Author:

Keywords:

Shading devices, Computational Fluid Dynamics

Abstract:

The application of large glazed surfaces in office and residential buildings demands the integration of shading devices in the design of the facade in order to reduce overheating and high cooling loads during warm periods. However, the physical phenomena occurring at the facade, between the external layer of louvers, the glazing pane(s) and the interior space are very complex and depend on numerous factors. The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of solar radiation on the airflow and heat transfer on a glazing facade with exterior louvers. The study is performed in three phases: (1) design and modeling of the experimental set-up, (2) laboratory experiments and (3) CFD validation. This paper focuses on the first phase. The experiment set-up consists on a vertical test opaque facade with an external layer of aluminum louvers which is placed in front of a solar simulator.