Thermal Model Validation Process for Building Environment Simulation: A Case Study for Single-Family House

Abstract

Currently, more and more emphasis is being placed on reducing energy consumption in buildings to reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Building performance simulation is very useful to predict energy demand and indoor environment quality. An indispensable element of the simulation is the validation and calibration of the model, which is an arduous process. The aim of the study was to present a four-level validation (using measurement results) and calibration of a thermal model of a naturally ventilated single-family house. Numerical calculations using co-simulation between EnergyPlus and Contam were performed. The results of the one-year simulation measurements of the indoor temperature and ventilation airflows were compared. After the calibration was performed, a high convergence of the results was found. The normalized mean bias error for hourly and monthly values did not exceed 1% and the coefficient of variation of the root mean squared error was a maximum of 7% with a simultaneous high correlation of the results in the range from 0.85 to 0.89. It was found that the final results were significantly influenced by the appropriate modeling of air exchange in the building, including the opening of windows.

Implementation of Building a Thermal Model to Improve Energy Efficiency of the Central Heating System—A Case Study

“…Despite the common opinion among researchers and experts about the great complexity of building the issue of energy modeling, it was assumed that the model prepared based on many solutions described in the scientific and industry literature [31][32][33][34] would be as functional as possible. That is, it will consider (qualitatively and, if possible, quantitatively) the physical phenomena occurring in the building in a representative way and will be utilitarian, i.e., operational enough to be used in the process of analysis and creation without the use of advanced IT tools (e.g., Matlab package) and algorithms that control the topology of a heat substation, which are used in construction.…”

“…Based on a simple hourly method an equivalent resistances and one capacitance (5R1C) network model of a building (zone) [29,30] where the thermal-electrical analogy is based on the similarity between electric current and heat flux, an original thermodynamic model was built with a resolution to the type of partition (on the passive side) and the many possible sources of thermal energy supply to the system and dissipation fluxes (Figure 5). Despite the common opinion among researchers and experts about the great complexity of building the issue of energy modeling, it was assumed that the model prepared based on many solutions described in the scientific and industry literature [31][32][33][34] would be as functional as possible. That is, it will consider (qualitatively and, if possible, quantitatively) the physical phenomena occurring in the building in a The model uses the concentrated heat capacity C of the partition to write a differential equation modeling changes in its temperature as a building structure.…”

The Effect of European Climate Change on Indoor Thermal Comfort and Overheating in a Public Building Designed with a Passive Approach

“…The aim of providing good IAQ (indoor air quality) with low energy consumption is not only a problem for contemporary building owners and users [4] but for future cases too. With measurement data available from the past, the validation of simulation results is possible, and is necessary to calibrate a model [5]. Still, the uncertainties of the future are challenging to predict accurately in terms of occupancy [6], yet substantially governs all the assessed parameters.…”

“…With the changing climate, which is shifting the generally comfortable European weather into a more extreme one, not only do we need to adapt our building strategies, but we also need to consider the concerns against the metrics that we use to quantify thermal comfort. According to the study of Picard et al [7], weather is one of the most significant factors influencing energy consumption and thermal comfort in our buildings-yet its variation is usually not taken into consideration among the six criteria listed by Yoshino et al [8]: (1) weather, (2) building envelope, (3) building energy and services, (4) indoor design criteria, (5) building operation and maintenance, (6) occupant behavior. Not taking climate change effects into account makes the buildings vulnerable to it [9].…”