Workflow design for the analysis of transitional space microclimates application to the analysis of strategies for the improvement of the energy performance and comfort of courtyard buildings in the mediterranean climate

This thesis aims to design a new simulation methodology applied to the microclimate of courtyards to assess their thermodynamic performance considering the different factors involved. Using this new methodology, different strategies to improve the performance of the courtyard as a passive element to reduce the energy consumption of buildings and improve user comfort are analyzed. This work is structured into five chapters. Chapter 1 presents the state of the art and the objectives, methodology, and structure of the thesis. Chapter 2 summarizes the findings of this research considering the existing tools applied to the simulation of the microclimate of courtyards and the development of a novel workflow to their simulation. This can be considered as one of the main contributions of the present thesis. The new workflow is validated using monitoring data and contrasting it with existing procedures to emphasize the main advantages and innovations, as well as some limitations and future developments. Chapter 3 shows the results of using the methodology previously described in the analysis of the effectiveness of different strategies to improve the thermal performance of courtyards. Among the different strategies analyzed with this methodology, the inclusion of shading devices had the largest influence on air temperature (monitored up to 13ºC of thermal delta). Albedo, in contrast, had less effect on the air temperature (around 0.2ºC of thermal delta) but had an important influence on user comfort (lowering up to 5ºC in Psychological Equivalent Temperature comfort index if optimized), mainly for their implication on surface temperature and thus mean radiant temperature. Thermal inertia and night ventilation were found to improve the courtyard's performance up to 1.6ºC and 1.4ºC UTCI. Chapter 4 presents the linkage of the methodology of simulation of the courtyard to the analysis of the indoor comfort of buildings and energy demand using existing building energy simulation tools. It was found that by using some lowcarbon strategies like shadings and air movement using fans, indoor adaptive comfort increased from 39 % of the time to up to 90-100%. In the courtyard, the use of a shading device reduced air temperature by 1ºC and the Universal Thermal Comfort Index up to 5ºC. Finally, Chapter 5 addresses the main results and conclusions, the contributions of this work, and some recommendations for professionals in the sector of building design. The results of this thesis have been published in several high-impact journals.

Author dc:creator

• López Cabeza, Victoria Patricia

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Galán-Marín, Carmen
• Rivera-Gómez, Carlos

Statement dc:rights

• Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/11441/146207

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:idus.us.es:11441/146207