Thermal Comfort Analysis
for Passenger Compartments of Bus and Train

Benefits gained through simulations of passenger compartments of public transportation vehicles

Be it busses, tramways, metro or passenger trains - THESEUS‑FE can be utilized to solve any thermal problems arising in and around public transportation vehicles. Application cases where THESEUS‑FE really shines are the thermal comfort assessment of passengers and analyzing energetic measures such as different glazings or heat insulation.

An overview of use cases where THESEUS‑FE can help to gain invaluable insight for public transportation:

• Simulating the power of HVAC systems on summer or winter days with extreme climate conditions, so-called worst-case scenarios Typical questions in this regard are:
  • How high does the volume flow and inlet temperature of the HVAC system need to be to maintain a comfortable temperature level in the whole passenger compartment or to reach it within a pre-defined period of time?
  • Is a homogeneous heating of the whole passenger cabin possible to guarantee an adequate comfort level on all seats?
• Localization of thermal bridges in the passenger compartment
  • Where and why do the highest heat flows arise?
  • Comparison of different measures for local heat insulation
• Dimensioning of novel radiant heating panels as an alternative to classical HVAC concepts.
• Calculation of possible energy savings to provide a basis for a cost-benefit analysis
• Comparison of different glazing variants regarding their energy efficienty in typical summer and winter load cases. These simulations usually consider wavelength-dependent transmission and absorption of glazings as well as time-dependent solar loads based on the relative movement of the sun.
• Cost-benefit analysis of full year simulations on various places on earth. Mathematical models for sun intensity and sun position as well as other environmental conditions are used in this case.
• Additional questions which can be answered by simulations with THESEUS‑FE are:
  • Are there any risks for local moisture condensation in cavities of the cabin construction or within insulation bodies
  • Influence of engine waste heat on the climatization of the passenger compartment
  • Are there any hot areas with a potential risk of injury on the surfaces of the passenger cabin