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New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Green Building".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 February 2022) | Viewed by 28374

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Dr. Amir Ebrahimi-Moghadam

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Guest Editor

Faculty of Engineering, Mechanical Engineering Department, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Interests: energy; renewable energy; thermodynamics; optimization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Mohammad Hossein Ahmadi

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Guest Editor

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood 3619995161, Iran
Interests: sustainable energy; artificial intelligence method; renewable energy, nexus; integrated modeling
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Today, energy is one of the challenging issues facing humans as the access to energy resources has become an essential factor for sustainable development in each country. Buildings are one of the main components in the global energy consumption matrix and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, using new technologies and approaches for improving the level of energy consumption and the thermal comfort conditions in buildings could be considered as important topics for researchers. This Special Issue (SI) focusses on collecting high-quality research and review papers related to new approaches and technologies for improving thermal comfort conditions and reducing energy consumption in social housing.

The potential topics for submissions to the SI include, but are not limited to:

Passive and active approaches in thermal comfort and energy consumption;
Passive and active approaches in greenhouse gas emissions in buildings;
Controlling the daylight in buildings by means of the proper strategies;
Proposing innovative standalone energy systems for satisfying the energy requirements of residential complexes;
Modelling and using novel light shelves arrangements in buildings;
Using innovative micro/nano technologies in buildings.

Dr. Amir Ebrahimi-Moghadam
Dr. Mohammad Hossein Ahmadi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

nearly zero energy buildings
smart buildings
energy consumption
renewable energies
daylight controlling
thermal comfort
CHP and CCHP systems in buildings
cogeneration, trigeneration, and multi-generation energy systems
HVAC
Sustainability

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 7305 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Techno-Environmental Analyses and Optimization of a Utility Boiler Based on Real Data

by Sajad Koochakinia, Amir Ebrahimi-Moghadam and Mahdi Deymi-Dashtebayaz

Sustainability 2022, 14(5), 2592; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14052592 - 23 Feb 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1669

Abstract

A numerical simulation for analysis and optimization of the performance and NOx production was applied to a natural gas fuel boiler in South Pars Gas Complex. For this purpose, nine actual environmental and operational parameters of a boiler were measured and recorded every two hours and then averaged daily for a year. Using the thermodynamic laws, important parameters such as body and exhaust flue gas losses, as well as the thermal efficiency and exergy efficiencies of the combustor and boiler, were calculated for each day. The results show that, owing to changes in the environmental and operational conditions, the thermal and exergy efficiency of the boiler varied from 83% to 87% and 27% to 32%, respectively, during the year. In addition, by optimizing the excess air percentage, the thermal and exergy efficiencies could be increased by 1.5% and 3%, respectively, for most days of the year. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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38 pages, 61987 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Implementing MCDM Techniques for Ranking Renewable Energy Projects under Fuzzy Environment: A Case Study

by Mohsen Ramezanzade, Hossein Karimi, Khalid Almutairi, Hoa Ao Xuan, Javad Saebi, Ali Mostafaeipour and Kuaanan Techato

Sustainability 2021, 13(22), 12858; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212858 - 20 Nov 2021

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 3245

Abstract

Energy requirements have increased dramatically due to industrialization, economic, and population growth. To meet this demand, and solve its challenges, such as climate change, renewable energies do play an important role. This research work aims at selecting the best renewable energy projects using a hybrid decision-making framework from environmental, economic, technical, and social aspects at a sub-national level. In this regard, a new hybrid fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making model is deployed in which Vise Kriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje, distance from average solution, and additive ratio assessment methods are used. In addition, for the weighing of criteria, Fuzzy Shannon’s entropy is used. Furthermore, the North Khorasan province is nominated as a sub-national study area. The results show that among 30 sub-criteria, social acceptance, net-presented cost, and noise were the top three with weights of 0.1105, 0.1003, and 0.0988, respectively. Solar energy projects also accomplished high ranks with an overall score of roughly 0.22. After that, small hydropower got second place with a score of 0.187. Moreover, the ranking of cities indicates that Jajarm was the most suitable location for implementing renewable energy development with a score of 0.14. Finally, sensitivity analysis was carried out to show that the mathematical model possessed good robustness. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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16 pages, 3409 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Energy/Economic Analysis and Optimization of On-Grid Photovoltaic System Using CPSO Algorithm

by Reza Alayi, Mahdi Mohkam, Seyed Reza Seyednouri, Mohammad Hossein Ahmadi and Mohsen Sharifpur

Sustainability 2021, 13(22), 12420; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212420 - 10 Nov 2021

Cited by 29 | Viewed by 2119

Abstract

Today, the use of renewable energy is increasing day by day, and this development requires the optimization of these technologies in various dimensions. Solar systems have a higher acceptance due to their high availability and accessibility; the most common solar technology is photovoltaic cell. In this research, modeling was done to achieve the most economically optimal arrangement of photovoltaic panels, inverters, and module placement to generate more electrical energy by considering economic parameters, for which the CPSO algorithm was used. Four different combinations of module and inverter were studied in this research, among which the second combination, which included PV module type one and inverter type two, was the best case. One of the significant results of the present study is 191,430 kWh of electrical energy during the studied year by the solar cell connected to the grid, which requires $42,792,727 to produce. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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14 pages, 8966 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Outdoor Thermal Comfort Optimization through Vegetation Parameterization: Species and Tree Layout

by Bouthaina Sayad, Djamel Alkama, Redha Rebhi, Younes Menni, Hijaz Ahmad, Mustafa Inc, Mohsen Sharifpur, Giulio Lorenzini, Ehab Azab and Ashraf Y. Elnaggar

Sustainability 2021, 13(21), 11791; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132111791 - 25 Oct 2021

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2384

Abstract

The optimization of outdoor thermal comfort has become the keystone to guarantee the healthy and comfortable use of outdoor spaces. This study aims to optimize the outdoor thermal comfort through vegetation parameterization in a boulevard located in Guelma city, Algeria during summertime. However, two main parameters were investigated, species and tree layout, through a numerical simulation. We first collected microclimate data of a sunny summer day. Second, we used real microclimate data in different simulations using the Envi-met atmospheric model. The findings reveal that Ficus Nitida is the most significant species to intercept solar radiation and provide shade over the day in Souidani Boudjemaa Boulevard, with a maximum reduction of T_a = 0.3 °C and UTCI = 2.6 °C at 13:00 p.m. Tree layout is a determining parameter in the creation of shaded paths, based on the quality of the shadows cast by the trees, namely, their size. Thereby, planting the washingtonia palm trees along the center of the boulevard is the best option to maximize the shaded area within the boulevard, with maximum reduction of T_a = 1.8 °C and UTCI = 3.5 °C at 16:00 p.m. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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18 pages, 3673 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficiency Enhancement in Double-Pass Perforated Glazed Solar Air Heaters with Porous Beds: Taguchi-Artificial Neural Network Optimization and Cost–Benefit Analysis

by Roozbeh Vaziri, Akeem Adeyemi Oladipo, Mohsen Sharifpur, Rani Taher, Mohammad Hossein Ahmadi and Alibek Issakhov

Sustainability 2021, 13(21), 11654; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132111654 - 21 Oct 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1620

Abstract

Analyzing the combination of involving parameters impacting the efficiency of solar air heaters is an attractive research areas. In this study, cost-effective double-pass perforated glazed solar air heaters (SAHs) packed with wire mesh layers (DPGSAHM), and iron wools (DPGSAHI) were fabricated, tested and experimentally enhanced under different operating conditions. Forty-eight iron pieces of wool and fifteen steel wire mesh layers were located between the external plexiglass and internal glass, which is utilized as an absorber plate. The experimental outcomes show that the thermal efficiency enhances as the air mass flow rate increases for the range of 0.014–0.033 kg/s. The highest thermal efficiency gained by utilizing the hybrid optimized DPGSAHM and DPGSAHI was 94 and 97%, respectively. The exergy efficiency and temperature difference (∆T) indicated an inverse relationship with mass flow rate. When the DPGSAHM and DPGSAHI were optimized by the hybrid procedure and employing the Taguchi-artificial neural network, enhancements in the thermal efficiency by 1.25% and in exergy efficiency by 2.4% were delivered. The results show the average cost per kW (USD 0.028) of useful heat gained by the DPGSAHM and DPGSAHI to be relatively higher than some double-pass SAHs reported in the literature. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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14 pages, 2028 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimal Load Frequency Control of Island Microgrids via a PID Controller in the Presence of Wind Turbine and PV

by Reza Alayi, Farhad Zishan, Seyed Reza Seyednouri, Ravinder Kumar, Mohammad Hossein Ahmadi and Mohsen Sharifpur

Sustainability 2021, 13(19), 10728; https://doi.org/10.3390/su131910728 - 27 Sep 2021

Cited by 54 | Viewed by 3412

Abstract

This article studied the load frequency control (LFC) of a multi-source microgrid with the presence of renewable energy sources. To maintain a sustainable power supply, the frequency of the system must be kept constant. A Proportional–Integral–Derivative (PID) controller is presented as a secondary controller to control the frequency of the microgrid in island mode, and the integral of squared time multiplied by error squared (ISTES) is used as a performance index. The use of the Craziness-Based Particle Swarm Optimization (CRPSO), which is an improved version of Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), improves the convergence speed in optimizing the nonlinear problem of load and frequency controller design. The test microgrid is composed of the load and distributed generation units such as diesel generators, photovoltaics and wind turbines. The proposed controller provided the desired response to adjusting the microgrid frequency, achieving the final response after a short time and making it more stable and less oscillatory compared with the conventional system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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26 pages, 4760 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Use of a Hybrid Wind—Solar—Diesel—Battery Energy System to Power Buildings in Remote Areas: A Case Study

by Khalid Almutairi, Seyyed Shahabaddin Hosseini Dehshiri, Seyyed Jalaladdin Hosseini Dehshiri, Ali Mostafaeipour, Alibek Issakhov and Kuaanan Techato

Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8764; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168764 - 05 Aug 2021

Cited by 40 | Viewed by 3804

Abstract

The emerging environmental consequences of overdependence on fossil fuels have pushed many countries to invest in clean and renewable sources of power. Countries like Iran where these sources can be found in abundance can take advantage of this potential to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels. This study investigated the feasibility of the standalone use of a hybrid renewable energy system (HRES) to power buildings in the Bostegan village in the Hormozgan province of Iran. Technical, economic, and environmental assessments were performed with the help of the Hybrid Optimization of Multiple Energy Resources (HOMER) software, and the optimal configuration for the system components was determined accordingly. The results showed that the simultaneous use of wind and solar systems with a converter and a backup system comprised of a diesel generator and batteries will be the most economic option, offering electricity at a cost of 1.058 USD/kWh and with a renewable fraction of 64%. After selecting the most optimal system using the step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (SWARA) and weighted aggregated sum product assessment (WASPAS) techniques, a sensitivity analysis with 27 parameter settings was performed to determine the effect of fuel price fluctuations and the uncertainty in the renewable energy potentials on the results. This analysis showed that in the worst-case scenario, the price of electricity will reach as high as 1.343 $/kWh. In the end, the study investigated an alternative scenario where the generated power is used for hydrogen production, which showed that the system output can be used to produce 643.63 ton-H2/year. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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21 pages, 2372 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Development of an Integrated Structure for the Tri-Generation of Power, Liquid Carbon Dioxide, and Medium Pressure Steam Using a Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell, a Dual Pressure Linde-Hampson Liquefaction Plant, and a Heat Recovery Steam Generator

by Bahram Ghorbani

Sustainability 2021, 13(15), 8347; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158347 - 27 Jul 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2340

Abstract

Due to the increase in energy consumption and energy prices, the reduction in fossil fuel resources, and increasing concerns about global warming and environmental issues, it is necessary to develop more efficient energy conversion systems with low environmental impacts. Utilizing fuel cells in the combined process is a method of refrigeration and electricity simultaneous production with a high efficiency and low pollution. In this study, a combined process for the tri-generation of electricity, medium pressure steam, and liquid carbon dioxide by utilizing a molten carbonate fuel cell, a dual pressure Linde-Hampson liquefaction plant and a heat recovery steam generator is developed. This combined process produces 65.53 MW of electricity, 27.8 kg/s of medium pressure steam, and 142.9 kg/s of liquid carbon dioxide. One of the methods of long-term energy storage involves the use of a carbon dioxide liquefaction system. Some of the generated electricity is used in industrial and residential areas and the rest is used for storage as liquid carbon dioxide. Liquid carbon dioxide can be used for peak shavings in buildings. The waste heat from the Linde-Hampson liquefaction plant is used to produce the fuel cell inlet steam. Moreover, the exhaust heat of the fuel cell and gas turbine would be used to produce the medium pressure steam. The total efficiency of this combined process and the coefficient of performance of the refrigeration plant are 82.21% and 1.866, respectively. The exergy analysis of this combined process reveals that the exergy efficiency and the total exergy destruction are 73.18% and 102.7 MW, respectively. The highest rate of exergy destruction in the hybrid process equipment belongs to the fuel cell (37.72%), the HX6 heat exchanger (8.036%), and the HX7 heat exchanger (6.578%). The results of the sensitivity analysis show that an increase in the exit pressure of the V1 valve by 13.33% would result in an increase in the refrigeration energy by 2.151% and a reduction in the refrigeration cycle performance by 9.654%. Moreover, by increasing the inlet fuel to the fuel cell, the thermal efficiency of the whole combined process rises by 18.09%, and the whole exergy efficiency declines by 12.95%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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10 pages, 2795 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Plants on the Energy Output of Green Roof Photovoltaic Systems in Tropical Climates

by Chila Kaewpraek, Liaqat Ali, Md. Arefin Rahman, Mohammad Shakeri, M. S. Chowdhury, M. S. Jamal, Md. Shahin Mia, Jagadeesh Pasupuleti, Le Khac Dong and Kuaanan Techato

Sustainability 2021, 13(8), 4505; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13084505 - 18 Apr 2021

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 3611

Abstract

The rapid rise in the number of fossil fuel uses over the last few decades has increased carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. The purpose of implementing renewable energy solutions, such as solar, hydro, wind, biomass, and other renewable energy sources, is to mitigate global climate change worldwide. Solar energy has received more attention over the last few decades as an alternative source of energy, and it can play an essential role in the future of the energy industry. This is especially true of energy solutions that reduce land use, such as off-grid and on-grid solar rooftop technologies. This study aims to evaluate the energy conversion efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) systems in tropical environments. It also explores the effect of growing plants beneath PV panels. Two identical grid-connected PV systems—each containing five solar panels—were installed. The overall power production of each PV system was about 1.4 kWp. All the collected data were processed and analysed in the same way and by the same method. The PV systems were installed in two different environments—one with the possibility of growing the plants beneath the PV panels (PViGR module) and one with no possibility of growing the plants beneath the PV panels (PViSR module). The experiments were conducted in the Bo Yang District of Songkhla, Thailand over a 12-month period. Our findings indicate that green roof photovoltaic (GRPV) systems can produce around 2100 kWh of electricity in comparison to the 2000 kWh produced by other solar energy systems. Thereby, growing plants beneath PV panels increases electricity production efficiency by around 2%. This difference comes from the growing of plants underneath GRPV systems. Plants do not only help to trap humidity underneath GRPV systems but also help to cool the PV panels by absorbing the temperature beneath GRPV systems. Thus, in the production of electrical energy; the system was clearly showing significant differences in the mentioned results of both PV solar systems, which are evident for great energy efficiency performances in the future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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28 pages, 3197 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Novel Policy to Optimize Energy Consumption for Dairy Product Warehouses: A Case Study

by Khalid Almutairi, Elham Manoosi Esfahani, Ali Mostafaeipour, Alibek Issakhov, Chila Kaewpraek and Kuaanan Techato

Sustainability 2021, 13(5), 2445; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052445 - 24 Feb 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2228

Abstract

Worldwide energy supply is mostly reliant on fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide emissions have caused many negative environmental issues like climate change, air pollution, and energy security. An important alternative to this hazard is substituting the fossil fuel-based carbon energy sources with renewable energy sources. Passive strategies, which are devised to provide thermal comfort in buildings are examples of how to use renewable energies. For this study, a dairy product warehouse in the city of Yazd in Iran was thoroughly investigated. The main goal of this study is to introduce different scenarios, then identifying them based upon optimization of energy consumption. Another main purpose of the present study is to maximize the use of passive energy to meet the cooling needs of a dairy products warehouse in the studied area. Underground temperature is lower than the surface in summer, also it is higher in winter. Therefore, this property of soil is investigated by using nine different scenarios at different heights for constructing underground warehouse for storing dairy products. Clearly, different renewable tools like wind turbine, wind catcher, solar chiller, and different roof designs by Savanah grass, roof pond are also investigated. At first, the cooling load of the warehouse is calculated separately for each season. Then, according to the energy load values obtained, the nominated scenarios are investigated. The results of the comparisons show that the construction of a warehouse at a depth of 3 m from the ground with a green roof covered with Savannah grass helps achieve the best degree of reduction in the cooling power. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Approaches and Technologies in Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Social Housing)

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