Towards a more holistic and complementary approach to modelling energy consumption in buildings

Abstract

The need to reduce energy consumption in buildings is clearly recognised as a necessary contribution to the minimisation of greenhouse gas emissions. To complement the focus on the energy performance of individual buildings, this paper suggests additional approaches which include life cycle energy analysis in combination with urban energy mapping techniques. Commencing with an overview of energy consumption in the built environment, the paper draws attention to other components of urban energy consumption such as the embodied energy of buildings and infrastructure. The different approaches to modifying energy usage are placed in the context of scale in the built environment and complexity of urban energy improvements. Recent attempts to influence energy consumption patterns across this scale are referred to by using the city of Adelaide in South Australia as an example. Some research projects are described which take a range of approaches to modelling energy usage in buildings. These offer potential for analysing changes to overall energy consumption such as the retrofitting of buildings, selection of alternative dwelling forms and the design of urban redevelopments.