A comprehensive review of water-energy nexus assessment methodologies applied to residential buildings

This paper presents a literature review of the current certification methodologies for assessing the use efficiency of water and energy in residential buildings. The review is based on the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses) approach which establishes a three-step procedure: (1) Establishment of the search strategy, with the definition of exclusion criteria; (2) Collection and discussion of relevant contributions; and (3) Identification of research gaps and formulation of the research questions. Seven methodologies aiming to evaluate the water efficiency in residential buildings are reviewed in further detail. These methodologies are analysed, their strengths and weaknesses are identified, and the research gaps are discussed. Most of the previous literature reviews are primarily focused on energy consumption and lack a comprehensive water-related criteria evaluation, and when this subject is covered, not often is it provided relevant information to understand how these systems address their water-related questions assessment.