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An Investigation of Thermal Comfort of Houses in Dry and Semi-Arid Climates of Quetta, Pakistan

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  • Waqas Ahmed Mahar

    (Sustainable Building Design (SBD) Lab, Department of UEE, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Universitè de Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
    Department of Architecture, Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences (BUITEMS), Airport Road, Baleli 87100, Quetta, Pakistan)

  • Griet Verbeeck

    (Faculty of Architecture and Arts, Hasselt University, 3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium)

  • Manoj Kumar Singh

    (Department of Human and Social Systems, Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1, Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-8505, Japan)

  • Shady Attia

    (Sustainable Building Design (SBD) Lab, Department of UEE, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Universitè de Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium)

Abstract

In Pakistan, reinforced concrete frame houses are the most widely used and common construction technology. In a country that experiences extreme hot and cold seasons throughout the year, buildings need to be adaptable to the climate to improve the thermal comfort of the inhabitants. Therefore, the aim of this study was to improve thermal comfort in reinforced concrete frame houses using passive design and energy efficiency measures in Quetta, Pakistan. Thermal comfort of a representative house was investigated using a building performance simulation. The building model created in EnergyPlus was validated by comparing it with on-site monitored data in both summer and winter seasons. The model was calibrated using statistical methods. Then, the calibrated model was used to perform a whole year simulation in which various orientations, ventilation, passive design, and energy efficiency strategies were applied to perform parametric analysis for the improvement of thermal comfort. The best fit-to-context thermal comfort model was selected, and the potential of bioclimatic design strategies was quantified. The results indicate that by adopting passive design strategies comfort hours can be increased from 43% to 59%. The results of the study revealed many findings which could be useful for architects and building engineers to set a future direction for improvement of indoor comfort in Quetta as well as in many other areas of Balochistan Province in Pakistan.

Suggested Citation

  • Waqas Ahmed Mahar & Griet Verbeeck & Manoj Kumar Singh & Shady Attia, 2019. "An Investigation of Thermal Comfort of Houses in Dry and Semi-Arid Climates of Quetta, Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-21, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:19:p:5203-:d:269841
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Enrico Fabrizio & Valentina Monetti, 2015. "Methodologies and Advancements in the Calibration of Building Energy Models," Energies, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-27, March.
    2. Roshan, Gh.R. & Ghanghermeh, A.A. & Attia, S., 2017. "Determining new threshold temperatures for cooling and heating degree day index of different climatic zones of Iran," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 156-167.
    3. Nafisa Bhikhoo & Arman Hashemi & Heather Cruickshank, 2017. "Improving Thermal Comfort of Low-Income Housing in Thailand through Passive Design Strategies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-23, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Marcellinus U. Okafor & Bankole Osita Awuzie & Kenneth Otasowie & Udochukwu Marcel-Okafor & Clinton Aigbavboa, 2022. "Evaluation of Indoor Thermal Comfort Conditions of Residential Traditional and Modern Buildings in a Warm-Humid Climate," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-28, September.
    2. Mushk Bughio & Swati Bahale & Waqas Ahmed Mahar & Thorsten Schuetze, 2022. "Parametric Performance Analysis of the Cooling Potential of Earth-to-Air Heat Exchangers in Hot and Humid Climates," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-21, September.
    3. Di Zeng & Jinkui Wu & Yaqiong Mu & Hongyuan Li & Mingshan Deng & Yanqiang Wei & Weibing Sun, 2020. "An Assessment of Tourism Climate Comfort in the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-12, August.
    4. Khatri, Krishan Lal & Muhammad, Amir Raza & Soomro, Shakir Ali & Tunio, Nadeem Ahmed & Ali, Muhammad Mubarak, 2021. "Investigation of possible solid waste power potential for distributed generation development to overcome the power crises of Karachi city," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    5. Waqas Ahmed Mahar & Griet Verbeeck & Sigrid Reiter & Shady Attia, 2020. "Sensitivity Analysis of Passive Design Strategies for Residential Buildings in Cold Semi-Arid Climates," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-22, February.
    6. Mushk Bughio & Thorsten Schuetze & Waqas Ahmed Mahar, 2020. "Comparative Analysis of Indoor Environmental Quality of Architectural Campus Buildings’ Lecture Halls and its’ Perception by Building Users, in Karachi, Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-29, April.
    7. Mohammad S. Albdour & Mohammad Shalby & Ahmad A. Salah & Fadi Alhomaidat, 2022. "Evaluating and Enhancing the Energy Efficiency of Representative Residential Buildings by Applying National and International Standards Using BIM," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-23, October.
    8. Abir Khechiba & Djamila Djaghrouri & Moussadek Benabbas & Francesco Leccese & Michele Rocca & Giacomo Salvadori, 2023. "Balancing Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption in Residential Buildings of Desert Areas: Impact of Passive Strategies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-21, May.
    9. Mushk Bughio & Muhammad Shoaib Khan & Waqas Ahmed Mahar & Thorsten Schuetze, 2021. "Impact of Passive Energy Efficiency Measures on Cooling Energy Demand in an Architectural Campus Building in Karachi, Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-35, June.

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