Application of flow control techniques for indoor ventilation

Significant amount of energy is consumed each year on heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC), raising ongoing demand for energy efficient HVAC systems. This study explores the applicability of flow control techniques to improve the ventilation performance of a mixed ventilated environment. The effect of two kind of periodic excitations, periodic air supply and synthetic jet, on the representative flowfield are investigated. The results show that the flow pattern becomes oscillatory and the fresh air sweeps a wider region by applying the periodic supply condition. The mean age of air is reduced as a consequence, indicating an improvement in the ventilation performance. By activating synthetic jet close to the air supply inlet, the ventilation air jet is vectored, showing the potential to more actively control the fresh air direction.