Building damages in Deyang city by the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake

The Ms8.0 Wenchuan earthquake in 2008 caused huge casualties, economic losses, and building damages , which are analyzed. The results show that damages of houses designed according to the current seismic code were significantly smaller than those without such design, suggesting that the code has achieved the desired goal of seismic fortification. Buildings of different kinds of structures showed large differences in damages ： Houses with steel-frames and shear walls or steel structures suffered the least damages ; those with frames or with brick-and-concrete structures suffered more; old cottages, the most.

Color Landscape Planning and Design of Urban Street Buildings:A Case Study of the Western Section of Zhongshan Road in Shenyang City

Through exploring color landscape planning and design of buildings in the western section of Zhongshan Road in Shenyang City, this paper proposed color landscape design methods adaptive to Chinese urban construction, concerning various tasks such as reasonable orientation of street building colors, effective control of street building colors, realization of regional characteristics and cultural connotations of urban colors via designs, so as to provide references and theoretical support for the future landscape design of urban streets.

Intelligent System Application to Monitor the Smart City Building Lighting

A smart city incorporates infrastructure methods that are environmentally responsible,such as smart communications,smart grids,smart energy,and smart buildings.The city administration has prioritized the use of cutting-edge technology and informatics as the primary strategy for enhancing service quality,with energy resources taking precedence.To achieve optimal energy management in themultidimensional system of a city tribe,it is necessary not only to identify and study the vast majority of energy elements,but also to define their implicit interdependencies.This is because optimal energy management is required to reach this objective.The lighting index is an essential consideration when evaluating the comfort indicators.In order to realize the concept of a smart city,the primary objective of this research is to create a system for managing and monitoring the lighting index.It is possible to identify two distinct phaseswithin the intelligent system.Once data collection concludes,the monitoring system will be activated.In the second step,the operation of the control system is analyzed and its effect on the performance of the numerical model is determined.This evaluation is based on the proposed methodology.The optimized resultswere deemed satisfactory because they maintained the brightness index value(79%)while consuming less energy.The intelligent implementation system generated satisfactory outcomes,which were observed 1.75 times on average.

Student capacity building of dengue prevention and control: A study of an Islamic school, Southern Thailand

Dengue has been a critical problem for an Islamic School, Nakhon Si Thammarat province, Southern Thailand. Objectives: 1) to build student capacity;and 2) to evaluate the results of student capacity building. Method: Participatory Action Research: PAR was applied in three phases: 1) the school-based preparation phase;2) the process of building student capacity phase, and 3) evaluation of the results of the student capacity building. Independent T-Test statistical method was used to analyze student capacity both before and after the intervention. Larval Indices were determined through ratio analysis. Results: Prior to the intervention, there was no clear strategy for combating dengue. In this study, three groups were formed to build student capacity: a leader group, a non-leader group, and a support group. The leader group (48 student leaders), critical to the study, was set as a dengue club named “Eliminate Ades Aegypti, the culprit of dengue” which focused on eight sets of activities: “Dengue or Death”, “Seniors educating juniors”, “Reward for good answers”, “Dengue monitoring team”, “Youth to expel mosquetoes”, “Mosquito or busy”, “Garbage elimination of Pondok”, and “Essential doctors”. The level of student capacity for the prevention and control of dengue of a sampling of 308 student representatives of the Pondok (Islamic school) showed an increase after intervention ( (SD);56.78 (17.06);65.33(15.36) and different statistic significant (P < 0.001). The Larval indices ratio levels had decreased from the original levels (BI = 244, HI = 45, and CI = 26) after intervention (BI = 137, HI = 39, and CI = 19). Dengue morbidity and mortality rates were not found during the study. Discussion: Although there had been an increase in student capacity, a decrease in the larval indices ratio, and the absence of a dengue epidemiology index, the high risk of a dengue epidemic might still be found in the school because the ratio of larval indices were higher than the standard index. Then, the committed participation of students, school, and communities around the school vicinity is needed in building student capacity of dengue prevention and control.

Optimization of Building Layouts to Increase Wind Turbine Power Output in the Built Environment Assumed to Be Installed at Fukushima City and Tsu City in Japan

It is very important to consider proper intelligent integration and locations of renewable energy sources into the built environment for developing smart cities. Wind speed distribution study in the built environment is very essential for analyzing the wind turbine performance located in the built environment. In this work, the building layout like nozzle is proposed and the objective is to optimize the building layout for increasing electrical energy output of wind turbine, assumed to be installed in actual cities of Japan. The wind speed distribution across buildings is numerically simulated by using CFD-ACE+. Wind turbine power output is estimated using the power curve of a real commercial wind turbine and wind speed distribution is simulated using CFD software. The meteorological data of Fukushima city and Tsu city of Japan are utilized for evaluating the wind speed distribution profile across the building and for finding the electrical energy output from wind turbine. The proposed building models, which have the angle between two buildings like nozzle of 90°, 135° and 180°, can provide the wind acceleration at the back of buildings for the wind blowing from the main wind direction and the angle of 135&deg;is optimum building layout. In the case of installing the proposed building model in Fukushima city and Tsu city, the wind energy output in winter season is higher while that in summer season is lower irrespective of the buildings’ angle. The interaction between the change in frequency distribution of wind speed and direction throughout the year and the location of open tip of building model decides the power generation characteristics of the proposed building model.

The Effects of Building Form on Microclimate and Outdoor Thermal Comfort in a Tropical City

The urban microclimate has direct implications with regards to thermal comfort indoors as well as outdoors. In the tropics, the outdoor thermal comfort conditions during daytime are often far above acceptable comfort standards due to intense solar radiation and high solar elevations. This study aims to know effects of simple and fundamental building forms on microclimate and outdoor thermal comfort in a high dense tropical city, focusing on Dhaka, Bangladesh as a study city. Investigations are carried out on existing area and model areas with modified building forms （in respect of height and shape） on the microclimate as well as on outdoor thermal comfort during daytime in summer. This study has demonstrated that the model using less ground coverage and higher buildings can offer a better thermal climate than the models using maximum ground coverage in a high-density tropical city.

Post-occupancy Evaluation for Ceremonial and Public Buildings： A Case Study of Amman City Hall, Jordan

POE （post-occupancy evaluation） of buildings is one of the most important mechanisms which ensures that ceremonial and public building performance including its facilities is sustained. POE studies concerned with efficiency of building performance after using and implementing with the end-user. It provides feedback on the current status of the building and proposes solutions to existing problems in addition to guidelines and design criteria for the best solutions in the future. Despite precedent research which have been undertaken in the context of building performance, aspects of evaluating building performance have not been specified and used widely in Jordan. At the commencement of this research, the concept of POE is still new in Jordan, and the local building practitioners are still unfamiliar with this approach for the evaluation of a building performance in Amman. Accordingly, there is a need to undertake this kind of research in Jordan to identify the main guidelines of POE to be applied effectively in ceremonial and public buildings. This study therefore applies POE of indoor environment of the public buildings by exploring the guidelines that can constitute a successful and effective framework for the public buildings in Amman. This was achieved using the learnt lessons from Amman City Hall building which was used as a case study and reflecting them on these where needed. Analytical and descriptive approach basis was applied, adopting a mixed method approach （qualitative and quantitative method） by using observation tool and a questionnaire survey with occupants. Context-derived data and statistics analyzed together were used to explore the guidelines of POE to be applied effectively in public buildings. A field visit and observation tool was adopted for gathering information leading to the findings and recommendations. A questionnaire was also used to extrapolate core findings of this research. This research provides a significant contribution of POE result towards improving indoor environment to ceremonial and public buildings in Jordan.

Assessment and Rehabilitation of Damaged Buildings in Historic Benghazi City

The primary focus of the study is to assess and classify the damage in the old Benghazi City.Specifically,it aims to evaluate buildings within a designated area,which is bordered by Umar Ibn Al-Aas Street to the south,Omar Al-Mukhtar Street to the north,Ben Issa Street to the east,and the extension of Gamal Abdel Nasser Street to the west.The main objective is to gather valuable insights and data that can support effective rehabilitation or reconstruction efforts.By comprehending the extent of the damage and categorizing it accordingly,the study seeks to provide essential information for decision-making processes and determine the most appropriate approach for restoration.The ultimate aim is to ensure the safe return of residents to the affected area.In addition to this,the restoration process aims to preserve and revitalize the city’s religious,historical,and distinctive features.This includes safeguarding religious structures,landmarks,and elements that contribute to the city’s unique identity.To achieve this,the study proposes separate rehabilitation schemes tailored for ordinary buildings and historic buildings.

World Porcelain Capital Playing the Spring Overture——Notes on the Building of Jingdezhen City into the World Porcelain Capital

Jingdezhen city lies in the Northeast of Jiangxi Province.It is located in the transitional area between the Huangshan-Huaiyushan mountain range and the Plain of Poyang Lake and is known as the historical"capital of porcelain"with a history of about 1000 years.It was listed as the four

The path and countermeasures of increasing government’s governance capacities in energy-saving renovation of existing buildings

The dual functions of government participation and governance in the development of the existing building energy-saving renovation market determine the importance of the government’s scientific and effective actions.Continuously improving the government’s role is to promote the effective operation of the existing building energy-saving renovation market.Based on the inherent requirements of improving the government governance capacity in the development of the existing building energy-saving renovation market,this paper constructs the implementation path for the development of the existing building’s energy-saving renovation market from the three dimensions of practical concept,practical process and practical methods.From the four aspects of improving the legal and regulatory system,building a market information sharing platform,establishing a sound market supervision mechanism,and consolidating and improving the market accountability system,we will structure the existing building energysaving renovation market development to improve the government’s ability to restrain and implement measures.From the four levels of improving the market incentive mechanism,optimizing the market financing environment,clarifying the position of market resource allocation,and building a social operation platform,design measures to improve government incentives in the development of the existing building energy conservation renovation market.From the shaping of governance yuan organizational roles,governance capacity and responsibilities of departments at all levels to define boundaries,to build four main interactive platform governance perspective,the main parties demand balance the interests of both the governance capacity development planning in the government market,building energy-saving market to enhance the implementation of countermeasures.In order to promote the healthy and sustainable development of the existing building energy-saving renovation market based on the enhancement of government governance capacity.

Geotechnical Risk Assessment and Geological Origin of Building Fracturation in Agadez City(North Niger)

The Agadez city is built on the faulted and fractured sandstones formation of the“Agadez Sandstones”,which deposit in unconformity on the Precambrian basement of the Aïr Mountain.The present study focuses on the geotechnical risk assessment and geological origin of building fracturation in Agadez city.A methodological approach integrating measurement of fractures planes affecting the buildings and their statistical analysis has been implemented.Statistical analysis of obtained data showed that in 100 fractured buildings,about 3%buildings are at risk of collapse(very high risk),64%buildings are fractured(medium risk of collapse),and 34%buildings are cracked(lower risk of collapse).These results showed as well that the nature of the material(rheology)influences the buildings fracturation.Indeed,the buildings made from cement are more easily fractured than buildings made from clay materials.Statistical analysis of fracture planes reveals that the geotechnical risk associated with buildings fracturation propagates in NW-SE,corresponding to the major directions of risk propagation,mainly dipping in northwest sectors(zones)of the Agadez city.The interpretation of geological and geophysical data combined to those obtained in the case of this study,reveals that the risk associated with buildings fracturation in Agadez city is caused by geological seismic events and or anthropogenic activities(explosive firing on the uranium mining sites like Somaïr and Cominak).

Building Rainbows for the City

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Experimental Study of the Interaction between Building Clusters and Flash Floods

In recent years, flash flood disasters have occurred frequently in southwest China due to the increased frequency of extreme climate events. To solve this problem, great efforts have been made in studying the process of flash flood. However, little attention was paid on bearing body of hazard, the clusters of buildings. Thus the real disaster mechanism of flash flood remains unclear.Accordingly, based on the experiments of artificial flash floods in a conceptual solid model, this paper focuses on the flood-impacted inundation characteristics of the building clusters at different locations of the gully model, in order to obtain a better understanding of the disaster process and the interaction between the flash floods and building clusters. The results showed that, in a typical smallscale flash flood gully with hot and dry climate, 1)clusters of buildings on an alluvial fan could reduce about 35% of the flooding area by blocking the diffusion of the flood to the depression areas, and could also promote the deposition in lower reaches of the river channel by blocking the overbank flow from going back into the channel, making the width-depth ratio of the channel larger. 2) The flash flood rates of disaster and hazard on the alluvial fan are generally higher than that of the inner gully. For the inner gully,buildings located on the beaches along the lower river and the transitional areas of the straight channel and channel bends can easily be affected because of their lower elevations. For the alluvial fan, buildings nearby the meanders suffer the greatest impacts because of bank collapsing and flooding. 3) The safe vertical distance from a building to the river channel is 13 m for the buildings in the inner gully under extreme floods. Below this threshold, the smaller the vertical distance is, the greater the risk exposure is. For the buildings on the alluvial fan, especially for the buildings near the concave bank of the top rush point,the horizontal distance is more important, and the safe value is 80 m under extreme floods.

Effects of a Building’s Density on Flow in Urban Areas

The effects of a building＇s density on urban flows are investigated using a CFD model with the RNG k - ε turbulence closure scheme. Twenty-seven cases with different building＇s density parameters （e.g., building and street-canyon aspect ratios） are numerically simulated. As the building＇s density parameters vary, different flow regimes appear. When the street canyon is relatively narrow and high, two counterrotating vortices in the vertical direction are generated. The wind speed along streets is mainly affected by the building＇s length. However, it is very difficult to find or generalize the characteristics of the street-canyon flows in terms of a single building＇s density parameter. This is because the complicated flow patterns appear due to the variation of the vortex structure and vortex number. Volume-averaged vorticity magnitude is a very good indicator to reflect the flow characteristics despite the strong dependency of flows on the variation of the building＇s density parameters. Multi-linear regression shows that the volume-averaged vorticity magnitude is a strong function of the building＇s length and the street-canyon width. The increase in the building＇s length decreases the vorticity of the street-canyon flow, while, the increase in the street- canyon width increases the vorticity.

The Fuzzy Synthesizing Evaluation of City's Environmental Quality Based on GIOWA Operator:A Case of 13 Cities of Jiangsu Province

In this paper, the generally induced ordered weighted averaging (GIOWA) operator is used to construct the fuzzy evaluating system of the quality of a city’s environment including air, water and noise. Based on the part data of air, water and noise of the 13 cities under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu provincial government in 2002, a case study is given. The evaluating results show that the evaluating system of the quality of a city’s environment based on the GIOWA operator can reflect the condition of pollution controlled and environmental quality of a city in a period of time.

Smart Buildings for A Sustainable Development

The use of sustainable technologies for buildings, with the goal of creating an environment for living and working that uses fewer resources and generates less waste, also aims to retrofit existing buildings to be more efficient in terms of energy and water. Many cities are following this way targeting both commercial and municipal buildings. These cities are called smart cities where all life processes and nerve centers of social life are read, in order to radically improve quality of life, opportunity, prosperity, social and economic development, thanks to the use of technology. This paper deals with the study of smart buildings within smart cities, namely the use in an integrated project of computer and telematics tools with automation organized systems and passive bioclimatic strategies in architecture, determining a socio-technical management of intelligent building. The article is the result of a research carded out within the framework of intelligent buildings in the last generation cities, such as those ones with zero emissions that are taking place in the Middle East countries （Dubai, Masdar, Tiajin, and Kochi）. The topic deals with the issues of building automation as a form of technological intelligence and the study of those smart technologies integrated into the building envelope that improve its performances, making it more sustainable. The research methodology has provided a bibliographic retrieval on the state of the art and the latest technological trends in the building field, later has followed a theoretical and comparative approach of the examined technologies, which led to the development of reasoning on operation, performance and functional capabilities of a building that is both sustainable and home automation, to arrive at the final concept of sustainable intelligent building, able to combine the artificial intelligence, home automation, and technological devices of the architectural project to enhance the building energy performance. In conclusion, the proposed result is that of an integrated intelligent building in which artificial intelligence will become part of the shell-building in order to achieve high levels of energy efficiency and thus environmental sustainability.

Technical Design for Holistic Wireless Communication in Smart Buildings

This paper presents the design of a wireless building monitoring network implemented at the University of Nottingham's Creative Energy Homes test site.The network is installed in seven smart buildings with the aim of holistically collecting energy data.Data will be used to inform a central control algorithm to optimise the energy flows between buildings,in turn promoting the smart cities concept.Sensors and meters measuring temperature,humidity,CO_2,heat energy,power,and stratified tank temperature are described.Furthermore,the communication protocols utilised are also discussed,which include wireless MBus and EnOcean.This paper also covers the methods used for ensuring the reliability of data signals and the system controls.

BUILDING MODELING FOR 3D CITY MODEL

New development in urban planning, cityscape, real estate management and the like, calls for new demands for 3D city model. There are so many objects in 3D city model such as building, river, road, and so on. The building model is very important in 3D city model. In recent years,a lot of research work about visualization has been done. In our opinions,visualization is only a part of 313 city model, while interactive operation about buildings is rather important as well. In order to implement interactive operation (create , edit, query,etc. ), good data structure and model must be developed.