BUILDING VENTILATION

1. Types Of Ventilation
2. Natural Ventilation And Mechanical Ventilation
3. Difference Between Natural Ventilation And
Mechanical Ventilation
4. Natural And Mechanical Ventilation Methods
 VENTILATION
 Ventilation moves outdoor air into a building
or a room, and distributes the air within the building
or room.
 The general purpose of ventilation in building
is to provide healthy air for breathing by
both diluting the pollutants originating in the building and
removing the pollutants from it.
 Ventilation is necessary in buildings to remove ‘stale’
air and replace it with ‘fresh’ air:

 Helping to moderate internal temperatures.

 Replenishing oxygen.
 Reducing the accumulation of moisture, odors, bacteria,
dust, carbon dioxide, smoke and other contaminants that
can build up during occupied periods.
 Creating air movement which improves the comfort of
occupants.
BUILDING VENTILATION HAS THREE BASIC ELEMEN
T:

 Ventilation rate:
The amount of outdoor air that is provided into the spac
e, and the quality of the outdoor air.
 Airflow direction:
The overall airflow direction in a building, which should
be from clean zones to dirty zones.
 Air distribution or airflow pattern:
The external air should be delivered to each part of the
space in an efficient manner and the airborne pollutants
generated in each part of the space should also be
removed in an efficient manner.
 TYPES OF VENTILATION

There are two main types of Ventilation:

1. Natural Ventilation
2. Mechanical Ventilation
 WHAT IS NATURAL VENTILATION?
 It is the process of supplying and removing air through an indoor
space without using mechanical systems. It refers to the flow of
external air to an indoor space as a result of pressure or
temperatures differences.
 Natural ventilation occurs in two ways :
1. Pressure differences
2. Temperature difference.
 Purpose built openings include windows, doors,
solar chimneys, wind towers and trickle ventilators.
 The natural ventilation of buildings depends on:
 Climate
 Building design
 Human behavior.
 NATURAL VENTILATION IS GENERALLY CATEGORIZED
AS:
 WIND-DRIVEN (OR WIND-INDUCED) CROSS
VENTILATION, where pressure differences between
one side of the building and the other draw air in on
the high pressure side and draw it out on the low
pressure side.
 Air moves from high pressure to low pressure. Speed ​
of air movement depends on the pressure differences.
 These types of ventilation are through:
1. Window
2. Roof
3. Wall
 Window is one of the only several
ways to get natural ventilation.
 Design in terms of shape, position,
size and number of openings will
determine the effects of ventilation.
 Ideally, windows/openings should be
placed on all the walls of the building..
 Wind-induced ventilation uses
pressures generated on the building
by the wind, to drive air through
openings in the building. It is most
commonly realized as cross-
ventilation, where air enters on one
side of the building, and leaves on the
opposite side
 NATURAL VENTILATION IS
GENERALLY CATEGORIZED AS:
 BUOYANCY-DRIVEN STACK VENTILATION (THE STACK
EFFECT):
 The cooler air enters the building at low level, is heated by
occupants, equipment, heating systems and so on, becomes
less dense and so more buoyant and rises through the
building to be ventilated to the outside at the top.

 This effect can be used to naturally ventilate buildings. A

positive pressure area is created at the top of a building and
negative pressure area at the bottom.

 This process can take place without mechanical assistance,

simply by introducing openings at the bottom and the top of
buildings.
 Air movement caused by stack effect. This effect
occurs when there are air temperature differences
within outside and inside . Hot air in the building will
rise up and will be replaced with cold air from outside.
 Rate of air movement is dependent on the :
1. Temperature difference
2. Height
3. The size and position of the
air intake opening.
 WHAT IS MECHANICAL
VENTILATION?
Mechanical ventilation is a method of forced or
induced ventilation by using mechanical air handling
systems, commonly called HVAC systems.
Mechanical ventilation is used to control indoor air
quality, excess humidity, odors, and contaminants
can often be controlled via dilution or replacement
with outside air.
However, in humid climates specialized ventilation
systems can remove excess moisture from the air.
 WHERE MECHANICAL
VENTILATION IS NEEDED?
 The building is too deep to ventilate from the perimeter.
 Local air quality is poor, for example if a building is next to
a busy road.
 Local noise levels mean that windows cannot be opened.
 The local urban structure is very dense and shelters the
building from the wind.
 Air cooling or air conditioning systems mean that windows
cannot be opened.
 Privacy or security requirements prevent windows being
opened.
 Internal partitions block air paths.
 The creation of draughts adjacent to openings.
CHARACTERISTICS OF IDEAL MECHANICAL
VENTILATION
 TYPES OF MECHANICAL
VENTILATION
 A CIRCULATION SYSTEM such as a ceiling fan, which
creates internal air movement, but does not introduce fresh
air.
 A PRESSURE SYSTEM, in which fresh outside air is blown
into the building by inlet fans, creating a higher
internal pressure than the outside air.
 A VACUUM SYSTEM, in which stale internal air is extracted
from the building by an exhaust fan, creating
lower pressure inside the building than the outside air.
 A BALANCED SYSTEM that uses both inlet and extract
fans, maintaining the internal air pressure at a similar level to
the outside air and so reducing air infiltration and draughts.
 A LOCAL EXHAUST SYSTEM that extracts local sources
of heat or contaminants at their source, such
as cooker hoods, fume cupboards and so on.
 MECHANICAL VENTILATION SYSTEMS
FOR COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS
 In commercial developments, mechanical ventilation is typically driven
by AIR HANDLING UNITS (AHU) connected to ductwork within
the building that supplies air to and extracts air from interior spaces.
Typically AHU comprise an insulated box that forms the housing for;
filter racks or chambers, a fan (or blower), and
sometimes heating elements, cooling elements, sound attenuators and
dampers. In some situations, such as in swimming pools, air handling
units might include dehumidification..
 Where mechanical ventilation includes heating, cooling and humidity
control, this can be referred to as HEATING VENTILATION AND AIR
CONDITIONING (HVAC).
 Extracting internal air and replacing it with outside air can increase the
need for heating and cooling. This can be reduced by re-circulating a
proportion of internal air with the fresh outside air, or by HEAT
RECOVERY VENTILATION (HRV) that recovers heat from extract air to
pre-heat incoming fresh air using counter-flow heat exchangers.
 The design of mechanical ventilation systems is generally
a specialist task, undertaken by a building services engineer.
 BENEFITS OF MECHANICAL VENTILATION:
 Better Indoor Air Quality:
Indoor air can be many times more polluted than outdoor air, and the
average Human beings spend 80 percent of the day inside. Ventilation
systems can significantly improve a home’s air quality by removing
pollutants, and moisture that can cause mold (decay) problems.
 More Control:
When homes rely on air flow through walls, roofs, and windows for
ventilation, there is no control over the source or amount of air that
comes into the house. In fact, air leaking into the house may come from
undesirable areas such as the garage or attic. Mechanical ventilation
systems, however, provide proper fresh air flow along with appropriate
locations for intake and exhaust.
 Improved Comfort:
Mechanical ventilation systems allow a constant flow of outside air into
the home and can also provide filtration, dehumidification, and
conditioning of the incoming outside air.