New paper in "Applied Energy" on optimal building retrofits considering energy demand and supply
The SusTec team comprising Evan Petkov, George Mavromatidis, Christof Knoeri, and Professor Volker Hoffmann, collaborating with James Allan from the Empa Urban Energy Systems Lab, developed a new methodology for the investment planning of existing building retrofits.
The MANGOret optimization framework (Multi-stAge eNerGy Optimization – retrofitting) is built on top of the original MANGO model published earlier this year by George and Evan. The goal was to bridge the gap between energy system modeling and real estate management. Modernizing buildings is a key lever for Net-Zero since 90% of the European building stock will still stand in 2050. Real estate managers are currently challenged in developing cost-effective and decarbonized strategies to meet their goals.
The optimization model and scalable data-frameworks allow stakeholders to quickly develop long-term (+30 years) optimal retrofitting strategies: from minimum cost to minimum emissions. By taking a multi-stage approach, we generate the optimal solutions for “when” it is best to do “what” to achieve low-CO2 retrofits. For each unique building, this relates to interventions on both the energy supply and demand sides along with non-energy renovations, encompassing both operational and embodied emissions.
The MANGOret model show the trade-offs of low-CO2 deep retrofits to the cost and value of the building, finding “no-regret” investment strategies. Overall, the approach presents an advanced long-term perspective for sustainable real estate management. This research is supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) under the ‘Policies for accelerating renewable and efficient building & district retrofits’ (PACE REFITS) project.
Find the open access link here: Download https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2022.118901