Research-Based Design Initiative

In late 2011, Portland State University faculty were awarded the largest NCARB Grant for the Integration of Practice and Education in the Academy to date in order to generate translational building science research in collaboration with firms in Portland, Oregon. This grant, along with the resources of the Green Building Research Laboratory (GBRL), transformed traditional lecture-based building science and technology courses into a series of on-going, graduate level seminars that revolve around two primary activities: (1) students conduct building science research of relevance to a project currently under design in a firm and (2) students are embedded in project teams where they attend all interdisciplinary meetings for the course of a term to witness and document interdisciplinary collaboration.

In this unique way, students became contributing members of a design team and building science experts on issues relevant to current practice. For the architecture firms involved, working with universities allows practicing architects the ability to utilize a deeper level of research expertise in the design process and access resources not typically available in practice. One of the most exciting outcomes of this collaboration have been the semi-annual research symposiums where students present their work to representatives from all of the participating firms, creating a dialog around pressing building science issues with students, faculty and practitioners.

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Portland Metro Building Performance: Optimizing Energy Performance and Occupant Comfort at Portland Metro

Ali Alajmi, Janna Ferguson, Erika Colvin, and Yukari Kubo

The objective of this research is to investigate potential existing building retrofits to improve the work environment for building occupants as well as the overall building energy performance. Beginning with the building skin and moving to the individual cubicle, our team wanted to find a specific architectural solution that would help to reduce the Metro building’s overall energy consumption and help to create a more comfortable work environment
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Qualitative Daylighting Analysis

Alejandra Ruiz, Genevieve Wasser, and Bora Architects

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a combination of strategies used for analyzing daylighting qualities in the context of two classrooms. The strategies include qualitative information from observations and a post-occupancy survey, on-site light level measurements, and computer generated simulations all intended to inform a comparative analysis of the daylighting conditions and perceived daylighting qualities between the two classrooms. This composite approach takes into consideration access to daylight and views, ... Read More
Research Tools for Assessing Thermal Bridging

Portland State University. School of Architecture and ZGF Architects

Objective:

Project Overview Results Results Compile knowledge developed from the use of building analysis tools, their applicability and limitations, for the refrence of future needs.
Water and Community Relience

Portland State University. School of Architecture

RESILIENCE: the capacity of a system to absorb a disturbance and reorganize while undergoing change so as to still retain essentially the same function, structure, identity, and feedbacks .
Analyzing Daylight Autonomy: New Dining Hall at George Fox University

Katie Barmore-McCollum, Corey T. Griffin, and THA

THA Architecture is designing a dining hall for George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon. The school has out-grown their current dining hall and is in need of a larger space. This is a new construction project of 30,000 sf and with a budget of $200 a square foot. The program includes; dining space, dining space that can be closed off with folding walls, a café, cafeteria food pick-up area, kitchen, ... Read More
Arduino Microcontroller + Adaptive Architecture Responsive Illuminance Device

Portland State University. School of Architecture

The project focused on light-responsive architecture.
Beaverton High School

Katie Barmore-McCollum, Nicole de Jong, Sergio Palleroni, Huafen Hu, Reid Weber, and PAE

The intended task was to study early massing concepts for climate responsiveness using Sefaira as an analytical tool. We were to work rapidly to analyze a series of massing concepts during the schematic design phase and provide feedback to the Boora design team to determine which factors/outputs to be studied such as daylighting, energy use, and building orientation. We received three massing models from Boora to study in Sefaira and ... Read More
Computational Fluid Dynamics for Early Stage Architectural Design

Russell Wisniewski, Corey T. Griffin, Mark Stroller, Lona Rerick, Erika Colvin, Jeanne Jameson, and Stephen Colin

This project set out to evaluate the validity and usefulness of CFD within the contemporary Design Practice. Initially attempting to analyze a specifi c design it became clear a more general study was needed. Analyzing natural ventilation is an infi nitely complex process, to determine the level of simplication required for use involved breaking the natural process down and analyzing the pieces seperately and then together. By using this process ... Read More
Cross Laminated Timber Building Performance

Portland State University. School of Architecture

Current standard construction techniques play an increasing role in greenhouse gas emissions, so the need for exploration into alternative methods are a requirement for future products and construction. 47% of the CO2 emissions delivered into our atmosphere are due to building construction and materials. Cross-laminated timber (CLT) and other varied wood products are an emerging, viable source of sustainable, alternative building methods. The presented body of research explains the benefits ... Read More
Designing for Ventilation with CFD: Evergreen State College Costantino Recreation Center

Sergio Palleroni, Russell Wisniewski, Noureddine Dib, Huafen Hu, Mark Stroller, Jeanne Jameson, Stephen Colin, and Erika Colvin

The Costantino Recreation Center (CRC) houses the offi ces for all head coaches, athletic training, and recreation and athletics administrative staff. The CRC gymnasium holds three full-size basketball courts and four full-size volleyball courts, and can seat up to 1,500 for events. It was last re-modeled in 1990 to add a gymnasium, multi-purpose exercise room, offi ce space and wellness center, and general recreation use by students, faculty, staff and ... Read More
Energy Use Intensity and Infrared Thermography as a Tool in Building Assessments

Carrie Dickson, Sean Newberry, and Blake Reynolds

Understanding a building’s energy usage has become more important over recent years. The building sector uses nearly half of the energy produced in the United States. By identifying ways to reduce a building’s energy usage, it can have major impact on reduced carbon emissions.
Envelope Optimization Analysis for South Cooper Mountain High School: Setaira Web-application

Juan C. Garduno, Mike Manzi, Corey T. Griffin, and Boora Architects

Research Goals:

1. Identify Sefaira’s energy simulation limitations Goals:

2. Identify successful Sefaira strategies/setting compared to eQuest strategies/settings
Evolutionary Modeling and Building Energy Efficiency: How can Building Performance Evaluation be integrated early into an ever-accelerating design process?

Portland State University. School of Architecture

With the increasing demand for energy efficient buildings, designers have begun to face a new challenge- how can performance evaluation be integrated into the ever-accelerating design process? The design and performance evaluation of a building are, in most cases, divorced. The designer will often have to halt, freeze the design, and wait for performance results to filter back. That gap between freezing the design and awaiting results can be weeks. ... Read More
Examining Feasibility of Thermal Mass for Passive Heating and Cooling in the Pacific Northwest

Portland State University. School of Architecture

Scientifically, thermal mass is equivalent to thermal capacitance or heat capacity, the ability of a body to store thermal energy.

In building design, thermal mass is a property of the mass of a building which enables it to store heat, providing “inertia” against temperature fluctuations. For example, when outside temperatures are fluctuating throughout the day, a large thermal mass within the insulated portion of a house can serve to “flatten ... Read More
Fairbanks Wall System Study

Zach Hampton, Asmait Zeleke, Sergio Palleroni, Reid Weber, Haufen Hu, and ZGF

The purpose of this study was to understand and develop the best wall system possible for ZGF Architects to potentially implement into future projects in the city of Fairbanks.Alaska that requires a wall system to reach at least R-30. ZGF has been working on an 80.000 square foot surgical addition to the Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and ask for our research to infonn future insulation system selections. The extreme climate of ... Read More
Faubion PK-8 School: Daylight Analysis

Sergio Palleroni, Haufen Hu, Adam McSorley, Katherine Odell, Valeriya Shcheglova, and Boora Architects

Light is the first thing that captures your eye after you are born and is often the last th ing you see before you fall asleep. Light makes humans, objects, spaces, architecture and everything we see around us visib le by its reflection. Everyday, people are confronted with light and shadow, two elements that are complementary. Daylight is a natu ral element that changes every minute, caused by the rotation ... Read More
PSU Business School Renovation + Personal Comfort

Abolfazl Mekanik, Corey T. Griffin, and SRG Partnership

Assessing the Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) is the first step to design a low energy building and to ensure the comfort of the occupants are satisfied based on high quality standards. Schools are a category of buildings in which a high level of environmental quality considerably improves occupants' attention, concentration, learning, hearing and performances. A common practice to evaluate thermal comfort and indoor air quality perception is to assess the ... Read More
The Role of Healing Gardens

Kalina K. Vander Poel and ZGF

The overarching objective of this research is to expand the dialogue of the role of healing gardens in hospitals. In order to understand the role of healing gardens in hospitals, it is important to determine how and to what extent the healing garden is being used. By expanding this dialogue we can reaffirm the legitimacy of current approaches such as design criteria and the program. When the perception and role ... Read More
A Post-Occupancy Daylight Analysis: Vernonia K-12 School

Julia Mollner and Corey T. Griffin

Daylight is an important aspect of design, specifically in school settings. Daylight is not only desirable but crucial for the growth of children, including: increased connection to nature, reduced electricity bills, and increased attention spans. Recent studies have shown the positive relationship between diffuse daylight and student performance (Melton, 2012). The proper design of daylight can enhance a space without electric light. The main goals of daylighting are (1) control ... Read More
Breezeway Wind Analysis

Andrew Borgerding, Scott F. Burns, Corey T. Griffin, and Ben Deines

The project is focused on the wind strategies for the Black Butte Ranch site in central Oregon. The foundation is at the edge of a lake in the high desert with the central Oregon mountain ranges to the west. These mountains help to maintain a consistent wind direction for the majority of the year. Wind rose studies have given THA the basic idea of direction, west to east in the ... Read More
Calculating Energy Consumption for Building Materials

G. Antons, M. Hoover, W. Uebelacker, Sergio Palleroni, Huafen Hu, and Ben Deines

Sustainability is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. With that, Life Cycle Assesment (LCA) was born and is now a standard tool in measuring how sustainable we are in building from material extraction to end of life.

Architects have adopted the responsibility to lead the building industry down a green and sustainable path; as a part ... Read More
Daylight and Artificial Lighting Strategies for a Nicu Remodel

Rachel Browne; Huafen Hu; Elham Masoomkhah; Nada Maani; Karina Adams; Sergio Palleroni; Ben Deines; SRG Partnership, Inc.; and Luma Lighting Design

SRG is proposing an NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) remodel for a major healthcare provider here in the Portland metro area.This is an intensive care unit for babies born prematurely and up to 6 months of age. The space is in an existing hospit al and has previously been used as an N ICU. However, it is currently being used as overflow office space and is now under consideration for ... Read More
Entryway Wind Impact Assessment

Andrew Borgerding, Scott F. Burns, Kelsy Colvin, Sergio Palleroni, Haufen Hu, and Ben Deines

The project consists of a current medical facility located in Gresham, Oregon. This site is subjected to fierce winds pushing west out of the Columbia River Gorge. These winds have the ability to reach hurricane wind speeds which will ultimately guide the shape of the building footprint and overall orientation/ building envelope. ZGF is looking for a qualitative study between multiple massing models in relationship with wind turbulence. These models ... Read More
Evaluating Sefaira: A Research Collaboration

Mart Schaefer, Sergio Palleroni, Huafen Hu, Ben Deines, and Boora Architects

Sefaira Concept is a plug-in that runs in Trimble SketchUp, a 3D modeling program with wide usage in architecture design. Known for its ease of use, SketchUp is particularly useful during a project’s schematic design phase. Until now, however, it lacked robust analysis tools. Sefaira Concept fills that gap and allows designers to explore a variety of options for reducing energy impact early in a project’s life. Before a tool ... Read More
Evolutionary Analysis for Building Efficiency: Inventing Generative Tools for Diagramming Spatial Relationships

Christopher Boon, Corey T. Griffin, Sergio Palleroni, Huafen Hu, Lyee Chong, Ben Deines, and ZGF

This project attempts to utilize generative software in order to create an analytical system intended to enhance order and efficiency within groups of complexly inter-connected architectural programs. The focus of the research involves developing a parametric definition that can diagrammatically arrange spatial volumes. These volumes represent the various building functions (programs) in terms of square footage. The driving condition for these experiments is adjacency. The theory is that if two ... Read More