English

A numerical and experimental study is performed to analyze the influence of natural convection on heat transfer in a composite system comprising a porous material heated from below and an air space situated above this. The numerical model is verified by conducting a number of experiments, on a model material consisting of polystyrene pellets of cylindrical shape, made in the Wind Box. This apparatus is a prototype and has been designed and developed at the Department of Building Physics.

This paper discusses a multi-year (MY) approach to building energy simulation and presents a pilot study in Hong Kong that investigates long-term building energy performance using MY weather data. Building energy simulations in the pilot study were carried out using the DOE-2.1E program. A set of 17 years hourly weather data (1979-95) was taken as the weather input to drive the simulation. It is found that the MY approach can provide more information for the analysis of long-term building energy performance and climatic properties.

The design of   monitoring system for   distnbuted energy and heat supply is presented in the paper. The analysis of monitoring system and the phase of pre-design was done by means of Object Modelling CASE Tool, the designed system was implemented in LONWORKS HW and SW environment The function of communication modules providing data transmission from distanced   energy and   heat supply system have been verified and a typical result of qualitative  simulation of  the  distanced complex behaviour  is presented.

The physics of moisture transfer is complex and as a result modelling is normally carried out on a macroscopic basis, with empirical coefficients used to simulate the transport process. These coefficients are not single values but depend on the moisture content of the material. The application of this data within the simulation environment requires the determination of a systematic methodology for its presentation. This paper investigates the transport coefficient referred to as the vapour (or moisture) permeability.

This paper presents the theoretical modelling work of an elementary urban units (street), thermal behaviour. The calculation code Codyflow was set up as a way to model the thermal response (structure surface temperature and ambient air temperature) of an urban system to the solicitations of the outside climate.

This article presents a study of a building-equipment coupled system performed at the Gaz de France R & D Division. The commercial building under study is equipped with an air-conditioning installation which includes a gas-fired dual-seJVice absorption machine. One of the aims of this study is to compare various air­ conditioning systems on the basis of both technical and economic criteria. The building, its air-conditioning installation and the large-scale experimental monitoring programme are presented.

This paper reports the current state of an ongoing collaborative project which aims to promote modelling and simulation of energy in buildings by making self-learning course material available on the World Wide Web (WWW).

Computer based design aids have much potential to improve the productivity of the design process and provide more confidence in the performance of a building. Although sophisticated design aids have existed for some time there is still a reluctance to use them to full advantage. This is particularly true of the strategic phase of building design. The barriers to the use of computer models are explored and the means by which they can be overcome via the education of post-graduate students and practising professionals are discussed.

Since two years, the Dutch building consultancy practice has been supported by an integrated design environment to base its advices on. This environment, called the Uniform Environment or UO in Dutch abbreviated form, has been developed by the Association for Computerisation in the Building and Installation Technology (VABI) and TNO Building and Construction Research. The basic principle of the UO is that all data, associated with a building project, is stored in one database, irrespective of the design tools being used in the project.

A new integrated simulation system for the building services design and facilities management purposes is being developed by Insinööritoimisto Olof Granlund Oy. The system covers the thermal simulation needs of the whole building life cycle from the preliminary design to renovations. The main components of the simulation system are a simulation database, user interfaces, a result module, a building geometry modeller and a calculation engine. The building geometry modeller generates a 3-D surface model of the building. The calculation engine of the first version is DOE 2.1E.