An Approach to Energy Conscious Renovation of Residential Buildings by a Trombe Wall System

Abstract

Turkey has a great potential for solar energy, the primary source of renewable energy. Heating uses 36% of the total energy consumed in buildings in Turkey. Heating energy consumption and energy conservation methods become necessary due to the lack of regulations for encouraging the utilization of solar energy. In this study, the south facade of a flat in existing buildings in Istanbul and Erzurum (representative cities in Turkey for mild-humid and cold regions) are renovated by the application of the Trombe wall principle, a well-known indirect passive solar gain system. An approach is proposed for this application and the comparison of the existing facades with the renovated facades was done according to thermal performance and hourly variations of interior wall temperatures. Since most energy efficient renovation standards in the world recommend increasing the thickness of insulation, the results are compared with highly insulated walls. In this study, it has been shown that insulation only helps to decrease heat loss through the envelope if you have an internal heating system, but a Trombe wall transfers solar heat gain, thus saving on the use of mechanical heating systems for some climatic regions of the world.