EXPLORING BUILDING ENVELOPE DESIGN FOR WARM HUMID ZONES TO OPTIMIZE INDOOR THERMAL COMFORT IN THE DESIGN OF A PROPOSED LEKKI FREE TRADE ZONE RESORT, LAGOS
Abstract
It is the responsibility of Architects to design buildings to achieve a comfortable indoor environment. In a bid to achieve this, Architects cannot neglect any part of the building envelope design. This is the reason why it is important to study the ways of achieving thermal comfort through envelope design in resorts.
The aim of this project is to achieve an envelope design in terms of roofing and walling materials to give optimum indoor thermal comfort. The study was conducted by collecting climatic data from similar resort in the same climatic zone and checking the factors of thermal comfort and also simulating the indoor thermal comfort using different envelope designs.
Conclusion drawn from, findings from this study indicate that though burnt bricks has an advantage of giving off heat as compared to sandcrete blocks in increasing comfort hours. Resort Buildings with bricks as wall material and clay tiles as roofing material showed a better performance in achieving optimum indoor thermal comfort by up to 7.14% more than the conventional sandcrete blocks and long span Aluminium roofing sheet. The implication of the study is
that professionals especially architects could minimize the use of active means to achieve thermal comfort in indoor spaces by a good design and specification of thermal friendly materials.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Declaration ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
ii
Certification ……………………………………………………………………………………………………..
iii
Acknowledgement …………………………………………………………………………………………….
iv
Dedication …………………………………………………………………………………………………………
v
Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
vi
Table of Contents …………………………………………………………………………………………….
vii
List of Plates …………………………………………………………………………………………………..
xiv
List of Tables ………………………………………………………………………………………………….
xvi
List of Figures………………………………………………………………………………………………..
xvii
List of Appendices …………………………………………………………………………………………..
1.3.1 Aim 3
1.3.2 Objectives 3
2.3.1 Destination resort 7
2.3.2 All-inclusive resort 8
2.3.3 Ski resorts 8
2.4.1 Construction technology /structural system 11
2.4.2 Site planning and landscaping 12
2.4.3 Spatial organization 12
2.7.1 Functions of the building envelope 16
2.7.2 Design of building envelope 17
2.7.3 Interactions with other building elements 19
2.8.1 Walls 21
2.8.2 Roofs 23
2.8.3 Windows 23
2.10.1 Cross-ventilation 25
2.10.2 Thermal insulation 25
2.10.3 Site planning 26
2.10.4 Protection against heavy rainfall 26
2.10.5 Adequate drainage 26
2.10.6 Protection against solar radiation 26
2.10.7 Wind pressure 27
2.10.8 Convective cooling 27
3.2.1 Case study 30
3.2.2 Simulation in Ecotect® Analysis 31
3.7.1 Descriptions 32
3.7.2 Tables 32
3.7.3 Figures and plates 32
4.2.1 Brief description 34
4.2.2 Building form 35
4.2.3 Building envelope 36
4.2.4 Construction technology/structural system 38
4.2.5 Site planning and landscaping: 39
4.2.6 Spatial organization: 39
4.3.1 Brief description 44
4.3.2 Building form 45
4.3.3 Building envelope 46
4.3.4 Construction technology/structural system: 50
4.3.5 Site planning and landscaping: 50
4.3.6 Spatial organization: 50
4.4.1 Brief description 55
4.4.2 Facilities 55
4.4.3 Building form 56
4.4.4 Building envelope 56
4.7.1 Landscape 73
4.7.2 Ventilation 73
4.7.3 Building materials 73
4.7.4 Resort characteristics 73
4.7.5 Fire safety and exits 73
4.7.6 General observations for the whole case-studies 74
4.8.1 Steps followed for the simulation ………………………………………………………….. 75
4.9.1 Comparison of the simulation results and discussion 79
4.9.2 Discussion of the materials 79
4.9.3 Resultant temperature with proposed walls 80
4.9.4 Thermal comfort with proposed walls 83
4.9.5 Temperature with proposed roofs 85
4.9.6 Thermal comfort with proposed roofs 88
5.1.1 Weather and climate 91
5.1.2 Vegetation 91
5.4.1 Climate: ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 94
6.4.1 Spatial arrangement 101
6.4.2 Circulation (within and out) 101
6.4.3 Site planning and landscaping 102
6.5.1 Concrete 102
6.5.2 Steel 103
6.5.3 Glass 103
6.5.4 Bricks 103
6.5.5 Bamboo 103
6.6.1 Water supply 103
6.6.2 Power supply 103
6.6.3 Heating ventilation and air conditioning system 103
7.4.1 Professional enlightenment 112
7.4.2 Assessment method 112
REFERENCES 113
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Background of Study
Tourism and recreation are key aspects of human existence. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), (2010) reports indicate that tourism is amongst the fastest growing industries in the world. Tourism has benefits ranging from social to economic gains.
Nigeria is blessed with abundant tourism potentials which are yet to be developed. Facilities such as resort centres can help in developing such potentials for Nigeria. A resort is a full-service facility that provides access to or offers a range of amenities and recreation facilities to emphasize a leisure experience and are characteristically located in vacation-oriented setting. (Brey, 2009)
Resort centres should therefore be optimized for thermal comfort .Thermal comfort was defined by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE, 2009) as the “state of mind which expresses satisfaction with the thermal environment”.
Though it is difficult to satisfy everyone in a space due to physiological and psychological variation from person to person, thermal comfort is still one of the most significant factors affecting environmental satisfaction (Nazanin, Jones, & Knight, 2008).
It is important for architects and professionals of the building industry to consider the type of building material(s) to be used for buildings and the climate of the location under consideration in order to develop buildings which are optimized for thermal comfort.
By doing this, there would be Comfort, good health and productivity of the building occupants. In the design of the built environment, good thermal comfort concept(s) should be adopted to allow for energy efficiency in order to meet the requirement of sustainable development.
Thermal Comfort involves control of temperature, humidity, air motion and non-environmental factors such as dress and activity level of the occupants (McQuiston, Parker,
Spliter, 2005). Thermal comfort is maintained when the heat produced by human 1
metabolism and other components of the building are allowed to disperse, thus maintaining thermal balance with the surroundings. The users of the indoor environment generally feel better when the humidity is kept at about 50% RH. Higher humidity causes the building feel ‘stuffy’. Furthermore, high humidity can contribute to the development of bacterial and fungal growth, especially in sealed buildings (ASHRAE, 2009).
This thesis collected and analysed data through simulation to help designers to improve indoor thermal comfort in resort which are recreational facilities.
Problem Statement
Resorts are part of tourism activities which have become a source of negative environmental and social impact by destroying the ecological system. Resorts are energy-consuming due to the adoption of foreign ideas that are alien to the environment, people and culture in order to achieve maximum leisure.
This problem is compounded by non-functional designs which hardly cope with the climatic conditions and design requirements of their regions (Bromberek, 2009). It has therefore become a necessity to optimize passive thermal comfort systems in our buildings.
Aim and Objectives:
1.3.1 Aim
This work aims at exploring building envelopes that could be improved to achieve thermal comfort in resorts in the warm humid climate.
1.3.2 Objectives
To determine through literature, which materials are suitable for improving thermal comfort in the warm humid climate resorts;to study resorts and their designs within the context of building envelope for improving indoor thermal comfort; andto demonstrate through design, the application of these envelopes in designing a resort.
Research Questions
The research intends to answer the following questions:
Which materials help to achieve the best building envelope to optimize indoor thermal comfort in resorts located in the warm-humid zone of Nigeria?Can thermal comfort be achieved through envelope design to attain a comfortable indoor environment?
Scope of Study
The scope of this research would be restricted to a study of the roofing and walling materials of resort in the warm humid zone of Nigeria.
Justification for The Study
Resorts are for the purpose of relaxing from the Hustle of life. More than half of the activities in resorts are indoor activities which consume much energy in terms of achieving a thermally comfortable environment.
There is therefore, a need for self-sustaining buildings with excellent performance that maximizes natural ventilation and natural sources of energy without relying on artificial energy for cooling, heating and lighting.
This has inspired the researcher to embark on this research in order to come up with the best type of building envelope to improve thermal comfort which will in turn increase occupant’s satisfaction.
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EXPLORING BUILDING ENVELOPE DESIGN FOR WARM HUMID ZONES TO OPTIMIZE INDOOR THERMAL COMFORT IN THE DESIGN OF A PROPOSED LEKKI FREE TRADE ZONE RESORT, LAGOS
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