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ScienceDirect
Available online at www.sciencedirect.com
Available online at www.sciencedirect.com
ScienceDirect
Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
1876-6102 © 2017The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the Scientific Committee of The 15th International Symposium on District Heating and Cooling.
The 15th International Symposium on District Heating and Cooling
Assessing the feasibility of using the heat demand-outdoor
temperature function for a long-term district heat demand forecast
I. Andrića,b,c*, A. Pinaa, P. Ferrãoa, J. Fournierb., B. Lacarrièrec, O. Le Correc
aIN+ Center for Innovation, Technology and Policy Research -Instituto Superior Técnico,Av. Rovisco Pais 1, 1049-001 Lisbon, Portugal
bVeolia Recherche & Innovation,291 Avenue Dreyfous Daniel, 78520 Limay, France
cDépartement Systèmes Énergétiques et Environnement -IMT Atlantique, 4 rue Alfred Kastler, 44300 Nantes, France
Abstract
District heating networks are commonly addressed in the literature as one of the most effective solutions for decreasing the
greenhouse gas emissions from the building sector. These systems require high investments which are returned through the heat
sales. Due to the changed climate conditions and building renovation policies, heat demand in the future could decrease,
prolonging the investment return period.
The main scope of this paper is to assess the feasibility of using the heat demand –outdoor temperature function for heat demand
forecast. The district of Alvalade, located in Lisbon (Portugal), was used as a case study. The district is consisted of 665
buildings that vary in both construction period and typology. Three weather scenarios (low, medium, high) and three district
renovation scenarios were developed (shallow, intermediate, deep). To estimate the error, obtained heat demand values were
compared with results from a dynamic heat demand model, previously developed and validated by the authors.
The results showed that when only weather change is considered, the margin of error could be acceptable for some applications
(the error in annual demand was lower than 20% for all weather scenarios considered). However, after introducing renovation
scenarios, the error value increased up to 59.5% (depending on the weather and renovation scenarios combination considered).
The value of slope coefficient increased on average within the range of 3.8% up to 8% per decade, that corresponds to the
decrease in the number of heating hours of 22-139h during the heating season (depending on the combination of weather and
renovation scenarios considered). On the other hand, function intercept increased for 7.8-12.7% per decade (depending on the
coupled scenarios). The values suggested could be used to modify the function parameters for the scenarios considered, and
improve the accuracy of heat demand estimations.
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the Scientific Committee of The 15th International Symposium on District Heating and
Cooling.
Keywords: Heat demand; Forecast; Climate change
Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289
1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC; Historical
buildings retrofit in the Mediterranean area
10.1016/j.egypro.2017.09.389
10.1016/j.egypro.2017.09.389 1876-6102
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientic committee of the Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC;
Historical buildings retrot in the Mediterranean area
Available online at www.sciencedirect.com
ScienceDirect
Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC; Historical buildings
retrofit in the Mediterranean area.
Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC; Historical buildings retrofit in the
Mediterranean area, 12-13 May 2017, Matera, Italy
Energy retrofitting of dwellings from the 40’s in Borgata Trullo -
Rome
Livio de Santolia, Francesco Mancinib, Benedetto Nastasic,
*
, Serena Ridolfib
a Department of Astronautics, Electrical and Energy Engineering (DIAEE), Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
bDepartment of Planning, Design and Technology of Architecture, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Flaminia 72, 00196 Rome, Italy
c Department of Architectural Engineering and Technology (AE+T), Environmental & Computational Design Section, TU Delft University of
Technology, Julianalaan 134, 2628 BL Delft, The Netherlands
Abstract
Buildings with architectural constraints and recognized historical values entail careful design process, especially, when the aim is
to improve the energy efficiency. Foreseeable interventions consist of preservation and improvement of building envelope energy
performance as well as the adaptation of the built environment to modern use and its accessibility. The compatibility between the
aforementioned constraints and its future more sustainable use represents the crucial challenge. In this paper, feasible
interventions on the dwellings from the 40’s in Borgata Trullo, Rome were designed and analyzed. Public housing asset is an
interesting environment to test a sustainable holistic approach due to its homogeneity in terms of building technology solutions
and typologies. Furthermore, the absence of public funding made more difficult the ordinary and extra-ordinary maintenance
processes. So, the approach accounts for the age of the building along with the subsequent reduced energy performance as well as
the architectural values to preserve. The proposed energy retrofitting measures are related to the building envelope, in the
installation of insulation layers, the substitution of windows and improvement of HVAC systems to enhance energy efficiency.
Besides the case study, design guidelines were presented to help the stakeholders in compatible and sustainable interventions.
New HVAC solutions showed high gains in energy saving even if building envelope modifications were limited by the willing to
preserve the cultural heritage values. Therefore, a virtuous restoration can address effectively current energy efficiency targets.
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC;
Historical buildings retrofit in the Mediterranean area.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +39 320 8069101
E-mail address: benedetto.nastasi@outlook.com
Available online at www.sciencedirect.com
ScienceDirect
Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC; Historical buildings
retrofit in the Mediterranean area.
Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC; Historical buildings retrofit in the
Mediterranean area, 12-13 May 2017, Matera, Italy
Energy retrofitting of dwellings from the 40’s in Borgata Trullo -
Rome
Livio de Santolia, Francesco Mancinib, Benedetto Nastasic,*, Serena Ridolfib
a Department of Astronautics, Electrical and Energy Engineering (DIAEE), Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
bDepartment of Planning, Design and Technology of Architecture, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Flaminia 72, 00196 Rome, Italy
c Department of Architectural Engineering and Technology (AE+T), Environmental & Computational Design Section, TU Delft University of
Technology, Julianalaan 134, 2628 BL Delft, The Netherlands
Abstract
Buildings with architectural constraints and recognized historical values entail careful design process, especially, when the aim is
to improve the energy efficiency. Foreseeable interventions consist of preservation and improvement of building envelope energy
performance as well as the adaptation of the built environment to modern use and its accessibility. The compatibility between the
aforementioned constraints and its future more sustainable use represents the crucial challenge. In this paper, feasible
interventions on the dwellings from the 40’s in Borgata Trullo, Rome were designed and analyzed. Public housing asset is an
interesting environment to test a sustainable holistic approach due to its homogeneity in terms of building technology solutions
and typologies. Furthermore, the absence of public funding made more difficult the ordinary and extra-ordinary maintenance
processes. So, the approach accounts for the age of the building along with the subsequent reduced energy performance as well as
the architectural values to preserve. The proposed energy retrofitting measures are related to the building envelope, in the
installation of insulation layers, the substitution of windows and improvement of HVAC systems to enhance energy efficiency.
Besides the case study, design guidelines were presented to help the stakeholders in compatible and sustainable interventions.
New HVAC solutions showed high gains in energy saving even if building envelope modifications were limited by the willing to
preserve the cultural heritage values. Therefore, a virtuous restoration can address effectively current energy efficiency targets.
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Climamed 2017 – Mediterranean Conference of HVAC;
Historical buildings retrofit in the Mediterranean area.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +39 320 8069101
E-mail address: benedetto.nastasi@outlook.com
282 Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289
2 Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
Keywords: energy refurbishment; energy efficiency; public housing.
1. Introduction
Prioritizing sustainable urban regeneration can be considered the strategy to unlock urban resources towards
healthy [1] and low-energy built environment [2]. Especially in highly urbanized areas, urban policy is definitely
developing guidelines and best practices to address new issues such as outdoor thermal comfort [3], adaptation
strategies to climate change [4] and more complex preservation measures for existing and listed buildings [5,6].
Today, the concept of urban renewal works with socio-economic regeneration and environmental impact, through
appropriate energy improvement strategies and resource management but keeping in mind the preservation of
historical, social and cultural values [7]. Old buildings, such as the ones built in the 60’s to face the rising demand
for housing, have often issues to be identified as cultural heritage rather than built environment no more suitable for
modern society. Maintenance and refurbishment is the logical demand of this housing stock since many building
components already reached the end of their useful life [8].
Beyond this critical issue, even where durability of materials is preserved, the design of those buildings entails
high-energy consumption, spatial layout not suitable for modern society as well as neglecting many requirements
obligatory according current regulations. Heading towards low or nZEB status is an achievable target if an integrated
renovation is coupled with the analysis on energy production side as well as thermal management strategies [9,10].
The main lack in regulation is that the refurbishment framework from an energy point of view is the same for all
building types, merging new constructions with large perspective of energy savings with listed buildings where even
ordinary maintenance can negatively affect its preservation in terms of historical and architectural values. However,
it is not realistic to push listed buildings to have energy performance as new buildings as well as adopting complex
methods to explore energy saving potential [11]. Only, thanks to a careful and accurate planning of interventions can
achieve optimal results from all points of view as already demonstrated in [12,13].
In order to assess the feasibility of urban regeneration Borgata Trullo was selected as c ase study. It is a public
housing district built in the 40’s in Rome, which is a representative example of the heterogeneity of case studies in
Italy. This study is part of a comprehensive work done on public housing in Rome [14] .
2. Borgata Trullo
Borgata Trullo is located in the south-west part of Rome, currently belonging to the Municipio XI, an
administrative division of Rome Municipality. It takes its name from an ancient Roman tomb located on the right
bank of the Tiber River. During the First World War, the Trullo area was the place chosen to locate the first
industrial settlements. In 1917, Gaetano Maccaferri reclaimed land to build a barbed-wire factory for the military
defence. Then, the Defence Ministry chose this area to set a branch of Genio Militare. Moreover, the area was also
involved in the urban transformations for the Universal Exhibition of 1942.
In 1939, the fascist Independent Institute of public housing built up low-cost housing complexes, called borgate,
composed by three villages: Torre Gaia, Quarticciolo and Trullo. The future users of those buildings were Italian
settlers from France, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. In detail, Borgata Trullo was designed as a complex of
336 apartments, divided into three main lots: one central plot, a southern lot and a northern one [15,16].
The Borgata was provided with roads, water and electricity services. Roberto Nicolini and Joseph Nicolosi were
the designers following modern criteria and allusive architectural language to the rationalists themes. As shown in
Figures 1 and 2, different kind of spaces were designed such as the balcony and staircase, kitchen gardens and
private gardens were built. Great part of the buildings is composed by two or three floors with a specific focus on
orientation to North-South and East-West for increasing the received solar radiation.
The buildings were conceived as the combination and series of two modules, called QE and QS. The QE contains
four apartments per floor, each one consisting of three rooms and accessories, served by balcony with access from a
single head-scale, as shown in Figure 3.
Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289 283
Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 3
As shown in Figures 1 and 2, different kind of spaces were designed such as the balcony and staircase, kitchen
gardens and private gardens were built. Great part of the buildings is composed by two or three floors with a specific
focus on orientation to North-South and East-West for increasing the received solar radiation.
Fig. 1. Architectural plan of Borgata Trullo.
Fig. 2. Top view of Borgata Trullo in the ’40s.
The buildings were conceived as the combination and series of two modules, called QE and QS. The QE contains
four apartments per floor, each one consisting of three rooms and accessories, served by balcony with access from a
single head-scale, as shown in Figure 3. While, the QS contains three apartments per floor: a small one com-posed
by two rooms, a tiny kitchen and rest room with a surface of about 50 sq.m. and two symmetrical apartments at each
side of the small one with a bigger kitchen. The wall stratigraphy and the structure were made by tuff masonry and
bearing walls in pumice concrete, respectively. The floor was built as reinforced concrete slabs and pots of pumice
conglomerate. Then, the sanitary consists of toilet, sink and shower. In 1940, Borgata Trullo was further developed
but with the aim to reduce iron and concrete use.
284 Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289
4 Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
a
b
Fig. 3. QE: Ground floor (a) and First floor (b).
Later on, nearby the original settlement of Borgata Trullo, new public housing interventions were added as we ll
as a huge amount of informal buildings.
3. Status quo
Before the refurbishment design, a study on the thermo-physical characteristics and the installed HVAC systems
was carried out by means of on-site survey, as reported in Figure 4. Furthermore, related bibliography as well as
original architectural drawings were analyzed along with infrared camera use and surveying the inhabitants.
Fig. 4. Current views of Borgata Trullo.
The critical thermal singularities were determined by the thermographic survey of the building envelope in order
to detect the modifications to the building components during the years: e.g. the substitution of window. In addition,
onsite campaign allowed to identify new installed HVAC units such air conditioning units as depicted in Figures 6
and 7. A first information related to the building envelope is its low insulated layout both for opaque and transparent
surfaces. Indeed, insulation layer is absent in great part of the buildings. The absence of horizontal plane as shading
device does not protect the buildings from overheating phenomena occurring during the summer since the windows
solar gain factor is high, around 0.80.
Table 1 reports the U-value of all the building components.
Table 1. U-value of building envelope components.
Description
Thickness
[m]
U
[W/m
2
K]
Bearing walls in pumice conglomerate and brick
0,60
0,92
Low ventilated slab, no insulation, covered by granite flooring
0,32
1.38
Flat roof, no insulation, reinforced concrete and pumice pots
0,35
1,54
Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289 285
Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 5
Fig. 5. Infrared and normal picture of South Elevation.
Fig. 6. A detail of Infrared and normal picture of South Elevation.
Fig. 7. Chimney and external air conditioning terminals.
The original HVAC system was composed by centralized heating system and autonomous domestic hot water
production. During the years, in many buildings independent gas-boilers were installed for each flat so as to
determine the interruption of centralized heating system supply. Those boilers were mainly located in the balcony.
High temperature water supply for space heating was organized in a main duct located in the ground floor and
columns to distribute it to the radiators. This entailed that in the detachment from centralized heating system a new
distribution system was built in the apartments along with occluding the original columns. The cooling system was
not included in the original configuration. Then, split-units systems (air-to-air heat pump) were added entailing
changes in the facade aspect by the introduction of external terminals as shown in Figure 7.
The Italian laws [17] refer for both energy certification and energy audit process to the National technical
standards UNI / TS 11300, which is the adoption of EN ISO 13790. It accounts for a monthly-based static method to
286 Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289
6 Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
calculate heating demand but, if preferred by specialists, it promotes the use of more detailed dynamic -based
simulation methods. The use of dynamic methods, however, requires more technical knowledge and often is more
time-consuming. A good compromise is the simulation tool ArchiEnergy which allows you to perform one-zone
hourly dynamics simulations and to perform economic evaluations of the investments, including incentive system in
force in Italy [18]. For the diagnosis of the building case study it was decided to use the simplified dynamic method
since the static analysis is not able to take into account crucial factors. Table II reports the results of performed
simulation for a reference building.
This latter is composed by three floors, each one with four apartments. Heating supply is provided by a
centralized gas boiler while, domestic hot water is supplied by individual electric boilers. Radiators are the heating
terminals and regulation is driven by the thermostat installed in the boiler.
Table 2. Results of performed simulation.
Heating demand
[W/m2]
Primary Energy
[kWh/m2y]
Seasonal efficiency
of heating system
[%]
Total Primary Energy
[kWh/m2y]
Winter
Summer
Winter
Summer
Apartment 1 - 1st f.
69.7
51.3
65.5
31.0
48.5%
141.7
Apartment 2 - 1st f.
63.6
51.3
54.3
32.2
46.9%
121.6
Apartment 3 - 1st f.
63.6
51.3
54.3
32.2
46.9%
121.6
Apartment 4 - 1st f.
72.3
53.9
65.8
36.2
48.7%
141.9
Apartment 1 - 2nd f.
47.5
51.6
25.2
38.2
41.0%
64.6
Apartment 2 - 2nd f.
41.5
51.6
15.8
42.3
37.6%
44.2
Apartment 3 - 2nd f.
41.5
51.6
15.8
42.3
37.6%
44.2
Apartment 4 - 2nd f.
50.2
54.3
25.8
44.5
41.6%
65.2
Apartment 1 - 3rd f.
68.0
60.5
59.7
45.8
48.3%
129.8
Apartment 2 - 3rd f.
62.0
60.5
48.2
48.0
46.8%
108.1
Apartment 3 - 3rd f.
62.0
60.5
48.2
48.0
46.8%
108.1
Apartment 4 - 3rd f.
70.6
63.2
59.4
51.6
48.7%
128.0
Building
59.4
55.1
44.8
41.0
46.3%
101.7
As depicted in Table 2, the energy consumption is aligned with the typical value for buildings of the same age.
Building envelope is clearly not equipped with insulation as well as a no effective regulation system. This latter
entails an average efficiency of the regulation system around 67% due to the lack of thermostat in the indoor rooms.
According to Italian Energy Performance Certification System, the building has the label G. A preliminary
estimation of the cost for gas supply corresponds to about 6,300 €/year.
4. Energy refurbishment proposals
Starting from the energy status quo and accounting for the architectural constraints, two aspects were investigated
for energy refurbishment interventions:
a first solution is to improve building envelope thermodynamic performance in order to reduce heating and
cooling demand as well as increasing the effects of passive solutions;
a second aspect is to design the improvement strategy on the HVAC system side in order to increase the
production efficiency, integrate a higher share of renewables to meet building energy demand. Specifically, two
options were considered for installing high efficiency heating systems. Those measures entail different
investment costs and change in building performance.
4.1. The insulation layer
As regards the building envelope, considering the smooth and plastered facades and a flat roof, an insulation
layer for opaque walls and an upside-down roof solution to cover all around the building, as shown in Table 3.
Referring to the windows, a double-glazing wooden solution with argon gas in the cavity and glasses covered by
a double low emissivity (g=0.20) and solar controlled layers was hypothesized.
Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289 287
Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 7
Table 3. U-value of each building envelope components in the refurbished configurations.
Description
Thickness
[m]
U
[W/m
2
K]
Bearing walls of pumice conglomerate and bricks, insulated with expanded polystyrene (7 cm) and plaster
0.67
0.38
Low-ventilated slab covered by granite flooring, insulated by expanded polystyrene (8 cm) and plaster
0.41
0.33
Flat roof in reinforced concrete and pumice pots, insulated by expanded polystyrene (8 cm) covered by granite flooring
0.43
0.31
Double-glazing wooden window with glasses covered by low emissivity (g=0.20) and solar controlled layers
-
1.54
The hypothesized insulation measures allow a high improvement in passive building envelope performance,
especially referring to winter season, as shown in Table 4.
On average, the winter heat load changes from 59.4 to 28.3 W/m2, showing a reduction of 52% while, the
summer heat load varies from 55.1 to 37.1 W/m2 with a reduction of 33%. Moreover, the heating demand decreased
from 44.8 to 14.0 kWh/m2y, i.e. around 69% while, cooling demand is almost halved from 41.0 to 22.7 kWh/m2y.
From an economic point of view, the investment cost associated to this refurbished building envelope solution is
equal to 135,000 €, deriving from a parametric cost of 70€/m2 for insulation in vertical opaque walls, another one of
80€/m2 for insulation in horizontal roof and, finally, a parametric cost of 400€/m2 related to the window substitution.
Table 4. Results of Performed simulation of refurbished scenario.
Thermal load
[W/m
2
]
Primary Energy
[kWh/m
2
y]
Winter
Summer
Winter
Summer
Ante
Post
Ante
Post
Ante
Post
Ante
Post
Apartment 1 - 1st f.
69.7
30.8
-56%
51.3
35.8
-30%
65.5
18.6
-72%
31.0
19.1
-38%
Apartment 2 - 1st f.
63.6
28.3
-56%
51.3
35.8
-30%
54.3
14.3
-74%
32.2
20.1
-38%
Apartment 3 - 1st f.
63.6
28.3
-56%
51.3
35.8
-30%
54.3
14.3
-74%
32.2
20.1
-38%
Apartment 4 - 1st f.
72.3
31.8
-56%
53.9
36.9
-32%
65.8
18.6
-72%
36.2
21.5
-41%
Apartment 1 - 2nd f.
47.5
25.5
-46%
51.6
35.7
-31%
25.2
9.9
-61%
38.2
21.6
-43%
Apartment 2 - 2nd f.
41.5
23.0
-45%
51.6
35.7
-31%
15.8
6.3
-60%
42.3
23.4
-45%
Apartment 3 - 2nd f.
41.5
23.0
-45%
51.6
35.7
-31%
15.8
6.3
-60%
42.3
23.4
-45%
Apartment 4 - 2nd f.
50.2
26.6
-47%
54.3
36.8
-32%
25.8
10.2
-61%
44.5
24.3
-45%
Apartment 1 - 3rd f.
68.0
31.6
-53%
60.5
39.0
-36%
59.7
19.4
-67%
45.8
23.5
-49%
Apartment 2 - 3rd f.
62.0
29.2
-53%
60.5
39.0
-36%
48.2
15.3
-68%
48.0
24.8
-48%
Apartment 3 - 3rd f.
62.0
29.2
-53%
60.5
39.0
-36%
48.2
15.3
-68%
48.0
24.8
-48%
Apartment 4 - 3rd f.
70.6
32.7
-54%
63.2
40.2
-36%
59.4
19.6
-67%
51.6
26.0
-50%
Building
59.4
28.3
-52%
55.1
37.1
-33%
44.8
14.0
-69%
41.0
22.7
-45%
4.2. Installation of a condensing boiler and improvement in distribution system
In addition to the interventions to building envelope, thermal insulation it has been suggested an essential
improvement of HVAC system to take full advantage of insulation measures. So doing, the introduction of a gas
condensing boiler along with re-building the distribution system, since the current one has reached the end of
lifespan, is associated to a temperature regulation and thermostatic valves attached to all radiators.
The building envelope interventions allow to significantly reduce the thermal loads of the project and, as a result,
to continue using the existing radiators as heating terminals. Indeed, it is possible to maintain the same radiant
surfaces, even with a lower operating temperature (45-40°C deliver and return temperatures) of the condensing
boiler since the heat load was reduced by the insulation. With reference to the summer cooling, no completely new
plant installation was hypothesized because the reduction of cooling loads implies the opportunity to maintain the
heat pumps. Yet, to recover the original state of the facades, it is suggested to locate on the roof all the outdoor units
of the existing air conditioners.
In this way, the HVAC system average seasonal efficiency is much higher than the previous one, i.e. 89.1% vs.
46.3%. Consequently, the primary energy demand for heating decreases appreciably from 101.7 to 15.7 kWh/m2y
with a reduction of 85 %. It is remarkable that the share of renewable energy is still zero in this configuration.
Nevertheless, according the current energy classification in Italy, the building energy label reaches class A1.
288 Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289
8 Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
From an economic point of view, the investment required for the replacement of plant systems is approximately
26,000 Euros. This value was estimated by assuming a parametric cost of 100 €/kW for the condensing boiler,
another one equal to 15 €/m2 for remaking the distribution system, 6 €/m2 for the adjustment system and 10 €/m2 for
heating terminals. To sum up, when interventions on building envelope were included, the total cost is about
161,000 euro. Furthermore, the new price for gas supply can be estimated around 2,600 €/year, with a saving of
3.700 €/year compared to the status quo. Accounting for the 65% tax deduction applied in Italy for such
interventions, the payback period can be estimated in 15 years.
4.3. Heat pump installation, improvement in distribution system and PV array integration
Another option to integrate a renewable share in the buildings is the installation of air-water heat pump along
with storage facilities plus the previous measures on the building envelope. A PV array in amorphous siliceous
around 6 kW of power can be in-stalled on the roof. A drawback of this configuration is that an increase of 50% in
terminals surface must be taken into account since the heating is supplied at lower temperature by thermal storage
(35-30°C deliver and return temperatures). Recent research demonstrated that, if available a high renewable
electricity excess, by means of Power to Gas it is possible to green the high temperature heating supply [20,21].
Yet, limited available roof surface entail a lower temperature solution by means of heat pumps. In order to have a
small size heat pump, a thermal storage of 8,000 liters was added to the system layout. The size of the thermal
storage is designed to supply heat for 8 hours to the building during a typical day in January, the coldest month in
Rome (charging temperature around 45°C). Furthermore, by the storage use it is possible to use the electricity from
the Grid to feed the heat pump when the price of electricity is more convenient [22] or local renewables guarantee
an energy excess [23].
This entails a further saving in terms of expenses. The average seasonal efficiency of this layout is 66.7%, asking
for a primary energy consumption for heating equal to 31.3 kWh/m2y, 70% less than the status quo. However,
64.6% of the primary energy demand can be met by renewable production. So doing, the non-renewable primary
energy demand for heating is 11.1 kWh/m2y. According the current energy classification in Italy, the building
energy label reaches class A4.
From an economic point of view, the associated investment is equal to 42,000 €. To estimate this value, it was
assumed a parametric cost of 250 €/kW for the heat pump, 1,500 €/kW for the PV array, 15 €/m2 for the distribution
system, 6 €/m2 for the regulation devices and 15 €/m2 for the heating terminals. To sum up, when interventions on
building envelope were included, the total cost is about 187,000 €.
The cost of electricity for feeding the heat pump is about 700 €/year, with a saving of 5,600 €/anno compared to
expenses for the gas supply.
Accounting for the 65% tax deduction applied in Italy for such interventions, the payback period can be
estimated in 11 years.
5. Conclusions
The two phases of this research are closely connected each other, not requiring cut-ting-edge technology [24] but
using economically viable solutions, already well-established on the market. The analytical step determined what are
the strengths, weak-nesses and significant elements of the project. Then, in the second phase, assuming the possible
interventions for the energy refurbishment, the preservation of architectural values is considered crucial.
Borgata Trullo, as typical public housing, shows great opportunity for reducing energy demand. It leads to
consider relevant a first stage of survey to consider the nature of structural, conservative, social, managerial issues at
the same time with the ones related to energy efficiency. The proposed design choices aim at improving the energy
performance of buildings and to increase the comfort of the inhabitants but, by preserving the historicized aspect of
the buildings. The values recognized as historical ones are fundamental evidence of a recent but important phase of
Italian and European architecture history by its formal, structural characteristics and distribution of the artefacts.
The result shows the feasibility of energy efficiency measures and the opportunity to achieve high targets since
the existing building stock has poor thermal performance. An important issue, often not considered, is the heating
Livio de Santoli et al. / Energy Procedia 133 (2017) 281–289 289
8 Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
From an economic point of view, the investment required for the replacement of plant systems is approximately
26,000 Euros. This value was estimated by assuming a parametric cost of 100 €/kW for the condensing boiler,
another one equal to 15 €/m2 for remaking the distribution system, 6 €/m2 for the adjustment system and 10 €/m2 for
heating terminals. To sum up, when interventions on building envelope were included, the total cost is about
161,000 euro. Furthermore, the new price for gas supply can be estimated around 2,600 €/year, with a saving of
3.700 €/year compared to the status quo. Accounting for the 65% tax deduction applied in Italy for such
interventions, the payback period can be estimated in 15 years.
4.3. Heat pump installation, improvement in distribution system and PV array integration
Another option to integrate a renewable share in the buildings is the installation of air-water heat pump along
with storage facilities plus the previous measures on the building envelope. A PV array in amorphous siliceous
around 6 kW of power can be in-stalled on the roof. A drawback of this configuration is that an increase of 50% in
terminals surface must be taken into account since the heating is supplied at lower temperature by thermal storage
(35-30°C deliver and return temperatures). Recent research demonstrated that, if available a high renewable
electricity excess, by means of Power to Gas it is possible to green the high temperature heating supply [20,21].
Yet, limited available roof surface entail a lower temperature solution by means of heat pumps. In order to have a
small size heat pump, a thermal storage of 8,000 liters was added to the system layout. The size of the thermal
storage is designed to supply heat for 8 hours to the building during a typical day in January, the coldest month in
Rome (charging temperature around 45°C). Furthermore, by the storage use it is possible to use the electricity from
the Grid to feed the heat pump when the price of electricity is more convenient [22] or local renewables guarantee
an energy excess [23].
This entails a further saving in terms of expenses. The average seasonal efficiency of this layout is 66.7%, asking
for a primary energy consumption for heating equal to 31.3 kWh/m2y, 70% less than the status quo. However,
64.6% of the primary energy demand can be met by renewable production. So doing, the non-renewable primary
energy demand for heating is 11.1 kWh/m2y. According the current energy classification in Italy, the building
energy label reaches class A4.
From an economic point of view, the associated investment is equal to 42,000 €. To estimate this value, it was
assumed a parametric cost of 250 €/kW for the heat pump, 1,500 €/kW for the PV array, 15 €/m2 for the distribution
system, 6 €/m2 for the regulation devices and 15 €/m2 for the heating terminals. To sum up, when interventions on
building envelope were included, the total cost is about 187,000 €.
The cost of electricity for feeding the heat pump is about 700 €/year, with a saving of 5,600 €/anno compared to
expenses for the gas supply.
Accounting for the 65% tax deduction applied in Italy for such interventions, the payback period can be
estimated in 11 years.
5. Conclusions
The two phases of this research are closely connected each other, not requiring cut-ting-edge technology [24] but
using economically viable solutions, already well-established on the market. The analytical step determined what are
the strengths, weak-nesses and significant elements of the project. Then, in the second phase, assuming the possible
interventions for the energy refurbishment, the preservation of architectural values is considered crucial.
Borgata Trullo, as typical public housing, shows great opportunity for reducing energy demand. It leads to
consider relevant a first stage of survey to consider the nature of structural, conservative, social, managerial issues at
the same time with the ones related to energy efficiency. The proposed design choices aim at improving the energy
performance of buildings and to increase the comfort of the inhabitants but, by preserving the historicized aspect of
the buildings. The values recognized as historical ones are fundamental evidence of a recent but important phase of
Italian and European architecture history by its formal, structural characteristics and distribution of the artefacts.
The result shows the feasibility of energy efficiency measures and the opportunity to achieve high targets since
the existing building stock has poor thermal performance. An important issue, often not considered, is the heating
Author name / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 9
supply temperature in order to involve the existing distribution system or the terminals in providing the best
performance with the foreseeable technological solutions.
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