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Transforming an
Occupied Office Into a
Zero Energy Building
BY HIROAKI TAKAI, ASSOCIATE MEMBER ASHRAE; KOJI TANAKA, P.E.JP, MEMBER
PHOTO CREDIT SHINKENCHIKU-SHA ASHRAE; KAZUKI WADA, MEMBER ASHRAE; HIROKI KAWAKAMI, MEMBER ASHRAE
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FIRST PLACE | 2019 ASHRAE TECHNOLOGY AWARD CASE STUDIES
The office renovation provides spaces suitable for concentration and communication. It also allows occupants to share
office equipment, terminals and other facilities, reducing plug loads, air conditioning and lighting, while enhancing
productivity.
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(Left) Vertical louvers that had been used before renovation were reattached to the outside surface after blinds and
single glass were installed to form a double skin. (Above) Daylighting is maximized through the renovated space.
(Right) Openings for natural ventilation are mounted at floor level.
May Jun July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr
2016 2017
40 400 418 417
0 0
–40 –400
417 403
–80 –800
–1200
–120 1,396
Consumption
–1600
–160 Generation (Before) Generation (Predicted) Generation (Actual)
Consumption (Before) Consumption (Predicted) Consumption (Actual) Before Predicted Actual
FIGURE 1 Total consumption of primary energy (May 2016 – April 2017) by month (left) and year (right).
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slightly more than 21% of the heat energy for heating) Radiant Panel
(Figure 3). Dessicant Air Conditioner 2°F
Parking Space
IAQ and Thermal Comfort Ground 1°F
Level P
Indoor Temperature and Humidity P P
To provide occupants with a comfortable thermal envi- Heat Pump Heat Exchanger
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2
Consumption Rates Before and After Renovation May
0.008
According to the surface tempera- 0.006
ture distribution (Figure 5), the tem- Feb
0.004
perature difference is small among 0.5 clo zone
0.002
the peripheral walls, the ceiling, and 0.000
the glass faces, and an ideal radiant 20 21 22 23
Figure 4 24 25 26 27 28 29
environment has been created. The Operative Temperature, °C
human-body exergy consumption FIGURE 4 Operative temperature and humidity in Aug., Feb., and May (ASHRAE Standard 55-2013 Graphic Method).
rate was reduced by the renovation.
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back will drop to appropriately 14 years, and when the Primary Energy: 9.76 MJ/kWh
Reference Building is modeled by Japanese Web Program
time required for payback from improving workplace
FIGURE 7 Comparison of primary energy consumption before and after renovation.
productivity is taken into account, the payback will drop
to approximately eight years.
in the renovation work. This is extremely difficult to
Environmental Impact achieve even for new building construction.
Carbon Dioxide Emissions
The amount of annual CO2 emissions from the building Conclusion
was 25.8 ton·CO2/yr. Carbon neutralization was effectively This is Japan’s first project that renovated an occupied
achieved since the amount of CO2 reduction due to creat- building and converted it to zero net energy. It also cov-
ing energy through photovoltaics was 26.7 ton·CO2/yr. ers power consumption through plug load. This project
both achieved zero energy and brought about benefits
Energy Consumption and Energy Balance Before and After Renovation such as improved comfort, improved workplace pro-
Primary energy consumption was reduced by 71% for ductivity, workstyle innovation, a healthy office, and a
the reference building. Since energy generation was resilient building.
equivalent to 30%, a net positive energy building of 1%
was achieved (Figure 7). Bibliography
TAKENAKA Corporation. 2018. TAKENAKA’s Green Buildings.
Shukuya, M. 2013. Exergy: Theory and Applications in the Built
Reduction in Waste Discharge Environment.
By 100% recycling through reduce, reuse and recycle Springer. Kazanci, O., et al. 2016. “Theoretical analysis of the
activities, we achieved “a final disposal ratio of 0%” performance of different cooling strategies with the concept of cool
exergy.” Building and Environment 100(May):102 – 113.
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