Effects of the use of balconies on thermal and luminous performance of office buildings

Abstract

Shading and natural ventilation are effective bioclimatic strategies to assure thermal comfort in most part of the Brazilian territory. Balconies can be used as a solar shading device that behave as an eave to the lower floor, reducing the incidence of direct solar radiation, while allowing the entrance of reflected and diffuse light and natural ventilation through windows openings. A mapping of the literature indicates the existence of gaps in the investigation of influence of balconies in thermal performance integrated with luminous performance, especially in office buildings. Thus, the objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of the use of balconies on thermal and luminous performance of mixed-mode office buildings. A reference model representing an office building and possible variations of geometric parameters of balconies will be defined based on an analysis of a database of office buildings located at São Paulo, Brazil. The models will be used to perform wind tunnel tests in order to define wind pressure coefficients of the building envelope, to be used as input data for thermal and luminous performance computer simulations. The results will be analyzed through simulation-based optimization method, using genetic algorithms to identify parameters and ranges that generate optimal cases for both thermal and luminous performance simultaneously. (AU)