A NEW CONFIGURATION OF ROOF SKYLIGHT COMBINED WITH SOLAR CHIMNEY
•Solar chimney-based ventilation • Daylighting • Air Change • Heat gain reduction • Modular configuration
Abstract
This paper reports experimental performance of a new modular configuration of roof integrating skylight and solar chimney intended to reduce heat gain admission, induce ventilation and ensure sufficient indoor illuminance. This integrated Skylight Solar Chimney (SSC) configuration is composed of three layers: a 1mm thick clear acrylic layer on the outside, a set of 1 mm thick aluminum slats distanced each other at the middle and a layer with a combination of clear acrylic and aluminum slats at the inner side. To assess SSC performances, two small rooms of 2.52m3 volume were built using concrete blocks for walls and corrugated cement panels for the south facing roof slopped at 30 degrees. The roof of the first house, which served as a reference, integrated a transparent corrugated panel whereas the other house integrated our SSC. The dimensions of the SSC are 0.50m x 1.50m x 0.15 m (W x L x H). A 0.025m2 outlet opening was located at the top lateral side whereas two inlet openings of similar surface area were installed on the bottom lower layer (one inside the room and another outside). Three scenarios of SSC inlets were considered. Field test results showed that in all scenarios considered the indoor temperature of room with SSC was 1 to 4 °C lower that of the reference room and varied following ambient conditions. When both inside and outside inlet openings were used, the highest temperature difference was observed. The measured heat flux through the roof of reference house was much more important than all SSC scenarios tested, a 50% difference was observed when both SSC inlets were open. This clearly demonstrated SSC efficiency to reduce heat gain. The air change (ACH) induced varied between 2-29. SCC indoor illuminance was about 50% lower than that of the reference house.
