Impact of External Walls Insulation Location and Distribution on Energy Consumption in Buildings: A Case Study of Northern Cyprus

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the impact of walling in terms of insulation location and distribution on energy consumption in building. The number of seven wall assemblies with the same thermal mass varying in thermal insulation location and distribution was studied. Dynamic thermal simulation was employed using EDSL Tas software as the main research tool. Continuous (24 hours) air conditioning and Northern Cyprus climatic references were applied in Famagusta as well. The outcomes revealed that utilization of thermal insulation indicated significant improvement on the overall energy performance of the buildings. It also indicated a significance when locate insulation layer in the outside of the building external walls. This project is the first part of a much larger project that intends to propose the suitable wall construction in the case of Northern Cyprus which not only create a knowledge base of passive techniques in terms of walling but it also address areas of material, thickness and the hybrid technologies.