One typical and realistic scenario in the field of building environment simulations is the usage of a heater in a room. The purpose of this simulation is to comprehend and forecast the thermal dynamics that occur in a closed environment during the operation of a heating unit. The air motion is mainly moved by natural convection.

Simulation Process

It has tried to use the simplest model, focusing on the performance of a heater and its roll in ventilation. Indeed, our model is established from two zones. One is the solid heater and the other is the air zone. The structured grid rockets the accuracy of the present study. A source term applies the heat generation in 100 W/m3 in the heater zone. The Surface-to-surface (S2S) radiation model considers the radiative effects, so the volume impacts are not included.

Post-processing

The 100 W/m3 heat generation inside the heater can increase its core temperature to 302K. Whereas, the environment temperature is set as 300K. This distinct temperature gradient helps the heat to be transmitted from the warm zones around the heater toward the colder areas via a natural convection mechanism. It is shown in terms of contours that the warm air rises to the top of the room area, near the ceiling. However, the heater capacity is not efficient compared to the volume of the room. So it would be more favorable to use a high-capacity heater for the room.