The Ministry of Environment has set up an exhibition of heat adaptation products in front of its building to showcase the industry’s development and encourage public participation.
The ministry on Thursday held a news conference to unveil the exhibition demonstrating the cooling technologies of a “high-transparency, heat-insulating balloon canopy” and “nano-mineral diffused light net.”
Temperatures of 40°C or higher are expected to become the new normal in Taiwan within the next 10 years due to global warming and the urban heat island effect, Minister of Environment Peng Chi-ming (彭啟明) said.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Environment
The ministry has therefore been promoting interagency efforts to plant more trees to increase green shade coverage, he said.
While it is difficult to plant trees in some places and seedlings need time to grow big enough to provide shade, locally developed innovative cooling technologies can be applied to protect pedestrians against heat injuries, Peng said.
Using lightweight shading structures to provide “immediate coverage” can help reduce solar heat load, said Lin Tzu-ping (林子平), a member of the Executive Yuan’s National Urban Forest Promotion Committee.
Such measures are a key strategy for preserving people’s thermal comfort and protecting health in urban areas where planting trees might be unsuitable or where trees have yet to grow big enough, said Lin, a professor of architecture at National Cheng Kung University.
The two shading technologies demonstrated in the exhibition area are capable of blocking shortwave solar radiation by 30 to 40 percent, Lin added.
Lin Yi-chun (林怡君), who invented the nano-mineral diffused light net, said the net incorporates mica minerals produced locally in Taiwan into recycled PET polyester fibers.
It transforms harsh direct sunlight into soft, diffused light, while the nano-minerals allow the fibers to absorb moisture from the air, she said.
When the net is exposed to sunlight, the moisture evaporates and lowers temperatures, she said.
Huang Yi-xing (黃翌星), the inventor of the balloon canopy, said the balloons can lower temperatures by up to 6°C, depending on how cloudy it is.
The balloons feature a dual-layer structure and a cesium tungsten oxide nanoparticle film, making them capable of blocking 86 percent of infrared radiation and more than 99 percent of ultraviolet radiation from the sun, he said.
The exhibition, scheduled to run for 100 days, was set up to showcase how heat adaptation technoliges can be integrated into people’s lives, the ministry said.
Aided by investments from industry, more comprehensive heat adaptation strategies can be developed for outdoor workers, vulnerable groups and the general public, it said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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