The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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OBJECTIVES: The main objective of this research is the application of all the environmental analysis tools that will be required to find out the actual performance of an existing building located in Chile that was recently built and in which no environmental strategies were considered. Therefore the most probable outcome will be the implementation of new strategies in order to improve the environmental performance of this building.

ABSTRACT: In 2007 the Chilean government came out with the new thermal regulation that is divided in 3 stages, been the third one based on the application of the new buildings regulation in aspects of thermal performance, with new U-values to walls, roofs and windows. On the other hand, been this project constructed during the same year that these new applications were applied and constructed by the same government, it is absolutely relevant to understand the actual environmental performance on this building .This is why the results made through qualitative and quantitative analysis are so relevant and reveal a great lack of any environmental strategy application in this public building whose main function is to provide a comfort learning space for the community. Nevertheless much of that comfort is obtained from mechanic heating and cooling system . INTRODUCTION:

Chile has experienced serious problems of power provision during the last few years, and the coming years do not seem very fruitful with the Argentine gas provision cuts in the short and medium term. On the other hand the power policies of the Government have not yet managed to clarify which is going to be the direction the country is going to take in terms of energy sources, making it difficult to unravel the future of the country energy problems. The subject of the Sustainable Architecture has settled in the discussion, and it sounds stronger than ever in Chile. The government has created an Energy Efficiency Program promoted by the Ministry of Economy. This program subsidizes the cost that implies the development and improvement of buildings to make them energy efficient. However, been a project recently developed by the Chilean government, no study has been made to determine the actual environmental performance of the building, therefore ignoring all the energy problems in which the country is living today. This study will analyse the actual performance of the building, focusing in the skylight influence in the reading area and comparing this area to the Cafe area. The study attempts to understand the environmental performance in terms of its thermal and lighting behaviour between these two areas.

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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Santiago Sky conditions during occupancy Hours 9:00 -20:00 mon-sun
90% 80% 70% 60% 50%

3. Climate Analysis

clear sky

overcast sky

Latitude 3326' Longitude 7037

40% 30% 20%

10%
0%

Figure 3

Direct radiation Solar protection

Direct radiation Solar protection

Figure 1

Figure 2

The Literary cafe is located in Santiago City, the Capital of Chile. Santiago is the principal city; located almost in the middle of the country. The latitude is the main element that determines the Chilean climate. Santiago counts with a Mediterranean climate, being the summer season since December through February (the thermometers go up to 30C in this season) and winter since May through August, and the annual average is of 14C. During the year there is a 52% of clear sky condition over Santiago which means that any system of illumination based on natural lighting could be useful. . During almost haft of the year (47%) the external temperature is below the comfort range, this means that heat loss must be prevented during this period. On the other hand the other haft of the year (42%) the external temperature is in the comfort range, which means passive cooling system could be viable in this period.

Figure 4

Santiago averages temperatures during the year HOURS

C
Figure 5

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

(apendix.1)
SOLAR ANGLES:

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3.1 Site microclimate analysis

winter solstice: 34.5

equinox solstice: 58.3

summer solstice: 79.7

WINTER SOLSTICE

EQUINOX SOLSTICE

Figure 6

SUMMER SOL STICE

The Literary Coffee Bustamante is located in the middle of Bustamante Park which is surrounded by residential buildings (fig.6). The project is generated from translucent central space, contained by two lateral volumes, closed, consolidating the continuity of the park throughout its entire axis(fig.7). The rectangular shape of the building has and orientation mostly northsouth, being these two facades the main entrances which have large windows facing south and north, these last, exposed to the penetration of sun light. On the other hand, the two lateral volumes are made of pure concrete and they contain service areas. The prevailing winds come from the south east making the south facade permeable to winds current. The noise pollution from the main street is absorbed by the trees and the lateral concrete walls from the east and west facades

Noise pollution

Winter winds

Noise pollution

The orientation benefits of not having any overshadow issue by the surrounding building. On the other hand, the surrounding trees are acting as a natural layer helping to block the direct sun in summer time and letting it inside in winter season.
Figure 7

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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4. The Literary caf

Plan first floor

Plan ground floor

Figure 8 Architect: Germn Bannen Lay Location: Park Bustamante, Bustamante n335, Santiago, Chile. Build surface: 630.05 msq Year: 2007/2008 Figure 9

N
Plan First Floor

4.1 Architectural Concept: The geometry and the translucent elements reinforce the continuity of the park. The central cover was developed with a perimetral louvre window, recovering the idea of the Colonial Prgola that was part of the park before.

4.2 Design strategies:

This is not a building that stands out for its application of environmental strategies neither for its performance in such field, but nevertheless, there are some basic strategies that were implemented in it, one of these is the orientation to the north facade, mostly glazed, through this facade is where most the solar gains are won to heat the building in winter. On the other hand, the east and west facades are made of pure concrete thus minimizing the noise pollution. (fig. 9,10)

Figure 10

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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4.3 Activities: North Facade The building is developed in two levels: the ground level connects the park with the cafeteria and multiple activity hall, where workshops have placed every weekend, stand publishing books, metropolitan newspaper, launchings, and newspaper and periodicals library. This level counts with public toilets and an area of services for the personnel of the building .In the first floor there is the reading area, this is a free plant with sofas, armchairs, and reading tables, with books .In this level is located the reception, a leading desk, administration, a the library, and a children section specially designed. (fig.10, 11, 12). Croos Section 1

South Facade

Figure 13

Figure 14

West Facade

Figure 11

Croos Section 2
East Facade

Figure 15

Figure 12

Figure 16

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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5. Qualitative analysis: The indoor environment should be designed and controlled so that occupants comfort and health are assured. There are individual differences in perception and subjective evaluation, resulting in a base level of dissatisfaction within the building population. (CIBSE Guide A, M.Humphreys), 2006: page 1.1) 5.1 Occupants survey: Eventhough, most of the time the literary cafe building runs with mechanical ventilation in summer and heating in winter, this survey has been structured with the main objective of analysing the occupants satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the internal condition of the building as it is and obtain a general perception of occupants opinion in two specific areas: the caf and the reading area (fig.15). Nevertheless it must be born in mind that in some of the surveys the mechanical system could have been turned on at the moment they were answered. On the other hand the inquiry covered the people that were in the literary cafe in summer as much as in winter making a total of 42 people considered in the questioning.

4.4 Building materials: The predominant material of this building is concrete; the thermal mass of this material has been the way of trying to achieve insulation on the externals walls. The material also has been used in the roof. The only area in which insulation has been implemented is in the roof, this has been made of one layer of polystyrene with wood ceiling that is visible in the reading area. On the other hand, the north and south facades are completely glazed with single glass except for the toilets area, the staff service and the offices. The skylights that are located on the reading area are made of polycarbonate (fig.17,18)

ROOF (U-VALUE: 0.26 W/M2 K)

Metal deck: 2 mm

Asphalt layer: 0.5 mm

Concrete: 150 mm Polystyrene: 100 mm Wood ceiling: 20 mm

SKYLIGHT: (U- VALUE: 3.40 W/M2 K) Polycarbonate: double layer, 16 mm

EXTERNAL WALLS: (U-VALUE 1.03 W/M2 K)

Concrete: 250 mm

WINDOW (U-VALUE: 5.60 W/M2 K)

EAST AND WEST FACADE WINDOWS:
(U-VALUE: 1.63 W/M2 K) Exterior frame: aluminium Interior frame: aluminium Double glazing

Exterior frame: aluminium

Interior frame: aluminium Single glass High emissivity glass

Figure 17 Figure 18 Figure 19

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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5.2. Survey Results: Reading area: SUMMER: Temperature Caf area: SUMMER: Temperature

light

air

light

air

WINTER: Temperature

light

air

WINTER: Temperature

light

air

Figure 17

SUMMER: Air-condition:

WINTER: heating

SUMMER: Air-condition:

WINTER: heating:

Figure 20

Figure 21

According to the survey, there seemed to be a discomfort during summer with the low temperatures in this area. 28% of the people complained of certain discomfort in terms of feeling cold in summer. On the other hand in terms of brightness most of the people felt comfortable with the light, only a 20% claimed to be slightly bright in excess in summer. In terms of ventilation there seems to be excess of air conditioning during this period. The performance of the building in winter seems to be much better, in terms of lighting and ventilation. Nevertheless, 28% of the people complained of being cold in excess in this season. When inquired on air-conditioning, people expressed a discomfort on the heating system and on the intensity of the airconditioning during summer (fig.20). On the other hand, there is a strong dependency on the heating system in winter.

The cafe area seems to be most affected by the overuse of airconditioning in summer. However, the occupants seemed satisfied with most of the lighting and the air conditioning but at the same time most of the comfort in this area relays on the heating system in winter.(fig.21) Do you think the Reading caf is a suitable place to read?

Figure 22

In general, the majority of the people feels that the reading cafe is a suitable place to read. Nevertheless, they are some issues the building has, regarding the use of air condition in excess in summer, creating low temperatures and heat loss in winter that seems to be managing through heating systems. In terms of lighting, there seems to be a brightness issue in the reading area in summer.

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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6. Skylight Typology: The skylight in general is used to bring light into a space where the natural light cannot reach through as a vertical translucent element. They also can be used as a great source of ventilation and heat gains . The geometry of the skylights turn to change accordingly to the purpose of the design, in terms of what and how is wanted to illuminate. The skylight design for this building has a conceptual background rather than an environmental strategy; it was based on recovering the idea of the Colonial Prgola (that was located in the park as part of the recovery plan) (fig.24).In this particular case the geometry of the skylight is quite simple allowing the light to come directly (fig.25), without any reflecting element or shape that could reduce the impact of the direct light or solar radiation rather than the material itself. The translucent material is made of polycarbonate with thin steel straps that keep the material rigid. (fig.25,26)

Roof plan

Figure 25

Figure 23

Figure 24

Figure 26

Figure 26

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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7. Quantitative analysis: daylight performance: Lighting in a building has three purposes: To enable the occupant to work and move about in safety To enable tasks to be performed correctly and at an appropriate pace To create a pleasing appearance. Accordingly to CIBSE guide the comfort criteria for the reading rooms are to maintain the illuminance at a minimum of 500 lux. (CIBSE Guide A, M.Humphreys (Oxford Brookes University), 2006: page 1.8.1) 7.1. Computer daylight simulation: The simulation was made to analyse the daylight performance in the cafe and reading area to find out if these areas complied with the minimum requirement they were supposed to achieve according to their activities. (fig.27,28,29,30) Reading area
Daylight Factor (average) 4.68% Daylight Factor (minimum) 0.49% illuminance overcast/ average 747.3 lux illuminance sunny/ average 1811.2 lux CIBSE recommendation (minimum) 50-200 lux (dining rooms) Figure 27

Cafe area

Figure 29

area CAF AREA

uniformity ratio 0.2

areas READIN G AREA

Daylight Factor (average) 11.25%

Daylight Factor (minimum) 3.09%

uniformity ratio 0.2

illuminance overcast/ average 947.46 lux

illuminance sunny/ average 8887.95 lux

CIBSE recommendation (minimum) 500 lux areas (reading Figure 28

Figure 30

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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CONTRAST RATIO 9.5 : 1.5 :1 CONTRAST RATIO 16 : 1 : 22

(appendix.2) Cafe area overcast condition

Reading area overcast condition

Figure 35

Figure 36

Cafe area sunny day

Figure 31

Reading area sunny

Figure 32

The contrast ratio show glare problems in the morning in the reading area Time:9:30 AM Date:21 of December . Acording to CIBSE code for interior lighting been the guideline of 10:3:1

Sky surfaces visible at direct angles

Indirect light bounce in the ceiling and then goes back to desk
Figure 33 Figure 34 Figure 37

Both areas are well illuminated, fulfilling the minimum standard of Illuminance requirements from CIBSE guide (fig.31,32,33,34), the main issue lies in the lack of lighting uniformity. Studies were made also in sunny days where the illuminance levels in the reading area exceeded dramatically the standard levels, being the main reason the light coming down from the skylights (fig.37). Considering that the caf area is near the glass wall, the depth of the room seems to be too long to provide efficient light on the side of this area, creating dark spaces in the joints between floor and the walls near this area. In the reading area there is also a lack of uniformity, but in this case, the main reason lies on the fact that it is receiving a great amount of daylight from the skylight, creating a big contrast between the area near the glass and in the balcony area, therefore in sunny days glade became an issue in this area, contrast studies were conducted . Having identified the two main problems, regarding the uniformity ratio in both areas and glare issues in the reading area, computer simulation were conducted having the main goal of findind out possible solutions to dress these issues.)

9:00 am

12:00 pm

16:00 pm

Winter

view Equinox Heliodom testing Confirm glade issue In the reading area Summer
Figure 37

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The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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(appendix.3)

The main changes made were based on changing the transmittance of the skylight materials in the reading area and the windows in the first floor of the south facade to a lower transmittance level to avoid contrasts issues with the main objective of improving the uniformity ratio in these two areas. On the other hand, skylights were provided for the cafe area,(fig.40) creating a semi-translucent opening in the floor of the reading area with the objective of providing natural lighting to the caf area . Therefore, after these changes the uniformity ratios were improved to a 0.5 in the reading area and in the cafe area to a 0.6. (fig.38,39,42)

Figure 40

areas CAF AREA READING AREA Figure 38

Daylight Daylight Factor Factor (average) (minimum) 5.27% 7.78% 3.29% 4.09%

illuminance uniformity ratio overcast/ average 0.6 0.5 747.3 lux 947.46 lux

CIBSE illuminance sunny/ recommendation average (minimum) 50-200 lux (dining 1511.2 lux rooms) 2880.95 lux 500 lux (readind areas Figure 41

Figure 39

Figure 42

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The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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After applying the materials to the TAS 3D model, the preliminary conclusion regarding the materiality of the building it can be inferred that the north and the south facades are mostly exposed to the external condition, being the main reason the low U-values of the windows in those facades. Simulation N1: only materials and infiltration.

8. Quantitative analysis thermal performance: 8.1. Computer simulation: After having a global view of the daylight performance of the building, the next stage was to approach an understanding of the thermal performance. In terms of what is the role of the skylights in the reading area and how their thermal performance affect the entire building, also to find out how the external envelope behave in different seasons without mechanical ventilation and heating. For this analysis, the simulations were concentrated in the comparison of the two areas; the reading and cafe areas, been the first one above the second one. North facade south facade reading area

Figure 44

The reading area seems to be just the 30% of the year in the comfort range. On the other hand the Caf area overhead by a 5% the comfort range of the reading area in the entire year. However the predominant temperatures in both areas, are the ones below the comfort range. Simulation N2: effect of ventilation in summer (no internal gains)

Figure 43

Simulations Summary table:

Numbers N1 N2 N3 N4 N5 aims of simulations performance of the envelope : only materials and infiltration. performance of the building including ventilation. performance of the building including ventilation and internal gains Performance of the building without skylight, to study the impact of solar gains. performance of the building with skylight and improvement in materials and ventilation

Figure 45

Materials Summary table:

structure ext. Walls inter. Walls windows windows2 skylights materials Concrete plaster wall with foamed insulation single glass Double glazing Polycarbonate Concrete with metal deck, insulation: Polystyrene and Wood ceiling U-values W/M2 K 1.03 0.894 5.60 1.63 3.40 orientation east, west inside north and south east and west ceiling Figure 30 top of the building

The introduction of ventilation in summer has the effect of bringing down a 10% the temperatures over the 25 C, and keeping the same percentage in the temperatures below the comfort range in the reading area. Nevertheless, the comfort range percentage has increased in almost a 25% in the caf area and brought down almost a 10% the temperatures over the comfort rage. Therefore, the introduction of ventilation helps to reduce the temperature above the comfort range in this case.

roof

0.26

12

The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area (appendix.4).

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Simulation N3: effect of ventilation in summer and internal gains.

The main aim of the simulation without skylight was to find out which was the real impact in the thermal performance of the solar radiation coming down through the skylight located in the first floor over the reading area. The temperature change between these two cases is of 6 C in the reading area and 2 C in the cafe area during the hotest day of the year. Simulation N5: with skylight, improvement in materials, ventilation and internal gains

Figure 44

This case is the closest to the actual performance of the building in a passive mode, and it showed overheating problems in both areas with the introduction of occupants. On the other hand, it evidenced that almost 50% of the temperatures in the caf area are reaching the comfort range, being one of the main reasons this area is always much colder than the reading area, but the introduction of occupants helped to stabilize the temperatures in this area.

Figure 48

Simulation N4: building without skylight

Figure 45

Peak day with skylight

Peak day without skylight

In this simulation, it has been demonstrated that through the improvement of the U-value of the materiality in the skylight, glazing and creating more opening windows in the south facade the comfort range increased considerably in both areas. On the other hand, the actual performance of the building only allows 2 months of the year to have a free running building (without air-conditioning or heating).On the other hand, with the introduction of the following changes, the free running period could be extended to a 4 months. Temperatures in occupancy Hours 9:00 -20:00 mon-sun Actual performance

Figure 49

Improvement performance

Figure 46

Figure 47 Figure 50

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The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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9. Quantitative analysis: ventilation performance The aim of this study is to evaluate whether natural ventilation is achieved in the terms of air flow and air change in the main space where the reading and caf areas are. For this study the Optivent program was used to analyse the building behaviour in different seasons . Summer: temperatures outdoor 28 C/ indoor 36 C On the CISBE guide the suggested that the air supply rate for a reading room it should be of 10 litres per second of fresh air per person. The reading area was simulated for 30 people being the fresh air rate 30 litres per second (0.30 m3/S). Therefore, it can be concluded that most of the time the air flow rate is achieved with the existent ventilation, nevertheless in summer season the levels achieved of air flow for cooling seem to be barely reaching what is required. However, must be taken into account that the glass door has been taken as the main inlet and outlet of this building for this simulation being the main reason why this building does not have big openings therefore in a common situation these doors will be kept closed most of the time. Therefore to improve this situation the creation of more opening windows should be considered.

Figure 51

Equinox: temperatures outdoor 17 C/ indoor 24 C

Winter: temperatures outdoor 1 C/ indoor 15 C

Figure 52

Figure 52

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The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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10. Conclusions:

From this study it can be concluded that the building has certain thermal and lighting issues. According to the survey, it seems to be a discomfort in terms of excess use of the air conditioning during summer, causing extreme temperature changes between outdoor and indoor of the building in summer. On the other hand, most of the people feel comfortable with the light performance of the building and the air quality.
However, analysing the building in more details, there is an issue on the daylight uniformity of the reading and caf area, created by the amount of light coming from the skylight in the reading area. On the other hand, in the caf area the daylight uniformity issue comes from the lack on light coming from the glass located in the south facade. In terms of thermal performance, through the simulations, it has been concluded that external envelope has thermal problems being the main issue the permeability of the external envelope regarding the typology of glazing used in the south facade where most of the heat loss is going through and in a secondary aspect the poor insulation of the building that is related directly to the low U-values of the concrete used on the building.

In terms of thermal aspect, change the south facade single glaze to a double glazing, thus avoiding excessive heat loss. As well as reducing the transmittance of polycarbonate in the skylight. In aspect of ventilation, create opening windows in the south facade that will improve the flow rate in summer and it also will help to maintain temperature in the comfort range in the months of march, April, October and November, when these improvements will have the biggest impact in the building, allowing the building have two more months of free running in terms of air-conditioning or heating in the year.

10.1 Suggested improvements:

From this study, suggestions had been made to improve the performance of the building in terms of passive design, regarding on thermal and lighting aspects.
In lighting aspect changing the transmittance of the skylight in the reading area and the windows in the first floor of the south facade to a lower transmittance material, this will allow to improve the uniformity ratio in this area. On the other hand secondary skylight can be provided in the floor of the reading area to bring light indirectly to the cafe area in this way improving the uniformity ratio of the caf area.

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The Literary Caf Bustamante Park The Skylight Influence on The Environmental Performance of The reading area

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11. References:

[1] Humphreys, Michael, & Nicol Fergus. 2006. CIBSE, 7th Edition. Place: Printed in Great Britain by Page Bros. (Norwich) Ltd. [2] Michael J. Holmes *, Jacob N. Hacker.2007. Climate change, thermal comfort and energy: Meeting the design challenges of the 21st century .Place: Arup, 13 Fitzroy Street, London W1T 4BQ, UK. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com [3]Tamura Y.2004.wind effects on buildings and urban environment. Proceeding of ISWE1-the first international symposium on wind effects on buildings and urban environment/Tokyo/8-9 March 2004. [4]Benson Lau. The luminous environment in the Elephant and Rhino Pavillon in London Zoo.Ph.Darwin College.May 2000. [5]Benson Lau. K14 CSP Glare Phenomenon 2 organisation: Department of Architecture & the Built Environment, Nottingham University. [6] Besser Daniela. 2010. Victor Miller Building.The atriums influence on the environmental performance of the classrooms. [7] Cafe literario parque Bustamante.Agustin Infante K. organisation: Plataforma Arquitectura.2008.[viewed 10 march 2011].Available from: http://www.plataformaarquitectura.cl/2008/06/26/cafe-literario-parque-bustamante/ [8] Plan Nacional de Accin de Eficiencia Energtica 2010-2020. Organisation: AChEE.[viewed date: 10 april 2011].Available from: http://www.ppee.cl/576/channel.html

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