Strategies for reducing poor indoor air quality and adverse temperature exposure in Delhi's households: A multi-objective assessment

Abstract

High temperatures, an extremely polluted ambient environment, alongside disparities in housing quality and household energy use, indicate overheating risk and poor indoor air quality in Delhi dwellings. In this study, we explore a range of interventions to reduce adverse temperature exposure and improve indoor air quality, focusing on PM2.5, for exemplar base case households developed to cover the range of settlements types found in Delhi. Interventions are modelled using dynamic thermal simulation, and include a range of modifications to dwelling operation and building fabric, as well as additional building components. A weighted multi-objective assessment considering annual energy use, intervention cost, and a health metric encompassing heat, cold and PM2.5 exposure, is employed to score the suitability of strategies for each settlement type. The most effective strategy is found to be a combination of changes in building fabric with evaporative cooling and cooking ventilation in all archetypes. The results demonstrate how a weighted multi-objective assessment is effective in selecting strategies for settlement types with differing priorities. Practical application: Current dwellings in Delhi risk significant energy consumption or provide inadequate indoor environmental quality. This work presents the performance of potential interventions, by considering multiple criteria, which could be deployed in Delhi households to provide low-energy healthy homes.