Application of Breathing Architectural Members to the Natural Ventilation of a Passive Solar House

Kyung-Soon Park, Sang-Woo Kim and Seong-Hwan Yoon
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Kyung-Soon Park: Department of Building Systems Engineering, Dong-Eui University, Busan 47340, Korea
Sang-Woo Kim: Department of Architecture, Pusan National University, Busan 46241, Korea
Seong-Hwan Yoon: Department of Architecture, Pusan National University, Busan 46241, Korea

Energies, 2016, vol. 9, issue 3, 1-15

Abstract: The efficient operation of a passive solar house requires an efficient ventilation system to prevent the loss of energy and provide the required ventilation rates. This paper proposes the use of “breathing architectural members” (BAMs) as passive natural ventilation devices to achieve much improved ventilation and insulation performance compared to mechanical ventilation. Considering the importance of evaluating the ventilation and insulation performances of the members, we also propose numerical models for predicting the heat and air movements afforded by the members. The numerical model was validated by comparison with experimental results. The effectiveness of the BAMs was also verified by installation in houses located in an area with warm climate. For this purpose, chamber experiments were performed using samples of the BAMs, as well as numerical simulations to assess natural ventilation and heat load. The main findings of the study are as follows: (1) the one-dimensional chamber experiments confirmed the validity of the numerical models for predicting the heat and air movements afforded by the BAMs. Comparison of the experimental and calculated values for the temperature of air that flowed into the room from outside revealed a difference of less than 5%; (2) observations of the case studies in which BAMs were installed in the ceilings and exterior walls of Tokyo model houses revealed good annual ventilation and energy-saving effects. When BAMs with an opening area per unit area of A = 0.002 m 2 /m 2 were applied to three surfaces, the required ventilation rate was 0.5 ACH (air changes per hour), and this was achieved consistently. Compared to a house with general insulation and conventional mechanical ventilation, heating load was reduced by 15.3%–40.2% depending on the BAM installation points and the differing areas of the house models.

Keywords: passive; natural ventilation; heat load; full-size experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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