Use of computational fluid dynamics to analyse indoor air quality issues.

The potential for using a large eddy simulation (LES) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model to analyze building indoor air quality (IAQ) and ventilation problems was investigated. The LES model was developed by the Fire Science Division of NIST to simulate the transport of smoke and hot gases during a fire in an enclosure. Based on an extensive literature review, the application of the LES model to a test case, and discussions with building industry contacts, it was determined that this model offers unique capabilities compared to other available CFD models and could be used to make a significant contribution in studying issues of current interest in the IAQ and ventilation field. Recommendations for future work include evaluation of the predictive accuracy of CFD, analysis of topics that take advantage of transient simulation capability of this model, and development of a strategy for U.S. industry to apply CFD in the design process.