English

The paper describes the possible role of monitoring activities in the study of passive cooling concepts. Special attention goes to monitoring activities for post-implementation performance analysis on real buildings. Various aspects of the monitoring method, the set-up of a monitoring campaign, accuracy aspects of monitoring results as well as their extrapolation are discussed.

To increase of diffusion on the bioclimatic architecture is necessary to make the calculation Method easy to use for designers. In particular the available calculation method for analytical, based on transfer functions or finite elements method or those made for simplified calculations are generally very complex to use. Is necessary to develop methods of analytical type and simplified more "friendly" to use.

There is a substantial gap between truly energy-efficient construction and what is currently being built. The problems range from lack of training to carelessness. But there are ways to cure the problems and bring best practices into widespread use.             

The work in progress of an Expert system called ISOLDE that is being prepared in a specific Tusk of the International Energy Agency is presented. This program will give intelligent user support on energy use and thermal comfort during the design process of commercial buildings through general advices, simplified methods, detailed simulations. In particular the paper focuses on the passive cooling approach covered by this tool. 

A short state of the art in heat attenuation studies and technology is presented, with reference to the climate conditions of Mediterranean countries. The main areas of mass, insulation, building shape, glazing and control are considered. The main problems pertaining to each area are discussed and the most promising perspectives illustrated. A possible scenario for a future European concerted action is proposed, considering both applied research, pre-normative studies, and industrial developments.

Comfort conditions in a warm/hot environment can be achieved by means of several cooling strategies ranging from the obvious sun shading to the less obvious radiant cooling. These strategies are identified and three selected computer models are evaluated in terms of their capability to cope with them. The result is that the most popular or sophisticated computer models available are not able to deal with passive cooling. Also the problem of is the interface between currently available computer models and their final users, the architects, is analyzed.