A study on an estimation method of the effective opening area of entrance doors and winter airflow rate into atrium buildings

This study develops a simplified estimation method for calculating the effective opening area of automatically operated entrance doors and the winter airflow rate into entrance halls due to the stack effect. The relationships between the number of people passing through the doors and the average opening area ratio were obtained from detailed simulations of a variety of different types of doors, and were approximated by equations. The relationships between the effective entrance door opening areas and the outdoor airflow rates were determined by solving air balance equations for each of the six types of buildings. These relationships were also approximated by equations. The proposed estimation method, utilizing these two kinds of approximation equations, was used to examine the changes in the winter outdoor airflow rate through the entrance doors on a weekday for six different buildings. This method helps designers plan entrances and determine the proper heating equipment capacity.