The cooling performance of a building integrated evaporative cooling system driven by solar energy

The solar chimney is a passive cooling technique to enhance the natural ventilation of buildings. The effect is, however, limited under hot and humid climatic conditions. In the study, the solar chimney was accompanied by a dew-point evaporative cooler. The dew-point evaporative cooler was integrated with the ceiling of a building. The air flow induced by the solar chimney was predicted by simulation, and the cooling effect of the dew-point evaporative cooler was also analyzed by heat and mass transfer simulation. The results showed that the system was capable of coping with internal heat gains of an ordinary office building. In addition, the optimal geometry of the evaporative cooling channel was revealed.

► We proposed a solar chimney driven evaporative cooling system for buildings.
► The air flow rate as well as the cooling effect were predicted by simulation.
► The channel width of the evaporative cooler was a influential parameter of design.
► We showed the optimum channel width in terms of cooling capacity.
► The system would cope with internal heat gains of ordinary office buildings.