energy efficiency

In the research project 3for2 Beyond Efficiency, low-exergy distributed cooling and ventilation systems for application in the tropics are designed and tested in a demonstrator building in Singapore. The HVAC system designed consists of passive chilled beams for sensible cooling, fan coil units for latent cooling and dedicated outdoor air handling systems for IAQ control. The design reduces building space requirements due to less ventilation equipment.

Air Handling Unit (AHU), as a system for space heating and cooling is one of the most relevant causes of energy consumption in both residential and tertiary sector buildings. As the energy efficiency of AHU is closely linked to the climate conditions, a special attention should be given about varying yearly climate conditions in different geographical locations.

Recent studies have shown that ventilative cooling reduces overheating, improves summer comfort and decreases cooling loads. Therefore, it is considered as one of the most efficient way to improve summer comfort. Although, HVAC designers still lack of guidelines to improve the energy and comfort efficiency of their installations.  

The implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive 2010/31/EU recast puts increasing pressure to achieve better building and ductwork airtightness.  

In this context, Eurovent Certita Certification decided to establish a new certification programme for Ventilation Ductwork Systems, opening a new chapter in the history of the Eurovent Certified Performance (ECP) certification mark, which concerned only products, not systems, until then.  

The opening keynote will present an overview of the current status and future opportunities for smart buildings in Europe, in the context of the transition to more sustainable use of energy. In 2017 EASME mapped the activities of projects working on smart buildings and the extent of EU support given under the Horizon 2020 framework programme. The results were presented at the conference Sustainable Places 2017 at Teeside University (UK) and published the same year in a special issue of the peer reviewed journal Buildings.

It is estimated that HVAC systems represent the highest energy consumption (approximately half of the total energy consumed) and one of the highest cost, especially in non-residential buildings. Therefore, that energy consumption in related to the cost of the building, the energy consumption and the thermal comfort.
Although the comfort of the users should be a factor to be aware of, it may not be the only one. It is advisable to have a balance between this variable and energy consumption, because of its impact on the environment and climate change.

Pressure drop due to filters embedded in HVAC systems is one of the energy loss causes in building air conditioning systems, which can become important in large all-air systems with highly demanding filtering needs, such as hospitals, clean rooms, laboratories or pharmaceutical environments.

Radon gas is a pathological agent confirmed by World Health Organization in terms of increasing the risk of lung cancer generation when it is inhaled by human in high concentration. This gas comes from soils with uranium content (i.e. granite terrain) and penetrates through the building envelope, such, as floors or basement walls. Its accumulation in indoor spaces increases the radon concentration level, constituting a health problem for occupants. This can be handled by rehabilitation actions in buildings that reduce indoor concentration to acceptable levels.

Comfort and energy saving are two important concepts treated in current buildings in order to maintain a good air quality reducing the energy consumption. According to International Energy Agency (IEA) buildings represent 32% of total final energy consumption, and the need for reduction of CO2 emission leads to pay attention to the energy demand in buildings. On the other hand maintaining a good-quality environment helps to improve the productivity and effectiveness of workers.

An office building of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy systems (Fraunhofer ISE) in Freiburg was retrofitted in 2012 with an innovative concept based on technology integration in the façade. Prefabricated window modules integrating air inlets and outlets, façade integrated air ducts and a heat and moisture recovery ventilation device were implemented. A long term monitoring was set up including energy, temperature, CO2 and humidity measurements.