Analysis of the change of the specific heat loss coefficient of buildings resulted by the variation of the geometry and the moisture load

Abstract

Nowadays, energy saving as well as energy-conscious design and refurbishments of buildings became the most important actions to be achieved worldwide. The energy performance of a building can be considerably affected by climate. The significance of a ‘design with climate’ approach is highlighted in this paper. The article investigates the impact of climate conditions (focusing on humidity and precipitation) on design decisions. The overall energy performance of the building is achieved by the adopted architectural and technical solutions. In this study the thermal performance of the envelope of nearly zero energy buildings, built from different materials with different moisture load is tested and demonstrated. The change of the specific heat loss coefficient of buildings is presented in function of the building structure (wall and insulation), design (envelope surface to heated volume ratio) and moisture content of materials. In the conclusion the article attempts to give suggestions to stakeholders, decision makers and planners to choose the appropriate envelope structure from moisture resistant, geometry and cost-optimum points of view. Since - the building enclosure is the interface between the interior of the building and the outdoor environment - a building's energy consumption depends on certain envelope design elements to a large extent.