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Abstract: Fenestration has always been regarded as the weak element in the building envelope due to its role in determining of the energy balance of a building. At the same time, cooling performance is becoming a significant parameter for evaluating the energy performance of buildings in Europe. Due to the plethora of window products with advanced properties currently existing on the market, it is not always easy for engineers to select the optimum solution. In this paper, the cooling performance of windows in the warmest part of Europe is evaluated with regard to their geometrical, thermophysical and optical characteristics, as well as their shading provisions. The analysis shows that the contribution of the windows in determining cooling loads is maximized when their solar transmittance is high and their thermal transmittance is low. Moreover, in the Mediterranean regions the increased thermal efficiency of transparent elements in buildings with controlled ventilation, such as offices, prohibits the dissipation of heat toward the ambient environment and ultimately result in higher cooling energy loads. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Thermal, environment and economic impact of Trombe wall system for residential building in Mediterranean region will be studied in this paper. Moreover, optimum size of this system will be determined by using Life Cycle Cost (LCC) criterion. This will lead to develop an approach for designing the most economic residential building in Mediterranean region. Hour-by-hour energy computer simulations were run with TRNSYS program to analyze the performance of Trombe wall. Then, a complete economical equations of LCC have been built and optimized for variable Trombe wall area ratio as a function of economic and thermal parameters. The optimum Trombe wall area ratio from thermal and economical point of view is 37%. This optimum ratio has reduced LCC by 2.4%. Moreover, about 445kg CO2 will be reduced annually. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, the seismic performance of reinforced concrete exterior wide beam–column connections with shallow spandrel beams lightly reinforced for torsion and moderate levels of gravity loads was investigated experimentally. The study focuses on existing frames designed and detailed according to construction practices used over ten years ago in the moderate-seismicity Mediterranean area. The results can be useful for assessing the seismic vulnerability of older structures and orienting seismic retrofit alternatives. Two 3/5 scale test models representative of exterior sub-assemblages in a prototype six-story building were subjected to gravity-load levels typical of those acting during an earthquake, and quasi-static cyclic lateral loads until failure. The performance was studied in terms of strength, displacement, ductility and energy dissipation capacity. The data are analyzed in conjunction with the results of previous tests. The specimens exhibited a “strong column–weak beam” type of flexural yielding mechanism. The average drift ratios at first yielding of the wide beam longitudinal reinforcement, , and at failure, , were 2.2% and 4.5% respectively; the displacement ductility ratio was approximately 2.2. Comparison to similar connections without added gravity loads showed that moderate levels of gravity loading increased by about 40%, and decreased by a similar percentage the value of and the energy dissipated in each half cycle of displacement expressed in terms of an equivalent viscous damping ratio. Finally, two approaches for estimating the wide-beam flexural capacity are examined. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]