Computer Modelling of a Large City Centre Library

Purpose
To design a low energy, environmentally friendly library in the centre of Coventry, giving full consideration to natural lighting, fresh air ventilation and combined heat and power. 

To model design proposals using computer simulation to predict the full anticipated running costs and indoor environmental conditions.

Clients
Coventry University

Collaborators
Short and Associates Architects and Environmental Design Partnership
The Institute of Energy and Sustainable Development was appointed energy and environmental consultant for the design of a large city centre library at Coventry University in the UK Midlands. The library was to have a net floor area of about 12000m2 and was to be as energy efficient as possible. Full consideration was to be given to natural ventilation, natural lighting and combined heat and power. The client also wanted the proposals to be computer modelled to obtain the anticipated running costs.

The design which evolved was a four storey building with a square footprint measuring 50m x 50m. The building is penetrated by four large lightwells in each quadrant which passively supply fresh air at low-level onto each floor from a plenum below the ground floor. The warm stale air which accumulates along the ceiling of each floor flows out of the building through a large central lightwell and sixteen smaller ventilation stacks located around the perimeter of the building. 

The likely performance of the proposed building design was analysed using dynamic thermal simulation (DTS) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software.

  • The work has demonstrated that in the UK it is possible to design large, nominally deep plan buildings which do not require air-conditioning despite internal heat gains up to about 40W/m2. 
  • The CFD and DTS models demonstrated that adequate fresh air would be drawn through the building and dry resultant temperatures of 27ºC would rarely be exceeded. 
  • Computer modelling showed that energy consumption and CO2 emissions could be reduced to about 80% of that required for a fully air-conditioned building.

Articles and Publications

Cook MJ, Lomas KJ and Eppel H (1999) Design and Operating Concept for an Innovative Naturally Ventilated Library, CIBSE National Conference, Harrogate, UK, pp 500-507.

Cook MJ, Lomas KJ and Eppel H (1999) Use of Computer Simulation in the Design of a Naturally Ventilated Library, Passive and Low Energy Architecture Conference, Brisbane, Australia, pp 597-602.

Field J (2000) Breeze Blocks, Building Services Journal, December 2000, pp 18-22 + front cover