A Methodology to Estimate Retrofit Energy Savings Using A Reduced-Order Energy Modeling Approach

Abstract

Building energy retrofits help to reduce energy use and improve energy efficiency of the buildings, however, most building owners typically consider retrofit implementation as a financial decision rather than an environmental one. Thus, to upgrade the existing buildings, it is extremely important to make accurate predictions of energy and cost savings which can help the building owners and facility managers to make capital budgeting decisions. The study proposes a methodology using reduced-order energy modeling approach to make rapid and accurate estimations of energy savings from retrofit installations in a building portfolio. A case study of 7 campus buildings undergoing several lighting, envelope and HVAC retrofits, and costing $3.6M to the university, is demonstrated in this thesis. The actual energy savings from the retrofits are compared with the modeled energy savings estimated using the proposed methodology.