The Implementation of Building Envelopes with Controlled Thermal Resistance
10th International Conference on Healthy Buildings 2012 2012
Anatolijs Borodiņecs, Baiba Gaujēna

Traditionally low energy buildings are supposed to have maximally big thermal resistance of building envelope. In reality, big thermal resistance is justified only in coldest winter days in countries with cold climate or in hot summer days with intensive solar radiation. In other periods buildings with full air conditioning would have to have different properties of building envelope that could allow heat flow in one or another direction. There are also periods when minimal resistance to vapour transfer is required. Sometimes the building envelope is needed only to prevent from rain, insects or to give the intimacy and it is not needed from the point of energy efficiency, as it does not have to form the shield against the heat or vapour flow. The fact is known to the scientists who use simulation of building energy performance during the whole year. Building energy performance simulation models allow choosing optimal characteristics of building envelope on the basis of annual heat consumption. The model described in this paper would help to optimise building energy performance even more on the condition that we can change the properties of building envelope. Two building’s components – the envelope and the air-conditioning system - have the major impact on building’s energy efficiency. As a rule, the building’s envelope is a passive element and the air-conditioning system is an active element regarding the possibility of regulation in order to ensure optimal indoor air parameters. In order to improve energy performance of air-conditioning systems it is necessary to create algorithm for controlled building envelopes. The combination of working parameters of air-conditioning system and building envelope’s thermal and solar resistance in summer, when the electricity demand for cooling is maximal, could provide the way for significant energy save in public buildings.


Keywords
Indoor air quality

Borodiņecs, A., Gaujēna, B. The Implementation of Building Envelopes with Controlled Thermal Resistance. In: 10th International Conference on Healthy Buildings 2012, Australia, Brisbane, 8-12 July, 2012. Red Hook: Curran, 2012, pp.1715-1722. ISBN 978-1-62748-075-8.

Publication language
English (en)
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