Abstract

There is an increasing awareness of the importance and cost of the thermal comfort of buildings’ occupants.  For those who live in a hot climate, demand for cooling systems is rising. Researches showed that during the hot seasons in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the increased usage of cooling systems results in increased use of energy consumption up to 70%-79% excessive amount of normal energy consumption. Because of such high-energy demands, there is an obvious expansion of the consequential economic impact countrywide. It has thus become very important to study the economic impact of air conditioning systems in the UAE. This research applies life cycle cost analyses on air conditioning systems under four major factors: (1) outside climate, (2) building type from the respect of elevation difference, (3) type of air conditioning systems, and (4) the distinctions among different brands of air conditioning systems. A mixed method research approach was considered that includes field observations, interviews with experts, document review, and mathematical/numerical data generation. Statistical analysis was applied together with the Analytical Hierarchy Processes (AHP) techniques. Results included developing a decision-making framework for selecting the most suitable air conditioning system regarding the total cost of the lifecycle span determined against the listed four assessment factors. Results also showed that humid coastal areas are more demanding in terms of air-conditioning energy consumption compared to an internal dry area.