Natural ventilation based on façade openings is limited by the characteristics of the climate, the location and the type of building, but it can be achieved through the use of hybrid ventilation (natural and mechanical ventilation). The aim of this paper is to estimate the potential for energy savings with the use of hybrid ventilation in commercial buildings located in Florianópolis, Brazil. Combinations of models with different sizes and geometries, in four orientations and ten window areas were analyzed. Two cases were investigated: a reference case, operating only with an air-conditioning system and another one, with hybrid ventilation. The thermo-energetic simulations were performed by applying the EnergyPlus programme, using the TRY climate file of Florianópolis. The annual electricity consumption of each room was obtained through simulations. The consumptions of the reference case were compared with the hybrid ventilation case. Thus, the energy savings by using hybrid ventilation were calculated. In addition, an analysis of alternatives of user behaviour with respect to patterns of use of hybrid ventilation was performed. The hybrid ventilation strategy had significant energy savings, achieving a reduction of global energy consumption up to 31.9%. However, despite this potential energy savings were up to 31.9%, it is likely that users can feel dissatisfied on certain hot days, when the air-conditioning is turned off at some point.
Hybrid ventilation; Energy savings; Computer simulation
