Natural ventilation effectiveness in low-income housing to challenge energy poverty

Abstract

The steady rise in global average temperatures due to climate change is leading to a significant increase in cooling energy demand worldwide. Despite having the least access to energy, the Global South will experience the greatest increase in cooling degree days (CDD), forcing the majority of the world’s population to endure highly uncomfortable temperatures in the buildings. As a result, it becomes crucial to prioritize passive design-based approaches to air conditioning, to mitigate the increasing demand for active cooling while ensuring equitable space cooling opportunities for all. This work, combing the CFD simulation with building energy modeling, evaluates the impact of natural cross-ventilation and building form on improving indoor thermal conditions in hot and arid climates. The analysis, focusing on low-income housing prototypes designed by Indian architect Charles Correa, demonstrates how proper building form design, by improving the ventilation and cooling efficiency of buildings, can ensure indoor thermal comfort even in challenging climatic conditions, helping to reduce energy consumption and prevent energy poverty. Natural ventilation provides an operative temperature reduction of up to 3.1 °C on the hottest day and up to 3.9 °C on the typical cooling period day. Even discomfort hours are drastically reduced by 31.3 % and 77.8 % respectively.