Search results for: building energy performance criteria

Authors: H. Nejadriahi

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A growing demand for sustainability makes sustainability as one of the significant debates of nowadays. Energy saving is one of the main criteria to be considered in the context of sustainability. Reducing energy use in buildings is one of the most important ways to reduce humans’ overall environmental impact. Taking this into consideration, study of different design strategies, which can assist in reducing energy use and subsequently improving the sustainability level of today's buildings would be an essential task. The sustainability level of a building is highly affected by the sustainability performance of its components. One of the main building components, which can have a great impact on energy saving and sustainability level of the building, is its facade. The aim of this study is to investigate on the role of facade in sustainability enhancement of the contemporary buildings of Iran. In this study, the concept of sustainability in architecture, the building facades, and their relationship to sustainability are explained briefly. Following that, a number of contemporary Iranian buildings are discussed and analyzed in terms of different design strategies used in their facades in accordance to the sustainability concepts. The methods used in this study are descriptive and analytic. The results of this paper would assist in generating a wider vision and a source of inspiration for the current designers to design and create environmental and sustainable buildings for the future.

Keywords: building facade, contemporary buildings, Iran, sustainability

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Authors: Moataz M. Hamed, Khalid S. M. Al Hagla, Zeyad El Sayad

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Thinking in design energy-efficiency and high-performance green buildings require a different design mechanism and design approach than conventional buildings to achieve more sustainable result. By reasoning about specific issues at the correct time in the design process, the design team can minimize negative impacts, maximize building performance and keep both first and operation costs low. This paper attempts to investigate and exploit the sustainable dimension of building information modeling (BIM) in designing high-performance green buildings that require less energy for operation, emit less carbon dioxide and provide a conducive indoor environment for occupants through early phases of the design process. This objective was attained by a critical and extensive literature review that covers the following issues: the value of considering green strategies in the early design stage, green design workflow, and BIM-based performance analysis. Then the research proceeds with a case study that provides an in-depth comparative analysis of building performance evaluation between an office building in Alexandria, Egypt that was designed by the conventional design process with the same building if taking into account sustainability consideration and BIM-based sustainable analysis integration early through the design process. Results prove that using sustainable capabilities of building information modeling (BIM) in early stages of the design process side by side with green design workflow promote buildings performance and sustainability outcome.

Keywords: BIM, building performance analysis, BIM-based sustainable analysis, green building design

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Authors: Ludovic Favre, Thibaut M. Schafer, Jean-Luc Robyr, Elena-Lavinia Niederhäuser

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This paper presents an optimization method based on genetic algorithm for the energy management inside buildings developed in the frame of the project Smart Living Lab (SLL) in Fribourg (Switzerland). This algorithm optimizes the interaction between renewable energy production, storage systems and energy consumers. In comparison with standard algorithms, the innovative aspect of this project is the extension of the smart regulation over three simultaneous criteria: the energy self-consumption, the decrease of greenhouse gas emissions and operating costs. The genetic algorithm approach was chosen due to the large quantity of optimization variables and the non-linearity of the optimization function. The optimization process includes also real time data of the building as well as weather forecast and users habits. This information is used by a physical model of the building energy resources to predict the future energy production and needs, to select the best energetic strategy, to combine production or storage of energy in order to guarantee the demand of electrical and thermal energy. The principle of operation of the algorithm as well as typical output example of the algorithm is presented.

Keywords: building's energy, control system, energy management, energy storage, genetic optimization algorithm, greenhouse gases, modelling, renewable energy

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Authors: Carolina Aparicio-Fernández, Alejandro Vilar Abad, Mar Cañada Soriano, Jose-Luis Vivancos

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The building sector is responsible for 40% of the total energy consumption in the European Union (EU). Thus, implementation of strategies for quantifying and reducing buildings energy consumption is indispensable for reaching the EU’s carbon neutrality and energy efficiency goals. Each Member State has transposed the European Directives according to its own peculiarities: existing technical legislation, constructive solutions, climatic zones, etc. Therefore, in accordance with the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, Member States have developed different Energy Performance Certificate schemes, using proposed energy simulation software-tool for each national or regional area. Energy Performance Certificates provide a powerful and comprehensive information to predict, analyze and improve the energy demand of new and existing buildings. Energy simulation software and databases allow a better understanding of the current constructive reality of the European building stock. However, Energy Performance Certificates still have to face several issues to consider them as a reliable and global source of information since different calculation tools are used that do not allow the connection between them. In this document, TRNSYS (TRaNsient System Simulation program) software is used to calculate the energy demand of a building, and it is compared with the energy labeling obtained with Spanish Official software-tools. We demonstrate the possibility of using not official software-tools to calculate the Energy Performance Certificate. Thus, this approach could be used throughout the EU and compare the results in all possible cases proposed by the EU Member States. To implement the simulations, an isolated single-family house with different construction solutions is considered. The results are obtained for every climatic zone of the Spanish Technical Building Code.

Keywords: energy demand, energy performance certificate EPBD, trnsys, buildings

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Authors: Qiong He, S. Thomas Ng

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Upgrading the thermal performance of building envelope of existing residential buildings is an effective way to reduce heat gain or heat loss. Overhang device is a common solution for building envelope improvement as it can cut down solar heat gain and thereby can reduce the energy used for space cooling in summer time. Despite that, overhang can increase the demand for indoor heating in winter due to its function of lowering the solar heat gain. Obviously, overhang has different impacts on energy use in different climatic zones which have different energy demand. To evaluate the impact of overhang device on building energy performance under different climates of China, an energy analysis model is built up in a computer-based simulation program known as DesignBuilder based on the data of a typical high-rise residential building. The energy simulation results show that single overhang is able to cut down around 5% of the energy consumption of the case building in the stand-alone situation or about 2% when the building is surrounded by other buildings in regions which predominantly rely on space cooling though it has no contribution to energy reduction in cold region. In regions with cold summer and cold winter, adding overhang over windows can cut down around 4% and 1.8% energy use with and without adjoining buildings, respectively. The results indicate that overhang might not an effective shading device to reduce the energy consumption in the mixed climate or cold regions.

Keywords: overhang, energy analysis, computer-based simulation, design builder, high-rise residential building, climate, BIM model

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Authors: Liang Zhao, Jili Zhang, Chongquan Zhong

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Energy consumption data, in particular those involving public buildings, are impacted by many factors: the building structure, climate/environmental parameters, construction, system operating condition, and user behavior patterns. Traditional methods for data analysis are insufficient. This paper delves into the data mining technology to determine its application in the analysis of building energy consumption data including energy consumption prediction, fault diagnosis, and optimal operation. Recent literature are reviewed and summarized, the problems faced by data mining technology in the area of energy consumption data analysis are enumerated, and research points for future studies are given.

Keywords: data mining, data analysis, prediction, optimization, building operational performance

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Authors: Bin Su

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Auckland has a temperate climate with comfortable warm, dry summers and mild, wet winters. An Auckland school normally does not need air conditioning for cooling during the summer and only needs heating during the winter. The Auckland school building thermal design should more focus on winter thermal performance and indoor thermal comfort for energy efficiency. This field study of testing indoor and outdoor air temperatures, relative humidity and indoor surface temperatures of three classrooms with different envelopes were carried out in the Avondale College during the winter months in 2013. According to the field study data, this study is to compare and evaluate winter thermal performance and indoor thermal conditions of school buildings with different envelopes.

Keywords: building envelope, building mass effect, building thermal comfort, building thermal performance, school building

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Authors: Mathieu Bourdeau, Philippe Basset, Julien Waeytens, Elyes Nefzaoui

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As residential buildings account for a third of the overall energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in Europe, building energy modeling is an essential tool to reach energy efficiency goals. In the energy modeling process, calibration is a mandatory step to obtain accurate and reliable energy simulations. Nevertheless, the comparison between simulation results and the actual building energy behavior often highlights a significant performance gap. The literature discusses different origins of energy performance gaps, from building design to building operation. Then, building operation description in energy models, especially energy usages and users’ behavior, plays an important role in the reliability of simulations but is also the most accessible target for post-occupancy energy management and optimization. Therefore, the present study aims to discuss results on the calibration ofresidential building energy models using real operation data. Data are collected through a sensor network of more than 180 sensors and advanced energy meters deployed in three collective residential buildings undergoing major retrofit actions. The sensor network is implemented at building scale and in an eight-apartment sample. Data are collected for over one year and half and coverbuilding energy behavior – thermal and electricity, indoor environment, inhabitants’ comfort, occupancy, occupants behavior and energy uses, and local weather. Building energy simulations are performed using a physics-based building energy modeling software (Pleaides software), where the buildings’features are implemented according to the buildingsthermal regulation code compliance study and the retrofit project technical files. Sensitivity analyses are performed to highlight the most energy-driving building features regarding each end-use. These features are then compared with the collected post-occupancy data. Energy-driving features are progressively replaced with field data for a step-by-step calibration of the energy model. Results of this study provide an analysis of energy performance gap on an existing residential case study under deep retrofit actions. It highlights the impact of the different building features on the energy behavior and the performance gap in this context, such as temperature setpoints, indoor occupancy, the building envelopeproperties but also domestic hot water usage or heat gains from electric appliances. The benefits of inputting field data from an extensive instrumentation campaign instead of standardized scenarios are also described. Finally, the exhaustive instrumentation solution provides useful insights on the needs, advantages, and shortcomings of the implemented sensor network for its replicability on a larger scale and for different use cases.

Keywords: calibration, building energy modeling, performance gap, sensor network

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Authors: Patrick T. Aquino, Jimwel B. Balunday, Cephas Olivier V. Cabatit, Mary Grace Q. Razonable

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In 2023, the Philippine Department of Energy (PDOE) published the National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Plan (NEECP) and Roadmap 2023-2050 to be the basis of a comprehensive program for the efficient supply and economical use of energy. The building sector, as one of the most energy-intensive sectors, shall conform to the energy-conserving design to reduce the use of energy. The concept of Net-Zero Energy Building (NZEB), and its definitions promote to improve energy efficiency of the buildings. The PDOE partnered with Meralco Power Academy to survey and conduct focus group discussions to establish the readiness into NZE-aspiring buildings of government entities. This paper outlines important NZEB principles, best practices from other countries, issues and gaps relating to energy management program, and the recommendations on the development of a framework for NZEB under government building in the Philippines. Results revealed the limitation on specific data to establish a baseline building energy efficiency performance index and significant energy uses; the need to update the Guidelines for Energy Conservation Design of Buildings, including NZEB definition and requirements; appropriate enabling infrastructures and programs to transition government buildings into NZE-aspiring buildings to Nearly Zero Energy Buildings by 2050.

Keywords: NZEB, energy efficiency, buildings, Philippines

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Authors: Salma Maher, Ahmed Elseragy, Sally Eldeeb

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Nowadays, Urbanism and climate change lead to the rapid growth in energy consumption and the increase of using air-conditioning for cooling. In a hot climate area, there is a need for a new sustainable alternative that is more convenient for an existing situation. The Building envelope controls the heat transfer between the outside and inside the building. While the building façade is the most critical part, types of façade material play a vital role in influences of the energy demand for heating and cooling due to exposure to direct solar radiation throughout the day. Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the use of curtain walls in office buildings façades started to increase rapidly, which lead to more cooling loads in energy consumption. Integrating the living wall system in urban areas as a sustainable renovation and energy-saving method for the built environment will reduce the energy demand of buildings and will also provide environmental benefits. Also, it will balance the urban ecology and enhance urban life quality. The results show that the living wall systems reduce the internal temperature up to 4.0 °C. This research carries on an analytical study by highlighting the different types of living wall systems and verifying their thermal performance, energy-saving, and life potential on the building. These assessing criteria include the reason for using the Living wall systems in the building façade as well as the effect it has upon the surrounding environment. Finally, the paper ends with concluding the effect of using living wall systems on building. And, it suggests a system as long-lasting, and energy-efficient solution to be applied in curtain wall façades in a hot climate area.

Keywords: living wall systems, energy consumption, curtain walls, energy-saving, sustainability, urban life quality

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Authors: Aswitha Bachala

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Energy shortage became a worldwide major problem since the 1970s, due to high energy consumption. Buildings are the primary energy users which consume 40% of global energy consumption, in which, 40%-50% of building’s energy usage is consumed due to its envelope. In hot and dry climates, 40% of energy is consumed only for cooling purpose, which implies major portion of energy savings can be worked through the envelopes. Biomimicry can be one solution for extracting efficient thermoregulation strategies found in nature. This paper aims to identify different biomimetic building envelopes which shall offer a higher potential to reduce energy consumption in hot and dry climates. It focuses on investigating the scope for reducing energy consumption through biomimetic approach in terms of envelopes. An in-depth research on different biomimetic building envelopes will be presented and analyzed in terms of heat absorption, in addition to, the impact it had on reducing the buildings energy consumption. This helps to understand feasible biomimetic building envelopes to mitigate heat absorption in hot and dry climates.

Keywords: biomimicry, building envelopes, energy consumption, hot and dry climate

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Authors: Rafia Akbar

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This paper assesses different Energy Efficiency Measures (EEMs) and their impact on energy consumption and carbon footprint of an educational building located in Islamabad. A base case was first developed in accordance with typical construction practices in Pakistan. Several EEMs were separately applied to the baseline design to quantify their impact on operational energy reduction of the building and the resultant carbon emissions. Results indicate that by applying these measures, there is a potential to reduce energy consumption up to 49% as compared to the base case. It was observed that energy efficient ceiling fans and lights, insulation of the walls and roof and an efficient air conditioning system for the building can provide significant energy savings. The results further indicate that the initial investment cost of these energy efficiency measures can be recovered within 6 to 7 years of building’s service life.

Keywords: CO2 savings, educational building, energy efficiency measures, payback period

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Authors: Ekele T. Ochedi, Ahmad H. Taki, Birgit Painter

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The effect of the sun and its path on thermal comfort and energy consumption in residential buildings in tropical climates constitute a serious concern for designers, building owners, and users. Passive design approaches based on the sun and its path have been identified as a means of reducing energy consumption as well as enhancing thermal comfort in buildings worldwide. Hence, a thorough understanding regarding the sun path is key to achieving this. This is necessary due to energy need, poor energy supply, and distribution, energy poverty, and over-dependence on electric generators for power supply in Nigeria. These challenges call for a change in the approach to energy-related issues, especially in terms of buildings. The aim of this study is to explore the influence of building orientation, glazing and the use of shading devices on residential buildings in Nigeria. This is intended to provide data that will guide designers in the design of energy-efficient residential buildings. The paper used EnergyPlus to analyze a typical semi-detached residential building in Lokoja, Nigeria using hourly weather data for a period of 10 years. Building performance was studied as well as possible improvement regarding different orientations, glazing types and shading devices. The simulation results show some reductions in energy consumption in response to changes in building orientation, types of glazing and the use of shading devices. The results indicate 29.45% reduction in solar gains and 1.90% in annual operative temperature using natural ventilation only. This shows a huge potential to reduce energy consumption and improve people’s well-being through the use of proper building orientation, glazing and appropriate shading devices on building envelope. The study concludes that for a significant reduction in total energy consumption by residential buildings, the design should focus on multiple design options rather than concentrating on one or few building elements. Moreover, the investigation confirms that energy performance modeling can be used by building designers to take advantage of the sun and to evaluate various design options.

Keywords: energy consumption, energy-efficient buildings, glazing, thermal comfort, shading devices, solar gains

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Authors: Barbara Eschen Danielsen, Morten Niels Baxter, Per Sieverts Nielsen

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Europe is currently in an energy and climate crisis, which requires more sustainable solutions than what has been used to before. Europe uses 40% of its energy in buildings so there has come a significant focus on trying to find and commit to new initiatives to reduce energy consumption in buildings. The European Union has introduced a building standard in 2021 to be upheld by 2030. This new building standard requires a significant reduction of CO2 emissions from both privately and publicly owned buildings. The overall aim is to achieve a zero-emission building stock by 2050. EU is revising the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) as part of the “Fit for 55” package. It was adopted on March 14, 2023. The new directive’s main goal is to renovate the least energy-efficient homes in Europe. There will be a cost for the home owner with a renovation project, but there will also be an improvement in energy efficiency and, therefore, a cost reduction. After the implementation of the EU directive, many homeowners will have to focus their attention on how to make the most effective energy renovations of their homes. The new EU directive will affect almost one million Danish homes (30%), as they do not meet the newly implemented requirements for energy efficiency. The problem for this one mio homeowners is that it is not easy to decide which renovation project they should consider. The houses are build differently and there are many possible solutions. The main focus of this paper is to identify the most impactful solutions and evaluate their impact and evaluating them with a criteria based sustainability indicator framework. The result of the analysis give each homeowner an insight in the various renovation options, including both advantages and disadvantages with the aim of avoiding unnecessary costs and errors while minimizing their CO2 footprint. Given that the new EU directive impacts a significant number of home owners and their homes both in Denmark and the rest of the European Union it is crucial to clarify which renovations have the most environmental impact and most cost effective. We have evaluated the 10 most impactful solutions and evaluated their impact in an indicator framework which includes 9 indicators and covers economic, environmental as well as social factors. We have packaged the result of the analysis in three packages, the most cost effective (short term), the most cost effective (long-term) and the most sustainable. The results of the study secure transparency and thereby provides homeowners with a tool to help their decision-making. The analysis is based on mostly qualitative indicators, but it will be possible to evaluate most of the indicators quantitively in a future study.

Keywords: energy efficiency, building renovation, renovation solutions, building energy performance criteria

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Authors: Saou Mohamed Amine

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The construction industry has been identified as a user of substantial amount of materials and energy resources that has an enormous impact on environment. The energy efficient in refurbishment project is being considered as one of the approaches to achieve sustainability in construction industry. The increasing concern for environment has made building owners and designers to incorporate the energy efficiency features into their building projects.

Keywords: construction industry, design team attributes, energy efficient performance, refurbishment projects characteristics

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Authors: Eric Ohene, Albert P. C. Chan, Shu-Chien HSU

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The rising building energy consumption and related carbon emissions make it necessary to construct net-zero carbon buildings (NZCBs). The objective of net-zero buildings has raised the benchmark for building performance and will alter how buildings are designed and constructed. However, there have been growing concerns about uncertainty in net-zero building design and cost implications in decision-making. Lessons from practice have shown that a robust net-zero building design is complex, expensive, and time-consuming. Moreover, climate conditions have an enormous implication for choosing the best-optimal passive and active solutions to ensure building energy performance while ensuring the indoor comfort performance of occupants. It is observed that 20% of the design decisions made in the initial design phase influence 80% of all design decisions. To design and construct NZCBs, it is crucial to ensure adequate decision-making during the early design phases. Therefore, this study aims to explore practical strategies to design NZCBs and to offer a design framework that could help decision-making during the design stage of net-zero buildings. A parametric simulation approach was employed, and experts (i.e., architects, building designers) perspectives on the decision framework were solicited. The study could be helpful to building designers and architects to guide their decision-making during the design stage of NZCBs.

Keywords: net-zero, net-zero carbon building, energy efficiency, parametric simulation, hot climate

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Authors: Habtamu Tkubet Ebuy

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Purpose Conventional dynamic energy simulation tools go beyond the static dimension of simplified methods by providing better and more accurate prediction of building performance. However, their ability to forecast actual performance is undermined by a low representation of human interactions. The purpose of this study is to examine the potential benefits of incorporating information on occupant diversity into occupant behavior models used to simulate building performance. The co-simulation of the stochastic behavior of the occupants substantially increases the accuracy of the simulation. Design/methodology/approach In this article, probabilistic models of the "opening and closing" behavior of the window of inhabitants have been developed in a separate multi-agent platform, SimOcc, and implemented in the building simulation, TRNSYS, in such a way that the behavior of the window with the interconnectivity can be reflected in the simulation analysis of the building. Findings The results of the study prove that the application of complex behaviors is important to research in predicting actual building performance. The results aid in the identification of the gap between reality and existing simulation methods. We hope this study and its results will serve as a guide for researchers interested in investigating occupant behavior in the future. Research limitations/implications Further case studies involving multi-user behavior for complex commercial buildings need to more understand the impact of the occupant behavior on building performance. Originality/value This study is considered as a good opportunity to achieve the national strategy by showing a suitable tool to help stakeholders in the design phase of new or retrofitted buildings to improve the performance of office buildings.

Keywords: occupant behavior, co-simulation, energy consumption, thermal comfort

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Authors: Vinh Duy Cao, Shima Pilehvar, Anna M. Szczotok, Anna-Lena Kjøniksen

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The total energy consumption is dramatically increasing on over the world, especially for building energy consumption where a significant proportion of energy is used for heating and cooling purposes. One of the solutions to reduce the energy consumption for the building is to improve construction techniques and enhance material technology. Recently, microcapsulated phase change materials (MPCM) with high energy storage capacity within the phase transition temperature of the materials is a potential method to conserve and save energy. A new composite materials with high energy storage capacity by mixing MPCM into concrete for passive building technology is the promising candidate to reduce the energy consumption. One of the most untilized building materials for mixing with MPCM is Portland cement concrete. However, the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) due to producing cement which plays the important role in the global warming is the main drawback of PCC. Accordingly, an environmentally friendly building material, geopolymer, which is synthesized by the reaction between the industrial waste material (aluminosilicate) and a strong alkali activator, is a potential materials to mixing with MPCM. Especially, the effect of MPCM on the thermal and mechanical properties of geopolymer concrete (GPC) is very limited. In this study, high thermal energy storage capacity materials were fabricated by mixing MPCM into geopolymer concrete. This article would investigate the effect of MPCM concentration on thermal and mechanical properties of GPC. The target is to balance the effect of MPCM on improving the thermal performance and maintaining the compressive strength of the geopolymer concrete at an acceptable level for building application.

Keywords: microencapsulated phase change materials, geopolymer concrete, energy storage capacity, thermal performance

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Authors: Francesca Scalisi, Cesare Sposito

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The building construction industry consumes a large amount of resources and energy, both during construction (embodied energy) and during the operational phase (operating energy). This paper presents a review of the literature on low carbon and low embodied energy materials in buildings. The embodied energy comprises the energy consumed during the extraction, processing, transportation, construction, and demolition of building materials. While designing a nearly zero energy building, it is necessary to choose and use materials, components, and technologies that allow to reduce the consumption of energy and also to reduce the emissions in the atmosphere during all the Life Cycle Assessment phases. The appropriate choice of building materials can contribute decisively to reduce the energy consumption of the building sector. The increasing worries for the environmental impact of construction materials are witnessed by a lot of studies. The mentioned worries have brought again the attention towards natural materials. The use of more sustainable construction materials and construction techniques represent a major contribution to the eco-efficiency of the construction industry and thus to a more sustainable development.

Keywords: embodied energy, embodied carbon, life cycle assessment, architecture, sustainability, material construction

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Authors: Azzam Alosaimi

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Different countries attempt to reduce energy demands and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions to mitigate global warming potential. They set different building codes to regulate excessive building’s energy losses. Energy losses occur due to pressure difference between the indoor and outdoor environments, and thus, heat transfers from one region to another. One major sources of energy loss is known as building airtightness. Building airtightness is the fundamental feature of the building envelope that directly impacts infiltration. Most of international building codes require minimum performance for new construction to ensure acceptable airtightness. The execution of airtightness required standards has become more challenging in recent years due to a lack of expertise and equipment, making it costly and time-consuming. Hence, researchers have developed predictive models to predict buildings infiltration rates to meet building codes and to reduce energy and cost. This research applies a theoretical modeling approach using Matlab software to predict mean infiltration rate distributions and total heat loss of Saudi Arabia’s housing stock.

Keywords: infiltration rate, energy demands, heating loss, cooling loss, carbon emissions

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Authors: M. Alwetaishi

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One of the most common and traditional strategies in architecture is to design buildings passively. This is a way to ensure low building energy reliance with respect to specific micro-building locations. There are so many ways where buildings can be designed passively, some of which are applying thermal insulation, thermal mass, courtyard and glazing to wall ratio. This research investigates the impact of each of these aspects with respect to the hot and dry climate of the capital of Riyadh. Thermal Analysis Simulation (TAS) will be utilized which is powered by Environmental Design Simulation Limited company (EDSL). It is considered as one of the most powerful tools to predict energy performance in buildings. There are three primary building designs and methods which are using courtyard, thermal mass and thermal insulation. The same building size and fabrication properties have been applied to all designs. Riyadh city which is the capital of the country was taken as a case study of the research. The research has taken into account various zone directions within the building as it has a large contribution to indoor energy and thermal performance. It is revealed that it is possible to achieve nearly zero carbon building in the hot and dry region in winter with minimum reliance on energy loads for building zones facing south, west and east. Moreover, using courtyard is more beneficial than applying construction materials into building envelope. Glazing to wall ratio is recommended to be 10% and not exceeding 30% in all directions in hot and arid regions.

Keywords: sustainable buildings, hot and arid climates, passive building design, Saudi Arabia

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Authors: Sormeh Sharifi, Wasim Saman, Alemu Alemu, David Whaley

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Although various energy rating schemes and compulsory building codes are using around the world, there are increasing reports on overheating in energy efficient dwellings. Given that the cooling demand of buildings is rising globally because of the climate change, it is more likely that the overheating issue will be observed more. This paper studied the summer indoor temperature in eight air-conditioned multi-level houses in Adelaide which have complied with the Australian Nationwide Houses Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) minimum energy performance of 7.5 stars. Through monitored temperature, this study explores that overheating is experienced on 75.5% of top floors during cooling periods while the air-conditioners were running. This paper found that the energy efficiency regulations have significantly improved thermal comfort in low floors, but not on top floors, and the energy-efficient house is not necessarily adapted with the air temperature fluctuations particularly on top floors. Based on the results, this study suggests that the envelope of top floors for multi-level houses in South Australian context need new criteria to make the top floor more heat resistance in order to: preventing the overheating, reducing the summer pick electricity demand and providing thermal comfort. Some methods are used to improve the envelope of the eight case studies. The results demonstrate that improving roofs was the most effective part of the top floors envelope in terms of reducing the overheating.

Keywords: building code, climate change, energy-efficient building, energy rating, overheating, thermal comfort

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Authors: Yao Meng, Mahroo Eftekhari, Dennis Loveday

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Currently, there are two types of heating systems in Chinese residential buildings, with respect to the controllability of the heating system, one is an old heating system without any possibility of controlling room temperature and another is a new heating system that provides temperature control of individual rooms. This paper is aiming to evaluate the impact of potential variables on the energy performance of old and new buildings respectively in China, and to explore how the use of individual room temperature control would change occupants’ heating behaviour and thermal comfort in Chinese residential buildings and its impact on the building energy performance. In the study, two types of residential buildings have been chosen, the new building install personal control on the heating system, together with ‘pay for what you use’ tariffs. The old building comprised uncontrolled heating with payment based on floor area. The studies were carried out in each building, with a longitudinal monitoring of indoor air temperature, outdoor air temperature, window position. The occupants’ behaviour and thermal sensation were evaluated by questionnaires. Finally, use the simulated analytic method to identify the impact of influence variables on energy use for both types of buildings.

Keywords: residential buildings, China, design parameters, energy efficiency, simulation analytics method

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Authors: Sujoy Anirudha Das, Albert Thomas

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Building sector is a major consumer of energy globally, and it has corresponding effects to the environment with respect to the carbon emissions. Given the fact that India is expected to add 40-billion square meter of new buildings till 2050, we need frameworks that help in reducing the overall energy consumption in the building sector. Even though several simulation-based frameworks that help in analyzing the building energy consumption are developed globally, in the Indian context, to the best of our knowledge, there is a lack of a comprehensive, yet user-friendly framework to simulate and optimize the effects of various energy influencing factors, specifically for Indian buildings. Therefore, this study is aimed at developing a simulation-based optimization framework to model the energy interactions in different types of Indian buildings by considering the dynamic nature of various energy influencing factors. This comprehensive framework can be used by various building stakeholders to test the energy effects of different factors such as, but not limited to, the various building materials, the orientation, the weather fluctuations, occupancy changes and the type of the building (e.g., office, residential). The results from the case study involving several building types would help us in gaining insights to build new energy-efficient buildings as well as retrofit the existing structures in a more convenient way to consume less energy, exclusively for an Indian scenario.

Keywords: building energy consumption, building energy simulations, energy efficient buildings, optimization framework

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Authors: Awni H. Alkhazaleh, Baljinder K. Kandola

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In this study, a form-stable composite Paraffin/Nanoclay (PA-NC) has been prepared by absorbing PA into porous particles of NC to be used for low-temperature latent heat thermal energy storage. The leakage test shows that the maximum mass fraction of PA that can be incorporated in NC without leakage is 60 wt.%. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) has been used to measure the thermal properties of the PA and PA-NC both before and after incorporation in plasterboard (PL). The mechanical performance of the samples has been evaluated in flexural mode. The thermal energy storage performance has been studied using a small test chamber (100 mm × 100 mm × 100 mm) made from 10 mm thick PL and measuring the temperatures using thermocouples. The flammability of the PL+PL-NC has been discussed using a cone calorimeter. The results indicate that the form composite PA has good potential for use as thermal energy storage materials in building applications.

Keywords: building materials, flammability, phase change materials, thermal energy storage

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Authors: Claire Far, Sara Wilkinson, Deborah Ascher Barnstone

Abstract:

Energy issues have been a growing concern in current decades. Limited energy resources and increasing energy consumption from one side and environmental pollution and waste of resources from the other side have substantially affected the future of human life. Around 40 percent of total energy consumption of Australian buildings goes to heating and cooling due to the low thermal performance of the buildings. Thermal performance of buildings determines the amount of energy used for heating and cooling of the buildings which profoundly influences energy efficiency. Therefore, employing sustainable design principles and effective use of construction materials for building envelope can play crucial role in the improvement of energy efficiency of existing dwellings and enhancement of thermal comfort of the occupants. The energy consumption for heating and cooling normally is determined by the quality of the building envelope. Building envelope is the part of building which separates the habitable areas from exterior environment. Building envelope consists of external walls, external doors, windows, roof, ground and the internal walls that separate conditioned spaces from non-condition spaces. The energy loss from the building envelope is the key factor. Heat loss through conduction, convection and radiation from building envelope. Thermal performance of the building envelope can be improved by using different methods of retrofitting depending on the climate conditions and construction materials. Based on the available studies, the importance of employing sustainable design principles has been highlighted among the Australian building professionals. However, the residential building sector still suffers from a lack of having the best practice examples and experience for effective use of construction materials for building envelope. As a result, this study investigates the effectiveness of different energy retrofitting techniques and examines the impact of employing those methods on energy consumption of existing dwellings in Sydney, the most populated city in Australia. Based on the research findings, the best thermal retrofitting methods for increasing thermal comfort and energy efficiency of existing residential dwellings as well as reducing their environmental impact and footprint have been identified and proposed.

Keywords: thermal comfort, energy consumption, residential dwellings, sustainable design principles, thermal retrofit

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Authors: Berhane Gebreslassie

Abstract:

Conventional commericial buildings are among the highest unwisely consumes enormous amount of energy and as consequence produce significant amount Carbon Dioxide (CO2). Traditional/conventional buildings have been built for years without consideration being given to their impact on the global warming issues as well as their CO2 contributions. Since 1973, simulation of Green Building (GB) for Energy Efficiency started and many countries in particular the US showed a positive response to minimize the usage of energy in respect to reducing the CO2 emission. As a consequence many software companies developed their own unique building energy efficiency simulation software, interfacing interoperability with Building Information Modeling (BIM). The last decade has witnessed very rapid growing number of researches on GB energy efficiency system. However, the study also indicates that the results of current GB simulation are not yet satisfactory to meet the objectives of GB. In addition most of these previous studies are unlikely excluded the studies of ultimate building energy efficiencies simulation. The aim of this project is to meet the objectives of GB by design, modeling and simulation of building ultimate energy efficiencies system. This research project presents multi-level, L-shape office building in which every particular part of the building materials has been tested for energy efficiency. An overall of 78.62% energy is saved, approaching to NetZero energy saving. Furthermore, the building is implements with distributed energy resources like renewable energies and integrating with Smart Building Automation System (SBAS) for controlling and monitoring energy usage.

Keywords: ultimate energy saving, optimum energy saving, green building, sustainable materials and renewable energy

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Authors: Sara Mota Carmo

Abstract:

Nowadays, there is an increasing demand for buildings to be energetically autonomous through energy generation systems from renewable sources, according to the concept of a net zero energy building (NZEB). In this sense, the present study aims to study the integration of wind energy through piezoelectricity applied to the building skin. As a methodology, a reduced-scale prototype of a building was developed and tested in a wind tunnel, with the four façades monitored by recording the energy produced by each. The applied wind intensities varied between 2m/s and 8m/s and the four façades were compared with each other regarding the energy produced according to the intensity of wind and position in the wind. The results obtained concluded that it was not a sufficient system to generate sources to cover family residential buildings' energy needs. However, piezoelectricity is expanding and can be a promising path for a wind energy system in architecture as a complement to other renewable energy sources.

Keywords: adaptative building skin, kinetic façade, wind energy in architecture, NZEB

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Authors: Lorena Polovina, Maddy Kennedy-Parrott, Mohammad Fakoor

Abstract:

The construction industry accounts for approximately 40% of total GHG emissions worldwide. In order to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, ambitious reductions in the carbon intensity of our buildings are crucial. Passive House presents an opportunity to reduce operational carbon by as much as 90% compared to a traditional building through improving thermal insulation, limiting thermal bridging, increasing airtightness and heat recovery. Up until recently, Passive House design was mainly concerned with meeting the energy demands without considering embodied carbon. As buildings become more energy-efficient, embodied carbon becomes more significant. The main objective of this research is to calculate the embodied carbon impact of a Passive House and compare it with the BC Energy Step Code (ESC). British Columbia is committed to increasing the energy efficiency of buildings through the ESC, which is targeting net-zero energy-ready buildings by 2032. However, there is a knowledge gap in the embodied carbon impacts of more energy-efficient buildings, in particular Part 3 construction. In this case study, life cycle assessments (LCA) are performed on Part 3, a multi-unit residential building in Victoria, BC. The actual building is not constructed to the Passive House standard; however, the building envelope and mechanical systems are designed to comply with the Passive house criteria, as well as Steps 1 and 4 of the BC Energy Step Code (ESC) for comparison. OneClick LCA is used to perform the LCA of the case studies. Several strategies are also proposed to minimize the total carbon emissions of the building. The assumption is that there will not be significant differences in embodied carbon between a Passive House and a Step 4 building due to the building envelope.

Keywords: embodied carbon, energy modeling, energy step code, life cycle assessment

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Authors: Jiří Hirš, Jitka Mohelnikova

Abstract:

A photovoltaic system integrated into a high-rise building façade was studied. The high-rise building is located in the Central Europe region with temperate climate and dominant partly cloudy and overcast sky conditions. The PV façade has been monitored since 2013. The three-year monitoring of the façade energy generation shows that the façade has an important impact on the building energy efficiency and sustainable operation.

Keywords: buildings, energy, PV façade, solar radiation

Procedia PDF Downloads 273