Abstract

This study was performed to evaluate the internal temperature behavior of classrooms in relation to outside temperature and the roof deck. The temperature was measured in four classrooms with a mean area of 75.5 m². Three classrooms were covered with asphaltic bitumen of three different colors (red tile, matte white and ebony black) the last one was covered with typical clay of the region. Two temperature sensors were installed in each classroom. The first one was fixed outside of the calssrooom at 0.40 m above the roof surface and the second one was installed 0.15 m below the ceiling. The temperature data were stored over ten minutes with a set of remote terminal units which form a wireless sensor network. The results showed significant differences in temperature between the four classrooms with a grade of significance of 0.05, and it showed that the color of the roof deck significantly influences the thermal behavior inside the classrooms. The influence of external temperature over the internal temperature was quantified with the r-Person coefficient, which was found at a mean value of 0.98.

Key words: Thermal behavior, color cover, thermal comfort, roof surface.