New NPLV Rating Works
about chiller operating hours. It assumes that
“Weather” Your Plant Has
a Single or Multiple Chillers
In December 1998, the Air-conditioning
and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) issued a
revised Standard, ARI 550/590-98, which
addressed efficiency measurements for
centrifugal, screw and reciprocating chillers.
The major change involved the formula used
to calculate average chiller efficiency. The
formula was revised to improve its accuracy,
especially at off-design conditions. The goal
was to give chiller buyers better information
with which to make energy comparisons.
However, the revised formula was derived
from analysis of a single-chiller system. This
has raised concerns about its applicability
to multiple-chiller systems, which make up
the majority of chiller plants. This worry is
groundless when the difference between
multiple-chiller systems and single-chiller
systems is understood, along with how the
formula works for both types of systems.
Background
The formula used in ARI Standard
550/590-98 to calculate average chiller
efficiency involves a set of four Operating
Conditions. Each Condition consists of a
“% Design Load” and a “Head.” The Head is
represented by either an outdoor dry-bulb
(DB) temperature for air-cooled chillers, or
an entering condenser-water temperature
(ECWT) for water-cooled chillers. For water-
cooled chillers, the four Conditions are 100%
load @ 85°F ECWT, 75% load @ 75°F ECWT,
50% load @ 65°F ECWT, and 25% load @
65°F ECWT. These temperatures were
derived by averaging weather data from
around the United States, and utilizing a
typical cooling-tower approach.
The formula makes some assumptions
a chiller spends 1% of its operating hours at
100% load and 85°F ECWT simultaneously,
42% of operating hours at 75% load and
75°F ECWT, 45% of operating hours at 50%
load and 65°F ECWT, and 12% of operating
hours at 25% load and 65°F ECWT. These
values are based on weather data, recognizing
the major impact of weather on both chiller
loading and efficiency.
The result of the formula is a chiller-
efficiency number, expressed in kW/ton.
If the chiller design conditions are the standard
ARI conditions (44°F leaving chilled-water
temperature, 85°F ECWT or 95°F outdoor
DB, 2.4 gpm/ton evaporator flow, 3.0 gpm/ton
condenser flow, and standard fouling factors),
then the efficiency number is known as the
Integrated Part-Load Value (IPLV).
But what about different chiller design
conditions? For departures from standard
ARI conditions (i.e., 83°F ECWT or different
flow rates), the efficiency number is known
as the Non-standard Part-Load Value
(NPLV). Because IPLV is a specialized
subset of NPLV, which is used primarily
in manufacturers’ catalogs, we will focus
on NPLV in this Update.
The ARI recognizes that an NPLV rating
can’t predict exactly what the absolute chiller
efficiency would be in an actual installation.
NPLV does, however, provide a meaningful
way of comparing the relative efficiency of
different chiller models. The actual efficiency
may differ from the NPLV by a few percent,
but each chiller model will differ by a
similar amount.
The Multiple-Chiller Question
Standard 550/590-98 states that NPLV
applies to single-chiller systems and that full
energy analyses should be used for multiple-
chiller systems. The ARI (of which YORK is
a member) recognized that multiple-chiller
 systems make up the majority of chiller
plants. However, single-chiller plants are
easier to analyze, so ARI started there.
It’s important to note that no analysis was
ever done to determine whether the new
Standard would work for multiple-chiller
systems. Multiple-chiller plants are now
under study in an ARI committee.
What makes multiple-chiller plants
different from single-chiller plants, as far
as chiller efficiency is concerned? In a
single-chiller plant, the chiller sees the full
range of building cooling loads: from 100%
design load down to 10%, when the chiller
shuts off. In multiple-chiller systems, on the
other hand, chillers cycle off as the building-
cooling load gets lower, and the load on the
remaining chillers increases. The result is that
the individual chillers see higher loads, on
average. In fact, the more chillers there are
in the system, the higher the average chiller
load. Table 1 illustrates this phenomenon.
Table 1 — Average Chiller Loads in
Multiple-Chiller Systems (parallel chillers)
Number of Building Building Building Chiller
Chillers in Total Load Average Load Average Load Average Load
the System (Tons) (Tons) (%) (%)
1 4000 2000 50 50
2 4000 2000 50 67
3 4000 2000 50 75
4 4000 2000 50 83
A multiple-chiller system appears to
breach the assumptions used in calculating
NPLV. The weather assumptions would be
fundamentally unchanged, but the chiller-
loading assumptions would change, with
more hours being spent at higher loads.
Wouldn’t this make the Standard and NPLV
inapplicable for multiple-chiller systems?
The Multiple-Chiller Answer
Surprisingly, no. NPLV is also valid
for multiple-chiller systems, despite the
difference in average chiller loading. YORK
was one of the developers of the Standard,
and is deeply involved in the study of multiple-
chiller systems for the ARI. In analyzing
these systems, YORK has found that the
Standard does accurately predict chiller
efficiency for multiple-chiller systems as well.
How can that be, if the assumptions used
in the formula have changed so radically?
To find the answer, we need to look at the
factors that determine the efficiency of a
refrigeration compressor.
There are two factors: Load and Head.
Load is the amount of refrigerant gas that
the compressor must handle over time. Head
is the pressure difference against which the
compressor must operate. In a water chiller,
the lower pressure is determined by the
evaporator temperature. The higher pressure
is determined by the condensing temperature,
which is determined primarily by the weather
conditions: the outdoor dry-bulb temperature
entering the air-cooled condenser, or the
wet-bulb temperature of the air entering
the cooling tower.
Which has the greater impact on
compressor efficiency: Load or Head?
Let’s look at water-cooled centrifugal
chillers, the most common type of chiller
used in large plants. Figure 1 shows the
energy performance of an “average”
centrifugal chiller. The performance was
simulated by averaging together the most
recent performance curves published by
YORK, Carrier and Trane in their catalogs.
The curves show the relationship between
“% Design Load” and “% Design kW” for
various ECWTs.
If we hold the Head constant (by using
only the 85°F ECWT line) and vary the Load,
what happens to chiller efficiency? We find
that the kW/ton varies relatively little — only
5%. This is illustrated in Figure 2, using the
same curves as in Figure 1.
A simple analogy may help clarify why
the change is so small. Imagine a catapult
(representing the compressor) throwing a
10-lb rock (representing the Load) up a 20-
foot cliff (representing the Head). Say that
the power required for this operation is 1 HP.
If the rock is reduced to only 5 lb, then the
machine needs only 0.5 HP. Is the machine
becoming more efficient in terms of HP/lb?
No. If we divide power (HP) by Load (lb), we
get the same answer in both cases: 1÷10 =
0.5÷5 = 0.1 HP/lb.
Alternatively, if we hold the Load constant
(at 100%, for example) and vary the Head,
we find that change in chiller efficiency can
be as much as 30%. This is illustrated in
Figure 3.
Let’s use our same simple analogy
to examine this case. Imagine the rock
(representing the Load) stays at 10 lb, but
the cliff (representing the Head) is lowered
to 10 feet. Now the catapult would require
0.7 HP to accomplish the operation. Has the
catapult become more efficient? Yes. If we
divide the power (HP) by the Load (lb), the Figure 1 — Off-design Performance of “Average”
answer is now 0.7÷10 = 0.07 HP/lb, which Water-cooled Centrifugal Chiller
is 30% better than when we only lowered
the Load in Figure 2. 100%
We said earlier that the chiller-loading
pattern in a multiple-chiller plant is different
than a single-chiller plant. However, the 80%
weather stays the same, no matter how

% Design kW
many chillers are in the plant. Because 60%
Head (determined by the weather) will have
the major impact on chiller efficiency, and
Load (determined by the number of chillers) 40%
85°F ECWT
will have a minor impact, it stands to reason 75°F ECWT
that ARI 550/590-98 will accurately predict 20% 65°F ECWT
chiller efficiency in multiple-chiller plants.
55°F ECWT
Let’s analyze a multiple-chiller plant and
see if that is true. 0%
10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Analysis of a Multiple-Chiller Plant % Design Load
Six systems were analyzed, addressing the
same building load, using from 1 to 6 chillers
each, using average U.S. weather data, and
run with 4 different operating schedules. Figure 2 — Chiller Efficiency Changes with
Variable Load /Constant Head
System Description of System
Number (all constant-speed) 0.583 kW/ton
1 One 3600-ton unit 100%

2 Two 1800-ton units

80%
3 Three 1200-ton units 0.553 kW/ton kW/ ton varies
by only 5.1%
% Design kW

4 Four 900-ton units

60%
5 Five 720-ton units 0.557 kW/ton
6 Six 600-ton units
40%

Group Description of
Number Operating Schedule 20%
24 hr/day, 7 days /wk, chiller
1
shut off below 0°F outdoor DB
0%
24 hr/day, 7 days /wk, chiller 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
2
shut off below 55°F outdoor DB % Design Load
12 hr/day, 5 days /wk, chiller
3
shut off below 0°F outdoor DB
12 hr/day, 5 days /wk, chiller
4 Figure 3 — Chiller Efficiency Changes with
shut off below 55°F outdoor DB
Variable Head /Constant Load
The Building Load Parameters: 100% 0.583 kW/ ton
Design Building Cooling Load = 3600 tons
kW/ ton varies
Design Outdoor Temperatures = 100°F DB/78°F WB by 30.0%
80%
Design Cooling-Tower Approach = 7°F 0.408 kW/ ton
% Design kW

Design Efficiency for All Chillers = 0.583 kW/ton 60%

NPLV for All Chillers = 0.488 kW/ton
Design Leaving Chilled-Water Temperature = 44°F 40%

Minimum Entering Condenser-Water Temperature = 65°F

Average Internal Load = 40% of Peak 20%

0%
10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

% Design Load
 TABLE 2 — Average Efficiency of the Six Chiller Systems (kW/ton)
Group System System System System System System
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 0.493 0.476 0.480 0.481 0.482 0.483
2 0.487 0.486 0.489 0.492 0.493 0.496
3 0.494 0.482 0.487 0.487 0.489 0.491
4 0.491 0.490 0.494 0.496 0.498 0.500
Average 0.491 0.484 0.488 0.489 0.489 0.492

From this information, 24 analyses were Summary

done. These were created using the ASHRAE
Temperature-Bin Method for calculating
energy. The results are summarized in
Table 2 above.
The results show that the average
kW/ton for single- and multiple-chiller
systems are the same, within reasonable
accuracy. The new NPLV rating tracks
efficiency for multiple-chiller systems
as well as single-chiller systems.
ARI Standard 550/590-98 states that
NPLV is only applicable to single-chiller
systems, because of its chiller-loading
assumptions. However, it turns out that
the Standard is equally applicable to
multiple-chiller systems, because chiller
loading (between 50% and 100% load,
where individual chillers operate in
multiple-chiller systems) only marginally
impacts chiller efficiency. The major
factor in chiller efficiency is Head, which
is determined by the weather. And the
weather doesn’t care how many chillers
a plant contains.

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