COOLING LOAD ANALYSIS OF AN AIR-CONDITIONED BUILDING IN SINGAPORE - EFFECTS OF LOCATION AND ORIENTATION

Abstract

This dissertation focuses on the Cooling Load Analysis of an air-conditioned mixed occupancy building, the Boon Lay Community Center, Singapore. The aim of this research is to study the effect of two different cases on the cooling load of the air-conditioned spaces within the building: Case One: The orientation of the building in respect to the sun and Case Two: The location in terms of altitude, proximity to the sea and so on.

The three locations chosen were Sentosa (Beach), Bukit Timah Hill (Highest Point in Singapore) and Serangoon New Town (Urban Residential Estate). The two of the four most influencing outdoor parameters such as relative humidity, dry bulb and wet bulb temperatures for each of the scenario were measured. The third parameter, namely the radiation from the sun was generated by the software E20-II. The HAP feature of the software was used to calculate the cooling load of the building for each of the cases. The calculations are governed by the ASHRAE Standard 62.1: 2010 and Singapore Standard SS553: 2009. An interview with an M&E expert, specializing in HVAC systems, was conducted to get a better understanding of the standards and current industrial practices.

The simulated results for Case One showed that although the cooling loads of the different scenarios do not vary significantly, the Peak Load Level is attained at different time of the day and month for each case. Hence, although the orientation of the building with respect to the sun might be influential of the cooling load at a specific given time, the design cooling load of the building remains quite stable. As for Case Two, The simulations revealed that the Peak Load Level is attained by the Building during the same time of the day and month, but the Design Cooling Load varies between the three locations. Hence, the orientation of the building with respect to the sun is not as critical as the location when it comes to Design Load Calculation of the HVAC system in a building.