Investigation of the correlation of building energy use intensity estimated by six building performance simulation tools

Abstract

This paper reports the investigation of the correlation of building energy use intensities, estimated by six building performance simulation programs and, based on findings, establishes formulas for conversion of each program to another in selected simulation tools. The data used for the analyses was collected from 15 residential projects and 180 simulation runs in two construction modes: as-built and code compliance (California's Title 24 Standard), using six different simulation tools. The data set included heating and cooling energy use intensities, multiple building attributes, and climate conditions. The results were compared by various program combination sets to analyze and determine the correlation of estimated energy use intensities (EUIs).The statistical analysis of the collected data revealed that heating EUI conversion formulas were more robust than those of cooling EUIs, and a project case generating moderate or high EUIs generated lower error rates than that with low EUIs. Since building energy performance always generates significant discrepancies, depending on the simulation tools adopted, the outcome of this study will help building performance stakeholders understand the estimated energy performance of one tool as compared to that of another. The result will also be helpful for designing a high performance building without a technical mishap.