Energy use in non-residential buildings - possibilities for smart energy solutions

The first part of this report discusses the energy use in non-residential buildings through a literature survey. The questions addressed are the division of energy use according to different purposes, correspondence between measured and calculated energy use and future trends in the energy use. The building categories discussed in more detail are office buildings, commercial buildings, hospitals and educational buildings. The energy use in these building types varies greatly, both considering the specific energy use, and energy use according to the purpose. When comparing measured and calculated energy uses, big deviations have been reported in all the discussed building categories such that the calculated energy is clearly lower than the measured use for new buildings, and vice versa for old buildings. To be able to understand this deviation and to better model the building energy use, better measurement data, as well as more accurate input data are needed. The second part of the report presents case examples of buildings and building complexes with integrated energy solutions and systems for waste heat utilization. From the case studies it could be concluded that such system solutions generally consist of and energy storage, heat pumps, and a connection to the district heating system to cover the peak load. Utilization of waste heat is seen as a good energy efficiency measure, enabling reductions in both heating and cooling demands, as well as reducing the overall energy costs. Interaction of the energy supply of different buildings for better utilization of waste heat is however so far little practiced.