Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

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Prediction of natural ventilation in buildings with large openings

Yuguo Li*, Angelo Delsante, Je€ Symons
Advanced Thermo-¯uids Technologies Laboratory, CSIRO Building, Construction and Engineering, Graham Road, P.O. Box 56, Highett,
Victoria 3190, Australia
Received 8 June 1998; received in revised form 14 September 1998; accepted 8 February 1999

Abstract

This paper ®rst presents a consistent pressure-based formulation for natural ventilation of single-zone and multi-zone
buildings with multiple openings. Pressure-based multi-zone formulation is made easier to implement by introducing an auxiliary
concept of external pressure, which allows all the formulas to be presented in an integrated form. Multi-zone situations
considered include vertically interconnected zones, and horizontally interconnected zones with same heights and di€erent
heights. The formulation includes the combined e€ect of wind, thermal buoyancy and mechanical ventilation, and it can be used
for both external and internal large openings.
A simple and easy implementation method was then presented. Single-zone and multi-zone analytical solutions are revisited or
developed by the pressure-based formulations and used for the validation of the implementation method. A CFD method is also
used to cross-check the implementation method in a single-zone building with very large external openings. A reasonable
agreement has been found between the results predicted by the pressure-based formulation and those predicted by the analytical
solutions and CFD methods. Crown Copyright # 2000 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction [1] presented a generalised neutral height-based theory

In the design of most industrial and agricultural
buildings, a minimum amount of outdoor intake is
generally required for no-wind situations. This requires
the proper design of natural ventilation openings and
consideration of many other parameters such as build-
ing thermal properties and outdoor thermal environ-
ment. When there are multiple zones in buildings, ¯ow
resistance between zones should also be considered.
1.1. Previous work on natural ventilation modelling
There have been some excellent e€orts in developing
simple design tools for natural ventilation [2]. Simple
equations have been used in most design guidelines,
for example BS 5925 [3] and CIBSE Guide [4]. Bruce
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +61 3 9252 6000; fax: +61 3 9252
6244.
for natural ventilation through multiple openings in
one wall. In multi-zone buildings with multiple open-
ings Bruce's neutral height-based theory [1] cannot be
applied directly, as each wall of a zone may have
di€erent neutral heights.
Almost in parallel with natural ventilation research,
in the last 20 years there has been a great amount of
work in determining in®ltration ¯ow rates and air
¯ows through large openings (see [5]). A number of
multi-zone in®ltration programs exist. In particular, a
software program called COMIS3.0 has been devel-
oped by a team of international experts in the IEA
Annex 23 project [6]. In principle, this work can be
extended to natural ventilation. Unlike natural venti-
lation, the ventilation openings in the in®ltration study
are generally assumed to be small. Partly because of
this aspect, many in®ltration programs assume that the
¯ow through an opening is unidirectional. In these
models, a large opening may be computed by dividing

0360-1323/00/$ - see front matter Crown Copyright # 2000 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 3 6 0 - 1 3 2 3 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 1 1 - 6
192 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

Nomenclature

Aj area of opening j ri ceiling height in global vertical coordinate

A e€ective opening area of a building for Zone i
bj width of opening j Rik upper level of the shared vertical wall
Cd discharge coecient between Zones i and k in local vertical
Cp pressure coecient coordinate
C ÿ, C + ¯ow coecients rik upper level of the shared vertical wall
Fi ¯oor height in local vertical coordinate for between Zones i and k in global vertical
Zone i and generally it is 0 coordinate
fi ¯oor height in global vertical coordinate Ti air temperature in Zone i
for Zone i v wind speed
Fik lower level of the shared vertical wall Zlj, Zhj two vertical coordinates of opening j
between Zones i and k in local vertical Z i neutral plane height in local vertical coor-
coordinate dinate for the vertical wall between Zones
fik lower level of the shared vertical wall i and k
between Zones i and k in global vertical z neutral plane height for a vertical wall in a
coordinate single-zone building
g gravity acceleration z global vertical coordinate for the entire
Hi middle height in local vertical coordinate building
for Zone i z' local vertical coordinate for a zone
hi middle height in global vertical coordinate
for Zone i Greek symbols
h height between two vertical openings b volumetric expansion coecient
Kt ¯ow coecient for an opening ri air density for Zone i
N number of zones
pext external pressure Subscripts
pi internal pressure for Zone i o outside
q volumetric ¯ow rate b bottom opening
qij volumetric ¯ow rate through opening j in t top opening or top zone
zone i tot total pressure di€erence
Ri ceiling height in local vertical coordinate
for Zone i Superscripts
n ¯ow exponent (=0.5 for large openings)

it into a number of small openings to simulate di€er-
ent magnitude and direction of air¯ows at di€erent
heights, which is referred to as the multiple element
approach. While there is always a problem of how
many divisions are the optimum, this method also
increases the number of ¯ow openings and the compu-
tation time.
A single element approach has been used for some
time to analyse ¯ows through large openings such as
internal doorways and in ®re zonal modelling, see
[7,8]. A possible formulation was proposed for the
COMIS program to consider bi-directional ¯ows
through large openings [6]. Lilliengren [9] developed a
simple pressure di€erence formula for a single-cell in®l-
tration model to consider the bi-directional ¯ows. This
formula was extended and applied by Li and Peterson
[10] in a Multi-cell In®ltration and eX®ltration
(MIX.0) model.
This short review cannot be completed without men-
tioning air¯ow rate prediction in modelling spread of
®re, smoke and toxic gases in ®re engineering. In ®re
modelling, the vent ¯ow is governed by the pressure
di€erence across a vent, which depends on combined
thermal buoyancy and volumetric expansion when
combustion occurs. Bi-directional ¯ows across vents
and other openings were considered in a number of
multi-zone ®re models (see for example, [11,12]).
1.2. Computer implementation
In multi-zone modelling of in®ltration and venti-
lation, a number of excellent implementation methods
have been developed with most being based on the
popular modular approach. This approach allows the
development of element (node) models, namely initiali-
sation, matrix assembly, solution method and post-
processing, somewhat independent. It should be men-
tioned that the graphics user interface is beyond the
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206
scope of the present paper, although it can be a very
important issue in computer implementation. Walton
[13] implemented a bi-directional ¯ow element for
large openings (such as doorways) in a vertical par-
tition between rooms. The situations considered by
Walton [13] are relatively simple compared to the gen-
eral situations to be considered in this paper. The
COMIS project also proposed a possible formulation
for consideration of bi-direction ¯ows through large
openings [6]. Li and Peterson [10] implemented the bi-
directional ¯ows of large external openings in a multi-
zone model. The code developed by Li and Peterson
[10], MIX (Multi-zone In®ltration and eX®ltration),
has been applied to a number of ¯ow problems [14].
Recently, the MIX program has been revised for natu-
ral ventilation analysis of multi-zone buildings [16,15].
Evaluation and validation are important in any
development of computer models and computer im-
plementations, but these can be dicult tasks, mainly
because there is a lack of experimental data. The
evaluation of the computer implementation in this
paper is carried out using two alternative approaches.
. The ®rst is to derive three analytical solutions with
the pressure-based formulations for simple situ-
ations, i.e. a single-zone and multi-zone building
with unidirectional ¯ows, and compare the simu-
lated results with the analytical solutions.
. The second is to compare the simulated results with
CFD predicted results in a single-zone building with
very large external openings. The CFD simulations
predict both the overall air change rate and the air
¯ow pattern in the building.
1.3. The purposes of this paper
In this paper, a basic and consistent pressure-based
formulation is ®rstly revisited for natural ventilation of
multi-zone buildings with multiple openings for both
buoyancy and wind-driven ¯ows. This can be con-
sidered as a multi-zone extension to Bruce's [1] neutral
height-based formulation. A simple and easy im-
plementation method is then presented for the simplest
situation of bi-directional ¯ows, i.e. the temperature in
each zone is uniform.
In this paper, the air temperature pro®les in each
zone will be assumed to be known. In real predictions,
the air temperatures can be obtained from a building
thermal analysis program, which will again require
input for air change rates from natural ventilation and
air change rates between zones. The multi-zone air
¯ow program can be readily integrated into an existing
building thermal analysis code, which has already been
done in an Australian program CHEMIX [16,15].
193
2. Geometry for zones and openings
2.1. Classi®cation of ventilation openings
The ventilation openings can be classi®ed according
to their sizes:
. Type AÐLarge openings with relatively large verti-
cal length scales compared to the zone height. The
openings are generally open or half open windows,
doorways and other purpose-built openings.
. Type BÐSmall openings with relatively small verti-
cal length scales compared to zone heights. These
openings may have large horizontal length scales.
. Type CÐPorous openings uniformly distributed
over a relatively large area which have large vertical
length scales. Type C can be used to model a closed
window with cracks or an entire wall with back-
ground leakages.
. Type DÐOther openings such as supply and
exhaust registers. Modelling of Type D openings is
not covered in this paper. Ventilation ¯ow rates are
treated as a constant in the ¯ow balance equation.
Based on their locations, ventilation openings can be
grouped into three basic types:
. Vertical openingsÐopenings located in vertical
walls.
. Horizontal openingsÐopenings located in horizon-
tal ceilings, roofs or ¯oors.
. Inclined openingsÐopenings located in inclined
roofs. Some window openings may also be classi®ed
as inclined openings.
It should be noted that all horizontal openings are
Type B openings. An inclined opening may be treated
as a combination of a vertical opening and a horizon-
tal opening before any applicable and e€ective ¯ow
equations are developed.
Etheridge and Sandberg [17] provided a detailed
review of the existing knowledge about the geometry,
location and distribution of ventilation openings. It is
beyond the scope of this paper to discuss these further.
To bene®t from the approach in this paper, determi-
nation of ventilation openings for a building needs to
follow a systematic procedure:
. First step: identify those obvious large openings of
Types A and B, such as open doors, open windows,
roof ventilators and other natural ventilation open-
ings.
. Second step: identify major areas where signi®cant
leakages exist, e.g. closed doors or windows and so
on. Measurement may provide leakage coecients
for these areas. These areas may be modelled as
Type C porous openings. There seems to be a need
to develop a simple method to measure locally the
194 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206
Fig. 1. Geometric de®nition of zones and openings.
leakage characteristics of potentially leaky areas.
. Third step: quantify other undetermined background
openings. Other information such as those obtained
from a pressurisation test may indicate there are still
other background openings, but no information is
available about their location and distribution. One
way is to distribute the remaining background open-
ings among the surfaces based on some visual
inspection of likely distribution ratios.
2.2. Geometry data for zones and openings
Good geometry data management can simplify the
derivation process of the pressure di€erence and ¯ow
rate equations, improve code eciency and, perhaps
most importantly, minimise coding errors.
A proposed data management approach is shown in
Fig. 1. The building is divided into N zones. The basic
rules for zone division are that either each boundary
separates two zones with a signi®cant air temperature
di€erence, or each boundary provides signi®cant ¯ow
resistance.
Two coordinate systems are used, viz:
. A global vertical coordinate z is chosen for the
entire building. The origin of z is at the ground level
for Zone 1.
. A local coordinate z ' is chosen for each zone con-
sidered. The origin of z ' is at the ¯oor level of the
zone.
As a convention, capital letters such as Z, R, F, H are
always used for the local coordinate z ' and the corre-
sponding small letters for the global coordinate.
Rectangular zones and openings are assumed in this
paper, although the theory applies to other geometries
as well. The following geometrical parameters for each
zone should be speci®ed:
. For each Zone i, the ¯oor is de®ned by z=fi and
z '=0, and the ceiling is de®ned by z=ri and z'=Ri.
Generally, Fi=0. Thus, the zone height is Ri. The
middle height Hi can be calculated as 0.5Ri.
. When two zones are horizontally interconnected, the
lower level of the shared vertical wall is at z=fik
and z '=Fik, and the upper level of the shared verti-
cal wall is at z=rik and z'=Rik. Thus, the height of
the vertical wall is RikÿFik. The middle height Hik
of the shared wall is calculated as 0.5 (Fik+Rik).
This set of data only needs to be speci®ed when
there are openings through the shared vertical wall.
The following geometrical parameters for each opening
should be speci®ed:
. For each large vertical opening j, one should specify
that it is between Zones i and k. Its width is bj, and
the two vertical coordinates are z=zlj and z=zhj, re-
spectively. The local coordinates are z'h=Zlj=zljÿfi
and zh' =Zhj=zhjÿfi, respectively. For convenience,
such an opening will be referred to as (zlj, zhj) or
(Zlj, Zhj).
. For each small vertical opening j, one should specify
it is between Zones i and k. Its area is Aj and height
Zj.
. For each horizontal opening j, one should specify it
is between Zones i and k, the width and length are
bj and lj, respectively.
By default, the outdoor is grouped as Zone 0. The
datum level is at H1, also by default.
3. Mathematical formulations
3.1. Generalised theory
The theory is presented for a single-zone building. A
vertical opening is considered ®rst. For a single zone
building, the building is Zone 1 and the outdoors is
Zone 0. Zones 0 and 1 share the same bottom level,
and other situations where Zones 0 and 1 have di€er-
ent bottom levels can be easily treated in a similar
way. The vertical coordinates z and z' coincide.
At height z close to the vertical wall or opening, the
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206 195

indoor and outdoor pressure can be obtained, respect- merical solution methods need to be applied to obtain
ively, as follows: z .
…z Based on the obtained neutral levels, the opening
pt1 …z† ˆ p10 ÿ g r1 dz zlÿzh of width b is divided into J + 1 sub-openings,
H1 where J is the number of non-equal neutral levels
within the opening height. It is assumed that
…z zl < z 1 < z 2 . . . < z J < zh.
1
pt0 …z† ˆ p00 ÿ g r0 dz ‡ r0 Cp …z†v2 …z† …1† In each sub-opening s (z s , z s + 1), the ¯ow rates can
H1 2
be calculated
The total pressure di€erence across the opening at … z
s‡1
height z is obtained as qs ˆ K t b …j Dptot j†n Sgn…Dptot † dz …7†
zs
Dptot …z† ˆ pt0 …z† ÿ pt1 …z†
…z It should be mentioned that this method may not be
1 2
ˆ r0 Cp …z†v …z† ÿ g …r0 ÿ r1 † dz the ideal approach for calculating ¯ow rate through
2 H1
large openings, in particular when wind is present.
ÿ … p01 ÿ p00 † …2† Etheridge and Sandberg [17] discussed the issue of
angled plumes through large openings when there is
As a convention, a positive pressure di€erence always
no wind. It seems that a two-layer hydraulic approach
means an in¯ow to the zone considered. The term
may be preferable. But it is unknown at the present
p01ÿp00 can be de®ned as the zonal internal pressure,
how the two-layer hydraulic approach can be inte-
p1, at the datum level H1 relative to the ambient press-
grated into a network ¯ow model. Future work is
ure at the same level.
needed. In this work, Eq. (7) is still used, and the over-
For a large opening j, an ori®ce ¯ow rate equation
all ¯ow rate through the opening j is
may be applied with an appropriate discharge coe-
cient, i.e. X
J‡1
s qj,1 ˆ qs …8†
2 j Dptot j sˆ1
qj,1 ˆ CD A Sgn…Dptot † …3†
r For general situations, numerical integration will be
needed to evaluate the integral in Eq. (7).
For small openings such as cracks or background For a horizontal opening in the roof, the calculation
openings, the ¯ow rate through an area j is calculated is simpler than for vertical openings. The pressure
as di€erence can be calculated as
qj,1 ˆ Kt A…j Dptot j†n Sgn…Dptot † …4† … R1
1
Dptot …R1 † ˆ r0 Cp …R1 †v2 …R1 † ÿ g …r0 ÿ r1 † dz
where Kt is the ¯ow coecient determined by the per- 2 H1
meability, shape and size of the openings and A is the ÿ p1 …9†
area of the opening. For simplicity, n is taken as 0.6
for small openings. If p the
equation is also used for where Cp(R1) is the wind pressure coecient on the
large openings, Kt ˆ Cd 2=r and n = 0.5. roof. The ¯ow rate through a horizontal opening in a
In the multiple element approach, an opening is roof can be calculated using Eq. (3).
divided into small parallel sub-openings and ¯ow rates The ¯ow balance for the entire building as a single
are calculated individually for each small sub-opening. zone gives
For a di€erential height dz, the ¯ow equation is
X
N1

dq ˆ Kt b…j Dptot j†n Sgn…Dptot † dz …5† qj,1 ˆ 0 …10†

where b is the opening width.
With Dptot(z )=0, the neutral levels z can be deter-
mined. The neutral levels z are simply the real roots
of the following equation
… z
1 ventilation ¯ow rate qj,1 can be considered to be con-
r0 Cp …z †v2 …z † ÿ g …r0 ÿ r1 † dz ÿ p1 ˆ 0 …6†
2 H1
In order to solve this equation, r0, r1, Cp and v as a
function of z should be known. In general cases, nu-
jˆ1
where N1 is the total number of openings, and qj,1 is
the net ¯ow rate through each opening j. For discus-
sion purposes here, when an opening, j, is a mechan-
ical ventilation supply or exhaust opening, the
stant. A method of modelling mechanical ventilation
¯ow rates involving modelling duct ¯ow and coupling
with internal pressure of building has been described
(see for example, [10]). Eq. (10) can be used to deter-
196 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

Fig. 2. Pressure pro®les across an opening in a single-zone building.

mine the unknown pressure p1, which can then be used this simplest situation, which can simplify the math-
to obtain new neutral level locations and total pressure ematical formulation.
di€erence. The solution procedure is thus iterative. From Eq. (2), the total pressure di€erence for a ver-
Eq. (2) is a general pressure di€erence equation and tical opening is
it applies to general situations where Cp, v and den-
sities are not constant along height. It is straightfor- Dptot …z† ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ …r0 ÿ r1 †g…z ÿ H1 † ÿ p1 …11†
ward to apply the above formulations to situations
where the room air temperature is uniform or linearly where Cp, v and r are not a function of height z. We
strati®ed. However, as mentioned, there are two com- de®ne an e€ective `external' pressure, as opposed to
putational complexities in using this equation in the the de®nition of internal pressure p1,
single element approach for large openings when the
room temperature is not uniform, viz: pext …z† ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ …r0 ÿ r1 †g…z ÿ H1 † …12†
. The neutral levels have to be determined numeri-
cally. The `external' pressures at both ¯oor and ceiling levels
. The ¯ow rate Eq. (4) also has to be calculated nu- are
merically.
pext …0† ˆ 12 rCp v2 ‡ …r0 ÿ r1 †gH1
The pressure-based formulation presented above is a
much simpler theory than Bruce's neutral height-based
theory. It can be easily shown that the present formu-
pext …R1 † ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ …r0 ÿ r1 †gH1 …13†
lation is identical to Bruce's formulation for a single
zone building when the buoyancy force works alone.
The neutral level can be calculated as
In the following text, the theory will be further simpli-
®ed for the constant zonal air temperature situation
pext …0† ÿ p1
(fully mixed), and extended to multi-zone situations. z ˆ …14†
…r0 ÿ r1 †g

3.2. Simple one-zone formulations Examining Fig. 2, an alternative for the expression of
the total pressure can be obtained:
Constant air temperatures and constant wind speeds  
are quite often assumed in a number of air¯ow rate z
Dptot …z† ˆ … pext …0† ÿ p1 † 1 ÿ  …15†
codes. It certainly provides an easy-to-handle situation z
to obtain quickly an order-of-magnitude analysis.
Additionally, there is at most one neutral plane for for 0 < z < z, and
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206 197
 
z ÿ z
Dptot …z† ˆ … pext …R1 † ÿ p1 † …16†
R 1 ÿ z

for z < z < R1.

For a sub-opening (z1, z2) W(0, z), we have,
… z2
q ˆbKt j pext …0† ÿ p1 jn
z1
 
z n
 1 ÿ  Sgn… pext …0† ÿ p1 † dz
z
ˆ bKt j pext …0† ÿ p1 jn
"    #
z z1 n‡1 z2 n‡1
 1ÿ  ÿ 1ÿ  … pext …0† ÿ p1 †
n‡1 z z
…17†

For a sub-opening (z1, z2)W (z, R1), we have

… z2
q ˆ bKt j pext …R1 † ÿ p1 jn
z1
 n
z ÿ z
 Sgn… pext …R1 † ÿ p1 † dz
R1 ÿ z
R 1 ÿ z
ˆ bKt j pext …R1 † ÿ p1 jn
n‡1
"   n‡1 #
 n‡1
z2 ÿ z z1 ÿ z
 ÿ Sgn… pext …R1 † ÿ p1 †
R 1 ÿ z R 1 ÿ z
…18†

Di€erent ¯ow situations are shown in Fig. 3 (i = 1,

k = 0) and summarised in Table 1.
It is easy to show for an opening in the roof, the
external pressure can be calculated as

pext …R1 † ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ …r0 ÿ r1 †gH1 …19†

3.3. Multi-zone formulations

Fig. 3. Di€erent in¯ow and out¯ow situations with bi-directional Basically, the above formulation for single-zone
¯ows through a large opening. openings can be easily extended into multi-zone open-

Table 1
In¯ow and out¯ow sub-openings for di€erent ¯ow conditions

In¯ow Out¯ow

r0 > r1 or T1 > T0 r0 < r1 or T1 < T0 r0 > r1 or T1 > T0 r0 < r1 or T1 < T0

z  < zl (0, 0) (zl, zh) (zl, zh) (0, 0)

zl < z  < zh (zl, z ) (z , zh) (z , zh) (zl, z )
z  > zh (zl, zh) (0, 0) (0, 0) (zl, zh)
198 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

Dptot …z 0 † ˆ 12 rCp …z†v2 ÿ Hdi r0 gÿ

…r0 ÿ pi †g…z 0 ÿ Hi † ÿ pi …22†

In the outdoor wind pressure calculation, if the wind

pro®le along the height is to be considered, a piecewise
constant approach can be taken, i.e. the wind velocity
is constant for each zone height.
Again, we de®ne an `external' pressure as

pext …z 0 † ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ Hdi r0 g ÿ …r0 ÿ ri †g…z 0 ÿ Hi † …23†

The neutral plane Z i can be determined as

pext …0† ÿ pi
Z i ˆ …24†
…r0 ÿ ri †g

As the neutral plane height Z i is evaluated in the local

coordinate z ', the capital letter is used here.
The calculation of air exchange ¯ow rate through a
large vertical opening is the same as that for single-
zone openings. As an example, we will provide a
detailed formulation for the vertically interconnected
multi-zone situation.
For a sub-opening (Z1, Z2) W(0, Z i ), we have
… Z2  
z n
q ˆ bKt j pext …0† ÿ pi jn 1 ÿ  Sgn… pext …0† ÿ pi †
Fig. 4. Pressure pro®les across an opening in a building with verti- Z1 Zi
cally interconnected zones.
Z i
dz ˆ bKt j pext …0† ÿ p1 jn
n‡1
ings. Internal pressure can be de®ned for each zone. " n‡1   #
For consistency, all internal pressures should be Z1 Z2 n‡1
 1ÿ  ÿ 1ÿ  Sgn… pext …0† ÿ pi †
de®ned relative to the ambient hydrostatic pressure at Zi Zi
the datum level, i.e. …25†

pi ˆ pi0 ÿ p00 …20† For a sub-opening (Z1, Z2)W (Z i , Ri), we have

… Z2
where pi0 is the hydrostatic pressure at hi or Hi in q ˆ bKt j pext …Ri † ÿ pi jn
Zone i, and p00 is the outdoor hydrostatic pressure at Z1
 
h1 or H1. z ÿ Z i n
The following multi-zone situations are considered, Sgn… pext …Ri † ÿ pi † dz
Ri ÿ Z i
namely vertically interconnected zones, horizontally
Ri ÿ Z i
interconnected zones with the same heights, horizon- ˆ bKt j pext …Ri † ÿ pi jn
n‡1
tally interconnected zones with di€erent heights and "  #
 n‡1 
horizontally interconnected zones with partially over- Z2 ÿ Z i Z1 ÿ Z i n‡1
 ÿ Sgn… pext …Ri † ÿ pi †
lapped heights. Ri ÿ Z i Ri ÿ Z i
…26†
3.4. Vertically interconnected zones
Di€erent ¯ow situations are summarised in Table 2
See Fig. 4. For a Zone i, the mid-height is Hi and
and shown in Fig. 3 (k = 0).
the outdoor reference pressure position, p00,i, relative
It can be seen that the formulation for this multi-
to the datum level is at
zone case is very similar to that for single-zone open-
ings, except that the `external' pressure is di€erent.
Hdi ˆ fi ‡ Hi ÿ H1 …21† Thus, in all other multi-zone situations, only the
`external' pressure for the zone considered will be de-
The total pressure di€erence at height z' is rived.
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206 199

Table 2
In¯ow and out¯ow sub-openings for di€erent ¯ow conditions for a multi-zone opening

In¯ow Out¯ow

r0 > ri or Ti > T0 r0 < ri or Ti < T0 r0 > ri or Ti > T0 r0 < ri or Ti < T0

Z i < Zl (0, 0) (Zl, Zh) (Zl, Zh) (0, 0)

Zl < Z i < Zh (Zl, Z i ) (Z i , Zh) (Z i , Zh) (Zl, Z i )
Z i < Zh (Zl, Zh) (0, 0) (0, 0) (Zl, Zh)

3.5. Horizontal ceiling, ¯oor and roof openings pext …Ri † ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ … fi ‡ Hi ÿ H1 †r0 g ÿ …r0

ÿ ri †gHi …32†
For a ceiling opening of Zone i connecting to Zone
k,

ptk …0† ÿ pti …Ri † ˆ … pk ÿ pi † ‡ …rk Hk ‡ ri Hi † …27† 3.6. Other situations

For horizontally interconnected zones with the same

pext …Ri † ˆ pk ‡ …rk Hk ‡ ri Hi † …28† heights (see Fig. 5), the `external' pressure can be
obtained as
For a ¯oor opening of Zone i connecting to Zone k,
pext …z 0 † ˆ pk ÿ …rk ÿ ri †g…z 0 ÿ Hi † …33†
ptk …Rk † ÿ pti …0† ˆ … pk ÿ pi † ÿ …rk Hk ‡ ri Hi †g …29†
For horizontally interconnected zones with di€erent
heights (see Fig. 6), it can be derived that
pext …0† ˆ pk ÿ …rk Hk ‡ ri Hi †g …30†
pext …z 0 † ˆ pk ‡ rk g‰… fk ‡ Hk † ÿ … fi ‡ Hi †Šÿ
If Zone i has a roof, for a roof opening …34†
…rk ÿ ri †g…z 0 ÿ Hi †
pt0 …Ri † ÿ pti …Ri † ˆ 12 rCp v2 ÿ … fi ‡ Hi ÿ H1 †r0 gÿ
…31† and for horizontally interconnected zones with par-
…r0 ÿ ri †gHi ÿ pi
tially overlapped heights (see Fig. 7),

Fig. 5. Pressure pro®les across an opening in a building with horizontally interconnected zones at the same height.
200 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

pext …z 0 † ˆ pk ‡ rk g‰… fk ‡ Hk † ÿ … fik ‡ Hik †Š 4.2. Calculation of ¯ow coecients

ÿ ri g‰… fi ‡ Hi † ÿ … fki ‡ Hki †Š ÿ …rk
In zone i, a neutral plane divides a vertical wall
0
ÿ ri †g…z ÿ Hik † …35† opening (0, Ri) into two parts (0, Z i ) and (Z i , Ri) if
Z i is less than Ri and greater than 0. Generally, if for
In summary, the multi-zone situations presented have an opening j (Z1, Z2)W (0, Z i ), the ¯ow rate through
covered the most common practical interzonal open- the opening can be calculated as
ings in buildings.

… Z2
qj,i ˆ bi Kt j pext …0† ÿ pi jn
4. Implementation details Z1
 
4.1. Overall implementation structure z n
1 ÿ  Sgn… pext …0† ÿ pi † dz
Zi
The proposed overall implementation structure fol- "  …36†
lows the popular modular structure. After data input, n Z 
i Z1 n‡1
ˆ bj Kt j pext …0† ÿ pi j 1ÿ  ÿ
the pressure in each zone is initialised and then n‡1 Zi
updated by solving a system of non-linear equations.
In each iteration, the external pressure is ®rst calcu-   #
Z2 n‡1
lated for each opening in the building, and the ¯ow 1ÿ  Sgn… pext …0† ÿ pj †
Zi
coecients, which will be de®ned later, are then evalu-
ated for each opening. The matrix equation is estab-
lished before it is solved by a linear solver and the new
pressures are updated. The iteration ends when conver-
gence is achieved. Calculation of ¯ow coecients and If for this opening (Z1, Z2) W(Z i , Ri), the ¯ow rate
the solution method will be described in detail. through it can be calculated as

Fig. 6. Pressure pro®les across an opening in a building with hori- Fig. 7. Pressure pro®les across an opening in a building with hori-
zontally interconnected zones with di€erent heights. zontally interconnected zones of partially overlapped heights.
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206 201
… Z2  n " n‡1   #
z ÿ Z i Z i Z1 Z2 n‡1
qj,i ˆbj Kt j p…Ri † ÿ pi jn Cÿ ˆ bKt 1ÿ ÿ 1ÿ 
Z1 Ri ÿ Z i n‡1 Z i Zi
Sgn… pext …Ri † ÿ pi † dz
Ri ÿ Z i
ˆ bj Kt j … pext …Ri † ÿ pi jn C‡ ˆ 0 …42†
n‡1
"  #
 n‡1 
Z2 ÿ Z i Z1 ÿ Z i n‡1 for Z i r Z2.
 ÿ
Ri ÿ Z i Ri ÿ Z i It can be easily shown that both Cÿ and C + are
Sgn… pext …Ri † ÿ pi † …37† always non-negative. However, when the temperature
di€erence between two zones is very small, say, smaller
where p is the width of the opening j and
bj than 10ÿ10, the neutral height Z i can be either very
Kt ˆ Cd …2=r†. small or huge. This will cause the ¯ow coecients to
It should be mentioned that the external pressure at be zero. In this case, the density di€erence-driven ¯ows
¯oor level is used in Eq. (36) and that at ceiling level is can be neglected. From the implementation point of
used in Eq. (37). If an opening contains the neutral view, the ¯ow coecients can be calculated as follows:
level, then the opening can be divided into two sub-
Cÿ ˆ 0
openings and ¯ow rates through each can be calculated
separately using Eqs. (36) and (37), respectively.
In the proposed implementation method, the ¯ow C ‡ ˆ bKt …Z2 ÿ Z1 † …43†
rate through an opening adjacent to zone k can be
easily shown to be when Z i is very small; and
qj,i ˆ C ‡ j Dpc jn ÿCÿ j Dpf jn for Tk > Ti Cÿ ˆ bKt …Z2 ÿ Z1 †

qj,i ˆ Cÿ j Dpf jn ÿC ‡ j Dpc jn for Tk RTi …38† C‡ ˆ 0 …44†

where when Z i is huge.

For a horizontal opening j, the ori®ce equation is
Dpf ˆ pext …0† ÿ pi ˆ pk ‡ …rk ÿ ri †gHi ÿ pi
s
2 j Dptot j
qj,i ˆ CD Ak Sgn…Dptot † …45†
Dpc ˆ pext …Ri † ÿ pi ˆ pk ÿ …rk ÿ ri †gHi ÿ pi …39† r

The ¯ow coecients are It can be written as

Cÿ ˆ 0 qj,i ˆ Cÿ j Dptot jn ÿC ‡ j Dptot jn …46†

" The ¯ow coecients can be calculated as follows:

‡ Ri ÿ Z i If Dptot r 0 then
C ˆ bKt
n‡1
# C‡ ˆ 0
 n‡1  
Z2 ÿ Z i Z1 ÿ Z i n‡1
 ÿ …40†
Ri ÿ Z i Ri ÿ Z i Cÿ ˆ Kt Aj …47†

for Z i R Z1; and if Dptot < 0 then

" n‡1 #
Z i Z1 C ‡ ˆ Kt Aj
Cÿ ˆ bKt 1ÿ
n‡1 Z i

Cÿ ˆ 0 …48†
" #
 n‡1
Ri ÿ Z i Z2 ÿ Z i
C ‡ ˆ bKt …41†
n‡1 Ri ÿ Z i 4.3. Solution method

for Z1 < Z i < Z2, and The balance of volume ¯ows in all rooms together
202 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

can be expressed by the following non-linear system of where

equations:
Dpf ˆ pk ‡ …rk ÿ ri †gHi ÿ pi
fi … p1 ,p2 , . . . ,pN † ˆ 0, i ˆ 1,2, . . . ,N …49†

where N is the number of zones and Dpc ˆ pk ÿ …rk ÿ ri †gHi ÿ pi …58†

X
Ni It can be shown for both situations, that the ®rst-order
fi … p1 ,p2 , . . . ,pN † ˆ qj,i …50† derivatives can be calculated as
jˆ1
@qj,i
ˆ ÿnCÿ j DPf jnÿ1 ÿnC ‡ j Dpc jnÿ1
where qj,i is the net ¯ow rate through an opening j and @ pi
Ni is the number of openings in Zone i.
The non-linear system of equations is solved numeri- @qj,i
cally by the Newton±Raphson method. In this method, ˆ nCÿ j Dpf jnÿ1 ‡nC ‡ j Dpc jnÿ1 , i 6ˆ k …59†
@ pk
a linear system of equations is solved iteratively:

X
N The set of linear equations can be solved by any linear
@fi solver. In MIX2.0, the method of Gauss±Jordan elim-
dpk ˆ ÿfi … p1 ,p2 , . . . ,pN †, i ˆ 1,2, . . . ,N …51†
kˆ1
@ pk ination with full pivoting is used.
The new pressures are calculated as
From Eq. (50), we have
pnew
i ˆ pold
i ‡ adpi , i ˆ 1,2, . . . ,N …60†
@ fi XNi
@ qj,i
ˆ …52† where a is an under-relaxation factor and 0 < a R 1.
@pk jˆ1
@pk
In MIX2.0, both the total ¯ow rate for qi for each
Calculation of @qj,i/@pk for di€erent ventilation open- zone and the variable pi are checked for convergence.
ings can be derived as follows. The solutions are generally very fast and convergence
For a ceiling or ¯oor opening j in zone i the ¯ow can generally be obtained with 20 iterations if the
rate can be calculated as pressure is initialised properly.
Initialisation of pressures in MIX2.0 is done by ®rst
qj,i ˆ ÿC ‡ j pi ÿ pext jn ‡Cÿ j pext ÿ pi jn …53† assigning the hydrostatic pressure,

It can be easily shown that p1 ˆ 0

@qj,i
ˆ ÿnC ‡ j pext ÿ pi jnÿ1 ÿnCÿ j pext ÿ pi jnÿ1 pi ˆ p1 ÿ rg…hi ÿ H1 † …61†
@pi
The pressures are then updated by solving a set of lin-
@qj,i ear equations, which are obtained by assuming n = 1
ˆ nC ‡ j pext ÿ pi jnÿ1 ‡nCÿ j pext ÿ pi jnÿ1 , in the set of non-linear Eqs. (49).
@pk …54†
i 6ˆ k
5. Evaluation
For a roof opening, j, the ¯ow rate can be calculated
similarly 5.1. Exact solution: Single-zone buildings with two
‡ n n openings and buoyancy alone
qj,i ˆ ÿC j pi ÿ pext j ‡Cÿ j pext ÿ pi j …55†
For simplicity, we introduce the notation W  (h1,
Again, it can be shown that
h2) to represent a ventilation opening of width W with
@qj,i vertical coordinates from h1 to h2.
ˆ ÿnC ‡ j pext ÿ pi jnÿ1 ÿnCÿ j pext ÿ pi jnÿ1 …56† The ®rst problem is a building with a bottom open-
@pi
ing and a top opening (see Fig. 8(a)). The indoor air
For a vertical wall opening j in zone i, there are two temperature is uniform. The exact solution can be
situations: easily derived as

qj,i ˆ ÿCÿ j Dpf jn ‡C ‡ j Dpc jn for Tk > Ti A2t

pi ˆ ÿ …r ÿ ri †gh …62†
A2t ‡ A2b o
qj,i ˆ ‡Cÿ j Dpf jn ÿC ‡ j Dpc jn for Tk RTi …57† and
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206 203

Fig. 9. Comparison of exact solutions with predicted results for a

building with two equal-area openings. Three predictions with open-
ing heights of 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 m are shown.

may be found in some industrial buildings. The results

of the simple analytical solution and MIX2.0 are com-
pared. The simple theory underpredicts the overall
ventilation ¯ow rate by about 50%. This is because bi-
directional ¯ows occur in the bottom opening. The
Fig. 8. Geometry of three simple ¯ow systems: (a) one-zone building; neutral height is within the bottom opening. It is inter-
(b) two-zone building; and (c) multi-zone building. esting that the simple theory still successfully predicts
s the out¯ow through the top opening.
2A2t A2b ro ÿ ri
qt ˆ qb ˆ C d gh …63†
A2t ‡ A2b r 5.2. Exact solution: Single-zone buildings with two
openings and wind e€ect
This result is the same as that derived by Etheridge
and Sandberg [17] and it has been used in a number of The second problem is again a building with a bot-
design guidelines. The ®rst test is a building with two tom opening and a top opening in two opposite walls
openings with equal areas. The two openings are (see Fig. 8(a)), but with wind e€ects. The bottom
10  (0, 1 m) and 10  (9, 10 m). Thus, the relative opening is in the windward wall and the top opening
height h is 9 m. The predicted ventilation ¯ow rates as
a function of temperature di€erence are shown in Fig.
9. The analytical solution based on the equation and
the numerical solution of MIX2.0 are compared. Two
other di€erent opening heights are chosen in the
MIX2.0 runs. These are 5  (0, 2 m), 5  (9, 11 m),
2.5  (0, 4 m) and 2.5  (9, 13 m). The opening verti-
cal locations are adjusted in order to have the same
relative height h for all three MIX2.0 runs. All the
results agree with each other very well. The results
show that for a building with two equal-area openings
separated vertically, the analytical solution can be used
for predicting ventilation ¯ow rates. The question is
that can this simple analytical solution be applied for
a building with two unequal-area openings.
Fig. 10 shows the results of a di€erent test with two
unequal openings. The two openings are 5  (0, 4 m)
and 2.5  (9, 10 m). The bottom opening is seven Fig. 10. Comparison of exact solutions with predicted results for a
times larger than the top opening. This combination building with two unequal-area openings.
204 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206

where
!ÿ1
1 1 1
A2all ˆ 2
‡ 2 ‡


‡ 2 …66†
A01 A12 An0

It can be seen that if rogSN N

Fig. 11. Comparison of exact solutions with predicted results. Three
predictions are shown for the opening heights of 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 m.
is in the leeward wall. The indoor air temperature is
uniform. It can be easily derived that
qt ˆ qb
s
 
2A2t A2b ro ÿ ri 1 2
ˆ Cd gh ‡ v C p1
A2t ‡ A2b r 2
The building tested is the same as the building with
two equal-area openings used in Fig. 8. Assume that
the building is a cube and the Cp values are 0.7 and
ÿ0.5 for the bottom (windward) and top openings (lee-
ward), respectively. For a wind speed of 4 m/s, the
predicted ventilation ¯ow rates as a function of tem-
perature di€erence are shown in Fig. 11. The agree-
ment is very good.
5.3. Exact solution: Multi-zone buildings
i = 1hi > gSi = 1rihi, there is
an upward ¯ow. Analytically, this is the sucient con-
dition for maintaining upward ¯ows. The basic
assumptions behind this sucient condition include
that no bi-directional ¯ows exist through any openings
and the air temperature in each zone is uniform.
This result can be applied to analyse buildings with
solar chimneys. It should be mentioned that the ¯ow
resistance in the solar chimney due to wall friction is
neglected. In buildings with sub-¯oor plenums and
solar chimneys, the air in the sub-¯oor plenum and in
the occupied zones is expected to be cooler than out-
door air during day time. The thermal stack intro-
duced in the solar chimneys should be suciently large
to extract the air out of the building. For example,
consider a single-zone oce building of 3 m high with
a 2 m high sub-¯oor plenum and a solar chimney. We
assume the air temperatures at 15 and 228C in the sub-
¯oor plenum and the oce, respectively. The air tem-
1 2
ÿ v C p2 perature in the solar chimney is 358C and outside air is
2
at 258C. Based on the above condition, the solar chim-
…64† ney has to be at least 3.2 m high in order to maintain
an upward ¯ow. However, note that a solar chimney
height only slightly greater than 3.2 m will only pro-
vide an upward ventilation ¯ow with an almost zero
ventilation ¯ow rate. Similarly, the analytical solution
can also be used to determine the required height and
air temperature of a solar chimney in order to achieve
a speci®ed ventilation ¯ow rate.
For a two-zone system (Fig. 8(b)), it is assumed that
the temperature in the bottom zone is Tb and in the
top zone Tt. The above results can be simpli®ed as fol-
low: the ¯ow rates are

For a multi-zone building shown in Fig. 8(c), the s

2Dpb
pressure di€erence across each opening can be derived qb ˆ C d A b
as follows: r

2A2all X
N
s
Dp01 ˆ …r ÿ ri †ghi
A01 iˆ1 o
2 2Dpt
qt ˆ Cd At
r

2A2all X
N
Dp12 ˆ …r ÿ ri †ghi s
A212 iˆ1 o 2Dpm
qm ˆ C d A m …67†
r
...
The pressure di€erence across each opening is

2A2all X
N
2A2b A2t
Dpn0 ˆ …r ÿ ri †ghi …65† Dpm ˆ ‰…ro ÿ rb †ghb ‡ …ro ÿ rt †ght Š
An0 iˆ1 o
2
A2tmb
 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206
Fig. 12. Comparison of exact solutions with predicted results for a
two-zone building.
2A2m A2t
Dpb ˆ ‰…ro ÿ rb †ghb ‡ …ro ÿ rt †ght Š
A2tmb
2A2b A2m
Dpt ˆ ‰…ro ÿ rb †ghb ‡ …ro ÿ rt †ght Š …68†
A2tmb
where
A2tmb ˆ A2m A2b ‡ A2m A2t ‡ A2t A2b …69†
That is, if rog(ht+hb) > rbghb+rtght, there is always
an upward ¯ow. This condition is independent of the
sizes of ventilation openings, if the indoor air tempera-
tures are maintained.
Consider a two-zone building with each zone having
a height of 8.05 m. There are three openings, the bot-
tom opening is 100  (0, 0.1 m), the middle opening
10 m2 and the top opening 100  (7.95, 8.05 m). The
purpose of validation here is to test the multi-zone
pressure calculation aspect of MIX2.0, but not the bi-
directional ¯ows. Thus, both vertical openings are con-
sidered to be a slot. The exact solution and the
MIX2.0 prediction are compared in Fig. 12. Again,
excellent agreement is obtained.
Table 3
Comparison of predicted air change rates under di€erent conditions
Case
West wind (3 m/s), outdoor air (58C)
North east wind (3 m/s), outdoor air (208C)
North east wind (3 m/s), outdoor air (208C)
North east wind (0.1 m/s), outdoor air (208C)
West wind (3 m/s), outdoor air (208C)
South wind (3 m/s), outdoor air (208C)
205
5.4. CFD simulations
Computational ¯uid dynamics programs can simu-
late the air ¯ow ®elds in buildings, which can be used
to evaluate the overall air ¯ow rates entering or leav-
ing a building. However, it should be noted that CFD
is only a numerical experiment and CFD itself requires
validation and evaluation processes. In the CFD simu-
lations of a natural ventilation problem here, there has
been no validation for the CFD programs for the
speci®c problem being solved, although the CFD pro-
gram used for this study has been evaluated for a
range of other building ventilation problems. Thus, the
evaluation here is only considered as a cross-check
process.
Speci®cation of the boundary conditions at a large
opening is a dicult problem. In this paper, a simple
pressure boundary condition is used [15]. No knowl-
edge of air ¯ow rate or velocity distribution across an
opening is needed for this boundary condition.
The example enclosure to be presented here is a
wholesale fruit market in Australia. The enclosure is
the space enclosed by the two warehouses, the canopy
(roof) and the two end openings. The enclosure is
about 200  46  10 m =92,000 m3. There are two
side openings at the roof level with each opening
about 2 m high. In the enclosure, there are always 18
loading/unloading trucks on two centre lanes with six
additional trucks on two circulation lanes from mid-
night to 4:00 a.m., which is the period for this study.
The trucks are the main sources of heat. The need for
a ridge vent was studied, but is not reported here.
There is no other additional mechanical ventilation
system for the space. Removal of truck exhaust gases
will rely on natural ventilation and moving-truck-
induced ¯ows in the enclosure. The moving-truck-
induced ¯ows are estimated to be about 0.13 air
changes per h. The pressure coecients used in this
work were obtained from AS1170 [18].
Air change rates (air changes per h) predicted by
MIX2.0 and CFD for six di€erent cases are compared
in Table 3. Considering the di€erences between the
two methods, the agreement is fairly good. The largest
di€erence occurs when there is a west wind, which gen-
MIX2.0 prediction CFD prediction
20.9 28.8
19.9 21.6
11.0 8.6
10.6 7.9
20.9 28.9
20.5 25.9
206 Y. Li et al. / Building and Environment 35 (2000) 191±206
erates a mixed ¯ow pattern in the enclosure as shown
by the CFD predictions. The ¯ow characteristics at the
two end openings are very complex, which indicates
that the assumption of neglecting the indoor air ¯ow-
induced pressure may not be fully valid. More details
about this case study can be found in [15].
More application of the developed multi-zone pro-
gram can be found in [19] for a building with two sub-
¯oor plenums and two solar chimneys and [20] for a
ten-zone smelter building where both CFD and multi-
zone predictions are compared.
6. Conclusions
By introducing an auxiliary concept of external
pressure, the pressure-based formulation for natural
ventilation can be presented in an integrated form,
which will simplify its implementation in a computer
program. The integrated formulation applies to situ-
ations including vertically interconnected zones, and
horizontally interconnected zones with same heights
and di€erent heights. A simple and easy implemen-
tation method for the generalised formulation for
natural ventilation of multi-zone buildings is also
developed. In this method, a popular modular struc-
ture is used. The main modules include the external
pressure, ¯ow coecient, and matrix equation estab-
lishment and its solution. The developed program is
evaluated against analytical solutions and CFD predic-
tions. In general, good agreement is achieved. Further
conclusions regarding the use of the multi-zone pro-
gram for buildings with thermal strati®cation are pre-
sented in [20].
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