Energy use and environmental impacts: A general review

Globally, buildings are responsible for approximately 40% of the total world annual energy consumption. Most of this energy is for the provision of lighting, heating, cooling, and air conditioning. Increasing awareness of the environmental impact of CO(2) and NO(x) emissions and chlorofluorocarbons triggered a renewed interest in environmentally friendly cooling and heating technologies. Under the 1997 Montreal Protocol, governments agreed to phase out chemicals used as refrigerants that have the potential to destroy stratospheric ozone. It was therefore considered desirable to reduce energy consumption and decrease the rate of depletion of world energy reserves and pollution of the environment. One way of reducing building energy consumption is to design buildings that are more economical in their use of energy for heating, lighting, cooling, ventilation, and hot water supply. Passive measures, particularly natural or hybrid ventilation rather than air conditioning, can dramatically reduce primary energy consumption. However, exploitation of renewable energy in buildings and agricultural greenhouses can also significantly contribute toward reducing dependency on fossil fuels. Therefore, promoting innovative renewable applications and reinforcing the renewable energy market will contribute to preservation of the ecosystem by reducing emissions at local and global levels. This will also contribute to the amelioration of environmental conditions by replacing conventional fuels with renewable energies that produce no air pollution or greenhouse gases. The provision of good indoor environmental quality (IEQ) while achieving energy and cost efficient operation of the heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning plants in buildings represents a multivariant problem. The comfort of building occupants is dependent on many environmental parameters including air speed, temperature, relative humidity, and quality in addition to lighting and noise. The overall objective is to provide a high level of building performance, which can be defined as IEQ, energy efficiency (EE), and cost efficiency (CE). IEQ is the perceived condition of comfort that building occupants experience due to the physical and psychological conditions to which they are exposed by their surroundings. The main physical parameters affecting IEQ are air speed, temperature, relative humidity, and quality. EE is related to the provision of the desired environmental conditions while consuming the minimal quantity of energy. CE is the financial expenditure on energy relative to the level of environmental comfort and productivity that the building occupants attained. The overall CE can be improved by improving the IEQ and the EE of a building. The increased availability of reliable and efficient energy services stimulates new development alternatives. Anticipated patterns of future energy use and consequent environmental impacts (acid precipitation, ozone depletion, and greenhouse effect or global warming) are comprehensively discussed in this paper. Throughout the theme several issues relating to renewable energies, environment, and sustainable development are examained from both current and future perspectives. It is concluded that renewable environmentally friendly energy must be encouraged, promoted, implemented, and demonstrated by full-scale plant especially for use in remote rural areas. (C) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3220701]