Best of 2010!
Here are HPAC Engineering's most read articles of 2010
In many large commercial buildings, central-station air handlers are used to maintain occupant comfort. Often, these units include return fans, which...
An engineer is calculating the cooling load for each room to be served by a new rooftop unit. Solar and transmission heat gains through the windows, walls,...
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has handed down its first decision with respect to a third-party challenge to a LEED certification. It involves an appeal of the certification awarded to Northland Pines High School in Eagle River, Wis. Now, we must figure out how the challenge and the USGBC’s response to it impacts the certification and decertification processes moving forward....
The last five years have seen a steady increase in the rate of adoption of chilled beams in the United States, as designers and facility owners have become...
Looking to meet its growing cooling needs using less power, UT recently embarked on a district-cooling-optimization project that has seen gas-use quantities return to 1970s levels....
In run-to-failure maintenance, the DOE notes, "No actions or efforts are taken to maintain the equipment as the designer originally intended, either to prevent failure or to ensure that the designed life of the equipment is reached." Basically, equipment is run until it breaks....
Design criteria for smoke-control systems have changed over the years. Instead of ventilating an affected area, smoke-control systems now must prevent the spread of smoke to non-affected areas and/or provide a tenable environment in the area of incident. How effective are current smoke-control systems? Can building-code requirements for smoke-control systems be met reasonably? How can applications not described in building codes be addressed?...
HVAC design engineers face many choices throughout the planning process, perhaps few as crucial as that of fan equipment, a principal consumer of energy. This article will discuss options for improving energy efficiency when designing an HVAC system and selecting a fan....
One result of America's growing water shortages likely will be an increased public-policy focus on water conservation, water-efficiency technologies, and on-site water treatment and reuse. This policy focus could offer unprecedented opportunities for mechanical contractors, technology suppliers, and engineering consultants....
Facilities managers have at their disposal a proven and effective means of helping to contain employer health costs: increasing ventilation. This article will discuss how increased ventilation can prevent the spread of disease among workers in commercial and government office buildings....
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