Analysis of the impact of emergency energy saving measures on a sample of Italian public school buildings

In Italy, the worsening of the energy crisis and the rise in fuel and electricity prices since winter 2022 have made even more urgent the need to improve the energy performance of the local building stock. Faced with this situation, several public authorities recommended general energy-saving operation measures for buildings HVAC systems to be implemented in the public building stock, aiming at reducing energy consumption and producing economic savings in the short term. Specifically, in the Alpine city of Bolzano, Italy, a set of basic operation measures for buildings heating systems control and natural ventilation rate reduction were recommended. However, these measures were often implemented regardless of the buildings specific features with the risk of deeply worsening the indoor environmental quality ( IEQ ). Therefore, in this context, this work aims at assessing the impacts on heating energy consumption, IEQ and learning performance in a set of four public school buildings of dated and recent construction in the municipality of Bolzano in the heating season 2022–2023, under the implementation of the operation control measures provided by local authorities. Furthermore, it is intended to verify whether in the fall-winter season 2023–2024, after the lifting of the energy-saving recommendations, any best practice for an efficient operation of buildings energy systems has been maintained. Thus, heating consumption, thermal comfort and indoor air quality ( IAQ ) in the heating season 2023–2024 have been analysed and compared with the ones of 2022–2023. Results show how basic operation strategies, if not well designed, may cause a deep worsening of the indoor environmental conditions and occupants’ task performance. Furthermore, this work provides a good overview of the way buildings with different features and construction period respond to basic operation control measures. • Low-cost operation control measures can produce significant heating energy savings. • Inadequate operation control measures may worsen the indoor environmental quality. • In absence of mandatory energy-saving requirements, thermal comfort is prioritised. • Poorly insulated buildings show often inadequate thermal environments. • Poor indoor air quality negatively impacts students’ learning performance.