scholarly journals Energy Renovation of Residential Buildings in Cold Mediterranean Zones Using Optimized Thermal Envelope Insulation Thicknesses: The Case of Spain

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 2287 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis M. López-Ochoa ◽  
Jesús Las-Heras-Casas ◽  
Luis M. López-González ◽  
César García-Lozano
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Thermal Insulation ◽  
Life Cycle Cost ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Cold Climate ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Climate Zones ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Zero Energy Buildings

The residential sector of the European Union consumes 27% of the final energy of the European Union, and approximately two-thirds of the existing dwellings in the European Union were built before 1980. For this reason, the European Union aims to transform the existing residential building stock into nearly zero-energy buildings by 2050 through energy renovation. The most effective method to achieve this goal is to increase the thermal insulation of opaque elements of the thermal envelope. This study aims to assess the energy, environmental and economic impacts of the energy renovation of the thermal envelopes that are typical of the existing multi-family buildings of the 26 provincial capitals in the cold climate zones of Spain. To achieve this goal, the insulation thickness to be added to the walls, roof and first floor framework is optimized by a life cycle cost analysis, and the existing building openings are replaced, thus minimizing both the total heating costs and the total heating and cooling costs. The study uses four thermal insulation materials for four different heating and cooling systems in 10 different models. The results obtained will be used to propose energy renovation solutions to achieve nearly zero-energy buildings both in Spain and in similar Mediterranean climate zones.

scholarly journals Impact of insulation thicknesses of several types of thermal insulator on energy cost with respect to different climate zones in Morocco

2020 ◽  
Vol 307 ◽  
pp. 01023
Author(s):  
Ayoub Gounni ◽  
Mohamed Tahar Mabrouk ◽  
Abdelhamid Kheiri ◽  
Mustapha El Alami
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Insulation ◽  
Life Cycle Cost ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Expanded Polystyrene ◽  
Life Cycle Cost Analysis ◽  
Liquefied Petroleum Gas ◽  
Climate Zones ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Fourth Zone ◽  
Cooling Loads

In Morocco the thermal insulation of buildings envelop was not a common practice until it becomes obligatory since 2015 to meet the requirements of the Moroccan construction thermal regulation (RTCM) depending on six climate zones. The aim of this paper is to determine the optimum thickness of expanded polystyrene (EPS) and rock wool (RW) of walls constructed of brick for different Moroccan climate zones: Agadir (first zone), Tanger (second zone), Fes (third zone), Ifrane (fourth zone), Marrakech (fifth zone), Errachidia (sixth zone). A numerical model of a multilayered wall is developed to compute the annual heating and cooling loads. These loads are used as input to life cycle cost analysis using the energy and insulation costs. The liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and electricity are used as energy source, respectively, for heating and cooling. For each case, the calculation is carried out for annual heating and cooling loads and total cost including insulation and energy costs. Results show that the optimum thermal insulation depends on climate zones and insulation types. The lowest value of energy savings is obtained for climate zone 1 which are 289.55 and 300.55 dh/m² respectively for EPS and RW.

scholarly journals A Methodology for Energy Simulation of Risedential Buildings: A Case Study for Amman

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 772-781
Author(s):  
Ahmad Altarabsheh ◽  
Ibrahim Altarabsheh ◽  
Sara Altarabsheh ◽  
Nisreen Rababaa ◽  
Ayat Smadi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Life Cycle Cost ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Green Buildings ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Zero Energy Building ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Whole Life Cycle ◽  
Zero Energy Buildings

Green buildings have been gaining in popularity over the past few years in Jordan. This is attributed to environmental and financial reasons directly related to energy consumption and cost. Energy sector in Jordan faces two main challenges which are the fast growing of energy demand and the scarcity of resources to fulfill this demand. Green buildings can save energy by designing them as near Zero Energy Buildings, where they produce amount of energy almost equal the amount of energy they consume. In special cases green buildings can be designed as Net zero energy buildings, where they produce as much energy as they consume. Jordan government encourage people to adopt net zero green buildings by issuing the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Law No. 13 of 2012, that allows selling excessive electricity to electricity companies. Despite these benefits of green buildings, they are not yet the norm in the building sector in Jordan. This can be attributed to the high construction cost of green building compared to traditional one. However, this may not be true if the whole life cycle cost of the building is considered, in which the cost not only include design and construction but also operation and maintenance as well. This paper aims to provide real life cycle cost analysis for a typical residential building in Jordan, and to search different effective building strategies and design scenarios that will lead to a successful near Zero Energy Building. The search will apply main green building strategies recommended for Jordan climatic zone. The outcome of this study is a list of best economically feasible design solutions and system selections that result in near Zero Energy Building in Jordan for residential buildings.

scholarly journals Energy Renovation of Residential Buildings in Hot and Temperate Mediterranean Zones Using Optimized Thermal Envelope Insulation Thicknesses: The Case of Spain

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 370
Author(s):  
Jesús Las-Heras-Casas ◽  
Luis M. López-Ochoa ◽  
Luis M. López-González ◽  
Pablo Olasolo-Alonso
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Cost ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Residential Building ◽  
Temperate Climate ◽  
Life Cycle Cost Analysis ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Existing Building ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Residential Building Stock

One of the greatest challenges facing the European Union is the conversion of the existing residential building stock into nearly zero-energy buildings (NZEBs) by 2050 through energy renovation, given that the residential sector is one of the largest consumers of final energy and that approximately two-thirds of existing dwellings were built before 1980. The objective of this study is to assess the energy, environmental, and economic impacts of the energy renovation of thermal envelopes of existing multi-family buildings in the hot and temperate climate zones of Spain by using life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) to determine the optimal thicknesses of insulation to be added to the walls, roof, and first floor framework of the buildings and replacing existing building openings to achieve NZEBs. Four thermal insulation materials are considered with four different heating and cooling systems and ten different models. With the methodology developed, the best energy renovation solutions are estimated and then thermally simulated. In total, 67 of the 576 proposed energy renovation solutions achieve NZEBs. This study fills in the gap between LCCA estimates and reality.

The applicability of nearly/net zero energy residential buildings in Brazil – A study of a low standard dwelling in three different Brazilian climate zones

2020 ◽  
pp. 1420326X2096115
Author(s):  
Jaime Resende ◽  
Marta Monzón-Chavarrías ◽  
Helena Corvacho
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Performance Standard ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Climate Zones ◽  
Net Zero Energy ◽  
Net Zero

Buildings account for 34% of world energy consumption and about half of electricity consumption. The nearly/Net Zero Energy Building (nZEB/NZEB) concepts are regarded as solutions for minimizing this problem. The countries of Southern Europe, which included the nZEB concept recently in their regulatory requirements, have both heating and cooling needs, which adds complexity to the problem. Brazil may benefit from their experience since most of the Brazilian climate zones present significant similarities to the Southern European climate. Brazil recently presented a household energy consumption increase, and a growing trend in the use of air conditioning is predicted for the coming decades. Simulations with various wall and roof solutions following the Brazilian Performance Standard were carried out in a low standard single-family house in three different climate zones in order to evaluate thermal comfort conditions and energy needs. Results show that in milder climate zones, achieving thermal comfort with a low energy consumption is possible, and there is a great potential to achieve a net zero-energy balance. In the extreme hot climate zone, a high cooling energy consumption is needed to provide thermal comfort, and the implementation of a nearly zero-energy balance may be more feasible.

scholarly journals Investigation of Ventilation Energy Recovery with Polymer Membrane Material-Based Counter-Flow Energy Exchanger for Nearly Zero-Energy Buildings

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1727 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miklos Kassai ◽  
Laith Al-Hyari
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Recovery ◽  
Polymer Membrane ◽  
Cold Climate ◽  
Sensible Heat ◽  
Membrane Material ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Counter Flow ◽  
Flow Energy ◽  
Zero Energy Buildings

The usage of energy recovery ventilation units was extended in European countries. Air-to-air heat and energy recovery is an effective procedure to reduce energy consumption of the ventilation air. However, the material of the core significantly influences the performance of the exchangers, which is becoming an extremely important aspect to meet the energy requirements of nearly zero-energy buildings. In this study, the performance of two counter-flow heat/enthalpy energy exchangers are experimentally tested under different operating conditions, and the values of the sensible, latent, and total effectiveness are presented. Moreover, the effects of the material of two exchangers (polystyrene for the sensible heat exchanger and polymer membrane for the energy exchanger) on the energy consumption of ventilation in European cities with three different climates (in Reykjavík in Iceland as a cold climate, in Budapest in Hungary as a temperate climate, and in Rome in Italy as a warm climate) are evaluated. The results show that the energy recovery of ventilation air with a polymer membrane material-based counter-flow energy exchanger performs better than using a polystyrene sensible heat recovery unit.

scholarly journals Matching Energy Consumption and Photovoltaic Production in a Retrofitted Dwelling in Subtropical Climate without a Backup System

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 6026
Author(s):  
Sergio Gómez Melgar ◽  
Antonio Sánchez Cordero ◽  
Marta Videras Rodríguez ◽  
José Manuel Andújar Márquez
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Hot Water ◽  
Subtropical Climate ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Electric Circuits ◽  
Renewable Energy Production ◽  
Zero Energy Buildings

The construction sector is a great contributor to global warming both in new and existing buildings. Minimum energy buildings (MEBs) demand as little energy as possible, with an optimized architectural design, which includes passive solutions. In addition, these buildings consume as low energy as possible introducing efficient facilities. Finally, they produce renewable energy on-site to become zero energy buildings (ZEBs) or even plus zero energy buildings (+ZEB). In this paper, a deep analysis of the energy use and renewable energy production of a social dwelling was carried out based on data measurements. Unfortunately, in residential buildings, most renewable energy production occurs at a different time than energy demand. Furthermore, energy storage batteries for these facilities are expensive and require significant maintenance. The present research proposes a strategy, which involves rescheduling energy demand by changing the habits of the occupants in terms of domestic hot water (DHW) consumption, cooking, and washing. Rescheduling these three electric circuits increases the usability of the renewable energy produced on-site, reducing the misused energy from 52.84% to 25.14%, as well as decreasing electricity costs by 58.46%.

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