Energy conservation in buildings with integration of advanced ventilated wall components.

The performance of a Ventilated wall component under real weather conditions was tested, during two weather seasons, winter and summer. The component was built in a 1:1 scale, consisting of two equal area parts, a Ventilated wall with and without a radiant barrier. It was installed at the South faade of a PASSYS outdoor Test Cell at CRES. Air openings were located at the bottom and top of each wall component in order to facilitate the air movement through the air gap. Simultaneous measurements were carried out at both wall components in order to perform a comparative study of their performance. Different configurations were tested on both wall parts, namely: different air inlet and outlet areas, by changing the number of openings, natural and mechanical ventilation of the air gap, controlled and floating room air temperature. Results showed that the application of this technique in the building's structure is beneficial in terms of reducing the cooling load. This paper describes the design, construction, experimental testing and results drawn out of this experimental study for the summer period.