EXPLORING THE INDOOR AIR MOVEMENT CONDITION IN THE STUDENT RESIDENTIAL BUILDING AT POLITEKNIK UNGKU OMAR

Abstract

Natural ventilation is a crucial and profound aspect in anticipating permissible indoor air movement in built environments. An appropriate ventilation operationalisation in built environments aids in providing fresh air and expels heat and indoor pollution. Hence, the objective of this study is to explore the current indoor air movement condition in the student residential building. A field measurement was executed in a pre-detriment room to analyse current indoor air movement. A model of the case study room similar to the field measurement was developed using computerized simulation software with two (2) sets of opening configurations. Findings showed that the range of air velocity of the case study room in opening configuration (1.0 m/s during midday) did not meet the Malaysian Standard requirement (0.25–0.50 m/s) for a potential natural ventilation strategy as a cooling effect in internal building space. The study concluded that uncomfortable conditions in the case study room and recommendations for improvements to the future development of Malaysian Polytechnics might help to provide better indoor air movement conditions.