Optimization of thermal environment in a building with low-exergy radiant systems and glazed facade

The aim of this study is to evaluate the potential of thermal comfort enhancement in a selected zone of a modern office building with high ratio of glazed façade and a heating / cooling system with high thermal inertia, equipped with low-exergy radiant heating and cooling. Experimental measurements performed over three reference weeks, distributed over heating, transition and cooling period, revealed overheating during 15 % - 30 % of the evaluated time intervals in the heating period. A simulation model of the reference zone with four variations of ventilation and shading system control strategies was created in TRNSYS to investigate the possibilities of thermal environment optimization. Three different heating/ cooling radiant systems were implemented to the model with the optimal set-point variation. The simulations indicate a potential to significantly enhance thermal comfort by improving the control strategy of the heating system and of the external blinds, however, the difference between the thermal environments created by the three different radiation systems were negligible. Energie-Umweltmanagement