Methodology for Estimating Energy and Water Consumption Patterns in University Buildings: Case Study, Federal University of Roraima (UFRR)

Abstract

Knowing water and energy consumption patterns sets the baseline for understanding their drivers and assessing the perfomance of potential measures to increase efficiency and/or reliability. However, these patterns can vary substantially depending on the building caracteristics, on the building users and use, on the cultural, social, economic, environmental context in which the building is located, among many other factors. This article presents a general methodological framework for characterizing water and energy consumption patterns in buildings based on the evaluation of the proportions of the surface areas of each space type, proposing indicators of water and energy use, by end use per square meter and by space type. Universities, in most cases, represent large water and energy consumers with distintive consumption drivers and patterns which have received limited attention when compared to other types of buildings (e.g., residential). The methodological framework proposed was applied to the buildings of the Paricarana Campus of Federal University of Roraima (UFRR), Brazil, providing one of the few examples in the literature reporting water and energy consumption in university buildings in tropical climates. The findings have shown that teaching rooms and administration rooms are the main source consumers, representing 48% and 49% of the institution's energy and water consumption, respectively. Air conditioning is the biggest energy consumption (63%), while personal use represents 72% of the total water consumption in a building. The toilets represent a large water consumption in a university building (46.40%). Comparing different buildings uses, the central library is the highest source consumption, due to the longest operating time and the highest occupational density. The methodological proposal intends to be a useful tool to support managers and decision-makers to understand the dynamics of consumption and then propose effective practices to reduce water and energy uses, as well as providing reference data for comparison with other educational institutions.