Deploying new construction technologies and materials has solved many environmental problems caus... more Deploying new construction technologies and materials has solved many environmental problems caused by building waste materials, namely saves energy and natural resources, and reduces environmental pollutants through reusing and recycling building materials and increasing lifespan and durability of the materials. Nonetheless, in developing countries like Iran, due to lack of the Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste management plans and these new technologies, merely negligible amounts of C&D waste materials are recycled annually, resulting in environmental pollution and heavy costs in metropolitan cities such as Tehran. In this paper, along with reviewing previous researches done in the field of recycling building materials, their significant role and embodied energies in the environmental spaces was explained. The most important types of them (including plastics, textile, metal, glass, paper, aggregates, bricks, and wood), were identified to examine their potential in further plans and designs, as well as their unique recycling features and characteristics. The research method is descriptive-comparative, and after reviewing the existing literature, this issue has been considered in Tehran as one of the largest cities. Tehran is engaging with environmental pollution caused by C&D materials, especially mixing sand and cement, concrete, bricks which account for 30%, 19%, and 18% respectively. Finally, mid-term and long-term solutions were proposed in order to create a framework for the improvement of future recycling projects, especially in the city of Tehran.
Urban design and morphology are one of the most important factors affecting outdoor thermal comfo... more Urban design and morphology are one of the most important factors affecting outdoor thermal comfort that should be given special attention. Optimal orientation would improve the quality of the building's thermal comfort as well as its urban area, considering the geography and climate of the area. Conversely, orientation and physical form of the buildings (particularly high-rise buildings) which are incompatible with climate could create a phenomenon called "urban heat island" and disrupt their thermal comfort. Moreover, vegetation as one of the outdoor affecting factors, through creating air movement and shading can help in enhancing the thermal comfort sensation. This paper, through a descriptive-analytical method, firstly explored the theoretical foundations around thermal comfort and the effects of morphology and vegetation on that. Secondly, a high-rise building complex located in Maslak district of Istanbul, a modern and developing region with the Mediterranean climate, was chosen as a case study. Three design alternatives, including the current design and two hypothetical design alternatives for building orientation and vegetation parameters, have been analyzed and the thermal comfort indicators, PMV and PPD have been calculated by Envi-met software. By evaluating and comparing the outputs, it can be concluded that controlling these two parameters (building orientation and vegetation) could have a positive impact on outdoor thermal comfort.
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