Buildings In Tropical Climate Research Articles

Assessing the Impact of Phase-Change Materials on Enhancing the Thermal Efficiency of Buildings in Tropical Climates

Civil construction and buildings account for a significant 36% of worldwide energy consumption, contributing to 37% of global CO2 emissions. In Brazil, buildings consume a substantial 51.2% of the nation’s electricity production. Remarkably, approximately one-third of this energy is allocated specifically for maintaining thermal comfort within these structures. The thermal performance of a building has a significant impact on its energy efficiency; in this way, technologies developed to contribute to the energy efficiency of envelopes can directly contribute to the reduction in the building’s overall energy consumption. PCMs are technologies capable of absorbing heat without increasing temperature and can contribute to the better energy performance of envelopes. PCMs are used as a thermal performance solution in cold climate regions, and studies show that they are likely to work in buildings in tropical climates. The objective of this work is to analyze the performance of PCMs in tropical regions of the southern hemisphere, specifically in Brazil, and their behavior according to the constructive system used. Computer simulation contributes to an analysis closer to the reality of the implementation of this technology in these regions. This work is carried out with simulations in the software EnergyPlusTM version 24.1. The results demonstrate that PCMs can effectively contribute to a reduction in energy consumption for the thermal comfort of buildings in tropical climates, demonstrating the possible feasibility of the development of this technology for tropical climates.

Assessing the Potential of Smart Windows for Energy Efficiency in Tropical Buildings: A Review of Current Research and Future Directions

Abstract Smart windows have energy-saving potential in buildings in tropical climates. Characterized by high solar radiation, humidity, and temperature, tropical climates demand innovative solutions for energy-efficient building design. Smart windows, which can regulate the transmission of light and heat through different thermochromic, photochromic, or electrochromic technologies, are promising to reduce energy consumption in such buildings. Several emerging window technologies, such as gasochromic, hydrochromic, polymer-dispersed liquid crystal, and suspended particle device technologies, also have promising energy-saving potential. However, their high initial costs, durability, and reliability of these technologies limit their applicability. Prospects for smart windows in buildings in tropical climates include advancements in materials science, cost reduction, and integration of smart window technology with other building systems, such as lighting and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. The potential benefits of smart windows for energy-saving s in buildings in tropical climates are substantial, up to 37%. Thus, further research and development in this area would lead to significant advancements in sustainable building design for a better future.

Selecting suitable passive design strategies for residential high-rise buildings in tropical climates to minimize building energy demand

Passive design strategies (PDS) are a fitting solution to reduce the ever-growing energy cost of residential high-rise buildings in tropical regions. However, PDSs’ building energy saving potential significantly varies with local climate conditions, but it has been sparsely investigated. Hence, this study investigated the energy-saving efficiency of eight common PDSs integrated into a typical residential high-rise building in three sub-climates: extremely hot humid (0A), very hot humid (1A), and warm humid (3A) defined by ASHRAE for the tropical climate. This study developed a Building Performance Analysis (BPA) workflow with a BIM-based simulation framework and local and global sensitivity analyses for the building energy analysis. The global sensitivity analysis revealed that low e-coating on glasses is the most influential PDS for 0A and 1A climates, but it has a negative effect in the sub-climate zone 3A. The low-conducting exterior walls are the most effective PDS in the sub-climate zone 3A, but they are poorly performed in the other two sub-climate zones. Based on the energy calculation and sensitivity analysis, this study proposes the best PDS groups, saving up to 40.1%, 63.5%, and 31.7% of average annual building consumption in the sub-climate zones, 0A, 1A, and 3A climates.

Multi-Scale Study of a Phase Change Material on a Tropical Island for Evaluating Its Impact on Human Comfort in the Building Sector.

Our study explores the utilization of a phase change material (PCM) to optimize energy efficiency and thermal comfort in buildings in tropical climates. Employing a comprehensive multi-scale approach, this research encompasses both microscopic and macroscopic analyses to rigorously evaluate the PCM's performance under various environmental conditions. It evaluates the effect of PCMs on ambient conditions in the face of temperature variations and high humidity, utilizing experimental methods at different scales (microscopic and macroscopic). Microscopic analyses reveal the composite structure of the PCM, consisting of microencapsulated paraffin within a cellulose fiber matrix. At a macroscopic scale, experiments using two real-scale test cells evaluated thermal performance and its influence on thermal comfort. Temperature and humidity data were meticulously collected over an extended period to assess the PCM's impact on indoor regulation. We employed type T thermocouples and flux meters to monitor thermal dynamics and energy flux across the building walls. This setup facilitated a detailed comparison of temperature variations and thermal comfort metrics between the PCM-equipped test cell and a control cell. The results indicate a seasonal duality of the PCM: beneficial in winter for thermal regulation but problematic in summer due to excessive heat retention. The conclusions highlight the importance of carefully selecting and adapting PCMs for tropical climates, thus providing valuable insights for designing sustainable buildings in regions facing similar climatic challenges.

Analysis of Vertical Greenery Systems (VGS) on Cooling Loads on Campus Buildings in Tropical Climates

Analysis of Vertical Greenery Systems (VGS) on Cooling Loads on Campus Buildings in Tropical Climates

Finding the gaps in design strategies and technological advancements for net-zero energy buildings development in India

The climate-adaptive net-zero energy building design is an effective trend for achieving a carbon-neutral environment and reducing global energy demand, especially, in India where building energy consumption recorded substantial growth in the past decade. This review article focuses on the development of net-zero energy buildings in tropical climates through the analysis of 44 real case studies. This study investigates the building envelope parameters, advance technologies, and their effectiveness on the building energy models. In the first phase of this study, fourteen net-zero energy buildings or high-performance buildings in the USA, China, and India considering energy-efficient design features and their significant effect on energy consumption have been examined. Moreover, the role of building simulation tools in improving energy efficiency is discussed. The second phase investigates the thirty best practices of net-zero energy buildings in tropical climates worldwide based on envelope choices, heating, cooling, and lighting features. Furthermore, this review discusses the evolving definitions, challenges, and inconsistencies in terminologies of net-zero energy building and illustrates India's initiatives towards net-zero development. The objectives of this review study are to highlight the challenges in building material research, advanced lighting, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning technologies, and integration of renewable energy compared to developed nations. Additionally, the gaps that are the barriers to the development of net-zero energy building in India have been identified. The review eventually concludes by providing policy recommendations and suggesting areas for future research to facilitate net-zero energy-building development in India.

Semi-Transparent PV and Double-Glazed Windows for Heat Reduction and Electricity Generation: A Study for Office Buildings in Tropical Climate

This research aims to develop a methodology for the evaluation of the potential energy saving and energy generation of semi-transparent PV and double-glazed window in Indonesia office buildings. The evaluation is based on Comsol software. The heat transfer equations for the inside the enclosure between the glass have been constructed according to the natural convection equation. The simulations were accomplished for four orientations from January until December and compared to a single-glazed window. The results show that it is possible to reduce the energy consumption for artificial lighting and air-conditioning using appropriate control systems and furthermore to generate electricity using semi-transparent photovoltaic panels in windows. The use of semi-transparent PV and double-glazed window has proven to be more effective in reducing heat transfer in buildings and generate electricity. East-facing double-glazed windows produce the most electricity, approximately 341 kWh.

Enhancing Day-Ahead Cooling Load Prediction in Tropical Commercial Buildings Using Advanced Deep Learning Models: A Case Study in Singapore

Commercial buildings in hot and humid tropical climates rely significantly on cooling systems to maintain optimal occupant comfort. A well-accurate day-ahead load profile prediction plays a pivotal role in planning the energy requirements of cooling systems. Despite the pressing need for effective day-ahead cooling load predictions, current methodologies have not fully harnessed the potential of advanced deep-learning techniques. This paper aims to address this gap by investigating the application of innovative deep-learning models in day-ahead hourly cooling load prediction for commercial buildings in tropical climates. A range of multi-output deep learning techniques, including Deep Neural Networks (DNNs), Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs), and Long Short-Term Memory networks (LSTMs), are employed to enhance prediction accuracy. Furthermore, these individual deep learning techniques are synergistically integrated to create hybrid models, such as CNN-LSTM and Sequence-to-Sequence models. Experiments are conducted to choose the time horizons from the past that can serve as input to the models. In addition, the influence of various categories of input parameters on prediction performance has been assessed. Historical cooling load, calendar features, and outdoor weather parameters are found in decreasing order of influence on prediction accuracy. This research focuses on buildings located in Singapore and presents a comprehensive case study to validate the proposed models and methodologies. The sequence-to-sequence model provided better performance than all the other models. It offered a CV-RMSE of 7.4%, 10%, and 6% for SIT@Dover, SIT@NYP, and the simulated datasets, which were 2.3%, 3%, and 1% less, respectively, than the base Deep Neural Network model.

Assessment of Architecture Students’ Knowledge of Passive Design Strategies in Academic Buildings in a Typical Nigerian Private University

Buildings use more than 40% of the energy consumed worldwide. This has prompted the development of numerous strategies to guarantee that buildings can still function maximally with reduced energy use. The concept of passive design strategies has been widely employed in architectural professional practice to ensure the reduction of building energy usage is kept to a minimum and enhance building performance. In architectural design training, however, despite the study of building climatology, several students are still seen designing buildings in tropical climates with little adoption of passive design strategies. To this end, this study aims at assessing the knowledge level of graduate architecture students at Lead City University, Ibadan, Oyo State of passive design strategies in academic buildings. The case study research approach was used, and respondents were chosen through random sampling. A total of 84 students were given structured questions to answer in order to collect primary data. Data were analysed using frequencies and percentages in SPSS, and the results were presented using tables. Respondents’ level of awareness and importance of the various concepts associated with passive design in academic buildings were considered. The study revealed that respondents have good knowledge about passive design strategies. Building materials, day lighting, and natural ventilation were identified as the most crucial among the passive design strategies used for academic buildings in achieving users' comfort and reducing energy conservation. Also, building mass was observed to be considered the least important among the passive design strategies. Keywords: Academic building, Architecture students, Design strategies, Passive design, Thermal comfort.

Daylight Performance of Integrated Horizontal Light Pipe with Shading Devices (Validation) for High-Rise Building in Tropical Climate

Daylight is known to bring benefits to human in terms of productivity, psychology, and physiology. The emergence of deep plan layout in high-rise hinders the utilisation of the abundance daylight available in tropical climate. This brings challenges to ensure a uniform distribution in the interior room. This study focuses on the software validation of the integration of a horizontal light pipe (LP) and shading devices (SD) to illuminate the deep plan where the former provides daylight in the deepest portion of the room while the latter helps to shade the excessive daylight at the window opening. The shading devices that have been chosen are overhang, light shelf, and blinds. The computer simulation, Integrated Environment Solution: Virtual Environment (IESVE), is being validated with physical model experiment with a scale of 1:10. The experiment was conducted in an open carpark in Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia from 9am to 3pm for two days. The validation was done using graph comparison, Pearson Correlation, relative root mean square error (RRMSE), and relative mean bias error (RMBE). The results shows that the daylight ratio (DR) from the software has positive relationship with the experiment data. Hence, the software can be used to further simulate various integration of LP and SD.

Experimental investigation on thermal performance of an actively cooled light shelf

Although the energy efficiency of light shelves has been studied, the thermal effects due to reflected solar radiation from light shelves have yet to be adequately investigated in previous research. The key research questions are whether this radiation results in additional heat load in buildings in tropical climates and how this can be reduced. In this work, the performance of an exterior aluminium light shelf is studied experimentally using a scaled prototype. The total amount of heat transmitted by the light shelf is about 40 W/ m2, which is close to the average thermal transmission of the envelope of a low-energy building. Experimental data analysis has revealed two components of the radiant heat transmitted by a light shelf: a) a direct instantaneous reflection of infrared radiations and b) secondary long-wave radiation resulting from the heating up of the light shelf material. The secondary radiation is a significant part of the overall heat transmitted by the light shelf. The light shelf was actively cooled by circulating water through hydronic radiant capillary mat tubes to reduce this component, and the radiant heat transmitted was measured. These experiments showed that an actively cooled light shelf could considerably reduce the secondary radiant heat transmitted through a clerestory window. A significant decrease in secondary heat transmission within a range of 3.8–5.9 W/m2 was observed when compared to an identical light shelf that was not cooled. This reduction is about 10% of the total heat transmitted by the light shelf.

Analysis of Thermal Performance of Naturally Ventilated Residential Building in Tropical Climate: Case Study of Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Comfort of the building is one of the important factors that is hard to achieve for architects and engineers as it depends on both physic and psychological parameter. This paper discusses these two aspects on the thermal performance of residential building in context of hothumid climate. Three different types of residential buildings including townhouse, detached house and apartment building in Phnom Penh, Cambodia were chosen as the case studies. The analysis of thermal performance of each house is based on (a) the measurement of physical parameters (air temperature, relative humidity, air velocity), (b) occupants survey to compare with data from the measurement and (c) interview with the occupants to know about their satisfaction and sensation to the physical parameters. Impact of different designs of houses on thermal performance and the importance of influential physical parameters for tropical climate is analysed. Comparison of results to the Fanger’s model also indicate the importance of air velocity in thermal comfort for tropical region. The survey shows that in natural ventilation, women in their 20s to 30s feel comfortable with the temperature of 29 to 30°C and humidity of 73 to 75%.

Development and life cycle cost analysis of a solar hybrid HVAC system for use in buildings in tropical climates

Due to the high amount of energy used by conventional air-conditioning systems in hot/warm and humid climates, solar desiccant cooling systems (SDCSs) have emerged as an alternative with significant energy savings (ESs). The main challenge of these systems is their high initial cost compared to the percentage of energy saved. System optimization will enhance this percentage, making these systems economically viable. This study aims to develop a solar hybrid desiccant cooling system (SHDCS) and assess the life cycle cost of the innovative-optimized model. Three optimization potentials—the dehumidification, cooling, and regeneration air processes—are taken into account for developing an SHDCS. A new two-stage hybrid desiccant system is designed and simulated in TRNSYS software, using the aforementioned optimization potentials for a seminar room located at the National University of Malaysia—or Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)—Selangor, Malaysia, as a site study. The empirical setup validates the simulation model. The influence of optimization potentials on performance indicators such as the coefficient of performance (COP), the solar fraction (SF), ES, and CO2 emissions are evaluated. The results show that the innovative-optimized model can provide thermal comfort in the seminar room while saving ∼38% electricity compared to a conventional fan coil unit (FCU). The COP, SF, and payback period of the optimized system are respectively improved by 0.9, 1.5, and 7 years.

Passive building design for improving indoor thermal comfort in tropical climates: A bibliometric analysis using CiteSpace

This paper reviews the literature on passive building design for improving indoor thermal comfort in tropical climates through a bibliometric analysis. The Web of Science database and CiteSpace were searched, and 722 articles were selected and analyzed to form the body of this article. An overview of the evolution of publications from 1984 to 2021 is first presented, followed by an examination of the co-citation networks of journals, countries, keywords, documents and authors. Co-occurrence analysis of 391 keywords, 861 highly cited publications and the top 15 most frequently mentioned publications and most salient were used to identify research methodologies and to analyze the correlation search of articles. Some notable work on thermal comfort models and passive design strategies suitable for a warm climate is also discussed. The results show that real-time field studies compared to dynamic simulations represent the most outstanding research on passive design and thermal comfort of buildings in tropical climates. In addition, standards such as ASHRAE Standard 55 and ISO Standard 7730 have played an essential role in the evolution of the subject. The results of this study may inspire other researchers and policy makers.

Potential and limits of Natural Ventilation for comfort in retrofit buildings in tropical climates

The space cooling demand is growing very fast in the world in conjunction with the increase of life standards and the climate change. A major stake for the future in buildings is to provide human comfort and to limit the cooling energy consumption. In this context, natural ventilation turns to be an interesting solution in tropical zones where 40% of the world's population lives. This paper aims to assess the potential and limitations of wind induced crossed natural ventilation for comfort in tropical environments. A method based on correlations from the literature is proposed, integrating all the links in the physical chain of natural ventilation, i.e. from outdoor climatic conditions to indoor comfort. The application of this method is done through a case study in Reunion Island and gives orders of magnitude of comfort time proportion according to different parameters such as the opening surface, the indoor thermal and humid loads and the orientation of the considered building. Finally, the limitations of the method are discussed, as well as the need for research to define design rules to favour natural ventilation for housing and office retrofit.

Application of Double Skin Façade (DSF) and Electrochromic Glass in Buildings in Tropical Climate

Abstract One method in terms of architectural technology used to minimize the negative impact of overheating is to design a building with double skin façade and integrating it with electrochromic glass. The purpose of this research is to reveal whether the use of a double skin façade and the application of electrochromic glass would be preferable for buildings in tropical climates, in terms of obtaining aesthetic points while not having to sacrifice thermal comfort nor committing energy waste at the same time. The data in this research is obtained with qualitative – descriptive comparative method, which is applied for room temperature measurement with a computer simulation software, based on pre-existing theories, reference standards and material specifications from existing manufacturers. The results of this study conclude that the application of double skin façade in a building does make a significant contribution to achieving thermal and lighting comfort. Both profiles of space reduction with the use of electrochromic glass in buildings in tropical climates are able to reach ideal temperatures in comparison to when ordinary glass material is applied. And third, it is proven that the double skin façade technology and applying electrochromic glass on a building can provide significant energy efficiency for long-term projects.

Adaptive thermal comfort approach to save energy in tropical climate educational building by artificial intelligence

This work shows a comparative study of energy savings in an air-conditioning educational building in Aw's tropical climate regarding annual cooling load and degree-days, with adequate comfort levels following the adaptive thermal comfort approach. The comfort temperature modeling was by fuzzy logic-based (FL-BM), artificial neural networks based (ANN-BM), adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system based (ANFIS-BM) and CIBSE Guide A and a Local linear model, concerning the Mexican standard. In modeling, the mean predicted dissatisfied percentage was 18.1 ± 3.4% and the mean predicted mean vote 0.2 ± 0.08. The ANN-BM was (R2/R2); 24.5 (0.98/0.04) times more accurate than the Local model, 2.9 (0.98/0.34) than FL-BM and 1.7 (0.98/0.57) than ANFIS-BM. The yearly cooling load savings by ANN-BM were 43.7% and 15.6% by the Local model. The ANN-BM annual cooling degree-days showed savings of 33.2% and by Local model 3.2%. ANFIS-BM outputs reduced cooling loads by 15.1% and cooling degree-days by 9.3%. The energy savings appeared when the determined mean Tcomf increases by using more accurate modeling. In air-conditioning buildings in a tropical climate, considering the adaptive approach, the AI-BM allows that Tcomf increase, enabling significant cooling loads reductions and energy savings, providing thermal comfort to the occupants at the same time.

Le Corbusier’s Solar Shading Strategy for Tropical Environment: A Sustainable Approach

In warm and tropical climates, excess solar gain may result in high cooling energy consumption. Shadingis a simple method to block the sun before it can get into the building. The ‘brise-soleil’, or ‘sun-breaker’solution refers to a permanent sun shading technique, like the simple patterned concrete walls popularized byLe Corbusier. Le Corbusier in his design of buildings in tropical climate wanted to make a ‘pact with nature’unlike his earlier works of the cold climates where he was to ‘combat the nature’. Le Corbusier’s solar shadingstrategy in Unit De Habitation and Capitol complex in Chandigarh are pioneering example for his approachtowards dealing with the harsh tropical climate. This paper tries to rediscover the climate consciousness ofthe master architect in terms of Brise Soleil as his solar shading strategy for the tropical environment. Themethodology adopted in the research is through qualitative analysis. In this paper an attempt has been madeto analyse Brise soleil as a solar shading strategy with reference to the tropical architecture of Le Corbusier.The application of Brise Soleil in Le Corbusier’s tropical works such as Ministry of education in Rio de Janeiro,Unité d’ Habitation in Marseilles and Capitol Complex in Chandigarh has been studied. The relevance ofshading in today’s context with reference to climatic control and energy conservation and sustainability hasalso been discussed. Incorporation of Brise Soleil as a solar shading technique in buildings will certainlyreduce our dependency on artificial means for thermal comfort and minimize the environmental problems dueto excessive consumption of energy and will evolve a built form, which will be more climate responsive andmore sustainable.

Feasibility and retrofit guidelines towards net-zero energy buildings in tropical climates: A case of Ghana

Constructing and retrofitting buildings into net-zero energy has become an important strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions; however, its implementation remains a critical challenge, particularly with existing buildings retrofit. This study investigates the feasibility and proposes retrofit guidelines that achieve net-zero energy targets for existing buildings in a tropical climate. A two-storey residential building, a typical archetype model in Ghana, was analyzed systematically using parametric simulation. The calibrated model was used to determine energy efficiency interventions and renewable energy potential for achieving Net-Zero Energy Building (NZEB) across four major climate zones. The results showed that passive design strategies such as natural ventilation, sun-shading, daylighting, and envelope airtightness transformed the case building with an Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of 136–138 kWh/m2/yr to 68–70 kWh/m2/yr, therefore reducing 48–50% of total energy demand. Subsequently, a solar PV system was scaled to cover the remaining energy needs with a payback period of 6–10 years, thus transforming the building into NZEB and even to “net-positive energy” (i.e., building generating more energy than it consumes). The study demonstrates that it is feasible to achieve the NZEB target in existing residential buildings in the tropical climate of Ghana. This study’s novelty is that it offers retrofit interventions and adequate retrofit guidelines for renovating residential buildings into NZEBs.

Performance Evaluation of Phase Change Materials to Reduce the Cooling Load of Buildings in a Tropical Climate

Tropical region such as Darwin has similar weather patterns throughout the year, thus creating higher energy demands in residential buildings. Typically, buildings consume about 40 per cent of the total energy consumption for indoor heating and cooling. Therefore, building envelopes are linked with design strategies such as the use of thermal energy storage and phase change materials (PCM) to minimize this energy consumption by storing a large amount of thermal energy. Primarily, PCMs are targeted by researchers for use in different components of buildings for thermal efficiency; thus, this study aimed to provide a suitable PCM to optimize indoor thermal comfort and minimize the cooling loads of residential buildings in tropical climates through simulation of a tropical climate building and provide optimum thickness for the selected material. Microencapsulated PCM mixed with gypsum in wallboards were used to reduce the cooling load of a building located in Darwin. The cooling load of the building was calculated using Revit software. A comparison of the cooling load of the building was carried out using PCM-incorporated wallboards of thicknesses of 0 cm, 1 cm and 2 cm in Energy Plus software. The total cooling load decreased by 1.1% when the 1-centimetre-thickness was applied to the wall, whereas a 1.5% reduction was obtained when a 2-centimetre-thick PCM layer was applied. Furthermore, the reduced cooling loads due to impregnation of the PCM-based gypsum wallboard gave reduced energy consumption. Ultimately, the 2-centimetre-thickness PCM-based gypsum wallboard gave a maximum reduction in cooling load with a 7.6% reduction in total site energy and 4.76% energy saving in USD/m2/year.