ECO-FRIENDLY MATERIALS FOR THE ENERGY RETROFIT OF EXISTING BUILDINGS

Today is widely recognized that the main cause of CO2 production and of non-renewable energy consumptions in Europe is due to the building field. For this reason, to improve the energy performance of existing houses through an energy retrofit action (adapting their performances to those required by regulations) is an important strategy to reduce energy consumptions since they are much more than new ones, also representing an economic opportunity. In particular, an important approach in the reducing energy needs consists in the thermal insulation of the envelope, through the application of innovative technologies and materials. The paper will present the result of a research about the possibility to carry out different energy retrofit measurements, with different economic implications: it can be possible to evaluate the effectiveness of strategies proposed by examining a typical house of Palermo and measuring the improvements obtainable through the application of a new eco-friendly panel on the external walls. The new panel, made with scraps of pruning of prickly pear crops, has been patented (n. 1402131) by using the cladodes of Opuntia Ficus-Indica, a widespread plant in the Mediterranean Basin, according to the principles of sustainable and eco-friendly development. The eco-friendly panel has shown thermal performance that can be considered satisfying and competitive with those of other commercially available panels, helping, at the same time, to the waste disposal: the nature of the plant makes the material highly recyclable and easily disposable. The study has been carried out by comparing the thermal and dynamics improvements obtainable adding different panels on the external walls of the house. The final output will show the results, by assessing the energy and economic savings after the retrofit interventions