Impact of Green Design and Technology on Building Environment (open access)

Impact of Green Design and Technology on Building Environment

Currently, the public has a strong sense of the need for environment protection and the use of sustainable, or “green,” design in buildings and other civil structures. Since green design elements and technologies are different from traditional design, they probably have impacts on the building environment, such as vibration, lighting, noise, temperature, relative humidity, and overall comfort. Determining these impacts of green design on building environments is the primary objective of this study. The Zero Energy Research (ZOE) laboratory, located at the University of North Texas Discovery Park, is analyzed as a case study. Because the ZOE lab is a building that combines various green design elements and energy efficient technologies, such as solar panels, a geothermal heating system, and wind turbines, it provides an ideal case to study. Through field measurements and a questionnaire survey of regular occupants of the ZOE lab, this thesis analyzed and reported: 1) whether green design elements changed the building’s ability to meet common building environmental standards, 2) whether green design elements assisted in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) scoring, and 3) whether green design elements decreased the subjective comfort level of the occupants.
Date: December 2015
Creator: Xiong, Liang
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2010: Analysis of Trends and Issues in the Finacning (open access)

Global Trends in Sustainable Energy Investment 2010: Analysis of Trends and Issues in the Finacning

This report shows that in spite of the global economic downturn, investment in sustainable energy is still strong.
Date: 2010
Creator: United Nations Environment Programme
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Green Jobs Training: A Catalog of Training Opportunities for Green Infrastructure Training (open access)

Green Jobs Training: A Catalog of Training Opportunities for Green Infrastructure Training

This catalog provides information on training and certification opportunities for jobs and careers categorized as part of the "green economy." The catalog includes federal and state listings.
Date: September 2010
Creator: United States. Environmental Protection Agency.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Economic Resilience, Disasters, and Green Jobs:  An Institutional Collective Action Framework (open access)

Economic Resilience, Disasters, and Green Jobs: An Institutional Collective Action Framework

This dissertation is about economic resilience of local governments to natural disasters. Specifically, the dissertation investigates resilience on regional level. Moreover, the dissertation also investigates growth in the green job sector in local governments. The findings indicate that local governments working with each other helps green job creation. In addition, the dissertation finds that green jobs, following disasters, experience three percent growth. This dissertation is important because it investigates the relationship between climate- related disasters and green jobs, which is an area that is under-investigated.
Date: December 2017
Creator: Ismayilov, Orkhan M.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Green Infrastructure in Arid and Semi-Arid Climates (open access)

Green Infrastructure in Arid and Semi-Arid Climates

This brochure describes the benefits of adopting "green infrastructure" design principles to communities in arid and semi-arid regions.
Date: May 2010
Creator: United States. Environmental Protection Agency.
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Our Planet, February 2010 (open access)

Our Planet, February 2010

Magazine of the United Nations Environment Programme discussing worldwide environmental policies and other concerns. This issue is devoted to programs in several countries that are investing in a "green economy" in order to ensure the efficient and sustainable use of natural resources.
Date: February 2010
Creator: United Nations Environment Programme
Object Type: Journal/Magazine/Newsletter
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Influence of Urban Green Spaces on Declining Bumble Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) (open access)

The Influence of Urban Green Spaces on Declining Bumble Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Bumble bees (Bombus spp.) are adept pollinators of countless cultivated and wild flowering plants, but many species have experienced declines in recent decades. Though urban sprawl has been implicated as a driving force of such losses, urban green spaces hold the potential to serve as habitat islands for bumble bees. As human populations continue to grow and metropolitan areas become larger, the survival of many bumble bee species will hinge on the identification and implementation of appropriate conservation measures at regional and finer scales. North Texas is home to some the fastest-growing urban areas in the country, including Denton County, as well as at least two declining bumble bee species (B. pensylvanicus and B. fraternus). Using a combination of field , molevular DNA and GIS methods I evaluated the persistence of historic bumble bee species in Denton County, and investigated the genetic structure and connectivity of the populations in these spaces. Field sampling resulted in the discovery of both B. pensylvanicus and B. fraternus in Denton County's urban green spaces. While the relative abundance of B. fraternus in these spaces was significantly lower than historic levels gleaned from museum recors, that of B. pensylvanicus was significantly higher. Statistical analyses found …
Date: May 2016
Creator: Beckham, Jessica L.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Green Entrepreneurialism and the Making of the Trinity River Corridor: The Intersection of Nature and Capital in Dallas, Texas

Access: Use of this item is restricted to the UNT Community
Since the adoption of neoliberalism, many cities have taken to integrating nature with capital accumulation to create a sense of place. This has been closely tied to urban greening, or green "revitalization." As part of curating this desired character, city governments are working to roll out plans to restore and renew neighborhoods using their natural landscapes through methods such as reforestation, the creation of parks, and commercial development. These cities, deemed Entrepreneurial cities, are increasingly incorporating natural or green spaces into their development of character as part of their branding schemes. This research focuses on the role of nature as the site of economic development and community revitalization within Dallas, Texas. This research examines how the City of Dallas uses nature to attract capital, and how the narratives of development relate to residents' visions for development in the historically neglected Joppa neighborhood in the Trinity River Corridor. Development near Joppa could be an example of how the natural landscape is being used to not only attract developers but also to bring a different ‘class' of resident into the area. By exploring this intersection of nature and capital in Dallas, we can better understand the nuanced ways through which the neoliberalization …
Date: May 2019
Creator: Krupala, Katie Ilene
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Energy Efficiency Standards and Targets (open access)

Energy Efficiency Standards and Targets

This map shows states with policies to promote efficient generation, transmission, and use of energy.
Date: 2010
Creator: Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) (open access)

Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE)

This map shows states using property-assessed clean energy (PACE) programs to finance renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
Date: 2010
Creator: Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Renewable & Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards (open access)

Renewable & Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards

This map shows states with standards requiring electric utilities to generate a percentage of electricity from renewable energy sources.
Date: 2010
Creator: Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Field Validation of Zero Energy Lab Water-to-Water Ground Coupled Heat Pump Model (open access)

Field Validation of Zero Energy Lab Water-to-Water Ground Coupled Heat Pump Model

Heat pumps are a vital part of each building for their role in keeping the space conditioned for the occupant. This study focuses on developing a model for the ground-source heat pump at the Zero Energy lab at the University of North Texas, and finding the minimum data required for generating the model. The literature includes many models with different approaches to determine the performance of the heat pump. Each method has its pros and cons. In this research the equation-fit method was used to generate a model based on the data collected from the field. Two experiments were conducted for the cooling mode: the first one at the beginning of the season and the second one at the peak of the season to cover all the operation conditions. The same procedure was followed for the heating mode. The models generated based on the collected data were validated against the experiment data. The error of the models was within ±10%. The study showed that the error could be reduced by 20% to 42% when using the field data to generate the model instead of the manufacturer’s catalog data. Also it was found that the minimum period to generate the cooling …
Date: May 2016
Creator: Abdulameer, Saif
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Use of Bio-Product/Phase Change Material Composite in the Building Envelope for Building Thermal Control and Energy Savings (open access)

Use of Bio-Product/Phase Change Material Composite in the Building Envelope for Building Thermal Control and Energy Savings

This research investigates the bio-products/phase change material (PCM) composites for the building envelope application. Bio-products, such as wood and herb, are porous medium, which can be applied in the building envelope for thermal insulation purpose. PCM is infiltrated into the bio-product (porous medium) to form a composite material. The PCM can absorb/release large amount of latent heat of fusion from/to the building environment during the melting/solidification process. Hence, the PCM-based composite material in the building envelope can efficiently adjust the building interior temperature by utilizing the phase change process, which improves the thermal insulation, and therefore, reduces the load on the HVAC system. Paraffin wax was considered as the PCM in the current studies. The building energy savings were investigated by comparing the composite building envelope material with the conventional material in a unique Zero-Energy (ZØE) Research Lab building at University of North Texas (UNT) through building energy simulation programs (i.e., eQUEST and EnergyPlus). The exact climatic conditions of the local area (Denton, Texas) were used as the input values in the simulations. It was found that the EnergyPlus building simulation program was more suitable for the PCM based building envelope using the latent heat property. Therefore, based on the …
Date: August 2018
Creator: Boozula, Aravind Reddy
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Renewables 2010: Global Status Report (open access)

Renewables 2010: Global Status Report

This report describes economic trends in building the capacity of renewable energy in several countries.
Date: 2010
Creator: Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicle Policies (open access)

Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicle Policies

This map shows state laws and regulations that affect medium- and heavy-duty vehicles. The policies include tax incentives, fines, guidelines, and grants.
Date: 2010
Creator: Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Increasing Effective Thermal Resistance of Building Envelope's Insulation Using Polyurethane Foam Incorporated with Phase Change Material (open access)

Increasing Effective Thermal Resistance of Building Envelope's Insulation Using Polyurethane Foam Incorporated with Phase Change Material

Incorporating insulation material with phase change materials (PCMs) could help enhance the insulation capability for further building energy savings by reducing the HVAC loadings. During the phase change process between the solid and liquid states, heat is being absorbed or released by PCMs depending on the surrounding temperature. This research explores the benefits of a polyurethane (PU)-PCM composite insulation material through infiltrating paraffin wax as PCM into PU open cell foam. The new PU-PCM composite provides extra shielding from the exterior hot temperatures for buildings. Through this study, it was demonstrated that PU-PCM composite insulation could potentially help building energy savings through reducing the loads on the HVAC systems based on the building energy modeling using EnergyPlus. The Zero Energy Lab (ZØE) at the University of North Texas was modeled and studied in the EnergyPlus. It is a detached building with all wall facades exposed to the ambient. It was determined that the new PU-PCM insulation material could provide 14% total energy saving per year and reduce the electricity use due to cooling only by around 30%.
Date: May 2019
Creator: Houl, Yassine
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Regional Initiatives (open access)

Regional Initiatives

This map shows states that participate in regional initiatives to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and increase generation of renewable energy.
Date: 2010
Creator: Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S. Climate Action Report 2010 (open access)

U.S. Climate Action Report 2010

The Fifth U.S. Climate Action Report presents a detailed outline of the actions the U.S. is taking to address climate change, contains updated projections on U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and underscores the United States commitment to address climate change.
Date: June 2010
Creator: U.S. Department of State
Object Type: Text
System: The UNT Digital Library
Performance Evaluation of UNT Apogee Stadium Wind Turbines (open access)

Performance Evaluation of UNT Apogee Stadium Wind Turbines

The following report chronicles the University of North Texas Wind Turbine Project at Apogee Stadium. The timeline of events will include the feasibility study conducted by and for the university, grant awards from the Texas State Energy Conservation Office to fund the project, and a three-year sample of real time performance data since installation. The purpose of this case study is to compare the energy generation estimates by various stakeholders to the measured energy generation using a new but uniform performance relationship. In order to optimize energy generation in wind turbine generator systems, the most common wind speeds measured at the site should also be the most efficient wind speeds at which the wind turbine can convert the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical energy and ultimately electrical energy. The tool used to convey this relationship will be a figure plotting the wind speed profile against the efficiency curve of the wind turbine. Applying this relationship tool to the UNT Apogee Stadium wind turbines provided valuable results. The most common wind speeds at Apogee Stadium are not the most efficient wind speed for the turbine. Also, the most common wind speeds were near the lower limit of the wind …
Date: May 2016
Creator: McCary, William D., III
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Disasters, Smart Growth and Economic Resilience: An Empirical Analysis of Florida Cities

Access: Use of this item is restricted to the UNT Community
This dissertation examines the relationship between economic resilience, disaster experience, and smart growth policies at the local government level. The study is based upon three research questions that examine spatial distribution of economic resilience in Florida cities, and examines the impact of disaster experience, and smart growth policies adopted by local governments on economic resilience. Based upon the bounce-forward approach (Cowell, 2013; Klein et al. 2003), economic resilience is defined using three dimensions—economic stability, economic equity, and economic diversity. The spatial analysis is conducted by mapping economic resilience scores across 780 Census Designated Places in Florida through standard deviation method of classification, and conducting cluster-outlier analysis. Results suggest difference in economic resilience within coastal and inland communities—with higher scores mostly situated inland. East Central Florida, Tampa Bay, and South Florida were identified as high economic resilience clusters, and Northwest Florida was identified as low resilience cluster. Impact of disaster experience, and smart growth policies on economic resilience was examined based upon logic of focusing events by Birkland (1997, 2010). Data was collected from the U.S. Census, the National Climatic Data Center, and the Energy Sustainable Florida Communities Survey conducted by Florida State University in 2009. Results suggest significant association between …
Date: August 2019
Creator: Chatterjee, Vaswati
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Why Breastfeed? Understanding the Factors that Influence Women to Breastfeed in Southeast Fort Worth (open access)

Why Breastfeed? Understanding the Factors that Influence Women to Breastfeed in Southeast Fort Worth

Today breastfeeding is a common conversation with the ever-growing holistic movement and the effort to 'go green' as demonstrated by the proliferation of the organic food industry in recent years within the United States. Breastfeeding may reduce poor health outcomes including infant morbidity and mortality. Infant mortality is a priority in Tarrant County within southeast Fort Worth as defined by this project’s client Healthy Moms – Healthy Babies – Healthy Community. The purpose of this research was to identify the contextual factors that influence breastfeeding decisions among the zip codes in southeast Fort Worth in which infant mortality is greatest. In analysis of the data among breastfeeding mothers and stakeholders, support was the greatest contribution to successful breastfeeding.
Date: May 2016
Creator: Jimenez, Lesley S.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Assessing Rainfall Interception by Urban Tree Canopies in Denton, Texas (open access)

Assessing Rainfall Interception by Urban Tree Canopies in Denton, Texas

Rainfall interception is one mechanism by which tree canopies can reduce surface runoff in urban areas. The objectives of this research were to: 1) quantify rainfall interception by urban tree canopies, and 2) determine the influence of vegetation and microenvironmental factors on rainfall interception rates. In the city of Denton, Texas, 30 mature post oak (Quercus stellata) and blackjack oak (Quercus marilandica) trees were selected for study. Trees were assigned to one of three categories: clusters of trees on greenspace (CG), isolated trees on greenspace (IG), and isolated trees surrounded by pavement (IP). Throughfall (the volume of water that travels through the canopy and reaches the soil surface) collectors were placed beneath these trees and rainfall collectors were placed in nearby open areas. Throughfall and rainfall were collected daily from 19 March to 4 July. Interception was calculated as the difference between throughfall and gross rainfall. Over the study period, there were 27 days with measurable rainfall; daily rainfall ranged from 1-51 mm. Over the sampling period, rainfall interception for individual trees ranged from -10% to 49%, indicating high spatial variability in interception. Percent interception was highest for the CG treatment (22.7 ± 3.8 SE), intermediate for IG (27.4 ± …
Date: May 2017
Creator: Edington, Patrick
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Poststructuralist Critical Rhetorical Analysis as a Problem Analysis Tool: A Case Study of Information Impact in Denton’s Hydraulic Fracturing Debate (open access)

Poststructuralist Critical Rhetorical Analysis as a Problem Analysis Tool: A Case Study of Information Impact in Denton’s Hydraulic Fracturing Debate

Energy and the natural environment are central concerns among stakeholders across the globe. Decisions on this scale often require interaction among a myriad of institutions and individuals who navigate a complex variety of challenges. In Denton, Texas in 2014, voters were asked to make such a decision when tasked with a referendum to determine whether the city would continue to allow hydraulic fracturing activity within its borders. For social scientists, this situation requires further analysis in an effort to better understand how and why individuals make the decisions they do. One possible approach for exploring this process is a method of poststructuralist critical rhetorical analysis, which is concerned with how individuals’ identities change through interaction with institutions. This study reflects upon the texts themselves through a poststructuralist critical rhetorical analysis of images employed by those in favor of and those against Denton’s ban on hydraulic fracturing in an attempt to identify images that alter the grid of intelligibility for the audience. The paper includes deliberation about the relative merits, subsequent disadvantages, and possible questions for further study as they relate to the theoretical implications of critical rhetorical analysis as information science. Ultimately, the study identifies poststructuralist critical rhetorical analysis as …
Date: May 2016
Creator: Sykes, Jason
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Greensheet (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 42, No. 126, Ed. 1 Wednesday, April 13, 2011 (open access)

The Greensheet (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 42, No. 126, Ed. 1 Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Free weekly newspaper that includes business and classified advertising.
Date: April 13, 2011
Creator: unknown
Object Type: Newspaper
System: The Portal to Texas History