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Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy...
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Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Energy, Physics, Environment, and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2017) | Viewed by 81936

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Francesco Guarino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edifico 9, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: life cycle assessment; ecodesign; net-zero energy buildings; environmental sustainability; sustainable buildings; renewable energy technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Sonia Longo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy
Interests: circular economy; life cycle assessment; energy system
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The transition towards a low-carbon energy system is quickly becoming an important scientific target of the following decades. Now that ‘business as usual scenarios’ portray an increase in the average temperature of the globe of around 6 °C, it is time to act towards decarbonisation in all sectors. Obviously, doing so in the building sector is paramount, since it already accounts for around 40% of primary energy used in the world and 35% of greenhouse gases emission.

In this context, the net zero energy building (NZEB) diffusion is very relevant since this would finally allow the development of distributed and low-carbon generation. Several steps forward have already been taken from the first definition in the EPBD, stating that a NZEB should have a very high energy performance and the very low amount of energy required should be covered to a very significant extent by energy from renewable sources, including energy from renewable sources produced on-site or nearby.

However, progress is slower than expected: Net Zero Energy buildings are still not yet ready for mass deployment in the market. Although most technologies employed are nearly mature, costs are still not competitive, definitions of system boundaries and policies are highly diversified around the world, building clusters and grid interactions need to be studied further, etc.

As such, Buildings has decided to devote a Special Issue on the subject “Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings” to bring together articles that focus on current advancements in the Net Zero Energy Buildings field.

We are looking for original papers that report on topics based on innovative contributions, such as:

  • NZEB case studies
  • Cost analysis of NZEBs
  • NZEB modelling, calibration, simulation and lessons learned
  • Advancements in NZEB modelling and simulation
  • Policies effects and discussion
  • NZEB design optimization through simulation
  • Use of NZEB building simulation in the design process
  • Micro-grids and NZEB clusters
  • Life cycle assessment of NZEBs
  • Load match and grid interaction for NZEBs.

Further papers that address related topics will also be considered. Papers will be published immediately upon acceptance, following a thorough peer-review process.

Dr. Francesco Guarino
Prof. Dr. Sonia Longo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • net zero energy buildings
  • distributed generation
  • cost-effective NZEBs
  • case-studies
  • lessons learned
  • design process
  • building performance simulation
  • building clusters
  • load match and grid interaction
  • building design optimization

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

4773 KiB  
Article
Redesign of a Rural Building in a Heritage Site in Italy: Towards the Net Zero Energy Target
by Maurizio Cellura, Giuseppina Ciulla, Francesco Guarino and Sonia Longo
Buildings 2017, 7(3), 68; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7030068 - 28 Jul 2017
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 7779
Abstract
In order to achieve the ambitious objective of decarbonising the economy, it is mandatory, especially in Europe and in Italy, to include the retrofitting of existing buildings. In a country where a large share of existing buildings have heritage value, it is important [...] Read more.
In order to achieve the ambitious objective of decarbonising the economy, it is mandatory, especially in Europe and in Italy, to include the retrofitting of existing buildings. In a country where a large share of existing buildings have heritage value, it is important to design effective retrofit solutions also in historical buildings. In this context, the paper describes the experience of re-design of an existing rural building located in Sicily, inside the ancient Greeks' “Valley of the Temples”. An energy audit was performed on the building, and its energy uses were thoroughly investigated. A building model was developed in the TRNSYS environment and its performances validated. The validated model was used for redesign studies aimed towards the achievement of the Net Zero Energy Building target. The best performing solutions to be applied to a case study like the Sanfilippo House were those regarding the management of the building, as in the case of the natural ventilation and the energy systems setpoints, that would allow a large impact (up to 10% reductions in energy uses) on the energy performances of the building with no invasiveness, and those with very limited invasiveness and high impact on the energy efficiency of the building, as in the lighting scenario (up to 30% energy uses reduction). The most invasive actions can only be justified in the case of high energy savings, as in the case of the insulation of the roof, otherwise they should be disregarded. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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2932 KiB  
Article
Energy Optimized Envelope for Cold Climate Indoor Agricultural Growing Center
by Caroline Hachem-Vermette and Anders MacGregor
Buildings 2017, 7(3), 59; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7030059 - 2 Jul 2017
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 7748
Abstract
This paper presents a study of the development of building envelope design for improved energy performance of a controlled indoor agricultural growing center in a cold climate zone (Canada, 54° N). A parametric study is applied to analyze the effects of envelope parameters [...] Read more.
This paper presents a study of the development of building envelope design for improved energy performance of a controlled indoor agricultural growing center in a cold climate zone (Canada, 54° N). A parametric study is applied to analyze the effects of envelope parameters on the building energy loads for heating, cooling and lighting, required for maintaining growing requirement as obtained in the literature. A base case building of rectangular layout, incorporating conventionally applied insulation and glazing components, is initially analyzed, employing the EnergyPlus simulation program. Insulation and glazing parameters are then modified to minimize energy loads under assumed minimal lighting requirement. This enhanced design forms a base case for analyzing effects of additional design parameters—solar radiation control, air infiltration rate, sky-lighting and the addition of phase change materials—to obtain an enhanced design that minimizes energy loads. A second stage of the investigation applies a high lighting level to the enhanced design and modifies the design parameters to improve performance. A final part of the study is an investigation of the mechanical systems and renewable energy generation. Through the enhancement of building envelope components and day-lighting design, combined heating and cooling load of the low level lighting configuration is reduced by 65% and lighting load by 10%, relative to the base case design. Employing building integrated PV (BIPV) system, this optimized model can achieve energy positive status. Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC), are discussed, as potential means to offset increased energy consumption associated with the high-level lighting model. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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9391 KiB  
Article
Outdoor Characterization of Phase Change Materials and Assessment of Their Energy Saving Potential to Reach NZEB
by Cristina Cornaro, Marco Pierro, Valerio Adoo Puggioni and Daniele Roncarati
Buildings 2017, 7(3), 55; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7030055 - 22 Jun 2017
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 6027
Abstract
Phase change materials (PCM) are very promising materials for improving energy efficiency in buildings, especially in hot weather conditions. In spite of the growing attention paid to the integration of PCM into buildings, there are few studies on PCM evaluation under real operating [...] Read more.
Phase change materials (PCM) are very promising materials for improving energy efficiency in buildings, especially in hot weather conditions. In spite of the growing attention paid to the integration of PCM into buildings, there are few studies on PCM evaluation under real operating conditions. This lack of data often does not allow accurate calibration and validation of building simulation models. This work aims to characterize a commercial PCM panel by RUBITHERM®. The panel was laid on the floor of a test box exposed outdoors, and the experimental data were used to validate a PCM software tool implemented in IDA Indoor Climate and Energy software. A reference office building model with characteristics prescribed by Italian regulations (STD) was provided with three PCM with melting points of approximately 21 °C, 24 °C and 26 °C, laid on the floor office. The building energy performance obtained was compared to the energy performance of a reference building prescribed by the new Italian building energy performance regulation (NZEB) for three cities in Italy (Trento, Rome and Palermo). The results showed that energy savings obtained from implementing PCM in the STD building were not sufficient to reach the NZEB reference value for all cities. Only the use of night ventilation was able to assist in reaching NZEB. PCM with a 21 °C melting point showed the best annual energy saving performance in all cities. Temperature range and temperature peaks experienced by PCM in the day/night cycle can explain the behavior of these materials in the various cities and seasons as latent and sensible heat storage systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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7791 KiB  
Article
Nearly Zero Energy Buildings: An Overview of the Main Construction Features across Europe
by Giulia Paoletti, Ramon Pascual Pascuas, Roberta Pernetti and Roberto Lollini
Buildings 2017, 7(2), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7020043 - 31 May 2017
Cited by 53 | Viewed by 11183
Abstract
Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (nZEBs) represent the backbone to achieve ambitious European goals in terms of energy efficiency and CO2 emissions reduction. As defined in the EPBD, by 31 December 2020, all of the new buildings will have to reach a target of [...] Read more.
Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (nZEBs) represent the backbone to achieve ambitious European goals in terms of energy efficiency and CO2 emissions reduction. As defined in the EPBD, by 31 December 2020, all of the new buildings will have to reach a target of nearly zero energy. This target encourages the adoption of innovative business models as well as the technology development in the building sector, aimed at reducing energy demand and exploiting local renewable energy sources (RES). Assessing the share of implementation and the performance of technologies in new or renovated nZEBs is strategic to identify the market trends and to define design guidelines with the most effective solutions according to the context. In this regard, this paper analyses the construction features of a set of nZEBs, collected in 17 European countries within the EU IEE ZEBRA2020 project, with a special focus on the influence of the boundary conditions on the technologies adopted. The results show a general high insulation level of the envelope and recurrent specific technologies in the Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) system (i.e., heat pumps and mechanical ventilation), while the climatic conditions do not drive significantly the design approach and the nZEB features. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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1784 KiB  
Article
Impact of Demand-Side Management on Thermal Comfort and Energy Costs in a Residential nZEB
by Thibault Q. Péan, Joana Ortiz and Jaume Salom
Buildings 2017, 7(2), 37; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7020037 - 9 May 2017
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 7680
Abstract
In this study, simulation work has been carried out to investigate the impact of a demand-side management control strategy in a residential nZEB. A refurbished apartment within a multi-family dwelling representative of Mediterranean building habits was chosen as a study case and modelled [...] Read more.
In this study, simulation work has been carried out to investigate the impact of a demand-side management control strategy in a residential nZEB. A refurbished apartment within a multi-family dwelling representative of Mediterranean building habits was chosen as a study case and modelled within a simulation framework. A flexibility strategy based on set-point modulation depending on the energy price was applied to the building. The impact of the control strategy on thermal comfort was studied in detail with several methods retrieved from the standards or other literature, differentiating the effects on day and night living zones. It revealed a slight decrease of comfort when implementing flexibility, although this was not prejudicial. In addition, the applied strategy caused a simultaneous increase of the electricity used for heating by up to 7% and a reduction of the corresponding energy costs by up to around 20%. The proposed control thereby constitutes a promising solution for shifting heating loads towards periods of lower prices and is able to provide benefits for both the user and the grid sides. Beyond that, the activation of energy flexibility in buildings (nZEB in the present case) will participate in a more successful integration of renewable energy sources (RES) in the energy mix. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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2509 KiB  
Article
Energy and Economic Evaluation of Green Roofs for Residential Buildings in Hot-Humid Climates
by Abubakar S. Mahmoud, Muhammad Asif, Mohammad A. Hassanain, Mohammad O. Babsail and Muizz O. Sanni-Anibire
Buildings 2017, 7(2), 30; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7020030 - 29 Mar 2017
Cited by 75 | Viewed by 14968
Abstract
Green roofs may be considered a passive energy saving technology that also offer benefits like environmental friendliness and enhancement of aesthetic and architectural qualities of buildings. This paper examines the energy and economic viability of the green roof technology in the hot humid [...] Read more.
Green roofs may be considered a passive energy saving technology that also offer benefits like environmental friendliness and enhancement of aesthetic and architectural qualities of buildings. This paper examines the energy and economic viability of the green roof technology in the hot humid climate of Saudi Arabia by considering a modern four bedroom residential building in the city of Dhahran as a case study. The base case and green roof modelling of the selected building has been developed with the help of DesignBuilder software. The base case model has been validated with the help of 3-month measured data about the energy consumption without a green roof installed. The result shows that the energy consumption for the base case is 169 kWh/m2 while the energy consumption due to the application of a green roof on the entire roof surface is 110 kWh/m2. For the three investigated green roof options, energy saving is found to be in the range of 24% to 35%. The economic evaluation based on the net present value (NPV) approach for 40 years with consideration to other environmental advantages indicates that the benefits of the green roof technology are realized towards the end of the life cycle of the building. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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3598 KiB  
Article
Nearly Zero Energy Standard for Non-Residential Buildings with high Energy Demands—An Empirical Case Study Using the State-Related Properties of BAVARIA
by Michael Keltsch, Werner Lang and Thomas Auer
Buildings 2017, 7(1), 25; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7010025 - 15 Mar 2017
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 7295
Abstract
The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) 2010 calls for the Nearly Zero Energy Building (nZEB) Standard for new buildings from 2021 onwards: Buildings using “almost no energy” are powered by renewable sources or by the energy produced by the building itself. For [...] Read more.
The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) 2010 calls for the Nearly Zero Energy Building (nZEB) Standard for new buildings from 2021 onwards: Buildings using “almost no energy” are powered by renewable sources or by the energy produced by the building itself. For residential buildings, this ambitious new standard has already been reached. But for other building types, this goal is still far away. The potential of these buildings to meet a nZEB Standard was investigated by analyzing ten case studies, representing non-residential buildings with different uses. The analysis shows that the primary characteristics common to critical building types are a dense building context with a very high degree of technical installation (such as hospital, research, and laboratory buildings). The large primary energy demand of these types of buildings cannot be compensated by building- and property-related energy generation, including off-site renewables. If the future nZEB Standard were to be defined with lower requirements because of this, the state-related properties of Bavaria suggest that the real potential energy savings available in at least 85% of all new buildings would be insufficiently exploited. Therefore, it would be more useful to individualize the legal energy verification process for new buildings, to distinguish critical building types such as laboratories and hospitals from the other building types. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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6248 KiB  
Article
The Role of Vernacular Construction Techniques and Materials for Developing Zero-Energy Homes in Various Desert Climates
by Farajallah Alrashed, Muhammad Asif and Stas Burek
Buildings 2017, 7(1), 17; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings7010017 - 27 Feb 2017
Cited by 32 | Viewed by 17684
Abstract
Hot desert regions, like Saudi Arabia, are very challenging in terms of building energy consumption. The role of the housing sector in the country is critical as it accounts for half of the total national electricity consumption. It is important to apply sustainable [...] Read more.
Hot desert regions, like Saudi Arabia, are very challenging in terms of building energy consumption. The role of the housing sector in the country is critical as it accounts for half of the total national electricity consumption. It is important to apply sustainable energy concepts in this sector, and the application of Zero-Energy Homes (ZEHs) could be an appropriate option in this regard. In ZEHs, the energy demand needs to be reduced significantly before employing renewable energy, and a way to achieve that is through applying vernacular construction techniques and materials. This study aims to investigate the role of courtyard, mushrabiyah and adobe construction for the development of ZEHs in the five main Saudi climatic zones represented by Dhahran, Guriat, Riyadh, Jeddah and Khamis Mushait. A base house is designed, modelled and compared with measured electricity values. The comparison between the base house and the houses adapted with these techniques and materials is undertaken based on the annual electricity demand and the maximum power demand, and findings reveal that mushrabiyah can reduce them by 4% and 3%, respectively, while adobe can reduce them by 6% and 19%, respectively. Courtyards are found to be not helpful in terms of energy saving. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Towards Decarbonization in the Building Sector: Innovating Net Zero Energy Buildings)
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