- Architecture, Sustainable Architecture, Conservation, Heritage Conservation, Museology, Architectural Conservation, and 51 moreArchitectural Heritage, Energy efficiency, Preventive conservation, Museography, Historic environment, Energy efficiency, Museums and Exhibition Design, Cultural Heritage, Museum Studies, Cultural Heritage Conservation, Modern Architecture, Environmental Design of Buildings, Thermal comfort & Energy efficiency in hot climates, Natural ventilation as a passive cooling strategy, Buildings’ Monitoring, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling and simulation, Environmental Design, Computational Fluid Dynamics, Stone conservation, Analysis of Pigments on Ancient Artifacts, Restoration and Conservation of Ancient and Historic Buildings and Structures, Museum environment, Consolidation of Structures In Situ, Consolidation of Painted Ancient Stone Surfaces, Building Conservation, Historic cities, Indoor Air Quality, Art History, Design, Architectural History, Urban History, Urban Regeneration, Vernacular Architecture, Interior Design (Architecture), Interior Architecture, Cultural Heritage Management, Heritage Studies, Historic Preservation, Architectural Preservation & Restoration, Energy Efficiency Buildings, Art Conservation, Risk assessment, Storia Dell'Architettura, Restauro, HVAC / Building Services, Building Services (Architecture), Resilience, Resilience (Sustainability), Little Ice Age, Disaster risk reduction, Community Resilience, and Disaster risk managementedit
- gedit
The energy performance of heritage buildings is attracting growing interest in research and practice. Accordingly, as shown by our literature review, increasing numbers of articles on energy-efficiency measures for heritage buildings are... more
The energy performance of heritage buildings is attracting growing interest in research and practice. Accordingly, as shown by our literature review, increasing numbers of articles on energy-efficiency measures for heritage buildings are being published in peer-reviewed journals. However, there is no overview of how energy efficiency and heritage conservation have been approached in the studies. To address this gap we categorized and assessed the identified studies in terms of two key elements of such investigations: energy analysis and analysis of cultural heritage values. Most of the studies evaluate and propose measures to reduce the operational energy use of single heritage buildings, and fewer have applied a broader system perspective. Moreover, the underlying notion of the buildings' cultural heritage values seems to have been derived mainly from international conventions and agreements, while potentially significant architectural, cultural and historical factors have been rarely discussed. Our findings highlight that, when considering energy improvements, cultural heritage values should be more explicitly articulated and analysed in relation to established conservation principles or methodologies. Besides further scientific study, this point to the need of designing best-practice approaches that allow transparency and knowledge sharing about the complex relationships between energy efficiency and heritage conservation of buildings.
Research Interests:
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe the cross-fertilisation process between the concept of resilience and building conservation. The authors discuss how the conservation field can address new issues posed by climate change... more
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the cross-fertilisation process between the concept of resilience and building conservation. The authors discuss how the conservation field can address new issues posed by climate change and whether the concept of resilience plays a role within the framework of sustainable building conservation.
Design/methodology/approach
Starting from the use of resilience as a “travelling concept”, different interpretations of the term emerging from different fields are compared and interrelated in order to understand how this concept can impact future research in building conservation.
Findings
In addition to summarising recent developments in conservation theory with a special focus on how sustainability has influenced the field, this work also suggests some lines of research where resilience could foster interdisciplinary approaches to building conservation and presents some controversial outcomes.
Originality/value
The paper raises a discussion on how the concept of resilience could renew the field of building conservation, helping contemporary society to address the challenges of climate change.
The purpose of this paper is to describe the cross-fertilisation process between the concept of resilience and building conservation. The authors discuss how the conservation field can address new issues posed by climate change and whether the concept of resilience plays a role within the framework of sustainable building conservation.
Design/methodology/approach
Starting from the use of resilience as a “travelling concept”, different interpretations of the term emerging from different fields are compared and interrelated in order to understand how this concept can impact future research in building conservation.
Findings
In addition to summarising recent developments in conservation theory with a special focus on how sustainability has influenced the field, this work also suggests some lines of research where resilience could foster interdisciplinary approaches to building conservation and presents some controversial outcomes.
Originality/value
The paper raises a discussion on how the concept of resilience could renew the field of building conservation, helping contemporary society to address the challenges of climate change.
Research Interests:
Authors present an ongoing research to balance conservation, users’ comfort and energy efficiency of an important masterpiece of post-war architecture. The Collegi of the University of Urbino consist of 5 dormitories hosting more than... more
Authors present an ongoing research to balance conservation, users’ comfort and energy efficiency of an important masterpiece of post-war architecture. The Collegi of the University of Urbino consist of 5 dormitories hosting more than 1,000 students within a 62,000 m2 surface. Architect Giancarlo De Carlo designed this complex beside the Renaissance city center, from 1962 to 1983.
This paper presents some outcomes form the “Keeping it modern” research program financed by the Getty Foundation which aims at providing the Collegi with a sustainable conservation plan. The goal is to lower heating and operational costs in order to allow more funds in conservation activities. Specific issues regard:
- the striking dimensions of the complex
- the constructive features (brickwork walls, exposed concrete structures, single-glazed windows)
- the lack of data about the hygrothermal performances.
These problems are quite common in XX century built heritage, where energy performances can be even poorer than those of pre-industrial buildings are. The research includes:
- a hygrothermal analysis of a representative selection of rooms;
- a proposal for the energy retrofitting, through a building-HVAC model;
- a test on a pilot site.
Authors have monitored surface temperatures, indoor air temperature and humidity for one year. Temperature and humidity distribution was mapped through a digital psychrometer. Thermal imaging has been used to detect heat losses, thermal bridges and heat gains due to the solar radiation. Data have fed a building-HVAC model, which was a reference to design an appropriate strategy for retrofitting and improving the energy efficiency of the complex. Some solutions are cur-rently being implemented on a pilot site. The building performances before and after retrofitting are compared.
On a methodological side, this research confirms that a solid knowledge about each case is required to support a retro-fit proposal, even when regarding a XX century building. The results provide indications to merge conservation and sustain-ability of XX century buildings, given that the cultural value of such a huge heritage is often disregarded in energy retrofit interventions.
This paper presents some outcomes form the “Keeping it modern” research program financed by the Getty Foundation which aims at providing the Collegi with a sustainable conservation plan. The goal is to lower heating and operational costs in order to allow more funds in conservation activities. Specific issues regard:
- the striking dimensions of the complex
- the constructive features (brickwork walls, exposed concrete structures, single-glazed windows)
- the lack of data about the hygrothermal performances.
These problems are quite common in XX century built heritage, where energy performances can be even poorer than those of pre-industrial buildings are. The research includes:
- a hygrothermal analysis of a representative selection of rooms;
- a proposal for the energy retrofitting, through a building-HVAC model;
- a test on a pilot site.
Authors have monitored surface temperatures, indoor air temperature and humidity for one year. Temperature and humidity distribution was mapped through a digital psychrometer. Thermal imaging has been used to detect heat losses, thermal bridges and heat gains due to the solar radiation. Data have fed a building-HVAC model, which was a reference to design an appropriate strategy for retrofitting and improving the energy efficiency of the complex. Some solutions are cur-rently being implemented on a pilot site. The building performances before and after retrofitting are compared.
On a methodological side, this research confirms that a solid knowledge about each case is required to support a retro-fit proposal, even when regarding a XX century building. The results provide indications to merge conservation and sustain-ability of XX century buildings, given that the cultural value of such a huge heritage is often disregarded in energy retrofit interventions.
Research Interests:
This paper reports the results of three innovative laboratory tests implemented during winter 2013 in the framework of the Climate for Culture European Project (2009–2014). Thermal analysis was used to assess the heating efficiency of... more
This paper reports the results of three innovative laboratory tests implemented during winter 2013 in the framework of the Climate for Culture European Project (2009–2014). Thermal analysis was used to assess the heating efficiency of some heaters with different power consumption, geometric shape and dimensions.
Experimental laboratory results were obtained under natural indoor environmental conditions and the outcomes were applied to a real case study of two churches on the Italian Alps during the Friendly Heating project.
Results provide useful information to help final users and/or conservators to exploit at the best the heating efficiency of some heaters on the basis of the geometric characteristics of the elements and represent helpful advices for their installation, considering both the optimal position for the maximum comfort performance and the need for not exceeding specific risk thresholds for artwork preservation.
Experimental laboratory results were obtained under natural indoor environmental conditions and the outcomes were applied to a real case study of two churches on the Italian Alps during the Friendly Heating project.
Results provide useful information to help final users and/or conservators to exploit at the best the heating efficiency of some heaters on the basis of the geometric characteristics of the elements and represent helpful advices for their installation, considering both the optimal position for the maximum comfort performance and the need for not exceeding specific risk thresholds for artwork preservation.
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Conservation, Indoor Air Quality, Heritage Conservation, Energy and Environment, Preventive conservation, and 8 moreBuilding Physics, Building Conservation, Architectural Preservation & Restoration, Indoor environment - thermal comfort, indoor air quality health and wellbeing, Natural ventilation as a passive cooling strategy, IAQ, Restoration and Conservation of Ancient and Historic Buildings and Structures, and Architectural Heritage Conservation
Abstract. The town of Kiruna, founded in 1900 in the northernmost part of Sweden, is nowadays in the middle of an impressive urban transformation: due to the impacts of mining activities a large part of the city center has to be moved or... more
Abstract. The town of Kiruna, founded in 1900 in the northernmost part of Sweden, is nowadays in the middle of an impressive urban transformation: due to the impacts of mining activities a large part of the city center has to be moved or rebuilt. Among the buildings to be moved and kept in use are some of the so-called ‘Bläckhorn’ timber houses, designed by Gustaf Wickman in the early 20th century as residential units for the workers of the mining company LKAB and part of the original core of Kiruna. This has raised several questions on the sustainability of renovating historic buildings in a sub-arctic climate. In order to explore the challenge of increasing the energy efficiency of the Bläckhorn houses, data on their constructional and historical features as well as their thermal and energy performance have been collected.
The paper addresses the following issues:
- Historic buildings are often blamed for their poor energy efficiency without considering their usually high constructional quality. What do we know about the real performances of these buildings?
- Energy retrofits in non-monumental and inhabited historic buildings are often guided by practical and operational needs rather than by their heritage significance. Can a value-based approach affect the improvement of energy efficiency?
- In a subarctic climate, even simple interventions can help to save a considerable amount of energy in historic buildings. To which extent the energy performances of the Bläckhorn houses could be increased without affecting their heritage values?
The paper addresses the following issues:
- Historic buildings are often blamed for their poor energy efficiency without considering their usually high constructional quality. What do we know about the real performances of these buildings?
- Energy retrofits in non-monumental and inhabited historic buildings are often guided by practical and operational needs rather than by their heritage significance. Can a value-based approach affect the improvement of energy efficiency?
- In a subarctic climate, even simple interventions can help to save a considerable amount of energy in historic buildings. To which extent the energy performances of the Bläckhorn houses could be increased without affecting their heritage values?
Research Interests:
The paper is based on experience developed in several years of teaching conservation of modern heritage in schools of architecture, international Erasmus workshops and doco- momo workshops to students coming from all over the world, with... more
The paper is based on experience developed in several years of teaching conservation of modern heritage in schools of architecture, international Erasmus workshops and doco- momo workshops to students coming from all over the world, with different cultural and educational backgrounds.
Modern architectural heritage masterpieces have a high potential for pedagogic purposes, especially in helping students to develop a critical thinking on (modern) heritage preservation. During these courses students are guided through an in-depth analysis of a speci c building, or buildings, in order to de ne intervention strategies and to develop a preservation project. The analysis of the buildings – ranging from historical understanding of the radical ideas of modern architects to eld survey, archival and bibliographical research, and analysis of uses, problems, materials and decay – is the starting point of a continuous challenge to common- place, standard solutions, to established beliefs about the modern heritage and about the contemporary role of the architect.
All this is made possible through the application of a teaching method within which the theory of conservation and practice of design proceed at the same pace, in a spiral process of mutual awareness. This method is the most appropriate to engage students with preser- vation and reuse of modern architecture, meant as essential tools for their future profes- sional background, rather than as separate elds of action. The project is a mean to pinpoint the subtle contradictions of the discipline and an occasion to develop the required critical knowledge to translate theoretical positions in a sound approach to the transformation/ evolution of built heritage.
Modern architectural heritage masterpieces have a high potential for pedagogic purposes, especially in helping students to develop a critical thinking on (modern) heritage preservation. During these courses students are guided through an in-depth analysis of a speci c building, or buildings, in order to de ne intervention strategies and to develop a preservation project. The analysis of the buildings – ranging from historical understanding of the radical ideas of modern architects to eld survey, archival and bibliographical research, and analysis of uses, problems, materials and decay – is the starting point of a continuous challenge to common- place, standard solutions, to established beliefs about the modern heritage and about the contemporary role of the architect.
All this is made possible through the application of a teaching method within which the theory of conservation and practice of design proceed at the same pace, in a spiral process of mutual awareness. This method is the most appropriate to engage students with preser- vation and reuse of modern architecture, meant as essential tools for their future profes- sional background, rather than as separate elds of action. The project is a mean to pinpoint the subtle contradictions of the discipline and an occasion to develop the required critical knowledge to translate theoretical positions in a sound approach to the transformation/ evolution of built heritage.
Research Interests:
The book reports the results of the EU funded project "Climate for Culture" developed under the 7th Framework Programme under Grant Agreement No. 226973