Geoffrey R Mitchell,

Centre for Rapid and Sustainable Product Development,

Institute Polytechnic Leiria, Portugal

Contact:geoffrey.mitchell(a)ipleiria.pt

Abstract:

The construction and operation of any building has a substantial and wide-ranging impact on the environment in both the short and long term., In the European Union, buildings currently consume 40% of the energy and produce 36% of the CO2 emissions. The building will generate waste and may emit harmful gases and other emissions directly in to the atmosphere. Designers face considerable and many challenges to meet demands for facilities that are accessible, secure, healthy, and productive whilst minimizing the impact of the building on the environment and the consumption of energy. These challenges will be exacerbated by the anticipated changes in the global climate and the accompanying legislative programmes to reduce energy consumptions and CO₂ emissions. This contribution is focused on an examination of the deployment of nanotechnologies which will facilitate novel design approaches especially in terms of the control of the environment of the building. The focus p range from energy storage, generation and conversion, light filtering and spectrum conversion, smart materials for micro ventilation and air quality control. A particular of this study is the emphasis on materials which have smart functionality.