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Effect of indoor mass on the time constant and thermal delay of buildings
Author(s) -
Antonopoulos K. A.,
Koronaki E. P.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
international journal of energy research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.808
H-Index - 95
eISSN - 1099-114X
pISSN - 0363-907X
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-114x(200004)24:5<391::aid-er585>3.0.co;2-l
Subject(s) - thermal mass , thermal , constant (computer programming) , time constant , transient (computer programming) , maximization , environmental science , mechanics , computer science , mathematics , thermodynamics , engineering , mathematical optimization , physics , electrical engineering , programming language , operating system
A numerical procedure is presented for predicting the transient thermal behaviour of buildings and estimating time constant τ and thermal delay t d . The proposed procedure is used to examine the effect of indoor mass on the above characteristics. The predicted effect of these is considerable; for example, the usual indoor mass in houses increases τ and t d by up to 40 per cent, which is analysed to 25 per cent for interior partitions and 15 per cent for furnishings. Both τ and t d are found to be linear functions of the mass of interior partitions M p and furnishings M f . These functions are given for typical buildings. A simple ‘time constant and thermal delay model’ is also proposed, which is in satisfactory agreement with the developed rigorous numerical solution. Components of τ and t d are introduced, which express the contribution of any indoor construction element or piece of furniture to the ‘total’ time constant and thermal delay of buildings. The analysis in components, which are related to the corresponding ones of the ‘effective thermal capacitance’, provides useful information for the maximization of heat or cool storage in buildings. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.