Bioclimatic and Energy Performance by Eco-Efficiency in Buildings of the Metropolitan District of Quito, Ecuador

Urban development demands new forms of expansion, among the most common are vertical growth, which at the same time demands sustainable criteria. This form of growth has implemented the concept of eco-efficiency, which seeks sustainable urban development through the proposal of energy-efficient buildings with the use of limited resources. Within this concept, bioclimatic design is one of the most relevant aspects. However, it is important to quantify the energy improvements of the new proposals through a methodology that facilitates understanding. The aim of this study is to characterize the energy performance of buildings that obtained an increase in floors through the application of an eco-efficiency matrix. This proposal for the Metropolitan District of Quito considers sustainable criteria; nevertheless, this study focuses on bioclimatic parameters related to absorbance and reflectance, lighting comfort, and thermal comfort. For this purpose, four tower-type buildings with different numbers of stories were analyzed. From each tower, a typical apartment was evaluated, which constitutes the analysis unit for the study. In this sense, on-site temperature and relative humidity data were used to interpret the climatic behavior of the apartments. Modeling of the apartments based on geometrical and constructive characteristics, and energy parameters, was also performed. These models allowed to perform computational simulations, obtaining results of natural lighting, thermal comfort, and energy performance. A comparison was also made between the case studies and others with the same geometry but without energy efficiency strategies to determine energy consumption, CO2 emissions, and operating costs. The results showed that buildings that apply bioclimatic design strategies, as well as energy efficiency measures, reduce energy consumption by an average of 33% compared with buildings that do not apply these strategies.