The heat from the sun gets trapped on Earth as a result of greenhouse gas emissions, resulting in global warming and climate change. According to CleanTechnica, this article explores how climate change may affect building heating and cooling loads, cost-effective efficiency solutions, and renewable energy production, as the energy demands of buildings are heavily influenced by weather patterns.
For reference, Stockholm, Milan, Vienna, Madrid, Paris, Munich, Lisbon, and Rome are eight locations that demonstrate the variations in European climates.
The study assessed how climatic parameters have changed over the past few decades using weather datasets frequently utilized in building energy simulations. Remarkably, a future climate change scenario is examined for the year 2060.
Notably, building weather files drive energy simulations for a typical baseline and a residential building that is designed to be nearly zero energy using a cost-optimization method. However, according to the analysis, the few weather datasets presently on hand cannot guarantee accurate outcomes for building simulations.
Furthermore, it has been discovered that the energy balance in European buildings will shift dramatically in future circumstances. Depending on the region, heating will drop by 38%–57% while cooling will rise by +99%–380%.
It is also important to remember that efficiency improvements to lessen cooling requirements and overheating will be preferred in upcoming NZEBs. This highlights how raising energy efficiency will be increasingly important under climate change scenarios.
Furthermore, more effective NZEBs will make it possible for renewable energy to adhere significantly better to building demands than the baseline.
Reduced winter and summer peak demand will also have benefits, especially when combined with short-term power storage. When winter solar resource is scarce, PV self-consumption is improved by more airtight, better-insulated NZEBs.
