NUMERICAL STUDY OF HEAT-STORAGE IN A BUILDING

To describe the characteristics of heat storage of buildings is essential to clarifying causes of the heat island effect. In this study a model building was used to calculate its heat balance in a two-dimensional method. The plain structure of the model simplified the analyses of various parameters. The following were obtained from the results of numerical experiments: (1) the larger the heat conduction of a model, the more it absorbed insolation and released heat in the evening; (2) the higher the specific heat at constant volume of the model, the more it absorbed insolation and released heat during the night; (3) the higher the albedo of a model, the less it absorbed insolation and released heat during the night; (4) the more the outside wind weakened, the more the model absorbed insolation and released heat during the night; (5) there was no specific seasonal difference in nocturnal heat flux; the maximum amount of heat flux after sunset increased in January; (6) there was no difference in the amount and diurnal variation of heat flux between buildings of different sizes; (7) with respect to differences in building materials, concrete absorbed insolation and released heat during the night more than the others.