Demonstration and Cost Analysis of a Building Retrofit Using High Performance Insulation
Abstract
The Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that, in 2010, for all U.S. buildings (including Department of Defense [DOD] Facilities),15.6 quads of primary energy consumption was attributable to fenestration and opaque building envelope components, of which the wall-related primary energy consumption was about 21 percent, or 3.3 quads. For commercial facilities, primary energy consumption attributed to walls during heating cycles was 1.48 quads, or is similar to 30 percent of total energy consumption due to building envelope components. Heat loss through walls during a heating cycle is a critical component of overall facility energy use and mitigation measures are important to reduce total facility energy consumption. This project demonstrated and validated the use of modified atmosphere insulation (MAI) to reduce wall-related energy consumption in DOD facilities. A combination of facility sensors and modeling activities were used to determine the effectiveness of the MAI. By retrofitting walls and increasing their thermal resistance (R-value) by R10-20 (h-sq ft-degrees F/Btu), reductions of 30 percent or more over the baseline wall-generated space conditioning loads are possible. This report analyzes the cost and performance aspects of the MAI technology.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 18, 2013
- Accession Number
- AD1061217
Entities
People
- Tapan Patel
Organizations
- Engineer Research and Development Center