The influence of indoor microclimate on thermal comfort and conservation of artworks: the case study of the Cathedral of Matera (South Italy)

The Matera Cathedral was built in Apulian-Romanesque style in the thirteenth century on the highest spur of the “Civita” that divides “Sassi” district in two parts. The constructive material is the calcareous stone of the Vaglia, extracted from quarries in the area of Matera. The interior is Baroque and presents several artworks. The research had to evaluate the indoor microclimate during and after the restoration works, that also concern the installation of floor heating system to heat the indoor environments. Specifically, we have analyzed the thermal comfort and the effect that the artwork and construction materials inside the Cathedral of Matera have undergone

“The bearing walls like a “natural thermal governor”: the case of “Sassi di Matera”

The bearing walls represent one of the most ancient technological systems in the building process; in fact, the built heritage, historical or monumental, is realized within this particular kind of solution. It’s a simple structural system, but it possesses high quality technical and technological characteristics that makes it competitive; just think about the low impact that it produces on the surrounding environment, the low CO2 loading that it releases in the atmosphere during its cycle of life and, furthermore, the possibility to recycle its component. This research involved the values expresses by this particular kind of architecture and the indoor quality produced. Today, while projecting, it is very important at first place to consider the definition of the quality parameters of the indoor air and comfort requested to a dwelling place. We did this with tests “in situ” by monitoring the indoor comfort (as requests by the low UNI EN ISO 7730 1997 e UNI EN ISO 7726 2002 , directive CEE n° 106/89). This research looks at demonstrating that the bearing walls operate like a “natural governor” of the thermal and hygrometrical comfort and are able to give high quality performances, even without the support of technological systems. The characteristic performances of these spaces, that today are utilized in different ways as regards the original use, are tested and monitored. The testing activity was verified through experimental applications in the restoration of two urban buildings in the ancient “Sassi” in the town of Matera (Italy); they represent two typological structures characterized by bearing walls made of limestone blocks. The space and structures analyzed demonstrate what said before, showing how these building are suitable to the requirements of performances and quality requested for the residential environments (European Directive 2002/91/CE and Italian low D.lgs 192/05 – 311/06) even if they are built with traditional technologies

Numerical and experimental thermal analysis for the improvement of various types of windows frames and rolling-shutter boxes

Data provided by Italian Ministry of Environment say that in 5 years you consume, just for heating of an apartment, an amount of energy equal to that required for the all construction of the same apartment. The years come down to three if one includes other energy consumption. In terms of primary energy, the building-plant system is responsible for about 45 % of the national energy demand. The rolling-shutter box system, in most cases, is the first responsible for thermal dispersions and input of free heat coming from outside. In addition, the window frames have the obligation of the CE marking to be sold on the free European market. Among the basic requirements, the thermal transmittance is the parameter responsible for the energy performance. The research concerned the energy study of different window frames and rolling-shutter boxes through the use of finite element methodology and experiments in situ. This study was carried out on six different types of windows frames (PVC, wood, and wood-aluminium) and four different models of rolling shutters-boxes (all with structure made by expanded polystyrene). The experimental analysis allowed the comparison between the thermal transmittance values calculated according to the UNI EN ISO 10077-1/2 and measured in accordance with ISO 9869

Analysis of Energy Consumption of Different Typologies of School Buildings in the City of Matera (Southern Italy)

Abstract School buildings constitute an important part of the non-residential building stock, because students and teachers spend much time in these rooms. This paper presents the outcome of a study on the energy performance of five different school buildings located in Matera city (South Italy). The analysis is aimed at calculating the energy requirement in accord with UNI TS 11300, comparing the results with dynamic analyses (using the Energy Plus method) and the effective energy consumptions. This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 649956. The analysis has confirmed the best precision of dynamic method respect the stationary one, with an error estimated of about the ten percent compared to the real consumptions. We also presented the energy auditing interventions for all schools and evaluate the incidence of the envelope and thermal system on energy consumptions

Italian Guidelines for Energy Performance of Cultural Heritage and Historical Buildings: The Case Study of the Sassi of Matera

Abstract The Sassi of Matera are a unique example in the world of rock settlements, developed from natural caves carved into the rock and molded into increasingly complex structures inside two large natural amphitheaters. Research focuses on the compatibility of the energy efficiency measures applied in Sassi buildings with the recent MiBACT guidelines on "Energy efficiency improvements in cultural heritage" and AiCARR guidelines on "Energy efficiency of historical buildings". The paper aims to analyze energy and environmental performance of different building typologies and monuments of the Sassi site

microclimate of territory of matera and the heat island effect

Abstract This work is focused on micro-climate analysis of the Matera town. We carried out several measurement campaigns of climate parameters in summer and winter season by measuring temperature and relative humidity. These analyses show that, in the historical center, the temperature values are greater than in areas with presence of vegetation. We analyzed the temperature and relative humidity trend of the last seven years. The average seasonal temperatures rise, due to an increased use of air conditioners, causes the growth of urban temperatures. The sparse vegetation present in the town center does not allow the dissipation of the latent heat

Dynamic Modeling and Simulation of Buildings Energy Performance Based on Different Climatic Conditions

The aim of this work is the analysis, under dynamic conditions, of the energy performance of buildings based on different climatic conditions. Two school buildings, Liceo Classico “E. Duni” and Liceo Scientifico “D. Alighieri”, located in Matera, Italy, are considered. Furthermore, a strategy to improve the energy performance of the two school buildings is proposed by the installation of a co-trigeneration plant integrated with a solar plant. Such a plant is equipped with an absorption chiller to produce chilled fluid. The analysis under dynamic conditions has been performed by using a well-known simulation software, TRNSYS 17, and the results have been compared with those obtained under stationary conditions by employing a numerical solver, MC-11300, which is certified by the Italian Thermotechnical Committee. At first, the results obtained by considering the dynamic and stationary states and the experimental data measured in situ are compared by considering the actual buildings plants. Then, the energy performance of the two buildings is computed by considering three different climatic zones of Italy. Finally, a discussion of the advantages of the proposed requalification solution, which employs the trigeneration plant, is given

Life cycle assessment of Italian residential windows: Sensitivity of analysis

Product Sustainability assessment is becoming ever more critical in the global competition; this is particularly true for building sector. This paper faces the problem of the analysis of sensitivity of this task by referring to a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) case of a PVC window for civil buildings applications. Sensitivity has been appreciated by referring to two functional units to evaluate the quality of the environmental impacts by relating it to the window features: per piece and per square meter of see-Through surface. It resulted that the sustainability impact calculated per square meter changes considerably with the change of the type of window. This sensitivity analysis leads to propose a new criterion of the analysis to provide a reliable assessment approach to be used for the evaluation of the environmental performance of products. The difference between the values of thermal transmittance measured and calculated is inferior to 5%, which it is an absolutely optimal value

Energy Recovery of theSolid Waste of the Olive Oil Industries–LCA Analysis and Carbon Footprint Assessment

Renewable energy technologies contribute to the mitigation of climate change impacts through reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) such as carbon dioxide. In this paper, a power plant located in Italy and fed with waste deriving from the olive oil industries is considered. The de-oiled pomace is characterised by lower caloric value equal to 4000 kcal/kg, by low content of nitrogen and sulphur and by the absence of heavy metals. A plant for the production of energy from biomass (de-oiled pomace and waste wood) is analyzed through a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. The carbon dioxide equivalent (kgCO2eq) emitted into the atmosphere is equal to 0.0597 kgCO2eq /kWh. The GHG emissions have been compared with those of a plant for energy production that uses refuse derived fuel (RDF) and with those of one that uses coal. The environmental benefits are quantified and the possibilities to develop the use of the pomace-to-energy at national level are estimated