Indoor Energy Analysis of Food Distribution Warehouse

The current investigation involves carrying out dynamic thermal simulations and computational fluid dynamic analysis (CFD) analysis. The purpose of this analysis is to assist in designing a ventilation system to achieve an acceptable internal thermal environment of less than 28 o C dry bulb temperatures within the occupied space. The thermal performance of the facility over a period of time has been simulated taking into account the effect of thermal mass within the space which affects the average internal space temperatures. Results from the dynamic thermal simulation analysis were then used to provide the boundary conditions for the CFD analysis. The investigated warehouse has been simulated using four different roofs based mechanical ventilation strategies. The amount of goods stored in the warehouse has been found to play a significant role in keeping the warehouse temperature within the acceptable range. An almost empty warehouse tends to vary with the outside ambient temperature. However, a warehouse full of goods makes use of thermal mass to provide a passive cooling strategy. It is recommended that mechanical ventilation of 350 m/s of air to be adopted using the smoking fans already exist in the warehouse. These fans should operate when the ambient temperature falls below 27oC at any time of the day if the temperature requirements are satisfied during the summer period.