THE OBSTACLES TO ENERGY SAVING IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS IN NIGERIA: STAKEHOLDERS’ PERSPECTIVES

Over the past three decades research on energy use in buildings has become significant due to increasing scientific and political pressure on issues concerning global warming and climate change. As part of the impact by climate change, tropical nations are faced with several challenges in achieving energy savings, particularly the energy consumption behaviour of building occupants, with very little research coming from Africa. Previous research has shown that variations due to occupant behaviour is substantial. To address these challenges in line with the objectives of some of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (namely, clean and sustainable energy, as well as climate action) in residential buildings, this paper explores the perceptions of stakeholders by identifying the barriers which affect energy use from different cultural perspectives. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured telephone interviews with experts in the energy and construction fields in Nigeria. The purpose of the interviews was to provide an insight into residential energy consumption behaviour and the barriers faced in the adoption of sustainable energy sources. The results were analysed using an energy cultural framework. An analysis of the results shows that continuous awareness of energy saving behavioural change, government subsidies for renewable energy, government checks, and the standardization of energy-efficient appliances imported into the country can improve people’s trust regarding sustainable choices and can promote efficient energy use. The outcome from this work is expected to give a better understanding of energy use behaviour and inform future energy policies and interventions related to household energy saving.

Download Full-text

Design and Application of Cellular Concrete on a Mexican Residential Building and Its Influence on Energy Savings in Hot Climates: Projections to 2050

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10228225 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (22) ◽

pp. 8225

Author(s):

Ana C. Borbon-Almada ◽

Jorge Lucero-Alvarez ◽

Norma A. Rodriguez-Muñoz ◽

Manuel Ramirez-Celaya ◽

Samuel Castro-Brockman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Use ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Design Stage ◽

Second Phase ◽

Dynamic Simulations ◽

Conventional Concrete ◽

The Impact ◽

Cellular Concrete

The thermal performance of economical housing located in hot climates remains a pending subject, especially in emerging economies. A cellular concrete mixture was designed, considering its thermophysical properties, to apply the new material into building envelopes. The proposed materials have low density and thermal conductivity to be used as a nonstructural lightweight construction element. From the design stage, a series of wall systems based on cellular concrete was proposed. Whereas in the second phase, the materials were analyzed to obtain the potential energy savings using dynamic simulations. It is foreseen that the energy consumption in buildings located in these climates will continue to increase critically due to the temperature increase associated with climate change. The temperatures predicted mean vote (PMV), electric energy consumption, and CO2 emissions were calculated for three IPCC scenarios. These results will help to identify the impact of climate change on the energy use of the houses built under these weather conditions. The results show that if the conventional concrete blocks continue to be used, the air conditioning energy requirements will increase to 49% for 2030 and 61% by 2050. The proposed cellular concrete could reduce energy consumption between 15% and 28%, and these saving rates would remain in the future. The results indicate that it is necessary to drive the adoption of lightweight materials, so the impact of energy use on climate change can be reduced.

Download Full-text

The impact of building envelope retrofit measures on postwar MURBS in Toronto

10.32920/ryerson.14649852.v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sara Damyar

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Energy Use ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Building Envelope ◽

Simulation Software ◽

Energy Simulation ◽

Reduce Energy Consumption ◽

The Impact ◽

Current Standards

Building envelope retrofits is one of the options available to reduce energy consumption of postwar MURBs in Toronto. This study evaluates the impact of building envelope retrofits that meet current standards on energy consumption of a Toronto postwar MURB; utilizing eQUEST energy simulation software. Further upgrades also take place to evaluate how the impact of building envelope retrofits on energy use can be increased and optimized for all assemblies of building envelope and airtightness. Moreover, the retrofit strategies are ranked based on cost and energy-saving effectiveness. The results of the analysis reveal that building envelope retrofit based on OBC-2012 standards can reduce the energy consumption by up to 44%. Furthermore, the optimal RSI values of all building envelope components were found to be equal or less than code requirements which outcomes significant energy savings. Lastly, the ranking of the strategies helps to identify the best option according to the priorities of a project.

Download Full-text

Determinants of Energy Saving: Evidence from a Vocational School in Greece

Energies ◽

10.3390/en12193647 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 12 (19) ◽

pp. 3647 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Daiva Dumciuviene ◽

Akvile Cibinskiene ◽

Meda Andrijauskiene

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Energy Use ◽

Residential Buildings ◽

Sustainable Energy ◽

Theoretical Background ◽

Vocational School ◽

School Buildings ◽

Saving Behavior ◽

Important People

For this paper, the authors theoretically analyzed the determinants of energy saving and sustainable energy consumption in schools. Much research exists on energy-saving behavior in residential buildings. However, there is a lack of focus on public buildings and schools. A systematic literature review was conducted in order to construct the theoretical background for the research of school buildings, which are substantially less investigated. The determinants of sustainable energy use in schools were grouped together into three groups: (i) psychological and social, (ii) sociodemographic and economic, and (iii) contextual. The influence of these determinants on energy consumption was investigated empirically by conducting a questionnaire survey in a vocational school in Greece. The results reveal that the intention to save a substantial amount of energy in a vocational school in Greece is greater when students feel morally obliged to consider the environment and nature, believe that it is in their power to avoid unnecessary power consumption, and are positively influenced by teachers, classmates, and other important people in their lives.

Download Full-text

The impact of building envelope retrofit measures on postwar MURBS in Toronto

10.32920/ryerson.14649852 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sara Damyar

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Energy Use ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Building Envelope ◽

Simulation Software ◽

Energy Simulation ◽

Reduce Energy Consumption ◽

The Impact ◽

Current Standards

Download Full-text

ANALYSIS OF RESULTS OF MEASURES PERFORMED TO INCREASE ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN VASIL KARAGIOZOV HIGH SCHOOL OF YAMBOL, BULGARIA

Applied Researches in Technics Technologies and Education ◽

10.15547/artte.2018.04.004 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 306-310 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ivan Binev

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

Energy Efficiency ◽

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Energy Use ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Improve Energy Efficiency ◽

Before And After ◽

The Impact

The report analyzes the results of the implemented measures to improve energy efficiency in Vasil Karagiozov High school of Yambol, Bulgaria. Energy savings are determined by measuring and/or calculating energy consumption with previously adopted baseline levels, implementing a measure or program to improve energy efficiency by providing normalized corrections corresponding to the impact of specific climatic conditions on energy use. A reference heating energy consumption of 38.62 kWh/m2 was determined after the renovation of the building. Comparing the reference energy costs for heating before and after the implementation of the energy saving measures show a real decrease of the energy consumption for heating by 53.44%. Compared to the reference energy consumption for heating before and after the energy saving measures show an actual reduction of energy consumption for heating by 47.86%.

Download Full-text

Towards Sustainable Energy Retrofitting, a Simulation for Potential Energy Use Reduction in Residential Buildings in Palestine

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14133876 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (13) ◽

pp. 3876

Author(s):

Sameh Monna ◽

Adel Juaidi ◽

Ramez Abdallah ◽

Aiman Albatayneh ◽

Patrick Dutournie ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Use ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Residential Buildings ◽

Residential Building ◽

Simulation Models ◽

Water Heating ◽

Heating And Cooling ◽

Space Cooling ◽

Cooling Loads

Since buildings are one of the major contributors to global warming, efforts should be intensified to make them more energy-efficient, particularly existing buildings. This research intends to analyze the energy savings from a suggested retrofitting program using energy simulation for typical existing residential buildings. For the assessment of the energy retrofitting program using computer simulation, the most commonly utilized residential building types were selected. The energy consumption of those selected residential buildings was assessed, and a baseline for evaluating energy retrofitting was established. Three levels of retrofitting programs were implemented. These levels were ordered by cost, with the first level being the least costly and the third level is the most expensive. The simulation models were created for two different types of buildings in three different climatic zones in Palestine. The findings suggest that water heating, space heating, space cooling, and electric lighting are the highest energy consumers in ordinary houses. Level one measures resulted in a 19–24 percent decrease in energy consumption due to reduced heating and cooling loads. The use of a combination of levels one and two resulted in a decrease of energy consumption for heating, cooling, and lighting by 50–57%. The use of the three levels resulted in a decrease of 71–80% in total energy usage for heating, cooling, lighting, water heating, and air conditioning.

Download Full-text

People or Systems: Does Productivity Enhancement Matter More than Energy Management in LEED Certified Buildings?

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su132413863 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (24) ◽

pp. 13863

Author(s):

Yana Akhtyrska ◽

Franz Fuerst

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Management ◽

Energy Use ◽

Management Practices ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Occupant Comfort ◽

Energy Use Intensity ◽

Using Data ◽

Advanced Metering ◽

The Impact

This study examines the impact of energy management and productivity-enhancing measures, implemented as part of LEED Existing Buildings Operations and Management (EBOM) certification, on source energy use intensity and rental premiums of office spaces using data on four major US markets. Energy management practices, comprised of commissioning and advanced metering, may reduce energy usage. Conversely, improving air quality and occupant comfort in an effort to increase worker productivity may in turn lead to higher overall energy consumption. The willingness to pay for these features in rental office buildings is hypothesised to depend not only on the extent to which productivity gains enhance the profits of a commercial tenant but also on the lease arrangements for passing any energy savings to the tenant. We apply a difference-in-differences method at a LEED EBOM certification group level and a multi-level modelling approach with a panel data structure. The results indicate that energy management and indoor environment practices have the expected effect on energy consumption as described above. However, the magnitude of the achieved rental premiums appears to be independent of the lease type.

Download Full-text

Humidity-Sensitive Demand-Controlled Ventilation Applied to Multi-Unit Residential Building – Performance and Energy Consumption in Dfb Continental Climate

10.20944/preprints202011.0406.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jerzy Sowa ◽

Maciej Mijakowski

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Use ◽

Energy Savings ◽

Residential Buildings ◽

Ventilation System ◽

Residential Building ◽

Primary Energy ◽

Controlled Ventilation ◽

Demand Controlled Ventilation ◽

Continental Climate

A humidity-sensitive demand-controlled ventilation system is known for many years. It has been developed and commonly applied in regions with an oceanic climate. Some attempts were made to introduce this solution in Poland in a much severe continental climate. The article evaluates this system's performance and energy consumption applied in an 8-floor multi-unit residential building, virtual reference building described by the National Energy Conservation Agency NAPE, Poland. The simulations using the computer program CONTAM were performed for the whole hating season for Warsaw's climate. Besides passive stack ventilation that worked as a reference, two versions of humidity-sensitive demand-controlled ventilation were checked. The difference between them lies in applying the additional roof fans that convert the system to hybrid. The study confirmed that the application of demand-controlled ventilation in multi-unit residential buildings in a continental climate with warm summer (Dfb) leads to significant energy savings. However, the efforts to ensure acceptable indoor air quality require hybrid ventilation, which reduces the energy benefits. It is especially visible when primary energy use is analyzed.

Download Full-text

Understanding the Incremental Impact of Built Environment on Climate Change of Metropolitan City Karachi

Mehran University Research Journal of Engineering and Technology ◽

10.22581/muet1982.2004.11 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

pp. 678-685

Author(s):

Nimra Kanwal ◽

Nuhzat Khan

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Energy Consumption ◽

Residential Buildings ◽

Building Design ◽

High Energy ◽

Metropolitan City ◽

Green Area ◽

The World ◽

The Impact ◽

The City

Buildings are the most important part of development activities, consumed over one-thirds of the global energy. Household used the maximum energy around the world, likewise in Pakistan residential buildings consumed about half of total energy (45.9% per year). The study aims to analyze the impact of building design on climate of Metropolitan City Karachi, Pakistan and to evaluate the change in urbanization patterns and energy consumption in the buildings. To have better understanding of the issues correlations was established amongst population, urbanization patterns, green area, number of buildings (residential and commercial), building design, energy consumption and metrological records (climate change parameters) by collecting the data from the respective departments. With the help of the collected data amount of carbon dioxide was estimated. The results reveled that during last 36 years the urban population of Karachi increased exponentially from 5,208,000 (1981) to 14,737,257 (2017) with increase in urbanized area from 8.35 km2 (1946) to 3,640 km2 (2017) that may led to reduce the green area of the city from 495,000 hectors (1971) to 100,000 hectors (2015). Moreover, the building’s design and numbers are being changed from 21 high-rise buildings (2009) to 344 (2017). It may be concluded that change in temperature pattern and climatic variability of the city may be due to increase in population and change in lifestyle that lead to high energy consumption that is prime source of increased in CO2 emission in the environment of Karachi city, However, Greenhouse Gases (GHG) releases are much lower than the levels reported from metropolitan cities around the world.

Download Full-text

The Impact of Individual Behavior on Household Energy Saving

Journal of Economic Impact ◽

10.52223/jei3012105 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 39-46

Author(s):

Gulshan Maqbool ◽

Zulqarnain Haider

Keyword(s):

Energy Consumption ◽

Energy Saving ◽

Influencing Factors ◽

Energy Demand ◽

Energy Use ◽

Household Head ◽

Least Square ◽

Primary Data ◽

Saving Behavior ◽

The Impact

Energy-saving behaviors are defined as the daily and habitual practices of households that focus on specific reductions in energy use. The main objective of this research was to estimate the impact of the energy-saving behavior of individuals on energy demand and to estimate the impact of factors affections the adoption of energy-saving techniques. The study is based on primary data which is collected through questionnaires. The data were collected from rural and urban households in four tehsils of district Sargodha, Pakistan. The Ordinary Least Square technique was to describe the relationship between electricity consumption and different explanatory variables such as gender, age, region, family members, dwelling area, income, energy consumption awareness, external influencing factors, and household saving behavior. Job status is negative and significant, qualification variable in this study is insignificant, marital status is negatively associated with energy consumption and significant, size of a household has a significant effect on the model. The monthly income of the household head has a positive and significant effect. Energy consumption awareness is significantly negative. External influencing factors are insignificant. Saving behavior in electronic appliances is significantly negative to energy consumption. Government should put efforts to aware the public about energy-saving measures through an awareness campaign using electronic media like mobile and email. Energy-saving appliances should be a sale at cheap prices. The household should have to change its habitual behavior.

Download Full-text