Building energy analysis and simulation of Changsha area

In this paper, the potential of energy saving in residential building in Changsha area was studied with dynamic simulation approaches. As we know that cooling and heating are both required more or less in this climate zone considering the climate condition and solar radiation may be advantaged for winter but disadvantaged for summer. This simulation was made to analyze the effect on the air conditioning energy consumption from four aspects: the material of the exterior wall thermal insulation, the window glass type, exterior window shades, and the indoor lighting control. It is hoped that the work presented would enable architects and building designers to adopt optimal energy-efficiency design strategies according to the climate characters of some given zones.