Energy and environment performance of buildings with retractable membrane ceilings

Abstract

The retrofit with membrane ceilings has been utilized for stadiums and residential buildings. A further retractable membrane ceiling can facilitate the management of indoor thermal performance. This study focuses on the quantitative building performance with such retractable membrane ceilings for a stadium and a residential building. For stadium buildings, the effects of retractable membrane ceiling on thermal adjustment and improvement are validated. The oneday and one-year experimental results show that temperature differences below and above the ceiling are dependent on the combined effects of membrane ceiling, air conditioning and solar irradiance. The apparent temperature difference inside and outside of the stadium suggests that the membrane ceiling is indispensable to adjust indoor performance. For residential buildings, the retractable membrane ceiling can have a temperature difference of 3.7 ^oC below and above the membrane ceiling. The radiant floor can heat near-ground area and solve the local discomfort. Thus, the combination of membrane ceiling, air conditioning and radiant floor can make residential rooms comfort.