Section VI- HVAC Strategies

a.) Summary:
It is important for new construction designers to consider the heating, ventilation,
and air conditioning needs within a building. There are many different HVAC
systems, and each tends to be unique to its building. It is very important to
design the HVAC system based on the individual building to make sure the
equipment is not oversized. Adding quality to the envelope and minimizing loads
can also reduce the final HVAC costs. The following strategies are recommended
by SEDAC to increase efficiency of HVAC systems:
 Demand Control Ventilation (DCV)
 High efficiency equipment
o Condensing boilers
o Variable frequency drives
o Economizers
o Air source heat pumps
o Chilled beams
o Variable refrigerant flow (VRF)

b.) Technical Information:

Demand Controlled Ventilation:

Ventilation is the process of bringing outside air into a building to provide building
occupants with fresh air. Depending on weather conditions, ventilation air must usually
be either heated, cooled, and/or be dehumidified. Because of this, ventilation air
represents a significant portion of HVAC energy consumption.
Maximum ventilation rates, or the amount of fresh air in cubic feet per minute (CFM)
that an air handler system brings into a building is based on the maximum number of
people that can occupy the space being served by an air handler. It is not unusual for
an air handler to operate at the maximum ventilation rate continuously, even if the
space is only partially occupied. This method of operation results in over-ventilation and
wasted energy.
Since buildings are rarely at maximum occupancy, significant energy savings can be
achieved by reducing the amount of outside air being introduced into the building and
then conditioned without compromising air quality. Demand controlled ventilation (DCV)
is a method that controls ventilation rates based on the concentration of carbon dioxide
(CO2) of interior air while maintaining proper indoor air quality.

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 Since buildings are rarely at
maximum occupancy, significant
energy savings can be achieved
by reducing the amount of outside
air being introduced into the
building and then conditioned
without compromising air quality.
Demand controlled ventilation
(DCV) is a method that controls
ventilation rates based on the
concentration of carbon dioxide
(CO2) of interior air while
maintaining proper indoor air
quality.

CO2 sensors placed in the return air duct system monitor the concentration of CO 2,
which increases or decreases based on the number of people in the building. The
sensors signal the outdoor air dampers when to adjust the amount of air to be
introduced into the air-handler so that fresh air requirements are met. Many new HVAC
systems already use this type of ventilation control and it is possible to retrofit older
systems with comparable controls. Alternatively, if a building has equipment scheduling
capabilities and the capability to modulate outdoor air dampers, the air intake rates can
be lowered during stretches of low occupancy.

Condensing boilers:

Non-condensing hot water boilers are built and operated to avoid condensation from
occurring in the heat exchanger. To do so, temperatures within the heat exchanger
need to be kept above approximately 140oF. This requirement causes flue gasses to be
quite hot which are then vented to the exterior. Jacket losses from these boilers can
also be considerable since minimum temperatures need to be maintained. Conversely,
condensing boilers are built from materials that can withstand the corrosive effects of
condensation, capture the heat that non-condensing boilers exhaust out the flue, and
have much lower jacket losses since they can operate at temperatures well below a
non-condensing boiler, and capture heat off of the heat exchanger.

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 Because boilers are typically sized
to satisfy heating loads during the
coldest anticipated weather, which
occurs infrequently, they usually
operate at part-load. Therefore,
condensing technology can
substantially increase the overall
operating efficiency of the hot
water heating system.

Current condensing boiler technology with high turn down ratio can achieve
efficiencies between 85-97%, with peak efficiency at low-fire rates and low-
return water temperature. With proper system design and operation, this
characteristic allows condensing boiler technology to be particularly efficient
at partial loads as opposed to non-condensing boilers which operate below
their rated maximum efficiency under part-load conditions.

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Variable Frequency Drives:
Standard operating procedure for most electric motors that drive pumps and fans is for
them to be either on, and run at full-speed, or off. Motors frequently do not need to run
at full-speed and allowing them to run at a slower speed can save energy, money, and
increase the life of the motor. Adding a variable frequency drive (VFD) to a motor
allows the speed of the motor to vary to meet the load at any moment.
VFDs control the speed of an AC motor by varying the motor’s supplied voltage and
frequency of power. VFDs are effective in applications with pumps or fans that
frequently experience a variable load. Good indicators that a VFD addition would be
effective are situations which require the motor to frequently cycle on/off or to operate
constantly using valves or dampers to regulate flow.
VFDs are commonly applied to motors on air-handlers, cooling towers, large exhaust
motors, and chilled water or hot water (hydronic) pump motors. For example, for the fan
motor on an air-handler serving a variable air-volume (VAV) system, static pressure in
the duct system can be measured and as VAV boxes reduce airflow, static pressure
increases in the duct system can trigger the VFD to reduce fan speed. VFDs must be
programmed for each installation to avoid potential resonance problems.

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Economizers:
Air-side economizers bring fresh outside air into buildings for cooling purposes. The
outside air be mixed with exhaust air for desired temperatures. Traditionally, these
systems cool buildings whenever outsider air is lower than the temperature of
recirculated air. Along with decreasing HVAC costs, this method can also improve
indoor air quality.

Air source heat pumps:

Air source heat pumps transfer heat from outside to inside buildings. These systems
warm inside of a building while cooling the outside air. The major pieces of this
equipment include an outdoor heat exchanger coil, which collect heat from surrounding
outside air, and an indoor heat exchanger coil, which transfer heat to hot air ducts.
Chilled beams:
In a chilled beam system, pipes of cold water are passed through a heat exchanged
either integrated into or closely connected to the ceiling. As beams cool the surrounding
air, the cooling descends to the floor, causing the warm air to rise. While passive chilled
beam systems are controlled only through the convection process, active systems also
exist, which include air ducts to push air toward the unit.
Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF):
VRF is a good option for buildings with varying loads and different zones. This strategy
uses refrigerant as the source for heating and cooling. It includes multiple fan coil units
and evaporators throughout the building, which are each connected to one condensing
unit. Each unit may be controlled by different users, depending on the varying heating
and cooling needs throughout the building. VRF heat recovery technology also adds to
the energy saving of this equipment, allowing for heating and cooling only when
necessary.

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c.) Case Study: Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHP)

Although it may be expensive, incentives for GSHPs help cover the cost, particularly for
the public sector. This particular system had an EER of 13.5 and a COP of 4.5. In this
case, the server room cooling tied into the heat pump loop. Their system also includes a
dedicated outside variable air volume with the GSHP and heat recovery. DCV was
implemented, while economizers and variable frequency drives on the water pumps
were installed. User control thermostats with +/-2°F adjustment were also set up to give
each occupant a little bit of control over his/her own space.

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