Analysis of Flow Around Several Buildings on the University of New Haven Main Campus

Date of Submission

4-2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering

Department

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering

Advisor

Maria-Isabel Carnasciali

Committee Member

Jonathan G. Dudley

Committee Member

Byungik Chang

Committee Member

Samuel Daniels

Keywords

wind flow, ANSYS®, wind velocity, wind power, alternative power sources

LCSH

Wind turbines--Aerodynamics, Wind power--Experiments

Call No. at the Univ. of New Haven Library

AS36.N29 Mech. Engr. 2016 no.1

Abstract

The modeling of the wind flow around several buildings on the University of New Haven UNH campus was studied; an understanding of the flow field and the interactions that occur in the airflow between the various buildings is needed to establish optimal placement of a small-scale wind turbine. Identifying a proper location for a wind turbine will ensure maximum power output. The power output is determined by the velocity of the air that passes through the turbine and is proportional to the air flow velocity cubed. The presence of buildings and various structures as well as the flow through and around the buildings impacts the flow field and flow velocity. Modeling of these buildings was done by computational simulation (CFD) with simplified geometries. Buildings dimensions were obtained from the UNH facilities’ department while simplifications were made for modeling using the ANSYS® software suite. The velocity and pressure fluctuations of the air passing around the buildings were computationally acquired for different wind directions. The study considered steady state simulations. Turbulence was modeled using the k-omega and SST equations. Four factors were investigated in this study: influence of wind directions, influence of wind speed, influence of neighboring buildings and influence of turbulence models. The mesh was studied so that the results were independent of the mesh resolution and included examining the dependence of first thickness of the boundary layer y+. The results of the simulations were focused on Buckman Hall and demonstrate that the wind velocity at 5-10 m above the building roof is enhanced numerously, as much as 1.5-2 times the nominal 3-10 m/s inlet velocity. Additional studies are needed to strengthen the results yielded by the model; recommendations are made for future work.

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