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This is a guideline to building simulations with MicroShade® in IES-VE. IES-VE is a building simulation software for analyzing buildings and installations developed by IES in United Kingdom. IES-VE is used for designing and simulating buildings and calculates among others the annual energy consumption and indoor climate for a given building.

This guideline is intended for reproducing correct solar heat gain (SHGC or g-value) in IES-VE. Correct simulation of light transmittance is not offered by this guideline. For daylight simulations please see our guideline on daylight calculations in Diva on www.microshade.net under download.

Simulation of MicroShade® in IES-VE

About MicroShade®

MicroShade® is a highly effective shading product containing microscopic shading lamellas. The shading efficiency depends on the incidence angle of the sun on the lamellas. When the sun is high in the sky during the summer, MicroShade® provides the strongest shading and during winter when the sun is low more heat is allowed into the building. Similarly, the shading effi-ciency also varies during the course of the day due to the different positions of the sun morning, noon and evening.For façade applications two MicroShade® product types are commonly used – the MicroShade® MS-A and MS-D. Aesthetically, these are similar, only the MS-D provides a stronger shading whilst the MS-A allows more daylight inside. For roof applications, MS-RS and MS-RW are typically used. MS-RS is recommended in pitches up to 30°, and MS-RW is recommended for pitches between 30° and 60°. For more information on selection of MicroShade® please see our selection guidelines on www.micros-hade.net/downloads-software

1 Facade application means glazing mounted in a near vertical position.

Guideline to building simulations in IES-VE

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Micro lamellas

The micro lamellas in MicroShade® are a three dimensional mesh providing effective shading both horizontally and vertically. The vertical shading effect from micro lamellas can be simulated by reducing solar energy transmission gradually as the solar irradiation angle increases relative to the window.

Dynamic simulation of MicroShade® in IES-VE

This guideline holds a distinction between vertical facades, non-vertical facades and roofs. MicroShade® glazing can be simu-lated in IES-VE by using specific glazing configurations in the Apache Construction Data Base (ApCDB). For vertical facades both the “External shade” and the “Local shade” options under glazing configuration should be used to simulate MicroShade®, while for non-vertical facades or roofs only the ”Local shade” option should be used. The only modules required for simulating with MicroShade® is ModelIT (for modeling/import), ApacheSim (for window configuration and simulation) and Vista (for results output).

Entering MicroShade® for simulation in IES-VE is done by separating glazing and shading:

1. Glazing:TheglazingisconfiguredasitwouldbewithouttheMicroShade®

a. Vertical facades: with the g-value of the glazing itselfb. Roofs or non-vertical facades: the g-value is changed, as explained in the “non-vertical facades” and

“Roofs” sections of this guideline.

2. Shading:

a. Vertical facades: MicroShade® is added onto the window by means of the “External shade” and ”Local shade” options

b. Roofs or non-vertical facades: MicroShade® is added onto the window by a g-value multiplication factor and specific settings for the “Local shade” options

Figure 3 shows the workflow for simulation with MicroShade®.

Figure 1: Side fins can be used to simulate the horizontal shading effect of MicroShade®

Figure 2: External shading, balcony and overhang can be used to simulate the vertical shading effect of MicroShade®

Ext. ShadeFor vertical facades only: Apply shading increment

transmission factors

ModelITBuild/import model and

weather data

ApCDBSet glazing configuration Apply g-value factor for

non-vertical glazings

ApacheSimApply constructions

Local shadeApply shading geometry

as specified

Figure 3: Workflow for simulation with MicroShade®

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Vertical facades

For vertical facades shading factors are added through the “External shade” option. In addition, side fins are added through the “Local shade” option. In case of façades with tilt between 60° and 90°, the “External shade” option is not applicable, and the g-value should be reduced by a certain factor (see the “Non-vertical Facades” section).

Simulation procedure

1. Open the glazing construction dialog box:

“Apache” module >> “Project Constructions” button >> “Glazed” tab >> double-click the desired window.

2. Enter MicroShade®-specificvaluesdescribedbelow:

2.1 In “External shade”-dialog box:

a. Choose “Louvre” as shading optionb. Leave “Calculate” for “Ground diffuse transmission” and “Sky diffuse transmission” checked. c. Choose “on continuously” as percentage profile, and set all four threshold values to 0 W/m2Kd. Enter transmission factors found in Table 1 in each increment field

2.2 In “Local shade”-dialog box:

a. Enter projection values from Table 2 in the appropriate fields. Set window height and width to 1.

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Figure 4: Glazing Build-up for façade

Table 1: Settings for MicroShade in “External Shade” - Shading factors at 15° increment angles

0° 15° 30° 45° 60° 75°

MS-A 0,65 0,56 0,49 0,37 0,19 0,10

MS-D 0,58 0,50 0,43 0,32 0,15 0,10

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MS-A MS-D

Windowwidth 1 1

Balcony projection 0 0

Overhangprojection 0 0

Leftfinprojection 0.254 0.248

Rightfinprojection 0.254 0.248

Windowheight 1 1

Balcony height 0 0

Overhangoffset 0 0

Leftfinoffset 0 0

Rightfinoffset 0 0

Table 2: Settings for MicroShade in "Local Shade"

The values in Table 2 are valid for a typical 2- or 3-layer low-energy window. In case of other window configurations please contact support@microshade.dk. Please note that MicroShade® cannot be used with a single-pane window.

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Non-vertical Facades - tilts between 60° and 90°

The “External shade” option is not applicable for non-vertical facades. Instead, shading variation due to solar height is reproduced by overhang and balcony projection from “Local shade” com-bined with a g-value reduction factor. MS-A, MS-D and MS-RW can be used for tilts between 60° to 90°. The g-value for the glazing can be altered by changing the transmission of the window panes. The total g-value for the glazing should be equal to the real g-value of the glazing multiplied by the g-value reduction factor, see Table 4.

Simulation procedure

1. Open the glazing construction dialog box:

“Apache” module >> “Project Constructions” button >> “Glazed” tab >> double-click the desired window.

2. Enter MicroShade®-specificvaluesdescribedbelow:

2.1 In “Local shade”-dialog box:

a. Enter projection values from Table 4 in the appropriate fieldsb. Set “Window height” and “Window width” to 1.

2.2 In glazing construction dialog box:

a. Adjust “g-value (EN 410)” to the value found by multiplying real g-value with reduction factor (see Table 4). Use the transmittance of the first window pane to do this.

Figure 5: Glazing build-up for tilted façade with MS-D

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MS-A MS-D MS-RW

Windowwidth 1 1 1

Balcony projection 0.263 0.247 0

Overhangprojection 0.301 0.298 0.288

Leftfinprojection 0.254 0.248 0.220

Rightfinprojection 0.254 0.248 0.220

Windowheight 1 1 1

Balcony height 0 0 0

Overhangoffset 0 0 0

Leftfinoffset 0 0 0

Rightfinoffset 0 0 0

g-valuereductionfactor 0.65 0.58 0.42

Table 3: Local shading values for roof application

The values in Table 4 are valid for a typical 2- or 3-layer low-energy window. In case of other window configurations please contact support@microshade.dk. Please note that MicroShade® cannot be used with a single-pane window

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Roofs - tilt from zero (horizontal) to 60°

The “External shade” option is not applicable for roofs. Instead, shading variation due to solar height is reproduced by overhang and balcony projection from “Local shade” combined with a solar ener-gy transmission factor. This means that in case of rotation of MicroShade®, balcony and overhang turns to side fins vice versa. Rotation of MicroShade® is only necessary in some cases when MS-RW is applied to east/west orientation. Please contact MicroShade® support to know if this is the case for your specific project.

MS-RS is recommended for pitches up to 30°, and MS-RW is recommended for pitches between 30° and 60°. As MS-RS is symmetric on both axes, side fins and overhang/balcony are the same. For MS-RW, these are different.

The g-value for the glazing can be altered by changing the transmission of the window panes. The total g-value for the glazing should be equal to the real g-value of the glazing multiplied by the g-value reduction factor, see Table 4.Simulation procedure

1. Open the glazing construction dialog box:

“Apache” module >> “Project Constructions” button >> “Glazed” tab >> double-click the desired window.

2. Enter MicroShade®-specificvalues,describedbelow:

2.1 In “Local shade”-dialog box:

a. Enter projection values from Table 4 in the appropriate fieldsb. Set “Window height” and “Window width” to 1.

2.2 In glazing construction dialog box:a. Adjust “g-value (EN 410)” to the value found by multiplying real g-value with the reduction factor

(see Table 4). Use the transmittance of the first window pane to do this.

The values in Table 4 are valid for a typical 2- or 3-layer low-energy window. In case of other window configurations please contact support@microshade.dk. Please note that MicroShade® cannot be used with a single-pane window.

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Figure 6: Glazing build-up for skylight

The values in Table 4 are valid for a typical 2- or 3-layer low-energy window. In case of other window configurations please contact support@microshade.dk. Please note that MicroShade® cannot be used with a single-pane window.

MS-RS (0° to 30°) MS-RW (30° to 60°)

Windowwidth 1 1

Balcony projection 0.291 0

Overhangprojection 0.291 0.288

Leftfinprojection 0.291 0.220

Rightfinprojection 0.291 0.220

Windowheight 1 1

Balcony height 0 0

Overhangoffset 0 0

Leftfinoffset 0 0

Rightfinoffset 0 0

g-valuereductionfactor 0.60 0.53

Table 4: Local shading values for roof application

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Calculation example – building with façade and skylight

This example shows how MicroShade® is added to the façade and roof respectively.

Case

• Location: Sydney• Glazing: 4-12-4 with low-energy coatings and MS-D and MS-RW respectively. The g-value without MicroShade® is 0.63.

Façade

The façade window is built up through the ApCDB dialog as instructed in the “Vertical façades”-section. Shading factors from Table 1 are entered in the “External shade”-dialog box, side fin-measures etc. from Table 2 are entered in the “Local shade” -dialog box, see Figure 8.

Figure 7: Tutorial model

Figure 8: Facade window with MS-D

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Roof

The skylight has a tilt of 40° facing east, thus MS-RW with a 90° rotation will give the best result. The g-value reduction factor for MS-RW is 0.53, thus:

g_IES=reductionfactor×g_(glazingw/oMS)=0.53×0.63=0.33

The transmittance of the glazing is adjusted until the “g-value (EN 410)”-field matches 0.33. This is done by altering the trans-mittance of the first pane only. “External shade” is kept at “None”. “Local shade” is set according to instructions in the “Roof or non-vertical facades” section, Table 4. Note that the side fin-projections are entered under the “Balcony projection” and “Over-hang projection” fields and vice versa, due to the rotation of the MicroShade®. Thus “Left fin projection” is set to zero, as the balcony projection, which is now rotated to being side fin, has a value of zero.

Figure 9: Rotation of MS-RW

Figure 10: Skylight with MS-RW

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Assigning and checking constructions are most easily done through the “Assign constructions” dialog box, see Figure 11.

Next step is to run the simulation. When doing this, there is no need to tick any of the model link boxes, as no external modules are used.The results before and after MicroShade® is reflected on the solar gain graph, see Figure 12. Note that the effect is also reflected when looking at results for external irradiation on the window, but this is only valid for the vertical façade, as the MicroShade® in this case is simulated without changing the g-value of the glazing, as opposed to the non-vertical façade where a g-value factor is applied.

Figure 11: Application of windows on building

Figure 12: Comparison of solar gain before and after applying MicroShade®

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Applicability and limitations

Locations

The guideline for vertical facades can be used for any location. For sloped roof and non-vertical facades, it is recommended to consult with MicroShade® technical support for locations with latitude between -20 and 20, as larger deviations may occur in this region.

Windowsizesandgeometry

This guideline can be used for any size and shape of window – however values for “Local shade” is calculated to 1x1 m win-dows, which means that this is the geometrical height and width that must be entered under “Local shade” settings. The shad-ing effect calculated based on this will apply to the whole window, thus there are no need to scale the local shading measures according to window size in the model.

Deviation

By using this guideline, the monthly g-value deviation is within 10 % from the actual g-value of the MicroShade®. However, this guide does not offer guidance on deviation on calculation of solar irradiation, ie. IES-VE may give significantly different amounts of irradiation compared to other software, due to different calculation methods.

MicroShade A/S | Gregersensvej 1F, DK-2630 Taastrup, Denmark | VAT No. DK27492207 | www.microshade.dk | info@microshade.dk

The information above is given without liabilities for MicroShade A/S. The right to changes is reserved.