Proposal of a survey-based methodology for the determination of the energy consumption in the residential sector

European and national policies have encouraged the investigation of solutions for the reduction of the energy demand and the improvement of energy efficiency. In particular, in the residential sector the knowledge of actual energy uses represents a key aspect in order to achieve the goals set by European Directives. In such a context, a numerical model, implemented in Excel® and Matlab®, was developed in order to assess the energy consumption for space heating, DHW and cooking in the residential sector, based on a statistical dataset including 20,000 records that was collected by ISTAT in the context of a survey on the energy consumption of Italian families during year 2013. The space heating model is based on the definition and evaluation of classes of dwelling-types, function of the geometrical and thermo-physical properties of the dwellings and of the occupants’ uses. The energy consumption for DHW and cooking are calculated on a record per record basis according to a Standard-based approach. The present study describes the methodology and the main results of the model, which have been compared with the data of the ISTAT survey for each energy use and type of fuel. A detailed validation of the model is currently carried out based on the ISTAT survey.