Impact of solar insulation film on the cooling load of an office building in Singapore - A simulation study

Abstract

This study investigates the properties of a pre-existing high-performance Low-E Double Glazed Unit (DGU) commonly used for fenestration in buildings in Singapore through simulation. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory window series software Optics 6 and Window 7 were used to determine the thermal properties of the glazing systems. The window series software based calculations revealed that upon application of the film, Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) and the Thermal Transmittance (U-Value) were reduced by 13% and 1%, respectively. Trimble SketchUp Pro was used to develop the geometry of the medium-rise office building, and the OpenStudio interface for EnergyPlus was used to simulate each scenario. Five studies were undertaken to holistically understand the impact of solar insulation film including the reduction in the cooling load and energy usage. The energy study consists of simulating two scenarios so that ACMV component capacities and flow rates are automatically calculated by EnergyPlus. These simulations quantified that after applying the window film, the cooling load reduction on a design day was 8%, and the annual cooling energy savings was approximately 9%. Higher cooling load reduction and cooling energy savings occurred for the shallow floor plan. The numerical calculations of Envelope Thermal Transfer Value (ETTV) suggest a comparative improvement of 14% with the application of a window film.