Cool Roofs

We were inspired to research and innovate about cool roofs because in Thailand it’s really hot
so the electricity bill for the air conditioning can get really high and that’s why we innovated
about cool roofs

Cool roofs are roofs designed to reduce the heat of the rooms beneath them. Cool roofs are
made from materials that are high solar resistance. They are usually colors that are light or
white. To understand cool roofs, you must understand color, resistance value, visible light and
thermal insulation.

Color

Color is a reflection of a sunlight which hits an object. The reflected light which gets in our eyes
is the color we see. So a color which is light reflects more sunlight than dark colors. Because
dark colors absorbs more sunlight which means more heat.

Visible Light

Visible light waves are the only electromagnetic waves people’s eyes can see. We see these
waves as the colors of the rainbow. Each color has a different wavelength. Red has the longest
wavelength and purple has the shortest wavelength. When all the waves are seen together,
they make white light.

When a white light goes through a prism, the prism breaks the white light to the entire visible
light spectrum.
All these things help us to understand how cool roof s works and you won’t have to use too
much money on electricity during hot days.

Thermal Insulation

Thermal insulation is a way to prevent heat from escaping or entering a container. Less dense
materials are better insulators because in denser material, the closer its atoms are together so
the atoms block more heat. Poor conductors of electricity are also poor heat conductors.

R-value

R-Value is a resistance of a material to heat and is its ability to insulate. It is used as a way of
telling how good a material can insulate. So the higher the R-Value, the better the insulation of
a material is.

R-value Table

Material R-Value
Hardwood siding (1 inch thick) 0.91
Wood shingles (lapped) 0.87
Brick (4inch thick) 4.00
Concrete block (filled cores) 1.93
Fiberglass batting (3.5 inch thick) 10.90
Fiberglass batting (6 inch thick) 18.80
Fiberglass board (1 inch thick) 4.35
Cellulose fiber (1 inch thick) 3.70
Flat glass (0.125 inch thick) 0.89
Insulating glass (0.25 in space) 1.54
Air space (3.5 inch thick) 1.01
Free stagnant air layer 0.17
Drywall (0.5 inch thick) 0.45
Sheathing (0.5 inch thick) 1.32
Visible Light

Visible light waves are the only electromagnetic waves people’s eyes can see. We see these
waves as the colors of the rainbow. Each color has a different wavelength. Red has the longest
wavelength and purple has the shortest wavelength. When all the waves are seen together,
they make white light.
When a white light goes through a prism, the prism breaks the white light to the entire visible
light spectrum.

All these things help us to

understand how cool roof s works and you won’t have to use too much money on electricity
during hot days.

Bibliography

Visible light: www.brainpop.com, http://science.hq.nasa.gov/kids/imagers/ems/visible.html

Color: www.brainpop.com

Thermal Insulation: www.wikipedia.com

R-Value: www.google.co.ke