Building ventilation–A taxonomy of international terminology

Building ventilation terminology is inconsistent across disciplines, geographic regions, and industry sectors, creating barriers to effective communication among engineers, architects, and building scientists. This research addresses this inconsistency by developing a hierarchical taxonomy of 22 ventilation strategies organised within three primary system categories: Natural Ventilation, Mechanical Ventilation, and Hybrid Ventilation. Major conclusions indicate that standardised terminology will support future effective building design, research synthesis, and education basis. The taxonomy was developed through literature searches of academic databases and a review of major international building codes and standards. The research identifies interchangeable terms, clarifies conceptual boundaries, and distinguishes accepted ventilation strategies from related technologies such as HVAC systems, which are often mistaken for ventilation. The results show considerable variation in how identical ventilation strategies are described across different contexts. Terms like 'passive' and 'natural', 'hybrid' and 'mixed-mode', and 'active' and 'mechanical' are used interchangeably, despite referring to the same systems. In some cases, identical terms describe different concepts, while single concepts may have multiple terms. Regional preferences further complicate terminology, with 'mixed-mode ventilation' being more common in North America, and 'hybrid ventilation' being favoured in Europe. The taxonomy maps these variations systematically, establishing definitions based on operational principles, including how ventilation is achieved and spatial scope of air movement, developed into the Building Ventilation Classification (BVC) Chart. Limitations include focus on strategy types rather than performance characteristics, and primary reliance on English-language sources. This taxonomy provides a practical reference tool supporting clearer specification, interdisciplinary collaboration, and investigation of ventilation performance.