Sustainability trends for buildings require new construction systems to foster energy efficiency and environmentally friendly buildings. Green roofs are interesting construction systems because they provide both aesthetic and environmental benefits. This paper continues a long-term research in order to evaluate and improve the thermal behaviour and sustainability of extensive green roofs. Simul...

Title of Document: INVESTIGATING CRUMB RUBBER AMENDMENTS FOR EXTENSIVE GREEN ROOF SUBSTRATES Sonia Lorelly Solano Torres, MS, 2010 Directed By: John D. Lea-Cox, PhD. Chair, Plant Sciences and Landscape Architecture Department Extensive green roof systems can mitigate urban stormwater by capturing rainfall and reducing runoff volume. Green roof substrates, often made from expanded shales, slates...

We assessed the total energy required to manufacture, install and maintain an extensive, sedumplanted green roof over its assumed life of 20 years in the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. using the method of emergy analysis. We estimated its environmental benefits as the sum of summer electricity savings due to cooler building temperatures, primary production of biomass and reduction in intensity...

Urbanization leads to higher phosphorus (P) concentration in urban catchments. Among different stormwater retention measures, green roofs are the least efficient in phosphorus retention. Moreover, much research has shown that green roofs act as sources of phosphorus, and they can emit P in significant loads. In this study low P emission green roof substrate was developed based on the proposed s...

Green roofs have the potential to function as islands of biodiversity within urban and suburban environments. However, plant diversity is constrained by the harsh environment of a green roof, especially summertime water deficit and heat stress. We hypothesized that Sedum species, which are highly tolerant of the roof-top environment, would reduce peak soil temperature and increase performance o...

Urban land area in the United States is projected to increase to 8.1% of total land area by the year 2050. These human-dominated environments create conditions that degrade both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. If cities are to reduce their environmental impact, innovative practices must be developed that replace ecosystem services lost during the urbanization process. This study evaluated t...

To educate the Purdue community and general public about the environmental benefits of green roofs, the Boiler Green Initiative (BGI) installed Tippecanoe County’s first green roof on Purdue’s campus in May 2009. The extensive green roof is approximately 165 m and consists of vegetation and pavers to make the space an aesthetically pleasing, usable environment. A monitoring system records surfa...

Global warming has become a threat of our time. It poses challenges to the existence of all biota on this earth and has made a clear impact on the level of energy and water consumption. No doubt, increase in the ambient temperature increases indoor and outdoor temperature level of the buildings which catalyzes the use of energy and cost intensive mechanical air-conditioning systems. Green roof ...

due to the high value of land, low area of green space and its unsuitable distribution in the regions, the use of green roof technology in iran’s metropolises seems a suitable option in order to improve the quality of urban environment. using hierarchical analysis technique (ahp) and a survey research, this study identifies challenges which prevent the extension of green roofs in iran. so by st...