Author : Phillips, Bert
Publisher : The Corporation
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 38 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (32 download)
Book Synopsis Corridor Air Ventilation System Energy Use in Multi-unit Residential Buildings : Final Report by : Phillips, Bert
Download or read book Corridor Air Ventilation System Energy Use in Multi-unit Residential Buildings : Final Report written by Phillips, Bert and published by The Corporation. This book was released on 1999 with total page 38 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: CMHC funded this study to expand knowledge about the energy impact of operating ventilation systems that pressurize corridors in multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs). In the winter of 1997/98, a field test protocol to assess the impact of the corridor ventialtion system operation was developed and tested on a MURB. Building energy use was monitored with the corridor ventilation system operating one winter night and off the following night. This process was repeated over a range of temperatures. The tests provided real data on the energy impact of operating corridor ventilation systems. Monitoring data were compared with predictions from a computer model. The computer model proved not to be a useful tool for assessing the impacts of corridor ventilation on infiltration or building energy use. In the winter of 1998/99, the field protocol was tested on another four buildings to assess its applicability to buildings with different energy systems. Data analysis focused on time periods between midnight and early morning, when the impacts of solar gains and day-to-day variation in DHW loads and occupant activities (cooking, cleaning, clothes drying, weekends, holidays, etc.) were assumed to be minimized. Linear regression was applied to each data set (i.e., the fans-on data and the fans-off data) to mathematically define the relationships between outdoor temperature and energy use in each building. The field protocol was relatively straightforward and inexpensive to apply and could be done without use of expensive or high-tech monitoring equipment. The data analysis, done in a spreadsheet computer program, showed very good correlation between outdoor temperature and whole-building energy use and distinct relationships for the "fan on" and "fan off" operating condition. Observations made on the five study buildings were sufficiently similar to allow for general conclusions to be drawn about the impact of operating corridor ventilation systems on building energy use and whole-building air change rates. The observed increase in whole building energy use when the corridor ventilation systems were operated in the study buildings ranged from 60 to 90% of energy that would be required to condition the corridor ventilation system air flow. This energy increase was much bigger than expected, based on a fundamental analysis of the buildings. This leads to the conclusion that operating corridor ventilation systems does not appreciably increase indoor-to-outdoor pressure differentials across suite walls so does not displace significant amounts of infiltration. Turning the corridor ventialtion system off did not result in complaints about air quality during cold weather, but did when temperatures were above freezing. As such, turning corridor ventilation systems off may be an effective strategy for reducing energy consumption and peak energy demand during very cold weather.
