Effects of Visitor Influx on the Indoor Climate of the Milan Cathedral
Atmosphere
; 14(4):743, 2023.
Article
in English
| ProQuest Central | ID: covidwho-2296724
ABSTRACT
The indoor climate of non-climatized churches is usually subject to cyclical fluctuations of temperature and relative humidity induced by external climate conditions which might be dampened by the high thermal capacity of their envelope. However, several phenomena affect their indoor climate (e.g., internal gains due to people and artificial lighting, air infiltration, etc.), which lead to environmental variations that might jeopardize the artworks contained within. In particular, one of the most influential parameters that may affect non-climatized churches is the massive and intermittent presence of people who constantly visit their spaces. In such regard, long-term monitoring allows the collection of environmental data with different building operation conditions and visitor fluxes. This paper analyses the indoor climate of the Milan Cathedral (Duomo di Milano) in Italy for three continuous years (including the lockdown period that occurred in 2020 caused by the COVID-19 pandemic), with a focus on visitors' effects on the indoor environment and the conservation of the main artworks contained within. The results of the analysis have shown that spaces with huge volume are most influenced by the opening of the doors rather than the hygrothermal contribution of the intermittent presence of massive crowds. Moreover, the absence of visitors for a prolonged period correlates with an improvement in the indoor conservation conditions for artworks, especially those made of hygroscopic materials, due to the reduction in short, rapid climate fluctuations.
Meteorology; historic buildings; indoor climate; induced climate risks; conservation; visitor impact; lockdown; Pandemics; Relative humidity; Pollutants; Air infiltration; Humidity; Indoor environments; Cathedrals; Microclimate; Climatic analysis; Heat; Religion; COVID-19; Fluctuations; Climatic conditions; Climate change; Indoor climates; Case studies; Historic preservation; Historic buildings & sites; HVAC; Climate; Church buildings; Thermal capacity; Coronaviruses; Churches; Cultural heritage; Italy
Full text:
Available
Collection:
Databases of international organizations
Database:
ProQuest Central
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
Language:
English
Journal:
Atmosphere
Year:
2023
Document Type:
Article
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