Abstract:
Retrofitting existing buildings for energy sustainability is a recently developed area of research
and study in architectural design. A significantly high share of energy is used to maintain indoor
thermal comfort in non-domestic buildings due to their poor thermal performance. Therefore
existing buildings in developing countries can benefit greatly from low cost passive retrofits to
reduce energy use.
Passive architectural elements of a building are important design variables which act as modifiers
of outdoor climate into favourable indoor climates in buildings. Passive elements in a building
include the microclimate, form, and the building envelope. Intervening thermal performance of
these elements in existing buildings can improve indoor thermal comfort conditions.
This paper consists of a critical case study building describing its thermal performance and
climatic response to illustrate problems in non-domestic buildings in Colombo. The outdoor to
indoor thermal comfort modification was analyzed using air temperature, humidity and air
velocity data and measures. The results concluded that the poor thermal performance of the
building is caused by the building's poor climatic response. Critical areas of the building were
identified to have the potential for retrofitting passive design strategies to improve building
energy sustainability.
