Analysis of the Effect of Relative Humidity on the Convective Heat Transfer Coefficient Using Full-Scale Experiments in a Climatic Wind Tunnel

Jan Kočí (), Tomáš Navara, Jiří Maděra (), Arsenii Trush, Riccardo Cacciotti, Stanislav Pospíšil and Robert Černý
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Jan Kočí: Department of Materials Engineering and Chemistry, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Thákurova 7, 166 29 Prague, Czech Republic
Tomáš Navara: Department of Materials Engineering and Chemistry, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Thákurova 7, 166 29 Prague, Czech Republic
Jiří Maděra: Department of Materials Engineering and Chemistry, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Thákurova 7, 166 29 Prague, Czech Republic
Arsenii Trush: Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prosecká 809/76, 190 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Riccardo Cacciotti: Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prosecká 809/76, 190 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Stanislav Pospíšil: Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prosecká 809/76, 190 00 Prague, Czech Republic
Robert Černý: Department of Materials Engineering and Chemistry, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Thákurova 7, 166 29 Prague, Czech Republic

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-15

Abstract: The effect of relative humidity on the convective heat exchange between a solid surface and an ambient air stream is analyzed in this study. In the experimental part, a unique closed-circuit climatic wind tunnel is utilized, allowing full-scale experiments to be conducted with full control over the environmental parameters defining the experimental boundary conditions. The experimental configuration, which includes a specific design of a specimen to promote a controlled heat flow through the specimen body, might bring new insights into the field of energy-related calculations or prediction of building energy consumption. The novelty of this work lies in the implementation of relative humidity as an independent factor within thermal modelling, which might contribute to increasing the accuracy of building energy simulation models. The computational analysis of experimental results indicates relative humidity as an important parameter, which can affect the convective heat transfer coefficient by up to 37%. The major effects have been observed after exceeding a relative humidity of 50–55%.

Keywords: convective heat transfer coefficient; advanced correlation; wind tunnel; relative humidity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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