Coupling strategy of HVAC system 1 simulation and CFD part 1: study on the design phase of an under floor air distribution system

This report describes the utility of coupling an energy simulation tool and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for modelling a heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system, and demonstrates the application of this method in the design phase. A case study was conducted for the design phase of an air-conditioning system with an under floor air distribution system.  First, the cooling load for the target room was estimated, and the air-handling unit was designed based upon the estimated peak load. Next, the cooling load of the chilled water (air-conditioning load) was estimated first by using the energy simulation tool alone, and then by using the energy simulation tool coupled with CFD. We found that it was possible to estimate the proper air-conditioning load when the actual air-temperature distribution of the room was modelled by CFD.