Airborne pollutant emissions from naturally ventilated buildings: Proposed research directions

Abstract

The present article describes the current research focus and the future research trends associated with investigating emissions from naturally ventilated buildings as identified at the technical session entitled "Emission from naturally ventilated buildings (Measurement, modelling, reduction and assessment)", that was held during the International Commission of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (Commission Internationale du Genie Rural, CIGR) World Congress in Quebec, Canada, between the 13 th and 18 th of June 2010. Current knowledge and measurement techniques can only provide reasonable estimates of emissions from naturally ventilated livestock buildings. Thus, further research and development are required. Its final goal is a point where the measurements are precise enough to validate simulation models and to obtain more consistent and accurate emission estimates. To achieve this, better synergy between mathematical modelling, physical modelling and field measurements of ventilation rates in naturally ventilated livestock buildings is required. The review of the research presented at the Quebec meeting identified the following intermediate goals: 1. Investigate and determine error sources and measurement inaccuracies. Error analysis might be necessary to interpret results and establish research priorities. *Manuscript Click here to view linked References 2. Develop intelligent ventilation control systems that can handle highly fluctuating ventilation condition in naturally ventilated livestock buildings. 3. Develop practical field methods that can be used as reference standards. 4. Establish a dedicated facility that could be used to obtain precise reference measurements of ventilation rates in naturally ventilated building. To enable this, a parallel development of new technologies (instrumentation and methodology) is required.

Thermal energy use for dehumidification of a tomato greenhouse by natural ventilation and a system with an air-to-air heat exchanger

“…However, reliable measurements of air flow rates for naturally ventilated buildings are difficult to achieve (Takai et al 2013), and no such attempts were made. The present approach using a simulation model incorporates a number of uncertainties.…”

Present and future of the numerical methods in buildings and infrastructures areas of biosystems engineering

“…For example, in dairy cattle there are interesting papers on ventilation from the Aarhus University (Wu et al, 2012;Shen et al, 2013) or research on ammonia emissions (Sun et al, 2002;Bjerg et al, 2013) (Predicala and Maghirang, 2003;Mossad, 2009;Tong et al, 2013), poultry (Pawar et al, 2010;Zajicek and Kic, 2012;Bustamante et al, 2013) or rabbit (Flores-Velázquez et al, 2013). A paper on trends regarding research on livestock pollutant emissions, including CFDs, has been recently published (Takai et al, 2013) (Figure 2). …”

Development of a reference method for airflow rate measurements through rectangular vents towards application in naturally ventilated animal houses: Part 3: Application in a test facility in the open

“…A special issue in Biosystems Engineering, i.e. Emissions from Naturally Ventilated Livestock Buildings (November 2013) delivered reviews on existing emission rate measuring techniques , their uncertainties and the possible research directions (Takai et al, 2013). In these reviews, it is strongly emphasized that current techniques, such as tracer gas techniques, need further improvement.…”

“…One of the conclusions of Takai et al (2013) is that a dedicated facility needs to be established that can be used to obtain precise reference measurements of ventilation rates in naturally ventilated buildings. The authors state that such a facility would enable researchers to investigate and determine error sources and underlying mechanisms for measurement inaccuracies.…”