Thermal Performance Analysis of a Commercial Space Exposed to Solar Radiations in the Composite Climatic Conditions

Abstract

People spend majority of their lifetime indoors making comfortable dwellings one of the major requirements otherwise it may primarily impact the occupant’s health and productivity. Indoor temperature and relative humidity (RH) are the two major parameters for determining comfort level, whilst airflow and heat transfer are having an influential role in controlling these parameters. Since solar radiations are the primary source of heat inside a building and ceiling fans play a significant role in improving air circulation. The present study strives to develop a model for evaluating the thermal behavior of commercial space under the influence of solar radiations and ceiling fans. It involves “solar ray tracing” and “3D-Fan zone” models to assess their impact on indoor air quality and thermal comfort. The developed model is validated by comparing the simulated results of air velocity and temperature with experimental data accumulated from space. Further, the validated model is used to evaluate the impact of different levels of solar irradiation between 200 W/m² and 1000 W/m² on the indoor environment. Results revealed that an increment of 200 W/m² irradiations is raising the mean indoor temperature by 0.2 °C, percentage dissatisfaction by 8% while a reduction in RH is reported to be 0.5%.

Disclosure statement

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Shubham Kumar Verma

Shubham Kumar Verma graduated in Mechanical Engineering from Rustamji Institute of Technology in 2015. He completed his M.Tech. from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU). Presently, he is a research scholar in the School of Energy Management in SMVDU. His research interests are energy efficiency, computational fluid dynamics, interoperability, and thermal comfort.

Vibhushit Gupta

Vibhushit Gupta graduated with an M.Tech degree in Renewable Energy from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU) in 2019. He earned his B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from Kurukshetra University. He is currently a Ph.D. Scholar in SMVDU. His research interests are thermal comfort, heat transfer and computational mechanics.

Sahil Thappa

Sahil Thappa graduated with an M.Tech degree in mechanical engineering from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU) in 2016 and earned his B.Tech. degree from Arni University, Pathankot in 2014. He is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in Energy Management from SMVDU. His research interests are solar energy, solar collectors, and heat transfer.

Sanjeev Anand

Sanjeev Anand is Assistant Professor in Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU). He received his B.E. degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1995 from Nagpur University and his M.Tech. and Ph.D. degrees in Energy from SMVDU. His research interests are energy efficiency, heat and mass transfer, energy, and exergy analyses.

Navin Gupta

Navin Gupta, is an architect with 25 years of experience. He did his graduation (B. Arch.) from the University of Trivandrum and post-graduation (Landscape Architecture) from Maharishi Dayanand University, Rohtak. His key research interests are buildings orientation designing, ventilation, energy-saving and vernacular practices by focusing on strategic planning and architectural research.

Yatheshth Anand

Yatheshth Anand has done his M.E. in CAD/CAM and Robotics after pursuing his B.E in Mechanical Engineering. He completed his Ph.D. in the area of Exergy and Moisture Dynamics in Buildings in 2018. Presently he is working as Assistant Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University. His research interests are nearly zero-energy buildings, exergetic analysis, computational fluid dynamics and automation.