Fast prediction of non-uniform temperature distribution: A concise expression and reliability analysis

Abstract

Fast prediction of indoor temperature distribution is valuable to recognize the status and assist in rapid decision making and heat source control. Prediction using a superposition theorem based on the assumption of fixed flow field is an alternative method of performing fast prediction. However, little research revealed the methods’ reliability based on fixed flow field, and previous prediction methods primarily focused on the temperature at a steady state. In this paper, an algebraic expression was established to predict the temperature distribution based on the definition of transient accessibility indices for temperature. The prediction accuracy was mainly verified using a numerical method with 14 cases. It was concluded: (1) the proposed expression can perform fast prediction once the transient accessibility indices are prepared in advance; (2) the fixed flow field adopted in the proposed method should be built by a thermal scenario considering the heat source at a certain intensity, rather than a scenario with no heat source. The accuracy is acceptable for positions outside the heat source area; (3) there is no significant effect of the choice of supply air temperature utilized in building the fixed flow field on prediction accuracy. The research on prediction accuracy is helpful for a reasonable application of the proposed method in real projects.