The study investigated the performance of solar chimney, which is integrated into a one-story building. A module was developed for and implemented in the Energy Plus program for the simulation and determination of the energy impact of thermal chimneys. The basic concepts, assumptions, and algorithms are implemented into the Energy Plus program to predict the performance of a solar chimney. The results showed that in Nanjing 45 is found to be optimum for obtaining maximum rate of ventilation and the rate of ventilation increases with increase of the ratio between height of absorber and gap between glass and absorber. This finding is in agreement with experimental results. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.