Energy managementin a MEDIUM-SIZED office building: nudging towards zero carbon footprint

Abstract

Energy audits have become one of the primary approaches for determining energy saving opportunities in buildings, as they provide key information on deficiencies and potential improvements to reduce energy consumption and maximise energy efficiency. This dissertation aims to analyse the energy performance of a medium-sized office building in the centre of Valletta, Malta. Three approaches have been implemented which included a walk-through survey for determining building and energy services characteristics, as well as measuring indoor air quality, analysis of one year energy consumption and modelling of the whole building in a specialised energy modelling software, DesignBuilder powered by EnergyPlus engine. A number of energy efficiency measures were identified and analysed. A hierarchy of potential energy efficiency measures tailor-made for the different zones of the building have been identified together with their resulting energy saving potential. Five possible measures are proposed in total, three regarding modifications on the building envelope of the building, installing shading devices, insulation and enhancing the double glazed windows with low emissivity (LoE) film and two measures regarding alterations to the energy systems, being the installation of desk lamps in the offices and lighting control. The results obtained from the simulation show that measures like insulation, shading and lighting control provide substantial improvements for reducing energy consumption in the building. On the other hand, LoE windows and desk lamps do not perform sufficiently well to be implemented, although some adjustments could make them beneficial. Finally, several recommendations were made for the successful implementation of the proposed measures such as cost benefit analysis. It was also recommended to analyse in greater detail the causes of particularly high overall energy consumption in the building, which is possibly due to high infiltration losses of air-conditioned air through open doors and windows