ENERGY EFFICIENT BUILDINGS AND TECHNICAL SYSTEMS DESIGN

The Course aims to provide the technical and scientific bases to assess the Energy Performance of buildings and their thermal systems, as well as the fundamental elements for the design of the thermal systems. To this end, the Course describes the most recent technologies for the energy efficiency of buildings and thermal systems, and the related design methodologies. The Course also presents the main techniques for active and passive heating of buildings, with particular reference to solar technologies, and the issues of Indoor Air Quality and Thermal Comfort.  The acquired knowledge will allow the students to address the Energy Performance Certification of a building provided with thermal systems, and to perform energy renovation projects that comply with the strict performance requirements imposed by the recent regulations, while also accessing the available fiscal incentives.

The laboratory module aims to provide the practical foundations necessary for the sustainable design of buildings and their thermal systems through the use of suitable software for simulating the energy performance of buildings, certified by the most recent European and Italian regulations.

Energy performance of the opaque envelope - Detailed calculation and correction of thermal bridges – Hygrometric checks and corresponding design solutions – Green roofs and “cool” roofs - Energy performance of the transparent envelope and shielding systems - Natural ventilation and air quality - Controlled mechanical ventilation systems (VMC): components and principles of sizing - Thermal comfort: regulatory obligations and evaluation methods - Calculation of the winter thermal load -  Building integrated photovoltaic systems: operation and sizing principles - Condensing boilers and heat pumps: selection and sizing criteria - Radiators, fan coil units and radiant floors: operation and sizing principles - Sizing of fluid distribution  networks – Control logics of thermal systems, and their efficiency  - Solar thermal systems: schemes and sizing principles - Energy certification of buildings: current legislation - Energy Performance Certificate (APE) – Fiscal incentives for the energy efficiency of buildings and systems 

"Laboratory" module (40 hours)

The project work concerns the energy renovation of an existing building chosen by the students and will make use of certified Italian software tools for the thermal and energy analysis of buildings. The project work will be conducted in small groups of 2-3 students each and will cover the following aspects:

• Functional and geometric characterization of the building
• Definition of the main thermal features of the glazed and opaque envelope, including thermal bridges
• Identification of HVAC systems and water systems
• Characterization of photovoltaic panels and solar thermal collectors features (if any)
• Energy Performance Certificate
• Proposal of PV system installation

The students can also refer to the following books to deepen some topics:

1. V. RAISA, Teoria e tecnica della ventilazione. Ed. Delfino, 2010
2. G. ALFANO, F.R. D’AMBROSIO, G. RICCIO, La valutazione delle condizioni termoigrometriche negli ambienti di lavoro: confort e sicurezza. Ed. CUEN, 1997
3. F. GROPPI, G. ZUCCARO, Impianti solari fotovoltaici a norme CEI. Ed. Delfino, 2010
4. A. BRIGANTI, Manuale di climatizzazione. Ed. Tecniche Nuove (Cap. 7, 8, 9)
5. N. ASTE, F. GROPPI, Impianti solari termici. Manuale per ingegneri, architetti, installatori. Ed. Delfino, 2007.

• Legal checks regarding the energy performance of buildings: Decree 26/06/2015
• Calculation of the transmittance for a thermal bridge
• Energy balance of a roof
• Hygrometric checks according to Decree 26/06/2015
• Calculation of the transmittance for the fixtures
• Legal checks on mobile shading devices
• Characteristic parameters of photovoltaic modules
• Energy requirements associated with ventilation
• Features of mechanical ventilation systems
• Estimation of the electricity production of a photovoltaic system
• Sizing of a radiator
• Operation of a fan coil 
  
• Sizing of a radiant floor
• Sizing a hot water pipe
• Calculation of the overall efficiency of a heating system
• Components of a solar thermal system
• Calculation of non-renewable primary energy requirements
• Conditions for obtaining tax incentives
• Discussion of the design choices concerning the composition of the opaque and transparent building envelope
• Discussion of plant design choices
• Results of hygrometric and energy checks required by law
• Integration of renewable energy sources with the existing building