A Systematic Analysis of Phase Change Material and Optically Advanced Roof Coatings Integration for Athenian Climatic Conditions

Angeliki Kitsopoulou, Evangelos Bellos (), Panagiotis Lykas, Christos Sammoutos, Michail Gr. Vrachopoulos and Christos Tzivanidis
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Angeliki Kitsopoulou: Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15772 Athens, Greece
Evangelos Bellos: Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15772 Athens, Greece
Panagiotis Lykas: Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15772 Athens, Greece
Christos Sammoutos: Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15772 Athens, Greece
Michail Gr. Vrachopoulos: Department of Agricultural Development, Agrofood and Management of Natural Resources, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 34400 Psachna, Greece
Christos Tzivanidis: Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 15772 Athens, Greece

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 22, 1-20

Abstract: Energy retrofit solutions that concern a building’s roof structure play a significant role in the enhancement of a building’s thermal behaviour. This study investigates the integration of phase change materials (PCMs) with cool coatings (CCs) or thermochromic coatings (TCCs), namely, a PCM roof, a PCM-CC roof, and a PCM-TCC roof, as alternative and novel tactics for the simultaneous control of solar heat transfer and solar heat reflection. An energy simulation analysis with the DesignBuilder tool is conducted for a one-story residence and the climatic conditions of Athens. The simulation results indicate that, compared to the existing concrete roof construction, the PCM roof, PCM-CC, and PCM-TCC roof systems demonstrate energy savings that reach up to 13.55%, 16.04%, and 21.70%, respectively. The systematic analysis reveals that the increase in PCM’s thickness leads to an increase in the total electricity savings of the buildings, but in the case of PCM-CC and PCM-TCC roof systems, they merely effect the cooling thermal loads. The mean phase transition temperature that favours the cumulative electricity savings is 28 °C in the case of PCM and PCM-TCC roof systems and 35 °C in the case of PCM-CC roof systems. The methodology of this study allows the design of efficient, integrated roof systems with advanced thermal and optical properties as energy retrofit solutions for Mediterranean climatic conditions.

Keywords: thermochromic; phase change material; latent storage; energy savings; retrofitting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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