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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.0
2.0
INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................................................... 5
3.0
4.0
5.0
SPECIFIC NUMBERS............................................................................................................................................................. 15
6.0
7.0
8.0
REFERENCES .......................................................................................................................................................................... 21
APPENDIX 1............................................................................................................................................................................................. 22
APPENDIX 2............................................................................................................................................................................................. 22
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Report Summary
1.1.1
The brief for this report was to carry out a review of the Air-to-Air Heat Recovery technologies
available for use in the Commercial and Industrial business sectors. The target audiences are Energy
Engineers and those involved in Facilities Management.
1.1.2
The research for the report considered a number of commercially available Air-to-Air Heat Recovery
Technologies; with particular focus on Sensible heat recovery.
1.1.3
The premise of the report is that where possible the use of air re-circulation is optimized before heat
recovery is considered.
1.1.4
The report outlines why Heat Recovery should be considered and presents the potential effects on
Capital and Operating costs.
1.1.5
The report presents a list of Technical data to be considered; and a list of information required by the
designer at design stage to allow the economic viability of heat recovery to be assessed.
1.1.6
The report describes the various commercially available Heat Recovery technologies and presents a
comparison table of the technologies showing typical operating parameters, advantages and
disadvantages.
1.1.7
The report outlines factors to be taken into account when considering technical options at Design
and Retro-fit stages of a project.
1.1.8
The report presents a worked example using a run-around coil Heat Recovery assembly. The
calculation results show the total nett KWh savings, the total nett annual cost savings and the
predicted simple Payback Period.
1.1.9
Finally the report presents sample Heat Exchanger selections based on the design conditions used
in the worked example.
1.2
Findings/ Conclusions
1.2.1
Following after optimization of air recirculation and control strategies, the potential for Heat
Recovery should be considered on every new project, and on existing projects if not already
previously considered.
1.2.2
All heat recovery devices add to the system resistance in an air handling installation, and therefore
increase operating costs. Heat recovery becomes economically justifiable when the capital
investment is recouped by the nett operating cost savings, within a reasonable Payback Period. As a
number of variables have to be considered, each situation needs to be assessed to determine if the
application of heat recovery is viable.
1.2.3
The four types of Air-to-Air Heat Recovery devices described in this report are suitable for
Commercial and Industrial applications; however the particular technical challenges of the project
will dictate the most suitable solution, e.g.,
-
Where supply and extract air streams are in close proximity Heat pipes, Plate Heat Exchangers
or Rotary Wheels may be used.
Where air supply and extract air streams are separated Run-around coils are the only viable
option. This is often the case in retro-fit situations.
Plate Heat Exchangers are widely used in Residential and Commercial large and small scale
applications.
Where Sensible and Latent energy recovery is required a Rotary Wheel is the most suitable
choice.
Where the exhaust air stream contains corrosives; suitably treated run-around coils or Plate Heat
Exchangers may be used.
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1.2.4
Heat pipes are particularly suitable in dehumidification applications, e,g, Swimming Pools
The worked example in section 7.0 shows the Total nett energy savings and the Total annual cost
savings for a 5.0 m3/s air handling system (full Fresh air) using a run-around coil heat recovery
installation. The simple Payback Period is calculated at 1.2 years.
The Table below shows comparative data for the other heat recovery technologies using similar
design conditions:
Heat Recovery
Device
Effectiveness
(%)
Capital
Cost ()
Total Annual
Cost Saving ()
Simple Payback
Period (Yrs)
Heat Pipe
49
14,500
11,032
1.3
Run-around Coil
49
13,200
10,602
1.2
Rotary Wheel
67
11,000
15,873
0.7
Plate Heat
Exchanger
67
10,000
14,499
0.7
Note: The costs indicated are rough order of magnitude figures which include capital cost of
equipment, controls, installation and design fees.
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2.0 INTRODUCTION
2.1
2.1.1
2.2
2.2.1
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3.1.1
Recirculation of building extract air is the cheapest and most efficient form of Air-to-Air Heat
Recovery since it involves little or no energy penalty. However in certain circumstances, e.g. where
the exhaust air contains contaminants such as odours, chemicals, dust or corrosives it may not be
possible to re-use this air. In these circumstances air-to-air heat recovery devices should be
considered in both new and refurbishment projects.
3.1.2
Any time the temperature of the air being discharged from a building is higher than the incoming
air to the building there is a potential opportunity for heat recovery. There is great scope for energy
conservation if the heat in the exhaust air can be reclaimed and applied as a source of energy to
raise the temperature of the incoming outside air. Heat recovery systems use heat energy that
would otherwise be rejected as waste to pre-heat the incoming air, resulting in saved energy, lower
running costs and potentially reduced plant capacities.
3.1.3
A variety of devices are available which facilitate air-to-air heat exchange, these include,
Two of the above devices deliver direct air-to-air heat exchange and two employ an intermediate
circulating medium.
The actual level of heat recovery will depend on the type of heat recovery device selected and the
temperature difference between the supply and extract air streams.
All heat recovery devices create a resistance against which a fan has to operate (pressure drop).
This causes the fan to work harder to maintain flow rate, so increasing electricity consumption.
Where an intermediate circulating fluid is used there is the additional consideration of the
electrical consumption of the circulating pump and the losses from the interconnecting pipework.
The amount of energy saved by installing a heat recovery device is equal to the energy
recovered less the extra energy used in operating pumps, fans, etc.
The final decision on installing heat recovery systems depends on economic viability. As the cost of
electricity is greater than the cost of fossil fuels, the heat recovery device will need to recover
enough energy to economically justify its inclusion, while delivering a reasonable Payback Period.
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3.2
3.2.1
Capital Costs
Savings
- Design Costs
Running Costs
- Increased maintenance
3.3
3.3.1
Technical items to be considered (at design stage and when considering a retro-fit)
The following technical items should be considered when selecting an Air-to-Air Heat Recovery
device,
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
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3.4
3.4.1
3.4.2
Economic Justification
Assuming the technical requirements can be met, the final decision on the installation of a heat
recovery device will be made on the grounds of its economic justification. This justification requires
an assessment of the potential energy savings in comparison to the system capital cost and the
increased operating costs.
In order to carry out an assessment the following information is required,
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
The economic investment is considered justified if the assessment shows the capital cost investment
can be recovered by the energy cost savings related to the installation of the heat recovery system,
within a reasonable Payback Period.
A reasonable Payback Period would be considered to be of the order of 1- 6 years for most
businesses.
3.4.3
The number of air changes per hour increases and the heating season lengthens.
The temperature difference between the supply and extract air streams increases.
The supply and extract air streams are within close proximity (though run-around coils can be
considered where this is not the case).
The system operates for extended periods of time, e.g. a system which operates 24/7 will yield
higher savings than a system which operates 10/5.
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System Descriptions
4.1.1
4.1.2
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Main Features:
Materials of construction:
Tube Material Copper, Aluminium and Stainless Steel
Fin Material - Copper, Aluminium and Stainless Steel
Performance:
Effectiveness: 50 65% (Sensible)
Resistance to air flow: Approx. 150 500 Pa
Typical Applications:
General HVAC systems in Commercial or Industrial applications where sensible heat recovery
is required.
Retrofit HVAC applications where plant space is limited and/or supply and extract ductwork
are not in close proximity.
Where cross-contamination of air streams in not permitted.
4.1.3
of a tilting mechanism fixed to the body of the device. Pleated flexible connectors attached to the
supply and exhaust ductwork allows freedom for the tilting movement. Face and by-pass dampers
may also be used to achieve capacity control.
The capacity of the device will vary according to the numbers of coil rows, the fin spacing and the
air velocity across the coil.
Supply and Exhaust ductwork cannot be separated.
Module sizes range from 50 l/s to 36000 l/s.
Main Features:
Materials of construction:
Tube Material Copper or Aluminium
Fin Material Aluminium
Performance:
Effectiveness: 45 65% (Sensible). The effectiveness of the heat exchanger is dependent on
the relative direction of airflows in the supply and exhaust ducts. Counterflow gives the best
performance. Parallel flow will reduce the efficiency by about one fifth of the quoted counterflow performance.
Resistance to air flow: Approx. 150 500 Pa
Manufacturers claim there is no risk of cross contamination between air streams, but this is
subject to the quality of the construction of the device.
This technology is seldom used in HVAC applications due to the relatively high capital cost.
Typical Applications:
General HVAC systems in Commercial or Industrial applications where sensible heat recovery
is required.
Particularly where plant space is tight and supply and exhaust duct are running side by side.
Used as an alternative to Plate Heat Exchangers on air handling unit installations where plant
space availability is an issue. Note: Only a viable alternative on air volume flowrates exceeding
5-6 m3/s.
Used in dehumidification applications, e.g. Swimming Pools
4.1.4
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Performance:
Effectiveness: 50 80% (Sensible). Plate Heat exchangers can achieved higher efficiencies
because of the single stage heat transfer process and are therefore not inhibited by additional
secondary losses associated with the run-around coil arrangement.
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Resistance to air flow: Approx. 150 300 Pa at a face velocity of 3 m/s. With differential
pressures in excess of 1000Pa, high delta-P plate heat exchangers should be selected to avoid
plate deformation.
Typical Applications:
Central Plant Heat Recovery from exhaust air for space heating of Offices, Warehouses and
Factories.
Local ceiling mounted heat recovery units for small Commercial applications.
4.1.5
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5.2
5.2.1
Table 5.0 below shows a comparison of the different types of Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers
Table 5.0
Run-around coil
Heat Pipe
45 - 65 % Sensible only
- 45 500C
- 40 40C
- 60 800C
- 55 800C
150 500 Pa
150 500 Pa
150 300 Pa
100 300 Pa
N/A (1)
Counter-flow
Parallel-Flow
Counter-flow
Cross-Flow
Counter-flow
Parallel-Flow
Cross-Leakage (%)
0 5%
1-10%
Modulation Control
By-pass damper
50 l/s and up
50 l/s and up
25 l/s and up
25 35000 l/s
2 (incl. pipework)
20 30 yrs
15 20 Yrs
25 30 Yrs
15 Yrs
50 - 80 % Sensible only
- No moving parts
- No risk of crosscontamination
- High pressure
differentials between
air streams is possible
- Easily cleaned
- Easily cleaned
-Relatively space
efficient
- Extensively used in
Residential and Commercial
applications
Disadvantages
-Relatively space
efficient
- Few suppliers
-Filtration required to
protect coils
- Sensible heat transfer
only
- Cross-contamination
between air streams
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It is generally more cost effective to include for heat recovery at design stage than to consider it post
project completion. Early consideration allows the full range of options to be technically and
commercially evaluated, and the best solution selected for the particular application. Once the project
has been completed the opportunities are limited.
6.2
Of the technical items outlined in section 3.3 the following will dictate the final selection in a retro-fit
situation,
a. Plant space availability
b. Distance between supply and extract air streams
c. Quality and condition of the supply and extract air streams.
d. Modification requirements to existing services to accommodate new equipment.
e. Move-in space provision.
f. Impact on the performance of the existing air handling plant.
6.3
6.3.1
6.4
6.4.1
6.5
6.5.1
6.6
6.6.1
6.7
6.7.1
6.8
6.8.1
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Below is a worked example based on the use of a Run-around coil Heat Recovery device.
The resultant heat energy savings, running cost savings and payback period are based on the
following input data,
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
7.1.2
Weather Data Dublin 1966 to 1995 (Refer to Appendix 1 to this document). The range of
temperatures is taken from -5C to 21.
24 hour operation of the air handling system and heat recovery device.
Boiler efficiency:
90%
Fan efficiency:
80%
The boilers are gas fired. The price of Natural Gas is 4.0 Cent per kWh.
The price of Electricity is 10.0 Cent per kWh.
The extract air temperature is 22C.
The run-around coil system Effectiveness is 49%.
The supply and extract air volumes flowrates are balanced at 5.0 m3/s respectively.
The supply air heat recovery coil has an airside pressure drop of 104 Pa.
The exhaust air heat recovery coil has an airside pressure drop of 138 Pa.
The volume flowrate of the water/glycol circuit is 5.3 kg/s.
The waterside pressure drop in the water/glycol circuit is 100 kPa.
The efficiency of the circulating pump in the water/glycol circuit is 65%.
The Total Heat Recovery savings are based on an external temperature limit of 14C.
Appendix 2 to this document includes equipment selections for alternative Heat Recovery devices
using the above design parameters.
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8.0 REFERENCES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Eurovent 10/1 (1986) Heat Recovery Devices Specifications, Terminology, Classification and Functional
Characteristics.
Eurovent 10/3 (1989) Heat Recovery / Energy Conservation Some Typical Methods.
Besant R.W., C.J. Simonson, Wei Shang Design for Air-to-Air Heat and Moisture Exchange in HVAC
Applications.
ASHRAE Handbook (2007) - Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning Applications.
BSRIA TN 11/86 (1986) Selection of Air-to-Air Heat Recovery Systems.
Article Bureau of Energy Efficiency Waste Heat Recovery.
BSEN 13053 (2001) Ventilation for buildings- Air Handling Units Ratings and performance for units,
components and sections.
BG2/2009 Illustrated Guide to Ventilation, BSRIA.
CIBSE Guide B Heating, ventilating, air conditioning and refrigeration Chartered Institution of Building
Services Engineers, London.
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APPENDIX 1
DUBLIN 30 YEAR WEATHER DATA 1965 to 1995
APPENDIX 2
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Heat Pipe
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