Title: Basics of Building Heating and Cooling - archtoolbox.com
Headings: Basics of Building Heating and Cooling
Basics of Building Heating and Cooling
Article Contents
Conduction
Convection
Radiation
Cooling

Content: Given two objects, the particles within the hotter object move more rapidly than those in the cooler object. When the heated object is put in contact with the cooler object, the molecules in the cooler object begin to vibrate faster, which means it is gaining heat energy and becoming warmer. If you were to grasp a metal pole at room temperature with your hand, the pole feels cold due to the fact that heat energy is being transferred from your hand to the pole. The vibration of the molecules in your hand is causing an increase in the vibration speed of the molecules inside the metal, which causes the temperature of the metal to rise and that of your hand to drop. For this reason, we would say that metal is a good conductor. Building insulation, on the other hand, is not a good conductor. If you were to grab insulation with your hand, it would likely feel warm or neutral, due to the fact that the vibration of the molecules in your hand is not able to cause an appreciable increase in the vibration of the molecules in the insulation. Heating or cooling through conduction typically takes place at the building envelope (the outside walls, windows and doors) where warm or cold air outside causes the molecules of the envelope to increase vibration or decrease vibration which in turn causes a heat loss or gain inside of the building. An example of conduction affecting building temperature is the transfer of heat energy through the components of a window. Outside air comes in contact with the exterior mullion surface, which transfers energy through the metals and the glass, which transfers the energy to interior finish materials in contact with the mullion.