Natural and Hybrid Ventilation Aided by Solar Cells and Low Pressure Fans in an Atrium

In office buildings, an atrium has great potential for employing natural ventilation aided by the buoyancy effect. The architectural design of an atrium is critical in order to maximize the amount of natural ventilation.. However, in terms of both aesthetics and economy, it is difficult to design an atrium shape that will optimize natural ventilation. Taking this constraint into consideration, in this study a strategy is suggested whereby natural ventilation can be adopted with minimal change to the design of the atrium. Initially, a BIPV was installed on the top of an atrium in order to strengthen the buoyancy effect. This was then combined with forced ventilation by using a low pressure fan. To evaluate the performance of this measure, a CFD simulation and an Energy-Airflow analysis were carried out.