Use of thermal insulation plasters to increase thermal performance in historical residential buildings: The case of Ankara Beypazarı

Energy is an important part of human life. The increasing energy need in the world and in our country affects the majority of our agenda. Factors such as high comfort standards, development of the industrial sector, and increasing population, which have emerged with developing technology, increase energy demand. In order to establish a balance between the increase in energy demand and production, the concept of energy efficiency has been turned to and studies have been carried out on this subject. Energy efficiency refers to the reduction of energy consumption without causing a decrease in life standards and service quality in buildings. In other words, it is aimed to reduce CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions by taking them under control. According to the data obtained, the building sector accounts for almost a quarter of CO2 emissions. The most important factor affecting this rate is heating. Since the ongoing construction sector will continue to increase the building stock, the construction sector is one of the most important factors in Turkey's achievement of the national climate protection targets determined in the National Contribution Declaration. National and international laws, regulations, and standards are being created to ensure energy efficiency. Energy efficiency studies in these legislations mostly include items for newly constructed buildings. Although standards have been tried to be set for studies to be conducted on historical structures, they have not yet been sufficiently explained. Historical structures constitute an important part of our cultural heritage and carry traces of the past. However, many historical structures are not used due to reasons such as natural factors, social changes and differentiation of functional requirements that they are exposed to over time. In this context, investigating the reasons why historical structures are not used is of critical importance in terms of increasing the effectiveness of restoration processes. Especially air conditioning and heating problems are among the important elements that affect the functionality of historical structures. Within the scope of this study, the problem related to thermal insulation in historical residential structures is focused on. In the study, thermal insulation plaster suggestions for historical residential structures were developed and their analyses were carried out in the İZODER TS 825 calculation program. The energy efficiency between the current situation and the situations where thermal insulation plaster is applied was determined. The research results reveal that an efficiency of up to 20% is provided in historical residential structures with the use of thermal insulation plasters. It is planned to contribute to the literature in terms of creating a basis for thermal performance studies that will reduce energy consumption and will not harm the unique identity of the structure.