Increasing building energy efficiency through advances in materials

Materials advances could help to reduce the energy and environmental impacts of buildings. Globally, buildings use about 20% of primary energy and account for 20% of atmospheric emissions. Building energy consumption emanates from a variety of sources, some of which are related to the building envelope or fabric, some to the equipment in the building, and some to both. Opportunities for reducing energy use in buildings through innovative materials are therefore numerous, but there is no one system, component, or material whose improvement alone can solve the building energy problem. Many of the loads in a building are interactive, and this complicates cost/benefit analysis for new materials, components, and systems. Moreover, components and materials for buildings must meet stringent durability and cost/performance criteria to last the long service lifetimes of buildings and compete successfully in the marketplace.