{"id":316386,"date":"2023-06-14T05:55:11","date_gmt":"2023-06-14T09:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canada.constructconnect.com\/?p=316386"},"modified":"2023-06-13T14:24:08","modified_gmt":"2023-06-13T18:24:08","slug":"windows-and-glass-curtain-wall-called-out-as-carbon-criminals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canada.constructconnect.com\/dcn\/news\/resource\/2023\/06\/windows-and-glass-curtain-wall-called-out-as-carbon-criminals","title":{"rendered":"Climate and �鶹��ý����ion: Windows and glass curtain wall called out as carbon criminals"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Glass curtain walls and large windows have been popular in building design for decades.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to esthetic considerations, there are other important benefits. Large panels of glass bring natural light into interior spaces, reducing energy demands for artificial lighting. Offering a view of the outside world also results in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4031400\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">measurable improvements<\/a> to the health and well-being of occupants.<\/p>\n<p>Glass is under attack these days. Allegations of high CO<sub>2 <\/sub>emissions associated with glass production and the supposed low operational carbon performance of large window units are bringing criticisms concerning the extensive use of glass which some say overshadow the benefits.<\/p>\n<p>Environmental commentator Lloyd Alter has been particularly critical about the prolific use of glass. He has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treehugger.com\/can-an-all-glass-office-building-really-be-considered-green-4858249\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">accused<\/a> architects of \u201claziness\u201d for \u201csimply outsourcing the design to a curtain wall supplier,\u201d and has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treehugger.com\/all-glass-buildings-are-aesthetic-well-thermal-crime-4856882\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">called<\/a> glass curtain wall, \u201can esthetic as well as a thermal crime.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Provocative declarations of \u201cthermal crime\u201d require examination to determine fairness and accuracy. Although glass may be overused on building exteriors in some cases, modern glazing continues to evolve, particularly as triple-glazing becomes available at more reasonable costs.<\/p>\n<p>Glass manufacturing and industry recycling efforts were outlined in <a href=\"https:\/\/canada.constructconnect.com\/dcn\/news\/resource\/2023\/06\/seeking-clarity-on-the-decarbonization-of-commercial-glass\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">last week\u2019s<\/a> Climate and �鶹��ý����ion. However, the challenge remains to calculate the level of embodied carbon in a finished glass component when so few product-specific EPDs exist.<\/p>\n<p>Although requiring high kiln temperatures, glass manufacturing processes actually represent low levels of CO<sub>2<\/sub> emissions compared to other building materials. For credible figures, we turn to France.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_316390\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-316390\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-316390\" src=\"https:\/\/cc-production-uploads-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JB-C-C-Cube-Berlin-Wikimedia-web.jpg\" alt=\"Twin-skinned facades, as seen in the Cube Berlin building, permits daylight to enter while providing protection against solar heat gains. \" width=\"600\" height=\"451\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cc-production-uploads-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JB-C-C-Cube-Berlin-Wikimedia-web.jpg 600w, https:\/\/cc-production-uploads-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2023\/06\/JB-C-C-Cube-Berlin-Wikimedia-web-300x226.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-316390\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">WIKIMEDIA COMMONS \u2014 Twin-skinned facades, as seen in the Cube Berlin building, permits daylight to enter while providing protection against solar heat gains.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>According to Finance ClimAct, an organization providing tools to integrate climate issues into investment decisions, the GHG emissions from the <a href=\"https:\/\/finance-climact.eu\/news\/decarbonizing-the-glass-industry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">entire French glass sector<\/a> represent 3.0 per cent of the country\u2019s industrial emissions. Within that, the production of flat glass used for both the building and automotive sectors is only 16 per cent, or 0.48 per cent overall. In contrast, <a href=\"https:\/\/finance-climact.eu\/news\/decarbonizing-the-steel-industry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">steel<\/a> represents 22 per cent of industrial GHGs, and <a href=\"https:\/\/finance-climact.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/synthesis-stp-cement-first-results-2021.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cement<\/a> 12.5 per cent.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of operational carbon, there have been improvements in frame design, and double or triple glazing in window units. Sophisticated engineering now goes into top quality window units to provide thermal breaks and air and water tightness, whether unit framing is wood, PVC, fibreglass, aluminum or steel.<\/p>\n<p>Advanced window technology is not always considered when comparative studies of wall structures are conducted. <a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/1MJvGzuXTN80jt8GZmtOmScHIcbiFZsTc\/view\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">One such study<\/a>, undertaken by Ha\/f Research Studio at the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design at the University of Toronto, is an example.<\/p>\n<p>The study sets out to, \u201cbalance operational carbon and embodied carbon in building design through a Whole Life Carbon (WLC) perspective\u201d by measuring and comparing the operational and embodied carbon differences between four individual wall structures using different building materials and varying window-to-wall ratios.<\/p>\n<p>Problematic is the introduction of so many variables into each wall sample. The cross-sections and window units for each appear also to be unsophisticated in their design.<\/p>\n<p>In terms of operational carbon analysis, the study intentionally avoids \u201csophisticated modelling of occupancy, internal gains, thermal mass, airtightness, solar orientation, shading devices and glazing properties.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Many of these directly affect the study\u2019s findings as they relate to windows.<\/p>\n<p>Kelly Doran, director of the Ha\/f Research Studio, shared a portion of another study with the Daily Commercial News that analyzes the electricity grid intensity in North American cities with different climates, versus the cost premium and payback periods for double and triple glazed windows.<\/p>\n<p>He concludes, \u201creducing window-to-wall ratios and shedding our fascination with floor-to-ceiling would do wonders to cost, carbon, and performance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, it is not clear whether the study considers the latest advances in double or triple glazed window technology and coatings. Conclusions are also based on long-term predictions concerning the future decarbonization of specific urban grids that currently rely on fossil fuels.<\/p>\n<p>Decisions to reduce window-to-wall ratios in commercial buildings must be based on properly conducted, objective analysis of window unit design versus solid wall structures, as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=zJRsmiaqh6A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">conducted on residential walls<\/a>.\u00a0 Otherwise, shrinking the number of windows, or installing multiple small ones instead of large ones, may be ill-founded.<\/p>\n<p><em>Next week: A look at how glass and window technologies are evolving to meet today\u2019s complex carbon demands.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>John Bleasby is a Coldwater, Ont.-based freelance writer. Send comments and Climate and �鶹��ý����ion column ideas to editor@dailycommercialnews.com.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Glass curtain walls and large windows have been popular in building design for decades. In addition to esthetic considerations, there are other important benefits. Large panels of glass bring natural light into interior spaces, reducing energy demands for artificial lighting. Offering a view of the outside world also results in measurable improvements to the health [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":251392,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_expiration-date-status":"","_expiration-date":0,"_expiration-date-type":"","_expiration-date-categories":[],"_expiration-date-options":[]},"categories":[12],"tags":[3856,15468,11058,63900,1069,46,17232,10914,80848,80847,36675,1416,3948],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v19.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Climate and �鶹��ý����ion: Windows and glass curtain wall called out as carbon criminals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/canada.constructconnect.com\/dcn\/news\/resource\/2023\/06\/windows-and-glass-curtain-wall-called-out-as-carbon-criminals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Climate and �鶹��ý����ion: Windows and glass curtain wall called out as carbon criminals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Glass curtain walls and large windows have been popular in building design for decades. 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