Energy, cost, and CO 2 emission comparison between radiant wall panel systems and radiator systems

TL;DR

This study compares the energy, cost, and CO2 emissions of radiant wall panel systems versus traditional radiators, finding that insulated radiant panels are most efficient but also most costly.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive comparison of four heating systems using simulation, highlighting the efficiency and emissions benefits of insulated radiant wall panels over radiators.

Findings

Insulated radiant panels (PH-WI) are most energy-efficient.

Radiator systems without insulation (RH-WOI) consume the most energy.

Insulated radiant panels require higher initial investment.

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to evaluate the possibility of application or replacement of radiators with low-temperature radiant panels. This paper shows the comparison results of operations of 4 space heating systems: the low-temperature radiant panel system without any additional thermal insulation of external walls (PH-WOI), the low-temperature radiant panel system with additional thermal insulation of external walls (PH-WI), the radiator system without any additional thermal insulation of external walls (the classical heating system) (RH-WOI), and the radiator system with additional thermal insulation of external walls (RH-WI). The operation of each system is simulated by software EnergyPlus. The investigation shows that the PH-WI gives the best results. The RH-WOI has the largest energy consumption, and the largest pollutant emission. However, the PH-WI requires the highest investment.