Abstract
In temperate countries, heat recovery is often desirable through mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR). Drawbacks of MVHR include use of electric power and complex ducting, while alternative passive heat recovery systems in the form of roof or chimney-based solutions are limited to low rise buildings. This paper describes a biomimetic concept for natural ventilation with heat recovery (NVHR). The NVHR system mimics the process of water/mineral extraction from urine in the Loop of Henle (part of human kidney). Simulations on a facade-integrated Chamber successfully imitated the geometry and behaviour of the Loop of Henle (LoH). Using a space measuring 12 m2 in area and assuming two heat densities of 18.75 W/m2 (single occupancy) or 30 W/m2 (double occupancy), the maximum indoor temperatures achievable are up to 19.3 °C and 22.3 °C respectively. These come with mean relative ventilation rates of 0.92 air changes per hour (ACH) or 10.7 L·s−1 and 0.92 ACH (11.55 L·s−1), respectively, for the month of January. With active heating and single occupant, the LoH Chamber consumes between 65.7% and 72.1% of the annual heating energy required by a similar naturally ventilated space without heat recovery. The LoH Chamber could operate as stand-alone indoor cabinet, benefitting refurbishment of buildings and evading constraints of complicated ducting, external aesthetic or building age.
Highlights
Buildings consume significant portions of heating energy in the United Kingdom (UK)
A popular example of active heat recovery system is mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) [5] which is driven by electric power, and use forced airflow to deliver and extract air into multiple spaces with heat exchange occurring in a central air handling unit
The simulation of the Loop of Henle (LoH) Chamber was done through IES, a commercially available software used for dynamic thermal modelling [29]
Summary
Buildings consume significant portions of heating energy in the United Kingdom (UK). A domestic building allocates around 50% of its energy requirement to space heating [1] while for the commercial buildings; the proportion is around 55% [2]. 40% of its energy on space and air heating [3]. About half (46%) of the energy consumed by buildings in the UK is due to space heating. In the coming decades, heat recovery systems could contribute an important role towards reducing the energy needs of buildings and to the success of the UK’s low carbon initiative [4]. Current heat recovery systems for buildings can be broadly classified into active or passive systems. A popular example of active heat recovery system is mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) [5] which is driven by electric power, and use forced airflow to deliver and extract air into multiple spaces with heat exchange occurring in a central air handling unit
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