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The project BESTFACADE, sponsored by the Energy Intelligent Europe programme of the European Union, and led by MCE-Anlagenbau, Austria, accumulated the state of the art of double skin facades (DSFs) in seven European countries (Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Portugal and Sweden). Twenty-eight facades of different buildings in all partner countries of BESTFACADE have been analysed for the aspects, types of facade in different countries, DSFs in different climatic regions of Europe, existing simulations and measurements, thermal behaviour, indoor air quality, comfort, user acceptance, energy demand and consumptions, control strategies, integrated building technology, cost (investment, maintenance and operation), resource conservation, environmental impact, comparison to conventional glass facades (CGFs), integration of renewable energy sources into DSFs, as well as non-energy related issues, such as, acoustics, aesthetics, fire protection, moisture, corrosion, durability, maintenance an... more...

The potential of controlling techniques for an electrochromic device is investigated in a systematic way, using both experimental and theoretical tools. Concerning the theoretical part a model was developed in the TRNSYS environment and validated against experimental data. These data were collected from experiments, which were carried out in a PASSYS test cell with a movable wall. Having established a good model performance several cases of window types (such as a 4 mm clear window and a low-e double glazing) and controlling strategies for the electrochromic device are simulated. Obtained results from the series of simulations were compared in terms of the heating and cooling loads of the test cell for each case. It was found that the development of a scheduled control strategy for the electrochromic glazing is better in terms of cooling loads. Finally, a more sophisticated control strategy was examined based on the adaptive fuzzy approach. more...

Highly-glazed spaces are attractive in many ways (solar heating, aesthetics, etc.), however, their thermal behaviour remains difficult to predict. In such spaces, the assumptions or methods generally used in building thermal simulation tools — e.g. homogeneous air temperature in the room, simplified calculations of radiative heat transfer between walls, absence of airflow modelling within the room — do not seem appropriate. We have developed a new model (AIRGLAZE) to improve the prediction of the thermal behaviour of large highly-glazed spaces. It consists of an envelope module to calculate conductive and radiative heat transfer in the building envelope. It is coupled with a zonal airflow model to predict air motion within the room. Particular attention is paid to sun patch modelling and the internal distribution of shortwave and longwave radiation within the building; direct retransmission, reflection to the outside, and transmission to other zones of the building are taken into account. The results of AIRGLAZE are compared with measurement data from two experimental test cells: the IEA Annex 26 experimental atrium, and a test cell at ENTPE. Compared to the one-air-node approach, the zonal method significantly reduces the mean discrepancy with measurement data during stratified conditions (from 3.9°C down to 0.4°C for the Annex 26 atrium). In general, experimental and numerical results tally well in both cases. more...

Traditional wood buildings in France and in Madagascar use abundant local forest resources in architecture. Woodcan be considered as renewable and natural material when coming from sustainably managed forest. Using wood in construction contributes significantly in controlling the atmospheric carbon cycle and the emission of greenhouse gas. This study presents the main physical characteristics of wood materials and building systems showing the influence of wood coating on indoor environment. Hygrothermal phenomena across the living space are characterized and presented in this work : the presence of water in the wood, the behavior of equilibrium moisture, heat transfer and mass transfer, the physical parameters of wood material and physical parameters of indoor environment. Thermal comfort is similarly characterised. This work contributes knowledge on the evaluation of interactions between thermal comfort, indoor air and wood coating by means of in situ and laboratory measurements and numerical model simulations., Les constructions traditionnelles en bois en France et à Madagascar témoignent de l’utilisation ancienne d’abondantes ressources forestières locales. Le bois peut être considéré comme un matériau naturel et renouvelable dans la mesure où les ressources forestières sont gérées durablement. L’utilisation du bois dans la construction contribue largement à la maîtrise du cycle du carbone atmosphérique et à la limitation des émissions de gaz à effet de serre. Ce travail présente les principales caractéristiques physiques du matériau bois et des systèmes constructifs associés, montrant l’importance et l’influence du revêtement en bois sur l’environnement intérieur des habitations. La caractérisation des phénomènes hygrothermiques à l’échelle de la pièce d’habitation a été détaillée : présence d’eau dans le bois, comportement de l’équilibre hygroscopique, transfert thermique et transfert de masse, les paramètres physiques du bois et d’une ambiance intérieure. Enfin, ce travail apporte des connaissances sur l’évaluation des interactions entre le confort thermique, l’ambiance intérieure et le revêtement en bois, grâce à des campagnes de mesure in situ, à des mesures en laboratoire et à des modélisations de scénarios numériques. more...

Traditional wood buildings in France and in Madagascar use abundant local forest resources in architecture. Woodcan be considered as renewable and natural material when coming from sustainably managed forest. Using wood in construction contributes significantly in controlling the atmospheric carbon cycle and the emission of greenhouse gas. This study presents the main physical characteristics of wood materials and building systems showing the influence of wood coating on indoor environment. Hygrothermal phenomena across the living space are characterized and presented in this work : the presence of water in the wood, the behavior of equilibrium moisture, heat transfer and mass transfer, the physical parameters of wood material and physical parameters of indoor environment. Thermal comfort is similarly characterised. This work contributes knowledge on the evaluation of interactions between thermal comfort, indoor air and wood coating by means of in situ and laboratory measurements and numerical model simulations., Les constructions traditionnelles en bois en France et à Madagascar témoignent de l’utilisation ancienne d’abondantes ressources forestières locales. Le bois peut être considéré comme un matériau naturel et renouvelable dans la mesure où les ressources forestières sont gérées durablement. L’utilisation du bois dans la construction contribue largement à la maîtrise du cycle du carbone atmosphérique et à la limitation des émissions de gaz à effet de serre. Ce travail présente les principales caractéristiques physiques du matériau bois et des systèmes constructifs associés, montrant l’importance et l’influence du revêtement en bois sur l’environnement intérieur des habitations. La caractérisation des phénomènes hygrothermiques à l’échelle de la pièce d’habitation a été détaillée : présence d’eau dans le bois, comportement de l’équilibre hygroscopique, transfert thermique et transfert de masse, les paramètres physiques du bois et d’une ambiance intérieure. Enfin, ce travail apporte des connaissances sur l’évaluation des interactions entre le confort thermique, l’ambiance intérieure et le revêtement en bois, grâce à des campagnes de mesure in situ, à des mesures en laboratoire et à des modélisations de scénarios numériques. more...