Cfd-Assisted Design and Optimization of Solar Chimneys for Elementary School Classrooms
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Proceedings of BS2015: 14th Conference of International Building Performance Simulation Association, Hyderabad, India, Dec. 7-9, 2015. CFD-ASSISTED DESIGN AND OPTIMIZATION OF SOLAR CHIMNEYS FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CLASSROOMS Justin C. DeBlois1, Demba Ndiaye2 1Setty and Associates, New York, NY 2University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC Dynamics (CFD) studies, numerical studies and ABSTRACT experimental studies. Much of the literature focuses A passive ventilation system using solar chimneys on optimizing the chimney height, tilt angle and was designed to provide ventilation to several width for a specific climate and set of environmental classrooms in an addition to an elementary school in conditions. Washington, DC. The primary design objectives A research group recently developed a module for were to provide enhanced indoor environmental implementation in EnergyPlus that would calculate quality and a learning opportunity for students. This the performance of an inclined solar chimney, and paper explores the design process, describes conducted a cursory experimental validation (Jianliu, obstacles faced in implementing the design, and 2013). The module was not available for use in this presents the results of the simulations. The multi- paper. The authors further attempted to find the variable optimization approach taken to the design, optimum tilt for the Nanjing (China) climate. using a detailed airflow model in EnergyPlus and Another study of the inclined solar chimney used CFD, attempted to find the design parameters such as mathematical analysis and experimental validation to chimney height and opening areas that result in the study the inclination angle and chimney gap width highest number of occupied hours per year with for specific, steady state, environmental conditions adequate ventilation flow rates. EnergyPlus results (Khanal, 2014). A paper looked into the effect of show potential HVAC energy savings of up to 5%, wind speed on solar chimney performance, and up to 1,200 occupied hours that the classrooms something which is often overlooked in the literature could have adequate natural ventilation. CFD results but which is key to a successful design (Tan, 2014). complement these simulations by demonstrating the For the Powell project, the annual EnergyPlus ranges of exterior temperatures and ventilation flow simulations also include the effect of wind. rates that are thermally comfortable. Comprehensive Literature often relies on CFD to model the air flow analysis with simulation tools allowed an optimal in solar chimneys. The scope of these studies is often design for this complex, multi-variable problem. smaller than the scope of the Powell study, such that INTRODUCTION CFD does not predict the actual thermal comfort in the space. For example, one group uses CFD to The solar chimney is a natural ventilation technique predict the performance of a residential solar that uses an open construction extending above the chimney, and then validates it experimentally building to allow buoyancy driven ventilation to flow (Chung, 2014). Another uses CFD to parametrically up from the occupied space through a vent near the study the effect of glass tilt angle and air gap width top of the chimney. Solar chimneys use the buoyancy on performance, and again the scope of the model is force from warm interior air near the ceilings of the limited to the chimney itself (Lal, 2014). rooms and also take advantage of solar radiation by allowing the insolation to pass through a South- Despite the challenges of using a ventilation facing window in the chimney and be absorbed by technique which is not fully understood from an the dark, low-reflectivity interior surfaces of the academic perspective, solar chimneys were identified chimney. Natural convection then causes the air in early in the design process for the Powell Elementary the chimney to warm and flow upward and out of the School addition and renovation project as a strategy vent. for improving the indoor environmental quality of the classrooms and for providing an educational tool on Numerous recent studies have examined the use of green buildings. solar chimneys in residential, educational and a variety of other building types. The two story design Figure 1 shows a design of the solar chimney in the of Powell elementary school is unusual in the Revit model of the addition, Building C. The two tall literature. A literature review on the solar chimney structures above the eight classrooms are solar research showed that the solar chimney system is still chimneys. not completely understood (Khanal, 2011). The literature is split between Computational Fluid - 818 - Proceedings of BS2015: 14th Conference of International Building Performance Simulation Association, Hyderabad, India, Dec. 7-9, 2015. are identical. Therefore, one classroom was simulated on each floor and the shared wall was considered adiabatic, or without heat transfer. The South walls of the classrooms were also considered adiabatic because they face a conditioned corridor with temperature set points identical to the classrooms and separate conditioning systems. Figure 2 shows the visualization of the model. Figure 1: Eight classrooms served by two vertical solar chimneys Each solar chimney served four classrooms: two on the first floor and two on the second floor. The chimney spans the two floors and has vents into each of the classrooms, as well as a vent and fenestration Figure 2: First iteration model visualization surface near the top of the chimney. An advanced control system is required to automatically actuate There is a South-facing, sloped window on the back the vent openings, as well as possibly control a of the solar chimney. This window has area 72 ft2, ventilation fan in the solar chimney. The operation of and a sloped angle of 22° from the vertical. This the ventilation system is occupant controlled, by a window is placed to maximize solar radiation switch and an automated control system. allowed into the chimney, to be absorbed by the low- reflectivity coating in the chimney and convected to SIMULATIONS the internal air to cause upward airflow. The window The building energy model of the Powell classrooms is double-paned, without a low-e coating. and solar chimneys went through two iterations. The The airflow network includes three zone air nodes: first iteration was based off standard classroom the first and second floor classrooms and the solar assumptions and a preliminary chimney design. A chimney. There are two fixed and three operable sensitivity analysis was conducted with the design openings. The vents between the classroom and the suggested by the NIST software LoopDA (Dols et solar chimney were fixed open and could not be al., 2012) as the center point. The second iteration controlled dynamically at this point in the study due used the actual designed constructions and expected to limitations within the EnergyPlus front end. The operational characteristics for the building, and a bottom portions of the two main classroom windows multi-dimensional analysis of the key design and the vent from the chimney to the exterior were variables was conducted that accounted for the operable and controlled automatically. There were interactions between parameters. A CFD model was exterior air nodes corresponding to each of the developed of the space to simultaneously assess the exterior openings, at the appropriate height. The wind thermal comfort performance of the advanced natural flow coefficients were calculated according to an ventilation strategy and inform the zonal models on EnergyPlus algorithm tailored to the approximate possible comfortable flow modes. geometry of the building. First Iteration Zonal Model Second Iteration Zonal Model The first model, developed in an EnergyPlus For the second iteration of the model, more care was (EnergyPlus, 2014) front end, was the simplest zonal taken to match the constructions and geometry of the representation that could capture the dynamics of the building as it is designed. The second iteration solar chimney while excluding the rest of the included four classrooms, in case there were any building. The airflow patterns on the first and second asymmetrical aspects to the heat transfer. The floor are different because of the difference in inlet constructions matched the intended design, and the heights, so two stories were included. While each assumed heat gains and schedules were carefully solar chimney serves two classrooms on each floor, matched to the expected usage patterns of the the two are symmetric with little heat transfer building. Gains included people, lights, and solar. between them because there are no openings between Equipment gain is relatively small in this type of them and the set points and activity schedules in each space. For all annual simulations, an annual schedule - 819 - Proceedings of BS2015: 14th Conference of International Building Performance Simulation Association, Hyderabad, India, Dec. 7-9, 2015. was created with three seasons: academic year, summer, and vacation. Only the academic year was considered an occupied time period. Therefore, the peak cooling season, and a time when the natural ventilation system might be very effective, was not included in the analysis because the system will not operate during the summer when the building is unoccupied. See Figure 5 for a summary of the external conditions during occupied time steps. The second iteration model controlled the ventilation openings only roughly,