Conference Paper

Proceedings of Building Simulation 2021: 17th Conference of IBPSA

Evaluating the Performance of different Window Opening Styles for single-sided buoyancy-driven natural Ventilation using CFD Simulations

Akshit Gupta, Annamaria Belleri, Francesco Babich
Institute for Renewable Energy, Eurac Research, 39100 Bolzano, Italy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26868/25222708.2021.30215
Abstract: In many circumstances, natural ventilation is a costeffective and efficient alternative to higher energy consuming mechanical ventilation systems to provide thermal comfort and good air quality. The aim of this research is to investigate the performances of different types of windows such as bottom hung, horizontal pivot and top hung fanlight for single-sided natural ventilation driven by buoyancy forces. CFD simulations, combining RANS model and SST k-ro turbulence models, were used to numerically evaluate the different window opening styles for the weather conditions of South Tyrol, Italy. In addition to the much-studied parameters of ventilation effectiveness, thermal comfort parameters have been considered based on standards such as EN ISO 7730 and ASHRAE 55, for comparing the performances of these selected windows. The results indicate that horizontal pivot window performs the best among the 3 types, because of its two-part structure ensuring better segregation. It provides 23% higher incoming airflow rate compared to bottom hung windows both in winter and summer conditions, but a 11% higher draught risk in winter.
Keywords: windows, CFD modelling, natural ventilation, geometrical simplification, external domain
Pages: 1220 - 1227
Paper: