As temperatures across Europe touch record levels, the debate on the need to bend the traditional European resistance to air conditioning and to follow the American example is intensified.
The traditional reluctance of the old continent towards universal use of air conditioning is due to the historical design of old buildings, the high cost of electricity and the strong ecological consciousness of citizens, elements that kept air conditioning away from most households.
The logic of the argument about the need for cooling is strong. Prolonged heat affects productivity, weakens working and family everyday life, while it can be fatal for vulnerable social groups.
However, as noted by an article in the Financial Times by Carlo Ratti, author, professor in MIT and Politeccico di Milano and founder of Carlo Ratti Associati, Europe is required to think twice before blindly adopting conventional, energetic air conditioning units. There are clearly more effective ways to cool down buildings.
Cool inside, «fever» in the atmosphere – A vicious cycle
The external units you meet in buildings worldwide attract their origin from 1902, when young engineer Willis Carrier designed the first air management device for a printing plant in Brooklyn. Since then, millions of similar systems have been installed on facades and roofs.
Despite evolution, the basic operating principle remains the same: works just like a refrigerator, removing the heat out of the room and ensuring the coveted dew inside.
However, this operating authority It hides a significant disadvantage. It does not annihilate heat, but simply shifts it, channeling it out of buildings.
The resulting rise in road temperature increases the need for cooling, producing even more heat. As mercury rises, the system is forced to operate more and more intensively.
Direction of heat to soil or water
The way out of this vicious circle is the transfer of heat to soil or waterMany large cities developed, not by chance, near lakes, rivers or seas, as the water element acts as a thermal reservoir, maintaining temperatures relatively stable throughout the year.
Accordingly systems can be implemented at individual building level. The use of water to store excess heat allows their expansion over entire urban blocks.
Fraîcheur de Paris: How it works
One of the largest central cooling networks worldwide is the Fraîcheur de Paris, a name that refers to a fine aroma, offering a promise of coolness.
This system uses two completely separate closed circuits meeting in underground stations. Initially, the Seine water is temporarily drawn and driven to the underground cooling stations.
There, through special machinery, The heat from the hot water coming back from the city buildings is transferred to the cold water of the river.
River water simply absorbs heat, operating as a natural refrigerator, and then returns to the Seine slightly warmer.
The other circuit, with the now frozen water, is rerouted into the city's pipe circuit to cool down the buildings.
Another developing system operates in Geneva, utilizing the city lake (despite the problem with invasive mussels, which was treated with mechanical pipe scrapers). Instead of millions of private devices competing for electricity and emitting heat, a city can manage heat energy such as just water or electricity: through a shared network.
Water as «heat battery»
The water potential, however, extends beyond the simple transfer of heat. In some advanced systems it acts as a species «heat battery». When electricity is cheap and abundant, the water is cooled and stored, while when temperatures peak, the stored dew is pumped into the interiors of the buildings. This procedure μειώνει αισθητά την πίεση στα δίκτυα ηλεκτροδότησης, τα οποία καταπονούνται εξαιτίας της υπερχρήσης του κλιματισμού.
Δεν είναι πανάκεια
Βέβαια, καμία από τις συγκεκριμένες μεθόδους δεν αποτελεί πανάκεια. Τα κτίρια μπορούν να περιορίσουν το θερμικό φορτίο μέσω αποδοτικότερων ενεργειακών τζαμιών, επαρκούς αερισμού, σωστά τοποθετημένης σκίασης και ανακλαστικών στεγών, ενώ η συμβολή των δέντρων μειώνει σημαντικά τη θερμοκρασία στο επίπεδο του δρόμου.
Η Ευρώπη έχει τώρα την ευκαιρία να υιοθετήσει μια πιο φιλόδοξη στρατηγική. Το Fraîcheur de Paris θα μπορούσε να γίνει το Fraîcheurs du Monde: όχι ένα εφεδρικό σύστημα για μια ήπειρο που προσπαθεί να καλύψει τη διαφορά, αλλά ένα παγκόσμιο πρότυπο σχεδιασμένο για έναν αιώνα που θερμαίνεται διαρκώς και απαιτεί σύγχρονες λύσεις ψύξης.
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