Impact of Weather and Occupancy on Energy Flexibility Potential of a Low-energy Building

The introduction of renewable energy sources in the energy market leads to instability of the energy system itself; therefore, new solutions to increase its flexibility will become more common in the coming years. In this context the implementation of energy flexibility in buildings is evaluated, using heat storage in the building mass. This study focuses on the influence of weather conditions and internal gains on the energy flexibility potential of a nearly-zero-energy building in Denmark. A specific six hours heating program is used to reach the scope. The main findings showed that the direct solar radiation and the outdoor temperature appeared to have the larger impact on the thermal flexibility of the building. Specifically, the energy flexibility potential of the examined apartment can ensure its thermal autonomy up to 200 h in a typical sunny winter day.