A numerical studyofheat transfer through a sunlit glazing unit with internal louvered shade has been performed. The two-dimensional model was developed to approximate the system as an isothermal vertical flat plate with adjacent heated, horizontal, and rotateable louvers, and includes the effects of convection, radiation, and conduction. Six variables were identified for examination of their effects on heat transfer in the system:​ slat angle, slat nominal distance, slat emissivity, absorbed heat flux in the slats, plate temperature, and plate emissivity.

An experimental model of the system was constructed to validate the numerical model using a Mach-Zehnder Interferometer. The interferometer allows examination of convective heat transfer in the system. Experiments were performed which examined the effects of blind placement and angle, and glass temperature. Convective heat flux rates measured at the plate's surface, measured blind slat temperatures, and isotherms were found to be in excellent agreement with numerically obtained results.

A parametric analysis was conducted to aid in designing an investigative numerical series. Results suggested that heat flux from the glass surface exhibited a 2nd order response. Subsequently, a three level factorial parametric series was performed numerically, and the results were examined using statistical methods. As a result of this analysis, an estimator equation was derived which predicts heat flux at the indoor window surface as a function of the investigative variables.

The estimator equation was subsequently used to predict SHGC and U-factor for a numberofconditions, and compared to data obtained experimentally with a solar calorimeter. Calculated and measured data were found to be in excellent agreement