Green Building Technology

Solar energy is clean, eco-friendly and also sustainable. Due to the fact that the energy produced from the

Carbon emissions are changing the planet for the worse. Energy production (mostly coal) is producing a one third of the US 's global warming emissions. Renewable sources produce little to zero percent. The balance of coal and renewable energy in the U.S. needs to be evened out with renewable techniques. Statistics from the Union of Concerned Scientist’s “Benefits of Renewable Energy Use” show that most renewable resources emit less than one pound of CO2E/kWh. These have significantly less of a carbon footprint than coal, which emits 1.4 to 3.6 lbs. CO2E/kWh or natural gas, which emits .6 to 2 lbs. CO2E/kWh. This impressive difference of carbon emissions between renewable and fossil fuel is the key to caring for our environment. A 2009 USC study found that if 25 percent of the US 's

expensive at all after its creation and installation costs. Solar energy can very well be the

I personally have seen house with solar panels and also you see them on calculators. They may be expensive but I believe they are worth it for the environment. In fact according to Eric McLamb, “Solar energy is having the most immediate impact on home energy needs, and is expected to provide the energy needs for one billion people by the middle of this century”. Which can in the nearer future increase the way people get they’re energy thus decrease the consumption of oil. According to the European Photovoltaic Industry Association, “Solar power could provide energy for more than one billion people by 2020 and 26 percent of global energy needs by

Seeing that Prairie View A&M University is a small campus consisting of about 9,000 students you would believe that they are doing a lot of eco-friendly things, such as using energy efficient bulbs and having recycle bins placed near every trash can on campus. Becoming more sustainable can go way beyond the little things; the campus can install solar panels or installing a green roof. Solar panles use light energy from the sun to generate electricity through this effect called the photovoltaic effect. Installing solar panels can be very expensive, but in the end it’ll save the college a lot of money on their electricity bills. Solar energy is non polluting and it is emission free while generating electricty. Another advantage of using solar

Big idea: Solar energy is great for the environment because of no pollution, it gets a lot of energy, and it is a great investment. However, solar panels can come at a high cost to buy and to get installed.

6. Solar energy is radiant energy we get from the sun. Basically, the sun gives off a lot energy and we convert it into electricity. This is one of the cleanest way to help out in climate change. Pros: 1. Clean 2. Sustainable 3. Renewable Cons: 1. Not completely reliable 2. Expensive 3. Exotic

The use of solar energy does not cause greenhouse gas emissions and is healthier for the environment than traditional forms of energy.

11) These technologies would save 2,900 to 3,900 gallons of gasoline over their lifetime. Thereby cutting emissions of global-warming gases by 37 to 50 tons.

However, very few realize the urgency in dramatically improving our living conditions in order to preserve the resources that are diminishing in front of our eyes. In the early 1990s, scientific researchers began recognizing the shifting experienced in global climate change. Upon acknowledging the fact that global warming did exist, scientists sought after ways to alleviate this developing social problem. In order to use sources already existing in our environment, alternative energy resources, such as solar energy, have come to the forefront in solutions. The implementation of technologies that use solar energy, that is any form of energy radiated by the sun, date back to A.D. 100 when Northern Italian summer homes with windowed rooms were constructed using thin sheets of mica or selenite (Skylar and Sheinkopf 7). From that time forward, inventors have created ways in which solar energy can be used to fuel our daily lives. Innovations in solar water heating, solar pool heating, solar electricity, and even solar cooking are currently offered as an alternate means of energy. The question remains, however, as to why more Americans are not taking advantage of these accessible energy-saving resources. In comparison to other energies used to fuel the nation, “solar energy is the cleanest, safest, most environmentally gentle energy option” the United States has

Green buildings could become one of the main factors to preserve our rapidly decaying environment. There is no easy way to define a green building, but a green building is essentially a structure that amplifies the positives and mitigates the negatives throughout the entire life cycle of the building (Kriss, 2014). There are many definitions for a green building, but all of them include the planning, designing, constructing, and operating of the building while taking into huge considerations of the energy use, water use, indoor air environment, materials used and the effect it has on the site the green building is being built on. The first green buildings dates back to as far as the 1970’s, when solar panels went from experiments to reality. Green buildings were not as popular as they are today due to their extremely high pricing. With technology rapidly growing, solar panels are becoming cheaper and cheaper, making the transition to creating green buildings more affordable. This is the primary reason for the increased growth of green buildings today. A modern company that is paving the way to the growth of green buildings named LEED, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, focuses primarily on new and effective ideas for environmentally friendly buildings projects. With more than 60,000 commercial projects worldwide and 1.7 million square feet being certified every day, LEED is one of the leading groups for promoting green buildings. LEED has popularized the entire

A few of these was include, methagenic material eliminating methane emissions and offsetting the reduction in landfill carbon sequestration, materials that require large energy input can be made from recycled inputs which require less energy and virgin materials, as well as the reduction of cardboard and paper products reduces the demand for fresh wood for harvest which increases forest carbon storage (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). For certain materials, recycling, reducing, and reusing them have a positive effect on reducing the energy use of industries to manufacture them and GHGs. Some of these materials include aluminum and paper. The authors discuss how the overall GHG emissions that are embedded in a final product is still sensitive to the amount of energy used during the manufacturing process as well as the GHG intensity of the energy use and various fuels utilized during the manufacturing processes (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). The authors also find that GHG associated with aluminum and paper is higher in the United States industry because of the lower GHG intensity of Canadian electricity (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). This is the result of Canada utilizing more hydroelectricity and the United States depends more on coal for electricity (Kelleher, Seidel, & Torrie, 2015). Table 2 illustrates the impact of recycling due to forest carbon sequestration and energy savings on GHGs. In this table we see that aluminum, non-ferrous, and PET are the most recycled materials that have high energy savings and forest carbon sequestration. These materials are measured in tonnes and represented as CO2eq per tonne of recycled material. Moreover, the selected materials that have the least GHG impact on energy saving and forest carbon sequestration are glass, ferrous metals, steel, and

High content of recycled material is one of the positives factors in this category. Also helpful is when the insulation can be reused or recycled. Ideally the material should come from a renewable source. All these factors contribute to low embodied energy, which is the energy used to produce, process and transport the insulation before it reaches the homeowner. Also the use of hydrocarbons or carbon dioxide as blowing agents can contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. The preferred materials are the ones that don’t require blowing agents at all.

In order for one to further understand the importance of solar energy, the problem of global warming must be explained. As defined by Webster’s Dictionary, “Global Warming” is an increase in the earth’s average atmospheric temperature that causes corresponding changes in climate and that may result from the greenhouse effect. With an average increase in atmospheric temperatures, our planet is slowly deteriorating. In order to stall or halt this global destruction, countries must turn to solar energy as a cleaner alternative to the depletion of fossil fuels. Solar energy creates a homeostasis for the climate. Due to its ability to decrease global climate changes, solar power can address global warming in several ways.

One valuable accessory made for uses of sustainability is the solar powered glass invention. Its soul purpose is to sustain energy all around the world. This way, our natural resources can be preserved for other uses, keeping our environment intact. Also this can help maintain your money by saving energy. Furthermore, allowing the solar powered glass to maintain the spotlight.