A novel system solution for cooling and ventilation in office buildings: A review of applied technologies and a case study

• We carried out a literature review of natural ventilation, building thermal mass activation and diffuse ceiling inlet.
• We proposed a new system solution combining these three technologies for cooling and ventilation in office buildings.
• The new solution can utilize natural ventilation even in cold winter without any draught risk.
• Energy saving potential of the new solution can reach up to 50% in a typical office room.
• Cooling energy saving potential mainly occurs in summer, transitional seasons and part of winter, depending on the heat load level.

As a response to new energy policies in the building sector, office buildings have become well-insulated and highly-airtight, resulting in an increasing cooling need both in summer and in winter. In order to effectively save energy, new interests in cooling concepts using passive cooling technologies and renewable energy sources have risen. Based on a literature review of natural ventilation, building thermal mass activation and diffuse ceiling ventilation, this paper proposes a new system solution combining these three technologies for cooling and ventilation in office buildings. This new solution has the special function of using natural ventilation all the year around without draught risk, even in very cold seasons. A case study of a typical office room using this solution and other traditional HVAC systems is carried out by energy simulation. The results show that there is a large energy saving potential using this solution compared with other systems. Energy saving potential for cooling occurs in summer, transitional seasons and part of winter, depending on the internal heat load level. Meanwhile, due to the large cooling potential of outside air in winter, the minimum ventilation rate is sufficient for the ventilation and cooling requirements compared with that in other seasons.