Potential of Energy Saving through Modification of Low Energy Housing Models

Abstract

Globally, building sector currently consumes around of 40 percent of total energy and it is predicted to further rapidly increasing up to 80 percent by 2040. This study aims to investigate some design options to achieve thermal comfort and reduce energy consumption. In Indonesia, building sector consumes around of 37.8 percent of the total nationwide energy consumption. Computer simulations using EDGE and EnergyPlus were performed in this study to obtain embodied energy value and obtain operative temperature respectively. EDGE uses monthly quasi-steady-state calculation method based on the European CEN5 and ISO 13790 standards while EnergyPlus uses dynamic simulation model based on hour-by-hour (or higher resolution) outputs. A single storey building with 12 different parameters and design configurations including one base model were developed for this simulation. Some parameters were evaluated such as wall materials, roof materials, Window to Wall Ratio (WWR), window shading, ventilation opening, solar PV and ceiling fan. The simulation results showed that modification of U-value of wall and roof, increased WWR value, presence of window shading, additional rooster above windows with WWR of 9 percent and additional ceiling fans would optimize the embodied energy saving of building by 20.2 percent. Under these circumstances, final embodied energy saving of building was around of 63,939 MJ. This result was 10,837 MJ higher than that of the base model. Simulation results showed that the operative temperature mostly did not exceed the upper comfortable limits.