Buildings In Finland Research Articles

The impact of metering methods on collective self-consumption: Insights from multi-dwelling buildings in Finland

Globally, legislative reforms have significantly promoted the adoption of solar photovoltaic systems. In many European countries, updated legislation encourages the formation of energy communities and collective self-consumption in residential buildings. This study investigates the financial viability of solar photovoltaic systems in Finnish multi-dwelling buildings, focusing on the impact of recent legislative enhancements supporting collective self-consumption through virtual net-metering, known as the credit calculation model. By analyzing hourly consumption data from two properties in 2018 and 2020, and incorporating simulated photovoltaic production with electricity market prices, our findings highlight the advantages of virtual net-metering. Self-consumption ratios increased from 15% to 38 %, and annual revenue improved by 10 EUR/kWp to 29 EUR/kWp. Comparing the credit calculation model with behind-the-meter approaches using joint electricity subscriptions revealed self-consumption ratio differences of 5 % to 15 % for identical system sizes. Additionally, electricity purchasing cost savings of 16 % to 19 % were identified with behind-the-meter, increasing further compared to costs from other Finnish distribution system operators. This underscores the economic benefits of such arrangements and highlights potential savings across different regional pricing models. These insights demonstrate the financial benefits of collective self-consumption and joint electricity subscriptions in multi-dwelling contexts, signaling the need for extended research across diverse settings to validate these findings.

Life Cycle Assessment of an Office Building in Finland Using a Custom Assessment Tool

Life cycle analysis (LCA) is a crucial instrument in the construction industry, offering a comprehensive evaluation of the environmental impacts at every stage of a building’s lifecycle. Recently introduced into Finnish construction legislation, this approach has not yet been thoroughly researched in relation to the Finnish Ministry of the Environment (FMoE) assessment method, nor have new calculation techniques been proposed to address its shortcomings. Furthermore, Finnish research on environmental impact assessment has predominantly focused on residential buildings, leaving a scarcity of studies on office buildings. This paper aims to fill these gaps in the literature, considering LCA, carbon footprint, and carbon handprint assessment tools of concrete-, timber-, and steel-framed cases. Our results are as follows: (1) the majority of the carbon footprint of a concrete-framed case originated from emissions associated with energy use and second largest share of total emissions occurred during the product phase of the building and within this phase, the building services contribute the most to product-related emissions; (2) a significant portion of these emissions came from facades and floor structures; (3) the carbon footprint of the timber-framed option was significantly lower than that of its concrete- and steel-framed counterparts; (4) steel-framed option’s carbon footprint was nearly equivalent to that of the concrete-framed option; (5) estimated carbon handprint of the timber-framed option was considerably higher than that of the concrete- and steel-framed options, primarily due to the carbon storage capacity of the timber components; (6) steel-framed option’s carbon handprint surpassed that of the concrete-framed option because of the high recycling and reuse potential of steel components; (7) the LCA method used by FMoE has some unclear areas. These ambiguities include how to assess the impacts of carbonation in cement-based products and the replacement of building components.

Near-, medium- and long-term impacts of climate change on the thermal energy consumption of buildings in Finland under RCP climate scenarios

The building sector is critical in climate change mitigation by reducing its energy consumption. At the same time, warming climate requires adaptation measures from buildings, making it necessary to study the future thermal energy demand of buildings. This paper studies the impact of climate change on the thermal energy demand of buildings in a heating dominated climate of Finland, under “representative concentration pathway” (RCP) climate scenarios in near- (2030), medium- (2050) and long-term (2080) horizon. Additionally, the impact of the thermal performance level of the buildings is investigated. The thermal energy demand calculation is based on overarching standards from the European “energy performance of buildings” directive. The weather scenarios present both typical and extreme weather years, applied through morphing and future weather data from the Finnish Meteorological Institute. The results show that annual thermal energy demand in Finland in 2080 can decrease up to 74.6kWh/m2. In addition, the decrease in heating demand will be higher than the increase in cooling demand. Cooling can become the dominant peak in long-term evaluations, especially in South Finland (Vantaa) with passive buildings under RCP8.5 climate scenario. Renovation is the most efficient action to decrease energy intensity, the earliest it is done the better.

Identification of environmental Actinobacteria in buildings by means of chemotaxonomy, 16S rRNA sequencing, and MALDI-TOF MS.

The manuscript addresses the challenges in identifying environmental bacteria using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) Biotyper-based protein profiling. The matter of the studies-actinobacterial strains-has been isolated mostly from building materials that originated from a confirmed moisture-damaged situation. Polyphasic taxonomy, 16S RNA gene sequencing, and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry were applied for identification purposes. In this experimental paper, a few important facts are highlighted. First, Actinobacteria are abundant in the natural as well as built environment, and their identification on the species and genus levels is difficult and time-consuming. Second, MALDI-TOF MS is an effective tool for identifying bacterial environmental strains, and in parallel, continuous enrichment of the proteomics mass spectral databases is necessary for proper identification. Third, the chemical approach aids in the taxonomical inquiry of Actinobacteria environmental strains.

Simulation analysis of Finnish residential buildings’ resilience to hot summers under a changing climate

This study evaluated how residential buildings in Finland's cold climate withstand hot summers under climate change. The buildings' responses to outdoor temperatures, overheating, energy consumption, and cooling power demand were investigated with the actual data of the hot summer of 2018, and its projected conditions for 2050 and 2080 under the highest Representative Concentration Pathway. The results revealed that lightweight structured detached houses reacted about two times faster to outdoor temperatures. The new apartment and the new elderly house, constructed according to the latest Finnish building code, showed slower responses and lower indoor temperatures during current and future hot summers with no degree hours above the Finnish health limits of 30 °C/32 °C. Conversely, the old non-renovated apartment building and elderly house built in the 1970s–80s experienced higher indoor temperatures. Their indoor temperature surpassed 30 °C/32 °C even in the current climate. Although passive solutions reduced indoor temperatures effectively, hot summers necessitated active cooling systems. The cooling energy and power demand in the old buildings were higher compared to the new ones. However, the cooling electricity consumption was considerably small compared to the heating and total energy consumption in all the studied buildings. It was projected to increase in future climates by 40–160 % depending on the building type and climate scenario.

Renovate or replace? Consequential replacement LCA framework for buildings

Is it more environmentally friendly to replace an existing building with a new one or to renovate the existing property? This paper addresses how to frame and evaluate this question. Although several previous studies exist, their methods lack a harmonised set of practice. A new framework is introduced that adopts the concept of consequential replacement framework (CRF) for life cycle assessment (LCA) which had previously been applied to vehicles. The application of the CRF to buildings is demonstrated with case studies on school buildings in Finland. Three alternative cases are examined: the refurbishment of a 1950s school; extending it with an annex; and demolition and replacement with a new concrete or timber building. As the European environmental impact regulation of buildings pertains to CO2 emissions, the paper also focuses on CO2. The case studies demonstrate that refurbishment in Finland is a more climate-friendly alternative to demolition and new build. The studied new buildings’ better energy efficiency is set off for decades by the carbon spike caused by the embodied CO2 in their materials. The CRF is shown to be a methodologically sound, easily approachable framework for evaluating immediate environmental consequences of decision-makers’ retention or replacement choices, suitable to different contexts. Policy relevance As the global CO2 budget is running out, the need to combat the escalation of the climate emergency is imminent. Decades-long payback times for embodied CO2 investments in new replacement buildings, as in the paper’s case studies, are not helpful in this effort. The introduced framework helps to uncover the climate change mitigation potential in building preservation, which is presently poorly understood and considered in policymaking. The new framework provides a useful decision support tool and evidence for both policymakers and planners. Current policy initiatives in Europe focus on CO2 regulation for new build and renovation. However, replacement situations are not yet regulated. In contexts where renovation clearly proves to be more climate friendly (as validated by this method), policymakers should recognise the greenhouse gas-mitigation potential in building retention and create policies to encourage renovation over new build.

A Review of Non-Residential Building Renovation and Improvement of Energy Efficiency: Office Buildings in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Germany

Existing buildings are a source of great potential for energy efficiency through renovation. In this study, the national energy requirements equivalent for the major renovation of existing non-residential buildings using the example of office buildings in five European case countries are drawn out and discussed. The non-residential building sector has been found to be complex and heterogenous with much less available data than for the residential sector, but having greater average specific energy consumption per floor area. The existing non-residential building stock in the studied countries has been divided into varying amounts of groups and sub-groups. The energy requirements have been shifting from the increasing requirements for the U-values of the building envelope (before the 2000s) towards calculated energy demand for buildings as a whole (currently). The requirements for buildings in the near future will be carbon emission based. The energy efficiency of N-RBs in all of the studied case countries have been steadily improved during different decades of construction. Relatively older office stock combined with the relatively late introduction of national energy requirements was found to have a significantly larger potential for energy savings. Different terms and contents in national requirements were used to describe the principles of “major renovation” as from EPBD.

The Ignition Frequency of Structural Fires in Australia from 2012 to 2019

Appropriate estimates of ignition frequency derived from fire statistics are crucial for quantifying fire risks, given that ignition frequency underpins all probabilistic fire risk assessments for buildings. Rahikainen et al. (Fire Technol 2004; 40:335–53) utilized the generalized Barrois model to evaluate ignition frequencies for different buildings in Finland. The Barrois model provides a good prediction of the trend of the ignition frequency; however, it can underestimate the ignition frequency depending on the building type. In this study, an analysis of the Australian fire statistical data from 2012 to 2019 was performed and compared with studies from Finland. A new coefficient is proposed to improve the Barrois model for a better fit for buildings in Australia. Several categories, such as hotels and hospitals, which were absent in previous studies, have been included as separate categories in this study. Office and retail spaces in Finland have an ignition frequency one order of magnitude lower than in Australia. On the other hand, other buildings (retail and apartments in particular) are much more prone to fire ignition in Australia than in Finland. The improved generalized Barrois model based on the Australian fire statistical data will be useful for determining ignition frequency for risk quantification in the Australian context.

Land-Use Planning in Municipalities as a Driver for Sustainable Residential Building in Finland: A Regional Innovation System Approach

Land-Use Planning in Municipalities as a Driver for Sustainable Residential Building in Finland: A Regional Innovation System Approach

Tracing teachers’ perceptions of entanglement of digitally-mediated educational activities and learning environments: a practice-oriented method

School spaces, technologies, and educational activities shape each other reciprocally. This mixed-methods study (i) developed a methodological framework for tracing the interdependence between school spaces, digital instruments, and teachers’ practices in their use, and (ii) created practice-based knowledge about the relations of teachers’ perceptions of educational activities to school spaces in order to acknowledge architects and educational practitioners in designing learning environments that support educational renewal. We participated in the construction process of a new general upper-secondary school building in Finland, taking into consideration the school’s operating culture and teachers’ pedagogic needs (social aspects), as well as the mediation of school spaces by digitalization and national curriculum reformation (material aspects). The data were collected through a teacher survey (n = 31), teacher interviews (n = 10), and the analysis of group notes that teachers (n = 39) generated in a participatory workshop. The results revealed that teachers consider it critical in the design of new learning environments to foster a collaborative and multidisciplinary school culture that emphasizes learners’ wellbeing and inclusion, as well as utilizing readily-available digital instruments with basic-level functionality. The developed methodological framework appeared suitable for visualizing (with radar charts) the sociomaterial interdependence of school spaces, digital instruments, and teachers’ personal and collective pedagogical activities. We argue that teachers’ perceptions of school spaces, digital instruments, and pedagogic practices entanglement consolidates learning environments design from an educational point of view and should be taken into consideration when constructing new school buildings.

From Secret Fashion Shoots to the #100projectors

From Secret Fashion Shoots to the #100projectors

The smart meets the conventional: Media storylines and societal frames on the energy action of housing cooperatives

In the acceleration phase of energy transitions, the role of community and citizen action is emphasised. The role of active, smart and experimental communities and individuals adopting novel practices and technologies is often contrasted with more conventional and mundane everyday practices, which change only slowly. In this context, the role of news media is central in disseminating information, mediating confrontations, and offering a space for shared societal frames on transition. This article examines Finnish media storylines on emerging energy technologies and practices in housing cooperatives, which manage most of the apartment buildings in Finland and thus have a key role in energy transition. Focusing on 17 years of development in three mainstream media, we first identify three main phases in media discourse intensity, focus and level of detail. Next, we analyse the ten main storylines on stabilising and reconfiguring the role of housing cooperatives in energy system change. Finally, we combine these storylines with cross-cutting societal frames on governmentalizing energy communities from the perspectives of technological anticipation, saving potentials and governance interventions.

RESIDENTS’ EXPERIENCE IN TIMBER APARTMENT BUILDINGS IN FINLAND

ABSTRACT Residents’ attitudes towards new bio-based products such as wood play an important role in the anticipated transition towards a forest-based bioeconomy. Timber apartment buildings (over two-story) represent a modern bio-based business opportunity for endorsing low-carbon urban housing. This paper investigated residents’ experience in timber apartment buildings in Finland. In this study, a questionnaire was conducted among residents. The 308 received responses highlighted that: (1) residents were mostly quite satisfied with their current residence, living environment, and apartment’s functionality, (2) respondents had generally a positive attitude towards overall appearance and architecture of their buildings, (3) the majority thought that ecological issues would influence their own choice of residence, (4) presence of fire alarm system and automatic sprinkler system were assessed as the factors that improve life safety, (5) participants mostly drew attention to the properties of timber apartment buildings regarding good sound insulation and good indoor climate, and (6) surveyed residents would most like to move into two-story residential buildings and apartment buildings. These results will help provide a better understanding of the contemporary timber residential market and constitute a basis for interested parties e.g. policymakers, developers, and construction companies to pave better ways for future housing development in Finland.

Monte Carlo simulation approach to understand the cost variance for energy retrofit projects: comparative study of Finland and the United States

Energy-efficient building is often characterised with higher construction costs. There is a large variance in energy-efficient building construction costs, especially in retrofit projects. A lack of understanding of cost variance and ambiguity of cost-optimal practices has impeded the adoption of energy retrofit practices globally. To respond to such a knowledge gap, a comparative study was conducted on energy retrofit projects on residential buildings in Finland and the United States. A Monte Carlo simulation was used to determine the coefficient of variation for construction costs and the potential reasons behind the variations. The specific aims of this study are (a) to gain a deeper understanding of construction cost variances in energy retrofit projects, (b) to identify the most influential cost items, and (c) to understand the correlations among different cost items. For this analysis, a database including 10 Finnish buildings and 7 US buildings was created, and actual construction cost data was collected. The results showed the following: (1) US projects had a larger total construction cost variance with highly skewed distribution, and Finnish energy retrofit projects had a cost distribution similar to conventional retrofit projects; (2) the two most significant construction cost factors for both countries were non-energy related cost items and the building envelope, rather than the mechanical system (heating and ventilation) as commonly perceived; and (3) the larger construction cost variance in the United States may be associated with the unfamiliarity of energy-efficient technologies and varied construction methods in different regions. The insights and suggestions derived from those findings are discussed in the conclusion.

Waste heat recovery potential in residential apartment buildings in Finland's Kymenlaakso region by using mechanical exhaust air ventilation and heat pumps

With the growing share of ventilation heat loads, the heat recovery over the mechanical ventilation systems appears as one of the key solutions to reduce heat loss and generate energy savings. Finland's long-term renovation strategy aims for a highly energy-efficient and almost carbon-free building stock by 2050. One of the greatest potentials for energy savings relates to those built between the 1960s and 1980s where no heat recovery exists. This study addresses the wasted heat potential of apartment buildings in the Kymenlaakso region in Finland and how EAHPs can utilize it. The wasted heat potential was mapped by selecting buildings of different ages in Kotka from the 1950s to 2010 and for which the thermal energy balance was determined. The apartment buildings with mechanical exhaust ventilation in Kymenlaakso were surveyed. If all the mapped exhaust air waste energy could be utilized by EAHPs, it could produce the thermal energy combined from different decades up to 18.7 GWh/a in Kotka and 36.8 GWh/a in Kouvola. The calculated annual reduction in CO 2 emissions might be about 590 and 944 tCO 2 in Kotka and Kouvola, respectively. The calculated payback periods varied from 7 to 13 years for the selected buildings.

Comparative Study on Life-Cycle Assessment and Carbon Footprint of Hybrid, Concrete and Timber Apartment Buildings in Finland.

To date, in the literature, there has been no study on the comparison of hybrid (timber and concrete) buildings with counterparts made of timber and concrete as the most common construction materials, in terms of the life cycle assessment (LCA) and the carbon footprint. This paper examines the environmental impacts of a five-story hybrid apartment building compared to timber and reinforced concrete counterparts in whole-building life-cycle assessment using the software tool, One Click LCA, for the estimation of environmental impacts from building materials of assemblies, construction, and building end-of-life treatment of 50 years in Finland. Following EN 15978, stages of product and construction (A1–A5), use (B1–B6), end-of-life (C1–C4), and beyond the building life cycle (D) were assessed. The main findings highlighted are as following: (1) for A1–A3, the timber apartment had the smallest carbon footprint (28% less than the hybrid apartment); (2) in A4, the timber apartment had a much smaller carbon footprint (55% less than the hybrid apartment), and the hybrid apartment had a smaller carbon footprint (19%) than the concrete apartment; (3) for B1–B5, the carbon footprint of the timber apartment was larger (>20%); (4) in C1–C4, the carbon footprint of the concrete apartment had the lowest emissions (35,061 kg CO2-e), and the timber apartment had the highest (44,627 kg CO2-e), but in D, timber became the most advantageous material; (5) the share of life-cycle emissions from building services was very significant. Considering the environmental performance of hybrid construction as well as its other advantages over timber, wood-based hybrid solutions can lead to more rational use of wood, encouraging the development of more efficient buildings. In the long run, this will result in a higher proportion of wood in buildings, which will be beneficial for living conditions, the environment, and the society in general.

Numerical modeling and validation of a large-scale borehole thermal energy storage system in Finland

With the increasing demand in reducing carbon dioxide emissions, utilizing thermal energy storage technology, including borehole thermal energy storage (BTES), has become an efficient way to improve energy efficiency. Accurate modelling of the BTES is crucial to correctly predict the BTES performance in the building energy simulation. In this study, a large-scale BTES used for an educational building in Finland, was modelled in the IDA ICE 4.8. The BTES consists of 74 groundwater-filled boreholes with 310 m depth. The boreholes were installed with single U-tube heat exchangers. The BTES model was validated by 1.5-years measured inlet and outlet fluid temperatures of the BTES field. The results show the developed BTES model can predict the storage performance with high accuracy. During the 1.5-years validation period, the average difference between simulated and measured inlet and outlet fluid temperatures of the BTES field were within 1 °C.

What About Wood?—“Nonwood” Construction Experts' Perceptions of Environmental Regulation, Business Environment, and Future Trends in Residential Multistory Building in Finland

Abstract Despite the sustained interest in multistory wood-frame construction (WMC) along with an expanding bioeconomy, the rate of market uptake has been modest outside North America. Changing environmental values and regulation are expected to boost WMC adoption along with an expanding bioeconomy, yet the future prospects of WMC are typically explored with an empirical focus on the actors that are already active in WMC. To address the possible bias, this paper elicits the views of nonwood actors (i.e., construction company managers and executives in the areas of procurement and project planning with no prior experience in WMC), through 10 semistructured interviews. The results indicate that the nonwood actors do not necessarily oppose WMC as such, but there remain competitive barriers for a major market growth of WMC related to, for example, lack of standardization and significant enough productivity benefits to motivate adopting a new potentially risky construction practice. Based on comparisons with previous literature, the most notable differences in opinions between wood actors and nonwood actors regarded the direction and strength of the impact of consumer preferences on WMC demand. While acknowledging that this is a crude comparison without statistical significance, one can observe similarities in the distribution of answers for the questions unrelated to WMC, but more dispersion for those addressing WMC. Yet, while the attitudes toward wood as a construction material seem to differ, both the wood and nonwood actors seem to regard the doubling of the market share of WMC in Finland by 2030 as feasible.

Analyzing power and energy flexibilities by demand response in district heated buildings in Finland and Germany

This study aims to investigate the effect of demand response (DR) on power and energy flexibilities with three types of district heated buildings (apartment building, cultural center, and office building) in Finland and Germany. The rule-based control algorithm was applied for the DR control with two country-specific dynamic district heating (DH) prices, the more fluctuated Finnish synthetic DH price and the flatter German synthetic DH price. This research was implemented with the validated dynamic building simulation tool IDA ICE. Setpoint smoothing of the indoor air temperature was applied to minimize the rebound effect. Night time set-back was adopted in the cultural center and office building. The results show that the DR control without smoothing creates additional peaks in power demand while the setpoint smoothing significantly decreases the peak power demand. The DR control can significantly shape the heating power demand of the buildings and increase energy flexibility. The range of the resultant seasonal energy flexibility factors is from 3 to 26% for charging and from -6 to -31% for discharging, depending on the building types and countries. Cases with night time set-back have higher power and energy flexibilities while it causes additional peaks, which is detrimental to DH systems.

Emissions and power demand in optimal energy retrofit scenarios of the Finnish building stock by 2050

Finland and the European Union aim to reduce CO2 emissions by 80–100 % before 2050. This requires drastic changes in all emissions-generating sectors. In the building sector, all new buildings are required to be nearly zero energy buildings. However, 79 % of buildings in Finland were built before 2000, meaning that they lack heat recovery and suffer from badly insulated facades.This study presents four large-scale building energy retrofit scenarios, showing the emission reduction potential in the whole Finnish building stock. Six basic building types with several age categories and heating systems were used to model the energy demand in the building stock. Retrofitted building configurations were chosen using simulation-based multi-objective optimisation and combined according to a novel building stock model.After large-scale building retrofits, the national district heating demand was reduced by 25–63 % compared to the business as usual development scenario. Despite a large increase in the number of heat pumps in the system, retrofits in buildings with direct electric heating can prevent the rise of national electricity consumption. CO2 emissions in the different scenarios were reduced by 50–75 % by 2050 using current emissions factors.