Interaction between the mixing and displacement modes in a naturally ventilated enclosure

Experiments are carried out to study for the first time interactive phenomena in buoyancy-induced natural ventilation in a full-scale enclosure with upper and lower openings on one of the sidewalls. The interaction between the mixing and the displacement ventilation modes is revealed by opening the lower vent to different heights while the upper vent is kept fully open. Both. the transient process and steady state interaction are explored. Measurements include temperature differences between inside and outside and air velocity through the upper opening. The level of the neutral plane at the upper vent, defined here as the plane separating between inflow and outflow, decreases with R* the ratio between the opening heights (and areas) of the lower and upper vents. Experiments show that when 0 < R* < 0.27 the mixing and displacement modes interact through a new combined ventilation mode. For 0.53 < R* <= 1, the displacement mode dominates whereas in the intermediate range, 0.27 <= R* <= 0.53, either the combined or the pure displacement mode takes place. The experiments are in qualitative agreement with a previous theoretical model. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.