Displacing air conditioning in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: An evaluation of ‘fabric first’ design integrated with hybrid night radiant and ground pipe cooling systems

This paper presents an investigation into the viability of ‘fabric first’ intelligent architectural design measures, in combination with a hybrid cooling system.The specific aim is to displace air conditioning (AC) and reduce carbon dioxide, while maintaining thermal comfort, in a typical housing block in KSA. The results of thermal modelling and prototype field trials suggest that passive design measures combined with night radiant cooling and supply ventilation via ground pipes, can negate the requirement for a standard AC system. Such a strategy may also have a remarkably short payback period when energy savings, in use, are set against the additional capital costs associated with improved building fabric performance.

Practical application: This study suggests that a significant proportion of AC cooling energy can be displaced by improving building fabric performance in combination with supply ventilation via ground pipes. As radiometer readings fell as low as 2.8℃ when the night sky is clear, roof-mounted high emissivity hydronic radiant panels can also provide a significant opportunity for additional heat flushing. In hybrid combination, these strategies have the potential to lower the carbon footprint of a typical housing block in KSA by over 80% and these measures and strategies will be equally applicable and cost-effective in all geographic regions of the world where cooling loads represent the predominant domestic energy use.