A new dynamic response factor for the assessment of the thermal performance of buildings based on the harmonic analysys

Abstract

Because of the increasing uncertainty on the energy scene, the energy saving issue becomes really important in all those countries which are not able to produce energy on their own. In recent years, a significant effort in the direction of energy efficient buildings has been promoted by governments and scientific communities, who are discussing strategies to implement energy regulations and reduce building energy consumption. The energy performance concerns the amount of energy consumed or estimated to satisfy all the needs of the building. As a consequence, extensive research activities, both at national and international levels, have been carried out to create a general framework for a calculation methodology of the building energy performance. Many problems have arisen, concerning the definition of energy rating, the accuracy of the calculation methodology and the discrepancies between an application to new or to existing buildings. In this work we have chosen to investigate and further develop the potentialities offered by Harmonic Analysis though an extension of the Admittance method. Applied to energy saving studies for buildings, the traditional method (the Admittance method proposed by the standard UNI EN ISO 13786) offers the possibility of characterizing different building components through synthetic parameters of clear physical meaning and minor computational effort. Our work aims at enhancing the traditional method proposing a complete mathematical calculation method for the building energy evaluation. The proposed method could serve as a sort of link between the need for simplification by the technicians (supported and endorsed by national legislation and the EU and by many international standards).