Natural Ventilation

Lesson 7 Env.Science for building.

Definition- ventilation
VENTILATION is the process by which fresh air is introduced and ventilated air is removed from an occupied space. The primary aim of ventilation is to preserve the qualities of air. Sometimes, ventilation may also be used to lower the temperature inside an occupied area.

Natural ventilation

Natural ventilation is the process of supplying and removing air by means of purpose-provided aperture (such as openable windows,ventilators and shafts.)

Natural ventilation may be divided into two categories:

1. Controlled natural ventilation

2. Infiltration

Controlled natural ventilation

Controlled natural ventilation is intentional displacement of air through specified openings such as windows, doors, and ventilations by using natural forces (usually by pressures from wind and/or indooroutdoor temperature differences). It is usually controlled to some extent by the occupant.

Infiltration

Infiltration is the uncontrolled random flow of air through unintentional openings driven by wind, temperature-difference pressures and/or appliance-induced pressures across the building envelope.

In contrast to controlled natural ventilation, infiltration cannot be so controlled and is less desirable than other ventilation strategies, but it is a main source of ventilation in envelopedominated buildings.

Mechanical ventilation
Mechanical or forced ventilation is the process of supplying and removing air by means of mechanical devices, such as fans.
It may be arranged to provide either supply, extract or balanced ventilation for an occupied space. There are also specialised areas in which ventilation is vital, such as ventilation for industrial processes, mines, tunnels and underground development.

Purposes of ventilation
Maintaining human comfort and health are two key reasons for providing ventilation in buildings.

To achieve these purposes, a ventilation system should be :

1. Provide sufficient supply of air/oxygen for the physiological needs of human beings (a minimum of 0.2 l/s/person is required for breathing purpose) and/or livestock;

3. provide sufficient supply of air/oxygen for industrial, agricultural and other processes (for example, provision of oxygen for burning and combustion processes); 4. remove the products of respiration and bodily odour (including those from smoking) of human and/or animal occupants; 5. remove contaminants or harmful chemicals generated by processes or from building materials;

6. remove heat generated by people, lighting and equipment inside the occupied space;
7. create some degree of air movement which is essential for feelings of freshness and comfort (usually a velocity of 0.1 to 0.3 m/s is required).

Principles of Natural Ventilation For air to move into and out of a building, a pressure difference between the inside and outside of the building is required. The resistance to flow of air through the building will affect the actual air flow rate

In general, controlled natural ventilation and infiltration are driven by pressure difference across the building envelope.

The pressure difference is caused by:

1. wind (or wind effect); 2. difference in air density due to temperature difference between indoor and outdoor air (stack or chimney effect); or 3. combination of both wind and stack effects.

Wind effect

When air flow is due to wind, air enters through openings in the windward walls, and leaves through openings in the leeward walls.

Air flow around a building

 Wind pressures are generally high/positive on the windward side of a building and low/negative on the leeward side. The occurrence and change of wind pressures on building surfaces depend on: 1.wind speed and wind direction relative to the building; 2.the location and surrounding environment of the building; and 3.shape of the building.

 For a building with numerous partitions and openings, it is under various pressures depending on the relative sizes of the openings and the wind direction. With large openings on the windward face, the building tends to be under positive pressure.

The reverse is true if the openings are smaller than those downstream.

STACK EFFECT
When air movement is due to temperature difference between the indoor and outdoor, the flow of air is in the vertical direction and is along the path of least resistance. The temperature difference causes density differentials, and therefore pressure differences, that drive the air to move.

During the winter season the following stack effect occurs:

indoor temperature is higher than outdoor temperature; the warmer air in building then rises up; the upward air movement produces negative indoor pressure at the bottom; positive indoor pressure is created on the top; warmer air flows out of the building near the top; and the air is replaces by colder outside air that enters the building near its base.

Stack Effect

 During the summer season , the reverse occurs when indoor temperature is lower than outdoor temperature.
Stack effect that may occur in different forms of buildings, including a building with no internal partition, a building with airtight separation of each storey, and an ideal building with vertical shafts and horizontal openings.

 When thermal force is acting alone, a neutral pressure level (NPL) exists, where the interior and exterior pressures are equal. At all other levels, the pressure difference between the interior and exterior depends on the distance from the neutral pressure level and the difference between the densities of inside and outside air.

Combined effect of wind and temperature difference

In most cases, natural ventilation depends on a combined force of wind and stack effects. The pressure patterns for actual buildings continually change with the relative magnitude of thermal and wind forces. The pressures due to each effect are added together to determine the total pressure difference across the building envelope.

 The relative importance of the wind and stack pressures in a building depends on building height, internal resistance to vertical air flow, location and flow resistance characteristics of envelope openings, local terrain, and the immediate shielding of the building structure.

Design for Natural Ventilation The design of controlled natural ventilation systems requires identification of the prevailing wind direction, the strategic orientations and positions of openings on the building envelope. These openings include windows, doors, roof ventilators, skylights, vent shafts, and so forth.

Ventilation rates

When designing a ventilation system, the ventilation rates are required :

to determine the sizes of fans, openings, air ducts.

The methods that can be used to determine the ventilation rates include: (a) Maximum allowable concentration of contaminants
A decay equation can be used to describe the steadystate conditions of contaminant concentrations and ventilation rate, like this:

Ci = Co + F / Q(3)
Ci = maximum allowable concentration of contaminants Co = concentration of contaminants in outdoor air F = rate of generation of contaminants inside the occupied space (l/s) Q = ventilation rate (l/s)

b) Heat generation The ventilation rate required to remove heat from an occupied space is given by:

where H = heat generation inside the space (W) Q= ventilation rate (l/s) cp= specific heat capacity of air (J/kg.K) = density of air (kg/m3) Ti= indoor air temperature (K) To= outdoor air temperature (K)

c) Air change rates

Most related professional institutes and authorities have set up recommended ventilation rates, expressed in air change per hour, for various situations. The ventilation rate is related to the air change rate by the following equation:

Q = ventilation rate (l/s) V = concentration of contaminants in outdoor air ACH = air change per hour

Recommended air change rates

Space Car parks Kitchen Lavatory Bathrooms Boiler Rooms Air change rates per hour 6 20-60 15 6 15 - 30

Outdoor Air-Requirements for Ventilation

Application Estimated maximum occupancy (persons per 100 m2 floor area) Outdoor air requirements (l/s/person)

Offices

- Office Space
- Conference Room Retails store -Street level -Upper Floors and arcades Education - Class room - Auditorium - Library

7
50

10
10

30 20

5 5

50 150 20

8 8 8

Application

Estimated maximum Outdoor air occupancy (persons per 100 requirements m2 floor area) (l/s/person)

Hospitals - Patient Rooms -Operating Rooms 10 20 13 15

Flow caused by wind

Major factors affecting ventilation wind forces include: average wind speed; prevailing wind direction; seasonal and daily variation in wind speed and direction; local obstructing objects, such as nearby buildings and trees; position and characteristics of openings through which air flows; and distribution of surface pressure coefficients for the wind.

Guidelines for natural ventilation

The following guidelines are important for planning and designing natural ventilation systems in buildings: a natural ventilation system should be effective regardless of wind direction and there must be adequate ventilation even when the wind does not blow from the prevailing direction;

inlet and outlet openings should not be obstructed by nearby objects;

Guidelines for natural ventilation

windows should be located in opposing pressure zones since this usually will increase ventilation rate; a certain vertical distance should be kept between openings for temperature to produce stack effect; openings at the same level and near the ceiling should be avoided since much of the air flow may bypass the occupied zone; architectural elements like wing(partition) walls, parapets and overhangs may be used to promote air flow into the building;

Guidelines for natural ventilation

topography, landscaping, and surrounding buildings should be used to redirect airflow and give maximum exposure to breezes; in hot, humid climates, air velocities should be maximised in the occupied zones for bodily cooling; to admit wind air flow, the long faade of the building and the door and window openings should be oriented with respect to the prevailing wind direction;

Guidelines for natural ventilation

if possible, window openings should be accessible to and operable by occupants; vertical shafts and open staircases may be used to increase and generate stack effect; openings in the vicinity of the neutral pressure level may be reduced since they are less effective for thermally induced ventilation; if inlet and outlet openings are of nearly equal areas, a balanced and greater ventilation can be obtained.

Barriers to the application of natural ventilation

A successful application of natural ventilation strategies is only possible when there are no problems in many areas at various levels from the design stage to actual operating demands placed on the building users (Allard, 1998).

These potential barriers include :

Barriers during building operations Barriers during building design Other barriers

Barriers during building operations

Safety concerns Noise from outdoor Dust and air pollution Solar shading covering the openings Draught prevention Knowledge of the users about how to take the best advantage of natural ventilation

Barriers during building design

Building and fire regulations Need for acoustic protection Difficult to predict pattern of use Devices for shading, privacy & daylighting may hamper the free flow of air Problems with automatic controls in openings lack of suitable, reliable design tools

Other barriers Impact on architectural & envelope design Fluctuation of the indoor conditions Design a naturally ventilated building requires more work but could reduce mechanical system (design fee on a fixed percentage of system's cost) Increase risk for designers Lack of suitable standards

Infiltration and Air Leakage

Infiltration is the uncontrolled flow of air through openings in the building envelope driven by pressure differences across the building shell. The surface pressure driving the air flow include:
wind pressure; pressures arising from temperature difference between indoor and outdoor; and pressures resulting from operation of mechanical exhaust.

 The infiltration rate of a building depends on weather conditions, equipment operation and occupant activities.
The characteristics of infiltration air flow may be determined by measuring the air leakage of the building envelope which describes the relative tightness of a building. Typical leakage rates are around 6 to 10 air changes per hour at 50 Pa pressure difference.

 Control of infiltration is needed to assure indoor thermal comfort and to minimise building energy use.

Normally, infiltration may be lessened by reducing the surface pressures driving the air flow, for instance, through changing the landscaping in the vicinity of the building.
A more common method is to reduce the air leakage of the building shell (for example, increase air tightness).

Air leakage area and performance

Air leakage is a measure of the air tightness of the building envelope. In practical building design, the air tightness of the whole building or its components is expressed as a leakage rate (in air change per hour), or an air leakage area.

 Building air leakage area is a physical property of a building determined by its design, construction, seasonal effects, and deterioration over time.
The larger the air leakage, the larger its infiltration rate.

Percentages of air leakage for residential building

components Components
Walls Ceiling details Heating system (furnace, ducts) Windows and doors Fireplaces

Range
18 - 50% 3 - 30%

Mean
35% 18%

3 - 28%
6 - 22% 0 - 30% 2 - 12% <1%

18%
15% 12% 5%

Vents in conditioned spaces

Diffusion through walls

 The building envelope of large commercial buildings are often thought to be quite air tight, but in fact many cases indicate that some components and the workmanship of them may affect the performance significantly.
The infiltration calculations usually focus on doors and windows which are the obvious weak points. Lift, stair, service shaft walls; floors; and other internal partitions are also the major separating elements of concern in these buildings.

 In large buildings, the air leakage associated with internal partitions is very important for evaluating internal air flow. Their leakage characteristics are needed to determine infiltration through exterior walls and air flow patterns within the building .

These internal resistances are very essential for two aspects:

in the event of a fire, to predict smoke movement patterns and determine smoke management strategies; and
to support air movement calculations when designing air distribution systems.