The use of displacement and zoning ventilation in a multipurpose arena

This study investigated the performance of ventilation and indoor climate in a multipurpose arena located in Malmo, Sweden, with a seating capacity of 13,000 individuals, and in which a combination of displacement and zoning ventilation was applied. The main objective was to explore thermal conditions, indoor air quality, airflow patterns and air distribution. The measured operating conditions were ice hockey game and training situation. The measurements were conducted to observe the indoor climate and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations were performed to get a generic view of the air distribution and the flow field over the whole arena indoor environment. The results show that air movement was highly case-dependent. However, the experiments indicated an upward flow along the lower seating area and a downward flow along the upper seating area. During the game, the average rise of temperature was around 2 degrees C in arena with low stratification while using displacement ventilation. The temperature range was 12-17 degrees C at the lower seating area and 15-17 degrees C at the upper seating area. The corresponding air-speed level was 0.06-0.36 m/s. The relative humidity was about 30%-40% where a part of the humidity was transferring into the ice sheet. The carbon dioxide concentration increased locally to near 900 ppm indicating reasonable operation of ventilation. The CFD simulations predicted well-mixed conditions in arena, thus supporting the measured low-temperature stratification. Overall, the air movement was significantly affected by supply air temperature, variable airflow rates and retractable stand position (on-off) in the arena enclosure. The results support the use of displacement and zoning ventilation in multipurpose arenas.