The following article was published in ASHRAE Journal, June 2003.

Copyright 2003 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. It is presented for educational purposes only. This article may not be copied and/or distributed electronically or in paper form without permission of ASHRAE.

By Thomas Hartman, P Member ASHRAE .E.,

hile the most important function of any variable air volume (VAV) system is to provide a high quality environment for building occupants, this critical function rarely receives the attention it deserves. As a result, basic control strategies for terminal VAV boxes have seen little significant change since the introduction of pressure independent box control more than 30 years ago.

However, by applying more effective operating strategies available with modern digital controls, designers can offer enormous improvements in building comfort and occupant control at a very modest cost premium. This article highlights low cost zone control enhancements that will improve the comfort and climate in commercial buildings.
VAV Zone Control

VAV systems use terminal VAV boxes that typically serve zones consisting of two or more offices or open areas of five
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or more occupants. The average VAV zone size in commercial office buildings is usually between 500 and 800 ft2 (50 and 75 m2) in area, and most zones are controlled with a single space temperature sensor. This space temperature sensor regulates the flow of primary air (and reheat in areas subject to net heat loss) from the VAV box in response to space temperature compared to a zone temperature setpoint. Pressure independent VAV box controls modulate the airflow in a range bounded by preset minimum and maximum airflow rates. Many VAV systems are
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designed to operate with a fixed supply air temperature (usually 55F [13C]), or with a supply air temperature reset over a limited range (e.g., 55F to 60F [13C to 15.5C]). Figures 1 and 2 show typical VAV zone conf igurations used in commercial buildings. In Figure 1 the VAV box serves perimeter offices, and in Figure 2 it serves an open office area. In both figures, a single temperature sensor is used to control the VAV box. Lighting control may be exercised by occupancy sensors as shown in Figures 1 and 2, by wall switches, or by a separate digital lighting control system. Regardless of the
About the Author Thomas Hartman, P .E., is a principal of The Hartman Co., Marysville, Wash.

June 2003

method of lighting control, it is most commonly completely separate from HVAC control at the zone level as shown in Figures 1 and 2. As they lay out VAV zones, designers should be mindful that comfort issues continue to be the number one complaint occupants have about their office space.1 Furthermore, actual thermal conditions in large areas of commercial buildings are often outside accepted comfort limits.2 Simple steps that can improve zone comfort should always be considered. The layouts shown in Figures 1 and 2 have many problems that can adversely affect comfort and can be mitigated with improved controls. Location of the temperature sensor for each VAV box is a common problem. In office areas, the largest or most representative office usually is chosen. In open areas without fixed partitions, a nearby wall or building column as shown in Figure 2 is generally selected. Using only a single temperature sensor for multiple offices risks extended periods of poor comfort in the offices without sensors. Offices are often located around the perimeter of the building. When VAV systems were first introduced, the building envelope dominated the variJune 2003

ability of thermal loading of these spaces. So long as all offices were on the same exposure, a single sensor was adequate to regulate conditions in all the offices because the thermal load was expected to be pretty much the same for all offices due to their common exterior exposure. That logic is no longer valid for modern designs. Envelope losses have been much reduced in recent years. While lighting loads and many office appliance loads have also decreased, the density of people and appliances in offices has generally increased, and the variability in internal loads among offices is far greater due to improved local controls such as occupancy sensors for lighting and standby modes for office equipment. Imagine an occupant is away for the day and the temperature sensor is located in his or her office (Figure 1). The office is vacant with lights off and door and window blinds closed. It is likely the other offices will be out of acceptable comfort range and their occupants will have comfort complaints during that day due to the significant variance of heat loads in those spaces compared to the one in which the sensor is located. Locating space temperature sensors for effective control of open spaces can also be difficult. Open areas rarely have suitable locations for temperature sensors. The limited options for locating space temperature sensors in open areas often result in poor temperature control and/or cross control among adjacent zones, which increases energy use and makes comfort control difficult. Another problem is the isolation of the HVAC and lighting systems typical of most building controls. In Figures 1 and 2, the lights will react promptly to occupancy. However, because of building thermal inertia and the nature of zone controls, substantial portions of a building must become unoccupied for long periods before the reduced cooling load leads to a reduction in HVAC energy. This wastes energy and leads to discomfort from swings and variations in temperature throughout the building. Furthermore, no mechanism exists to direct comfort cooling resources specifically to the areas of the building that are occupied. Cool and cold weather operation also can cause comfort problems. Unless fan-powered VAV boxes or high minimum airflows are used, dumping often occurs at low cooling load conditions. Dumping occurs if diffusers are not carefully selected for the minimum flow and if the flow among the diffusers is not kept in balance. In such conditions, the lower temperature primary air fails to mix with room air due to the low exit velocities from the diffuser at minimum flow condiASHRAE Journal 25

ASC VAV

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Application Specific VAV Box Controller Temperature Sensor Occupancy Sensor

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Application Specific VAV Box Controller Temperature Sensor Occupancy Sensor

Figure 1: Typical VAV perimeter zone serving office areas.

Figure 2: Typical VAV interior zone serving open areas.

tions. Without mixing, the dense primary air falls directly on the occupants, causing discomfort. Even when dumping does not occur, the low supply airflow may cause supply air to inadequately mix with room air. Comfort problems associated with VAV systems have become more pronounced in the last decade due to greater load variances and occupant densities in modern buildings.
Designing More Effective VAV Zone Systems

Research and technology developments are offering new directions and opportunities for VAV zone operation. Research and testing has shown that operating VAV systems with a minimum supply temperature of 10C (50F) that is adjusted upward when cooling demand falls usually results in a much more efficient and cost effective system than employing a fixed 13C (55F) supply air temperature.3 Field experience indicates when the controls of poorly performing VAV systems are reconfigured with optimization control to maximize operating efficiency under all conditions, the result is a supply air temperature that changes with cooling load. Such opSouth Perimeter VAV Zone Airflow Demand Max. VAV Box Zone Primary Airflow Load Supply Requirement Air 16C 500 L/s 60% (61F) (1050 cfm) 16C 580 L/s 70% (61F) (1,230 cfm) 14C 530 L/s 80% (57F) (1,120 cfm) 12C 500 L/s 90% (54F) (1,050 cfm) 10C 470 L/s 100% (50F) (1,000 cfm)

timization frequently yields the lower supply air temperatures suggested by this research along with reduced airflow at peak load conditions. Freely optimized controls of conventionally designed systems yield supply air temperatures that usually vary from about 10C to 16C (50F to 62F). This optimized operation with adjustable or floating supply air temperature offers improved comfort conditions due to greater air circulation and less risk of dumping during cooler weather, which leads to more uniform space conditions at all times. Also, lower temperature air may be used to reduce indoor humidity during humid outdoor conditions. Finally, for many system types, the implementation of floating supply air temperature strategies significantly improves the energy performance of the overall comfort system.4 When VAV systems are designed with adjustable or floating supply air temperature control strategies, thought has to be given to how the VAV zones and boxes are sized. Currently, VAV boxes usually are sized based on a single point of operation: maximum zone load at design supply air temperature. How-

North and East Perimeter VAV West Perimeter VAV Zone Interior VAV Zone Airflow Zone Airflow Demand Airflow Demand Demand Max. Max. Max. VAV Box VAV Box VAV Box Zone Primary Zone Primary Zone Primary Airflow Airflow Airflow Load Supply Load Supply Load Supply Requirement Requirement Requirement Air Air Air 14C 400 L/s 13C 360 L/s 16C 500 L/s 60% 60% 60% (57F) (840 cfm) (55F) (760 cfm) (61F) (1,050 cfm) 13C 420 L/s 13C 420 L/s 16C 580 L/s 70% 70% 70% (55F) (890 cfm) (55F) (890 cfm) (61F) (1,230 cfm) 12C 440 L/s 12C 440 L/s 16C 660 L/s 80% 80% 80% (54F) (930 cfm) (54F) (930 cfm) (61F) (1,400 cfm) 11C 460 L/s 11C 460 L/s 14C 600 L/s 90% 90% 90% (52F) (970 cfm) (52F) (970 cfm) (57F) (1,260 cfm) 10C 470 L/s 10C 470 L/s 10C 470 L/s 100% 100% 100% (50F) (1,000 cfm) (50F) (1,000 cfm) (50F) (1,000 cfm)

Table 1: VAV box airflow requirements at various zone load conditions.

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Box Design Max. Airflow

Max. Airflow Function Of Primary Air Temp.

B
Airflow

16C SAT 14C SAT

Min. Airflow Function of % OA in Primary Air

C 12C SAT 10C SAT A Minimum

Space Temperature

Figure 3: Cooling effect box damper control.

ever, with an adjustable supply air temperature and optimized control, the greatest zone airflow requirement may not occur at peak load conditions. Table 1 shows airflow requirements at various load conditions for typical zones in a VAV system with adjustable supply air temperature. The figures were developed assuming the same peak load for each zone. Airflows have been calculated by first estimating the highest supply air temperature that could occur at each of the various zone load conditions. Note in Table 1 that the peak airflow requirement for the south perimeter zones occurs at 70% zone cooling load and that the airflow requirement at this load point is about 25% greater than at peak load. For interior zones, the peak airflow requirement is about 40% greater than at design conditions. When designing for adjustable or floating supply air temperature, the designer needs to develop charts like these for typical perimeter and interior zones. Then, designers must size VAV boxes that serve those zones for the highest airflow that may be required. While the supply air reset scheme should be developed so that the peak airflow demand can always satisfy the building, some areas of the building may require higher airflows under non-design conditions when the supply air temperature has been reset upward. Designers also need to take care when sizing system ductwork and zone components to ensure that they are adequate to provide and properly distribute the required airflow at part-load conditions when the supply air temperature may be above the minimum. Unless the reset scheme is developed carefully to minimize the higher part-load airflow requirements in areas of the building, the potential savings from smaller sized fan and ductwork possible with the lower design supply air temperature can be compromised. When a VAV system with adjustable supply air temperature is used, the control of the VAV box dampers must also be given special attention. Control of the primary air damper is typically bounded by preset minimum and maximum airflows, and the airflow setpoint is based on space temperature vs. setpoint for the zone. The minimum airflow rate is usually based on outdoor air ventilation requirements. However, when the outside air conJune 2003

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CAC VAV

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Custom Application VAV Box Controller Temperature Sensor Occupancy Sensor

Custom Application VAV Box Controller Temperature Sensor Occupancy Sensor

Figure 4 (left): Integrated lighting and VAV perimeter subzones serving office areas. Figure 5 (right): Integrated lighting and VAV interior subzones serving open areas.

tent of the primary airstream and the temperature of the primary supply air are both designed to be variable, neither of these airflow limits nor the damper control algorithm should be fixed. Instead the box maximum and minimums and damper control can be continuously calculated and adjusted based on the status of the space served, the percent outside air in the primary airstream, and the temperature of the primary air. Such calculations and adjustments can be easily made since the information required to make such adjustments is readily available over the controls network. The resulting box damper control for the South Perimeter zone analyzed in Table 1 is shown in Figure 3. Figure 3 illustrates the use of cooling effect damper control to replace conventional box damper control when proportional-only control is used to modulate airflow with respect to space temperature error from setpoint. However, the technique also can be used when full PID or other control techniques are applied to modulate the VAV box damper. Cooling effect control results in more stable VAV system operation and better comfort stability throughout the building when adjustable primary air temperature is used because it maintains a constant rate of cooling into those VAV zones that are in balance while supply air temperature is changing. As shown in Figure 3, with cooling effect control, the control algorithm that operates the primary air damper changes as a function of supply air temperature so that if all other conditions remain equal for a zone, the airflow setpoint will change in accordance with supply air temperature to compensate for the change in supply air temperature and maintain a constant cooling effect to the zone. To see how this improves system operation, imagine that the box represented in Figure 3 is operating at space temperature A and at 16C (61C) supply air temperature. With proportional-only control, it will provide airflow represented by the operating point B. Assume another zone is calling for addi28 ASHRAE Journal

tional cooling, and the VAV system determines that reducing supply air temperature is the most effective and efficient method of meeting the extra demand. If the primary air temperature is reduced to 14C (57C), then the zone represented in Figure 3 will adjust its operating point to C, which will immediately reduce the zone airflow as shown, making more airflow and lower temperature air available to the zone in need of additional cooling. Thus, that zone will more quickly return to its operating limits. Meanwhile, zones already in control will remain stable because the cooling effect supplied to them remains constant. Such control may provide a more stable and comfortable building environment in a variety of applications.
Integrating Temperature and Occupancy Control

Upgrading VAV system designs with adjustable supply air temperature and cooling effect control of VAV boxes has the potential to yield large zone comfort improvements. Todays high level and low cost of control technology is a mandate for designers to do much more to promote comfort in commercial buildings. The use of multiple space temperature sensors to control each VAV box has been shown to be an effective and low cost upgrade to VAV terminal control.5 Consider the benefit of adding space temperature sensors in each of the zones represented in Figures 1 and 2. In Figure 1, adding temperature sensors in the other two offices would permit the conditions in those offices to be incorporated in the control of the VAV box and lead to generally more comfortable conditions in the office spaces. In open office areas, multiple temperature sensors also are helpful in improving comfort conditions. When fully configured and occupied, modular partitions and variations in loading often make the addition of space temperature sensors helpful in open office areas. Also, it is often difficult to locate sensors optimally in open offices. Multiple sensors can help
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CAC VAV

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Figure 6: Integrated lighting & VAV using a zone subnetwork.

achieve more uniformly comfortable conditions throughout large office areas. For the open office area in Figure 2, adding another temperature sensor on the building column on the left may improve the comfort level in that zone. However, the real benefits of improved sensing are most effectively realized when lighting and occupancy controls are incorporated along with additional temperature sensors. Consider Figures 4 and 5 in which the occupancy sensing and lighting control has been integrated into the VAV zone control along with additional temperature sensors. The result is the development of subzones, each of which has individual temperature and occupancy sensing and lighting control. These subzones permit a substantial increase in the level of comfort in buildings. Consider the example cited earlier in which the large office in Figure 1 is unoccupied. In the Figure 4 configuration, the unoccupied condition of that office is included in the box control as well as the lighting control logic. Thus, not only is the lighting shut down in that office, but also the temperature sensor in the office is removed from the zone comfort control algorithm. Only the temperature(s) of occupied office(s) (or open area[s]) are included in determining the box cooling effect required for the zone, leading to better comfort in the occupied spaces. If all three offices become unoccupied, the box minimum airflow limit can be reduced or eliminated depending on conditions, and the cooling effect reduced to keep the offices in a standby condition to await the return of the occupants. Integrating lighting and comfort control as shown in Figures 4 and 5 can substantially improve building comfort at a small cost. Consider that the only additional devices required for the zone layouts shown in Figures 1 and 2 are the extra space temperature sensors. The occupancy sensing and lighting controls are already included in the Figures 1 and 2 designs they are just configured differently than in those
June 2003

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designs. The primary change from Figures 1 and 2 to Figures 4 and 5 is from application-specific controllers with simple, fixed functions on each VAV box to programmable custom application controllers that permit each zone to adequately accommodate the number and variety of subzones it serves. This change to more functional box controllers is fundamental to the success of improving zone control.
Role of Interoperability in Improving Zone Control

The primary purpose of interoperability at the zone level is to provide greater choice for the zone controls in each tenants space. Many DDC system manufacturers have a limited selection of controllers for zone control. Some offer only application specific controllers that lack the programming flexibility to implement cooling effect airflow control or to implement multiple subzones with integrated lighting control. To improve the lighting and comfort control options available for building tenants, designers need to specify and ensure the implementation of a true standard communication network at the zone level in order to broaden the zone controls choice to a variety of custom application control products that can be applied for zone control. Many new products incorporate standard communications such that they can interoperate with sys-

tems of various manufacture, offer flexible programmability, and incorporate sufficient I/O capabilities to work well in integrated lighting/comfort control strategies. Using a recognized standard for the zone communications network permits different zone control products of various manufacture and capabilities to serve the needs of individual tenants in multi-tenant buildings. Some newer zone control products include a dedicated subnetwork for connecting subzone devices such as occupancy sensors, temperature sensors and lighting ballasts. This subnetwork approach to zone integration is shown in Figure 6. Less wiring is involved in the subnetwork approach. Its costs compared to the hardwired solutions illustrated earlier depends on factors such as the levels of occupant interface and function that are desired from the subnetwork. The use of a subnetwork to connect the temperature and occupancy sensors has a number of advantages compared to allocating a separate I/O point on the box controller for each device. Comparing Figure 6 to Figure 4 shows that the wiring is somewhat simpler. More important is the potential for additional device functionality. For example, a network-connected temperature sensor may easily and inexpensively incorporate user interface buttons and a display that permits the occupant

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to operate lighting independently of the occupancy sensor or to adjust the temperature setpoint. With such network-connected devices, lights can be shut down for presentations, or dimming ballast lighting can be used to set the lighting level. While the zoning shown in these figures does not provide true individual control of thermal conditions in each subzone, these simple configurations provide the ability for individual occupants to express thermal comfort preferences, which are then considered by logic in the VAV box controller in establishing the cooling effect to be delivered to the zone. These preference adjustments will soon be accomplished over networks connected to the occupants PCs. But for the present, a network connected local temperature sensor device that incorporates pushbuttons and a small display is a simple, low-cost method of effectively connecting occupants to their environments to improve occupant comfort.6
Cost Implications of Integrated Zone Control

scheme in every zone. Rather, integrated lighting and HVAC with individual thermal and lighting level preference adjustments may be applied only where their application will capture additional value for the tenant to justify its cost.
Summary and Conclusion

VAV zone control costs can vary substantially among buildings, but traditional zone control generally costs about $1.50 per ft2 in class A office buildings. Code compliant lighting control adds about another $1 per ft2. When VAV and lighting control is integrated according to configurations shown in Figures 4 through 6, it is often possible to provide the superior environment and individual preference adjustment capabilities for a premium of as little as $0.50 per square foot. This small premium can pay very substantial rewards for building owners in terms of attracting and retaining tenants. However, most enticing to the building owner is that the decision as to whether or not the cost is justified can be made on a tenant by tenant or zone by zone basis, and the premium can be included as a tenant cost. If the VAV system is designed with an effective adjustable or floating supply air temperature control strategy and with a zone control communication network that employs established communication standards, there is no need to incorporate a single HVAC and lighting control

VAV zone control strategies have not changed significantly in recent years, so change is overdue. To enhance energy optimization and comfort, and to make the important move toward connecting occupants with their comfort system, designers need to consider incorporating adjustable supply air temperature and recognized standard control communications trunks in their VAV system designs. Implementing a VAV system with adjustable supply air temperature permits the use of a smaller air-distribution system that saves cost without compromising building comfort or operating efficiency. Implementing zone control on a recognized standard network allows building owners and tenants to select from a growing variety of options for zone control that may include subzone operation and individual preference adjustments. Once such a system is installed, it is up to the designer to help the building owner and tenants to select the right mix of lighting integration, occupant interface, and zone sensing to fit each zone control application.
References
1. Federspiel, C.C. 1998. Statistical analysis of unsolicited thermal sensation complaints in commercial buildings. ASHRAE Transactions. 2. Schiller, G.E., et al. 1988. A field study of thermal environments and comfort in office buildings. ASHRAE Transactions. 3. Karino, N., et al. 1999. The effect of optimizing supply water temperature and air volume on a VAV system. Renewable and Advanced Energy Systems for the 21st Century, Lahaina, Hawaii. 4. Hartman, T. 2001, Ultra-efficient cooling with demand based control. Heating, Piping, Air Conditioning (12). 5. Hartman, T. 1993. Terminal regulated air volume (TRAV) systems. ASHRAE Transactions. 6. Hartman, T. 1997. Trends toward more user-friendly building environments. Heating, Piping, Air Conditioning (2).

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