Application of computational fluid dynamics in building services engineering

Application of Computational Fluid Dynamics to building services design is illustrated and reviewed. Principal areas of application are designs requiring an understanding of the air flow pattern, such as design of smoke control systems and air distribution in a heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system. In such an approach, the indoor air motion is described by a set of partial differential equations describing conservation of mass, momentum, enthalpy and chemical species concentration, if any. The air flow pattern, temperature contour, and chemical species concentration distribution induced by thermal sources are predicted by solving that system of equations using the finite difference method. Assessment of the longitudinal ventilation in a tunnel, smoke filling in an atrium, and the interaction between the air flow induced by a fire and a sprinkler water spray are illustrated in the area of fire engineering. Simulation of the combustion process is briefly reviewed. Calculation of the macroscopic flow parameters in an air-conditioned gymnasium and an office is demonstrated. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.