Systems with Low Energy Consumption
Samira Ghorbani; Masoud Taheri Shahraeini; Mostafa Mohajerani
Abstract
Daylight serves as a fundamental element in the design of sustainable buildings, significantly contributing to energy efficiency and occupant visual comfort. However, the uncontrolled penetration of natural light may result in issues such as glare and uneven daylight distribution within interior spaces. ...
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Daylight serves as a fundamental element in the design of sustainable buildings, significantly contributing to energy efficiency and occupant visual comfort. However, the uncontrolled penetration of natural light may result in issues such as glare and uneven daylight distribution within interior spaces. An effective approach to daylight management involves utilizing light shelves, which enhance interior daylight penetration while mitigating excessive brightness near windows. This study examines the impact of light shelves on daylight distribution improvement through simulations conducted with the Ladybug plugin within the Grasshopper plugin, integrated into the Rhino modeling software. In this process, the building model was developed under specific climatic conditions, and key light shelf parameters, including depth, angle, and surface reflectivity, were evaluated. The analysis was carried out based on illuminance metrics. Among the nine measurement points, the three terminal points in the darkest areas were selected to assess the performance of the light shelf in improving daylight distribution. This study focused on evaluating the improvement in daylight levels achieved by the selected light shelf scenario at these points and the average illuminance of the rear work surfaces that required enhancement on December 21 and June 21. As a result, the implementation of light shelves in the targeted studio contributed to a 22%–30% enhancement in daylight availability.
Shahrzad Talebsafa; Masoud Taheri Shahraeini; Xiaoshan Yang; Mohammadreza Rabiei
Abstract
Thermal comfort is one of the most important factors affecting the quality of outdoor space. This work investigates the effect of shade on outdoor thermal comfort during the hot season. For this purpose, meteorological measurement and questionnaire surveys are conducted simultaneously at four points ...
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Thermal comfort is one of the most important factors affecting the quality of outdoor space. This work investigates the effect of shade on outdoor thermal comfort during the hot season. For this purpose, meteorological measurement and questionnaire surveys are conducted simultaneously at four points of the university campus in the cold semi-arid climate of Shahrood, Iran. Then the ENVI-met V4 is validated and implemented to examine the impact of different shading scenarios on outdoor thermal comfort. The neutral physiological equivalent temperature (PET) and the upper boundary of the PET comfort range are obtained at 21.9 °C and 26.9 °C, respectively. The results demonstrate that the plant shade creates the most acceptable thermal environment. Also shading cause a significant reduction in the PET value and thermal stress, while increasing the comfort levels and the comfort hours during the sunny days. Furthermore, the simulation results indicate that creating shade in the open space by trees contribute to lower level of mean radiant temperature up to 24.79 °C and up to 13.7 °C for PET. Moreover, a maximum mitigation effect of an architectural shade is obtained at 32.6 °C for mean radiant temperature and 17 °C for PET. The highest reduction of PET (17.2 °C) is achieved by the combination of trees and the architectural shade. The outcomes of this research work provide useful design recommendations to improve outdoor thermal comfort.