Journal: Energy and Buildings

Abbreviation

Energy build.

Publisher

Elsevier

Journal Volumes

ISSN

0378-7788
1872-6178

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Publications 1 - 10 of 92
  • Introduction to the special issue on energy and environment of residential buildings in China
    Item type: Other Journal Item
    Moser, Alfred; Meier, Alan (2006)
    Energy and Buildings
  • Economic, ecological and thermo-hygric optimization of a vapor-open envelope for subtropical climates
    Item type: Journal Article
    Goto, Y.; Ostermeyer, Y.; Wakili, K. G.; et al. (2012)
    Energy and Buildings
  • Combined energy hub optimisation and demand side management for buildings
    Item type: Journal Article
    Batić, Marko; Tomašević, Nikola; Beccuti, Giovanni; et al. (2016)
    Energy and Buildings
  • Furthering embodied carbon assessment in practice: Results of an industry-academia collaborative research project
    Item type: Journal Article
    Pomponi, Francesco; Moncaster, Alice; De Wolf, Catherine (2018)
    Energy and Buildings
    In order to meet the mid-century carbon reduction targets and to mitigate climate change and global warming it is imperative that embodied greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions in the built environment receive immediate attention from policy, industry and academia. While academic research has grown in recent years, the uptake of embodied carbon assessments in practice has been slower. This paper reports the findings of a collaborative project between industry and academia to shed light on how to accelerate a wider uptake of embodied carbon assessments in buildings. Five projects have been each examined by three assessors (independent environmental consultants) for a total of fifteen detailed assessments. Results are presented for each of the five case studies, showing elements of agreement and, most often, of variation. Additionally, each of the life cycle stages as defined by the TC350 standards is analysed both numerically and in terms of its contribution towards the whole life embodied carbon. The results show that significant discrepancies consistently exist even when the initial information available to the assessors is the same. The numerical analysis also reveals that all life cycle stages account for important shares of the whole life carbon, and that therefore partial assessments – e.g. cradle-to-gate - are not sufficient if carbon reductions are to be realistically achieved. Future research in the field should continue to address the challenges identified in this article and work towards greater understanding and reliability of the numbers produced.
  • Intermediate complexity model for Model Predictive Control of Integrated Room Automation
    Item type: Journal Article
    Lehmann, B.; Gyalistras, D.; Gwerder, M.; et al. (2013)
    Energy and Buildings
  • Influence of the urban microclimate in street canyons on the energy demand for space cooling and heating of buildings
    Item type: Journal Article
    Allegrini, Jonas; Dorer, Viktor; Carmeliet, Jan (2012)
    Energy and Buildings
  • Energy and building technology for the 2000 W Society: Potential of residential buildings in Switzerland
    Item type: Journal Article
    Pfeiffer, A.; Koschenz, M.; Wokaun, Alexander (2005)
    Energy and Buildings
  • A method for zone-level urban building energy modeling in data-scarce built environments
    Item type: Journal Article
    Koral Iseri, Orcun; Duran, Ayça; Canlı, Ilkim; et al. (2025)
    Energy and Buildings
    Urban Building Energy Modeling (UBEM) is critical for improving the resilience of cities to climate change, but most regions lack of data sets necessary for its development. A bottom-up approach is a viable method to initiate comprehensive UBEM frameworks. However, this process is often challenged by incomplete data, which can significantly affect the reliability and resolution of simulation results. Traditional deterministic approaches commonly used in UBEM fail to capture the diversity of the building stock. Thus, probabilistic methods are increasingly used, which require a careful examination of the types and patterns of missing data. This paper fills a critical gap in the literature by presenting a probabilistic approach to data generation for data-scarce environments to build high-resolution bottom-up urban-scale models while preserving building stock heterogeneity and statistical consistency. Our methodology includes advanced data imputation and generation techniques based on density estimations. This approach is illustrated with a case study in the Bahçelievler neighborhood in Ankara, Turkey. We have developed four different UBEM versions with varying degrees of data granularity to demonstrate the effectiveness of our methods. The proposed models incorporate comprehensive data on construction and occupant-related parameters, enhancing the resolution of energy simulations for buildings. This research provides a robust framework for the development of UBEM in regions lacking comprehensive datasets, ultimately supporting informed policy making and improved urban energy management.
  • A scalable approach for real-world implementation of deep reinforcement learning controllers in buildings based on online transfer learning: The HiLo case study
    Item type: Journal Article
    Coraci, Davide; Silvestri, Alberto; Razzano, Giuseppe; et al. (2025)
    Energy and Buildings
    In recent years, Transfer Learning (TL) has emerged as a promising solution to scale Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) controllers for building energy management, addressing challenges related to DRL implementation as high data requirements and reliance on surrogate models. Moreover, most TL applications are limited to simulations, not revealing their real performance in actual buildings. This paper explores the implementation of an online TL methodology combining imitation learning and fine-tuning to transfer a DRL controller between two real office environments. Pre-trained in simulation using a calibrated digital twin, the DRL controller reduces energy consumption and improves indoor temperature control when managing the operation of a Thermally Activated Building System in one of the two offices both in simulation and in the real field. Afterwards, the DRL controller is transferred to the other office following the online TL methodology. The proposed approach outperforms a DRL controller implemented without pre-training, and Rule-Based and Proportional-Integral controllers, achieving energy savings between 6 and 40% and improving indoor temperature control between 30 and 50%. These findings underscore the efficacy of the online TL methodology as a viable solution to enhance the scalability of DRL controllers in real buildings.
  • Post-Insulating traditional massive walls in Southern Europe: A moderate thermal resistance can be more effective than you think
    Item type: Journal Article
    Posani, Magda; Veiga, Rosário; Freitas, Vasco (2023)
    Energy and Buildings
    Post-insulating existing buildings is a promising solution for reducing operational CO2 emissions from the European built environment. Nonetheless, its efficacy is unclear when traditional and historic massive walls are considered, especially in Southern Europe. This study employs a validated and calibrated dynamic hygrothermal simulation model to assess indoor comfort and energy demands in a public library with thick stone masonry walls and intermittent occupation, considering three Southern European climates: Porto, Lisbon, and Bologna. Five insulation materials, including three thermal mortars and two conventional materials (Hydrophobic Mineral Wool and Expanded Polystyrene), are compared using internal and external insulation solutions. Thin insulation systems (4 cm) with moderate thermal resistance (Rt = 0.3–1.0 m2K/W) are studied and found to provide more benefits than drawbacks. One thermal mortar-based system demonstrates comparable performance to conventional insulation materials, indicating that low-conductivity thermal mortars are effective for retrofitting historic and traditional massive walls. Numerical analyses show that optimal reductions of energy demand can be achieved with an insulation Rt of 0.9–1.3 m2K/W, while further increases yield no additional benefits and even counterproductive outcomes. Results support adopting moderate Rt insulation in Southern European climates and highlight the need for future research considering the effect of post-insulation on climate change adaptation.
Publications 1 - 10 of 92