IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v16y2024i5p2028-d1348949.html

A Roof Refurbishment Strategy to Improve the Sustainability of Building Stock: A Case Study

Author

Listed:
  • María J. Ruá

    (Mechanical Engineering and Construction Department, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castellón de la Plana, Spain)

  • Ángel M. Pitarch

    (Mechanical Engineering and Construction Department, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castellón de la Plana, Spain)

  • Inés Arín

    (Mechanical Engineering and Construction Department, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castellón de la Plana, Spain)

  • Lucía Reig

    (Mechanical Engineering and Construction Department, Universitat Jaume I, 12071 Castellón de la Plana, Spain)

Abstract

The aging of the building stock in most cities highlights the relevance of refurbishment to achieve sustainability. Current refurbishment practices are often short-sighted and do not encompass holistic strategies beyond energy saving. This research study aims to analyze the factors involved in roof refurbishment versus current decision-making determinants. The objective is to identify the barriers that hinder their implementation and to find arguments to support roof renovations. A multicriteria analysis, which considered environmental, economic and performance factors, was employed to select optimal roof refurbishment solutions. This study evaluated five solutions. With interviews held with construction professionals and a survey of experts and homeowners, the preferences and criteria for making decisions about roof refurbishments were analyzed. Simulation tools were then used to estimate the energy savings, payback periods and environmental impact for a representative building in the study area. The results were extrapolated to a neighborhood level. The results highlight the importance of considering factors, such as weight, cost and user preferences when selecting suitable refurbishment solutions. The findings not only estimate the potential energy savings and carbon emission reductions in the area but also underscore the relevance of roof refurbishments for prolonging a building’s life span to contribute to sustainability.

Suggested Citation

  • María J. Ruá & Ángel M. Pitarch & Inés Arín & Lucía Reig, 2024. "A Roof Refurbishment Strategy to Improve the Sustainability of Building Stock: A Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-18, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:5:p:2028-:d:1348949
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/5/2028/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/5/2028/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bevilacqua, Piero & Bruno, Roberto & Arcuri, Natale, 2020. "Green roofs in a Mediterranean climate: energy performances based on in-situ experimental data," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 1414-1430.
    2. Mario Maiolo & Behrouz Pirouz & Roberto Bruno & Stefania Anna Palermo & Natale Arcuri & Patrizia Piro, 2020. "The Role of the Extensive Green Roofs on Decreasing Building Energy Consumption in the Mediterranean Climate," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-13, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Natale Arcuri & Manuela De Ruggiero & Francesca Salvo & Raffaele Zinno, 2020. "Automated Valuation Methods through the Cost Approach in a BIM and GIS Integration Framework for Smart City Appraisals," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-16, September.
    2. Behrouz Pirouz & Natale Arcuri & Behzad Pirouz & Stefania Anna Palermo & Michele Turco & Mario Maiolo, 2020. "Development of an Assessment Method for Evaluation of Sustainable Factories," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-15, February.
    3. Ángel Pitarch & María José Ruá & Lucía Reig & Inés Arín, 2020. "Contribution of Roof Refurbishment to Urban Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-20, October.
    4. Edoardo De Cristo & Luca Evangelisti & Leone Barbaro & Roberto De Lieto Vollaro & Francesco Asdrubali, 2025. "A Systematic Review of Green Roofs’ Thermal and Energy Performance in the Mediterranean Region," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(10), pages 1-38, May.
    5. Behrouz Pirouz & Stefania Anna Palermo & Mario Maiolo & Natale Arcuri & Patrizia Piro, 2020. "Decreasing Water Footprint of Electricity and Heat by Extensive Green Roofs: Case of Southern Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-16, December.
    6. Bevilacqua, Piero, 2021. "The effectiveness of green roofs in reducing building energy consumptions across different climates. A summary of literature results," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    7. Sinem Yıldırım & Çimen Özburak & Özge Özden, 2023. "Green Roofs, Vegetation Types, Impact on the Thermal Effectiveness: An Experimental Study in Cyprus," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-19, February.
    8. Bin Li & Weihong Guo & Xiao Liu & Yuqing Zhang & Peter John Russell & Marc Aurel Schnabel, 2021. "Sustainable Passive Design for Building Performance of Healthy Built Environment in the Lingnan Area," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-22, August.
    9. Mihalakakou, Giouli & Souliotis, Manolis & Papadaki, Maria & Menounou, Penelope & Dimopoulos, Panayotis & Kolokotsa, Dionysia & Paravantis, John A. & Tsangrassoulis, Aris & Panaras, Giorgos & Giannako, 2023. "Green roofs as a nature-based solution for improving urban sustainability: Progress and perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    10. Roberto Bruno & Francesco Nicoletti & Giorgio Cuconati & Stefania Perrella & Daniela Cirone, 2020. "Performance Indexes of an Air-Water Heat Pump Versus the Capacity Ratio: Analysis by Means of Experimental Data," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-19, July.
    11. Behrouz Pirouz & Sina Shaffiee Haghshenas & Behzad Pirouz & Sami Shaffiee Haghshenas & Patrizia Piro, 2020. "Development of an Assessment Method for Investigating the Impact of Climate and Urban Parameters in Confirmed Cases of COVID-19: A New Challenge in Sustainable Development," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-17, April.
    12. Yuanfan Zheng & Liang Chen & Haipeng Zhao, 2024. "Assessing Building Energy Savings and the Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Potential of Green Roofs in Shanghai Using a GIS-Based Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-23, September.
    13. Jon Laurenz & Jone Belausteguigoitia & Ander de la Fuente & Daniel Roehr, 2021. "Green Urban (RE) Generation: A Research and Practice Methodology to Better Implement Green Urban Infrastructure Solutions," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-24, December.
    14. Edson R. Marciotto & Marcos Vinicius Bueno de Morais, 2021. "Energetics of Urban Canopies: A Meteorological Perspective," J, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-19, October.
    15. Jerzy Szyszka & Piero Bevilacqua & Roberto Bruno, 2020. "An Innovative Trombe Wall for Winter Use: The Thermo-Diode Trombe Wall," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-15, May.
    16. Qingwen, Wang & XiaoHui, Chu & Chao, Yu, 2024. "Modeling of heat gain through green roofs utilizing artificial intelligence techniques," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 303(C).
    17. Evola, Gianpiero & Costanzo, Vincenzo & Infantone, Marco & Marletta, Luigi, 2021. "Typical-year and multi-year building energy simulation approaches: A critical comparison," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 219(C).
    18. Luca Evangelisti & Claudia Guattari & Gianluca Grazieschi & Marta Roncone & Francesco Asdrubali, 2020. "On the Energy Performance of an Innovative Green Roof in the Mediterranean Climate," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-18, October.
    19. Elena Korol & Natalia Shushunova, 2022. "Analysis and Valuation of the Energy-Efficient Residential Building with Innovative Modular Green Wall Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-13, June.
    20. Luca Evangelisti & Edoardo De Cristo & Roberto De Lieto Vollaro, 2025. "In Situ Winter Performance and Annual Energy Assessment of an Ultra-Lightweight, Soil-Free Green Roof in Mediterranean Climate: Comparison with Traditional Roof Insulation," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-20, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:5:p:2028-:d:1348949. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.