Building fabric thermal storage: Use of computational fluid dynamics for modelling

Abstract

The paper describes work towards the construction and validation of an accurate and detailed computer model of a commercially available thermal storage system. The model is constructed with the aid of a computational fluid dynamics package, using a minimum of fitted data. The paper also includes a discussion of the reasons for current interest in fabric energy storage (FES), the mechanisms by which it may operate and summaries of operational experience with FES buildings and current research in this field. Some preliminary results from the computer model are presented and the plans for future work are outlined.