Low-cost ventilation strategies to improve the indoor environmental quality by enhancing the natural ventilation in multistory residential buildings

Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) influences a building’s livability. Because most people spend ~65% of their time at home, methods and design strategies to achieve high-quality indoor environments are worth investigating. This study investigates the performance of the indoor environmental quality through implementing various low-cost natural ventilation strategies on a typical apartment in the multistory residential buildings in Amman, Jordan. A simulation software was used to conduct a detailed data analysis based on the ventilation rate, indoor operative temperature, relative humidity, and CO2 concentration in the base case apartment unit and propose design strategies. The simulation results were compared with the results obtained in the base case, analyzed, and discussed to determine the most efficient ventilation strategy. The proposed strategies improved the indoor air quality most of the time when compared to the base case, and maintain it within relevant international standards. The results provide a foundation to improve the IEQ in newly developed residential apartments by providing architectural design guidelines for achieving an effective natural ventilation system.