PASSIVE SOLAR BUILDINGS

BY
R.SOWMYA
M.Tech 1styr
131574
 Contents
 What are passive solar buildings?
 Constructional Elements for residential buildings
 How does passive solar design use the sun’s power?
 How does it work?
 Systems involved
 Radiant panels
 Thermal storage walls
 Trombe walls
 Concrete walls
 Concrete block walls
 Water walls
 Material considerations
 Benefits
 Levels of application
 Conclusion
 Introduction
 Industrial and technological innovations, population growth,
and rapid urbanization lead to an increase in energy
consumption.
 Dependency on foreign sources of energy and their negative
environmental impact have made energy efficiency and
conservation critical issues.
 35–40% of our energy is consumed by buildings, and 85% of
that is need solely for heating.
What are passive solar buildings?

 “In PASSIVE SOLAR BUILDINGS, windows, walls, and floors are

made to collect, store, and distribute ’SOLAR ENERGY’ in the form
of heat in the winter and reject solar heat in the summer.
 Elements considered for residential
buildings construction

 Placement of room-types, internal doors

& walls, & equipment in the house.
 Orienting the building to face the
equator.
 Extending the building dimension along
the east/west axis
 Adequately sizing windows to face the
midday sun in the winter, and be shaded
in the summer.
 Minimising windows on other sides,
especially western windows.
 Using thermal mass to store excess solar
energy during the winter day (which is
then re-radiated during the night).
 How does passive solar design
use the sun’s power?

Procedures for design of buildings to passively use solar energy

for heating buildings may typically involve:
 Use of shading devices to reduce heating by radiant (solar)
energy in the summer and allow it in winter,
 Utilize thermal convection (i.e. hot air rises) to maximize heating
by convection in winter, and
 Utilize thermal storage (mass-effect) to transfer excess heating
capacity from daylight to night time hours.
 How does it work
•HOW DOES IT WORK?

 Passive solar buildings are designed to let the heat into the
building during the winter months, and block out the sun
during hot summer days. This can be achieved by passive
solar design elements such as shading, implementing large
south-facing windows, and building materials that absorb
and slowly release the sun’s heat.
Systems

Direct Gain
Indirect Gain
Day lighting
Direct Gain
Indirect gain
Day lighting
 Radiant Panels:
Radiant panels are simple passive solar systems that are
inexpensive and well suited as retrofits to metal buildings.
 Thermal storage walls

 A thermal storage wall is a

passive solar heating system
in which the primary
thermal storage medium is
placed directly behind the
glazing of the solar aperture.
 Heat transfer to the living
space is sometimes
augmented by the addition of
circulation vents placed at
the top and bottom of the
mass wall.
 Trombe Walls

In summer
The density of the materials in
the Trombe wall acts as a
method of slow heat absorption
and transfer.
 Continued…

 In winter
 In the winter, when the sun is
allowed to shine on them, they can
be ‘charged’ up to help to warm the
house by transferring the sun’s heat
inside.
 In the winter, when the surrounding
outside air temperature drops as the
air cools after the sun has gone
down, the object with thermal mass
will continue to release its stored
heat energy.
 When all the heat is discharged, it is
ready to once again ‘charge’ up or
absorb heat again.
 Concrete Block Wall:

 Concrete block buildings are very common they may offer opportunities
for passive solar retrofits.
 Concrete floor slabs and massive partitions between zones help prevent
overheating and otherwise improve the performance of concrete block
thermal storage walls
 For new construction, superior performance of solid masonry walls by
filling the cores of the block in the thermal storage wall with mortar as it
is erected.
 Water walls

 Water walls are thermal storage walls that use containers of

water placed directly behind the aperture glazing as the
thermal storage medium.
 It is more advantageous than a trombe wall by using half the
space and being effective at much higher heat capacities.
 The advantage over masonry walls is that water has a
volumetric heat capacity about twice that of high density
concrete; it is therefore possible to achieve the same heat
capacity
 MATERIALS CONSIDERATIONS

 When designing energy-efficient buildings, it’s necessary to know

the solar heat gain of materials used on the structure’s exterior
 Glass and plastic blocks
 Patterned glazing
 Skylights
 Sunshades
 Roof structures
 Tubular daylighting devices
 Solar screens
 Electrochromic and photochromic glazings
 Translucent or solar-absorbent product.
 Skylights
Skylights are a simple way of introducing light to rooms right below roof level. Both
fixed and operable skylights are available.
Angled (splayed) walls broadcast the most light, and placing skylights near a wall
creates a pleasant light-washing effect on the wall surface.
. Skylights also can produce unexpected glare and uncomfortably warm indoor
temperatures unless they have shades. With this in mind, in most climates it is wise
to limit skylights to north roof slopes
 Windows and glazing

 In terms of energy efficiency, glazing is a very

important element of the building envelope.
 Glazing transfers both radiant and conducted heat
 Daytime heat gain must be balanced against night
time heat loss when selecting glazing areas.
 Window frames can conduct heat. Use timber or
thermally separated metal window frames in cooler
climates.
 INSULATED GLAZING

 when outside temperatures are significantly higher or lower than

inside temperatures, heat pours through the weakest thermal link
in the building envelop .
 Insulated glazing helps in keeping the heat from passing through.
 heat gain must be balanced against night time heat loss when
selecting glazing areas.
 Lightweight prefabricated buildings have high levels of heat
transmission; they are very influenced by outdoor conditions.
Cooling in summer and heating in winter become less efficient and
consume more energy. The use of insulation materials is especially
beneficial in winter; they are not as efficient for summer.
 BENEFITS

Bright interiors and

transmits visible light:

 Transmits all the visible

light frequencies making
the home interiors
brighter.
 Provides glare control in
bright, sunny climates.
 Continued..

Blocks ultraviolet energy:

 Blocks up to 99.9% of the UV radiation compared to
clear glass unit.
 Prevents fading of interior fabrics and décor.
Continued..
Cooler and comfortable in summer:
 Low SHGC numbers mean less summer heat.
 Keeps interior cooler and comfortable.
 Helps to reduce cooling energy costs.
Continued..
Warmer in winter:
 Low-e-characteristics reflects furnace hear back into the
room and provides low u-value insulation properties.
 Reduces furnace heat loss
 Helps to reduce heating energy costs.
LEVELS OF APPLICATION

Pragmatic
Annualized
Minimum machinery
Zero energy building
 List of pioneering solar buildings

 Rosenberg House, Tucson, Arizona,

 MIT Solar House #1, Massachusetts, USA
 Howard Sloan House, Glenview, Illinois, USA
 Rose Elementary School, Tucson, Arizona, USA
 University of Toronto House, Toronto, Canada
 New Mexico State College House, New Mexico.
 CONCLUSION

 They can perform effortlessly and quietly without

mechanical or electrical assistance.
 Reductions can be made to heating bills by as much as
40% annually, and also improve the comfort of living
spaces.
 Simple techniques can make a huge difference in the
comfort and energy consumption through the years.
 The economical solution to a warmer house in the
winter and a cooler house in the summer is to insulate it
well, while understanding the movement of heat.
it is the better solution.
 REFERENCES

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_solar_building_design.

 "U.S. Department of Energy - Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy -

Passive Solar Building Design". Retrieved 2011-03-27
 http://www.srrb.noaa.gov/highlights/sunrise/fig5_90n.gif
 Your Home - Insulation
 "BERC – Air tightness". Ornl.gov. 2004-05-26. Retrieved 2010-03-16.
 Your Home - Passive Cooling.
 Passive Solar Design (PDF 233 KB). (December 2000). DOE/GO102000-
0790. Work Performed by the NAHB Research Centre, South face Ene.
 www.PassiveSolarEnergy.info - Passive Solar Energy Technology
Overview
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