Building envelope and conditioning unit interaction: a case study.

The building may be seen as a "container" of a conditioned environment where man comfortably carries out a number of activities. The achievement of acceptable indoor environmental conditions depends on the way such a container is realized. In other words, the whole building, which is designed to create a space in which man can suitably carry out certain activities, contributes with all its parts to controlling the desired environmental conditions. Nevertheless, some of its parts, more than others, affect the environmental quality and control, namely: the envelope and the air-conditioning unit (HVAC). The paper presents the results of the experimentation carried out on different types of boiler systems combined with different types of heating terminals in order to determine the best combination, also considering the influence of the systems on the indoor environment. The experiments were carried out considering two types of envelope. The methods for the evaluation of the behaviour of the systems is also presented. The analysis has been carried out by using a three-floor experimental building conceived and realized by /CITE with the aim of characterizing and comparing the various systems under real working conditions.