WATeRVASE: Wind-catching Adaptive Technology for a Roof-integrated Ventilation Aperture System and Evaporative-cooling

WATeRVASE (also known as Hydroculus) is an adaptive downdraft evaporative-cooling windcatcher. The project is multi-faceted in its performance mechanisms and consists of ongoing research and data collection. The primary cooling function is realized with downdraft cooling, optimized by the morphology of the windcatcher structure. The evaporative-cooling function is actuated with a small solar-powered pump that feeds water to a hydrogel membrane embedded in the underside lining the top of the structure. The skin of the structure will be studied with layers of heat capacitance materials in combination with radiant-cooling polymers. The prototype is installed in Tucson, Arizona for hot-arid climate adaptation. Future work will include study of moisture recuperation at the base of the structure for a near closed-loop water system.