Evaluation of the Thermofluidic Performance of Climatic Chambers: Numerical and Experimental Studies

Abstract

Climatic chambers are highly important in research and industrial applications and are used to examine manufactured samples, specimens, or components in controlled environment conditions. Despite the growing industrial demand for climatic chambers, only a few published studies have specifically concentrated on performance analysis and functional improvements through numerical and experimental studies. In this study, a 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of a climatic chamber was developed using Ansys Fluent to simulate the fluid flow, heat, and mass transfer to obtain the velocity, temperature, and relative humidity fields in the interior box of a 1200 L climatic chamber. The results were then validated with experimental data from a prototype. Finally, the heat losses of the surrounding components of the chamber were calculated, and the relationship between the inside temperature and the overall thermal loss was modelled. This validated numerical model provides the possibility of optimising the performance of climate chambers by reducing the thermal loss from the walls and modifying the air flow pattern inside the chamber.