Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applied to buildings sustainable design: natural ventilation. Case study.

Abstract

Through the last decades, building designers should deal with reliable design strategies to take advantage of natural resources in order to increase energy efficiency in buildings, as well as to promote sustainable development and add value to the society. This thesis proposes a reliable building design strategy to improve buildings energy efficiency by means of natural ventilation (NV) use. The strategy consists in evaluating the most suitable architectural solution in a particular case study taking into account environmental conditions and building surroundings in order to maximize NV use since the early building design stage. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques are used to conduct the research. This is a powerful design tool that permits buildings NV behaviour simulation prior to building construction. Therefore, the aim of the thesis is to provide a real case study building in which the NV design strategy is applied to show a reliable example and support building design decisions since the design stage. The design strategy is based on the use of a commercial numerical code that solves the fluid mechanic equations. The CFD software simulates the features that influence NV and predicts its behaviour in the different building configurations prior to building construction. This numerical technique allows, on the one hand, the visualization of air flow paths in buildings. On the other hand, many quantifiable parameters are calculated by the software. Through the analysis and comparison of those parameters, the best architectural solutions are chosen. With regards to all possible architectural decisions, the research is focused on the facade configuration selection and the building location. First of all, the NV design strategy feasibility is analysed in a particular region: the Mediterranean Valencian Coastal area (Spain). The region is characterized by the uniform conditions of the prevailing wind during the warm season. Then, a validated CFD simulation is used to analyse qualitatively and quantitatively the building surrounding influence on wind paths through and around buildings. The objective is to compare different facade opening positions and select the alternative that takes more profit of the NV resources available. Additionally, a general quantification of the ventilated facade contribution to buildings energy efficiency is presented under the frame of the facade configuration selection. Secondly, two simulations are conducted to analyse two different building locations. The assessment of surrounding buildings influence on building NV behaviour is done through validated CFD models. Some parameters and visualizations are proposed to be used in the quantitative and qualitative assessment of each solution respectively. Then, the best location alternative with regards to NV performance is selected. Finally, the research is concluded with the case study building full-scale construction. The indoor CFD simulation used from the beginning is then successfully validated. The NV building behaviour is also successfully verified. Additionally, contrasted performance indexes are used to evaluate indoor comfort conditions: draught risk (DR), predicted mean vote (PMV) and predicted percentage of dissatisfied people (PPD). The results show that comfort conditions can be reached more energy efficiently by means of NV use. Afterwards, it is verified how the comfortable indoor environment conditions are ensured and optimized by the NV use. Although the design strategy is applied to a particular building design, the design strategy potential is that it could be applied to all buildings. Consequently, major potential energy savings could be achieved.