Selection of refurbishment construction solutions to improve the indoor environmental quality and sustainability of buildings

Abstract

Building rehabilitation is essential to achieve the targets defined by the EPBD recast regarding energy efficiency, reduction of carbon emissions and use of on-site renewable energy sources. Besides the energy efficiency the Indoor Environmental Quality of Buildings (IEQ) and environmental impact must also be considered when planning a refurbishment project. Thus to propose an effective building rehabilitation is necessary select the adequate construction solutions taking into account their impact on the energy performance, thermal and acoustic comfort, indoor air quality and environmental impact of the building. In this work a multi-criteria decision analysis method, ELECTRE III, is applied to balance all these aspect, during the design phase of a refurbishment project, in order to assist the design team on the selection of construction solutions. Throughout the multi-criteria analysis performed, it was possible to verify that the rehabilitation solutions with lower embodied energy were the best refurbishment options.