Brown Bauhaus Climate Design Flashcards
The average rate at which radiant energy from the sun is received by the earth, used in calculating the effects of solar radiation on buildings
Solar constant
The angular elevation of a celestial body above the horizon
Altitude
Either of the two times during the year when the sun crosses the plane of the celestial equator and when the length of day and night are everywhere approximately equal, occurring about March 21 and September 21
Equinox
March 21
Vernal / Spring Equinox
September 21
Autumnal Equinox
A great circle on the earth’s surface passing through both geophysical poles
Meridian
The placing of a building in relation to the path of the sun, either to maximize the amount of heat gained from solar radiation during the coldest months or to minimize the amount of heat gained in the warmest month
Solar orientation
A solar-heating system using a building’s design and construction and the natural flow of heat to collect, store, and distribute solar energy, with minimal use of fans and pumps
Passive solar-heating
A bank of earth placed against one or more exterior walls of a building as protection against extremes in temperature
Berm
A screen usually of louvers, placed on the outside of a building to shield the windows from direct sunlight.
(A French term, which means “sunscreen”)
Brise-soleil
The circulation of fresh air through open windows, doors, or other openings on opposite sides of a room
Cross ventilation
The tendency of air or gas in a shaft or other vertical space to rise when heated, creating a draft that draws in cooler air or gas from below
Chimney effect
The climate as affected by landform
Topoclimate
The movement of water from ocean to atmosphere, rain, run off, soil water, ground water (in aquifers), and back to the sea
Hydrologic cycle
Any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that is deposited on the Earth’s surface. Its main forms of include rain, snow, ice pellets, and graupel.
Precipitation
The ability of air movement to produce comfort cooling
Natural ventilation
An architectural design approach where air is collected and transferred predominantly by natural means using evaporative cooling effects of water and greenhouse effect of vegetation to distribute cool breeze through a structure within the limits of indoor design temperature conditions
Passive cooling
A part of the architecture, in both its historical, theoretical, and technical perception combining aesthetic and psychological qualities of light, orientation, cross-section, finishes, and fenestration in general
Daylighting
The temperature of air measured by a thermometer freely exposed to the air but shielded from radiation and moisture. In construction, it is an important consideration when designing a building for a certain climate
Dry bulb temperature
The amount of water vapor that exists in a gaseous mixture of air and water
Relative humidity
Any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that is deposited on the Earth’s surface
Wind
A strategy of climate control using wall insulation, area, and orientation of glazing in the building shell, etc.
Static control
The electromagnetic radiation and particles (electrons, protons, and rarer heavy atomic nuclei) emitted by the sun
Solar radiation
A strategy of climate control using operable window sash, movable window insulation, adjustable sun-shading devices, etc.
Dynamic control
The process of heat transfer through solid building materials in which heat energy is transmitted from particle to particle within the material
Thermal conduction
A measure of solar radiation energy received on a given surface area in a given time
Insolation (Insident solar radiation)
The time rate of heat flow through a unit surface area (1 sqm) of a body from one of its faces to the other, for a unit temperature difference (1F) between them
Conductance
The rate of heat transfer through a material or composite such as a building assembly
Thermal transmission
The time rate of heat flow through a unit area and unit thickness of a homogenous material under steady-state conditions
Conductivity
The entry of cold air through joints, cracks, and faulty seals in construction, and around doors and windows
Infiltration
The “fictitious” temperature of outdoor air which would produce the same rate of heat entry into the surface as occurs due to the actual combination of incident solar radiation, radiant exchange with the sky and other surroundings, and convective heat exchange with outdoor air
Sol-Air Temperature (SAT)
The heat entering the interior through a glazing material exposed to the sun due to its transmission of solar radiation and due to the glazing’s inward liberation of heat absorbed within it
Solar heat gain
The measure of light intensity striking a surface
Illuminance
The ratio of the amount of radiant energy released (emitted) by a particular surface at a specified wavelength and temperature to the emittance of an ideal “blackbody” at the same wavelength and temperature
Emittance
The ratio of the amount of radiant energy transmitted through specified thickness of a substance at a specified wavelength to the total amount of radiant energy incident upon its surface
Transmittance
A measure of the insulation value or resistance to heat flow of building elements or materials
Thermal resistance
The transfer of heat by the movement of a liquid or gas
Convection
The process of supplying or removing air by natural or mechanical means to or from a space, usually through air exchange with the out-of-doors
Ventilation
Convective heat transfer propelled by pressure differences. It may be induced by pumps, fans, or blowers, or acting upon the exterior of buildings, by the wind (although the wind is purely natural convection occurring on a regional scale).
Forced convection
A system in which a coolant is circulated by convection caused by a difference in density between the hot and cold portions of the liquid
Thermosiphon
The transfer of heat energy through space by electromagnetic radiation
Thermal radiation
A large amount of heat is absorbed by water in its change of phase, and the specific quantity required effecting the change from liquid at a given temperature at the same temperature
Latent heat
The rate of evaporation depends primarily upon the difference in vapor pressure between the ambient outdoor air and the very thin film of vapor-saturated air that resides at the surface of the water
Evaporative surface cooling
The temperature at which water evaporates into the air can bring the air into saturation “adiabatically” at the same temperature
Wet-bulb temperature
The problem inherent in using the roof as an evaporative cooling surface to extract heat from the interior is identical to that of coupling the interior to the roof as a radiator
Heat extraction
A measure of a material’s ability to reject solar heat, as shown by its temperature rise under full sun
Solar reflective index (SRI)
A solar heating system consisting of a masonry thermal storage wall placed between the solar aperture and the heated space
Trombe wall
The sector of the sky as seen from a daylight aperture or building surface. It can be measured in either section or as a three-dimensional solid angle. The larger the area of the sky and the higher the daylight factor in the room.
Sky view factor
The upwind side of a building or obstruction that faces the direction, from which the wind blows, usually subjected to higher pressure
Windward
The maximum buildable volume on a site that will not shade adjacent sites during specified dates and times
Solar gain
