Open AccessUtilizing a novel mobile diagnostics lab to validate the impact of vegetative wall coverings in building cooling load reduction
Author(s) -
O Fagbule,
Rajeev B Patel,
Ulrike Passe,
John E. Thompson
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of physics. conference series
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.21
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1742-6596
pISSN - 1742-6588
DOI - 10.1088/1742-6596/2069/1/012126
Subject(s) - shading , heat flux , environmental science , greenhouse , evaporative cooler , solar gain , thermal comfort , cooling load , thermal , thermal conduction , flux (metallurgy) , heat transfer , materials science , air conditioning , meteorology , mechanical engineering , engineering , composite material , mechanics , horticulture , physics , computer science , computer graphics (images) , metallurgy , biology
Building cooling loads are driven by heat gains through enclosures. This research identifies possible ways of reducing the building cooling loads through vegetative shading. Vegetative shading reduces heat gains by blocking radiation and by evaporative air cooling. Few measured data exist, so we gathered thermal data from a vegetative wall grown in front of a Mobile Diagnostics Lab (MDL), a trailer with one conditioned room with instrumentation that collects thermal data from heat flux sensors and thermistors within its walls. In spring 2020 a variety of plants were cultivated in a greenhouse and planted in front of the south façade of the MDL, which was placed in direct sunlight to collect heat flux data. The plants acted as a barrier for solar radiation and reduced the amount of thermal energy affecting the trailer surface. Data were collected through the use of 16 heat flux sensors and development of continuous infrared (IR) images indicating surface temperature with and without plant cover. The façade surface beneath the plants was 10-30 °C cooler than exposed façade areas. In further analyses, the heat-flux data were compared to IR temperature data.