Cooling load calculation methods in spaces with stratified air: A brief review and numerical investigation

Due to vertically thermal stratification in indoor spaces, the cooling load calculation is always a challenge in the design of stratified air distribution systems (STRAD), which in turn is crucial to determine the supply air flow rate and the cooling load to be removed by the air conditioning system. In this paper, several cooling load calculation methods, developed in the past 20 years and focused on STRAD systems, were briefly reviewed. It attempts to clarify these methods in terms of their advantages, limitations and suitable ranges of applications. Furthermore, series of numerical simulations with a total number of 56 cases were conducted, and the applications of a novel cooling load calculation method in STRAD systems were investigated. The reliability of the method was validated for STRAD systems with separated locations of return and exhaust grilles, when adopted in three typical spaces with different building heights, namely a small office, a large terraced classroom and a terminal building. Databases of effective cooling load factors (ECLFi) for different heat sources distributed in the three spaces were obtained and presented, which can be conveniently used to calculate cooling loads. In addition, the influences of return grill height on the occupied zone cooling load as well as the energy saving potentials of STRAD systems were also clarified. The results presented in this paper are helpful for the design and optimization of STRAD systems.