Dehumidification Demand of Football Stadiums

The 22nd FIFA World Cup is being held in Doha, Qatar between November 21 and December 18, 2022. This sports event not only attracted the attention of football fans, but also attracted the attention of the world. During winter, the relative humidity of Doha varies between 60-70%, and the temperature varies between 32 °C and 40 °C. In summer, the temperature and RH can rise to 48℃ and 70% respectively. Building a football field in such an environment is full of challenges. The temperature and relative humidity are strictly commanded when the stadium is available to the public.

Design of Lusail Stadium for the Qatar World Cup

At the international bidding stage of the complex structure design of the Lusail Stadium for the Qatar World Cup, the design team of the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design continued to optimize and improve the structural design. In view of the tropical desert climate, the high temperature and humidity all the year round, and the large sandstorms along the Persian Gulf, the design team proposed a number of countermeasures to reduce the impact of environmental factors on the building structure, and created a comprehensive and efficient system for the owner, which not only achieved a magnificent architectural effect but also met the safety and functional requirements. The design shortened the construction period and saved more than 10,000 tons of steel, which realized a low-carbon construction.

(picture from tyc sports.com)

Temperature and Humidity Demand of the Football Stadium

“In the field of sports architecture, this is a challenging case study for new design solutions that guarantee the comfort and safety of occupants in such a hot and humid climate.” The stadium area is 195,000 square meters, which can accommodate 80000 spectators. Such semi open architecture exposes the occupants to high risk of thermal stress. To deal with the problem, an HVAC system controls the climate on the tiers and the football pitch to guarantee adequate thermal comfort in the stadium. Cooling air nozzles are installed in the upper tier to cool down the middle and lower tiers through the buoyancy effect. The cooler air moves downward and displaces the lighter layers of hot air, thereby establishing an internal re-circulation. The chilled air is supplied inside the stadium at a temperature between 19-23°C after being moisturized with a RH of 50%. The dehumidifier used for controlling the humidity plays an important role in producing a comfortable human living environment. This practice can be used for reference in the construction of semi open sports venues in similar environments.

Other Points of Building a Football Stadium

Because the football field covers a large area and is usually used in an outdoor environment, sometimes it will be used for training and competition in rainy weather. If there is water on the ground, it will seriously affect the players’ performance and also cause hidden dangers. This requires that the ground has sufficient drainage capacity to ensure that even in the case of heavy rain, the rainwater falling on the court can quickly flow around and be discharged through drainage facilities. Therefore, when building the ground, it is required to have a slope of 4‰ to 5‰, and the slope is slightly higher in the middle and lower around. This slope is very small, just for drainage, and the players can not feel it on the court.

Most football fields will be built with cement foundation, because cement concrete has very high strength and long service life, which can provide good support and protection for the lawn. Because the moisture below the ground will have an impact on the lawn, the new standard requires the use of waterproof film on the ground, which can block the moisture, so that the lawn can be used for a longer time, and also prevent the aging of the cement foundation due to the accumulation of salt in the surface soil.

Preair is one of the best dehumidifier manufacturers that can customize commercial dehumidifiers, industrial dehumidifiers, and dehumidifiers for home use. If you are in charge of the construction of a sports field and in need of professional dehumidifiers, please contact us at any time and any place.