Design of Typical Energy Efficient and Zero Energy building for Kabul City
Author(s):
Ahmad Masih Ahmadi
Recently, the consumption of energy in residential buildings has been increasing. On one hand, urbanization increased energy consumption in residential buildings. On the other hand, construction of nonstandard buildings especially residential buildings, caused excessive energy waste. Implementation of energy efficiency and zero-energy building strategies is one of the best solutions to decrease energy waste and energy intensity in a residential building in Kabul City. This research is conducted to design typical energy-efficient and zero energy building strategies for Kabul City. The majority of people use unrefined fossil fuels for heating. As we know, fossil fuels cause environmental pollution. To burn these fuels, most greenhouse gases GHGs emissions are released in the atmosphere, and these GHGs are very harmful to health and cause different types of illnesses. This study is performed in two stages. First, the construction cost of a customarily built building is calculated. Then, the heat loss and heat gain of this inefficient building are also calculated. The same procedure is repeated for a more efficient and insulated building. After comparing, it is revealed that an insulated building saves 65% of the energy and emits 60% less CO2 compared to the inefficient building. To make this building a zero-energy building, we tried using photovoltaic technology. All-electric loads for this building are calculated, and the components of the photovoltaic system are designed accordingly. Finally, the implementation of energy-efficient and zero-energy building has lots of benefits of cost-saving, being environment-friendly, reduced illness, and individual sustainability for each building.
