The Environmental Control of Historic Arab Baths: A Thermodynamic Simulation of the Hernando de Zafra Baths in Granada

Abstract

The Arab baths of Hernando de Zafra, popularly known as Casa de las Tumbas, are found at the intersection of calle Elvira and calle San Andrés in the historic centre of Granada (Spain). This article presents a thermodynamic study of the environmental operation of this complex of Arab baths, which has a furnace and hot, warm, and cold rooms, as well as auxiliary adjoining spaces and annexes. Computer models are used for the finite element analysis of the fluid dynamics for the process of lighting the furnace and subsequently diffusing the temperature, and smoke is expelled through the chimneys. The FDS software used—verified and validated by the NIST—processes the conditions for lighting the furnace and the thermal transmission of the generated heat to the different rooms in the building. This is the first case of this software being used for an analysis of the ancient Arab baths. The results show the global thermal behaviour, and the conclusions establish the temperatures reached inside the rooms and the thermal energy contributions needed to reach these temperatures.