When a building undergoes a retrofit project, the goal of assessing energy and environmental performances of retrofit actions is a complex matter. Building and its environment are complex systems in which all sub-systems are strongly interdependent and influence the overall efficiency...

Since July 2008, a Solar Desiccant Evaporative Cooling (DEC) system has been operating as a test plant at the solar laboratory of the Dipartimento di Energia (ex DREAM) of the University of Palermo. The system is composed of an air handling unit (AHU) designed for ventilation of the laboratory...

The paper presents the results of an energy and environmental assessment of a set of retrofit actions implemented in the framework of the EU Project "BRITA in PuBs" (Bringing Retrofit Innovation to Application in Public Buildings - no: TREN/04/FP6EN/S07.31038/503135). Outcomes arise from a life...

The energy demand of the hotel sector of an Italian region is here utilized for hierarchizing, by means of an empirical method, efficient measures devoted to energy saving and reduction of CO2 emissions.

Renewable energy sources are often presented as "clean". A more correct definition is that they are "cleaner" than ones based on fossil fuel conversion. When the energy consumption and the environmental impacts related to the plant's life-cycle are considered, a more comprehensive assessment of...

The saving of primary energy from fossil fuels and the promotion of exploitation of renewable sources are two of the most relevant goals to be achieved in order to match the climate protection target fixed by the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. For Italy, the commitment is the reduction of the...