and it is no need to face to any miserable power cut
situations normally we are facing.
This is economically very advantage method for using power and the
reducing costs is the main reason people use solar power in their
34

homes in other countries and they have succeeded on this and
sometimes some residence in developed countries are not only using
solar electricity but also they are used to sell there surplus power for
central power system of the country. It is of course installation cost is
some what high but it should understand that we are investing this
money for another 10 to 15 years, it is because after installation it is
no need to spend money for maintenance, in developing counties like
Sri Lanka people may not have enough money to this procedure but
there should be a considerable government interference just because
this a good investment
2.3.1.1. SOLAR WATER HEATING

Water heating is one of the major power consume procedure in the
house, this solar water heating can be used to heat water for zero cost
therefore it will be a good practice if people can use solar heating to
heat water, and this will be economically advantage option, in our
country most of the places through out the country is normally having
good sun light through out the day and this will be enough to use a
solar hot water heating system
2.3.2. WIND POWER

Wind is another kind of power generating source we can use free of
charge, if the building site situated in a area where it is normally
having good wind conditions we can use this system, under the
sustainable architecture here it will be discussed how this is been
operate cheaply, because actually if a domestic user select this system
sometimes this may not cheep system to gain electricity for him,
35

advantages and disadvantages are common to this system also and
under any circumstances the user cant operate a system like this
Here in Sri Lanka, that is the pearl of the Indian ocean, is surrounded
by the beautiful Indian ocean, therefore there are high speed winds all
ways around the country, hence costal areas of our country are
suitable for generate power using winds, not only here in Sri Lanka
but also other counties where there is a costal area is suitable for use
wind as alternative power generating resource and also highest places
like top of mountains and such areas are suitable for generating wind
power.
General speed of the winds are higher with the height, therefore most
of the time use a tall tower and mounted a propeller like in the
following figure
Figure 2.6
(Typical wind power
generating tower)
36

Winds impact with the blades of the propeller and it will rotate thus
there is a generator inside the rotating house to generate electricity,
and if it is not enough the power generating from one tower we can
use number of towers, if there are use more towers to generate
power it is called as a wind farm, and the costal areas are the most
suitable places for wind farms therefore it will be worth to have
several wind farms around the country and through them we can
supply power to the people who are living in coastal areas
Figure 2.7
(Carland Cross Wind Farm, Cornwall )
37

2.3.2.1. FLOATING WIND FARMS
Floating wind farms are similar to a normal wind farm, but the
difference is that they float in the middle of the ocean. wind farms can
placed in water up to 40 meters, The advantage of having a floating
wind farm is to be able to harness the winds from the open ocean.
Without any obstructions such as hills, trees and buildings, winds from
the open ocean can reach up to speeds twice as fast as coastal areas.
This is also a good alternative way of power generating method for
our country, individual people may not have the capacity of installing
and operating a system like this, but government can concentrate
about this.
Figure 2.8
(Floating Wind Farm)
38

This power generating method can be used for any need of the domestic and
industrial power needs.
Picture 2.10
Picture 2.9
(Installation of a small wind turbine
( Telecom electrification in
for water purification)
Kenya with small wind turbine)
Using wind farm power generating method there are advantages and
disadvantages we must consider
Advantages of wind farms
Wind is free, wind farms need no fuel.
Produces no waste or greenhouse gases.
The land beneath can usually still be used for farming.
Wind farms can be tourist attractions.
A good method of supplying energy to remote areas.
Disadvantages of wind farms

 The wind is not always predictable - some days have no wind.
39

 Suitable areas for wind farms are often near the coast, where
land is expensive.
2.4. Geothermal energy

This is also another good way for alternating power, this is actually
good way of generating power for specially countries which is situated
near the Pacific Ocean, because it has found that those areas are the
most efficient for geothermal energy. And other countries like our
country if we want to use geothermal energy we can first arrange a
research to find the suitable places.
Geothermal is the heat of the earth, the core of the earth is consisted
with enormous amount of heat and this heat are gradually coming to
the surface of the earth, there are places where this heat is coming
out of the ground also such as volcanoes, hot springs and geysers.
Therefore such places are specially important, Here in Sri Lanka also
we can see some places where we can find hot springs, e.g.,
Trincomaly District, it is wise to have a research to find whether it is
possible to use geo thermal energy in areas like this Trincomaly
District
There are ways of using geothermal energy

1.Direct Use and District Heating Systems -which use hot water from
springs or reservoirs near the surface.
2.Electricity generation- in a power plant requires water or steam at
very high temperature (300 to 700 degrees Fahrenheit).
Geothermal power plants are generally built where geothermal
reservoirs are located within a mile or two of the surface.
3. Geothermal heat pumps- use stable ground or water temperatures
near the earth's surface to control building temperatures above
40

ground. In country like Sri Lanka this procedure may be deserved,
because in this system, we can use ground temperature.
Temperatures of the above ground change a lot from day to day
and season to season, temperatures in the upper 10 feet of the
Earth's surface hold nearly constant between 50 and 60 degrees
Fahrenheit. This is normal conditions for most areas around the
earth; this means that soil temperatures are usually warmer than
the air in winter and cooler than the air in summer. (This
conditions is an advantage for specially countries where there are
clear seasonal change over, how ever here in Sri Lanka for the
areas such as Nuwaraeliya, Bandarawela, etc can use this heat
pump system) Geothermal heat pumps use the Earth's constant
temperatures to heat and cool buildings. They transfer heat from
the ground (or water) into buildings in winter and reverse the
process in the summer.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),
geothermal heat pumps are the most energy-efficient,
environmentally clean, and cost-effective systems for temperature
control. Although, in USA most homes still use traditional furnaces
and air conditioners, geothermal heat pumps are becoming more
popular. And this situation is clearly a pleasure for the people who
are talking about sustainability
41

Figure 2.11
(Simply circulate water or an antifreeze solution through a closed loop network
of pipe)
2.5. Tidal Power

Sri Lanka is being surrounded by the sea, the tidal power can be
considered as a god way for alternating power, the tide moves with a
huge amount of water each day and the energy carried with these tides
are huge and with the newest technologies it is possible to convert this
energy into electrical power although it is not easy.
42

2.5.1.1. TIDAL BARRAGES
A huge dam is built across a river estuary (in wide tidal river mouth). This
dam is called as a "barrage" When the tide goes in and out, the water
flows through tunnels in the dam, The ebb and flow of the tides can be
used to turn a turbine, or it can be used to push air through a pipe, which
then turns a turbine. This procedure is used in Britain and this systems
provide around 20% of their energy needs. (See picture 3.3)
2.5.1.2. TIDAL REEF

This procedure also can be used to convert energy of the tides into
electricity, this also very similar procedure for tidal barrage but this design
does not block the water movement as much like in the barrage method,
so it wouldn't affect the tides as severely therefore the environmental
consequences are less. And this could be built in sections, so power could
start being generated sooner. (See figure 2.12)
Figure 2.12
(Tidal Barrages, Rance estuary in northern France)
43
Figure 2.13
(Tidal Reef, example design)
2.5.1.3. OFFSHORE TURBINES
These systems are like an underwater wind farms. First identify the offshore
areas where there normally have good wave conditions, and install under
water towers as in the (figure 3.5) these method is better for the
environment than any other tidal energy methods and also energy from
waves do not emit any carbon or harmful greenhouse gases, so that it is
much better for the planet and every living thing on it. (See figure 2.14)
44
Figure 2.14
(Tidal Reef, example for design)
Advantages
Tidal power is free
It produces no greenhouse gases or other waste
It needs no fuel
It produces electricity reliably
Not expensive to maintain.
Disadvantages
A barrage across an estuary is very expensive to build, and affects a
very wide area - the environment is changed for many miles
upstream and downstream.
There are few suitable sites for tidal barrages
45

3. Sustainable Architecture and Construction
Considerable amount of money of the global economy is dedicated to

constructing, operating and equipping homes and offices. And this is increasing
day by day although the spaces are not enough people haven’t stopped their
construction, devastating natural places like forests, lakes, beach, etc any where
they are constructing various kinds of buildings, sky scrapers which are tiring to
catch the zenith of the sky they are constructing in a competitive way.
Speed of the constructions and use of materials, lands etc are leading the world
into some severe problems, as follow
1. Depletion of materials
2. Depletions of lands
3. Depletion of land for agriculture
4. Destruction of natural places
5. Environment pollution
6. Wastage of materials and other resources
7. Land fillings from the materials that cannot be reuse
Considering all those things people should understand the necessity of the
sustainable construction that means ‘creating a healthy built environment using
resource efficient, and ecologically based principles’
3.1. Minimize resource consumption - conserve and reduce use of

resources.
Conservation supports the principles of sustainability; it is minimize the
resource consumption, resent past years it has been used materials
without any conservation usually for reasons of short-term economic
46

advantage and to day it has led to a panic situation of shortage of
material in the world and some countries have to import necessary
materials from other countries for constructions hence under this ground
the cost of the materials is sky rocketing therefore it is need to manage
the resource consumption
Water is one of the resource that we are using for our construction
process and abundant resource that we can find in some areas and
shortage resource for other areas, however now this resources is
becoming a shortage resource for every where in the world and main
reason for this is consumption of this resource without any management
for reservation, as an examples people have used water without
categorized whether it is suitable for use of the daily routings of the
people and animal ( this means they must identify the water as drinkable,
good for constructions, and good for agriculture and other aspects, and
also some factories, hotels, etc have build up near the natural water
resources without any sustainability and they used to contaminating the
water by adding every unsuitable, dangerous chemicals etc and thus this
resources had become unusable
At least now people should understand this situation and they can limit
the consumption of water through
1. Rooftop rainwater harvesting for outdoor irrigation
2. Water efficiency in buildings through the use of conserving fittings
such as low-flow showerheads, tap aerators, dual flushing toilet
mechanisms
3. In external landscaping the use of indigenous, low water dependent
plant species.
47

Figure 3.1
(Water pollution,
People have used to
adding various kind of
pollutants to water,
unfortunately this will
be a fact to reduce
there life time.
Please give your
concentration on this
you are jeopardizing not only your life but also your child )
Water is only a one resource that it had been considered, other resources
also conserve by limiting resource consumption by raising issues as to
whether the materials or resources intended for use are:
1. Renewable and abundant;
2. Low impact on the environment at source;
3. Non-polluting, emitting no harmful vapors, particles or toxins during
either manufacture or use;
4. Energy efficient, using low energy in production, transportation and
use;
5. Durable, long-lived and easy to maintain and repair, and be
convincingly tested in their application;
6. Equitable and produced via socially correct means, e.g. good
working conditions, fair wages, equal opportunity; and
48

7. Low waste and capable of being reused and recycled, thereby saving
the vast amounts of energy spent on processing raw materials.
Recycled steel, for example, saves more than 70% of the energy
used in manufacturing new steel from primary ore.
If the material is renewable and abundant there is no problem for using

them for construction as an example wood related materials but when
achieving the needs of woods should not target to terminate of forest,
there are types of woods that we can use while foresting as an examples,
oak, teak, etc they can be used any kind of usages in constructions, Oak
related productions like sheet material for use on floors and walls, sealing
can be used and Teak can be used for making doors, windows, roof related
materials. And composite boards are made from waste timber and
vegetable matter and those are also optional, but due to the heavy
demand, most often fresh timber is made from hard-pressed woods that
gain from forests and that should be avoided
3.2. Maximize resource reuse - avoid and reduce waste.

Another side of sustainability is avoid and reduce wastage whenever it is
possible to reuse a building it should be considered and if the building can
not be reused then it should go to refurbishment, like wise as much as
possible building should be maintain and used, if the refurbishment
doesn’t safe and it is not eligible to reuse then only it should go to
demolition, there are building elements like windows, tile, wooden
material etc, which is potential for reuse therefore it should be careful to
remove those elements safely before being demolished
Many of the countries are constructing a building to a specific period of
time and after that they used to demolished those buildings, sometimes
49

using dynamites or any other explosives, if there are is a building it should
not be used and need to demolished it should do in that way but why they
are designing them in such specific time period, sometimes for very short
period of time, this is not the way to day the world needed, if there is a
designing that should be long lasting design and it will be the need of the
world.
With the above process wastage is high because if the building is not good
for reuse there are some elements that can be used again, therefore if it is
need to demolished a building it should be considered at least this
wastage.
And also when using new material for any kind of work wastage should be
considered
Figure 3.2
Maximize Resource use(Paris, France: The D ’Orsy Museum, originally railway station,
‘Recycled’ to become an exhibition gallery,)(Derek Thomas2002, Architecture and the urban
environment, a vision for the new age)
50

3.3. Use local material
In any where of this world we can find natural resources that can be used
for our purposes, it is need a very little processing effort to convert them
into materials that we want, most commonly found resources are, rock,
sand, trees, clay, limestone are some of them actually if someone need to
build a house these things are enough for it, and a house which is being
made with local materials, will give a good natural and interesting look,
hence before going to artificial or imported material it is wise to consider
about local material which is cheap economically.
Rock as one of the most found local material and after processing with
little effort (sometimes for some tasks just breaking is enough) we can use
them for various works such as to make retaining walls for landscaping, or
make other decorative outdoor projects. They can also be used with
mortared together to make walls for a house. And such walls are best
suited to special interior places where their thermal mass for heat storage
can be taken advantage of. And the strong of the walls also enough to
survive at least two three decades if any external force like flood,
hurricane, etc wouldn’t take a place
Another type of local material that we are using is adobe and in our
country (Sri Lanka) we are still using these things, which is made out of
the clay and just need the labors to made and no any other considerable
cost are involve with the procedure of making adobe that can be made
into blocks for building, for walls, floors can be formed using adobe.
Another kind of locally available building material is wood. And also wood
is clearly one of the most useful building materials on the world and the
trees can be available any locality therefore wood also available in any
where. However as it is mentioned in the above for the easiest and the
51

purpose of narrow economic clouds it should not be incline to destroy
natural forest tat has remain in the present world. Reforesting is the most
suitable way to have trees, there are specials trees that we can grow
easily and use full for our purpose and a special tree is not suitable for any
localities but there are lot of trees which match with selected localities.
Although wood can be use for many purpose of construction it should be
used only for where it is necessary.
When trees are utilized in their natural rounded, and/or contorted
shapes, rather than sawn into boards, there are many benefits. It is
possible to find dead, but still solid trees in many locations that can be
used in many ways. Parts of trees can support tremendous weight in a
decorative, pleasing manner. By keeping them round, it can retain the
inherent strength that the tree had in the first place.
When we are going to build up a house, office or any kind of buildings we
can use these locally available material which is more cheep, So before go
for an expensive artificial material first look around at the materials that
nature provides nearby
As I mentioned in the above early days of Sri Llankens( even in today), In

addition to intorducing the thick brick layers to buildings that hey had
used buildings which is made completely using clay and woods, ( not only
in Sri Lanka some oter countries like, India, Bangladesh, etc ) present day
also we can see those types of houses,
52

Figure 3.3
(Use locally available cheap materials to build)
Hundred present locally available materials have used to build this house,
economically very cheap to build a house like this, but people may avoid to use a
house like above, it is because the appearance of the house is not giving a
comfortable look. That is only the reason; therefore people should incline to find
new ways of building houses using the same locally available and aesthetically
valuable house, so instead of the appearance of the above house how about
using appearance like bellow
Figure 3.4
(Good appearance
for a thatched house
www.holiday-
rentals.co.uk)
53

Good appearance of houses that we can follow, those houses also have used
locally available materials to construct
Figure 3.5
(A typical
Devonshire cob and
thatch house.
http://www.devonh
eritage.org/Places/D
evonCounty/images)
3.4. Use Natural material

A building, which is being made with naturally made materials, is better to
live with. as an example a floor which is being made by using wood is very
comfortable compared with cement or tile floor and just because of the
resilient characteristic of the wood it would not give hurt when someone
fall down on it. Also choosing natural materials will reduce the pollution
often associated with their manufacture process (for every ton of
Portland cement that is manufactured, an equal amount of carbon
dioxide is released into the air). And then there is the matter of health,
natural materials are much less likely to adversely affect your health
A home or office means people are always (specially a home) circulate

within it, therefore it should be a healthy place for people, but present
54

day all houses (or office spaces) are completely not providing a healthy
back ground. Home or office should be a place we feel healthy to live. The
quality of the air is very importance. There is an increased risk of air
pollution when we seal the interior space tightly against air infiltration
from outside. This is because any contaminants that are released into the
interior air are more likely to stay there. Today most of the houses and
the offices are achieving these artificial air circulations which lead people
for many healthy and economic problems
Figure 3.6
(Here most of the parts

of this building it has
used, natural materials
specially woods)
From both an aesthetic and health point of view, it is good practice to

used building with natural materials and introducing products of natural
related into house and offices Among the natural materials that can use,
stone, glass, lime or mud plasters, adobe or rammed earth, bricks, tiles,
untreated wood . Cork, paper, reeds, bamboo, canes and grasses, all
natural fibers (linen, cotton, wool, etc.). Including plants in the living
space can greatly enhance the natural plight of the spaces Plants giving a
good appearance to spaces and also theyrelease oxygen into the air,
while reducing the carbon dioxide content of the air.
55
3.5. Use renewable or recyclable resources.
Using renewable material or recyclable material will reduced the

necessity of reproducing and also keeping them out of the landfill, not
only that producing a material means not a simple process which
sometimes use heavy machinery, labor, fuel etc, reusing a product means
we reserve those things to future.
Some sustainable architecture incorporates the use of recycled or second
hand materials, such as reclaimed lumber. If we can reduce use of new
materials creates a corresponding reduction in energy used in the
production of materials. Often sustainable architects incline to use old
structures to serve new needs in order to avoid unnecessary construction
that means the consumptions of new materials. When older buildings are
demolished, reusable elements should be carefully removed such as
doors, windows, mantels, and hardware, thus reducing the consumption
of new goods
3.6. Protect the natural environment.

Population is increasing day by day, and increasing population means that
the increasing of the need of the people, they need food, transport,
buildings, etc. Increasing these needs means that it is increasing the
people’s involvement with the nature therefore we should follow a
sustainable procedure to protect the natural environment.
Vernacular Architecture is also a good way of constructing building using
locally available resources and traditions to address local needs; it is also
a sustainable construction method
See Appendix for more about Vernacular Architecture
56
Conclusion
The areas where it has been discussed in this report can be present as a checklist
as following
Protect Natural resource.
Avoid being disturb or any harm to the natural resource, respect to the natural
resources and culturally valued places
Minimize site waste.

Concentrate on site wastage and advice all for minimize waste and recycling
resources
Renovate older buildings.

Renovating existing buildings is the most sustainable construction.
Concentration on the Size of building
A home should be just the right size for its occupants and their activities. Use
buildings which can be manageable very easily and construction cost May
reduced and economically cheap
Evaluate site resources.

Before commence constructions carry out a careful site evaluation: solar access,
soils, vegetation, important natural areas, etc.
Minimize environmental impact.

Minimize the impact with forests wildlife habitats, wetlands, sanctuaries, water
resources
57
Pay attention to solar orientation.
Reduce energy use by orienting buildings to make optimal use of passive solar
heating, day lighting, and natural cooling.
Get benefit from existing vegetation.

Use the trees around the buildings to avoid excessive sunlight
Design an energy-efficient building.

Use high levels of insulation, high-performance windows, and tight construction.
In Southern climates, choose glazing with low solar heat gain
Design buildings to use renewable energy.

Passive solar heating, day lighting, and natural cooling can be incorporated cost-
effectively into most buildings. Also consider solar water heating, wind power,
geothermal energy and tidal energy.
Avoid chemicals and other pollutants into the groundwater.

Protect water resource and avoid adding any kind of waste to water
Optimize material use.

Minimize waste by designing for standard sizes. Avoid waste from structural
over-design (use optimum value-engineering/advanced framing). .
Conserve water.
Water that has been used for bathing, dish washing, or clothes washing can be
recycled for flushing toilets or irrigation. Rooftop water catchment for outdoor
watering should be considered in many regions.
Install high-efficiency heating and cooling equipment.

Use well-designed high-efficiency air conditioners (and distribution systems) not
only save the building occupants money, but also produce less pollution during
operation.
58

Install high-efficiency appliances.
Use energy efficiency appliances (lamps such as Fluorescent bulbs). High
efficiency appliances offer both economic and environmental advantages over
their conventional counterparts.
Install water-efficient equipment.

Water-conserving toilets, showerheads, and faucet aerators not only reduce
water use, they also reduce demand on septic systems or sewage treatment
plants. Reducing hot water use also saves energy.
Use durable products and materials.

Manufacturing is very energy-intensive; a product that lasts longer or requires
less maintenance usually saves energy. Durable products also contribute less to
our solid waste problems.
Buy locally produced building materials.

Look for locally produced materials which is cheap and sometime it is no need
excessive transport cost
Use building products made from recycled materials.

Building products made from recycled materials reduce solid waste problems,
cut energy consumption in manufacturing, and save on natural resource use.
Reuse building materials when possible.

Reduce landfill pressure and save natural resources by reusing, when demolished
buildings carefully remove reusable elements
As it has been mentioned in the above these factors can be used as a check list
for sustainable architecture and if it is needed a sustained future, people have to
follow these check list in verbatim, Sustainable architecture which describe
environmentally friendly design techniques and systems approach to design and
construction, will be help for a sustained future, in this report it has been
59

discussed problems which have taken a place, and related remedies that we can
follow under sustainable architecture
By engaging in Sustainable architecture, we create high performance buildings
that are in harmony with their context and ones that protect, enhance and even
restore the natural environment. We optimize energy efficiency and exploit
opportunities for passive solar and natural lighting. We conserve natural
resources through reducing waste, using regional resources, and using
renewable, used and recycled materials. Such as sustainable Architect can use to
enhance human comfort and reduce or eliminate problems that have taken a
place due to miss conduct of the people expecting narrow economic profits,
60

Case study 1
Constructing a house and use of sustainability
As a case study for the sustainable architecture here I am going to describe

construction procedure and suitable low costing materials for constructing a
house using local and natural materials, and this case study for look specially for
the local materials that we can use , in this case aim is going for
1. Respect for site
2. Use local material
3. Use Natural material
4. Minimize resource consumption - conserve and reduce use of resources.
5. Maximize resource reuse - avoid and reduce waste
6. Use renewable or recyclable resources.
7. Protect the natural environment.
8. Energy conservation and use of renewable energy resources
Please note that this constriction procedure is mostly suitable for constricting a
house in Sri Lanka, because in this case study mostly it has been concentrated
conditions, available material, climate and the lively hood etc of Sri Lanka
1. Place
Aesthetic and contextual response was great for the buildings specially we like to
have a good aesthetic appearance for our residence, most of the time if the
appearance of a house is tally with the environment, back ground, and other
surrounding houses etc the aesthetic appearance is unwittingly deserved to that
house this is called as contextual response of a house, therefore natural place on
which the house is being deemed to build, should not be disturbed, however
today this site preparation procedure is doing with heavy machinery and drilling,
blasting also can be taken a place when it is necessary, today what the people
61

are doing is they are preparing the site according to their need, this procedure
may loose the stability, aesthetic and contextual response of the building
In this country sun light is available most of the time in the day and the light
from the sun rays is enough for the daily routings, therefore it should consider
the orientation of the house to receive effective sunlight through the day time,
in this country it might be having excessive sunlight and that can be lead to
uncomfortable hot conditions within the house but this can be control growing
plants around the house
2. Foundation
As it has been mentioned in the process of foundation construction, excavation
for foundations it should avoid using heavy machinery that will disturbed the
steady of the earth (vibrations etc) and later it will lead to settle down the
structure with cracks of walls, foundations etc, use of labors for excavation is the
best way and it should appreciate in this country most of the time it is use labors
Materials for foundation
As a sustainable method (Use local material) always before going to by any thing
for the use of constructions it should search what materials can be available near
or is there any materials which can be reused, as an example if the site is
consisted with boulders, by means of a little processing it can be used for your
foundations
Locally available materials that can be used for foundations
1. Boulders
2. Solid rock particles
3. Clay can be used as a bonding materials instead of cement
4. To minimize resource consumption you can go for salvation materials from
your old house etc
62

3. Walls
Most of the time in this country it is being used clay bricks which is good because
of the clay bricks are locally available material, to day this situation is converting
and people have tend to use cement bricks which lead to increase the artificial
appearance of a house while losing the neutrality, here in this country most of
the places are suitable for making clay bricks and the process of making clay
bricks also a easy procedure and adobe also a kind of brick which is some what
large than the normal clay brick and it is also a very god material that can be
used for constructing walls, Any soil that is composed of between 20 and 30
percent clay, with the rest mostly sand, is good for adobe projects. Such soil is
found naturally in many areas of the country. There for used to made adobe for
wall construction is economically very cheap, following this procedure you can
test possible soil for making
Place some soil in a glass which uses to drink water and then fill the glass with
water. Next, shake the glass until all of the soil is suspended in the water and
then set it aside for several hours to settle out. First of all heavier particles will
sink, and the finer clay will settle on the top. Organic material will float on the
water. There should be a clear line of demarcation between the clay, silt and
sand. Then it is an easy to estimate the percentage of the total amount of soil
that the clay represents.
63

Making clay bricks, there is no any artificial or environmentally affective
materials are being used, just clay and water
Today also in some village areas we can see rammed earth walls, these are
construct use of Using local and Natural material, in this case rammed earth
walls are acting as a thermal barrier and protect the comfortable conditions
within the house, up to the late 1900 people have used this method but today
we cannot see people use this ramped walls to build their houses, that is also a
fact for they have faced problems like need of cooling systems for their houses
Construction of a rammed earth wall (house)
In this case also it can be used a soil that is composed of between 20 and 30
percent clay, if the content of the sand is high it is not good to use because it is
weaken the strength of walls, however any where of this country it can be find
good soil for rammed earth walls, stems of trees and reepers (lath which made
64

out of the bamboo or areca nut trees can be used) are use to construct the
structure of the wall, in the cleared placed where you want to construct the
house first plant the tree stems in corners of walls and on the lines of walls are
going, using number of stems it can increase the strength of the walls this stems
should be planted very steadily, after that reepers which are parallel to each
other are nailed or tied to these stems steadily to represent the either side f
walls
Stems Reepers
Plan view of a wall
Stems
Reepers
Elevation of a wall structure
65

After complete the wall structure clay is being prepared mixing water and
compacting by specially men treading on it, compacted clay is prepared as
globate in shape ( this shape is easy to handle and put into walls) after that this
prepared globate shape clay put in to the holes of the walls and tamped by
hands
Stems Reepers
Prepared globate shape clay put in to these holes
Like wise rammed earth walls are being constructed, in some countries they
mixed straws with this clay in order to increase the strength of the walls and
they called as those walls are cob web walls
A house which has used cob

web walls
(http://www.devonheritage.o
rg/Places/DevonCounty/imag
es/CobandThatch.jpg</TITLE>
)
66
Here also we can use cob web walls to made our houses, wall finishes should be
considered greatly because aesthetic appearance of the house is depend on the
finishing, here in this case we can use clay as a good finishing material and after
that it can be white washed as seen in the picture above,
The following locally available natural materials can be used to construct walls
1. Bricks, adobe
2. Clay , clay mixed with straws
3. Timbers
4. Bamboos
5. Rock particles
6. local stones
7. Straw bales
4. Roofs
Roof element also can be made using 100% natural materials, example is
thatched roofs, timbers witch is not planed or plane timber can be used as ribs ,
reepers and purlins, after completing g the roof structure covering ( coconut
thatches or straw thatches tied with the reepers specially in coconut thatched
roofs
The following locally available natural materials can be used as roof coverings
1. Coconut thatches
2. Straw thatches ( straw bales)
3. Leaves of Palmyra tree
4. Tall grass ( mana) bales
67

5. Finishes
As wall finishes it can be used clay and to keep a good appearance it can be
white washed and also can be used timber which is prepared in many ways as
swan timbers, boards, compacted hard woods etc
As floor finishes it can be used a compacted soil surface which is secondary
applied a good clay surface this the simple way that we can use as floor finishes
in addition to that following materials also can be used as floor finishes
1. Brick
2. Adobe and it can applied a thin clay layer on it and can be applied colored
clay
3. Wood
4. Hard wood timber, boards
5. Granite can be used after little process
6. Industrially processed Granite also can be used but may be expensive
7. Planks
A stair case made out of timbers

(http://www.greenhomebuilding.co
m/localmaterials.htm -->)
68

6. Landscaping
Actually the landscaping is increase the aesthetic appearance of the land; this is
in one hand protecting the natural environment the more you protect the
natural environment the more you increase the aesthetic appearance of your
land, therefore it should be careful to protect the natural environment, such as if
there are large trees you must avoid cutting them and when you want to plant
trees and flowers always you must go for the plants which deserved to the
prevailing climatic conditions of the area if not it must be want to spend lot of
money to maintain them
69

Case Study 2
Design a light system for a selected area
This article is extracted from one of my assignment and the following is a my

design (according to the Lumen method) which is suitable for the following
conditions
Design a light system for a factory the floor area measures 42m, 20m, required
illumination level is 210 Lux, Lighting design Lumen (LDU) is 15000 lumens,
Utilization factor (UF) is 0.4, Maintenance factor (MF) is 0.75
How to decide number of lamps which suitable for the selected area
1. Required illumination (E) = 210 Lux

The factory floor measures (A) = 42m*20m
Lighting design Lumen (LDU) = 15000 lumens
Utilization factor (UF) = 0.4
Maintenance factor (MF) = 0.75
Numbers of lamp = E* A
F * UF *MF
= 210 Lux*42m*20m
15000*0.4*0.75
Numbers of lamp =39.2
Therefore it is 40 bulbs need for this factory.
70

Arrangements of the lightings
Ceiling area = 42m*20

The height from the ceiling to the working plane is = 2.75
The spacing to mounting height ratio is =3:2
Then the spacing between lamps =4.125
Numbers of rows =20/4.125

=4.8484
Therefore there should be 5 rows
Then the spacing between lamps become 4m
The 5 rows can be arrange as follow
42m
Spacing between rows 4m
20m
Half spacing 2m
71

Numbers of lamps in each row
Total lamps = 40
Numbers of row =5
Numbers of lamps in each row = 40/5
=8//
8 lamps in an each row
Therefore the longitudinal space between lamps in a row = 42/8
= 5.25meters
Here will be half the spacing at both ends = 5.25/2
= 2.625m
This layout should be as follow.
42m
5.25m
20m
2.62m
72

Then the lamps layout should be as follow
42m
4m 5.25m
20m
2m 2.62m
Practical problems come across when maintaining the above system.
1. Although we measured the height from the ceiling to the working plane is
2.7m it is not same in the every where of the area there may have some
differences there fore it will not give the same required illumination at
everywhere.
2. Reflection of the light from the walls and furniture and other instruments
in the area will be a factor to deviate the required illumination level
3. Absorptions of lights by the instrument in the area also will be a factor to
deviate the required illumination level
Learn more about building constructions visit http://www.helpmydegree.info 73

Appendix
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorise methods of construction

which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs.
Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental,
cultural and historical context in which it exists. It has often been dismissed as
crude and unrefined, but also has proponents who highlight its importance in
current design. It can be contrasted against polite architecture which is
characterised by stylistic elements of design intentionally incorporated for
aesthetic purposes which go beyond a building's functional requirements.
Vernacular architecture is influenced by a great range of different aspects of

human behaviour and environment, leading to differing building forms for
almost every different context; even neighbouring villages may have subtly
different approaches to the construction and use of their dwellings, even if they
at first appear the same. Despite these variations, every building is subject to the
same laws of physics, and hence will demonstrate significant similarities in
structural forms.
(Vernacular architecture, viewed on 22.08.09, www. wikipedia.com)
74

Reference
1. Derek Thomas 2002, A vision for the new age, Architecture and the urban
environment
2. Sustainable architecture, viewed on 27.07.2009,
http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40" xml:lang="en">
3. Sustainable Architecture, Building today for tomorrow, viewed on
27.07.2009,
http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/sustainable_architecture.htm -->
4. Sustainable architecture, viewed on 27.07.2009,
http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40" xml:lang="en">
5. Sustainable Architecture, Building today for tomorrow, viewed on
27.07.2009,
http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/sustainable_architecture.htm -->
6. importance-of-sustainable-architecture, viewed on 27.07.2009
http://makewealthhistory.org/2007/09/10/the-importance-of-
sustainable-architecture/ -->
7. Why is there an Energy Crisis, viewed on 27.07.2009,
http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/articles/energycrisis.htm -->
8. Gyula Sebestyen, 2003, New Architecture and Technology
9. Civilengineerblog, viewed on 27.07.2009,
http://civilengineerblog.com/solar-power-home/&usg
10. Energy resource, Wind Power, viewed on 01.08.2009
http://home.clara.net/darvill/altenerg/wind.htm -->
11. Tidal power - energy from the sea, viewed on 01.08.2009,
http://home.clara.net/darvill/altenerg/tidal.htm -->
12. Cowart Coleman group, sustainable/ preservation viewed on 01.08.2009

http://www.cowartgroup.com/sustainable.htm -->
75

Reference of figures
1. Forties Wind Energy, viewed on 01.08.2009

http://www.fortiswindenergy.com/img/molen_homepage.png&imgrefurl
2. www.freefoto.com
3. Derek Thomas 2002, A vision for the new age, Architecture and the urban
environment
4. Energy resource, Wind Power, viewed on 01.08.2009

http://home.clara.net/darvill/altenerg/wind.htm -->
5. Floating wind farms, viewed on 01.08.2009,
www.mywindpowersystem.com
6. How We Can Use Energy from Waves, Tides and Currents , viewed on
01.08.2009 http://www.bionomicfuel.com/how-we-can-use-energy-from-
waves-tides-and-currents/ -->
7. Tidal power - energy from the sea, viewed on 01.08.2009,
http://home.clara.net/darvill/altenerg/tidal.htm -->
8. Use natural water stream to cool the home,
httpwww.friars.co.nziLrot1.jpg
76

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Sustainable Architecture

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SUSTAINABLE

(Haughton and Hunter, 1994)

Under the sustainable architecture it is being discussed a need of constructing a

Conservation supports the principles of sustainability; it is minimize the resource

Another side of sustainability is avoid and reduce wastage whenever it is possible

SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE FOR A SUSTAINED FUTURE ................................ 14

WHY NEED OF SUSTAINABILITY? ........................................................................ 15

CASE STUDY 1 ..................................................................................................... 61

CONSTRUCTING A HOUSE AND USE OF SUSTAINABILITY.................................................... 61

CASE STUDY 2 ..................................................................................................... 70

DESIGN A LIGHT SYSTEM FOR A SELECTED AREA ............................................................. 70

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE ................................................................................... 74

REFERENCE OF FIGURES ..................................................................................... 76

Why need of sustainability?

‘Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of

(Brundtland Report of the World Commission on the Environment and

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Therefore we need to think in sustainable way to eschew future generations

1.1. Respect for site

And also it is very important aspect to used to avoiding in constructions in the

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1.3. Size of the buildings and sustainability

Sustainably architecture is something we need to talk more in the field of energy

Under the sustainable architecture it is being discussed a need of constructing a

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(This shows normal energy usage

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2.3. Alternative energy and their use

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2.3.1. SOLAR HEATING

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When we use solar power in our homes, it is capable of storing

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2.3.1.1. SOLAR WATER HEATING

2.3.2. WIND POWER

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Disadvantages of wind farms

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2.4. Geothermal energy

There are ways of using geothermal energy

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2.5. Tidal Power

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2.5.1.2. TIDAL REEF

2.5.1.3. OFFSHORE TURBINES

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Considerable amount of money of the global economy is dedicated to

3.1. Minimize resource consumption - conserve and reduce use of

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If the material is renewable and abundant there is no problem for using

3.2. Maximize resource reuse - avoid and reduce waste.

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