Increasing steadily in relevance to aspects of the construction of buildings is their energy considerations, especially with regard to the efficiency and sustainability without restriction of functionality. Therefore the different simulation calculations are becoming essential in the analyses of various processes with multiple possibilities.
Today the representation of scenarios for the prediction of thermal conditions in the development of products are indispensable and replace countless physical model tests in the optimization process. This is used for example in building technology.
A large number of software tools for the energetic building and flow simulations provide opportunities to investigate the potential of energy savings and the thermal comfort of the user.
Simulations can facilitate decision making processes already in the early stages of planning and help to develop an energy-efficient building. Here decision making templates are generated for the development of energy concepts aimed at thermal comfort as well as at the best energy efficiency and incorporation by means of control strategies of plant engineering.
In contrast to conventional stationary calculation methods for determining loads, dynamic simulations are based on numerical routines. The partial differential equation systems are used for balancing unsteady processes.
Here load profiles of internal loads such as people and lighting, as well as the heat input by solar radiation in the course of time are included in the calculations. In this way different loads can be resolved in any time intervals, as in over the day or the year to determine peaks and reductions in load over the period to be considered.
The structure of the building in the form of geometry and building materials, the location and the position of the object, as well as requirements, usage and load profiles of various kinds are important conditions in the calculations and are extended by the introduction of reverse shading schemes, lighting regimes and active components. In this way a more realistic dynamic model is mapped, to determine both temporal patterns of heating and cooling loads, surface temperatures, as well as weather – and radiation data.
The evaluation especially of the temperature and humidity and the resulting air conditions in the building provides information as to thermal behaviour in an operating state. This includes also the frequency of the exceeding of limit values from directives and regulations during the time to be considered. Further conclusions can be drawn as to thermal comfort throughout the building, or in specific areas from these results.
With the generation of all results, tailor-made concepts can be developed for the operation and supply of the building.
