Numerical modelling of ventilated facades: A review

Abstract

The use of double skin facades (DSF) in the building sector and its thermal benefits have been widely studied numerically over the last 30 years. These modelling and simulations are based on different typologies, which have evolved altogether with the available computational resources. The models that have been used to study the thermal performance of DSF can be grouped as analytical and lumped models, non-dimensional analysis, network models, control volume, zonal approach, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). This paper describes these different typologies of numerical modelling highlighting their benefits and limitations, and overviews the research produced using each typology. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.