Search

Rising global temperatures in the Arabian Peninsula region caused by climate change have increased the demand for air conditioning, resulting in more electricity consumption and CO 2 emissions. This paper treats Qatar as a representative country for understanding the effect of future regional warming on the electricity demand and CO 2 emissions We first develop a model that relates daily electricity demand with temperature. By combining this model with temperature projections from the CMIP6 database (bias adjusted and statistically downscaled) and population and GDP projections from four shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs), we can calculate Qatar's demand for electricity until the end of the century. The model identifies an average sensitivity of +4.2%/°C for the electricity demand and projects an increase in electricity demand by 5–35% due to warming alone at the end of this century. The model suggests that under SSP1-2.6, warming-induced CO 2 emissions could be offset by carbon intensity improvements. Furthermore, under SSP5-8.5, assuming no carbon intensity improvement, future warming could add 20–35% of CO 2 emissions per year by the end of the century, with half of the electricity demand related to more frequent hot days. We further found that the temperature effect on power demand and CO 2 emissions is small compared to the effects from socioeconomic factors such as population, GDP, and carbon intensity. • Data-based model to predict electricity demand from daily temperature regionally. • Projection of power demand with CMIP6 temperature projections for different SSPs. • Inclusion of the effect of the evolution of the population and the GDP on the demand. • Assumption on the evolution of the carbon intensity to deduce the CO 2 emissions. • Application to Middle East countries and implication for global temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite a wide range of energy efficiency measures being implemented, carbon emissions from the building sector continues to rise. Against the backdrop of rapidly increasing cooling energy demand, mixed-mode (MM) ventilation approach has extensively been studied by the building science community as a way to lift comfort indoors whilst minimising energy use associated with air-conditioning. This paper presents a literature review of important research themes within the context of thermal comfort and energy use in mixed-mode buildings. The findings from our focused review suggest that occupant perception of, or attitudes toward indoor thermal environment can differ, depending on the mode of operation within a MM building. The comfort zone of occupants in MM buildings are consistently estimated to be wider than that of fully air-conditioned building counterparts. Although the scale of benefit greatly depends on climate characteristics, the MM strategy demonstrates significant energy saving potential especially when coupled with a 'moving comfort target' approach based on the adaptive comfort model. The focus of future research should be on how to optimise comfort, level of control (automated vs. manual), and the associated energy demands. • Research into comfort and energy in mixed-mode (MM) buildings intensified. • Occupant comfort perception is affected by operation mode within MM building. • Comfort zone is wider in MM building than fully AC building. • MM ventilation demonstrated significant energy saving potential. • Future research to resolve issue of automated vs. manual control of MM operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]