Abstract
Retrofitting “nearly-zero energy” heritage buildings has always been controversial, due to the usual association of the “nearly-zero energy” target with high energy performance and the utilization of renewable energy sources in highly regarded cultural values of heritage buildings. This paper aims to evaluate the potential of turning heritage building stock into a “nearly-zero energy” in hot, dry climates, which has been addressed in only a few studies. Therefore, a four-phase integrated energy retrofitting methodology was proposed and applied to a sample of heritage residential building stock in Egypt along with microscale analysis on buildings. Three reference buildings were selected, representing the most dominant building typologies. The study combines field measurements and observations with energy simulations. In addition, simulation models were created and calibrated based on monitored data in the reference buildings. The results show that the application of hybrid passive and active non-energy generating scenarios significantly impacts energy use in the reference buildings, e.g., where 66.4% of annual electricity use can be saved. Moreover, the application of solar energy sources approximately covers the energy demand in the reference buildings, e.g., where an annual self-consumption of electricity up to 78% and surplus electricity up to 20.4% can be achieved by using photo-voltaic modules. Furthermore, annual natural gas of up to 66.8% can be saved by using two unglazed solar collectors. Lastly, achieving “nearly-zero energy” was possible for the presented case study area. The originality of this work lies in developing and applying an informed retrofitting (nearly-zero energy) guide to be used as a benchmark energy model for buildings that belong to an important historical era. The findings contribute to fill a gap in existing studies of integrating renewable energy sources to achieve “nearly-zero energy” in heritage buildings in hot climates.
Highlights
We developed an integrated retrofitting methodology that balanced multi-performance targets in historic districts in hot climates
The central questions revolved around how heritage buildings can transform to become energy neutral in such a climate, and what optimal scenarios can achieve nearly-zero energy use while keeping their cultural values
The main findings of this study revealed that the proposed retrofitting methodology is a useful tool, as shown in the results of its application on three reference buildings in Khedivial Cairo
Summary
The net-zero emissions roadmap involves a global energy system transformation by. 2050, as stated by the International Energy Agency (IEA) [1]. This roadmap and other global initiatives such as the Climate Action Plan and Paris Agreement pay massive attention to the decarbonisation of the building sector and transition towards a clean energy utilization (e.g., renewable energy sources (RES)) in sector [1,2,3,4,5]. Integrating the RES in the building sector—more precisely, in existing buildings—is essential to foster maximising energy production on a large scale (e.g., districts and regions) [2,6].
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