How Cooling Towers Work - Cooling towers use evaporation cooling to cool condenser water from a chiller. Water is pumped to the top of the cooling tower, where the water flows down some flow plates to the cooling tower basin. As the water is flowing down the flow plates air is pulled through the plates and over the water where it releases heat through evaporation. (more…)
Carrier Chiller w/Air Source Condenser
Chilled Water System Efficiency - Chilled water systems in HVAC are common in large commercial applications utilizing chillers to chill the water, a pumping system to pump the water (water and glycol systems are common), and chilled water coils inside air handlers or ductwork to exchange heat from the air that is distributed throughout the building for conditioning.
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Chilled Water System Basics - Chilled water systems work much the same way as direct expansion systems work. The exception is they use water in the coil rather than refrigerant. Technically speaking, water can be classified as a refrigerant. Chilled Water systems can be rather complex and many chilled water systems are found in commercial and industrial applications. There are some chilled water systems used in residential applications. (more…)
Building Commissioning is a Systemic Process
Building Commissioning Benefits - The Building Commissioning Guide defines commissioning as a systemic process of assuring verification and documentation, from the design phase to a minimum of one year after construction that all facility systems perform interactively in accordance with the design documentation and intent, and in accordance with the owner’s operational needs including preparation of operating personnel. (more…)
Trane Chilled Water Systems – Multi-Zone Air Conditioning Systems - This Trane HVAC chiller serves four different apartments. Chilled water systems offer a great way for multi-zone air conditioning. From small apartment buildings to large commercial buildings chilled water systems can serve multi-zone air conditioning systems. (more…)
Plate Heat Exchanger and Free Cooling - This plate heat exchanger is used in a data center for a chilled water system and is a chilled water economizer. Heat exchangers are used in marine applications, industrial processes including chemical processing systems, food processing, and many HVAC applications including chilled water applications, hot water applications, and economizer applications. (more…)
Proper HVAC Fan Maintenance and Control can Save Energy Dollars
Fan Maintenance Energy Savings - According to the Department of Energy fans consume nearly 80 billion kilowatts of energy per year. Optimizing how fans work functionally in mechanical applications can reduce energy use and save energy dollars for end users.
Assuming the design engineer selected the proper fan and proper installation in the well-designed system what can a facility manager do to save energy dollars and increase performance by looking at the fan systems in their building(s)? To make a good evaluation you need to look at several different factors in fan operation.
Watts Backflow Preventers | Water Safety - Backflow preventers are necessary on water loops where the water is used in a hydronic loop that heats or cools the water through a boiler or chiller system. This Watts backflow preventer is installed on a large boiler system that heats thousands of gallons of water. The hydronic loops are designed to be hermetic. However, there is always some loss of water somewhere in the system.
For safety purposes to prevent the boiler from losing all of its water, a make-up water loop is connected to the loop. The make-up water feed needs backflow preventers installed in the pipe to prevent any of the boiler or chilled water from getting back to a domestic water feed for the make-up water. (more…)
