Key
3365
Conference Year
2014
Keywords
Building Envelope Systems and Facades, Building Simulation & Energy Modeling
Abstract
In Europe, the criteria for designing new buildings are regulated by a set of European Directives and national laws having as a goal the creation of net zero energy buildings by the year 2020. Moreover, according to 2010/31/EU Directive after 31 December 2018, new buildings occupied and owned by public authorities must be nearly zero-energy buildings. The low energy consumption must be accompanied by well-defined thermal characteristics of the building envelope (both opaque and transparent components) and HVAC systems, and must ensure acceptable internal thermal comfort conditions. An interesting case study, proposed in this work, is represented by the elderly nursing building “RelaXXI” which hosts dependent people who require 24-hour special assistance and medical care. Designers focused on the indoor environmental quality as the main goal of the project and the HVAC system has been designed pursuing the maximum integration with the building and its architecture. The aims of this paper are to (1) describe the main design characteristics of the RelaXXI building, (2) analyze the results obtained by dynamic simulation of heating and cooling energy demands, and (3) present the results of performance monitoring completed to date.
On the Energy Performance Design of a Skilled Nursing Facility Building