Program 5.8 - European and International Cooperation;
Sub-program 5.8.1 - SUPPORT Awarding participation in Horizon 2020 - Institutions

Energy positive buildings based on integrated renewables

Implementation period

29.01.2024 – 15.07.2026

Financed by

UEFISCDI through program 5.8, subprogram 5.8.1.

Implementation team

More details here.

Project coordinator

Technical University of Cluj-Napoca

Project Director

Assoc. Prof.. dr. eng. Mihaela CREȚU

Scintifical and technical report of the project

First year here.
Second year here.

Short description of the awarded project:

Title: Energy positive buildings based on integrated renewables

Project number: 52PHE/2024.

Official website: https://renplushomes.eu/

Objectives:

The RENplusHOMES project has a number of 22 partners, and a total budget of approx. 6 million EURO for a period of 3.6 years. The project aims to develop a generally valid methodology on Energy Positive Houses (residential buildings with surplus energy from renewable sources) to facilitate the transition to a climate neutral future. In order to create holistic energy positive buildings, RENplusHOMES will develop and/or retrofit key technologies at the project’s pilot sites with high replicability and sustainability. Thus, UTCN has an ambitious and high-impact goal to develop and implement in the pilot site innovative hardware solutions such as: geothermal structure – implemented for the first time in an existing building and photovoltaic panels integrated into the building facade, made from recycled panels and also fulfilling the shading function; all in order to “have buildings” with a net positive impact on the environment and drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Project value:

  • Co-financing: 0 RON;
  • Budget 2024: 62.160 RON;
  • Budget 2025: 73.190 RON.

Events: No events were organized within this project.

Contact: assoc. prof. dr. eng. Mihaela CREȚU,  Mihaela.Cretu@ethm.utcluj.ro, str. G. Baritiu nr 26-28, room 53, tel: 0264401462

PN-IV-P8-8.1-PRE-HE-ORG-2023-0143, 52PHE:

  • Retaining young researchers, increasing the research potential of the staff and the possibility to maintain and even further increase the involvement in international projects, currently we have 4 ongoing Horizon Europe projects on related topics: integration of renewable sources in buildings, smart grid interactive buildings, energy efficiency and energy transition.

  • Participation in research internships (at universities in the country or abroad), scientific conferences or workshops will allow team members as well as young researchers to gain the necessary experience in research work.

  • In order to increase the impact of the publications and the visibility of the university, the project will aim at publication in ISI or BDI journals and participation in relevant conferences.

  • Procurement of a high-performance sensor system to allow efficient data acquisition and monitoring of the geothermal structure and photovoltaic panels. This will be integrated into the building’s existing energy management system, thus allowing data to be visualized in real-time.

Results achieved in the first year of implementation:

  • Participation in 2 international conferences and 2 published articles indexed ISI and BDI:

    1. Roxana -Valentina Briscan, Ciprian Forț, Simona Vlad, Denisa Șteț, “Prototip pentru aplicații de telemedicină în cadrul caselor pozitiv energetice pentru îmbunătățirea accesibilității la îngrijirea medicală”, 9th International Conference on Advancements of Medicine and Health Care through Technology – MediTech 2024, 30 september – 2 octomber, Cluj-Napoca, România, IFMBE Proceedings Series – MediTech 2024.

    2. Timea Farkas, Andrei Ceclan, Levente Czumbil, Dan D. Micu, “Viitor Sustenabil într-un Campus Universitar: O Analiză Cuprinzătoare a Emisiilor de CO2 și un Plan de Acțiune”, 7th International Conference on Smart Energy Systems and Technologies, SEST 2024, 10-12 September, Torino, Italy, https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10694227.

  • Participation in 1 working visit to the Catalan Institute of Construction Technology, Barcelona, Spain, December 4-8, 2024
  • 3 research grants

Results achieved in the second year of implementation:

  • Participation in 2 international conferences and 2 published articles indexed ISI and BDI:

    1. Mahmuda Rahman, Shahria Tanzil, Mihaela Crețu, Dan D. Micu, “Current Scopes and Challenges Associated with Renewable Energy Integration across Various Systems”, Proceedings of the Future Energy Solutions Conference, FES 2025, 24-26 September 2025, Cluj-Napoca, România.

    2. Mihaela Crețu, Mircea N. Lăncrănjan, Dan D. Micu, “ Assessing Vehicle-to-Grid as a Flexible Energy Storage Solution for Buildings: Case Studies and Policy Outlook in Romania”, Proceedings of the IEEE PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies, ISGT 2025  Conference, 23-26 November, Dubai, UAE.

  • Participation in 1 international conference: ISGT2025 at the University of Dubai, Dubai, UAE, November 23-26, 2025.
  • 3 research grants: 2 for doctoral students and 1 for a postdoctoral student.

Representative images