Abstract
Theoretical thermal analysis of the barned livestock environment affords owners the opportunity to explore process efficiency, energy substitution and animal response ahead of costly and time-consuming field trials. In this article, a thermodynamic model is developed and experimentally validated against a homogeneous, cage-free, single-storey broiler barn. The simulation predictions agree well with the experimental results. The average root mean square error is 5.8% for the temperature prediction and 6.3% for the humidity prediction. The model further allows assessment of heating and ventilation efficiency, demonstrating the significant energy savings available to insulated barned structures, with such efficiency measures recommended ahead of any consideration for energy substitution.
Highlights
Broilers are commonly raised in barn, with short growth cycles suited to the closed barn environment
Broiler life is characterised by a large heating demand, with late broiler life characterised by a significant ventilation demand
For the scenario’s considered, insulation to the barn reduced the heat load by 60% over the 35-day cycle
Summary
Broilers (meat poultry) are commonly raised in barn, with short growth cycles suited to the closed barn environment. Broiler chicks enter the barn environment as juvenile, 0.05 kg live weight, day-old chicks. Day-old chicks are introduced to a partitioned barn (brooding) environment to accommodate both their size and demand for supplementary heat. Such partitioning improves homogeneity during brood, with a homogeneous distribution assumed within the presented model. Brooding continues for between 4 and 11 days until the full barn span is made available to accommodate the larger birds. Around this juncture, a transition occurs as the process moves from endothermic to exothermic. Broiler life is characterised by a large heating demand, with late broiler life characterised by a significant ventilation demand
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