Green Buildings: Advanced Construction Materials

Speakers: Chris Garvin, Cook & Fox Architects; Christian Meyer, Columbia University; Thomas Richardson, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

This will be the inaugural event for the newly formed Frontiers of Science Discussion Group named Green Science and Environmental Systems. The launch of this new discussion group will be the first project of a new Academy initiative in physical sciences and engineering.

The Green Science and Environmental Systems discussion group will specifically focus on the role science can play in understanding the environment and the development of green science.

The title of this year's set of meetings is Greening the Urban Environment: Evaluating the Science and Hype.
The first meeting's topic is Green Buildings: Advanced Construction Materials. Subsequent meeting topics will address water, air, transportation, and green chemistry & manufacturing.

Concrete and Sustainable Development: Christian Meyer

Concrete is by far the most widely used building material worldwide. As a matter of fact, mankind uses more of it than of any other material except water. The vast amounts of materials needed to produce our built infrastructure have a major impact on our planet, both in terms of depletion of natural resources, energy consumption, and greenhouse gas emission. Any efforts at reducing these environmental loads should be welcomed in the name of sustainable development. Fortunately, new developments in modern concrete technology offer various avenues for reducing the environmental impact on all three counts. This lecture will highlight the important efforts in this regard.

Buildings Research at LBNL: Advanced Electrochromic Windows: Thomas J. Richardson

New commercial and residential buildings have become increasingly more energy efficient due to improvements in materials and standards. Older buildings benefit from added insulation and retrofitting with low-emittance and solar control windows, doors, and skylights. LBNL has been in the forefront in materials and design research as well as in building energy management systems. Current efforts to develop new products including dynamic windows, passive ventilation, and "cool roofs" are currently in progress. An important component of this work is learning what factors drive consumer acceptance and market penetration, and pursuing solutions that address these issues. The LBNL electrochromic windows project will be used as an example of coordination of technical scientific research with realistic product evaluation and industry-driven government support.