1. A psychrometric chart is presented in the textbook as part of the chapter on
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Question
1. A psychrometric chart is presented in the textbook as part of the chapter on the building enclosure. What is the importance of psychrometrics for building science?
a. Psychrometrics helps us to better understand the insulating performance of many different types of insulation
b. The potential for water intrusion through any wall penetration is better understood by the coefficient of psychrometrics
c. Psychrometrics helps us to better understand the likelihood of condensation given the humidity level in the house and the temperature of cold surfaces along the building enclosure
d. Air leakage through the wall is increased if it has a higher psychrometric value
e. c and d
2. Wood that is used for the wall cavity is described as a ‘hygroscopic’ material. Which statement best describes the meaning of this term as well as the resulting performance characteristics?
a. Hygroscopic means that the material has an affinity for water and may take up water from the air during periods of high humidity
b. Framing lumber may be installed at a higher moisture content and will need to dry out during the several months following construction
c. With hygroscopic materials (wood) there will be swelling if the material takes on water, this may cause problems if this swelling is not considered in the building design
d. At very high moisture contents, wood is subject to decay
e. a, b, c, and d
3. Nuclear energy has some definite advocates and some strong critics. Which answer best describes the current situation with nuclear energy?
a. Advocates for nuclear energy point out that it does not add to CO2 emissions and does not reduce fossil fuel supplies
b. Earlier complaints about the disposal of waste nuclear material have been largely resolved with the approval of the Yuca Mountain disposal site
c. While there have been concerns due to nuclear energy disasters, new designs are safer and address many of the previous operational problems
d. Originally nuclear energy was touted as being very economical (‘too cheap to meter’) but building nuclear facilities and decommissioning old plants has made the economics much less attractive
e. a, c and d
4. As we consider using more renewable energy for housing, which answer best describes the current situation?
a. Renewable energy for housing is likely to increase considerably in the next four years as concerns about climate change are addressed at the federal level
b. One of the challenges in getting more renewable energy to houses is that the existing infrastructure that has been built around the fossil fuel industry
c. Low prices for natural gas and greater supply due to fracking represent an impediment to greater research and acceptance of renewable energy
d. Renewable energy has grown to 25% of American energy usage and is expected to grow by 2% for the next several years
e. b and c
5. Life cycle assessment (LCA) has been considered as a means of evaluating the comparative environmental impact of building materials. Which statement best describes LCA?
Select one:
a. LCA only monitors the energy inputs for manufacturing building materials and the energy inputs for disposal after useful life is completed
b. The best feature about LCA is its comparative ease of use and the limited data that is needed in order to provide a meaningful evaluation
c. While LCA has been demonstrated to be a powerful tool for evaluation, one of its limitations is that it requires considerable amounts of data about all of the manufacturing, transportation and disposal factors
d. With the development of product certification for lumber, LCA has been largely discarded as a meaningful evaluation protocol
Explanation / Answer
1) E , Psychrometrics helps us to better understand the likelihood of condensation given the humidity level in the house and the temperature of cold surfaces along the building enclosure. Air leakage through the wall is increased if it has a higher psychrometric value.
2) E
3) E
4) E, One of the challenges in getting more renewable energy to houses is that the existing infrastructure that has been built around the fossil fuel industry. Low prices for natural gas and greater supply due to fracking represent an impediment to greater research and acceptance of renewable energy.
5) C While LCA has been demonstrated to be a powerful tool for evaluation, one of its limitations is that it requires considerable amounts of data about all of the manufacturing, transportation and disposal factors
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