Achieving optimal visual comfort in office buildings of Isfahan by Climate-Based Daylight Modelling (CBDM): A case study of Isfahan

The daylight level in interior spaces of office buildings highly affects productivity, job satisfaction and health condition of employees. Achieving optimal daylight level in office buildings helps reducing various harmful effects artificial lighting which may lead to the well-being of employees and can affect various aspects of the building. Maximizing daylight availability in the interior spaces of office buildings through the use of different glazings and shading systems is one of the most common and effective tools to achieve such goal. It is also important to consider buildings orientation as it is one of the fundamental factors which directly affects how a space receives daylight. By the use of climate-based daylight modeling and examining various shading systems and glazings, the presented study seeks to achieve optimal visual level through maximizing useful daylight illuminance (UDI) in a reference office model for cardinal orientations. To this end, weather data of Isfahan is used as this city represents the climate with high daylight availability. The results show the importance of using the reflective louver (in different configurations according to the orientation). Findings also reveal the very similar effects of clear double glazing and clear triple glazing.