@article{mccarty_accepted_2021,
title = {(accepted) {Retrofit} {Potential} of {Single} {Family} {Detached} {Homes}: an {Expert} {Elicitation}},
journal = {Buildings \& Cities},
author = {McCarty, Justin and Scott, Alexandra and Rysanek, Adam},
year = {2021},
}The judgment of thermal comfort is a cognitive process influenced by physical, psychological and other factors. Prior studies have suggested that occupants who are generally satisfied with many non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) are also more likely to be satisfied with thermal conditions as well. This paper applies Bayesian logistic regression to identify and predict the independent relationship between non-thermal metrics of IEQ, such as CO2 concentrations, noise levels, and light levels, and perceived thermal comfort. The study is the first to do so with respect to a large field study. The regression analysis is done against a dataset of objective and subjective IEQ measurements collected from 779 occupants of open-plan offices in large Canadian and US cities. The results suggest there is evidence supporting a view that measurements of indoor CO2 concentrations and indoor speech intelligibility are correlated with perceived thermal satisfaction. For example, a posteriori predictions drawn from the regression model suggest that, under the same psychrometric conditions (i.e., operative temperature = 23 °C, relative humidity = 30\%, etc.), occupants experiencing indoor CO2 concentrations of 500 ppm were {\textasciitilde}30 ± 8\% more likely to state they felt thermally satisfied than occupants experiencing indoor conditions at 900 ppm.
@article{crosby_correlations_2021,
title = {Correlations between thermal satisfaction and non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality: {Bayesian} inference of a field study of offices},
volume = {35},
issn = {2352-7102},
shorttitle = {Correlations between thermal satisfaction and non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352710220336834},
doi = {10.1016/j.jobe.2020.102051},
abstract = {The judgment of thermal comfort is a cognitive process influenced by physical, psychological and other factors. Prior studies have suggested that occupants who are generally satisfied with many non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) are also more likely to be satisfied with thermal conditions as well. This paper applies Bayesian logistic regression to identify and predict the independent relationship between non-thermal metrics of IEQ, such as CO2 concentrations, noise levels, and light levels, and perceived thermal comfort. The study is the first to do so with respect to a large field study. The regression analysis is done against a dataset of objective and subjective IEQ measurements collected from 779 occupants of open-plan offices in large Canadian and US cities. The results suggest there is evidence supporting a view that measurements of indoor CO2 concentrations and indoor speech intelligibility are correlated with perceived thermal satisfaction. For example, a posteriori predictions drawn from the regression model suggest that, under the same psychrometric conditions (i.e., operative temperature = 23 °C, relative humidity = 30\%, etc.), occupants experiencing indoor CO2 concentrations of 500 ppm were {\textasciitilde}30 ± 8\% more likely to state they felt thermally satisfied than occupants experiencing indoor conditions at 900 ppm.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-12-20},
journal = {Journal of Building Engineering},
author = {Crosby, Sarah and Rysanek, Adam},
month = mar,
year = {2021},
keywords = {Thermal comfort, Indoor environmental quality, Bayesian modelling, Office occupants, Thermal comfort models, Uncertainty quantification},
pages = {102051},
file = {ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/DC67SSJM/S2352710220336834.html:text/html;ScienceDirect Full Text PDF:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/BGQHR5AC/Crosby and Rysanek - 2021 - Correlations between thermal satisfaction and non-.pdf:application/pdf},
}This work presents a weighted ensemble of supervised learning models for estimating the days of the year where compliance with the Adaptive Model of thermal comfort is exceeded. The ensemble combines several gradient boosting on decision tree algorithms and Bayesian logistic regression. In a presented case study, the model is trained on three summers of hourly weather data and indoor air temperature data of a south-facing, naturally-ventilated office in Vancouver, Canada. The model is then used to predict thermal comfort exceedance under a possible climate change scenario. It is found that the ensemble outperforms its individual models in terms of accuracy, precision, and similar metrics. In eight of nine trials using the ensemble to re-assess known history, the ensemble predicts total comfort-exceeding days within a margin of one day. Under the RCP 8.5 global climate change scenario, the model predicts annual comfort-exceeding days will double before the 2050s, by that point exceeding current local thermal comfort compliance guidelines. Future applications of the presented methodology may assist other areas of data-driven forecasting, such as peak energy demand prediction. It may also assist analysis of emerging space cooling solutions such as radiant cooling of free-running buildings.
@article{rysanek_forecasting_2021,
title = {Forecasting the impact of climate change on thermal comfort using a weighted ensemble of supervised learning models},
volume = {190},
issn = {0360-1323},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360132320308891},
doi = {10.1016/j.buildenv.2020.107522},
abstract = {This work presents a weighted ensemble of supervised learning models for estimating the days of the year where compliance with the Adaptive Model of thermal comfort is exceeded. The ensemble combines several gradient boosting on decision tree algorithms and Bayesian logistic regression. In a presented case study, the model is trained on three summers of hourly weather data and indoor air temperature data of a south-facing, naturally-ventilated office in Vancouver, Canada. The model is then used to predict thermal comfort exceedance under a possible climate change scenario. It is found that the ensemble outperforms its individual models in terms of accuracy, precision, and similar metrics. In eight of nine trials using the ensemble to re-assess known history, the ensemble predicts total comfort-exceeding days within a margin of one day. Under the RCP 8.5 global climate change scenario, the model predicts annual comfort-exceeding days will double before the 2050s, by that point exceeding current local thermal comfort compliance guidelines. Future applications of the presented methodology may assist other areas of data-driven forecasting, such as peak energy demand prediction. It may also assist analysis of emerging space cooling solutions such as radiant cooling of free-running buildings.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2021-01-21},
journal = {Building and Environment},
author = {Rysanek, Adam and Nuttall, Rohan and McCarty, Justin},
month = mar,
year = {2021},
keywords = {Climate change, Adaptive comfort model, Bayesian logistic regression, Ensemble, Gradient boosting on decision trees, Supervised learning},
pages = {107522},
file = {ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/28Y52Y2C/S0360132320308891.html:text/html;ScienceDirect Full Text PDF:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/X2MZBF95/Rysanek et al. - 2021 - Forecasting the impact of climate change on therma.pdf:application/pdf},
}Radiant cooling-assisted natural ventilation is an innovative technical approach that combines new radiant cooling technology with natural ventilation to increase fresh air delivery into buildings year-round with minimal energy cost and improves air quality. Currently, the standard paradigm for HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) is based on central air systems that tie delivery of heating and cooling to delivery of fresh air. To prevent heat loss, the delivery of fresh air must be tightly controlled and often limited through recirculation of already heated air. Buildings are designed with air-tight envelopes, which do not allow for natural ventilation, and depend on energy-intensive central-air systems. As closed environments, buildings have become sites of rapid COVID-19 transmission. In this research, we demonstrate the energy cost of increasing outdoor air supply with standard systems per COVID-19 recommendations and introduce an alternative HVAC paradigm that maximizes the decoupling of ventilation and thermal control. We first consider a novel analysis of the energy costs of increasing the amount of conditioned fresh air using standard HVAC systems to address COVID-19 concerns. We then present an alternative that includes a novel membrane-assisted radiant system we have studied for cooling in humid climates, in place of an air conditioning system. The proposed system can work in conjunction with natural ventilation and thus decreases the risk of indoor spread of infectious diseases and significantly lowers energy consumption in buildings. Our results modeling HVAC energy in different climates show increased outdoor air in standard HVAC systems can double cooling costs, while increasing natural ventilation with radiant systems can halve HVAC costs. More specifically it is possible to add up to 100 days’ worth of natural ventilation while saving energy, when coupling natural ventilation and radiant systems. This combination decreases energy cost by 10-45\% in 60 major cities globally, while increasing fresh air intake.
@article{aviv_fresh_2021,
title = {A {Fresh} ({Air}) {Look} at {Ventilation} for {COVID}-19: {Estimating} the global energy savings potential of coupling natural ventilation with novel radiant cooling strategies},
issn = {0306-2619},
shorttitle = {A {Fresh} ({Air}) {Look} at {Ventilation} for {COVID}-19},
url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261921003421},
doi = {10.1016/j.apenergy.2021.116848},
abstract = {Radiant cooling-assisted natural ventilation is an innovative technical approach that combines new radiant cooling technology with natural ventilation to increase fresh air delivery into buildings year-round with minimal energy cost and improves air quality. Currently, the standard paradigm for HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) is based on central air systems that tie delivery of heating and cooling to delivery of fresh air. To prevent heat loss, the delivery of fresh air must be tightly controlled and often limited through recirculation of already heated air. Buildings are designed with air-tight envelopes, which do not allow for natural ventilation, and depend on energy-intensive central-air systems. As closed environments, buildings have become sites of rapid COVID-19 transmission. In this research, we demonstrate the energy cost of increasing outdoor air supply with standard systems per COVID-19 recommendations and introduce an alternative HVAC paradigm that maximizes the decoupling of ventilation and thermal control. We first consider a novel analysis of the energy costs of increasing the amount of conditioned fresh air using standard HVAC systems to address COVID-19 concerns. We then present an alternative that includes a novel membrane-assisted radiant system we have studied for cooling in humid climates, in place of an air conditioning system. The proposed system can work in conjunction with natural ventilation and thus decreases the risk of indoor spread of infectious diseases and significantly lowers energy consumption in buildings. Our results modeling HVAC energy in different climates show increased outdoor air in standard HVAC systems can double cooling costs, while increasing natural ventilation with radiant systems can halve HVAC costs. More specifically it is possible to add up to 100 days’ worth of natural ventilation while saving energy, when coupling natural ventilation and radiant systems. This combination decreases energy cost by 10-45\% in 60 major cities globally, while increasing fresh air intake.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2021-03-31},
journal = {Applied Energy},
author = {Aviv, Dorit and Wee Chen, Kian and Teitelbaum, Eric and Sheppard, Denon and Pantelic, Jovan and Rysanek, Adam and Meggers, Forrest},
month = mar,
year = {2021},
keywords = {Air Quality, COVID-19, Energy Cost, Natural Ventilation, Radiant Systems, Thermal Comfort},
pages = {116848},
file = {ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/XLGN35ZR/S0306261921003421.html:text/html},
}Thermal comfort standards have suggested a number of physical indices which can be calculated from either building simulations or in situ physical monitoring to assess the long-term thermal comfort of a space. However, the prohibitively high cost of sensor technologies has limited the applications of these physical indices, and their usefulness has never been established using data collected in real buildings. This paper is the first assessment of the six types of existing indices (23 total) found in standards and five types of new indices (36 total) and their correlation with the long-term thermal satisfaction of building occupants. Correlation analyses were based on continuous thermal comfort measurements and post-occupancy evaluation surveys from four air-conditioned office buildings in Sydney, Australia. We found that the majority of existing indices, especially those based on predicted mean vote (PMV) and predicted percentage dissatisfied (PPD) metrics, have a weak correlation with thermal satisfaction. The percentage of time outside a temperature range was the best-performing index from the standards (r=-0.63). A new index based on the percentage of time that daily temperature range is greater than a threshold reported the strongest correlation (r=-0.8) with thermal satisfaction for this dataset. The results suggest that occupants’ long-term thermal comfort is influenced more by pronounced excursions beyond some acceptable temperature range and large variations in daily temperature than the average experience over time. These findings support the use of continuous monitoring technologies for long-term thermal comfort evaluation and inform potential amendments of international thermal comfort standards.
@article{li_improved_2020,
title = {Improved long-term thermal comfort indices for continuous monitoring},
volume = {224},
issn = {0378-7788},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378778820303820},
doi = {10.1016/j.enbuild.2020.110270},
abstract = {Thermal comfort standards have suggested a number of physical indices which can be calculated from either building simulations or in situ physical monitoring to assess the long-term thermal comfort of a space. However, the prohibitively high cost of sensor technologies has limited the applications of these physical indices, and their usefulness has never been established using data collected in real buildings. This paper is the first assessment of the six types of existing indices (23 total) found in standards and five types of new indices (36 total) and their correlation with the long-term thermal satisfaction of building occupants. Correlation analyses were based on continuous thermal comfort measurements and post-occupancy evaluation surveys from four air-conditioned office buildings in Sydney, Australia. We found that the majority of existing indices, especially those based on predicted mean vote (PMV) and predicted percentage dissatisfied (PPD) metrics, have a weak correlation with thermal satisfaction. The percentage of time outside a temperature range was the best-performing index from the standards (r=-0.63). A new index based on the percentage of time that daily temperature range is greater than a threshold reported the strongest correlation (r=-0.8) with thermal satisfaction for this dataset. The results suggest that occupants’ long-term thermal comfort is influenced more by pronounced excursions beyond some acceptable temperature range and large variations in daily temperature than the average experience over time. These findings support the use of continuous monitoring technologies for long-term thermal comfort evaluation and inform potential amendments of international thermal comfort standards.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Energy and Buildings},
author = {Li, Peixian and Parkinson, Thomas and Schiavon, Stefano and Froese, Thomas M. and de Dear, Richard and Rysanek, Adam and Staub-French, Sheryl},
month = oct,
year = {2020},
keywords = {Building performance, Continuous monitoring, Data driven methods, Post occupancy evaluation (POE), Thermal comfort, Workplace satisfaction},
pages = {13},
file = {Li et al. - 2020 - Improved long-term thermal comfort indices for con.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/M7IQ74C8/Li et al. - 2020 - Improved long-term thermal comfort indices for con.pdf:application/pdf;ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/53XMBLBL/S0378778820303820.html:text/html},
}DOAJ is an online directory that indexes and provides access to quality open access, peer-reviewed journals.
@article{teitelbaum_globe_2020,
title = {Globe thermometer free convection error potentials},
volume = {10},
issn = {2045-2322},
url = {https://doaj.org},
doi = {10.1038/s41598-020-59441-1},
abstract = {DOAJ is an online directory that indexes and provides access to quality open access, peer-reviewed journals.},
language = {en},
number = {1},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Scientific Reports},
author = {Teitelbaum, Eric and Chen, Kian Wee and Meggers, Forrest and Guo, Hongshan and Houchois, Nicholas and Pantelic, Jovan and Rysanek, Adam},
month = feb,
year = {2020},
note = {Publisher: Nature Publishing Group},
pages = {1--13},
file = {Teitelbaum et al. - 2020 - Globe thermometer free convection error potentials.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/MAK694C8/Teitelbaum et al. - 2020 - Globe thermometer free convection error potentials.pdf:application/pdf;Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/X4XMMA5Z/97619a99b364408cbe67e03f73bf31c4.html:text/html},
}@inproceedings{sheppard_accepted_2020,
address = {Vancouver, BC},
title = {(accepted). {Predicting} {Membrane} {Temperature} of {Condensation} {Free} {Radiant} {Cooling} {Panels}},
booktitle = {{eSIM2020} {Conference} {Proceedings}},
publisher = {International Building Performance Simulaton Association},
author = {Sheppard, Denon and Rysanek, Adam},
month = sep,
year = {2020},
file = {Sheppard and Rysanek - 2020 - (accepted). Predicting Membrane Temperature of Con.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/N2R3PDYF/Sheppard and Rysanek - 2020 - (accepted). Predicting Membrane Temperature of Con.pdf:application/pdf},
}@inproceedings{mccarty_accepted_2020,
address = {Vancouver, BC},
title = {(accepted). {Climate} {Change} {Impact} on {Utility} of {District} {Heating} in {New} {Development} {Context}},
booktitle = {{eSIM2020} {Conference} {Proceedings}},
publisher = {International Building Performance Simulaton Association},
author = {McCarty, Justin and Rysanek, Adam},
month = sep,
year = {2020},
file = {McCarty and Rysanek - 2020 - (accepted). Climate Change Impact on Utility of Di.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/LDTA5JQF/McCarty and Rysanek - 2020 - (accepted). Climate Change Impact on Utility of Di.pdf:application/pdf},
}Building occupants are continuously exposed to multiple indoor environmental stimuli, including thermal, visual, acoustic, and air quality related factors. Moreover, personal and contextual aspects can be regarded as additional domains influencing occupants’ perception and behaviour. The scientific literature in this area typically deals with these multiple stimuli in isolation. In contrast to single-domain research, multi-domain research analyses at least two different domains, for example, visual and thermal. The relatively few literature reviews that have considered multi-domain approaches to indoor-environmental perception and behaviour covered only a few dozen articles each. The present contribution addresses this paucity by reviewing 219 scientific papers on interactions and cross-domain effects that influence occupants’ indoor environmental perception and behaviour. The objective of the present review is to highlight motivational backgrounds, key methodologies, and major findings of multi-domain investigations of human perception and behaviour in indoor environments. The in-depth review of these papers provides not only an overview of the state of the art, but also contributes to the identification of existing knowledge gaps in this area and the corresponding need for future research. In particular, many studies use “convenience” variables and samples, there is often a lack of theoretical foundation to studies, and there is little research linking perception to action.
@article{schweiker_review_2020,
title = {Review of multi‐domain approaches to indoor environmental perception and behaviour},
volume = {176},
issn = {0360-1323},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360132320301621},
doi = {10.1016/j.buildenv.2020.106804},
abstract = {Building occupants are continuously exposed to multiple indoor environmental stimuli, including thermal, visual, acoustic, and air quality related factors. Moreover, personal and contextual aspects can be regarded as additional domains influencing occupants' perception and behaviour. The scientific literature in this area typically deals with these multiple stimuli in isolation. In contrast to single-domain research, multi-domain research analyses at least two different domains, for example, visual and thermal. The relatively few literature reviews that have considered multi-domain approaches to indoor-environmental perception and behaviour covered only a few dozen articles each. The present contribution addresses this paucity by reviewing 219 scientific papers on interactions and cross-domain effects that influence occupants’ indoor environmental perception and behaviour. The objective of the present review is to highlight motivational backgrounds, key methodologies, and major findings of multi-domain investigations of human perception and behaviour in indoor environments. The in-depth review of these papers provides not only an overview of the state of the art, but also contributes to the identification of existing knowledge gaps in this area and the corresponding need for future research. In particular, many studies use “convenience” variables and samples, there is often a lack of theoretical foundation to studies, and there is little research linking perception to action.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Building and Environment},
author = {Schweiker, Marcel and Ampatzi, Eleni and Andargie, Maedot S. and Andersen, Rune Korsholm and Azar, Elie and Barthelmes, Verena M. and Berger, Christiane and Bourikas, Leonidas and Carlucci, Salvatore and Chinazzo, Giorgia and Edappilly, Lakshmi Prabha and Favero, Matteo and Gauthier, Stephanie and Jamrozik, Anja and Kane, Michael and Mahdavi, Ardeshir and Piselli, Cristina and Pisello, Anna Laura and Roetzel, Astrid and Rysanek, Adam and Sharma, Kunind and Zhang, Shengbo},
month = jun,
year = {2020},
keywords = {Comfort, Contextual, Human perception, Multi-domain, Multi-perceptual, Multi-physical, Occupant behaviour, Personal},
pages = {106804},
file = {Schweiker et al. - 2020 - Review of multi‐domain approaches to indoor enviro.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/A6WU2IVS/Schweiker et al. - 2020 - Review of multi‐domain approaches to indoor enviro.pdf:application/pdf;ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/DBJKT4SC/S0360132320301621.html:text/html},
}We present results of a radiant cooling system that made the hot and humid tropical climate of Singapore feel cool and comfortable. Thermal radiation exchange between occupants and surfaces in the built environment can augment thermal comfort. The lack of widespread commercial adoption of radiant-cooling technologies is due to two widely held views: 1) The low temperature required for radiant cooling in humid environments will form condensation; and 2) cold surfaces will still cool adjacent air via convection, limiting overall radiant-cooling effectiveness. This work directly challenges these views and provides proof-of-concept solutions examined for a transient thermal-comfort scenario. We constructed a demonstrative outdoor radiant-cooling pavilion in Singapore that used an infrared-transparent, low-density polyethylene membrane to provide radiant cooling at temperatures below the dew point. Test subjects who experienced the pavilion (n = 37) reported a “satisfactory” thermal sensation 79\% of the time, despite experiencing 29.6 ± 0.9 °C air at 66.5 ± 5\% relative humidity and with low air movement of 0.26 ± 0.18 m⋅s−1. Comfort was achieved with a coincident mean radiant temperature of 23.9 ± 0.8 °C, requiring a chilled water-supply temperature of 17.0 ± 1.8 °C. The pavilion operated successfully without any observed condensation on exposed surfaces, despite an observed dew-point temperature of 23.7 ± 0.7 °C. The coldest conditions observed without condensation used a chilled water-supply temperature 12.7 °C below the dew point, which resulted in a mean radiant temperature 3.6 °C below the dew point.
@article{teitelbaum_membrane-assisted_2020,
title = {Membrane-assisted radiant cooling for expanding thermal comfort zones globally without air conditioning},
volume = {117},
copyright = {Copyright © 2020 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/This open access article is distributed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License 4.0 (CC BY-NC-ND).},
issn = {0027-8424, 1091-6490},
url = {https://www.pnas.org/content/117/35/21162},
doi = {10.1073/pnas.2001678117},
abstract = {We present results of a radiant cooling system that made the hot and humid tropical climate of Singapore feel cool and comfortable. Thermal radiation exchange between occupants and surfaces in the built environment can augment thermal comfort. The lack of widespread commercial adoption of radiant-cooling technologies is due to two widely held views: 1) The low temperature required for radiant cooling in humid environments will form condensation; and 2) cold surfaces will still cool adjacent air via convection, limiting overall radiant-cooling effectiveness. This work directly challenges these views and provides proof-of-concept solutions examined for a transient thermal-comfort scenario. We constructed a demonstrative outdoor radiant-cooling pavilion in Singapore that used an infrared-transparent, low-density polyethylene membrane to provide radiant cooling at temperatures below the dew point. Test subjects who experienced the pavilion (n = 37) reported a “satisfactory” thermal sensation 79\% of the time, despite experiencing 29.6 ± 0.9 °C air at 66.5 ± 5\% relative humidity and with low air movement of 0.26 ± 0.18 m⋅s−1. Comfort was achieved with a coincident mean radiant temperature of 23.9 ± 0.8 °C, requiring a chilled water-supply temperature of 17.0 ± 1.8 °C. The pavilion operated successfully without any observed condensation on exposed surfaces, despite an observed dew-point temperature of 23.7 ± 0.7 °C. The coldest conditions observed without condensation used a chilled water-supply temperature 12.7 °C below the dew point, which resulted in a mean radiant temperature 3.6 °C below the dew point.},
language = {en},
number = {35},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences},
author = {Teitelbaum, Eric and Chen, Kian Wee and Aviv, Dorit and Bradford, Kipp and Ruefenacht, Lea and Sheppard, Denon and Teitelbaum, Megan and Meggers, Forrest and Pantelic, Jovan and Rysanek, Adam},
month = sep,
year = {2020},
pmid = {32817481},
note = {Publisher: National Academy of Sciences
Section: Physical Sciences},
keywords = {thermal comfort, energy efficiency, photonics, radiant cooling},
pages = {21162--21169},
file = {Teitelbaum et al. - 2020 - Membrane-assisted radiant cooling for expanding th.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/R7QFRG58/Teitelbaum et al. - 2020 - Membrane-assisted radiant cooling for expanding th.pdf:application/pdf;Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/FM8C654S/21162.html:text/html},
}This paper aims to formulate and test a parametric highperformance building design workflow that allows architects to explore realistic space attributes. It also allows architects to assess their environmental performative outcomes such as daylight simulation, solar radiation and occupant visual link in order to inform decision making during the design process. Using the Rhino and Grasshopper platform, a new workflow is proposed for generating and analyzing building forms generatively and extensively to predict their environmental performance. This approach comes from the improved interoperability between the parametric model tools, simulation engines and statistical analysis tools, enabling significant ability to compare energy performance with other performance metrics. The overall framework is divided into four steps: site setup, massing generation, performance evaluation and visualization, and design development. Through a residential building design case in Vancouver, it is anticipated that, by incorporating knowledge about the environmental performance of a design early in the volumemaking process, the proposed framework will help designers better navigate performance objectives in the architectural design environment.
@inproceedings{liu_case_2020,
address = {Online},
title = {A {Case} of {High}-{Performance} {Building} {Form} {Design} {Workflow} {Informed} by {Computational} {Simulation}},
abstract = {This paper aims to formulate and test a parametric highperformance building design workflow that allows architects to explore realistic space attributes. It also allows architects to assess their environmental performative outcomes such as daylight simulation, solar radiation and occupant visual link in order to inform decision making during the design process. Using the Rhino and Grasshopper platform, a new workflow is proposed for generating and analyzing building forms generatively and extensively to predict their environmental performance. This approach comes from the improved interoperability between the parametric model tools, simulation engines and statistical analysis tools, enabling significant ability to compare energy performance with other performance metrics. The overall framework is divided into four steps: site setup, massing generation, performance evaluation and visualization, and design development. Through a residential building design case in Vancouver, it is anticipated that, by incorporating knowledge about the environmental performance of a design early in the volumemaking process, the proposed framework will help designers better navigate performance objectives in the architectural design environment.},
language = {en},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the {Symposium} on {Simulation} for {Architecture} and {Urban} {Design}},
publisher = {Society for Modeling \& Simulation International (SCS)},
author = {Liu, Haobo and Rysanek, Adam and Frisque, Andrea and Chan, Jeanie},
month = may,
year = {2020},
pages = {349--356},
file = {Liu et al. - A Case of High-Performance Building Form Design Wo.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/DKRJADI4/Liu et al. - A Case of High-Performance Building Form Design Wo.pdf:application/pdf},
}This research proposes the use of membrane-assisted radiant panels to improve the thermal comfort of naturally ventilated spaces in hot and humid climates. These radiant panels are capable of conditioning naturally ventilated spaces, which is impractical with conventional mechanical cooling systems. For conventional systems, a permeable envelope will result in energy wastage from conditioned air escaping or condensation occurring on the radiant surfaces. In our system, there is no air-conditioning and we avoid condensation by separating the radiant surfaces from humid air using a membrane transparent to thermal radiation. The membrane-assisted radiant panels are an unutilized technology for architects to design comfortable naturally ventilated spaces. We propose a cooling system based on the technology and discuss the architectural implications, particularly the permeability of the building envelope and requirements for mechanical spaces, of employing this system in a case study that is a naturally ventilated classroom. Our system is compared to conventional cooling systems. Although our system requires a ceiling space reconfiguration, it does not require duct works and envelope retrofits. The comparative case study shows a potential 52\% reduction in cooling energy demand from initial estimation. Considering the trade-offs, our system can be a good alternative for retrofit projects.
@article{chen_exploring_2020,
title = {Exploring membrane-assisted radiant cooling for designing comfortable naturally ventilated spaces in the tropics},
volume = {0},
issn = {0961-3218},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1080/09613218.2020.1847025},
doi = {10.1080/09613218.2020.1847025},
abstract = {This research proposes the use of membrane-assisted radiant panels to improve the thermal comfort of naturally ventilated spaces in hot and humid climates. These radiant panels are capable of conditioning naturally ventilated spaces, which is impractical with conventional mechanical cooling systems. For conventional systems, a permeable envelope will result in energy wastage from conditioned air escaping or condensation occurring on the radiant surfaces. In our system, there is no air-conditioning and we avoid condensation by separating the radiant surfaces from humid air using a membrane transparent to thermal radiation. The membrane-assisted radiant panels are an unutilized technology for architects to design comfortable naturally ventilated spaces. We propose a cooling system based on the technology and discuss the architectural implications, particularly the permeability of the building envelope and requirements for mechanical spaces, of employing this system in a case study that is a naturally ventilated classroom. Our system is compared to conventional cooling systems. Although our system requires a ceiling space reconfiguration, it does not require duct works and envelope retrofits. The comparative case study shows a potential 52\% reduction in cooling energy demand from initial estimation. Considering the trade-offs, our system can be a good alternative for retrofit projects.},
number = {0},
urldate = {2021-03-31},
journal = {Building Research \& Information},
author = {Chen, Kian Wee and Teitelbaum, Eric and Meggers, Forrest and Pantelic, Jovan and Rysanek, Adam},
month = nov,
year = {2020},
note = {Publisher: Routledge
\_eprint: https://doi.org/10.1080/09613218.2020.1847025},
keywords = {Mixed-mode, performance-based buildings, prototypes, thermal comfort},
pages = {1--13},
file = {Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/GR6BERVR/09613218.2020.html:text/html},
}The judgment of thermal comfort is a cognitive process which is influenced by physical, psychological and other factors. Prior studies have shown that occupants, who are generally satisfied with many non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality, are more likely to be satisfied with thermal conditions as well. This paper presents a novel approach that considers the effect of non-thermal building environmental design conditions, such as indoor air quality and noise levels, on perceived thermal comfort in open-plan offices. The methodology involves the use of Bayesian inference to relate the occupant’s thermal dissatisfaction in a building not only to thermal conditions and occupant metabolic factors (i.e., parameters of the original Fanger model), but also to measurable non-thermal metrics of indoor environmental quality. A Bayesian logistic regression approach is presented in this paper. The experimental context regards a prior indoor environmental quality measurement and evaluation study of 779 occupants of open-plan offices throughout Canada and the US. We present revised PMV-PPD curves for real-world offices that take into account both thermal and wellbeing IEQ parameters. The Bayesian inference analysis reveals that the occupant’s thermal dissatisfaction is influenced by many non-thermal IEQ conditions, such as indoor CO2 concentrations and the satisfaction with the office lighting intensity.
@article{crosby_bayesian_2019,
title = {Bayesian inference of thermal comfort: evaluating the effect of “well-being” on perceived thermal comfort in open plan offices},
volume = {609},
issn = {1757-899X},
shorttitle = {Bayesian inference of thermal comfort},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1088%2F1757-899x%2F609%2F4%2F042028},
doi = {10.1088/1757-899X/609/4/042028},
abstract = {The judgment of thermal comfort is a cognitive process which is influenced by physical, psychological and other factors. Prior studies have shown that occupants, who are generally satisfied with many non-thermal conditions of indoor environmental quality, are more likely to be satisfied with thermal conditions as well. This paper presents a novel approach that considers the effect of non-thermal building environmental design conditions, such as indoor air quality and noise levels, on perceived thermal comfort in open-plan offices. The methodology involves the use of Bayesian inference to relate the occupant’s thermal dissatisfaction in a building not only to thermal conditions and occupant metabolic factors (i.e., parameters of the original Fanger model), but also to measurable non-thermal metrics of indoor environmental quality. A Bayesian logistic regression approach is presented in this paper. The experimental context regards a prior indoor environmental quality measurement and evaluation study of 779 occupants of open-plan offices throughout Canada and the US. We present revised PMV-PPD curves for real-world offices that take into account both thermal and wellbeing IEQ parameters. The Bayesian inference analysis reveals that the occupant’s thermal dissatisfaction is influenced by many non-thermal IEQ conditions, such as indoor CO2 concentrations and the satisfaction with the office lighting intensity.},
language = {en},
number = {4},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering},
author = {Crosby, Sarah and Newsham, Guy and Veitch, Jennifer and Rogak, Steven and Rysanek, Adam},
month = oct,
year = {2019},
note = {Publisher: IOP Publishing},
pages = {7},
file = {Crosby et al. - 2019 - Bayesian inference of thermal comfort evaluating .pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/858VUNWQ/Crosby et al. - 2019 - Bayesian inference of thermal comfort evaluating .pdf:application/pdf},
}This paper introduces a new filetype that has the potential to improve data analytics in the building sector. The aim of the paper is to explore the general logic and hierarchy of the file type, explore the mechanism in which it would transmit data, and define initial user groups and the process by which they would use the file and server system.
@inproceedings{mccarty_digital_2019,
address = {Atlanta, GA},
title = {Digital {Energy} {Performance} {Signature} {Extensible} {Markup} {Language} ({DEPSxml}): {Towards} a {New} {Characterization} {Framework} for {Sharing} {Simulation} and {Measured} {Data} on {Building} {Design} and {Energy} {Performance}},
abstract = {This paper introduces a new filetype that has the potential to improve data analytics in the building sector. The aim of the paper is to explore the general logic and hierarchy of the file type, explore the mechanism in which it would transmit data, and define initial user groups and the process by which they would use the file and server system.},
language = {en},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the {Symposium} on {Simulation} for {Architecture} and {Urban} {Design}},
publisher = {Society for Computer Simulation International},
author = {McCarty, Justin and Rysanek, Adam},
month = apr,
year = {2019},
pages = {253--260},
file = {McCarty and Rysanek - 2019 - Digital Energy Performance Signature Extensible Ma.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/4J4FD7U3/McCarty and Rysanek - 2019 - Digital Energy Performance Signature Extensible Ma.pdf:application/pdf},
}For thermal comfort research, black globes have become the de facto tool for mean radiant temperature, TMRT, measurement. They provide a quick, cheap means to survey the radiant environment in a space with nearly a century of trials to reassure researchers. However, as more complexity is introduced to built environments, particularly by engineering spaces to separate radiative and convective modes of heat transfer for energy efficiency and comfort, we must reassess the relationship of globe readings in the context of their environments. In particular, corrections for globe readings taking wind into account [1, 4] rely on a forced convection heat transfer coefficient. The simulation proposed in this paper demonstrates the influence of free convection on the instrument’s readings. Initial studies show that the TMRT and air temperature separations of 2 K could introduce errors equivalent to 0.1 m/s of air velocity, providing an additional mechanism for globe readings to track air temperatures.
@inproceedings{teitelbaum_black_2019,
address = {Atlanta, GA},
title = {Black globe free convection measurement error potentials},
abstract = {For thermal comfort research, black globes have become the de facto tool for mean radiant temperature, TMRT, measurement. They provide a quick, cheap means to survey the radiant environment in a space with nearly a century of trials to reassure researchers. However, as more complexity is introduced to built environments, particularly by engineering spaces to separate radiative and convective modes of heat transfer for energy efficiency and comfort, we must reassess the relationship of globe readings in the context of their environments. In particular, corrections for globe readings taking wind into account [1, 4] rely on a forced convection heat transfer coefficient. The simulation proposed in this paper demonstrates the influence of free convection on the instrument's readings. Initial studies show that the TMRT and air temperature separations of 2 K could introduce errors equivalent to 0.1 m/s of air velocity, providing an additional mechanism for globe readings to track air temperatures.},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the {Symposium} on {Simulation} for {Architecture} and {Urban} {Design}},
publisher = {Society for Computer Simulation International},
author = {Teitelbaum, Eric and Meggers, Forrest and Pantelic, Jovan and Chen, Kian Wee and Rysanek, Adam},
month = apr,
year = {2019},
keywords = {black globe, mean radiant temperature, measurement protocol, sensors},
pages = {143--146},
file = {Teitelbaum et al. - 2019 - Black globe free convection measurement error pote.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/TXNZGM5L/Teitelbaum et al. - 2019 - Black globe free convection measurement error pote.pdf:application/pdf},
}Air conditioning demand is projected to increase rapidly over the next 50 years, particularly in already hot and humid climates. Radiant cooling can be an energy efficient strategy to mitigate comfort energy demand with high air temperatures, thereby reducing both sensible and latent loads in spaces. We have built an outdoor radiant cooling pavilion, the Cold Tube, which is able to produce a mean radiant temperature up to 10 °C below the air temperature in hot and humid Singapore. It avoids condensation and unwanted air cooling by separating cold surfaces from the outside air with a membrane transparent to the radiant cooling heat transfer. This strategy eliminated unwanted convective losses in the form of sensible (air conditioning) and latent (condensation) losses. Controlling the system to avoid condensation was a major feature of the research, and the results show that as cooling demand increases due to warmer air temperatures, the cooling capacity of the Cold Tube also increased to compensate, providing comfortable setpoints to all measured ambient conditions over the duration of the experiment. For ambient air conditions on site in Singapore of 31°C and 65 \%RH, we were able to maintain a 22°C mean radiant temperature inside of the pavilion. The additional cooling increased heat flux from exposed human skin to 156 W m−2 and was successful at avoiding condensation. While this study was conducted outdoors, this demonstration and evaluation will help inform subsequent applications of the technology, such as augmenting comfort in naturally ventilated indoor environments.
@article{teitelbaum_cold_2019,
title = {The {Cold} {Tube}: {Membrane} assisted radiant cooling for condensation-free outdoor comfort in the tropics},
volume = {1343},
issn = {1742-6596},
shorttitle = {The {Cold} {Tube}},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1088%2F1742-6596%2F1343%2F1%2F012080},
doi = {10.1088/1742-6596/1343/1/012080},
abstract = {Air conditioning demand is projected to increase rapidly over the next 50 years, particularly in already hot and humid climates. Radiant cooling can be an energy efficient strategy to mitigate comfort energy demand with high air temperatures, thereby reducing both sensible and latent loads in spaces. We have built an outdoor radiant cooling pavilion, the Cold Tube, which is able to produce a mean radiant temperature up to 10 °C below the air temperature in hot and humid Singapore. It avoids condensation and unwanted air cooling by separating cold surfaces from the outside air with a membrane transparent to the radiant cooling heat transfer. This strategy eliminated unwanted convective losses in the form of sensible (air conditioning) and latent (condensation) losses. Controlling the system to avoid condensation was a major feature of the research, and the results show that as cooling demand increases due to warmer air temperatures, the cooling capacity of the Cold Tube also increased to compensate, providing comfortable setpoints to all measured ambient conditions over the duration of the experiment. For ambient air conditions on site in Singapore of 31°C and 65 \%RH, we were able to maintain a 22°C mean radiant temperature inside of the pavilion. The additional cooling increased heat flux from exposed human skin to 156 W m−2 and was successful at avoiding condensation. While this study was conducted outdoors, this demonstration and evaluation will help inform subsequent applications of the technology, such as augmenting comfort in naturally ventilated indoor environments.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Journal of Physics: Conference Series},
author = {Teitelbaum, Eric and Chen, Kian Wee and Meggers, Forrest and Pantelic, Jovan and Aviv, Dorit and Rysanek, Adam},
month = nov,
year = {2019},
note = {Publisher: IOP Publishing},
pages = {012080},
file = {Teitelbaum et al. - 2019 - The Cold Tube Membrane assisted radiant cooling f.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/MU8YLYI5/Teitelbaum et al. - 2019 - The Cold Tube Membrane assisted radiant cooling f.pdf:application/pdf},
}In this study, we enhance the understanding and design of a radiant cooling technology for outdoor comfort in tropical climates, originally proposed by R.N. Morse in 1963, in this journal. We investigate a type of radiant cooling methodology whereby the cold temperature source is physically separated from the outdoor environment by an insulated enclosure using a membrane transparent to infrared radiation. The enclosure isolates the radiant cooling surface from ambient conditions, allowing the radiant surface to be cooled significantly below ambient dew point temperatures without incurring condensation. For this new study, a Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy analysis on three candidate membrane materials is undertaken and a prototype experimental test panel is fabricated. Our study shows that for a 5°C chilled panel temperature, the exterior membrane surface temperature reaches 26°C in a 32°C / 70\% RH environment resulting in an effective mean radiant temperature of 15.8°C. These results provide new evidence in support of Morse’s original proposal, that such panels could provide significant radiant cooling without condensation in humid environments. Radiant cooling products based on the studied technology may offer an ability to provide thermally comfortable conditions in hot environments without the energy required for dehumidification.
@article{teitelbaum_revisiting_2019,
title = {Revisiting radiant cooling: condensation-free heat rejection using infrared-transparent enclosures of chilled panels},
volume = {62},
issn = {0003-8628},
shorttitle = {Revisiting radiant cooling},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1080/00038628.2019.1566112},
doi = {10.1080/00038628.2019.1566112},
abstract = {In this study, we enhance the understanding and design of a radiant cooling technology for outdoor comfort in tropical climates, originally proposed by R.N. Morse in 1963, in this journal. We investigate a type of radiant cooling methodology whereby the cold temperature source is physically separated from the outdoor environment by an insulated enclosure using a membrane transparent to infrared radiation. The enclosure isolates the radiant cooling surface from ambient conditions, allowing the radiant surface to be cooled significantly below ambient dew point temperatures without incurring condensation. For this new study, a Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy analysis on three candidate membrane materials is undertaken and a prototype experimental test panel is fabricated. Our study shows that for a 5°C chilled panel temperature, the exterior membrane surface temperature reaches 26°C in a 32°C / 70\% RH environment resulting in an effective mean radiant temperature of 15.8°C. These results provide new evidence in support of Morse's original proposal, that such panels could provide significant radiant cooling without condensation in humid environments. Radiant cooling products based on the studied technology may offer an ability to provide thermally comfortable conditions in hot environments without the energy required for dehumidification.},
number = {2},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Architectural Science Review},
author = {Teitelbaum, Eric and Rysanek, Adam and Pantelic, Jovan and Aviv, Dorit and Obelz, Simon and Buff, Alexander and Luo, Yongqiang and Sheppard, Denon and Meggers, Forrest},
month = mar,
year = {2019},
note = {Publisher: Taylor \& Francis
\_eprint: https://doi.org/10.1080/00038628.2019.1566112},
keywords = {Radiant cooling, spectral analysis, sub dewpoint, thermal comfort, thermal transparency},
pages = {152--159},
file = {Teitelbaum et al. - 2019 - Revisiting radiant cooling condensation-free heat.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/NGK5Y4TS/Teitelbaum et al. - 2019 - Revisiting radiant cooling condensation-free heat.pdf:application/pdf;Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/F78EFVPZ/00038628.2019.html:text/html},
}Over the last decade, building engineers have begun implementing sensible-latent de-coupled air-conditioning systems in non-residential buildings in hot-humid climates. Typically, a de-coupled system consists of a dedicated outdoor air sub-system for ventilation and high-temperature radiant cooling sub-system for space cooling. This approach has lowered cooling energy demands and fan energy consumption in buildings. However, the complete energy saving potential of de-coupled systems, specifically high-temperature space cooling sub-systems, can only be realized by using low-lift chillers that supply chilled water which matches the high-temperature radiant cooling application. This paper discusses the results of a retro-installation of a prototype modular low-lift chiller to provide high-temperature chilled water (at 17 °C) to the radiant cooling units. The paper presents temperature and cooling load profiles, control methodology and energy efficiency improvements of the low-lift cooling system. The paper also further discusses the influence of various parameters on the performance of the chiller. Despite having a cooling capacity of only 20 kW, the modular low-lift chiller is consistently able to achieve a Coefficient of Performance (COP) of 8. By operating at a low-lift (20 K) compared to a high-lift (29 K), the sensible cooling electrical consumption (at the chiller) is reduced by 23\% despite being compared to a high-lift low-temperature chiller with 100 x higher cooling capacity. When normalized for cooling capacities, this reduction is between 29–30\%. The project is the first known installation of low-lift cooling for building comfort control in hot-humid climates, and first reported publication of low-lift cooling in a real-life scenario – i.e., non-laboratory conditions or modelling exercise.
@article{seshadri_high_2019,
title = {High efficiency ‘low-lift’ vapour-compression chiller for high-temperature cooling applications in non-residential buildings in hot-humid climates},
volume = {187},
issn = {0378-7788},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378778818317432},
doi = {10.1016/j.enbuild.2019.01.028},
abstract = {Over the last decade, building engineers have begun implementing sensible-latent de-coupled air-conditioning systems in non-residential buildings in hot-humid climates. Typically, a de-coupled system consists of a dedicated outdoor air sub-system for ventilation and high-temperature radiant cooling sub-system for space cooling. This approach has lowered cooling energy demands and fan energy consumption in buildings. However, the complete energy saving potential of de-coupled systems, specifically high-temperature space cooling sub-systems, can only be realized by using low-lift chillers that supply chilled water which matches the high-temperature radiant cooling application. This paper discusses the results of a retro-installation of a prototype modular low-lift chiller to provide high-temperature chilled water (at 17 °C) to the radiant cooling units. The paper presents temperature and cooling load profiles, control methodology and energy efficiency improvements of the low-lift cooling system. The paper also further discusses the influence of various parameters on the performance of the chiller. Despite having a cooling capacity of only 20 kW, the modular low-lift chiller is consistently able to achieve a Coefficient of Performance (COP) of 8. By operating at a low-lift (20 K) compared to a high-lift (29 K), the sensible cooling electrical consumption (at the chiller) is reduced by 23\% despite being compared to a high-lift low-temperature chiller with 100 x higher cooling capacity. When normalized for cooling capacities, this reduction is between 29–30\%. The project is the first known installation of low-lift cooling for building comfort control in hot-humid climates, and first reported publication of low-lift cooling in a real-life scenario - i.e., non-laboratory conditions or modelling exercise.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Energy and Buildings},
author = {Seshadri, Bharath and Rysanek, Adam and Schlueter, Arno},
month = mar,
year = {2019},
keywords = {Radiant cooling, High-temperature cooling, Hot-Humid climates, Low lift vapour compression chiller, Singapore},
pages = {24--37},
file = {Seshadri et al. - 2019 - High efficiency ‘low-lift’ vapour-compression chil.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/Y3HKUYAW/Seshadri et al. - 2019 - High efficiency ‘low-lift’ vapour-compression chil.pdf:application/pdf;ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/VXF3B2XX/S0378778818317432.html:text/html},
}@inproceedings{teitelbaum_condensation-free_2018,
address = {Syracuse, NY},
title = {Condensation-free radiant cooling using infrared-transparent enclosures of chilled panels},
url = {https://surface.syr.edu/ibpc/2018/IE6/1},
booktitle = {{IBPC} 2018 {Proceedings}},
publisher = {International Association of Building Physics},
author = {Teitelbaum, Eric and Rysanek, Adam and Pantelic, Jovan and Aviv, Dorit and Obelz, Simon and Buff, Alexander and Luo, Yongqiang and Meggers, Forrest},
month = sep,
year = {2018},
pages = {901--906},
file = {Teitelbaum et al. - 2018 - Condensation-free radiant cooling using infrared-t.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/9Z9XJF6U/Teitelbaum et al. - 2018 - Condensation-free radiant cooling using infrared-t.pdf:application/pdf;:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/IP4KHN3E/1.html:text/html},
}Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) are among the major energy demand in the buildings sector globally. Improving the energy efficiency of such systems is a critical objective for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning towards renewable sources of energy supply. The interest of this paper is to explore means to increase the efficiency of HVAC systems in accommodating occupants’ behavior in real time. For instance, rooms in office buildings are not always occupied by occupants during scheduled HVAC service periods. This offers an opportunity to reduce unnecessary energy demands of HVAC systems associated with occupants’ behavior. An in-depth analysis of occupants’ stochastic behavior within an office building is conducted in this paper. A demand-driven control strategy is proposed that automatically responds to occupants’ energy-related behavior for reducing energy consumption and maintains room temperature for occupants with similar performances as a static cooling. In this control strategy, two types of machine learning methods – unsupervised and supervised learning – are applied to learn occupants’ behavior in two learning processes. The occupancy-related information learned by the algorithms is used by a set of specified rules to infer real-time room setpoints for controlling the office’s space cooling system. This learning-based approach intends to reduce the need for human intervention in the cooling system’s control. The proposed strategy was applied to control the cooling system of the office building under real-world conditions. Eleven case study office spaces were selected, representing three typical office uses: single person offices, multi-person offices, and meeting rooms. The experimental results report between 7\% and 52\% energy savings as compared to the conventionally-scheduled cooling systems.
@article{peng_using_2018,
title = {Using machine learning techniques for occupancy-prediction-based cooling control in office buildings},
volume = {211},
issn = {0306-2619},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261917317129},
doi = {10.1016/j.apenergy.2017.12.002},
abstract = {Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) are among the major energy demand in the buildings sector globally. Improving the energy efficiency of such systems is a critical objective for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning towards renewable sources of energy supply. The interest of this paper is to explore means to increase the efficiency of HVAC systems in accommodating occupants’ behavior in real time. For instance, rooms in office buildings are not always occupied by occupants during scheduled HVAC service periods. This offers an opportunity to reduce unnecessary energy demands of HVAC systems associated with occupants’ behavior. An in-depth analysis of occupants’ stochastic behavior within an office building is conducted in this paper. A demand-driven control strategy is proposed that automatically responds to occupants’ energy-related behavior for reducing energy consumption and maintains room temperature for occupants with similar performances as a static cooling. In this control strategy, two types of machine learning methods – unsupervised and supervised learning – are applied to learn occupants’ behavior in two learning processes. The occupancy-related information learned by the algorithms is used by a set of specified rules to infer real-time room setpoints for controlling the office's space cooling system. This learning-based approach intends to reduce the need for human intervention in the cooling system’s control. The proposed strategy was applied to control the cooling system of the office building under real-world conditions. Eleven case study office spaces were selected, representing three typical office uses: single person offices, multi-person offices, and meeting rooms. The experimental results report between 7\% and 52\% energy savings as compared to the conventionally-scheduled cooling systems.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Applied Energy},
author = {Peng, Yuzhen and Rysanek, Adam and Nagy, Zoltán and Schlüter, Arno},
month = feb,
year = {2018},
keywords = {Building control, Energy savings, Machine learning, Occupant behavior, Smart buildings},
pages = {1343--1358},
file = {Peng et al. - 2018 - Using machine learning techniques for occupancy-pr.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/R9BFDTHS/Peng et al. - 2018 - Using machine learning techniques for occupancy-pr.pdf:application/pdf},
}The satisfaction of occupants with an indoor environment supplied by a conventional central VAV air-conditioning system was compared to a novel system represented by decentralized ventilation units and a network of passive chilled beams. In parallel with occupant survey measurement of indoor air quality (IAQ) parameters was conducted with the developed wireless IAQ sensing kits. The same occupant cohort was surveyed for both systems, as occupants of the conventionally-conditioning office, known as the ‘Previous Office’ later moved into the office conditioned by the novel system, known as the ‘3for2 Office’. We observed that the perceived thermal comfort and air quality satisfaction of the occupants were markedly higher in the 3for2 Office than in the Previous Office. While occupants of the 3for2 Office could raise or lower indoor air temperatures, they appeared to be consistently satisfied with higher indoor air temperatures than that set by the building management of the Previous Office. The primarily Singaporean occupants of the 3for2 Office also felt thermally comfortable even when indoor air velocities in the office were measured to be below 0.1 m/s recommended by Singaporean Standards. The 3for2 Office’s ventilation system was designed to supply outdoor air beyond minimal required ventilation rates, which lead to relatively low levels of CO2 and PM2.5 concentrations in the 3for2 office. We believe that higher ventilation rates resulting in lower pollutant concentrations are responsible for a higher-than-average survey score on air quality satisfaction. We also believe that enabling occupants to set air temperature in the space resulted in higher-than-average thermal comfort satisfaction.
@article{pantelic_comparing_2018,
title = {Comparing the indoor environmental quality of a displacement ventilation and passive chilled beam application to conventional air-conditioning in the {Tropics}},
volume = {130},
issn = {0360-1323},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360132317305334},
doi = {10.1016/j.buildenv.2017.11.026},
abstract = {The satisfaction of occupants with an indoor environment supplied by a conventional central VAV air-conditioning system was compared to a novel system represented by decentralized ventilation units and a network of passive chilled beams. In parallel with occupant survey measurement of indoor air quality (IAQ) parameters was conducted with the developed wireless IAQ sensing kits. The same occupant cohort was surveyed for both systems, as occupants of the conventionally-conditioning office, known as the ‘Previous Office’ later moved into the office conditioned by the novel system, known as the ‘3for2 Office’. We observed that the perceived thermal comfort and air quality satisfaction of the occupants were markedly higher in the 3for2 Office than in the Previous Office. While occupants of the 3for2 Office could raise or lower indoor air temperatures, they appeared to be consistently satisfied with higher indoor air temperatures than that set by the building management of the Previous Office. The primarily Singaporean occupants of the 3for2 Office also felt thermally comfortable even when indoor air velocities in the office were measured to be below 0.1 m/s recommended by Singaporean Standards. The 3for2 Office's ventilation system was designed to supply outdoor air beyond minimal required ventilation rates, which lead to relatively low levels of CO2 and PM2.5 concentrations in the 3for2 office. We believe that higher ventilation rates resulting in lower pollutant concentrations are responsible for a higher-than-average survey score on air quality satisfaction. We also believe that enabling occupants to set air temperature in the space resulted in higher-than-average thermal comfort satisfaction.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Building and Environment},
author = {Pantelic, Jovan and Rysanek, Adam and Miller, Clayton and Peng, Yuzhen and Teitelbaum, Eric and Meggers, Forrest and Schlüter, Arno},
month = feb,
year = {2018},
keywords = {Cohort study, Decentralized ventilation, Displacement ventilation, Indoor environmental quality, Passive chilled beams, Tropically acclimatized occupants},
pages = {128--142},
file = {Pantelic et al. - 2018 - Comparing the indoor environmental quality of a di.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/23KDQMTK/Pantelic et al. - 2018 - Comparing the indoor environmental quality of a di.pdf:application/pdf;ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/UNB8V5QG/S0360132317305334.html:text/html},
}This article addresses an opportunity to improve Low Exergy air-conditioning system efficiencies in the tropics by incorporating ‘low-lift’ chillers. …
@article{seshadri_evaluation_2017,
title = {Evaluation of low-lift sensible cooling in the tropics using calibrated simulation models and preliminary testing},
volume = {122},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1876610217329065},
doi = {10.1016/j.egypro.2017.07.308},
abstract = {This article addresses an opportunity to improve Low Exergy air-conditioning system efficiencies in the tropics by incorporating ‘low-lift’ chillers. …},
language = {en},
number = {Special Issue: CISBAT 2017 International Conference},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Energy Procedia},
author = {Seshadri, Bharath and Rysanek, Adam and Schlueter, Arno},
month = sep,
year = {2017},
note = {Publisher: Elsevier},
pages = {511--516},
file = {Seshadri et al. - 2017 - Evaluation of low-lift sensible cooling in the tro.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/BWU2U749/Seshadri et al. - 2017 - Evaluation of low-lift sensible cooling in the tro.pdf:application/pdf;Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/PD5UCXL2/S1876610217329065.html:text/html;Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/RXG2S9P2/S1876610217329065.html:text/html},
}Building information modelling (BIM) has carved a growing niche in the construction industry for the support of new building projects. The same cannot be said for existing buildings, where the prevalence of uncertain data, and unclear information, has been difficult to reconcile with the unambiguous nature of BIM parameterization. An opportunity to alleviate these challenges may have arrived from the recent boon of virtual reality platforms for navigating physical environments. This paper demonstrates how labeling of equirectangular images with data or text widgets is possible using publicly-available software libraries. A prototype is presented and tested on a building in Singapore.
@inproceedings{rysanek_workow_2017,
address = {San Francisco, CA},
title = {A workflow for managing building information and performance data using virtual reality: an alternative to {BIM} for existing buildings?},
abstract = {Building information modelling (BIM) has carved a growing niche in the construction industry for the support of new building projects. The same cannot be said for existing buildings, where the prevalence of uncertain data, and unclear information, has been difficult to reconcile with the unambiguous nature of BIM parameterization. An opportunity to alleviate these challenges may have arrived from the recent boon of virtual reality platforms for navigating physical environments. This paper demonstrates how labeling of equirectangular images with data or text widgets is possible using publicly-available software libraries. A prototype is presented and tested on a building in Singapore.},
language = {en},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the 15th {IBPSA} {Conference}},
publisher = {International Building Performance Simulaton Association},
author = {Rysanek, Adam and Miller, Clayton and Schlueter, Arno},
year = {2017},
pages = {2767--2774},
file = {Rysanek et al. - 2017 - A workflow for managing building information and pe.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/4HRETX4Y/Rysanek et al. - 2017 - A workflow for managing building information and pe.pdf:application/pdf},
}Occupancy in buildings is one of the key factors influencing air-conditioning energy use. Occupant presence and absence are stochastic. However, static operation schedules are widely used by facility departments for air-conditioning systems in commercial buildings. As a result, such systems cannot adapt to actual energy demand for offices that are not fully occupied during their operating time. This study analyzes a seven-month period of occupancy data based on motion signals collected from six offices with ten occupants in a commercial building, covering both private and multi-person offices. Based on an occupancy analysis, a learning-based demand-driven control strategy is proposed for sensible cooling. It predicts occupants’ next presence and the presence duration of the remainder of a day by learning their behavior in the past and current days, and then the predicted occupancy information is employed indirectly to infer setback temperature setpoints according to rules we specified in this study. The strategy is applied for the controls of a cooling system using passive chilled beams for sensible cooling of office spaces. Over the period of two months both a baseline control and the proposed demand-driven control were operated on forty-two weekdays of real-world occupancy. Using the demand-driven control, an energy saving of 20.3\% was achieved as compared to the benchmark. We found that energy savings potential in an individual office was inversely correlated to its occupancy rate.
@article{peng_occupancy_2017,
title = {Occupancy learning-based demand-driven cooling control for office spaces},
volume = {122},
issn = {0360-1323},
url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360132317302445},
doi = {10.1016/j.buildenv.2017.06.010},
abstract = {Occupancy in buildings is one of the key factors influencing air-conditioning energy use. Occupant presence and absence are stochastic. However, static operation schedules are widely used by facility departments for air-conditioning systems in commercial buildings. As a result, such systems cannot adapt to actual energy demand for offices that are not fully occupied during their operating time. This study analyzes a seven-month period of occupancy data based on motion signals collected from six offices with ten occupants in a commercial building, covering both private and multi-person offices. Based on an occupancy analysis, a learning-based demand-driven control strategy is proposed for sensible cooling. It predicts occupants' next presence and the presence duration of the remainder of a day by learning their behavior in the past and current days, and then the predicted occupancy information is employed indirectly to infer setback temperature setpoints according to rules we specified in this study. The strategy is applied for the controls of a cooling system using passive chilled beams for sensible cooling of office spaces. Over the period of two months both a baseline control and the proposed demand-driven control were operated on forty-two weekdays of real-world occupancy. Using the demand-driven control, an energy saving of 20.3\% was achieved as compared to the benchmark. We found that energy savings potential in an individual office was inversely correlated to its occupancy rate.},
language = {en},
urldate = {2020-10-15},
journal = {Building and Environment},
author = {Peng, Yuzhen and Rysanek, Adam and Nagy, Zoltán and Schlüter, Arno},
month = sep,
year = {2017},
keywords = {Demand-driven control, Energy efficiency, HVAC, Intelligent systems, Occupancy learning, Occupancy prediction},
pages = {145--160},
file = {Peng et al. - 2017 - Occupancy learning-based demand-driven cooling con.pdf:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/PZ5IERD3/Peng et al. - 2017 - Occupancy learning-based demand-driven cooling con.pdf:application/pdf;ScienceDirect Snapshot:/Users/adamrysanek/Zotero/storage/EYVRJ66C/S0360132317302445.html:text/html},
}