Dynamic Radiant Barrier for Modulating Heat Transfer and Reducing Building Energy Usage

Tyler R. Stevens, Behzad Parsi, Rydge B. Mulford and Nathan B. Crane ()
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Tyler R. Stevens: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA
Behzad Parsi: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA
Rydge B. Mulford: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Dayton, 300 College Park, Dayton, OH 45469, USA
Nathan B. Crane: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 16, 1-19

Abstract: Buildings consume significant energy, much of which is used for heating and cooling. Insulation reduces undesired heat transfer to save on heating and cooling energy usage. Radiant barriers are a type of insulation technology that reduces radiant heat absorbed by a structure. Applying radiant barriers to buildings reduces costs and improves both energy efficiency and occupant comfort. However, homes often have favorable thermal gradients that could also be used to reduce energy usage if the insulation properties were switched dynamically. This article introduces two dynamic radiant barriers intended for residential attics, which can switch between reflecting and transmitting states as needed. These radiant barriers are manufactured as a single deformable assembly using sheet materials and are compatible with various actuation mechanisms. The efficacy of these radiant barriers is reported based on a hotbox experiment and numerical calculations. The experimental results demonstrate that both proposed dynamic radiant barrier designs increase effective thermal resistance by factors of approximately 2 when comparing insulating to conducting states, and by approximately 4 when comparing the insulating state to the case without a radiant barrier. Additionally, the dynamic radiant barriers achieve heat flux reductions up to 41.9% in the insulating state compared to tests without a dynamic radiant barrier.

Keywords: dynamic radiant barrier; radiant barrier; reflective insulation; building insulation; building energy; switchable thermal insulation; topology morphing insulation; energy efficiency; heat transfer (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: 2024
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