Parametric Study of Air Infiltration in Residential Buildings—The Effect of Local Conditions on Energy Demand

Abstract

Airtightness is nowadays one of the physical parameters which determine overall building energy performance. In a wide range of states, the upper limit for air change rate at a Pa (na), air permeability rate at a Pa (qa), or specific leakage rate at a Pa (wa) is determined by the formal regulations. It should be highlighted that airtightness requirements are mainly the same around the world, disregarding any site and climatic conditions. The main goal of the presented work was to reveal the effect of individual location and surrounding infiltration rate and heat demand. The analyses were done using numerical techniques and computational models of the three buildings developed and calibrated based on the blower door test results. The compared buildings characterize by a similar geometry but differ in the air change rate at 50 Pa (n50). Analyses done for different locations and levels of sheltering by surrounding elements allow the determination of the real effect of local conditions. The obtained differences in energy demand between two locations from the same climatic zone were from 70% to 90%, depending on the airtightness of the buildings. Considering different sheltered conditions, the differences for the same location can be even 200%. The obtained results allowed for the formulation of the general conclusion that building location and level of exposure could be considered in future airtightness regulations.

Multi‐hour ahead forecasting of building energy through a new integrated model

“…The investigation carried out takes into account only the building envelope with its construction materials and the characteristics of each climate. Air infiltration is depending on wind velocity, wind direction, and the air‐tightness of the building envelope, the air infiltration was estimated throughout the simulation period with h = 0.6 Vol/h 20 …”

“…Air infiltration is depending on wind velocity, wind direction, and the air-tightness of the building envelope, the air infiltration was estimated throughout the simulation period with h = 0.6 Vol/h. 20 The cooling or heating needs are calculated over 1 year for the studied area in the specified time step with the specified point temperatures (heating or cooling).…”

A Case Study of Empirical Validation of EnergyPlus Infiltration Models Based on Different Wind Data

“…On the other hand, if it is warm, the cooling load could increase by 4% to 14% [19,20]. Furthermore, some studies estimated that air leakage could be responsible for 50% of energy loss [21,22]. In the current context, where regulations are being created to reduce carbon emissions [23], it is relevant to control any cause of increasing building loads, one of the most important of which is leakage airflow, and, therefore, its precise measurement and correct input in BEM software should be carried out.…”

Annual Energy Performance of an Air Handling Unit with a Cross-Flow Heat Exchanger

“…It supplies fresh air to sanitary and utility rooms of a total area of 717.91 m 2 and volume of 2153.8 m 3 . Polish ventilation standards in residential buildings have been described recently [60][61][62]. In commercial or Because of its size, the building was equipped with 5 AHUs.…”