Faculty of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Feasibility of Natural Ventilation

in the Mechanical Engineering
Building
1
Project Summary
In pursuit of UWA sustainable development goals, this study investigates the possibility of using
natural ventilation in the Mechanical Engineering building at the university's Craley campus! "he
building currently uses a number of mechanical heating, ventilation and cooling #$%AC& systems
hich offer some opportunities for improved energy efficiency! "o study the e'isting building and
services, a model of the building has been created using state of the art thermal simulation and
analysis softare! A selection of natural ventilation schemes have been modelled in order to study
the feasibility of replacing, or reducing the energy consumption of, the mechanical ventilation
currently used! "his report describes the modelling pro(ect and discusses the results of the
feasibility study conducted!
"he scope of or) for this pro(ect, as stated at the outset, has proved to be somehat over
ambitious! "he comple'ity of the softare chosen for the tas) has sloed don the pace of the
modelling tas)! While *+, +esign ,tudio is an e'cellent pac)age and it leverages the poer of the
Energy-lus to ensure high .uality hole building simulation, it is at an early stage of development!
$ence it is poorly documented and suited more to e'perienced professionals! "his has sloed the
progress on the basic models hich must be made before .uality investigations of possible
alterations to the building can be made! "o deal ith this reality, it has been proposed to reduce the
scope of the pro(ect and focus on investigating the feasibility of natural ventilation for the
mechanical engineering building as constrained by the local climate and the building!
Acknowledgements
"han)s to /eraldine "an, "ony $umphries, Angus "avner, Mar) -itman, $elen Whitbread, Alistair
0obertson!
1
School / Section name
The University of estern !ustralia
M""", #$ %tirling &igh'ay, Cra'ley ! ("")

Tel *(+ , (-,, """"
Fa. *(+ , (-,, """"
Email email/u'a0edu0au
Web www.xxx.uwa.edu.au
C12C3% 4rovider Code5 ""+6(7
Table of Contents
-ro(ect ,ummary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1
Ac)noledgements!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2
-lanned -ro(ect ,cope !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 3
0evised -ro(ect ,cope!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 3
4iterature 0evie5Case ,tudies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 6
Case ,tudies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 6
City of Melbourne's Council $ouse 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 6
/rove $ouse at "hames %alley University!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 7
8ion 9ational -ar) %isitor Centre Utah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :
;uilding +escription !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! <
E'isting heating, ventilation and cooling system!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1=
4ocal climate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 11
*ptions and *pportunities!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1>
Modelling ,oftare!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 12
*+, ,tudio!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 12
*pen?*AM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 12
Energy-lus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 12
Model Inputs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!12
;uilding /eometry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 13
Construction and Materials!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 13
Windos and ,hading !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 13
;uilding Use and *ccupancy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 16
,chedules!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 16
*ccupancy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!16
4ighting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 17
Electric E.uipment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!17
Windo %ent ,chedule!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 17
"hermal Comfort ,chedules !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1:
Activity !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1:
Clothing !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1:
Air velocity !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1:
Wor) Efficiency !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1:
Ideal 4oads $%AC !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1:
Airflo 9etor) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1:
Infiltration !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1<
Assessment Criteria!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1<
Indoor "emperatures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1<
Infiltration and %entilation 0ates!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1<
Cooling 4oads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1=
"hermal Comfort!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1=
>
0esults!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 11
Input %erification!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 11
Cooltoer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 11
,hading!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11
Comparative ,tudies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1>
,ummary +iscussion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! >1
Conclusions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! >1
0eferences!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! >>
2
Planned Project Scope
1! Complete audit of e'isting mechanical services in building including Chilled ater loops,
additional heat5cool services, ducting, fans, diffusers etc!
1! Identification of possible natural ventilation schemes in building #consult ith ?acilities
Management 5 $%AC engineer&
>! Create a computer model of the Mechanical Engineering building and its mechanical service
2!%alidate the model ith actual data #energy consumption etc&
3! Model various natural ventilation schemes
6! Investigate additional energy efficiency measures #e!g indo insulation films& to supplement
natural ventilation proposal
7! Analy@e the model and select the most favorable alternatives
:! *utline costs of proposed scheme and compare to energy savings estimated
<! Main deliverable ill be a set of recommendations for utili@ing natural ventilation in the
Mechanical Engineering building
Revised Project Scope
0eferring to the planned pro(ect scope above, the planned revision of the scope ill beA
1! Unchanged
1! Unchanged
>! Unchanged
2! After discussions ith ?M, it as decided not to proceed ith this!
3! ?eer of the proposed options ill be investigated, rather than fully implemented models for
each of the options, the modelling ill focus on the feasibility of an ideal natural ventilation
scheme !
6! Modelling reduced solar gain is still planned!
7! 0eplace this element ith a discussion of ho to implement the modelled scheme in the e'isting
building!
:! Cost of the imageI9B film can be found
<! "his deliverable ill be the final report hich ill describe the relevant design principles, the )ey
features of the feasibility study, the constraints imposed by the building and climate and
C Compare closed building and nightCcooled building
C Duantify the effect of reduced solar gain through e'isting indos
3
Literature Review/Case Studies
styleA point or argument #Author,Eear&
"he use of night cooling to reduce energy consumption in modern buildings is discussed in
#Bolo)troni et al, 1<<:&! "he strategy is found to be particularly effective in moderate climates and
for high thermal mass construction! #Wang et al, 1==<& et al study the use of night cooling by
mechanical means for lightCeight constructions and temperature climates!
"he thermal comfort criteria by hich natural ventilation strategies are (udged are discussed
#?ordham,1===& ho argues for an e'tending the narro criteria, set out by the A,$0AE standard
FrefG! E'tensions include accounting for air movement and peoples tendency to acclimatise to local
eather! Acclimatisation is accounted for in the or) of #,@oa)y,1<<HH& Fpull ref from miriamG and
the ,E" values for -erth, discussed in Fmiriam'sG $onour's "hesis are used here to .uantify the
comfort conditions uni.ue to -erth, WA!
"he impact of climate on passive cooling potential is .uantified by #Artmann et al, 1==7&! "he
climatic cooling potential characterises the climates impact on the thermal behaviour of a building
in terms of degreeChours! "he CC- is defined as a summation over a period of nights of the product
of building temperature and outdoor temperature! Useful nightCcooling is said to occur for CC-
values of 1==)$ or above #Artmann et al, 1==7&
Methods for integrating the fundamental principles of natural ventilation into buildings are
discussed by #Mansouri, 1<<:&!
Case Studies
City of Melbourne's Council House 2
City of Melbourne's Council $ouse 1 achieved Australia's highest energy efficiency rating, the
/reenstar 6 ,tar certification #esd design guide, EEA0&! It features phase change materials and airC
conditioning is achieved ith 1==I fresh air and chilled ceiling panels! "he building uses night
ventilation! "he building implements a night cooling system using openable indos and stac)
effect! ,ee ?igure 1! Applying such a scheme to the UWA Mechanical Engineering building could
be problematic! "here is a security concern ith having indos opened at night! "he concern is
perhaps loer for the first and second story indos! ,econdly, the scheme relies on effective
crossCventilation and clear flo paths to the vertical column! "o be effective, the path for airflo
must be continuous, hich it is not! "he interior spaces are bro)en by the central corridors! "o
effectively apply this simple natural ventilation scheme re.uires dealing ith these to issues!
$oever, an idealised version of such a night purging scheme as applied, ignoring these issues, in
order to .uantify the potential benefit it can deliver!
6
Grove House at Thames Valley University
/rove $ouse at "hames %alley University in the UB underent a substantial renovation to
implement a natural ventilation scheme! "he main features of the scheme being a passive stac) and
facade ventilation system, the use of nightCcooling and solar panels for electricity generation!
Windos ere replaced to include air inlet grilles to ventilate a plenum space ad(acent to the
internal floors! Air flos along the
thermal mass of the concrete slabs
and is dran into stairells hich
serve as passive stac) devices here
air is dran out at the rooftop! "he
scheme is fundamentally similar to
the one implemented in the
Melbourne Council building,
hoever, the facade deals ith the
security issue of openable indos!
"he system re.uires airspace ad(acent
to the internal floors continuous to the
stairells! "o apply this scheme to the
UWA Mechanical Engineering
building, e'tensive or) ould be re.uired to provide such a continuous space for airflo! In the
buildings core, there are three stairells hich could provide the necessary vertical spaces! A lac)
of ceiling space in the building is the other main hindrance to applying such a scheme!
7
Figure 1: Night cooling at Melbourne's City Council Building
Figure 2: Facade Ventilation devices
Zion National Park Visitor Centre Utah
"he final case study e'amined is the 8ion 9ational -ar) %isitor Centre in Utah! "he local climate
dry and mild, ith arm summers, similar to -erth's! "he %isitor Centre is a landmar) pro(ect for
passive design! "he )ey features of the building are its open plan, ith high indos oriented to
catch the inter sun and e'clude the summer sun, a cooling toer using ater evaporation to
provide a lo energy source of temperature and humidity control and trombe alls to provide
passive heating in inter!
"he %isitor Centre provides an e'ample of an ideal implementation of passive design and natural
ventilation! It highlights the potential of passive design features hen incorporated into the building
design from its inception! "he relevance of this case study to the Mechanical Engineering building
at UWA is the use of cooling toers combined ith lo openings for inta)e air and high openings
for e'haust air! "he climate in -erth dictates that some source of cooling ill #most li)ely& be
needed to maintain comfortable conditions! Cooling toers may be able to provide this cooling at a
lo energy cost!
:
Figure 3:Photo of the Visitor Centre shoing
cooling toer and high indos for e!haust air
Figure ": #he $assive design features of the Visitor Centre
Building Description
"he mechanical engineering building at the University of Western Australia's Craley campus is a
large spraling building! It consists of nine main bloc)s and to lecture theatres! "he core of the
building consists of the A,; and C bloc)s! -eripheral to this core, there are several large or)shop
and laboratory area, hich are generally large spaces ith high ceilings! Each building is divided on
its east est a'es by a central corridor! ;oth the south and north facades are gla@ed, ith the
northern facades generally having more internal blinds shading the rooms on that side! "he building
as constructed in the 1<6='s and consistent ith that period, the construction materials are a
mi'ture of concrete, bric), metal roofing and clear gla@ing! "he building as not designed for a
mechanical $%AC system! "his is apparent in the inclusion of some passive design features and
also in the lac) of ceiling5interCfloor space available for ducting and pipeor)! "he passive features
of the building are the east5est orientation of bloc)'s main a'is, the prevalence of e'ternal shading
on the northern facades and the shallo depth of the north5south e'tent ith openable indos on
both of these sides! "hrough its long service, the building has undergone several refits and
renovations, including a mechanical $%AC system being installed in the late 1<<='s! "his system is
described in more detail in the #$%AC section&! "he original interior morphology Fmust introduce
Mansouri before thisG had to be modified to allo this system to operate effectively and this has left
the building in a somehat contradictory state! It does not have the closed, airCtight type spaces
necessary for effective airCcon designs nor the open, ell vented spaces ideal for natural ventilation
design! "he original scope of or) called for a model of the entire building, hoever, given its si@e
and the comple'ity of modelling spaces ith so much variation, it has been decided to model the
main core of the building, the A,; and C bloc)s! "hese can be seen in the image belo, noticeable
as the central section ith the dar)er roof!
<
Figure %: google &a$s i&age of the Mechanical 'ngineering building( #he core of
the building has a dar)er shade of roofing &aterial
Eisting !eating" ventilation and cooling system
"he core of the Mechanical Engineering building is serviced by a variable air volume #%A%& $%AC
system that as retrofitted to the building in 1<<:! "he building, constructed in the 1<6='s,
constrained the $%AC system in a number of ays! Centralised plant as not practical, given the
spread out nature of the building! "hus, there are several plant rooms located around the building
hich serve nearby spaces! In some cases, the corridors are used for return air plenums! ?or this
reason, and to maintain independence of the thermal @ones served each air handling unit #A$U&,
doors have been installed in long corridors through the ; and C bloc)s! "he ceiling spaces through
these buildings provide very little room for the re.uired ducting and services and in some cases a
loered ceiling is noticeable! $oever, the ceiling spaces throughout the building are not uniform!
"he air handling units are served by chilled ater from the UWA central plant! "he central plant
uses evaporative toers to produce ater at 3C for use throughout the University! ?acilities
Management note that during pea) periods the chilled ater demand can be greater than the plant's
capacity and hen this occurs, rolling supply reductions occur!
"he air handling units are %A% devices ith variable speed fans #%,?& and outdoor air
economisers! "his is an optimum arrangement for energy efficiency! "he air volume delivered by
the A$U to each @one varies according to the load on the system! In the rooms that each A$U
serves, a user can sitch on the airCcon as re.uired! "he A$U ill deliver air according to the
re.uired load, calculated ith input from the room's thermostat! "he typical se.uence of events on a
given or)ing day is as follos! At the beginning of the day the variable speed fan ill be off and
there ill be no air floing through the A$U! As the rooms are occupied, the airCcon sitch is
pressed by users in those rooms, the A$U ill begin operating! "he %,? ill spin up, it ill settle
at a speed hich provides for a static pressure drop of about 13=pa! "his air flo ill pass over the
chilled ater coils, cooled to the set point! "emperature sensors in the room provide feedbac) to
ensure the air is at set point! An economy cycle operates such that if the outside air temperature is
suitable for heating or cooling it ill be used instead of supply air! When it is not suitable, for
e'ample on a very hot day, the volume of outside air delivered is determined by the fresh air
re.uirement, hich is usually about 1= l5s5person! An onCsite eather station provides calibrated
outside air temperature and relative humidity information for the University ide facilities
management system #?M,&
In addition to the %A% system supplied by the A$U's there are also areas served by fan coil
units#?CU's& and evaporative units! "o ?CU's located outside /:: and /<1 serve those rooms!
"he large spaces in the ater research lab and the mechanical engineering or)shop are served by
evaporative units! It is found that these large spaces can be efficiently cooled in this ay and that in
-erth's climate, this is effective for all but a fe days of the year, hen the relative humidity is too
high for effective cooling!
1=
Local climate
"he e'tent to hich natural ventilation can provide a comfortable internal environment is dictated
largely by the local climate! "o achieve the necessary fresh air ventilation rates Fneed to set up A,
fresh air re.uirementsG and maintain cool indoor air temperatures during long hot summer periods
are often conflicting re.uirements! "he e'tent of this conflict varies ith the seasons and ith
climate! In temperate climates, the outdoor conditions ill coincide ith satisfactory thermal
comfort for a considerable proportion of the year! In hot humid climates there is a small proportion
of the year hen outdoor air can be used to ventilate an indoor space ithout raising the
temperature to an uncomfortable level!
"hus an assessment of the local climate is a necessary starting point for a discussion of the
feasibility of any natural ventilation scheme!
"he climate in -erth, WA is classified as dry ,ummer sub tropical under the Boppen classification
and is characterised by dry and hot summers and mild inters! +uring the armer months, the local
eather is dominated by high pressure systems bringing dry easterly inds! "his summer pattern is
accompanied by a seaCbree@e! Which, hen it occurs, brings a cool change in the afternoons! As
initial modelling and advice from ?M sho that the Mechanical ;uilding does not often re.uire
heating, the focus throughout this study is on the ,ummer conditions and the availability of cooling
measures!
"he annual trend of minimum and ma'imum temperatures is shon in figure ?I/U0E! ,ummer
ma'imums in the high >='s are typical, ith cool evenings being the norm! Winter ma'imums in the
high teens, and minimums above free@ing are typical! What is also apparent in the figure belo is
that the diurnal variation through the year is relatively constant! +uring the milder seasons, this
translate into a reasonable level of night cooling potential!
11
Figure *( Monthly &ini&u& and &a!i&u& te&$eratures
8anuary February March !pril May 8une 8uly !ugust %eptember 3ctober November 9ecember !nnual
"
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6"
6$
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"he prevailing ind is detailed in figure ?I/U0E belo! "he figure shos the prevalence of the
southesterly ind in the afternoon, providing a reliable coolCchange to most hot days!
"he sea bree@e is a southesterly ind hich generally pic)s up by mid afternoon and can travel
inland further than the metro area! "o .uantify the possible cooling effect available from the sea
bree@e, eather data for the past < years from the -erth Airport as analysed! ;ased on a rough, but
reasonable definition hich states that a sea bree@e occurs if
the ind direction is beteen 1:= C17=
the ind strength is 3 )nots or greater #1!3m5s&
the daily ma'imum as above 13C
With a total of 1362 days of ind and temperature data for the past < years there ere 717 days
ith a sea bree@e beteen 11pm and 11am, a mean value of about 1:I, or 1 day in three! "here
ere >>6 out of 1362 days here the ma' as above 13 and there as no sea bree@e!
"he climatic cooling potential, e'pressed in degreeChours as calculated for a building temperature
of 1>C and the average C-- value for each month of the year is shon in figure ?I/U0E belo!
11
Figure +: ,ind -oses for Perth's seasons. (thin)bric)(co&(au
"he lo C-- values for the hot months of +ecember, January, ?ebruary and March, #less than
2=Bh& mean that there is limited potential for nightCcooling in these months!
#ptions and #pportunities
/uided by this evaluation of the local climate and by the case studies discussed, a number of natural
ventilation and passive design features ere investigatedK
1! 9ightCcooling through openable indos
1! Windo films applied to e'isting indos
>! *perable shading devices
2! +ayCtime cooling ith Cooltoers
"hese options provide an opportunity to reduce the energy consumed in cooling the Mechanical
Engineering building! "he building and the climate provide some constraints on the degree and
nature of these opportunities! Using the thermal simulation and analysis methods that are consistent
ith the process of environmentally sustainable design, the feasibility of these options ere
investigated!
1>
Figure /( Cli&atic Cooling Potential
8anuary
February
March
!pril
May
8une
8uly
!ugust
%eptember
3ctober
November
9ecember
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6"
-"
("
,"
+""
+6"
+-"
Climatic Cooling 4otential
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$odelling So%tware
ODS Studio
"he modelling and analysis softare used for this pro(ect
as *+, ,tudio! *+, +esign ,tudio brings together several
openCsource pac)ages including ;lender C a >+ design tool,
Energy-lus C the building simulation and analysis tool
developed by the U!, +epartment of Energy and 9ational
0eneable Energy 4aboratory, *pen?*AM C a
computational fluid dynamics pac)age and other pac)ages
not used here #-itman, 1=11&
"he building geometry is modelled in ;lender! $ere the
building's physical properties, its floorplan, construction
materials etc are represented! *+, ,tudio translates these
properties into the form re.uired for Energy-lus! "his is encapsulated in the I+?, hich is a te't file
containing a description of the buildings surfaces, construction materials, shading, $%AC system,
internal loads #people, lights, electricity&, the schedules on hich the building operates #e!g times
hen it is occupied, times hen the $%AC is on and off& and other re.uired details! Energy-lus
ill simulate this building over a given period and sub(ect to an e'ternal environment described in a
eather file!
OpenFOAM
?urther modelling inputs are available by passing the building geometry to *pen?*AM and
running C?+ simulations, for e'ample to e'amine the pressure distribution on the building facade
under the action of ind! +ue to time constraints, e'tracting the pressure distribution data from
*pen?*AM as not achieved!
EnergyPlus
Energy-lus is one of the most highly validated thermal modelling tools available! It is also
opensource hich means no licensing fees are necessary to use it! ?urther, it is very ell
documented and supported!
$odel &nputs
In order to construct a useful thermal model of the building, a considerable amount of input data
as re.uired! "his data consists of information hich can be broadly categorised intoK
1! ;uilding geometry
1! Construction and materials
>! Windos and shading devices
2! ;uilding use and occupancyK patterns of building occupancy and use!
12
Figure 0: 1n i&age of the &odel. dran in Blender
3! $eating, ventilation and cooling system #$%AC&
3! 4ocal eather conditions!
Building Geometry
"he geometric and $%AC information as gathered from architectural and mechanical plans!
+iscussions ith "ony $umphries from ?acilities Management ere also a very useful source of
information on the building and $%AC operation! "he architectural draings provided the starting
point for the model of the building! Well over >== draings ere provided by ?M! "hese draings
include original plans from created by the +epartment of -ublic Wor)s in the 1<6=s and from
various refits and e'tensions in the years since! "he main floorCplan draings ere ta)en from
draings A112C=1BE, A112C=1BE, A112C/9BE, A112 and A112C137 #,ite -lan&! "he building
consists of several bloc)s, ith the A,; and C bloc)s comprising the core of the building, modelled
in this pro(ect! "his core building is served by several air handling units! ;loc)s E,? and / house
large or)shop and laboratory spaces that are served by dedicated rooftop evaporative coolers!
Construction and Materials
"he architectural plans also provided information on the construction materials used in the building!
"he building is constructed ith a mi'ture of concrete, bric), timber and metal roofing! /la@ing is
6mm float glass! E'terior alls ithout gla@ing are generally single or double bric), gla@ed facades
are timber framed panels, ith a insulation bac)ed gla@ed panel on the loer third of the facade!
"he insulation levels through the building are assumed to be HHmm fibre panels in the ceiling space!
Interior partitions are either light plasterboard construction or single bric) in some older spaces!
"hese construction materials are represented in the model using the data from the A,$0AE
$andboo) of ?undamentals on the thermal properties of common building materials, hich is
available as a dataset in Energy-lus!
Windows and Shading
"he shading has been modelled by including venetian blinds on the interior indos of the
northern facade and by e'ternal shades along the east and est facades! "he e'ternal shading comes
from the balcony around the first and second floors! *n the eastern side the first floor overhangs the
underlying Clough ?irst Eear centre area! "he shading has been modelled in Energy-lus by
describing these balconies as ,hading! $ence the only effect of the surfaces in Energy-lus is to
thro a shado, the thermal properties are null! "he shading can be seen in ?igures 2 and 3 belo,
hich sho the balconies on the eastern facades!
13
Building se and Occupancy
With the e'clusion of the building shell, the building use and occupancy is probably the most
important aspect of the energy model! "he thermal load hich a $%AC system must meet comes
from to categories, e'ternal and internal gains! "he main e'ternal source of heat is solar gain!
"here are four main internal gains consideredK people, lights, electric e.uipment and infiltration!
Each of these internal gains has an associated schedule according to hich the thermal load varies!
"hese schedules and their pea) values are described belo!
Schedules
Occupancy
"he occupancy levels have been set by
specifying area per person! Consistent ith
typical office space densities, this is set at 1
person per 1= s.uare metres! Energy -lus
calculates internally the number of people in a
@one from the floor area! "he pea) occupancy
level then varies according to the schedule in
figure ?I/U0E to the left! "his schedule is
typical of an office space, here levels fluctuate
through the or)ing day, ith a lull around
lunchtime!
16
Figure 12: 3so&etric vie shoing eastern facade ith shading in yello
Figure 11: 3so&etric vie shoing eastern facade ithout shading
Figure 11
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3ccupancy %chedule
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Lig!ting
"he lighting levels are set at a level consistent
ith a typical office space, of 1=W5m1!
Energy-lus calculate internally the total
lighting poer in a @one from the @one floor
area! "he lighting levels fluctuate through the
or)ing day according to the schedule shon
in figure ?I/U0E to the left! 4ighting levels
are set at @ero over ee)ends and holidays!
Electric Equipment
E.uipment levels, accounting for the heat
generated by e.uipment such as computers,
des)top lamps, photocopiers etc, is accounted
for by specifying an e.uipment level of
appro'imately >===W per @one! "his level
fluctuates according to the schedule shon in
figure ?I/U0E!
Window Vent Schedule
"he openable indos operate on a schedule hich accounts for occupancy and temperature!
+uring occupied hours, the indos can be opened hen there is a temperature benefit to doing so!
"he indo vent schedule sets a limiting temperature of 11!1 degrees! When the temperature in a
@one is above this setpoint and the temperature indoors is higher than outdoors, the indos are
opened! "his corresponds to a common sense approach to indo venting! It allos for cooling
bree@es to ventilate interior spaces! When the outdoor temperature is belo this set point, hich
17
Figure 12
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?ights %chedule
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EAuipment %chedule
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corresponds to the heating set point, the indos remain closed, helping to maintain a arm indoor
environment!
!hermal Com"ort Schedules
Activity
"he heat generated by the occupants of the building is set at a level of 1>1W! "his is consistent ith
a typical person performing some sedentary activity! "he level is constant through the year!
Clothing
A clothing schedule specifies a constant clothing insulation level of 1clo for the simulation period!
"he .uantitive unit of insulation provided by clothing is the clo! ?or e'ample,
E'ample 1& "rousers and and short sleeve shirt provides =!37clo!
E'ample 1& "rousers, vest, "Cshirt, long sleeve shirt and suit (ac)et provides 1!12clo
"o investigate the effect of the clothing levels on thermal comfort, the clothing schedule as varied
to =!6clo for the arm months of 9ovember to March and 1!1clo for the cooler months of April C
*ctober!
Air velocity
An air velocity schedule specifies a constant air velocity of =!1m5s for the simulation period! "o
investigate the effects of increasing the air velocity to mitigate higher air temperatures the air
velocity is increased to =!: m5s!
Work Efficiency
A or) efficiency schedule specifies a constant level of = for the simulation period! "his means that
all of a persons metabolic activity is converted into heat! "his is consistent ith sedentary activity!
#deal $oads %&AC
Energy-lus provides the ability to model a simple, ideal $%AC netor) ith a minimum of input
re.uired! "he Ideal 4oads netor) is a idealised system in hich the @one is heated or cooled by the
amount necessary to reach the user specified set points!FEL input output ref G ;y removing the
complications of the additional plant and e.uipment and the interactions amongst these
components, Ideal 4oads $%AC allos the user to study the effect of varying the internal and
e'ternal gains on the @one comfort conditions ith a minimum of distractions!
Air"low 'etwor(
Energy-lus provides the ability to simulate the ventilation of a building due to ind! "he Airflo
9etor) can simulate airflos through multiple @ones and the interactions beteen natural and
1:
forced ventilation! A simple Airflo 9etor) as implemented, to capture the effect of ventilation
through openable indos and crac)s in the e'ternal facades! In order to manage the comple'ity of
this simulation module, the settings ere ta)en from e'ample files detailing the ventilation of a lo
rise, rectangular building! "he Airflo 9etor) re.uires details on each surface of the building, in
order to calculate the effect that a ind, from any direction, ill have on the pressure distribution
over that surface! Initially, the scope of the pro(ect included modelling the building in *pen?*AM,
in order to e'tract the coefficient arrays necessary for the Airflo 9etor) settings! $oever, the
this step proved too complicated to solve in the available time! ?or an idea on the level of detail
re.uired, each e'ternal surface, of hich the model has about 1==, needs an array of 11 values,
detailing the effect of a ind from an array of directions, >= degrees apart! In order to calculate
theses 11 values, the model must be placed in a simulated ind tunnel, the ind applied, and the
pressure distribution calculated! "hen the pressure over the area that each e'ternal building surface
occupies mus be calculated and ;ernoulliMs e.uation solved to e'tract the ind pressure coCefficient
value! "his ould mean that 11 C?+ simulations ould need to be run, ith each run needing over
1== calculations! *bviously, this process ould need to be automated, yet doing so ould have
been very time consuming! "he alternative as to accept the appro'imation provided by assuming
the building as rectangular! "his ill result in some errors to the pressure distributions calculated
internally in Energy-lus! $oever, the air change rates inspected sho reasonable values and for
the level of accuracy in the model as a hole, the appro'imation as decided to be acceptable!
Infiltration
?or the passive model, the Airflo 9etor) is disabled! In order to achieve a comparable level of
night cooling, a design level of infiltration is set! "his level is set according to a schedule that
replicates the behaviour of the Airflo 9etor)! +uring the armer months, 9ovember to April,
infiltration levels of 1= AC$ occur overnight, dropping to 1 AC$ during the day! +uring the cooler
months, the infiltration level is a constant 1 AC$!
Assessment Criteria
"o assess the effectiveness of the various natural ventilation and passive design features
investigated, some criteria must be chosen by hich to (udge them! "he criteria chosen are
discussed belo!
#ndoor !emperatures
"he most direct and simple criteria for (udging the effectiveness of the various options investigated,
is to compare the resulting air temperatures! As there are over 1= @ones in the building model, one
@one is chosen to conduct most of these comparisons!
#n"iltration and &entilation )ates
"he fresh air rates delivered by natural ventilation are set by Australian ,tandard A,166:!1 1==1!
"he re.uired fresh air rate set by "able 2!1 for lo activity levels is 345s per person! At a typical
office density of 1=mN1 per person, this e.uates to =!145s5mN1 or =!===1mN>5s5mN1 of fresh air!
1<
"his level of fresh air inflo can be used as a rough guide as to the rate of inflo due to the
infiltration modelled ith the Airflo 9etor) through surface crac)s!
"he typical air change rate for an office or public buildings is =!> C =!3 Air changes per hour, AC$!
Fref thisG! Air Changes per $our is the a flo rate measurement! It indicates the flo rate at hich a
room's volume of air is replaced in one hour! "his doesn't mean the air in the room is entirely
replaced by fresh air, hether this occurs depends on the effectiveness of the inflo and outflo of
air in the room! It simply indicates a rate of flo of outside air into a room si@ed volume of the
period of time of one hour!
"hese to rules of thumb are used to verify the rates of infiltration and ventilation in the models!
Cooling $oads
"he relative energy efficiency of the natural ventilation schemes investigated is found by comparing
the loads re.uired to maintain a heating set point of 11C and cooling set point of 12C! Using the
Ideal 4oads $%AC system available in Energy-lus, these loads are found for each of the models!
"he Ideal 4oads calculations in the Energy-lus simulation state this energy in Joules, hich is
converted to )Wh, for every hour of the year simulated!
!hermal Com"ort
"he community e'pectation of comfortable internal environments has arisen as a cultural
conse.uence of the prevalence of mechanical cooling of buildings! 0esearch into thermal comfort
conducted in the 1<6='s by ?anger FpaperG has become the basis of a internationally accepted
standard for thermal comfort! "his standard is laid out in A9,I5A,$0AE ,tandard 33C1==2A
"hermal Environmental Conditions for $uman *ccupancy! "he criteria is )non as?anger
-redicted Mean %ote! "here are si' main physiological factors that determine thermal comfort!
P!ysiological 'actors in t!ermal com%ort AS(RAE )!ermal Com%ort Scale
1! Metabolic rate C> Cold
1! Clothing insulation C1 Cool
>! Air temperature C1 ,lightly cool
2! 0adiant "emperature = 9eutral
3! Air speed 1 ,lightly arm
6! $umidity 1 Warm
> $ot
"hese factors are the ob(ective variables hich allo a .uantification of the more sub(ective notion
1=
of 'hot' or 'cold' ! "o capture the more sub(ective measure of a person's sensation of that
environment, the A,$0AE thermal comfort scale is used! "his provides a numerical scale to match
to the sensation of 'hot' and 'cold'! "he -redicted mean vote calculates the number hich :=I of a
typical group of people ould choose on this scale given the environmental variables at the time!
Comfort ranges can be selected, for e'ample, the A$,0AE standard sets the -M% range to C=!3 to
=!3! ,ee figure ?I/U0E, hich relates to :=I of occupants being comfortable!
"he ability of people to adapt to their local climate is an important consideration in thermal
comfort, hich is somehat overloo)ed by the ?anger predicted mean vote method! "he effect of
local climate is accounted for in the standard effective temperature#,E"&, a measure of thermal
comfort detailed by ,@o)olay #,@o)olay, 1<:7&! "he ,E" method provides a range of temperature
and humidity conditions based upon a thermal neutrality temperature uni.ue to a local climate! "his
range is displayed on the psychometric chart in ?igure 12 belo! "he comfort range is outlined in
red, hile the blue data points indicate the hourly temperature and humidity values for the eather
conditions as simulated!
Results
"he results presented here fall under to categories, firstly there are verifications of model inputs
and secondly there are the .uantities dran from comparative studies!
#nput &eri"ication
&n%iltration and *entilation
,ome simple verifications ere performed to ensure that the models created produced reasonable
results and that the dynamic performance of the model reflected the modelling intent!
"o chec) that the infiltration values, achieved ith the Airflo 9etor) and the +esign Air
,pecification, are reasonable, the air change rate as compared to the rule of thumb for modern
ell sealed building of =!> C =!3 AC$! An effective cross ventilation scheme ill achieve hundreds
11
Figure 1"
of AC$! E'amining a typical @one for the average and ma'imum infiltration value verified an
average of =!><AC$ and minimum of =!11 AC$
"o verify the ventilation rates, the air change rate as crossCreferenced ith the indo opening
settings, indoor and outdoor temperatures and heating and cooling set points! "his method as
necessary as there ere a number of set points and schedule acting in concert to produce the
re.uired heating, cooling and venting!
"his verification led to a fineCtuning of the Windo%ent,ched! "he dynamic performance of all
these settings can be hard to clearly imagine! It as found that contradictory behaviour as
occurring here the indos ere open and the heating load increasing to compensate for the
additional cooling load introduced! "o remove this contradiction, the heating set point schedule as
modified so that the heating ill not occur hen the indos open! "he control logic on the
Airflo 9etor) does not allo for a direct comparison beteen outdoor air temperature and the
heating set point! A building management system ould hoever, easily ma)e this comparison!
*aria+le Air *olume (*AC System
"he initial modelling involved a %A% $%AC, hoever this very difficult to simulate properly! "he
main issue being ith the proper si@ing of the main air handling unit heating coil! Investigating this
issue, the results shoed that the terminal reheat coils ere doing all off the heating re.uired by the
@one hile the main heating coil as doing none! +ue to the complicated nature of the interaction
beteen many different settings on several pieces of plant and e.uipment, the error causing this as
not found! It as mainly for this reason, that the decision to model an Ideal 4oads $%AC system
as ta)en!
,indow -la.ing Properties
"o verify the e'pected decrease in solar heat gain ith the addition of the indo films modelled,
the output variable detailing the transmitted solar gain as e'amined for each of the four indo
films!
Cooltower
"he operation of the Cooltoer as verified by e'amining the flo rates of ater and air through
the toers and by e'amining the effect on the @one temperature! "he initial setting of a minimum
@one temperature of 16C as changed, as the internal conditions ere too cold!
Shading
"he proper operation of the blinds as verified by loo)ing at the output variable "ime Windo
,hade Is *n, hich shos hen the shading is on and off! "his as compared to the desired set
points and the effect on the solar gain in the @one ith and ithout blinds as compared!
11
Comparative Studies
"he second broad category of analyses underta)en ere comparative studies! "hese studies can
further be placed into one of three investigationsA
1! Closed versus *pen building
1! 9arro versus E'panded thermal comfort criteria
>! %arious indo films
/0 Closed versus #pen +uilding
In this first study, the baseline model, in hich the building has an Ideal 4oads $%AC netor) and
an Airflo 9etor) simulating openable indos #or an ideal cross ventilation scheme& is
compared to a model ith the same input e'cept that the indos remain closed at all times! "hus,
comparisons are made beteen a building in hich all heating and cooling is done by a mechanical
system and a building ere the mechanical system is supplemented by night cooling and a indo
opening rule hich states, in basic terms, that the indos are opened hen there is a temperature
benefit from doing so!
"he goal of this study is to investigate hether openable indos can reduce the re.uired cooling
loads!
"he method used to determine an anser to this .uestion is to implement openable indos! "he
baseline model is varied by adding an Airflo 9etor) to allo for night cooling of the building!
"he results dran upon to anser this .uestion are the indoor air temperatures and the Ideal 4oads
Cooling energy re.uired to meet the cooling set point! ?igures belo sho the indoor temperature
in a typical @one during a ee) from each season of the year, corresponding plots of the re.uired
cooling loads and finally these to data sets in one plot! "his last plot helps to sho ho the night
cooling effect reduces the cooling load re.uired and also to sho that there are periods in the year
hen simply opening indos ill lead to comfortable interior conditions, bypassing the use of the
mechanical system entirely!
It is important to note that in these to models, the Ideal 4oads $%AC system does not have an
economy mode! "he economy mode ould reduce the energy used to cool the building, by
increasing the flo of outdoor air into the @one hen the outdoor air is belo the indoor air
temperature! An economy mode should be standard on any modern $%AC netor) that attempts to
achieve reasonably efficient operation! While it decreases the cooling energy re.uired, it
nonetheless using the mechanical systems C fans, ducting and associated electrical e.uipment! It
thus doesn't solve the common sense contradiction of using a mechanical system to ventilate a
building hen simply opening indos and alloing the bree@e to do free cooling!
1>
Figure 1%
"6B+$ "+5""5""
"6B+$ ")5""5""
"6B+$ +@5""5""
"6B+( "+5""5""
"6B+( ")5""5""
"6B+( +@5""5""
"6B+@ "+5""5""
"6B+@ ")5""5""
"6B+@ +@5""5""
"6B+, "+5""5""
"6B+, ")5""5""
"6B+, +@5""5""
"6B+) "+5""5""
"6B+) ")5""5""
"6B+) +@5""5""
"0"
$0"
+"0"
+$0"
6"0"
6$0"
#"0"
#$0"
Temperature Comparison for Closed and 3penable indo's
%ummer
Cone Mean !ir Temperature, 3penable indo's Cone Mean !ir Temperature, Closed indo's
T
e
m
p
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Figure 1*
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"$B"(B+6 +@5""
"0"
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#"0"
Temperature Comparison for Closed and 3penable indo's
!utumn
Cone Mean !ir Temperature, 3penable indo's Cone Mean !ir Temperature, Closed indo's
T
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Figure 1+
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"@B+( "65""5""
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"@B+, "65""5""
"@B+, +-5""5""
"@B+) "65""5""
"0"
+"0"
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#"0"
Temperature Comparison for Closed and 3penable indo's
inter
Cone Mean !ir Temperature, 3penable indo's Cone Mean !ir Temperature, Closed indo's
T
e
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p
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a
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Temperature Comparison for Closed and 3penable indo's
%pring
Cone Mean !ir Temperature, 3penable indo's Cone Mean !ir Temperature, Closed indo's
T
e
m
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Figure 10
"6B+$ "+5""5""
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Cooling ?oads and Temperature
2deal ?oads Total Cooling Energy:>h;, 3penable indo's 2deal ?oads Total Cooling Energy:>h;, Closed indo's
Cone Mean !ir Temperature, 3penable indo's Cone Mean !ir Temperature, Closed indo's
9ayB&our
C
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Figure 22
"$B"+B+6 "65""
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"0"
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-0"
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+"0"
+60"
+-0"
"0"
$0"
+"0"
+$0"
6"0"
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#"0"
Cooling ?oads and Temperature
Closed and 3penable indo's, for !utumn 'ee>
2deal ?oads Total Cooling Energy:>h;, 3penable indo's 2deal ?oads Total Cooling Energy:>h;, Closed indo's
Cone Mean !ir Temperature, 3penable indo's Cone Mean !ir Temperature, Closed indo's
9ayB&our
C
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;
"his investigation found the encouraging result that there is a clear temperature and cooling load
benefit in the openable indos scenario and thus leads to further investigating the feasibility of a
naturally ventilated building! "o anser the .uestion of hether such a building could provide a
comfortable internal environment, the second comparative study investigates the thermal comfort
critera
1arrow versus Etended t!ermal com%ort criteria
"he second set of comparisons involve studying a model of the building ithout a mechanical
means of heating and cooling! "he goal of this study is assess hether such a building could
provide a comfortable internal environment! "o basic models, ith the Ideal 4oads $%AC system
removed, are compared! "o parameters, clothing insulation and air velocity levels, ere varied
and the narro A,$0AE standard as e'tended to account for these factors and for effect of
adaptation to the local climate!
"he results dran upon to ma)e these comparisons areK histogram data of thermal comfort as given
by predicted mean vote values for all occupied hours of the year, scatter plots of temperature and
humidity conditions and the comfort range as given by the ,tandard Effective "emperature method!
Discussion
"he A,$0AE "hermal Comfort ,tandard provides a narro definition of comfort range as being
-M% values beteen C=!3 and =!3! "his is illustrated for to clothing insulation levels as shon in
figure > "his is a very narro criteria and it is difficult for passive designs to achieve!
An e'panded criteria is beteen C1 to 1 on the A,$0AE "hermal Comfort scale! ;ased on this
e'panded thermal comfort criteria, the results from the to models compared are shon in figure
?I/U0E, over the page! Using a constant clothing insulation level of 1clo and a constant air
17
Figure 21: #he 145-1' #her&al Co&fort -ange
velocity level of =!1m5s the results for the basic model sho that the building provides a
comfortable internal environment for 71I of the occupied hours! In the seasonally ad(usted model
the clothing insulation levels vary from =!6clo in the armer months to 1!1clo in the cooler months!
In the seasonal model, the building provides a comfortable internal environment 73I of the
occupied hours!
"hermal comfort criteria can be
e'panded to account for the effect of
moving air on the s)in, and to
account for people's ability to adapt
to the local climate! "o .uantify
these e'panded thermal comfort
criteria, the ,tandard Effective
"emperature #,E"& uses a comfort
range determined from a thermal
neutrality temperature ad(usted to the
local climate! ?or -erth this thermal
neutrality temperature is 1>!13C
and the ,E" range is shon in figure
fI/U0E! "his figure clearly shos
the spread in temperature and
humidity values and the small
percentage of hich fit into the ,E"
range! Appro'imately 2=I of the
occupied hours fit into this range!

What is clear then from both of these measurements is that the internal environment is not
comfortable for a significant proportion of the occupied hours! "he results here sho that ad(usting
the clothing insulation values to account for the armer and cooler months and increasing the air
velocity to offset the effect of high air temperatures cannot significantly alleviate the discomfort
people ould e'perience in the building ere it to have no source of dayCtime cooling!
1:
Figure 22
<# <6 <6 to <+ <+ to " " to + + to 6 6 to # # to - - or more
"D
+"D
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Fanger 4redicted Mean Votes
&istogram of !nnual 3ccupied &ours
basic seasonal
4MV 1ange
4
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Passive Building
A source of cooling can be provided by a Cooltoer! A cooltoer uses the evaporation of ater to
provide a flo of cool air to a space! As the 8ion 9ational -ar) %isitor Centre case study shos
#see ?igure 1&, this type of system is effective in hot, dry climates and can provide a reliable source
of cooling ith very lo energy consumption #only a ater pump is necessary&
/iven the results found, hich have shon that the natural ventilation options investigated ould
need to be supplemented by some source of dayCtime cooling, a system of Cooltoers has been
modelled! "his is despite the author's opinion that the system as modelled is not practical! "his is
because they ould re.uire significant vertical space and retrofitting ducting to the building interior
to distribute cool air at lo velocity! 9onetheless, a model as implemented in hich these
practicalities are ignored and the cooling potential available from a Cooltoer is delivered to each
thermal @one in the building model!
1<
Figure 2": 4'# range and annual internal conditions for a ty$ical 6one
Figure 23
?urther, in this model, the solar gain is
reduced by implementing a system of
internal operable blinds, hich bloc)
solar radiation hen its level e'ceeds
1=W5m1! With these to variations in
place, the results belo describe the
internal conditions! ?igure ?I/U0E
shos that the temperature and humidity
conditions are generally cooler but more
humid! "he proportion of occupied
hours found to be inside the ,E" range
as a surprising 13I, far loer than the
unCcooled models! $oever, this is
because the temperatures are generally loer than the minimum boundary! If all hours belo the
ma'imum end of the ,E" range #the right hand side of the red bo' in figure ?I/U0E& are included,
the building is comfortable during appro'imately 7=I of the occupied hours!
?igure ?I/U0E above shos a comparison of the temperature in a typical @one, ith cooling
provided by a Cooltoer and ithout! +uring the ee)end days in the middle of this range, no
cooling is provided! +uring the times of its operation, the cooling toer clearly )eeps the
temperatures don, generally belo 13C!
>=
Figure 2%
<# <6 <6 to <+ <+ to " " to + + to 6 6 to # # to -- or more
"D
$D
+"D
+$D
6"D
6$D
#"D
#$D
-"D
-$D
"D "D
-D
-+D
#)D
+-D
#D
+D
&istogram of 4redicted Mean Vote
4
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n
t
a
g
e

o
f

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Figure 2*
"6B+$ "(5""5""
"6B+$ +#5""5""
"6B+$ 6"5""5""
"6B+( "#5""5""
"6B+( +"5""5""
"6B+( +@5""5""
"6B+( 6-5""5""
"6B+@ "@5""5""
"6B+@ +-5""5""
"6B+@ 6+5""5""
"6B+, "-5""5""
"6B+, ++5""5""
"6B+, +,5""5""
"6B+) "+5""5""
"6B+) ",5""5""
"6B+) +$5""5""
"6B+) 665""5""
"
$
+"
+$
6"
6$
#"
#$
Mean !ir Temperatures
Mean !ir Temperature Cone +" ith Coolto'er Mean !ir Temperature Cone +" No Cooling
9ayB&our
T
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m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r
e
:
C
;
,indow 'ilm
?inally, the effect of the adding a indo film to the e'isting building's gla@ing as e'amined!
?igure ?I/U0E shos that the optimal indo film is the ,terling 1= type! "his has the loest
,olar Energy transmitted and the highest visible light transmitter of the four films investigated!
Each of the four films results in different annual heating and cooling loads! "hese are shon in
figure ?I/U0E! ,terling 1= provides the loest annual Cooling load at 166MWh! "he associated
heating load is slightly higher than the minimum hich is achieved by the ,olar 3= type! $oever,
as previously stated, the focus throughout this pro(ect as on reducing the energy consumption
associated ith cooling the building! Comparing the ,terling 1= and *utside Weatherable #*,W&
films, the ,terling 1= reduces the cooling loads by appro'imately >=I
>1
Figure 2+
%ilver !7 $" ?o' E
%ilver !7 6$ ?o' E
%entinel - Mil Clear 3%
%terling 6"
"
6"
-"
("
,"
+""
"
"06
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"0,
+
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+-0@
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@@06
+,
@(
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,)
660$
%olar Energy Transmitted TD Total %olar Energy 1eEected
Thermal Energy Transmitted FEmissivityG Visible ?ight Transmitted D
Figure 2/
Cooling:Mh; &eating:Mh;
"
+""
6""
#""
-""
&eating and Cooling ?oads for Various indo' Films
3utside eatherable %ilver6$ %ilver$" %terling6"
E
n
e
r
g
y

:
M

h
;
Summary Discussion
While the climate provides a rather limited potential for night cooling, the results sho that an ideal
cross ventilation scheme can reduce the energy re.uired to cool the building! When cooling is
needed the most, in the hot months of +ecember, January, ?ebruary and March, the climatic cooling
potential is around 13degreeChours, ell short of the 1==degreeChours considered necessary for a
viable night cooling strategy #Artmann et al, 1==7&! $oever, this measure doesn't account for the
cooling effect of the sea bree@e and still leaves open the opportunity to utilise night cooling, or
perhaps an allCday cooling scheme, during the mild months! "he results of the investigation into a
building ith no mechanical cooling system sho that the internal conditions ould be comfortable
for a significant proportion of the year! "his is true for the narro definition that only a modern
high energy consumption $%AC netor) can provide and also by any reputable measure hich is
broader than this! "he results of a study of cooling provided by a lo energy evaporative system
using Cooltoers shos that an acceptable level of comfort is possible for most of the occupied
hours, appro'imately beteen 7=I and :=I by the to methods discussed! $oever, this system
of cooling ould not be practical to implement and may result in humidity levels that some people
ould not find comfortable! ?inally, the results of the indo film analysis sho that a applying a
indo film to the e'isting gla@ing can reduce the cooling energy re.uired by up >=I !
Conclusions
"here are several conclusions to dra from this investigation into the feasibility of natural
ventilation in the Mechanical Engineering building! ?irstly, any scheme must account for the local
climate hich provides some potential for night cooling in the mild months, but demands some
additional source of cooling in the summer months! ,econdly, any scheme must deal ith the
constraints of the building's layout and geometry! "he prospect of effectively ventilating a space
ith many interior partitions is a challenging one! "hirdly, it is possible to improve the energy
efficiency of the building by enhancing the shading, by one or both of adding operable shades and
indo films to the e'isting gla@ing!

>1
References
O! "riantis PEnvironmental strategies in retrofitting of educational buildings Q "he integrated
approachR in International Conference P-assive and 4o Energy Cooling 7=< for the ;uilt
EnvironmentR, May 1==3, ,antorini, /reece
"he +epartment of the Environment and Water 0esources PE,+ +esign /uide *ffice and -ublic
;uildingsR 1==7 Melbourne
Australian ,tandards
Artmann, 9!,Ma@,$!S$eiselberg,-! ' Climatic potential for passive cooling of buildings by nightC
time ventilation in Europe', Applied Energy %ol! :2, pp 1:7Q1=1, 1==7
Malhotra, E 1==>, '"he )noledge application gap in information systems research and education
and their .uest for the dependent variable', 3nfor&ation -esources Manage&ent 7ournal, vol! 16,
no! 1, pp! 1C7! Available fromA -ro.uest! F17 ?ebruary 1==2G!
#+epartment of Industry, "ourism and 0esources 1==6&
+epartment of Industry, "ourism and 0esources 1==6, ;eing -repared for an Influen@a -andemicA a
Bit for ,mall ;usinesses, /overnment of Australia, Available fromA
ThttpA55!innovation!gov!auU! F1: ?ebruary 1==<G!
,tandards Australia 1==:, Personal floatation devices 8 9eneral re:uire&ents( A, 273:!1C 1==:!
Available fromA ,tandards Australia *nline! F1 +ecember 1==:G!
-itman, Mar) 1=11, *+, ,tudio Users' /uide, *+,CEngineering -erth Western Australia
,@o)olay, ,!,% 1<:7, #her&al ;esign <f Buildings. 0AIA Education +ivision, Canberra
4io, -ey En, '?easibility ,tudy of /rondater Cooling ,ystem "hroughout Australia' UWA
Mechanical Engineering $onours "hesis, 1==> -erth
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