CLIMATE AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT

UNIT 4

IMPACT OF AIR MOVEMENT DUE TO NATURAL AND BUILT FORMS

2 MARKS
1. WHAT IS WIND ROSE?

A wind rose is a graphic tool used by

meteorologists to give a succinct view of
how wind speed and direction are
typically distributed at a particular
location.

A diagram showing for a given place the

relative frequency or frequency and
strength of winds from different
directions.
2. WHAT IS THE USE OF WIND SHADOWS IN ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN?

Due to the wind flow from one side of building

negative zone will created in the other side of
building is known as wind shadow

The figure-1 shows the outline of airflow at

90* and the fig-2 at 45* to a building square
in plan

In the fig-2 a greater velocity is created

along the windward faces , therefore the
wind shadow will be much broader

The negative air pressure ( the suction effect)

will be increased and an increased air flow
will result
3. MENTION 4 PASSIVE VENTILATION TECHNIQUES IN BUILDINGS

• Stack effect or chimney effect

• Venturi effect
• Wind shafts (wind tower)
• Earth air tunnel
4. WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE BEHIND STACK EFFECT?
the warmer and light air will flow out at the
top and the cooler, denser out door air will
flow in the bottom
when air movement is due to temperature
difference between the indoor and outdoor, the
flow of air is in the vertical direction and is
along the path of least resistance.
upwards (normal stack effect0,when the
building air is warmer than the outside air, and
downwards,(reverse stack effect)
5. HOW ARE THE OPENINGS DESIGNED IN HUMID REGIONS?

• Openings should be oriented to the prevailing breeze and internal

flow should be at the body level, ie. In the living zone
• Openings should be large and fully open able
• The openings must be free from the effect of outside obstructions
• The air should not pass through hot surfaces before reaching the
building.
6. EXPLAIN THE FUNCTION OF A COURTYARD.
A courtyard enhances air circulation through principle of stack
effect( air movement driven by buoyancy).

After the air passes through the interiors it heats up and start
rising . The courtyard allows this air to escape

It can provide climatic as well as visul or

acoustic protection.

Its geometry and material make up should be

considered in the design stage in order to
provide the highest level of thermal comfort.

It was mainly developed to be climate

responsive
7. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT WAYS THAT AIR MOVES IN A BUILDING?

• Movement of air is caused by temperature or pressure differences and is

eperienced as wind.
• Where there are differences of pressure between two places, a pressure gradient
exists, across which air moves: from the high-pressure region to the low-pressure
region.
• This movement of air however, does not follow the quickest straight-line path. In
fact, the air moving from high to low pressure follows a spiralling route, outwards
from high pressure and inwards towards low pressure.
8. DEFINE AIR CURRENTS.
Air currents are
concentrated areas
of winds.
They are mainly due
to differences in
pressure and/or
temperature.
Air currents of the world

They are divided

into horizontal and
vertical currents:
both are present at
mesoscale while
horizontal ones
dominate at mesoscale
synoptic scale

Synoptic scale
9. EXPLAIN THE USE OF FAN.
• A ceiling fan is a mechanical fan, tocirculate air.
• Unlike air conditioners, fans only move air—they do not
directly change its temperature
• The major task and work of the ceiling fan is to circulate
the air in some specific area or room.
16 MARKS
1. DISCUSS THE EFFECTS OF THERMALLY INDUCES AIR CURRENTS IN DETAIL.

Same as 4th
2. DISCUSS THE PATTERN OF AIR MOVEMENT AROUND AND THROUGH BUILDINGS.
Air movement around buildings
Air movement must be one of the most important consideration in designing of
layout

After a careful analysis of site climatic condition a design hypothesis may be

produced on the basis of general information derived from the experimental
findings

Air flow in layouts

Air stream separation

Air flow around buildings At the face of buildings Reverse flow behind a tall block
 Air movement through buildings
• Air flow patterns is completely predicted
on the basis of empirical rules derived
from measurements in actual building in
wind tunnel studies

• Wind tunnel is a research tool developed

to assist with studying the effects of air
moving over or around solid objects

The following factors can be isolated which affect the indoor air flow
• Orientation • Position of openings

• External features • Size of openings

• Cross ventilation • Controls of openings

orientation
• The greatest pressure on the
windward side of a building is
generated when the elevation is
at right angles to the wind
direction, so greatest indoor air
velocity will be achieved in this
case

• However ,been found by givoni

that a wind incidence at 45
degree would increase the
average indoor air velocity and
would provide a better
distribution of indoor air
movement
External features
• External features
of the building
itself can strongly
influence the
pressure build-up

• The wind velocity

gradient is made
steeper by an un
even surface ,such
as scattered
Building, walls,
fences, tress or
scrub
Cross-ventilation
• Ventilation achieved by placing openings in
opposite walls of a room and intended to provide
air change and sensible air movement

• Absence of an outlet opening or with full Lack of cross-ventilation

partition there can be no effective air movement
through a building .with windward opening and
no outlet or leeward opening and no opening
pressure is build-up indoors (buffet)

• Several right –angle bends such as internal walls

or furniture within a room can effectively stop
low velocity air flow

• Where internal partitions are unavoidable, some Effect of opening positions

airflow can be ensured, if partition screens are
used clear of the floor and the ceiling
 Position of openings
• If the opening at the inlet side is above the
occupancy level (2mts) regardless of the
outlet opening position, the airflow will take
place near the ceiling and not in the living
zone
Pressure built up inlet

• Ina two storey building the air flow on the

ground floor may be satisfactory but on the
upper floor, it may be directed against the
ceiling

Air flow in two floor building

 Size of openings
• With largest air velocity will be obtained through a small inlet opening with a larger
outlet

• When the inlet opening is large, the air velocity through it will be less, but the total rate
of airflow will be higher . When the wind direction is not constant or when air flow
through the whole space is required, a larger inlet opening will be preferable

• The best arrangement is full wall openings on both sides, with adjustable sashes or
closing devices, which can assist in channeling the flow in the required direction,
following the change of wind
Controls of openings
• Sashes, canopies, louvers and other elements controlling the openings that influence
• Fly screens or mosquito nets reduce the velocity of air flow

Effect of sashes Effect of canopies

Effect of louvers
Internal obstructions
• Air must be free to move from inlet to outlet. The two are not very
useful if there is a wall between them.
• A clear path between inlet and outlet must be maintained.
3. WHAT ARE THE FACTORS THAT DETERMINE VENTILATION IN A BUILDING? EXPLAIN IN DETAIL
WITH SUITABLE SKETCHES.

Same as the previous answer , starting from air movement through the
building
4. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT MEANS BY WHICH VENTILATION IS INDUCED BY THERMAL
CURRENTS? EXPLAIN EACH METHOD WITH APPROPRIATE SKETCHES.

For air to move into and out of a building, a pressure difference

between the inside and outside of the building is required.

The pressure difference is caused by:

• wind (or wind effect);
• difference in air density due to temperature difference between
indoor and outdoor air (stack or chimney effect); or
• combination of both wind and stack effects.
 Supply of fresh air Type of occupancy, number and activity of the occupants

Requirements may be stipulated by building regulations and advisory codes

in terms of m3/h (oxygen content inhaled per
person) person, or in number of air changes per hour but these are applicabl
e to mechanical installation.

SUPPLY OF FRESH AIR

Natural ventilation: Provision of “permanent ventilators” i.e of openings

which may not be closed, may be compulsory

These may be grilles or ‘air bricks’ built into a wall or may be incorporated with
windows.The size of the openable windows may be stipulated in relation to t
he floor area or the volume of the room.
CONVECTIVE COOLING
•The exchange of indoor air with fresh out door air can provide coolng.
•The moving air acts a heat carrying medium
 Stack effect
• When air movement is due to temperature
difference between the indoor and outdoor,
the flow of air is in the vertical direction and is
along the path of least resistance.
• The temperature difference causes density
differentials, and therefore pressure
differences, that drive the air to move.

How stack effect occurs

• indoor temperature is higher than outdoor
temperature;
• the warmer air in building then rises up;
• the upward air movement produces negative
indoor pressure at the bottom;
• positive indoor pressure is created on the top;
• warmer air flows out of the building near the
top; and
• the air is replaced by colder outside air that
enters the building near its base.
PROVISION OF VENTILATION: STACK EFFECT

•Ventilation, i.e., both the supply of fresh air and c

onvective cooling, involves the movement of air at a
relatively slow rate.

•The motive force can be either thermal or

dynamic (wind).

•The stack effect relies on thermal forces, set

up by density difference (caused by temperature dif
ference )between the indoor and out door air.

•It can occur through an open window; the warmer

and lighter indoor air will flow out at the top and th
e cooler, denser out door air
will flow in at the bottom.
VENTILATION SHAFT
• The higher the shaft, the larger the cross sectional area
and greater the temperature difference; the greater the
motive force therefore, more air will be moved.

• The motive force is the ‘stack pressure’ multiplied by

the cross sectional area.

• The stack pressure can be calculated from the equation:

Ps (N/m2)= 0.042 x h x ∆ t
Where h = height of the stack (m),
∆ t = temperature difference (deg C)

• Such shafts are used for ventilation of internal,

windowless rooms (bathrooms, toilets)
• It can function as horizontal or vertical shafts in any multi
storey building.
PHYSIOLOGICAL COOLING
The movement of air past skin accelerates heat loss in two ways
• 1 – convective heat loss
• 2 – accelerating evaporation.
• accelerating evaporation - Evaporation rate varies based on humidity level of each place, hence
cooling by air movement is most preferred.
Cooling by air movement is most needed where there are no other forms of heat dissipation
available; when the air is an as warm as the skin and the surrounding surfaces are also at a similar
temperature.
5. WRITE SHORT NOTES ON: LAND AND SEA BREEZE; AIR FLOW PATTERNS AROUND TALL
BUILDINGS; WATER BODY IN HUMID CLIMATE AND WIND SHADOW.

Sea breeze and land breeze

Temperature differences at the earth’s surface occur whenever there are differences in surface
substances. A dark tarmacked surface will heat up more quickly on a sunny day (ie. Absorb more solar
radiation)than a grassy field.
similarly, along the coast, large areas of land heat up more quickly than adjacent sea water ( water has a
large heat capacity and Is a good conductor of heat ). Air near the land surface is heated by radiation and
conduction , expands and begins to rise, being lighter than the surrounding air . This is convection .
To replace the rising air , cooler air is drawn in from the
surface of the sea. This is advection , called a sea breeze and
can offer a pleasant cooling influence on hot summer
afternoons when further inland the heat may become
oppressive Air above the sea sinks and is again pulled in over
the land .

Since sea breeze owes its existence to the enhanced heating

of the land under the sun, it follows that at night, when the
land cools faster than the sea , a land breeze may develop . In
this case, it is air above the warmer surface water that is
heated and rises pulling in air from the cooler land surface
Air flow patterns around tall buildings
When air flow is due to wind, air enters through openings
in the windward walls, and leaves through openings in
the leeward walls

Reverse flow behind a tall block

Air stream separation

At the face of buildings
Water body in humid climate

Water bodies are found to be not eeective in decreasing the air temperature

The temperature of the air above and near water body is different from the temperature over the
land because the water has a different system of cooling and heating.

Water bodies are believed to be the best radiation absorbers, but on the other hand, they provide a
very small thermal response Unlimited availability of waters assists to an effective latent heat sink,
and evaporative cooling tends toward destabilizing the layer of surface and further improves mixing.

A cooler surface leads to a cooler air .A lot of researchers proposed that evaporative cooling from
water features or water bodies is still one of the most effective methods of passive cooling in urban
spaces and buildings . Enriched evaporation is capable of lowering the air temperature
Wind shadow

Due to the wind flow from one side of building

negative zone will created in the other side of
building is known as wind shadow

The figure-1 shows the outline of airflow at

90* and the fig-2 at 45* to a building square
in plan

In the fig-2 a greater velocity is created

along the windward faces , therefore the
wind shadow will be much broader

The negative air pressure ( the suction effect)

will be increased and an increased air flow
will result
6. DISTINGUISH BETWEEN AIR MOVEMENT AND VENTILATION. ACHIEVING GOOD
VENTILATION IN A WARM HUMID CLIMATE IS PART OF PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE,
ELABORATE.
• VENTILATION is the process by which fresh air is introduced and used air is removed from an
occupied space.
• The primary aim of ventilation is to preserve the qualities of air.
• Sometimes, ventilation may also be used to lower the temperature inside an occupied area.

• FUNCTIONS OF VENTILATION TYPES OF VENTILATION

• 1 – supply of fresh air • Natural ventilation ,it is the process of supplying and
removing air by means of purpose-provided aperture
• 2 – convective cooling
(such as openable windows, ventilators and shafts) and
• 3 – physiological cooling the natural forces of wind and temperature-difference,
pressures.
• Mechanical ventilation
Purpose of ventilation

• provide sufficient supply of air/oxygen for the physiological needs of human beings
• provide sufficient supply of air/oxygen for industrial, agricultural and other processes (for
example, provision of oxygen for burning and combustion processes);
• remove the products of respiration and bodily odour (including those from smoking) of
human and/or animal occupants;
• remove contaminants or harmful chemicals generated by processes or from building
materials;
• remove heat generated by people, lighting and equipment inside the occupied space;
• create some degree of air movement which is essential for feelings of freshness and comfort
(usually a velocity of 0.1 to 0.3 m/s is required).
The deference

An air flow measurement tells you how fast the air is moving. If you know the cross section area this
measurement will tell you Cubic Feet Per Minute (CFM), which is a measurement of ventilation.

Air flow can be used to calculate ventilation is the mixing of outside air with inside air.The purpose
of the mixing is to keep pollutants and carbon dioxide at the appropriate levels

When designing air flows you want to move polluted air to the outside. You also want tokeep air
from places like the science classroom, kitchen, and restrooms from flowing intooffice space or
classroom space. This can also be called “source control”.

In addition to being an important part of ventilation, air movement contributes to theperception of

comfort. Room occupants will be more comfortable with some airmovement.
Movement of air caused by temperature or pressure
differences is wind. Where there are differences of
pressure between two places, a pressure gradient
exists, across which air moves: from the high
pressure region to the low pressure region.

This movement of air, however, does not follow the

quickest straight line path. In fact, the air moving
from high to low pressure follows a spiralling route,
outwards from high pressure and inwards towards
low pressure.

This is due to the rotation of the Earth beneath the

moving air, which causes an apparent deflection of
the wind to the right in the northern hemisphere,
and left in the southern hemisphere.

Consequently, air blows anticlockwise around a low

pressure centre (depression) and clockwise around a
high pressure centre (anticyclone) in the northern
hemisphere (see Figure 3.1). This situation is
reversed in the southern hemisphere.
Ventilation in warm and humid climate
Ventilation is an obvious latent in hot and humid climate. What is less obvious is that there are
two components to ventilation: the controlled and un controlled component.

The controlled component is of course the outdoor air the designer adds to the building via a
controlled ventilation system. The uncontrolled component is defined here as air change
created by wind effects, stack effects and the pressure effects from the operation of the HVAC
system.

The uncontrolled component in most houses is larger than commonly assumed and typically
larger than the desired controlled component. Adding an additional controlled component to
this large uncontrolled component would only make an already bad situation worse.

The uncontrolled component is dominated by pressure effects created by the operation of

the HVAC system. Wind effects and stack effects acting on residential enclosures in hot
humid climates are low enough to be almost neglected.
Types of natural ventilation
Natural ventilation may be divided into two categories
• Controlled natural ventilation

is intentional displacement of air through specified openings such as windows,

doors, and ventilations by using natural forces (usually by pressures from wind
and/or indoor-outdoor temperature differences). It is usually controlled to
some extent by the occupant.
Infiltration (chimney, attic, walls)

• it is the uncontrolled random flow of air through unintentional

openings driven by wind, temperature-difference pressures and/or
appliance-induced pressures across the building envelope.

• In contrast to controlled natural ventilation, infiltration cannot be so

controlled and is less desirable than other ventilation strategies, but it
is a main source of ventilation in envelope-dominated buildings.
(completely covered)
Mechanical ventilation
• Mechanical or forced ventilation is the process of supplying and
removing air by means of mechanical devices, such as AC/heater. It
may be arranged to either supply, extract or balance ventilation for an
occupied space.