Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Ventilation design'

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 1998.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 93-95).
Natural Ventilation is the most effective passive cooling design strategy for architecture in hot and humid climates. In Thailand, natural ventilation has been the most essential element in the vernacular architecture such as the traditional house, but has become unused nowadays because of the urbanized conditions in big cities like Bangkok. This thesis explores the potential of using natural ventilation for modern houses by using a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) program. The research investigates the characteristics of Thai houses from the past to the present that climate, culture and technology have influenced. The analysis of the climate data concludes that natural ventilation can be used approximately four months a year to create conditions within the zone of thermal comfort. In a suburban housing project, site planning has a significant impact on the wind pattern and velocity. The simulation results indicate that the wind has better characteristics in the houses with square shapes than those with rectangular shapes. The vegetation around the houses also has some effect on the wind by slightly reducing its speed. Lastly, the prevailing winds from the north and north-northeast have similar wind patterns in a large housing project. The final stage is to design a prototype by using some climatic characteristics from the traditional Thai house. The air movement is inadequate in a house with regular size windows. Therefore, the study tests three more cases with larger windows. The results demonstrate that the maximum size window provides better thermal comfort. Finally, the study finds that the stack effect is negligible. The study shows the possibility to use natural ventilation for the houses in this region. The investigation has developed comprehensive design guidelines for architects. Necessary further research is presented in the end to find more solutions for climate-responsive architecture in today's physical conditions.
by Chalermwat Tantasavasdi.
M.S.

Ground-coupled ventilation (GCV) is a system that exchanges heat with the soil. Because ground temperatures are relatively higher during the cold season and lower during the hot season, the system takes advantage of this natural phenomenon. This research focused on designing a ground-coupled ventilation system evaluation tool of many factors that affect system performance. The tool predicts the performance of GCV system design based on the GCV system design parameters including the location of the system, pipe length, pipe depth, pipe diameter, soil type, number of pipes, volume flow rate, and bypass system. The tool uses regression equations created from many GCV system design simulation data using Autodesk Computational Fluid Dynamics software. As a result, this tool helps users choose the most suitable GCV system design by comparing multiple GCV systems' design performances and allows them to save time, money, and effort.
Doctor of Philosophy

Discharge coefficients are an important parameter in the prediction of the air displacement performance of ventilation outlets and in the design of ventilation ducts.
Discharge coefficients of a wooden ventilation duct 8.54 metres in length and of a constant 0.17 m$ sp2$ cross sectional area were measured. Four different outlet shapes and 3 aperture ratios of each shape were tested. A split plot experimental design was used to evaluate the effect of outlet shape, outlet size, and distance from the fan on discharge coefficient. The relationship between duct performance characteristics and discharge coefficient was examined. A mathematical equation to predict the discharge coefficient was developed and tested.
Discharge coefficient values measured ranged from 0.19 to 1.25 depending on the aperture ratio and distance from the fan. Outlet shape had no significant effect. The apparent effects of aperture ratio and size are due to the effects of head ratio. The equation predicting the discharge coefficient had a maximum error of 5 percent for the aperture ratios of 0.5 and 1.0, and 15 percent at an aperture ratio of 1.5.

A wooden, perforated, uniform cross-section duct was examined to determine the optimum levels of aperture ratio and fan speed with respect to uniformity of discharge. The optimum aperture ratio for the 8.54 m long duct was 1.0 with a uniformity coefficient of 90.28%. The fan speed had little effect on the uniformity of discharge. The friction factor was experimentally determined to be 0.048 for a non-perforated duct and this value was assumed to be the same for a perforated duct of similar construction. A kinetic energy correction factor was used to analyze the flow in the duct. Values for this correction factor were determined from experimental data. Values of the coefficient of discharge and the total duct energy were calculated. A mathematical model was proposed based on the conservation of momentum and the Bernoulli's equation. The model responded favourably and predicted the duct velocity nearly perfectly and slightly underestimated the total duct energy.

Axial ventilation fans are used to improve the air quality, remove contaminants, and to control the temperature and humidity in occupied areas. Ventilation fans are one of the most harmful sources of noise due to their close proximity to occupied areas and widespread use. The prolonged exposure to hazardous noise levels can lead to noise-induced hearing loss. Consequently, there is a critical need to reduce noise levels from ventilation fans. Since fan noise scales with the 4-6th power of the fan tip speed, minimizing the fan tip speed and optimizing the duct geometry are effective methods to reduce fan noise. However, there is a tradeoff between reducing fan speed, noise and aerodynamic efficiency. To this end, a new innovative comprehensive optimum design methodology considering both aerodynamic efficiency and noise was formulated and implemented using a multi-objective genetic algorithm. The methodology incorporates a control vortex design approach that results in a spanwise chord and twist distribution of the blades that maximize the volumetric flow rate contribution of the outer radii, i.e. the axial flow velocity increases from the fan hub to the tip. The resulting blade geometry generates a given volumetric flow rate at the minimum fan tip speed. The fan design is complemented by the design of the optimum inlet duct geometry to maximize volumetric flow rate and minimize BL thickness for low noise generation. Good agreement with experimental results validates the design process. The present study also incorporates multi-element airfoils to further increase the aerodynamic characteristics of the fan blades and enable lower fan speeds and noise. Good agreement between experiments and predictions indicate that traditional blade element momentum methods can be implemented in conjunction with multi-element airfoil aerodynamic characteristics with good accuracy. A direct comparison of fans designed with single and multi-element airfoils has shown that fans designed with multi-element airfoils aerodynamically outperform single element fans.
Doctor of Philosophy
Axial ventilation fans are widely used to improve the air quality, remove contaminants, and to control the temperature and humidity in occupied areas. However, high noise levels from ventilations fans are a harmful source of noise that can lead to irreversible noise-induced hearing loss. Therefore, this work addresses a critical need for quiet and efficient ventilation fans. To this end, a new innovative comprehensive optimum design methodology considering both aerodynamic efficiency and noise was formulated, implemented, and tested. The methodology optimizes the fan geometry to maximize the volumetric flow rate and minimize noise. The fan design is complemented by the design of the optimum inlet duct geometry to increase the volumetric flow rate and minimize BL thickness for low noise generation. Good agreement with experimental results validates the design process. The present study also incorporates multi-element airfoils to further increase the aerodynamic characteristics of the fan blades. A direct comparison of fans designed with single and multi-element airfoils has shown that fans designed with multi-element airfoils aerodynamically outperform single element airfoil fans.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2001.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 102-104).
Natural ventilation is an effective measure to save energy consumed in buildings and to improve indoor air quality. This study focuses specifically on the principles of single-sided natural ventilation design. Single-sided ventilation is very common in building designs and has been shown to produce very complicated, fluctuating airflow patterns at the openings of buildings. An ongoing challenge in natural ventilation design is therefore the ability to control the mechanisms of wind and temperature for desirable indoor environment conditions. Understanding these effects is important in determining the feasibility of natural ventilation designs. The current research approach used mainly (CFD) tools, together with analytical solutions, empirical models, and experimental results. CFD models were created and analyzed to determine the validity of using this tool for single-sided ventilation analysis and design. The impact of using computational modeling tools for the development of natural ventilation design is great to the building industry field. The focus of this CFD study was on a single room within a residential building in Cambridge, MA. Simulations were performed under varying conditions of temperature, wind speed, wind direction, opening layout and size, and internal heat load, in order to evaluate parameter trends. Airflow rates, velocity fields, and temperature distributions were derived from analytical equations and empirical models as well as from experimental measurements, in order to validate and perform further research in this area. Consequently, this investigation found CFD tools to be valid for studying single-sided natural ventilation strategies with respect to indoor, outdoor, and combined indoor and outdoor flow. From this validation, CFD was applied further to determine the effects of buoyancy, wind, and combined flow on natural ventilation rates and overall indoor conditions. For buoyancy driven flow, CFD performed well when modeling both the indoor and outdoor environment in the calculation, resulting in a 10% difference between semi-analytical and CFD results. However, for wind-driven flow, CFD was found to under predict empirical model results by approximately 25%. This under prediction was attributed to mean or time-averaged, rather than instantaneous calculations of the CFD technique applied to this study. In addition to evaluating the effects of buoyancy and wind on ventilationrates, this study also focused on the effects of wind direction, opposing buoyancy and wind forces, and mixed-mode ventilation. The results from these studies provided further insight into the field of single-sided ventilation and revealed the need for further research in this valuable area. To fully understand and utilize this natural ventilation strategy, the results from the complete single-sided ventilation study were compiled and developed into a computer design tool and a set of general design guidelines. These tools were created in such a way so that designers can use them to evaluate ventilation performance and see immediate results for an indoor environment that they propose to design. The level of analysis that is desired by designers in this area calls for a tool such as this one. This total investigation has been essential in evaluating and analyzing the important areas of the single-sided ventilation field and in providing a strong foundation for further research in improving natural ventilation design as well as in improving CFD and turbulence modeling.
by Camille Allocca.
S.M.

A framework for the implementation of automated ventilation systems engineering was proposed. An extensive research in the area of design guidelines and best practices for the design and operations of laboratories was conducted. a software prototype was created to better support the integration of ventilation engineering to early design stages was created. New methodologies for enhancing the semantics and for deriving building morphology information from early design BIM models were created. The prototype software was tested using as reference currently available practices. Findings concerning the speed of operation, the extended capabilities of the proposed framework and the implication for future research are discussed.

This project is mainly focused on the improving and design of the ventilation system of two rooms at different levels of a gym (Friskis and Svettis in Gävle, Sweden) to reduce the  concentration to never be higher than 1000 ppm. For this purpose, several field measurements were performed in different locations and situations. Two main measurements were necessary. On one hand, the  level in different parts of the rooms during different activities. On the other hand, the air flow through the inlet and outlet ducts of the ventilation system. It was also important to take into account the indoor temperature and humidity. These measurements were enough to analyze the failures of the system and to recognize the worst points of each room. Comparing both rooms, the necessity of changing the ventilation system in one of these rooms was much higher, due to there were measured  values up to 3000 ppm during a typical day in the gym. With this information the consequences of high CO2 levels in human people were analyzed. Among various ventilation systems, displacement ventilation system was proposed as the new design. Theoretical calculations were made to reach to the value of 31.8  in the air change rate (ACH), which was the necessary value for the new design to keep the carbon dioxide level under 1000 ppm.

Natural ventilation is a low-energy design strategy that has the potential both to significantly reduce energy usage in buildings and to provide a healthy and comfortable indoor environment. It has particular potential for use in tall, multi-storey buildings. However, the integration of natural ventilation into these large building designs has seen mixed success. Furthermore, there is a gap between simple 'rule-of-thumb' design guidance and detailed, computational design tools. This research attempts to bridge the gap between the simple and detailed with the broad aim of providing rapid and intuitive guidance for use in preliminary design. We use a simple mathematical approach to develop a coherent and easy-to-use framework for modelling ventilating flows, which quantifies the interactions between a core set of design variables. We focus in particular on buoyancy-driven ventilation in buildings with atria, ventilation stacks and/or similar vertical spaces that span multiple floors. Simple methods centred around hand calculations and design charts are developed to inform the sizing of vents in an 'ideal design' scenario, in which the desired ventilation flow rates and air temperatures are delivered to all occupants within a building. We define a measure of the ventilation performance of an atrium and use this to provide an indication of when an atrium is beneficial to a ventilation system design and when it is detrimental. We also use a transient flow analysis to consider 'off-design' scenarios, in which undesirable flow regimes may occur, and to place design tolerances on the building envelope. It is hoped that this work will form a point of reference for further research and for future revisions of design guidance literature.

The history of surgery is nearly as old as the human race. Control of wound infection has always been an essential part of any surgical procedure, and is still an important challenge in hospital operating rooms today. For patients undergoing surgery there is always a risk that they will develop some kind of postoperative complication. It is widely accepted that airborne bacteria reaching a surgical site are mainly staphylococci released from the skin flora of the surgical staff in the operating room and that even a small fraction of those particles can initiate a severe infection at the surgical site.  Wound infections not only impose a tremendous burden on healthcare resources but also pose a major threat to the patient. Hospital-acquired infection ranks amongst the leading causes of death within the surgical patient population. A broad knowledge and understanding of sources and transport mechanisms of infectious particles may provide valuable possibilities to control and minimize postoperative infections. This thesis contributes to finding solutions, through analysis of such mechanisms for a range of ventilation designs together with investigation of other factors that can influence spread of infection in hospitals, particularly in operating rooms. The aim of this work is to apply the techniques of computational fluid dynamics in order to provide better understanding of air distribution strategies that may contribute to infection control in operating room and ward environments of hospitals, so that levels of bacteria-carrying particles in the air can be reduced while thermal comfort and air quality are improved.  A range of airflow ventilation principles including fully mixed, laminar and hybrid strategies were studied. Airflow, particle and tracer gas simulations were performed to examine contaminant removal and air change effectiveness. A number of further influential parameters on the performance of airflow ventilation systems in operating rooms were examined and relevant measures for improvement were identified. It was found that airflow patterns within operating room environments ranged from laminar to transitional to turbulent flows. Regardless of ventilation system used, a combination of all airflow regimes under transient conditions could exist within the operating room area. This showed that applying a general model to map airflow field and contaminant distribution may result in substantial error and should be avoided. It was also shown that the amount of bacteria generated in an operating room could be minimized by reducing the number of personnel present. Infection-prone surgeries should be performed with as few personnel as possible. The initial source strength (amount of colony forming units that a person emits per unit time) of staff members can also be substantially reduced, by using clothing systems with high protective capacity. Results indicated that horizontal laminar airflow could be a good alternative to the frequently used vertical system. The horizontal airflow system is less sensitive to thermal plumes, easy to install and maintain, relatively cost-efficient and does not require modification of existing lighting systems. Above all, horizontal laminar airflow ventilation does not hinder surgeons who need to bend over the surgical site to get a good view of the operative field. The addition of a mobile ultra-clean exponential laminar airflow screen was also investigated as a complement to the main ventilation system in the operating room. It was concluded that this system could reduce the count of airborne particles carrying microorganisms if proper work practices were maintained by the surgical staff. A close collaboration and mutual understanding between ventilation experts and surgical staff would be a key factor in reducing infection rates. In addition, effective and frequent evaluation of bacteria levels for both new and existing ventilation systems would also be important.
Tidigt i mänsklighetens utveckling har kirurgin funnits med i bilden. Hantering av infektioner har genom tiderna varit en oundviklig del av alla kirurgiska ingrepp, och finns kvar ännu idag som en viktig utmaning i operationssalar på sjukhus. För patienter som genomgår kirurgi finns alltid en risk att de efter ingreppet utvecklar någon behandlingsrelaterad komplikation. Allmänt accepterat är att de luftburna bakterier som når operationsområdet huvudsakligen består av stafylokocker frigjorda från hudfloran av operationspersonalen i operationssalen, och att endast en liten del av dessa partiklar behövs för att initiera en allvarlig infektion i det behandlade området. Sårinfektioner innebär inte bara en enorm börda för hälso- och sjukvårdsresurser, utan utgör också en betydande risk för patienten. På sjukhus förvärvad infektion finns bland de främsta dödsorsakerna i kirurgiska patientgrupper.. En bred kunskap och förståelse av spridningsmekanismer och källor till infektionsspridande partiklar kan ge värdefulla möjligheter att kontrollera och minimera postoperativa infektioner. Denna avhandling bidrar till lösningar genom analys av en rad olika ventilationssystem tillsammans med undersökning av andra faktörer som kan påverka infektionsspridningen på sjukhus, främst i operationssalar. Syftet med arbetet är att med hjälp av CFD-teknik (Computational Fluid Dynamics) få bättre förståelse för olika luftspridningsmekanismers betydelse vid ventilation av operationssalar och vårdinrättningar på sjukhus, så att halten av bacteriebärande partiklar i luften kan minskas samtidigt som termisk komfort och luftkvalité förbättras.  Flera luftflödesprinciper för ventilation inklusive omblandade strömning, riktad (laminär) strömning och hybridstrategier har studerats. Simuleringar av luft-, partikel- och spårgasflöden gjordes för alla fallstudier för att undersöka partikelevakuering och luftomsättning i rummet. Flera viktiga parametrar som påverkar detta undersöktes och relevanta förbättringar  föreslås i samarbete med industrin. Av resultaten framgår att mängden genererade bakterier i en operationssal  kan begränsas genom att minska antalet personer i operationsteamet. Infektionsbenägna operationer skall utföras med så lite personal som möjligt. Den initiala källstyrkan (mängden kolonibildande enheter som en person avger per tidsenhet) från operationsteamet kan avsevärt minskas om högskyddande kläder används. Av resultaten framgår också att ett horisontellt (laminärt) luftflöde kan vara ett bra alternativ till det ofta använda vertikala luftflödet. Ett horisontellt luftflöde är mindre känsligt för termisk påverkan från omgivningen, enkelt att installera och underhålla, relativt kostnadseffektivt och kräver vanligen ingen förändring av befintlig belysningsarmatur. Framför allt begränsar inte denna ventilationsprincip kirurgernas rörelsemönster. De kan luta kroppen över operationsområdet utan att hindra luftflödet. En flyttbar flexibel skärm för horisontell spridning av ultraren ventilationsluft i tillägg till ordinarie ventilation undersöktes också. Man fann att denna typ av tilläggsventilation kan minska antalet luftburna partiklar som bär mikroorganismer om operationspersonalen följer en strikt arbetsordning. Bra samarbete och förståelse mellan ventilationsexperter och operationsteamet på sjukhuset är nyckeln till att få ner infektionsfrekvensen. Det är också viktigt med effektiva och frekventa utvarderingar av bakteriehalten i luften, för såväl nya  som befintliga ventilationssystem.

QC 20160129

It is difficult to design for thermal comfort in low cost housing due to construction and dimensional constraints placed by regulatory and cost requirement. Low-cost houses have failed to achieve satisfactory temperatures which makes inhabitation bearable. Comparisons in building environmental behaviour have been made between the traditional Malay and modern houses in Malaysia using the Welsh School of Architecture Environmental Data Logger on five different types of low-cost houses. Two houses represent the traditional Malay house and the other three are typical of the modern low-cost designs. Analysis and comparison of data collected, was used to determine the degree of environmental and design failures in modern low-cost houses. The data was also used to validate a computer thermal model to contribute to the objectives of a parallel Tripartite Research Group Project, comprising of Universiti Sains Malaysia, the UK Building Research Establishment and The University of Wales, the aim of which was to investigate low cost housing design solutions. From a combination of environmental monitoring and computer modelling, it was determined that air movement, ventilation rate and sunshadings was the predominant criteria for thermal comfort in Malaysian homes. Since it was found that wind is almost calm for nearly half the year, air movement by temperature difference (stack effect) was investigated. The second part of this thesis investigated the double-skin roof as a solution to the problem of discomfort by achieving the required air movement and ventilation rate, as well as providing sunshading to enhance comfort. A scale model of 1:3 was constructed and placed under the solar simulator. Results obtained have been used to inform design guidelines.

Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2015.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Increased awareness of environmental problems has awakened interest in renewable energy systems. Natural ventilation systems are especially of interest, as people spend most of their time indoors. Indoor air quality is an important consideration when human health and occupant comfort is to be maintained. This study focusses on determining the best inlet and outlet shape for a natural ventilation system from a chosen set of configurations. The inlet and outlet configurations were tested on a PDEC (Passive Downdraught Evaporative Cooling) shaft and solar chimney. The PDEC incorporated an evaporative cartridge made from cotton cloth. Independent models of the PDEC and solar chimney were built in a thermally controlled space where the configurations were tested at different wind speeds. The configurations were tested on a wet or dry PDEC shaft and on a hot or cold solar chimney. One-dimensional finite difference models, accounting for some two-dimensional effects in the evaporative cartridge, of the cartridge and solar chimney were developed. CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) models were further constructed in FLUENTr, simulating operating conditions for each inlet and outlet test. The CFD models were constructed to obtain numerical comparisons for the experimental data. The ability of the one-dimensional and CFD models to predict the performance of the PDEC and solar chimney were investigated. The results indicated that an inlet configuration called a TFI (Turbine Fan Inlet) performed the best at the tested wind speeds. The TFI was further able to significantly increase volumetric flow rate in the PDEC shaft for the dry evaporative cartridge tests. The outlet that performed best under the tests is a Windmaster Tornado Wind Turbine, or Whirlybird, which is a commercially available configuration. The one-dimensional models were not able to accurately predict conditions during start-up. The CFD models were highly accurate in predicting the experimental values. It is recommended that a two-dimensional theoretical model be developed to better predict start-up conditions.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Verhoogde bewustheid van omgewings probleme het belangstelling in hernubare energie stelsels ontwaak. Natuurlike ventilasie stelsels is veral van belang, sedert mense die meeste van hul tyd binnenshuis spandeer. Binnenshuise lug kwaliteit is ’n belangrike oorweging wanneer menslike gesondheid en insittendes se gemak in stand gehou moet word. Hierdie studie fokus op die bepaling van die beste inlaat en uitlaat vorm van ’n gekose stel konfigurasies vir ’n natuurlike ventilasie-stelsel. Die inlaaten uitlaat-konfigurasies is op ’n PDEC (Passive Downdraught Evaporative Cooling) skag en sonkrag skoorsteen getoets. Die PDEC het ’n verdampings doek, gemaak van katoen, ingesluit. Onafhanklike modelle van die PDEC en sonkrag skoorsteen is in ’n termies-beheerde ruimte en die konfigurasies is by ’n onveranderende wind spoed getoets. Die konfigurasies is op ’n nat of droog PDEC skag en op ’n warm of koue son skoorsteen getoets. Een-dimensionele eindige verskil modelle, wat sommige twee-dimensionele effekte in ag neem in die verdampings doek, van die doek en sonkrag skoorsteen is ontwikkel. CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) modelle is verder gebou in FLUENTr, wat die werkstoestande vir elke inlaat en uitlaat toets simuleer. Die CFD modelle is ontwikkel om die eksperimentele data met numeriese waardes te vergelyk. Die vermoë van die een-dimensionele en CFD modelle om die verrigting van die PDEC en sonkrag skoorsteen te voorspel, is ondersoek. Die resultate dui daarop dat ’n inlaat opset genoem TFI (Turbine Fan Inlet) die beste vaar by die elke getoetsde wind spoed. Die TFI was verder in staat om die volumetriese vloeitempo in die PDEC skag aansienlik te verhoog vir die toetse met ’n droë verdamping doek. Die uitlaat wat die beste presteer het in die toetse is ’n Windmaster Tornado Wind Turbine, of Whirlybird, wat ’n kommersieel beskikbare konfigurasie is. Die een-dimensionele modelle was nie in staat om die toestande tydens die begin-fase akkuraat te voorspel nie. Die CFD modelle was hoogs akkuraat in die voorspelling van die eksperimentele waardes. Dit word aanbeveel dat ’n twee-dimensionele teoretiese model ontwikkel word om die toestande tydens begin-fase beter te voorspel.

The project was carried out at Karlstad University during the spring of 2014 as a degree project for a Degree of Bachelor of Science in Innovation and Design Engineering and consists of 22.5 ECTS. The supervisor was lecturer Lennart Wihk from Karlstad University. The examiner was professor Leo de Vin. The project was conducted for Swegon AB and dealt with developing a user interface for systems regulating climate parameters in indoor environments, such as hotel rooms or office environments. The area of focus has been on developing the user interface with regard to end users, giving it the right functions and making it easy to understand. Suggestions about how user interfaces of this type could look was to be delivered to Swegon. The project started with creating a foundation. This was done through literature studies, benchmarking and interviews. The information gained here was used to put together a list of requirements which was later used as a guide when developing and evaluating concepts. Idea generation-methods were used to generate concepts and the concepts were developed further to later be voted on by employees at Swegon. The votes were evaluated and two concepts were developed, based on the the voting outcome. The concepts are inspired by wishes from the end users (expressed in the interviews) and are developed with regard to principles of design. The concepts were made into prototypes, in the form of 3D-printed models. The results of the project, in short: • Two image boards. One with thoughts about functions of existing climate related user interfaces written on it, and one with thoughts of different ways of illustrating air-temperature written on it. • Explanations of and reflections about functions of four different types of user interfaces for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. • Four product semantic analyses (PSA). Three of existing user interfaces for Swegon HVAC systems and one of a concept for a user interface for HVAC systems. • Interviews with six potential end users, written down to a large extent. • A compilation of the six interviews, written down in English. • An interview with an employee at Swegon service, regarding installation of user interfaces for HVAC systems, written down to a large extent. • A functional analysis, which in this project works as a requirements specification. • 10 ideas of concepts. • Two voting-systems which are developed for use when voting for several elements which can be combined to make up a holistic concept. The voting-systems are inspired by the "morphological analysis" described by Johannesson et al. (2009). • Two final concepts of user interfaces for HVAC systems with thorough descriptions in a table in this report. The concepts are developed with respect to end users and design principles. • Simplified versions of each of the two final concepts as CAD-models and as 3D-prints.

Air distribution ducts are used in the environmental control of livestock and poultry building as well as the conditioning of most agricultural produce.
In order to simplify the approach to the design of ventilation ducts, a mathematical equation has been derived to describe the average air velocity of a duct.
The primary objective of the research work was to test goodness of fit of an equation describing the average air velocity of perforated ventilation ducts, under balanced as well as unbalanced air distribution: $V = H sb{o}{X over L} + (V sb{L}-H sb{o}) {X sp2 over L sp2}$.
This equation was successfully tested using data measured from 14 ducts of constant cross-sectional area, built of wood or polyethylene with outlets of various shapes and aperture ratios. Results indicated that aperture ratio and distance along the duct are the two most significant factors influencing the average duct air velocity values, but material and outlet shape had little effect.

The following report outlines a project that has been implemented as a degree of Bachelor of Science in Innovation and Design at the Faculty of Health, Science and Technology at the University of Karlstad.. The project is carried out in behalf of Flexit AB in Töcksfors. Flexit AS/AB has an ongoing project of heat and ventilation systems for family housing. The project covers the required development of a combi device for the installation. The combi device is installed on the facade and combines the handling of outdoor and exhaust air. The device is visible on the facade of the building, therefore the design of the device impacts on how customers agrees to it. The current device was not considered enough aesthetically pleasing to be accepted by customers. The objectives of the project was to enable sales of the company’s ongoing project of heat and ventilation systems for family housing. The work has been carried out according to the product development process where the combination of functionality and design has been the main focus to achieve the objectives of the project. Several concepts were created trough design methods. The concepts were compared to the specification of requirements and one final concept was chosen for further development. The result was five different solutions of a thinner device. All the solutions had the same basic design where the front steelplate varied. The solutions were presented in CAD constructions with renderings. The result also contains simulations of the designs. The designs were considered more attractive than the original product. The solution meets 21 of 28 requirements from the product specification.

This diploma thesis presents a design of an emergency ventilator machine used in specialized hospital departments. Aim of the thesis was to evaluate the knowledge resulting from the analysis of current products and apply this knowledge in the final solution. The new conceptual design is focused on improving the continuity of the body of the ventilator with the respect to the stand part and the unification of the aesthetic aspect of the medical device while considering ergonomic and technological parameters.

The housing estates boom was and is a result of the Southeast Asia economic growth after the economic crisis between 1997 and 1998. Housing estates, especially in the suburbs of Bangkok, are designed by considering only aesthetics and costs without considering the negative effects that might occur to the occupants and nature. These negative effects lead to the insufficiency energy crisis.Determining how to reduce the energy used and increase the living quality in the building type is the critical question for architects to answer. Redesigning the housing estate using sustainable design concepts, especially with a focus on the natural ventilation and shading device strategies, can lift up the occupants' living quality because such design can provide cross ventilation through the house and solar shading to reduce the heat gain in the house. Not only would such design improvements make houses more comfortable for inhabitants, they also would reduce the energy use.The methodologies of research start with spatial analyses to define the general character of this type of house, then the redesigning of a selected existing house is used to focus on natural ventilation and shading devices design in order to improve the occupants living quality and to reduce the energy used in the house. It is hoped that this project can be the first step for other architects to understand the logic of natural ventilation and shading control design strategies within the realm of sustainability.
Department of Architecture

Thesis: S.M. in Architecture Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2017.
This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. "June 2017."
Includes bibliographical references (pages 64-65).
One of the most widely discussed passive building design strategies is using natural ventilation for cooling. In addition to providing fresh air, which enhances occupant productivity and comfort, strategic implementation of natural ventilation in buildings reduces the energy needed for cooling. And this reduction in energy consumption significantly reduces carbon dioxide emissions. During the initial design phase, designers routinely use climate-file based analysis to evaluate the potential for comfort ventilation against other passive building strategies. Following this initial screening, it is customary to conduct detailed simulations to further develop design ideas. At this point, inconsistencies can arise between the early climate-file based analysis and later-stage simulations. Major differences arise from limitations of climate-file based analysis to account for influences of construction assemblies, building program, and occupant comfort preferences. This manuscript presents a building performance-based climate analysis method where quick, single-zone simulations are run in EnergyPlus. The ventilation cooling potential for a site and a building program is calculated using a series of Python scripts.
by Alpha Yacob Arsano.
S.M. in Architecture Studies

Thesis: S.B., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2014.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 66-69).
Currently, the United States alone is responsible for approximately twenty percent of the world's total energy consumption. This consumption is equivalent to roughly 100 quadrillion Btu of energy, or in plainer terms, over $1 trillion in energy expenditures annually. This sector alone comprises nearly half of all the energy consumed in the United States. Additionally, about seventy-five percent of all electricity produced in the U.S. is consumed by building operations. This precedent has convinced me that finding an alternative is worth the investment. The purpose of my thesis project is to explore substitutes to mechanical heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) building systems. My project revisits the concept of natural ventilation and explores and evaluates its feasibility as an energy-saving and comfortable alternative to mechanical ventilation systems. Additionally, my project focuses on how buildings can be designed to naturally condition the indoor environments of our buildings. More specifically, I would like to help architects discover how they can utilize natural ventilation effectively. Using the TRNSYS simulation environment, I methodically show how a designer would use TRNSYS to make informed decisions about natural ventilation in their designs. My research is meant to be a valuable tool for other designers who are unsure or uncomfortable with utilizing this natural process to condition their buildings. The final deliverable of my thesis project is a comprehensive strategy for designers to incorporate natural ventilation in the early stages of their building design.
by Kristian Fennessy.
S.B.

Chemicals in indoor air, either emitted from a source or from a reaction, have been suggested to cause ill health in buildings. However, no clear correlations between exposure and health effects have been made.

In this thesis we studied the reaction between monoterpenes, a group of biogenic unsaturated C10 hydrocarbons, and ozone. Ozonolysis of monoterpenes was used as model reactions for unsaturated compounds in ambient air. Also the products formed from these reactions have been suggested as important participants in the occurrence of discomfort and ill health in buildings.

To enable a reliable and sensitive measurement of ppb-ppt levels of monoterpenes and the formed products in the presence of ozone an evaluation of available scrubber materials was made. Potassium iodide was shown to remove ambient levels of ozone and have a recovery of >95% for all monoterpenes and formed products included in the investigation.

Experimental conditions showed to have a large impact on the initial steps of the ozonolysis, and also on the composition of the formed products. We showed that water plays an important and complex role both in the initial stage of ozonolysis of ∆³-carene and in the formation and composition of products from the ozonolysis of ∆-pinene. The use of experimental design facilitated the evaluation of the investigated reactions. We showed that the formation of OH radicals could be studied using multiple linear regression models and that the presence or absence of OH radicals had a profound impact on the formation of many of the formed products. We also made an observation of the lack of formed OH radicals in the ozonolysis of limonene and discussed probable causes of this observation.

Despite the short reaction times and the ambient levels of ozone and monoterpenes used in our experiments we showed that a number of oxidation products were formed, and that the reaction rate is significantly increased in a ventilation system. This formation is underestimated by theoretical calculations and leads to high amounts of known irritants in the indoor air. We showed that theoretical calculations underestimate the formation of these oxidation products 3-13 times, depending on ventilation system and monoterpene.

This thesis investigated thermal comfort for naturally ventilated housing in Iran with special reference to Ilam. An important aim was to establish the neutral temperature and the acceptable range of environmental conditions for Dam people in their houses. The methodology used for this aIm was field studies. These studies were divided into two parts- one in the hot season and the other in the cool season. The results showed a good relationship between neutral temperature and mean indoor temperature and also between outdoor temperature and neutral temperature. The indoor comfort temperature (Tn), which is dependent on outdoor temperature (Tom), could be found from the following equation: Tn = 17.3 + 0.36 Tom The findings of the study revealed that the Ilam people could achieve comfort at higher indoor air temperatures compared with the recommendations by international standards like ISO 7730. The results also showed that passive systems as a main comfort strategy could be applied to housing design in Ilam. By using the results of this study, strategies to minimise housing energy consumption, not only for Ilam but also for other regions, which have similar climates and cultures to Ilam, can be proposed.

This thesis is concerned with an experimental and theoretical investigation of domestic heat pumps. The development of heat pumps in the 1970's did not meet the original expectations and this thesis examines the reasons why. The items considered included cycling and unsteady conditions created whilst matching the heat pump's output to meet a space heating load. A detailed study was made of the hermetically sealed refrigerant compressor, the heat exchangers, and the refrigerant pressure and temperature control systems. In addition to the conventional heat pump a study was made of the advantages gained from modular designed heat pumps. The application of heat pumps to U.K. dwellings and climatic conditions was studied together with the suitability of thermostatic control. Initial studies were made of the operation of a demonstration unit. This showed how intermittent operation would reduce a heat pump performance and was followed by the development of a computer model which simulated the complete refrigerant circulation system. This allowed a study to be made of a heat pump performance at part load conditions. A computer model of the complete refrigerant cycle was developed which aided in the design and construction of a heat pump which used refrigerant R12. This was followed by the construction of a second test rig using R 134(a). The completed R 134(a) test rig was installed in an environmental chamber which could simulate outdoor weather conditions. Results from the test rigs indicated that the performance was greatly affected by on/off cycling an item that was further investigated.

A fire in road tunnel can be dangerous and lead to serious consequences if not addressed appropriately. In a tunnel fire incident, creating a smoke free path for motorist evacuation and facilitating fire fighters to access the fire is critical for fire and rescue operations. A means of achieving this is to use ventilation fans to blow sufficient air down the tunnel ensuring no back-layering of smoke occurs upstream of the fire. The airflow necessary for such operation is known as the critical velocity which is a function of a number of factors includes; heat release rate, tunnel geometry, tunnel gradient etc. Among these parameters, the heat release rate is the most difficult to identify as this value is dependent on the types of vehicles, number of vehicles involved, the type of cargo and the quantity of cargo carried by these vehicles. There are also other factors such as the influence of ventilation condition, tunnel geometry and the use of legislation (to restrict hazardous vehicles entering in tunnel) that could affect the heat release rate in a tunnel fire. The number of possible fire scenarios is numerous. Based on current practise, fire size selection for most tunnel ventilation design often references various guidelines such as NFPA 502, BD78/99 or the PIARC technical committee report. The heat release rate, particularly for goods vehicle recommended by the guidelines varies from 20 to 30 MW. However, recent fire tests conducted in the Runehamar tunnel experiments indicate a higher heat release rate. These experiments suggest that heat release rate guidelines for goods vehicles might be underestimated. An ideal means to estimate the heat release rate in the tunnel is to use the oxygen consumption calorimetry technique. However, this approach is generally expensive, logistically complicated to perform and it is often not feasible to conduct such tests for a tunnel project at the initial design stage simply because the structure and systems are not ready for such activities. This research thesis presents an approach to establish a design fire in a road tunnel particularly the peak heat release rate for emergency tunnel ventilation system design. The analysis consists of two stages; stage one involves the use of a probabilistic approach (risk analysis) to identify the potential cause and type of vehicle which could result in a tunnel fire. Findings from the risk analysis are used in stage two in which Computational Fluid II Dynamics (CDF) modelling is used to establish the heat release rate in the tunnel considering factors such as fuel load, ventilation condition, tunnel geometry and ignition location. The Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS 4.0.7), a CFD model of fire-driven fluid flow is used for the analysis and an urban road tunnel project in Singapore is used to illustrate this methodology. Other topic related to this research work includes the reconstruction for the Runehamar tunnel fire test using numerical approach to calibrate the FDS simulation model. The used of Probabilistic Bayesian approach and CFD approach using FDS to estimate the heat release rate in the tunnel is also investigated in this thesis. The effect of vehicle fire spread in road tunnel and numerical simulation of road tunnel fires using parallel processing is presented. Preliminary work in using FDS5 for tunnel simulation work is discussed as part of the research work in this project.

Two of the main safety and health issues recognized during deep cut coal mining are methane and dust hazards. Advances in continuous miner technology have improved safety and productivity. However, these advances have created some environmental problems, notably more dust and methane being generated at the face during coal extraction. Results of studies performed in the last three decades concerning the face ventilation for deep cut mining showed very complicated airflow behavior. The specifics of flow patterns developed by the face ventilation systems presents significant challenge for analytical description even for equipment-free entry. Fortunately, there are methods, such as numerical simulations that could be used to provide an engineering solution to the problem. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes have been successfully applied during the last decade using the power of Supercomputers. Although significant progress has been made, a benchmark industry oriented CFD code dedicated to face ventilation is still not available. The goal of this project is to provide the mining industry a software for CFD analysis and design of face ventilation systems. A commercial CFD system SC/Tetra Thermofluid Analysis System with Unstructured Mesh Generator, copyright © Cradle Co, was selected for a development platform. A number of CFD models were developed for the needs of this study including methane release, dust generation, 3D models of commonly used continuous mining machines, scrubbers and water spray systems. The developed models and the used CFD code were successfully validated in the part for methane dilution, using available data from small scale and full scale experiments. The developed models for simulation of dust control systems need to be validated in the future. The developed code automates all necessary steps needed for simulation of face ventilation systems, starting with the construction of a 3D model, generation of the computational mesh, solving and monitoring the calculations, to post-processing and graphical representation of the obtained results. This code shall allow mining engineers to design better and safer face ventilation systems while providing the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) a tool to check and approve the industry’ proposed ventilation plans.

Including a courtyard open to the sky is an interesting design feature in most old town shophouses. It has been found that the courtyard shophouses in this urban fabric were always good examples for the bioclimatic typologies where their residents could enjoy the outdoor daylight and fresh air with a minimum of energy use while not being separated from their climate and culture. However, such courtyards in Taiwan have gradually disappeared while more have been retained in urban Southeast Asia. This thesis intends to determine what kinds of factors influence the application, outcomes, and changes over time of early shophouses for its dwellers. The principal aim of this thesis is to evaluate the potential of the retention of traditional shophouse courtyards in urban Southeast Asia, especially in Taiwan, with a focus on the preservation of continuity rather than the preservation of the past. The work presented in this thesis consists of three main research activities, all focusing on the use of simulation tools and the logic of reasonable inferences to support the continuance of traditional shophouses: analysis of current traditional shophouses; development of an approach for well-founded selection of ecological design in lighting and ventilation; analysis of the suitability of existing practices and experiences to support the selection process; and development of a strategy as well as a proof-of-concept prototype that provides support for the selection of ecological issues and that demonstrates the viability of the proposed changes. It should be noted that the research is exploratory in nature and has only begun to address the many issues that are important in the preservation of urban heritages, but the questions addressed – what quality needs are important for shophouse occupant satisfaction and what quality dimensions are important for public attitudes – are arguably among the most important in quality maintenance.

This study develops a decision-support framework assisting the design of non-residential buildings with natural ventilation. The framework is composed of decision modules with input, analysis algorithms and output of natural ventilation design. The framework covers ventilation with natural driving force and mechanical-assisted ventilation. The framework has two major assessment levels: feasibility assessment and comparison of alternative natural ventilation approaches. The feasibility assessment modules assess the potential of the site with the design proposition for natural ventilation in terms of wind, temperature, humidity, noise and pollution conditions. All of the possible natural ventilation approaches and system designs are assessed by first applying constraints functions to each of the alternatives. Then the comparison of alternative approaches to natural ventilation continues by assessing the critical performance mandates that include energy savings, thermal comfort, acoustic control, indoor air quality and cost. Approaches are finally ranked based on their performance.
Ph. D.

Through the last decades, building designers should deal with reliable design strategies to take advantage of natural resources in order to increase energy efficiency in buildings, as well as to promote sustainable development and add value to the society. This thesis proposes a reliable building design strategy to improve buildings energy efficiency by means of natural ventilation (NV) use. The strategy consists in evaluating the most suitable architectural solution in a particular case study taking into account environmental conditions and building surroundings in order to maximize NV use since the early building design stage. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques are used to conduct the research. This is a powerful design tool that permits buildings NV behaviour simulation prior to building construction. Therefore, the aim of the thesis is to provide a real case study building in which the NV design strategy is applied to show a reliable example and support building design decisions since the design stage. The design strategy is based on the use of a commercial numerical code that solves the fluid mechanic equations. The CFD software simulates the features that influence NV and predicts its behaviour in the different building configurations prior to building construction. This numerical technique allows, on the one hand, the visualization of air flow paths in buildings. On the other hand, many quantifiable parameters are calculated by the software. Through the analysis and comparison of those parameters, the best architectural solutions are chosen. With regards to all possible architectural decisions, the research is focused on the façade configuration selection and the building location. First of all, the NV design strategy feasibility is analysed in a particular region: the Mediterranean Valencian Coastal area (Spain). The region is characterized by the uniform conditions of the prevailing wind during the warm season. Then, a validated CFD simulation is used to analyse qualitatively and quantitatively the building surrounding influence on wind paths through and around buildings. The objective is to compare different façade opening positions and select the alternative that takes more profit of the NV resources available. Additionally, a general quantification of the ventilated façade contribution to buildings energy efficiency is presented under the frame of the façade configuration selection. Secondly, two simulations are conducted to analyse two different building locations. The assessment of surrounding buildings influence on building NV behaviour is done through validated CFD models. Some parameters and visualizations are proposed to be used in the quantitative and qualitative assessment of each solution respectively. Then, the best location alternative with regards to NV performance is selected. Finally, the research is concluded with the case study building full-scale construction. The indoor CFD simulation used from the beginning is then successfully validated. The NV building behaviour is also successfully verified. Additionally, contrasted performance indexes are used to evaluate indoor comfort conditions: draught risk (DR), predicted mean vote (PMV) and predicted percentage of dissatisfied people (PPD). The results show that comfort conditions can be reached more energy efficiently by means of NV use. Afterwards, it is verified how the comfortable indoor environment conditions are ensured and optimized by the NV use. Although the design strategy is applied to a particular building design, the design strategy potential is that it could be applied to all buildings. Consequently, major potential energy savings could be achieved.
Durante las últimas décadas los agentes involucrados en el diseño de edificios deben de utilizar estrategias fiables de diseño que les permitan aprovechar los recursos naturales del entorno con el objetivo de aumentar la eficiencia energética de los edificios así como promover el desarrollo sostenible y generar valor añadido para la sociedad. Esta tesis propone una estrategia de diseño fiable de edificios para mejorar su eficiencia energética mediante el uso de la ventilación natural (NV por sus siglas en inglés "natural ventilation"). La estrategia consiste en evaluar la solución arquitectónica más adecuada teniendo en cuenta las condiciones ambientales y el entorno de los edificios con el objetivo de maximizar el uso de la ventilación natural desde la fase inicial de su diseño. En esta tesis se aplica la estrategia de diseño a un caso de estudio real y particular. La estrategia de diseño se basa en el uso de un código numérico comercial que resuelve las ecuaciones de la mecánica de fluidos (CFD por sus siglas en inglés "computational fluid dynamics"). El software CFD simula las características que influyen en la ventilación natural y predice su comportamiento en los edificios antes de su construcción. Esta técnica numérica permite la visualización del flujo de aire en los edificios. Además, el software permite calcular parámetros que son analizados y comparados posteriormente para elegir la solución arquitectónica que suponga un mejor comportamiento de la ventilación natural. Con respecto a todas las decisiones arquitectónicas posibles, la investigación se centra en la selección de la ubicación del edificio y de la configuración de los huecos de su fachada. En primer lugar, se analiza la viabilidad de la estrategia de diseño en una región determinada: la zona costera Mediterránea de la Comunidad Valenciana. La región se caracteriza por las condiciones uniformes del viento predominante durante la estación cálida. A continuación, se utiliza una simulación de CFD validada para analizar cualitativamente y cuantitativamente la influencia de los edificios circundantes en los flujos del viento a través y alrededor de los edificios circundantes. El objetivo es comparar distintas posiciones de los huecos de la fachada para seleccionar la alternativa que mejor aproveche los recursos de ventilación natural disponibles. Además, se presenta en el marco de la selección de la configuración de la fachada una cuantificación general de la contribución de la fachada ventilada a la eficiencia energética de los edificios. En segundo lugar, se realizan dos simulaciones para analizar dos ubicaciones diferentes del edificio caso de estudio. La evaluación de la influencia de los edificios circundantes en el comportamiento de la ventilación natural del edificio caso de estudio se realiza mediante la utilización de modelos CFD validados. Se proponen distintos parámetros y visualizaciones para la evaluación cuantitativa y cualitativa de cada solución. A continuación se selecciona la mejor ubicación con respecto al comportamiento de la ventilación natural en el edificio caso de estudio. Finalmente, la investigación concluye con la construcción a escala real del edificio caso de estudio. Se valida con éxito la simulación CFD del interior del edificio utilizada desde la etapa de diseño. También se verifica con éxito el comportamiento de la ventilación natural del edificio. Además, se analizan las condiciones de confort interiores mediante la evaluación de los siguientes índices: riesgo de corrientes de aire (DR por sus siglas en inglés "draught risk"), voto promedio previsto (PMV por sus siglas en inglés "predicted mean vote") y el porcentaje previsto de personas insatisfechas (PPD por sus siglas en inglés "predicted percentage of dissatisfied people"). Los resultados muestran que el uso de la ventilación natural permite alcanzar, de manera más energéticamente eficiente, las
Durant les últimes dècades els agents involucrats en el disseny d'edificis utilitzen estratègies fiables de disseny que els permeten aprofitar els recursos naturals de l'entorn amb l'objectiu d'augmentar l'eficiència energètica dels edificis així com promoure el desenvolupament sostenible i generar valor afegit per la societat. Aquesta tesi proposa una estratègia fiable de disseny d'edificis per a millorar la seva eficiència energètica mitjançant l'ús de la ventilació natural (NV per les sigles en anglès "natural ventilation"). L'estratègia consisteix a avaluar la solució arquitectònica més adequada tenint en compte les condicions ambientals i l'entorn dels edificis amb l'objectiu de maximitzar l'ús de la ventilació natural des de la fase inicial del seu disseny. En aquesta tesi s'aplica l'estratègia de disseny a un cas d'estudi real i particular. L'estratègia de disseny es basa en l'ús d'un codi numèric comercial que resol les equacions de la mecànica de fluids (CFD per les sigles en anglès "computational fluid dynamics"). El programari CFD simula les característiques que influeixen en la ventilació natural i prediu el seu comportament en els edificis abans de la seva construcció. Aquesta tècnica numèrica permet la visualització del flux d'aire en els edificis. A més, el programari permet calcular paràmetres que són analitzats i comparats posteriorment per triar la solució arquitectònica que supose un millor comportament de la ventilació natural. Pel que fa a totes les decisions arquitectòniques possibles, la investigació es centra en la selecció de la ubicació de l'edifici i de la configuració de les obertures de la façana. En primer lloc, s'analitza la viabilitat de l'estratègia de disseny en una regió determinada: la zona costanera Mediterrània de la Comunitat Valenciana. La regió es caracteritza per les condicions uniformes del vent predominant durant l'estació càlida. A continuació, s'utilitza una simulació de CFD validada per analitzar qualitativament i quantitativament la influència dels edificis circumdants en els fluxos del vent a través i al voltant dels edificis circumdants. L'objectiu és comparar diferents posicions dels buits de la façana per seleccionar l'alternativa que millor aprofite els recursos de ventilació natural disponibles. A més, en el marc de la selecció de la configuració de la façana es presenta una quantificació general de la contribució de la façana ventilada a l'eficiència energètica dels edificis. En segon lloc, es realitzen dues simulacions per analitzar dues ubicacions diferents de l'edifici cas d'estudi. L'avaluació de la influència dels edificis circumdants en el comportament de la ventilació natural de l'edifici cas d'estudi es realitza mitjançant la utilització de models CFD validats. Es proposen diferents paràmetres i visualitzacions per a l'avaluació quantitativa i qualitativa de cada solució. A continuació es selecciona la millor ubicació pel que fa al comportament de la ventilació natural a l'edifici cas d'estudi. Finalment, la investigació conclou amb la construcció a escala real de l'edifici cas d'estudi. Es valida amb èxit la simulació CFD de l'interior de l'edifici utilitzada des de l'etapa de disseny. També es verifica amb èxit el comportament de la ventilació natural de l'edifici. A més, s'analitzen les condicions de confort interiors mitjançant l'avaluació dels següents índexs: risc de corrents d'aire (DR per les sigles en anglès "draught risk"), mitjana de vots previstos (PMV per les sigles en anglès "predicted mean vote") i el percentatge previst de persones insatisfetes (PPD per les sigles en anglès "predicted percentage of dissatisfied people"). Els resultats mostren que l'ús de la ventilació natural permet assolir, de manera més energèticament eficient, les condicions de confort.
Mora Pérez, M. (2017). Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applied to buildings sustainable design: natural ventilation. Case study [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/86208
TESIS

Dust is ubiquitous in underground mine activities. Continuous inhalation of dust could lead to irreversible occupational diseases. Dust particles of size lower than 75.0 µm, also known as float coal dust, can trigger a coal dust explosion following a methane ignition. Ventilation air carries the float coal dust from the point of production to some distance before it’s deposited on the surfaces of underground coal mine. Sources of dust are widely studied, but study of dust transportation has been mainly based on experimental data and simplified models. An understanding of dust transportation in the mine airways is instrumental in the implementation of local dust control strategies. This thesis presents techniques for sampling float coal dust, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis, and mathematical modeling to estimate average dust deposition in an underground coal mine. Dust samples were taken from roof, ribs, and floor at multiple areas along single air splits from longwall and room and pillar mines. Thermogravimetric analysis of these samples showed no conclusive trends in float coal dust deposition rate with location and origin of dust source within the mine network. CFD models were developed using the Lagrangian particle tracking approach to model dust transportation in reduced scale model of mine. Three dimensional CFD analysis showed random deposition pattern of particle on the mine model floor. A pseudo 2D model was generated to approximate the distance dust particles travel when released from a 7 ft. high coal seam. The models showed that lighter particles released in a high airflow field travel farthest. NIOSH developed MFIRE software was adopted to simulate dust transportation in a mine airway analogous to fume migration. The simulations from MFIRE can be calibrated using the dust sampling results to estimate dust transportation in the ventilation network.

Denna rapport behandlar ett produktutvecklingsprojekt i kursen Examensarbete för högskoleingenjörsprogrammet innovationsteknik och design, MSGC12, vid fakulteten för hälsa, natur- och teknikvetenskap vid Karlstads universitet våren 2015. Handledare för projektet har varit universitetsadjunkt Lennart Wihk och examinator för projektet har varit professor Leo de Vin. Arbetet gjordes i uppdrag av Carl-Ola Danielsson för Swegon i Arvika. Uppdraget har haft som mål att effektivisera underplåten för en av Swegons komfortmoduler både konstruktion- och utseendemässigt. Detta gjordes för att användarvänligheten och säkerheten vid underhållsarbeten ska öka samt för att skapa ett mervärde hos produkten. Arbetet resulterade i ett flertal koncept för hur låsningsanordningen till komfortmodulernas underplåt kan utformas. En utvärdering av dessa koncept resulterade sedan i ett grundläggande koncept för hur låsningsanordningen bör utformas. Genom layoutkonstruktionen utvecklades det grundläggande konceptet och resulterade i totalt tre slutkoncept. Slutkoncepten är alla en typ av snabblåsning mellan underplåten och komfortmodulen. På grund av den minskade tid som slutkoncepten medför vid öppning och stängning av underplåten minskar den statiska belastningen på användaren. Slutkoncepten möjliggör öppning och stängning av underplåten med ett enhandsgrepp, vilket minskar risken för olyckor vid underhållsarbeten av komfortmodulerna. Det finns utrymme för vidarutveckling av slutkoncepten i form av konstruktionsförbättringar, materialval samt fastmonteringsanordning i underplåt och komfortmodul.
This report covers a product development project within the course Degree of Bachelor of Science thesis for innovation and design engineer program, MSGC12, at the Faculty of Health, Nature and Engineering Science at Karlstad University in the spring of 2015. Lennart Wihk has been the supervisor of the project and Professor Leo de Vin acted as examiner for the project. The work was commissioned by Carl-Ola Danielsson for the company Swegon in Arvika, Sweden. The project aimed at improving the face plate for one of Swegon’s comfort modules in both construction and appearance. This was done to improve the usability and safety during maintenance work and to create an added value in the product. The work resulted in a number of concepts for how the locking device to the comfort modules face plate can be designed. An evaluation of these concepts later on resulted in a basic concept for how the locking device should be designed. By a further development of the basic concept, a total of three final concepts were developed. All of the final concepts are a type of quick locking positioned between the face plate and the comfort module. Because of the reduced time required in opening and closing the face plate, the static load is reduced on the user. The final concepts enable opening and closing of the face plate with one hand, reducing the risk of accidents during maintenance work of the comfort modules. There is room for further development of the final concepts in terms of design improvements, material choice and the mounting arrangement of the face plate and the comfort module.

Thesis: S.B., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Architecture, 2018.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 55-56).
Contaminated particles in hospitals can spread from infected patients to those who are hospitalized for non-disease-related reasons. The reputation of hospitals, especially in the developing world, as places where diseases are spread rather than cured necessitates design strategies focused on stopping or controlling disease spread among patients. In this thesis, I examine the potential of architectural layout, among other factors, to reduce the spread of contaminants through passive ventilation strategies. Using Computational Fluid Dynamics, I propose a system of hospital rooms which minimizes contaminant spread among patients while maintaining comfortable airflow rates.
by Abigail M. Anderson.
S.B.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture, 2005.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 150-154).
Natural ventilation is widely applied in sustainable building design because of its energy saving, indoor air qualify and indoor thermal environment improvement. It is important for architects and engineers to accurately predict the performance of natural ventilation, especially in the building design stage. Unfortunately, there is not any good public tool available to predict the natural ventilation design. The integration of the multi-zone model and the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation provides a way to assess the performance of natural ventilation in whole buildings, as well as the detailed thermal environmental information in some particular space. This work has coupled the multi-zone airflow model with the thermal model. A new program, called MultiVent, has been developed with a web-server that can provide online calculation for the public. The MultiVent program can simultaneously simulate the indoor air temperature and airflow rate with known indoor heat sources for buoyancy dominated, buoyancy-wind combined and wind dominated cases. To properly apply the MultiVent program to the natural ventilation design, two configurations in naturally ventilated buildings should be carefully studied: the atrium and large openings between the zones. A criterion has been set up for dividing the large opening and the connected atrium space into at least two sub-openings and sub-zones. The results of the MultiVent calculation can provide boundary conditions to the CFD simulation for some particular zone. In order to correctly simulate the particular space with CFD, the location and conditions at the integrating surface (boundary surface) have been studied. This work suggested that the simulation zone should include part of the connected atrium space when
(cont.) the occupied room is simulated with CFD. There are two options to integrate the MultiVent and CFD simulation through different boundary conditions: velocity (mass) integration and pressure integration. The case studies of this work showed that both of them can generate good CFD simulation results.
by Gang Tan.
Ph.D.

Master of Science
Department of Architecture
Michael D. Gibson
The use of Natural Ventilation (NV) to cool buildings in mixed climates can conserve significant cooling energy. In mixed climates it is particularly important during the fall and the spring, where appropriately designed buildings should use very little energy for heating or cooling. Natural ventilation is also important in residential buildings, where internal heat gain can be managed, making cooling by natural ventilation easier. Earlier investigations have clearly shown the economic, social, and health benefits of the use of NV in built environment. Studies have shown that increased airflow or air-speed during ventilation can bring a significant rise in comfort range which further reduces the cooling energy required to maintain comfort. The climatic data of the central United States (U.S.) shows that the availability of frequent high speed wind and favorable seasonal humidity conditions make natural ventilation feasible in late spring and early fall, where NV can offset most of the cooling demand for a home or multifamily residential unit, though it is not possible to maintain thermal comfort during the entire summer with NV alone. In mixed climates, NV for multifamily residential units has not been investigated thoroughly. According to 2009 International Residential Code, multifamily residential buildings are typically designed to use a code minimum amount of operable or ventilating windows, 4% of the floor area being ventilated, while also using lightweight construction methods (such as wood framing) that is prone to fast thermal response during the overheated periods of the year. While climate may favor the use of NV in these building types, the sizing of windows and the building construction type limit the potential to save energy with NV. This study hypothesized that the maximum benefits from NV in the climate of the central U.S. requires further optimization of window openings beyond the energy code minimum, and a construction system incorporating mass that can slow thermal response during overheated periods. During the study, the climatic data of the central US was scrutinized to understand the most suitable time frames where NV could be applied in order to maintain indoor thermal comfort in various construction systems in residential buildings: mainly lightweight using wood framing, and heavier construction using concrete and masonry. The location of the housing unit, first level or second level, was also examined to account for the differences in thermal gains and losses as a result of ground coupling and additional heat gain from the roof. Further, computational fluid dynamics evaluated the comfort achieved with different ventilation areas. Change in comfort hours by using NV tested the practicability of the use of NV to maintain indoor thermal comfort for different scenarios. The study concluded with design recommendations for building orientation, operable window size, and construction type as these factors relate to thermal comfort and the optimization of multifamily residential buildings to utilize NV for energy savings in the U.S.

Studies on design for control optimization of air-conditioning (a/c) system for better performance in Hong Kong are reported in this thesis. Typical plant configuration data was collected from an in-depth survey of a/c systems and control used in Hong Kong. Control performance has been used for the first time as an objective for optimizing a/c system designs. The study investigates and illustrates that optimization of a/c systems for application in the Hong Kong by simulation is promising and flexible. The accuracy of simulation is enhanced by using the survey data. The survey shows that some a/c control systems and their control strategies are not well considered in the design stage and their operation and set-up are not properly addressed. Hence, there exists optimization opportunities in the a/c system design and control strategies for a/c systems used in Hong Kong. Parameters affecting the control performance of a/c systems were investigated by carrying out experiments. Identified parameters are the objective function of optimization, controller settings, control valve and drive and, in case of direct digital control, sampling rate. The influence of these factors on the control performance is an essential consideration for the entire optimization process. Strategies in applying the findings in optimizing an a/c system for control performance by simulation were developed and suggested. This study provides platform for further simulation study of optimization in both methodologies and control strategies for a/c system design and operation.

This work is concerned with evaluating and studying the possibilities of enhancing natural ventilation performance and its use as a passive cooling strategy in walk-up public housing blocks within the Egyptian desert climatic region. This research attempts to maximize the benefits from the vast investments made in housing projects in Egypt through providing thermally comfortable housing prototypes that could use by contrast less energy for cooling purposes. This is considered essential in the light of the current concerns about energy all over the world. Egypt was devided to seven different climatic regions by the Egyptian organization for energy conservation and planning. The Egyptian desert climatic region, which was chosen as the research context, is the largest climatic region of Egypt. Most of the Egyptian new cities that accommodate the majority of the recent public housing projects are located within this desert climatic region that represents the typical hot arid climate characteristics. Nationally, the problem of the misuse of the housing prototyping was spotted. According to previous researchers, the same basic prototypical designs are being built all over the country without giving enough consideration to the actual effects of different climates and the diversity in the residents social needs. Regionally, within the Egyptian desert climatic region, the harsh climatic conditions rate the problem of achieving thermal comfort within these housing prototypes as the most urgent problem that needs to be examined in depth. A pilot study that used observation and monitoring methods was conducted in the New Al-Minya city (The representative city of the desert climatic design region) in order to closely investigate this problem and identify its dimensions. The results confirmed thermal discomfort conditions of the housing prototypes built there, especially during the hot summer period. The passive design strategies analysis of the climatic context indicated that night purge ventilation is the most effective passive strategy that could enhance thermal comfort. These results go along with the rule of natural ventilation in reducing the used energy for cooling and the actually massive national income spent on these housing prototypes encourage this work so to concentrate on natural ventilation. Different studies using multi-approaches research techniques were employed in order to achieve the main aim of the research. These techniques included; literature review, monitoring, questionnaire and computer simulation.A critical literature review was conducted including; the physical science of natural ventilation, its strategic design as well as the design measures that control natural ventilation and the airflow in; the macro, intermediate and micro design levels. The results of the investigations were discussed and interpreted in the light of this review. A representative case study was chosen for the study. The natural ventilation performance in the case study was quantitatively and qualitatively evaluated through conducting field objective and subjective assessment respectively. In evaluation study, the thermal performance of the case study under different ventilation scenarios was monitored, the airflow inside it was simulated using CFD (computational fluid dynamics) software “FloVent” and a sample of residents were questioned. This study identified many problems associated natural ventilation uses and indicated its poor performance within the case study. A number of design measures were formulated based on the literature review and considering the evaluation study results along with the research context nature. The proposed natural ventilation design measures were applied to the case studies and their effectiveness in terms of enhancing the natural ventilation performance was quantified using “FloVent”. Results reported that the proposed natural ventilation design measures could significantly enhance the natural ventilation performance inside the case study quantitatively and qualitatively. This in turn maximizes the potential of providing thermal comfort by using both natural ventilation strategies; comfort ventilation and night purge ventilation. However, all the applied measures could not achieve neither an acceptable airspeed at any of the case study spaces nor a good airflow circulation at some of its spaces. It can be concluded that the current design of the case study can not achieve quality airflow without the use of the mechanical assisted ventilation. In general, it seems very difficult to optimize the air velocity within all spaces in a very dense multi-space design like this case study. A new design that considers natural ventilation and its drivers has to be introduced.

This research seeks to find a design solution for reducing the energy usage in high-rise office buildings in Singapore. There are numerous methods and techniques that could be employed to achieve the purpose of designing energy efficient buildings. The Thesis explores the viability of double-skin fa??ades (DSF) to provide natural ventilation as an energy efficient solution for office buildings in hot and humid environment by using computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations and case study methodologies. CFD simulations were used to examine various types of DSF used in office buildings and the behaviour of airflow and thermal transfer through the DSF; the internal thermal comfort levels of each office spaces were analyzed and compared; and an optimization methodology was developed to explore the best DSF configuration to be used in high-rise office buildings in the tropics. The correlation between the fa??ade configurations, the thermal comfort parameters, and the internal office space energy consumption through the DSF is studied and presented. The research outcome of the Thesis has found that significant energy saving is possible if natural ventilation strategies could be exploited with the use of DSF. A prototype DSF configuration which will be best suited for the tropical environment in terms of its energy efficiency through cross ventilation strategy is proposed in this Thesis. A series of comprehensive and user-friendly nomograms for design optimization in selecting the most appropriate double-skin fa??ade configurations with considerations of various orientations for the use in high-rise office buildings in the tropics were also presented.