Computational study and experimental validation of the heat ventilation in a living room with a solar patio system

The numerical investigation of the heat ventilation and thermal comfort evaluation in a living room with a patio system was undertaken using a validated computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model. The Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) modeling approach with the k-epsilon turbulence model was used for the numerical investigations. The steady-state governing equations were solved using the software SolidWorks Flow Simulation. Based on the various flow simulations, the numerical results obtained for the temperature distributions, the airflow patterns and the turbulence characteristics inside the building were presented. Using the numerical results, it was noticed that the choice of the building design can improve comfort conditions by modifying the microclimate of the building and by enhancing the airflow in it. Indeed, it was found that patio system can be useful of a heat source in the building. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.