Effect of Radiative Heat Transfer and Boundary Conditions on the Airflow and Temperature Distribution Inside a Heated Tunnel Greenhouse

Abstract

The airflow and temperature distribution in a heated tunnel greenhouse in the presence of a row of tomato plants owing to heat dissipation from heating pipes is numerically studied with the use of the Fluent-CFD software. The fully turbulent airflow in the greenhouse induced by buoyancy forces is modeled by using the k–ε model. The radiative heat transfer is taken into account by using the model of discrete ordinates. Two types of boundary conditions expressing heat losses at the greenhouse cover are treated: pure convection and convection combined with thermal radiation.