ASHRAE 50

YE A R S
JOURNAL
19
59–2009

The following article was published in ASHRAE Journal, June 2009. ©Copyright 2009 American
Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. It is presented for educational
purposes only. This article may not be copied and/or distributed electronically or in paper form
without permission of ASHRAE.

Domed Stadium
Air-Conditioning Design
BY I.A. NAMAN, P.E., FELLOW/LIFE MEMBER ASHRAE  REPRINTED FROM ASHRAE JOURNAL, AUGUST 1966

T
his paper will discuss methods
used to solve the problems
related to air conditioning
the Harris County Domed Stadium.
Specifically, the problems arose as
a result of the size of the building,
which is larger and greatly different
from any other that has ever been air
conditioned, and thus created design
problems not experienced previously.
The engineers in this case were embark-
ing on a project of unknown problems
in unknown areas. As the work began
to develop, the architects first inquired
as to whether the proposed building
was practical and feasible to air condi-
tion. To form a better conception of
the physical relationships of the space,
the following will be helpful: The clear
height of the roof at the center is about
212 ft above the playing field and the
diameter of the circular building is
about 640 ft at the point from which
air is distributed. The overall area
enclosed is some 91/2 acres. Seating is
provided for 56,000 for football.
There were a number of factors that
had to be considered in the feasibil-
ity study, including, first, the roof
design. This was related to the ability
to grow grass inside the stadium, the
acoustics, the cooling load, and the
problems of heating such a space. The
second major factor to be considered
concerned the air to be circulated. The
questions that occurred to us were as
follows:
1. Is the quantity of air required for
cooling and heating within reasonable
limits for practical distribution?
2. What about the feeling of com-
fort related to this amount of air
circulation?
3. How can the air be distributed
over so large an area without extend-
ing ductwork to areas where obstruc-
tions could not be permitted?
4. Will the noise of distributing the
air be excessive?
The next major consideration
concerned the problem of the smoke

I.A. NAMAN, P.E., FELLOW/LIFE MEMBER ASHRAE

Mr. Naman is the founder of I.A. Naman +
Associates, Inc., a consulting engineering firm
located in Houston. Mr. Naman opened the
firm in 1947 and built it into one of the largest
engineering firms in Houston. One of his sig-
nature accomplishments was designing the
air-conditioning system for the Houston Astrodome in the 1960s.
Mr. Naman graduated from Rice University with a degree in
mechanical engineering and received his master’s in mechanical
engineering from the University of Illinois.
He has served on the board of Houston Industries, as
a guest lecturer at Harvard University and Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, as a teacher at the University
of Houston and Rice University, and in leadership roles
in technical societies. He is an ASHRAE Fellow and Life
Member and a Life Member of the National Society of
Professional Engineers.
Mr. Naman, now 91, enjoys traveling the world, includ-
ing a world cruise taken last year. He resides part-time in
Houston and part-time at his ranch in Milano, Texas.

60 ASHRAE Journal a s h r a e. o rg June 2009