NATURAL VENTILATION IN

COLD AND CLOUDY

CLIMATE.

BVDUCOA,PUNE.
K A LYAN I J A I S WAL
SHRUTI DHARIYA
SHWETA JATHAR
T.Y.B.ARCH

DESIGN PRINCIPLES:
These regions experience very cold winters,
hence trapping and using the suns heat
whenever it is available, is of prime concern in
building design.
The internal heat should not be lost back to the
ambient.
The insulation of building elements and control
of infiltration help in retaining the heat.
Exposure to cold winds should be minimized.

OBJECTIVES WHILE DESIGNING BUILDINGS :

RESIST HEAT LOSS BY:
1. Decreasing the exposed surface area.
2. Increasing the thermal resistance.
3. Increasing the thermal capacity.
4. Increasing the buffer spaces.
5. Decreasing the air exchange rate.

 PROMOTE HEAT GAIN BY:

1. Avoiding excessive shading.
2. Utilizing the heat from appliances.
3. Trapping the heat of the sun.

GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS:
SITE:
LANDFORM: In cold climates, heat gain is desirable, hence
buildings should be located on the south slope of a hill or
mountain for better access to solar radiation. At the same
time, the exposure to cold winds can be minimized by locating
the building on the leeward side. Parts of the site which offer
natural wind barrier can be chosen for constructing a building.

 OPEN SPACES AND BUILT FORMS: Buildings in cold

climate, should be clustered together to minimize
exposure to cold winds. Open spaces must be such that
they allow maximum south sun. they should be treated
with a hard and reflective surface so that they reflect
solar radiation onto the building.

 STREET WIDTH AND ORIENTATION: In cold climates, the street

orientation should be east-west to allow for maximum south
sun to enter the building. The street should be wide enough
to ensure that the buildings on one side do not shade those
on the other side (i.e. solar access should be ensured).

ORIENTATION AND PLATFORM:

In the cold zones, the buildings must be compact with
small S/V ratios . This is because the lesser the surface
area, the lower is the heat loss from the building.
Windows should preferably face
south to encourage direct gain. The north side of the
building should be well-insulated. Living areas can be
located on the southern side while utility areas such as
stores can be on the northern side. Air-lock lobbies at
the entrance and exit points of the building reduce heat
loss. The heat generated by appliances in rooms such
as kitchens may be recycled to heat the other parts of
the building.

BUILDING ENVELOPE:
(a) Roof: False ceilings are a regular roof feature of houses
in cold climates. One can also use internal insulation such as
polyurethane foam (PUF), thermocol, wood wool, etc. An
aluminium foil is generally used between the insulation
layer and the roof to reduce heat loss to the exterior. A
sufficiently sloping roof enables quick drainage of rain water
and snow. A solar air collector can be incorporated on the
south facing slope of the roof and hot air from it can be used
for space heating purposes. Skylights on the roofs admit
heat as well as light in winters The skylights can be provided
with shutters to avoid over heating in summers.

(b) Walls: Walls should be of low U-value to resist heat loss. The southfacing walls (exposed to solar radiation) could be of high thermal
capacity (such as Trombe wall) to store day time heat for later use.
The walls should also be insulated. The insulation should have
sufficient vapour barrier (such as two coats of bitumen, 300 to 600
gauge polyethylene sheet or aluminium foil) on the warm side to
avoid condensation. Hollow and lightweight concrete blocks are also
quite suitable. On the windward or north side, a cavity wall type of
construction may be adopted.
(c) Fenestration: It is advisable to have the maximum window area on
the southern side of the building to facilitate direct heat gain. They
should be sealed and preferably double glazed. Double glazing helps
to avoid heat losses during winter nights. However, care should be
taken to prevent condensation in the air space between the panes.
Movable shades should be provided to prevent
overheating in summers.

D: Colour and texture: The external surfaces of the walls should be dark in
colour for high
absorptivity to facilitate heat gains.

CASE STUDY:
HIMURJA OFFICE BUILDING, SHIMLA.
Office building for Himachal Pradesh Energy Development Agency with
active and passive solar retrofits.

A south-west view of the

office building showing
especially designed
sunspaces for
maintaining solar gains
in winter

LOCATION : Shimla, Himachal Pradesh.

BUILDING TYPE: Office building.
CLIMATE: Cold and cloudy.
ARCHITECT: Dr. Arvind Kishan and Kunal Jain.
BUILT-UP AREA: 635 square meters.
CLIMATE: As it lies in cold and cloudy climate zone ,
it has long winter october to february end with a
severe cold spell of about 2 months minimum DBT
-3 degree c with short wet periods in winter. While
summer ( may june ) is very pleasant with
maximum DBT 28 degree c, monsoon period (july
and august) has a high level of precipitation with
high humidity (maximum relative humidity 85%).
Inetrvening periods have a milder climate.

DESIGN RESPONSE:
The climate requires building to be heated almost throughout the year.

Building has been given a good southern exposure

Good possibility of additional solarr heat gain from the western

exposure.

Section through he buildingshowing solar access

through specially designed solarium and air heating
panels.

A closer view of the

solarium.

DAYLIGHTING AND HEATING.

Plan of the building and its three dimensional form allow maximum
penetrartion of the sun, maximizing both solar heat gain and daylight.
While heat gain is maximized, its absorption in the designed thermal mass
provides heat in the spaces throughout the diurnal cycle.
Air heating panels designed as an integral part of the southern wall panels
provide effective heat gain through a close connective loop.
Distribution of heat gain is achieved through a connective loop utilizing the
stairwell as a means of distrbuting heated air .
Specially designed solarium(sunspace) is built as an intergral part of
southern-wall to maximize heat gain.
To optimi9ze ventilation, the connective loop is coupled with solar chimneys
designed as an integral part of the roof.
Distribution of daylight in spaces is achieved through a careful integration of
window and light shelves.

Plan showing daylighting levels at regular inervals.

INSULATION AND WINDOW DESIGN:

Good insulation of 5cm thick glass wool.
Minimum fenestration(only in toilets) on northern exposure
prevents heat loss.
Use of weather-proofed (with no thermal bridges) hard
plastic windows because they mimimize infiltration losses.
Double glazing.

RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS

Roof-mounted solar hot water system (1000 litre per day) has been used
in the building. The water is circulatedthrough radiators for space heating
specially in the northern spaces.

A view of curved ceiling

with glass blocks to
distribute daylight and
roof-mounted solar water
heating system.

Design features:

Air heating panels designed as an integral part of

the south wall provide effective heat gain.
Heat gained in the building is distributed through a
connective loop.;
Dounle-glazed windows to minimize infiltration.
Insulated RCC diaphragm walls on the north to
prevent heat loss.
Solar chimney.
Solariun on south for heat gain.
Solar water heating system.