Evaluation of the ventilation performance of apartment buildings in winter for a severe cold region of China

The purpose of this research was to assess the performance of air infiltration or naturally driven ventilation, the corresponding energy consumption and indoor contaminant level for residential buildings in Harbin, a typical city in the severe cold region of China. Based on questionnaire surveys and field measurements, a prototypical apartment building was determined. Then, unsteady-state numerical simulations were carried out by the use of COMIS. A parametric study on ventilation performance was undertaken based on applying various air-tightness levels. These results showed that infiltration alone resulted in under-ventilation and an imbalance in air distribution. It also resulted in a risk of high concentrations of indoor contaminants. To overcome the shortcomings of infiltration alone, a mechanical balanced system, incorporating a heat exchanger, was developed. This approach was shown to offer much improved control over ventilation compared with infiltration alone.