Albertslund Library, Denmark: Optimization of Indoor Daylight and Thermal Climate Conditions and Use of Fan-assisted Natural Ventilation in a Public Library

The theme for the renovation of Albertslund Library has been to create a markedly bright library that is open to its surroundings and environment. The overall objective is to satisfy the needs of the staff at the library and users in all age groups and from all social stratums. Further, the goal is to have a building which is optimized in terms of indoor daylight and thermal conditions, use of natural ventilation for saving energy in terms of cooling, and electricity for fan assistance and artificial light. The innovative elements in the project are a result of co-operative work by Esbensen Consulting Engineers A/S and Henning Larsens Tegnestue. Project meetings early in the design process between the architects and engineers has resulted in a success for integration of several innovative and effective energy elements, thus saving valuable time and reducing costs. This paper will describe the different technologies used in the project, and the detailed and specialized simulations carried out in the design process will be discussed with special focus on daylight. The building was completed in spring 2004.