Application of Passive Cooling Technologies in Commercial Buildings

World over building sector is largest consumer of electrical energy. Energy requirement for air cooling and refrigeration is found to be 40 % of total consumption of electrical energy used in building sector. Passive cooling technologies used in building have good potential of indoor air cooling many building built on these principles are showing reduction in energy requirements. In present work, passive cooling technologies such as planform, shading devices, garden trap bond, fenestration, air ducts, earth berming, and indoor gypsum wall finishes, false ceiling etc. had been integrated into building design of a commercial building at Tuljapur in the hot and dry climatic zone of India. Field experimentation work of measurement of temperatures in indoor and outdoor locations of the building had been conducted to assess the cooling potential of these technologies. It was found that average temperature reduction in indoor atmosphere was archived as 3°C except the temperature difference between indoor and outdoor atmosphere. This was a cumulative effect of above mentioned passive cooling technologies integrated in building design.