Thermal energy performance simulation of a residential building retrofitted with passive design strategies: A case study in mexico

Ana Paola Vargas, Leon Hamui

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Scopus citations

Abstract

High energy consumption as a result of an inefficient design has both economic and environmental repercussions throughout the life cycle of a building. In Mexico, the residential sector is the third-largest final energy consumer, therefore improving the performance of existing buildings is considered an effective method in achieving energy savings. Moreover, in Mexico warm climate regions predominate, which impacts energy consumption. This article examines a linked, single-family house located in the hot-humid climate city of Villahermosa, Tabasco (México). DesignBuilder software was used to conduct the thermal energy performance simulation of the existing building (base case) and to evaluate the energy-saving potentials by implementing different passive design strategies. As a result, the annual electricity consumption of the base case decreased a maximum of 2.0% with the passive design strategy in exterior windows, 4.9% in walls and, 13.7% reduction in roofs, the latter being the enclosure with the greatest reduction achieved. Nevertheless, a final adaptation proposal with the passive design strategies, whose results represented the highest energy savings, accomplished a total reduction of 23.5% with a payback period of 5.8 years.

Original languageEnglish
Article number8064
JournalSustainability (Switzerland)
Volume13
Issue number14
DOIs
StatePublished - 2 Jul 2021

Keywords

  • Energy efficiency
  • Hot-humid climate
  • Passive design strategies
  • Thermal energy performance simulation

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Thermal energy performance simulation of a residential building retrofitted with passive design strategies: A case study in mexico'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this