/pdf/research-design-qualitative-quantitative-and-mixed-methods-1m92m1x5gg.pdf

Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches

The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling

Building envelope insulation is crucial for an energy-efficient and comfortable indoor environment because the envelope accounts for 50–60% of total heat gain/loss in a building. Previous studies mostly used lifecycle cost as the criteria to select the optimum insulation materials with little or no consideration of embodied energy, emission, and summer overheating potential. This study presents a comparative analysis of building insulation materials properties (thermal, hygroscopic, acoustic, reaction to fire, environmental, and cost) and their performance in different climate zones and proposed an optimization framework. Insulation materials can be primarily categorized as conventional, state-of-the-art and sustainable. State-of-the-art insulation materials have the lowest thermal conductivity value amongst the three insulation types. However, their life cycle cost is higher compared to the other types. Sustainable insulation materials could be useful to delay and minimize indoor peak temperature and reduce overheating risk during the hot summer period. The analysis also showed that building walls with comparatively lower thermal resistance are more cost-effective for the cooling dominated region, but walls with higher thermal resistance are more cost-effective in heating-dominated regions. However, highly insulated and airtight houses may also lead to increased overheating risk and peak cooling demand during a hot summer period. In addition, hygroscopic, acoustic, and fire retardancy properties of insulation materials are critical to control indoor relative humidity in a humid region, to maintain a minimum noise level in a zone, and to reduce fire destruction. Hence, the optimization should include four criteria 1) Energy, 2) Environment, 3) Economic, and 4) Comfort.

Comparative analysis of building insulation material properties and performance

The current fire protection measures in buildings do not account for all contemporary fire hazard issues, which has made fire safety a growing concern. Therefore, this paper aims to present a critical review of current fire protection measures and their applicability to address current challenges relating to fire hazards in buildings.,To overcome fire hazards in buildings, impact of fire hazards is also reviewed to set the context for fire protection measures. Based on the review, an integrated framework for mitigation of fire hazards is proposed. The proposed framework involves enhancement of fire safety in four key areas: fire protection features in buildings, regulation and enforcement, consumer awareness and technology and resources advancement. Detailed strategies on improving fire safety in buildings in these four key areas are presented, and future research and training needs are identified.,Current fire protection measures lead to an unquantified level of fire safety in buildings, provide minimal strategies to mitigate fire hazard and do not account for contemporary fire hazard issues. Implementing key measures that include reliable fire protection systems, proper regulation and enforcement of building code provisions, enhancement of public awareness and proper use of technology and resources is key to mitigating fire hazard in buildings. Major research and training required to improve fire safety in buildings include developing cost-effective fire suppression systems and rational fire design approaches, characterizing new materials and developing performance-based codes.,The proposed framework encompasses both prevention and management of fire hazard. To demonstrate the applicability of this framework in improving fire safety in buildings, major limitations of current fire protection measures are identified, and detailed strategies are provided to address these limitations using proposed fire safety framework.,Fire represents a severe hazard in both developing and developed countries and poses significant threat to life, structure, property and environment. The proposed framework has social implications as it addresses some of the current challenges relating to fire hazard in buildings and will enhance overall fire safety.,The novelty of proposed framework lies in encompassing both prevention and management of fire hazard. This is unlike current fire safety improvement strategies, which focus only on improving fire protection features in buildings (i.e. managing impact of fire hazard) using performance-based codes. To demonstrate the applicability of this framework in improving fire safety in buildings, major limitations of current fire protection measures are identified and detailed strategies are provided to address these limitations using proposed fire safety framework. Special emphasis is given to cost-effectiveness of proposed strategies, and research and training needs for further enhancing building fire safety are identified.

Fire hazard in buildings: review, assessment and strategies for improving fire safety

A study on islamic banking education and strategyfor the millinium malaysian experience

Modeling the behavior of load bearing concrete walls under fire exposure

Purpose




Reinforced concrete structural frames with masonry infills (infill-frames) are commonly used for construction worldwide. While the behavior of such frames has been studied extensively in the context of earthquake loading, studies related to their fire performance are limited. Therefore, this study aims to characterize the behavior of infill-frames under fire exposure by presenting a state-of-the-art literature review of the same.




Design/methodology/approach




Both experimental and computational studies have been included with a special emphasis on numerical modeling (simplified as well as advanced). The cold behavior of the infill-frame and its design requirements in case of fire exposure are first reviewed to set the context. Subsequently, the applicability of numerical modeling strategies developed for modeling cold infill-frames to simulate their behavior under fire is critically examined.




Findings




The major hurdles in developing generic numerical models for analyzing thermo-mechanical behavior of infill-frames are identified as: lack of temperature-dependent material properties, scarcity of experimental studies for validation and idealizations in coupling between thermal and structural analysis.




Originality value




This study presents one of the most popular research problems connected with practical and reliable utilization of numerical models, as a good alternative to expensive traditional furnace testing, in assessing fire resistance of infill-frames. It highlights major challenges in thermo-mechanical modeling of infill-frames and critically reviews the available approaches for modeling infill-frames subjected to fire.

Puneet Kumar

Papers

Fire hazard in buildings: review, assessment and strategies for improving fire safety

Modeling the behavior of load bearing concrete walls under fire exposure

Numerical modeling of structural frames with infills subjected to thermal exposure: State-of-the-art review

Effect of fire on in-plane and out-of-plane behavior of reinforced concrete frames with and without masonry infills

Response of prestressed concrete beams under combined effects of fire and structural loading