On the Retrofit of Existing Buildings with Aerogel Panels: Energy, Environmental and Economic Issues

Among the super insulating materials, aerogel has interesting properties: very low thermal conductivity and density, resistance to high temperatures and transparency. It is a rather expensive material, but incentives in the field can improve its economic attractiveness. Starting from this, the therm...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Energies (Basel) 2021-03, Vol.14 (5), p.1276
Main Authors: Marrone, Paola, Asdrubali, Francesco, Venanzi, Daniela, Orsini, Federico, Evangelisti, Luca, Guattari, Claudia, De Lieto Vollaro, Roberto, Fontana, Lucia, Grazieschi, Gianluca, Matteucci, Paolo, Roncone, Marta
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
aerogel
Buildings
Case studies
Climate change
Cost control
dynamic simulation
economic analysis
Economics
Emissions
Energy conservation
Energy consumption
Energy demand
Environmental management
Heat conductivity
Heat resistance
High temperature
Insulation
LCA
Net present value
Polyethylene terephthalate
Probability distribution
Retrofitting
Tax credits
Taxation
thermal behavior
Thermal conductivity
Thermal resistance
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Summary:Among the super insulating materials, aerogel has interesting properties: very low thermal conductivity and density, resistance to high temperatures and transparency. It is a rather expensive material, but incentives in the field can improve its economic attractiveness. Starting from this, the thermal behavior of a test building entirely insulated with aerogel panels was investigated through an extended experimental campaign. A dynamic simulation model of a case study building was generated to better comprehend the energy savings obtained through aerogel in terms of energy demand over a whole year. The investigation was completed by computing the carbon and energy payback times of various retrofit strategies through a life cycle assessment approach, as well as by a cost-benefit analysis through a probabilistic financial framework. Compared to conventional insulation materials, aerogel is characterized by a higher energy and carbon payback time, but it guarantees better environmental performance in the whole life cycle. From an economic-financial perspective, the aerogel retrofit is the best in the current tax incentive scenario. However, due to its higher lump-sum investment, aerogel’s net present value is very sensitive to tax deductions, and it is riskier than the best comparable materials in less favorable tax scenarios.
ISSN:1996-1073
1996-1073
DOI:10.3390/en14051276