Simulation Study on Cooling Effect of Thermally Activated Light Shelf (TALS) System

Abstract

A light shelf is commonly used to mitigate glare discomfort and overheating by preventing solar radiation from penetrating the indoor space. If the light shelf can be thermally activated, it can also be used for space cooling, particularly for the perimeter zone in buildings. In this study, a thermally activated light shelf (TALS) system was proposed, where the light shelf was integrated with a radiant cooling panel system. To examine the applicability of the TALS system, heat transfer simulations were conducted using the Physibel software. Based on the simulation results, the layer of TALS was determined to maximize cooling capacity at the lower panel surface while minimizing the lower surface temperature. Transient simulations were also conducted to evaluate the cooling effect of the TALS system during the summer season. Simulation results showed that the TALS system could reduce the average perimeter and interior zone temperature by 2.23°C and 2.19°C, respectively. With the TALS system, the maximum temperature was reduced by 3.2°C in both the perimeter and interior zones. It was found that the TALS system could effectively reduce the room air temperature, which could lead to cooling energy savings. The impact of the TALS system on cooling energy consumption needs to be investigated in future studies.