IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i18p13983-d1244173.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Energy Audits and Energy Modeling as a Tool towards Reducing Energy Consumption in Buildings: The Cases of Two Multi-Unit Residential Buildings (MURBs) in Toronto

Author

Listed:
  • Ali Taileb

    (Faculty of Science, Engineering & Information Technology, Durham College, Whitby Campus 1610, Champlain Avenue, Whitby, ON L1N 6A, Canada)

  • Mohammed Fareed Sherzad

    (Department of Architecture, College of Architecture, Art and Design, Ajman University, Ajman P.O. Box 346, United Arab Emirates)

Abstract

This research is based on an energy audit of two multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs) located in Toronto, Canada. Energy consumption (gas and electricity) data were extracted from the energy bills of the two buildings for a consecutive period of three years. The data were then normalized to account for variations in weather conditions. Conclusions were drawn from correlation analyses between kWh, cooling degree days (CDDs), and heating degree days (HDDs), which were then compared to the energy consumption benchmarks of MURBs within the GTA. An energy simulation using e-Quest v.3.64 was performed, utilizing the advantages of the e-Quest building modeling tool to create a virtual 3D model of the audited buildings. A baseline model was constructed to reflect the actual buildings and was used to simulate the outcomes and calculate the projected energy savings from window replacements with a higher energy efficiency than the existing ones. The simulation results revealed that triple low-E glazing outperformed single- and double-glass windows, achieving reductions of 38% and 34% in gas consumption, respectively. The building envelope simulations showed that enhancing insulation reduced gas consumption by 4%, while an insulation upgrade demonstrated no discernible savings. Reducing the window area by 20% (north/south sides) led to a 6% decrease in gas consumption, while a 30% reduction resulted in approximately 9% of energy savings.

Suggested Citation

  • Ali Taileb & Mohammed Fareed Sherzad, 2023. "Energy Audits and Energy Modeling as a Tool towards Reducing Energy Consumption in Buildings: The Cases of Two Multi-Unit Residential Buildings (MURBs) in Toronto," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-16, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:18:p:13983-:d:1244173
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/18/13983/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/18/13983/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Constantinos A. Balaras & Andreas I. Theodoropoulos & Elena G. Dascalaki, 2023. "Geographic Information Systems for Facilitating Audits of the Urban Built Environment," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(11), pages 1-26, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Constantinos A. Balaras & Kalliopi G. Droutsa & Elena G. Dascalaki & Simon Kontoyiannidis & Andrea Moro & Elena Bazzan & Paola Borgaro, 2023. "Auditing and Rating Sustainability of Mediterranean Buildings, Neighbourhoods and Cities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-18, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:18:p:13983-:d:1244173. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.