MIT energy-saving, color-changing roof tiles top competition

William Atkins
Monday, 12 October 2009 21:13

Science - Energy

According to the MIT News article, the white tiles reflect approximately 80% of sunlight falling on them during summer months, while the same tiles, when black in color, reflect only about 30% of sunlight.

In other words, they absorb about 70% of the rays of the Sun during the winter months.

The researchers state that such technology has the potential of saving up to 20% on cooling costs. (They also said that savings in heating costs have yet to be calculated.)

The roof tiles are called Thermeleon by the MIT team. The article says it “rhymes with chameleon, because of its color-changing property.”

The material was one of the competitors in the 2009 Making and Designing Materials Engineering Contest (MADMEC) held at  MIT.

It is an annual competition, now in its third year (MADMEC III), which is available for teams of current MIT students or 2009 graduates.

The Thermeleon team placed first, with a total award of $5,000, in the Wednesday, October 7, 2009 contest.