Investigation of Energy Efficiency in The Housing Sector Within The Framework of Sustainable Building Design

Abstract

Today, increasing environmental concerns and worries about energy security have made the efficient use of energy in buildings of critical importance. Buildings account for a significant portion of global energy consumption and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. In this context, it is of great importance to evaluate the energy performance of buildings and make the necessary improvements to reduce their energy consumption. In the construction sector, most of the energy consumption is realised in residential buildings. Therefore, by focusing on energy efficient works primarily on residential buildings, a significant reduction in energy consumption can be achieved and negative impacts on the environment can be minimised. Energy efficient building design studies are generally carried out on the basis of a building, floor or neighbourhood through thermal insulation of the building envelope. This study distinguishes itself from other studies by taking into account the characteristics of Island-based settlements in the implementation of energy-efficient building design. In addition, it is an important feature of this study that energy analyses in buildings are carried out in a comprehensive manner to include the use of electricity as well as natural gas. In this study, an island-based urban regeneration project located in the Mediterranean climate zone is considered and research on energy efficiency is carried out on selected base buildings. The analyses were performed using the Design Builder simulation program of the EnergyPlus dynamic thermal simulation engine and the Solar PV simulation program with PVsyst software. An increase in initial investment cost, the rate of energy savings, and the values of energy consumption were calculated on an annual basis.