The sustainable building design and operation research area focuses on the physical spaces of the CIRS building. Using CIRS as a living laboratory, researchers work collaboratively with partners to test, implement, demonstrate and study sustainability innovation.
Research includes:
- The incorporation of sustainable building design with lifecycle performance analyses;
- The interplay between the building, its subsystems and the building inhabitants; and
- The impact and influences of the building on inhabitant behaviour and preferences.
Research in this area explores:
- Building construction;
- Water and ventilation systems;
- Space acoustics;
- Heating and cooling systems; and
- The psychological effects of sustainability on CIRS inhabitants.
Active Sustainable Building Design and Operation Research
Sustainable Building Science Program Projects at CIRS
Sustainable Building Science program (SBSP) Trainee Research Project – Yizhong Lei, MASc (MECH)
Auralization of Sound and Control Measures at CIRS
Optimal Thermal and Acoustical Performance of Window Systems
Exploration of Building Evaluation Studies
Natural Ventilation Silencers in Buildings
Natural Ventilation Silencers at CIRS
Beam Tracing Prediction Research
CIRS Dynamic Lifecycle Costing Assessment
Identifying “Next Frontier” IT Solutions for CIRS
The Intersection Between Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Life Cycle Costing (LCC) and Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Energy Efficient Ventilation for Improved Air Quality
Predicting Energy Use and Operation Cost of HVAC Air Filters
CIRS Auditorium Ventilation System: Adequacy Assessment, Energy Consumption and Comfort
Cretivity and Mood Study
Eating Study
Apple Study
Recycling Study
Laptop Study
Sustainable Building Science Program Projects at CIRS
Project Description: The Sustainable Building Science Program (SBSP) helps to train the next generation of building-design professionals by consolidating and integrating interdisciplinary scientific education, conducting state-of-the art research, and studying real-world design challenges with a focus on sustainability. SBSP trainees collaborate with CIRS researchers to evaluate new technologies incorporated into the CIRS building. CIRS also houses an environmental research laboratory to support SBSP research and training.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Co-investigators: Prof. John Robinson, Prof. Ray Cole, Prof. Steve Rogak, Prof. Karen Bartlett, Fitsum Tariku, BC Institute of Technology (BCIT), Assoc. Prof. Konrad Walus, Prof. Thomas Froese, Prof. Frank Lam, Prof. Lorne Whitehead, Assoc. Prof. Kendal Bushe, Prof. Nemy Banthia, plus additional collaborators
Graduate Students: Chris Bibby, James Montgomery, Julia Reckermann, Stefan Storey, Paul Save, Laura Fedoruk, Sepideh Khosravi, Yizhong Lei, post-doctoral fellow Jessie Chen
Partners: BCIT, Perkins+Will, Stantec, BC Hydro, City of Vancouver, Krieger SRM
Funding: NSERC - CREATE
Status: First group of students began in September 2011
Outcomes/Outputs: Current trainee research projects, including:
Optimal design of natural ventilation silencers (Bibby)
Energy efficiency in air filtration (Montgomery)
CIRS pre-occupancy evaluation (Reckermann)
Dynamic lifecycle analysis for building design (Storey)
Uptake of new technology in sustainable building (Save)
Canopy system for core daylighting (Khosravi)
Structural performance of box-based, cross-laminated timber system used in floor applications (Chen)
UBC Smart Grid (Fedoruk)
Ventilation, indoor environmental quality, energy use and occupant satisfaction in occupied green and non-green building (Lei)
Project Description: Studying the modelling and prediction of sound in CIRS 2N, and improvement through a sound-masking system.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Graduate Student: Yizhong Lei
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: CATT-Acoustic 3D model of CIRS 2N, and information about the effectiveness of sound masking systems.
Sustainable Building Science program (SBSP) Trainee Research Project – Yizhong Lei, MASc (MECH)
Project Description: This Sustainable Building Science Program (SBSP) project explores the ventilation, indoor environmental quality, energy usage and occupant satisfaction in occupied green and non-green buildings.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Co-investigators: Prof. Karen Bartlett
Graduate Student: Yizhong Lei
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: Data on ventilation, indoor-environmental quality, energy usage and occupant satisfaction in occupied green and non-green buildings, and the relationships between them.
Auralization of Sound and Control Measures at CIRS
Project Description: Explores the auralization of sound and control measures in CIRS 2N .
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Undergraduate Student: Nathan Willson
Funding: NSERC
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: CATT-Acoustic 3D model of CIRS 2N, and audio files of auralized speech before and after acoustical treatment.
Project Description: Build a sound-monitoring and sound-masking system.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Undergraduate Students: Rob Barr, Wang Liao, Jason Niu
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: A prototype system for monitoring the acoustical environment in a building, and preliminary performance data.
Optimal Thermal and Acoustical Performance of Window Systems
Project Description: Study the optimal thermal and acoustical performance of window systems.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Undergraduate Student: Augustin Garnier
Partners: City of Vancouver
Status: Summer 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Information about the acoustical and thermal performance of curtain-wall and triple-layer window systems.
Project Description: Conduct a review of “green” acoustical materials.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Undergraduate Student: Augustin Garnier
Status: Summer 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Report reviewing currently-available sustainable acoustical materials.
Exploration of Building Evaluation Studies
Project Description: Conduct a review of past POE studies and methods.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Co-investigators: Prof. John Robinson, Lillian Zaremba
Undergraduate Student: Helene Favier
Status: Summer 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Report reviewing previous building evaluation studies and methods.
Natural Ventilation Silencers in Buildings
Project Description: Explores the optimal design of natural-ventilation silencers.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Co-investigators: Prof. Steve Rogak, Fitsum Tariku (BCIT)
Graduate Student: Vivek Shankar
Funding: Sustainable Building Science Program (SBSP)
Status: Starts September 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Improved experimental methods for characterizing the acoustical and airflow performance of natural ventilation openings and silencers, and optimal designs and performance data for novel configurations.
Natural Ventilation Silencers at CIRS
Project Description: CIRS natural ventilation silencer design, construction and testing.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Graduate Student: Mina Samimi
Status: Summer 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Optimal design and construction of a natural ventilation opening silencer for an office in CIRS, and test data on its acoustical and airflow performance.
Project Description: Monitor the thermal performance of CIRS thermal slabs, and how they are affected by an insulating layer.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Co-investigators: Prof. Nemy Banthia
Undergraduate Student: Cole Crocker (MECH), James Higgins (MECH)
Funding: NSERC, UBC MECH
Status: Summer 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Data resulting from monitoring activities.
Beam Tracing Prediction Research
Project Description: Beam-tracing prediction of sound in rooms connected by ventilators.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Murray Hodgson
Undergraduate Students: James Higgins (MECH)
Funding: NSERC
Status: Summer 2012
Outcomes/Outputs: Beam-tracing model of the Natural Ventilation Opening Test Suite, and comparisons of measured and predicted sound-transmission data for openings and silencers.
CIRS Dynamic Lifecycle Costing Assessment
Project Description: This project was conducted to calculate the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of CIRS, by evaluating costs incurred in all phases of the ownership cycle, from cradle to grave. Research utilized lifecycle costing to compare the financial performance of CIRS to an equivalent building, and scenario analysis to showcase how CIRS is operationally designed to withstand energy source and carbon tax changes.
People:
Graduate Student: Stefan Storey, PhD Candidate
Principal Investigator: Prof. John Robinson
Co-investigators: Alberto Cayuela, John Metras, Mark Monroe
Partners: UBC – Infrastructure Development and Building Operations, Honeywell, Haworth
Funding: BC Hydro Student Desk funding, Sustainable Building Science Program (SBSP)
Status: Completed October 2011
Outcomes/Outputs: Not available yet
Identifying “Next Frontier” IT Solutions for CIRS
Project Description: Graduate students and UBC Information Technology (IT) professionals researched several IT solutions for the new CIRS building, and estimated the environmental impacts and monetary costs, using life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC).
The resulting recommendations helped determine the IT infrastructure in CIRS, and the research methods used are being developed for future decision-making at UBC. The project demonstrated that LCA and LCC data can influence decisions if presented when implementation options are sufficiently well-defined to support quantitative analysis, but not fully determined.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. John Robinson
Co-investigator: Alberto Cayuela
Graduate Students: Paul Teehan, Stefan Storey
Partners: UBC ITS
Funding: UBC ITS, USI/CIRS
Status: Completed December 2010
Outcomes/Outputs: Power Point presentation, “CIRS IT options: environmental and cost analysis
The Intersection Between Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Life Cycle Costing (LCC) and Building Information Modeling (BIM)
Project Description: Project explores the intersection between LCA, LCC and BIM through the study of CIRS and the Pharmaceutical Sciences buildings at UBC.
People:
Principal Investigator: Assoc. Prof. Sheryl Staub-French
Co-investigators: Alberto Cayuela, Claudio Pini, John Sacre, Rob Sianchuk
Graduate Students: Helia Amiri, Raza Ali
Partners: UBC Civil Engineering, USI/CIRS, UBC ITS, UBC Building Operations
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: Not available yet
Energy Efficient Ventilation for Improved Air Quality
Project Description: Focuses on improving the ventilation performance of hospitals by reducing their energy consumption and infection risk simultaneously. Research is taking place in the ventilation laboratory at CIRS.
People:
Graduate Student: Amir Abbas Aliabadi, PhD Candidate
Principal Investigator: Prof. Steve Rogak
Partners: USI/CIRS, Haworth, Giacomini
Funding: Sustainable Building Science Program (SBSP)
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: Not available yet
Predicting Energy Use and Operation Cost of HVAC Air Filters
Project Description: Project aimed to develop a model to calculate the energy consumption and operating costs of HVAC air filters using results from standard performance tests and knowledge of filtration theory.
People:
Graduate Student: James Montgomery, PhD Candidate
Principal Investigator: Prof. Steve Rogak
Funding: Sustainable Building Science Program (SBSP)
Status: Complete
Outcomes/Outputs: Please click for more details.
CIRS Auditorium Ventilation System: Adequacy Assessment, Energy Consumption and Comfort
Project Description: Study monitors the state of several parameters characterizing the CIRS auditorium ventilation system. The data collected will be analyzed to characterize the ventilation system performance in terms of indoor environmental quality and energy consumption.
People:
Principal Investigator: Eric Mazzi
Co-investigator: Prof. Steve Rogak
Graduate Student: Marc Tabet
Funding: CERC, USI
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: A description of the CIRS Auditorium System; A series of experiments to understand ventilation system behaviour in the given operating conditions (occupancy and environment); An estimate of the ventilation energy usage; Hourly data collection during two distinctive seven-day periods; An air change assessment using tracer gas methodology (CO2); An evaluation of the thermal comfort (constrained definition) achieved; An evaluation of the indoor air quality (constrained definition) achieved.
Project Description: Study CIRS inhabitants’ expectations about, and interaction with, innovative building systems and technologies prior to moving into the CIRS building, and conduct behavioral research. Create a baseline for CIRS inhabitants’ productivity, health and happiness, and measure improvements over time.
People:
Principal Investigators: Prof. John Robinson, Prof. Ray Cole
Co-investigator: Kara McDougall
Graduate Students: Julia Reckermann, supported by Sylvia Coleman
Partners: SBSP, USI/CIRS, Haworth, Honeywell, BC Hydro
Funding: Master’s thesis project funded through SBSP
Status: Research complete, thesis in development
Outcomes/Outputs: Sustainability Charter; Pre-occupancy surveys and evaluations; Two journal papers (pre-occupancy evaluation approach and results of this pre-occupancy evaluation) under development
Project Description: Study CIRS inhabitants’ expectations about, and interaction with, innovative building systems and technologies after moving into the CIRS building, and conduct behavioural research. Create a baseline for CIRS inhabitants’ productivity, health and happiness, and measure improvements over time.
People:
Principal Investigators: Prof. John Robinson, Prof. Ray Cole
Co-investigators: Prof. Alan Kingstone, Kara McDougall
Graduate Students: Sylvia Coleman, Amanda Duncan
Partners: SBSP, USI/CIRS, Haworth, Honeywell, BC Hydro
Funding: Existing funding to be complemented with funding from Modern Green Development
Status: In progress
Outcomes/Outputs: A number of papers and reports on post-occupancy evaluation subjects, such as converting building occupants to inhabitants, evaluating expectations and building performance, and evaluating the health, productivity and happiness of inhabitants
CIRS Psychology Project – Creativity and Mood Study
Project Description: Developing innovative techniques of behavioural response prediction by users of new technologies, processes or methodologies. Project determines how the CIRS building affects study participants’ mood and creativity scores, when compared to the Douglas Kenny Building at UBC.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Alan Kingstone
Co-investigators:
Graduate Students: Undergraduate psychology students?
Partners: UBC Psychology Department
Funding:
Status: Underway
Outcomes/Outputs:
CIRS Psychology Project – Eating Study
Project Description: Developing innovative techniques of behavioural response prediction by users of new technologies, processes or methodologies. Project examines how eating and social behaviour is affected by the CIRS building.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Alan Kingstone
Co-investigators:
Graduate Students:
Partners:
Funding:
Status:
Outcomes/Outputs:
CIRS Psychology Project – Apple Study
Project Description: Developing innovative techniques of behavioural response prediction by users of new technologies, processes or methodologies. Project examines how organic food purchases are affected by the CIRS building.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Alan Kingstone
Co-investigators:
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Partners:
Funding:
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Outcomes/Outputs:
CIRS Psychology Project – Recycling Study
Project Description: Developing innovative techniques of behavioural response prediction by users of new technologies, processes or methodologies. Project explores how social presence affects recycling behaviour at CIRS.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Alan Kingstone
Co-investigators:
Graduate Students:
Partners:
Funding:
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Outcomes/Outputs:
CIRS Psychology Project – Laptop Study
Project Description: Developing innovative techniques of behavioural response prediction by users of new technologies, processes or methodologies. Project explores the laptop use and migration patters in the new large CIRS lecture theatre.
People:
Principal Investigator: Prof. Alan Kingstone
Co-investigators:
Graduate Students:
Partners:
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