Architecture Commons^™

This article discusses design, prototype development and an experimental study of facade-integrated thermoelectric (TE) materials. TEs are smart materials that have the ability to produce a temperature gradient when electricity is applied, exploiting the Peltier effect, or to generate a voltage when exposed to a temperature gradient, utilizing the Seebeck effect. TEs can be used for heating, cooling, or power generation. In this research, heating and cooling potentials of these novel systems were explored. Initially, two low fidelity prototypes were designed and constructed, where one prototype was used to study integration of TE modules (TEM) as stand-alone elements in the …

This article discusses the design, prototype development and an experimental study of facade-integrated thermoelectric (TE) materials. TEs are semiconductors that have the ability to produce a temperature gradient when electricity is applied, exploiting the Peltier effect, or to generate a voltage when exposed to a temperature gradient, utilizing the Seebeck effect. TEs can be used for heating, cooling, or power generation. In this research, heating and cooling applications of these novel systems were explored. Initially, we designed and constructed two prototypes, where one prototype was used to study integration of TE modules (TEM) as stand-alone elements in the facade, and …

This article explores the thermal, energy, and daylighting performance of double skin façades (DSFs) in different climate types, specifically focusing on three typologies: box window, corridor, and multi-storey DSFs.  These systems were investigated and analysed to determine how different DSFs perform in comparison to each other, as well as a typical curtain wall (single skin glazed façade used as a baseline), in a multitude of climate applications. The utilised research methods included two-dimensional heat transfer analysis (Finite Element Method analysis), Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis, energy modelling, and daylight simulations. Heat transfer analysis was used to determine heat transfer coefficients …

This paper explores thermal and energy performance of double skin facades (DSFs) in different climate types, specifically focusing on three typologies: box window, corridor type and multistory DSFs. These systems were investigated and analyzed to answer the question of how the different DSFs perform in comparison to each other, as well as a typical curtain wall (single skin facade used as a baseline), in a multitude of climate applications. The utilized research methods included two-dimensional heat transfer analysis (finite element analysis), Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis and energy modeling. Heat transfer analysis was used to determine heat transfer coefficients (U-values) …

This article discusses results of a research study that investigated daylight performance of glazed double-skin facades (DSFs) in various climate types. The objectives of the study were: 1) to analyze the daylight levels in different types of DSFs (box window, corridor type, and multistory) in four different climates; 2) to compare daylight performance against the conventional single skin glazed facade (curtain wall); 3) to investigate the effects of facade orientations on daylight; and 4) to investigate the impacts of facade characteristics (different depth of air cavities in DSFs) on daylight levels. The research methods consisted of daylight simulations in Radiance …