Making buildings and factories more energy efficient
Louis Gosselin and his team are studying the impact of occupant behaviour on energy consumption in buildings and industrial plants and looking at materials and processes that can improve energy efficiency.
Project architects
Louis Gosselin, Eng.
Full Professor, Faculty of Science and Engineering (Department of Mechanical Engineering)
Affiliated with:
- Aluminum Research Centre (REGAL)
- Institut nordique du Québec (INQ)
- ndustrial Research Chair on Eco-responsible Wood Construction (CIRCERB)
Member of:
- American Society for Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and its Québec chapter
- FORAC
- CRISI
Team
Louis Gosselin works closely with students and colleagues from various disciplines on a number of different projects.
Partners
- Hydro-Québec
- Stace
- Oïkos
- Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada
- APN
- CIRCERB partners
- FORAC partners
Understanding human behaviour to improve buildings
Louis Gosselin’s work focuses on analyzing the impact occupants have on a building’s energy efficiency by comparing actual performance with pre-construction predictions. He uses hundreds of sensors to continuously collect large amounts of data on how much occupants open their windows and use hot water, electricity, and heating systems. His research aims to make human behaviour a key consideration in the building design stage.
Optimizing the aluminum smelting process
Aluminum production is one of Québec’s main industries and is a huge energy consumer. A whopping 15% to 20% of the electricity generated in the province goes to aluminum production. Louis Gosselin is working to better understand the materials, processes, and equipment used in aluminum smelters to help the industry become more energy efficient and reduce its energy intensity. He is also finding ways to reuse the waste heat they release into the environment.
Overcoming the North’s energy challenges
Many northern communities rely entirely on fossil fuels for their energy supply. Louis Gosselin is teaming up with community partners and researchers from multiple disciplines (geology, architecture, planning, etc.) to develop more energy-efficient Arctic buildings that take local needs, traditions, and lifestyles into account. Their work also contributes to designing energy infrastructure from renewable energy sources.
Louis Gosselin studied energy consumption in a multi-residential building in Cité Verte, Québec City’s first green neighbourhood.
Louis Gosselin is helping aluminum smelters improve their practices and reduce their energy consumption.
(Photo credit: Alcoa)
The team uses test chambers to develop and study innovative building envelopes in real conditions.
Louis Gosselin and his team are working with northern communities to develop energy-efficient buildings.
(Photo credit: Société d’habitation du Québec)
What’s next
Louis Gosselin and his team continue to find ways to improve energy efficiency in buildings and industrial plants by:
- Developing smart building envelopes that incorporate renewable materials like wood
- Simulating the complex phenomena involved in industrial processes
- Creating tools and technologies to improve factory energy efficiency
- Developing methods to design and control systems that take occupant behaviour into account
- Exploring the best ways to incorporate renewable energy sources into buildings