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Library

This library contains research reports produced by the Building America program and other building science resources used to support this Solution Center. The materials cover both new construction and existing homes. Use the search box and/or the filters to explore hundreds of residential building resources. Access to some references not produced by Building America may require purchase from the publisher. Documents are listed alphabetically. While we continually update our database, links may have changed since posting. Please contact our webmaster if you find broken links.

Showing results 1 - 9 of 9

Cool Colored Materials for Roofs

Author(s)
Akbari Hashem,
Levinson Ronnen,
Wiel Stephen,
Desjarlais Andre,
Miller William,
Jenkins Nancy,
Rosenfeld Arthur,
Scruton Chris
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Study describing efforts and outcomes in developing color-pigmented roofing products with coatings to increase solar reflectance.

Cool Science: Overview

Author(s)
Heat Island Group
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
LBNL webpage introducing heat island effect and cool materials concepts, and providing links to LBNL pages explaining cool pavements, cool roofs, and cool walls.

Evaporative Cooler Tips

Author(s)
Home Energy Saver
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Publication Date
Webpage providing tips for installing and maintaining an evaporative cooler.

Heat Island Group: Resources

Author(s)
Heat Island Group
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
LBNL webpage providing resources and tools related to cool technologies, including the SRI calculator and the DOE Cool Roof Calculator.

Measured and Simulated Performance of Reflective Roofing Systems in Residential Buildings

Author(s)
Parker Danny,
Huang Yu Joe,
Konopacki Steven,
Gartland Lisa,
Sherwin John,
Gu Lixing
Organization(s)
Florida Solar Energy Center,
FSEC,
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Study investigating measured cooling energy savings in homes across the U.S. from the installation of roofing with higher solar reflectance.

Passive Cooling Designs to Improve Heat Resilience of Homes in Underserved and Vulnerable Communities

Author(s)
Sun Kaiyu,
Zhang Wanni,
Zeng Zhaoyun,
Levinson Ronnen,
Wei Max,
Hong Tianzhen
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
This study evaluated 11 measures for passive cooling using four heat resilience metrics with and without grid power in Fresno CA and found the two most effective measures were installing solar-control window films and adding roof insulation; natural ventilation also helped reduce overheating in...

Peak power and cooling of shade trees

Author(s)
Akbari Hashem,
Bretz Sarah E,
Kurn Dan M,
Hanford James W
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Paper describing a study on savings in peak power and cooling energy for homes with shade trees.

Potential benefits of cool walls on residential and commercial buildings across California and the United States: Conserving energy, saving money, and reducing emission of greenhouse gases and air pollutants

Author(s)
Rosado Pablo,
Levinson Ronnen
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Large scale simulation study investigating the effects of cool roofs and walls on buildings of various vintages across the U.S., with special attention given to California.

SRI Calculator

Author(s)
Levinson Ronnen
Organization(s)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,
LBNL
Publication Date
Spreadsheet tool that computes solar reflectance index (SRI) and roof surface temperature based on solar reflectance and thermal emittance using ASTM standard E 1980.