Comparisons of Thermal Performance and Energy Consumption of Facades Used in Commercial Buildings

Lawrence D. Carbary, Valerie Hayez, Andreas Wolf, Mahabir Bhandari

Concerns over the growth of emissions and global warming in the developed world have been rising steadily over the past few years. Buildings hold the key to obtain and maintain long term energy savings and sustainability, as the building sector accounts for a significant percentage of the energy usage today.

It is important to assess energetic performance of buildings in order to provide owners and specifiers economic data allowing the choice of an appropriate renovation program
for an existing building or provide a comparison for systems selection for new constructions. Choosing energy efficient fenestration systems can play an important role in minimizing energy costs (heating and lighting) for the building.

This study investigates the energy consumption of commercial buildings with varying climatic conditions and materials. Fenestration systems evaluated are mechanically fixed
glazed curtainwall systems compared to Silicone Structural Glazed system. Simulations are performed using Therm and Window software from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories and EFEN software from Carli Inc.

Results show that low U values in combination with low air infiltration rates provide the lowest energy consumption resulting in best performance.

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The Authors

	Mr. Lawrence Carbary Industry Scientist Dow Corning Lawrence D. Carbary is an Associate Industry Scientist for Dow Corning Corporation in the Construction Industry. He graduated from Michigan Technological University in July 1982 with a bachelors degre... Read more
	Ms. Valerie Hayez Ir Dow Corning Read more
	Dr. Andreas Wolf Scientist, New Business Development Dow Corning GmbH Dr. Andreas Wolf is a Scientist and New Opportunity Development Specialist for the Global Construction Industry at Dow Corning, Wiesbaden, Germany. He has lectured intensively in Europe, North Amer... Read more
	Dr. Mahabir Bhandari Senior Energy Analyst carli, Inc. Read more