Ventilated air chambers in a traditional ceramic product for masonry enclosures with passive cooling

Abstract

The ceramic products in architecture present an opportunity for development in constructive solutions capable of mitigating the thermal loads in the building envelope, the present work starts from the challenge of adding passive attributes that diminish the heat transfer in masonry systems composed by pieces of fired clay, this objective is based on the recognition of the strengths of the traditional products of the ceramic industry in the region of Norte de Santander, Colombia; the solution derived from this research process responds to conditions of warm tropical climate typical of the city of Cúcuta as a case study. In the first stage of exploration, those pieces that due to their physical-thermal properties and their positioning in the industry offer an opportunity for thermal efficiency in local construction from a low-cost perspective are analyzed from the market offer; later, following theoretical criteria, strategies for the addition of passive cooling in the region's resources are established; and finally, in a process of analysis that involves technological tools with parameters typical of the place, the effectiveness of the methods developed from thermal simulations in temperature conditions of 33°C is evaluated. The present study appreciates the potential of tradition and configures alternatives to reduce energy consumption due to air conditioning and comfort requirements in Nortesantanderean buildings.