Numerical Investigations on Thermal Environment in High-Rise Office Atrium Building: A Case Study in Xi'an, China

The atrium, embraced by a glazed roof atop the architectural structure, bathes the interior in natural light, elevating its aesthetic and functional appeal. However, during the summer, this architectural feature introduces environmental challenges, notably vertical thermal stratification, which can seriously affect the indoor thermal environment. Through numerical simulation, our study evaluated the thermal environment of a high-rise office building with an enclosed atrium in Xi'an, China-a typical city with a hot summer and cold winter climate. To explore the effects of indoor air conditioning operation, outdoor thermal and wind conditions on the atrium's thermal environment in summer, we utilized the Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) modeling approach, combined with the Finite Volume Discrete Ordinates Method (fvDOM) radiation model and the k-e turbulence model embedded in OpenFOAM. In pursuit of enhanced indoor thermal conditions, our research extends to a sensitivity analysis focusing on cooling strategies, including roof shading (S) and indoor air conditioning (C) and their combination (SC). The results showed that the highest cooling effect occurred around 3:00PM of case SC and case C exhibited the highest temperature difference within atrium space. Overall, the study provides valuable insights into optimizing the thermal performance of enclosed atrium spaces in high-rise buildings, contributing to the development of sustainable building design practices tailored to the hot summer and cold winter climate zone.