Passive solar techniques for Sri Lanka

Abstract

Passive solar architecture can be described as the utilisation of the energy of the sun together with the characteristics of the local climate to directly maintain thermally comfortable conditions in buildings while minimising energy consumption. Since Sri Lanka is a tropical country, passive solar techniques include minimisation of solar heat gain while maximising the ventilation and structural cooling. It is shown that passive solar techniques should be included at a very early stage of the design of a passive solar building. The effects of orientation, shading devices, window sizes, roofing materials, insulation, colour of the exterior and interior walls, use of courtyards to maximise natural ventilation, and arrangement of roof to maximise structural cooling is shown with suitable examples.