A double-skin facade makes it possible to gain irradiance through the glass on the outer side in summer, and to increase the temperature of air flowing in the cavity so as to induce the flow of air current. Therefore, a double-skin facade is able to reduce the load of the outer skin, which is delivered from the outside to the inside in summer, and to serve as a buffer space for the internal and external environments in winter, and thereby prevent heat loss from the building envelope. Theoretical analysis was conducted to review the heat effects of a double-skin facade and to evaluate the performance of a plan for indoor load reduction. This study carried out a field measurement of a building with a double-skin facade and then analyzed the thermal phenomenon occurring in between the outer skin of the outside and the skin of the inside facing the building surface, according to the effects of irradiance going into the double-skin facade cavity. In order to propose an indoor air conditioning energy reduction plan using preheated air through the double-skin facade, this study utilized a building simulation to be implemented on the target building and then analyzed the effects of the improvement plan for the double-skin facade. A simulation model was suggested that implemented the aforementioned airflow network and analyzed the ventilation performance and energy performance according to the application of alternative plans and thermal effect. To find the actual state of operation of the double-skin facade in winter, this study measured the target building. A solar chimney-based double-skin facade was analyzed in winter. As a result, with the application of a solar chimney and a rise in its height, the available capacity of relatively larger solar heat increased, and therefore the proposed plan had excellent performance in terms of heating energy saving. When the thermal effect was applied to the solar chimney, the heating energy use effect of the solar irradiance of the double-skin facade was larger. When thermal effect was applied to a three-floor solar chimney, the heating energy use increased to about 7.6 times higher than that of the original performance of the double-skin facade.

There is much research on zero energy buildings. In this paper, technologies and policies to improve the building energy efficiency of zero energy buildings are presented. The zero energy building certification system in Korea is introduced, and the evaluation is carried out based on the energy self-reliance rate that enables zero energy buildings. Zero energy buildings are able to minimize energy consumption due to the application of highly efficient building materials and equipment technology. In this research, to increase the prevalence of zero energy buildings in Korea, the authors propose a zero energy building technology package. Using a passive and active technology package, we confirmed the necessity and detailed requirements of each technology parameter. We analyze and classify Korean building material testing methods and performance standards, and propose passive and active technology packages, modules, material performance testing methods and minimum requirement performance standards. Finally, this study proposed a table presenting the test methods, standard and minimum value of performance. By these results, the authors confirmed the effectiveness and availability of passive and active technical packages.

To reduce the energy consumption in buildings, modern buildings are increasingly becoming airtight. In these structures, the outdoor air is supplied inside through mechanical ventilation systems, which are essential for ensuring comfortable indoor air quality. However, these systems consume a considerable amount of energy in buildings. One potential solution is using a thermal labyrinth system, which is buried underneath the building. It can pre-cool or pre-heat the outdoor air through heat transfer with the surrounding soil. In this research, a number of case studies were conducted to optimize the thermal labyrinth design. The optimized thermal labyrinth system was derived using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. In addition, operation algorithms were developed for the efficient operation of the thermal labyrinth system in buildings. The results indicated that there were five operation modes, and the thermal labyrinth could be operated for seven months of the year. The energy reduction effects of the thermal labyrinth system were analyzed and were assessed by the transient system simulation (TRNSYS) tool. A 12% reduction in the annual heating and cooling energy was achieved by applying the thermal labyrinth system.