Dehumidifier Core: A Climate Responsive Architecture for Humid Regions
A passive architecture that redefines comfort in humid climates using airflow and silica gel to create self-dehumidifying spaces.
“Dehumidifier Core” explores how climate responsive architecture can solve environmental challenges specific to humid tropical regions. Designed by Hamed Malekandeh, Parisa Khosravi, Parto Hedayati, and Hanieh Rahimbakhsh, this project was a shortlisted entry of Form Follows Climate 2020.
The concept stems from a pressing question: how can architecture adapt naturally to humidity without relying on high-energy systems? By studying the tropical city of Paramaribo, Suriname, the team proposed a building system that passively manages air moisture—reducing humidity through airflow and silica gel-based materials.
Design Concept
High humidity often plagues equatorial cities due to proximity to water bodies and high precipitation. Traditional architectural responses such as shading and cross-ventilation help but do not fully address moisture control. The “Dehumidifier Core” offers an alternative: a passive humidity regulation system that maintains comfort without mechanical dehumidifiers.
The design uses silicon dioxide (SiO₂)—commonly known as silica gel—as a natural absorbent. When integrated within the architectural skin, it reduces air moisture through passive airflow. This system allows the building to breathe, circulate air, and self-regulate humidity without external energy consumption.
Climatic Context
Paramaribo experiences a Tropical Rainforest Climate (Af, Köppen-Geiger classification) with an average temperature of 26.8 °C and annual rainfall of 2103 mm. Even the driest months record significant precipitation. The city’s persistent humidity levels inspired the team to explore architectural materials capable of balancing indoor comfort passively.
By analyzing psychrometric charts, the designers observed that 46.7 % of hours in the region require dehumidification for human comfort. Their goal was to design a system that could achieve this naturally—through form, orientation, and material logic.
Spatial Planning and Passive Strategy
The master plan revolves around courtyards and interconnected voids that allow airflow across the building mass. These courtyards not only facilitate cross-ventilation but also serve as social and play spaces for children—blending climatic performance with human experience.
- Airflow Optimization: The building is rotated 45° toward the city’s wind rose to capture prevailing breezes and enhance dehumidification around its envelope.
- Functional Integration: Internal zoning includes preschool, library, performance area, café, and play spaces, each arranged around semi-open corridors that act as breathing voids.
- Vertical Connectivity: Voids, ramps, and stairwells double as airflow channels, creating vertical movement for warm air to escape and cooler air to circulate.
Silica Gel Experimentation
To validate their approach, the team conducted laboratory tests simulating humid tropical conditions. Using a mechanized greenhouse and temperature-humidity loggers, they observed the performance of silica gel in real-time environments.
The results demonstrated a marked reduction in humidity levels—over 80 % efficiency at maintaining indoor comfort. When combined with airflow, silica gel maintained stable humidity even as external temperatures fluctuated.
This experiment proved that passive dehumidification can be achieved architecturally without mechanical intervention, paving the way for low-energy building envelopes.
Architectural Expression
The exterior reflects a modular, grid-based geometry—each unit designed as a self-regulating micro-climate cell. The roof’s alternating ridges and voids enhance wind circulation, while translucent materials allow diffused light to enter without heat gain.
Inside, wooden finishes and open corridors create a warm, human-scale environment. The project balances technical performance with sensory experience, transforming climate responsiveness into an architectural aesthetic.
Performance and Sustainability
The “Dehumidifier Core” functions as both a building and a living experiment. Its passive design reduces dependency on artificial air-conditioning, thereby cutting down energy consumption. The silica gel system can be maintained easily and replaced periodically, ensuring longevity and low operational costs.
By combining passive cooling, airflow dynamics, and material science, the project exemplifies the future of climate adaptive architecture in tropical and humid regions.
“Dehumidifier Core” redefines how buildings can adapt to their environment. Through a blend of scientific experimentation and architectural imagination, it demonstrates that climate responsive architecture is not just about form—it’s about creating self-sustaining systems that harmonize human comfort with nature.
This shortlisted entry of Form Follows Climate 2020 stands as a benchmark for sustainable innovation, proving that even in the most humid climates, architecture can breathe, adapt, and thrive.
