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Research Article

The influence of airtightness on contaminant spread in MURBs in cold climates

Philip Mckeen( ), Zaiyi Liao
Department of Architectural Science, Ryerson University, Toronto, M5B 2K3, Canada
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Abstract

Tall buildings in cold climates have unique challenges in maintaining indoor air quality due to stack effect. During the heating season, interior air buoyancy creates large pressure differentials in vertical shafts that can drive airflow from lower floors into upper floors. This pressure differential can result in the spread of contaminants throughout a building. Most recently, concern over COVID-19 has increased attention to the potential spread of airborne diseases in densely populated buildings. For many multi-unit residential buildings, suite ventilation has traditionally relied upon fresh air supplied through a mechanically pressurized corridor. In cold climates, large pressure differentials created by stack-effect can reduce the effectiveness of this approach. Multizone and CFD simulations are employed to analyze airflow and contaminant spread due to stack effect. Simulations are conducted on an idealized model of a 10-storey building using a range of experimentally derived airtightness parameters. Simulations demonstrate stack effect can reduce corridor ventilation to suites and even reverse the airflow for leakier buildings. Reduced airflow to suites can result in the accumulation of contaminants. Reversal of the airflow can allow contaminants from a suite to spread throughout the building. Contaminant spread is illustrated as a function of mechanical ventilation, building airtightness, and ambient temperatures. Strategies to reduce the influence of stack effect on mechanically pressurized corridors are discussed.

Keywords

stack effectMURBs ventilationcontamination spread

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Building Simulation
Volume 15 Issue 2,
February 2022
Pages 249-264
DOI: 10.1007/s12273-021-0787-6
Cite this article:
Mckeen P, Liao Z. The influence of airtightness on contaminant spread in MURBs in cold climates. Building Simulation, 2022, 15(2): 249-264. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12273-021-0787-6

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Received: 12 October 2020
Revised: 27 January 2021
Accepted: 18 February 2021
Published: 15 May 2021
© Tsinghua University Press and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2021
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