In this paper, we identify key drivers and barriers for the adoption of building energy retrofits in Germany, which is promoted by public policy as an important measure to address the future challenges of climate change and energy security. We analyze data from a 2009 survey of more than 400...

Ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems exhibit high thermal performance. Consequently, they are increasingly used to heat and cool buildings. The thermal performance of GSHP systems strongly depends on the operation ground temperature and thermal quality of the building envelope (TQBE). The...

The considerable amount of energy consumption associated to the residential sector justifies and supports energy consumption modeling efforts. Among the three approaches to develop energy models, statistical approaches are a good option to avoid the burden associated to engineering approaches...

The paper brings new evidence on the impact of separate mechanical ventilation system on the annual energy and exergy performance of several design alternatives of residential heating systems, when they are designed for a house in Montreal. Mathematical models of residential heating, ventilation...

The extensive energy use in the European building sector creates opportunities for implementing energy conservation measures (ECMs) in residential buildings. If ECM are implemented in buildings that are connected to a district heating (DH) system, the operation of DH plants may be affected,...

Throughout the last years the use of on-site renewable energy sources (RES) in residential houses has continuously increased in many industrial countries and it is expected that many of the supply systems will be based solely on renewable sources in the medium term future. However, the...

Energy consumption of buildings takes up about a third of Singapore's total electricity production. In this paper, we present a pioneering study to investigate the energy performance of residential buildings. Beginning with an energy survey of households, we established the air-conditioning...

It is well recognized that in the long run, the implementation of energy efficiency measures is a more cost-optimal solution in contrast to taking no action. However, the Net ZEB concept raises a new issue: how far should we go with energy efficiency measures and when should we start to apply...

This research work focuses on the definition of the factors that determine the selection of residence site in urban and rural areas in Greece. The followed approach is based on an analysis that takes into account the nature and the peculiarities of the problem studied and it is built around a...