Building Technology and Urban Systems

About Us +
Researchers in the Building Technology & Urban Systems Division (BTUS) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory develop data and technologies that increase energy efficiency and improve the health, safety and comfort of building occupants, in the United States and worldwide.

We work closely with industry partners, academics and government officials to achieve these goals, and share our research widely
Research +
We are at the forefront of cutting-edge research that redefines building technology and explores all areas of urban systems.

We have been leaders for decades in developing energy-efficient windows, improving indoor air quality, coming up with new ideas to fix the nation's electricity grid, and so much more.

Visit our research areas at the right to find out more.
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Publications +
Enjoy presentations from Building Technology & Urban systems research experts on a wide variety of topics in the areas of building energy efficiency, the electricity grid and how it relates to buildings and much more.
- Presentations
News
Tools & Guides +
Explore our tools, guidebooks and software and download for free.

We offer a variety of technologies designed to simulate and model real-world circumstances to assist in energy-saving programs and help building owners build better buildings. These tools can help calculate performance of building systems like windows and shades, help consumers and builders pick the best windows for a variety of applications and much more.

2000

Levinson, Ronnen M., William W. Delp, Darryl J. Dickerhoff, and Mark P. Modera."Effects of airflow infiltration on the thermal performance of internally insulated ducts."Energy and Buildings 32.3 (2000) 345-354. DOI

Konopacki, Steven J., and Hashem Akbari."Energy savings calculations for heat island reduction strategies in Baton Rouge, Sacramento, and Salt Lake City."2000 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings 9 (2000) 215-226.

Akbari, Hashem, Steven J. Konopacki, and Danny S. Parker."Updates on revision to ASHRAE Standard 90.2: including roof reflectivity for residential buildings."2000 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings 1 (2000) 1-11.

Pomerantz, Melvin, Brian Pon, Hashem Akbari, and Sheng-Chieh Chang."The effect of pavements' temperatures on air temperatures in large cities." (2000).

Taha, Haider, Alan K. Meier, Weijun Gao, and Toshio Ojima."Mitigation of urban heat islands: meteorology, energy, and airquality impacts."Journal of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Engineering 529 (2000) 69-76.

Akbari, Hashem, and Arthur H. Rosenfeld."Cool communities."Macmillan Encyclopedia of Energy 1 (2000) 305-8.

Pomerantz, Melvin, Hashem Akbari, and John T. Harvey."Cooler reflective pavements give benefits beyond energy savings: durability and illumination."ACEEE 2000 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings 8 (2000) 293-304.

Levinson, Ronnen M., William W. Delp, Darryl J. Dickerhoff, and Mark P. Modera."Effects of air infiltration on the effective thermal conductivity of internal fiberglass insulation and on the delivery of thermal capacity via ducts." (2000).

Levinson, Ronnen M., William W. Delp, Darryl J. Dickerhoff, and Mark P. Modera."Effects of Airflow Infiltration on the Thermal Performance of Internally-insulated Ducts."Energy & Buildings 32 (2000) 345-354.

Wray, Craig P., Mary Ann Piette, Max H. Sherman, Ronnen M. Levinson, Nance Matson, Debbie A. Driscoll, Jennifer A. McWilliams, Tengfang T. Xu, and William W. Delp."Residential Commissioning: A Review of Related Literature." (2000).

1999

Taha, Haider, and Robert Bornstein."Urbanization of meteorological models: implications on simulated heat islands and air quality."Proceedings of the International Congress of Biometeorology and International Conference on Urban Climatology (ICB-ICUC) (1999).

Taha, Haider, Steven J. Konopacki, and Sasa Gabersek."Impacts of large-scale surface modifications on meteorological conditions and energy use: a 10-region modeling study."Theoretical and Applied Climatology 62.3-4 (1999) 175-185. DOI

Akbari, Hashem, Leanna S. Rose, and Haider Taha."Characterizing the fabric of the urban environment: a case study of Sacramento, California." (1999). DOI

Akbari, Hashem, Steven J. Konopacki, and Melvin Pomerantz."Cooling energy savings potential of reflective roofs for residential and commercial buildings in the United States."Energy - The International Journal 25 (1999) 391-407. DOI

Taha, Haider."Modifying a mesoscale meteorological model to better incorporate urban heat storage: a bulk-parameterization approach."Journal of Applied Meteorology 38 (1999) 466-473. DOI

Pomerantz, Melvin, Hashem Akbari, Paul H. Berdahl, Steven J. Konopacki, Haider Taha, and Arthur H. Rosenfeld."Reflective surfaces for cooler buildings and cities."Philosophical Magazine Part B 79 (1999) 1457-1476. DOI

1998

Akbari, Hashem, and Steven J. Konopacki."The impact of reflectivity and emissivity of roofs on building cooling and heating energy use."Proceedings of Thermal VII: Thermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Buildings VII (1998).

Akbari, Hashem, and Sarah E. Bretz."Cool systems for hot cities."Professional Roofing 32-35 (1998) 1-5.

Taha, Haider, Steven J. Konopacki, and Hashem Akbari."Impacts of lowered urban air temperatures on precursor emission and ozone air quality."Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association 48.9 (1998) 860-865. DOI

Akbari, Hashem, Lisa M. Gartland, and Steven J. Konopacki."Measured energy savings of light-colored roofs: results from three California demonstration sites."1998 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings 3 (1998) 1-13.

Konopacki, Steven J., Lisa M. Gartland, Hashem Akbari, and Leo I. Rainer."Demonstration of energy savings of cool roofs." (1998). DOI

Taha, Haider."Impacts of cool cities on air quality: A preliminary modeling assessment for Nashville, TN, Dallas, TX and Atlanta, GA." (1998). DOI

McPherson, E. Gregory, Klaus I. Scott, and James R. Simpson."Estimating cost effectiveness of residential yard trees for improving air quality in Sacramento, California, using existing models."Atmospheric Environment 32.1 (1998) 75-84. DOI

Akbari, Hashem, Steven J. Konopacki, Danny S. Parker, Bruce A. Wilcox, Charles N. Eley, and Martha G. VanGeem."Calculations in support of SSP 90.1 for reflective roofs."ASHRAE Transactions 104.1A (1998) 984-995.

Rosenfeld, Arthur H., Hashem Akbari, Joseph J. Romm, and Melvin Pomerantz."Cool communities: strategies for heat island mitigation and smog reduction."Energy and Buildings 28 (1998) 51-62. DOI