Energy-saving, economic and environmental benefits analysis of cool roofs and green roofs for retail buildings in America

Research Article
Open access

Energy-saving, economic and environmental benefits analysis of cool roofs and green roofs for retail buildings in America

Pengfei He 1*
  • 1 The 16th Dormitory of Engineering Department of Wuhan University    
  • *corresponding author 15586655000@163.com
Published on 7 November 2023 | https://doi.org/10.54254/2755-2721/25/20230771
ACE Vol.25
ISSN (Print): 2755-273X
ISSN (Online): 2755-2721
ISBN (Print): 978-1-83558-071-4
ISBN (Online): 978-1-83558-072-1

Abstract

Green roofs and cool roofs are considered to improve energy efficiency, and provide economic benefits, energy-saving benefits, environmental benefits for the traditional grey roofs. Some national and local standards have analysed and recommended these technologies in existing building renovations, but their research subjects were mostly office or residential buildings, which didn’t include the evaluation and analysis of specific roof renovations in different thermal zones in the United States. This paper conducted a 40-year life cycle cost analysis of retail buildings’ roofs in 16 cities across 8 different thermal zones in the United States. LCCA found that cool roofs showed a positive life cycle NPV in all cities, while green roofs showed a negative NPV. This article also analysed and compared the environmental benefits of retail buildings’ roofs in 16 cities, and calculated the emission reductions that they can bring to power plants. This paper also selected retail buildings’ roofs from 8 representative cities in 8 different thermal zones for energy savings and cost savings analysis. The results show that decision-makers can transform ordinary roofs into green roofs or cool roofs according to the characteristics of each thermal zone, combined with energy-saving benefits, economic benefits, environmental benefits and other factors, which is conducive to the implementation of new specifications.

Keywords:

green roof, cool roof, life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA), net present value (NPV), emission savings

He,P. (2023). Energy-saving, economic and environmental benefits analysis of cool roofs and green roofs for retail buildings in America. Applied and Computational Engineering,25,242-253.
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References

[1]. China Association of Building Energy Efficiency, “China Building Energy Research Report,” p. 73, 2016, [Online]. Available: http://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-20170710-1/report-20170710-1

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[7]. Y. He, H. Yu, A. Ozaki, and N. Dong, “Thermal and energy performance of green roof and cool roof: A comparison study in Shanghai area,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 267, p. 122205, Sep. 2020, doi: 10.1016/J.JCLEPRO.2020.122205.

[8]. G. B. Cavadini and L. M. Cook, “Green and cool roof choices integrated into rooftop solar energy modelling,” Appl. Energy, vol. 296, p. 117082, Aug. 2021, doi: 10.1016/J.APENERGY.2021.117082.

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Cite this article

He,P. (2023). Energy-saving, economic and environmental benefits analysis of cool roofs and green roofs for retail buildings in America. Applied and Computational Engineering,25,242-253.

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The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

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About volume

Volume title: Proceedings of the 2023 International Conference on Functional Materials and Civil Engineering

ISBN:978-1-83558-071-4(Print) / 978-1-83558-072-1(Online)
Editor:Bhupesh Kumar
Conference website: https://www.conffmce.org/
Conference date: 26 August 2023
Series: Applied and Computational Engineering
Volume number: Vol.25
ISSN:2755-2721(Print) / 2755-273X(Online)

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References

[1]. China Association of Building Energy Efficiency, “China Building Energy Research Report,” p. 73, 2016, [Online]. Available: http://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-20170710-1/report-20170710-1

[2]. S. Nadel et al., “An Introduction to U.S. Policies to Improve Building Efficiency,” Am. Counc. an Energy- Effic. Econ., no. 202, 2013.

[3]. B. Ashtari, M. Yeganeh, M. Bemanian, and B. Vojdani Fakhr, “A Conceptual Review of the Potential of Cool Roofs as an Effective Passive Solar Technique: Elaboration of Benefits and Drawbacks,” Front. Energy Res., vol. 9, no. October, pp. 1–18, 2021, doi: 10.3389/fenrg.2021.738182.

[4]. D. Z. Chen Hui, Ren Jun, “The function and development status of roof greening at home and abroad,” 2007.

[5]. S. Chowdhury, Y. Hamada, and K. Shabbir Ahmed, “Indoor heat stress and cooling energy comparison between green roof (GR) and non-green roof (n-GR) by simulations for labor intensive factories in the tropics,” Int. J. Sustain. Built Environ., vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 449–462, Dec. 2017, doi: 10.1016/J.IJSBE.2017.09.001.

[6]. D. Shi, Y. Gao, R. Guo, R. Levinson, Z. Sun, and B. Li, “Life cycle assessment of white roof and sedum-tray garden roof for office buildings in China,” Sustain. Cities Soc., vol. 46, no. December 2018, p. 101390, 2019, doi: 10.1016/j.scs.2018.12.018.

[7]. Y. He, H. Yu, A. Ozaki, and N. Dong, “Thermal and energy performance of green roof and cool roof: A comparison study in Shanghai area,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 267, p. 122205, Sep. 2020, doi: 10.1016/J.JCLEPRO.2020.122205.

[8]. G. B. Cavadini and L. M. Cook, “Green and cool roof choices integrated into rooftop solar energy modelling,” Appl. Energy, vol. 296, p. 117082, Aug. 2021, doi: 10.1016/J.APENERGY.2021.117082.

[9]. J. Sproul, M. P. Wan, B. H. Mandel, and A. H. Rosenfeld, “Economic comparison of white, green, and black flat roofs in the United States,” Energy Build., vol. 71, pp. 20–27, 2014, doi: 10.1016/j.enbuild.2013.11.058.

[10]. J. Yang et al., “Green and cool roofs’ urban heat island mitigation potential in tropical climate,” Sol. Energy, vol. 173, pp. 597–609, Oct. 2018, doi: 10.1016/J.SOLENER.2018.08.006.

[11]. M. Zinzi and S. Agnoli, “Cool and green roofs. An energy and comfort comparison between passive cooling and mitigation urban heat island techniques for residential buildings in the Mediterranean region,” Energy Build., vol. 55, pp. 66–76, Dec. 2012, doi: 10.1016/J.ENBUILD.2011.09.024.

[12]. O. Prakash, A. Ahmad, A. Kumar, S. M. Mozammil Hasnain, A. Zare, and P. Verma, “Thermal performance and energy consumption analysis of retail buildings through daylighting: A numerical model with experimental validation,” Mater. Sci. Energy Technol., vol. 4, pp. 367–382, Jan. 2021, doi: 10.1016/J.MSET.2021.08.008.

[13]. “Analysis of Building Envelope Construction in 2003 CBECS,” no. June, 2007.

[14]. K. Gowri, D. Winiarski, and R. Jarnagin, “Infiltration Modeling Guidelines for Commercial Building Energy Analysis,” 2009.

[15]. H. Cho, K. Gowri, and B. Liu, “Energy Saving Impact of ASHRAE 90.1 Vestibule Requirements: Modeling of Air Infiltration through Door Openings,” 2010.

[16]. S. Goel et al., “Enhancements to ASHRAE Standard 90.1 Prototype Building Models,” 2014

[17]. “EMS Plant Loop Override Control.” https://cn.gii.tw/report/act1128090-green-roof-market-growth-future-prospects.html (accessed May 22, 2023).

[18]. “Prototype Building Models | Building Energy Codes Program.” https://www.energycodes. gov/prototype-building-models (accessed Jun. 10, 2023).

[19]. “Energy prices in the U.S. - statistics & facts | Statista.” https://www.statista.com/ topics/6337/energy-prices-in-the-us/?kw=&crmtag=adwords&gclid=EAIaIQobChMInIqnp5rN_wIVwcOWCh3D0wZnEAAYASAAEgIHcPD_BwE#topicOverview (accessed Jun. 19, 2023).

[20]. “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).” https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/index.php#electricity (accessed Jun. 25, 2023).