Cooling Average Potential of Evaporative Cooling System in Dry Warm Climate

The high summer temperatures, high solar radiation and common inadequate thermal design of buildings obliges the occupants to recur to the use cooling equipment such as evaporative air-conditioning to achieve acceptable levels of habitability. Evaporative cooling systems require considerable electric energy and a significant constant clean water supply during operation. Therefore, this paper presents the results of a field study aims to quantify in this kind of weather, the potential cooling means having the following strategies: indirect evaporative cooling and shading devices; indirect evaporative cooling, shading devices and thermal mass; indirect evaporative cooling, solar protection, thermal mass and nocturnal radiative cooling; indirect evaporative cooling, thermal insulation and nocturnal radiative cooling; and finally indirect evaporative cooling, thermal insulation, thermal mass and nocturnal radiative cooling. The method consisted of measuring the reduction in air temperature is achieved with each of these cooling strategies, applied in three research modules of same construction features, orientation and dimensions during the summer 2012.Then quantified the cooling average potential by the method proposed by Dr. Eduardo Gonzalez (1989). Finally registration was the water consumption with each of these strategies and estimated required consumption by direct evaporative cooling to achieve the same cooling potential. The results obtained indicate that the IEC/TI/NRC had cooling potential of 822.89 Wh/m 2 day, followed IEC/SP with 764.19 Wh/m 2 day and finally IEC/SP+TM 568.60 Wh/m 2 day.