cooling

The need for energy efficient buildings is outlined, and the principal issues relating to commercial developments are discussed. The importance of natural cooling is highlighted, and the associated principle are examined. Some ways in which this can be achieved in conventional steel framed construction are presented. The suggestions include passive systems which rely simply on exposing sufficient thermal capacity of the building fabric, and active systems which provide greater control and improved performance. They represent an application of technology for sustainable development.

The dynamic performance of a radiative cooling system for buildings is calculated and presented in the present paper. The cooling system consists of a lightweight metallic radiator covered by a single polyethylene wind screen and used for cooling the ambient air below its designed initial temperature. The cooler air is directed and eventually mixed with the indoor air of the building to provide primarily instantaneous thermal comfort during the night and secondly to cool the interior mass of the building by convection, thus creating a cold storage for the following day.

Since the beginning of this decade, natural ventilation in office buildings has been receiving specific interest. There are two sorts of application. Natural ventilation can be a strategy for indoor air quality control. It can also be used as night ventilation during warm or hot periods. In this case the objective is to cool down the thermal mass and improve the thermal summer comfort. The EC JOULE NatVent project wanted to identify the barriers to the application of natural ventilation in office-type buildings in moderate and cold climates and to provide solutions.

A computational study had been carried out on hot and cold air interaction across the door of an urban transport vehicle. The studies show that within 20 s after the door is opened all cool air beside the door of the vehicle would flow out when the amb

The air distribution effects of floor mounted swirl diffusers are investigated and described inthis paper. Results are based on a case study of an office typical of those in urban commercialenvironments. The effects of the swirl applied to the supply air as well as temperaturedifferentials between supply and room air are explored. The investigation is restricted tosituations where cooling is required.The results of the work, which is undertaken by way of CFD analysis, are presented in termsof appropriate ventilation effectiveness parameters.

A new ventilated cooledbeam system concept with free cooling has been installed and monitored in a retrofitted office building in the Wartsila NSD Finland complex in Vaasa, Finland. Good indoor air quality and individual room temperature control has been achieved using ventilated cooled beams. Both cooling- and supplyair distribution functions were integrated in the same room unit. No extra costs were incurred for the low-energy system's freecooling loop.

MCA is a partner in a research group which is being funded by the European Commissions JOULE program to explore the application of passive downdraught evaporative cooling (PDEC) in non-domestic buildings (I). As part of MCA's task to design a full scale experimental building, special components were designed to catch the wind and distribute through the building spaces. To determine the most efficient form for these components, a series of wind tunnel tests was undertaken at the University of Ancona, Italy.