Investigation of thermal performance of double-layered thermally activated building system in heating mode

Abstract

Main principle of the thermally active building system (TABS) which is a type of radiant heating system operating at low temperatures range as 30–50 ˚C is to bring the ambient temperature to the desired level by heating the building mass. TABS system is also a system that can heat at low temperatures such as underfloor heating systems, and both systems can be applied in multi-story buildings. Because these systems operate at low temperatures, they are compatible with both each other and with renewable energy sources. At the same time, heating and cooling at temperatures close to room temperature can also increase the coefficient of performance (COP) in these systems. In this study, a double-layered system which is a new concept was designed by using both underfloor heating and TABS on the same floor; and the thermal performance of the double-layered TABS system (DLTS) was examined using the FLUENT/ANSYS programs. In the calculations, different supply water temperatures (30, 35 and 40 °C) and the pipe positions on the vertical axis (0.001 m, 0.050 m, and 0.100 m) were considered. It can be obtained from the results that the efficiency of the heating systems can be increased by using the new DLTS proposed in this study. © IMechE 2021.