Manuscipt revised

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Theoretical comparison of cooling loads of an air handling

unit in blow-through and draw-through configurations
Mridul Sarkar
Mechanical Engineer, Dar Al-Handasah Consultants Pvt. Ltd, Pune 411028, India.*

Abstract
Blow-Through (BT) and Draw-Through (DT) modes are the two common types of Air Handling Unit (AHU)
configurations that are prevalent in Heating Ventilation and Air conditioning (HVAC) systems in existence. The
arrangements of a supply fan and a cooling coil in these systems have advantages on each other in terms of cooling
coil loads, moisture removal and noise levels. In the present work, a simple equipment load formulations for the two
modes are shown, which may be used by designers for early diagnosis and decision making. From the comparison of
derived loads for a cooling-dehumidifying chilled water coil, it is proved that DT type AHU shows higher cooling
load than BT type, when supply air temperature from both these types of AHU is same. It is also seen that the
difference between these coil-loads are actually affected by the AHU inlet condition and fan heat addition. An early
choice between a DT and a BT system based on usage and requirement saves a lot of future hassles and untimely
retrofits.

Keywords: Draw -Through, Blow- Through, AHU, HVAC, Cooling Load, Dehumidification

1.

INTRODUCTION
An Air Handling Unit (AHU) is the simplest and most basic air conditioning equipment that has the ability to

cool, dehumidify, circulate, heat, humidify or filter air to provide comfort and good quality environment. With
technological advancement and improved manufacturing facilities, it is now possible to build AHUs that can supply
more than 100,000 cfm (~ 50,000 lps) of conditioned air circulated inside a building. Such big air conditioners

1
Corresponding author. Tel.: +91-20-8446424456; e-mail: mridul.sarkar@dargroup.com; mridul.rns@gmail.com
* Permanent address: 65/3 Type-4, Park rd., Range Hills Estate, Pune, 411020, India.

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consume a lot of energy. In fact, for a commercial building, sources state that nearly 30% of total energy
consumption is from HVAC systems used for cooling, heating, ventilation and circulation of conditioned air [1].
But, like any other machine, AHUs require timely maintenance for smooth operation. Hence it becomes necessary
for selecting AHUs that are not only economical and energy efficient but have a long service life.

The energy consumption by a circulating fan is of significant magnitude depending on the flow rate handled by
an AHU. Even though mechanical efficiencies of modern fan motors have improved a lot, still it is difficult to
prevent heat addition into air stream due to resistive heat loss from the motor windings, dynamic pressure losses in
impellers and frictional losses in motor bearings and belt drives [2]. The cooling and dehumidification performance
of an air handler is affected substantially due to addition of heat energy as the thermodynamic property of air
changes. An AHU in BT configuration allows inclusion of this fan heat, into air stream, which becomes a part of
direct coil load. On the other hand, DT type AHU imbibes this thermal energy to increase the net enthalpy of cooled
and dehumidified air just before it is supplied to a zone.

A cross flow heat exchanger modeling for a cooling and dehumidifying coil has been carried out extensively by
researchers. Both dynamic and steady state models are available for common air handling units to study the
performance of cooling coils. Some of dynamic modeling approaches used by various authors are: transient
simulations [3], finite element method [4], Laplace transformation [5] etc. On the other hand, for steady state
modeling, generalized energy and mass conservation equations are used for determining on-coil load [6 7]. Where
dynamic models provide guidelines for proper operation control strategies, steady state models are used for optimum
coil sizing for AHUs [5].

For practical purposes, characteristic parameters called AHU coil bypass factor and effective coil apparatus
condition are assumed. This effectively simplifies complexity for modeling the interactions between moist air,
chilled water and coil geometry. Various bypass factors for HVAC equipment based on applications are stated in
literature [8]. A coil apparatus condition (or more commonly known as apparatus dew point temperature) is easily

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obtained by finding intercept of temperature-humidity variation with saturation curve on a psychrometric chart, after
assuming a constant slope for it along air inlet and exit conditions [7 8]. This approximates the coolingdehumidification process for moist air into a linear variation. All these made thermodynamic analysis for an AHU
inherently easier.

From simulation study available in literature it is seen that an AHU with an upstream fan shows a better cooling
performance than an AHU where fan is downstream the coil [9]. But there is little work done for rationalizing and
quantifying this difference by thermodynamic principles. This article aims at bridging that gap by providing a
comparative performance for these two AHU types based on a steady state analysis.

In this article basic and simple cooling demand relationships for BT and DT type AHUs are provided and a
point to point comparison between them is drawn. Along the proceeding sections, primary course of actions are
outlined as:

Formulating cooling loads for an AHU in DT and BT configurations under certain established
assumptions.

2.

Comparison of performance at a common supply temperature for same inlet psychrometric conditions.

ASSUMPTIONS
Placement of a supply fan plays crucial part in performance variation between DT and BT configurations. In

both cases sensible heat from this fan is added to the air stream. Impact of fan heat addition brings differences in
cooling coil load and resulting off-coil air humidity. Both cooling and dehumidification of moist air are considered
here. This implies that the supply temperature is lower than dew point temperature (DPT) of incoming air at AHU
inlet. Chilled water is considered the main refrigerant for coil. For analyzing cooling performance of an AHU certain
assumptions are put forth. Many of these are traditionally made in HVAC literature for thermal performance and
experimental validation studies.

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The maximum flow rate requirement for an AHU system depends on peak zone sensible load and the
temperature difference between supply air and space [10 11]. The sensible heat pickup by moisture content in the
supply air is duly neglected for air flow rate requirement [12]. References on AHU testing specifications consider an
average air density for cooling load and fan power consumption [13 14]. Sensible heat added by a fan is primarily
dictated by system air flow rate, efficiency of fan assembly and net air pressure drop (sum of internal and external
pressures) through the system [2 15]. The total pressure (static + velocity heads) across a fan remains same as long
as a constant air flow rate is maintained through the AHU and duct network [16 17]. Hence relative positioning of
fan with respect to an AHU coil does not affect the sensible temperature rise of air due to heat added by it. Being a
non-reactive mixture, ideal gas behavior for dry air and water vapor is considered. Also the sum of partial pressures
of dry air and water vapor present in moist air is taken equal to ambient pressure for the geographic location. This
ambient pressure is determined by incorporating a correction involving its elevation from sea-level [6 18]. The
specific heats of dry air, water vapor and condensate water are considered to be constant throughout [13]. Finally
uniform air velocity across a coil is considered that simplifies total cooling load determination for BT and DT type
AHUs [3].

3.

FORMULATION OF COIL LOADS

With the sufficient assumptions and information acquired, basic equipment load calculations for BT and DT

configurations are obtained in the following sections. The whole formulation is divided into following steps:

Determining apparatus dew point (ADP) temperatures from AHU inlet temperature and required supply
temperature (for comparison, AHU inlet and supply temperatures are taken same for both DT and BT).

Determining humidity ratio at ADP temperature.

Determining off coil humidity ratio for each configuration.

Calculating the total coil loads (sensible and latent) from above.

In figure 1, basic BT and DT configurations for AHU are shown, with appropriate states labeled accordingly:

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(Figure 1)

3.1 ADP temperature

Considering both cooling and dehumidification, the following section gives ADP temperatures for the air
conditioning process. ADP temperature gives the saturation limit of cold air after it passes through an evaporator or
cooling coil.
For DT configuration:
T2 1 BF Tdtx BF T1

(1)

Across the fan, considering the fan heat addition:

T2 T3 T fan heat

(2)

Putting (2) into (1):

T3 T fan heat 1 BF Tdtx BF T1

Tdtx

1 BF T T
1

fan heat

1 BF

T1 T3

(3)

Similarly for BT configuration:

T3 1 BF Tbtx BF T2'

(4)

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T2' T1 T fan heat

(5)

Putting equation (5) into (4):

T3 1 BF Tbtx BF T1 T fan heat

Tbtx

1 BF T BF T
1

fan heat

1 BF

T1 T3

(6)

Noting BF < 1, comparison of equations (3) and (6) gives:

Tbtx Tdtx

(7)

So for the same AHU, a DT configuration results in lower ADP temperature than BT configuration. Additionally a
common observation leads to:

Tbtx Tdtx T fan heat

(8)

Hence on comparing equations (2), (4) and (8):

Tbtx Tdtx T3 T2 T2' T1

(9)

3.2 Humidity ratio at ADP temperature (x)

The humidity ratio of moist air at any temperature is given by:

Pv
Pt Pv

(10)

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Since, ADP temperature is the lower limit of saturation (upper being DPT) for moist air passing through the
coil, the required partial pressure will be equal to saturation vapor pressure at that temperature. The 2009 ASHRAE
handbook Fundamentals [6] refers to a basic correlation for evaluating saturation pressure at a particular
temperature, valid for a range of 0-200oC (32-392oF). Apparatus dew point temperature of cooling-dehumidifying
chilled water coil used for normal HVAC applications is often higher than 4 oC (39oF) [19] but restricted to an upper
limit for keeping the room DPT below 16.8 oC (62oF), which is the permissible maxima for comfort, as per ASHRAE
Std. 55-2010 [20]. In this short temperature band, the modified Clausius Clapeyron equation can provide acceptable
saturation pressures (appendix A). This is given by:
C plv

l0 C plv T0 1 1
Pa Ta R


exp
Pb Tb
R
Tb Ta

(11)

If the saturation pressure at a temperature is known, then determining it at any other temperature along the
saturation line can be done by equation (11). For this 273 K (32oF) is taken as reference temperature, corresponding
to which the saturation vapor pressure is noted to be 0.611 kPa (6 mbar). Taking this into consideration, equation
(11) gives:
C plv

l0 C plv T0 1 1
T R
PT Po
exp

R
T0 T

T0

At the ADP temperatures, partial vapor pressures are given by:

DT Configuration:

Pdtx

C plv

l0 C plv T0 1
Tdtx R
1
Po

exp
T
R
T
T
0 dtx

(12)

BT Configuration:

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C plv

l0 C plv T0 1
Tbtx R
1
Pbtx Po
exp

R
T0 Tbtx

T0

(13)

Hence, from equation (10):

DT configuration:

dtx

Pdtx

(14)

Pt Pdtx

BT configuration:

btx

Pbtx

(15)

Pt Pbtx

The variation of saturation vapor pressure with absolute temperature as given by equations (12) & (13) is an
increasing function. With higher temperature it gives higher vapor pressure from the relation. Hence the conclusion
that can be drawn from putting together equations (7), (14) and (15):

btx dtx

(16)

Equation (16) establishes an inequality for a cooling-dehumidifying coil at ADP temperatures for the two AHU
modes. It proves that the humidity content at ADP for BT configuration is greater than that for DT.

3.3 Off-coil humidity ratio

Figure 2 shows the cooling and dehumidification process for DT and BT configuration of AHU.

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(Figure 2)

Applying linear interpolation for DT configuration:

2 dtx T2 Tdtx

1 dtx T1 Tdtx

(17)

Rearranging equation (1) and putting in equation (17) gives:

2 dtx
BF
1 dtx
2 BF 1 dtx 1 BF

(18)

Similarly for BT configuration:

3 btx T3 Tbtx

2' btx T2' Tbtx

(19)

From equations (4) and (19):

3 btx
BF
2' btx
3 BF 2' btx 1 BF
3 BF 1 btx 1 BF

(20)

sensibleheat additiondoes not changemoisturecontent 2 ' 1

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Off-coil humidity ratio or specific humidity is important to determine the total coil load and zone latent load
pick up performance by supply air.

3.4 Cooling coil loads

Determination of coil loads is now possible with the parameters obtained above. A steady state analysis for
enthalpy and mass balance across the coil gives total conditioning load for air stream. The state points of air stream
across the AHU are labeled as per figure 1. In this case the condensate sub cooling part is also considered for total
load. Before the condensate drops-off into a drain pan, it attains almost the same temperature as that of coil surface
(same as ADP).

DT configuration:
(Figure 3)

Applying energy balance for moist air and condensate flow-down across the coil for DT configuration as shown in
figure 3,
ma ha1 ma hv1 ma ha 2 ma hv 2 mwhldtx Qdt

Expanding the enthalpy terms:

ma C pa T2 T0 ma2 l0 C pv T2 T0

maC pa T1 T0 ma1 l0 C pv T1 T0

mwC pl (Tdtx To ) Qdt

(21)

From mass balance:

10

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mw ma (1 2 )

(22)

Putting equation (22) in (21), the cooling load for DT configuration is written as:

m C C T T m l C C T T
a
pa
1 pv
1
2
2
0
pl
pv
2
0
a 1

Qdt

C
(
T

T
)
2 pl 2
dtx
a 1

(23)

For equation (23), specific heat for moist air and specific enthalpy of condensation can be lumped up as:

C p C pa 1 C pv

l2 l0 C pl C pv T2 T0 lo C plv T2 T0

Equation (23) is hence reduced to:

Qdt maC p T1 T2 ma 1 2 l2 ma 1 2 C pl (T2 Tdtx )

(24)

On observation, concise form of equation (24) is given by:

Qdt Qdt sensible Qdt latent Qdt condensate subcool

The constituent terms are as shown in equation (24). The cooling energy expended for condensate sub cooling,
is very less as compared to the sensible and latent parts. For general evaluation of cooling loads it is often neglected.
Using equations (2) and (18), the latent and sensible terms for equation (24) can be expanded in terms of AHU
inlet-exit conditions, fan heat addition and coil ADP temperatures:

11

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ma C p T1 T3 maC p T fan heat

Qdt ma 1 BF 1 dtx l3 ma (1 BF ) 1 dtx C pl (T2 Tdtx )

ma (1 BF ) 1 dtx C plv T fan heat

(25)

The expanded form of coil load equation as shown by (25) is easily comparable with similar equation applicable for
BT configuration as shown below.

BT configuration:
The coil load takes the form for BT configuration as:

Qbt Qbt sensible Qbt latent Qbt condensate subcool

From mass and enthalpy balance for BT configuration shown in figure (4) and reiterating the same procedure done
for DT configuration:
(Figure 4)

Qbt maC p T2' T3 ma 2' 3 l3 ma 2' 3 C pl (T3 Tbtx )

Qbt maC p T2' T3 ma 1 3 l3 ma 1 3 C pl (T3 Tbtx )

(26)

Using equations (5) and (20), equation (26) is written as:

ma C p T1 T3 maC p T fan heat

Qbt ma 1 BF 1 btx l3

m (1 BF ) C (T T )
a
1
btx
pl
3
btx

(27)

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The first two terms on the right hand side of equations (25) and (27) give equal net sensible heat load across the
cooling coil for DT and BT configurations. The difference between the respective coil loads is hence a direct
consequence of the extent of dehumidification across the evaporator and condensate cooling at coil surface. On
comparing equations (25) & (27) and recollecting conclusions obtained previously and stated in equations (7), (9),
(16):

Qdt Qbt

(28)

The inequality shown by equation (28) is very important from the energy consumption point of view. Higher
coil load for draw through configuration implies higher annual chiller energy for space cooling purpose. Further
comparison gives:

% Excess load

Qdt Qbt
100
Qdt

Substituting the coil loads, excess coil load percentage gives:

ma 1 BF btx dtx l3 ma 1 BF 1 dtx C pl T2 Tdtx

m 1 BF C T T m 1 BF C
1
btx
pl
3
btx
a
1
dtx
plv T fan heat
a
ma C p T1 T3 maC p T fan heat ma 1 BF 1 dtx l3

m 1 BF

1 dtx C pl T2 Tdtx ma (1 BF ) 1 dtx C plv T fan heat

a

100

1 BF btx dtx l3 1 BF btx dtx C pl T3 Tbtx

1 BF C

T
1
dtx
plv
fan heat

100
qsensible 1 BF 1 dtx l3 1 BF 1 dtx C pl T2 Tdtx

1 BF C

T
1
dtx
plv
fan heat

(29)

It is clear that the advantage of lower coil load of BT as compared to DT actually depends significantly on the
AHU air flow inlet-output conditions and fan heat addition. The positioning of a fan does not affect the sensible coil
load when an equal supply temperature from both is desired, but it does have an effect on latent coil loads.
Nevertheless as clear from equation (29), a higher sensible load ratio (on coil) reduces the energy saving percentage

13

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from cooling. In the following section a comparison between DT and BT configurations is shown to elaborate this
point.

4.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

A comparison of cooling and moisture removal performance is presented in this section. For this, a fixed supply

temperature maintained by an AHU and constant fan heat addition is considered for both DT & BT configurations.
The cooling performance is obtained at various inlet temperatures and humidity conditions. To study the zone load
pickup characteristics, the conditioned space is considered to be attaining a required set point after supplying air
through both configurations of AHU. In all these cases it is assumed that the zone sensible load is fixed so that
maximum required air flow rate remains the same. This allows the comparative study based on specific enthalpy
changes of air stream across the coil and zone. The fixed parameters considered are:

Bypass factor of coil BF: 0.1

AHU supply temperature T1: 12oC (285 K)

Tfan heat: 1.5 K (2.7oF)

Ambient atmospheric pressure Pt: 101 kPa (1 Bar)

Fictitious Zone condition: 24oC (74oF) & 50% Relative Humidity (RH)

4.1 Evaporator Cooling Performance

Figure 5 and 6 show variation of excess load percentage between DT and BT configuration and percentage
moisture removal respectively, at different inlet temperatures and humidity ratios.
(Figure 5)
(Figure 6)

14

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With increase in inlet air stream temperature, level of sensible cooling required to maintain a fixed AHU outlet
temperature, rises. As shown by equation (29) and figure 5, a reduction in excess coil load percentage is expected as
inlet air stream becomes hotter. Humidity content of inlet air also affects the cooling performance. It is clear from
figure 5 that at a constant inlet temperature, an increment in humidity ratios results in declination of percentage
difference in total on-coil load between DT and BT configurations. For equal temperature drop across an evaporator,
an increase in humidity ratio slightly increases the overall sensible enthalpy change along with rise in latent enthalpy
change for both DT and BT (sensible coil load remains same in this case for both DT and BT). This leads to a
decrease in excess coil load percentages at rising humidity ratios between DT and BT, even though differences
between latent on-coil loads are slowly escalating. The enthalpy for sub cooling of condensate is strictly dependent
on the net moisture removal. On this front too, a DT configuration shows higher condensate flow than a BT
configuration for same AHU inlet condition and hence higher conduction loads due to condensate sub cooling.

Figure 6 shows the percentage moisture removal for DT and BT types of AHU, when the cooling coil
experiences an equal temperature drop across it. For same AHU entry temperature, more humid air shows higher
moisture removal percentage. Figure 7 shows psychrometric plot for DT and BT cooling processes for two different
inlet temperatures at a common AHU supply temperature.
(Figure 7)

4.2 Zone Load Pick up Performance

The supply temperature and humidity content of air stream affect sensible and latent heat picked up from the
zone. At the exhaust/return terminal, air becomes hotter and more humid. Since a constant zone sensible load has
been considered here, the final relative humidity (RH) of space is affected by the humidity content of supply air. The
latent heat pickup and its difference for DT and BT configurations are shown in Figures 8 and 9 respectively, at
different AHU inlet conditions. For the comparison, zone RH is fixed to 50% and temperature set point kept at 24 oC
(74oF).
(Figure 8)

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(Figure 9)

At a fixed inlet and supply temperature from an AHU, higher inlet humidity ratio results in higher off-coil
moisture content, even though more condensate formation takes place. This reduces the amount of latent heat that
can be removed from the space to attain a particular zone condition. On the other hand, keeping same moisture
content at inlet and supply temperature from AHU outlet, hotter incoming air shows higher level of condensation
(hence lower humidity ratio) after passing through evaporator coil. It leads to an increase in zone latent heat pick up
capacity for supply air to attain the prescribed zone set point. These observations are quite evident form the variation
plot shown in figure 8. Figure 9 shows how the two configurations compare each other in terms of zone latent heat
removal. The difference between latent heat enthalpies removed by DT and BT configurations supplying air at same
temperature is independent of the AHU inlet humidity ratio. This implies that the net difference of moisture
removed by DT and BT configurations from incoming air stream is only dependent on the AHU inlet temperature
and remains constant with varying humidity ratios.

Figure 10 shows psychrometric plot for DT and BT cooling process for a common supply temperature at same
inlet dry bulb temperature but different wet bulb temperatures.
(Figure 10)

4.3 Conclusion from comparative study

From the comparative analysis of DT and BT type AHUs, these conclusions are drawn:

For a same moisture content (humidity ratio) at inlet and an equal sensible enthalpy change through
evaporator, hotter (or dryer) the air at coil upstream, lesser will be the condensation and vice versa.

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For a same inlet moisture content and an off-coil temperature, hotter (or dryer) the air at upstream of an
evaporator, higher will be the condensation required and lower will be the evaporator surface (ADP)
temperature sought.

For a same on-coil temperature and an equal temperature drop across an evaporator, more humid the air at
inlet, more will be condensation but higher will be humidity ratio at coil exit after cooling and vice versa.

5.

DT or BT WHICH ONE TO CHOOSE?

Above analysis shows that the cooling load for a draw through type of AHU is higher than a blow through type.

Also, it is seen from comparative study that the relative cooling performance of two AHUs are affected by
thermodynamic conditions of moist air at inlet and sensible fan heat addition. From an energy efficiency point of
view, blow through type seems to be a natural choice. But in a real operating case, considering only energy
consumption aspect is not a correct practice. As an example, for humid climates, fresh air handling units (FAHUs)
are generally preferred to be of DT type instead of their counterpart [21 22].

For some cases, a choice of BT AHU is deterred mainly due to either of two reasons: relatively higher humidity
ratio & DPT of supply air and higher moisture or condensate blow off from coil surface. The latter occurs due to
close proximity of a supply fan discharge from cooling coil. This causes uneven distribution of air velocity along the
coil face that has high kinetic energy to drag the condensate along with its flow. Literature study suggests that this is
one of the main reasons for filters, located downstream of coils (mainly for pharmaceutical manufacturing rooms,
clean rooms in electronics manufacturing, radioactive areas etc. [23]), becoming wet and losing their effectiveness,
at locations that are humid or having higher wet bulb temperatures [24]. A diffuser section upstream along with a
moisture eliminator downstream of the coil is often recommended for BT type AHU to keep coil face velocity
distribution even and to eliminate the condensate drag from entering into supply duct respectively.

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It is advised to consider the pros and cons of a particular HVAC system in its operational life and to make the
best decision depending on requirement, utility and climatic factors. Table 1 shows preferred AHU type for different
climatic conditions defined by ASHRAE.
(Table 1)

6.

CONCLUSION
A simple equipment load calculation methodology for draw through and blow through types of AHU has been

presented in the current work. The comparison of cooling and dehumidification performance for these two
configurations led to some important conclusions. It is also seen that at a given AHU inlet condition, draw-through
configuration shows higher condensation rates thereby increasing the latent load and additional condensate cooling
load on evaporator coil. On the other hand, blow-through type of AHU has its own reservations. While choosing the
type of AHU, it is important to consider all the tradeoff factors related to energy consumption and smooth operation
that lead to an efficient and long hassle-free equipment life.

APPENDIX A
Derivation of modified Clausius Calpeyron equation to find saturation vapor pressure is presented in this
appendix section. As per literature study [26], the variation of saturation vapor pressure with absolute temperature is
given by:
(A1)

dPT lPT

dT RT 2

Noting that the latent heat of vaporization is a function of the absolute temperature as:

l lo C pl C pv T T0 lo C plv T T0

Equation A1 can be arranged thus:

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lo C plv T T0 dT
dPT

PT
RT 2

(A2)

Integrating equation A2 gives:

Pa

Pb

Ta
lo C plv T T0 dT
dPT

PT
RT 2
Tb

P
ln a
Pb

T
Ta
C plv T
a lo C plv T0

dT

dT

2
RT
RT 2
Tb
Tb

C plv

l0 C plv T0 1 1
Pa Ta R

exp
Pb Tb
R

Tb Ta

(11)

Equation (11) is thus obtained which is the modified form of Clausius Calpeyron equation. Replacing the lower limit
of temperature and saturation pressure in equation (11) by To & Po the more general form is given by:
C plv

l0 C plv T0 1 1
T R
PT Po
exp

R
T0 T

T0

(A3)

From literature (2009 ASHRAE handbook Fundamentals [6]) the general relation used for finding saturation
vapor pressure is due to Hyland and Wexler. Figure A1 shows the variations of saturation pressures with
temperature from equation (A3) and Hyland-Wexler co-relation. The error between the saturation pressures is lesser
than 1% in temperature range of 0-60oC (32-140oF) as shown in figure A1.
(Figure A1)

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Nomenclature
Symbols Used
BF

Bypass factor of coil

Cp

Specific heat capacity of moist air at AHU inlet

(kJ/kg-K)

Cpa

Specific heat capacity of dry air = 1.006 kJ/kg-K

(0.24 Btu/lb-oF)

Cpl

Specific heat capacity of liquid water = 4.186 kJ/kg-K

(1 Btu/lb-oF)

Cpv

Specific heat capacity of water vapor = 1.86 kJ/kg-K

(0.44 Btu/lb-oF)

C plv

Difference of specific heats of liquid and vapor: 2.34

kJ/kg-K (0.56 Btu/lb-oF)

T fan heat

Temperature increment due to sensible fan heat addition

(K)

ha

Specific enthalpy of dry air (kJ/kg-K)

hl

Specific enthalpy of condensate (kJ/kg-K)

l0

Specific latent heat of condensation at 273 K = 2501

kJ/kg (1075 Btu/lb)

lT

Specific latent heat of condensation at T K (kJ/kg)

ma

Total mass flow rate of air (kg/s)

Partial pressure (kPa)

Total coil load (kW)

qsensible

Specific sensible enthalpy change across cooling coil

(kJ/kg DA)

Gas constant for water vapor

(0.1 Btu/lb-oF)

Absolute temperature (K)

= 0.4618 kJ/kg-K

Greek Symbols

Ratio of molecular mass of water vapor to dry air

(=0.622)

Humidity ratio (kg moisture/kg dry air)

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Subscripts
0

Reference state 273 K

AHU inlet condition

DT off-coil condition

BT on-coil condition

AHU supply condition

a,b

At absolute temperatures Ta & Tb K

bt

BT configuration

bt-sensible

Sensible part for BT coil load

bt-latent

Latent part for BT coil load

bt-condensate subcool

Condensate sub cooling part for BT coil load

btx

Saturation condition at Apparatus dew point for BT

dt

DT configuration

dt-sensible

Sensible part for DT coil load

dt-latent

Latent part for DT coil load

dt-condensate subcool

Condensate sub cooling part for DT coil load

dtx

Saturation condition at Apparatus dew point for DT

Total

Water vapor

REFERENCES
[1]

Energy efficiency trends in residential and commercial buildings, report by U.S. Department of Energy,
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Washington (DC), U.S.A, 2008.

[2]

Brelih N., How to improve energy efficiency of fans in air-handling units, REHVA European HVAC
Journal Special issue for ACREX India 2013 exhibition, 2013, pp. 25-30.

[3]

Zhou X., Braun J.E., A simplified dynamic model for chilled-water cooling and dehumidifying coils Part1: Development, International Journal of HVAC&R Research 13(5) (2007) pp. 785-804.

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[4]

Wang G., Liu M., Claridge D. E., Decoupled modeling of chilled water cooling coils using a finite element
method, Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference for Enhanced Building Operations, Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, USA, October 11-13, 2005.

[5]

Yao Y., Shiqing L., The transfer function model for dynamic response of wet cooling coils, Energy
Conservation and Management 49 (2008) pp. 3612-3621.

[6]

ASHRAE Handbook Fundamentals, Chapter 1 Psychrometrics, American Society of Heating,

Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia, U.S.A, 2009.

[7]

ASHRAE Handbook HVAC systems and equipment, Chapter 19 Air cooling and dehumidifying coil,
American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia, U.S.A, 2000.

[8]

Chapter 8 - Applied psychrometrics, in: Part 1- Load Estimating, Carrier System Design Handbook, Carrier
Corporations, Syracuse, New York, 1960, pp. 115-151.

[9]

Phillips R., Using direct evaporative and chilled water cooling, ASHRAE Journal 51(7) (2009) pp. 16-19.

[10]

Liang Y., Zhang C., Analysis on energy saving potential of integrated supermarket HVAC and refrigeration
systems using multiple subcoolers, Energy and Buildings 42 (2010) pp. 251-258.

[11]

ASHRAE Handbook Fundamentals, Chapter 17 Residential Cooling and Heating Load Calculations,
American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia, U.S.A, 2009.

[12]

Eurovent 6/8 2005, Recommendations for calculations of energy consumption for air handling units,
Eurovent/ Cecomaf, Belgium, 2005.

[13]

ASHRAE Standard 33-2000, Method of testing forced circulation air cooling and air heating coils,
American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia, U.S.A, 2000.

[14]

ANSI/AHRI Standard 430-2009, Performance rating of central station air-handling units, Air Conditioning
Heating and Refrigeration Institute, Virginia, U.S.A., 2009.

[15]

Kavanaugh S., Fan demand and energy: Three air-distribution systems, ASHRAE Journal 42(6) (2000) pp.
47-52.

[16]

Chapter 2 - Air conditioning apparatus, in: Part 6- Air Handling Unit, Carrier System Design Handbook,
Carrier Corporations, Syracuse, New York, 1960, pp. 17-44.

[17]

Cermak J., Murphy J., Select fans using fan total pressure to save energy, ASHRAE Journal 53(7) (2011)
pp. 44-47.

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[18]

Kavanaugh S., McCrary B. H., Woodbury K.A., Psychrometric spreadsheet, ASHRAE Journal 48(1)
(2006) pp. 28-32.

[19]

Mumma S.A., Designing dedicated outdoor air system, ASHRAE Journal 43(5) (2001) pp. 28-31.

[20]

ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55-2010, Thermal environmental conditions for human occupancy, American
Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia, U.S.A, 2010.

[21]

Bebari G.J., Fresh air treatment in hot and humid climates, ASHRAE Journal 40(10) (1998) pp. 67-70.

[22]

Bebari G.J., Shakkour S., Hashem F., Fresh air handling units: Comparison & design guide, ASHARE
Journal 48(1) (2006) pp. 34-41.

[23]

ASHRAE Handbook HVAC systems and equipment, Chapter 24 - Air cleaners for particulate
contaminants, American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia,
U.S.A, 2000.

[24]

Wet Filters in HVAC Systems: Applying air filtration in a humid or saturated environment, Camfil Farr
Technical Bulletin, URL: http://www.cfweb.us/T/Wet_Air_Filters_IN_HVAC_Systems.PDF, last
accessed: 18 Feb 2013.

[25]

ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2010, Energy standard for buildings except low-rise residential buildings,
American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Georgia, U.S.A, 2010.

[26]

Koutsoyiannis D., Clausius - Clapeyron equation and saturation vapor pressure: Simple theory reconciled
with practice, European Journal of Physics 33 (2012) pp. 295-305.

23

List of Figure Captions

Figure 1

Figure 1 Basic DT and BT configurations

Figure 2

Temperature & humidity representation of cooling-dehumidification process for DT (L) and BT (R)
configurations

Figure 3

Enthalpy and mass balance of moist air and condensate for DT configuration

Figure 4

Enthalpy and mass balance of moist air and condensate for BT configuration

Figure 5

Excess load percentage variations with inlet conditions

Figure 6

Moisture removal percentage variations with inlet conditions

Figure 7

Psychrometric plot for cooling and dehumidification for DT and BT configurations at common
humidity ratio at inlet and supply temperature (1=AHU inlet, 2=DT off-coil, 2=BT fan downstream,
3 = DT fan downstream, BT off-coil.)

Figure 8

Variation of Latent Heat Removed with AHU inlet conditions

Figure 9

Variation of Excess Latent Heat Removed with AHU inlet conditions

Figure 10

Psychrometric plot for cooling and dehumidification for DT and BT configurations at common inlet
and supply temperatures (1=AHU inlet, 2=DT off-coil, 2=BT fan downstream, 3 = DT fan
downstream, BT off-coil.)

Figure A1

Comparison of saturation vapor pressure variations with temperature.

Table 1

Table 1.AHU type preferred for various climatic conditions

Climate type

ASHRAE
nomenclature
[25]

Preferred
AHU Type

Remarks

Very Hot-Humid,
Hot- humid

1A,2A

DT

BT type can be used for a system where off-coil specific humidity is well below the required room
specific humidity and its zone sensible heat ratio is sufficient to meet prescribed room relative
humidity.

Additional acoustic liner or attenuator near supply point to be provided for DT type AHU system,
where air borne sound should be restricted (e.g. for classrooms).

BT system can be used for a recirculating AHU when the zone latent loads can be decoupled from
sensible part and be met by separate dedicated system (e.g. by DOAS)

DT type should be used for special applications mentioned above (where downstream filters are
required).

DT type can be used for spaces with low room DPT requirements.

DT type can also be used for systems serving spaces with high latent heat ratios (e.g. kitchens,
natatorium), to maintain prescribed relative humidity.

First costs should take precedence when energy savings from excess coil loads (between DT and
BT type) are not economical to offset it.

Very Hot-Dry,
Hot-Dry

1B,2B

BT

Warm-Humid

3A

DT

Warm-Dry

3B

BT

Same as for 1A and 2A

DT type should be used for special applications mentioned above (where downstream filters are
required).

Either a DT or BT type is suitable for systems that provide free cooling or in case of economizer
operation.

DT type can be used for spaces with low room DPT requirements.

Figure 1
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Figure 2
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Figure 3
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Figure 4
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Figure 5
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Figure 6
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Figure 7
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Figure 8
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Figure 9
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Figure 10
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Figure A1
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highlights

Modified Clausius-Clapeyron equation for humidity ratios at apparatus dew point temperatures.
Sensible, latent and condensate sub cooling loads for DT and BT coils.
Draw-through type shows more cooling coil loads than blow-through type.
Psychrometric plot for cooling-dehumidification through AHU coil.