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Find out what's new at Symbiosis Lab

Stay connected with us on the latest publications, awards, events and press releases.

  1. 2024
    1. Nov
      1. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the The 2nd International Conference on Smart Systems and Power Management (IC2SPM 2024), Beirut, Lebanon: Autonomous Heat Loss Detection in Buildings for Efficient Façade Control and Energy management

      2. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Technology | Architecture + Design: Deep learning-based segmentation of thermal images for heat loss detection in building façade
      3. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the 4th International Conference on New Trends on Sustainable Energy (ICNTSE), November 2024, Alexandria, Egypt: Peer-To-Peer Heat Trading Between Buildings For Enhanced Economic And Environmental Performance
         

      4. Press release

        Dr. Araji was recognized for ASHRAE award in the President's reception for excellence in research at the University of Waterloo

    2. Oct
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy Conversion and Management: Thermal comfort-constrained nonlinear operational optimization of a solar-absorption-radiant cooling system
      2. Press release

        Dr. Araji's research profiled in Waterloo News: If these walls could ... generate energy?
    3. Sep
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy: Kinetics model with experimental validation for optimal microalgae generation in double-skin façades
    4. Aug
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Applied Energy: Utilizing deep learning towards real-time snow cover detection and energy loss estimation for solar modules
    5. Jul
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Applied Energy: Hierarchical optimization of district heating plants by integrating evolutionary and non-linear programming algorithms
    6. Jun
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2024 Mitacs Research Award with Steve Francis from Symbiosis Institute of Technology, India: Carbon sequestration using clay substrates with microalgae media in building façades

      2. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2024 Mitacs Research Award with Muhammad Ahtisham Sudheer from National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan: Wireless communication for optimal energy generation and exchange in urban environments

      3. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Renewable Energy: Optimization models for photosynthetic bioenergy generation in building façades
    7. May
      1. Press release

        Dr. Araji's research profiled in Waterloo News: Using AI to improve building energy use and comfort
      2. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Turkstra Talks in Urban Engineering, Waterloo, Canada: Urban Decarbonization: Modeling to optimize the Environmental Performance of Neighborhoods and Cities

      3. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2024 Mitacs Research Award with Malek Aloui from Carthage University, Tunisia: Machine learning applications towards efficient energy utilizations in urban centers

      4. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Renewable Energy: Influence of geometric design variables on the performance of a novel V-shaped cavity receiver
      5. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2024 Mitacs Accelerate with Canadian Museum of Architecture: Decreasing the energy performance gap and thermal loads in residential dwellings using machine learning and building energy modeling

    8. Apr
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy Storage: Optimizing the characteristic cooling curves of PCM-integrated thermally active buildings: Experimental and numerical investigations
      2. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy Conversion & Management: A novel approach to clean polygeneration using a triple-function compound parabolic solar collector
      3. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Building & Environment: Experimental validation of ventilated double-skin façades aided by neural networks and thermal modelling for heating demand reduction
    9. Feb
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy Conversion & Management: Machine learning-aided thermography for autonomous heat loss detection in buildings
    10. Jan
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Technology | Architecture + Design: Neural networks for monitoring microalgae biomass in building façades

      2. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the 4th International Conference on Smart Grid and Renewable Energy, Qatar: Pareto optimization for enhanced building energy efficiency and bioenergy generation
      3. Award

        Dr. Araji received the 2023 ASHRAE Decarbonization Challenge Award, one of 9 projects selected out of 43 submitted by 37 ASHRAE Chapters worldwide: Multi-plenum fan array coupled with double skin façades integrating microalgae photobioreactors towards advanced carbon bio-fixation and thermal energy preservation
  2. 2023
    1. Aug
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy & Buildings: Computational procedure of solar irradiation: A new approach for high performance façades with experimental validation
    2. Jun
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2023 Mitacs Research Award with Muhammad Arham from National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan: Neural network algorithms for effective human visual comfort in design

    3. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2023 Mitacs Research Award with Ayush Dabra from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, India: Machine learning towards optimizing urban energy performance

      2. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2023 Mitacs Research Award from Mitacs with Aastha Patel from Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India: Algal bio-responsive façades for high performance built environments and cellular growth

    4. Apr
      1. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the International Conference on Mechanical, Automotive and Mechatronics Engineering, Dubai: A novel genetic algorithm for optimizing microalgae residence time in flat panel photobioreactors
      2. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Net-Zero Workshop - Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy, Waterloo, Canada: Decoding Emissions: Key Indicators for Energy Efficiency Measures in Buildings and Communities

      3. Award

        Dr. Araji received the New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) Exploration Grant: Monitoring energy flow of urban buildings using aerial multi-modality imaging audits

    5. Mar
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Sustainable Energy, Grids & Networks: Snow loss modeling for solar modules using image processing and deep learning
      2. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Waterloo Research Talks: Sustainable Urban Environments, Cambridge, Canada: High performance architecture: Towards a zero-carbon mandate for environmental sustainability
    6. Feb
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Sustainable Energy Technologies & Assessments: Multivariate optimization towards energy balance with geometric constraints of building design and urban space intensity
    7. Jan
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy & Buildings: A new trigonometric model for solar radiation and shading factor: Varying profiles of building façades and urban eccentricities
      2. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Energy: Multi-objective problem of optimizing heat transfer and energy production in algal bioreactive façades
      3. Press release

        Dr. Araji was appointed as Associate Director of Research at the School of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, University of Waterloo
  3. 2022
    1. Nov
      1. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the 3rd uSim Conference of IBPSA, Scotland: Integral model with machine learning for balancing heat transfer and energy generation in algal bio-reactive façades
      2. Press release

        Dr. Araji was appointed as Director of Architectural Engineering at the Civil & Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Waterloo

    2. Oct
      1. Press release

        Dr. Araji wasa panelist at Building Climate Resilience, Office of Sustainability, University of Manitoba, Canada

    3. Sep
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Building Engineering: Computational fluid dynamics using finite volume method: A numerical model for Double Skin Façades with renewable energy source in cold climates
    4. Jul
      1. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the International Conference on Electrical, Computer and Energy Technologies, Czech Republic: Optimization of cooled building-integrated photovoltaics using Powell’s conjugate direction method in Canada
    5. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2022 Mitacs Research Award with Gnabeli Yao from ENSEEIHT-département Mécanique des Fluides, France: Contemporary energy modeling for double skin façades in cold climate

      2. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2022 Mitacs Research Award with Kunal Gupta Birla from Institute of Technology & Science, India: Image processing analysis towards optimizing algal cultivation in photobioreactors

      3. Exhibition

        Symbiosis Lab developed a model for Sustainable Housing to be exhibited at the Canadian Museum of Architecture
      4. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2022 Mitacs Research Award with Miriam Consejo  Camarasa from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, Mexico: Network and inter-building communication in the urban environment

  4. 2021
    1. Aug
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Building Engineering: Co-model for urban density permutations and building form optimization with high-performance energy criteria
    2. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2021 Mitacs Research Award with Jahanvi Budania from LNM Institute of Information Technology, India: Contemporary energy modeling in façades

      2. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2021 Mitacs Research Award with Xinyi Zhang from Beijing Institute of Technology, China; and Kamalesh Manoharan from PSG of Technology, India: Renewable microalgae modeling through digital image processing

  5. 2020
    1. Oct
      1. Presented + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the ASHRAE Topical Conference Proceedings, USA: Optimization of double skin façades with integrated renewable energy source in cold climates
    2. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2020 Mitacs Research Award with Lesly Galaviz Fuentes from Instituto Tecnológicoy de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, Mexico: Renewable microalgae optimization for net-zero energy buildings

      2. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2020 Mitacs Research Award with Regina Tan from Hong Kong University, Hong Kong; and Shashank Shukla from Govt. College of Engineering & Tech, India: Performance optimization of building envelopes

    3. Feb
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Canadian Steel Conference, Winnipeg, Canada: Double skin façades: In-situ testing for energy production and hygro-thermal performance

  6. 2019
    1. Dec
      1. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the Sustainable Built Environment D-A-CH Conference, Austria: Surface-to-volume ratio: How building geometry impacts solar energy production and heat gain through envelopes
    2. Jul
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji, Dr. Shahid, and Qing Su presented at the Price Industries, Winnipeg, Canada: Particle accelerated collision technology

    3. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2019 Mitacs Research Award with Lisa Wagner from Ulm University, Germany and M. Rahal from Monastir University, Tunisia: Advances in computational tools for energy efficient buildings

    4. Mar
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the International Conference on Innovative Applied Energy IAPE '19, Oxford, UK: Model for solar energy utilization in buildings: impact of inclination angle & orientation with shadow patterns

  7. 2018
    1. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2018 Mitacs Research Award with Houssem Eddine from Monastir University, Tunisia: Computational tools for energy efficient buildings

    2. Apr
      1. Award

        Dr. Araji received the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant: Symbiosis optimization of double­skin façades and interactive image-based networking in cold climates

    3. Feb
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Building Engineering: Symbiosis optimization of building envelopes and micro-algae photobioreactors

  8. 2017
    1. May
      1. Award

        Symbiosis Lab received the 2017 Mitacs Research Award with Qing Su from Hunan University, China: Renewable microalgae optimization for net-zero energy buildings

      2. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the Journal of Technology | Architecture + Design: A mathematical model toward energy optimization with building-integrated photovoltaics
    2. Apr
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Lebanese American University, Byblos, Lebanon: Responsive Sustainable Design: Accentuating the surplus from rationale to process and opportunity

  9. 2016
    1. Nov
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction, Winnipeg, Canada: Integration of a renewable energy systems with steel structure façades

    2. Aug
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) in the Journal of Sustainable Cities & Society: Pilot-study on airborne PM2.5 filtration with particle accelerated collision technology in office environments
    3. Jul
      1. Presentation + Publication

        Symbiosis Lab presented at the 3rd International Conference on Renewable Energies for Developing Countries, Lebanon: A parametric design algorithm for building integrated photovoltaics with net-zero energy performance
    4. Mar
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Stantec Consulting Office, Winnipeg, Canada: Architecturally exposed steel construction

    5. Feb
      1. Competition

        Dr. Araji won the Warming Huts v.2016: An Art + Architecture Competition on Ice with two co-applicants from industry and a team of seven students

  10. 2015
    1. Mar
      1. Featured service

        Dr. Araji named Trusted Jury member for 2015 Hans Fischer Fellows at Technical University of Munich to determine their future research areas and directions

  11. 2014
    1. Nov
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon: Responsive sustainable design: Accentuating the surplus from rationale to process and opportunity

    2. Jul
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Oskar von Miller Forum, Munich, Germany: Building materials: Specification, detailing and technology innovation

      2. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Institute for Advanced Studies, Garching, Germany: Performative architectural typologies integral to the energy equation

    3. Jun
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the International Graduate School of Science and Engineering (IGSSE), Burghausen, Germany: Regenerative design leading to surplus in energy & sustainability

      2. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at TÜV SÜD AG, Munich, Germany: Preeminent environmental design: Conceptualization & implementation in architecture

      3. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Oskar von Miller Forum, Munich, Germany: Lessons and guidelines on building the world’s tallest towers

    4. May
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Oskar von Miller Forum, Munich, Germany: Positive energy practice: Vision, reality and performance

      2. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the Oskar von Miller Forum, Munich, Germany: Environmental augmentation for high-performance urban systems

    5. Mar
      1. Featured service

        Dr. Araji held Guest Scientist position for one term residency at the Oskar von Miller Forum in Munich, Germany

      2. Award

        Dr. Araji was awarded the 2014 TÜV Süd Stiftung Visiting Professorship associated with the outstanding scientist for the year from the Institute for Advanced Studies at Technical University of Munich, Germany

      3. Featured service

        Dr. Araji served on the Advisory Group for the NexusHaus project between Technical University of Munich and University of Texas, Austin for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon in Irvine, California

  12. 2013
    1. Sep
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in Leukos, the journal of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES): Paradigm in sustainability and environmental design: lighting utilization contributing to surplus-energy office buildings
    2. Apr
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture, University of Arizona, USA: The language of performance

    3. Feb
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the College of Design, Iowa State University, USA: Un-measurable performance

  13. 2012
    1. Jul
      1. Publication

        Symbiosis Lab published in the journal of Materials & Design: Realizing the environmental impact of soft materials: criteria for utilization and design specification
  14. 2011
    1. Feb
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the University of Manitoba, Canada: Technology & design

    2. Jan
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the University of Manitoba, Canada: Ecology & design

  15. 2010
    1. Dec
      1. Publication

        Dr. Araji published in the 4th International Conference on Energy Sustainability, ASME, USA: Systems integration for cost effective carbon neutral buildings: a masdar headquarters case study
    2. Oct
      1. Publication

        Dr. Araji published in the Journal of Lighting Research & Technology: A novel way of utilising Radiance-Matlab visualisation for facade design optimisation
    3. Apr
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the University of Oklahoma, USA: Integrated sustainable practice & innovation in design

    4. Feb
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the University at Buffalo, USA: A holistic approach to design & experimentation

  16. 2009
    1. Oct
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA: Architectural practice: Principles & materials of sustainable design

    2. Sep
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji co-presented with Weismantle P, Ventsch L, and Boyer J at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA: Schematic design & team integration

    3. Mar
      1. Presentation

        Dr. Araji presented at the University of Notre Dame, USA: Architecture design & sustainable technologies

  17. 2008
    1. Apr
      1. Publication

        Dr. Araji published in the Journal of Architectural Science Review: Window sizing procedures based on vertical illuminance and degree of discomfort glare in buildings interiors
  18. 2007
    1. Jun
      1. Publication

        Dr. Araji published in the Journal of Architectural Science Review: An examination of visual comfort in transitional spaces