Abstract
The energy audit for a building is a procedure designed mainly to obtain adequate knowledge of the energy consumption profile, identify, and quantify opportunities for energy savings by a cost-benefit analysis and report, clearly and comprehensively, about the obtained results. If the audit is referred to a building with a significant historical and artistic value, a compatibility evaluation of the energy saving interventions with the architectural features should also be developed. In this paper, analysing the case study of a historical building used as public offices in Pisa (Italy), the authors describe how it is possible to conduct an energy audit activity (especially dedicated to the lighting system) and they show how, for this type of buildings, it is possible to obtain significant energy savings with a refurbishment of the lighting system. A total number of seven interventions on indoor and outdoor lighting sub-systems were analysed in the paper. They are characterised by absolute compatibility with the historical and artistic value of the building and they show short payback times, variable between 4 and 34 months, allowing a reduction of the electrical energy consumption for the artificial indoor and outdoor lighting variable from 1.1 MWh/year to 39.0 MWh/year. The followed methodology and the evaluation results described in the paper, although based on a case study, can be extended to numerous historical buildings used as public offices, a recurring situation in the centres of Italian historical cities.
Highlights
The energy audit for an existing building is a procedure designed mainly to obtain an adequate knowledge of the energy consumption profile, identify and quantify the opportunities for energy savings by a cost-benefit analysis, and report, clearly and comprehensively, about the obtained results [1]
For energy audit should be considered a systematic procedure which begins with survey operations and with the acquisition of the historical consumption data of the building, proceeds through the use of appropriate simulation models for the energy performance of the building, and finishes with the identification and analysis of energy-saving opportunities based on cost-effectiveness evaluations
Lacking an international standardization on the detailed modalities to conduct an energy audit for a historical building intended for a public function so relevant as that of a Prefecture, the energy audit of Palazzo Medici was carried out according to the latest European guidelines in this regard [14,18,19]
Summary
The energy audit for an existing building is a procedure designed mainly to obtain an adequate knowledge of the energy consumption profile, identify and quantify the opportunities for energy savings by a cost-benefit analysis, and report, clearly and comprehensively, about the obtained results [1]. For energy audit should be considered a systematic procedure which begins with survey operations and with the acquisition of the historical consumption data of the building, proceeds through the use of appropriate simulation models for the energy performance of the building, and finishes with the identification and analysis of energy-saving opportunities based on cost-effectiveness evaluations. If the audit refers to an existing building with a significant historical and artistic value a compatibility evaluation of the energy saving interventions with the architectural features should be added to the above indicated stages, which requires a multidisciplinary and well-structured analysis [2,3,4,5].
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