Energy-efficient retrofit of an unconditioned institute building

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the energy-efficient retrofitting of an existing unconditioned academic department building in the campus of the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, India. It is achieved with the use of energy simulation modelling to examine the energy-saving benefits of power-consuming equipments, power generation through renewable sources improving thermal comfort through Energy Conservation and Building Code India's compliance and motivating the buildings’ occupants for energy-responsive behaviours. These strategies, when applied together, lead to an overall reduction of 40.4% in the total energy consumption. It was observed that the energy units saved for an unconditioned building are significantly lower than that of a conditioned building, but the percentage changes are comparable for both the types. The heat gain results from simulation software also show that in such buildings external windows account for most of the heat gain within the building, whereas uninsulated walls result in heat loss throughout the year. Changes in the operative temperature of the order of 0.5–4.0°C are observed by proposing a green roof, false ceiling, wall insulation and high performance glass. If the same retrofits are applied to all other academic buildings, huge energy savings and cost benefits can be obtained.