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Skin Façades

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Skin Façades

1


ALSODouble Skin Facades





Double Skin Facades
In recent years, the use of double skin facades, sometimes referred to as a "building in a building", has gained a lot of popularity throughout the world, due to characteristics such as durability, ecology, easy circulation of fresh-air, use of natural resources, etc. As indicated by the term "double skin" such a facade is intended to mean a system in which two "skins" - two layers of glass - are separated by a significant amount of air space, that is to say, a second glass facade is placed in front of the first. This systems enables air to circulate between the cavity of the two facades, providing excellent air circulation. The type of double skin facade then determines the type of air circulation. Of course, the most interesting systems are those designed in such a way that in addition to permitting natural air circulation, they also use solar energy, converting it into electrical energy.

OK, now let's take a closer look at the benefits of double skin facades:

Double skin scheme Natural ventilation
Thanks to a second glass skin, building users can also leave windows open during various climatic conditions such as wind, rain, etc. The first or exterior part of the skin shields the entire building, and by doing so, permits natural ventilation through air corridors between the skins. With a double skin facade it is possible to maintain windows open 24 hours and not compromise interior comfort.

Better acoustic insulation - improve noise protection
With a double skin facade it is possible to achieve the same excellent acoustic insulation with the windows open as with that obtained in classical glass facades with the windows closed.

Reducing heating energy requirements
In winter time, the air stored between the glass skins is heated by the suns rays, thus improving both the heat-insulating functions of the facade and its thermal performance, as well as reducing heating costs.

Reducing cooling energy requirements
With natural ventilation, so-called night cooling can significantly reduce the costs of air-conditioning in the summer.

Exploiting solar power
With the incorporation of photovoltaic glass, as well as other systems and components, it is possible to utilize the sun's energy to reduce energy consumption and costs. These solar rays also heat the air stored in the corridor between the two glass skins.


We will now discuss the benefits, performance and interaction of these systems with the environment during winter and summer.


Summer performance - warm climactic conditions
It is important to make clear that double skin facades can only cool the air inside the structure by several degrees lower than the actual external temperature. It would be utopian to expect that these systems could provide the same cooling action as air-conditioners. However, the combination of both will offer better results. Of course, there is a certain level of energy consumption, but this is significantly reduced as internal temperatures are already lower than outside temperatures. But aside from using air-conditioning, there are several other methods to cool the building. Heat inside a building is chiefly produced by the penetration of the sun through transparent surfaces. In the case of an office, it is also important to consider the internal phenomena that can increase temperatures, such as: computers, artificial lighting, body heat, etc. Double-skin facades offer a protected place within its corridor to mount shading or daylight-enhancing devices such as Venetian blinds. Protected from exterior environmental conditions, these shading devices are less expensive than systems mounted on the exterior. The principal benefit of double skin facades over traditional architecture is that they permit the application of blinds even for taller buildings with substantial wind load. In addition, special materials(glass) can be utilized to control solar rays, such as reflective glass. These special materials are mainly used for architectural purposes due to their performance in reducing solar heat. Reflective glass also produces a mirror effect, blocking vision through the glass to the inside of the building.



Image: Schiffer, Harry (2003). communicative display skin. Graz, Austria:


Another type of glass that has been used recently to improve solar performance is called electrochromic glass. This glass can change color from clear to dark using a electrical current. The electrical current can be activated manually or by sensors which react to light intensity. Glass darkening reduces solar transmission into the building. When there is little sunlight, the glass brightens, so that the need for the artificial light is minimized. I believe this type of glass has only been used in classical types of facades. However, we might expect the application of this type of glass in double skins in the near future. If you need more information about types of glass used in facades, as well as their properties and benefits, you can visit Glass manual of GlassOnWeb.com.



To return to double skin and cooling systems, another simple method, so-called night cooling, can be used. The basic principle of this system is to leave the windows open at night when the temperature is lower than in daytime. The front skin protects the building interior from different environmental conditions and other unpleasant factors. This natural ventilation process works even during daylight hours, but because of the high external temperatures it does not obtain the same cooling effect as at night. To summarize, current technologies do not allow us to create a completely natural air-conditioning system, but it is possible to reduce overheating by regularly ventilating at night, blocking the sun's ray from entering directly into the building, using accessories and equipment with low heat ratios inside the office, etc.





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A THEORY.........................theory

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SOURCES..

Double Skin Facades - Glass in Building
Photos of Torre Agbar on Pixelmap
B+H
40% Of UK’s Energy Consumption Is Building Related - Levolux helps move towards green buildings through solar heat gain reduction
Glaxo Wellcome | Facade Engineering | Arup

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Skin Façades

2-A


ALSODouble Skin Façades




Applications>>>>

JEAN NOUVEL




Skin of Nouvel's Torre Agbar with the roof of an old Barcelona building below.
"Agbar Tower with Older Building"




Like a camera shutter, the wall of the Arab Institute can open
and close to control the amount of light entering the building.

"L'Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris"




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+IMAGES..Architecture of the Arab Institute on Pixelmap....