Computational modelling of the transient response of building internal pressure to a sudden opening

Abstract

This paper describes the computational and experimental modelling of the transient response of internal pressures to sudden openings in buildings and models. It is shown that the computer model correctly predicts both the Helmholtz frequency and the decay rate of internal pressure. A study of the flow patterns from the computational results also show that a vena-contracts forms in the oscillating flow following a sudden opening. It is thought that viscous losses may be important and new analytic models have therefore been suggested which have been used to obtain a match with the experimental results.