Estudo de viabilidade técnica e econômica para edificação universitária zero energy building

Abstract

Issues related to energy matrices and the energy supply guarantee are themes of the 2030 Agenda through SDG7 (Sustainable Development Goal 7). Electricity plays a leading role in the fossil fuels energy matrix transition to a matrix with renewable and clean energies, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and contributing to climate change mitigation. In this context, buildings are among the leading electricity consumers, and self-sufficient energy buildings or Zero Energy Buildings (ZEB) concept aims to reduce energy consumption through energy efficiency strategies and offset consumption with renewable energy sources. The study main objective is to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of applying energy efficiency and renewable energy strategies to make a university building a Zero Energy Building, in order to guarantee the energy balance. The characterization of the L1 building of the University of Passo Fundo was carried out, with data collected on constructive characteristics, use and occupation, energy consumption, and renewable energy generation. After that, the retrofit strategies of the lighting and air conditioning system and the use of natural lighting were defined, which will allow a reduction of 18.02% in the current consumption of the building, in addition to improving the comfort conditions in the internal environments. The on-site renewable energy system provided the performance rating used to design the building's self-sufficiency scenarios. The three proposed self-sufficiency scenarios, selected among others, had a payback time acceptable when considering subsidies for energy efficiency programs, ranging from 2 to 14 years for the return on investment. The building offers technical and economic feasibility to become a Zero Energy Building, due to solar orientation, available roof area, and potential for consumption reduction, contributing as a model for verifying energy efficiency strategies to be replicated for other types of buildings, in order to establish an integrated network of energy self-sufficient buildings. In this way, the research contributes to the discussion and proposition of resilient and sustainable infrastructure, to mitigate climate change and meet the goals of SDG7 of the 2030 Agenda.