Effect of Window Performance on Energy Conservation in Building in Bahrain

Abstract

Abstract : Bahrain is a group of islands in the Arabian Gulf with relatively high population density. The geographical nature of Bahrain facilitates the country with a hot and humid weather most of the times through out the year. This results into a high power demand for air conditioning purpose. When considering the annual growth of the electrical power demand in the country, it could be predicted that the country must install new power stations with more capacity than the existing stations to meet the power demand. The main objective of this study is to determine the electrical energy saving due to using advance glazing units in the residential buildings in Bahrain and to study the effect of this conservation measure on the consumers, the environment and the national economy. The study use Energy-10 computer software, for modeling and simulation of energy flow to examine measures to reduce the thermal load. For the calculation a typical metrological year (TMY) and a typical model of Bahrain traditional house are used. The measures examined are various types of glazing, building orientation & shape effect, shading and reducing infiltration. The analysis of the simulation show that the best position for rectangular house is to have its long side and maximum number of windows facing south direction, also with respect to the glazing type show that the reflective double glazing with vinyl frame is the best option with reduction in cooling load of 14.8%, it also reduce the life cycle cost by BD 782.000, in addition it reduce the carbon dioxide emission by about 8.7%.