LoginStates that methods used by Swiss energy consultants in calculating air change rates are often inaccurate. Most consultants use the "observation method" utilising smoke pencils etc.
Bibliographic database Airbase
AIRBASE is the Bibliographic Database of the AIVC. It contains publications and abstracts of articles related to energy efficient ventilation. Where possible, sufficient detail is supplied in the bibliographic details for users to trace and order the material via their own libraries. Topics include: ventilation strategies, design and retrofit methods, calculation techniques, standards and regulations, measurement methods, indoor air quality and energy implications etc. Entries are based on articles and reports published in journals, internal publications and research reports, produced both by university departments and by building research institutions throughout the world. AIRBASE has grown and evolved over many years (1979 to present day, over 22000 references and 16000 documents available online). For most of the references, the full document is also available online.
The AIVC website includes a protected content feature that provides access to AIRBASE. Access to the protected content is free of charge but requires you to register first.
Describes pressurization tests conducted by the National Testing Institute on 3 large industrial buildings.
Uses model buildings to study external distribution of wind pressure and internal air flow. Compares air flow data with computed values derived from the pressure distribution data.
Describes a simple device developed in the Institute for Applied Physics which is suitable for frrsh air control in air conditioned spaces. The protype instrument detects the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere on the basis of photoacoustics.
Describes tests made in a single-family house to examine the overall effects of the kerosene heater in situ.
Describes airing habits based on observation of windows of 50000 rooms in terraced housing and blocks of flats. Compares the results with observations in other countries.
Continues on from a previous paper, which gives a theoretical framework for using moments of concentration histories as a means of assessing air quality.
Presents a study to improve knowledge of the air tightness of the building envelope. The airtightness of buildings was measured by the pressure method and a literature study was carried out of corresponding measurements inScandinavia.
Summarizes the information obtained concerning new residential construction in the US and points out important differences between US and Swedish technology and construction methods for energy efficient housing.
Looks at the separate requirements of ventilation and heat recovery. Discusses the energy cost of ventilation. Gives example calculations for four different situations to show how much saving an air-to-air heat exchanger can provide.
Reports on pressure tests carried out on the Kasarminkatu 24 building (a museum of architecture) in Helsinki.
Presents methods for the measurement of air flow rates, including methods for measuring flow in ducts, at exhaust and supply air devices and for air change rates for using tracer gas.
The problems associated with the measurement of ventilation rates and air movement patterns in large single cell buildings which were unoccupied and unheated were investigated using the tracer gases nitrous oxide and sulphur hexafluoride.
Requirements for new buildings including large residential buildings are given and cover illumination, exterior envelope, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, service water heating, transportation, freeze protection and energy management.
In this paper, an empirical method is proposed which qualifies the thermal performance of buildings through the entire year.
This paper deals with the concept of energy efficient houses as integrated systems.
This paper presents a mathematical model, implemented in a general computer code, that can provide detailed information on the velocity and temperature fields prevailing in three-dimensional buildings of any geometrical complexity, for a given v
A survey of air flow patterns established in reliable laboratory experiments and field studies, with their original sources.
This paper explains the physics of air flow patterns, the aerodynamics of buildings and their implications for effective ventilation. Ventilation influenced design strategies of sunshading, daylighting and landscaping are discussed.
The heating and cooling loads due to air infiltration may be estimated by a mathematical model that requires knowledge of the leakage characteristics of each component of the envelope.