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The goal of sustainable and high-performance building requires an integrated interdisciplinary orientation that seeks not only to make advances, but also to find ways to change the behavior of firms, occupants of buildings, and local governments to adopt more environmentally friendly development and building use practices. The Center will draw together experts from across Harvard’s various schools to pursue highly interdisciplinary research and teaching to advance the state of knowledge and practice in green building. Experts from the Graduate School of Design will be joined by researchers from various Harvard institutions including the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the School of Public Health, the Business School, the Kennedy School, the Law School, and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.  

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The Center’s research initiatives seek to establish how buildings can be designed and built to radically improve material consumption patterns and life-cycle building performance through:

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Societal impact and benefits from advances in knowledge and technology depend upon the adoption and diffusion of actual product and process innovations in the marketplace. New business models and financing models are needed to overcome divergences between social and private rates of return on green building investments. Laws, regulations, and enforcement mechanisms are critical public policy drivers for technology adoption and diffusion. Similarly, behaviorally informed tools for public policy such as choice architecture, default rules, norms, simplification, and information are critical to shaping technology adoption and diffusion.

• Utilize our database of product and technology introductions to better understand the rate of technological change in the building industry and the factors that influence technology adoption and diffusion
• Develop economic models for drivers of innovation and technology adoption relating to incentives, government policies, and individual and business behavior
• Create cost-benefit studies that assess the potential returns to firms that adopt technologies that improve building performance
• Analyze ways to shape incentives and behavior of individuals in buildings to support better building performance outcomes

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• How can we shape incentives and the behavior of individuals in buildings to support better building performance outcomes?
• How can we better understand the factors that influence technology adoption and diffusion so that we can create better government policies, regulations, and enforcement mechanisms?

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• Develop and evaluate tools to enable implementation, improvement, and compliance with energy-efficient practices and codes
• Refine and test the next generation of regulations, such as outcome-based codes, that will ensure on-going building performance
• Develop computational models and framework to design and manage sustainable communities and cities

A major advance in any of these dimensions has potential to improve lives around the world. The interaction of people, ideas, and knowledge across various disciplines at the Center will create greater potential for major advances.

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Green building and sustainable architecture

Green building methods and sustainable architecture focus on environmentally responsible and energy-efficient construction practices. They aim to minimize negative environmental impacts not only during the building process, but also beyond. For example, access to renewable energy sources is incorporated into the finished building to improve sustainability. Key principles of these methods include energy efficiency, water conservation, and the use of sustainable materials.

In order to be most effective, sustainable architecture should take into consideration broader urban contexts, site planning, and transportation, taking input from the community at each stage. These practices create more livable and resilient spaces. Adoption of green building is growing worldwide due to increased environmental awareness and its long-term benefits.

This Collection seeks to showcase the latest trends around this topic by inviting submission of original research investigating new approaches for green building and sustainable architecture.

Ghaffar Ali

Shenzhen University, China

Ayman S. Mosallam

University of California, Irvine, USA

Samad M.E. Sepasgozar

University of New South Wales, Australia

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A comprehensive review on green buildings research: bibliometric analysis during 1998–2018

1 School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, No. 135 Yaguan Road, Tianjin, 300350 China

2 Tianjin University Research Institute of Architectural Design and Urban Planning Co., Ltd, Tianjin, 300072 China

3 Center for Green Buildings and Sponge Cities, Georgia Tech Tianjin University Shenzhen Institute, Shenzhen, 518071 Guangdong China

Umme Marium Ahmad

Xiaotong wang.

4 School of Architecture & Built Environment, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia

Associated Data

Buildings account for nearly 2/5ths of global energy expenditure. Due to this figure, the 90s witnessed the rise of green buildings (GBs) that were designed with the purpose of lowering the demand for energy, water, and materials resources while enhancing environmental protection efforts and human well-being over time. This paper examines recent studies and technologies related to the design, construction, and overall operation of GBs and determines potential future research directions in this area of study. This global review of green building development in the last two decades is conducted through bibliometric analysis on the Web of Science, via the Science Citation Index and Social Sciences Citation Index databases. Publication performance, countries’ characteristics, and identification of key areas of green building development and popular technologies were conducted via social network analysis, big data method, and S-curve predictions. A total of 5246 articles were evaluated on the basis of subject categories, journals’ performance, general publication outputs, and other publication characteristics. Further analysis was made on dominant issues through keyword co-occurrence, green building technologies by patent analysis, and S-curve predictions. The USA, China, and the UK are ranked the top three countries where the majority of publications come from. Australia and China had the closest relationship in the global network cooperation. Global trends of the top 5 countries showed different country characteristics. China had a steady and consistent growth in green building publications each year. The total publications on different cities had a high correlation with cities’ GDP by Baidu Search Index. Also, barriers and contradictions such as cost, occupant comfort, and energy consumption were discussed in developed and developing countries. Green buildings, sustainability, and energy efficiency were the top three hotspots identified through the whole research period by the cluster analysis. Additionally, green building energy technologies, including building structures, materials, and energy systems, were the most prevalent technologies of interest determined by the Derwent Innovations Index prediction analysis. This review reveals hotspots and emerging trends in green building research and development and suggests routes for future research. Bibliometric analysis, combined with other useful tools, can quantitatively measure research activities from the past and present, thus bridging the historical gap and predicting the future of green building development.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11356-021-12739-7.

Introduction

Rapid urban development has resulted in buildings becoming a massive consumer of energy (Yuan et al. 2013 ), liable for 39% of global energy expenditure and 68% of total electricity consumption in the USA (building). In recent years, green buildings (GBs) have become an alternative solution, rousing widespread attention. Also referred to as sustainable buildings, low energy buildings, and eco-buildings, GBs are designed to reduce the strain on environmental resources as well as curb negative effects on human health by efficiently using natural resources, reducing garbage, and ensuring the residents’ well-being through improved living conditions ( Agency USEP Indoor Air Quality ; Building, n.d ). As a strategy to improve the sustainability of the construction industry, GBs have been widely recognized by governments globally, as a necessary step towards a sustainable construction industry (Shen et al. 2017 ).

Zuo and Zhao ( 2014 ) reviewed the current research status and future development direction of GBs, focusing on connotation and research scope, the benefit-difference between GBs and traditional buildings, and various ways to achieve green building development. Zhao et al. ( 2019 ) presented a bibliometric report of studies on GBs between 2000 and 2016, identifying hot research topics and knowledge gaps. The verification of the true performance of sustainable buildings, the application of ICT, health and safety hazards in the development of green projects, and the corporate social responsibility were detected as future agenda. A scientometrics review of research papers on GB sources from 14 architectural journals between 1992 and 2018 was also presented (Wuni et al. 2019a ). The study reported that 44% of the world participated in research focusing on green building implementation; stakeholder management; attitude assessment; regulations and policies; energy efficiency assessment; sustainability performance assessment; green building certification, etc.

With the transmission of the COVID-19 virus, society is now aware of the importance of healthy buildings. In fact, in the past 20 years, the relationship between the built environment and health has aroused increasing research interest in the field of building science. Public spaces and dispersion of buildings in mixed-use neighborhoods are promoted. Furthermore, telecommuting has become a trend since the COVID-19 pandemic, making indoor air quality even more important in buildings, now (Fezi 2020 ).

The system for evaluating the sustainability of buildings has been established for nearly two decades. But, systems dedicated to identifying whether buildings are healthy have only recently appeared (McArthur and Powell 2020 ). People are paying more and more attention to health factors in the built environment. This is reflected in the substantial increase in related academic papers and the increase in health building certification systems such as WELE and Fitwel (McArthur and Powell 2020 ).

Taking the above into consideration, the aim of this study is to examine the stages of development of GBs worldwide and find the barriers and the hotpots in global trends. This study may be beneficial to foreign governments interested in promoting green building and research in their own nations.

Methodology

Overall description of research design.

Since it is difficult to investigate historical data and predict global trends of GBs, literature research was conducted to analyze their development. The number of published reports on a topic in a particular country may influence the level of industrial development in that certain area (Zhang et al. 2017 ). The bibliometric analysis allows for a quantitative assessment of the development and advancement of research related to GBs and where they are from. Furthermore, it has been shown that useful data has been gathered through bibliometrics and patent analysis (Daim et al. 2006 ).

In this report, the bibliometric method, social network analysis (SNA), CiteSpace, big data method, patent analysis, and S-curve analysis are used to assess data.

Bibliometrics analysis

Bibliometrics, a class of scientometrics, is a tool developed in 1969 for library and information science. It has since been adopted by other fields of study that require a quantitative assessment of academic articles to determine trends and predict future research scenarios by compiling output and type of publication, title, keyword, author, institution, and countries data (Ho 2008 ; Li et al. 2017 ).

Social network analysis

Social network analysis (SNA) is applied to studies by modeling network maps using mathematics and statistics (Mclinden 2013 ; Ye et al. 2013 ). In the SNA, nodes represent social actors, while connections between actors stand for their relationships (Zhang et al. 2017 ). Correlations between two actors are determined by their distance from each other. There is a variety of software for the visualization of SNA such as Gephi, Vosviewer, and Pajek. In this research, “Pajek” was used to model the sequence of and relationships between the objects in the map (Du et al. 2015 ).

CiteSpace is an open-source Java application that maps and analyzes trends in publication statistics gathered from the ISI-Thomson Reuters Scientific database and produces graphic representations of this data (Chen 2006 ; Li et al. 2017 ). Among its many functions, it can determine critical moments in the evolution of research in a particular field, find patterns and hotspots, locate areas of rapid growth, and breakdown the network into categorized clusters (Chen 2006 ).

Big data method

The big data method, with its 3V characters (volume, velocity, and variety), can give useful and accurate information. Enormous amounts of data, which could not be collected or computed manually through conventional methods, can now be collected through public data website. Based on large databases and machine learning, the big data method can be used to design, operate, and evaluate energy efficiency and other index combined with other technologies (Mehmood et al. 2019 ). The primary benefit of big data is that the data is gathered from entire populations as opposed to a small sample of people (Chen et al. 2018 ; Ho 2008 ). It has been widely used in many research areas. In this research, we use the “Baidu Index” to form a general idea of the trends in specific areas based on user interests. The popularity of the keywords could imply the user’s behavior, user’s demand, user’s portrait, etc. Thus, we can analyze the products or events to help with developing strategies. However, it must be noted that although big data can quantitatively represent human behavior, it cannot determine what motivates it. With the convergence of big data and technology, there are unprecedented applications in the field of green building for the improved indoor living environment and controlled energy consumption (Marinakis 2020 ).

Patent analysis

Bibliometrics, combined with patent analysis, bridges gaps that may exist in historical data when predicting future technologies (Daim et al. 2006 ). It is a trusted form of technical analysis as it is supported by abundant sources and commercial awareness of patents (Guozhu et al. 2018 ; Yoon and Park 2004 ). Therefore, we used patent analysis from the Derwent patent database to conduct an initial analysis and forecast GB technologies.

There are a variety of methods to predict the future development prospects of a technology. Since many technologies are developed in accordance with the S-curve trend, researchers use the S-curve to observe and predict the future trend of technologies (Bengisu and Nekhili 2006 ; Du et al. 2019 ; Liu and Wang 2010 ). The evolution of technical systems generally goes through four stages: emerging, growth, maturity, and decay (saturation) (Ernst 1997 ). We use the logistics model (performed in Loglet Lab 4 software developed by Rockefeller University) to simulate the S-curve of GB-related patents to predict its future development space.

Data collection

The Web of Science (WOS) core collection database is made up of trustworthy and highly ranked journals. It is considered the leading data portal for publications in many fields (Pouris and Pouris 2011 ). Furthermore, the WOS has been cited as the main data source in many recent bibliometric reviews on buildings (Li et al. 2017 ).

Access to all publications used in this paper was attained through the Science Citation Index-Expanded and the Social Sciences Citation Index databases. Because there is no relevant data in WOS before 1998, our examination focuses on 1998 to 2018. With consideration of synonyms, we set a series of green building-related words (see Appendix ) in titles, abstracts, and keywords for bibliometric analysis. For example, sustainable, low energy, zero energy, and low carbon can be substituted for green; housing, construction, and architecture can be a substitute for building (Zuo and Zhao 2014 ).

Analytical procedure

The study was conducted in three stages; data extraction was the first step where all the GB-related words were screened in WOS. Afterwards, some initial analysis was done to get a complete idea of GB research. Then, we made a further analysis on countries’ characteristics, dominant issues, and detected technology hotspots via patent analysis (Fig. ​ (Fig.1 1 ).

Analytical procedure of the article

Results and analysis

General results.

Of the 6140 publications searched in the database, 88.67% were articles, followed by reviews (6.80%), papers (3.72%), and others (such as editorial materials, news, book reviews). Most articles were written in English (96.78%), followed by German (1.77%), Spanish (0.91%), and other European languages. Therefore, we will only make a further analysis of the types of articles in English publications.

The subject categories and their distribution

The SCI-E and SSCI database determined 155 subjects from the pool of 5246 articles reviewed, such as building technology, energy and fuels, civil engineering, environmental, material science, and thermodynamics, which suggests green building is a cross-disciplinary area of research. The top 3 research areas of green buildings are Construction & Building Technology (36.98%), Energy & Fuels (30.39%), and Engineering Civil (29.49%), which account for over half of the total categories.

The journals’ performance

The top 10 journals contained 38.8% of the 5246 publications, and the distribution of their publications is shown in Fig. ​ Fig.2. 2 . Impact factors qualitatively indicate the standard of journals, the research papers they publish, and researchers associated with those papers (Huibin et al. 2015 ). Below, we used 2017 impact factors in Journal Citation Reports (JCR) to determine the journal standards.

The performance of top10 most productive journals

Publications on green building have appeared in a variety of titles, including energy, building, environment, materials, sustainability, indoor built environment, and thermal engineering. Energy and Buildings, with its impact factor 4.457, was the most productive journal apparently from 2009 to 2017. Sustainability (IF = 2.075) and Journal of Cleaner Production (IF = 5.651) rose to significance rapidly since 2015 and ranked top two journals in 2018.

Publication output

The total publication trends from 1998 to 2018 are shown in Fig. ​ Fig.3, 3 , which shows a staggering increase across the 10 years. Since there was no relevant data before 1998, the starting year is 1998. Before 2004, the number of articles published per year fluctuated. The increasing rate reached 75% and 68% in 2004 and 2007, respectively, which are distinguished in Fig. ​ Fig.3 3 that leads us to believe that there are internal forces at work, such as appropriate policy creation and enforcement by concerned governments. There was a constant and steady growth in publications after 2007 in the worldwide view.

The number of articles published yearly, between 1998 and 2018

The characteristics of the countries

Global distribution and global network were analyzed to illustrate countries’ characteristics. Many tools such as ArcGIS, Bibexcel, Pajek, and Baidu index were used in this part (Fig. ​ (Fig.4 4 ).

Analysis procedure of countries’ characteristics

Global distribution of publications

By extracting the authors’ addresses (Mao et al. 2015 ), the number of publications from each place was shown in Fig. ​ Fig.5 5 and Table ​ Table1. 1 . Apparently, the USA was the most productive country accounting for 14.98% of all the publications. China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and the UK followed next by 13.29% and 8.27% separately. European countries such as Italy, Spain, and Germany also did a lot of work on green building development.

Global geographical distribution of the top 20 publications based on authors’ locations

Global research network

Global networks illustrate cooperation between countries through the analysis of social networks. Academic partnerships among the 10 most productive countries are shown in Fig. ​ Fig.6. 6 . Collaboration is determined by the affiliation of the co-authors, and if a publication is a collaborative research, all countries or institutions will benefit from it (Bozeman et al. 2013 ). Every node denotes a country and their size indicates the amount of publications from that country. The lines linking the nodes denote relationships between countries and their thickness indicates the level of collaboration (Mao et al. 2015 ).

The top 10 most productive countries had close academic collaborative relationships

It was obvious that China and Australia had the strongest linking strength. Secondly, China and the USA, China, and the UK also had close cooperation with each other. Then, the USA with Canada and South Korea followed. The results indicated that cooperation in green building research was worldwide. At the same time, such partnerships could help countries increase individual productivity.

Global trend of publications

The time-trend analysis of academic inputs to green building from the most active countries is shown in Fig. ​ Fig.7 7 .

The publication trends of the top five countriesbetween 1998 and 2018 countries areshown in Fig 7.

Before 2007, these countries showed little growth per year. However, they have had a different, growing trend since 2007. The USA had the greatest proportion of publications from 2007, which rose obviously each year, reaching its peak in 2016 then declined. The number of articles from China was at 13 in 2007, close to the USA. Afterwards, there was a steady growth in China. Not until 2013 did China have a quick rise from 41 publications to 171 in 2018. The UK and Italy had a similar growth trend before 2016 but declined in the last 2 years.

Further analysis on China, the USA, and the UK

Green building development in china, policy implementation in china.

Green building design started in China with the primary goal of energy conservation. In September 2004, the award of “national green building innovation” of the Ministry of Construction was launched, which kicked off the substantive development of GB in China. As we can see from Fig. ​ Fig.7, 7 , there were few publications before 2004 in China. In 2004, there were only 4 publications on GB.

The Ministry of Construction, along with the Ministry of Science and Technology, in 2005, published “The Technical Guidelines for Green Buildings,” proposing the development of GBs (Zhang et al. 2018 ). In June 2006, China had implemented the first “Evaluation Standard for Green Building” (GB/T 50378-2006), which promoted the study of the green building field. In 2007, the demonstration of “100 projects of green building and 100 projects of low-energy building” was launched. In August 2007, the Ministry of Construction issued the “Green Building Assessment Technical Regulations (try out)” and the “Green Building Evaluation Management,” following Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing, and Shanghai, more than 20 provinces and cities issued the local green building standards, which promoted GBs in large areas in China.

At the beginning of 2013, the State Council issued the “Green Building Action Plan,” so the governments at all levels continuously issued incentive policies for the development of green buildings (Ye et al. 2015 ). The number of certified green buildings has shown a blowout growth trend throughout the country, which implied that China had arrived at a new chapter of development.

In August 2016, the Evaluation Standard for Green Renovation of Existing Buildings was released, encouraging the rise of residential GB research. Retrofitting an existing building is often more cost-effective than building a new facility. Designing significant renovations and alterations to existing buildings, including sustainability measures, will reduce operating costs and environmental impacts and improve the building’s adaptability, durability, and resilience.

At the same time, a number of green ecological urban areas have emerged (Zhang et al. 2018 ). For instance, the Sino-Singapore Tianjin eco-city is a major collaborative project between the two governments. Located in the north of Tianjin Binhai New Area, the eco-city is characterized by salinization of land, lack of freshwater, and serious pollution, which can highlight the importance of eco-city construction. The construction of eco-cities has changed the way cities develop and has provided a demonstration of similar areas.

China has many emerging areas and old centers, so erecting new, energy efficiency buildings and refurbishing existing buildings are the best steps towards saving energy.

Baidu Search Index of “green building”

In order to know the difference in performance among cities in China, this study employs the big data method “Baidu Index” for a smart diagnosis and assessment on green building at finer levels. “Baidu Index” is not equal to the number of searches but is positively related to the number of searches, which is calculated by the statistical model. Based on the keyword search of “green building” in the Baidu Index from 2013 to 2018, the top 10 provinces or cities were identified (Fig. ​ (Fig.8 8 ).

Baidu Search Index of green building in China 2013–2018 from high to low

The top 10 search index distributes the east part and middle part of China, most of which are the high GDP provinces (Fig. ​ (Fig.9). 9 ). Economically developed cities in China already have a relatively mature green building market. Many green building projects with local characteristics have been established (Zhang et al. 2018 ).

TP GDP & Search Index were highly related

We compared the city search index (2013–2018) with the total publications of different cities by the authors’ address and the GDP in 2018. The correlation coefficient between the TP and the search index was 0.9, which means the two variables are highly related. The correlation coefficient between the TP and GDP was 0.73, which also represented a strong relationship. We inferred that cities with higher GDP had more intention of implementation on green buildings. The stronger the local GDP, the more relevant the economic policies that can be implemented to stimulate the development of green buildings (Hong et al. 2017 ). Local economic status (Yang et al. 2018 ), property developer’s ability, and effective government financial incentives are the three most critical factors for green building implementation (Huang et al. 2018 ). However, Wang et al. ( 2017 ) compared the existing green building design standards and found that they rarely consider the regional economy. Aiming at cities at different economic development phases, the green building design standards for sustainable construction can effectively promote the implementation of green buildings. Liu et al. ( 2020 ) mainly discussed the impact of sustainable construction on GDP. According to the data, there is a strong correlation between the percentage of GDP increments in China and the amount of sustainable infrastructure (Liu et al. 2020 ). The construction of infrastructure can create jobs and improve people’s living standards, increasing GDP as a result (Liu et al. 2020 ).

Green building development in the USA and the UK

The sign that GBs were about to take-off occurred in 1993—the formation of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), an independent agency. The promulgation of the Energy Policy Act 2005 in the USA was the key point in the development of GBs. The Energy Policy Act 2005 paid great attention to green building energy saving, which also inspired publications on GBs.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a popular metric for sustainable buildings and homes (Jalaei and Jrade 2015 ), has become a thriving business model for green building development. It is a widely used measure of how buildings affect the environment.

Another phenomenon worth discussion, combined with Fig. ​ Fig.7, 7 , the increasing rate peaked at 75% in 2004 and 68% in 2007 while the publications of the UK reached the peak in 2004 and 2007. The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC), a United Kingdom membership organization, created in 2007 with regard to the 2004 Sustainable Building Task Group Report: Better Buildings - Better Lives, intends to “radically transform,” all facets of current and future built environment in the UK. It is predicted that the establishment of the UKGBC promoted research on green buildings.

From the China, the USA, and the UK experience, it is predicted that the foundation of a GB council or the particular projects from the government will promote research in this area.

Barriers and contradicts of green building implement

On the other hand, it is obvious that the USA, the UK, and Italian publications have been declining since 2016. There might be some barriers and contradicts on the adoption of green buildings for developed countries. Some articles studied the different barriers to green building in developed and developing countries (Chan et al. 2018 ) (Table ​ (Table2). 2 ). Because the fraction of energy end-uses is different, the concerns for GBs in the USA, China, and the European Union are also different (Cao et al. 2016 ).

Top Barriers for Green building in US, UK and China

It is regarded that higher cost is the most deterring barrier to GB development across the globe (Nguyen et al. 2017 ). Other aspects such as lack of market demand and knowledge were also main considerations of green building implementation.

As for market demand, occupant satisfaction is an important factor. Numerous GB post-occupancy investigations on occupant satisfaction in various communities have been conducted.

Paul and Taylor ( 2008 ) surveyed personnel ratings of their work environment with regard to ambience, tranquility, lighting, sound, ventilation, heat, humidity, and overall satisfaction. Personnel working in GBs and traditional buildings did not differ in these assessments. Khoshbakht et al. ( 2018 ) identified two global contexts in spite of the inconclusiveness: in the west (mainly the USA and Britain), users experienced no significant differences in satisfaction between green and traditional buildings, whereas, in the east (mainly China and South Korea), GB user satisfaction is significantly higher than traditional building users.

Dominant issues

The dominant issues on different stages.

Bibliometric data was imported to CiteSpace where a three-stage analysis was conducted based on development trends: 1998–2007 initial development; 2008–2015 quick development; 2016–2018 differentiation phase (Fig. ​ (Fig.10 10 ).

Analysis procedure of dominant issues

CiteSpace was used for word frequency and co-word analysis. The basic principle of co-word analysis is to count a group of words appearing at the same time in a document and measure the close relationship between them by the number of co-occurrences. The top 50 levels of most cited or occurred items from each slice (1998 to 2007; 2008 to 2015; 2016 to 2018) per year were selected. After merging the similar words (singular or plural form), the final keyword knowledge maps were generated as follows.

Initial phase (1998–2007)

In the early stage (Fig. ​ (Fig.11), 11 ), “green building” and “sustainability” were the main two clusters. Economics and “environmental assessment method” both had high betweenness centrality of 0.34 which were identified as pivotal points. Purple rings denote pivotal points in the network. The relationships in GB were simple at the initial stage of development.

Co-word analysis from 1998–2007

Sustainable construction is further enabled with tools that can evaluate the entire life cycle, site preparation and management, materials and their reusability, and the reduction of resource and energy consumption. Environmental building assessment methods were incorporated to achieve sustainable development, especially at the initial project appraisal stage (Ding 2008 ). Green Building Challenge (GBC) is an exceptional international research, development, and dissemination effort for developing building environmental performance assessments, primarily to help researchers and practitioners in dealing with difficult obstacles in assessing performance (Todd et al. 2001 ).

Quick development (2008–2015)

In the rapid growing stage (Fig. ​ (Fig.12), 12 ), pivot nodes and cluster centers were more complicated. Besides “green building” and “sustainability,” “energy efficiency” was the third hotspot word. The emergence of new vocabulary in the keyword network indicated that the research had made progress during 2008 – 2015. Energy performance, energy consumption, natural ventilation, thermal comfort, renewable energy, and embodied energy were all energy related. Energy becomes the most attractive field in achieving sustainability and green building. Other aspects such as “life cycle assessment,” “LEED,” and “thermal comfort” became attractive to researchers.

Co-word analysis from 2008–2015

The life cycle assessment (LCA) is a popular technique for the analysis of the technical side of GBs. LCA was developed from environmental assessment and economic analysis which could be a useful method to evaluate building energy efficiency from production and use to end-use (Chwieduk 2003 ). Much attention has been paid to LCA because people began to focus more on the actual performance of the GBs. Essentially, LCA simplifies buildings into systems, monitoring, and calculating mass flow and energy consumption over different stages in their life cycle.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) was founded by the USGBC and began in the early twenty-first century (Doan et al. 2017 ). LEED is a not-for-profit project based on consumer demand and consensus that offers an impartial GB certification. LEED is the preferred building rating tool globally, with its shares growing rapidly. Meanwhile, UK’s Building Research Establishment Assessment Method (BREEAM) and Japan’s Comprehensive Assessment System for Building Environmental Efficiency (CASBEE) have been in use since the beginning of the twenty-first century, while New Zealand’s Green Star is still in its earlier stages. GBs around the world are made to suit regional climate concerns and need.

In practice, not all certified green buildings are necessarily performing well. Newsham et al. ( 2009 ) gathered energy-use information from 100 LEED-certified non-residential buildings. Results indicated that 28–35% of LEED structures actually consumed higher amounts of energy than the non-LEED structures. There was little connection in its actual energy consumption to its certification grade, meaning that further improvements are required for establishing a comprehensive GB rating metric to ensure consistent performance standards.

Thermal comfort was related to many aspects, such as materials, design scheme, monitoring system, and human behaviors. Materials have been a focus area for improving thermal comfort and reducing energy consumption. Wall (Schossig et al. 2005 ), floor (Ansuini et al. 2011 ), ceiling (Hu et al. 2018 ), window, and shading structures (Shen and Li 2016 ) were building envelopes which had been paid attention to over the years. Windows were important envelopes to improve thermal comfort. For existing and new buildings, rational use of windows and shading structures can enhance the ambient conditions of buildings (Mcleod et al. 2013 ). It was found that redesigning windows could reduce the air temperature by 2.5% (Elshafei et al. 2017 ), thus improving thermal comfort through passive features and reducing the use of active air conditioners (Perez-Fargallo et al. 2018 ). The monitoring of air conditioners’ performance could also prevent overheating of buildings (Ruellan and Park 2016 ).

Differentiation phase (2016–2018)

In the years from 2016 to 2018 (Fig. ​ (Fig.13), 13 ), “green building,” ”sustainability,” and “energy efficiency” were still the top three hotspots in GB research.

Co-word analysis from 2016–2018

Zero-energy building (ZEB) became a substitute for low energy building in this stage. ZEB was first introduced in 2000 (Cao et al. 2016 ) and was believed to be the solution to the potential ramifications of future energy consumption by buildings (Liu et al. 2019 ). The EU has been using ZEB standards in all of its new building development projects to date (Communuties 2002 ). The USA passed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, aiming for zero net energy consumption of 1 out of every 2 commercial buildings that are yet to be built by 2040 and for all by 2050 (Sartori et al. 2012 ). Energy consumption became the most important factor in new building construction.

Renewable energy was a key element of sustainable development for mankind and nature (Zhang et al. 2013 ). Using renewable energy was an important feature of ZEBs (Cao et al. 2016 ; Pulselli et al. 2007 ). Renewable energy, in the form of solar, wind, geothermal, clean bioenergy, and marine can be used in GBs. Solar energy has been widely used in recent years while wind energy is used locally because of its randomness and unpredictable features. Geothermal energy is mainly utilized by ground source heat pump (GSHP), which has been lauded as a powerful energy system for buildings (Cao et al. 2016 ). Bioenergy has gained much popularity as an alternative source of energy around the globe because it is more stable and accessible than other forms of energy (Zhang et al. 2015 ). There is relatively little use of marine energy, yet this may potentially change depending on future technological developments (Ellabban et al. 2014 ).

Residential buildings receive more attention because people spend 90% of their time inside. Contrary to popular belief, the concentration of contaminants found indoors is more than the concentration outside, sometimes up to 10 times or even 100 times more (agency). The renovation of existing buildings can save energy, upgrade thermal comfort, and improve people’s living conditions.

Energy is a substantial and widely recognized cost of building operations that can be reduced through energy-saving and green building design. Nevertheless, a consensus has been reached by academics and those in building-related fields that GBs are significantly more energy efficient than traditional buildings if designed, constructed, and operated with meticulousness (Wuni et al. 2019b ). The drive to reduce energy consumption from buildings has acted as a catalyst in developing new technologies.

Compared with the article analysis, patents can better reflect the practical technological application to a certain extent. We extracted the information of green building energy-related patent records between 1998 and 2018 from the Derwent Innovations Index database. The development of a technique follows a path: precursor–invention–development–maturity. This is commonly known as an S-type growth (Mao et al. 2018 ). Two thousand six hundred thirty-eight patents were found which were classified into “Derwent Manual Code,” which is the most distinct feature just like “keywords” in the Derwent Innovations Index. Manual codes refer to specific inventions, technological innovations, and unique codes for their applications. According to the top 20 Derwent Manual Code which accounted for more than 80% of the total patents, we classified the hotspots patents into three fields for further S-curve analysis, which are “structure,” “material,” and “energy systems” (Table ​ (Table3 3 ).

Top 20 keywords in classified patents

Sustainable structural design (SSD) has gained a lot of research attention from 2006 to 2016 (Pongiglione and Calderini 2016 ). The S-curve of structure* (Fig. ​ (Fig.14) 14 ) has just entered the later period of the growth stage, accounting for 50% of the total saturation in 2018. Due to its effectiveness and impact, SSD has overtime gained recognition and is now considered by experts to be a prominent tool in attaining sustainability goals (Pongiglione and Calderini 2016 ).

The S-curves of different Structure types from patents

Passive design is important in energy saving which is achieved by appropriately orientating buildings and carefully designing the building envelope. Building envelopes, which are key parts of the energy exchange between the building and the external environment, include walls, roofs, windows, and floors. The EU increased the efficiency of its heat-regulating systems by revamping building envelopes as a primary energy-saving task during 2006 to 2016 (Cao et al. 2016 ).

We analyzed the building envelope separately. According to the S-curve (Fig. ​ (Fig.14), 14 ), the number of patents related to GB envelops are in the growth stage. At present, building envelops such as walls, roofs, windows, and even doors have not reached 50% of the saturated quantity. Walls and roofs are two of the most important building envelops. The patent contents of walls mainly include wall materials and manufacturing methods, modular wall components, and wall coatings while technologies about roofs mainly focus on roof materials, the combination of roof and solar energy, and roof structures. Green roofs are relatively new sustainable construction systems because of its esthetic and environmental benefits (Wei et al. 2015 ).

The material resources used in the building industry consume massive quantities of natural and energy resources consumptions (Wang et al. 2018 ). The energy-saving building material is economical and environmentally friendly, has low coefficient heat conductivity, fast curing speed, high production efficacy, wide raw material source and flame, and wear resistance properties (Zhang et al. 2014 ). Honeycomb structures were used for insulating sustainable buildings. They are lightweight and conserve energy making them eco-friendly and ideal for construction (Miao et al. 2011 ).

According to the S-curve (Fig. ​ (Fig.15), 15 ), it can be seen that the number of patents on the GB “material” is in the growth stage. It is expected that the number of patents will reach 50% of the total saturation in 2022.

The S-curves of a different material from patents

Building material popularly used comprised of cement, concrete, gypsum, mortar compositions, and boards. Cement is widely used in building material because of its easy availability, strong hardness, excellent waterproof and fireproof performance, and low cost. The S-curve of cement is in the later period of the growth stage, which will reach 90% of the total saturation in 2028. Composite materials like Bamcrete (bamboo-concrete composite) and natural local materials like Rammed Earth had better thermal performance compared with energy-intensive materials like bricks and cement (Kandya and Mohan 2018 ). Novel bricks synthesized from fly ash and coal gangue have better advantages of energy saving in brick production phases compared with that of conventional types of bricks (Zhang et al. 2014 ). For other materials like gypsum or mortar, the numbers of patents are not enough for S-curve analysis. New-type green building materials offer an alternative way to realize energy-saving for sustainable constructions.

Energy system

The energy system mainly included a heating system and ventilation system according to the patent analysis. So, we analyzed solar power systems and air conditioning systems separately. Heat* included heat collecting panels and a fluid heating system.

The results indicated that heat*-, solar-, and ventilation-related technologies were in the growth stage which would reach 50% of the total saturation in 2022 (Fig. ​ (Fig.16). 16 ). Photovoltaic technology is of great importance in solar energy application (Khan and Arsalan 2016 ).

The S-curves of energy systems from patents

On the contrary, air conditioning technologies had entered into the mature stage after a decade of development. It is worth mentioning that the design of the fresh air system of buildings after the COVID-19 outbreak is much more important. With people spending the majority of their time inside (Liu et al. 2019 ), volatile organic compounds, formaldehyde, and carbon dioxide received the most attention worldwide (Wei et al. 2015 ). Due to health problems like sick building syndrome, and more recently since the COVID-19 outbreak, the supply of fresh air can drastically ameliorate indoor air quality (IAQ) (Liu et al. 2019 ). Regulating emissions from materials, enhanced ventilation, and monitoring air indoors are the main methods used in GBs for maintaining IAQ (Wei et al. 2015 ). Air circulation frequency and improved air filtration can reduce the risk of spreading certain diseases, while controlling the airflow between rooms can also prevent cross-infections. Poor indoor air quality and ventilation provide ideal conditions for the breeding and spreading of viruses by air (Chen et al. 2019 ). A diverse range of air filters coupled with a fresh air supply system should be studied. A crucial step forward is to create a cost-effective, energy-efficient, intelligent fresh air supply system (Liu et al. 2017 ) to monitor, filter outdoor PM2.5 (Chen et al. 2017 ), and saving building energy (Liu and Liu 2005 ). Earth-air heat exchanger system (EAHE) is a novel technology that supplies fresh air using underground soil heat (Chen et al. 2019 ).

A total of 5246 journal articles in English from the SCI and SSCI databases published in 1998–2018 were reviewed and analyzed. The study revealed that the literature on green buildings has grown rapidly over the past 20 years. The findings and results are summarized:

Data analysis revealed that GB research is distributed across various subject categories. Energy and Buildings, Building and Environment, Journal of Cleaner Production, and Sustainability were the top journals to publish papers on green buildings.

Global distribution was done to see the green building study worldwide, showing that the USA, China, and the UK ranked the top three countries, accounting for 14.98%, 13.29%, and 8.27% of all the publications respectively. Australia and China had the closest relationship on green building research cooperation worldwide.

Further analysis was made on countries’ characteristics, dominant issues through keyword co-occurrence, green building technology by patent analysis, and S-curve prediction. Global trends of the top 5 countries showed different characteristics. China had a steady and consistent growth in publications each year while the USA, the UK, and Italy were on a decline from 2016. The big data method was used to see the city performance in China, finding that the total publications had a high correlation with the city’s GDP and Baidu Search Index. Policies were regarded as the stimulation for green building development, either in China or the UK. Also, barriers and contradictions such as cost, occupants’ comfort, and energy consumption were discussed about the developed and developing countries.

Cluster and content analysis via CiteSpace identified popular and trending research topics at different stages of development; the top three hotspots were green buildings, sustainability, and energy efficiency throughout the whole research period. Energy efficiency has shifted from low to zero energy buildings or even beyond it in recent years. Energy efficiency was the most important drive to achieve green buildings while LCA and LEED were the two potential ways to evaluate building performance. Thermal comfort and natural ventilation of residential buildings became a topic of interest to the public.

Then, we combined the keywords with “energy” to make further patent analysis in Derwent Innovations Index. “Structure,” “material,” and “energy systems” were three of the most important types of green building technologies. According to S-curve analysis, most of the technologies of energy-saving buildings were on the fast-growing trend, and even though there were conflicts and doubts in different countries on GB adoption, it is still a promising field.

Future directions

An establishment of professional institutes or a series of policies and regulations on green building promulgated by government departments will promote research development (as described in the “Further Analysis on China, the USA, and the UK” section). Thus, a policy enacted by a formal department is of great importance in this particular field.

Passive design is important in energy saving which is ensured by strategically positioning buildings and precisely engineering the building envelope, i.e., roof, walls, windows, and floors. A quality, the passive-design house is crucial to achieving sustained thermal comfort, low-carbon footprint, and a reduced gas bill. The new insulation material is a promising field for reducing building heat loss and energy consumed. Healthy residential buildings have become a focus of future development due to people’s pursuit of a healthy life. A fresh air supply system is important for better indoor air quality and reduces the risk of transmission of several diseases. A 2020 study showed the COVID-19 virus remains viable for only 4 hours on copper compared to 24 h on cardboard. So, antiviral materials will be further studied for healthy buildings (Fezi 2020 ).

With the quick development of big data method and intelligent algorithms, artificial intelligence (AI) green buildings will be a trend. The core purpose of AI buildings is to achieve optimal operating conditions through the accurate analysis of data, collected by sensors built into green buildings. “Smart buildings” and “Connected Buildings” of the future, fitted with meters and sensors, can collect and share massive amounts of information regarding energy use, water use, indoor air quality, etc. Analyzing this data can determine relationships and patterns, and optimize the operation of buildings to save energy without compromising the quality of the indoor environment (Lazarova-Molnar and Mohamed 2019 ).

The major components of green buildings, such as building envelope, windows, and skylines, should be adjustable and versatile in order to get full use of AI. A digital control system can give self-awareness to buildings, adjusting room temperature, indoor air quality, and air cooling/heating conditions to control power consumption, and make it sustainable (Mehmood et al. 2019 ).

Concerns do exist, for example, occupant privacy, data security, robustness of design, and modeling of the AI building (Maasoumy and Sangiovanni-Vincentelli 2016 ). However, with increased data sources and highly adaptable infrastructure, AI green buildings are the future.

This examination of research conducted on green buildings between the years 1998 and 2018, through bibliometric analysis combined with other useful tools, offers a quantitative representation of studies and data conducted in the past and present, bridging historical gaps and forecasting the future of green buildings—providing valuable insight for academicians, researchers, and policy-makers alike.

(DOCX 176 kb)

Availability of data and materials

The datasets generated and analyzed throughout the current study are available in the Web of Science Core Collection.

(From Web of Science Core Collection)

Topic: (“bioclimatic architect*” or “bioclimatic build*” or “bioclimatic construct*” or “bioclimatic hous*” or “eco-architect*” or “eco-build*” or “eco-home*” or “eco-hous*” or “eco-friendly build*” or “ecological architect*” or “ecological build*” or “ecological hous*” or “energy efficient architect*” or “energy efficient build*” or “energy efficient construct*” or “energy efficient home*” or “energy efficient hous*” or “energy efficient struct*” or “energy saving architect*” or “energy saving build*” or “energy saving construct*” or “energy saving home*” or “energy saving hous*” or “energy saving struct*” or “green architect*” or “green build*” or “green construct*” or “green home*” or “low carbon architect*” or “low carbon build*” or “low carbon construct*” or “low carbon home*” or “low carbon hous*” or “low energy architect*” or “low energy build*” or “low energy construct*” or “low energy home*” or “low energy hous*” or “sustainable architect*” or “sustainable build*” or “sustainable construct*” or “sustainable home*” or “sustainable hous*” or “zero energy build*” or “zero energy home*” or “zero energy hous*” or “net zero energy build*” or “net zero energy home*” or “net zero energy hous*” or “zero-carbon build*” or “zero-carbon home*” or “zero-carbon hous*” or “carbon neutral build*” or “carbon neutral construct*” or “carbon neutral hous*” or “high performance architect*” or “high performance build*” or “high performance construct*” or “high performance home*” or “high performance hous*”)

Time span: 1998-2018。 Index: SCI-EXPANDED, SSCI。

Author contributions

Ying Li conceived the frame of the paper and wrote the manuscript. Yanyu Rong made the data figures and participated in writing the manuscript. Umme Marium Ahmad helped with revising the language. Xiaotong Wang consulted related literature for the manuscript. Jian Zuo contributed significantly to provide the keywords list. Guozhu Mao helped with constructive suggestions.

This study was supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.51808385).

Declarations

This manuscript is ethical.

Not applicable.

The authors declare no competing interest.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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Ask the Green Architect: Top Ten Green Building Questions

<p>Green architect Eric Corey Freed answers your questions on sustainable building performance, materials, and design.</p>

By Emily Rabin

September 15, 2005

Introducing green-building guru Eric Corey Freed, whose "Ask the Green Architect" column will appear in this space each month. We're kicking things off by covering the basics -- Freed's top ten frequently asked questions. Next we'll need to hear from you. Email your building-performance puzzles, air-quality queries, and construction conundrums to [email protected] .

Typically, I am suspicious of lists with an even number of ten items on it. It makes me think only eight or nine could be found and they made up a couple. Today, I am breaking my own rule and bringing you the ten most often asked questions I receive about green building. {related_content} After nearly 15 years in green building, I have observed widespread misunderstanding of some basic principals of sustainability. In the future, all buildings will be green. It is inevitable in order for our species to survive. The sooner everyone comes to a basis of understanding how to be environmentally responsible, the better off we all will be. These are the most common questions I receive in regards to building green:

• Why do green buildings cost more than traditional buildings?
• What is a "LEED" building?
• What do you mean by a "green" building?
• What is indoor air quality?
• Which is better: a recycled material or a natural material?
• How can I determine if a material is green or not?
• Where can I purchase green building materials and products?
• Are there any building code restrictions on the use of green materials?
• Why should I care about green building?
• Why aren't ALL buildings built to be green?

1. Why do green buildings cost more than traditional buildings? This is not true and a common misconception promoted by ignorant architects and contractors afraid of building in a different way. A good architect knows how to save their clients money. The client sets the budget, and a project should come in below that budget. With a clear direction of budget, there is no reason you cannot build a green building for the same price or less than a traditional building. The issue arises when you try to compare "apples and oranges." For instance, if you are comparing a building with solar panels to a traditional building without solar panels, of course it appears the traditional building costs less. This is focusing solely on the up-front cost of building. This model fails to take into account how the building with solar panels will immediately begin producing energy and lowering your monthly electricity bill. The lifecycle cost of the solar building will be much less. This monthly benefit, called a return on your investment, quickly pays for any additional up-front cost for purchasing the solar panels. Numerous studies have shown investments into green products and systems will pay for themselves at least ten times over the life of the building. Luckily, the benefits and opportunities to save money on the operational costs are enormous. The combination of energy savings, water reduction and maintenance costs will catch the attention of building owners and translate to bottom line benefits. The first step is energy efficiency. If every home in the U.S. used an Energy Star refrigerator, we could close ten aging power plants. The next step is energy reduction. Replacing your burnt out light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs would prevent enough pollution to equal removing one million cars from the road. Natural light easily replaces the need for lights in the first place. The energy savings alone in a green building could pay for green improvements several times over with a return on investment within 1-7 years. In the case where you are comparing similar materials, the costs end up being the same. For instance, a bamboo floor installs the exact same way as a traditional wood floor. The material costs are now the same, and use of the bamboo does not result in the clear cutting of a forest. Finally, green buildings offer social benefits not easily seen. Student test scores are 15% higher in spaces lit with natural daylight. WalMart has discovered their retail sales increase in stores with natural light. Office workers report greatly reduced absenteeism in an environment with natural, non-toxic materials. Although there are green materials that cost more than their traditional counterparts, there are also many more whose cost is far below the standard. Advances in recycling, new materials and better designs have allowed for a new generation of environmentally-friendly products that are less costly to produce. Of course, green materials also have a very important long term benefit of not destroying our planet's resources. Back to Top * * * * * 2. What is a "LEED" building? Since it's founding in 1991, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has emerged as a recognized and respected leader among green professionals. To help the construction industry define green building, the USGBC discovered a need for a method of scoring buildings to evaluate their "green-ness." LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is their green building rating system, which defines a voluntary guideline for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. LEED has quickly become the industry standard for green building in the United States. Today, LEED buildings can be found in 12 countries and all 50 states. There are currently over 20,000 LEED Accredited Professionals trained in this rating system and nearly 2,000 buildings on their way to certification. This represents about 8 percent of the U.S. new construction market, and this number is growing quickly. Still in it's early stages, some have found LEED to be confusing and difficult to implement. While LEED lists prescriptive requirements, there are no practical applications listed. A member of the construction team is left to guess how to meet the qualifications of each LEED point. The USGBC had enough foresight to understand this, and the LEED system is structured to be open ended and consensus-based. The systems is continually being refined and draft versions are left open for comment and debate. In the near future, LEED will simply get better and better. The LEED system works by dividing the building into five categories:

• Sustainable Sites
• Water Conservation
• Energy & Atmosphere
• Materials & Resources
• Indoor Environmental Quality

LEED lists opportunities for a building to earn points in each. The final number of points determines the green level of the building, rated as Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. To date, LEED has been adopted by 8 federal agencies, 20 states and 41 U.S. city and county governments as the green standard in the construction of all municipal facilities. This widespread acceptance of LEED will ensure future versions will overcome any criticism. Back to Top * * * * * 3. What do you mean by a "green" building? Buildings of the world consume:

• 40% of the world's energy & materials
• 25% of the wood harvested
• 17% of our water

The average American house uses:

• 13,127 board feet of lumber
• 6,212 square feet of sheathing
• 2,000 square feet of flooring

In the U.S., buildings account for:

• 36% of total electricity consumption
• 62% of electricity use
• 30% of greenhouse gas emissions
• 37% of ozone depletion potential

And, ironically enough, most of us spend 90% of our time indoors. Our way of life is killing us. Our buildings consume over 40% of our energy and resources and their use represents 70% of our total consumption. The environmental damage caused in the last hundred years is a direct result from how our buildings are built. Architects, designers, and all building professionals are in a position to affect great change on our environment, moreso than any other group, since our buildings are responsible for most of the damage. "Green building" (also known as "sustainable," "ecological," and "eco-designed") is a way of looking at buildings in terms of reducing energy use, conserving water, improving indoor air quality, and reducing dependence on our natural resources. Although the basic concepts for green building have been around for decades, it has only been in the last few years that we have seen this explosive growth in the greening of the construction industry. Once only of interest to hard-core environmentalists, the rise in energy prices, our dependence on fossil fuel and growing concerns over the damage done to our planet has boosted green building into the spotlight of mainstream interest. Today, those in the business of designing and constructing buildings are faced with the new challenge of environmental responsibility. The rise in energy costs, shortage of building materials and growing consumer demands are driving this market to seek out better and more efficient ways to build our buildings. In addition, new legislation, stricter building codes, and rising health costs are forcing builders to build green whether they want to or not. Research has shown that although an overwhelming majority of designers feel a responsibility to offer green building solutions, only a fraction of them do so. They blame this discrepancy on a "lack of information." More important than any statistic however, is the good feeling you have when you know you've done what's right for both your family and your community. Promoting continued health, financial savings, and social responsibility, Green building is the construction standard for the future, and the smart solution for today. Back to Top * * * * * 4. What is indoor air quality? Asthma, once rated seventh, is now the leading chronic illness in children. One of the primary causes of asthma is indoor air quality. The toxic chemicals found in most common building materials have been linked to asthma and other respiratory problems. The importance and need for green building is increasing exponentially as our health is affected. Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in homes. Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home. High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants. There are many sources of indoor air pollution in any home. These include combustion sources such as oil, gas, kerosene, coal, wood, and tobacco products; building materials and furnishings as diverse as deteriorated, asbestos-containing insulation, wet or damp carpet, and cabinetry or furniture made of certain pressed wood products; products for household cleaning and maintenance, personal care, or hobbies; central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices; and outdoor sources such as radon, pesticides, and outdoor air pollution. Apart from controlling the materials inside a building, the best way to control indoor air quality, especially in existing buildings, is through an increase in natural ventilation. With a lack of fresh air, pollutants will accumulate to levels that can pose serious health and comfort problems. Asthma afflicts about 20 million Americans, including 6.3 million children. Since 1980, the biggest growth in asthma cases has been in children under five. In 2000 there were nearly 2 million emergency room visits and nearly half a million hospitalizations due to asthma, at a cost of almost $2 billion, and causing 14 million school days missed each year. The consequences of poor indoor air quality go beyond mere comfort issues and extend into that of our future health. Back to Top * * * * * 5. Which is better: a recycled material or a natural material? Recycled or natural? This question harkens back to the old "paper or plastic?" debate. In reality, most architects and contractors do not want to get into a philosophical (and perhaps even semantic) argument about the pros and cons between these two types of materials. There is no perfect material. All materials have some negative impact on our environment. The key is in setting priorities for the project. For instance, for a residential kitchen countertop preference might be given to non-toxic and non-off-gassing materials. The indoor air quality and the health of the inhabitants (I believe) are more important than anything else. In the walls, perhaps using recycled plastic vapor barriers makes more sense. Our society is undergoing a difficult transition as we move out of the Industrial Age and into the "Ecotopian" age. I have many friends who would eschew any and all plastics, even if they were 100 percent recycled. I tend to be a little more practical. While we have this over-abundance of plastic heading for a landfill, perhaps it is wise to use this up in the form of recycled plastic products. I have set the next 5-7 years as a grace period for the use of recycled plastics in my own practice. After such time, and the supply of virgin plastics have been reused, the need for any oil based plastics will have been replaced with naturally based alternatives. There are natural materials that off-gas (such as the natural occurrence of formaldehyde in wood). Simply being a natural material does not guarantee the health of that material. As the designer, you will have to determine the appropriate material for the given installation. By setting your priorities for the health, energy use, durability and other factors will help you decide. Back to Top * * * * * 6. How can I determine if a material is green or not? The biggest obstacle in the adoption of green materials is a lack of understanding of how to look at materials. Our old method of "price first, features second, appearance last" is short sighted and explains how we put ourselves in this environmental catastrophe. The primary thing one must understand about green materials is to realize it is not black and white issue. There is no one perfect green material. All materials have both positive and negative environmental attributes. The key is in understanding which of these will benefit your specific project. For example, many people will ask me if concrete is a "green" material. They want a simple "yes" or "no" answer. But the real answer is not so black and white. If we look at the good things about concrete:

• durable, (technically) recyclable, natural, non-offgassing, made from natural sand, stone, and water, and
• we can see it casually appears to be a green material.

But on the other hand, the bad thing about concrete is it's chief ingredient, Portland Cement. Portland Cement is mined out of the Earth, heated to intense temperatures and as a by-product this releases tons of greenhouse gas. Suddenly, the green concrete you hoped for is a potentially bad source of pollution. So how do we resolve this? How do you take a complex issue of concrete and look at it in a black-and-white way? Perhaps you remember a few years ago, when dolphins were getting caught in the tuna fishing nets. There was a large outcry among consumers, "Don't buy tuna! It is killing the dolphins!" After all, dolphins are cute and deserve to be protected. (The tuna, I guess, were not cute enough for saving.) With the news of Flipper dying in a tuna net, the public responded and tuna sales plummeted. The industry changed seemingly overnight. What would otherwise be a complicated issue of marine fisheries, agriculture and industry was reduced to the beautifully black and white dictum of "Don't buy tuna!" So getting back to our example of concrete. How do we make concrete appear to be a black and white issue? If the main problem with concrete is its content of Portland Cement, we can replace up to 50% of that Portland Cement with a material called fly ash. Fly ash is a by-product of the coal industry. It is typically buried in a land fill where it seeps mercury into our water table. By putting it into our concrete mix, it turns out the fly ash makes the concrete stronger and more workable. Is concrete a green material? Fly ash concrete is a green material. This is how you make something into a black and white issue. This is the process you must go through with every material in your building. Is wood a green material? FSC-certified Wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council is a green material. Is steel a green material? High recycled content steel is a green material. Ask yourself these six questions when looking at any material:

• Where did this material come from?
• What are the by-products of its' manufacturer?
• How is the material delivered and installed?
• How is the material maintained and operated?
• How healthy are the materials?
• What do we do with them once we are done with these materials?

This is a shorthand approach looking at the entire lifecycle of a material. (For more information on green-materials certification programs, visit Web sites for the Forest Stewardship Council , Green Seal and Scientific Certification Systems .) Back to Top * * * * * 7. Where can I purchase green building materials and products? The primary complaint people make in regard to green materials is their inability to find them. Given the ubiquity of such systems as LEED and Energy Star, finding green materials has never been easier. Several clear sources come to mind:

• BuildingGreen : The publishers of the Environmental Building News and GreenSpec have put all of their unbiased and perfectly presented information together in a wonderfully straightforward site. Their reasonable fee (one week subscriptions start at $12.95) will provide access to their wealth of research reports and product findings. Organized by CSI categories and Homeowner Categories, BuildingGreen has emerged as the Consumer Reports of green building.
• GreenHomeGuide : Although targeted at homeowners, GreenHomeGuide provides reviews and descriptions of green products by the real professionals using them. Their Know-How sections provide all of the information you would need for greening a kitchen or a bathroom.
• Sales Reps: If you already have relationships with the sales representatives coming to your office, communicate to them your desire for more green products. Start the conversation and you will be surprised by the suggestions they provide.
• American Institute of Architects: For years, the AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) has been a place where architects could discuss how to green their buildings. Although the resources and influence of the COTE varies by AIA Chapter, you may find a whole world waiting for you full of knowledgeable architects ready to help you.
• U.S. Green Building Council : A valuable source for data in regard to green building, great for making the argument to skeptical developers and city officials. One of the reasons for the creation of the USGBC was to provide a credible authority on green building, so use them as such. You can point to their combined experience and knowledge to find hundreds of reports and case studies.
• Local Showrooms: Each month new showrooms are opening up around the country offering green materials. While these initially opened up around the green buildings hubs (San Francisco, Austin, Portland) new stores are open in Santa Monica, Chicago, and even Fairfield, Iowa.
• City Offices: Dozens of cities have a Department of the Environment or equivalent concerning themselves with green building, environmental justice and toxics disposal. If you cannot locate one in your city, look at the county and state level. Your local recycling collection company can also point you to a waste management authority or commission. Such departments are invaluable resources and will be able to provide you with information you never knew existed.

Back to Top * * * * * 8. Are there any building code restrictions on the use of green materials? One would assume a building code would favor green materials, given their tendency toward less toxic materials. In reality, building codes have little input in regards to the finishes or fixtures in a building. Generally, codes exist to protect the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants. You should be able to use green finish materials as freely as traditional building materials. The structural members in a building (walls, floors or beams), do impact the occupant health, safety and welfare, and, therefore, fall into the purview of the local building code. Alternative materials such as straw bale or adobe, despite it's time tested history, are still not accepted by many building departments. Cost-saving measures such as the use of finger jointed wood studs are also frowned upon by the local building inspectors. You will have to check with your local building department before planning any construction project with these non-traditional methods. Any wood intended for structural use must be inspected and grade stamped prior to use, or it will not comply with the building code. Ask the supplier for grade stamps, some provide this service in house for a reasonable fee. This does not apply to finish and non-structural wood. That said, it is always best to check with your local jurisdiction before using any materials. Back to Top * * * * * 9. Why should I care about green building? With most of us spending more than 90% of our time indoors, green building is the healthy, common sense choice for a better life. In traditional construction, the quality of our indoor environment is often far more polluted than outdoor one due to the building materials, inadequate lighting, and a variety of other variables. Green Buildings are sited, designed, constructed and operated to enhance the well-being of occupants, and to minimize negative impacts on the community and natural environment. Our buildings consume 40% of the world's total energy, 25% of its wood harvest and 16% of its water. Compared to traditional construction, a green built home takes some of this pressure off the environment. Logically, our society can no longer build this way. It is simply a matter of time before we run out of the resources needed. The sooner we change our habits and how we build our buildings, the better position we will be in to minimize the devastation. In the future, all buildings will be green. This is inevitable. Soon, we will have no choice. But perhaps the best justification of Green Building is how you cannot afford to not employ green principles. The occupants and owners of a building are losing money on every green feature they discarded. Architects are in a position to save their clients a great deal of money in the operational costs of a building. After all, a great deal more will be spent on the operations, maintenance and employees in a building than ever was spent upon initial construction costs. In short, a green building has the potential to:

• Provide a healthier and more comfortable environment
• Improve long-term economic performance
• Incorporate energy and water efficient technologies
• Reduce construction and demolition waste
• Bring higher resale value
• Include renewable energy technologies
• Improve indoor air quality and occupant satisfaction
• Are easier to maintain and built to last

All of these will save your clients money. Do you think that will get a building owner's attention?! Back to Top * * * * * 10. This all seems to make logical sense to me. Why aren't ALL buildings built to be green? Research has shown that 83% of designers feel they have a responsibility to offer green solutions to their clients, but only 17% do so. They blame this difference on "not enough information." In truth, the construction industry represents 20% of the U.S. economy, comprising $1.27 trillion of our gross domestic product. With such large amounts of money and influence, the construction industry is inherently risk adverse. We have been building our buildings in relatively the same fashion for the last hundred years. What is the incentive for an architect, contractor or developer to add risk? Luckily, the numerous benefits within green building are causing the industry to take notice. The initial acceptance was towards green finishes, where the risk is low. After all, it is the same exact process to install a bamboo floor as an old growth wood floor. The next wave of adoption was in systems to add to the building. Solar panels can be placed on the roof without much risk. They are simply added to the project much in the way one would add a heating system. The final surge in acceptance is now being seen in structural systems of the building. This final obstacle is slowly being overcome as developers realize a stuck frame building in Minnesota is different from a stick frame building in Arizona. Platform and balloon frame construction have been around since the 1830's. Invented as a direct result of the mass production of nails and dimensional lumber, balloon framing allowed low skill workers to put together a building. At the time, this system was ideal for the rapidly growing population and their expansion westward. The art of joinery was almost completely lost and millions of new homes were able to be built in areas previously thought impossible. Now we see the limitations and problems with such a system. Once you build out of sticks, the structure has to be insulated, sheathed, wrapped and waterproofed. All of these weaknesses are opportunities for you as the designer to minimize the ecological impact. The trick to widespread adoption lies in showing the industry the benefits far outweigh any perceived risk. In order to build out of an alternative construction method, you will have to sell client and contractor on the idea in order to succeed. You can do this in three simple ways:

• Experiment with a productized construction system: rather than start with building out of Adobe, perhaps an easier sell to your client would be an alternative construction system sold as a product. Green construction methods such as Structural Insulated Panels (SIP's) and Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF's) have emerged as a viable alternative to the 175 year old method of frame building.
• Visit other construction sites using this technology; see firsthand how other builders are using these materials. Talk to them about the process.
• Ask your sales representative for help: when reviewing any product, the sales reps are there to support your decision making. Ask them to present to your client or contractor in order to convince them of the viability of this material.

By more architects and contractors opening up themselves to new ideas, we will see more buildings built in an environmentally responsible manner. Back to Top * * * * * Got A Question? Send your questions about environmental management issues to [email protected] We can't guarantee that we'll answer every question, but we'll try. ------- Eric Corey Freed teaches the Sustainable Design curriculum at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, Calif. He is currently on the board of directors of Architects, Designers & Planners for Social Responsibility and a committee member of the AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE). This article has been excerpted from his upcoming book, The Inevitable Architect: A Phase by Phase Guide to Green Building.

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From Past to Future: The Urgency of "Green" in Architecture

• Written by Victor Delaqua
• Published on March 10, 2021

The climate crisis has revealed the poor planning of our cities and the spaces we inhabit. Both construction and projects contribute to high carbon gas emissions. Fortunately, there are several ways to intervene to bring change into this scenario, either through materials and techniques adopted in each initiative or through geographical and social impact. In this scenario, the only certainty is that: to think about the future we cannot ignore the "green" in all its recent meanings from nature to sustainability, and ecology.

There is no debate in stating that the future is allied to the subject of the environment . In 2001, Architectural Design: Green Architecture , an International Comparison already brought an overview of the theme, introducing green architecture at an international level. The publication was interspersed with "Green Questionnaires", which offered the perspective of great international architects on the topic, such as Norman Foster, Richard Rogers, Thomas Herzog, Jan Kaplicky, and Ken Yeang.

Two decades ago, these names already pointed out the urgency of looking at issues such as the environmental impact of buildings, the need to adopt renewable energy, the way we think about materials in buildings, the adversities of urban sprawl, and interconnectivity with natural systems. All of these topics are now more current than ever, but the debate has not stopped progressing, even slowly. 

The Croatian-Brazilian architect Marko Brajovic , who has his work aligned with biomimicry , approaches the subject in a primordial way, saying that "plants look "green" because the special pair of chlorophyll molecules uses the red end of the visible light spectrum to power reactions inside each cell" and then argues, that "green is about the flow of energy, matter and information into the system of Life. Architects are system thinkers and should understand the complexity of architecture as an organism, as a metabolic process inter-dependent with the environment , in constant transformation. That was the history of architecture, how it evolved through centuries adapting to changing conditions and how it has to evolve in this new challenging time."

Architecture has to anticipate and envision the future, urgently evolving the actual anthropocentric (and mechanistic) perception into an ecological activity of inter-relationship with the Natural environment . Architecture integrated with the metabolic process of our planet design for co-existence with all species where humans can benefit mutually. – Marko Brajovic

Lastly, he concludes that "future is about synchronicity of architecture with the natural processes, as intelligent, resilient and meaningful sense of Life".

On the other side of the planet, in Vietnam, the office HGAA reminds us that "there is not only Green Architecture but also Green Economy, Green Industry, Green Energy and sustainable agriculture, and any human activities which need to be considered when thinking about the environment and climate change", and concludes that "'Green' is not only about plants or trees. Green has become related to all the necessary issues like living, working, playing, traveling, etc. We need to immerse ourselves in nature every day so that we can protect the environment and use energy efficiently. So, 'Green' can become an indispensable and compulsory work to do in the present as well as in the future to be able to bring the world into habitat equilibrium".

The firm also talks about the recent history of Vietnam that can serve as an example for many other countries: a crisis aggravated by migration to large urban centers along with a special mentality, of citizens and investors who are more concerned with the cost of construction instead of thinking about the execution. These factors intensify the low living conditions of the population and, most of the time, produce spaces without quality for human activities.  

However, after several years of economic development, this scenario has changed in Vietnam as the importance and need for green spaces, harmony with nature, and useful environments are more valued. Therefore, today, " in many Vietnamese’s architectural projects, some Vietnamese architects and investors care and are interested in the environment , which not only brings many benefits to the users but also brings many benefits to societies and communities as well as spreading messages of environment protection".

If twenty years ago "green" was considered on the agenda of architectural discussions, today it has certainly proven to be an inseparable term from this discipline, essential to conceive the future of humanity. As we can observe in the conclusion of the Vietnamese architects' thought, it is necessary to understand new horizon possibilities for conciliation between civil construction and nature:

In the future, we need to have further and better long-term vision for environmental issues such as the enactment of regulations, legislation and policies for plannings and specific architectural solutions. Each individual in society should have specific thoughts and actions which protect the environment and soon bring the living environment back to a state of balance in order to ensure the sustainable development of humanity. – HGAA

This article is part of the ArchDaily Topic: Green . Every month we explore a topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and projects. Learn more about our monthly topics . As always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, contact us .

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April 16: The State of AI in Architecture: How are architects using AI for design?

Published: February 21, 2024  •  5 min read

What is Green Architecture, and Why is it Essential for Sustainable Living?

The built environment leaves a vast carbon footprint, accounting for a significant portion of global energy use, water consumption, and CO2 emissions. As environmental awareness and future consciousness gain traction in society, green architecture may hold the key to a sustainable tomorrow for buildings and people alike.

What is green architecture?

Green or sustainable architecture simply refers to buildings designed to create healthy living environments while mitigating adverse environmental impacts. This approach to design and construction prioritizes environmental responsibility, resource efficiency, and the well-being of occupants. It aims to reduce the negative impact of buildings on the natural environment while promoting eco-friendly practices and healthy energy consumption through technology such as real-time rendering solutions .

Unpacking the benefits of green architecture

The concept of green architecture challenges architects to leverage technology solutions to produce innovative structures with minimal harmful effects on the ecosystem. This approach presents a number of benefits, especially with regard to sustainable living. 

1. Environmental advantages 

Existing residential and commercial buildings are responsible for nearly 40% of carbon emissions in the United States. New construction relies heavily on natural resources, such as wood, stone, metal, and water, further impacting the environment. 

Green buildings use less energy, use sustainable materials, and minimize waste. These structures can even provide a net-positive environmental impact by generating their own power and enriching water reserves. LEED-certified buildings generate 50% less greenhouse gas emissions than conventional buildings.

2. Cost efficiency

Green buildings can reduce maintenance costs by 20% compared to traditional structures. Investing in green building retrofits can also cut down everyday operating expenses by up to 10% annually. These expenditure savings come from less waste, higher energy efficiency, and enhanced durability. 

3. Increased asset value 

Due to the increasing demand for sustainable living, green buildings have a 16% higher resale value than conventional structures. They also have higher occupancy rates, which translates to increased rental income for owners, thereby offsetting the higher initial costs of incorporating environmentally friendly features in construction projects. 

4. Improved occupant well-being 

Adopting sustainable building practices means improved indoor air and water quality, which can enhance inhabitants' health and general happiness. A good indoor environment in green commercial properties can also strengthen employee productivity , leading to better concentration and focus capabilities. 

5. Visual appeal

Green architecture typically features lush, full appearances, offering a welcome contrast to the gray, dull tones of most modern city buildings. Some sustainable properties can even include natural greenery accents, such as walls made of plants and vines hanging over the edges to provide a fresher aesthetic appeal.

More plants in and around a building can also facilitate faster recoveries. Research has shown hospitals with green infrastructure can speed up recovery time by 15% and reduce the rate of secondary infections by 11%.

The role of real-time rendering in green architecture

Real-time rendering solutions have become a game-changer in architecture, enabling architects to create, visualize, and present their designs with vivid realism and interactivity. With these photorealistic visualizations , stakeholders can gain invaluable insights into the sustainability features and benefits of a project before construction even begins.

Here are four prominent ways real-time 3D rendering can facilitate green architecture:

Energy analysis

Architects can leverage real-time rendering to gain visibility into a building’s energy performance to identify opportunities for improved efficiency. A 'light view' rendering style, for instance, displays how much light will hit a surface through the representation of a heat map.

They can also simulate the integration of renewable energy systems, such as solar panels or wind turbines, into a building’s design to measure their performance in reducing the structure’s carbon footprint.

Material selection

With real-time 3D rendering, architects can explore different building material options to evaluate their environmental impact. This helps them make informed decisions about selecting resources and insulation options that align with sustainable design goals.

Daylighting studies

Real-time rendering enables architects to visualize how the sun's angle impacts the building’s natural light, allowing them to make adjustments to maximize the benefits of daylighting . For example, they can analyze the building orientation, shading, and window placements to get as much natural light as possible while minimizing energy use for artificial lighting .

Virtual walkthroughs

Architectural visualizations make it easier for designers to communicate the green features of a building to the client and the public. These virtual walkthroughs allow stakeholders to see and understand how various design iterations impact a building’s sustainability and energy efficiency. 3D visualizations can also help educate the public about the importance of sustainable design and raise awareness about green practices in architecture.

Technologies used in green building and sustainable construction

Green architecture incorporates a number of eco-friendly elements and technologies, including:

• Renewable energy sources: Solar panels and geothermal systems help ensure a clean energy supply for buildings. These renewables can also save households up to $2,500 yearly.
• Green roofs: These roofing systems are wholly or partially covered with vegetation, providing enhanced insulation, noise reduction, and improved air quality. Green roofs also help reduce stormwater runoff, preventing erosion and overflowing sewers.
• Biomass stoves and boilers: These heating systems rely on bio-based, sustainable fuel sources like wood pellets and organic matter. In addition to lowering carbon emissions, using biomass stoves can also provide up to 22% tax credit rebates for the year.
• Electrochromic smart glass: Using smart glass in windows, doors, and skylights can reduce a building's energy needs by 20% , making it a leading innovation for green architecture.
• Water efficiency technologies: These encompass systems and methods for conserving water and minimizing waste. Examples include rainwater harvesting systems, dual plumbing fixtures, and greywater reuse techniques.

With the global green building market projected to hit over $1.3 trillion by 2032 , it’s only a matter of time until these sustainable technologies and techniques become the industry standards for new construction.

Examples of green buildings

Green constructions have become increasingly popular across the globe. One of the biggest examples is China’s tallest building — the Shanghai Tower. The building features a 33% green cover , earning the prestigious LEED Platinum certification as a result.

There’s 30 St Mary Axe, commonly known as The Gherkin, London’s first eco-friendly skyscraper. The building’s futuristic design lessens wind impact while maximizing natural ventilation and consuming half the energy similar towers require.

ChildSafe’s Salado Creek Campus was designed to incorporate nature to enhance healing. The design includes green roofs, healing gardens, and natural bioswales to resemble a park-life setting for children.

Sustainable design also plays a vital role in the emergence of intelligent cities. These structures utilize real-time rendering services to simulate the use of eco-friendly materials , such as mass timber, to mitigate environmental impact. As of 2023, 64 cities across 17 EU countries are in line for intelligent living upgrades.

Building green for a sustainable future

Green architecture helps buildings negate environmental impacts and create a cleaner, healthier environment for residents. However, collaboration is essential to making buildings truly environmentally friendly. Architects, developers, engineers, and occupants must work together to enforce sustainable building practices for a better tomorrow. 

Jane works as the Editor-in-Chief of Environment.co where she covers topics related to climate policy, net zero, biophilic, and more.

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Green building practices to integrate renewable energy in the construction sector: a review

• Review Article
• Open access
• Published: 15 December 2023
• Volume 22 , pages 751–784, ( 2024 )

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You have full access to this open access article

• Lin Chen 1 , 2 ,
• Ying Hu 1 , 2 ,
• Ruiyi Wang 1 , 2 ,
• Xiang Li 1 , 2 ,
• Zhonghao Chen 3 ,
• Jianmin Hua 1 , 2 ,
• Ahmed I. Osman   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2788-7839 4 ,
• Mohamed Farghali 5 , 6 ,
• Lepeng Huang 1 , 2 ,
• Jingjing Li 3 ,
• Liang Dong 7 , 8 , 9 ,
• David W. Rooney 4 &
• Pow-Seng Yap 3  

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The building sector is significantly contributing to climate change, pollution, and energy crises, thus requiring a rapid shift to more sustainable construction practices. Here, we review the emerging practices of integrating renewable energies in the construction sector, with a focus on energy types, policies, innovations, and perspectives. The energy sources include solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass fuels. Case studies in Seattle, USA, and Manama, Bahrain, are presented. Perspectives comprise self-sufficiency, microgrids, carbon neutrality, intelligent buildings, cost reduction, energy storage, policy support, and market recognition. Incorporating wind energy into buildings can fulfill about 15% of a building's energy requirements, while solar energy integration can elevate the renewable contribution to 83%. Financial incentives, such as a 30% subsidy for the adoption of renewable technologies, augment the appeal of these innovations.

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Introduction

With the implementation of economic globalization and the expansion of economic regions, the global consumption of energy and resources is growing rapidly at an average annual rate of 2.2% (Chen et al. 2023a ; Salam et al. 2020 ). The construction industry, as the main sector of energy consumption, accounts for 36% of the total global energy consumption (Chen et al. 2022a ). The rapid growth of the global population will require more urban building capacity in the next 40 years than in the past 4000 years (Chen et al. 2022b ; Gottlieb et al. 2023 ), but traditional buildings rely heavily on coal, oil, natural gas, and other non-renewable energy sources, and excessive energy use causes energy depletion and high pollution. Environmental instability, such as the greenhouse effect and extreme weather caused by energy, have aroused widespread concern for green, low-carbon, sustainable, and other renewable energy. At the same time, international energy deployment has set a goal of near net-zero emissions by 2050, as the construction industry is under intense pressure from energy scarcity and fossil fuel depletion (Zhang et al. 2022 ). Europe and the USA have redefined regulations and policies related to the development of near-zero-energy buildings for the development of renewable energy (Liu and Rodriguez 2021 ; Yang et al. 2022b ), and China also committed to the international government's "dual-carbon" goal of reaching peak carbon by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060 (Osman et al. 2023 ; Paris Agreement 2015 ). The application of renewable energy in buildings has, therefore, become a major driver of the energy transition in conventional buildings and an important cornerstone of urban planning and development strategies to reduce the contribution of the building sector to climate change and energy use.

Renewable energy, as an innovative alternative energy, plays a leading role in getting rid of fossil fuel dependence and mitigating climate change. It is used to reduce greenhouse gas emissions stemming from energy consumption during construction projects (Ghaffarian Hoseini et al. 2013 ; Yang et al. 2022b ). This approach aims to create environmentally friendly, energy-efficient, and sustainable buildings. Moreover, it stands as a pivotal contributor to the evolving global energy landscape as governments worldwide commit to addressing climate change and advancing sustainable development goals. Renewable energy was first used in the European Union, where the main objective was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, thus improving energy efficiency (Yang et al. 2022b ). In China, the initial application of renewable energy in building construction encompassed solar, wind, geothermal, and other sources. As technology in this field continues to mature, it plays a pivotal role in fostering the growth of a sustainable energy ecosystem. This is achieved by assessing how various technologies impact the enhancement of performance efficiency and the regulation of overall energy consumption levels (Zhang et al. 2015 ). Renewable energy is progressively becoming the energy strategy for numerous countries; for instance, the USA is investigating the economic feasibility of incorporating solar and geothermal technologies into heat pump systems (Kim and Junghans 2023 ), while Poland is employing wind and photovoltaic sources to facilitate its energy transition (Igliński et al. 2022 ). Therefore, the development and utilization of renewable energy plays a key role in building energy efficiency and emission reduction and promotes the sustainable development of buildings in the energy sector and even globally through existing natural resources and techno-economic measures.

This review systematically analyzes the current status and potential of renewable energy applications in the building sector. The review highlights the advantages of renewable energy applications in the building sector, such as solar, geothermal, wind, and biomass, as well as the challenges of technological innovation and development. It also provides examples of buildings in the construction sector that have successfully used renewable energy, describes the types of renewable energy used and the socio-economic benefits derived from their use, and analyzes the challenges and lessons learned during implementation. In addition, this review provides an in-depth look at the global policy and regulatory framework for renewable energy in buildings, considering the impact of policy on renewable energy adoption and, from there, analyzing the opportunities and barriers to policy implementation. The paper further explores the latest technological advancements like machine learning and Internet of Things technologies in renewable energy within the building sector and systematically evaluates their potential impact on renewable energy utilization for sustainable cities. Finally, the review concludes by discussing the prospects of renewable energy in the building sector, examining both the potential and challenges involved in promoting its widespread adoption.

Overview of renewable energies in the building sector

Renewable energy derived from natural resources, is less harmful to the environment than fossil fuels and serves as an alternative to traditional energy sources (Dey et al. 2022 ). Renewable energy in buildings refers to the integration of sustainable energy sources, such as solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass, into the full building life cycle of design, construction, operation, and maintenance to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and traditional energy sources, promoting environmental sustainability and mitigating climate change. The roots of renewable energy in architecture can be traced back to early experiments in passive solar design, maximizing the use of sunlight for heating and natural ventilation to design the orientation of buildings (Gong et al. 2022 ; Ionescu et al. 2015 ). With the increasing awareness of environmental protection, the application technology of renewable energy in modern buildings has also gained momentum for innovative development.

The application of renewable energy in buildings depends mainly on the characteristics of the energy required for the building and the type of different energy sources. Among the existing renewable energy sources, solar, wind, hydro, tidal, geothermal, biomass, and hydrogen are widely recognized as key and mature technologies in the renewable energy sector. However, solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass energy have a greater potential to fulfill the energy needs of buildings (Khan and Al-Ghamdi 2021 ; Wu and Skye 2021 ), as shown in Fig.  1 .

Types and sources of renewable energy in the building sector. Advancing the use of renewable energy within buildings is crucial for combatting climate change. The figure presented visually categorizes the types of renewable energy prevalent in the building sector. The dominant forms include solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, and biomass energy. Gaining a comprehensive understanding of these energy sources is pivotal. By integrating renewable installations with existing infrastructure and aligning them with energy demand patterns and environmental considerations, we can optimize overall efficiency

Solar energy

Solar energy stands as the most accessible and commonly adopted form of renewable energy, achieved by capturing the ionization of the sun's radiant energy. It is acclaimed for its limitless supply and eco-friendly attributes, positioning it as the leading-edge renewable energy technology poised to replace fossil fuels. Aldhshan et al. ( 2021 ) defined solar energy as one of the sustainable energy sources for generating electricity using photovoltaic systems. Building solar energy technology, the main source of energy from solar radiation and thermal energy in two aspects, photovoltaic technology and solar thermal energy for the integrated application of buildings is currently commonly used renewable energy technologies, and from the building characterization of the form can be divided into active solar energy and passive solar energy. Photovoltaic systems, solar power generation, and solar hot water are the main components of active solar systems, while building orientation, air circulation, and thermal biomass together constitute passive solar systems (Dey et al. 2022 ). Wu and Skye ( 2021 ) conducted statistics on the total amount of renewable energy utilized in residential buildings in the USA, where solar energy accounted for 31% of the total energy consumption.

The use of photovoltaic technology is critical to reducing building operating costs. Researchers use Geographic Information Systems to model photovoltaic systems and explore the economic and environmental benefits, showing that photovoltaic systems on rooftops could save the government an estimated $202 billion in costs while dramatically improving environmental performance (Asif et al. 2019 ). At the same time, solar distributed integration technology can meet the functional requirements of different components of the building according to specific requirements. The collected solar technology is applied to building windows to control the increase and decrease of building solar heat and thermal insulation, and the integrated application of distributed energy in building components greatly improves the comfort of occupants and climate energy-saving control (Vasiliev et al. 2019 ).

Improving the environmental performance of buildings and facilitating climate circulation is one of the characteristics of solar technology as a renewable energy source. For instance, Vassiliades et al. ( 2022 ) observed that active solar building integration systems can change the characteristics of buildings and reduce the negative climate impacts of building public spaces. In addition, the integrated application of solar energy and photovoltaic technology has a greater advantage in improving energy utilization efficiency and reducing energy demand. Research in Italy describes how a photovoltaic thermal solar-assisted heat pump system integrated with a photovoltaic thermal collector and a vapor-compression heat pump can be used to meet all of a building's thermal needs, increasing the efficiency of solar energy exploitation while reducing the consumption of ground-source heat pumps (Miglioli et al. 2023 ). Another study analyzed the capabilities of the solar cooling system by developing a dynamic calculation model compared to conventional systems, and the calculation results showed that the solar system can increase the renewable energy factor to 83% and reduce energy demand by 48% (Bilardo et al. 2020 ).

Building structures and designs need to integrate the use of solar energy resources to maximize the use of solar energy, which is often overlooked in many existing buildings. The building-integrated photovoltaic thermal systems can meet the electrical and thermal energy requirements of a building's domestic use, but the inconsistent supply of solar energy makes it very difficult to integrate building-integrated photovoltaic thermal air collectors into the building structure, and the system design is strongly influenced by the structural load-bearing capacity of the building (Şirin et al. 2023 ). Building-integrated photovoltaics play an important role in promoting the design and implementation of zero-energy buildings, but economic and technical obstacles need to be overcome. Regular maintenance and replacement of photovoltaic system components and auxiliary equipment are issues that designers focus on. The resulting economic cost directly affects its policies and the proprietor's willingness to support (Maghrabie et al. 2021 ).

In conclusion, solar energy offers significant benefits for buildings by reducing operating costs, enhancing the functionality of building components, improving energy use efficiency, and diminishing energy demand. Nonetheless, challenges persist, including the need for technological advancements, high maintenance and renewal costs, and the intricacies of structural design tailored for building applications. Therefore, integrated consideration of the utilization of solar energy resources is essential to maximize their potential.

Wind energy

With the development of offshore wind energy, the application of wind energy in the building sector is gradually becoming widespread and is considered to be one of the most commercially promising renewable energy sources (Zhang et al. 2023 ). The wind energy system consists of wind turbines, which work on the principle of converting kinetic energy into electrical energy, mechanical energy, and other required energy using wind vortex machines. Similar to solar, wind systems can be categorized into active and passive systems based on the size of the turbine, with the biggest difference between the two being the type of power drive, with the active rotating with the motor and the passive rotating with the wind direction (Palraj and Rajamanickam 2020 ). Wind power generation using wind energy, development of natural ventilation systems, wind energy testing, and wind impedance design are now common technologies for renewable energy applications in buildings (Deymi-Dashtebayaz et al. 2022 ; Peng et al. 2020b ).

The most direct impact of wind power generation is to reduce carbon emissions and consumption of non-renewable energy. According to research statistics, as of 2017, the use of wind energy resources has avoided at least 600 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions (Yousefi et al. 2019 ). The integration of wind energy systems in buildings generates renewable energy on the construction site, which can provide around 15% of the building's energy needs (Kwok and Hu 2023 ). The building design adopts a natural ventilation system to achieve the effect of indoor and outdoor air circulation through natural wind power, which can reduce the degree of dependence on air conditioning and, to a certain extent, reduce energy consumption. In this context, Wang et al. ( 2021a ) developed an innovative energy-efficient turbine damper ventilator, which reduces unwanted exhaust airflow to provide a comfortable indoor environment. Also, it can stabilize the air exchange in the building to meet minimum air quality standards.

Compared with conventional energy sources, wind energy generation equipment requires a significant investment in manufacturing and installation, including maintenance costs at a later stage. The electricity converted by the wind turbine and then supplied by the heat pump was simulated using the Energy PLAN software, and the results exhibited that the total energy cost increases by 653.2% under this scenario (Noorollahi et al. 2021 ). Noise generated by the operation of wind turbines is a concern for nearby residents, which originates from the mutual collision of turbine components and noise generated by air vibration (Zhang et al. 2023 ). In urban environments, the height and density between buildings limit the utilization of wind energy. The wind speed and direction between elevated buildings may be affected by blocking and turbulence, reducing the efficiency of wind power generation (Kwok and Hu 2023 ). Also, due to the uncontrollable and uncertain characteristics of wind, wind power generation is intermittent, which also seriously affects the efficiency of energy use (Roga et al. 2022 ).

In conclusion, while wind energy substantially contributes to emission reductions and meets the energy demands of buildings, it comes with higher upfront costs. Its efficiency is heavily dependent on natural wind speeds and is significantly influenced by the building's layout. Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore smart or other new technologies to improve the efficiency of wind energy use.

Geothermal energy

Geothermal energy is derived from the Earth's internal heat (Osman et al. 2023 ). The constant heat flow within the Earth contributes to the storage of internal heat, while rainfall within the Earth's crust plays a crucial role in completing the water cycle (Palmero-Marrero et al. 2020 ). Therefore, geothermal energy is a non-intermittent renewable energy source that is not dependent on climate or time of day and can supply energy 24 hours a day independently of external conditions. In terms of usage, solar and wind energy are more used for power generation, while geothermal energy is mainly used for heat production and cooling. In addition, it can work in conjunction with other energy systems, such as solar energy, to add effective for improving industrial competitiveness and positively impact job creation and economic development in the medium to long term. Depending on the depth of the subterranean layers, they can be categorized as shallow, intermediate and deep geothermal systems, but there is no specific universal definition or classification (Romanov and Leiss 2022b ). Geothermal technology development can be utilized for power generation, direct use, and heat extraction through shallow ground-source heat pumps.

Compared to conventional heating and cooling systems, geothermal energy systems can improve energy efficiency while significantly reducing energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions. D'Agostino et al. ( 2022b ) conducted simulation modeling based on Energy Plus software to systematically analyze the energy retrofitting of existing buildings with two types of low-hale geothermal systems: ground-source heat pumps and geo-aerothermal heat exchangers. The scholar observed that the use of these systems significantly reduces primary energy demand, energy costs, and CO 2 emissions compared to conventional gas boilers, demonstrating their effectiveness in achieving the goal of net-zero-energy buildings. Geothermal systems operate quietly without the noise of traditional heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, improving building operating comfort and health (Shah et al. 2022 ). At the same time, geothermal systems require a relatively small land area, making them suitable for urban environments where space is limited. Studies have estimated the land use intensity of geothermal power plants in buildings to be 7.5 m 2 per MW per year, which is much smaller than other energy technologies (Tester et al. 2021 ). In addition, geothermal systems can be integrated with a variety of architectural styles and provide design flexibility for buildings by utilizing different sizes and configurations of ground-source heat pumps to meet specific heating and cooling needs based on building size, load requirements, and space availability.

Despite the low operating costs of geothermal energy technologies, the need to drill holes and install underground components results in high installation costs and significant upfront investment costs (Hu et al. 2021 ; Lizana et al. 2018 ). The geological characteristics of the building project site largely determine the success or failure of a geothermal system (Chen and Feng 2020 ). Therefore, an accurate assessment of subsurface conditions is essential to determine the feasibility and potential output of a geothermal system, and uncertainties in geology can increase the risk of drilling failures and lead to additional costs. The application of geothermal energy is site-specific, and locations with sufficient thermal potential have become challenging. Studies have calculated subsurface thermal storage capacities of 8,300–16,600 GJ to satisfy winter heating in buildings using finite element methods (Chen and Feng 2020 ). In addition, the establishment and operation of geothermal systems have potential impacts on the environment. The noise generated by drilling construction and the treatment of geothermal fluids are all challenges faced by geothermal technology.

In summary, geothermal energy offers substantial improvements in energy efficiency, reductions in energy costs, and decreases in greenhouse gas emissions. Its design flexibility for integration with buildings presents a solution for energy transitions in space-limited urban structures. However, its high installation costs and the necessity for thorough evaluations of geological conditions and environmental impacts remain challenges.

Biomass energy

Biomass derived from organic materials extracted from living or sentient organisms such as animals, plants, or microorganisms can be combusted through aerobic and anaerobic digestion to produce energy and is by far the longest renewable energy source used by humans (Yang et al. 2022a ). Biomass in the building sector is usually utilized in the form of biomaterials in structural or non-structural parts of buildings to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and lower emissions. In general, biomass energy predominantly relies on resources like wood, agroforestry residues, plant fibers, as well as various organic waste materials, encompassing human, animal, and plant wastes. Biogas and direct combustion techniques primarily find application in the context of building energy needs. Additionally, biomass, including materials such as construction waste and animal excreta, can be utilized to generate electricity through dedicated power plants (Khan and Al-Ghamdi 2021 ). For example, Rahman et al. ( 2015 ) investigated biomass energy by studying the peak load of a biomass-powered 115 kW power plant, which can meet the power demand of an entire residential building. Thus, biomass can be utilized in buildings in several areas, such as biomass gas, biomass fuel, biomass heat, and biomass power generation (Allouhi et al. 2021 ; Furubayashi and Nakata 2021 ; Wu and Skye 2021 ).

Biomass plays a vital role in advancing the objectives of the Europe 2020 climate and energy strategy (Farghali et al. 2023b ). This involves initiatives like replacing conventional boilers with more efficient models and emphasizing renewable energy sources. For example, Las-Heras-Casas et al. ( 2018 ) investigated the possibility of substituting central fossil fuel boilers with biomass alternatives across diverse climatic zones in the peninsular region during winter. Their findings indicated the potential for significant reductions in non-renewable energy consumption (up to 93%) and substantial decreases in carbon dioxide emissions (up to 94%). Biomass offers a low-carbon footprint, given its carbon–neutral nature (Wang et al. 2018 ). Comparatively, using wood chips and pellets as fuel for biomass boilers instead of diesel resulted in substantial greenhouse gas reductions of 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide over 30 years for 54,241 households (Rafique and Williams 2021 ). Biomass boilers are well-known for their heating efficiency. Solid biomass fuels with calorific values between 14 and 23 MJ/kg exhibit high combustion efficiencies, with peak mass collection efficiencies of around 98% for wood chip pellets powered by 50 kW boilers, though overall collection efficiencies typically range from 70% to 90% (Baumgarten et al. 2022 ; Wang et al. 2017 ). The efficiency is further enhanced when biomass wood is compressed into pellets under high pressure and temperature (Hartmann and Lenz 2019 ). However, it is important to note that biomass combustion can lead to corrosion on heating surfaces due to boiler deposits (Chen et al. 2021b ). Furthermore, Pognant et al. ( 2018 ) highlighted that woodchip boilers may not be as environmentally friendly as natural gas boilers on a local scale. Nonetheless, woodchip boilers do improve local air quality and significantly reduce local ground-level particulate matter concentrations.

Biomass has a high calorific value of chemical energy and can be used directly in technologies such as combustion to generate electricity or in the production of biofuels. These biofuels can be burned to produce high-quality and high-temperature heat applications for heating buildings (He et al. 2019 ; Khan and Al-Ghamdi 2021 ). In addition to energy applications, biomass itself can also be used as a construction material, providing an environmentally friendly alternative to building components such as structural elements or thermal insulation. Studies have observed that the use of phase change materials made of biomass-derived porous carbon in buildings has a positive impact in terms of improved building thermal performance and building energy efficiency (Jiang et al. 2022b ). Furthermore, the integration of biomass energy into the construction sector can diversify energy supply chains and enhance energy security by reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels. Smart building energy efficiency systems that mix solar photovoltaic thermal panels and biomass heaters improve energy reliability while meeting building energy efficiency, and the availability of biomass energy throughout the year makes the biomass heaters in the system promote energy security (Behzadi et al. 2023 ).

As biomass is mainly derived from cultivated products, wood, or other wastes, extensive extraction for energy can exacerbate the destruction of vegetation, and biomass materials often compete with other land uses such as agriculture and forestry for resources such as land and water, balancing competing demands is essential for sustainable biomass extraction (Bungau et al. 2022 ; Yana et al. 2022 ). Some biomass materials may be less durable and less resistant to environmental factors such as moisture, pests, and fire than traditional building materials, and ensuring the long-term performance and longevity of biomass-based systems may require additional treatment and protection measures (Liuzzi et al. 2020 ). In addition, biomass materials have limited availability and may vary in quality and performance depending on factors such as seasonal cycles, climatic conditions, and regional differences (Hiloidhari et al. 2023 ). Therefore, ensuring a continuous and reliable supply of biomass materials may be a challenge for large-scale construction projects.

In summary, biomass holds a pivotal position in Europe's climate and energy strategy. It notably curtails non-renewable energy consumption and diminishes greenhouse gas emissions. Nonetheless, to harness biomass sustainably in extensive construction projects, challenges like resource competition, material durability, and supply reliability must be tackled.

This section delves into the pros and cons of four renewable energy types for building applications. Renewable energies leverage the inherent benefits of natural resources, curbing our reliance on fossil fuels to elevate energy efficiency and cut down greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, they are often marred by substantial upfront infrastructure costs and hurdles in technological advancement and innovation.

Case studies of renewable energy use in the building sector

In order to further concretize the above viewpoint and more intuitively demonstrate the application of renewable energy in building practice, the following section will conduct in-depth case studies through two cases: the Bullitt Center and Bahrain World Trade Center. We will elaborate on the successful implementation of renewable energy in these buildings, analyze the benefits of using these energy sources, as well as the challenges and lessons learned during the implementation process. These two cases provide us with valuable insights on how to promote renewable energy more widely in the construction field.

The Bullitt Center, Seattle, USA

Completed in 2013, the Bullitt Center, situated in Seattle, Washington, goes beyond conventional boundaries in energy efficiency, environmental responsibility, and occupant comfort. It serves as a prominent model of sustainable architecture, showcasing the seamless integration of renewable energy. This groundbreaking commercial structure not only redefines eco-friendly buildings but also establishes fresh benchmarks for energy efficiency, earning global recognition as one of the greenest edifices worldwide.

The core of the sustainable development of the Bullitt Center is the reliance on solar panels as the main source of renewable energy. The roof of the building is decorated with many photovoltaic solar panels, which can capture sufficient sunlight in the Pacific Northwest and convert sunlight into clean, renewable electricity. Solar power generation is the core of the building's net-zero-energy goal, and the building also has renewable technologies such as rainwater collection, composting toilets, and ground-source heat pumps. Based on the work of multiple authors in this field, we can further emphasize the advantages of the Brett Center in renewable energy integration, energy efficiency, and sustainability.

The Bullitt Center has attained net-zero-energy status, a milestone emphasized by Caballero et al. ( 2023 ), who highlight the crucial role of photovoltaic systems in this achievement. The extensive array of solar panels installed at the Bullitt Center ensures that it generates more energy than it consumes, thus solidifying its net-zero-energy building designation. This is consistent with the global shift toward sustainable building practices driven by high electricity costs and renewable energy availability. Energy self-sufficiency can be achieved. On-site photovoltaic systems, such as those on the roof of the Bullitt Center, are crucial for energy self-sufficiency in urban areas with limited rooftop space (D'Agostino et al. 2022a ). Some researches highlight the importance of combining solar power generation with improved insulation during roof renovation (D'Agostino et al. 2022c ). The Bullitt Center utilizes rooftop installation of solar panels to ensure that a significant portion of its energy demand comes from on-site renewable energy, maximizing energy efficiency and renewable energy utilization. This intervention greatly reduces costs. In addition, it adopts an energy-saving design, which maximizes the use of natural lighting in the building and reduces the need for artificial lighting during the day. Efficient heating and cooling systems, as well as advanced insulation technology, ensure that the energy consumption of buildings remains extremely low, ultimately achieving energy self-sufficiency.

By collecting rainwater, the Bullitt Center has reduced its dependence on traditional water sources, saving water and energy required for water treatment and distribution. The framework of the rainwater harvesting system is shown in Fig.  2 , as demonstrated by the research of (Ali and Sang 2023 ); the rainwater harvesting system effectively addresses the water and energy shortages of sustainable urban development. If designed properly, rainwater harvesting is economically feasible (Almeida et al. 2021 ). At the same time, the performance of rainwater collection system is influenced by climate zones (Ali and Sang 2023 ), and the Bullitt Center experiences a mild marine climate and regular rainfall, which is conducive to the functioning of rainwater collection systems. To further reduce water waste, the Bullitt Center has adopted composting toilets. These innovative devices reduce water consumption and wastewater treatment requirements, helping to reduce the overall environmental impact of buildings.

The framework of the rainwater collection system. This figure illustrates the operational mechanism of the rainwater harvesting system. The system captures rainwater via the roof, directs it through designated pipelines to a storage tank, and subsequently distributes it for toilet flushing and garden irrigation based on water requirements

The rainwater collection system at the Bullitt Center not only saves water but also helps reduce the risk of urban flooding. The research by Hdeib and Aouad ( 2023 ) suggested that rainwater harvesting systems can alleviate urban floods. Although their research focuses on arid areas, these principles apply to various climates. Effectively managing rainwater can help enhance its ability to withstand extreme weather events. In addition, the Bullitt Center also has certain economic benefits. Megahed and Radwan ( 2020 ) pointed out the economic advantages of using solar energy, including generating potential revenue by selling surplus energy to the grid. The model proposed by Ye et al. ( 2023 ) indicated that photovoltaic panel rainwater harvesting systems can allocate resources more effectively, increasing revenue while saving water and energy. This method is in line with the spirit of resource optimization and economic efficiency of the Bullitt Center.

Although these technologies bring many benefits to sustainability and energy efficiency, they also pose some challenges during implementation. In the case of the Bullitt Center, we examine the hurdles associated with various renewable technologies. Deploying multiple renewable energy sources frequently demands navigating intricate and continuously evolving regulatory frameworks. The Bullitt Center's commitment to renewable energy, such as solar panels, geothermal heating, and refrigeration systems, requires compliance with various federal, state, and local regulations related to renewable energy generation, grid interconnection, and building codes. Ensuring compliance with these regulations while breaking the boundaries of sustainable design is a daunting challenge. In addition, integrating various renewable energy sources into a building presents challenges related to system compatibility and coordination (Canale et al. 2021 ). Coordinating the operation of these systems, optimizing their performance, and ensuring their harmonious collaboration require high-level technical expertise and skilled technical personnel. Ensuring that the Bullitt Center has access to the necessary professional knowledge and resources is crucial for the success of these technologies.

The initial capital expenditures linked to the installation of multiple renewable technologies can be substantial. While these investments often result in long-term energy and water savings, securing the necessary upfront funding can be a hurdle, particularly for projects with limited budgets. Furthermore, all renewable technologies entail ongoing maintenance obligations to guarantee their sustained reliability and performance. Solar panels require regular cleaning and occasional maintenance, while geothermal systems require continuous monitoring. The continuous maintenance and monitoring of rainwater collection systems are crucial for preventing issues such as blockage, algae growth, or bacterial contamination (Clark et al. 2019 ), and key maintenance is needed to ensure water quality and system efficiency. Effectively managing these maintenance tasks and resolving unexpected failures can be resource-intensive and challenging.

The success of the Bullitt Center highlights the importance of adopting a holistic approach to sustainability, which focuses not only on energy efficiency but also on water conservation, material selection, and overall environmental impact. At the same time, the design and planning phase of the Bullitt Center is very detailed, with architects, engineers, and sustainable development experts involved. They need to make cautious, data-driven design decisions that consider local climate, energy, and resource availability. In addition, it is necessary to advocate and collaborate with local authorities to adjust building codes and regulations to adapt to innovative sustainability characteristics. Engaging with policy makers and regulatory agencies can promote the implementation of advanced green building practices. The Bullitt Center's success can be a model for similar projects in different regions and climates. Future endeavors should consider how lessons from the Bullitt Center can be adapted to their unique contexts.

This section delves into the Bullitt Center's accomplishments and challenges related to sustainability. The Bullitt Center achieved net-zero-energy status by leveraging photovoltaic systems, optimizing the use of solar energy and natural light. Furthermore, their efficient rainwater harvesting methods diminish reliance on conventional water sources, while also mitigating urban flooding. These sustainable practices not only benefit the environment but also present potential economic advantages, including the possibility of profit from excess energy. However, the adoption of such innovative technologies is not without its difficulties. Challenges include compliance with regulatory standards, harmonizing multiple renewable energy sources, and navigating both initial investment and recurring expenses. The Bullitt Center's achievements highlight the merit of a holistic approach to sustainability, considering local climatic conditions, available resources, and regulatory frameworks. Their success could pave the way for similar sustainable projects in future.

Bahrain World Trade Center, Manama, Bahrain

Bahrain is located in the southwest of the Persian Gulf, between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, with a tropical desert climate and hot and humid summers. The Bahrain World Trade Center is located on the Persian Gulf coast of the capital city of Manama, costs $96 million with a total construction area of 12,096 m 2 , and consists of two identical towers, each with a height of over 240 m and a total of 50 floors. Designers have set up a 75-ton bridge at the 16th, 25th, and 35th floors between the two towers and fix three horizontal axis wind turbines with a diameter of 29 m and their connected generators on these three bridges.

Due to the advantage of geographical location, the potential of wind energy resources has been explored. The study conducted by Adnan et al. ( 2021 ) in Pakistan emphasizes the importance of accurately evaluating wind energy resources to ensure efficient utilization of wind energy potential. This analysis includes average wind speed, Weibull parameters, as well as power and energy density, which helps determine suitable locations for wind energy production. In addition, reasonable building layout, height, and corner shape can also improve wind density and utilize urban wind energy (Juan et al. 2022 ). As shown in Fig.  3 , the wind power generation diagram of the Bahrain World Trade Center is located in a coastal urban area. By designing the building as a sail, sea wind convection is formed between the buildings, accelerating the wind speed, and making wind turbine power generation possible. In addition, batteries can be discharged in the event of insufficient wind power, assisting and stabilizing users' electricity usage by setting up to store excess electrical energy.

Schematic diagram of wind power generation for Bahrain World Trade Center. Incorporating an innovative design, the structure resembles a sail, strategically positioned to harness the prevailing sea winds. This unique design promotes wind convection between the buildings, channeling the flow efficiently. Positioned at an optimal height within the structure, a wind turbine captures this enhanced airflow, converting the kinetic energy of the wind into electrical power. This generated direct current is then processed through a converter, facilitating its efficient storage and transmission. In the final step, an inverter transforms the stored direct current back into alternating current to meet the building's electrical needs. This seamless integration of architecture and renewable energy technology not only serves the building's power requirements but also stands as a testament to sustainable and forward-thinking design

The Bahrain World Trade Center was a pioneer in incorporating wind power into its architectural design but faced several major challenges during its implementation. These challenges not only include technical and engineering aspects but also affect the functionality and overall sustainability of the building. The efficiency of wind turbines needs to be considered in urban environments characterized by turbulent wind patterns. Traditional wind farms are usually located in open areas with consistent wind flow to ensure optimal energy generation. In contrast, urban environments have complex wind patterns due to the presence of high-rise buildings and structures that disrupt and redirect airflow. To address this challenge, computational fluid dynamics simulations and wind tunnel tests can be used to evaluate the wind direction around buildings (Arteaga-López et al. 2019 ). These results can provide a basis for the design and layout of turbines, maximizing their exposure to the mainstream wind direction while reducing the impact of turbulence.

Maintaining wind turbines at considerable heights in coastal environments is a unique challenge. In this case, the standard maintenance procedures for ground turbines are not sufficient. Professional equipment, such as cranes or elevators, that can reach extreme heights is crucial for turbine maintenance. In addition, daily inspections and repairs need to consider harsh coastal environments, including exposure to salt water and humidity, which may accelerate wear and corrosion (Mourad et al. 2023 ). Developing maintenance plans for Bahrain World Trade Center turbines is crucial for their long-term reliability.

Managing the noise and vibration generated by wind turbines is crucial for creating a favorable working environment for the occupants of buildings. Excessive noise and vibration may disrupt office space, affect attention, and reduce the overall comfort of occupants (Karasmanaki 2022 ). Innovative solutions, such as sound barriers or damping mechanisms, may be incorporated into turbine design to mitigate these impacts. In addition, the layout and insulation of the building may have been optimized to reduce the spread of noise and vibration into the internal space.

Incorporating the relevant research findings into the context of the Bahrain World Trade Center, we can find that the wind turbine integration of the Bahrain World Trade Center is not only a symbol of architectural originality but also a practical model for sustainable urban development: by strategically placing wind turbines between the twin towers, Bahrain World Trade Center effectively utilizes wind energy, reduces dependence on traditional energy, and contributes to environmental sustainability. In addition, by incorporating wind energy, the Bahrain World Trade Center aligns with the broader concept of hybrid renewable systems and demonstrates how multiple renewable energy sources work together to improve energy efficiency. As emphasized by the research institute, the Bahrain World Trade Center reflects the importance attached to the utilization of wind energy resources and the assessment of wind energy potential in urban environments.

This section highlights the Bahrain World Trade Center's innovative approach to harnessing wind energy, using its unique sail-inspired design to optimize sea wind convection and turbine output. While integrated batteries ensure power during low-wind situations, challenges arise from urban wind dynamics, demanding sophisticated placement strategies. Additionally, maintaining turbines in coastal heights brings its own set of challenges, and addressing noise and vibration is crucial for ensuring comfort within the building.

• Policy and regulatory framework

Renewable energy policies and regulatory frameworks in the building sector

As a key sector of national economic growth, the construction industry has played an indispensable role in promoting China's urbanization process, but it has also had an irreversible impact on the global environment, the most direct impact on human survival being the series of chain reactions brought about by the greenhouse effect (Ahmed et al. 2021 ). The overexploitation and consumption of non-renewable energy sources, especially fossil fuels, is the main driver of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Global Carbon Atlas, greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion account for 28.9% of total global emissions in 2022 (Liu et al. 2023b ). However, primary energy sources, such as fossil fuels, have limited reserves globally, and the scarcity of resources is facing a serious challenge, and there is an urgent need for the global energy mix to transition to sustainable energy sources (Chen et al. 2023b ; Hoang et al. 2021b ).

Notably, the year-on-year decline in the cost of renewable power generation has contributed to a trend of continued growth in renewable energy sector applications, with approximately 77% of capacity additions to sustainable energy generation due to solar and wind energy in 2017 (Al-Shahri et al. 2021 ). Besides, according to the World Health Organization, 7 million people die each year due to air pollution, which mainly stems from the burning of fossil fuels (Arya 2022 ). The development and implementation of regulatory frameworks and policies aimed at accelerating the deployment of renewable energy are therefore critical for mitigating climate change, enhancing energy security, and promoting sustainable development (Lu et al. 2020 ).

In the construction industry, policies and regulatory frameworks influence the use of renewable energy (Gielen et al. 2019 ). Inês et al. ( 2020 ) reviewed the development of energy policies in five countries, namely the USA, Germany, the UK, Denmark, and China, to provide a comprehensive overview of sustainable energy policies that promote renewable energy. Meanwhile, the concept of biomaterials has been applied in the construction industry, where the use of biomaterials can reduce the carbon footprint of the construction process, improve sustainability, and reduce dependence on limited resources (Raza et al. 2023 ). However, the disposal of construction materials and waste management can be affected by waste regulations related to biomaterials (Philp 2018 ). Figure  4 shows the history of the evolution of policy and regulatory frameworks for renewable energy in construction. These policies and regulations will vary between countries and regions, but they are all guiding the construction industry to adopt renewable energy for more sustainable practices.

History of the evolution of renewable energy policies and regulatory frameworks in the building sector. The figure presented delineates a quintet of stages marking the evolution of renewable energy policies within the building sector. It chronicles a journey from nascent environmental consciousness to an unwavering global pledge, underscoring the pivotal influence of such policies on sustainable development and climate initiatives. Central to this narrative is the indispensable role of governmental regulations and policies in championing the emergence and growth of renewable energy technologies. In alignment with tenets of sustainable development, these policies foster the adoption of cleaner energy modalities, curtail ecological adversities, and enhance societal well-being

Since the onset of the oil crisis in the last century, growing environmental concerns and energy security issues have prompted the exploration of strategies related to renewable energy and sustainability in a variety of fields, including buildings (Economidou et al. 2020 ). Renewable energy and sustainability strategies have evolved from environmental awareness to a fully market-driven phase, where experimental initiatives in the 1990s to the development of mandatory standards in the 2000s became an important turning point, such as the Renewable Portfolio Standard and the Renewable Energy Standard, which marked a successful transition of renewable energy policies from theory to practice (Solangi et al. 2021 ; Tan et al. 2021 ). International agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement have played a key role in the development of global sustainability strategies, emphasizing the importance of coordinated action and shared commitment in combating climate change (Cifuentes-Faura 2022 ; Ottonelli et al. 2023 ). In addition, technological advances have become an integral part of renewable energy strategies, with smart building technologies, decentralized energy production, and energy storage solutions increasing efficiency and resilience (Walker et al. 2021 ). Future strategies will emphasize circular economy principles, resilience, and the integration of multiple approaches to create holistic and adaptive solutions for sustainable development (Farghali et al. 2023a ; Hoang et al. 2021a ).

The strategic principles for the development and implementation of policy and regulatory frameworks in the field of renewable energy and sustainable development reflect a proactive, forward-looking approach to adapting to changing environmental challenges and technological advances (Jiang et al. 2022a ). As promised in the Paris Agreement, policymakers prioritize international cooperation to align national strategies with global sustainable development goals (Iacobuţă et al. 2022 ). Effective strategic markets include market-driven incentives that are predominantly government-led, using mainly economic instruments to promote the use of renewable energy and application practices in the building sector (Solaymani 2021 ). It also emphasizes the importance of circular economy principles and builds the capacity to cope with future uncertainties. Together, these principles guide policy development and implementation to support renewable energy adoption, sustainability, and resilience in response to the changing global landscape.

In summary, governments and international organizations play an indispensable role in the development and implementation of renewable energy policies and regulatory frameworks. The formulation of strategic policies plays a pivotal role in curbing energy consumption, mitigating environmental repercussions, and steering the building sector toward elevated sustainability benchmarks, aligning with the escalating imperative for sustainable development. Nevertheless, an inclusive consideration of stakeholders is paramount to guarantee that these policies are both robust and effectively enforceable.

Impact of policies and regulations on the adoption of renewable energy

In the context of addressing the global climate crisis, countries around the world have committed to autonomous greenhouse gas contributions at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (Meinshausen et al. 2022 ). The European Union is at the forefront of global carbon action, announcing the "European Green Deal" in 2019, which sets an ambitious goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gases emissions by 2050 (Lu et al. 2020 ). The realization of the target is based on a comprehensive policy framework for the development and implementation of climate, energy, environmental, and economic policies and regulations to improve energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and promote the sustainable development of buildings. Policies that encourage the adoption of renewable energy in buildings are the most effective and carbon-reducing actions (Topcu and Tugcu 2020 ). Policies to support the application of renewable energy are diverse, ranging from economic incentives such as financial subsidies and tax breaks to the setting of stringent energy efficiency standards and renewable energy portfolio mandates (Romano et al. 2017 ). Table 1 shows the variety of policies that have been adopted to promote renewable energy solutions in the built environment in major energy countries, both nationally and internationally.

Based on the analyses in Table 1 , the results of the study indicate that policies to promote the development of renewable energy in buildings fall into four main categories: policy regulation, economic incentives, market transformation, and building performance and quality assurance. Government documents are developed or revised to mandate minimum energy requirements for buildings, renewable energy development regimes, and, most commonly, feed-in tariff harmonization. Economic measures such as financial subsidies and tax breaks incentivize renewable energy applications and expand their reach, and this is because the financial viability of renewable energy projects in buildings is influenced by the incentives and feed-in tariff subsidy rate, which determines the attractiveness of the investment. The development and application of renewable energy technologies such as solar, wind, and geothermal energy in buildings are now maturing, and actively exploring innovative developments in new renewable energy technologies and looking for market transitions is a strong guarantee that renewable energy can be sustainable in the long term. In addition, energy-efficient design, construction, and operation of buildings are legally encouraged through the creation of independent performance certificates for building materials, quality, structural elements, or technologies, and certified buildings typically consume less energy, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and overall energy demand.

Economic incentives, mainly tax credits and financial subsidies provide substantial benefits to stakeholders such as real estate developers, for whom the government clears financing barriers and increases the economic attractiveness of clean energy investments to investors (Zhang et al. 2021 ). Through a series of renewable energy policies such as tax credits to subsidize photovoltaic projects and high government prices for surplus solar power, the US has invested $250 million in encouraging the development of solar rooftops since 2010, and photovoltaic applications have exploded, with a 20-fold increase in new installations alone in six years (Song et al. 2016 ). The knock-on effect of this policy has also led to the increasing integration of solar panels, wind turbines, and energy efficiency systems into building projects, thus increasing renewable energy capacity.

Based on the linear relationship between financial investment and renewable energy development, it can be seen that the implementation of financial incentives expands the competitiveness of the renewable energy market and drives the application of renewable energy in the building sector toward more efficient and cost-effective solutions, thus contributing to the economic growth of the renewable energy building sector (Shahbaz et al. 2021 ). Policies such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, which combines green building certification with renewable energy, provide a new direction for sustainable building practices and renewable energy integration, lowering the operating costs for owners and occupants and improving energy efficiency, thus stimulating renewable energy use (Abd Rahman et al. 2021 ).

In conclusion, policy frameworks and regulations have a direct impact on the adoption of renewable energy in the construction sector. The implementation of policies and regulations stimulates the development of renewable energy and leads to technological advances in the sustainable building-related chain. These strategic initiatives not only align with global sustainable development aspirations but also expedite the shift toward an environmentally friendly and sustainable architectural landscape.

Opportunities and obstacles to policy development

In the development of sustainable development policies, the circular economy has been favored by policymakers for its ability to promote economic growth while also reducing dependence on raw materials and energy (Knäble et al. 2022 ). Its principle is to advocate the reuse and recycling of materials, thus maximizing the use of waste recycling to promote sustainable practices from construction to deconstruction and to reduce resource consumption to achieve the goal of sustainable development, which is consistent with the concept of renewable energy (Hossain et al. 2020 ). Hoang et al. ( 2021a ) integrated renewable energy into a smart city energy system by integrating more than two renewable energy components into the building system, achieving good emission reduction benefits and laying the foundation for exploring more sustainable and cleaner energy production in future. Researchers have determined that 1112 million tons of standard coal were consumed in the building sector in 2018 (Guo et al. 2021 ). With the depletion of non-renewable energy resources globally, it is important to develop competing policy frameworks that are in line with circular economy practices in order to adapt to the rapidly changing trends of the energy revolution (Danish and Senjyu 2023b ).

The development of renewable energy policies based on the combination of circular economy principles and smart renewable energy systems has great potential for expanding the use of renewable energy in the construction sector. Nag et al. ( 2022 ) applied circular economy principles to develop a wind turbine-based renewable energy system, whereby the refurbishment and remanufacturing of wind turbines achieves an extension of the life of the wind turbine. This synergy is aligned with the broader Sustainable Development Goals to minimize energy demand through resource optimization and material reuse. Smart city energy, on the other hand, relies on smart technological resources to improve energy efficiency in a high-quality manner, mainly by intelligently managing heating, cooling, and lighting systems, among others, to facilitate energy sharing within the community (Wang et al. 2021b ). In essence, the harmonious combination of circular economy and smart renewable energy systems will provide for a more sustainable, efficient, and resilient adoption of renewable energy in the building sector. The organic combination of financial incentives, energy efficiency, and market transformation is achieved for policymakers, symbolizing the transition of renewable energy policy toward a greener, more resource-based future.

However, the process of promoting and developing renewable energy in the building sector is not without obstacles, and Fig.  5 shows the challenges and practical implications of implementing renewable energy policies in the building sector. Although many governments have provided financial support for the development of renewable energy, the cost of renewable energy development is much higher than conventional energy sources compared to the high initial cost of renewable energy technologies, and the amount of government subsidies does not solve the fundamental problem, which poses a significant barrier for building owners (Chen et al. 2021a ). Frequent policy changes and regulatory uncertainty also make building investors and developers hesitant, and research has found that policy stability determines the long-term planning of renewable energy projects (Alola and Saint Akadiri 2021 ). The intermittent nature of solar and wind energy poses a challenge to grid integration and stability, as renewable energy access to building community grids is subject to both national regulations and policy regulations. At the same time, complex permitting procedures and technical requirements for grid integration further add to the complexity of implementing renewable energy systems in buildings (Wainer et al. 2022 ). Besides, the extent to which policies on renewable energy in buildings are developed and implemented at the national and regional levels is an important indication of the effectiveness of ensuring policy regulation (Busch et al. 2021 ).

Barriers to and impacts of renewable energy policies in the building sector. The figure delineates the predominant obstacles hindering the extensive integration of renewable energy within the building sector. These encompass limited governmental financial support, ambiguity in policy direction, intricate regulatory systems, a dearth of expertise, and the efficacy of policy execution. Moreover, the figure also illustrates the actual impacts and consequences of these barriers, providing a comprehensive overview of the challenges faced by various stakeholders and emphasizing the multifaceted nature of these barriers and their potential impacts. Overcoming these challenges is pivotal for enhancing renewable energy assimilation, realizing sustainable development objectives, and cultivating a robustly built milieu

Lessons learned from the implementation of renewable energy policies emphasize the flexibility of policy formulation and the need to continuously adapt to regional differences and new technologies that are continuously evolving. A sound assessment of the underlying national circumstances to develop renewable energy policies that are appropriate to the changing environment and regular policy reviews determine the longevity of policy implementation (Agyekum et al. 2021 ). At the same time, the adoption of different stakeholders' opinions ensures the policy's relevance and breadth (Neij et al. 2021 ). A study by Scheller et al. ( 2021 ) suggested that stakeholders influence the entire process of solar photovoltaic residential decision-making, and the shift in the role of participants from passive engagement to active information searching averts potential risks and challenges for policy makers and ensures that policies take into account a wide range of interests and needs. In addition, renewable energy portfolio standards, energy efficiency standards for appliances and buildings, are tailored to the specific needs of the local building sector for renewable energy to maximize the effect and impact of policy development (Danish and Senjyu 2023a ).

In conclusion, while potential avenues exist for renewable energy policies, especially at the nexus of smart and circular economic synergies, challenges such as high upfront investments, grid instability, and policy inconsistencies persist. This section delves into the policy and regulatory landscapes that bolster renewable energy adoption in buildings. An in-depth analysis of the policies and regulations championed by nations to facilitate renewable energy integration is presented, considering economic, social, and institutional dimensions. The resultant effects on sustainability and energy efficiency are also dissected. For effective execution of these renewable energy strategies, it is crucial to harness potential opportunities like smart and circular economy synergies, while concurrently navigating impediments like hefty initial investments, scarcity of expertise, and policy ambiguity, all within a cohesive and sustainable framework.

Innovations in renewable energy for building sustainability

Recent technological advancements in building-based renewable energy.

In recent years, as the construction industry gradually gets rid of its dependence on fossil fuels and countries to reduce carbon emissions to achieve sustainable development requirements, the use of solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, and other renewable energy has received widespread attention. Renewable energy technologies can address issues such as the global energy crisis, food insecurity, and climate change by providing environmentally friendly clean energy and are expected to make a significant contribution to the sustainable development of the construction industry (Izam et al. 2022 ). At present, renewable energy is not only a resource but has become a viable alternative to major transformational technologies. To this end, countries around the world are trying to innovate and improve renewable energy technologies and methods to promote the application of mature renewable energy technologies in the field of construction to achieve the best use of renewable energy in the construction industry.

Solar energy is one of the most environmentally friendly and sustainable renewable energy sources available today (Dehghani Madvar et al. 2018 ; Kannan and Vakeesan 2016 ). Research has shown that solar energy is the most abundant source of renewable energy, easy to obtain and low-cost, and has shown great potential to meet world energy needs in future (Adenle 2020 ). Due to its reliability and efficient performance, solar energy has become one of the most popular energy sources and will play an important role in future of energy. At present, the application of solar technology in the construction field mainly includes solar photovoltaic power generation, concentrated solar power generation, solar hot water systems, and solar air conditioning refrigeration technology. The main contribution of the above technology in the building is to save energy for heating (namely space heating and water heating), refrigeration, ventilation, electricity, and lighting (Bosu et al. 2023 ).

At present, the global installed capacity of solar photovoltaic power generation continues to increase and has become a rapidly developing industry (Diwania et al. 2020 ). However, the low conversion efficiency, high price, and large impact of climatic conditions of photovoltaic cell energy storage are the main obstacles to the promotion and stable development of this technology in the construction industry (Durganjali et al. 2020 ). As Table 2 shows, improvements in solar systems and innovative applications for integration with other energy sources or materials have led to significant advances in many aspects, including power generation and heating efficiency. The application of information technology, such as the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence, to solar photovoltaic systems has become one of the feasible solutions to the above problems. In addition, machine learning technologies such as artificial neural networks and support vector machines have great potential in predicting solar radiation intensity and power generation, and applying them to solar photovoltaic systems can also significantly improve the efficiency of photovoltaic power generation (Mellit and Kalogirou 2014 ; Sobri et al. 2018 ). In addition to improving solar technology, the integrated application of multiple energy sources or materials, as well as the development of various new materials of solar cells, have also contributed to the innovation and technological progress of solar power generation in the construction field. For the solar heat collection/refrigeration system using solar heat for building space heating, energy-saving technologies such as roof pool heat storage, phase change material heat storage, and new materials are directly or indirectly applied to the building design to maximize the use of solar energy provides an effective solution (Peng et al. 2020a ).

In addition to solar energy, other renewable energy technologies such as wind and geothermal energy, are also widely used in the construction sector. The most important part of any wind energy system is the wind turbine, which converts wind energy into mechanical energy that can be used for a variety of applications (Kumar et al. 2016 ). However, most of the early wind turbines installed in urban environments were restricted by limited land resources and distance from buildings. As a result, the design and performance of wind energy systems are increasingly advanced and innovative, especially in building-integrated wind energy systems (Rezaeiha et al. 2020 ; Stathopoulos et al. 2018 ), including Savonius-Darrieus hybrid rotors, piezoelectric generators, flag type triboelectric nano-generators, bladeless turbines, and more (Acarer et al. 2020 ; Bagheri et al. 2019 ).

As the demand for green and low-carbon technologies continues to rise, biomass applications in the building sector are poised to play an increasingly crucial role in promoting energy conservation, emission reduction, and sustainable development. For instance, Ebrahimi-Moghadam and Farzaneh-Gord ( 2023 ) devised an eco-friendly tri-generation system driven by an externally-fired gas turbine cycle, utilizing municipal solid waste biomass. This innovative system incorporates a double-effect absorption chiller/heater and undergoes a comprehensive evaluation based on energy, eco-exergy, and environmental analyses to gauge its reliability. The research employs a pioneering optimization strategy, combining Artificial Neural Networks and a multi-criteria Salp Swarm Algorithm to determine the optimal system size and operational parameters. Practical application is demonstrated through a case study, where the developed models are used to meet the electrical, heating, and cooling requirements of a selected building using real data and advanced energy architecture software. The findings underscore the significance of factors like municipal solid mass flow rate and compressor pressure ratio in shaping system performance. Additionally, eco-exergy analysis reveals that a substantial portion of the total cost is attributed to specific system components, particularly the gas turbine and gasifier (40% and 23%, respectively). At peak efficiency, the system can generate 541 kW of electricity, produce 2052 kW of heat, and provide 2650 kW of cooling. Remarkably, the levelized cost of electricity generation stands at $0.083/kWh, with an associated environmental factor of 1.3 kgCO 2 /kWh, showcasing the potential of biomass-fired gas turbine cycles to satisfy building energy demands efficiently.

Integrating wind energy and biomass integration represents another promising and sustainable energy option. In this context, Liu et al. ( 2023a ) aimed to create a near-zero-energy neighborhood in an industrial city to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They utilized biomass waste for energy production and incorporated a battery pack system for energy storage. The Fanger model was employed to assess occupants' thermal comfort, and hot water production was detailed. Using TRNSYS software, the building's transient performance was simulated for one year. Wind turbines were employed as electricity generators, with excess energy stored in batteries for use during low-wind conditions. Hot water was generated through a biomass waste system and stored in a tank, while a humidifier provided ventilation, and a heat pump addressed heating and cooling needs. The findings indicated that a 6-kW wind turbine could supply the building's power needs and charge the batteries, resulting in a zero-energy building. Biomass fuel was used to maintain hot water, with an average consumption of 200 g per hour.

In addition, geothermal energy, as a non-intermittent and potentially inexhaustible energy source, can be divided into shallow, medium, and deep geothermal energy technologies according to depth, which can meet the heating and cooling needs of building groups with different energy efficiency levels and has great potential in space regulation in buildings (Romanov and Leiss 2022a ). Recent technological innovations and advances in geothermal systems in the building factor have focused on the optimal design of shallow geothermal systems to improve their efficiency and the application of new materials and integration with other technologies. In pursuit of achieving clean heating in northern rural regions, a novel cooperative heating system, comprising a biomass boiler and a multi-source heat pump, has been introduced. This system is designed based on building heat load requirements and available resources, seamlessly integrating biomass energy, geothermal energy, and air energy sources. A dynamic simulation model, facilitated by TRNSYS software, has been developed to maintain energy balance, and an optimization model is proposed to minimize annual costs. The effectiveness of this model is demonstrated through its application in the Miaofuan rural community in Linzi Town, Linyi County, Dezhou City, Shandong Province, China. The optimized cooperative system exhibits significant cost reductions of 9.6%, 14.2%, and 11.7%, respectively, compared to the individual operation of geothermal heat pumps, air source heat pumps, and biomass boilers. Consequently, this cooperative heating system emerges as a highly suitable solution for rural areas seeking efficient and sustainable heating solutions (Hou et al. 2023 ). As shown in Table 3 , the main recent findings of various researchers on the technological advances and integrated innovative applications of wind and geothermal energy systems in buildings are summarized.

In summary, the latest technological advancements in the application of renewable energy in the construction field include the application of new materials, improvements, and new designs to the structure of renewable energy systems and integrated applications with other technologies or multiple energy sources. The continuous improvement and innovation of renewable energy technology have enabled it to overcome key technical shortcomings and fully leverage the advantages of renewable energy. It not only provides more environmentally friendly and sustainable choices for the construction industry but also provides greater creative space for architects and designers. With the continuous development and innovation of renewable energy technology in future, the construction industry is expected to bring more innovation, support the better integration of renewable energy systems into buildings, and create more opportunities for the construction industry to achieve significant decarburization and cost savings.

Impact of technological advancements on renewable energy adoption in buildings

As shown in Table 4 , technological progress has significantly influenced the application of renewable energy in the construction field. In recent years, the pursuit of higher efficiency has been the main driving force for innovation. Efficiency is also very important at the level of renewable energy systems, and various variables stimulate people's desire for more efficient technologies (Rathore and Panwar 2022 ). The floating photovoltaic technology is considered to have good development prospects due to its high power generation efficiency and no need to occupy land resources. The system is being developed based on new cell technologies, biodegradable materials, and advanced tracking mechanisms. However, the ecological impact, economic benefits, and optimization of size and system used are still challenges that need to be further addressed (Gorjian et al. 2021 ).

The modern technological development of wind power systems and their components, as well as reasonable architectural design optimization, have also made significant progress in generating power output and efficiency. Secondly, although nuclear energy has broad application prospects, natural disasters, and human hazards have always threatened this technology. Therefore, the development and application of nuclear energy are prudent, and the scale of utilization is still relatively low (Wei et al. 2023 ). Technological progress and innovation can not only improve the conversion and output efficiency of renewable energy systems but also reduce costs, thereby improving their performance and durability, making them more suitable for different regions and types of building applications. In future, the growth of the renewable energy industry mainly depends on reducing system costs and government policy support (Buonomano et al. 2023 ).

Energy storage technology can quickly and flexibly adjust the power of the power system, and the application of various energy storage devices to wind and solar power generation systems can provide an effective means to solve the problem of unstable renewable energy generation (Infield and Freris 2020 ). Giving full play to the advantages of various artificial intelligence technologies and cooperating with the energy storage system in the power system can improve the service life of the energy storage system and realize the optimal control of the multi-objective power system, which is the research direction of the integrated application of energy storage system and renewable energy in future (Abdalla et al. 2021 ). Chen et al. ( 2021b ) proposed an artificial intelligence-based useful evaluation model to predict the impact of renewable energy and energy efficiency on the economy. This model can help enhance energy efficiency to 97% and improve the utilization rate of renewable energy. Another study applied artificial neural networks and statistical analysis to create decision support systems and evaluated the solar energy potential of Mashhad City, Iran, using photovoltaic system simulation tools. The results show that the artificial neural network model can successfully predict electricity consumption in summer and winter, with an accuracy of 99% (Ghadami et al. 2021 ). Overall, machine learning technologies such as artificial neural networks and artificial intelligence have brought enormous potential for renewable energy applications in the construction industry, which can improve energy efficiency, reduce energy costs, reduce carbon emissions, and promote the development of the construction industry toward a more sustainable and environmentally friendly direction. The continuous development of these technologies will help create a smarter and greener building environment.

In conclusion, technological advancements offer promising prospects for integrating renewable energy into the construction sector. These advances encompass innovative design potential, superior system performance and resilience, heightened environmental benefits, augmented socio-economic returns, and data-driven innovations. Additionally, the strategic optimization of building layouts combined with the adoption of novel materials and technologies can further decrease the operational costs of renewable energy systems.

Emerging trends in renewable energy technology

The limitations of standalone renewable energy systems, like wind and solar power, characterized by unpredictability and uncertainty, lead to reduced utilization rates and increased construction expenses associated with these sources. In order to overcome these problems, hybrid renewable energy systems are receiving increasing attention from scholars and are widely used to address the challenges mentioned above (Farghali et al. 2023a ; Hajiaghasi et al. 2019 ). The use of machine learning and artificial intelligence technology for design optimization and cost control of hybrid renewable energy systems is an emerging trend, including support vector machines, genetic algorithms, and particle swarm optimization algorithms. Wen et al. ( 2019 ) proposed a deep recursive neural network model for aggregating power loads and predicting photovoltaic power generation and optimized the load scheduling of grid-connected community microgrids using particle swarm optimization. The results indicated that the community microgrid based on deep learning for solar power generation and load forecasting has achieved a reduction in total cost and an improvement in system reliability. Ramli et al. ( 2018 ) used a multi-objective adaptive differential evolution algorithm to optimize the design of a hybrid photovoltaic/wind/diesel microgrid system with battery storage. In addition, new algorithms such as the ant colony algorithm, bacterial foraging algorithm, and artificial bee colony algorithm are gradually being applied in the prediction and optimization research of hybrid renewable energy (Wei et al. 2023 ).

In recent years, there has been increasing research on the thermal storage performance and application prospects of phase change materials, among which the application of phase change materials in solar energy, architecture, and automobiles is prominent (Sikiru et al. 2022 ). The system combining solar collectors with suitable phase change materials has been proven through experiments to have better overall performance than traditional flat panel solar collectors (Palacio et al. 2020 ). As a commonly used thermal storage material, phase change materials have the disadvantage of low thermal conductivity. Therefore, Abuşka et al. ( 2019 ) developed a new type of solar air collector that combined phase change material Rubitherm RT54HC with aluminum honeycomb and studied the effect of using honeycomb cores on the thermal performance of phase change material thermal storage collectors under natural convection conditions. The results showed that the honeycomb core can effectively improve the thermal conductivity of phase change materials and is a promising thermal conductivity-enhancing material, especially during discharge. In addition, recent breakthroughs in nanomaterials, including quantum dots, nanoparticles, nanotubes, and nanowires, have significant implications for creating the next generation of efficient and low-cost solar cells. The safe and easy solution bonding of non-aggregated, monodisperse, passivated semiconductor nanoparticles with good photoelectric properties opens a new door for photovoltaic devices currently under study (Baviskar and Sankapal 2021 ).

In summary, technological advancements in renewable energy open new avenues for sustainable building and eco-friendly design. With science and technology's relentless evolution, the incorporation of renewable energy within the construction realm is poised to embrace intelligence, diversity, and digitization. At the same time, technological progress can also help solve the challenges of some renewable energy systems in practical applications, promoting their wider application in the building factor.

This section delves into the latest innovations concerning four prevalent renewable energy types used in buildings, scrutinizing the prospective influence of these breakthroughs in construction. Continuous refinement and inventive strategies in renewable energy systems, coupled with the amalgamation of diverse technologies, materials, and energy forms, bolster a building's environmental, energy, and economic advantages, thus championing a broader adoption of renewable methodologies in construction. Finally, the recent research hotspots and emerging development trends in the field of renewable energy are presented.

Perspective

With the increasing population and density in urban areas, having low-energy buildings with the least greenhouse gas emissions has become more important (Shirinbakhsh and Harvey 2023 ). In future, the vibrant prospects of renewable energy in the construction industry will be influenced by a series of complex and closely interrelated factors. This section will provide an in-depth outlook on the development of renewable energy in the construction industry from two main perspectives, namely prospects and potential challenges.

Energiewende

Energiewende is becoming a booster for the application of renewable energy in the construction industry. In the context of energiewende, renewable energy is widely regarded as the core element driving the development of building energy. In future, the construction industry will increasingly rely on the application of renewable energy, especially solar, wind, and geothermal energy. Besides, solar energy, as one of the most common and renewable energy sources, will play an important role in buildings. Photovoltaic power generation systems will be widely used on roofs, walls, and windows of buildings, turning them into distributed power producers. This distributed power generation model helps to reduce dependence on traditional energy and achieve a greener and more sustainable energy supply.

Additionally, wind energy is also an important part of the transformation of building energy. Wind power generation devices will not only be limited to traditional wind farms but will also be integrated into high-rise buildings, bridges, and other building structures. The widespread application of this type of wind energy will effectively utilize the wind energy resources in cities, provide clean electricity for buildings, and reduce environmental loads. In addition, geothermal energy, as a stable and reliable form of energy, will also be widely used in the construction field. Geothermal energy can be used in heating and cooling systems of buildings, reducing reliance on traditional energy and improving energy efficiency. Through underground heat exchange technology, buildings can achieve efficient energy conversion and reduce energy consumption in different seasons.

Biomass holds promising prospects for expanding renewable energy adoption in the building sector. As a versatile and sustainable energy source, biomass can be used for various applications, such as heating, cooling, and electricity generation, making it a valuable addition to the renewable energy mix. Additionally, biomass offers the advantage of energy storage through technologies like phase change materials, enhancing its suitability for meeting variable energy demands in buildings. Furthermore, the utilization of agricultural and forestry residues as biomass feedstock can contribute to waste reduction and resource optimization, aligning with sustainable building practices. As efforts to decarbonize the building sector intensify, biomass's potential to provide renewable, locally sourced energy while reducing greenhouse gas emissions positions it as a compelling option for advancing the adoption of renewable energy in buildings.

In summary, the introduction of renewable energy to the construction realm offers significant technological advancement. This shift also ensures a move toward greater sustainability. The synergy of architects, engineers, energy specialists, and other experts fosters the seamless integration and innovation of renewable energy solutions within architectural designs.

Energy self-sufficiency and microgrid technology

Energy self-sufficiency and microgrid technology are becoming leaders in the construction field. With the continuous innovation of technology, buildings are gradually moving toward the goal of energy self-sufficiency. By integrating solar power generation, energy storage systems, and intelligent energy management technologies, buildings are expected to achieve a certain degree of separation from traditional power networks and achieve the goal of self-power supply. This concept of energy self-sufficiency will further reduce reliance on traditional energy, enabling buildings to meet energy needs more independently.

The rise of microgrid technology will bring significant changes to building energy management. A microgrid is a small energy network composed of multiple energy components (such as solar cells, energy storage devices, and gas generators), which can achieve efficient utilization and sharing of local energy. Microgrid technology utilizes renewable resources to ensure the stability and sustainability of buildings or cities based on artificial intelligence, such as metaheuristics (Evolutionary, Swarm, Physically based, Human based, hybrid, and other standalone algorithms), and machine learning (Model-based Control, Reinforcement Learning, Fuzzy Logic), which helps better cope with energy fluctuations and intermittency (Tajjour and Singh Chandel 2023 ). The development of microgrid technology will also enhance the reliability of building energy. In traditional central power systems, once a fault or interruption occurs, the entire area may be affected. Additionally, microgrid technology allows the energy system inside the building to automatically switch to backup energy in the event of a power outage, ensuring the continuous operation of key equipment and improving the reliability and stability of energy supply.

Carbon neutrality and sustainable development

The United Nations General Assembly, with sustainable development as its core, has formulated the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, aimed at addressing environmental, economic, and social challenges in the process of human development. This agenda is an action plan for humanity, the Earth, and prosperity (Woon et al. 2023 ). Meanwhile, carbon neutrality and sustainable development have become important issues that cannot be ignored in the construction industry. With increasing global attention to climate change and environmental issues, the construction industry is actively responding to carbon neutrality goals and striving to reduce carbon emissions. In this context, renewable energy is seen as a crucial solution for achieving carbon neutrality goals.

Renewable energy, as a non-emission energy source, has obvious advantages. Renewable energy sources such as solar energy, wind energy, and hydropower not only do not produce harmful gases such as carbon dioxide in the energy production process, but their sustainability enables them to provide clean energy for buildings in the long term. This makes renewable energy one of the important means to achieve carbon neutrality goals.

In future, the construction industry will gradually reduce its dependence on high-carbon-emitting energy sources such as traditional coal and oil and turn its attention to renewable energy. Photovoltaic power generation systems will be more widely installed on roofs, walls, and even windows of buildings, and wind power plants may become a part of high-rise buildings. Geothermal energy technology will play a greater role in heating and cooling. Biomass systems, including biomass boilers and biogas generators, can be integrated into buildings to provide reliable and carbon–neutral energy. These changes will not only bring significant reductions in carbon emissions but also provide greater security and reliability in the energy supply. In addition to direct carbon emissions reduction, the promotion of renewable energy will also stimulate innovation and technological progress. While seeking higher energy efficiency and lower carbon emissions, the construction industry will face pressure from technological upgrading and innovation, which will promote the development of new materials, new equipment, and intelligent energy management technologies, thereby further promoting the application and development of renewable energy.

Intelligent building and energy internet

Intelligent buildings and the energy internet have been widely recognized as important directions for the future development of the construction industry. With the continuous progress of technology, buildings will gradually become intelligent and digitized, creating more intelligent conditions for efficient energy utilization. In future, intelligent building technology will play an important role in enabling buildings to achieve intelligent regulation and optimize energy use. Through the application of sensors, data analysis, and automatic control systems, buildings can collect environmental information such as energy consumption, temperature, humidity, brightness, and room occupancy, allowing for energy decomposition and equipment identification and generating timely and personalized recommendations to achieve efficient energy utilization (Alsalemi et al. 2022 ). For example, in cold winter, the system can automatically adjust the temperature and time of the heating system to ensure a comfortable indoor environment while minimizing energy waste.

The integration of architecture and energy internet will further enhance the effective utilization rate of energy. By connecting the building energy system to the energy internet, buildings can achieve precise matching with energy supply. The energy internet will allow buildings to flexibly adjust according to actual demand and energy supply, thereby maximizing energy utilization. For example, when there is sufficient energy supply, buildings can store excess energy, and when there is a shortage of energy supply, priority can be given to utilizing reserve energy to ensure the normal operation of the building.

This section delves into the envisioned future of the construction sector, with a spotlight on the transformative influence of renewable energy. It forecasts the industry's trajectory toward energy autonomy, underscores the advantages of adopting microgrid systems, and highlights the worldwide momentum toward carbon–neutral commitments. Furthermore, it explores the synergistic melding of smart buildings with the energy internet to enhance energy consumption efficiency.

Technological innovation and cost reduction

Technological innovation is the core driving force behind the application of renewable energy in the construction industry. With the continuous progress of technology, renewable energy technologies are also constantly innovating and evolving. However, despite significant progress, further efforts are still needed to reduce costs and improve efficiency to better meet the needs of the construction industry. In the field of renewable energy, cost has always been considered one of the key factors restricting its widespread application. To achieve the large-scale application of renewable energy technology in buildings, it is necessary to find ways to reduce the costs of production, installation, and maintenance. Especially for some emerging technologies, such as solar thin films and wind energy storage, their research and manufacturing costs are relatively high, requiring continuous investment and efforts to achieve cost reduction.

Energy storage technology

The role of energy storage technology in the field of renewable energy is becoming increasingly prominent, especially in the face of the intermittency and volatility of renewable energy. These characteristics make energy storage a key factor in achieving a stable supply of renewable energy. However, current energy storage technologies still face a series of challenges in terms of cost, efficiency, and reliability, requiring continuous improvement and innovation.

With the continuous growth of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind energy, the demand for energy storage technology is becoming increasingly urgent. Photovoltaic and wind power generation systems have fluctuating production capacity due to weather and other factors, while energy demand is all-weather. Therefore, efficient energy storage technology can store excess energy for release when needed, thereby ensuring the stability of the energy supply. However, there are still some limitations to current energy storage technologies. On the one hand, cost issues have limited the popularization of energy storage technology. Currently, some commonly used energy storage technologies, such as lithium-ion batteries, have superior performance but high manufacturing costs, especially for large-scale applications. On the other hand, the efficiency and reliability of some energy storage technologies also need to be improved. For example, some energy storage systems may experience certain losses during the energy conversion and storage process, which reduces the overall efficiency of the system.

In the future, the improvement and innovation of energy storage technology will be a hot topic in the field of renewable energy. Scientists and engineers are exploring new energy storage materials and technologies to reduce costs, improve efficiency, and extend the lifespan of systems. The research on new battery technologies and energy storage materials will provide new possibilities for addressing the challenges posed by the volatility of renewable energy.

Integrated design and multidisciplinary cooperation

In the context of the increasingly urgent global energy situation, achieving the maximum potential of renewable energy has become an urgent task in the construction field. In order to achieve this goal, the energy system, building structure, and function in architectural design need to achieve close integration, which can maximize the application effect of renewable energy. Therefore, interdisciplinary cooperation has become crucial, and cross-border cooperation in professional fields such as architects, engineers, and energy experts will help find the best technology integration solutions to create more efficient and reliable renewable energy applications.

Implementing integrated architectural design requires close cooperation from experts in various fields. Architects need to integrate the needs of energy systems into their architectural design, considering how to maximize the utilization of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind energy without affecting the appearance and functionality of the building. Engineers need to ensure the coordination between the building structure and the energy system, optimize the layout, and ensure the efficient operation of the energy system. Energy experts need to provide energy analysis and technical support for the entire system to ensure the rational application of renewable energy.

Based on interdisciplinary cooperation, innovative technology integration solutions will be born. This may include integrating photovoltaic power generation systems into the exterior walls of buildings, utilizing the exterior scenery of buildings to enhance wind power generation, or organically integrating ground-source heat pump systems with building structures. By integrating multidisciplinary expertise, the most suitable and innovative renewable energy solutions can be found for each construction project. This integrated design and multidisciplinary collaboration can help solve the problem of energy waste in traditional architectural design. Traditional buildings usually consider energy systems and building design separately, resulting in inefficient energy utilization. By implementing integrated design, buildings can respond more intelligently to energy needs and reduce unnecessary waste.

Policy support and market recognition

In the context of global energy issues gradually heating up, policy support and market recognition have become the two pillars to promote the application of renewable energy in the construction industry. The government's policy support not only provides important guarantees for the development of renewable energy but also stimulates the enthusiasm of building owners and developers to adopt these technologies at the policy level. The government can effectively promote the transformation and upgrading of the industry by focusing on investment in the field of new technology research and development, formulating incentive policies to promote technological progress and innovative technology pilot diffusion, increasing research and development investment, guiding social capital participation, and fully leveraging the lateral incentive effect of policies (Xie et al. 2023 ).

At the same time, market recognition is also crucial for the promotion and application of renewable energy. The realization of market recognition requires people to deeply recognize the enormous economic and environmental benefits that renewable energy can bring in long-term operations. This not only involves the return on initial investment but also relates to the savings in energy costs and the reduction of environmental burden in long-term operations. With the increasing awareness of environmental protection in society, people's demand for green performance in buildings is also increasing, which further strengthens the market's demand for renewable energy.

Policy support and market recognition have jointly built the foundation for the development of renewable energy in the construction industry. The guiding role of government policies enables renewable energy technologies to quickly enter the market, while market recognition ensures the stability and sustainability of these technologies in practical applications. This dual support not only promotes technological innovation in renewable energy but also provides a solid guarantee for the sustainable development of the construction industry.

Upgrade of energy infrastructure

To achieve the large-scale application of renewable energy in the construction industry, it is necessary to focus on upgrading energy infrastructure. Nowadays, the demand for energy in the construction industry is increasing, and traditional energy infrastructure often finds it difficult to meet the effective transmission and utilization needs of renewable energy. Therefore, by upgrading our existing energy infrastructure, we can create more favorable conditions for the integration and application of renewable energy. Upgrading energy infrastructure is not only about technological progress but also about optimizing and innovating existing systems. The introduction of intelligent technology is crucial in this process. By introducing technologies such as intelligent monitoring, data analysis, and remote control, energy infrastructure can more efficiently manage and control renewable energy. This will help address the challenges of intermittency and volatility in renewable energy, ensuring a stable supply of energy.

On the other hand, upgrading energy infrastructure also requires attention to equipment updates and renovations. The new generation of equipment and technologies, such as advanced transmission lines and efficient energy storage devices, will provide more reliable and efficient support for the transmission and utilization of renewable energy. By integrating these innovative devices with existing energy systems, we can achieve the upgrading and modernization of energy infrastructure. In addition, upgrading energy infrastructure also requires cooperation with multiple parties. Building owners, energy suppliers, technology providers, and other parties need to work closely together to promote the upgrading process of energy infrastructure. The government's support will also play a crucial role in promoting the smooth upgrading of energy infrastructure through policy guidance and financial support.

In summary, renewable energy in the construction industry will play an increasingly important role in achieving energiewende, reducing carbon emissions, and promoting sustainable development. Although facing multiple challenges such as technology, costs, and policies, these challenges will gradually be overcome with the continuous innovation of technology and the gradual recognition of the market. Cross-disciplinary cooperation, policy support, and market guidance will be key to achieving the development of renewable energy in the construction industry. Through continuous efforts, the construction industry is expected to achieve a green transformation of energy and create a more sustainable and environmentally friendly building environment for humanity.

This section expounds upon the prospects and obstacles of weaving renewable energy into the construction landscape. It accentuates the imperative of technological breakthroughs and cost-cutting measures and underscores energy storage's role in offsetting renewable energy's intermittency. The section also champions interdisciplinary teamwork for optimal design solutions and underscores how regulatory backing and market acknowledgment can bolster renewable energy adoption. Furthermore, overhauling the existing energy framework and embracing contemporary technologies and systems emerge as quintessential to meet the requisites of seamless renewable energy integration.

Renewable energy, known for its environmental benefits, is crucial in addressing growing energy demand and mitigating global warming. This review assesses its application in construction, covering technologies like solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal energy. While offering eco-friendliness, renewables enhance building energy efficiency and cut operational costs. In addition, this work also introduces successful application cases of renewable energy technology in the construction field, which can often achieve multifunctional sustainable development through the adoption of renewable energy technologies, and finally analyzes the difficulties and challenges faced in the application process. From a policy perspective, governments and international organizations play a crucial role in formulating and implementing renewable energy-related policy standards. However, problems such as high initial investment, unstable power grids, and inconsistent policies may be encountered when implementing policies. The implementation of the above policies and regulations will stimulate the sustainable development of renewable energy in the construction industry while promoting innovation and progress in related technological research. This paper presents the latest technological advances and innovative designs for various types of renewable energy systems. The results show that the application of advanced artificial intelligence technologies, such as machine learning, plays an important role in the optimization and improvement of various renewable energy systems. Secondly, the application of hybrid renewable energy systems and innovative building design and layout are also effective ways to enhance the advantages of renewable energy and achieve multi-purpose. In the future, the improvement and innovation of energy storage technology will be a research hotspot in the field of renewable energy, providing new possibilities for addressing the challenges brought by renewable energy fluctuations. Meanwhile, policy support and market guidance will be key to achieving the development of renewable energy in the construction industry.

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Acknowledgements

Dr. Ahmed I. Osman and Prof. David W. Rooney wish to acknowledge the support of the Bryden Centre project (project ID VA5048), which was awarded by The European Union’s INTERREG VA Program, managed by the Special EU Programs Body (SEUPB), with match funding provided by the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland and the Department of Business, Enterprise, and Innovation in the Republic of Ireland.

This work was supported by the SEUPB, Bryden Centre project (project ID VA5048).

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Lin Chen, Ying Hu, Ruiyi Wang, Xiang Li, Jianmin Hua & Lepeng Huang

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Department of Civil Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Suzhou, 215123, China

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School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT9 5AG, UK

Ahmed I. Osman & David W. Rooney

Department of Agricultural Engineering and Socio-Economics, Kobe University, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan

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LC was involved in conceptualization, writing, and review and editing. YH, RW, XL, ZC, and JH were involved in data gathering, writing, and review. AIO was involved in writing, review and editing, and supervision. MF was involved in writing, review and editing, and data editing. LH was involved in writing and review. JL and LD were involved in data gathering, writing, and review. DWR and PSY were involved in review and editing and supervision. LC, YH, RW, and XL jointly conceived the study and led the writing of the article with equal contributions. All other authors have contributed to data collection and analysis, interpretation of results, and writing of the article and are listed in alphabetical order.

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Chen, L., Hu, Y., Wang, R. et al. Green building practices to integrate renewable energy in the construction sector: a review. Environ Chem Lett 22 , 751–784 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-023-01675-2

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Thesis Topics for Architecture :20 topics related to Sustainable Architecture

Sustainable architecture is the architecture that minimizes the negative environmental impact of buildings. It aims at solving the problems of society and the ecosystem. It uses a selective approach towards energy and the design of the built environment. Most often sustainability is being limited to the efficient water heater or using high-end technologies. It is more than that. It is sometimes about creating awareness among people and communities about how we can coexist in the natural environment. Sustainable architecture is a means to enter the context in a natural way, planning and deciding the materials before the construction that have very few negative effects on the environment. Here are 20 Thesis topics for architecture related to Sustainable Architecture:

1. Urban Park | Thesis Topics for Architecture

To make a city livable and sustainable, urban parks play a key role to provide a healthy lifestyle for the residents of the city. It provides transformative spaces for the congregation and community development . Public parks are very crucial within the cities because they are often the only major greenery source for the area.

2. Neighborhood Development

There is always a challenge to implement sustainable development at a very local level. Thus, urban sprawl, environmental degradation, and traffic congestion have made it necessary to look at problems at the basic level. In cities, there is an extra opportunity to develop a sustainable neighborhood that incorporates energy-efficient buildings, green materials, and social infrastructures.

3. Community Garden Design | Thesis Topics for Architecture

Community gardens are the latest trend for sustainable living in urban areas due to rising health issues in the cities. It helps promote farming as an activity where locals can also get involved in the activities and encourage them to use gardens as recreational spaces. The gardens assist in the sustainable development of urban areas.

4. Waste Recycling Center

Waste recycling centers can be one of the great thesis topics for architecture since waste recycling is always seen as a burden on the city. But it can be converted into an opportunity by incorporating its function and value into the urban fabric . Waste to energy plants or waste recycling centers can be integrated with public functions that engage communities.

5. Restoration of Heritage/Old Building

Building restoration is the process of correctly exposing the state of a historical building, as it was in the past with respecting its heritage value. India has many heritage buildings including forts, temples , buildings which are in deteriorated conditions and need to be restored. Thus, it helps to protect our heritage of the past.

6. Rehabilitation Housing | Thesis Topics for Architecture

Rehabilitation housing is temporary housing made to accommodate people who vacate the colonies that are required to redevelop. Rehabilitation housing also accommodates peoples who get affected by natural calamity and are displaced due to that.

7. Riverfront Development

The development of a riverfront improves the quality of built and unbuilt spaces while maintaining a river-city relationship. It provides an identity to the stretch of the land which can include the addition of cultural and recreational activities. Various public activities and spaces are incorporated to develop the life and ambiance on the riverfront which leads to the environment and economic sustainability.

8. SMART Village | Thesis Topics for Architecture

SMART village is a modern initiative to develop rural villages and provide them with basic amenities, education, health, clean drinking water, sanitation, and environmental sustainability. It aims to strengthen rural communities with new technologies and energy access.

9. Net-Zero Energy Building

A lot of energy goes into the building sector which can be reduced by incorporating energy-efficient techniques and innovations. The Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB) produces as much energy as it consumes over the year, and sometimes more. NZEB can be applied to various typologies such as industrial, commercial, and residential. Due to emerging concerns over climate change, these buildings are a new trend nowadays.

10. Bermed Structure

The bermed structure is a structure that is built above ground or partially below the ground, with earth covering at least one wall. In extreme climatic conditions, a bermed structure protects from both heat and cold. The structure can be any typology be it residence, museum, or exhibition hall. These types of buildings are very energy efficient but extra care is needed to be given to waterproofing.

11. Regenerative Design

Regenerative design is active participation in engaging in the natural environment. It focuses on reducing the environmental impacts of a building on the natural surroundings through conservation and performance. While green building improves energy efficiency, the regenerative building improves the ecosystem as it will support habitats for living organisms.

12. Urban Agriculture Centre

Urban agriculture centers accommodate the space for cultivating, processing, and distribution of food in any urban area. The center helps to improve the quality of life and provides them healthy options to eat. Fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat products through the center improves food safety. The center can also be made a learning hub for people to collaborate and share their knowledge of sustainable food production. It can create awareness and improve the eating habits of people.

13. Revitalizing Abandoned Mill or Industry

Mills and industries are an important aspect of developing an urban area. They invoke the image of industrial development, invention, and success in their times. Thus, by revitalizing the abandoned mill, one can preserve the city’s old fabric.

14. Eco-Tourism Center

Eco-tourism center caters to the need to maintain the ecosystem with least intervention on the life of plants and wildlife. It also provides responsible travel to the people to the natural areas. The center also consists of research laboratories, data analysis and conducts studies to spread awareness among the locals about the ecosystems.

15. The Revival of a Heritage Building

Revival is a process of improvement in the condition and fortunes of the building, without losing its traditional spirit. When we talk about sustainability, Heritage revival is not paid any proper attention. On the other hand, it has a great opportunity to improve our rich culture’s heritage. It can provide positive impacts on the well-being of society as well as economic development.

16.Adaptive Reuse of a Building

Adaptive reuse is a process of retrofitting old structures for new users but retaining their earlier integrity to meet the new needs of the occupants. Thus, the best thing or feel about the building is preserved and developed in a modified way. It gives a new life to the building and removes the need to demolish the structure.

17. Redevelopment of Slum

Redevelopment of the slum is done to improve the urban sprawl created by the slums and no new land is available for the new construction. In current scenarios in many cities, urban slums are a major concern due to unhygienic and unstable living conditions. The redevelopment aims to give priority to health, livelihood, sanitation, and infrastructure without removing people from the site.

18. Vertical Farm | Thesis Topics for Architecture

A vertical farm is a structure/space in a greenhouse or a field where food production takes place on vertically inclined planes. It often includes agriculture that optimizes plant growth, and soilless techniques like aquaponics, hydroponics, etc. The farming systems can be made on buildings, ship containers, or mine shafts.

19. Wetland Restoration

A degraded wetland is restored which has been destroyed earlier on the land it has been at or still is. Restoration practices include re-establishment and rehabilitation. Wetland restoration is important to maintain ecology, wildlife habitat, and they contribute to economic well-being also.

20. Eco-Mosque | Thesis Topics for Architecture

Eco-mosque is an environmentally friendly and zero energy mosque with the perception towards modernity with sustainability. The Mosque is the epicenter of the community and an important learning place to amplify the environmental stewardship responsibilities. The Eco Mosque is a one-of-a-kind structure designed completely on green technology, being sustainable & with the minimum carbon footprint.

Madiha Khanam is an architect and an enthusiast writer. She approaches writing as a creative medium to pen-down her thoughts just like drawing and illustrating. She loves to read and write about architecture, engineering, and psychology. Besides, she loves to watch anime.

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81 Green Building Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best green building topic ideas & essay examples, ✅ simple & easy green building essay titles, 🔎 good research topics about green building, ❓ green architecture research questions.

• Green Buildings and Environmental Sustainability This paper scrutinizes the characteristics that need to be possessed by a building for it to qualify as green coupled with questioning the capacity of the green movements across the globe to prescribe the construction […]
• Green Building Design Management The concert of service and product design involves environmentally friendly technologies and effective use of natural resources and materials. It influences allocation of resources, design of the building an selection of materials and technologies. We will write a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts 808 writers online Learn More
• Operations Management vs. Green Building (GB) Introduction Green Building and Operations Management Importance and Role of Operations Management Conclusion Green building depends upon effective management process and resource allocation.
• The Relationship Between Green Buildings and Operations Management Once a total budget for a green building project is set, project management should think in terms of the possible impact of different combinations: the extremes of spending the total budget, and the results expected […]
• Lightening Solution for a Green Building Now better is the efficiency of electricity to light conversion, lesser is the electrical energy wasted and lesser is the amount of fossil fuel burnt and greenhouse gases produced to get the same amount of […]
• Green Building Leeds Certification – Childcare Center These provide regulations for the design of the facility, the infrastructure required, the size required and the specific services to be provided by the child care facility.
• Green Design Parameters in High-Rise Buildings in Hot-Humid Climate The core of the issue lies in the need to determine the pressure differences as applied to windward and leeward faces.
• Green Building and Green Practices Promotions One of the aspects of LCA is life cycle costing, which evaluates the financial cost of the design and maintenance of the building and is important for estimating the expenses associated with green buildings’ characteristics.
• Green Building: The Impact of Humanity on the Environment A growing awareness of humanity’s impact on the environment resulted in the emergence of regulations and evaluation systems across the world. Green Globes is online-based and requires a design team and a project manager for […]
• Green Building Programs Assessment Each of the initiatives evaluates the impact that buildings have on the environment as well as the way these buildings were built and how they can be disposed of in the future. The main objective […]
• Australian Green Building Innovation and Ethics The field has a direct impact on the quality of life and the environment. The concepts to be discussed include the origins of the project, its impacts, and how the innovation addresses sustainability concerns.
• Green Building Codes and Standards The building industry in the United States is not spared when it comes to the question of embracing the green paradigm in building and construction.
• Indoor Air Quality in Green Building Movement To check the hypothesis it is necessary to consider such issues as the history of green building, the impact of green building on environment and people’s health, the importance of the high indoor air quality […]
• Green Industrial Cities’ Designing A green environment includes the geographical area and the natural state that has not yet been developed and development must not negatively impact the existing infrastructure and the environment.
• Green Building in the Boston Area On the whole, this project illustrates how innovative technologies and creative decisions of the architects can improve the sustainability of buildings.
• Green Buildings and Their Efficiency Water Consumption The resources are useful in terms of provide regulation of buildings, components of green buildings, selection of green materials and where to purchase such materials.
• Green Design: Sustainable Landscaping and Garden Design The perfect designing of sustainable landscapes in the urban centers has led to efficient use of land in cities and the surrounding regions.
• Green Building in the United Arab Emirates Consequently, the government in the United Arab Emirates resolved for the implementation of better and advanced construction strategies that would ensure energy was conserved therefore providing a solution to the increased rate of pollution that […]
• Green Buildings Impact on the Environment The most outstanding benefit of green buildings is the reduction in wastes and this is something that other developments have not taken care of.
• Green Buildings and Indoor Air Quality The idea of “green buildings” has in many ways helped enhance indoor air quality.”Green buildings” are made possible by designing and constructing buildings which have high quality of indoor air as one of their major […]
• The Use of Green Materials for Sustainable Buildings Green materials used on the sustainable buildings reduce the environmental hazardous impacts such as the global warming effects, depletion of resources, and toxicities.
• Business Opportunities and the Future of Green Building Constructions
• Analysis of Business Plans About Green Building
• Can Green Building Councils Serve as Third Party Governance Institutions?
• Comparing Green Building Rating and Sustainable Building Rating Construction
• Water Ecological Aspects in Developing a Quantitative Climatic Model of Green Building
• Encouraging L.E.E.D. Green Building Technology
• Ethical and Sustainability Issues in Green Building
• Explicating Mechanical and Electrical Knowledge for Design Phase of Green Building Projects
• Adoption and Impact of L.E.E.D.-Based Green Building Policies at the Municipal Level
• Fire Risk Analysis and Fire Prevention Management Optimization for Green Building Design
• Global Green Building Materials Market: Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Forecast
• Linking Green Building, Advertising, and Price Premium
• Green Buildings Affect the Environment Construction
• The Relationships Between Green Building and Sustainability
• Analysis of Green Building and Sustainable Construction
• Linking Green Building and Zero Energy Trends
• Overview and Analysis of Benefits of Green Building
• Green Building Construction From an Accounting Perspective
• Mapping the Green Building Industry: How Local Are Architects and General Contractors
• Green Building Councils: Their Economic Role as Governance Institutions
• Property Tax Assessment Incentive for Green Building: Energy Saving Based-Model
• Green Building Evaluation From a Life-Cycle Perspective in Australia
• The Potential for Transformative Change in the Green Building Sector
• Green Building Laws and Incentives Provided by NY City and State
• Overview of Singapore’s Green Building Program
• Green Building Occupant Satisfaction: Evidence From the Australian Higher Education Sector
• State Environmental Policies: Analyzing Green Building Mandates
• Green Building: Passive House or Zero Energy Building
• Strategies for Promoting Green Building Technologies Adoption in the Construction Industry
• Green Building Pro-environment Behaviors: Are Green Users Also Green Buyers
• Sustainable Construction: Green Building Design and Delivery
• Green Building Project Management: Obstacles and Solutions for Sustainable Development
• Benefits and Barriers to Promoting Bamboo as a Green Building Material in China
• Green Building Research: Current Status and Future Agenda
• The Market for Green Building In Developed Asian Cities
• Green Building: Taking Advantage of All Natural Resources
• The Pros and Cons of Green Building
• Thermal Eco-Cities: Green Building and Urban Thermal Metabolism
• Understanding Green Building Construction in Singapore
• Using Green Building and Energy Efficient Resources
• Can Green Building Councils Serve as Third-Party Governance Institutions?
• What Is Green Building?
• What Does Green Building Construction Look Like From an Accounting Point of View?
• What Are the Business Opportunities and the Future of Green Architecture Structures?
• What Are the Ethical and Sustainability Issues in Green Building?
• How Are Mechanical and Electrical Knowledge Used in the Design Phase of Green Building Projects?
• How Do Green Buildings Affect the Environment?
• What Is the Relationship Between Green Architecture and Sustainability?
• What Is the Connection Between Green Building Trends and Zero Energy Consumption?
• What Is Green Building Industry Mapping?
• What Are the Green Building Councils?
• What Is the Green Building Practice Plan?
• How Are Green Building and Energy Efficiency Resources Used Together?
• What Is Green Building College?
• What Is the Property Tax Incentives for Green Building?
• What Does the NYC Green Building Initiative Look Like?
• What Materials Are Used for Green Architecture?
• What Resources Are Used for Green Building?
• What Is Rethinking the Socio-Technical Transformations of Green Entrepreneurship?
• What Is Green Building Aimed At?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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A microbial plastic factory for high-quality green plastic

Engineered bacteria can produce a plastic modifier that makes renewably sourced plastic more processable, more fracture resistant and highly biodegradable even in sea water. The Kobe University development provides a platform for the industrial-scale, tunable production of a material that holds great potential for turning the plastic industry green.

Plastic is a hallmark of our civilization. It is a family of highly formable (hence the name), versatile and durable materials, most of which are also persistent in nature and therefore a significant source of pollution. Moreover, many plastics are produced from crude oil, a non-renewable resource. Engineers and researchers worldwide are searching for alternatives, but none have been found that exhibit the same advantages as conventional plastics while avoiding their problems. One of the most promising alternatives is polylactic acid, which can be produced from plants, but it is brittle and does not degrade well.

To overcome these difficulties, Kobe University bioengineers around TAGUCHI Seiichi together with the biodegradable polymer manufacturing company Kaneka Corporation decided to mix polylactic acid with another bioplastic, called LAHB, which has a range of desirable properties, but most of all it is biodegradable and mixes well with polylactic acid. However, in order to produce LAHB, they needed to engineer a strain of bacteria that naturally produces a precursor, by systematically manipulating the organism's genome through the addition of new genes and the deletion of interfering ones.

In the scientific journal ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering , they now report that they could thus create a bacterial plastic factory that produces chains of LAHB in high amounts, using just glucose as feedstock. In addition, they also show that by modifying the genome, they could control the length of the LAHB chain and thus the properties of the resulting plastic. They were thus able to produce LAHB chains up to ten times longer than with conventional methods, which they call "ultra-high molecular weight LAHB."

Most importantly, by adding LAHB of this unprecedented length to polylactic acid, they could create a material that exhibits all the properties the researchers had aimed for. The resulting highly transparent plastic is much better moldable and more shock resistant than pure polylactic acid, and also biodegrades in seawater within a week. Taguchi comments on this achievement, saying "By blending polylactic acid with LAHB, the multiple problems of polylactic acid can be overcome in one fell swoop, and the so modified material is expected to become an environmentally sustainable bioplastic that satisfies the conflicting needs of physical robustness and biodegradability."

The Kobe University bioengineers, however, dream bigger. The strain of bacteria they used in this work is in principle able to use CO 2 as a raw material. It should thus be possible to synthesize useful plastics directly from the greenhouse gas. Taguchi explains, "Through the synergy of multiple projects, we aim to realize a biomanufacturing technology that effectively links microbial production and material development."

This research was commissioned by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization of Japan (grant JPNP20005) and funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Japan (grant 19K22069) and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (grant JPMJTM19YC). It was conducted in collaboration with researchers from Kaneka Corporation and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology.

• Biotechnology and Bioengineering
• Genetically Modified
• Microbes and More
• Sustainability
• Environmental Issues
• Air Pollution
• Biodegradation
• Energy development
• Algal bloom
• Evaporation from plants
• Bioluminescence

Story Source:

Materials provided by Kobe University . Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference :

• Sangho Koh, Sho Furutate, Yusuke Imai, Toshihiko Kanda, Shinji Tanaka, Yuichi Tominaga, Shunsuke Sato, Seiichi Taguchi. Microbial Platform for Tailor-made Production of a Biodegradable Polylactide Modifier: Ultrahigh-Molecular-Weight Lactate-Based Polyester LAHB . ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering , 2024; DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.3c07662

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