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BUILDING TEMPERATURE REDUCTION
Sacramento researchers coated a retail store’s dark roof white in 2002. Its peak roof temperature fell by up to 42°C and air-conditioning energy use dropped 52%In 2002, Sacramento researchers coated a retail store’s dark roof with a reflective cool-roof coating. The roof’s peak surface temperature ...- In Tucson, a 28,000-square-foot city roof got a white elastomeric coating; cooling energy fell 50–65%, saving over 400 million Btu and nearly $4,000 a yearCool roof coatings present an easy and efficient method to lower cooling bills during hot summer days. A Tucson city building illustrated i...
- Philadelphia installed white roofs on about 340 low-income seniors’ homes from 2001–2003; ceiling temperatures fell 4–5°F, and air-conditioning electricity use fell by 560 kWh per yearIn Philadelphia, the initiative to paint roofs white resulted in a remarkable decrease in home temperatures and energy consumption. This co...
- A Berkeley Lab study compared two Fresno homes for a year; the reflective tile roof ran 13.8°C cooler on a summer day, cut cooling electricity by 26%, and peak demand by 37%In Fresno, California, a comparative analysis of two houses revealed the advantages of reflective tile roofing. The home adorned with this ...
- Silver Sands Middle School replaced gray shingles with reflective white metal; plenum temperature fell by over 25°F, and cooling energy in Portable 096 dropped by over 33%A recent study revealed that dark roofs on portable classrooms led to increased cooling costs. By switching to white metal roofing, energy ...
- In 1991, researchers coated a Merritt Island home’s green-gray shingle roof with reflective material; the shingles reached about 110°F after treatmentDark roofs tend to soak up heat from the sun, resulting in higher air conditioning demands and costs. Utilizing reflective roofing material...
- In 2018, California's Kaiser Permanente opened an 8,110-square-meter medical office with a 640-kilowatt solar array. 8 years later, it cuts energy use 40% while using no fossil fuelsSolar installation is another defining part of the project's sustainability strategy. WorldGBC reports a 640-kilowatt photovoltaic array in...
- In 2001, researchers tested a white roof on a large Austin retail store; the study reported lower roof temperatures and an 11% reduction in cooling energy useA 2001 study in Austin demonstrated that white roofs lowered building temperatures significantly. This change reduced air conditioning ener...
- In 2011, NASA built a 50,000-square-foot California office that used 90% less drinking water and was designed to produce 20% more energy than it neededNASA’s Sustainability Base was designed as a 50,000-square-foot office that used just 12% of conventional electricity and 10% of potable wa...
- In 2018, a University of Hawaii study compared green and white roofs in Honolulu; the green roof was reported to have lower peak temperatures at the surface and nearby airA University of Hawaii graduate student tested green roofs against white ones. The green roof proved significantly cooler than the adjacent...
- How El Nino is choking the Panama CanalThe Panama Canal will reduce daily ship transits due to a severe drought. This El Nino phenomenon is causing significant water shortages fo...
- In 2011, GSA’s Chicago Federal Center joined the green challenge with 6,700 workers. 1 year later, an HVAC overhaul cut natural gas use 25% and saved $140,000 that yearThe Chicago Federal Center found a practical way to reduce energy use. GSA upgraded its HVAC system across the large federal complex. The c...
- In 2025, Egyptian researchers mixed eggshell waste into clay bricks to block the walls from absorbing outside heat and transferring it indoors during hot climates; heat transfer dropped 50%Egyptian researchers tested clay bricks containing eggshell waste and found that a 10% eggshell formulation fired at 1,100°C reduced therma...
- RMIT engineers mixed 1% recycled cigarette butts into fired-clay bricks, and the bricks matched standard strength while cutting firing energy by 10%In Melbourne, engineers are pioneering a groundbreaking technique to integrate discarded cigarette butts into building bricks. This eco-fri...
- In 2021, Berkeley Lab made a roof coating that switches at 67°C. Today, it beats existing coatings in 12 of 15 US climate zones, cutting household electricity use 10%Installing TARC could help the average U.S. household reduce electricity consumption by up to 10 percent annually. Another advantage of TAR...
- In 1995, Florida researchers coated a Cocoa Beach school roof white; over the following year, chiller energy use fell 10%, saving 13,000 kWh, while peak demand fell 35%A study conducted in Florida revealed that white roofs can drastically lower cooling costs, marking a significant achievement in the realm ...
- In 2019, RMIT researchers fired clay bricks mixed with treated sewage sludge; a 25% biosolids batch cut firing energy by 48.6% while passing strength testsResearchers are exploring ways to recycle sewage sludge into building materials. Mixing biosolids into clay significantly cuts the energy n...
- In 2023, researchers modeled fluid-filled microchannel windows; computer simulations estimated the liquid system could cut building energy use by 43 percentResearchers are developing innovative liquid windows that can control heat and light transmission. These tunable windows could potentially ...
- In 2025, Czech researchers reported 2024 summer tests of green facades; one Holešovice site recorded 6.4K lower mean radiant temperature than a white wallGreen facades play a significant role in regulating outdoor thermal conditions, although their effectiveness can significantly differ. A co...
- Argonne modeled Chicago’s August 2021 heatwave with different roof types; white roofs lowered air temperature by nearly 2°C and cooling energy use by 16.6%Transforming the rooftops of Chicago into cooler surfaces has led to a notable reduction in city temperatures. The use of white cool roofs ...
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