Abstract
This paper investigates the effect of an existing façade’s construction (viz. clear/grey/solar film, with and without external shade) and orientation on the performance of low-e (hard coat)-based retrofit double glazing in a tropical climate. The performance of double-glazed façades is characterized by the ability to reduce solar heat gain and the consequent reduction in power consumption of air-conditioning systems. This study involves a real-life test-bedding of a low-e (hard coat)-based retrofit double-glazing façade for a few specific cases—clear glass southeast façade without shade, clear glass southwest façade with external shade, and northwest façade with solar film and external shade. Subsequently, energy modelling simulations were done to analyze other scenarios involving various combinations of façade orientation (north, south, west, and east) and façade material (clear glass, tinted grey glass, clear glass with solar film) with and without external sunshades. The east/west-facing façades had a higher impact on the retrofit solution, and more so when the existing façade was of tinted glass or with solar film. For the case analyzed, with a window-to-wall ratio of 8% (based on overall building envelope), a grey tinted east-facing façade could benefit from annual average HVAC energy savings of up to 5.9%.
Highlights
Global warming and climate change mitigations have pushed the energy sectors of all countries to look toward options like renewable energy generation, optimal use of conventional fuels, and efficient consumption of energy
The averaged values of indoor and outdoor measured values have been tabulated in Table 5, for each configuration both before and after retrofit double glazing
A quick and easy retrofit solution, using a secondary layer of low-e glass and as a retrofit double glazing in a non-sealed condition, was demonstrated and studied through real-life installing as a retrofit double glazing in a non-sealed condition, was demonstrated and studied test-bedding
Summary
Global warming and climate change mitigations have pushed the energy sectors of all countries to look toward options like renewable energy generation, optimal use of conventional fuels, and efficient consumption of energy. In a tropical region like Singapore, the commercial and residential buildings consume around 50% of total electricity [1]. The building sector is at high precedence over other sectors to improve energy efficiency and reduce power consumption, which has translated into Singapore’s national target to retrofit 80% of the existing building stock to meet the Green Mark standard by 2030 [2]. The established and upcoming green building solutions focus on all possible aspects like building design, construction, and operations to reduce power consumption. HVAC and lighting are the predominant electrical loads in commercial buildings. Other than the technology advancements in the lighting and HVAC system and control systems [3], there is a need to address the root cause of the problem such as eliminating or reducing the unnecessary heat gain and lighting
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