BLD224561

Evaluating Exhaust Ventilation in a Parking Garage

using Autodesk CFD
Matt Bemis
Autodesk

Learning Objectives
• Create a simulation-ready CAD model that is representative of a parking garage
• Set up material assignments and boundary conditions for a scalar mixing analysis
• Understand basic meshing principles, concepts, and goal
• Set solver settings and convergence criteria
• Post process results and make design changes based on simulation data

Description
Autodesk CFD is a great tool for virtually prototyping and understanding the performance of
fluid-thermal systems. This class explores leveraging Autodesk CFD to test the performance of
a ventilation system in a parking garage before the design is finished and implemented. Parking
garages require carefully designed and engineered ventilation systems to keep air quality high
and car exhaust, specifically toxic carbon monoxide, levels low. You will learn mathematical
background and design criteria, as well as how to prepare simulation-ready CAD, set up
boundary conditions, mesh settings, and solver options. By the end of this class you will be able
to perform your own CFD car exhaust analysis in a garage or tunnel.

Speaker(s)
Matt Bemis is a CFD technical support specialist and CFD Knowledge Domain Expert at
Autodesk, responsible for providing customer support in the Americas. Matt spends his days
interacting with end users and helping them solve their engineering problems by best leveraging
CFD. He is well versed in modeling electronics cooling, turbomachinery, external aerodynamics,
automotive, and biomedical applications. Before joining Autodesk, Matt did product support and
consulting for an application specific CFD tool which models airflow and cooling inside of data
centers.

Page 1
 Background

Some automobile parking garages in metro areas can be fully enclosed, which presents
concerns due to toxic car emissions. The primary concern is emission of Carbon Monoxide,
which is already well studied and understood in terms of toxicity. Internal combustion
automobiles produce other toxic fumes, such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur gases, carbon dioxide,
and so on. Regardless, it is assumed if a design is built to ventilate carbon monoxide levels to
safe concentrations, other hazardous gases will reach satisfactory concentrations as well.

The number of cars operating at any given time varies, especially depending on the use of the
building. Apartment buildings or shopping areas tend to have more distributed, continued use,
while sports stadiums or office facilities can reach much higher levels of usage. It is assumed
that distributed use facilities see 5-10% of all cars operating at once, while a peak-use facility
could reach 20%.

Several assumptions will be made about CO production among cars. It is assumed an internal
combustion engine is an air pump, with a flow rate as follows:

1000 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 2 𝐿𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝐿𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑚3

∗ = 2000 =2
𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒 1 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒
𝑚3 1.225 𝐾𝑔 𝐾𝑔 𝑔
2 ∗ = 2.45 = 2450
𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑚3 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒

It is assumed each car will be emitting 11.17 g/min of CO, which represents an average of the
Winter Hot and Cold emission rates for 1996.

CO EMISSIONS FOR VEHICLES ARE OUTLINED ABOVE. THIS ANALYSIS WILL ASSUME 11.17 G/MIN OF CO
EMISSION.

Page 2
With the calculated flow rate of each car, as well as the CO generation, a total mass flow rate
and PPM at car exhaust outlet can be derived.

𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑀𝐹𝑅 = 𝐶𝑂 𝑀𝐹𝑅 + 𝐴𝑖𝑟 𝑀𝐹𝑅

𝑔 𝑔 𝑔
= 2450 + 11.17 = 2461.17
𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑖𝑛

𝑔
11.17
𝑚𝑖𝑛
𝑃𝑃𝑀 𝐶𝑂 = 𝑔 = 0.0045385 = 4,538 𝑃𝑃𝑀 𝐶𝑂
2461.17
𝑚𝑖𝑛

Each car will have an average outlet CO concentration of 4,538 PPM CO, with the rest being
air.

ASHRAE Guidelines

Operating internal combustion automobiles in a partially underground/fully enclosed parking

garage requires mechanical ventilation to ensure toxic fumes do not harm the occupants.
Carbon Monoxide is highly toxic and usually guidelines/standards to dilute CO will sufficiently
dilute other toxic gases. ASHRAE Standard 62.1 has defined a recommended exhaust flow rate
of 0.0075 m3/s per m2 of floorspace. Although this rule-of-thumb has been used for many
years, it does not address many unknowns. Some garage designs may require much less than
0.0075 m3/s per m2, while others may require more. As discovered with many CFD models in
the AEC space, ASHRAE guidelines or industry standard rules-of-thumb do a poor job meeting
the needs/design criteria of a specific design.

The historic value of 0.0075 m3/s per m2 at times has proven much too conservative.
Considering today’s energy standards and expectations, reducing the total air into the system
even by a few % can yield massive annual energy/cost savings.

Different agencies and governing bodies worldwide have different criterion or guidelines, but
there is a general consensus that ventilation systems should be designed to maintain a CO level
of 35 ppm, with a maximum of 120 ppm.

Several different designs are considered, and the best approach is obtained via evaluation of
CO concentrations and criterion.

Page 3
 Parking Garage Layout

The parking garage model used is a 177 space, 7352 m^2, underground space with a car
entrance on the left side and a car exit on the far right. The room is 3.5 m in height.

THE PARKING GARAGE LAYOUT USED HAS 177 SPACES, WITH CARS ENTERING ON THE LEFT SIDE AND
EXITING ON THE RIGHT.

Parking Garage Idealization

The simulation CAD model will remove all car bodies as they do not have a sizable impact on
simulation results. Furthermore, exhaust emitter CAD bodies will be constructed. These will be
assigned as internal fans once in CFD, and will emit the exhaust fumes from them.

The CFD analysis will evaluate the ventilation performance of the parking garage with 18 cars
idling indefinitely, which represents 10% of the rated car capacity.

Traditionally, users have used 1 emitter device, per emitting car, however this uses a lot of
mesh and require more clicks to preprocess a simulation. This model will use 1 emitter per 2
cars. The rate at which CO is emitted will simply be doubled for each device. All the CAD
changes necessary for simulation will be done in the Fusion 360 Simplify workspace.

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 SWITCH FROM THE MODEL WORKSPACE TO THE SIMULATION WORKSPACE.

Enter the Simulation workspace.

WHEN PROMPTED TO SELECT A SPECIFIC SIMULATION MODULE, SELECT SIMPLIFY.

Click to select the Simplify workspace.

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 RIGHT CLICK ON CARS AND REMOVE.

In the Design tree, right click on the Cars component and select Remove.

Next, the emitters will be built and cloned. First, it is necessary to hide the ceiling, and air
volumes

1. Within the Design tree, expand the building component by left-clicking on the horizontal
arrow.
2. Expand the Bodies under the building component.
3. Hide ceiling, air, and air(1).

Page 6
Next, the emitters will be built and cloned.

1. In the ribbon, select CONSTRUCT to access the drop-down menu. Select Offset Plane.
2. Select the vertical face of the bottom floor. Enter 14.2 meters. Click OK.

CREATE AN OFFSET PLANE 14.2 METERS IN.

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3. In the ribbon, select Sketch > Rectangle > 2 Point Rectangle.
4. Click the plane to start the rectangle sketch.
5. Click BOTTOM on the view cube to align your view.
6. Use the scroll wheel to zoom and align on the left-most section of the floor.
7. Click the corner of the floor and drag to the upper right corner to create a rectangle.
8. Enter 0.5 m x 0.5 m dimensions, using Tab to dimension the perpendicular side.

ON THE PLANE, CREATE AN 0.5 M X 0.5 M SQUARE.

9. Select Stop Sketch.

10. Click to select Sketch > Rectangle > Center Rectangle.
11. Select the middle of the rectangle.
12. Create a 0.3 m x 0.3 m rectangle. Select Stop Sketch.

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 USE THE CENTER RECTANGLE TO CREATE A 0.3 M X 0.3 M RECTANGLE.

The sketch will now be extruded.

1. In the ribbon, click Create, and Extrude.

2. Click to select the outer sketch. Extrude 0.6 m and keep New Body as the Operation.
3. Select OK.

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 EXTRUDE THE OUTER PATTERN 0.6 METERS.

4. Repeat this process for the internal rectangle, making sure to set the Operation to
New Body.

EXTRUDE THE INNER RECTANGLE 0.6 M. MAKE SURE TO SET THE OPERATION TO NEW BODY.

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The results parts should look like the above geometry. This will serve as the CO emitter in the
CFD simulation.

Next, the emitter needs to be moved into an appropriate location and cloned.

1. Select the “Front” view in the View Cube.

2. In the ribbon, select the Modify drop-down and choose Move/Copy.
3. Click to select both bodies, and move the emitter 35 m in the +X direction.
4. Select OK.

MOVE THE EMITTER BODIES 35 METERS IN THE +X DIRECTION.

Use the Move/Copy function to create a copy 7 meters in the +X.

1. Select Move/Copy, and select both bodies of the emitter.

2. Select the Create Copy checkbox.
3. Enter +X 7 m.
4. Select OK.

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Copy the 2 emitters to create another set 5.5 m in the +Y direction.

1. Select Move/Copy and select both emitters.

2. Select the Create Copy checkbox.
3. Enter +Y 5.5 m.
4. Select OK.

Next, another pattern of emitters will be built on the top half of the room.

1. Select Move/Copy on the upper right emitter.

2. Select the Create Copy checkbox.
3. Enter +Y 20 m.

COPY THE EMITTTER BODIES 20 METERS IN THE +Y DIRECTION.

4. Select OK.

The new emitter will now be patterned.

1. Click Create > Pattern.

2. Click to select the emitter.
3. Select the X axis as the Direction.
4. Set Quantity to 4, Distance to 21 m.
5. Select OK.

Page 12
 USE RECTANGULAR PATTERN TO MAKE 4 COPIES OF THE EMITTER.

Lastly, the two center emitters will be cloned in the +Y direction.

1. Click to select Move/Copy.

2. Click to select the 2 center emitters.
3. Select the Create Copy checkbox.
4. Enter +Y 7 m.
5. Select OK.

Page 13
 WITH 10 EMITTERS, THE MODEL IS NOW READY FOR SIMULATION.

The model is now ready for simulation. Unhide the air volumes and ceiling. The CAD is now
ready to be launched into CFD 2019 via the CAD Connection.

1. In the ribbon, select the CFD 2019 CAD Connections and select the “Simulate in CFD”
button.
2. Select a Study Path location somewhere on your local hard drive. This is where the
project will be saved.

DEFINE THE STUDY NAME, AS WELL AS A STUDY PATH.

3. Select Launch.

Page 14
 THE AUTODESK CFD USER INTERFACE IS LAID OUT IN A USER-FRIENDLY, INTUITIVE MANNER.

Autodesk CFD will be launched and your CAD geometry will be visible.

Setup

The Autodesk CFD user interface is laid out in a user-friendly manner. You can do just about
everything with the ribbon commands. Alternatively, all workflows are also accessible via the
Design Study Bar, which is located on the left side of the screen. The Setup ribbon is arranged
in a left-to-right workflow. You will start by assigning materials and finish by hitting solve.

General note on navigation: Left-click to select the volumes. Use Control + Mouse Wheel button
to hide bodies. Refer to the Autodesk CFD Model Navigation help documentation for further
information.

Page 15
Material Assignment

Start by assigning concrete to the Ceiling, Floor, and emitter housings. All solid bodies will be
suppressed from meshing, and the CFD simulation will be run without heat transfer.

1. Left click to select the ceiling, and roof. The lower right corner of CFD will say “2
Volumes selected”.

LEFT CLICK TO SELECT THE CEILING, FLOOR, AND EMITTER CAD VOLUMES.

2. In the CFD ribbon, select Edit.

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 ASSIGN CONCRETE AS THE MATERIAL.

3. Set the Material DB Name to Default, Type Solid, Name Concrete.

4. Select Apply.
5. With the mouse hovering over the ceiling, select Control + Mouse wheel button. The
volume the mouse is on will be hidden. Continue to do this for all air volumes and floor.
This will allow the emitters to be visible.
6. Select all 10 emitter housings. There should be 10 volumes selected.
7. In the CFD ribbon, select Edit.
8. Set the Material DB Name to Default, Type Solid, Name Concrete.
9. Select Apply.

Next, the air volumes will be selected and the scalar material will be defined and assigned. The
fluid volume will be an air – carbon monoxide mixture, defined based on scalar.

1. Select all air volumes in the model. 6 volumes should be selected.

2. Select Edit in the ribbon to open the material assignment dialog box.
3. Set the Material DB Name to Default, Type Fluid, Name Air.
4. Before clicking Apply, select Edit.

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 SELECT EDIT.

This will open the Material Editor.

CHANGE THE MATERIAL DATABASE TO LOCAL.

5. Click on the Local Save to Database. Click to select the local database.
6. Change to material name to Air-CO.
7. Click to select the Density Properties.
8. Change the Density Variation method from Equation of State to Piecewise linear.

Page 18
 WITH THE DENSITY SET TO PIECEWISE LINEAR, CHANGE THE VARIATION METHOD TO SCALAR.

9. Click on Temperature to change the independent variable to Scalar. Select Scalar.

For this analysis, a Scalar 1 = pure Carbon Monoxide, and Scalar 0 = pure Air.

10. Fill out the table as followed:

Scalar 1: 1.14 kg/m3

Scalar 0: 1.225 kg/m3

11. Select Viscosity in the Properties selection.

12. Fill out the viscosity table as follow:

Scalar 1: 1.74e-05 Pa-s

Scalar 0: 1.82e-05 Pa-s

13. Click to select Apply.

14. With the Material dialog box still up, select “Environment”.

Page 19
SETTING THE MATERIAL ENVIRONMENT TO VARIABLE ALLOWS THE DENSITY AND VISCOSITY TO CHANGE
AS A FUNCTION OF SCALAR.

15. Set the Material Environment to Variable. This will allow the density and viscosity of the
fluid to fluctuate based on scalar. This is necessary and critical for the analysis.
16. Select OK, and then select Apply on the material assignment.

With the fluid concrete defined, it is time to define the emitters.

1. Click to select all 10 emitters.

2. In the ribbon, select Edit.
3. Set the Material DB Name to Default, Type Internal Fan/Pump.
4. Click to set the Flow direction to Global Y.
5. Before clicking Apply, select Edit.
6. This will open the Material Editor.
7. Click on the Local Save to Database. Click to select the local database.
8. Change to material name to emitter.
9. Click to change the Flow Variation method to constant.
10. Input a flow rate of 4 m3/minute. Each emitter is discharging CO for 2 cars.
11. Select OK.
12. Select Apply.

Page 20
Boundary Conditions

It is now time to apply the boundary conditions. Start by setting the inlet boundary conditions.
Design 1 has 3 inlets, as shown below. This model has 7200 m2 of floorspace. Based on the
0.0075 m3/s per m2 from ASHRAE guidelines, this model needs 54 m3/s of ventilation. An 18
m3/s flow rate boundary condition is going to be used at all 3 inlets.

LEFT CLICK TO SELECT THE 3 INLETS.

1. In the ribbon, select Boundary Conditions.

2. Left click to select the 3 surfaces which will be inlets. Confirm that 3 surfaces are
selected by referencing the lower right corner of the UI.

Page 21
 VERIFY YOU ARE IN THE BOUNDARY CONDITION SETUP TASK, AND HAVE 3 SURFACES SELECTED.

3. In the ribbon, select Edit to open the boundary condition property settings.
4. Set the Type to Volume Flow Rate, Unit to m3/s, and Volume Flow Rate to 18.
5. Select Apply.
6. Re-select the same 3 faces and select Edit.
7. Change the boundary condition Type to Temperature, Unit to Celsius, and Temperature
to 20.
8. Select Apply.

Page 22
 Next, apply a 0 pressure gage pressure boundary condition to the outlet.

LEFT CLICK TO SELECT THE OUTLET FACE.

1. Select the outlet face.

2. In the ribbon, select Edit to open the boundary condition property settings.
3. Set the Type to Pressure, Unit to Pa, and Pressure to 0.
4. Select Apply.

Next, scalar boundary conditions will be applied to the outlets of the internal fans which were
defined earlier. Hide the ceiling, air volumes, and floor. The scalar boundary condition will be
applied to the outlet faces of the internals fan, therefore the model should be oriented so you
can see the outlets. Remember, the fans were set to flow in the +Y direction.

Page 23
 LEFT CLICK TO SELECT ALL 10 OUTLET FACES ON THE EMITTERS.

1. Click to select all 10 faces of the internal fans.

2. In the ribbon, select Edit to open the boundary condition property settings.
3. Set the Type to Scalar, Value to 0.0045. This represents the 4,500 PPM CO at the outlet
of car tailpipes.
4. Select Apply.
5. Re-select the same 10 faces and select Edit.
6. Change the boundary condition Type to Temperature, Unit to Celsius, and Temperature
to 120.
7. Select Apply.

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Meshing

With the materials and boundary conditions assigned, it is time to build the mesh definition. Start
by selecting Mesh Sizing in the Setup Ribbon. A uniform mesh will be used in this simulation.
The mesh length units are based on the units of the CFD model, which in this case is
centimeter. First, all solid bodies will be suppressed from meshing, which will conserve element
count.

1. Click to select all Concrete bodies. 12 bodies should be selected.

2. Right click and select Suppress. The bodies should turn blue.

Next, volume mesh sizes will be applied to the air volumes.

1. Click to select the main parking garage volume.

2. In the ribbon, select Edit.
3. Set the Element Size to 45.
4. Select Apply.
5. Click to select the 3 inlet extension volumes.
6. In the ribbon, select Edit.
7. Set the Element Size to 10.
8. Select Apply.
9. Click to select the large outlet extension volume.
10. In the ribbon, select Edit.
11. Set the Element Size to 35.
12. Select Apply.

Lastly, mesh refinement will be added to the inlet/outlet surfaces of the internal fans. Hide all
bodies but the internal fans and their housings.

CHANGE THE SELECTION FROM VOLUME SELECTION TO SURFACE SELECTION.

1. In the ribbon, click to select Surface selection.

2. Select all 20 inlets/outlets of the internal fans.
3. In the ribbon, select Edit.
4. Set the Element Size to 4.
5. Select all 20 inlet/outlet concrete housings.

Page 25
 SELECT THE EMITTER HOUSING SURFACE. A 8 CM UNIFORM MESH WILL BE APPLIED.

1. In the ribbon, select Edit.

2. Set the Element Size to 8.

Lastly, run the simulation for 0 iterations. This is done to confirm the model will mesh without
problems and the element count is reasonable.

1. In the ribbon, click to select Solve.

SET THE SIMULATION TO RUN FOR 0 ITERATIONS. THIS WILL GENERATIVE THE MESH, AS WELL AS
CONFIGURE THE SOLVE SETUP.

Page 26
 2. Set the Solver Computer to MyComputer.
3. Set Iterations to Run to 0.
4. Select 0.
5. Select Solve.

The solve will begin and start by meshing the domain. This will take several minutes. Once
done, meshing statistics can be view in the output bar. The mesh is 3,895,626 elements.

Solver Settings

Before running the simulation, several physics and solver settings need to be changed. Scalar
mixing will be enabled and a diffusion coefficient of 0.208 cm2/s will be used. The 0.208 cm2/s
value is obtained from Engineering Toolbox. The # of iterations to run will be set to 1,000,
although the simulation will likely converge before then. The gravity vector will be set to 0,0,-1.

1. Click to select Solve.

2. Set Iterations to Run to 1,000.
3. Select the Physics tab.
4. Check the box to enable Heat Transfer.
5. Set the Gravity Direction to 0,0,-1.
6. Click to select Advanced.
7. Click to select a General scalar.

A SCALAR DIFFUSION COEFFICIENT OF 0.208 CM2/S WILL BE USED.

8. Enter a Diffusion coefficient of 0.208 cm2/s.

9. Click to select OK.
10. Click Solve.

Page 27
Post-processing

With the simulation complete, it is time to post-process the results and evaluate the
performance of the ventilation of the parking garage. First, an isovolume showing areas of the
domain which are greater or equal to 100 PPM will be used.

1. While in the Results tab of the ribbon, click to select the Isovolume option.
2. In the ribbon, select Add.
3. Select Edit to change the properties of the isovolume.

SET THE MINIUMUM SCALAR VARIABLE TO 0.0001. THIS REPRESENTS 100 PPM.

4. Set the minimum to 0.0001 (100 Parts CO/ 1,000,000).

5. Select Enter.

SIGNIFICANT PORTIONS OF THE MODEL HAVE UNACCEPTABLE LEVELS OF CO.

Page 28
 Notice there are significant portions of the parking garage space which have
concentrations above 100 PPM of CO, and therefore do not meet the design criteria.
This design does not meet the specifications set forth by governing bodies, yet, the total
ventilation air flow rates were based on ASHRAE rules-of-thumb. As mentioned prior,
this design used the 0.0075 m3/s per m2 of floorspace.

Several features of the isovolumes look nonphysical and therefore should be inspected
further. The lower isovolume bodies appear to be heading in the direction opposite of the
outlet. The isovolumes are moving to the left, while the outlet is on the right.

A cut plane with velocity vectors will help give insight into this phenomenon.

1. In the Results tab of the ribbon, select Planes, and select Add.
2. Left click on the plane, and an X, Y, and Z will appear. Select Z.
3. Select the TOP view on the view cube.

A VELOCITY PLANE SHOWS LARGE VORTICES. THIS EXPLAINS THE ODD FLOW PATH OF THE
ISOVOLUMES

4. Observe the swirling due to the high velocity inlets. The top and bottom inlets are
offset just enough to encourage a clockwise swirl. The left inlet contributes to this
swirl as well.

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5. Right click on the plane and select Transparent.
6. In the ribbon, turn on Velocity Vectors.

VELOCITY VECTORS CONFIRM THE DIRECTION OF THE FLOW.

7. Notice the swirling occurring, which leaves “dead zones” of 0 velocity air. There is 1
major swirl, with 2 minor swirls on the top section of the domain.
8. Notice the isovolume paths now make sense after seeing the velocity vectors.

Design Changes

It is clear Design 1 does not meet criteria for toxic fume ventilation. An alternative design using
uniform, ducted exhaust returns will be considered. The same total ventilation flow rate will be
used, 54 m3/s. The CFD Design 1 will be cloned and then the geometry will be updated. This
will allow for an intelligent update of geometry. All previously defined material assignments and
boundary conditions will be preserved, which saves an incredible amount of time as the CFD
model is not built again “from scratch”.

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 1. In the Design Study Bar, right click on Design 1 and click to select Clone.

CLONE THE DESIGN STUDY.

2. Change the Design name to Design 2.

3. Check the box to Include mesh and results.
4. Select OK.
5. Close Autodesk CFD, saving the project when you do so.

Next, a new design will be opened in Fusion 360. The CAD changes were already done ahead
of time to save time. The new geometry will be pushed to CFD, and the Design 2 will be setup
and run.

1. Open Fusion 360, and open “18 cars ducted return”.

2. Select the dropdown and click to Enter the Simulation workspace.
3. Select Simplify workspace.
4. Use the CFD CAD Connection to Simulate in CFD.
5. Select the Update design study tab.
6. Navigate to the CFD project, selecting the arrow to expand the view.
7. Left click on Design 2 and select the Update design button.
8. CFD will open.

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With Autodesk CFD back open, it is necessary to assign materials to all the new parts. Notice
an additional large inlet has been made on the left side of the model. 3 large ducts have been
added to the model, each with 6 returns. Each return is offset slightly, with a separate air
volume. Start by assigning material to the new CAD volumes.

1. Hide the large air volumes, ceiling, floor, and 3 large ducts.
2. Select the 18 fluid volumes in the ducts, and the new inlet volume.
3. Select Edit in the ribbon to open the material assignment dialog box.
4. Set the Material DB Name to Local, Type Fluid, Name Air-CO.
5. Select Apply.
6. Click to select the 3 ducts
7. Select Edit in the ribbon to open the material assignment dialog box.
8. Set the Material DB Name to Default, Type Solid, Name Aluminum.
9. Select Apply.

With the material assignments assigned, it is time to edit boundary conditions. A total of 54 m3/s
of ventilation will still be used, but it will be distributed evenly to the 18 return ducts. The new
CAD volume will serve as an inlet. Boundary conditions will be applied differently in this model;
each duct will remove 3 m3/s of air from the domain, and the inlets will be assigned 0 pressure
BC, Scalar = 0, and Temperature = 20 C boundary conditions. The 3 former inlets will be
assigned the same boundary conditions.

1. Click to select the 3 former inlet faces.

2. In the ribbon, select Remove. This will remove the boundary conditions on the faces.
Repeat this process until all boundary conditions are removed.
3. Select the 4 inlets.
4. In the ribbon, select Edit to open the boundary condition property settings.
5. Set the Type to Pressure, Unit to Pa, and Pressure to 0.
6. Select Apply.
7. Re-select the same 4 faces and select Edit.
8. Change the boundary condition Type to Temperature, Unit to Celsius, and Temperature
to 20.
9. Repeat this process to add a Scalar = 0 boundary condition on the same faces.
10. Select Apply.

Next, a 3 m3/s flow rate boundary condition will be assigned to the return ducts. The flow
direction will be facing into the duct. Start by hiding all main air volumes, as well as the 18 return
duct air volumes. Once done, the flow rate boundary conditions can be applied.

1. Click to select the 18 surfaces.

2. In the ribbon, select Edit to open the boundary condition property settings.
3. Set the Type to Volume Flow Rate, Unit to m3/s, and Volume Flow Rate to 3.

Page 32
SELECT THE DUCT RETURN SURFACES AND APPLY A 3 M3/S FLOW RATE BOUNDARY CONDITION, OUT OF
THE DOMAIN.

4. Confirm the direction vectors are facing the right direction. If not, use the Reverse
Normal button to flip the direction.
5. Select Apply.

With the necessary boundary conditions changes done, it is time to assign mesh definitions to
the new CAD volumes. In the setup ribbon, select Mesh Sizing.

1. Click to select the new large inlet CAD volume.

2. Assign a mesh size of 35 cm.
3. Select Apply.

The 3 new ducts will be suppressed from meshing.

1. Click to select the 3 duct volumes.

2. Right click and select Suppress.

Lastly, a 20 cm surface mesh will be applied to the return ducts. First, hide the necessary CAD
volumes so the surface is visible.

1. Select all 18 surfaces.

2. In the ribbon, select Edit.
3. Set the Element Size to 20.
4. Select Apply.
5. In the ribbon, select Solve, set the simulation to run for 1000 iteration, from 0, and select
Solve.

Page 33
Use an isovolume to check areas of the model with a CO concentration >=100 PPM.

USING ISOVOLUMES AGAIN, IT IS CLEAR ALMOST THE ENTIRE DOMAIN MEETS STANDARDS FOR CO
CONCENTRATION.

Almost all regions of the model have a CO concentration below 100 PPM. There are some very
small, isolated areas of high concentration, but this only occurs directly at the emitters.

Page 34
 LOW VELOCITIES LOWER THE CHANCES OF VORTICES AND STAGNATION POINTS.

Design 2 has much larger inlets, which slows down the velocity on the supply air. There are no
longer yellow/red regions showing high velocity. Lower velocity decreases the chances and
magnitude of swirling. This decreases the chances of “dead zones” where velocity is 0 and
scalar builds up in concentrations.

Page 35
 VELOCITY VECTORS CONFIRM THERE ARE NO MAJOR VORTICES.

Velocity vectors show less vortices than Design 1. It is not easy to identify areas which are dead
zones. This is considered a much better design. Design 2 should be used. Furthermore, more
ventilation CFD studies could be run. Design 2 could be cloned and the total supply air can be
reduced. The CFD simulation can predict the minimum ventilation flow rate necessary to adhere
to the design objectives. Reducing total supply air can save enormous amounts of energy and
money, as these systems run 24/7/365.

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