Thermal performance assessment of a retrofitted building using an integrated energy and computational fluid dynamics (IE - CFD) approach

Abstract

The comfort of the occupant in the indoor thermal environment can be efficiently analysed using the principle of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technique. This can be modelled as a difference of measure of a region equivalent to air circulation and diffusion in/out of the area. Other parameters influence the room operating condition and energy consumption by the building systems directly and indirectly over a period of time. This paper represents how to use comfort theory and CFD concepts to do a computational study of building comfort and improve the energy performance of the building during the summer and winter seasons in the subtropical climate. The occupants’ overall comfort evaluation results in the chosen building are recorded, taking into account the suitable climate-responsive heating, ventilation and air conditioning approach and envelope systems. The thermal CFD simulation model used in this study incorporates the most current turbulence simulation methodology appropriate for airflow modelling in buildings. The numerical comfort analysis methodology is used to analyse the indoor thermal condition, considering the Cooled Beam cooling system and BioPCM as an envelope solution for possible retrofitting. The simulation findings show that the uniform temperature distributions observed during working hours are adequate and demonstrate improved energy performance by the building systems. Moreover, the results suggest that the use of advanced computational fluid dynamics techniques is a valuable method for the analysis of human comfort in indoor spaces.

Keywords

• Thermal analysis
• Indoor comfort
• Cooled Beam
• BioPCM
• CFD