ABSTRACT
Buildings account today for about 40% of final energy consumption worldwide, and they are responsible for about one-third of overall CO2 emissions (36% in Europe, 39% in the USA, about 20% in China). Figure 18.1.1 describes the distribution of end energy consumption in the European Union (EU). Especially in urban structures, building energy consumption is typically twice as high as transport, e.g. approximately factor 2.2 in London. The energy consumption of buildings consists of heating, cooling, ventilation, lighting and other electrical appliances. Solar energy contributes to the supply of heating energy by passive solar gains, to the reduction of electrical lighting consumption by “daylighting’’ (i.e. illumination of indoor spaces) and contributes to heating, cooling and electricity supply by active solar components such as solar thermal collectors or photovoltaic modules.
