1. PASSIVE SOLAR DESIGN TECHNIQUES
Atakan TANTEKİN
N. Filiz ÖZDİL
Mechanical Engineering Department, Adana Science and Technology University, Adana, Turkey
ABSTRACT
The necessity of energy demand is increasing day by day. The usage of fossil fuels causes high rates of diseases and environmental pollution in the world. In order to reduce these harmful effects, the usage of renewable energy sources have been developed recently. Sun, which is one of the well-known renewable energy source, is important option for the world in terms of energy production. Passive solar design is an emerging technology because of environmental awareness and less waste of energy. In this study, the basic design techniques of the passive solar houses and passive solar design techniques have been indicated.
Key Words: Solar Energy, Passive Solar Design, Solar Design Techniques, Trombe Wall
INTRODUCTION
Since the world is exist, energy has been a key term of our lives. Various methods have been developed to produce this energy required for a better life. The usege of fossil fuels for energy production has always been a popular and inexpensive method. However, the depletion of fossil fuel resources and the increment of the environmental pollution has led to the search for new methods. As a result of this research, the use of renewable energy sources has begun to spread. As it can be seen from the fig. 1, until 2035, the usage of renewable energy instead of the fossil fuel is expected to increase. Solar energy is one of the most accessible and efficient renewable energy source. As long as the sun is exist, energy production from the sun will continue. Passive solar houses has become one of the most popular ways to benefit from the solar energy in recent years. Example of a passive solar house can be seen from the fig. 2. In this study, passive solar design techniques are discussed in detail.
METHODS
All passive solar design must include five important elements. These are the aperture, the absorber, thermal mass, the distribution and the control. Each element performs a separate function, but all five elements must work together to better application of passive solar design. Moreover, there are some techniques to be taken into consideration during the passive solar design. These techniques are called as direct gain, indirect gain and isolated gain.
Direct Gain
Direct gain is the basic passive design technique. Sunlight enters the house through the aperture —usually south-facing windows with a glazing material made of transparent or translucent glass. The sunlight then strikes masonry floors or walls, which absorb and store the solar heat. The surfaces of these masonry floors and walls are typically a dark color because dark colors usually absorb more heat than light colors. At night, as the room cools, the heat stored in the thermal mass convects and radiates into the room.
Indirect Gain
In the indirect gain technique, passive solar house has its thermal storage between the south facing windows and the living spaces. Using a Trombe wall is the most common indirect gain technique. The wall consists of an 8 to 16 inch-thick masonry wall on the south side of a house. A single or double layer of glass is mounted about 1 inch or less in front of the wall’s surface. Solar heat is absorbed by the wall’s dark-colored outside surface and stored in the wall’s mass, where it radiates into the living space.
Isolated Gain
An isolated gain system has its integral parts separate from the main living area of a house. Examples are a sunroom and a convective loop through an air collector to a storage system in the house. The ability to isolate the system from the primary living areas is the point of distinction for this type of system. The isolated gain system will utilize 15 – 30% of the sunlight striking the glazing toward heating the adjoining living areas. Solar energy is also retained in the sunroom itself.
CONCLUSIONS
In this study, elements and design techniques of a passive solar house are presented. The aperture, the absorber, thermal mass, the distribution and the control are five important elements of all passive solar design. Furthermore, passive solar design techniques are listed as below.
Direct Gain
In order to obtain better passive solar design, all three techniques of passive solar design and key elements of the passive solar design must be combined.
REFERENCES
1. BP Energy Outlook, 2016 Edition, Outlook to 2035, 2016.
2. Passive Solar Design for the Home, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, 2001.
3. Passive Solar Design, Sustainable Sources: 21 years of online Green Building information, 2016,
Fig. 2 Passive Solar House
Fig. 3 Indirect Gain
Fig. 1 Primary Energy Inputs to Power
Fig. 3 Direct Gain