BSEE CHILLED BEAMS
For decades, fan coil units (FCUs) have been providing air conditioning to thousands of commercial buildings across the UK. However, chilled beams are a valuable and effective alternative to consider, especially as they deliver energy efficiency, high indoor air quality and, importantly, flexibility.
Chris Jones, Product Manager at Fläkt Woods, explains why it could be time to move on from the FCU.
uThe Stella chilled beam has been developed for the multi‐ service chilled beam market. It enables the integration of lights, sensors, sprinklers etc, without the need for a false ceiling.
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hilled beams can provide energy efficient air comfort, ventilation and high indoor air quality in a wide range of
commercial buildings, including offices, hotels, healthcare facilities and educational institutions. It has been suggested that the chilled beams market is expected to increase between now and 2020 (globally at a CAGR of 11.14 per cent)*.
The market is growing mainly at the expense of traditional FCUs and it’s easy to see why. As you would expect in today’s carbon conscious world, the most important factor is energy efficiency. Even though in recent years FCUs have become more efficient due to the legislatively driven introduction of electronically commutated (EC) motors, they still can’t compete on performance against chilled beams. Chilled beams are significantly more energy efficient, offering savings of up to 40 per cent over traditional air conditioning systems. Chilled water temperatures in chilled beams operate at higher water temperatures than fan coil systems; for example 14ºC flow compared to 6ºC respectively. This means the chiller used to create the chilled water will perform more efficiently for a chilled beam than for a fan coil, because the lower the chilled water temperature, the higher the energy use. Chiller energy consumption for chilled beam systems offers energy savings of around 35 per cent. It’s also worth noting that the installation and maintenance costs are also higher with an FCU. Fan coils obviously have a fan, which involves electrical wiring, resulting in additional costs. In addition, because the water temperature is so low in an FCU system, condensation will form on the pipework and the coil. This results in the need for anti-condensation protection, for example drip trays, at additional cost. As condensation will form on the coil and therefore makes it wet, FCUs usually need a filter to prevent the coil becoming clogged with dirt.
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ENERGY EFFICIENT CHILLED BEAMS The flexible alternative to fan coil units
In contrast, the installation and maintenance requirements for chilled beams are much lower. In a chilled beam system there is no need for condensation protection, because typically the chilled water temperature is above a room’s dew point (i.e. where condensation is formed). And since a chilled beam coil is dry, it doesn’t require a filter.
As market research indicates, the chilled beam market is set to increase. However, there are some
misconceptions and stigmas that need to be addressed in order to further accelerate growth.
A major misconception is flexibility. In modern buildings, particularly offices, the ability to adapt to change quickly has become a necessity. When a building is restructured, walls, people and furniture often move around, and room functions and occupancy levels can change. Therefore, air conditioning and ventilation systems must be flexible, and moving and adapting them should involve only minimum effort and short lead times. Often, being able to easily adapt the room comfort system to new layouts is equally as important as investing in the latest energy saving solution.
FCUs were sometimes favoured over chilled beams because they were considered more flexible – and this remains a big misconception. We find that when consultants and specifiers think about a chilled beam they often picture a large, 3m long, rectangular beam that’s largely immovable and inflexible. This of course wouldn’t be particularly helpful if walls needed to be moved in order to change the layout of a building floor. However, today’s chilled beams are much more flexible than original options.
An example is Fläkt Woods’ Wega II chilled beam, an active system for ventilation, cooling and heating developed for the high demands of the modern, dynamic office. With Wega II it is possible to change an office layout without having to move or install new chilled beams; only simple adjustment and reconfiguration of the FPC vanes and the variable position nozzles is
uThe chilled beam Flexicool IQID is an integrated system for ventilation, cooling and heating, fulfilling most needs for indoor climate.
required. Even the Pi functionality (the Pi function is pressure independent and makes the product suitable for many types of ductwork system) is designed for change; it can be easily moved with the high occupancy rooms by disconnecting, reconnecting and resetting the values.
The enhanced design includes variable geometry nozzles, to offer the widest choice of airflow settings. Nozzle change can be actuated to automatically adjust ventilation flow rates to occupancy levels, regardless of pressure changes in the ductwork system.
Today, chilled beams not only deliver a comfortable environment, high indoor air quality, minimum energy consumption and ease of installation and maintenance – they are also highly flexible and can be easily adapted to suit any future modifications of a building’s layout.
www.flaktwoods.co.uk
*
http://www.researchandmarkets.com/ publication/mhy8pzu/chilled_beam_syst em_market_by_design_functio
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Chilled beams
are significantly more energy efficient, offering savings of up to 40 per cent over traditional air conditioning systems. Chilled water temperatures in chilled beams operate at higher water temperatures than fan coil systems; for example 14C flow compared to 6C respectively.
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uThe WEGA II chilled beam is an active chilled beam system for ventilation, cooling and heating. This diffusion system offers comfort and flexibility thanks to the Flow Pattern Control combined with adjustable induction.
20 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER DECEMBER 2016 VISIT OUR WEBSITE:
www.bsee.co.uk
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