Potential Effects of Vacuum Insulating Glazing Application for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emission (GHGE) from Apartment Buildings in the Korean Capital Region

Abstract

Korea has set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) to levels 37% below the “business as usual (BAU)” level by 2030, and the building sector, in particular, aims to reduce GHGEs by 45,000,000-ton CO2-eq by 2020. In order to reach this goal, it is crucial to reduce GHGEs that result from energy consumption in apartment buildings, which account for approximately 65% of all buildings in the capital region where the population is concentrated. Moreover, as apartment buildings not only have high window-to wall area ratios, but also use insulating glazing (IG) with low thermal performance, an advanced window system with low heat transmittance (U-value), such as a concrete structure, is necessary for effective GHGE reduction. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the GHGE reduction effects from replacing existing IG vacuum insulating glazing (VIG) with low U-values in the apartment housing located in the capital region. The analysis revealed the possibility of a GHGE reduction by 45%–79% with the application of commercial VIG with U-values of 0.7 W/m2·K in lieu of the existing IG with U-values ranging from 1.2 to 3.3 W/m2·K for all apartment buildings located in the capital region. Furthermore, GHGEs could be reduced by 82%–93% by replacing the existing IG with VIG with U-values of 0.2 W/m2·K.