An Energy Efficient School for a Nature Disposed Population in Arid Lands of Central Argentina

FILIPPIN, C., BEASCOCHEA, A., FLORES LARSEN, S. AND LESINO,G

Journal of Building Physics

SAGE Publications

Año: 2007 vol. 30 p. 241 - 260

The monitoring and simulated thermal behaviour of a passive solar school at the Northwest of La Pampa province (Argentina) and the results of social-environmental surveys are presented. The passive design strategies were direct solar gain, thermal mass, insulated building envelope, daylighting, and natural ventilation. The monitoring was done under normal conditions of use (with the heaters working because of students attendance) and during an unoccupied period in winter holidays. The transient thermal simulation was done with SIMEDIF for Windows, a code developed at INENCO (Non Conventional Energy Research Institute) and widely used by researchers of Argentina. Northern glazed areas, orientation, internal heat gains, and use of the heating system, were analysed. The daily energy consumption was 0.009m3 of building useful area. When compared to conventional schools, 90% of energy savings were noticed. The surveys showed that PPD (Predicted Percentage of Dissatisfied) was around 5, with mean temperature and relative humidity around 17ºC and 27%, 1.6 clo (with jacket), and 1.8met of metabolic rate (1 met = 58 W/m2). Therefore, ISO 7730 standards were satisfactory accomplished.