A hybrid glass-based solar chimney to promote cross-ventilation and night flushing

The need to devise innovative systems to curtail carbon emissions to mitigate the increasing trend of global warming is a prime concern for our modern society. A major source of carbon emissions is the built environment, especially the need for cooling and heating requirements. However, due to the effects of climate change with harsher summers and colder winters in conjunction with rising levels of urbanization, the risk of global warming worsening beyond control is real, where our civilization can be locked into a vicious cycle of adapting to climate change consequences, but causing further global warming in the process. Naturally ventilated buildings have been found to meet occupant thermal requirements while having a significantly lower energy requirement than air-conditioned ones, however failing to provide the needed comfort in periods of low wind pressure. This paper presents an innovative glass-based solar chimney design, fixed to the façade of a building, typically floor-mounted, with the possibility to achieve forced natural ventilation and cooling during daytime, heating during daytime and night cooling. The system is implemented in a mechatronics configuration to offer the possibility for intelligent controls to shift across operational modes based on ambient conditions, climate zone and interior conditions. The proposed system is considered through various uses cases in the tropical context of Mauritius to demonstrate its potential to achieve thermally comfortable indoor environments without active cooling.