boundary layer

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has been introduced to the architectural engineering and HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning) industry for decades. Its effectiveness in assisting the architects and engineers in the design process has been well acknowledged. However, the mesh generation process is complicated and time consuming, especially for modeling free form geometric artifacts, e.g., buildings in complex terrains or human bodies in the room. This paper presents the effort to apply quality mesh generation to CFD simulations in architectural applications.

Two methods have been used for measurement of natural convection flows in a narrow vertical channel of which one wall is heated : a hot wire anemometer adapted to measurements in flows where temperature gradients exist (two hot wires with different overheat) and a method for attaining bulk flow information in boundary layer flows. Results from these two methods are compared.

When using RANS turbulence models the mean profiles of mixed convection can be predicted with accuracy. It is more important to resolve large scale 3D structures instead of using very complex turbulence models, for the prediction of room airflow with floor heating or cooled ceiling.

The principal soil gases of current concern to building are radon and landfill gas. The flow of these is generally thought to be dominated by viscous flow under a pressure gradient. This paper presents results for such pressure-driven flow of gas for problems relating to a building with a bare soil floor, for example below a suspended timber floor. The solutions address this problem in two dimensions as a mixed boundary problem.

The calculation of the infrared absorption in humid air (Schenker et al. 1995) has suggested an influence on the temperature and velocity profiles of the natural convection boundary layer. The profiles have been measured and confirm a small effect on the profiles in the laminar region of the flow but a strong one on the transition from laminar to turbulent flow. In a first approach based on the analytical solution for the conduction regime expressions could be deduced showing at least qualitatively the same modification of the temperature and the velocity profiles as measured.

The purpose of the presented investigation is the comparison between measured data of the laminar and turbulent mixed convection and their approximation by wall functions. New wall functions were implemented in a FVM-research-code using unstructured grids, which was developed by the author. Numerical results are compared with a turbulent closed cavity flow.