scholarly journals PROPOSAL OF A NORWEGIAN ZEB DEFINITION: ASSESSING THE IMPLICATIONS FOR DESIGN

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 133-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Sartori ◽  
T. H. Dokka ◽  
Inger Andresen
Keyword(s):  
Energy Demand ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Energy Supply System ◽  
Paradoxical Situation ◽  
Energy Efficient Buildings ◽  
Zero Emission ◽  
Definition Of

Conceptually a Zero Emission Building (ZEB) is a building with greatly reduced energy demand and able to generate electricity (or other carriers) from renewable sources in order to achieve a carbon neutral balance. However, a clear and agreed definition of Zero Emission Building (ZEB) is yet to be achieved, both internationally and in Norway. However, it is understood that both the definition and the surrounding energy supply system will affect significantly the way buildings are designed to achieve the ZEB goal. A formal definition of ZEB is characterized by a set of criteria that are: the system boundary, feeding-in possibilities, balance object, balancing period, credits, crediting method, energy performance and mismatch factors. For each criterion different options are available, and the choice of which options are more appropriate to define ZEBs may depend on the political targets laying behind the promotion of ZEBs, hence may vary from country to country. This paper focuses on two of these criteria: energy performance and credits used to measure the ZEB balance. For each criterion different options are considered and the implications they have on the building design are assessed. The case study is on a typical Norwegian single family house. It is shown that for certain choices on the two criteria options, a paradoxical situation could arise. When using off-site generation based on biomass/biofuels, achieving the ZEB balance may be easier for high energy consuming buildings than for efficient ones. This is the exact opposite of what ZEBs are meant to promote: design of energy efficient buildings with on-site generation options. Recommendations on how to avoid such a paradox are suggested.

scholarly journals Analysing energy upgrading projects of single-family houses towards a Norwegian nZEB level

2021 ◽  
Vol 2069 (1) ◽  
pp. 012112
Author(s):  
R Moschetti ◽  
B Time ◽  
L Gullbrekken ◽  
V Heide ◽  
L Georges ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Use ◽  
Thermal Environment ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Interdisciplinary Teams ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Definition Of

Abstract As the existing building stock is responsible for high energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, energy upgrading projects have been acknowledged as crucial for the energy performance improvement of existing buildings, as well as for environment preservation and rational use of resources. The aim of this article is to investigate the definition of a nearly zero-energy building (nZEB) level for the energy upgrading of single-family houses. In particular, the findings from a research project, i.e., “energy upgrading of wooden dwellings to nearly zero energy level” (OPPTRE), are presented and discussed. A core task of OPPTRE was to carry out an architectural competition, where six interdisciplinary teams proposed innovative solutions for upgrading to a nZEB level representative Norwegian wooden single-family houses, from the period 1950-1990. The upgrading measures proposed in the OPPTRE competition focused on several aspects, such as architectural quality, indoor thermal environment, energy use/generation, carbon footprint, and cost effectiveness. General principles for a nZEB level achievement in upgrading projects are discussed in this article, as deducted from the evaluation of the results of the OPPTRE architectural competition. In particular, the focus is on examining the solutions proposed for upgrading building envelope and technical building systems. Energy use, energy generation, investment costs, and CO2 emissions are examined across the various OPPTRE projects, striving to define a trade-off among different parameters for the achievement of a nZEB level. The findings of this paper support the creation of knowledge in nearly zero-energy upgrading of wooden single-family houses, aiming to a more systematic definition of a nZEB level in such projects. This can be relevant for several stakeholders, such as governmental institutions, homeowners, builders, and private or public decision makers, towards the market uptake of nZEB upgrading by 2030.

Life cycle costs and environmental impacts of a nearly zero-energy detached house

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 163-169
Author(s):  
Zs. Szalay ◽  
T. Csoknyai
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Life Cycle Cost ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Detached House ◽  
Zero Energy Buildings

Abstract The recast of the Energy Performance Building Directive contains a new article about the need to increase the number of buildings which go beyond current national requirements, and to draw up national plans for increasing the number of nearly zero-energy buildings (nZEB) with the final target that by 2020 all new buildings shall be nearly-zero energy. Nearly zero-energy buildings are buildings with a very high energy performance, where the remaining low energy demand can be supplied to a significant extent by renewable energy. In this paper, a detached house complying with the proposed Hungarian nZEB requirements is analysed. The life cycle cost and life cycle environmental impacts of the building are assessed for various building service systems to optimise the building design.

scholarly journals Proposed method for probabilistic risk analysis using building performance simulations and stochastic parameters

2020 ◽  
Vol 172 ◽  
pp. 25005
Author(s):  
Tomas Ekström ◽  
Stephen Burke ◽  
Lars-Erik Harderup ◽  
Jesper Arfvidsson
Keyword(s):  
Risk Analysis ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Probabilistic Methods ◽  
Building Performance ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Stochastic Parameters ◽  
The Impact

As parts of the world continue the work of mitigating the impact of climate change, many countries strive for continued reductions in energy demand from buildings by implementing more stringent building regulations. Consequently, the importance of accurate and efficient building performance simulations to predict the energy use of a building design increases. As observed in earlier studies, there are performance gaps between the predicted annual energy demand from building energy performance simulations based on deterministic methods compared to the monitored annual energy use of a building. This paper presents a preliminary method developed using probabilistic methods for risk analysis and building performance simulations to predict the energy performance of buildings using stochastic parameters. The method is used to calculate the probability for the energy performance of a building design to fulfil the energy requirements. The consequences are quantified using an example of energy performance contracting to evaluate the inherent risk of a building’s design. The method was demonstrated in a case study and validated by comparing the results in energy performance and probability of failure against measured data from 26 single-family houses.

scholarly journals Understanding the Reasons behind the Energy Performance Gap of an Energy-Efficient Building, through a Probabilistic Approach and On-Site Measurements

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (19) ◽  
pp. 6178
Author(s):  
Pierryves Padey ◽  
Kyriaki Goulouti ◽  
Guy Wagner ◽  
Blaise Périsset ◽  
Sébastien Lasvaux
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficient ◽  
Probabilistic Approach ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Performance Gap ◽  
Post Evaluation ◽  
Energy Efficient Buildings ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Energy Efficient Building

The performance gap, defined as the difference between the measured and the calculated performance of energy-efficient buildings, has long been identified as a major issue in the building domain. The present study aims to better understand the performance gap in high-energy performance buildings in Switzerland, in an ex-post evaluation. For an energy-efficient building, the measured heating demand, collected through a four-year measurement campaign was compared to the calculated one and the results showed that the latter underestimates the real heating demand by a factor of two. As a way to reduce the performance gap, a probabilistic framework was proposed so that the different uncertainties of the model could be considered. By comparing the mean of the probabilistic heating demand to the measured one, it was shown that the performance gap was between 20–30% for the examined period. Through a sensitivity analysis, the active air flow and the shading factor were identified as the most influential parameters on the uncertainty of the heating demand, meaning that their wrong adjustment, in reality, or in the simulations, would increase the performance gap.

Deep renovation of historic buildings

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 539-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Herrera-Avellanosa ◽  
Franziska Haas ◽  
Gustaf Leijonhufvud ◽  
Tor Brostrom ◽  
Alessia Buda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Demand ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Historic Buildings ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Critical Approaches ◽  
Conceptual Paper ◽  
Continued Use ◽  
Definition Of

Purpose Improving the energy performance of historic buildings has the potential to reduce carbon emissions while protecting built heritage through its continued use. However, implementing energy retrofits in these buildings faces social, economic, and technical barriers. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to present the approach of IEA-SHC Task 59 to address some of these barriers. Design/methodology/approach Task 59 aims to achieve the lowest possible energy demand for historic buildings. This paper proposes a definition for this concept and identifies three key socio-technical barriers to achieving this goal: the decision-makers’ lack of engagement in the renovation of historic buildings, a lack of support during the design process and limited access to proven retrofit solutions. Two methods – dissemination of best-practice and guidelines – are discussed in this paper as critical approaches for addressing the first two barriers. Findings An assessment of existing databases indicates a lack of best-practice examples focused specifically on historic buildings and the need for tailored information describing these case studies. Similarly, an initial evaluation of guidelines highlighted the need for process-oriented guidance and its evaluation in practice. Originality/value This paper provides a novel definition of lowest possible energy demand for historic buildings that is broadly applicable in both practice and research. Both best-practices and guidelines are intended to be widely disseminated throughout the field.

The Statistical Verification of Significance of Airtightness and Energy Performance

2015 ◽  
Vol 789-790 ◽  
pp. 1181-1184
Author(s):  
Michal Kraus ◽  
Kateřina Kubeková ◽  
Darja Kubečková
Keyword(s):  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Energy Performance Of Buildings ◽  
Energy Efficient Buildings ◽  
Statistical Verification ◽  
Low Energy Consumption

The main objective of the paper is to confirm or exclude a statistically significant impact of airtightness on the energy performance of buildings. Energy performance of buildings is characterized by a specific energy demand for heating and specific total primary energy. Airtightness is one of the key factors of energy efficient buildings. The quality of airtight building envelope except for low energy consumption also minimizes the risk of damage to the structure associated with the spread of the heat and water vapor in the structure.

scholarly journals Energy flexibility in Mediterranean buildings: a case-study in Sicily

2020 ◽  
Vol 197 ◽  
pp. 02002
Author(s):  
Ilaria Marotta ◽  
Francesco Guarino ◽  
Maurizio Cellura ◽  
Sonia Longo
Keyword(s):  
Residential Building ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Flexible Control ◽  
Emission Signal ◽  
Reduce Emissions ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Family House

Since the building sector is responsible for 40% of the world’s electricity demand, it is essential to act on it in order to reduce emissions of climate change gases on a global scale, as expressed also in the latest directive on the energy performance of buildings. A design approach that focuses on the energy flexibility of buildings can contribute to the improvement of its energy-environmental performances. In this context, the objective of the study is the analysis of the energy performance of a residential building in Sicily and the definition of strategies aimed at increasing its energy flexibility. In particular, the case study is a 631 m2 single-family house, modeled and simulated in TRNSYS environment. The approach involves the development of scenarios to reduce operating costs and CO2 emissions during the use phase of the building. Rule Based Control algorithms are implemented. The flexible control reacts to a price or emission signal, by modulating the heating set-point accordingly. The results highlighted significant increases in energy flexibility. The economic algorithm achieves savings of 21.46%, accompanied by a 15% reduction in emissions. The environmental algorithm allows to reduce CO2 emissions by about 30%. The economic impact is positive, with a 17.58% reduction in costs.

scholarly journals Identifying Retrofitting Strategies to Achieve Energy Efficient Building Design in Existing Buildings

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fadi Salah ◽  
Merve Tuna Kayılı
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficient ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Building Design ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Insulation Material ◽  
Existing Buildings ◽  
The North ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Energy Efficient Building

Reducing the energy needs of existing buildings has a significant place in reducing global energy demands. High energy savings can be achieved with passive renovation suggestions in existing buildings. In this study, the effect of the proposed renovations for an educational structure in Safranbolu on the heating and cooling demands of the building was determined with a simulation program. Energy improvements of up to 70 percent have been achieved through passive improvement designs in orientation and insulation material. The highest energy saving (69.31 %) was realized through a scenario of rearranging spaces from the north side to the south side where the number of users is relatively high and selecting a 20 cm aerogel thermal insulation material. While the heating and cooling load, in accordance with the definition of a zero-energy building, could not be reached in this scenario, the study showed the importance of holistic decisions taken in the design phase of the building with respect to energy-efficient building design.

scholarly journals Investigation of decarbonization potential in green building design to accelerate the utilization of renewable energy sources

2020 ◽  
pp. 195-195
Author(s):  
Norbert Harmathy
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Evaluation Method ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Minimum Energy ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Wide Audience ◽  
Green Building Design

The construction sector as one of the highest carbon emitters in the World has an international initiative for Green House Gas reduction. Green building certifications demonstrate performance, efficiency and economy in the constuction sector. The motivation of the research was to investigate whether Green certified buildings which fulfill the minimum energy standards do demonstrate high energy performance compared to energy efficient buildings and renewable systems. The hypothesis was to investigate that renewable energy source application could contribute to higher performance, against a typical efficient HVAC system (usually applied in commercial buildings) and a building aiming for Green certification, concerning mandatory energy efficiency requirement. The research scope was to investigate and evaluate various HVAC solutions using triple-criteria evaluation method for decarbonization: energy performance, carbon footprint and operation cost to formulate systematic solutions in the design phase of projects for wide audience with preferable and applicable results.

scholarly journals Finding Alternative Methods for Controlling the Power Shortage in Kurdistan through Improving Buildings’ Energy Performance

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 124
Author(s):  
Kawar T. Salih
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Building Sector

The power shortage is one of the major problems in developing countries. Kurdistan Region of Iraq suffers from this issue, like other developing countries. Especially, after the economy crises that has started in 2014. However, all its efforts for tackling this challenge has been in providing more energy supply stations and more fuel provision. Few studies have been found in the region that seek the relation between the quality of buildings and energy consumption. It is questioned if the building sector in Kurdistan is well managed and environmentally sufficient to consume minimum amount of energy since it is the largest energy consuming sector. This research will seek an alternative to decrease the energy demand in buildings instead of expanding the energy sector. This could be achieved by evaluating the quality of building sector environmentally and improving it. Providing guidelines for building’s thermal regulations, passive building design and increasing the energy efficiency of buildings by renewal means could be alternative strategies for lowering the energy consumption. Theoretical and numerical research approach have been taken in to account for finding the answer through a case study and comparative analysis. A variation of 21-29% of power consumption can be observed between buildings that have not considered energy efficiency criteria in their design and those who reflected them more in the design.

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