NATURAL VENTILATION

Content
1. Introduction
2. Importance of ventilation
3. Natural Ventilation
a) Wind
b) Stack effect
c) Combination wind and stack effect
4. Cross Ventilation
5. Position of Opening
6. Size of Opening
7. Control of Openings
a) Sasches
b) Canopies
c) Louvers & Shading
8. Humidity Control & Wind Scoop
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs):
At the end of the module, students will be able to:
1. Understand definition of Ventilation;
2. Feel the importance of Ventilation;
3. Explain what is meant by Natural Ventilation;
4. Understand ventilation requirement and air movement;
5. Know about Wind action; Stack Effect; combined effect.
6. Interpret Cross ventilation & its characteristics.
7. Explain effect of position of opening in ventilation.
8. Have an idea about how size of opening affect ventilation.
9. Gather detailed Concept on control of opening affecting
ventilation: Use of sashes, canopies, louvres etc.
10. Salient features of Wind Scoop: Humidity Control.
 Introduction: Ventilation
❖ The process of changing air in any
space to provide high indoor air
quality. (i.e. to control temperature,
replenish oxygen, remove moisture,
odours, smoke, heat, dust, airborne
bacteria, and carbon dioxide).
❖ Allows for the exchange of air from the
outside and circulation of air within
building.

❖ A proportion of air within the enclosed

space should be continuously
withdrawn and replaced by fresh air to
maintaining acceptable air quality in
buildings.
 Definition - a means of changing the air in an
enclosed space to :

Keep fresh air for Control Carbon Dioxide

respiratory system
Preserve correct level
of Oxygen in the air
Remove dust and
Lowering the
odors
heat level
Control the moisture
level

VENTILATION REQUIREMENTS
 Why Ventilation is important?
Maintaining the air purity
1. Preservation of oxygen content – this should be maintained at approximately
21% of air volume.
2. Removal of carbon dioxide – content of this to limit ~ 0.6% volume (in air)
3. Control of humidity – between 30-70% RH (Relative Humidity) is acceptable for
human comfort.
4. Prevention of heat concentration from machinery (electrical and mechanical) and
people (body heat)
5. Dispersal of concentration of bacteria-carrying particles
6. Dilution and disposal of contaminants such as smoke, dust, gases and body
odours; similarly for flammable concn. of gas vapour & dust at industrial buildings.
7. Provision of freshness – an optimum air velocity lies between 0.15 and 0.5 m/s.
Ventilation/air supply must be able to
improve human comfort conditions.
Perfect ventilation depends on:
✓ Volume of air required
✓ Temperature of air
✓ Speed of air movement
✓ Humidity
✓ Purity of air
▪ Requirements for an acceptable amount of fresh air
supply in buildings will vary depending on the nature of
occupation and activity.

▪ Air changes per hour or ventilation rate is the

preferred criteria for system design

▪ This is calculated by dividing the quantity of air by the

room volume and multiplying by the occupancy.

Quantity of air × Occupancy

Air changes per hour =
Room Volume

VENTILATION REQUIREMENTS
Recommendations for Ventilation in Public Buildings

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 Air Movement
Principles of Air Movement:
• Pressure difference between
inside and outside building
allows for the air to move from
outside to inside or, inside to
outside.

• Air flow rate through the

building affected by building
resistance.

• Controlled natural ventilation

and infiltration are driven by
pressure difference across the
building envelope.
Air Movement
The pressure difference is
caused by:
1. Wind (or Wind Effect)
2. Stack Effect
3. Combination of both
Wind and Stack Effects.

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 Natural Ventilation
➢ Process of supplying and removing air through an indoor space
by natural means (without a fan or other mechanical system)

• Two types:
1. Wind driven (Wind Effect) Ventilation
2. Stack ventilation

• Most often used through

operate-able windows for
small spaces.

• Complex building using

the stack effect to allow
the warm air to risen up and flow to the upper opening and
forcing cold air at the outside to be drawn into the building
through openings in the lower area.
 WIND EFFECT
When air flow is due to
wind, air enters through
openings in the windward
walls, and leaves through
openings in the leeward
walls.

The pressure distribution

patterns due to wind in a
number of cases are
illustrated in Fig. beside.

Figure: Air flow around a building

Wind pressures: Positive (high) pressure is created on the building sides that
face the wind (windward sides) whereas suction regions of negative pressure
are formed on the opposite sides (leeward sides) and on the side walls.
The occurrence and change of wind pressures on building surfaces depends
on:
1. wind speed and wind direction relative to the building;
2. the location and surrounding environment of the building;
3. shape of the building.
In a general case, an inflow of air is induced on the windward side and an
outflow on the leeward side. Airflow through an external opening is mainly
attributed to a wind induced
pressure difference across it.
(a) Ventilation through window

(b) Ventilation through wall

(c) Ventilation through roof

- Opening on roof
Cross Ventilation
When placing ventilation openings,
inlets and outlets are placed to
optimize the path that the air
follows through the building.
Windows or vents placed on
opposite sides of the building give
natural breezes a pathway through
the structure. This is called “Cross-
Ventilation”.
• Cross ventilation depends on two
continuously changing factors : wind
availability and wind direction.
• Consequently, it is a somewhat
unreliable source for providing air flow
and thermal comfort.
Considerations when designing for cross ventilation:
• Will work well if the room is up to 5 times the width of the ceiling
height.
• If cross ventilation is not possible placing windows on adjacent walls, at
90° to each other, will work but limit room size to 4.5 m × 4.5 m.
Partitions should not
obstruct air path.

Design spaces in such

a way that they
remain parallel to
main ventilation path.
Cross Ventilation [for all possible cases]

Placing openings across from, but not directly

opposite, each other causes the room’s air to
mix, better distributing the cooling and fresh air.
Cooler air sinks lower, while hot air rises;
therefore, locating the opening down low helps
push cooler air through the space, while locating
the exhaust up high helps pull warmer air out of Cross Ventilation
the space. [placing of inlet high or low]
STACK EFFECT
In a completely sealed
enclosure, thermal
differences between the
inside and outside will result
in a pressure difference
because warm air is less
dense than cold air.

Therefore when there is an

opening, air will flow across
the roof terminals boundary
to equalise the pressure.
• In stack ventilation, air movement is created by cool air being drawn
into the space low down to replace warmer air that naturally rises as
it is warmed and is then exhausted at the top.
• Stack ventilation works best in spaces with high ceilings and where
cross ventilation is not feasible.

The motive force is the stack

pressure multiplied by the cross-
sectional area
The Stack pressure can be
calculated from the equation:
Ps = 0.042  h  T
where Ps = stack pressure in N/m2;
h = the height of stack in m;
ΔT = Temperature difference in
Deg C (the constant is in N/m3 oC)
 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.
Combination of Wind and Stack Effect

In most buildings, natural ventilation relies on a combined wind force

and stack effects.
 The Stack Effect & Wind Pressure
Air movement in the attic may be
caused by the stack effect, wind
pressure or both.

Balanced ventilation also uses the

natural forces of wind pressure to
create areas of high and low
pressure areas around a house.

High-pressure areas form where

wind strikes the building and backs
up.
Low-pressure areas occur on the
downwind side.

Theoretically, air moves into the

building through openings in high-
pressure areas and exits at low-
pressure areas.
 Natural Ventilation depends on 6 factors:
1. Building Orientation and Shape
– opening and air movement.
2. External Elements
– house surrounding/tree.
3. CROSS VENTIALTION
– allow the air movement from one opening
to other opening…window, wall….
4. POSITION OF OPENING
5. SIZE OF OPENING
– height and width of window, double door…
6. CONTROL OF OPENINGS
– Sasches, Canopies, Louvres and other
elements controlling the openings, also
influence the indoor air flow pattern.
 Position of Openings
◼ To be effective, the air movement must be directed at the body
surface. In building terms this means that air movement must be
ensured through the space mostly used by the occupants: through
“the living zone (up to 2 m high)”.
◼ As the left figure shows, if the opening at the inlet side is at a high
level, regardless of the outlet opening position, the air flow will take
place near the ceiling and not in the living zone.
◼ In a 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. One possible
remedy is an increased roof parapet wall.

Pressure Build-up at Inlet Air flow in a two storey building

Size of Openings
Inlet & Outlet Areas ◼ Increasing the inlet and
◼ In both cross and stack outlet area increases
ventilation, the amount of ventilation.
heat removed from a building
is directly proportional to the
inlet and outlet areas.
◼ The larger the inlet and outlet
areas, the more air can travel
through the building and the
more heat can be removed.
 Maximize Natural Ventilation

Sashes can divert the air flow upwards. Only

a casement or reversible pivot sashe will
channel it downwards into the living zone
[See Figs.(i) + (ii) in next slide]
Control of Openings

In the humid tropics, it is important to

ensure that air flows into a room at a
level which suits its function.
Louvres can deflect air flow upwards
[Fig. (i)] or downwards [Fig. (ii)] .
A canopy over a window tends to direct
air flow upwards [Fig. (iii)] and a gap
between it and the wall ensures a
downward pressure [Fig. (iv)], which is
further improved in the case of a
louvered sunshade [Fig. (v)].
Control of Openings

Fig. (a) Effect of horizontal louvre; Fig. (b) Effect of a slot between wall and louvre;
Fig. (c) Effect of roof overhang; Fig. (d) Partition upto floor level.
 General Rules for Control of Openings

• Windows should be designed to admit natural ventilation.

The most important design issue is whether the windows
provide single-sided or cross-ventilation to interior spaces.

• The amount of air that flows through a window

(ventilation capacity) depends on the area and vertical
distribution of openings. These depend on the way the
window opens.

• Horizontal pivot windows offer the highest ventilation

capacity:
– For single-sided ventilation, place them as high as possible
to exhaust warm air at ceiling level.
– Air entering through the upper opening is directed toward
ceiling, making night-time cooling more effective.
 Canopies can eliminate the effect of
pressure build-up above the
window; thus the pressure below
the window will direct the air flow
upwards. A gap left between the
building face and the canopy would
ensure a downward pressure, tints a
flow directed into the living one.
Effect of Canopies
Wind Scoops are a simple
ventilation technique (employing
evaporative cooling) popular in
the Middle East and Africa. A
wind scoop is used to filter fresh
air into a building through the use
of prevailing winds and can help
purify, cool, and dehumidify
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buildings without energy usage.