Green Buildings to Net-Zero Buildings: Using Autodesk CFD

In this class, we will present the use of Autodesk CFD for a new building project with a goal for net-zero energy compliance. The building and construction industries are responsible for about 40% of the global energy use and about 30% of the global carbon emissions, contributing to climate change. Energy-optimized building design is one of the green building principles that, by 2030, could reduce the carbon footprint and achieve reduction of building-related emissions by 50%—and deliver net-zero buildings by 2050. In an endeavor to design energy-efficient buildings, adoption of new technologies for enhancing indoor environment quality, thermal quality, and lighting quality are imperative. And implementation of such technologies needs validation for performance. Modeling and simulation software such as Autodesk CFD could be used to estimate the performance of the built environment and compare different design decisions in order to realize the opportunity to reduce energy consumption and, therefore, carbon emissions.