Parametric Integration of CFD-based Wind Pressure Coefficients into Building Energy Models: A Novel Workflow

Abstract

By integrating computational fluid dynamics (CFD)-generated wind pressure coefficients (WPCs) into building energy models, recent workflows enable the evaluation of the impacts of local wind on the energy performance of buildings. With the current workflows, however, only manual integration of WPCs into building energy models is possible. This study provides a workflow for the parametric integration of CFD-based WPCs, sampled for each window in the model, into building energy models using the Rhino-GH platform. Using this workflow, this study performed a parametric block-scale energy evaluation of 324 iterations for courtyard and high-rise layouts in various urban and building design configurations in the climate of Tel Aviv to compare the cooling load deviations between CFD-based and default WPCs. The results reveal a significant cooling load deviation between default and CFD-based WPCs, particularly in compact configurations (courtyard typology, higher FAR, and narrower street widths), indicating that default wind pressure coefficients overestimate the natural cooling potential. Further investigation of the balance between solar gains and convective heat losses reveals a surge in the impact of solar gains on cooling loads when accounting for CFD-based WPCs in the climate of Tel Aviv. This workflow can assist designers and analysts in accounting for local wind patterns in energy-driven urban design workflows.