Network numerical simulation of coupled heat and moisture transfer in capillary porous media

In this paper we present the numerical solution of the problem of coupled heat and moisture transfer in porous materials. A network model introducing an analogy based in the equivalence mass transfer-electrical current is proposed to obtain the numerical solutions. An algorithm based on a finite-difference scheme for the spatial variable (as in the lines method because the time remains as a continuous variable) is formally equivalent to those derived from the mathematical model. An implementation of the Network Simulation Method is used to derive a solution to the heat and mass conservation coupled equations in porous media for the cases of distributed and lumped models. The obtained values by the theoretical model are compared with other author data to demonstrate the efficiency of the method used, moreover all the cases the convergence is always quickly reached. (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.