The new headquarters of the Commerzbank in Frankfurt - the tallest office building in Europe - has proved one thing conclusively: it is possible to build a vast high rise in the middle of a busy city and use passive techniques to control its internal environment
The provision of ventilation air for high-rise multifamily housing has plagued retrofit practitioners and researchers alike. How does one determine whether sufficient levels of outdoor air are being provided to all apartments in a building? And how does one know whether the systems can be retrofit to improve their energy efficiency without compromising air quality?
Jacques Whitford Environment Limited (JWEL) and Morrison Hershfield Limited (MH) have completed a research project investigating the level of risk associated with soil gases and dust in high-rise apartment buildings. The research was conducted in response to a request for proposals issued by the Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation (CMHC). The study investigated the hypothesis that the risk associated with gas and dust from contaminated lands can be reduced for residents of high-rise apartment buildings compared to residents of single-unit or low-rise residential structures .
An investigation was conducted of the effect of decreasing the air leakage area across internal partitions of a typical modern high-rise apartment. The objective of this work was to study the practicality of increased compartmentalization or separation of the living units from each other and from the corridors and vertical shafts in the building. Typically, the main barrier to air movement through a high-rise apartment building is the exterior skin or envelope.
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