Identification of Ideal Air Temperature Distribution Using Different Location for Air Conditioner in a Room Integrated with EATHE - A CFD Based Approach

Passive cooling is a building design approach that focuses on heat gain control and heat dissipation in a building in order to improve the indoor thermal comfort with low or nil energy consumption. Appropriate air temperature distribution in a room is necessary for thermal comfort. By using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) it is possible to compare optional ways of air supply for maintaining thermal comfort in a conditioned zone equipped with passive cooling like EATHE. Using these simulations, designer can choose the best method of air supply in the room diminishing the risk of an incorrect solution. This paper compares three cases in which integration of active (AC) and passive (EATHE) cooling was analysed with the help of CFD tool. The uniform heat flux from the surface was set to 55 W/m2, AC air velocity of 3 m/s and supply temperature kept constant at 291 K. k-ɛ model was considered for the turbulence model. Results was analysed and it was concluded that minimum time taken and maximum temperature drop was achieved with the installation of both the equipment on the same side of the room.