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Analysis of thermal comfort in a planetarium through CFD simulations

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Abstract

This work aims to obtain the velocity and temperature fields inside the Museum of the Universe (Planetarium of the Rio de Janeiro city) and the predicted mean vote and predicted percentage dissatisfied indices of thermal comfort for three specific times in autumn of 2014. The numerical analysis was developed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques, using the commercial software ANSYS Fluent. Experimental data and information from on-site surveys were used as input for the CFD simulation. The boundary conditions were no slip on the walls and prescribed velocity on the air-conditioning diffusers. Data for temperature boundary conditions came from previous experimental work. For the envelope, a prescribed temperature except for the north face of the glass cover with prescribed heat flow was assumed. The prescribed heat flow was also inserted on the ground and first floors, assuming a uniform distribution of heat produced by the visitors. The mesh test was performed for the temperature in a vertical line in a central position. Comparing the numerical results with experimental data, for the worst case, the average of temperature absolute differences at 13 points was 0.8 °C with a root-mean-square error of 4.75%. The results demonstrated the ability of the air-conditioning system to develop thermal comfort between the ground floor and the ceiling of the second floor, even when the latter is turned off, aided in this condition by the thermal stratification of the air observed in the dome region, caused by local stagnation.

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Acknowledgements

This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001. The experimental analysis was supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State University of Rio de Janeiro, Rua Fonseca Teles, 121, Rio de Janeiro-RJ, São Cristóvão, Brazil

    André Patrocinio de Castro, Manoel Antonio da Fonseca Costa Filho & Washington Batista de Lima

  2. Pontifical Catholic University of Minas Gerais, Av. Dom José Gaspar, 500, Coração Eucarístico, Belo Horizonte-MG, Brazil

    Cristiana Brasil Maia

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  1. André Patrocinio de Castro
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Correspondence to André Patrocinio de Castro.

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de Castro, A.P., da Fonseca Costa Filho, M.A., Maia, C.B. et al. Analysis of thermal comfort in a planetarium through CFD simulations. J Braz. Soc. Mech. Sci. Eng. 45, 569 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-023-04482-6

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