Authors: Yash Shukla, Rajan Rawal, Pamela Fennell, Steve Evans, Tej Chavda, Sammit Pancholi
Achieving India's Nationally Determined Contribution of reducing carbon emissions to 35%
of 2005 values while ensuring safe and dignified housing and clean energy for all is an
unprecedented challenge of global significance. A detailed understanding of the Indian
building stock is a critical prerequisite to addressing this challenge
Authors: Rajan Rawal, Sameer Maithel, Yash Shukla, Sonal Kumar, Greesha Gowri, Jayamin Patel, Satyendra Rana, Vishnu Vardhan
Authors: Tej Chavda, Sammit Pancholi, Kartikay Sharma, Rajan Rawal, Paul Ruyssevelt, Pamela Fennell
The report further includes the methodology to develop a 3D geometrical model for a pilot study area and its outcome, challenges faced, and lesson learned.
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Developing Cost-Effective and Low-Carbon Options to Meet India’s Space Cooling Demand in Urban Residential Buildings Through 2050
Global Cooling Challenge, Published in SEEM’s Energy Manager Magazine, Jan-Mar 2020
Authors: Archana Walia, Vida Rozite, Dr. Sukumar Devotta, Saswati Chetia, Sameer Maithel, Ankit Kalanki, Iain Campbell, Funder-Kristensen T, Leinweber D, Vishnu Vardhan
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India-UK Joint Integrated Urban Model for Built Environment Energy Research (iNUMBER), January 2019
Authors: Rajan Rawal, Himani Pandya, Tithi Soladhara, Paul Ruyssevelt, Kathryn Janda, Pamela Fennell
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India-UK Joint Integrated Urban Model for Built Environment Energy Research (iNUMBER), January 2019
Authors: Mona Iyer, Rajan Rawal, Sachin S, Himani Pandya, Asha Joshi and Kathryn Janda
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India-UK Joint Integrated Urban Model for Built Environment Energy Research (iNUMBER), January 2019
Authors: Rajan Rawal, Veeren Poola, Kartikay Sharma, Paul Ruyssevelt, Pamela Fennell
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India-UK Joint Integrated Urban Model for Built Environment Energy Research (iNUMBER), January 2019
Authors: Rajan Rawal, Himani Pandya, Tithi Soladhara, Paul Ruyssevelt, Kathryn Janda, Pamela Fennell
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India-UK Joint Integrated Urban Model for Built Environment Energy Research (iNUMBER), January 2019
Authors: Mona Iyer, Rajan Rawal, Sachin S, Himani Pandya, Asha Joshi and Kathryn Janda
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India-UK Joint Integrated Urban Model for Built Environment Energy Research (iNUMBER), January 2019
Authors: Rajan Rawal, Himani Pandya, Tithi Soladhara, Paul Ruyssevelt, Kathryn Janda and Pamela Fennell
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This case study demonstrates how simulation-driven facade design can significantly improve indoor thermal comfort while reducing building energy demand. Using advanced modelling tools in DesignBuilder , the study evaluates how design parameters such as glazing, shading devices, orientation, insulation, and thermal mass influence occupant comfort and building performance. Through an iterative optimisation process, the project identifies facade strategies that balance daylight, solar heat gain, and ventilation to create more climate-responsive buildings. The analysis highlights the importance of passive design interventions, particularly external shading and appropriate glazing selection, in minimizing overheating and improving indoor comfort conditions without excessive reliance on mechanical cooling. By integrating performance simulation into early-stage design decision-making, the study showcases how architects and engineers can develop energy-efficient and occupant-centric buildings using data-driven methods.
This case study explores how integrated HVAC optimisation and renewable energy design can dramatically improve the energy performance and resilience of buildings in remote or energy-constrained locations. Using advanced simulation workflows in DesignBuilder, researchers evaluated different HVAC configurations for the Bundanon Art Gallery in Australia, comparing an existing ground-source heat pump system with an optimised hybrid solution combining VRF, VAV, and water-cooled chillers. The study demonstrates how system-level integration can reduce inefficiencies often hidden in conventional HVAC designs while maintaining strict indoor environmental conditions required for sensitive spaces such as galleries and museums. The optimised design achieved substantial reductions in annual energy use and HVAC electricity demand, while also supporting the transition toward near off-grid energy operation through renewable energy integration. By combining performance simulation, energy systems thinking, and climate-responsive design strategies, the project highlights how buildings can simultaneously achieve occupant comfort, operational efficiency, and long-term sustainability in a low-carbon future.
In the summer of 2024, parts of Delhi, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra experienced surface temperatures exceeding 60°C. Heatwave-related deaths made headlines, and the demand for air conditioning strained the power grid. However, if we ask any urban planner, municipal commissioner, or climate officer in India about the actual temperatures on their city’s streets (particularly in dense, low-income neighbourhoods rather than at airports or research campuses), one will likely encounter an uncomfortable silence,,,
Prof. Rajan Rawal discusses how CEPT University is reshaping build environments
The study investigates the influence of indigenous tree species on indoor latent cooling loads in Ahmedabad, India, having a hot and dry climate. Focusing on ten mature tree species, and its phenological characteristics the impact on the indoor latent cooling load is analysed for a defined volumetric space under steady-state conditions. The analysis is based on nine representative conditions derived from the Indian Model for Adaptive Comfort (IMAC) for air-conditioned spaces, considering average dry bulb temperature and relative humidity.
Published in DownToEarth, 21 June 2024
Authors: Himani Pandya, Kartikay Sharma, Sachin S., Tithi Soladhara
Published in GRIHA Annual magazine Shashwat, Volume 5, Issue 6, December 2019
This article elaborates on various tools that can aid cities in planning the provision of sustainable energy and water services to citizens.
India’s cities may already be hot and overcrowded, but estimates say that the number of buildings in India is expected to double in the next 20 years.
As India undergoes this huge, largely unregulated development boom, vast numbers of new homes and buildings are being constructed in the cheapest and quickest way possible; mostly from brick, steel and concrete, which can quickly turn homes to ovens in the summer.
The warmer it gets, the more we use air conditioning. The more we use air conditioning, the warmer it gets. Is there any way out of this trap?
Published in Insite Magazine
Volume 10 | issue 07| September 2017
Published in Chitralekha Magazine
Vol. 3808(13)- July 2015
Published in Indian Architects & Builder
Vol. 28(5)- January 2015
Published in Indian Architects & Builder
Vol. 28(4)- December 2014
Published in Indian Architects & Builder
Vol. 28(3)- November 2014
Author: Melissa Smith
Published in Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Journal
Vol. 17- No. 6 – November – December 2014
Published in Indian Architects & Builder
Vol. 28(2)- October 2014
Published in Indian Architects & Builder
Vol. 28(2)- October 2014
Author: Melissa Smith
Published in Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Journal
Vol. 17- No.5 – September – October 2014
Development Team: Prof. Rajan Rawal, Bhavya Pathak, Prof. Yash Shukla, Dr. Shailesh Kr. Agrawal, Manish Kumar, Consultant, S Vikash Ranjan, Govinda Somani, Prof. Rashmin Damle, Palak Patel
Graphics and layout by: Mona Galsar, CRDF, CEPT University, Dalip Kumar
Authors: Malcolm Cook, Yash Shukla, Rajan Rawal, Dennis Loveday, Luciano Caruggi de Faria, Charalampos Angelopoulos
With contributions from: Sanyogita Manu, Deepta Mishra, Jayamin Patel, Aniket Deore, Saranya Anbarasu, Devna Vyas, Sanjeev Kumar
Graphics and layout by: Mona Galsar
Authors: Satish Kumar, Aleisha Khan, Anurag Bajpai, G. S. Rao, Jyotirmay Mathur, Laurie Chamberlain, P. C. Thomas, Rajan Rawal, Ravi Kapoor, Surekha Tetali, Vasudha Lathey, Vishal Garg
