CSC Sustainable Design & Green Building Practices 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which passive solar design strategy uses thermal mass to absorb heat during the day and release it at night?
- Direct gain
- Indirect gain (Trombe wall) (Correct answer)
- Isolated gain
- Convective loop
Correct answer: Indirect gain (Trombe wall)
Indirect gain systems, such as Trombe walls, place thermal mass between the glazing and the living space to absorb, store, and slowly release solar heat.
Question 2: What does the term 'embodied carbon' refer to in green building?
- Carbon emitted during building operation
- Carbon stored in wood products
- Lifecycle GHG emissions from material extraction through construction (Correct answer)
- Carbon offset credits purchased for a building
Correct answer: Lifecycle GHG emissions from material extraction through construction
Embodied carbon encompasses all greenhouse gas emissions associated with materials and construction processes throughout a building's lifecycle, excluding operational energy use.
Question 3: A building with a window-to-wall ratio (WWR) of 40% is being redesigned to reduce cooling loads. Which intervention has the greatest impact?
- Replacing single-pane with double-pane glazing
- Adding external shading devices on south and west facades (Correct answer)
- Switching to reflective window film only
- Reducing interior lighting levels
Correct answer: Adding external shading devices on south and west facades
External shading devices block solar heat gain before it enters the glazing, making them significantly more effective at reducing cooling loads than internal or glass-only measures.
Question 4: Under LEED v4, which credit category addresses the reduction of light pollution from a building?
- Sustainable Sites (SS) (Correct answer)
- Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ)
- Energy & Atmosphere (EA)
- Materials & Resources (MR)
Correct answer: Sustainable Sites (SS)
LEED v4's Sustainable Sites category includes the 'Light Pollution Reduction' credit, which limits exterior lighting that spills into the night sky or onto neighboring properties.
Question 5: Which green building rating system uses the concept of 'petals' to organize its performance categories?
- BREEAM
- Living Building Challenge (Correct answer)
- WELL Building Standard
- Green Globes
Correct answer: Living Building Challenge
The Living Building Challenge organizes its stringent requirements into seven 'Petals'—Place, Water, Energy, Health & Happiness, Materials, Equity, and Beauty.
Question 6: What is the primary function of a vegetated (green) roof in urban environments?
- Increase structural load capacity
- Reduce stormwater runoff and urban heat island effect (Correct answer)
- Improve indoor air quality through plant transpiration
- Generate solar energy through photovoltaic integration
Correct answer: Reduce stormwater runoff and urban heat island effect
Green roofs retain rainwater through soil and plant absorption and reduce urban heat islands by replacing heat-absorbing dark surfaces with vegetation.
Question 7: In daylighting design, which metric measures the percentage of time a space achieves adequate natural light levels without glare?
- Daylight Factor (DF)
- Useful Daylight Illuminance (UDI) (Correct answer)
- Climate-Based Daylight Modelling (CBDM)
- Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC)
Correct answer: Useful Daylight Illuminance (UDI)
Useful Daylight Illuminance (UDI) measures the fraction of annual occupied hours when interior illuminance falls within a 'useful' range (typically 100–3000 lux), balancing adequacy and glare risk.
CSC Sustainable Design & Green Building Practices 2
Which passive solar design strategy uses thermal mass to absorb heat during the day and release it at night?