Ventilation design: Use of computational fluid dynamics as a study tool

Abstract

The technique of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is applied to simulate indoor air flow induced by air distribution devices and thermal sources in large enclosures. The CFD package FLOVENT is used as the simulation tool. Examples taken to illustrate the capability of the technique are the air movement in four large waiting halls and the associated air conditioning design. The air flow in a large car park is also adopted as an example for a critical review of the performance of the mechanical ventilation system. To validate the package, numerical simulations are performed with experimental data for air-conditioned spaces reported by Sakamoto and Matsuo, Murakami and Kato and Chow and Wong. Further, the use of the model to calculate the mixing factor for a displacement ventilation system is illustrated.