Multi-Objective Optimization of Insulation Thickness with Respect to On-Site RES Generation in Residential Buildings

Agis M. Papadopoulos (), Konstantinos Polychronakis, Elli Kyriaki and Effrosyni Giama
Additional contact information
Agis M. Papadopoulos: Process Equipment Design Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Aristotle University, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Konstantinos Polychronakis: Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15772 Athens, Greece
Elli Kyriaki: Process Equipment Design Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Aristotle University, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Effrosyni Giama: Process Equipment Design Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Aristotle University, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 22, 1-16

Abstract: This paper investigates the optimization of insulation thickness with respect to the integration of renewable energy systems in residential buildings in order to improve energy efficiency, maximize the contribution of renewables and reduce life cycle costs. Using the DesignBuilder and EnergyPlus software, this study models a representative two-story residential building located in Athens, Greece. The building envelope features extruded polystyrene thermal insulation and windows with unplasticized polyvinyl chloride frames and low-e glazing. Six scenarios with hybrid renewable energy systems are analyzed, including air- and ground-source heat pumps, solar thermal systems and a biomass fired boiler, so as to assess energy consumption, economic feasibility and internal air temperature conditions. A Pareto-fronts-based optimization algorithm is applied to determine the optimal combination of insulation thicknesses for the walls, the roof and the floor, focusing on minimizing the life cycle cost and maximizing the percentage of renewable energy utilized. The results demonstrate that scenarios involving biomass boilers and solar thermal systems, both for heating and cooling, when combined with reasonable thermal protection, can effectively meet the recent European Union’s directive’s goal, with renewable energy systems contributing more than 50% of the total energy requirements, whilst maintaining acceptable internal air temperature conditions and having a life cycle cost lower than contemporary conventional buildings.

Keywords: thermal insulation; renewable energy; energy efficiency; optimization (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: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/22/5609/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/22/5609/ (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:17:y:2024:i:22:p:5609-:d:1517554

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 ().