Thermal Science

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DYNAMIC RADIATIVE COOLING: A REVIEW OF MATERIALIS FOR ENERGY-EFFICIENT WINDOW APPLICATIONS

ABSTRACT

Radiative cooling materials have received enormous attention for their ability to cool below ambient temperature without energy consumption. Unlike conventional radiative cooling systems, which can result in excessive cooling during colder months, dynamic radiative cooling materials can dynamically adjust their thermal radiation properties in response to environmental changes, enabling efficient cooling and heating across different seasons. This review summarizes the recent developments in dynamic radiative cooling materials, focusing on their physical mechanisms, including mechanically assisted films, thermochromic materials, temperature-responsive gels, and solvent-assisted systems. Special attention is given to their applications in energy-efficient building windows and façades. The challenges of scaling dynamic radiative cooling technologies for widespread use and their potential for future development are discussed, with recommendations for improving performance, sustainability, and integration into modern building systems.

KEYWORDS

Dynamic Radiative Cooling, Thermal Transfer Materials, Energy-efficient Windows, Adaptive Thermal Management

PAPER SUBMITTED: 2024-12-28

PAPER REVISED: 2025-03-20

PAPER ACCEPTED: 2025-04-11

PUBLISHED ONLINE: 2025-07-05

DOI REFERENCE: https://doi.org/10.2298/TSCI241228098H

CITATION EXPORT: view in browser or download as text file

THERMAL SCIENCE YEAR 2025, VOLUME 29, ISSUE No. 6, PAGES [4715 - 4732]

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Dynamic radiative cooling: A review of materialis for energy-efficient window applications

© 2026 Society of Thermal Engineers of Serbia. Published by the Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International licence

THERMAL SCIENCE

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Linna Hu

Zhongbao Liu

Zepeng Wang

Zhipeng Qie

DYNAMIC RADIATIVE COOLING: A REVIEW OF MATERIALIS FOR ENERGY-EFFICIENT WINDOW APPLICATIONS