Comparison of single-sided ventilation characteristics between single-storey and multi-storey buildings due to wind effect

Previous studies on single-sided natural ventilation are mostly limited to very simple physical models, such as a single-room or single-storey building. Our recent on-site measurements have shown that previous empirical models based on such simple physical models are inapplicable to multi-storey buildings. In order to explore why, this study systematically compares the ventilation characteristics of single-storey and multistorey buildings with single-sided natural ventilation. In addition to single-storey and multi-storey buildings with real rooms and openings, a solid block with the same dimensions as the single-storey building is created for comparison. Steady CFD simulation using the renormalization group (RNG) κ - ε turbulence model is employed to establish the mean flow fields, and the integration method is used to predict the ventilation rates. It is found that both the envelope flow pattern and the ventilation rate of a room in a multi-storey building are highly dependent on its three-dimensional location in the building. This phenomenon cannot be observed and explained using a single-storey building. The implications of the difference in ventilation characteristics between a single-storey and a multi-storey building are discussed and suggestions are made for future studies in single-sided natural ventilation.