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24 pages, 5556 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Techniques of Improving Infrastructure and Energy Resilience in Urban Setting

by Kuljeet Singh and Caroline Hachem-Vermette

Energies 2022, 15(17), 6253; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15176253 - 27 Aug 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1401

Abstract

The work proposes a technique to improve the infrastructure and energy resilience of new developments during the planning stage. Several resilience-related parameters are developed in this paper that can be used to quantify resilience. To apply these parameters, the work assumes various energy [...] Read more.

The work proposes a technique to improve the infrastructure and energy resilience of new developments during the planning stage. Several resilience-related parameters are developed in this paper that can be used to quantify resilience. To apply these parameters, the work assumes various energy outage scenarios varying from less than 24 h to 3 weeks. During these scenarios, a neighborhood population can be relocated to several public buildings promoting better utilization of onsite energy resources. The technique is applied to four representative neighborhoods encompassing various sustainability measures including clean energy. Further, this paper demonstrates an urban scale improvement technique for greater energy and infrastructure resilience. The results indicate a significant improvement in infrastructure resilience by relocating public shelter buildings on the main street intersections so that these can be easily accessible during energy outages or disaster events. Energy resilience can be achieved by the appropriate design of onsite energy resources to eliminate vulnerabilities. For instance, 8.8% to 15.4% of additional land for solar thermal collectors can eliminate thermal energy vulnerabilities. When surplus generation from onsite resources is twice or more as compared to demand during their unavailability, the electrical vulnerability can be eliminated by employing suitable battery banks in various buildings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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22 pages, 11950 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental and Co-Simulation Performance Evaluation of an Earth-to-Air Heat Exchanger System Integrated into a Smart Building

by Abdelhak Kharbouch, Soukayna Berrabah, Mohamed Bakhouya, Jaafar Gaber, Driss El Ouadghiri and Samir Idrissi Kaitouni

Energies 2022, 15(15), 5407; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15155407 - 26 Jul 2022

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 1782

Abstract

Building models and their connected subsystems are often simulated as standalone entities. However, in order to monitor a system′s reactions to changing parameters and to assess its energy efficiency, it must be exposed to the actual dynamic context of the building under study. [...] Read more.

Building models and their connected subsystems are often simulated as standalone entities. However, in order to monitor a system′s reactions to changing parameters and to assess its energy efficiency, it must be exposed to the actual dynamic context of the building under study. Hence, frameworks assessing co-operative simulation of buildings and their subsystems should be used. In this study, the Building Control Virtual Test Bed (BCVTB) framework was used for co-simulation of a small-scale building (EEBLab) connected to an Earth-to-air heat exchanger (EAHE). The EnergyPlus tool was used to simulate the indoor air temperature variations within the EEBLab, and MATLAB was used to model the EAHE system and to calculate its performance based on various parameters. The HOLSYS internet of things platform was deployed to monitor and collect the experimental data from the sensors to validate the simulations. A favorable agreement between the experimental and simulation results was obtained, showing the contribution of the small-scale EAHE system in maintaining a comfortable indoor temperature range inside EEBLab. Moreover, it demonstrated the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed approach for integrated building co-simulation and performance evaluation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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18 pages, 6635 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Integration of Thermal and RGB Data Obtained by Means of a Drone for Interdisciplinary Inventory

by Joanna Paziewska and Antoni Rzonca

Energies 2022, 15(14), 4971; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15144971 - 7 Jul 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2746

Abstract

Thermal infrared imagery is very much gaining in importance in the diagnosis of energy losses in cultural heritage through non-destructive measurement methods. Hence, owing to the fact that it is a very innovative and, above all, safe solution, it is possible to determine [...] Read more.

Thermal infrared imagery is very much gaining in importance in the diagnosis of energy losses in cultural heritage through non-destructive measurement methods. Hence, owing to the fact that it is a very innovative and, above all, safe solution, it is possible to determine the condition of the building, locate places exposed to thermal escape, and plan actions to improve the condition of the facility. The presented work is devoted to the technology of creating a dense point cloud and a 3D model, based on data obtained from UAV. It has been shown that it is possible to build a 3D point model based on thermograms with the specified accuracy by using thermal measurement marks and the dense matching method. The results achieved in this way were compared and, as the result of this work, the model obtained from color photos was integrated with the point cloud created on the basis of the thermal images. The discussed approach exploits measurement data obtained with three independent devices (tools/appliances): a Matrice 300 RTK drone (courtesy of NaviGate); a Phantom 4 PRO drone; and a KT-165 thermal imaging camera. A stone church located in the southern part of Poland was chosen as the measuring object. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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11 pages, 12593 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of Thermal and Energy Performance of the Thermal Bridge Breaker for Reinforced Concrete Residential Buildings

by Mi-Yeon Kim, Hyung-Geun Kim, Jin-Sung Kim and Goopyo Hong

Energies 2022, 15(8), 2854; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15082854 - 13 Apr 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2311

Abstract

Thermal bridges in building envelopes can cause significant heat loss and heat gain. In this study, the developed thermal bridge breaker was applied to an interior insulation finishing system in residential buildings to minimize the thermal bridges in building envelopes. To investigate the [...] Read more.

Thermal bridges in building envelopes can cause significant heat loss and heat gain. In this study, the developed thermal bridge breaker was applied to an interior insulation finishing system in residential buildings to minimize the thermal bridges in building envelopes. To investigate the thermal and energy performance of the developed thermal bridge breaker, the surface temperatures and heat flow at the wall and floor junctions were predicted using Physibel. In addition, the heating and cooling energy consumption in a residential building was analyzed by EnergyPlus. As a result, the use of the thermal bridge breaker can minimize the effective thermal transmittance in the building envelope system. Moreover, when the building envelopes were equipped with the thermal bridge breaker, the heating and cooling load through the exterior walls was decreased by 15–27%. Thus, the thermal bridge breaker can play an important role in minimizing the heat loss and occurrence of condensation in building envelopes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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14 pages, 23624 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Resource Efficiency and Thermal Comfort of 3D Printable Concrete Building Envelopes Optimized by Performance Enhancing Insulation: A Numerical Study

by Blessing Onyeche Ayegba, King-James Idala Egbe, Ali Matin Nazar, Mingzhi Huang and Mohammad Amin Hariri-Ardebili

Energies 2022, 15(3), 1069; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15031069 - 31 Jan 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3325

Abstract

3D concrete printing has gained tremendous popularity as a promising technique with the potential to remarkably push the boundaries of conventional concrete technology. Enormous research efforts have been directed towards improving the material properties and structural safety of 3D printed concrete (3DPC) over [...] Read more.

3D concrete printing has gained tremendous popularity as a promising technique with the potential to remarkably push the boundaries of conventional concrete technology. Enormous research efforts have been directed towards improving the material properties and structural safety of 3D printed concrete (3DPC) over the last decade. In contrast, little attention has been accorded to its sustainability performance in the built environment. This study compares the energy efficiency, operational carbon emission, and thermal comfort of air cavity 3DPC building envelopes against insulated models. Four insulations, namely expanded polystyrene (EPS), extruded polystyrene (XPS), polyurethane foam (PUF), and fiberglass (FG), are iteratively paired with three different 3DPC mix designs, and their resulting performances are reported. A numerical optimization analysis is performed to obtain combinations of 3DPC building models and insulation with the least energy expenditure, carbon production, and thermal efficiency. The results indicate that insulation considerably enhances the overall environmental performance of 3DPC structures. The optimization process also demonstrates the potential of using 3D printable fiber reinforced engineered cementitious concrete (3DPFRECC) with polyurethane infill for amplified sustainable performance in modern construction. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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23 pages, 1638 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Automated Residential Energy Audits Using a Smart WiFi Thermostat-Enabled Data Mining Approach

by Abdulrahman Alanezi, Kevin P. Hallinan and Kefan Huang

Energies 2021, 14(9), 2500; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14092500 - 27 Apr 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2070

Abstract

Smart WiFi thermostats, when they first reached the market, were touted as a means for achieving substantial heating and cooling energy cost savings. These savings did not materialize until additional features, such as geofencing, were added. Today, average savings from these thermostats of [...] Read more.

Smart WiFi thermostats, when they first reached the market, were touted as a means for achieving substantial heating and cooling energy cost savings. These savings did not materialize until additional features, such as geofencing, were added. Today, average savings from these thermostats of 10–12% in heating and 15% in cooling for a single-family residence have been reported. This research aims to demonstrate additional potential benefit of these thermostats, namely as a potential instrument for conducting virtual energy audits on residences. In this study, archived smart WiFi thermostat measured temperature data in the form of a power spectrum, corresponding historical weather and energy consumption data, building geometry characteristics, and occupancy data were integrated in order to train a machine learning model to predict attic and wall R-Values, furnace efficiency, and air conditioning seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER), all of which were known for all residences in this study. The developed model was validated on residences not used for model development. Validation R-squared values of 0.9408, 0.9421, 0.9536, and 0.9053 for predicting attic and wall R-values, furnace efficiency, and AC SEER, respectively, were realized. This research demonstrates promise for low-cost data-based energy auditing of residences reliant upon smart WiFi thermostats. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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16 pages, 2672 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimal Fuzzy Energy Trading System in a Fog-Enabled Smart Grid

by Khuram Shahzad, Sohail Iqbal and Hamid Mukhtar

Energies 2021, 14(4), 881; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14040881 - 8 Feb 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2145

Abstract

With the recent technological advancements, it has become possible to conceive numerous valuable applications for efficient utilization of energy resources in a smart grid. As distributed energy generation and distributed storage systems become cost-effective, trading energy becomes a lucrative alternative for both prosumers [...] Read more.

With the recent technological advancements, it has become possible to conceive numerous valuable applications for efficient utilization of energy resources in a smart grid. As distributed energy generation and distributed storage systems become cost-effective, trading energy becomes a lucrative alternative for both prosumers and manufacturers. In this paper, we make use of fuzzy logic to propose a system for optimal energy trading in a fog-enabled smart grid set-up. The existing systems in this realm have inherited issues of network latency, computational expensiveness, information availability, scalability, and performance. Some systems require a specialized transmission line for energy trading and plenty of them based on the dedicated producer-consumer model, putting limits to their practical effectiveness. Our framework makes use of fog-computing infrastructure to address scalability, information availability, and network latency issues. We exploit the fuzzy logic paradigm to handle the issues with crisp values and to improve the computational efficiency of the system. Our model of energy-trading system incorporates various input parameters to decide on the excess energy, including real-time price, time of day, outdoor temperature, buyers’ interest, and storage capacity. Simulation results show that our proposed system possesses promising potential to maximize the profit of energy trading and to minimize electricity usage from the main grid. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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Review

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27 pages, 1760 KiB

Open AccessReview

Circular Economy in the European Construction Sector: A Review of Strategies for Implementation in Building Renovation

by Aitana Sáez-de-Guinoa, David Zambrana-Vasquez, Víctor Fernández and Carmen Bartolomé

Energies 2022, 15(13), 4747; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15134747 - 28 Jun 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 4386

Abstract

Building renovation was declared a key point for sustainable development, however, the renovation rate of residential buildings in the European Union is insufficient to meet the climate and energy targets set. This paper analyses the main circular economy models used in the construction [...] Read more.

Building renovation was declared a key point for sustainable development, however, the renovation rate of residential buildings in the European Union is insufficient to meet the climate and energy targets set. This paper analyses the main circular economy models used in the construction sector, as well as the situation of the building renovation market, to set a framework for circular economy models in building renovation. Of all the existing strategies in this sector, design, material recovery, building renovation and end-of-life actions would be the best, respectively. It also includes a market analysis consisting of a literature review covering PEST perspectives (political, economic, social and technical) and a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats), concluding with a market gap analysis. The results of these analyses allow the development of a series of suggestions and strategies to be followed in order to solve the main barriers that hinder the implementation of the circular economy in the building´s renovation sector. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Energy-Efficient Buildings)

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