Hygrothermal Potential of Applying Green Screen Façades in Warm-dry Summer Mediterranean Climates

Autor: Claudio Vásquez, Renato D’Alençon, Pedro Pablo de la Barra, Madeleine Fagalde, Francisca Salza
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Facade Design and Engineering, Vol 8, Iss 2 (2020)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2213-302X
2213-3038
DOI: 10.7480/jfde.2020.2.5109
Popis: Green screen façades (GSF) remain an unexplored field of study in warm-summer climates with Mediterranean conditions. This research aims to establish whether or not these thermal comfort façade systems are worth developing in cities with dry summers and a high range of thermal oscillation. A comparative study of four buildings´ green screen façades in Santiago de Chile was carried out, with different orientations and plant species, both in type and state of maturity. Temperature and relative humidity outside and inside the cavity were measured during summer days. It was observed that, during the day, interior relative humidity was higher while the temperature was lower, reverting this behaviour during the afternoon and night. This result accounts for the existence of two different daily periods: passive cooling through evapotranspiration in the presence of solar radiation - reaching up to an 8°C temperature reduction and a 30% increase of the relative humidity - and passive heating in its absence. The results show that the determining parameters in the behaviour of a green screen façade in a temperate-warm climate are, first, the orientation of the façade, and second, the density of foliage. Regarding orientation, it was also found that the sun exposure was directly proportional to the performance of a green screen façade.
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