Assessing the airtightness performance of container houses in relation to its effect on energy efficiency

2018-04-15
This study examines the airtightness performance of four types of commonly-used container houses (CHs) and its impact on their energy efficiency. One of the CHs was treated by sealing all junctions inside the container envelope. The airtightness levels of unsealed and sealed CHs were measured by using the fan pressurization method. The interior surfaces of building envelope were scanned by thermal imaging in order to locate the areas suffering from air leakages and thermal failures. The annual energy consumptions of unsealed and sealed CHs for their heating were predicted by energy simulation analyses. The unsealed CHs have poor airtightness features while performing in Energy Rating B category. The junctions of those houses, especially where wall, slab and roof panels come together and the edges of the openings also suffer from air leakages, thermal bridges and condensation. Sealing the interior surfaces of junctions and edges improves the airtightness level considerably while heat loss and condensation problems at the junctions still continue. An 81% improvement in airtightness performance of the CH Type B provided a reduction of 9.3% in annual energy demand which is not enough to step up its Energy Rating category. The results indicate that airtight jointing is needed at junctions while the use of thermal breaks at junction details has vital importance to eliminate thermal failures and to improve energy efficiency performance of CHs. The combined use of Blower Test Method and Infrared Thermography is useful for non-destructive assessment of airtightness features of building envelopes.
BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT

Suggestions

Assessing the airtightness performance of container-like buildings in relation to its effect on energy efficiency
Bekboliev, Mirbek; Tanyer, Ali Murat; Department of Building Science in Architecture (2015)
This study analyzes the effect of airtightness on the energy efficiency of single and adjacent containerized buildings, before and after refurbishment. It further gives an overview of air leakage problems found in the sample of prefabricated buildings manufactured and located in Turkey. The air leakage of standard container-like building depends on a number of factors like the age of the building, manufacturing quality and quality of assembly implementation. The airtightness of four typical containerized bu...
Exergetic optimization of generated electric power split in a heat pump coupled poly-generation system
Kilkis, Birol I.; Kılkış, Şiir (2007-01-01)
This study analyzes environmental, energy, and economical benefits of a ground source heat pump, coupled poly-generation system by incorporating exergy into the energy efficiency analysis. Two additional terms, namely the rational exergy efficiency and the coefficient of performance were introduced to the primary energy savings equation in the European Union Directive 2004/8/EC. Based on the new equation, an optimization algorithm was developed, which can quantify the environmental, energy and economy benef...
Energy efficiency of buildings with a solar space: Two case studies from the Anatolian Plateau
Elias Özkan, Soofia Tahira; Taner, Özün (2009-12-01)
This paper discusses two case studies on the energy efficiency of buildings with south facing solar spaces. The study was conducted on buildings located on the Anatolian Plateau, a semi-arid upland region of Central Turkey where the harsh climate is characterized by long severe winters and hot, dry summers. One is an experimental hollow-brick building on the edge of the capital, the other constructed of mud-brick at an eco-center in a traditional village. Findings of this study have demonstrated that solar-...
Integrated analysis of pressure response using pressure-rate convolution and deconvolution techniques for varied flow rate production in fractured formations
Al-Rbeawi, Salam (Elsevier BV, 2018-03-01)
This paper introduces an integrated analysis for pressure transient behavior of conventional and unconventional multi-porous media reservoirs considering varied flow rate conditions. It focuses on the applications of pressure-rate convolution and deconvolution techniques for analyzing pressure records of homogenous single porous media, double porous media, and triple porous media reservoirs. The tasks covered in this paper are: Deconvloving pressure response, characterizing and developing analytical models ...
Reducing water and energy consumption in chemical industry by sustainable production approach: a pilot study for polyethylene terephthalate production
Alkaya, Emrah; Demirer, Göksel Niyazi (2015-07-15)
In this study, a polyethylene terephthalate manufacturing plant was subjected to environmental performance evaluation and analyses/benchmarking of water consumption. The objective was to determine processes/practices where significant water and related energy saving potential was present. Based on evaluations and analyses, a technology change was realized in heat transfer systems from water-to air-cooled process. As a result of the applications, soft cooling water consumption of the company was reduced by 4...
Citation Formats
A. M. Tanyer and A. Tavukçuoğlu, “Assessing the airtightness performance of container houses in relation to its effect on energy efficiency,” BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT, pp. 59–73, 2018, Accessed: 00, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://hdl.handle.net/11511/47410.