Multi-stage calibration of the simulation model of a school building through short-term monitoring

The increasing attention on the improvement of new and existing buildings' performance is emphasizing the importance of the reliability of the simulation models in predicting the complexity of the building behaviour and, consequently, in some advanced applications of building simulation, such as the optimization of the choice of different Energy Efficiency Measures (EEMs) or the adoption of model predictive control strategies. The reliability of the energy model does not depend only on the quality and details of the model itself, but also on the uncertainty related to many input values, such as the physical properties of materials and components, the information on the building management and occupation, and the boundary conditions considered for the simulation. Especially for the existing buildings, this kind of data is often missing or characterized by high uncertainty, and only very simplified behavioural models of occupancy are available. This could compromise the optimization process and undermine the potential of building simulation. In this context, the calibration of the simulation model by means of on-site monitoring is of crucial importance to increase the reliability of the predictions, and to take better decisions, even though this process can be time consuming. This work presents a multi-stage methodology to calibrate the building energy simulation by means of low-cost monitoring and short-term measurements. This approach is applied to a Primary School in the North-East of Italy, which has been monitored from December 2012 to April 2014. Four monitoring periods have been selected to calibrate different sets of variables at a time, while the validation has been carried out on two different periods. The results show that even if less than 8 weeks have been considered in the proposed calibration approach, the maximum error in the estimation of the temperature is less than ±0.5 in 77.3% of the timesteps in the validation period

A multi-stages approach to the calibration of a school building's simulation model

The calibration process is an important step to improve the reliability of the simulation model and to reduce the differences between simulated and measured building energy performance. This paper presents a methodology to calibrate a building simulation model by means of low-cost monitoring set-up and short term measurements. The proposed method can be defined as a multi-stage calibration. It is based on the assumption that input data affect the simulation results differently according to the considered period of the year. It seems thus possible to calibrate different sets of parameters in different reference periods, with the advantage of using shorter recording times when the calibration periods have been consistently selected

Long term evaluation of building energy performance : comparison of the test reference year and historical data series in the North Italian climates

The pursuit of better energy performance of buildings led o the recourse to more detailed instruments of analysis, requiring more complex and detailed inputs, such as the hourly weather data. In this work, the representativeness of the test reference year (TRYEN) weather data, recently developed in Italy in accordance with the procedure proposed by EN ISO 15927-4:2005, has been studied evaluating the energy performance – energy needs and peak loads – of a set of different simplified reference buildings by means of TRNSYS simulation code, using both the TRYEN and the TRYEN source multi-year collected weather series for 5 north Italian locations. The results have been analysed by means of both descriptive and inferential statistics. The variability of energy performance has also been correlated with the envelope characteristics, in order to estimate a sensitivity of the different buildings to the weather data variability

Pediatric vascular anomalies in Austria. Where are we at? A survey among primary care pediatricians

IntroductionVascular anomalies (VAs) are rare conditions and affected patients often experience a difficult patient journey. Timely diagnosis is only possible if primary caregivers are aware of the anomalies and are connected with dedicated specialists. Aim of our survey was to investigate the knowledge about diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities for children with VAs, and the existing networking among primary pediatric caregivers in Austria.MethodsPrimary care pediatricians in Austria were invited to complete an online questionnaire consisting of 28 questions focusing on pediatric VAs.ResultsOut of 373 invited pediatricians 93 (25%) returned the questionnaires, 86 of which were complete. Most physicians (39/93 42%) answered that they see between 15 and 30 patients with infantile hemangiomas per year. Vascular malformations are rarely treated in the primary care setting; most primary care pediatricians (58/86, 67%) reported that they currently treat fewer than 5 patients with such type of VAs. There was unequivocal agreement among the participants (84/86, 98%) on the need to establish a network of specialists and a registry dedicated to pediatric VAs.ConclusionsThis survey represents the first study shedding light on the awareness of VAs among Austrian pediatricians and can serve as a basis for future investigations and advances in the management of these conditions in Austria and other countries with a similar healthcare setting

Environmental analysis of an innovative system based on Municipal Solid Waste pyrolysis and combined cycle

This paper presents the environmental impact analysis of an innovative system based on the pyrolysis of MSW which produces solid (char), liquid (tar) and gas (syngas) fuels used in a combined cycle for electric power generation. The syngas, after filtration and compression, feeds two gas turbines. In turn, the exhaust from the gas turbines, after post-combustion with char and tar, drives a steam turbine power plant. The flue gas, before discharge, is processed in a SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) unit to reduce CO, VOC and NOx content and filtered to remove particulate matter. This innovative approach to energy recovery from MSW reconciles high energy efficiency with low polluting emissions. The environmental analysis includes the study of the polluting emissions and the simulation of their concentration in the area surrounding the plant to evaluate the potential environmental benefits compared to a traditional, oil or coal burning, power plan

Multi-objectives Optimization of Energy Efficiency Measures in existing Buildings

The enhancement of the energy performance of the existing buildings stock is nowadays a priority. To promote buildings energy renovation, the European Committee (2010) [1] asks Member States to define retrofit strategies finding cost-effective solutions. This so-called cost-optimal approach, described by the Commission Delegated Regulation EU (European Commission, 2012) [2], pursues a balance of energy and economic targets, but currently neglects some important aspects, such as indoor thermal comfort. This research investigates the relationship between the initial characteristics of residential buildings and the definition of optimal retrofit solutions in terms of either maximum economic performance, or energy consumption minimization towards nZEBs behaviour for the lowest achievable thermal discomfort. A multi-objective optimization has been carried out using a genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) coupled with a dynamic simulation tool. The results demonstrate that (i) with conventional Energy Efficiency Measures, it is possible to approach the zero energy target maintaining the economical convenience but worsening the indoor thermal comfort and that (ii) there is the necessity to introduce incentives to foster solutions not economically profitable, but more efficient in terms of energy savings and indoor thermal comfort

Long term evaluation of building energy performance : comparison of the test reference year and historical data series in the North Italian climates

The pursuit of better energy performance of buildings led o the recourse to more detailed instruments of analysis, requiring more complex and detailed inputs, such as the hourly weather data. In this work, the representativeness of the test reference year (TRYEN) weather data, recently developed in Italy in accordance with the procedure proposed by EN ISO 15927-4:2005, has been studied evaluating the energy performance – energy needs and peak loads – of a set of different simplified reference buildings by means of TRNSYS simulation code, using both the TRYEN and the TRYEN source multi-year collected weather series for 5 north Italian locations. The results have been analysed by means of both descriptive and inferential statistics. The variability of energy performance has also been correlated with the envelope characteristics, in order to estimate a sensitivity of the different buildings to the weather data variability