Zero Energy Buildings: A Reached Target or a Starting Point?

Fabrizio, Enrico

doi:10.3390/app10020512

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 12 publications

(22 reference statements)

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“…One of the main problems in the consistency of these two phases is load matching, or the ability that the building has over time to meet its energy needs. A building that was not designed as an nZEB, when able to match its load using careful resource monitoring and management, could in many cases perform similar to or better than an nZEB [4]. On the contrary, a high-performance building that undergoes a major mismatch between generation and use of energy often results in a worse operational performance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy Evaluation of a PV-Based Test Facility for Assessing Future Self-Sufficient Buildings

et al. 2021

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In recent years, investigations on advanced technological solutions aiming to achieve high-energy performance in buildings have been carried out by research centers and universities, in accordance with the reduction in buildings’ energy consumption required by European Union. However, even if the research and design of new technological solutions makes it possible to achieve the regulatory objectives, a building’s performance during operation deviates from simulations. To deepen this topic, interesting studies have focused on testing these solutions on full-scale facilities used for real-life activities. In this context, a test facility will be built in the university campus of Politecnico di Torino (Italy). The facility has been designed to be an all-electric nearly Zero Energy Building (nZEB), where heating and cooling demand will be fulfilled by an air-source heat pump and photovoltaic generators will meet the energy demand. In this paper, the facility energy performance is evaluated through a dynamic simulation model. To improve energy self-sufficiency, the integration of lithium-ion batteries in a HVAC system is investigated and their storage size is optimized. Moreover, the facility has been divided into three units equipped with independent electric systems with the aim of estimating the benefits of local energy sharing. The simulation results clarify that the facility meets the expected energy performance, and that it is consistent with a typical European nZEB. The results also demonstrate that the local use of photovoltaic energy can be enhanced thanks to batteries and local energy sharing, achieving a greater independence from the external electrical grid. Furthermore, the analysis of the impact of the local energy sharing makes the case study of particular interest, as it represents a simplified approach to the energy community concept. Thus, the results clarify the academic potential for this facility, in terms of both research and didactic purposes.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%