providing insights for todays

hvac system designer

2001 American Standard Inc. All rights reserved Volume 30, No. 3 I
engineers newsletter
design tips for effective, efficient
Dedicated Ventilation Systems
from the editor
Often the Engineers Newsletter limits
its coverage of design concepts to
theoretical discussions. This issue
tackles the subject of ventilation
system design, but does so by adopting
a practical, workaday approach. If you
design HVAC systems for multiple-
space applications, we think youll
appreciate this ENs how-to
instructions for determining equipment
capacities. Youll also find ideas for
improving the efficiency of dedicated
ventilation systems.
For years, most HVAC installations
have been mixed-air systems in
which an air handler combined outdoor
air (OA) and return air, then conditioned
the resulting mixture and delivered it to
occupied spaces in the building. Such
systems made it easy to provide proper
ventilation: the designer could set the
outdoor-air damper or outdoor airflow to
accommodate the worst-case
ventilation requirements. Although this
simplistic solution satisfied the
immediate concern, indoor air quality, it
also required high outdoor airflow to
compensate for the low ventilation
efficiency of the system.
Ventilation efficiency describes the
percentage of first-pass outdoor air that
dilutes indoor contaminants before
being exhausted from the building. The
higher the percentage of used
ventilation air, the more efficient the
system.
Ventilation becomes less efficient
when the mixed-air system serves
multiple spaces with differing
ventilation needs. One space (the
critical space) receives precisely
enough outdoor air for adequate
ventilation; all other spaces are
overventilated. There are various ways
to improve ventilation efficiency, but
the dedicated ventilation system is
an increasingly popular solution.
What Is a Dedicated
Ventilation System?
A dedicated ventilation system uses
a separate air handler to condition the
outdoor air before delivering it to the
outdoor/mixed-air intakes of other
HVAC units or directly to the occupied
spaces. In either case, terminal units
handle the local space loads.
Whether it is called a dedicated OA unit
(as in this EN), a 100-percent OA unit,
or a fresh air unit, the air handler must
dehumidify, cool, heat, and sometimes
humidify the incoming outdoor air. For
now, lets focus our attention on
dehumidification and cooling
Most unit designs use chilled water or
DX coils to cool the air and either cold-
coil or active-desiccant technology to
dry it. For this discussion, well look
only at cold-coil dehumidification
because it is less expensive, less
complex, and more widely understood
and applied than active-desiccant
technology. Also, cold-coil designs
sufficiently dehumidify conditioned air
for most commercial and institutional
applications.
Implications for
SystemDesign
To demonstrate how a dedicated
ventilation system affects equipment
selection, lets consider the system in
Figure 1 (page 2). A dedicated OA unit
meets the minimum ventilation
requirement by treating the outdoor air
and then delivering the conditioned air
(CA) directly to the occupied spaces.
Fancoils, controlled by thermostats,
Cold or Neutral Conditioned Air?
When some spaces ventilated by a
dedicated OA unit need heating while
others need cooling, designers usually
choose to deliver neutral-temperature
conditioned air. Dry conditioned air must
be reheated to the desired dry-bulb
temperature (a subjective value that
typically ranges from 70F to 74F).
Neutral-temperature air minimizes the
additional heating load that the dedicated
OA unit imposes on the terminal units.
If most of the spaces ventilated by the
dedicated OA unit are thermally similar
(that is, all of them need either heating or
cooling), designers may choose to deliver
cold conditioned air. The conditioned-air
dry-bulb temperature depends on the
required supply-air dew point, typically
between 50F and 55F. Cold conditioned
air means smaller, therefore less costly,
terminal units. I
I 2 Trane Engineers Newsletter Vol. 30, No. 3
satisfy the local sensible load in each
space.
Selecting the dedicated OA unit.
Required airflow, dew point, and dry-
bulb temperature of the conditioned air
(CA) are key to the selection of the
dedicated OA unit. The inset at right
demonstrates the selection logic
described below.
1 Determine the enthalpy-based
design condition. The weather
(entering-coil) condition with the
highest enthalpythat is, peak wet
bulb and mean coincident dry bulb
generally sets the peak cooling capacity
required from the dedicated OA unit.
The ASHRAE HandbookFundamentals
provides climatic design data for
various geographical locations.
2 Choose the target condition for
the occupied space. Most designers
choose a dry-bulb temperature of 72F
to 76F as the setpoint. To discourage
microbial growth, ASHRAE Standard
621999 recommends a relative
humidity of 60 percent or less during
cooling. Therefore, select the dedicated
OA unit to limit the relative humidity in
all spaces to no more than 60 percent.
Designing a dedicated ventilation
system that limits the space relative
humidity to a lower value (50 percent,
for example) adds unnecessary cost
Figure 1. Dedicated Ventilation System
because it requires larger equipment
and increases energy consumption.
3 Determine the latent load for each
space. Latent loads in spaces, which
are usually unaffected by weather
conditions, can be calculated with the
help of load-design software.
4 Calculate the system-level
outdoor airflow by finding and
summing the minimum ventilation-
airflow values of the occupied spaces.
Minimum ventilation requirements are
set by local codes or by ASHRAE
Standard 621999.
5 Determine the largest rise among
the space humidity ratios. As noted in
a previous EN (volume 29, number 4),
constant-volume terminal units without
dehumidification enhancements usually
dont remove enough moisture at a
partial sensible load. By providing
conditioned air that is drier than the air
in each space, the dedicated OA unit
can offset the local latent loads and
maintain the relative humidity at or
below the 60-percent maximum limit.
Note: The space with the highest
latent load may not be the space with
the largest humidity-ratio rise.
6 Calculate the required humidity
ratio and corresponding dew point
for the conditioned air delivered by the
dedicated OA unit. To do so, subtract
the largest humidity-ratio rise from the
target humidity ratio for the spaces.
The dedicated ventilation system in
Figure 1 removes the entire outdoor
load and the latent load generated
within each space. When the latent-
critical space is at the relative-
humidity limit, all other spaces are drier.
Note: Designs that deliver conditioned
air at a humidity ratio or dew-point
Practical Example: Selecting a Dedicated OA Unit
Lets see how the procedure outlined on
pages 23 can help us size a dedicated
outdoor-air (OA) unit that provides
ventilation directly to four classrooms in
a Jacksonville, Florida school:
1 Peak enthalpy condition (from
ASHRAE HandbookFundamentals):
T
oa
= 91F DB, 79F WB
2 Target space condition (designers
choice):
T
ra
= 74F DB (setpoint)
RH
ra
= 60% (maximum limit)
W
ra
= 75.2 gr/lb
3 Space latent and sensible loads (from
load calculations) in Btu/h:
Rm 1
Q
l
= 5,250;
Rm 1
Q
s
= 29,750
Rm 2
Q
l
= 5,465;
Rm 2
Q
s
= 26,775
Rm 3
Q
l
= 5,697;
Rm 3
Q
s
= 26,927
Rm 4
Q
l
= 5,250;
Rm 4
Q
s
= 28,262
4 Outdoor airflow (based on ASHRAE
Standard 621999) in cfm:
Rm 1
V
oa
= 15 cfm/p 29 people = 435
Rm 2
V
oa
= 15 cfm/p 30 people = 450
Rm 3
V
oa
= 15 cfm/p 32 people = 480
Rm 4
V
oa
= 15 cfm/p 29 people = 435
System
V
ot
= ! (V
oa
) = 1,800 cfm
5 Key humidity-ratio rise (calculated) in
gr/lb, that is, W = Q
l
/ (0.69 V
oa
):
Rm 1
W = 5,250 / (0.69 435) = 17.5
Rm 2
W = 5,465 / (0.69 450) = 17.6
Rm 3
W = 5,697 / (0.69 480) = 17.2
Rm 4
W = 5,250 / (0.69 435) = 17.5
6 Conditioned-air dew point (calculated):
W
ca
= W
ra
W
= 75.2 17.6 = 57.6 gr/lb
T
ca
= 52F DP
7 Conditioned-air dry bulb (designers
choice):
T
ca
= 71F DB (neutral), with reheat
or
T
ca
= 52F DB (cold), no reheat
Select the dedicated OA unit to deliver
1,800 cfm of ventilation air at a dew point
of 52F when the outdoor temperatures
are 91F DB and 79F WB. To deliver
neutral-temperature air, include reheat to
temper the ventilation air to 71F DB.
providing insights for todays HVAC system designer 3 I
temperature that equals the space
target cannot handle local latent loads.
These designs may result in a smaller
dedicated OA unit, but they require
larger terminal units and usually result
in higher indoor relative humidities.
7 Choose the required dry-bulb
temperature of the conditioned air.
If the system design requires
neutral-temperature conditioned air
(that is, conditioned air that
approximates the target for the space),
pick a dry-bulb value of 70F to 75F.
If the design requires cold ventilation
air, use a dry-bulb temperature that is
approximately equal to the required
dew point.
Selecting the terminal units. How
you select the dedicated OA unit can
significantly affect the required cooling
capacity (supply airflow and dry-bulb
temperature) for each terminal unit. The
inset on this page demonstrates the
following selection logic.
1 Determine the entering air
temperature. Terminal units see
only recirculated return air, which has a
temperature equaling the space target.
2 Calculate the sensible cooling
provided by the ventilation system.
Cold conditioned air provides
more sensible cooling than neutral
conditioned air, which is slightly cooler
than the space target. (See Cold or
Neutral Conditioned Air? on page 1.)
3 Determine the sensible cooling
load for each terminal unit. Subtract
the sensible cooling of the ventilation
system from the peak sensible load (at
the peak dry-bulb temperature), which
was calculated for each occupied space
with the help of load-design software.
4 Find the required supply
airflow for each terminal unit, given
an arbitrary supply-air temperature and
the sensible cooling load that the
terminal unit must satisfy. Unit
placement and geometry influence
the selection of a target supply-air
temperature, as does the design of
the dedicated ventilation system.
Delivering cold conditioned air
reduces required terminal-unit airflow
(and permits smaller terminal-unit
cabinets) than a system that delivers
neutral-temperature conditioned air.
Figure 2 offers a psychrometric
summary of the equipment-selection
conditions.
Figure 2. Selection Summary
When designing a dedicated ventilation system
that delivers conditioned air directly to occupied
spaces:
I Size the dedicated OA unit so that it also
handles the latent loads in the spaces at the
peak enthalpy condition.
I Size each terminal unit to handle the sensible
load in the space at the peak sensible (dry-
bulb) condition.
Practical Example: Effect on Terminal-Unit Sizing
If the dedicated outdoor-air (OA) unit
handles the peak latent load for the four-
classroom system in our Jacksonville,
Florida example, then the terminal units
only need sufficient capacity to satisfy the
peak sensible load.
Select the terminal units to deliver the
required sensible capacity (depending on
whether the dedicated OA unit delivers
neutral or cold conditioned air, T
ca
) at
the assumed supply-air temperature and
calculated supply airflow.
Procedure
Neutral CA
(T
ca
= 71F DB)
Cold CA
(T
ca
= 52F DB)
1 Target space condition, T
ra
, (designer choice) 74F DB 74F DB
2 Sensible cooling provided by ventilation system
(calculated), that is, Q
ca
= 1.085 V
oa
(T
ra
T
ca
):
Rm 1
Q
ca
= 1.085 435 (74 T
ca
) =
Rm 2
Q
ca
= 1.085 450 (74 T
ca
) =
Rm 3
Q
ca
= 1.085 480 (74 T
ca
) =
Rm 4
Q
ca
= 1.085 435 (74 T
ca
) =
1,416 Btu/h
1,465 Btu/h
1,562 Btu/h
1,416 Btu/h
10,383 Btu/h
10,742 Btu/h
11,458 Btu/h
10,383 Btu/h
3 Sensible cooling load provided by terminal unit
(calculated), that is, Q
tu
= Q
s
Q
ca
:
Rm 1
Q
tu
= 29,750
Rm 1
Q
ca
=
Rm 2
Q
tu
= 26,775
Rm 2
Q
ca
=
Rm 3
Q
tu
= 26,927
Rm 3
Q
ca
=
Rm 4
Q
tu
= 28,262
Rm 4
Q
ca
=
28,334 Btu/h
25,310 Btu/h
25,365 Btu/h
26,846 Btu/h
19,367 Btu/h
16,033 Btu/h
15,469 Btu/h
17,879 Btu/h
4 Supply airflow from terminal unit (given supply-air
temperature), that is, V
tu
= Q
tu
/ [1.085 (T
ra
T
sa
)]:
Rm 1
V
sa
= Q
tu1
/ [1.085 (74 55)] =
Rm 2
V
sa
= Q
tu2
/ [1.085 (74 55)] =
Rm 3
V
sa
= Q
tu3
/ [1.085 (74 55)] =
Rm 4
V
sa
= Q
tu4
/ [1.085 (74 55)] =
1,374 cfm
1,228 cfm
1,230 cfm
1,302 cfm
939 cfm
778 cfm
750 cfm
867 cfm
I 4 ENEWS-30/3
Trane believes the facts and suggestions presented here to be accurate. However,
final design and application decisions are your responsibility. Trane disclaims
any responsibility for actions taken on the material presented.
The Trane Company
An American Standard Company
www.trane.com
For more information, contact your
local district office or e-mail us at
comfort@trane.com
Ways to Improve Efficiency
Various options such as energy
recovery can improve operating
efficiency. If the ventilation system
delivers neutral-temperature air,
recovered or transferred energy can
provide tempering. Such designs can
recover heat from the refrigeration
circuit in a direct-expansion (DX) unit or
from an air stream, usually by arranging
an air-to-air heat exchanger in series
with the cooling coil.
Using a total-energy wheel (or any
other air-to-air heat exchanger) to
precondition the entering outdoor air
reduces both cooling and heating loads.
Smaller loads not only enable you to
downsize the dedicated OA unit, but
can also reduce operating cost. To take
advantage of this benefit, however,
most of the building exhaust must be
routed back to the air handler. (For
details, see EN volume 29, number 5.)
Although most dedicated OA units are
designed to deliver a constant flow of
conditioned air, applications with
fluctuating occupancies may benefit
from variable airflow. Automatically
adjusting the flow of conditioned air to
match the systems current ventilation
requirements can reduce operating
costs without sacrificing indoor air
quality.
Adding an airside economizer also
reduces operating costs, but requires a
duct system that is entirely separate
from the dedicated OA unit. Thats
because the dedicated OA unit is
usually selected to accommodate only
minimum outdoor airflow and does not
handle recirculated return air.
(Alternatively, airside economizing can
occur at the terminal units, but effective
operation also requires a means for
modulated exhaust.)
Setpoint reset can improve system
efficiency, too. Raising the humidity
ratio (dew point) of the conditioned air
while limiting the humidity in the critical
space avoids overdrying and lowers
the operating cost of the dedicated OA
unit. Similarly, raising the conditioned-
air dry-bulb temperature while avoiding
heating in all spaces reduces the cost
of operating the terminal units. It also
delays cooling-to-heating changeover in
two-pipe systems.
To effectively control relative humidity,
unoccupied dehumidification may be
necessary. A dedicated OA unit with
DX cooling can provide this function
without operating chillers and cooling
towers. Implementation requires a
return-air path to the dedicated OA unit
and a humidity sensor in the critical
space.
Key Concepts
I Always provide conditioned air
that is drier than the space. This
practice minimizes the required
terminal-unit capacity and adequately
controls the indoor relative humidity
without additional dehumidification
enhancements in the terminal units.
I Deliver cold conditioned air
whenever possible. Neutral
conditioned air increases the
capacity needed from the terminal
units and requires reheat at the
dedicated OA unit.
I Select equipment to limit the
relative humidity to 60 percent.
Targeting a drier-than-necessary
condition in the space requires
oversized equipment and consumes
more energy. I
By Dennis Stanke, staff applications
engineer, and Brenda Bradley,
information designer, The Trane
Company.
You can find this and other issues
of the Engineers Newsletter in the
commercial section of www.trane.com.
To comment, send a note to The Trane
Company, Engineers Newsletter Editor,
3600 Pammel Creek Road, La Crosse,
WI 54601-7599, or e-mail us at
comfort@trane.com.