Investigating the Adoption of Passive Cooling Strategies in Selected Office Buildings in Abuja, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigates the adoption of passive cooling strategies in office buildings in Abuja, Nigeria, with a focus on promoting sustainable design and enhancing energy efficiency. By evaluating the implementation patterns of various cooling techniques and identifying factors influencing their adoption, the research highlights the potential of passive strategies to reduce energy consumption and improve thermal comfort. Through a quantitative approach, the study surveyed three office buildings selected via convenience sampling from a population of over fifty, achieving a 90% response rate from 73 distributed questionnaires. Factor analysis revealed fifteen distinct dimensions of passive cooling strategies, accounting for 75.836% of total variance. Enhanced ventilation, thermal mass utilization, and space optimization emerged as primary factors. Findings show a preference for conventional methods, including operable windows (mean = 4.6515), traditional building materials (mean = 4.6212), and hard landscape features (mean = 4.4923), while advanced techniques like evaporative cooling showed limited adoption (mean = 1.5937). This research contributes to sustainable building practices, offering insights for architects, developers, and facility managers while emphasizing the importance of integrating advanced passive cooling solutions into building design.