MEANS OF THERMAL CONTROL

Mechanical Control
Structural Control
TOPIC 04:
MECHANICAL CONTROL
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THERMAL CONTROL IN BUILDINGS

Thermal control in buildings is done through modification or filtrations of the externally given conditions
and can be achieved by:

• Structural means
• Mechanical means
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STRUCTURAL CONTROL

Structural means of climatic control also called passive means, refer to:

• The planning of the building

• The use of materials in the buildings elements
• The construction techniques of the building elements.
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DESIGNING STRUCTURALLY FOR THERMAL CONTROL

Sequential Structural Design Consideration Involve The Following:

• Site characteristic
• Overall shape of the building plan and layout
• Material and construction of the building fabric
• Architectural detailing
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Site characteristic Material and construction of the building fabric

• The extent of solar radiation received on the site • Material of the envelope
• The wind flow pattern across the site • Solid-void relationship on the envelope
• The albedo of the site • Depth of buildings and porosity of the built form

Overall shape of the building plan & layout

Architectural detailing of the built form
• The form of the building
• The orientation of the building • Overall building section
• Means of efficient cross ventilation
• Building material and elements.
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Solar Control through Window

The greatest source of heat gain can be the solar radiation entering through a window. This could, in
fact, increase the indoor temperature far above the out-door air temperature, even in moderate climates,
through what is known as the greenhouse effect'. Window glasses are practically transparent for short-
wave infra-red radiation emitted by the sun, but almost opaque for long-wave radiation emitted by
objects in the room. The consequence of this is that the radiant heat, once it has entered through a
window, is trapped, inside the building. If solar overheating is a problem, as in all tropical climates, there
are four methods available for the reduction of solar heat gain through windows, four variables which
are within the control of the designer:

• Orientation and Window size

• Internal Blinds, curtains
• Special Glasses
• External shading devices
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Orientation and Window Size

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Internal blinds and curtains

Internal blinds and curtains are not very effective ways of solar control. It is true that they stop the
passage of radiation, but they themselves absorb the solar heat and can reach a very high temperature.
The absorbed heat will be partly convicted to the indoor air and partly reradiated. Half of this reradiation
is outwards, but as it is of a long wavelength, it is stopped by the window glass. The usual narrow space
between the window and the blind will thus be quite substantially overheated. The hot surface of the
blind increase the indoor temperature.
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Heat absorbing glasses

An ordinary window glass transmits a large
proportion of all radiation between 300 and 3000
nm, i.e. both visible light and short-wave infra-red,
but very little around and outside the 300 to 3000
nm range. Its transmittance is selective. This
selective transmittance can be modified by varying
the composition of the glass to reduce substantially
the infra-red transmission, whilst only slightly
affecting the light transmission. Such a product is
referred to as heat absorbing glass.
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External Shading Device

Shading can be provided by the building elements

such as awnings, overhangs, and trellises.
Some shading devices can also function as
reflectors, called light shelves, which bounce natural
light for daylighting deep into building interiors.

External shading devices, such as eaves, awnings,

and verandahs, play a critical role in reducing
unwanted solar heat gain, during summer
time. Shading devices work firstly by restricting
unwanted direct solar radiation through windows.
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Introduction
Solar Geometry
Solar Geometry is the Determining Factor of Heat Gain, Shading And
the Potential of Daylight Penetration.

Why solar geometry?

Understanding solar geometry is essential in order to :
• Passive building design ( for heating and cooling)
• Orient building properly
• Understand seasonal changes in the buildings and surroundings
• Design shading device
• Use the sun to animate architecture

Solar geometry works:

- The sun is generally high in the summer making it easy to block the
sun with shading device in the wall surface
It is naturally low in winter, allowing the sun to penetrate below our
-
shading devices and enter the building.
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Sky Dome

Position of the Sun

The Altitude (Υ)

The angle subtended by the sun with
respect to the ground at the position of the
observer on the vertical plane passing
through the observer and the sun is the
altitude of the sun.

The Azimuth (α)

If a person stands facing the sun and
imagines a vertical plane passing through
himself and the sun, then the angle
between the north direction and the said
plane measured clock wise is the
‘azimuth’ of the sun.
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altitude
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• Sun-Path / Sun-Path Diagrams

Sun-path refers to the apparent significant seasonal-and-
hourly positional changes of the sun (and length of daylight)
as the Earth rotates and orbits around the Sun.

• Sun-path diagrams are maps of the sky-vault projected on a

horizontal plane.

The most immediate use of a sun-path diagram is that the solar

azimuth and the altitude can be read and hence the position
can be exactly determined.
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• Sun-Path / Sun-Path Diagrams

By identifying the solar-windows of a particular
location, one can design the building such that there
is maximum utility of the solar energy by placing
thermal mass required for indirect heat gain in the
right orientation.

• By tracing down the surface area illuminated, to the

greatest extent, by the sun, the location of
clerestories and fenestrations of a building can be
optimized so that the thermal and visual comfort
levels in the building are met.

• The shading devices also can be designed similarly.

• By studying the sun-path diagram of a place one

can identify the optimal orientation of solar panels in
a given building.
 Sun Path / 1
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Sun-Path
•
Diagrams
Coming to one of the most important uses, the location of the house so that it receives the maximum shade
during summer can be obtained using software's like Autodesk Ecotec, Sketchup plagins.
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Sun-Path / Sun-Path Diagrams_sun path diagrams look like

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Sun-Path Diagram with surroundings

AHSANULLAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE | ARC 2123| FARJANA RAHMAN
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Sun-Path, Representation of Sun path in 2-D

So far you have seen the 3-D view, how does this look
like on paper?

• So people came up with methods to represent it on paper

which define the basis for characterization of sun-path
diagrams.

• The most popular 2 representations are:

Fig: Polar sun-path diagrams

1. Polar
Depending on the scale of the altitude circles,
the projections are again classified into 3 types:
Spherical , Equidistant and Stereographic.

2. Cartesian

Fig: Cartesian sun-path diagrams

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Sun-Path, Representation of Sun path in 2-D

How does somebody even read that?

Azimuthal lines:
Azimuth angles run around the edge of the diagram in 15° increments. A point's azimuth from the reference
position is measured in a clockwise direction from True North on the horizontal plane. True North on the
stereographic diagram is the positive Y axis (straight up) and is marked with an N.

Altitude lines:
Altitude angles are represented as concentric circular dotted lines that run from the center of the diagram out, in
10° increments from 90° to 0°. A point's altitude from the reference position is measured from the horizontal
plane up.

Date and month lines:

Date lines represent the path of the sun through the sky on one particular day of the year. They start on the
eastern side of the graph and run to the western side. There are twelve of these lines shown, for the 1st day of
each month. The first six months are shown as solid lines (Jan-Jun) whilst the last six months are shown as
dotted (Jul-Dec), to allow a clear distinction even though the path of the Sun is cyclical.

Hour Lines:
Hour lines represent the position of the sun at a specific hour of the day, throughout the year. They are shown as
that intersect the date lines. The intersection points between date and hour lines gives the position of the sun.
Half of each hour line is shown as dotted, to indicate that this is during the latter six months of the year.
 5.2 Sun-Path, Representation of Sun path in 2-D

Azimuthal line
Altitude line

Month and day line

Jul-Dec

Month and day line

Jan-June

Hour line
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SUN-PATH, REPRESENTATION OF SUN PATH IN 2-D
Polar sun-path diagrams

• Step 1 - Locate the required hour line on the diagram.

• Step 2 - Locate the required date line, remembering that solid are used for Jan-
Jun and dotted lines for Jul-Dec.
• Step 3 - Find the intersection point of the hour and date lines. Remember to
intersect solid with solid and dotted with dotted lines.
• Step 4 - Draw a line from the very center of the diagram, through the intersection
point, out to the perimeter of the diagram.
• Step 5 - Read the azimuth as an angle taken clockwise from North.
• Step 6 - Trace a concentric circle around from the intersection point to the
vertical North axis, on which is displayed the altitude angles.

• Step 7 - Interpolate between the concentric circle lines to find the altitude.
Sun-Path, Stereographic projection
Sun-Path, Stereographic projection
Sun-Path / Sun-Path Diagrams_ Sun path diagrams look like
Sun-Path / Sun-Path Diagrams_sun path diagrams look like
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Shading Device:
According to shading devices divided into two types based on application, internal shading and
external shading

1. Internal shading is interior element on inside windows. Internal shading devices generally can
adjustable. Thus shading can be blinds, curtains and others.
2. External shading is the shading element which is placed on building external. External
shading devices can reduced thermal energy effectively to anticipate and reduced radiation
before glass surfaces.

External shading devices divided into 2 types, Fixed Devices and Adjustable Devices.
I. Adjustable Devices generally used indoor or outdoor or between inside and outside of
windows (double glazing system) and generally used in internal shading systems.
II. Fixed Devices generally used outdoor and influence façade building. Building orientation was
the point.
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OBJECTIVE

Control intense direct sunlight to ensure a comfortable workspace.

• This is critical for occupant visual and thermal comfort and for minimizing
mechanical cooling loads.
• Direct sun is acceptable in less demanding spaces, such as circulation
zones, lobbies, eating areas, etc.

CATEGORIES
Shading devices can be grouped into three categories: the horizontal
overhang, vertical fin, and Overhang and fin combination or eggcrate.
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Design of Shading Device

Shadow Angle and Shadow Angle Protractor
The Sun’s position in relation to the wall surface of any
orientation (angle of incidence, β) can be established. The
performance of shading devices is specified by two
angles:

-Horizontal shadow angle (δ_Delta) which is the difference

between the solar azimuth and the wall azimuth and which
characterize a vertical shading device.

Vertical shadow angle (ε_Epsilon) which is solar altitude

-
projected and measured on a vertical plane normal to the
wall under consideration and it characterize a horizontal
shading device.

The distinction between the solar altitude angle and

the vertical shadow angle must be clearly
understood.
The first describes the sun’s position in relation to
the horizon;
The second describes the performance of a shading
device.
 Vertical shadow angle (VSA) which
Horizontal shadow angle (HSA) which
characterize a horizontal shading
characterizes a vertical shading device device

Shadow Angle
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Horizontal shadow angle

Vertical shadow angle

Shadow Angle Protractor

 Shadow Angle and Shading Mask
Shadow Angle Protractor

Vertical shadow angle Horizontal shadow angle

Vertical Shading
Device
Horizontal
Shading Device

Shadow Mask Shadow Mask

Evaluation
of Shading
Device

105
 Shading Device Shading Mask

1 1a 1b
Vertical Shading Device (Plan)

2b

Horizontal Shading Device (Section) Combined Shading Device

living shades
Design of Shading Device
Sun path Diagram

Shadow Angle Protractor

Summer

Winter
Design of Shading Device
Design of Shading Device