scholarly journals Application of Urban Scale Energy Modelling and Multi-Objective Optimization Techniques for Building Energy Renovation at District Scale

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11554
Author(s):  
Fahad Haneef ◽  
Giovanni Pernigotto ◽  
Andrea Gasparella ◽  
Jérôme Henri Kämpf
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Optimization Techniques ◽  
Multi Objective Optimization ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Energy Efficiency Measures ◽  
Multi Objective ◽  
Efficiency Measures

Nearly-zero energy buildings are now a standard for new constructions. However, the real challenge for a decarbonized society relies in the renovation of the existing building stock, selecting energy efficiency measures considering not only the energy performance but also the economic and sustainability ones. Even if the literature is full of examples coupling building energy simulation with multi-objective optimization for the identification of the best measures, the adoption of such approaches is still limited for district and urban scale simulation, often because of lack of complete data inputs and high computational requirements. In this research, a new methodology is proposed, combining the detailed geometric characterization of urban simulation tools with the simplification provided by “building archetype” modeling, in order to ensure the development of robust models for the multi-objective optimization of retrofit interventions at district scale. Using CitySim as an urban scale energy modeling tool, a residential district built in the 1990s in Bolzano, Italy, was studied. Different sets of renovation measures for the building envelope and three objectives —i.e., energy, economic and sustainability performances, were compared. Despite energy savings from 29 to 46%, energy efficiency measures applied just to the building envelope were found insufficient to meet the carbon neutrality goals without interventions to the system, in particular considering mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. Furthermore, public subsidization has been revealed to be necessary, since none of the proposed measures is able to pay back the initial investment for this case study.

Multi-Objective Optimization Approach for Improving Performance of Building

2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 70-73
Author(s):  
A. Kamenders ◽  
A. Blumberga
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Target Function ◽  
Complex Problem ◽  
Optimization Approach ◽  
Efficiency Measure ◽  
Multi Objective Optimization ◽  
Energy Efficiency Measures ◽  
Multi Objective ◽  
Energy Efficiency Measure ◽  
Efficiency Measures

Multi-Objective Optimization Approach for Improving Performance of Building Energy efficiency measures are different from energy efficiency and cost effectiveness perspective. For decision maker it is hard to make right decision about different energy efficiency measure combinations in building. It is a complex problem to choose the best energy efficiency measure combination as decision involves many different factors that should be taken in account. Decision on implementation of energy efficiency measure implementation usually depends on investment costs and pay back time. Standards like Latvian Building Code LBN 002-01 can't be used to achieve reasonable expenses in renovation of buildings. Therefore, in order to find the optimal energy-efficiency measures, it is necessary to carry out optimization taking all the variable parameters into account. In the paper target function was presented that gives ability of the multi-objective optimization approach to handle the problem of improving energy efficiency in buildings. Case study is used to demonstrate the feasibility of the approach. 104. series soviet type dwellings was analysed to optimized insulation thickness for external walls. Even if accord with the LBN 002-01 it is enough to use 7 cm thick isolation (λ-0,039 W/(m2K)) layers optimal insulation layer is 12 cm (λ-0,039 W/(m2K)).

scholarly journals Energy Efficiency Measures Applied to Heritage Retrofit Buildings: A Simulated Student Housing Case Study in Vienna

Heritage ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 3919-3937
Author(s):  
Essam Elnagar ◽  
Simran Munde ◽  
Vincent Lemort
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Efficient ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Energy Status ◽  
Pv System ◽  
Energy Efficiency Measures ◽  
Efficiency Measures

One pavilion was selected for deep retrofitting from the Otto Wagner area situated in the west of Vienna. The retrofitting process involves sustainable and energy-efficient construction to improve the energy performance and energy production potential of the building while preserving the cultural heritage and significance. This four-story pavilion was re-designed according to the proposed regulations of a net positive energy university building to become a student residence. Architectural, building envelope, and engineering interventions along with various changes were simulated through the Sefaira tool in the SketchUp model. These included: optimization of the U-values of the roof, walls, and floor; the addition of different layers of sustainable energy-efficient insulation materials to decrease the overall energy demand. The specific energy demands for heating, cooling, and lighting were decreased in the proposed model to reduce the total energy use intensity from 248.9 kWh/(m2 year) to 54.3 kWh/(m2 year) resulting in a 78.2% reduction. The main goal of this study is to try and achieve a net positive energy status building as part of the Otto Wagner area by improving the building envelope and integrating renewable energies. A total of 22.5% of the annual energy consumption was generated by the designed PV system. The selected building achieved the passive house standards in Austria by optimizing the energy performance with the proposed energy efficiency measures.

Assessment of energy efficiency measures using multi-objective optimization in Portuguese households

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 764-773 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica M. Eskander ◽  
M. Sandoval-Reyes ◽  
Carlos A. Silva ◽  
S.M. Vieira ◽  
João M.C. Sousa
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Multi Objective Optimization ◽  
Energy Efficiency Measures ◽  
Multi Objective ◽  
Efficiency Measures

Methodology for Preliminary Design of Buildings Using Multi-Objective Optimization Based on Performance Simulation

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno Ramos Zemero ◽  
Maria Emília de Lima Tostes ◽  
Ubiratan Holanda Bezerra ◽  
Vitor dos Santos Batista ◽  
Carminda Célia M. M. Carvalho
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Optimization Model ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
Design Guidelines ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Multi Objective Optimization ◽  
Multi Objective

Buildings' energy consumption has a great energetic and environmental impact worldwide. The architectural design has great potential to solve this problem because the building envelope exerts influence on the overall system performance, but this is a task that involves many objectives and constraints. In the last two decades, optimization studies applied to energy efficiency of buildings have helped specialists to choose the best design options. However, there is still a lack of optimization approaches applied to the design stage, which is the most influential stage for building energy efficiency over its entire life cycle. Therefore, this article presents a multi-objective optimization model to assist designers in the schematic building design, by means of the Pareto archived evolutionary strategies (PAES) algorithm with the EnergyPlus simulator coupled to evaluate the solutions. The search process is executed by a binary array where the array components evolve over the generations, together with the other building components. The methodology aims to find optimal solutions (OSs) with the lowest constructive cost associated with greater energy efficiency. In the case study, it was possible to simulate the process of using the optimization model and analyze the results in relation to: a standard building; energy consumption classification levels; passive design guidelines; usability and accuracy, proving that the tool serves as support in building design. The OSs reached an average of 50% energy savings over typical consumption, 50% reduction in CO2 operating emissions, and investment return less than 3 years in the four different weathers.

scholarly journals Comparison of nZEB indicators for hotel renovations under different European climatic conditions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filipe O Cunha ◽  
Armando C Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Minimum Energy ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Energy Model ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Efficiency Measures

Abstract Hotels hold an important role in the energy efficiency policies of the European Union (EU), as they are typically ranked among the top energy consumers in the non-residential sector. However, a significant amount of the energy used in hotels is wasted, leaving ample room for enhancing energy-efficiency and resource conservation. Indeed, energy refurbishment of the hotel building stock is crucial in order to reach the nearly zero energy building (nZEB) status imposed by EU Directives for energy efficiency, and also an important pillar to achieve the energy targets for 2030 and the transition towards climate-neutral levels by 2050. A typical 4-star hotel in operation in Faro (Portugal) was used as a case study in order to establish energy performance indicators for nZEB hotels in three European cities, taking into account the influence of the climatic context, the technical feasibility and cost effectiveness of the best energy retrofit packages. The study started after the calibration of the building energy model by means of an energy audit and measured data, in order to have a baseline model that represents well the actual energy use of the hotel in the reference location. The building energy model was developed by using DesignBuilder/EnergyPlus software. The validated model was then used to assess the effect of the best retrofit interventions (energy efficiency measures and active solar systems) in order to set minimum energy performance requirements and to reach cost-optimal levels and nZEB levels for refurbished hotels. A significant energy-saving potential was found for the cost-optimal benchmarks, and the obtained nZEB levels can be achieved under technically and economically conditions for the selected cities: Faro, London and Athens.

Semantic Data-Driven Models to Improve Energy Efficiency in Buildings and Cities

2021 ◽  
pp. 515-539
Author(s):  
Álvaro Sicilia ◽  
Gonçal Costa ◽  
Leandro Madrazo
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Semantic Web Technologies ◽  
Improve Energy Efficiency ◽  
Semantic Data ◽  
Multiple Data ◽  
Efficiency Measures ◽  
Multiple Domains

The assessment of building energy performance requires data from multiple domains (energy, architecture, planning, economy) and scales (building, district, city) to be processed with a diversity of applications used by experts from various fields. In order to properly assess the performance of the building stock, and to develop and apply the most effective energy efficiency measures, it is necessary to adopt a comprehensive, holistic approach. In this chapter, three research projects are presented which apply Semantic Web technologies to create energy data models from multiple data sources and domains in order to support decision making in energy efficient building renovation projects: SEMANCO, OptEEmAL, and OPTIMUS. A final reflection on the results achieved in these projects and their links to ongoing research on digital twins is presented.

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