Semi-open Spaces Research Articles

Analysis of the differences in thermal comfort between locals and tourists and genders in semi-open spaces under natural ventilation on a tropical island

The adoption of natural ventilation is prevalent in semi-open hotel lobbies on the tropical island of Hainan, China. This paper presents the results of a thermal comfort study of such applications in ten luxury hotels in this region. Significant differences were found between the local residents and tourists in their thermal satisfaction and between the males and females in their thermal comfort. Moreover, the thermal satisfaction levels of the local residents and tourists showed significant correlations with the wind speed and air temperature considering the wind speed compensation, with regard to genders, the males’ thermal comfort levels showed significant correlations with the wind speed and air temperature considering the wind speed compensation, while the females’ thermal comfort levels showed significant correlations with air temperature, wind speed and the air temperature considering the wind speed compensation. And results of ordinal logistic regression show that the tourists are more sensitive to the wind speed and air temperature considering the wind speed compensation than the local residents, and the females are more sensitive to the air temperature, wind speed and air temperature considering the wind speed compensation than the males.

Рекреационно-экологическая оценка ландшафтных парков на примере Макс-Ашманн-парка

В пределах Калининграда выделено пять ландшафтных парков, наиболее четко принцип ландшафтной организации просматривается в Макс-Ашманн-парке, который и послужил в качестве объекта исследования. Осуществлена инвентаризация зеленых насаждений парка: представлен видовой состав. Выявлены лесотаксационные характеристики популяций древесных насаждений: диаметр ствола, площадь проекции кроны, высота, возраст, виталитет. Всего на территории парка выделено 70 экз. деревьев, перешагнувших столетний рубеж и представляющих интерес в историческом плане, в основном это популяции Quercus robur L., Populus nigra L., Fagus sylvatica L., Tilia cordata Mill. При создании картографических произведений использованы ГИС-технологии, в частности, получены тематические карты масштаба 1:500: опорный план, карта ландшафтных рубок (с учетом возрастных деревьев, подлежащих сохранению), карта тематических зон (на основе экземпляров древесной растительности, представляющих историческое наследие), план открытых, закрытых и полуоткрытых пространств. Исследования базировались на концепции сохранения парка именно как ландшафтного, как некой модели лесных экосистем, характерных для Калининградской области. Выполнена рекреационно-экологическая оценка территорий ландшафтного парка. Представлены результаты картографирования объекта рекреации. В процессе картографирования отображено современное состояние растительного и почвенного покровов (дорожно-тропиночной сети); оценен рекреационный потенциал парка как объекта оздоровительного, спортивного и историко-познавательного назначения. Макс-Ашманн-парк был подразделен на ряд объектов разного качества. Основой для этого деления послужили природно-территориальные комплексы на уровне фаций, дающих представление об общих отличительных особенностях территории и позволяющих судить о степени их привлекательности как зон для организации отдыха. Таким образом, характерными особенностями представленных карт стали информационная насыщенность, комплексность, наглядность, полифункциональность.

Environmental behaviour of semi-open spaces in Mediterranean vernacular architecture. The case of rural traditional dwellings of Cyprus

Environmental behaviour of semi-open spaces in Mediterranean vernacular architecture. The case of rural traditional dwellings of Cyprus

CORRELATION OF CULTURE AND ARCHITECTURE: COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SEMI-OPEN SPACES IN QAJAR AND PAHLAVI HOUSES OF SHIRAZ

Semi-open spaces have been one of important and influential elements of Iranian houses which have been creating remarkable dynamics in houses designing due to combination of indoor and outdoor spaces. Their position between the encompassing close and open spaces , and functional flexibility of such spaces as communicational and living space have been entrusting them a key role of organizing the house spaces .The research tries to study the role of semi-open spaces and the way of their emerging in Qajar and Pahlavi houses through analytical and descriptive research , as well as the study of librarian references , written documents and field studies. SO ,we selected 11 samples of these eras houses which seemed to be more complete in terms of presence and the quality of semi-open spaces, and show distinguish architectural features of each era; then we analyzed their different semi-open spaces. The results showed that a significant change has been created in usage pattern and designing of some semi-open spaces during Qajar to Pahlavi era as a result of a cultural change and transition so that, in spite of the fixing role of some of these spaces such as lania, use, and function, some single-functional spaces have been transited to multi-functional ones such as column pillar, as a result of which we are seeing hierarchy lowering as well as greater accessibility of space

Description botanical park in the world

A green wall is a wall partially or completely covered with greenery that includes a growing medium, such as soil. Most green walls also feature an integrated water delivery system. Green walls are also known as living walls or vertical gardens. Green walls are used as one of means which for many years have been used to enrich the appearance of building elevations. They make it possible to introduce greenery into urban areas, which are often limited by the size of the building plot. They add an exceptional aesthetic aspect to the so-called ‘blind’ walls found in city centers. Green walls not only bring with them an element of beauty and integration with nature, but by being used to a wider extent, could also have a positive impact on the city’s micro climate. Various technologies enable the creation of green walls on the outside of buildings as well as in semi-open spaces and interiors. In this publication, five different methods of setting up living walls are described, from the relatively simple technique of planting climbers that easily cover bare walls to modular panel systems or green wall systems with flower pots to ‘living wall’ solutions and finally, to Patrick Blanc’s highly sophisticated vertical garden technology.

テヘランにおける住宅地域開発の課題考察

This paper reviews density control regulations in the city of Tehran, Iran, for private residential developments, meaning those constructed not by public sector but by individuals. The focus here is on the measures which seek to address physical attributes such as Building Coverage Ratio, Floor Area Ratio and provisions for open spaces. Based on statistical data with regards to recent private housing development, this paper argues that, as a result of transitory citywide development laws, most residential zones in Tehran have changed into mainly 5 storey apartment buildings, with limited open and semi-open spaces, in the interests of developers, in turn influenced by high demand and profit in the housing market.

Acoustic Conditions in the Atrium of Slovak Philharmonic

Musical performances, conferences, receptions or other events when many people gather can take place in different types of rooms and large shopping centrums, atria or city courtyards are not an exception. Continental weather however, doesn’t allow for keeping these semi-open spaces uncovered, in case of the whole year operation. Volume, shape and material choice of interior surfaces in atria are typically hard and thus sound reflective, which has very strong influence on acoustic comfort inside. This article analyses acoustic conditions in the atrium of Slovak philharmonic from room acoustic point of view and compares 5 different alternatives of a position of sound absorption in terms of its efficiency and adaptation of an atrium space for music performances, conferences or receptions.

Lighting performance of urban vernacular architecture in the East-Mediterranean area: Field study and simulation analysis

This study aims to investigate the natural lighting performance in indoor and semi-open spaces of urban vernacular architecture in the Mediterranean region. In vernacular architecture, natural lighting was the main source of light available and was largely achieved through the central courtyard. In this framework, an in-depth lighting performance analysis was carried out in a typical and representative traditional urban complex in the walled city of Nicosia, Cyprus. In-situ lighting measurements, as well as software simulations, were employed in order to assess the lighting performance of the building complex. The study has shown that lighting levels of semi-open and indoor spaces on the first floor are sufficient; whereas, the dense urban fabric, and the introverted character of vernacular architecture, create certain limitations to the lighting levels in indoor spaces of the ground floor. On the other hand, the positive impact of the inner courtyard to the lighting levels of semi-open and indoor spaces has been verified.

Functional Quality of private open/ semi-open spaces in residential units (Case Study: Bushehr city)

The qualitative aspects of residential environments have been great interest in recent researches. Despite the need of access to private open space for each dwelling unit, today in the city of Bushehr, we observe the construction of apartments which, in their design, the private open / semi- open spaces, have no performance quality and in addition, due to aberrant use, have reduced the quality of housing units and destruction of the urban landscape. The purpose of this research is to improve the quality of private open/semi- open spaces in housing units of Bushehr city. This fieldwork research is performed in residential units of Bushehr city. 20 samples were selected from contemporary residential units and 10 samples from vernacular architecture houses, using stratified sampling with the aim to include diverse types of private open/semi-open spaces. Physical characteristics of private open/semi-open spaces, as the independent variable and the quality of these spaces, as the dependent variable were evaluated; the first by harvest field and the latter by using a Likert scale and a non-interventionist view. Firstly, the physical characteristics of these spaces in contemporary architecture and vernacular architecture were compared by Kruskal-Wallis test. In the second stage, the correlation of the physical characteristics of these spaces with their quality was measured by Spearman test and ETA test. Among the physical characteristics of space, depth of space, and the ratio of length / depth of space, had the highest correlation with performance of space, and the lack of visual privacy and security were the most important factors for Creating Extensions by residents. Based on the test results, the focus has been to provide recommendations in order to improve the quality of private open / semi- open spaces.

Thermal and comfort conditions in a semi-closed rear wooded garden and its adjacent semi-open spaces in a Mediterranean climate (Athens) during summer

The cooling effect in a courtyard's garden and in the adjoining ground- and first floor verandas, attached to the NNE side of a two-storey building is evaluated with measurements performed during a hot weather summer period in Athens. Results revealed a well defined and strong daytime cool island between the buildings rear garden (with about 85% canopy covering) and an air temperature reduction for the ground floor veranda, as compared with an urban square with low canopy coverage (about 15%), reaching a maximum air temperature reduction of 6.5 K during daytime. Compared with a nearby densely wooded park, the garden and the veranda were found 1–1.5 K cooler during 4 and 8 hours during daytime, respectively. Using the physiologically equivalent temperature thermal index with appropriate adjustments to local conditions, it was found that those two sites, compared with the urban square, were able to mitigate the extreme thermal stress conditions and to decrease the daily number of hours associated with strong thermal stress conditions. It is concluded that appropriately designed semi-open spaces in residential buildings, well known from vernacular architecture for their qualitative benefits, may be considered as positive bioclimatic pedestrian transitional elements in sustainable urban design for Mediterranean climates.

Similarities and Differences Between Contemporary Turkish Houses and Those Worldwide

Due to discontent arising from the application of Modernism's totalitarian and homogenising logic to house design, recent research has concentrated on differences between cultures, societies and ethnic groups to the extent that today's students of architecture have difficulty finding sources which point to any universally valid values and preferences adopted by contemporary populations. In this study seventeen major design principles stemming from man-environment relationships, such as privacy, territoriality, personal space, backstage behaviour, orientation, and so on, as deduced from Turkish traditional houses, are investigated in terms of similarities among cultures. Samples of contemporary houses are selected from Turkey and elsewhere. Between local and international house designs full matches are depicted and verified by way of statistical analyses across fourteen items, such as living space subdivisions for guests and family, indirect access to the house (modulation), multi-purpose living space subdivisions (hierarchical living space), individualized bathrooms in bedrooms, independent family rooms, semi-closed spaces on the first floor, larger fenestration on upper floors as opposed to opacity of ground floors, segregated garden space, powerful demarcation of the garden space, orientation toward the house's own territory, bathrooms being situated in night time domains, differentiated status of spaces, multiple uses for stair landings (such as for hiding places for goods). Only three items showed some variance: closed balconies on upper floors were local, and semi-open spaces on ground floors were international tendencies. The practice of allowing direct access from the main entrance to a vertical circulation area was also predominantly a local choice.

Seasonal and regional differences in neutral temperatures in Nepalese traditional vernacular houses

Two surveys of the thermal environment and thermal sensations were conducted in the indoor and the semi-open spaces of traditional houses, during both summer and winter, in five districts of Nepal: Banke, Bhaktapur, Dhading, Kaski and Solukhumbu. The surveys were carried out for 40 days, gathering a total of 7116 thermal sensations from 103 subjects. The results show that residents are highly satisfied with the thermal condition of their houses, since they adjust well to the thermal conditions. The residents have higher neutral temperatures in semi-open spaces such as verandas than in indoor spaces. The findings reveal that people in the regions studied adapt well to the natural environment, as a result of which neutral temperatures are different in different climates. They are lowest in the cool climate, medium in the temperate climate and highest in the sub-tropical climate.

住宅におけるネパール人の夏と冬の温熱感覚

The survey of thermal environment and thermal comfort were conducted in the indoor and the semi-open spaces of the traditional houses, during both summer and winter, in five districts of Nepal: Banke, Bhaktapur, Dhading, Kaski and Solukhumbu. The surveys were carried out for 40 days, gathering a total of 7,116 thermal sensation votes from 103 subjects. The results are as follows: 1) Frequency is highest in 'neutral' in thermal sensation, 'comfortable' in thermal comfort and 'no change' in thermal preference. The residents are highly satisfied with the thermal condition of the houses. 2) The neutral temperatures for indoors are 21.1〜30.0℃ in summer and 13.4〜24.2℃ in winter, while the neutral temperatures for the semi-open spaces are 23.8〜31.7℃ in summer and 19.1〜20.3℃ in winter. The regional difference in neutral temperatures is 8.9K in summer and 2.8K in winter for indoor spaces, where 7.9K in summer and 1.2K in winter for semi-open spaces. It concludes that the residents are well adapted to different climates, since the neutral temperature is lowest in the cool climate, medium in the temperate climate and highest in the sub-tropical climate. 3) The seasonal difference in neutral temperature for indoor spaces is 4.9〜13.8K, and for semi-open spaces it is 3.5〜11.8K. The difference of about 1.5〜6K is explained by the seasonal difference of clothing insulation and wind velocity. The remaining difference might be explained by the seasonal adaptation of the residents. 4) The neutral temperatures for the semi-open spaces are 0.4〜3.7K higher than those for the indoor spaces both in summer and winter. The neutral temperature is higher in semi-open spaces, which suggests that the higher environment temperature raises the neutral temperature. The findings reveal that people in the resions studied adapt well to the natural environment, as a result of which the neutral temperature is different in different climates.

The semantic value of plants in the perception of space

People are satisfied with their environment as long as they understand the physical character of it. Because of this, in order to design understandable, clear and acceptable environments, designers have to increase the meaning of spaces. When open and semi-open spaces are mentioned, plants become an important space component. In accordance with this point of view, the aim of this study is to define the role of plants in constructing prefered environments and to find out which plants have suitable semantic value for planting designs that express the identity of buildings and spaces with different functions. The study consists of two parts: (1) The theoretical part deals with how plants became a symbol and the signification they take. In this part, samples of symbolic plants are given together with the definition of signification by using “Sign Theory”. (2) The application part examines whether the idea that spaces and buildings having different functions can be associated with plants. In this part 10 spaces and 24 plants are used to form an inquiry and cross-tabulation of plants with spaces and the reasons (the concept defining the feelings associated by a plant) are investigated.

A Study on Unstable S-Shape Characteristic Curves of Pump Turbines at No-Flow

A small model of a Francis-type pump turbine was tested without the rotating shroud and the radial distribution of pressure in the rotor was measured using pressure taps on the stationary shroud. The mean tangential velocity component in the rotor was measured with a laser velocimeter, and the flow pattern was visualized using a camera which rotated with the rotor. Comparing data at the no-flow condition in the turbine mode with those in the pump mode, the effect of semi-open spaces at the inlet and at the exit of blade rows on the difference of pressure rise between the two modes was recognized, and the flow patterns and the distributions of tangential velocity component in these zones were utilized to understand the phenomena. Furthermore, some discussion is included on the relationship between the design head coefficient in the turbine mode and the S-shape characteristics.

Molecular and crystal structure of hexazocyclane based on 4,4?-diaminodiphenyl ether

1. Experimental confirmation of the macrocyclic structure of hexazocyclane molecules has been obtained for the first time. 2. In the crystal of the hexazocyclane that has been investigated, the tautomeric structure that is realized is centrosymmetric with the H atoms at the nitrogen atoms bonding the isoindole and ether parts of the molecule. The factors favoring realization of this tautomeric form have been examined. 3. The basic features in the solvation of hexazocyclane molecules have been established: The crystal solvate molecules form H-bonds with the H-groups of the macroring and are located in its semiopen void spaces. 4. The data that we have obtained on the relative constancy of the dihedral angle between the planes of the benzene rings of the diphenyl oxide fragment of the hexazocyclane molecule can provide an explanation for the features of intramolecular cyclization of the hexazocyclane with additional nitrile groups in these fragments, specifically, the actual exclusive formation of the “trans” isomer.