Simulation of natural ventilation for semi-enclosed buildings

Abstract

Energy-saving buildings have become a topical issue and widely used the energy-saving ventilation design, which aims to maximize the use of natural ventilation while reducing demand on mechanical ventilation. In this research, natural ventilation performance of two different semi-enclosed building layouts, "O" type and "L-L" type, are studied by numerical simulation. According to the simulation results, in the "O" type, the maximum indoor air velocity occurs in building A (orientation facing the inflow direction). The minimum indoor air velocity occurs in building C (orientation facing building A). In the "L-L" type, the maximum indoor air velocity occurs in building A (orientation facing the inflow direction). The minimum indoor air velocity occurs in buildings B and D (orientation parallel to the inflow direction). And air flow field simulation results show that, the "L-L" type exhibits better than the "O" type in natural ventilation. Furthermore, simulation results show that the natural ventilation performance in the room is influenced not only by the building orientation, but also by the window size.