scholarly journals Modeling the Evolution of Construction Solutions in Residential Buildings’ Thermal Comfort

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 2427
Author(s):  
Inês F. G. Reis ◽  
António Figueiredo ◽  
António Samagaio
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Phase Change Materials ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Thermal Inertia ◽  
Thermal Fluctuations ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Regulatory Requirements ◽  
Thermal Discomfort ◽  
High Thermal Inertia ◽  
Global Energy Consumption

The evolution of the construction sector over the years has been marked by the replacement of high thermal inertia mass constructions by increasingly lighter solutions that are subject to greater thermal fluctuations and, consequently, thermal discomfort. To minimize these effects, energy demanding space conditioning technologies are implemented, contributing significantly to the sector’s share of global energy consumption. Enhanced constructive solutions involving phase-change materials have been developed to respond to the constructive thermal inertia loss, influencing buildings’ thermal and energy performance. This work aims to model the evolution of the construction over the last decades to understand to what extent constructive characteristics influence the occupants’ thermal comfort. For this purpose, typical and enhanced solutions representing distinct constructive periods were simulated using the EnergyPlus® software through its graphical interface DesignBuilder® and the thermal comfort of the different solutions was evaluated using the adaptive model for thermal comfort EN16798-1. The main results reveal that more restraining regulatory requirements are indeed mitigating thermal discomfort situations. However, overheating phenomena can rise, creating worrying consequences in the short-medium term. Thus, countries with mild climates such as Portugal, must pay special attention to these effects, which may be aggravated by climate change.

scholarly journals Thermal Dynamic Behavior in Bi-Zone Habitable Cell with and without Phase Change Materials

Proceedings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
Hanae El Fakiri ◽  
Lahoucine Ouhsaine ◽  
Abdelmajid El Bouardi
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Behavior ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Phase Change ◽  
Dynamic Behavior ◽  
Phase Change Materials ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Water Heater ◽  
Simplified Modeling

The thermal dynamic behavior of buildings represents an important aspect of the energy efficiency and thermal comfort of the indoor environment. For this, phase change material (PCM) wallboards integrated into building envelopes play an important role in stabilizing the temperature of the human comfort condition. This article provides an assessment of the thermal behavior of a “bi-zone” building cell, which was built based on high-energy performance (HEP) standards and heated by a solar water heater system through a hydronic circuit. The current study is based on studying the dynamic thermal behavior, with and without implantation of PCMs on envelope structure, using a simplified modeling approach. The evolution of the average air temperature was first evaluated as a major indicator of thermal comfort. Then, an evaluation of the thermal behavior’s dynamic profile was carried out in this study, which allowed for the determination of the PCM rate anticipation in the thermal comfort of the building cell.

scholarly journals Effect of phase change material using in building thermal comfort applications through several climate conditions.

2020 ◽  
Vol 170 ◽  
pp. 01007
Author(s):  
Marwa El Yassi ◽  
Ikram El Abbassi ◽  
Alexandre Pierre ◽  
Yannick Melinge
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Phase Change ◽  
Phase Change Material ◽  
Phase Change Materials ◽  
Chemical Change ◽  
Thermal Inertia ◽  
Temperature Fluctuations ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Change Material

Nowadays, buildings sector contributes to climate change by consuming a considerable amount of energy to afford thermal comfort for occupants. Passive cooling techniques are a promising solution to increase the thermal inertia of building envelopes, and reduce temperature fluctuations. The phase change materials, known as PCM, can be efficiently employed to this purpose, because of their high energy storage density. Among the various existing solutions, the present study is dedicated to solid-liquid phase change materials. Temperature evolution (according to their defined temperature range) induces the chemical change of the material and its state. For building applications, the chemical transition can be accomplished from liquid to solid (solidification) and from solid to liquid (melting). In fact, this paper presents a comparative thermal analysis of several test rooms with and without phase change materials embedded in a composite wallboard in different climates. The used PCM consist in a flexible sheet of 5 mm thickness (Energain, manufactured by the company DuPont de Nemours). The main properties of such a commercial solution have been delivered by the manufacturer and from analyses. The room model was validated using laboratory instrumentations and measurements of a test room in four cities: Lyon; Reading and Casablanca. Results indicate that this phase change material board can absorb heat gains and also reduce the indoor air temperature fluctuations during daytime. The aim of the study is to show the benefits of this layer with phase change material and compare it in different climatic zones.

scholarly journals Design Optimization of a Composite Solar Wall Integrating a PCM in a Individual House: Heating Demand and Thermal Comfort Considerations

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (21) ◽  
pp. 5640 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enghok Leang ◽  
Pierre Tittelein ◽  
Laurent Zalewski ◽  
Stéphane Lassue
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Objective Function ◽  
Melting Temperature ◽  
Latent Heat ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Optimization Method ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Pattern Search ◽  
Thermal Discomfort ◽  
Trombe Wall

Thermal energy storage (TES), which features an innovative technology, can enhance energy efficiency in the building sector and reduce CO2 emissions. Due to their high heat storage capacity, phase change materials (PCMs) have impressed many researchers. This paper investigates the energy performance of an individual house integrating a solar Trombe wall containing PCM with respect to heating demand and thermal comfort applications. The thermal energy performance of the design house was simulated using Dymola/Modelica, the thermal building simulation tool, whereby the optimization of objective functions as regards heating demand and thermal comfort was executed using GenOpt, the generic optimization software. Optimization of the solar Trombe wall focuses on the feasibility to find the optimal PCM parameters when running GenOpt, which consist of latent heat, melting temperature, PCM thickness and thermal conductivity, in order to minimize both the annual energy consumption for heating and the number of hours of thermal discomfort. The parametric study was first conducted for each PCM parameter so as to not only observe its effect on the identified energy performance, but also ensure the absence of errors in simulation runs before performing the optimization. The ‘Coordinate Search’ Generalized Pattern Search (GPS) algorithm was applied to minimize the objective function, whereas the ‘Weighted Sum Approach’ was used to solve the multi-objective function problem. Results showed that the higher the latent heat, the lower the heating demand and the greater the thermal comfort. The results of these parametric studies show that for the effect of the parameter on heating, demand is quite limited (1–2 kWh·m−2·year−1) whereas the effect on thermal comfort is more significant. The optimal PCM melting temperature is higher for warmer climates; it is also higher for the studied case applying the optimization method to minimize the objective function by assigning the number of hours of thermal discomfort (from 32.8 ∘C to 35.9 ∘C, depending on weather) than it is when applying the optimization method to reduce the objective function by assigning heating demand (from 31.5 ∘C to 32.9 ∘C, again depending on weather).

scholarly journals Upgrading the Smartness of Retrofitting Packages towards Energy-Efficient Residential Buildings in Cold Climate Countries: Two Case Studies

Buildings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurina C. Felius ◽  
Mohamed Hamdy ◽  
Fredrik Dessen ◽  
Bozena Dorota Hrynyszyn
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Life Cycle Cost ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Heat Losses ◽  
Cold Climate ◽  
The Impact

Improving the energy efficiency of existing buildings by implementing building automation control strategies (BACS) besides building envelope and energy system retrofitting has been recommended by the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) 2018. This paper investigated this recommendation by conducting a simulation-based optimization to explore cost-effective retrofitting combinations of building envelope, energy systems and BACS measures in-line with automation standard EN 15232. Two cases (i.e., a typical single-family house and apartment block) were modeled and simulated using IDA Indoor Climate and Energy (IDA-ICE). The built-in optimization tool, GenOpt, was used to minimize energy consumption as the single objective function. The associated difference in life cycle cost, compared to the reference design, was calculated for each optimization iteration. Thermal comfort of the optimized solutions was assessed to verify the thermal comfort acceptability. Installing an air source heat pump had a greater energy-saving potential than reducing heat losses through the building envelope. Implementing BACS achieved cost-effective energy savings up to 24%. Energy savings up to 57% were estimated when BACS was combined with the other retrofitting measures. Particularly for compact buildings, where the potential of reducing heat losses through the envelope is limited, the impact of BACS increased. BACS also improved the thermal comfort.

scholarly journals Revealing the Impacts of Passive Cooling Techniques on Building Energy Performance: A Residential Case in Hong Kong

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 4188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuan-Rui Yu ◽  
Han-Sen Guo ◽  
Qian-Cheng Wang ◽  
Rui-Dong Chang
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Energy Conservation ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Natural Ventilation ◽  
Phase Change Materials ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Passive Cooling ◽  
Total Energy Consumption

Environmental concerns and growing energy costs raise the importance of sustainable development and energy conservation. The building sector accounts for a significant portion of total energy consumption. Passive cooling techniques provide a promising and cost-efficient solution to reducing the energy demand of buildings. Based on a typical residential case in Hong Kong, this study aims to analyze the integration of various passive cooling techniques on annual and hourly building energy demand with whole building simulation. The results indicate that infiltration and insulation improvement are effective in regard to energy conservation in buildings, while the effectiveness of variations in building orientation, increasing natural ventilation rate, and phase change materials (PCM) are less significant. The findings will be helpful in the passive house standard development in Hong Kong and contribute to the further optimization work to realize both energy efficiency and favorably built environments in residential buildings.

scholarly journals Building-Information-Modelling-Based Thermal-Energy Performance Evaluation of Silica-Aerogel-Incorporated Rigid Board Roof Insulation Material for Residential Buildings in the Tropical Climate of Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol 945 (1) ◽  
pp. 012066
Author(s):  
Nadzhratul Husna ◽  
Syed Ahmad Farhan ◽  
Mohamed Mubarak Abdul Wahab ◽  
Nasir Shafiq ◽  
Muhammad Taufiq Sharif ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Silica Aerogel ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Insulation Material ◽  
Building Information Modelling ◽  
Indoor Thermal Comfort ◽  
Building Information

Abstract Malaysia is located in the equator, with a hot and humid climate. The highest temperature recorded during the day was 39 °C, which leads to discomfort among building occupants, in particular, residential buildings, where indoor thermal comfort is of a higher priority compared to other types of buildings. Hence, the thermal performance of the residential roof assembly needs to be improved to lower the indoor temperature and, accordingly, maintain the level of indoor thermal comfort. In view of the need to improve the thermal performance, a silica-aerogel-incorporated rigid board roof insulation material for residential buildings was developed using kapok fibre, high density polyethylene (HDPE) and silica aerogel. The thermal conductivity of the material was measured. The sample with 4 wt. % and 5 wt. % of silica aerogel content obtained the lowest thermal conductivity of 0.04 W/mK. Silica aerogel content of above 4 wt. % did not result in further reduction of the thermal conductivity. Therefore, it can be concluded that the optimum silica aerogel content for the sample was 4 wt. %. Building-Information-Modelling (BIM)based thermal-energy performance evaluation of the material was performed by generating temperature and cooling load data using Integrated Environmental Solution-Virtual Environment to validate the thermal-energy performance of the material, by installing the material within the roof assembly of a residential BIM. Findings indicate that the material can potentially be employed in the future as a roof insulation material to maintain the level of indoor thermal comfort among residential building occupants.

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