CFD simulation of the wind environment around an isolated high-rise building: An evaluation of SRANS, LES and DES models

Abstract The choice of proper turbulence models in computational fluid dynamics is still a challenging issue for accurately predicting outdoor microclimate and thermal comfort conditions in urban planning. This study compared the performances of the Steady Reynolds Averaged Navier–Stokes (SRANS) RNG k-e , Large Eddy Simulation (LES) and Detached Eddy Simulation (DES) modeling approaches in simulating the wind flow around an isolated building (with a 1:1:2 shape). The effects of the computational parameters were analyzed, including the grid resolution for all cases, and the discretization time step ( Δt ) and non-dimensional sampling time ( t * ) for the LES and DES cases. The results of the LES and DES simulations were affected by the gradual decrease in Δt and increase in t * until the two parameters reached 0.005 s and 288, respectively. The mean velocity fields on the windward side of the building predicted by the three models were in good agreement with the wind tunnel results. However, the results of the LES and DES cases were in better agreement with the experimental results for the leeward and lateral regions in both vertical and horizontal planes. The DDES (Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation) and LES models predicted similar results in the wake region, but the DDES has a lower overall mesh requirement. It is encouraging that the DDES model provides not only the mean flow field, but also the instantaneous wind characteristics, which can be useful for more accurate analysis of outdoor wind and thermal comfort.

[1]  Michael Breuer,et al.  Comparison of DES, RANS and LES for the separated flow around a flat plate at high incidence , 2003 .

[2]  R. Courant,et al.  On the Partial Difference Equations, of Mathematical Physics , 2015 .

[3]  Yoshihide Tominaga,et al.  Comparison of various k-ε models and DSM applied to flow around a high-rise building - report on AIJ cooperative project for CFD prediction of wind environment - , 2002 .

[4]  Yoshihide Tominaga,et al.  AIJ guidelines for practical applications of CFD to pedestrian wind environment around buildings , 2008 .

[5]  Tzu-Ping Lin,et al.  Thermal perception, adaptation and attendance in a public square in hot and humid regions , 2009 .

[6]  Theodore Stathopoulos,et al.  Simulation of near-field dispersion of pollutants using detached-eddy simulation , 2014 .

[7]  Shmuel Einav,et al.  A laser-Doppler velocimetry study of ensemble-averaged characteristics of the turbulent near wake of a square cylinder , 1995, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[8]  T. Shih,et al.  A new k-ϵ eddy viscosity model for high reynolds number turbulent flows , 1995 .

[9]  Qiusheng Li,et al.  Numerical evaluation of wind effects on a tall steel building by CFD , 2007 .

[10]  Yoshihide Tominaga,et al.  Numerical simulation of dispersion around an isolated cubic building: Comparison of various types of k–ɛ models , 2009 .

[11]  Kenny C. S Kwok,et al.  A new method to assess spatial variations of outdoor thermal comfort: Onsite monitoring results and implications for precinct planning , 2015 .

[12]  Cheuk Ming Mak,et al.  A study of interunit dispersion around multistory buildings with single-sided ventilation under different wind directions , 2014 .

[13]  Fotis Sotiropoulos,et al.  Detached eddy simulation of flow around two wall-mounted cubes in tandem , 2009 .

[14]  Y. Tominaga,et al.  Numerical simulation of dispersion around an isolated cubic building: Model evaluation of RANS and LES , 2010 .

[15]  S. Orszag,et al.  Development of turbulence models for shear flows by a double expansion technique , 1992 .

[16]  Robert N. Meroney,et al.  Gas dispersion near a cubical model building. Part I. Mean concentration measurements , 1983 .

[17]  K. Kakosimos,et al.  Application of Detached Eddy Simulation to neighbourhood scale gases atmospheric dispersion modelling. , 2013, Journal of hazardous materials.

[18]  P. Spalart,et al.  A hybrid RANS-LES approach with delayed-DES and wall-modelled LES capabilities , 2008 .

[19]  P. Spalart,et al.  A New Version of Detached-eddy Simulation, Resistant to Ambiguous Grid Densities , 2006 .

[20]  C. H. Liu,et al.  Vortex shedding and surface pressures on a square cylinder at incidence to a uniform air stream , 1999 .

[21]  Bert Blocken,et al.  50 years of Computational Wind Engineering: Past, present and future , 2014 .

[22]  Akashi Mochida,et al.  Prediction of wind environment and thermal comfort at pedestrian level in urban area , 2006 .

[23]  Jean-Pierre Bertoglio,et al.  Assessment of the vortex method for Large Eddy Simulation inlet conditions , 2006 .

[24]  Bert Blocken,et al.  CFD evaluation of wind speed conditions in passages between parallel buildings : effect of wall-function roughness modifications for the atmospheric boundary layer flow , 2007 .

[25]  V. Cheng,et al.  Urban human thermal comfort in hot and humid Hong Kong , 2012 .

[26]  B. Launder,et al.  Mathematical Models of turbulence , 1972 .

[27]  Y. Tominaga.  Flow around a high-rise building using steady and unsteady RANS CFD: Effect of large-scale fluctuations on the velocity statistics , 2015 .

[28]  S. Murakami,et al.  Comparison of various revised k–ε models and LES applied to flow around a high-rise building model with 1:1:2 shape placed within the surface boundary layer , 2008 .

[29]  Yoshihide Tominaga,et al.  Cooperative project for CFD prediction of pedestrian wind environment in the Architectural Institute of Japan , 2007 .

[30]  Ryuichiro Yoshie,et al.  CFD simulations of gas dispersion around high-rise building in non-isothermal boundary layer , 2011 .

[31]  Bje Bert Blocken,et al.  Computational Fluid Dynamics for urban physics: Importance, scales, possibilities, limitations and ten tips and tricks towards accurate and reliable simulations , 2015 .

[32]  Sue Ellen Haupt,et al.  Detached Eddy Simulation of Atmospheric Flow About a Surface Mounted Cube at High Reynolds Number , 2011 .

[33]  Michael Schatzmann,et al.  Wind-tunnel and numerical modeling of flow and dispersion about several building shapes , 1999 .

[34]  Jörg Franke,et al.  The COST 732 Best Practice Guideline for CFD simulation of flows in the urban environment: a summary , 2011 .

[35]  Bje Bert Blocken,et al.  Quality assessment of Large-Eddy Simulation of wind flow around a high-rise building : validation and solution verification , 2013 .

[36]  P. Spalart.  Comments on the feasibility of LES for wings, and on a hybrid RANS/LES approach , 1997 .