Comparative analysis of energy demand and CO2 emissions of residential buildings

Abstract

Rapid expansion of solar thermal energy for increasing energy efficiency of buildings has been adopted in short/medium and long-term energy strategies of EU countries. Within this context, the overall objective of this work is to develop an innovative high performance and cost effective hybrid solar heat and power system. The initial application is to be implemented in individual dwellings and small business residential buildings for on-site electricity and heat generation using solar thermal energy. It is estimated that the proposed technology will deliver 60% of domestic energy requirements and provide 20% reduction in energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions compared to the best existing low carbon energy technologies. The aim of this study consists in performing a comparative analysis of the different building typologies, which can host this technology, and their energy demands for heating and domestic hot water, as well as their CO2 emissions. © 2017. The Authors.