Aerogel insulation in building energy retrofit. Performance testing and cost analysis on a case study in Rome

Orsini, Federico; Marrone, Paola; Asdrubali, Francesco; Roncone, Marta; Grazieschi, Gianluca

doi:10.1016/j.egyr.2020.10.045

Cited by 16 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Based on the obtained results, in order to countermeasure UHI, it is necessary to consider more suitable cooling strategies in the city. In this regard, the expansion of green areas and the installation of passive building solutions [39][40][41][42] such as green roofs [43] could positively affect urban areas due to their microclimatic action and evaporative cooling. On the other hand, in historical cities (such as Rome), these aspects need to be considered together with architectural constraints.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Urban Overheating Impact: A Case Study on Building Energy Performance

2021

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It is well known that the construction sector is one of the main sectors responsible for energy consumption in the current global energy scenario. Thus, buildings’ energy software become essential tools for achieving energy savings. Climate and its implications for building energy performance are a critical threat. Hence, the aim of this study is to evaluate the climatic conditions in urban and suburban areas of Rome, estimating the incidence of the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon. To this end, meteorological data obtained from three different areas (two airports and one inside the city) were examined and compared. Then, TRNSYS software was used to create a simple building, in order to assess the impacts of various climatic situations on building energy performance. The study revealed significant percentage differences both in terms of energy needs for heating, from −20.1% to −24.9% when the reference stations are, respectively, Fiumicino and Ciampino, and for cooling, with a wider range, from +48.7% to +87.5% when the reference stations are Ciampino and Fiumicino. Therefore, the study showed the importance of more accurately selecting sets of climate values to be included in energy simulations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Urban Overheating Impact: A Case Study on Building Energy Performance

2021

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“…Based on the obtained results, in order to countermeasure UHI, it is necessary to consider more suitable cooling strategies in the city. In this regard, the expansion of green areas and the installation of passive building solutions [12] such as green roofs [13,14] could positively affect urban areas due to their microclimatic action and evaporative cooling. On the other hand, in historical cities (such as Rome), these aspects need to be considered together with architectural constraints.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of the Urban Heat Island in Rome (Italy): Extent and Effects on the Building Energy Performance Simulations

Battista¹,

Evangelisti²,

Roncone³

et al. 2021

TI-IJES

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It is well known that the building sector is one of the main responsible for energy consumption in the current global energy scenario. In this context, the concept of efficient buildings passes through newly built and retrofitted constructions. Thus, buildings energy software become essential tools for achieving energy savings, designing the so-called green buildings, and evaluating different energy retrofit solutions for the building stock. However, climate change and its effects on buildings energy performance represent a critical issue. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the climatic conditions in Rome and its surroundings, estimating the occurrence of the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon. Consequently, meteorological data obtained from two airports near the city and those recorded for two years in a densely built neighborhood of Rome were examined and compared. In addition, the differences among weather data, also taking into consideration UNI 10349, were highlighted. Then, TRNSYS software was used for creating a simple building, in order to evaluate the effects of different climatic boundary conditions on building energy performance, in terms of heating and cooling energy demands.

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“…Cuce et al [34] presented a comprehensive review on aerogel utilization in buildings: the applications range from energy insulation purposes, to sound insulation, fire retardation and air purification. The use of aerogel in retrofits of historical buildings is very competitive since it permits saving inner space, maintaining the external façades unaltered [35]. Karim et al [36] proposed a superinsulated plaster made with aerogel particles mixed in the matrix.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If, on one hand, the high performance of aerogel is nowadays well-known owing to several studies, on the other hand, these studies have also focused on the high cost of this material [35]. Nowadays, this aspect is considered as a very strong limit to its widespread application to the construction sector [38].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Later, different insulating materials were tested, taking always into account a thickness of the insulating layer equal to 0.01 m (equal to the thickness of the aerogel panel tested during the in situ campaign). This choice allows the comparison of different insulation materials with equal saving of inner space in the case of internal application; the use of aerogel is, in fact, a competitive solution in the retrofit of historical buildings when the intervention on the external façade is not possible for architectural conservatory constraints [35]. In particular, the simulated insulating materials are: Expanded PolyStyrene (EPS), rock wool, kenaf and aerogel (whose thermophysical properties are shown in Table 3).…”

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confidence: 99%

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On the Retrofit of Existing Buildings with Aerogel Panels: Energy, Environmental and Economic Issues

et al. 2021

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Among the super insulating materials, aerogel has interesting properties: very low thermal conductivity and density, resistance to high temperatures and transparency. It is a rather expensive material, but incentives in the field can improve its economic attractiveness. Starting from this, the thermal behavior of a test building entirely insulated with aerogel panels was investigated through an extended experimental campaign. A dynamic simulation model of a case study building was generated to better comprehend the energy savings obtained through aerogel in terms of energy demand over a whole year. The investigation was completed by computing the carbon and energy payback times of various retrofit strategies through a life cycle assessment approach, as well as by a cost-benefit analysis through a probabilistic financial framework. Compared to conventional insulation materials, aerogel is characterized by a higher energy and carbon payback time, but it guarantees better environmental performance in the whole life cycle. From an economic-financial perspective, the aerogel retrofit is the best in the current tax incentive scenario. However, due to its higher lump-sum investment, aerogel’s net present value is very sensitive to tax deductions, and it is riskier than the best comparable materials in less favorable tax scenarios.

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Aerogel insulation in building energy retrofit. Performance testing and cost analysis on a case study in Rome

Cited by 16 publications

References 8 publications

Urban Overheating Impact: A Case Study on Building Energy Performance

Urban Overheating Impact: A Case Study on Building Energy Performance

Analysis of the Urban Heat Island in Rome (Italy): Extent and Effects on the Building Energy Performance Simulations

On the Retrofit of Existing Buildings with Aerogel Panels: Energy, Environmental and Economic Issues

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