Simulation of Heat Gain by Conduction Through Walls for Residential Buildings in Iraq: Ramadi City as Case Study

To accurately estimate the cooling or heating load of a building, it is necessary to calculate the heat gained through the walls under specific climatic conditions. Many effective techniques to perform this task have been developed in the engineering literature, highlighting the importance of selecting sustainable building materials. In this study, the Fourier series, a third harmonic technique, was used in MATLAB to model the heat gain. The simulation process was based on hourly gain fluctuation through the walls, and conductive heat transfer was calculated. This method facilitated the determination of the amount of heat gained through different wall configurations. Input data for the simulation program included the number of layers of walls, as well as the thermal properties of each layer. Area-specific weather information is essential as the calculation is based on solar air temperature. The study was conducted in August 2023 over 24 hours in the City of Ramadi in Iraq. The results showed 1.2% higher than published research. The results showed that the third type of wall was the best. The third type improved the reduction of heat gain by 71% compared to the first type, by 80% compared to the second type, and by 68% compared to the fourth type.