Identification and Prioritizing Suitable Cities to Construct Zero Energy Buildings Using MADM Techniques (Case Study: Iran)

Increasing demand for energy due to population growth and global warming has led to numerous environmental issues such as deforestation, destruction of the ozone layer, drought, storms, and floods. These have encouraged researchers to seek new ways to use clean, renewable energies. The construction of Zero Energy buildings in Iran cities can be a significant step forward in economic development and pollution reduction in metropolitan areas. This study aims to identify and prioritize suitable cities in Iran to build Zero Energy buildings. For this purpose, the fuzzy Delphi and multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) methods have been used. The cities that are suitable for the construction of zero-energy buildings were selected through interviews with individuals who are experts in the fields of architecture, urban planning, and energy management and who are familiar with the construction of Zero Energy buildings, as well as considering the results of previous research and the characteristics of different cities. Then, with the fuzzy Delphi method, the necessary indicators for the priority of the selected cities were determined, and their weight was determined. After that, the cities were prioritized using MADM methods. The results showed that Yasuj, Shiraz, Tabriz, and Arak are suitable cities to build Zero Energy buildings in Iran.