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Recently, the concept of green architecture has become a common interest in various disciplines; innovative materials are continuously developed to fulfill the green architecture requirements. Translucent concrete (TC) or light-transmitting concrete (LTC) is produced as one of those innovative types of materials which allows external light to transmit through interior spaces by using some light elements like optical fibers with concrete. This paper aggregates and reviews the previous studies in terms of translucent concrete' applications, proper ratio and arrangement pattern of optical fibers, light-transmitting, mechanical, thermal and energy-saving properties. We reviewed the remarkable studies carried out especially last 10 years in translucent concrete techniques. Notwithstanding the advantages, literature concurs that several gaps were found in translucent concrete studies. Translucent concrete' strength and proper ratio of fibers are key limitations. The gap between studies examining the effect of using different ratios of optical fibers on the material strength and on energy-saving concluded that the proper ratio of fibers should be less than 5% for strength, and the optimum ratio ranges 4.3% to 6% for energy-saving. We identify possible areas for future research and suggest recommendations in the conclusion to fill these gaps.

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Façades as a part of urban areas' components; play an important role in sound propagation which affect sound environment in a street canyon. A parametric study was performed in order to investigate the influence of façade's formation by segments ratio on sound fields in urban streets in terms of sound pressure level (SPL). A computer simulation technique based on a hybrid method combining ray tracing and image source modeling was adopted, and an omnidirectional sound source was used. Series of computer simulations of varied numbers of segments that form façades were investigated in order to evaluate the real effect of the diffusion reflections that happened by façades with formations; relative to the smooth façades on sound propagation in streets. Results, in terms of relative sound pressure levels, show that a positive effect can be observed in the reduction of sound levels.