Experimental Evaluation of Correlations of Evaporation Rates from Free Water Surfaces of Indoor Swimming Pools

Abstract

Indoor swimming pool buildings can be considered as significant energy consuming public buildings. Most energy is consumed to heat swimming pool water and maintain the desired thermal comfort conditions in the swimming pool hall. Water evaporation from the swimming pool water surface increases humidity in the pool hall air, and therefore the consumption of energy for heating and ventilation of the swimming pool and the hall increases, especially in the scenario of more strict humidity control of the pool hall air. Mathematical correlations for predicting the evaporation rates from free water surfaces can be found in literature, but not all of them were designed specifically for indoor swimming pools. In this paper, the properties of indoor swimming pool water, pool hall air and evaporation rates are measured in a real indoor swimming pool building and measurement results are presented in the paper. The measured results are confronted to the evaporation rates calculated by applying literature mathematical correlations for determination of evaporation rates. A large discrepancy of results from the literature is determined. Based on the original measured results, a mathematical correlation for estimation of evaporation rates of indoor swimming pools is created by application of the least square method.