Impact of building morphology, thermal inertia and glazed area on the energy consumption of residential houses

摘要

This paper presents the energy savings that could be obtained by the appropriate design of the building in terms of morphology, thermal inertia and glazed area. Based on an extended database of values obtained by simulations, this parametric study gives a new approach for the architects or design engineers as support guidelines in the very first stage of their projects in finding efficiently energetic solutions. One of the analyzed parameters is the building shape coefficient which is defined as the ratio between the volume of a built form and its external heating losses area. It is shown that there is strong relationship between the shape coefficient and the heating demand, major energy reductions being possible with the right building form, values that could reach up to 40%. Another aspect of this study is to illustrate the interaction between different design parameters and what it is their impact on the energy demand of residential houses during the winter season. It was also investigated the building time constant that characterizes the thermal inertia and which is defined as the ratio of the effective thermal capacitance to the steady-state heat-loss coefficient of the building. The most noticeable effect of inertia on the building was seen especially in mid-season period when the heating energy demand is highly reduced when using a heavyweight building by comparison to a light one. A 10-12% energy reduction on the heating demand could be achieved with the correct glazingsurface and building time constant. These two parameters were found to be connected and must be analyzed in the same time.