Abstract
The article describes a 'climatically adaptive' approach to intelligent building in which a variety of technologies are integrated in the architectural design to provide thermal comfort with a minimal expenditure of energy. This concept is illustrated by the design of the Blaustein International Center for Desert Studies, a multi-use complex completed recently at the Sede-Boker Campus of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. In response to the local climate of this desert region, a number of strategies were developed by the authors to exploit natural energy for heating and cooling: earth berming of major parts of the building, 'selective glazing' for seasonal shading and energy collection, a down-draft 'cool-tower' for evaporative cooling and a hybrid mechanism for hot-air supply are several of the unique systems whose performance and feasibility are analyzed within the context of the overall building design.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 417-425 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Automation in Construction |
Volume | 6 |
Issue number | 5-6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 1 Jan 1997 |
Keywords
- Bio-climatic architecture
- Earth berming
- Evaporative cooling
- Passive heating
- Selective glazing
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Control and Systems Engineering
- Civil and Structural Engineering
- Building and Construction