Evaluating Energy Calculation Methods for Energy-conscious Occupants in Three Belgian Heritage Townhouses

Fuente: Zenodo
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Maton, Luca, De Jonge, Klaas, Himpe, Eline, Janssens, Arnold
Format: Recurso digital
Published: Zenodo 2025
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866902308545101824
author Maton, Luca
De Jonge, Klaas
Himpe, Eline
Janssens, Arnold
author_facet Maton, Luca
De Jonge, Klaas
Himpe, Eline
Janssens, Arnold
contents Achieving the EU's carbon-neutral target by 2050 requires a significant reduction in energy use within the building sector, which accounts for 40% of the total energy use. European historical cities, particularly heritage townhouses, pose a unique challenge due to their architectural and cultural value. The EU-Horizon project HeriTACE is addressing this challenge through a holistic renovation approach. This study investigates the impact of energy-conscious occupant behaviour on primary energy use for space heating in heritage townhouses in Ghent, Belgium. Three realities are compared: energy performance calculations, dynamic simulations, and actual energy use measurements. The energy performance calculations, based on the Belgian EPB software, tend to overestimate energy use by assuming a continuous heating system and a constant indoor temperature of 18°C. Dynamic simulations using Modelica incorporate actual occupancy behaviours and flexible heating patterns, leading to significantly lower energy use estimates. This actual heating patterns are derived from indoor temperature measurements in the case study buildings. Real energy use data, derived from energy bills, reveals that actual consumption can be up to seven times lower than EPB calculations. The findings suggest that dynamic simulations, which account for realistic occupant behaviours and lower comfort expectations, are more accurate in predicting energy use and are essential for developing effective renovation strategies for heritage townhouses.
format Recurso digital
id zenodo_https___doi_org_10_5281_zenodo_15077097
institution Zenodo
language
publishDate 2025
publisher Zenodo
record_format zenodo
spellingShingle Evaluating Energy Calculation Methods for Energy-conscious Occupants in Three Belgian Heritage Townhouses
Maton, Luca
De Jonge, Klaas
Himpe, Eline
Janssens, Arnold
Achieving the EU's carbon-neutral target by 2050 requires a significant reduction in energy use within the building sector, which accounts for 40% of the total energy use. European historical cities, particularly heritage townhouses, pose a unique challenge due to their architectural and cultural value. The EU-Horizon project HeriTACE is addressing this challenge through a holistic renovation approach. This study investigates the impact of energy-conscious occupant behaviour on primary energy use for space heating in heritage townhouses in Ghent, Belgium. Three realities are compared: energy performance calculations, dynamic simulations, and actual energy use measurements. The energy performance calculations, based on the Belgian EPB software, tend to overestimate energy use by assuming a continuous heating system and a constant indoor temperature of 18°C. Dynamic simulations using Modelica incorporate actual occupancy behaviours and flexible heating patterns, leading to significantly lower energy use estimates. This actual heating patterns are derived from indoor temperature measurements in the case study buildings. Real energy use data, derived from energy bills, reveals that actual consumption can be up to seven times lower than EPB calculations. The findings suggest that dynamic simulations, which account for realistic occupant behaviours and lower comfort expectations, are more accurate in predicting energy use and are essential for developing effective renovation strategies for heritage townhouses.
title Evaluating Energy Calculation Methods for Energy-conscious Occupants in Three Belgian Heritage Townhouses
url https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15077097