Purpose -The purpose of this research is to investigate natural illumination properties of one of the classrooms in the School of Architecture at Izmir Institute of Technology, located in Turkey, which is the northern hemisphere. Design/methodology/approach -In this study, the definitions of the basic terms in daylighting, such as daylight factor, illuminance, glazing ratio, are given first. Then, a luxmeter and a lighting simulation software, Velux, are used in order to calculate variable lighting factors during daytime, at different storeys, at different directions, for the classes. Velux is a proprietary software and it enables natural lighting analysis practically. Findings -Chosen classrooms are examined regarding their having sufficient natural illumination. The height of windows from the floor is changed, and the resultant effects on natural lighting in the classrooms are determined by using the lighting simulation program, Velux. The study shows that daylight factor and illumination near the window decreases as the height of the window above the floor increases. However, the illumination increases away from the window, giving greater uniformity to the lighting. At the same time, the usable depth of the classroom increases. The tall and narrow windows bring the daylight near themselves. Social implications -Practical window design decisions can help architects to provide effective and healthy natural lighting for interiors. Originality/value -Adjustment of the dimensions of the windows is important in order to balance the energy consumption of buildings. This study investigates natural lighting depending on both experimental measurements and simulation software, Velux.

In this study, temperature distribution and heat transfer through the cavity of a double skin façade (DSF) was investigated in the laboratory environment and analyzed numerically by using nodal network approach. The verification of the nodal network method was conducted by using data from the steady-state experiments and the same method was applied for the climate of Istanbul, Turkey under unsteady outside boundary conditions. Furthermore, heat gain and loss values in DSF for January and July were calculated and compared with single skin façade (SSF) application for different directions of the façades. The results were given for a day and a working time period of the office buildings by using monthly average daily climate data. Distinction working hours were more convenient to investigate the energy performance of DSF because of solar radiation effect. Using DSF in all directions, the cooling loads decreased up to 26% comparing to the SSF. DSF system was disadvantageous comparing to the SSF for January. However, it was shown that the heated air in the cavity could be used for preheating process of air in a HVAC system for winter period.

Purpose -The purpose of this research is to show significant points which can be used in the architectural design process by investigating the basic principles of earthquake resistant design (ERD) in a deductive format and to contribute to the architectural perception in ERD. Design/methodology/approach -First, the structural irregularity types are examined depending on the rules defined in the Turkish Earthquake Code, 2007 (TEC). Then, architectural design failures related to earthquake resistance of buildings under earthquake loading are visualized and solution suggestions in literature are described in detail by supported drawings. Findings -The problems causing structural irregularities are investigated deeply with given solutions in literature. It is obtained that the significant factors affecting the earthquake performance of structures are: architectural form, structural configuration, slenderness ratio, the location and rate of floor openings, projection rates and symmetry, rigidity and strength differences between floors, short columns, pounding effect. Social implications -The practical design decision rules can contribute to the phenomena of earthquake resistant architectural design and can encourage adoption of these rules in building industry. Originality/value -This study aims to gain an understanding of the problems in projects in terms of structural irregularities, and then manage to solve the problems using problem-oriented approaches. The suggested solutions can be adopted and applied to future projects for designing earthquake resistant buildings.

Flow and heat transfer of the air cavity between two glass façades designed in the box window type of double skin façade (DSF) was evaluated in a test room which was set up for measurements in the laboratory environment and analyzed under different working conditions by using a computational fluid dynamics tool. Using data from the experimental studies, the verification of the numerical studies was conducted and the air flow and heat transfer in the cavity between the two glass façades were examined numerically in detail. The depth to height of the cavity, the aspect ratio, was changed between 0.10 and 0.16, and was studied for three different flow velocities. Reynolds and average Nusselt numbers ranging from 28,000 to 56,500 and 134 to 272, respectively, were calculated and a non-dimensional correlation between Reynolds and Nusselt numbers was constructed to evaluate the heat transfer from the cavity (except inlet and outlet sections) air to the inside environment and it could be used the box window type of DSF applications having relatively short cavities.

a b s t r a c tThe aim of this study is to analyze the effect of perforated elements on pressure drop in a double skin facade cavity. This cavity separates the exterior and interior space as thermally controllable. The temperatures of the surfaces facing cavity with exterior and interior spaces have been determined experimentally under different airflow conditions. Two distinct perforated plates having different circular hole dimensions are positioned in the double skin facade cavity in order to create a pressure drop in the cavity. Pressure drops and temperature distributions in the cavity have been examined based on experimental measurements. The results show the surface and air temperature distributions in the cavity, the pressure drops under three different air flow rates and two different perforated plates. The dependence of the dimensionless pressure drop coefficient, Euler versus Reynolds numbers is investigated experimentally for different geometric characteristic of the perforated plates. So, Eu numbers independency after 30,000 of the Re numbers approximately is shown graphically. Evaluating the pressure loss in the DSF's cavity under usage of different type of pressure drop elements is essential for ventilating the cavity and choosing the fan capacity in the DSF applications.