search.noResults

search.searching

dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
FEATURE INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS & MAINTENANCE


ADVANCES IN TECHNOLOGY take ventilation to new level


How recent advances in fan technology, controls and evaporative cooling have taken a simple ventilation solution to a new level of performance is explained by EcoCooling


S


imple ventilation can provide a perfectly satisfactory solution to


cooling many industrial and commercial premises in the food and drink industry. However recent advances in fan technology, controls and evaporative cooling have taken this principle to a new level of performance.


ELECTRICALLY COMMUTATED FANS At the heart of any ventilation system is the fan. Fan speed control is essential for both room temperature management and efficiency and demanded by local regulations and European Energy Directives. Traditional fans have induction motors typically controlled using variable frequency inverters or voltage control. This approach has now been replaced with Electronically Commutated (EC) fans which have significant advantages over traditional AC units. An EC fan uses both AC and DC voltages. AC is supplied directly to the fan motor and internal electronics convert this to DC to power a fixed magnet DC motor. This provides a very efficient motor with very precise speed control. An EC fan will approximately follow a cube rule for energy consumption which means running an EC fan at half speed uses only 12.5% of the full speed power. In addition, capital cost and complexity is reduced relative to AC fans through avoidance of external speed controllers.


DIRECT EVAPORATIVE COOLING For many buildings ventilation can service all of the cooling needs for over 90% of the time. In warm weather a refrigeration based cooling system is often used to reduce internal temperatures. This is both expensive to install and operate. In many applications the refrigeration


element can now be replaced by direct evaporative cooling where the hot air is passed over simple wetted filters and the air is cooled by evaporation. Evaporative cooling supplements the


ventilation system providing cool air only when the outside temperature goes above a given set point. In the UK this process can provide a supply air temperature below 20°C for 99% of the time and never go above 24°C. Direct evaporative cooling


22 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2017 | FACTORY EQUIPMENT


integrated solutions for building management. A further opportunity exists with the availability of affordable touch screens or HMIs. These provide a straightforward solution to providing the end user with set point management, data and event logging and mimics together with email notification. Many HMIs incorporate remote access with the ability to view and control the ventilation system remotely. Some examples of how these technologies are applied in different sectors shall now be explained.


normally operates at 10% of the energy use of a split air conditioner. Modern direct evaporative coolers have integrated water control systems to maintain hygienic and efficient operation which complies with or exceeds all legionella regulations.


PROGRAMMABLE CONTROLLERS A new generation of low cost PLCs provide a simple method to manage ventilation systems. The controller typically takes inputs from temperature, relative humidity and carbon dioxide sensors and produces control signals to operate fans, dampers and control valves using internal logic. Inputs and outputs are either digital (on/off), analogue (variable) or instructions sent over a network. These controllers will communicate with


all the components of a ventilation system to optimise heating, cooling and fan energy use. Some PLC manufacturers provide open licence software for the user to develop their own solutions using simple logic programming tools. PLCs can operate in isolation or as part of a network. While network protocols can be complex the modern PLC can communicate using Modbus or TCP/IP based systems. This allows completely


Ventilation coupled with evaporative cooling and modern controls can provide industrial premises with a sophisticated air handling system


COMPUTER ROOM COOLING All IT equipment in server rooms and data centres requires cooling. A ventilation system supplemented with direct evaporative cooling can reduce the cooling energy bill by over 95%. Because there is normally extra cooling capacity for redundancy the fans run at slow speed which further reduces costs. Master and slave PLC arrangements provide a resilient solution to cooling. Direct evaporative cooling is only employed for <10% of the time. HMIs and PLCs can be remotely monitored and programmed for commissioning and day to day support.


TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY COMPLIANT COOLING Many locations can maintain compliant conditions by using only ‘free cooling’ (fresh air). Multiple EC fans can be connected directly to simple temperature controllers giving the simplest of automated solutions. PLCs can be used where more stringent conditions have to be met or when heating and cooling systems need to be integrated. Data capture can be extended to provide


Mean Kinetic Temperature analysis which can be used in demonstration of compliance. Ventilation coupled with evaporative cooling and modern controls can provide industrial and commercial premises with a sophisticated air handling system that compares with any air cooling refrigeration system at a fraction of the energy cost and provide a high level of environmental control.


EcoCooling T: 01284810586 www.ecocooling.org





Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49