Technical and architectural integration of a solar cooling system in a historical building

Solar heating and cooling technology is a plant engineering technique which uses hot water of solar collectors for building air conditioning during both winter and summer. Recently the interest for this technology has grown constantly especially due to the fact that it allows to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, save energy, and assure a local supply of energy thus more reliable. A critical point of discussion begins when solar collectors are installed in historical buildings because the protrusion formed by solar panels and mounting structures transforms the shape of the building, thereby altering its architectural aspects. In these cases, respect for historical heritage, protection of the landscape and the employment of renewable energy must be conciliated. As a consequence the design of the installation must be performed in order find out a good balance between technical and aesthetical requests. In this paper a solar heating and cooling plant designed for the Architecture Faculty of Second University of Naples with the aim to promote solar cooling and heating installations that facilitate the discovery of visual integrations and good compromises between technical and architectonic features is depicted in detail.