Archinect - News

Zigzag facades found to be the coolest wall solution for lowering energy consumption in new Columbia study

2024-08-12T15:46:00-04:00

Corrugated facade patterns were shown to reduce surface temperature on structures by up to 3.1°C (5.6°F) in a new experiment from a team of researchers at Columbia University. Their research into a scalable FinWall model, first published this spring in Cell Reports Physical Science, provided insights into a less common radiative cooling (RC) solution for walls to complement more popular techniques, such as white roofs affecting areas of the building envelope that receive considerable less heat stress from the ground.

Furthermore, "building simulations indicate that a mid-rise apartment building equipped with FinWalls can save 24% (or 10%) annual energy versus the same building with high-emissivity walls (or low-emissivity walls) in the US," the paper states. The product allows for retractable fins containing alternatively emissive and reflective surfaces to be deployed in order to "seamlessly transition between the cooling mode and the heating mode by adjusting [their] orientation....

U.N. global chief heat officer warns of the acute dangers of rising temperatures in cities

2023-07-31T15:40:00-04:00

Rising temperatures and increasingly frequent heat waves driven by climate change are turning many Mediterranean cities into dangerous places, especially for vulnerable groups. “We are not focusing enough on how extreme temperatures affect urban environments,” says Eleni Myrivili, who has spent years studying this issue in her hometown of Athens, which is one of the cities hardest hit by rising temperatures.

Amid devastating wildfires and record-breaking numbers of heat-related casualties throughout the Mediterranean region, Spanish newspaper EL PAÍS sits down with Eleni Myrivili, chief heat officer of Athens (Europe's first such municipal appointment) and also global chief heat officer to U.N. Habitat, to learn which concrete design and policy strategies can improve urban live in cities and help protect especially the most vulnerable groups.

Myrivili isn't holding back harsh criticism when she comments on an example of public urban design she deems inadequate for today's challenges — Madrid's Puerta del Sol square — saying, "Today, It is criminal to build squares without shade or cooling elements, because they create higher temperatures in the city, put people’s lives at risk and keep people away from public space."

Speaking also to The Guardian recently, Myrivili remarked on the increasing challenges of heat in cities and the built environment: "People are just starting to realize th...

The ancient ventilation method that’s still keeping Chinese homes cool

2023-07-17T11:46:00-04:00

When asked about why skywells have caught more attention of modern Chinese people, Wang [Zhengfeng] says that the courtyard is also designed to serve as a gathering space for families or communities, and comes with ritual meanings. "Perhaps changes in the way of life could also trigger vernacular nostalgia among people living in concrete and glass forests.” "It won't be easy to be sustainable by learning from the past without reflecting on our current behaviours."

Lightwells are of course, a common passive cooling method in modern Western designs, but in China, their popularity is partly driven by a budding “vernacular nostalgia” for traditional features and concepts. The government’s push towards greener building standards and a 2060 net zero carbon emissions target is also inspiring the renaissance in the face of skyrocketing energy consumption at a critical time. A 2018 report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicted 85% of all homes in the country will have at least one air conditioning unit by 2030.