Energy Efficiency Buildings

This paper introduces a groundbreaking approach to demand response management, aiming to empower consumers through innovative strategies. The key contribution is the concept of "acquiring flexibility rights", wherein consumers engage with power aggregators to curtail energy usage during peak-load periods, receiving incentives in return. A flexibility right coefficient is introduced, allowing consumers to tailor their participation in demand response programs, ensuring their well-being. Additionally, a lighting intensity control system is developed to enhance residential lighting network efficiency. The study demonstrates that high-energy consumers, adopting a satisfaction factor of 10, can achieve over 61% in electricity cost savings by combining the lighting control system and active participation in demand response programs. This not only reduces expenses but also generates income through the sale of flexibility rights. Conversely, low-energy consumers can fully offset their expenses and accumulate over USD 33 in earnings through the installation of solar panels. This paper formulates an optimization problem considering flexibility rights, lighting control, and time-of-use tariff rates. An algorithm is proposed for a distributed solution, and a sensitivity analysis is conducted for evaluation. The proposed method showcases significant benefits, including cost savings and income generation for consumers, while contributing to grid stability and reduced blackout occurrences. Real data from a residential district in Tehran validates the method's effectiveness. This study concludes that this approach holds promise for demand response management in smart grids, emphasizing the importance of consumer empowerment and sustainable energy practices.

This work develops a standalone autonomously controlled personalized ventilation (PV) unit in a naturally ventilated (NV) office space to maintain acceptable thermal comfort (TC) under steady and transient indoor conditions and activity levels. The NV-PV proportional integral derivative (PID) controller adjusts the PV supply temperature (TSPV) at the occupant set flow rate (QSPV) based on predicted TC using a regression model. The target TC level that the controller attains at all times is between 0 (neutral) and 1 (slightly comfortable). Process transfer functions were developed and then used to find the adaptive PID tuning coefficients using the Internal Model Control (IMC) method. The controller was tested in a case study at indoor temperature range of 25 to 33 °C with relative humidity range of 55% and 80%. It was shown that the NV-PV controller adjusted TSPV to maintain acceptable TC under transients of indoor conditions and metabolic rates.

Hot and humid climates present a challenge for implementing passive cooling practices in office spaces, due to the inherent small temperature difference between day and night, which affects the utilization of thermal storage systems. Moreover, added means are required to maintain the humidity in the space at an acceptable level for comfort. The novelty of this study is to design and implement a feasible hybrid cooling system for office spaces in such climates by uniquely combining several sustainable cooling, thermal storage, and dehumidification solutions. The proposed system integrates a phase change material (PCM) thermal storage layer with a melting temperature of 25 °C to cool the supply air and a personalized evaporative cooler (PEC) to provide cooling for the occupants. The supply air humidity is controlled using a solid desiccant wheel regenerated via an auxiliary heater assisted with a Trombe wall. Mathematical models were adopted for each system component/process, solved numerically and integrated to size the system components, simulate their operation and predict the overall system's performance in an office space during the summer months of Beirut climate. The proposed system was found to achieve acceptable thermal comfort levels in the space. Moreover, it reduced the total energy cost by 87% compared with a conventional air conditioning unit over the summer period. In addition, the Trombe wall provided energy savings of 55% compared to relying only on the auxiliary heater. Hence, integrating several sustainable solutions succeeded in implementing an effective cooling system of office spaces in hot humid climates.

Ageing Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) fluid pipeline systems pose significant operational and economic challenges due to degradation, energy inefficiency, and high retrofit costs. This study aims to develop a simulationdriven, machine learning-based framework to accurately predict retrofit costs and support cost-effective decision-making for ageing pipeline networks. A quantitative research methodology was adopted, where synthetic data were generated via stochastic simulation using Monte Carlo techniques in Python (NumPy and Pandas). Three supervised machine learning models, Random Forest, eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), and Artificial Neural Network (ANN), were implemented and evaluated using RMSE, R², and MAPE as performance metrics. The results showed that XGBoost achieved the best performance with an RMSE of 221.19, R² of 0.929, and MAPE of 5.90%, followed closely by Random Forest, while ANN underperformed with an RMSE of 335.03. XGBoost and Random Forest are closely aligned with actual retrofit costs, indicating strong predictive accuracy. The study concludes that ensemble models trained on simulationderived data offer a robust solution for proactive retrofit planning. The findings have significant implications for enhancing infrastructure resilience and optimising maintenance investment. However, the study is limited by the use of synthetic data and recommends future work with real-world datasets and expanded modelling techniques for multi-objective predictions.

Radiative cooling is an emerging technology for scenarios requiring space cooling. Radiative property tests of cooling materials are critical for evaluating the cooling performance and energy-saving potential. However, there is a lack of quantitative analysis of the impact of laboratory qualifications on testing results. This study reported a round robin campaign initiated by Chongqing University (China) and participated by seven other academic institutes. In this campaign, six cooling coatings were selected as target materials. The radiative propertiesshortwave reflectivity, hemispherical emissivity and atmospheric window emissivityof the coatings were tested. Based on the testing results, material errors, repeatability errors and reproducibility errors were analyzed. The results revealed that there were certain differences in the radiative properties of the coatings due to their inherent properties. In general, different coatings exhibited varying material errors (0.01%-2.66%), which, although small, were challenging to eliminate. Meanwhile, the radiative property tests showed excellent repeatability, with repeatability errors below 1.00%, confirming that the tests themselves were reliable under proper control. However, significant differences between laboratories (reproducibility errors ranging from 2.03% to 7.40%) suggested that differences in instrument models and operators could lead to significant deviations in the results. This, in turn, severely affected the evaluation accuracy of the coatings' cooling performance. Therefore, stricter and more detailed protocols are needed to improve the reproducibility for radiative property tests of the coatings.

A multi-criteria group decision-making method for the thermal renovation of masonry buildings: the case of Algeria. 2016 SEDDIKI, M., ANOUCHE, K., BENNADJI, A. and BOATENG, P. 2016. A multi-criteria group decision-making method for the thermal renovation of masonry buildings: the case of Algeria. Energy and buildings [online], 129, pages 471-483.

In hot and tropical countries external walls and roofs receive solar radiation absorbing part of it and transmitting a substantial part to the internal ambient provoking thermal discomfort. In cold climate heat is usually lost to the external ambient and again causing thermal discomfort. In both cases the thermal energy load is increased. For these reasons many studies were dedicated to investigate techniques for improving the thermal performance of walls and roofs. One of the most viable techniques is the use of PCM as thermal insulation filler that increases the thermal inertia of the component at relatively low cost and without substantial increase of weight. The formulation of the problem of the PCM composite wall is based on one dimensional pure conduction model for the PCM and the walls. The numerical solution involves moving grid for the PCM. The computational grid was optimized to eliminate grid size effects. The model was extended to treat the roof problem. The numerical pr...

A model for time dependent analysis of solar chimneys is presented. The energy balance equations for three components of solar chimneys, absorbing plate, cover glass and air-gap are discretized with respect to time using an implicit finite difference model. The discretized nonlinear energy balance equations are solved for numerous time steps over a 24-h period using the Newton-Raphson method. The time dependent solar irradiation is determined using the clear sky model. The model's performances for various parameters of solar chimney that affect the thermal mass of the absorbing plate are tested. It was determined that a solar chimney with a relatively large thermal-mass produces airflow well into night and early morning when no solar irradiance is present. Also, a high thermal mass of the absorbing plate results in smaller variations in the airflow rate. The results of the present model for a solar chimney with no thermal storage compare well with the previously published data.

In current system of building energy efficiency, the building energy saving rate is calculated based on energy consumption per unit area on a certain past stage. The approach is restricted by the development of economy, progress of energy-saving technologies and climate change. In present work, a novel building energy efficiency evaluation index is developed to represent building energy saving performance. A building model can be first established according to architectural design scheme, current standards and operating conditions. Then, average daily indoor air temperature would be obtained using hourly outdoor air temperature as input conditions, with the one-dimensional unsteady heat transfer model. Finally, the calculation equations of energy saving of envelopes (ΔS) and building energy saving rate (BESR) are derived. In application, a building envelopes trade-off option is proposed and a target building in Western China is employed for case study. The results indicate that, about 19.3% of whole energy achieving indoor human thermal comfort is provided by building envelopes for the target building. The parametric analyses indicate that, BESRs of the standard building model in cold climate zone (2A) are much higher than those in cold climate zone (2B) in China. It is found that, the trade-off option can also be employed to select and optimize insulation materials and layer thicknesses. The approach can provide new thoughts for evaluation of energy saving performance of building envelopes in the design phase.

Building envelopes integrating with phase change materials (PCMs) can achieve excellent thermal storage performance, which would benefit the establishment of comfortable indoor thermal environment and the reduction of building energy consumption. In the present paper, the thermal performance of PCMs-based lightweight wallboards integrating PCMs with insulation materials are investigated by comparative experiments. By using two reduce-scale test cells, the experiments are conducted in an artificial climate chamber which is controlled by harmonic and linearly rising/falling temperature changing processes. The comparisons of different PCM layer arrangements and layout areas on the wallboard thermal performance are conducted. Experimental results depict that the PCMs-based lightweight wallboard with PCM layer arrange on interior surface can reduce 32.4% of the temperature fluctuation amplitude and delay the lag time from 2.9 h to 4.1 h compared with the arrangement on exterior surface. To provide a convenient approach for engineers and architects to estimate the thermal performance of PCM envelopes in early design stage, a simple thermal design method is proposed based on harmonic response method and equivalent specific heat capacity principle. The calculation results of interior surface temperature agree well with the experimental results with an 7.7% relative error. The present work could provide validation data for simulation investigations of PCM envelopes and provide references for PCM envelopes thermal design.

Recently, more and more attention is paid on passive energy saving technologies in buildings, including night ventilation and thermal mass. In the paper, a porous building model is proposed to investigate wind and thermal environment around and inside an isolated building on different amounts of night ventilation and amounts of thermal mass. Inside the building, the Brinkman-Forchheimer extended Darcy model (BFED model) and the local thermal non-equilibrium model (LTNE model) are first adopted, to represent flow and heat transfer between airflow and thermal mass. The reliability of the model is validated with published wind tunnel experimental data. After that, local wind and thermal characteristics, cooling effects of night ventilation are obtained. The effects of three key parameters: airflow velocity, airflow temperature and equivalent porosity of the building are investigated in detail. The results indicate that, the outdoor air temperature has a larger influence on the effects of night ventilation than airflow velocity. And the proposed porous building model shows great advantages in modelling heat transfer between airflow and thermal mass. The investigation provides thoughts for dealing with urban wind environment, outdoor thermal environment and wind environment of building arrays.

This article stems from an ongoing research that aims primarily at designing a methodology for intervention in old buildings (in particular, in the bourgeois houses of Porto), targeted for the rehabilitation of traditional construction systems and based on "best practice" procedures in heritage conservation. A brief essay describing the usefulness of drawing in defining a constructive model that characterizes the existing buildings is presented, in particular in the context of its most frequent pathologies, emphasizing its importance in conceiving a methodology for intervention. The ongoing research that the authors has been developed on traditional construction in northern Portugal has contributed to the definition of this model, namely through studies on the ordinary housing in the city of Porto, also called bourgeois houses, and the recent research into the collection of CRUARB, the municipal office responsible between 1974 and 2002 for the urban heritage conservation of the Historical Centre. The investigation in progress has been confirmed the belief that the drawing is essential for the establishment of a methodology for intervention in old buildings, supporting the entire process, from the survey analysis of the existing built environment, through the stages of conception and construction, to the maintenance of buildings during their lifetime. The universal language of drawing also adds to the ability of bringing together the interests of the various disciplines involved in the actions of heritage conservation.

The study of the constructive system of the bourgeois houses of Porto has been initiated at several years ago with the realization of academic works concerning survey and interpretation (fig. ), which counts on some hundreds of analysed buildings, largely located in the Historic Centre of the city. The first systematization presented from this material, was based on main literature about the subject and on the consultation of architecture licensing processes, existing in the Municipal Historic Archive of Porto. The accomplished research turn out evident that the available specific literature is scarce and dispersed, and includes, mainly, the studies conducted by Ernesto Veiga de Oliveira and F e r n a n d o G a l h a n o , c o m p l e m e n t e d b y s m a l l monographic essays on applied materials or architectonic elements of the buildings. For this reason, the study was extended to treaties and, in particular, to manuals, that have had great national spreading during the XVIII and XIX centuries, with emphasis for the works of Oliveira, Leitão and Segurado. The referred systematization, which has been updated with data resulting from the most recent research, also includes an extensive and complementary graphic documentation of the constructive system of these buildings.

The intent of the paper is to determine the direct and indirect influences that exterior spaces have on habitable indoor spaces. The external transition zone, between the "open" and the "built" has been divided into three main elements forming an outdoor "room", which consists of floors, walls and roofs. The building type to be used is an educational building, which is located in Windhoek. The typical classrooms and offices will be evaluated in a programme called DEROB (Dynamic Energy Response of Buildings). Different types of surfaces and materials will be investigated for each element. The results proved that the ground surfaces and the vertical screens were more prominent in terms of changing the thermal comfort of the indoor volumes than the horizontal screens; however the horizontal screens still proved essential due to its shading properties as well as its rain protection, especially in Namibia's arid climate with summer rainfall.

The primary factors that determine the net thermal performance of a window system are its overall heat transfer rate (U-value), its air leakage characteristics and its sun control capability. With managed window systems these basic properties may be drastically altered on an hourly basis as movable insulating and shading devices are deployed over the prime windows. A large building energy analysis computer program, DOE-2, has been modified to model the thermal performance of a variety of window management devices. The deployment of these devices is simulated based upon fixed hourly schedules or the value of critical climatic factors such as solar intensity. Automatic operation may be modeled or manual operation with varying degrees of human fallibility may be simulated. The model couples reductions in infiltration rate to the deployment of an insulating or shading device. Results of heating load calculations are presented for the cases of single-and double-glazed windows in a typical house with glass-tofloor area ratios of 15 to 40%, and for window management devices with varying thermal resistance, air leakage rates and different modes of operation. window syster.ls with building thermal characteristics, orientation, and climate as controlled variables. (1.

This paper reviews the differences between thermal and daylighting considerations for building design and their implications for using illuminance and irradiance data. Old and new mathematical models for luminance distribution and illuminance calculation are explained. Overcast, clear, and average sky conditions are discussed and their dependence on atmospheric factors is examined. ~ve focus in particular on the turbidity of the clear atmosphere and the luminance at the zenith. We conclude that more measured daylighting data are required for validating the equations that have been developed separately in various parts of the world.

This paper investigates the mechanical properties of concrete containing different particle sizes of crumb rubber. This research have been conducted on 10% replacement of fine aggregates by three different particle sizes of crumb rubber which are 1 mm crumb rubber, 0.4-1 mm fine dust crumb rubber, and 0.2-0.6 mm powder crumb rubber. Laboratory tests include slump test, compressive test, flexural test, bulk density test, water absorption test, porosity test, and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) test were conducted on the concrete mixes. All concrete specimens were tested at the age of 7, 14, 28, and 56 days. The results from laboratory testing on concrete specimens were analyzed. It was found that in the inclusion of crumb rubber into concrete, it will reduce the strength of concrete. The usage of greater particle sizes of crumb rubber which is 1 mm crumb rubber gives better strength of concrete compared to the usage of smaller particle sizes of crumb rubber which is 0.2-0.6 mm powder crumb rubber. Therefore, the rubberized concrete can absorb the impact energy and suitable usage in roads and highways construction such as road divider, road pavement, and others because it can absorb impact from vehicles load, disaster and others.

While the issue of illuminating cultural assets is a design problem in itself, the subject becomes muchmore complicated if the cultural assets to be illuminated are urban landmarks. The lighting of historical urban landmarks is an increasingly common practice in the world and in our country recently. In orderfor these applications to be professional and qualified designs, they must have architectural, technical,economic and ecological sensitivities. In this study, first of all, the subject of illuminating the historicalcity landmarks is discussed at the urban and building scale. Illuminating the historical city landmarks isevaluated on national and international examples. A theoretical structure has been created with theseknowledge. In the light of this information, a lighting dialogue based on the symbolic values of thecultural assets was established between the Maiden's Tower, which is (one of)the landmark of the cityof Istanbul, and Maiden’s Castle, which is the landmark of the city of MersinThe fact that the existinglighting of Maiden’s Castle is incompatible with the cultural heritage values of the historical building isthe main reason for the need for this dialogue. Within the scope of the literature review of the study, itwas determined that professional lighting should have criterias such as the hierarchy of occupancy,space, height perceptions, architectural forms and elements of the buildings and emphasizing the urbansymbol value, based on the information obtained by examining the cultural assets from Turkey and theworld. At this point, the professional and qualified lighting of the Maiden's Tower, which meets thesecriteria, has been accepted as the pioneer of the lighting dialogue established between the two historicalbuildings. In the context of the determined lighting criteria, the current lighting of Kızkalesi has beendiscussed from a critical point of view, with taking into account the past lighting processes. In thiscontext, considering the past lighting processes of Maiden’s Castle, the current lighting has been handledwith a critical perspective and it has been emphasized that Maiden’s Castle should need a qualifiedlighting.

Abstract. The Internet of Things allows people and objects to seamlessly interact, crossing the bridge between real and virtual worlds. Newly created spaces are heterogeneous; social relations naturally extend to smart objects. Conviviality has recently been introduced as a social science concept for ambient intelligent systems to highlight soft qualitative requirements like user friendliness of systems. Roughly, more opportunities to work with other people increase the conviviality. In this paper, we first propose the conviviality ...

Social housing providers have recently emerged as unlikely innovators of low carbon transitions in the UK residential sector. They tend to have a significant amount of influence over large housing stocks, opportunities to access funding to retrofit on a large scale, can make explicit connections between reduced carbon emissions and improved quality of life for low-income residents, and foster a close relationship with the place and communities they serve. In effect, social housing providers are 'middle actors' who not only facilitate but also realise low carbon transitions through various strategies. This paper uses empirical findings from interviews with social housing providers in Greater Manchester to understand the different ways that low carbon and energy efficiency innovation is being undertaken in this sector. The findings reveal that as middle actors, social landlords influence upstream to policy makers and regulators, downstream to individual households, and sideways to other actors in the social housing sector as well as to other building and energy professionals. The findings reveal opportunities for governments to supplement their existing policies with recognising and supporting middle actors to accelerate low carbon transitions of the built environment.

The performance of diffuse ceiling air supply and chilled beam with swirl jet (CSW) in heating mode (winter situation) was studied and compared with regard to the generated indoor environment. An office mock-up with one occupant was simulated in a test room (4.5 x 3.95 x 3.5 m (L x W x H)). A window (6.5 m) with cold surface (14 °C) was simulated by radiant panels. Four CSW chilled beam units were installed symmetrically on the suspended ceiling together with two exhaust vents. The diffuse ceiling inlet was made of standard perforated acoustic tiles (0.5% total degree of perforation). The room air temperature was kept at 21 °C. Tracer gas was used to simulate pollution from floor and desk. The experimental conditions comprised: 1) night time without heat sources in the room; the room air conditioning system was used to heat up the room; 2) heat load generated by an occupant (simulated by dressed thermal manikin) and a laptop; 3) heating by convectors positioned under the window (con...

Elderly demand for thermal comfort and energy conservation in senior citizen centers is increasing in an aging society. To reveal the thermal responses of the elderly in a warm summer environment, a field study involving experimental measurements was conducted in Chongqing, China. The study included 333 subjects in 17 residential buildings and 119 subjects in 6 elderly nursing homes; it showed that elderly persons as passive users of air conditioners preferred cooling by natural ventilation. The mean thermal sensation vote was lower than estimates obtained from the PMV model in warm environments. The physiological responses of eight elderly subjects (65 ± 3) were measured in a climate chamber at 18 °C and 34 °C and compared with those from eight college students (22 ± 1) and eight middle-aged subjects (50 ± 5). In this chamber, oral temperature, blood pressure, and heart rate of elderly and middle-aged persons were determined to be almost constant as the air temperature was changed to a hot/cold environment for 30 min, a different result from that of the young subjects. However, the skin temperature for all age groups showed variation with air temperature, suggesting skin temperature as an optimal monitoring parameter for the entire population.

The calculation of electricity consumption forecast a few days ahead is a complicated issue and studies about this matter are continually being performed. Advances in this field allow obtaining consumption forecasts increasingly accurate. These consumption forecasts aim to improve the knowledge of the facilities, the planning and control of consumption and the measurement and verification of energy saving measures, among others. In this study the authors present several advances related to consumption forecast using end-uses (EUs). The methodology described enables an easy disaggregation of each EU in a facility and it also enables calculating a good forecast for each of them. For the disaggregation process, the correlation between energy and external variables, such as mean temperature, degree days or daylight, is studied. Additionally, an extrapolation method to obtain a total consumption forecast from forecasted EUs that cover approximately 60% of total consumption is developed. With this procedure, total consumption forecasts with high accuracy can be obtained without the need of classifying more than the 60% of the consumption of a facility. The higher accuracy in each end-use, the better results are obtained in the total consumption forecast. For this reason, the study is focused in the end-uses disaggregation and its forecast calculation. The entire methodology is illustrated and contrasted using the consumption of the Universitat Politècnica de València.

In countries with cold winters such as Poland, there is growing evidence for proliferating overheating in summer times due to climate change. Hence, buildings become more uncomfortable for their occupants during hot summers. To tackle this challenge, we use the passive strategies potential to adapt buildings in line with their experimental and engineering analysis of the indoor environment. This paper demonstrates the results of both thermal and airflow simulation of existing naturally ventilated in double-bedroom homes in Poland. Thermal and airflow simulation is used to improve the natural ventilation system and to address summer thermal comfort problems due to excessive hot airflow caused by climate change. In the first step of the research, over 300 multi-family home plans all over Poland were categorized by size, ventilation type, facade organization, and fenestration type. In the second part, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis is used on 3D models to predict indoor airflow velocities for different levels of the building envelope airflow permeability. Then, a coupled thermal and airflow simulation with 2 different window size, fully open, and with 3 integrated shadings options (base model or no shadings, 30 cm overhang with side-fin, and 10 cm depth horizontal louvers) are done to investigate whether the more opened envelope reduces a summer overheating problem. The results for the optimized natural ventilation through fenestrations successfully address houses' summer discomfort problem by reducing the indoor temperature between 2–3C and in some cases up to 4C cooler than similar models with small windows.

Climate change significantly affects buildings' energy consumption, which accounts for a large portion of global energy use. Mitigating these impacts can result in substantial energy savings and CO 2 emissions reduction. This study investigates the use of machine learning (ML) algorithms to predict the performance of energy savings and thermal comfort improvements resulting from optimized HVAC systems in office buildings across the United States in the future in the face of climate change. This environmental issue has a significant impact on buildings' energy consumption, accounting for a large portion of global energy use. Future weather files for 16 cities were generated using a statistical downscaling method based on the HadCM3 climate model and A2 GHG scenario. Baseline data and these future weather files were used to simulate energy performance for a medium office building prototype developed by the Department of Energy. The model was modified by adjusting HVAC setbacks, and the resulting energy savings and thermal comfort improvements were analyzed. The accuracy of the predictions was evaluated based on the popular ML model assessment metrics and the difference between predicted values and the simulated values. The results show that the surrogate ML model (Light Gradient boost Model Regressor LGBMR) can predict energy savings and thermal comfort improvements resulting from optimized HVAC systems, with a high degree of accuracy 88 %. These findings highlight the potential of ML algorithms to predict the effectiveness of HVAC setback temperature strategies for climate change mitigation in buildings, which can be used as an easy way to assess different HVAC optimization strategies for future conditions.

Various methods are proposed to evaluate the environmental quality of buildings. In general, these methods integrate issues of concern like the protection of the human health and eco-system (e.g. protection of the climate, fauna and flora), and the efficient use of resources (energy, water, materials). Life cycle assessment (LCA) allows a quantification of indicators related to these issues and is widely used among industrials as well as academics. This method has been applied in the building sector and several tools have been developed. The precision of these tools and their relevance as a design aid is often questioned. The aim of the work presented here is to have a clearer view upon these questions, and to propose some harmonisation regarding LCA based assessment of buildings. This work has been performed in the frame of the European thematic network PRESCO (Practical Recommendations for Sustainable Construction).

The issue of sustainability has been prevailed not only in building industry but also all other industries. It has been raised that the concept of green building system should be taken into account for the design of buildings. This study is to understand characteristics of the green building system and find the solution of urban problems. Now, over 60% people all over the world live in urban areas, and their communities continue to expand. Pollution and other hazards also tend to accumulate in urban areas. Accordingly, the problems of urban environment are true microcosms of environmental afflictions happening on a global scale. Most of urban problems are caused by human and their buildings. This study was conducted by two ways. One is assessment of energy, and the other is water cycle. Energy and water is also typical factors of urban problems. To solve the urban problems, we must change or shift the wrong circulating systems on (buildings) micro scale. The object building is a recently designed as an environmental-friendly building in Korea that has eco-systems. (as earth-berm, thermal labyrinth, concrete core cooling, soil energy, water-recycle, etc.) Furthermore, comparing eco-system to normal system, difference of energy saving between eco-system and normal system were analyzed by calculation of exergy-entropy of the energy and water cycling system. Consequently, control of micro-environment (the consumption-discharge balance of the energy and the water) in buildings is a key of urban problem solution

Smart monitoring of local electricity systems (LESs) with sources based on renewable energy resources (RESs) from the point of view of the requirements of the functions of an intelligent system are hardware and software systems that can solve the tasks of both analysis (optimization) and synthesis (design, planning, control). The article considers the following: a functional scheme of smart monitoring of LESs, describing its main components and scope of application; an assessment of the state of the processes and the state of the equipment of generators and loads; dynamic pricing and a dynamic assessment of the state of use of primary fuel and/or current costs of generators; economic efficiency of generator operation and loads; an assessment of environmental acceptability, in particular, the volume of CO2 emissions; provides demand-side management, managing maximum energy consumption; a forecast of system development; an assessment of mutual flows of electricity; system resistance to disturbances; a forecast of metrological indicators, potential opportunities for generating RESs (wind power plants, solar power plants, etc.); an assessment of current costs; the state of electromagnetic compatibility of system elements and operation of electricity storage devices; and ensures work on local electricity markets. The application of smart monitoring in the formation of tariffs on local energy markets for transactive energy systems is shown by conducting a combined comprehensive assessment of the energy produced by each individual power source with graphs of the dependence of costs on the generated power. Algorithms for the comprehensive assessment of the cost of electricity production in a transactive system for calculating planned costs are developed, and the calculation of the cost of production per 1 kW is also presented. A visualization of the results of applying this algorithm is presented.

Keywords: smart monitoring; Local Electricity Systems (LES); Renewable Energy Sources (RES); Demand-Side Management (DSM); energy storage systems; microgrids; energy efficiency

This publication demonstrates an optimization process for the selection of the best solution for residential building orientation.
Solar radiation absorbed by the outside walls of a building influences thermal comfort in the apartment. In winter, the solar radiation has a positive contribution and in summer – a negative. Solar gain depends on the orientation of the outside walls of the building.
The aim of this work is to find the best building orientation that will result in the most comfortable conditions in the apartment. Such work requires an building energy simulation program.
The publications “Building Energy Simulation and Optimization BESOO” and the related simulation programs created an opportunity for such work for Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The BESOO programs allow input of the direction of the outside walls of the building. The program allows the selection of building orientation every 22.5 degrees. This results in 16 options of the optimization.
The simulation and optimization show that for Jerusalem and Tel Aviv the best building orientation is ESS+SWW and the worst - WN+NE.

In recent years, became increasingly common the use of natural fibers in the civil engineering sector, as a part of energy-efficient and sustainable trends. In Romania, the breeding of sheep represents a traditional activity. Anually, important quantities of resulted wool are treated as wastes, being burned or buried. Several researches demonstrated good properties of sheep wool fibres which recommend them in insulation purposes or in reinforced composited obtaining. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the possibilities of sheep wool usage as a building material. This paper is important because, at present, the knowledge and the application of sheep wool fibers in this sector are relatively limited and treated with some doubts.

In this study, an investigation was made of the performance of a Trombe wall of classical structure used together with a heat store. Most Trombe walls are able to supply the heating needs of a space to which they are connected without the need for extra heating at times when the sun is shining. However, the heat obtained from the Trombe wall can be in excess of needs at such times, and measures must be taken to provide ventilation to the heated space. It is thought that the heat energy can be used more efficiently and productively by storing the excess heat outside the building and using it inside the building when there is no sunlight. To this purpose, a tank full of water and marble was built as a heat store as an alternative to the general Trombe wall design, and an attempt was made to minimise heat losses by burying it in the ground. It was concluded that in place of a traditional Trombe wall system using a massive wall heat store, a heat store could be constructed in a different position and with different materials. The Trombe wall system which was developed and tested met up to 30% of the energy needed for heating and cooling the building, and reduced the architectural and static disadvantages of Trombe wall systems. As a result of the study, it was seen that where a standard reinforced concrete wall could supply heat to the inside for 7 hours and 12 minutes, the figure for a wall made of paraffin wax was 8 hours and 55 minutes. In the same study, the heat storage thickness of a reinforced concrete wall was calculated as 20 cm, while that of a paraffin wax wall was calculated as 5 cm.

El uso de sistemas fotovoltaicos aislados de la red se utiliza cada vez más como el principal método de suministro de electricidad en zonas rurales de muchos países en desarrollo. El estudio se centra en determinar el ángulo de inclinación de los paneles fotovoltaicos que maximice la irradiancia solar capturada cada mes del año con el objetivo de conocer la inclinación óptima para el mes crítico. El objetivo es encontrar ecuaciones simples para relacionar la inclinación óptima mensual de los paneles solares y la latitud, para latitudes entre ±37º. Estas ecuaciones pueden ser muy útiles cuando los datos de irradiancia y las herramientas informáticas avanzadas no están disponibles para proporcionar la inclinación óptima mensual en ese sitio. Al optimizar la captura solar en el mes crítico y diseñar el sistema para satisfacer la demanda eléctrica máxima de ese mes, si se deja todo el año el panel con esa inclinación, habrá suficiente generación en el resto de los meses del año.

The transport sector is capable of generating an enabling environment to catalyse economic growth in Africa. The sector has, however, experienced great stagnation in terms of infrastructural improvement over the past decades. Road access presently makes up only 34 per cent of such access in Africa, as opposed to 50 per cent in other developing regions globally (PIDA, 2015). According to the intergovernmental Panel on Climate (IPCC) (2014), energy use accounts for 68 per cent of total global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, a disaggregation of the energy sector shows that fuel combustion predominates total GHG emissions in the sector, with the transport sector accounting for 23 per cent globally (IEA, 2015). In the case of Africa, the disaggregation of the GHG emissions resulting from fuel combustion by sector puts the transport sector at the top with 42 per cent, almost twice the global share, and even more than for electricity and heat production (32 per cent) (figure 1 is ...

Thermal modelling tools have widely been used in the construction industry at the design stage, either for new build or retrofitting existing buildings, providing data for informed decision-making. The accuracy of thermal models has been subject of much research in recent decades due to the potential large difference between predicted and 'in-use' performance -the so called 'performance gap'. A number of studies suggested that better representation of building physics and operation details in thermal models can improve the accuracy of predictions. However, full-scale model calibration has always been challenging as it is difficult to measure all the necessary boundary conditions in an open environment. Thus, the Energy House facility at the University of Salforda full-sized end terrace house constructed within an environmental chamberpresents a unique opportunity to conduct full-scale model calibration. The aim of this research is to calibrate Energy House thermal models using various full-scale measurements. The measurements used in this research include the co-heating tests for a whole house retrofit case study, and thermal resistance from window coverings and heating controls with thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs). Thermal models were created using an IESVE (Integrated Environment Solutions Virtual Environment). IESVE is a well-established dynamic thermal simulation tool widely used in analysing the dynamic response of a building based on the hourly input of weather data. The evidence from this study suggests that thermal models using measured U-values and infiltration rates do perform better than the models using calculated thermal properties and assumed infiltration rates. The research suggests that better representations of building physics help thermal models reduce the performance gap. However, discrepancies still exist due to various other underlying uncertainties which need to be considered individually with each case. In relative terms, i.e. variations in percentage, the predictions from thermal models tend to be more reliable than predicting the absolute numbers.

 A 'performance gap' is found to exist between measured and modelled building fabric performance.  Highly accurate measurement of building fabric properties (i.e. U-values and air permeability) is possible under controlled conditions.  Calibration of building energy models using accurate measurements of the building's fabric properties reduces the observed performance gap.

Thermal modelling tools have widely been used in the construction industry at the design stage, either for new build or retrofitting existing buildings, providing data for informed decision-making. The accuracy of thermal models has been subject of much research in recent decades due to the potential large difference between predicted and 'in-use' performance -the so called 'performance gap'. A number of studies suggested that better representation of building physics and operation details in thermal models can improve the accuracy of predictions. However, full-scale model calibration has always been challenging as it is difficult to measure all the necessary boundary conditions in an open environment. Thus, the Energy House facility at the University of Salforda full-sized end terrace house constructed within an environmental chamberpresents a unique opportunity to conduct full-scale model calibration. The aim of this research is to calibrate Energy House thermal models using various full-scale measurements. The measurements used in this research include the co-heating tests for a whole house retrofit case study, and thermal resistance from window coverings and heating controls with thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs). Thermal models were created using an IESVE (Integrated Environment Solutions Virtual Environment). IESVE is a well-established dynamic thermal simulation tool widely used in analysing the dynamic response of a building based on the hourly input of weather data. The evidence from this study suggests that thermal models using measured U-values and infiltration rates do perform better than the models using calculated thermal properties and assumed infiltration rates. The research suggests that better representations of building physics help thermal models reduce the performance gap. However, discrepancies still exist due to various other underlying uncertainties which need to be considered individually with each case. In relative terms, i.e. variations in percentage, the predictions from thermal models tend to be more reliable than predicting the absolute numbers.

Naturally ventilated buildings have a key role to play mitigating climate change. The predicted indoor temperatures in spaces with simple single-sided natural ventilation (SNV) are compared with those in spaces conditioned using a form of edge in, edge out advanced natural ventilation (ANV) for various UK locations. A criterion, for use in conjunction with the BSEN15251 adaptive thermal comfort method, is proposed for determining when the risk of overheating, both now and in the future, might be deemed unacceptable. The work is presented in the context building new, and refurbishing existing, healthcare buildings and in particular hospital wards. The spaces conditioned using the ANV strategy were much more resilient to increases in both internal heat gains and climatic warming than spaces with SNV. The ANV strategy used less energy, and emitted less CO 2 than conventional, mechanically ventilated (MV) alternatives. In a warming world, the 'life-expectancy' of passively cooled buildings can be substantially influenced by the internal heat gains. Therefore, resilience to climate change, susceptibility to internal heat gains and the impact of future heat waves should be an integral part of any new building or building refurbishment design process.

Advanced natural ventilation (ANV), often characterised by the use of dedicated ventilation stacks, shafts and other architecture features such as atria, light wells, has gained popularity for natural ventilation design in recent decades. In this research, a prototype ...

Ventilated façades have become an increasingly employed feature in the design of low energy buildings over recent years in that they offer the attractive features of a conventional glass façade but without the thermal disadvantages. These façades consist of a double skin surface, the outer layer of which is of toughened glass, and the inner layer of which usually comprises conventional double-glazing, behind which is the occupied space. The cavity formed by the outer and inner layers is ventilated, and frequently contains a blind. This blind, together with the cavity ventilation, provides a means to control the heat transfer across the façade, in terms of solar gain transmission and recovery of heat lost from the interior. A three-year project, funded by the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), has investigated the thermal and airflow performance of ventilated façades. A series of parametric experiments have been performed using the Large Scale Solar Simulator at Loughborough University. Results from these experiments have been used to validate models of airflow and thermal behaviour developed at De Montfort University. Advice on practical application and industrial practice has been provided by Arup Research and Development and IT Power. The result of the research is an improved understanding of the thermal and air flow behaviour of such ventilated double skin façades. The effects of external conditions, solar irradiation and exterior air temperature, on double skin façades with differing internal characteristics are presented and analysed in this paper. In particular, the effect of the blind blade angle on cavity temperatures and ventilation air flows will be reported, together with an outline of the guidance that is now emerging to assist designers of such façades.

This study presents a comprehensive investigation into the thermophysical, mechanical, and structural properties of natural zeolite-perlite composite plates intended for use as thermal mass elements in enhanced Trombe wall application. Natural zeolite composite plates were produced with 0 %, 2 %, 5 %, 7 %, 10 % and 15 % Perlite by volumes. The plates were produced with perlite content ranging from 0 % to 15 % by volume. Various characterization techniques including density, thermal conductivity, specific heat, volumetric heat capacity, thermal diffusivity, compressive strength, SEM-EDX, TGA, FT-IR, XRD, porosity, and BET analyses were conducted. Based on the evaluation of these properties, the composite containing 7 % perlite was identified as the optimal formulation, exhibiting a volumetric heat capacity between 2.20 × 10⁶ and 5.29 × 10⁶ J/m 3 depending on temperature. A full-scale Trombe wall system incorporating the optimized plates was constructed and experimentally tested under real meteorological conditions. The results confirmed that the natural zeolite-perlite composite plates perform effectively as sensible heat storage materials and offer strong potential for applications in passive solar heating, zero-energy buildings, and other systems requiring thermal energy storage.

This paper presents a study of the thermal characteristics of a concentric-tube heat exchanger that is a key element in local ventilation device. The inner tube of the concentric-tube heat exchanger has a sinusoidal, wavy surface in the longitudinal direction, which enables heat transfer enhancement. The tube can be stretched to a certain extent and thus change the corrugation of the heat-transfer surface area. We designed an experiment in which we used the Wilson-plot method to separately determine the convective heat-transfer coefficient on the inside and outside of the inner tube of the concentrictube heat exchanger with different corrugation ratios. Based on the measurements correlation equations were developed to calculate the convective heat-transfer coefficient for any corrugation ratio, which allows us to simplify the design of local ventilation devices. Performed studies showed that, compared to a smooth tube, the convective heat-transfer coefficient increased only in the case of corrugated tubes with a corrugation ratio of less than 1.648, but the heat transfer was more intense for all considered corrugated tubes by 65% to 90% due to the increased heat-transfer surface area. The highest heat transfer rate was observed for the case of the maximum-stretched tube with a corrugation ratio of 1.401, which is advantageous also in terms of material consumption.