scholarly journals Adaptive Thermal Comfort Potential in Mediterranean Office Buildings: A Case Study of Torre Sevilla

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3091 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raúl Castaño-Rosa ◽  
Carlos Rodríguez-Jiménez ◽  
Carlos Rubio-Bellido

The design and construction of buildings is currently subject to a growing set of requirements concerning sustainability and energy efficiency. This paper shows a case study of the Torre Sevilla skyscraper, located in the city of Seville (in the south of Spain), which has high-tech energy-efficient features and which uses air-conditioning systems during most of its operating hours. The analysis carried out starts from a simulation in which occupants’ thermal comfort are obtained, based on the adaptive comfort model defined in the standard EN 15251:2007. With this approach, it is possible to determine the number of hours during operation in which the building has adequate comfort conditions only with the help of the envelope and natural ventilation. Consequently, the remaining useful hours require the use of air-conditioning systems. The results show that it is possible to improve the thermal performance of the building due to its location in the Mediterranean climate. To do this, advanced mixed mode (through manual-opening or mechanically-controlled opening windows) and active air-conditioning are suggested. This experimental proposal provides a reduction of the occupation hours which require the use of air-conditioning equipment by 28.57%, reducing the air-conditioning demand and, consequently, the energy consumption of the building.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 1513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Sánchez-García ◽  
David Bienvenido-Huertas ◽  
Jesús A. Pulido-Arcas ◽  
Carlos Rubio-Bellido

Reports of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have set various greenhouse gas emissions scenarios, through which the evolution of the temperature of the planet can be estimated throughout the 21st century. The reduction of the emissions from the different activities carried out by mankind is crucial to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. One of the most significant activities is users’ behaviour within buildings, particularly the use of Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning systems. Modifying users’ behaviour patterns to guarantee acceptable thermal conditions inside buildings could lead to considerable energy saving percentages, and adaptive thermal comfort models could be an opportunity to achieve important savings. For this reason, this study analyzes the potential to apply adaptive thermal comfort models to use artificial air-conditioning systems by modifying setpoint temperatures. The analysis was conducted in five major European cities (Barcelona, Berlin, Bern, Rome, and Vienna) and in five climate change scenarios in the year 2050. The results showed that, in general, the energy saving achieved by adaptive strategies was larger in the cities with a greater cooling demand. Also, in both Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) of the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) considered, the energy saving were decreased in the cities of Barcelona and Rome, with values lower than those of the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) scenarios considered, whereas in the cities of Berlin, Bern, and Vienna, the saving in the RCP scenarios is greater than those in the other scenarios.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aiman Albatayneh ◽  
Dariusz Alterman ◽  
Adrian Page ◽  
Behdad Moghtaderi

The building industry is regarded a major contributor to climate change as energy consumption from buildings accounts for 40% of the total energy. The types of thermal comfort models used to predict the heating and cooling loads are critical to save energy in operative buildings and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). In this research, the internal air temperatures were recorded for over one year under the free floating mode with no heating or cooling, then the number of hours required for heating or cooling were calculated based on fixed sets of operative temperatures (18 °C–24 °C) and the adaptive thermal comfort model to estimate the number of hours per year required for cooling and heating to sustain the occupants’ thermal comfort for four full-scale housing test modules at the campus of the University of Newcastle, Australia. The adaptive thermal comfort model significantly reduced the time necessary for mechanical cooling and heating by more than half when compared with the constant thermostat setting used by the air-conditioning systems installed on the site. It was found that the air-conditioning system with operational temperature setups using the adaptive thermal comfort model at 80% acceptability limits required almost half the operating energy when compared with fixed sets of operating temperatures. This can be achieved by applying a broader range of acceptable temperature limits and using techniques that require minimal energy to sustain the occupants’ thermal comfort.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 473 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hardi K. Abdullah ◽  
Halil Z. Alibaba

Natural ventilation through window openings is an inexpensive and effective solution to bring fresh air into internal spaces and improve indoor environmental conditions. This study attempts to address the “indoor air quality–thermal comfort” dilemma of naturally ventilated office buildings in the Mediterranean climate through the effective use of early window design. An experimental method of computational modelling and simulation was applied. The assessments of indoor carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration and adaptive thermal comfort were performed using the British/European standard BS EN 15251:2007. The results indicate that when windows were opened, the first-floor zones were subjected to the highest CO2 levels, especially the north-facing window in the winter and the south-facing window in the summer. For a fully glazed wall, a 10% window opening could provide all the office hours inside category I of CO2 concentration. Such an achievement requires full and quarter window openings in the cases of 10% and 25% window-to-floor ratios (WFR), respectively. The findings of the European adaptive comfort showed that less than 50% of office hours appeared in category III with cross-ventilation. The concluding remarks and recommendations are presented.


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (6 Part A) ◽  
pp. 2597-2604
Author(s):  
Razika Kharchi ◽  
Khaled Imessad

A significant portion of energy consumed in buildings is due to energy usage by heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. Free cooling is a good option for energy savings in the systems. In recent years, scientists, engineers, and architects designed successful and innovative buildings which use passive cooling techniques, such as natural ventilation. The house studied in the present work, is a pilot project undertaken jointly by the Centre for Development of Renewable Energies (CDER) and the National Centre for Studies and Research of the integrated building (CNERIB) in the framework of the MED-ENEC project (Mediterranean Energy Efficiency in Construction structure). The house under consideration has a surface area of 65 m2 and is located in the region of Algiers which characterized by a Mediterranean climate with relatively mild winters and a hot and humid summer. The aim of this work is to study the thermal comfort inside the house in summer without air conditioning systems, only ventilation is considered. The aim of this work is to study the effect of natural ventilation on both thermal and hygrometric comfort inside the house during the summer period. Numerical simulation is made using the TRNSYS software and the results obtained are in good agreement with measured values. The prototype home is designed in a way that natural ventilation allows thermal comfort which induced energy saving from air conditioning. The mean temperature measured in the interior of the house is 26?C. The relative humidity reaches about 70% in August. Thermal comfort is related to relative humidity that are the essential parameters of the feeling of comfort. Humidity is an important parameter in thermal comfort, it is why we can conclude that we have reached a relatively good hygrothermal comfort.


Urban Science ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 53
Author(s):  
Haven Hailu ◽  
Eshetu Gelan ◽  
Yared Girma

Indoor thermal comfort is an essential aspect of sustainable architecture and it is critical in maintaining a safe indoor environment. Expectations, acceptability, and preferences of traditional and modern buildings are different in terms of thermal comfort. This study, therefore, attempts to evaluate the indoor thermal comforts of modern and traditional buildings and identify the contributing factors that impede or facilitate indoor thermal comfort in Semera city, Ethiopia. This study employed subjective and objective measurements. The subjective measurement is based on the ASHRAE seven-point thermal sensation scale. An adaptive comfort model was employed according to the ASHRAE standard to evaluate indoor thermal comfort. The results revealed that with regards to thermal sensational votes between −1 and +1, 88% of the respondents are satisfied with the indoor environment in traditional houses, while in modern houses this figure is 22%. Likewise, 83% of occupants in traditional houses expressed a preference for their homes to remain the same or be only slightly cooler or warmer. Traditional houses were, on average, in compliance with the 80% acceptability band of the adaptive comfort standard. The study investigated that traditional building techniques and materials, in combination with consideration of microclimate, were found to play a significant role in regulating the indoor environment.


2014 ◽  
Vol 493 ◽  
pp. 74-79
Author(s):  
Y.A. Sabtalistia ◽  
S.N.N. Ekasiwi ◽  
B. Iskandriawan

Energy consumption for air conditioning systems (air conditioning system) increased along with the increasing need for fresh air and comfortable in the room especially apartments. FAC system (Floor Air Conditioning) is growing because it is more energy efficient than CAC (Ceiling Air Conditioning) system. However, the position of the AC supply is on the lower level at the FAC system causes draft discomfort becomes greater as air supply closer to the occupants so that thermal comfort can be reduced. Heat mixture of windows, exterior walls, kitchen, and occupants in the studio apartment affect thermal comfort in the room too.This study aims to determine the position of the AC supply which has the best thermal comfort of FAC system in the studio apartment. It can be done by analyzing ADPI (Air Diffusion Performance Index), the distribution of air temperature, wind speed, RH (Relative Humidity), and DR (Draft Risk) to change the position of the AC supply supported by CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) simulation.This result prove that AC position 2 (on wall near the kitchen) is more comfortable than AC position 1 (on the bathroom wall) because AC position 2 away from occupied areas, thereby reducing the occurrence of draught discomfort.


2021 ◽  
pp. 108432
Author(s):  
Peiping Zheng ◽  
Chunxiao Wang ◽  
Yanchen Liu ◽  
Borong Lin ◽  
Huijun Wu ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Somaye A. Mohamadi ◽  
Abdulraheem J. Ahmed

<span>Despite their complexity and uncertainty, air conditioning systems should provide the optimal thermal conditions in a building. These controller systems should be adaptable to changes in environmental parameters. In most air conditioning systems, today, there are On/Off controllers or PID in more advanced types, which, due to different environmental conditions, are not optimal and cannot provide the optimal environmental conditions. Controlling thermal comfort of an air conditioning system requires estimation of thermal comfort index. In this study, fuzzy controller was used to provide thermal comfort in an air conditioning system, and neural network was used to estimate thermal comfort in the feedback path of the controller. Fuzzy controller has a good response given the non-linear features of air conditioning systems. In addition, the neural network makes it possible to use thermal comfort feedback in a real-time control.</span>


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abhijeet Chothave ◽  
Yashwant Mohite ◽  
Vinay Poal ◽  
Phaneendra Pamarthi

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