22/12/2025

Welcome to Our Sustainable Energy Laboratory

We are pleased to welcome you to the Sustainable Energy Laboratory following a period of significant upgrades and reorganization of our experimental facilities.
Over the past months, extensive work has been carried out to enhance our laboratory equipment and optimize the internal layout of the spaces. These improvements allow us to better manage experimental activities, accommodate new research infrastructures, and ensure higher efficiency, flexibility, and safety during testing campaigns.
The upgraded laboratory is now fully equipped to support advanced experimental research in building energy performance, HVAC systems, innovative materials, Hardware-in-the-Loop testing and Double Climatic Chambers. The reorganization of the spaces also enables smoother workflows and improved integration between different experimental setups.
We look forward to embarking on this new phase of research in an enhanced and more functional laboratory environment, and we wish you a happy New Year as we look ahead to exciting new research in the coming year!

1/9/2025

New Open-Access Publication in Energy & Buildings

We are happy to share that our new article, “Experimental assessment of wall thermal properties using an integrated response factor approach”, has been published in the journal Energy & Buildings.
In this work, we propose and validate an experimental methodology that enables the simultaneous characterization of both stationary and periodic thermal properties of wall systems within a single experimental setup. The proposed approach aims to simplify testing procedures, reduce experimental time, and improve consistency in the evaluation of building envelope thermal performance.
The study was carried out using an advanced hot-box experimental facility and demonstrates the accuracy and robustness of the method through numerical validation and experimental testing.
Co-authored by Maja Danovska, Davide Cassol, Ivan Giongo, and Alessandro Prada.
The article is open access and available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2025.116661

9/6/2025

Sustainable Energy Lab at EUBCE2025 – European Biomass Conference and Exhibition

Our research group participated in EUBCE 2025 (Valencia, Spain) with the contribution entitled: “Modeling and optimization of hybrid heat pump systems with biomass boilers for enhanced bioenergy integration in building heating.”
This study develops a detailed, MATLAB-based heating system (HS) model that simulates both heat pump cycles and biomass boilers using a quasi-physical approach. Unlike traditional performance-map models, which are limited to analyzing existing systems, this approach allows designers to assess how individual components and construction choices affect overall efficiency. Validated against manufacturer data and benchmarks, the model also incorporates operational logic to optimize generator selection and control biomass usage, balancing performance with emissions. This work provides a tool for designing more efficient and environmentally conscious heating systems, addressing the growing demand for sustainable energy solutions.

5/6/2025

Sustainable Energy Lab at CLIMA 2025 – REHVA HVAC World Congress

The Sustainable Energy Laboratory took part in CLIMA 2025, the REHVA HVAC World Congress held in Milan, presenting recent research on the interaction between building design, HVAC systems, and energy storage technologies.
The presented work focused on evaluating the effects of building and HVAC features on solar battery degradation in residential buildings, with particular attention to the role of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in enhancing building energy flexibility. BESS are a key enabling technology for increasing self-consumption, managing renewable energy intermittency, and supporting demand–supply balance in highly electrified buildings.
The study highlighted how proper HVAC sizing and control strategies can significantly influence battery degradation, lifetime, and overall system efficiency, reinforcing the importance of integrated design approaches to fully exploit the potential of energy storage systems.

16/4/2025

Sustainable Energy Lab Begins Testing of Phase Change Materials for High-Performance Building Envelopes

We’re excited to announce the start of experimental testing on advanced Phase Change Materials (PCMs) at the Sustainable Energy Lab, as part of a collaborative research effort between DICAM and DII at the University of Trento.
The tests are being carried out using our Hot-Box apparatus (Double Climatic Chamber), focusing on summer thermal performance and the potential of PCMs to enhance thermal comfort while reducing energy demand. The sample under investigation is a wall system composed of organic bricks, paired with an external layer of PCM prepared in multilayer structures: EPDM/NBR panels embedded with a shape- stabilized PCM.
PCMs could play a crucial role in modern building design by absorbing and storing heat during the day and releasing it during cooler periods, effectively flattening temperature peaks. This thermal buffering reduces heat flux into indoor spaces, which can significantly cut cooling loads, not only in warmer location, but also in the alpine region which is increasingly becoming a hot-spot of the global warming. This sets a difficult challenge in the building envelope optimization balancing both winter and summer thermal performance. Thanks to our sophisticated hot-box and a exhaustive data acquisition system, temperatures and heat fluxes are monitored in order to assess dynamic thermal properties of the analysed wall coupled with phase change materials. Our current focus is on understanding how PCM thickness affects the thermal behaviour of the wall, with an eye toward optimizing solutions tailored to different climatic zones. This research aims to support climate-responsive architecture and contribute to the development of more sustainable, energy-efficient buildings.
Stay tuned for updates as we continue this exciting journey toward smarter building materials and systems!