This piece is a part of the report the author had made and is intended to share the knowledge that

the author had acquired during the preparation of his Engineering Report; Design, Installation, Operation and Maintenance of 700 Tons HVAC System. In partial fulfillment for the requirement of taking the Professional Mechanical Engineering (PME) Board examination that he had successfully defended.

He wishes to dedicate his works to his two wonderful kids (Amina & Amira) and his entire family that serve as his inspiration for all of his aspiration and attainment.

With a hope that this will be beneficial for the reader and it may give them an input for whatever task they may find it might be useful.

Kiram M. Solaiman. PME, AVS, MInstPM

2.5.6 - Expansion Tank (Pressurization of the System) The expansion tanks are provided in closed hydronics systems to:

1-

Accept changes in water volume as water density changes with temperature to keep system pressure below equipment and piping system component pressure rating limits.

2-

Maintain positive gauge pressure in all parts of the system in order to prevent air from leaking into the system.

3-

Maintain sufficient pressures in all parts of the system in order to prevent boiling, including cavitations at control valves and similar constrictions.

4-

Maintain required net positive suction head (NPSHr) at the suction of pumps.

Step #1 Determine the initial precharge pressure; Pi 1. Find the lowest pressure point (LPP) in the system which is the highest point on the return line just as it drops down to the pump.

2.

Determine the minimum pressurization required at the LPP to maintain a positive gauge. The commonly recommended minimum pressurization is 4 psig (ASHRAE Journal March 2003)

3.

The tank will be the smallest and least expensive if located near the LPP.

4.

The static pressure rise PS,LPP for this design)

tank

which is simply the elevation

difference between the LPP and tank that is 36.08 ft. (Actual elevation of

Pi = Pi + PS,LPP tank + Pf,tank LPP Pf, tank LPP = 0 when tank is downstream Pi = 4.0 psig + 36.08 ft/2.31 ft/psig + 0 = 19.62 psig Step #2 Determine the maximum pressure; Pma 1. The standard pressure rating of all components in the system will be 125 psig or higher. Hence, Pma is assumed to be at this pressure. 2. Assume the pressure relief will be located near the chiller and the expansion tank.

3.

The static pressure difference Ps, CPPPRV is zero since they are at the same elevation. (CPP-Critical Pressure Point; which is the weakest link in the system, PRV-Pressure relief Valve).

4.

The relief valve is downstream of the CPP and is assumed to be equal to the pump head; that is 108.89 ft (Pf, CPPPRV) = 47.14 psig (108.89 Ft is the computed pump head for this design)

5.

The pressure relief valve set point is:

Prv = Pma + Ps,CPP PRV - Pf,CPP PRV = 125 + 0 - 47.14 = 77.86 psig

Pmax = Prv + Ps,PRV tank - Pf,CPP PRV Ps,PRV tank = 0 (they are both on same elevation) Pf,CPP PRV = 0 (they are both on same elevation) = 77.86

The tank minimum volume: (using Table 1, pp.5 ASHRAE Journal Mar 2003)

Va

Ve Vs [(vh / vc ) 1] Where: Vt = Volume of the tank Va = Tank acceptance volume Ve = Increase in volume of water as it expands Vc = specific volume of water @ 40 F generally Used for chiller = 0.01602 Vh= specific volume of water @ 80 F assumed Maximum temp in the tank = 0.01608 VS = System volume = 1810.23 gpm 1743 x [(0.01608/0.01602) 1] 6.63 gallons

Vt

Va / [1- (P a + P i)/ (P a + P max) 6.63 / [1 (14.7 + 19.62) / (14.7 + 77.86)] 10.40 gallons

Therefore, the expansion tank must have an acceptable volume of greater than 6.63 gallons and overall volume greater than 10.40 gallons.