posted on 2006-01-01, 00:00authored byHilary Davies
Energy efficient office buildings are intended to provide a comfortable and healthy environment for their occupants as well as reducing the energy consumption of the building. They are often designed as "showcase" buildings illustrating the potential for savings through some innovative design technology. But do such buildings actually deliver the desired energy savings and satisfactory comfort conditions for occupants? Measurements of a "green" University campus building in Victoria, Australia, designed with an innovative fabric energy storage system, demonstrate that the ventilation system is not providing acceptable indoor air quality conditions. The design strategies used to reduce energy consumption have had negative consequences on the air quality of the building. Insufficient fresh air is being drawn into the building leading to an excessive build up of carbon dioxide. It is recommended that monitoring systems need to use a wider range of measurements than temperature alone to guarantee good quality indoor air and working conditions and that commissioning of buildings should include adequate monitoring of the operational performance of the building. Designers need to be made aware of the potential consequences of their decisions when attempting innovative energy-efficient designs.
History
Pagination
1 - 10
Location
Hong Kong
Open access
Yes
Start date
2006-04-10
End date
2006-04-13
ISBN-13
9789623675116
ISBN-10
9623675119
Language
eng
Publication classification
E1 Full written paper - refereed
Copyright notice
2006, Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Editor/Contributor(s)
A Baldwin, E Hui, F Wong
Title of proceedings
BEAR 2006, construction sustainability and innovation : CIB W89 International Conference on Building Education and Research : 10-13 April 2006 : book of abstracts