Shelter energy use reduction through buoyancy-driven air flow manipulation: A numerical and experimental study

Abstract

The significance of reduction in energy usage of air-conditioned fabric structures, such as shelters, is huge considering the risks and the cost associated with running a generator in off-grid situations. As shelters are typically used in extreme climatic conditions, the energy usage as well as the transportation and running costs are high. The aim of this project is to modify the design of the shelter air gap to reduce the heat transfer due to buoyancy-driven flows across the shelter layers. To reduce the heat transfer, an additional layer is considered inside the air gap at various locations to suppress the natural convection heat transfer. A numerical model is developed to study the performance of the shelter under various conditions and validated by experimental data. The results of all cases are studied and the heat transfer data are reported. The temperature contours, velocity streamlines, Nusselt number, and power usage are calculated. The energy savings obtained with various air gap designs are also studied and reported. The results of this study show that improving the design of air gap by adding an additional layer can lead to significant reduction of air conditioning energy use in such shelters.