Introduction
Household energy consumption is a socio-technical phenomenon , arising from interactions between people and technology ( Lutzenhiser 1993 ). In the case of households ’ thermal environment , the energy saving potential decreased under the update of residential building codes and progress of technology in China . The impact of occupant behaviour , however , has become increasingly significant . Occupant behaviour rather than household ’ s physical characteristics deserves more attention in energy efficiency . There might be great difference in energy consumption or carbon emission of the same household depending on user ’ s sustainable view and lifestyle . The promotion of occupant ’ s knowledge , motivation and value was the key factor in reduction of building carbon emission ( Chen et al . 2010 ).
In Germany the main factors influencing choice when purchasing a specific heating system have been identified and economic aspects are very important ( Decker et al . 2015 ). In China , there was a comprehensive survey of 1450 households in 2012 to identify the characteristics and potential driving forces of residential energy consumption . The results show that commercial energy is used mainly for space heating in urban areas and space heating and cooling patterns show a vast disparity in different climate zones . 40 percent of surveyed households use central heating systems . Individual heating meters are not widely used , so 92 percent of centrally heated households pay in accordance with the heated area or the dwelling ’ s room area ( Zheng et al . 2014 ). This means that household owner will not benefit economically from energy efficiency behaviour . This policy will not play an active role in encouraging the change of household lifestyle in energy saving .
About 75 percent of the energy consumed in the residential sector in the Netherlands is used for home heating . Investigation of household behaviour and its impact on the use of natural gas for home heating was carried out . Household behaviour and home characteristics prove to be the major determinants of energy use for house heating . The greatest savings can be attained by reducing the amount of energy ( mainly natural gas in the Netherlands ) used for home heating . Large differences are observed between households in the use of natural gas . These differences are related to the behaviour activities and lifestyle of the household members . Most energy use however is related to the usage of appliances and energy savings require changes of behaviours and daily routines e . g . lowering the thermostat at night , closing curtains , using fewer rooms and using ventilation systems sparingly ( Verhallen et al . 1981 ). In the examined the relationship between homeowners ’ attitudes and their winter gas consumption , the results confirmed that thermal comfort was the most important determinant of household energy use . Residents ’ need or desire for comfort can have a substantial impact on consumption because space heating comprise the biggest components of residential energy consumption . It must be remembered that energy consumption is not behaviour ; it is a consequence of behaviour primarily thermostat setting in the case of residential energy use ( Becker et al . 1981 ).
Winter heating energy consumption is a large part of the household ’ s total energy consumption in cold zones of China . Compared to the centralized heating system which has been widely used in the north of China , the application of a decentralized household gas heating boilers with more customized functions can be operated according to the demands of occupant and lead to better energy efficiency . Previous research has shown that , household heating gas consumption is 7 ~ 9m3 / ( 100m2 · d ) in Dalian , Shenyang and Harbin , cities of severe cold climate zone ( Qian et al . 2005 ), and 7.21Nm3 / ( m2 · a ) in Beijing , city of cold zone ( Hua 2003 ). This provide the general description of household gas consumption , however there are no detail study currently on household
90 ZEMCH 2015 | International Conference | Bari - Lecce , Italy
Introduction
Household energy consumption is a socio-technical phenomenon, arising from interactions between people and technology (Lutzenhiser 1993).In the case of households’ thermal environment,
the energy saving potential decreased under the update of residential building codes and progress of technology in China. The impact of occupant behaviour, however, has become increasingly significant. Occupant behaviour rather than household’s physical characteristics deserves more
attention in energy efficiency. There might be great difference in energy consumption or carbon
emission of the same household depending on user’s sustainable view and lifestyle. The promotion of occupant’s knowledge, motivation and value was the key factor in reduction of building
carbon emission (Chen et al. 2010).
In Germany the main factors influencing choice when purchasing a specific heating system have
been identified and economic aspects are very important (Decker et al. 2015). In China, there was
a comprehensive survey of 1450 households in 2012 to identify the characteristics and potential
driving forces of residential energy consumption. The results show that commercial energy is
used mainly for space heating in urban areas and space heating and cooling patterns show a vast
disparity in different climate zones.40 percent of surveyed households use central heating systems. Individual heating meters are not widely used, so 92 percent of centrally heated households
pay in accordance with the heated area or the dwelling’s room area (Zheng et al. 2014).This means
that household owner will not benefit economically from energy efficiency behaviour. This policy
will not play an active role in encouraging the change of household lifestyle in energy saving.
About 75 percent of the energy consumed in the residential sector in the Netherlands is used for
home heating. Investigation of household behaviour and its impact on the use of natural gas for
home heating was carried out. Household behaviour and home characteristics prove to be the
major determinants of energy use for house heating. The greatest savings can be attained by
reducing the amount of energy (mainly natural gas in the Netherlands) used for home heating.
Large differences are observed between households in the use of natural gas. These differences are related to the behaviour activities and lifestyle of the household members. Most energy
use however is related to the usage of appliances and energy savings require changes of behaviours and daily routines e.g. lowering the thermostat at night, closing curtains, using fewer rooms
and using ventilation systems sparingly (Verhallen et al.1981).In the examined the relationship
between homeowners’ attitudes and their winter gas consumption, the results confirmed that
thermal comfort was the most important determinant of household energy use. Residents’ need
or desire for comfort can have a substantial impact on consumption because space heating comprise the biggest components of residential energy consumption. It must be remembered that
energy consumption is not behaviour; it is a consequence of behaviour primarily thermostat setting in the case of residential energy use (Becker et al. 1981).
Winter heating energy consumption is a large part of the household’s total energy consumption
in cold zones of China. Compared to the centralized heating system which has been widely used
in the north of China, the application of a decentralized household gas heating boilers with more
customized functions can be operated according to the demands of occupant and lead to better energy efficiency. Previous research has shown that, household heating gas consumption is
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