Mathematical modelling of passive displacement dual cooling coil (PDDCC) system in a tropical climate

Abstract

Unlike the conventional displacement ventilation (DV) systems, the Passive Displacement Dual Cooling Coil (PDDCC) system generates airflow in indoor environments based on natural convection and eliminates the necessity of mechanical ventilation to meet the thermal comfort and indoor air quality requirements. Investigations on such PDDCC systems, though, have been largely limited and its performance capacity and fluid flow behaviour are not fully understood. A mathematical model was, hence, developed in the current study to explore the effects of various boundary conditions on the performance of the PDDCC system. Results obtained from the mathematical model were, first, compared and validated against the measurement readings gathered from an experimental investigation conducted on the PDDCC system in a controlled test environment. The validated mathematical model was then applied to a parametric evaluation where the effects of chilled water supply (CHWS) temperature, flow rate, and return air temperature on the PDDCC system performance were examined. The varying effect of the latent and sensible cooling load was observed at the different boundary conditions applied to the PDDCC model. Slightly more than 32% of rise in total cooling load was predicted by reducing the CHWS temperature which established a much more significant contribution in comparison to the CHWS flow rate which generated approximately 5% rise in the total cooling load. Findings were supported by examining the sensible heat ratio (SHR) and the ratio of Latent cooling load: Sensible cooling load which was then was attributed to the temperature difference between the supply and return air temperature. By ensuring the maximum temperature difference, the total cooling load performance of the PDDCC system can be maximised. The contribution of both the CHWS temperature and flowrate was essential to achieve the maximum cooling load, hence, improving the total cooling performance of the PDDCC as a result.