ESP-r

ESP-r [69] is a general purpose, multi-domain-building thermal, interzone airflow, intrazone air movement, HVAC systems, and electrical power flow-simulation environment. It supports CFD models for analyzing air quality and comfort calculations. By addressing all design and systems' aspects simultaneously, ESP-r permits the investigation of complex relationships among building form, envelope, airflow, systems, and control. It employs a finite volume conservation approach in which a problem is transformed into a system of algebraic transfer equations of dependent variables (energy, mass, momentum, etc.), which are then integrated at successive time steps with respect to climate, occupant, and control system conditions. It comprises a central Project Manager providing navigation through support databases, a simulator, performance assessment tools, and a variety of third party applications for CAD, visualization, and report generation.

Hoseggen et al. [70] applied ESP-r to conclude whether a double-skin façade should be applied to the east façade of an office building in Trodheim, Norway, towards the reduction of heating demand. The paper also demonstrates how a double-skin façade with controllable windows and hatches for natural ventilation can be implemented in the simulation program. Bourgeois et al. [71] studied the occupancy behavioral patterns on building energy consumption using ESP-r. They demonstrated the implementation and integration of a sub-hourly occupancy-based control model that enabled advanced behavioral models. It was shown that building occupants seeking daylighting can lower the primary energy consumption by more than 40% compared to occupants relying on constant artificial lighting. The software (among others) has been employed to develop guidelines for seasonal energy consumption for heating and ventilation based on short periods of heat demand measurements and to determine the optimal duration of the measurement period [72]. Bonetti and Kokogiannakis [73] revealed a fine performance of the software in the framework of exploring exergy potential of seven different building wall types for utilizing nocturnal ventilation as a passive cooling strategy. Eller et al. [74] used the software to explore the potential of a bio-based phase change material (PCM) applied to construction components regarding the impacts on thermal performance under several climates, and determined the associated potential of energy savings.
