Using vegetated facade systems (VFS) as a sustainable solution for existing and new buildings and evaluating thermal performance of these sytems are not a new concept. However, there is a gap in literature about measuring thermal performance of VFS applied on an insulated wall. Also, in the research literature, there are few studies measuring thermal performance of felt type VFS in temperate climates, and data about the thermal performance of VFS during winter periods is still scarce. Thus, the aim of the present study is to measure the thermal performance of a felt type VFS applied on a thermal insulated existing wall that us located in Kocaeli, Turkey, under Csa climate conditions during heating and cooling periods. Test results indicate that the felt type VFS acts as a shading device and has a positive contribution to the thermal performance of building walls during a cooling period. In daytime when there is a high amount of solar radiation, felt type VFS decreased exterior surface temperatures of the insulated existing wall by a maximum of 24.4°C, 32.2°C and 37.2°C, in spring, summer and fall periods, respectively. Additionally, indoor air temperatures of the vegetated facade were lower than indoor air temperatures of the reference facade with the maximum difference of 1.8°C during the cooling period. Also, test results indicate that the vegetated facade never dropped to below 0°C while exterior surface temperatures of the reference facade dropped below 0°C at nighttime in the winter period. Thus, it can be claimed that the felt type VFS behaves as a thermal buffer and enhances the thermal performance of the exterior wall of the existing building during heating periods at nighttime. As a conclusion, although differences between exterior surface temperatures of vegetated and reference walls were high, differences between interior surface temperatures of vegetated and reference walls were not meaningful. That is due to the fact that the existing building exterior wall assembly includes 5 cm thickness thermal insulation material which enhance the thermal performance of the brick wall. Finally, according to solar reflectance results, it can be claimed that vegetated facade systems have a positive effect on reducing urban heat island effect.

[1]
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Working Group I: The Scientific Basis
.
[2]
Massachusetts Climate Change Adaptation Report.
The Changing Climate and Its Impact
.
[3]
T.R. Ministry of Environment and Urbanization.
Turkey’s National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan
.
November
2011
,
Ankara
.
[4]
Koyama
T.,
Yoshinaga
M.,
Hayashi
H.,
Maeda
K.,
Yamauchi
A.,
Identification Of Key Plant Traits Contributing to the Cooling Effects of Green Façades Using Freestanding Walls
,
Building and Environment
,
66
(
2013
)
96
103
.
[5]
Wong
N.H.,
Tan
A.Y.K.,
Chen
Y.,
Sekar
K.,
Tan
P. Y.,
Chan
D.,
Chiang
K.,
Wong
N.C.,
Thermal Evaluation of Vertical Greenery Systems for Buildings Wall
,
Building and Environment
,
45
(
2010
)
663
672
.
[6]
Cheng
C.Y.,
Cheung
K.K.S.,
Chu
L.M.,
Thermal Performance of a Vegetated Cladding System on Facade Walls
,
Building and Environment
,
45
(
2010
)
1779
1787
.
[7]
Alexandri
E.,
Jones
P.,
Temperature Decreases in an Urban Canyon due to Green Walls and Green Roofs in Diverse Climates
,
Building and Environment
,
43
(
2008
)
480
493
.
[8]
Olivieri
F.,
Olivieri
L.,
Neila
J.,
Experimental Study of the Thermal-Energy Performance of an Insulated Vegetal Facade Under Summer Conditions in a Continental Mediterranean Climate
,
Building and Environment
,
77
(
2014
)
61
76
.
[9]
Perez
G.,
Coma
J.,
Sol
S.,
Cabeza
L. F.,
Green Facade for Energy Savings in Buildings: The Influence of Leaf Area Index and Facade Orientation on the Shadow Effect
,
Applied Energy
,
187
(
2017
)
424
437
.
[10]
Technology Roadmap, Energy Efficient Building Envelopes,
2013
.
[11]
Safikhani
T.,
Abdullah
A. M.,
Ossen
D. R.,
Baharvand
M. A.,
Review of Energy Characteristic of Vertical Greenery Systems
,
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews
,
40
(
2014
)
450
462
.
[12]
Raji
B.,
Tenpierik
M. J.,
Dobbelsteen
A.,
The Impact of Greening Systems on Building Energy Performance: A Literature Review
,
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews
,
45
(
2015
)
610
623
.
[13]
Kontoleon,
K., J.,
Eumorfopoulou,
E., A.,
“The Effect of the Orientation and Proportion of a Plant-Covered Wall Layer on the Thermal Performance of a Building Zone”
Building and Environment
,
45
(
2010
)
1287
1303
.
[14]
Haggag
M.,
Hassan
A.,
Elmasry
S.,
Experimental Study on Reduced Heat Gain Through Green Facades in a Heat Load Climate
,
Energy and Buildings
,
82
(
2014
)
668
674
.
[15]
Feng
H.,
Hewage
K.,
Energy Saving Performance of Green Vegetation on LEED Certified Building
,
Energy and Buildings
,
75
(
2014
)
281
289
.
[16]
Perini
K.,
Ottele
M.,
Fraai
A. L. A.,
Haas
E.M.,
Raiteri
R.,
Vertical Greening Systems and the Effect on Air Flow and Temperature on the Building Envelope
,
Building and Environment
,
46
(
2011
)
2287
2294
.
[17]
Olivieri,
F.,
Olivieri,
L.,
Neila,
J.,
Experimental study of the Thermal-Energy Performance of an Insulated Vegetal Facade under Summer Conditions in a Continental Mediterranean Climate
.
Building and Environment
,
77
(
2014
)
61
76
.
[18]
Akbari,
H.,
Kurn,
D., M.,
Bretz,
S., E.,
Hanford,
J., W.,
Peak Power and Cooling Energy Savings of Shade Trees
,
Energy and Buildings
,
25
(
1997
)
139
148
.
[19]
Coma,
J.,
Perez,
G.,
Gracia,
A.,
Bures,
S.,
Urrestarazu,
M.,
Cabeza,
L., F.,
Vertical Greenery Systems for Energy Savings in Buildings: A Comparative Study Between Green Walls and Green Facades
,
Building and Environment
,
111
(
2017
)
228
237
.
[20]
Vox,
G.,
Blanco,
I.,
ve Schettini,
E.
(
2018
).
Green façades to control wall surface temperature in buildings
.
Building and Environment
,
129
,
154
166
.
[22]
Yüksel,
E.,
Türkeri,
A. N.,
Sustainable Facade System: Types of Vegetated Facade Systems Designed and Constructed in Turkey
, In
Proceedings of SBE 16 Istanbul—International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment
,
13–15 October 2016
,
Istanbul
.
[23]
Yüksel
E.,
Türkeri
A. N.,
Bitkilendirilmiş Cephe Sistemlerinin Farklı İklim Bölgelerindeki Isıl Performanslarinin Değerlendirilmesi, 2
.
Ulusal Yapı Fiziği ve Çevre Kontrolü Kongresi
,
04–06 May 2016
,
Istanbul Technical University
.
[24]
Yüksel
E.,
Türkeri
N.,
A Litterature Review of Experimental Setups Monitoring Thermal Performance of Vegetated Facade Systems
,
Journal of Facade Design & Engineering
,
Vol 5
No 2
(
2017
)
67
85
.
[32]
[33]
ISO 10211-1
(
1995
).
Thermal Bridges in building construction—Heat flows and surface temperatures—Part 1: General calculation methods
.
British Standards
.
UK
.
[34]
ASTM E1918
(
2006
).
Standard Test Method for Measuring Solar Reflectance of Horizontal and Low-Sloped Surfaces in the Field
.
ASTM International
.
USA
.
[35]
Chen,
Q.,
Li,
B.,
ve Liu,
X.
(
2013
).
An experimental evaluation of the living wall system in hot and humid climate
.
Energy and Buildings
,
61
,
298
307
.
[36]
ISO 7730:2005,
Ergonomics of the thermal environment—Analytical determination and interpretation of thermal comfort using calculation of the PMV and PPD indices and local thermal comfort criteria
,
International Organisation for Standardisation
.
[37]
ASHRAE, ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55-2010,
Thermal environmental conditions for human occupancy
,
American Society of Heating, Ventilating and Air-conditioning Engineers
,
Atlanta, GA, USA
.
This content is only available as a PDF.

Author notes

1. Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, Gebze Technical University, Kocaeli, Turkey, [email protected]

2. Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, İstanbul Technical University, İstanbul, Turkey, [email protected]