title: Effects of ventilation behaviour on indoor heat load based on test reference years.
abstract: Since 2003, most European countries established heat health warning systems to alert the population to heat load. Heat health warning systems are based on predicted meteorological conditions outdoors. But the majority of the European population spends a substantial amount of time indoors, and indoor thermal conditions can differ substantially from outdoor conditions. The German Meteorological Service (Deutscher Wetterdienst, DWD) extended the existing heat health warning system (HHWS) with a thermal building simulation model to consider heat load indoors. In this study, the thermal building simulation model is used to simulate a standardized building representing a modern nursing home, because elderly and sick people are most sensitive to heat stress. Different types of natural ventilation were simulated. Based on current and future test reference years, changes in the future heat load indoors were analyzed. Results show differences between the various ventilation options and the possibility to minimize the thermal heat stress during summer by using an appropriate ventilation method. Nighttime ventilation for indoor thermal comfort is most important. A fully opened window at nighttime and the 2-h ventilation in the morning and evening are more sufficient to avoid heat stress than a tilted window at nighttime and the 1-h ventilation in the morning and the evening. Especially the ventilation in the morning seems to be effective to keep the heat load indoors low. Comparing the results for the current and the future test reference years, an increase of heat stress on all ventilation types can be recognized.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, 79085, Freiburg, Germany. maddiros@online.de.
authors.forename: Madeleine
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rosenfelder
authors.affiliation: Department of Agrometeorology, German Meteorological Service, Frankfurter Strasse 135, 63067, Offenbach, Germany.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Koppe
authors.affiliation: University of Offenburg, Badstrasse. 24a, 77653, Offenburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Jens
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pfafferott
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, 79085, Freiburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Matzarakis
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D003252:Construction Materials; D005858:Germany; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009735:Nursing Homes; D014691:Ventilation
keywords: Heat health warning systems; Indoor heat load; Test reference years; Thermal building simulation model; Ventilation strategies