RT journal article
T1 Extending the Thermal Comfort Band in Residential Buildings: A Strategy towards a Less Energy-Intensive Society
A1 Monge Palma,  Rafael Antonio
A1 Sanchez Ramos, José
A1 Guerrero Delgado, M.D.C
A1 Palomo Amores, Teresa Rocío
A1 Romero Rodríguez, Laura
A1 Álvarez Domínguez, Servando
A2 Máquinas y Motores Térmicos
K1 energy crisis
K1 energy policy
K1 thermostat
K1 potential energy savings
K1 residential buildings
AB Extending set-point temperatures in residential buildings has a significant impact onenergy demand and thermal comfort. European governments have adopted this strategy to mitigatethe energy crisis. Previous studies attempting to quantify energy savings by extending set-pointtemperatures were limited due to a lack of building stock characterisation, poor climate representation,and the absence of uniformity in the reference set-point temperature. In this study, a large-scalesimulation was conducted, which included six building models covering 90% of southern EuropeKöppen–Geiger climates, where 20 ◦C and 25 ◦C were the reference heating and cooling set-pointtemperatures, respectively. This also accounted for the thermal characteristics of the older buildingstock, built more than 15 years ago, and the new buildings built under the latest version of Directive2010/31/EU. The results show that reducing the heating set-point temperature by 1 ◦C can lead toan average demand reduction of 20%, while raising the cooling set-point temperature by 1 ◦C canlead to a 25% cooling demand reduction. The oldest building stock shows a higher absolute savingspotential. Adjusting thermostats by 1 ◦C in Spanish homes during the winter season could representa saved natural gas volume of 1.8 million normal cubic meters, nearly 40% of the gas demand ofhouseholds in 2022. These findings suggest that extending the set-point temperatures in residentialbuildings can be a promising strategy towards a more energy-efficient society without compromisingthe occupant’s thermal comfort.
PB MDPI
SN 2076-3417
YR 2023
FD 2023
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/31457
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/31457
LA eng
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz
RD 10-nov-2026