The Effect of Embodied Impact on the Cost-Optimal Levels of Nearly Zero Energy Buildings: A Case Study of a Residential Building in Thessaloniki, Greece

Panagiotis Chastas, Theodoros Theodosiou, Karolos J. Kontoleon and Dimitrios Bikas
Additional contact information
Panagiotis Chastas: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Building Construction and Building Physics, Thessaloniki 54124, Greece
Theodoros Theodosiou: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Building Construction and Building Physics, Thessaloniki 54124, Greece
Karolos J. Kontoleon: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Building Construction and Building Physics, Thessaloniki 54124, Greece
Dimitrios Bikas: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Building Construction and Building Physics, Thessaloniki 54124, Greece

Energies, 2017, vol. 10, issue 6, 1-22

Abstract: Considering the nearly zero energy building (nZEB) and the increased measures for the improvement of the energy efficiency, the international literature indicates an extended use of specialized materials and technical installations. An increase in the embodied energy follows that use, with a final share between 74% and 100% in the total life cycle energy of residential nZEBs. The current energy efficiency legislation considers only the impact from the operational phase and ignores the embodied impact from the remaining life cycle phases of the building. Nevertheless, the delegated regulation 244 of 2012 acknowledges the incompleteness of this assessment and provides an optional consideration of the embodied (“grey”) energy. The current study applies this option through the macroeconomic global cost calculations and the cost-optimal levels of nZEBs. The results indicate a limited effect of the embodied impact on the cost-optimal levels and in specific on extended calculation periods and in combination with other key parameters of the sensitivity analysis. An increase in the primary energy and a transposition to variants with lower use of materials and decreased embodied emissions follow this effect. Sensitivity analysis confirms the calculation period as a key parameter and indicates the need for further research.

Keywords: embodied impact; CO 2 emissions; EPBD recast; nZEB; cost-optimal levels (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/10/6/740/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/10/6/740/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:10:y:2017:i:6:p:740-:d:99532

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().