GENERAL TEXT HVAC

A heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system in buildings may be described in

general terms as a system for providing the right conditions inside the building for the
thermal comfort of the occupants or the operating requirements of equipment and
processes. It will usually involve the addition or removal of heat or moisture between the
building interior and the exterior environment. In hot and humid climates, air-conditioning
primarily involves cooling and dehumidification processes.

HVAC systems are an important part of the building construction budget, account for a
major portion of a building’s annual energy consumption, and often require substantial
space allocations.

Everyone cares about cost! But the wise customer lays down a list of minimum
requirements and then negotiates. Mostly customer goes for price only and skips on right
equipment and design specifications. The selection process could be chilled water system or
direct expansion system, the design of HVAC systems is mainly related to various
parameters, including but not limited to the factors listed below.

Details of architecture

a. Structure, orientation, geographical location, altitude, shape, modules size & height
b. Purpose of the building, area classification, occupancy and usage patterns
c. Ratio of internal to external zones, glazing, plant room sitting, space for service distribution
d. Climate and shading, thermal insulation, passive climate control, relationship with adjacent
buildings
e. New or existing building, renovation or extension project, retrofitting or new equipment
f. Plant and system design to match the characteristic of the building and the need to meet the
needs (known and unknown) of the ultimate occupants.

 Details of Space allocation

a. Floor space and clear heights to accommodate HVAC plant, equipment, distribution and
room elements
b. Shaft spaces available for routing ducts/pipes
c. Location and size of structural columns and beams, clearance through steelwork, position of
 reinforcing rods
d. Ceiling height, clearance between suspended ceilings and beams
e. Foundation and supports requirement, permissible loadings
f. Location of obstructions that may be in the route of air-conditioning services, particularly
ductwork.

Details of building construction

a. Materials and thickness of walls, roof, ceilings, floors and partitions and their relative
positions in the structure, thermal and vapor transmittance coefficients, areas and types of
glazing, external building finishes and colour as they affect solar radiation, shading devices at
windows, overhangs, etc., as they reduce solar radiation and light transmission, building
mass, particularly as it affects thermal capacity
b. Sound and vibration control requirement, relation of air-conditioning equipment to critical
areas
c. Co-ordination with other services (e.g. electrical and plumbing work), use of service shafts,
ducts and equipment rooms to best mutual advantage.

Building regulations

a. Government and local regulation on occupancy & safety classification

b. Regulations of Public utilities on electrical wiring, power usage, water supply and drainage
c. Health and Safety regulations on indoor air quality, ventilation air quantities, noise control,
electrical, fuel, insulation and other hazardous materials
d. Local fire authority regulations and smoke removal systems
e. Insurance company regulations.

Miscellaneous Requirements

a. Accessibility for installation of equipment, space for maintenance;

b. Location of fresh air intakes and exhausts (to avoid short-circuiting and contamination);
c. Location of fire zones and fire walls (position of fire dampers);
d. Acceptable noise level: space available to house equipment and its location relative to the
conditioned space
e. Indoor & outdoor equipment preferences
f. Acceptability of components obtruding into the conditioned space.

Building Aesthetics

a. Architectural characteristics of space

 b. Reflected ceiling plans: Integration of air distribution devices in ceiling to harmonize with
lighting layout, fire sprinklers, detectors, communication systems and ceiling design
c. Size and appearance of terminal devices

There are broadly two types of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems:

 Local systems
 Centralized systems

Local systems are designed to condition a single space (or portion of a space) from a location
within or directly adjacent to the occupied space. These incorporate both the production
and delivery in a single piece of equipment and therefore are very compact systems. These
systems are essentially decentralized or point of use systems. These have drawbacks of
higher noise, lower reliability, inferior air quality, uneven temperature/humidity profiles and
compromised aesthetics. They also suffer from distance limitations between indoor/outdoor
units.

Centralized systems are dominant systems in large commercial buildings and are intended to
condition multiple spaces in a building. The centralized HVAC systems produce a heating
and/or cooling effect in a single base location and will always require distribution
components to convey the heating or cooling effect to the various spaces in a building that
require conditioning. Centralized HVAC system components may be grouped into 1) Source
components (production units) and 2) Distribution components (delivery units/services).

a. Source components. The source components include the heating and cooling
production equipment such as chillers, boilers, water heater along with associated
pumps, cooling towers, condensers, water treatment and electrical services etc.
These equipments are typically located away from occupied areas in a central
equipment room in the basement, roof or remote annexe to the main building. The
design of equipment rooms to host heating and cooling units depends on the size and
the weight of equipment, the installation and maintenance accesses and the
applicable regulations to ventilation air criteria.
b. Distribution components. The distribution components connect the source
components to terminal heat transfer units. The piping delivers the heating or
 cooling medium (chilled water/hot water) from a source location to air side
equipment [air handling units (AHUs), fan coils, radiators, convectors etc.]. The air
side equipment delivers the conditioned air at right temperature, humidity and
cleanliness to the targeted zones of the building. The air is delivered and circulated
throughout the building via ductwork.

The source components are properly integrated to the distribution components to deliver
the comfort and efficiency. We have learnt about the “Space Planning for HVAC Source
Components (Production Equipment)” in Part -1 of the course. In this Part-2 of the course,
we will focus on the “Distribution Equipment and Services”. Although the generic rules
related to spatial planning are similar in both the cases, the main difference is that the
distribution services happen within the occupied areas of the building.

In this course, you will learn the key factors in selection of air distribution equipment and the
space requirements for installation, replacement, inspection and maintenance of the AHUs,
pumps, piping, ducts and associated accessories. Rule of thumb information and indicative
dimensional details are provided for simplified learning and for quick guidance and
validation of end results.

The large buildings are usually served by centralized chilled water system. Figure below
shows a schematic of a typical building HVAC system, divided into five heat transfer loops:

i. Indoor air loop includes fans, cooling coils, terminal units, dampers, ducts, and
 controls. The air in the conditioned space is driven by fans through cooling coils and
then distributed to terminal units. Dampers are used to control airflows to terminal
units and fans are used to maintain a given air pressure in ducts. The cooling and
ventilation loads are transferred from the conditioned space to chilled water.
ii. Chilled water loop includes pipes, pumps, cooling coils, chiller evaporators, valves,
and controls. The chilled water in pipes is driven by pumps to circulate between
cooling coils and chiller evaporators. Valves are used to control the water flow to
cooling coils. The heat is transferred from air handling units (AHUs) to chiller
evaporators.
iii. Refrigerant loop includes evaporators, compressors, condensers, expansion valves
and controls. The refrigerant absorbs heat in chiller evaporators by changing phase
from liquid to gas. The working of compressors makes the refrigerant a high pressure
and high temperature state. The refrigerant with high temperature is cooled in chiller
condensers. The high pressure refrigerant in gas is released by expansion valves back
to evaporators again with phase change. The heat is transferred from chiller
evaporators to chiller condensers.
iv. Condenser water loop includes cooling towers, chiller condensers, pumps and
controls. The condenser water in chillers is delivered to cooling towers by pumps.
The heat is transferred from chiller condensers to cooling towers.
v. Outdoor air loop includes fans, cooling towers, and controls. The outdoor air is driven
by fans to go through cooling towers and to exchange heat with condenser water.
The heat is transferred from cooling towers to ambient environment.