ARCH 231- Environmental Design 1

ARCH 235- Introduction to Built Environment

DEPARTMENT OF BUILDING ENGINEERING

SECOND LECTURE
BUILDING SERVICES (HVAC)

INSTRUCTOR / DR. SALAH ABDULLAH ALGHAMDI

HVAC Definition
Before going any further, you should get a basic understanding HVAC. HVAC is a
technology, which is primarily utilized to control the environment within a home,
apartment or vehicle. The underlying purpose of the HVAC system is to create a
comfortable environment, while maintaining acceptable air quality.
Refrigeration Cycle

The basic refrigeration cycle consists of 4 major components (Compressor, Condenser coil, Expansion
valve and Evaporator). The hot air/water depending upon the system when compressed passes through the
condenser coil, heat is rejected to outside(atmosphere), passes through the expansion valve, provides the
required air or refrigerant for proper cooling and passes to the evaporator coil which helps in cooling of
the refrigerant or liquid and sending the cool liquid or gas to the compressor. The refrigerant is normally
referred in TR and 1 TR is the amount of heat to be extracted from the atmosphere(room) for melting one
metric ton of ice in 24 hours or 1TR = 12000 BTU/Hr.
Major HVAC water system components and cycle :-

• Chill water is going from the chiller to

the AHU coils.

1 Chiller • The fresh worm air is passing through

Chill water AHU chill coils then it is supplied to
the building as cool air.

• The water inside AHU coils become

2 Cooling tower worm and it is pumped to the cooling
Cold water tower to be cold.

• Using the evaporative cooling, the

cooling tower remove the heat from the
water then pump it to the chiller as cold
water.
Worm water
• The chiller is pumping the water again
as chill to the AHU by 10 °F.

3 Air handling unit

(AHU)
 HVAC Components

Condenser
SUPPLY DUCT
SUPPLY
Diffuser

Return
Diffusers

AHU
HVAC Components:- Condenser

1 Expansion
valve
2 Fan
thermal expansion valve is a
3 Compressor component in refrigeration
and air conditioning systems
4 Heat that controls the amount of
exchange coils refrigerant released into the
evaporator thereby
controlling superheat.
Thermal expansion valves
are often referred to
generically as "metering
devices
HVAC Components:- Air Handling Unit (AHU)

1 Heat exchange coils

2
2 Fan

1
Selection of a proper HVAC system

The factors to be considered while calculating the cooling load are, the
space(Area) of the room, the glass exposed to sun and partition walls if
any, the ambient temperature, the load due to light, equipment and
occupancy, fresh air requirement, filtration and infiltration of outside
air.
CENTRAL ALL-AIR SYSTEMS: SINGLE
DUCT, VARIABLE AIR VOLUME (VAV)

Description
Air is conditioned (mixed with a
percentage of outdoor air, filtered,
heated or cooled, and humidified or
dehumidified) at a central source.
Supply and return fans circulate the
conditioned air through ducts to the
occupied spaces of the building.
At each zone, a thermostat controls
room temperature by regulating the
volume of air that is discharged
through the diffusers in that zone.
Typical Applications
VAV is the most versatile and most
widely used system for heating and
cooling large buildings.
Advantages
This system offers a high degree of
local temperature control at moderate
cost. It is economical to operate
and virtually self-balancing.
Disadvantages
VAV is limited in the range of heating
or cooling demand that may
be accommodated within a single
system. When one area of a building
needs heating while another
needs cooling, a VAV system cannot
serve both areas without help from
a secondary system .
Major Components
Boilers and chimney, chilled water
plant, cooling tower, fan room, outdoor
fresh air and exhaust louvers,
vertical supply and return ducts,
horizontal supply and return ducts
CENTRAL ALL-AIR SYSTEMS: SINGLE
DUCT, CONSTANT AIR VOLUME (CAV)

Description
Air is conditioned (mixed with a
percentage of outdoor air, filtered,
heated or cooled, and humidified
or dehumidified) at a central
source. Supply and return fans
circulate the air through ducts to the
occupied spaces of the building.
A master thermostat controls the
central heating and cooling coils
to regulate the temperature of the
building.
Typical Applications
Spaces that have large open areas,
few windows, and uniform loads,
such as lobbies, department stores,
theaters, auditoriums, and exhibition
halls.
Advantages
This system offers a high degree of
control of air quality. It is comparatively
simple and easy to maintain.
Disadvantages
The entire area served by the system
is a single zone, with no possibility
for individual temperature
control.

One thermostat to control

the whole system
CENTRAL ALL-WATER SYSTEMS:
FAN-COIL TERMINALS (FCU)

Description
Hot and/or chilled water are piped
to fan-coil terminals. At each terminal,
a fan draws a mixture of room
air and outdoor air through a filter
and blows it across a coil of heated
or chilled water and then back into
the room. A thermostat controls the
flow of hot and chilled water to the
coils to control the room temperature.

Typical Applications
Buildings with many zones, all
located on exterior walls, such as
schools, hotels, motels, apartments,
and office buildings.
Advantages
No fan rooms or ductwork spaces
are required in the building. The
temperature of each space is
individually controlled.
Disadvantages
Humidity cannot be closely controlled.
This system requires considerable
maintenance, most of which must take
place in the occupiedspace of the
building.
Major Components
Boilers and chimney, chilled water
plant, cooling tower, vertical supply
and return piping, horizontal supply
and return piping, condensate
drainage piping, fan-coil terminals,
outside air grilles.
LOCAL SYSTEMS: PACKAGED TERMINAL
UNITS AND THROUGH-THE-WALL UNITS

Description
One or several through-the-wall
units or packaged terminal units are
mounted on the exterior wall of each
room. Within each unit, an electric
powered compressor and evaporator
coil provide cooling capability.
Heating is supplied either by electric
resistance coils or by utilizing
the compressor in a reversible cycle
as a heat pump. A fan draws indoor
air through a filter, adds a portion
of outdoor air, passes the air across
the cooling and heating coils, and
blows it back into the room.
Typical Applications
Apartments, dormitories, motels,
hotels, office buildings, schools,
nursing homes.
Advantages
Units are readily available and easily installed.
Initial costs are often lower than those for central
systems. Each room has individual control of
temperature. No building space is utilized for
central equipment, ductwork, or piping. Operating
costs may be lower than those for central systems
in buildings in which not all spaces need to be
heated or cooled all the time, such as motels.
Disadvantages
Maintenance costs are high and equipment life is
relatively short. Maintenance must be carried out
in the occupied spaces. The equipment is often
noisy and inefficient. Air distribution can be
uneven. Wintertime humidification is not possible.
Operating costs are high in areas with very cold
winters and costly electricity. Through-the-wall
and window-mounted units can be unsightly.
Major Components
Packaged terminal units or throughthe-wall units.
Typical dimensions of these units are given in the
table above.