AS202

MODULE - I CLIMATE AND

BUILT FORM II

Ar. ALEENA ACHI JOSEPH

Assistant Professor (Ad hoc)
Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Technology
Kottayam
SOLARPASSIVEARCHITECTURE

Presentation on : Earth Berming

Earth air tunnel
Wind tower
Vary thermal wall

Ar. Aleena Achi Joseph

Assistant Professor
Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Technology,
Pampady, Kottayam
 EARTH BERMING

• A Bermed house may be built above grade or partially below

grade, with earth covering one or more walls.
• An “elevational” bermed design exposes one elevation or face of
the house and covers the other side and sometimes the roof
with earth to protect and insulate the house.
• The exposed front of the house, usually facing south, allows
the sun to light and heat the interior.
• Placed skylights can ensure adequate ventilation and daylight
in the northern portions of the house.

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ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

• An earth-sheltered home is less • The principal downsides to earth-sheltered

susceptible to the impact of extreme houses are the initial cost of construction,
outdoor air temperatures than a which can be up to 2 0 % more than a
conventional house. conventional house, and the increased level of
care required to avoid moisture problems, both
• Earth-sheltered houses also require less
during construction and over the life of the
outside maintenance, and the earth
house.
surrounding the house provides
soundproofing.
• In addition, plans for most earth-sheltered
houses "blend" the building into the landscape
more harmoniously than a conventional home.
• Finally, earth-sheltered houses can cost less
to insure because they offer extra protection
against high winds, hailstorms, and natural
disasters such as tornados and hurricanes.

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SITE-SPECIFIC FACTORS FOR EARTH-SHELTERED DESIGN

• Before deciding to design and build an earth-sheltered house, you’ll need to

consider your building,
o Site's climate
o Topography
o Soil
o Groundwater level.

1. Climate: earth-sheltered houses are more cost-effective in climates

that have significant temperature extremes and low humidity.

• Rocky Mountains and northern Great Plains.

• Earth temperatures vary much less than air temperatures.
• Earth can absorb extra heat from the house in hot weather
or insulate the house to maintain warmth in cold weather.

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2. Topography: 3 . S oil: 4.Groundwater Level:

• Soil at your site is another • The groundwater level at

• A modest slope requires critical consideration. your building site is also
more excavation than a Granular soils such as sand important.
steep one. and gravel are best for earth • Natural drainage away from
• A flat site is the most sheltering. the building is the best way
demanding, needing extensive • These soils compact well for to avoid water pressure
excavation. bearing the weight of the against underground walls,
construction materials and are but installed drainage
• South-facing slope in a region with very permeable, allowing systems can be used to
moderate to long winters . water to drain quickly. draw water away from the
• South-facing windows can let in • The poorest soils are structure.
sunlight for direct heating, while cohesive, like clay, which may
the rest of the house is set back expand when wet and has
into the slope. poor permeability. Other Construction
• Regions with mild winters and hot
Considerations
summers, a north-facing slope • Waterproofing
might be ideal • Humidity
• Insulation
• Air exchange
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 CASE STUDY

• Gophers and Hobbits are not the only creatures

who enjoy living in underground homes.
• In the U. S. there are over 6 ,0 0 0 underground
homes built all across the country.
• One of the main advantages of underground
homes, are cooler than conventional homes, and
are resistant to natural disasters like hurricanes,
tornadoes.
• But, the number one feature of underground
homes is the energy savings.
• Use of solar panel system, free from paying
energy bills. Being underground, these homes
have quality of noise insulation which makes them
soundproof.

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Case Study- AMDAVAD NI GUFA, AHMEDABAD

• Amdavad ni Gufa is an underground art gallery in

Ahmedabad.
• It exhibits works of the famous artist Maqbool Fida
Hussain.
• The Cave-like underground structure has a roof made of
multiple interconnected domes, covered with a mosaic
of tiles.
• On the inside, irregular tree-like columns support the
domes.
• The mosaic tiles on the roof are similar to those found
on the roofs of the Jain temples at Girnar, and the
mosaic snake is from Hindu mythology.

DEVELOPMENT :
• The entire design is made up of circles and ellipses.

• The interior is divided by tree trunk or columns similar to

those found on stonehenge.

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 CONSTRUCTION:
• A simple floor of wire mesh and mortar was used instead of a
traditional foundation.
• All the structure's components are self-supporting.
• Ferro cement, only one inch thick, was used for the undulating walls and
domes in order to reduce load.
STRUCTURE :
• Light arrives though snouts creating spots of light on the floor which
move around as the day progresses, intended to create a mystic
atmosphere
• The gallery space is below ground level.
• A partially hidden staircase leads to a
circular door which opens into a cave-
like space.
• Though designed to display
paintings, the cave has no straight
walls, instead using a continuation of
the curved dome structure which
extends down to the floor.

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 EARTH AIR TUNNELS
The Earth Air Tunnel (EAT) systems utilizes the heat-
storing capacity of earth.
• Temperature remain four meter below the surface
remains almost constant throughout the year.
• That makes it potentially useful in providing buildings
with air-conditioning.
•It depends on the ambient temperature of the
location, the EAT system can be used to provide both
cooling during the summer and heating during winter.
• The tunnels would be especially useful for large
buildings with ample surrounding ground.
• The EAT system can not be cost effective for small
individual residential buildings.
•The ground temperature remains constant and air if
pumped in appropriate amount that allows sufficient
contact time for the heat transfer to the medium
attains the same temperature as the ground
temperature.

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EARTH-AIR TUNNEL PRINCIPLE
Underground heat exchanger
Also called:
o Earth-Air Heat Exchangers
o Air-to-soil Heat Exchangers
o Earth Canals

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TUBE MATERIAL
EAT can be used in either:
• The main considerations in
selecting tube material are: oClosed loop system
o Cost oOpen loop system
o Strength
o Corrosion
• Open loop system: outdoor air is
o Resistance drawn into tubes and delivered to AHU
o Durability or directly to the inside of the building
provides ventilation while hopefully Closed loop system
• Tube material has little cooling or heating the building interior
influence on performance. improves IAQ.
• Selection would be
determined by other
factors like ease of • Closed loop system: interior air
installation, corrosion circulates through EAT increases
resistance etc. efficiency, reduces problem with
humidity condensing inside tubes.

Open loop system

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TUBE
ARRANGEMENTS
• EAT can be used in either:
o One-tube system
o Parallel tubes system
• One tube system may not be
appropriate to meet air
conditioning requirements of a
building, resulting in the tube
being too large • Classification of EATHE (EAT Heat Exchanger)system
• Parallel tubes system o According to layout of pipe in ground
o More pragmatic design option o According to mode of arrangement
Reduce pressure drop, Raise
thermal performance • There are four different types according to layout of pipe in the
ground
• Horizontal/ straight Loop, Vertical Looped, Slinky/ spiral
Looped, Pond/Helical Looped

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CASE STUDY- Organo

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DESIGN
At Naandi – the Air handling units suck the outdoor air into the cement pipes (Hume pipes) in a ring main
running around the entire layout which is underground at a depth of four meters or 1 2 feet. Outdoor air enters
this ring main pipe through intake Orifices due to the static pressure created by the air handling unit. Air in this
ring main travels long distance below the ground before entering the villa site through the 3 0 0 M M secondary
pipe laid under the landscape. These 3 0 0 M M pipes are connected to a network of 1 0 0 M M pipes in the
basement of each villa. Each of the 1 0 0 M M pipes will open as Air vents in all the rooms of the villa. That is,
two openings in the living room, two for each of the three Bedrooms.

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The Ring main pipe being using at Naandi are 9 0 0
M M in diameter and are placed four meters below
the ground level. The larger size of the pipes
allows the air to come into contact with more
surface area of the earth increasing the rate of
heat transfer between the air in the pipe and the
soil.

The air handling units installed at each villa suck the air
from the outdoors through the intake orifices that are
strategically kept below Neem or other trees in the
farm into the ring main hume pipes where the air loses
its heat to the earth surrounding it. Thus cooled air is
sent through a set of filters and pushed into the villa
through the underground basement pipes (100 MM)
which travel vertically up through the walls opening in
each room as vents.

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 WIND TOWER

• Wind tower is generally used in hot and dry

climate for cooling purpose.
• The tower is meant to catch the wind at higher
elevations and direct in to the living space.
• The air passing in the tower may have equal or
different areas.
• The tower may have only one opening facing wind
direction ,if the wind is predominantly in one
direction, or many openings in all directions in
locations with variable window directions.

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 WORKING PRINCIPAL
In the presence of wind the cool night air enters the tower and forces itself down into the structure.
It is warmed slight during the process, sufficient cooling can be achieved due to forced circulation.
Again cooling due to noctumal radiation adds to this process

• Windcatchers tend to have one, four, or eight

openings. The construction of a windcatcher
depends on the direction of airflow at that specific
location.
• If the wind tends to blow from only one side, it is
built with only one downwind opening.
FUNCTION:
• The windcatcher can function in three ways:
Directing airflow downward using direct wind entry,
Directing airflow upwards using a wind-assisted
Temperature gradient, or directing airflow upwards
using a solar-assisted temperature gradient

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TORRENT RESEARCH CENTRE BUILDING...
• Location: GIDC Bhat, Bhat,
Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.
• Architect and interior
consultants: Nimish Patel and
parul Zaveri, Abhikram,
Ahmedabad.
• Total built-up area -19700sqm
• Project period : 1 9 9 4 - 1 9 9 9

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Inlets

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CONSEQUENCES:
• The consequences of this major experiment have been under observation since the
first occupation of the building and will continue to be carried for the coming years.
• In the summers, the inside temperature have generally not exceeded 31 ℃ to
32℃,when the outside temperature have risen up to44℃,a 12 ℃ -13 ℃ drop
• The temperature fluctuation inside the building have rarely exceeded beyond 3 ℃ to4 ℃ over
any 2 4 hour period, when the temperature fluctuations outside were as much as 14 ℃ to
17 ℃ .
• The economic viability of the project is demonstrated by the following indicators, which are
computed for the total project, on the basis of the results from the building under
observation.
• Additional civil works cost of the project including insulation etc. Works out to about
1 2 % t o 1 3 % of the conventional building.
• 200M.tonnes of amount energy is saved from Air-conditioning plant.
• The cumulative capital cost of the civil works and the A.C.plant works out of approx. 50lakhs
more then the conventionally designed buildings.
• The annual saving in the electrical consumption including the saving on account of less use of
artificial lighting during the day is approximately 60lakhs.
• The pay back period of the additional capacity cost, from the saving of the electrical
consumption alone, works out to a little less than 1 year.
• The pay-back period for the cost of the construction of the entire complex, from the
savings if the electrical consumption as well as plant replacement costs, work out at around
1 5 years.
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 THERMAL WALL
• Thermal mass is the ability of a material to absorb and store heat energy.
• A lot of heat energy is required to change the temperature of high
density materials like concrete, bricks and tiles. They are therefore said
to have high thermal mass.
• Lightweight materials such as timber have low thermal mass.
• Appropriate use of thermal mass can make a big difference to comfort and
heating and cooling bills.
• Thermal mass can store solar energy during the day and re-radiate it at night.
• Thermal mass, correctly used, moderates internal temperatures by averaging
out diurnal (day−night) extremes. This increases comfort and reduces energy
costs.
• Poor use of thermal mass can exacerbate the worst extremes of the climate
and can be a huge energy and comfort liability.
• It can radiate heat to you all night as you attempt to sleep during a
summer heatwave or absorb all the heat you produce on a winter night.
• To be effective, thermal mass must be integrated with solar passive design
techniques.
• This means having appropriate areas of glazing facing appropriate directions
with appropriate levels of shading, ventilation, insulation and thermal mass.

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HOW THERMAL M A S S WORKS
• Thermal mass acts as a thermal battery.
• During summer it absorbs heat during the day and releases it by night to cooling breezes or clear night skies,
keeping the house comfortable.
• In winter the same thermal mass can store the heat from the sun or heaters to release it at night, helping the
home stay warm.
• Thermal mass is not a substitute for insulation.
• Thermal mass stores and re-releases heat; insulation stops heat flowing into or out of the building.
• A high thermal mass material is not generally a good thermal insulator (see Rammed earth).
• Thermal mass is particularly beneficial where there is a big difference between day and night outdoor
temperatures

winter summer

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 Sources

https://www.slideshare.net/AkkiJasani/wind-tower-73195487

https://www.slideshare.net/maitreyiy/earth-air-tunnels

http://3rdmillenniumproject.org/twt-components/

https://www.slideshare.net/prachurya89/ppt-thermal-storage-wall

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 THANK YOU

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