EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF AIR FLOW OVER DOMED ROOFS

Domed roofs have been used in Iran and many other countries to cover large buildings such as mosques, shrines, churches, schools, etc. However their favorable thermal performance has allowed them to be employed in other buildings like bazaars, or market places in Iran. In this investigation, wind pressure coefficients were determined experimentally for a domed roof model in a boundary layer wind tunnel. The model was a 1/10 scale model of the dome of an old school in the city of Yazd, in the central desert region of Iran. The model included a number of windows at the collar of the dome, and a hole on its apex. A total of 48 pressure tabs were employed to measure the air pressure at various points on the dome model. Tests were run under three conditions of windows and the hole on top of the dome being open or closed. The result of this research can be used to determine the heat transfer coefficient of wind blowing on domed roofs and the passive cooling effect of such structures.