Journal of the Indian institute of architects (JIIA)

87 | Rajesh Malik

A Holistic Review of the Performance of the Passive Downdraught Evaporative Cooling System as a Partial Substitute to Air Conditioning in Hot and Dry Climates - Rajesh Malik
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Abstract

The objective of this paper is to review the functioning of the passive downdraft evaporative cooling system in vernacular as well as contemporary architecture and suggest appropriate means of integrating it with air-conditioning in order to offset the inherent drawbacks of both the systems. The methodology adopted to achieve this objective was revisiting the fundamental principles of the conventional PDEC in order to summarise the advantages and shortcomings in the functioning of PDEC in contemporary buildings and analyse the pros and cons of PDEC through energy simulation exercises. The major findings of the paper include an analysis of the contributions of some of the major parameters towards the performance of PDEC which offer an insight into the possible improvements in the performance of PDEC through innovations and their repercussions.

Keywords

Passive, Cooling, Downdraft, Energy, Evaporation

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References
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