Cost Allocation Model for Net-Zero Energy Buildings under Community-Based Reward Penalty Mechanism

The introduction of financial incentives for net-zero energy building/community (ZEB/ZEC) is a potential strategy that facilitates the development of sustainable buildings. In this study, a reward-penalty mechanism (RPM) is firstly proposed for a community that aims to achieve the target of annual zero energy balance. In order to investigate the cost allocated for each building in the community, a cost allocation model by considering the load of these buildings and the levels of zero energy building achieved is further proposed, based on which four typical types of the model is selected and investigated. The economic performance of a building under the four types of allocation model is then compared for a community that consists of 20 family houses in Ireland. By considering the possible ZEB level ranges in each building, two Cases are conducted (Case 1 – the range is between 0.0 and 1.0; Case 2 – the range is between 0.5 and 1.0). The results show that the 1^st model is the simplest one that allocates cost evenly. By contrast, the cost of a building depends on its load in the 2^nd model and depends on the ZEB level it achieved in the 3^rd model, while it considers the two factors evenly in the 4^th model. The proposed cost allocation model is expected to provide a basic guide for the designers of financial incentives as well as experts in the fields of net-zero energy buildings.