Sustainable Design and Environmental Systems Flashcards
7 cards from real ARE practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Sustainable Design and Environmental Systems flashcards as text
Which window performance metric measures the overall rate of non-solar heat transfer through a fenestration assembly, where lower values indicate better insulating performance?
Answer: U-factor
The U-factor measures the rate of heat transfer (conduction, convection, and radiation) through a window assembly; it is the inverse of R-value, so lower U-factors mean better insulation.
Photovoltaic (PV) solar panels convert sunlight directly into which form of energy?
Answer: Electrical energy
Photovoltaic panels use semiconductor materials to convert photons from sunlight directly into direct current (DC) electricity through the photovoltaic effect.
Which ASHRAE standard specifies minimum ventilation rates and indoor air quality requirements to protect the health of building occupants?
Answer: ASHRAE 62.1
ASHRAE 62.1 establishes minimum ventilation rates and IAQ procedures for commercial and institutional buildings to maintain acceptable indoor air quality.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) present in paints, adhesives, and finishes are a concern in sustainable building design primarily because they:
Answer: Degrade indoor air quality and can harm occupant health
VOCs off-gas from many common building products and can accumulate to harmful concentrations indoors, contributing to sick building syndrome and other occupant health issues.
A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of building materials evaluates environmental impacts across which scope?
Answer: From raw material extraction through end-of-life disposal
LCA tracks environmental impacts—energy use, emissions, and resource consumption—across all life stages: extraction, manufacturing, transport, use, and end-of-life.
ASHRAE climate zones are used in building design primarily to:
Answer: Guide appropriate envelope and energy efficiency strategies for a specific location
ASHRAE climate zones classify geographic locations by temperature and humidity patterns so designers can select appropriate insulation levels, glazing performance, and mechanical strategies.
Which material property, measured as an R-value, quantifies a building assembly's resistance to heat flow and determines its insulating effectiveness?
Answer: Thermal resistance (R-value)
Thermal resistance (R-value) measures how strongly a material or assembly resists heat flow; higher R-values indicate better insulation and reduced energy transfer through the assembly.