Abstract
This paper focuses on the energy retrofit cost-optimal analysis in the usual and deep building renovation scenarios, considering the importance of non-energy-related aspect in an integrated design approach. This objective is developed within the Italian regulation framework on energy efficiency and building renovation. Nowadays, the great part of tax incentives is given to retrofits merely based on technologies existing in the market, without any balanced design approach that may lead to the optimal solution. Moreover, three-quarters of the residential stock are expected to remain in use in 2050. In this framework, we present as a case study a tower building of the 1980s located in a social housing district of Rome (Italy). This kind of districts represents most of the urban expansions built during the second half of the twentieth century. Therefore, they are today one of the most relevant parts of the residential stock, suffering users’ discomfort, unhealthy conditions, typological obsolescence and structural and technological deficiency. Two integrated design options are proposed and analyzed both in terms of energy performance and in terms of related energy and construction costs. Focusing on the case of a tower building, the study attempts at including non-energy and economic factor in the definition of the optimal design solution and at establishing to what extent deep renovation is competitive with respect to usual renovation. The current situation, as reference case, has been compared both with nowadays usual retrofit solutions (envelope thermal insulation, high-performing windows, oil-condensing boiler, LED lights) both with advanced ones (superinsulation, ventilated façade, high-efficiency heat pump). The building has been modelled with Revit applying the well-known H-BIM method in order to accurately control architectural, typological, technological, economic and energy aspects in one single platform. Energy simulations have been performed with EnergyPlus using Insight plug-in and Green Building Studio. Results demonstrate a significant variation in terms of energy consumption and costs (heating, DHW, equipment and lightings) as well as construction costs and payback period of the initial investments. Compared to the reference case, on one side, the proposed usual renovation scenario reduces the former of about 52% and needs a 9-year payback period; on the other side, deep renovation scenario through a 22% additional investment leads to a decrease of 69% in energy consumption and 51% in energy costs, needing an 8-year payback period. The proposed approach in the assessment of renovation scenario allows public and private real estate companies to create energy-conscious design solutions and make cost-optimal investments. These solutions will result in a promotion of sustainable design perspectives taking advantages of the actual Italian incentive regulatory system and increasing substantially the real estate value of this kind of buildings and districts.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
BPIE. (2011). Europe’s buildings under the microscope. Brussels: Building Performace Institute Europe.
United Nations Agenda 2030—Sustainable Development Goals. Retrieved January 29, 2019, from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg11.
European Climate Foundation. (2010). Roadmap 2050: A practical guide to a prosperous, low carbon Europe. Brussels: European Climate Foundation
WWF, Ecofys, Office for Metropolitan Architecture, Stephan S. (2011). The energy report: 100% renewable energy by 2050. 256.
Lechtenböhmer, S., & Schüring, A. (2011). The potential for large-scale savings from insulating residential buildings in the EU. Energy Efficiency, 4, 257–270. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12053-010-9090-6.
ENEA. (2018). Rapporto annuale efficienza energetica 2018.
Boffa, C., & Riva, G. (2014). Attuazione della certificazione energetica degli edifici in Italia—Rapporto 2014. Milano: Sintesi.
Ma, Z., Cooper, P., Daly, D., & Ledo, L. (2012). Existing building retrofits: Methodology and state-of-the-art. Energy and Buildings, 55, 889–902. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2012.08.018.
Ferrante, A., Mochi, G., Predari, G., et al. (2018). A European project for safer and energy efficient buildings: Pro-GET-onE (Proactive Synergy of inteGrated Efficient Technologies on Buildings’ Envelopes). Sustainability, 10, 812. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030812.
Todaro B, Giancotti A, & De Matteis F. (2013). Il secondo progetto. Interventi sull’abitare pubblico. Prospettive Edizioni.
Di Biagi, P., & Marchigiani, E. (2008). Città pubbliche: linee guida per la riqualificazione urbana. Milano: Bruno Mondadori.
De Matteis, F., & Reale, L. (2017). Quattro quartieri. Spazio urbano e spazio umano nella trasformazione dell’abitare pubblico a Roma. Macerata: Quodlibet.
Roma Capitale. (2019). Roma Capitale: piani di zona. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from http://www.urbanistica.comune.roma.it/pdz.html.
Bossalino, F., & Cotti, A. (1992). Roma anni Novanta: l’edilizia residenziale pubblica e la nuova forma della città. Roma: Sapere.
Acknowledgements
This research was funded by the Department of Architecture and Urban Studies—DAStU, Politecnico di Milano, and fund number DDO8ECLZ01.
Authorship: Conceptualization E.C. and M.M.; methodology E.C. and M.M.; investigation V.V.; data curation V.V.; writing, original draft preparation M.M. and V.V.; writing, review and editing M.M.; supervision E.C. and A.R.; funding acquisition A.R.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Morganti, M., Vigoni, V., Currà, E., Rogora, A. (2020). Energy Retrofit Cost-Optimal Design Solutions in Social Housing: The Case of Three Tower Buildings of the 1980s. In: Sayigh, A. (eds) Green Buildings and Renewable Energy. Innovative Renewable Energy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-30841-4_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-30841-4_16
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-30840-7
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-30841-4
eBook Packages: EnergyEnergy (R0)