The heat is on

Environmental technologies are now well-entrenched in most branches of industry, with a vast array of devices designed to cut electricity generation and improve energy efficiency.

But one of the largest power users are the lighting, heating and ventilation systems used by buildings themselves. The building sector is now showing an increased interest in technologies which can reduce this power consumption.

This interest is being fuelled by the European Commission, with the EU’s Energy Performance Directive due to come into force in January 2006. Designed to minimise the use of energy for systems within buildings, the directive requires heating, cooling and ventilation systems ‘to be designed and built so that the energy required in use will be low’. The energy usage will be subject to inspection and certification.

Much of the research on heating systems focuses on combining heating with power generation, in a domestic version of combined heat and power (CHP) generation, according to Doug Harris, a specialist in environmental building techniques at Heriot-Watt University’s department of building, engineering and surveying.