scholarly journals A methodology for predicting the energy performance and indoor thermal comfort of residential stocks on the neighbourhood and city scales. A case study in Spain

2016 ◽  
Vol 139 ◽  
pp. 646-665 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Braulio-Gonzalo ◽  
María Dolores Bovea ◽  
María José Ruá ◽  
Pablo Juan
Urban Science ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 53
Author(s):  
Haven Hailu ◽  
Eshetu Gelan ◽  
Yared Girma

Indoor thermal comfort is an essential aspect of sustainable architecture and it is critical in maintaining a safe indoor environment. Expectations, acceptability, and preferences of traditional and modern buildings are different in terms of thermal comfort. This study, therefore, attempts to evaluate the indoor thermal comforts of modern and traditional buildings and identify the contributing factors that impede or facilitate indoor thermal comfort in Semera city, Ethiopia. This study employed subjective and objective measurements. The subjective measurement is based on the ASHRAE seven-point thermal sensation scale. An adaptive comfort model was employed according to the ASHRAE standard to evaluate indoor thermal comfort. The results revealed that with regards to thermal sensational votes between −1 and +1, 88% of the respondents are satisfied with the indoor environment in traditional houses, while in modern houses this figure is 22%. Likewise, 83% of occupants in traditional houses expressed a preference for their homes to remain the same or be only slightly cooler or warmer. Traditional houses were, on average, in compliance with the 80% acceptability band of the adaptive comfort standard. The study investigated that traditional building techniques and materials, in combination with consideration of microclimate, were found to play a significant role in regulating the indoor environment.


Biomimetics ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Miguel Chen Austin ◽  
Kevin Araque ◽  
Paola Palacios ◽  
Katherine Rodríguez Maure ◽  
Dafni Mora

Urban growth has increased the risk of over-heating both in the microclimate and inside buildings, affecting thermal comfort and energy efficiency. That is why this research aims to evaluate the energy performance of buildings in terms of thermal comfort (operative temperature (OP) levels, satisfied hours of natural ventilation SHNV, thermal lag), and energy efficiency (roof heat gains and surface temperatures) in an urban area in Panama City, using superficial-heat-dissipation biomimetic strategies. Two case studies, a base case and a proposed case, were evaluated using the Designbuilder software through dynamic simulation. The proposed case is based on a combined biomimetic strategy; the reflective characteristics of the Saharan ant applied as a coating on the roofs through a segmented pattern such as the Zebra’s stripes (one section with coating, and another without). Results showed that the OP decreased from 8 to 10 °C for the entire urban zone throughout the year. A reduction of 3.13% corresponding to 8790 kWh per year was achieved for cooling energy consumption. A difference of 5 °C in external surface temperature was obtained, having a lower temperature in which the biomimetic strategy was applied. Besides, it was evidenced that a contrasted-reflectivity-stripes pitched roof performed better than a fully reflective roof. Thus, the functionality of Zebra stripes, together with the reflective characteristics of the Saharan ant, provide better performance for buildings’ thermal regulation and energy needs for cooling.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2042 (1) ◽  
pp. 012070
Author(s):  
Tobias Kramer ◽  
Veronica Garcia-Hansen ◽  
Sara Omrani Vahid M. Nik ◽  
Dong Chen

Abstract This paper presents an alternative workflow for thermal comfort prediction. By using the leverage of Data Science & AI in combination with the power of computational design, the proposed methodology exploits the extensive comfort data provided by the ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database II to generate more customised comfort prediction models. These models consider additional, often significant input parameters like location and specific building characteristics. Results from an early case study indicate that such an approach has the potential for more accurate comfort predictions that eventually lead to more efficient and comfortable buildings.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2069 (1) ◽  
pp. 012069
Author(s):  
Yuchen Yang ◽  
Vahid M. Nik

Abstract In recent years, climate change has been widely recognized as a potential problem. The building industry is taking a variety of actions towards sustainable development and climate change mitigation, such as retrofitting buildings. More than mitigation, it is important to account for climate change adaptation and investigate the probable risks and limits for mitigation strategies. For example, one major challenge may become achieving low energy demand without compromising indoor thermal comfort during warm seasons. This work investigates the future energy performance and indoor thermal comfort of four European cities belonging to four different climate zones in Europe; Barcelona, Koln, Brussels, and Copenhagen. An ensemble of future climate scenarios is used, including thirteen climate scenarios considering five different general circulation models (GCM) and three representative concentration pathways (RCP 2.6, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5). Through simulating the energy performance of the representative buildings in each city and considering several climate scenarios, this paper provides a comprehensive picture about the energy performance and indoor thermal comfort of the buildings for near-term, medium-term, and long-term climate conditions.


Proceedings ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (23) ◽  
pp. 1392
Author(s):  
Susana Lage-Cal ◽  
M. B. Folgueras-Díaz ◽  
Juan Carlos Luengo-García

Attached sunspaces are widely employed in the higher floors of traditional residences in the North of Spain. More specifically, in Asturias, it is easy to find them south-oriented and cantilever-positioned. This helps to take the greatest advantage of sun rays, especially during long winter months, and provides a ground-leveled, rain-protected, arcaded space. The function of such space is being a passing area (if it is to be found in a city house), or an exterior mudroom (if it is to be found in a country estate). With respect to the thermal impact of attached sunspaces in inner comfort condition, it is worth determining whether they are truly valuable elements, suitable to be employed in contemporary passive residences in the Atlantic area, or if their climate-dependant performance invalidates such use.


Author(s):  
Sobhy Issam ◽  
Brakez Abderrahim ◽  
Brahim Benhamou

Abstract This paper aims at identifying the impact of three retrofit scenarios of a typical single family house on its energy performance and its indoor thermal comfort in several climates. Two of these scenarios are based on the Moroccan Thermal Regulation in Constructions (RTCM) while the third is the one proposed in this study. The climates, which range from group B to group C of the Köppen climate classification. The results show that the proposed renovation scenario allows reducing the heating load by 19-42% and the cooling load by 29-60% depending on the climate. Furthermore, the RTCM retrofit scenario leads to summer overheating in all climates. One of the main reason of this overheating is the insulation of the slab-on-grade floor as this insulation increases the annual heating/cooling energy needs of the house by 6%-10%. Moreover, the cavity wall technique was found to be the best option for external walls, instead of using high thermal insulting material, in the hot climates. The analysis of the energy performance, the thermal comfort indices and the payback periods for each retrofit scenario shows that the proposed scenario presents the best thermal performance, except for the Cold climate where the RTCM scenario is the most favorable.


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