The recast of the energy performance of buildings directive (EPBD) describes a comparative methodological framework to promote energy efficiency and establish minimum energy performance requirements in buildings at the lowest costs. The aim of the cost-optimal methodology is to foster the achievement of nearly zero energy buildings (nZEBs), the new target for all new buildings by 2020, characterized by a high performance with a low energy requirement almost covered by renewable sources. The paper presents the results of the application of the cost-optimal methodology in two existing buildings located in the Mediterranean area. These buildings are a kindergarten and a nursery school that differ in construction period, materials and systems. Several combinations of measures have been applied to derive cost-effective efficient solutions for retrofitting. The cost-optimal level has been identified for each building and the best performing solutions have been selected considering both a financial and a macroeconomic analysis. The results illustrate the suitability of the methodology to assess cost-optimality and energy efficiency in school building refurbishment. The research shows the variants providing the most cost-effective balance between costs and energy saving. The cost-optimal solution reduces primary energy consumption by 85% and gas emissions by 82%–83% in each reference building.

CONGEDO Paolo Maria;  D'AGOSTINO Delia;  BAGLIVO Cristina;  TORNESE Giuliano;  ZACÀ Ilaria; 

2016-11-29

MDPI AG

JRC100282

1996-1073,   

http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/9/10/851,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC100282,   

10.3390/en9100851,