Design of a single-family house for tropical climate (Aw) from guidelines obtained from anthropoclimate diagrams

Abstract

When we look at the environment around us, we see several negative environmental impacts resulting from human action (forest destruction, prolonged droughts, increased temperature and consequent melting of ice caps and even the spread of infectious diseases such as SARS-CoV2). Building production contributes to this process of environmental degradation by consuming resources for construction and maintenance and by generating waste. Therefore, it is important that we have tools and procedures to enable the development of less impacting building projects. With this intention, procedures and graphic tools such as the Olgyay and Givoni charts were developed. However, with the advent of adaptive models and advances in thermal simulation, these historically consolidated graphical tools demand updating. Therefore, a new procedure was developed, using diagrams based on the adaptive model (called Anthropoclimatic Diagrams 1 and 2) and involving the simulation of an internal thermal environment. From its application, guidelines for the design process are obtained. Due to their recent development, the Anthropoclimatic Diagrams were applied to few Brazilian climatic zones. This article aimed to present a project developed according to the guidelines obtained for the climate of Fortaleza/CE (Aw). As a result, a building was designed with light walls, shaded (preventing overheating) and cross ventilation. A large porch was used which, in addition to shading, fulfills the role of circulation.