Application of CFD to Reduce the Cooling Load of a Building: An Alternative Approach for Green Building Design

Abstract

Approximately 23 % of total CO2 emissions are attributed to the construction industry each year; in 2009, the industry produced 5.7 billion tonnes of CO2. Green building design is concerned with constructing a building in such a way that its carbon footprint is reduced throughout its life span. Lecture rooms are key components of educational institutions because they are where students spend the majority of their time. This study aims to propose a methodology to convert the existing designs of building to green buildings by optimizing the airflow. The lecture room at UET was chosen for this investigation because the air velocity distribution inside the room is not uniform due to the current design, which influences the convective heat loss from the room by creating pressure and temperature gradient. SOLIDWORKS 2021 was used to create the model of a lecture theatre. Because the majority of the rooms are naturally ventilated, a fluid dynamics analysis was performed on ANSYS Fluent 19.1 to ensure proper air ventilation. Natural airflow was improved by the addition of an extra column of windows. The total electric energy load has been computed, and the quantity of solar panels necessary to meet the demand has been recommended.