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Building Ventilation in Hot Climates: Rule #1: Priorities
Building Ventilation in Hot Climates: Rule #1: Priorities
Building Ventilation
in hot climates
Benoit Cushman‐Roisin
ENGS 44
24 April 2017
Rule #1: Priorities
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Types of passive cooling techniques – Summary
1. Cooling with ventilation
‐ Night flush (using cold night air to pre‐cool building for next day)
‐ Comfort ventilation (day or night, to promote evaporation from skin)
2. Radiant cooling
‐ Direct radiant cooling (through roof structure, out to night sky)
‐ Indirect radiant cooling (heat loss to night sky
transferred to a fluid that in turn cools the structure)
3. Evaporative cooling
‐ Direct evapora on (water spray at air inlet, T↓ but RH ↑)
‐ Indirect evaporative cooling (water sprayed on roof to cool roof)
4. Earth cooling
‐ Direct coupling (earth embankment)
‐ Indirect coupling (air entering structure by way of buried tubes)
5. Dehumidification with a desiccant
(for removal of latent heat in the humidity)
Recall the psychrometric chart
If it’s cold,
humidity is not a problem. But, if it’s hot, a
distinction must be made
between dry and humid.
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Ventilation rules for hot climates
The benefit of ventilation: With increased wind speed, the air feels cooler.
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Mind the microclimates on a hill,
and take advantage of them.
South slopes
offer more
solar heat
and shorter
shadows.
Using the wind effectively
Part 1: Orientation of the structure & pitch of roof
Prevailing wind
direction
(not necessarily
west to east)
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Using the wind effectively
Part 2: Using the Venturi effect (lower air pressure where air flows faster)
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Chin_Haw_Lim/public
ation/233982406/figure/fig2/AS:300104650117123@14485
61932282/Fig‐2‐Venturi‐shaped‐roof‐geometry‐and‐
experimental‐house‐with‐wind‐induced‐natural.png
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Using the wind effectively
Part 3: Stack effect
(hot air rising by buoyancy)
Examples
of solar chimneys:
From small to large
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Using the wind effectively
Part 4: Placement of
operable windows
If inlet and outlet do not have the same size
NOT SO GOOD VERY GOOD
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Small windows and lots of thermal mass for hot and dry places
Greece
Turkey
More examples of
historical and
indigenous use of
passive cooling
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Courtyards are
self‐shading and
may be combined
with evaporative
cooling.
Replica of a Roman Villa at the Getty Museum in California
Large pools of water frequently helped cool Roman villas in sunny and dry Italy.
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As it is now As it probably was in Roman times
Dining terrace was cooled by an indoor water canal.
A grapevine pergola provided shade.
The terrace is oriented to the south for winter heating.
Massive dome structures for hot and dry climate:
Sun shines from near top, seeing only the footprint of the structure,
but night time cooling is through the broader surface of the dome.
The dome offers the additional benefit of much thermal mass.
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A well designed mansion
in Virginia,
making use of the stack
effect (hot air rises into
the belvedere over the
open staircase)
Traditional
construction in
the Southeast USA
(hot & humid)
before the
invention of air
conditioning
All the structures
have operable
windows.
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Radiant Cooling:
Another form of natural ventilation combined with thermal mass
NIGHT
DAY
Using the ground temperature for passive cooling
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Can you see the drawbacks of these techniques?
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