Perspective of shading devices in energy saving of buildings

Abstract

As energy usage is increasing around the world and the price of energy is soaring, energy consumption of buildings is getting one of the most concerns of today life. Different strategies is been studied through decreasing energy demand of building that this paper reviews studies which shading device roles as an energy saving system. Shading device is not new element of architecture but its performance through energy saving makes it one of important research areas today. Choosing appropriate shading device is so crucial and can affect amount of energy saved. Its designing is dependent to climate, sun path and orientation of building. Choosing external or internal shading is also dependent to what we expect from shading device and each (external or internal) has different subgroups such as; overhang, light shelf, louver, blinds and combination of them. Researches show that the shading device can affect different aspects of the design of a building for example: thermal comfort, heat gain by glazed area, glare control, daylighting, visual comfort and energy saving. Different type of materials also can affect the performance of shading. Moreover the installation of shading device, its maintenance, being moveable or fixed can affect the outcome. Furthermore, a routine office room in tropical climate is selected and simulated with software with and without shading. For both situation the energy demand of office is been calculated by Energyplus. The aim of this simulation is to investigate the influence of shading device on energy saving of building. Overall the overviews and simulation confirm that designing shading device wisely at first steps of design or as an additional element for built buildings has a considerable effect to energy consumption. It also should be considered that shading design and installation of it is one of the less pricy steps through energy saving in building.