Thermal Performance Analysis of Highly Reflective Coating on Residences in Hot and Arid Climates

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-2003

Publication Title

Journal of Energy Engineering

Volume

129

Issue

2

First page number:

56

Last page number:

68

Abstract

A 1-D transient model (RESHEAT), developed by the writers, was used to study the thermal performance of a highly reflective paint applied sequentially to the outer walls and roof of a simulated residence in a hot and arid region of the southwestern United States. The model uses climatological inputs from a file that includes hourly data on ambient temperatures, insolation, cloud cover, and so on, at the particular location. The model focuses particularly on the potential cooling load reduction due to the reduced heat pickup from the inside attic surfaces to the outer surfaces of the supply duct. This simulation showed that a reduction of 33.6% (cooling load) on the average is achieved over the base case where no reflective paint is used when the outer surface of the roof and walls are painted. Alternatively, only a 11% reduction would be achieved if the reflective paint is applied only to the roof. Savings of $42 per month are conservatively estimated from calculations made when applying this technology to a typical residence (roof and walls) equipped with a 4 ton refrigeration unit in the Southwest.


Keywords

Coatings; Cooling; Cooling load; Cost optimal control; Dwellings – Air conditioning; Electromagnetic wave reflection; Energy conservation; Reflective materials; Refrigeration; Thermal analysis

Disciplines

Civil and Environmental Engineering | Engineering | Heat Transfer, Combustion | Materials Science and Engineering | Mechanical Engineering | Sustainability

Language

English

Permissions

Use Find in Your Library, contact the author, or interlibrary loan to garner a copy of the item. Publisher policy does not allow archiving the final published version. If a post-print (author's peer-reviewed manuscript) is allowed and available, or publisher policy changes, the item will be deposited.

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