NRC-IRC’s Green Building Activities

Christoph Reinhart, PhDchristoph.reinhart@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

Objectives of Today’s Lecture

•Present some NRC-IRC Green Building Research Highlights

•Promote the use of building performance simulation

• Focus Audience- Professional Engineers- Engineering Consultants- Design Professionals

Green Building Research

• Part of IRC’s Sustainable Build Environment Initiative

• Focus on:– Commercial Buildings– Residential Buildings– Urban Context

• Website and presentation oriented along popular green building rating schemes.

http://irc.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/sbe/green_e.html

NRC Profile

• 20 Institutes, 4000 staff (+1200 guest workers)• Canada’s Federal Laboratories

IRC Profile

• 220 staff (+ guest workers)• 5 Programs

– Codes & Evaluation– Fire– Urban Infrastructure– Building Envelope

& Structure– Indoor Environment

What are Green Buildings?

1Liter House

Passive HouseC2000

R2000CIBP

Sustainable Building

Solar Building

Energy Plus House

LEED

BREAM

Solarbaulow energy building

Green Globe

Categories for new commercial construction and major renovation projects

• Sustainable Sites (14)• Water Efficiency (5)• Energy & Atmosphere (17)• Materials & Resources (14)• Indoor Environmental Quality (15)• Innovation & Design Process (5)

LEED Rating System

NRC Research Thrusts

Green Buildings and Building Performance Simulation

Integrated Design Approach

Material Properties & Occupant Preferences & Behavior.=> That’s where simulations come into play.

To compare different design options during design development.

To reduce risk through reduced planning uncertainty.

To demonstrate code compliance (absolute values).

What are building simulations used for?

Who should ‘do’ building performance simulations?

•Better interfaces. Faster computers.

•Help to initiate a dialogue with the designer/client.

•Competitive edge: high demand for simulationists.

•Financial Incentives (CBIP, IRS).

•Opportunity to work on more interesting projects.

•Better integration of internal and solar gains with HVAC systems.

Professional Engineers!

www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/tools_directory/

Building Energy Software Tools Directory

Energy- Lighting Controls- Green Roofs- CCHT

Energy Use for Electric Lighting and Cooling in Commercial Buildings

Space Cooling 4%

Lighting (15%)Space Cooling (5%)

source: NRCan for 2001

Can be significantly higher in office buildings.

Lighting Energy Savings

• Replace electric lighting with with natural daylight

⇒ Consider the use of personal Controls (on/off switches, bi-level switching, dimming)

⇒ Consider the use of automated controls (occupancy sensors and photocell controlled dimming)

Space Cooling 4%

Rest

! occupancy sensors save25% and 50% lighting energy

!photocell controlled dimming saves- 50-60% in perimeter zone- 25-40% in ‘second row’

! commissioning photocells is easier for ‘top-lighting’ than ‘side-lighting’occupancy sensor occupancy & photocell

Rules of Thumb – Lighting Controls

Occupant Behavior Research

0

20

40

60

80

100

0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3.3 4.5 5.5 6.5 7.5distance to facade [m]

dayl

ight

aut

onom

y [%

]

blinds always fully closed

blinds always down, slats at 45 o

blinds always up

USER BEHAVIOUR ?!

New NRC/NRCan field study

0

0.25

0.5

0.75

1

0 100 200 300 400 500 600minimum work plane illuminance [lux]

switc

h-on

pro

babi

lity

at a

rriv

al

type 1

type 2

Switch-On Probability (I)

0

0.25

0.5

0.75

1

0 100 200 300 400 500 600minimum work plane illuminance [lux]

switc

h-on

pro

babi

lity

at a

rriv

al

Hunt 1978Lamparter 2000

Switch-On Probability (II)

Single Office Example

!!!! absolute comparison of different control strategies !!!! reference case is manual on/off switch with venetian blinds0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

manual on/off switch switch-off occupancysensor

on/off occupancysensor

dimming system dimming system withswitch-off occupancy

sensor

dimming system withon/off occupancy

sensor

annu

al e

lect

ric li

ghtin

g us

e [k

Wh/

ft2 yr]

reference case

Electric Lighting Use in South facing Office

Overall Energy Savings

Source: Tips for Daylighting

Integration of Lighting and Energy

Controls from Savings are climate dependant!

NRC Design Tools

– DAYSIM (advanced simulations)(2000 downloads, 600 A&E firms)Contact: Christoph Reinhart

– SkyVision (skylights)(1000 downloads)Contact: Aziz Laouadi

– Lightswitch (simulation beginners) Wizard (10000+ users)Contact: Christoph Reinhart

Seattle Art Museum - Arup Lighting

• Sidelit GalleryARUP Lighting

Seattle Art Museum - Arup Lighting

Museum Open Hours - 1,500,000+ lux-hours

ARUP Lighting

Seattle Art Museum - Arup Lighting

Automatic Shading + Switching - 555,000 lh

ARUP New York

Getting Started Energy Simulations

ee4: http://www.sbc.nrcan.gc.ca/software_and_tools/ee4_e.asp

e-Quest http://www.doe2.com/equest/

Getting Started Daylight Simulations

http://irc.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/ie/lighting/daylight/daysim/GettingStarted.pdf

What are “Green Roofs” or “Rooftop Gardens”?

Specialized roofing systems that support vegetation growth

NRC Contact: Bas Baskaran

Why Green Roofs?

Benefits (Owner)

– Energy efficiency

– Extended roof service life

Benefits (Municipality)

– Storm water management

– Less impact of sewer system

– Reduction in GHG emission

NRC Field Roofing Facility - Schematics

8m (26ft)

8m (26ft)

9m (30ft)9m (30ft)

5m (1

6ft)

5m (1

6ft)

NN

Green RoofGreen RoofReference RoofReference Roof

parapetparapet1m (3ft)1m (3ft)

Field Roofing Facility -Grass 2002

Green Roof

Reference Roof

Components and Instrumentation

Structural supportStructural support

VapourVapour control layercontrol layer

Thermal insulationThermal insulation

Support panelSupport panel

Reference RoofReference Roof Green RoofGreen Roof

S1 (VB)S1 (VB)

S0 (IN)S0 (IN)

S2 (INS)S2 (INS)

S4 (SB)S4 (SB)

LayerLayer

S5 (SM)S5 (SM)

ThermocoupleThermocouple

OUTOUT

S3 (MEM)S3 (MEM)

Heat Flux TransducerHeat Flux Transducer

Drainage layerDrainage layerFilter membraneFilter membrane

Growing mediumGrowing medium

VegetationVegetation

Roof membraneRoof membrane

020702, T-G1

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00

Time

Tem

pera

ture

(°C)

020702, T-R1

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00

Time

Tem

pera

ture

(°C

)Membrane Temperature Profile

Green RoofGreen RoofReference RoofReference Roof

A sunny summer day (July 2, 2002)A sunny summer day (July 2, 2002)

S0 (IN)

S3 (MEM)

OUT

Maximum Membrane Temperature

Maximum Roof Membrane Temperature(Nov 22, 2000 - Sep 30, 2002)

-20

0

20

40

60

80

Tem

pera

ture

(°C

)

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug SepNov Dec

2000 2001 2002

Reference Roof

Garden Roof

Heat Flow and Energy Efficiency

010716, HFT-R

-20

-10

0

10

20

30

40

0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00

Time

Hea

t Flu

x (W

/m2)

010716, HFT-G

-20

-10

0

10

20

30

40

0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00

Time

Hea

t Flu

x (W

/m2)

Green RoofGreen RoofReference RoofReference Roof

Heat Gain

Heat Gain

Heat Loss Heat Loss

Heat Loss

Green Roof excels in reducing heat gains.

Heat Flow Mechanism - Summer

Thermal Mass

Evapotranspiration

Insulation

Shading

Indoor

Heat Flow Mechanism - Winter

Thermal Mass Insulation

Indoor

Instrumentation -Stormwater Runoff

Green RoofGreen Roof

Drain PipeDrain Pipe

Flow MeterFlow Meter

Reference RoofReference Roof

RunoffRunoff--GGRunoffRunoff--RR

RainRain

Rain GaugeRain Gauge

Measurement Interval Selection

020927, Rain Event

0

5

10

15

20

12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00

Time

Rai

n, R

unof

f (m

m)

Duration: 384 min (6h 24min)Volume: 18.8 mm

Rain Runoff-R

Runoff-G

Delay

Flow Rate Amount

Runoff Statistics

Rain and Runoffs in Year 2002

0

50

100

150

200

Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep

Rai

n/R

unof

f (m

m)

RainRunoff-RRunoff-G

Overall Reduction = 54%

Main Results- Green Roofing Consortium

Membrane Durability

– Green roofs can reduce heat aging and thermal stress experienced by a roof membrane in service. This may improve membrane durability.

Energy Efficiency

– The green roof reduced the heat flow through the roof. The greenroof was significantly more efficient in reducing heat gain in the summer than heat loss in the winter.

Stormwater Management

– The green roof delayed runoff and reduced the runoff flow rate and volume by 54%.

Canadian Centre for Housing Technology

• Twin House Research Facility- To assess the whole-house

performance of energy efficient technologies

• Collaborative Effort:- National Research Council Canada- Natural Resources Canada - Canada Mortgage and Housing

Corporation- Contributions from 37 companies

NRC Contact: Mike Swinton

http://www.ccht-cctr.gc.ca/

Canada’s first Residential Fuel Cell

• NRCan, NRC, and Industry Partners• Fuel Cell Technologies, Kingston• Combined electrical power and space

& water heating

Thermostat Setback/Setforward

• NRCan, NRC, PERD funded• Evaluation of 3 different winter thermostat settings, and 2

summer settings• Whole House effects including surface temperatures and

recovery times

57241592316185466131Calculated Furnace Gas Consumption (MJ/yr)

10

18ºC Night and Day Setback

136.5---Savings from Benchmark (%)

16ºC Night and Day Setback

18ºC Night Setback

22ºC Benchmark

Materials and Resources- Vacuum Insulation Panels (VIP)

What is Vacuum Insulation Panel (VIP)?

Core Material

Gas Barrier / Facer Foil

Getter / Desiccant

Gas barrier

Core material

NRC Contact: Phalguni Mukhopadhyaya

Why VIP?

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Air Space Vermiculite Perlite Cellulose Mineral Fibre PolymericFoam

VIP

R-V

alue

Per

Inch

.

‘Pink’ Sheet

Research Goal: Achieve high R value at same cost and same durability as for conventional materials.

0.000

0.005

0.010

0.015

0.020

0.025

0.030

0.035

0.040

0.1 1 10 100 1000Log Pressure (mbar)

Ther

mal

Con

duct

ivity

(W/m

.K) Nanogel (Barrier Ultra-R)

Open-Cell PolyurethaneOpen-Cell PolystyrenePrecipitated Silica

Properties of Core VIP Materials

Fixed End

Vacuum Enclosure

Cold Plates

Main Guarded Heater

Stand

Newly Developed Vacuum Guarded Hot Plate for VIP Research

0.000

0.005

0.010

0.015

0.020

0.025

0.030

0.035

0.040

0.1 1 10 100 1000Log Pressure (mbar)

Ther

mal

Con

duct

ivity

(W/m

.K) Nanogel (Barrier Ultra-R)

Open-Cell PolyurethaneOpen-Cell PolystyrenePrecipitated Silica

Promising New Material

Indoor Environmental Quality-IA-Quest-Demand Responsive Buildings-Light & Health-Organizational Productivity

IA-Quest -software

•Based on results from Material Emissions Project which developed guidelines for indoor material selection and ventilation strategies to meet specific indoor air quality requirements.

•Database & simulation engine.

•Provides information regarding emission (‘off-gassing’) of volatile organic compounds (VOC).

Demand Responsive Buildings

• Ontario electricity use forecast to increase by 20% by 2020

• Growing concern whether supply can meet demand

• Buildings could “shed load” automatically at periods of high demand

• Lab study with 120 participants

NRC Contact: Guy Newsham

20

21

22

23

24

25

8:30

9:30

10:3

0

11:3

0

12:3

0

13:3

0

14:3

0

15:3

0

Time of Day

Air

Tem

pera

ture

(o C

)

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

Des

ktop

Illu

min

ance

(lux

)

rods and cones – visual effects of light

ganglion cells: biological effects of light (Berson et al., Science 2002)

New Research on Light and Health

Contact: Jennifer Veitch

Organizational Productivity Effects

Contact: Guy Newsham

CCHT Mike Swinton Mike.Swinton@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

Daylighting Christoph Reinhart Christoph.Reinhart@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

Green Roofs Bas Baskaran Bas.Baskaran@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

IA-Quest Bob Magee Bob.Magee@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

Lighting Controls Guy Newsham Guy.Newsham@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

VIP Phalguni Mukhopadhyaya Phalguni.Mukhopadhyaya @nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

Contact Info