dry climate

It is not unusual to face moisture problems in buildings in cold climates and wet regions. It is, however, unusual to have the same problem in a relatively dry region such as Jordon, which has moderate weather conditions and mild winters. Nevertheless, a significant proportion of houses and residential apartments in Jordan are affected. The monitoring of inside air conditions, wall surface temperatures, ventilation and living style has shown that a high relative humidity (RH >75%) occurs at walls resulting in possible condensation.

Electrical energy consumption in the northwest region of the Mexican Republic during the summer, is the highest of the country, due mainly to the use of mechanical refrigeration systems that are used to condition the interior of the housing and other buildings as a rule. It is shown that it is possible to condition the interior of a house by passive means in a hot dry climate during the summer, through the use of massive walls, evaporative cooling and solar radiation shield systems on the roof.

We describe the potential of using hygroscopic materials that release moisture and latent heat in order to reduce the temperature of building envelopes and, there upon, conduction cooling loads. It is analysed 3 different weathers and a classic Brazilian wall with different values of paint permeance on both external and internal surfaces. The results are presented in terms of temperature, moisture content profiles and heat fluxes, showing how to save energy from the natural movement of moisture.

This article talks about the solutions that the vernacular architecture of desert areas in Iran has used to survive against undesirable climatic conditions. It is a partial result of a research that has been done by the author in 1994 in Shahid Beheshti University in Iran. It discusses and assesses climatic problems and living discomfort of the Zavareh, a small historical city in Esfahan province.

Hispano-Islamic architecture addresses a great concern about summer heat. The seasonal high temperatures and dry atmosphere of southern Spain constituted a real challenge for the XIV-century Muslim builders of the Generalife. This small palace shows clearly a series of environmental strategies involving cooling due to its condition of summer villa for the sultans of Granada. This paper is based on a PhD research project on the Environmental Aspects of Hispano-Islamic Architecture carried out by the author under supervision of Simos Yannas.

The paper presents a bioclimatic house in the Negev Desert, lsrael, as a case study through which it attempts to present a comprehensive and critical view of bioclimatic architecture, design support tools, and appropriate details vis-a-vis common construction technologies and practices, assessing their relative impact and limitations. A number of topics are examined from different aspects, such as insulation and thermal mass, window systems incorporating double glazing, insulated shutters and window screens, vis-a-vis solar gains.lr ventilation and infiltration.