Introduction Chapter one: Types of Air Conditioners

There are various types of air conditioning systems. The application of a particular type of system depends upon a number of factors like how large the area is to be cooled, the total heat generated inside the enclosed area, etc. An HVAC designer would consider all the related parameters and suggest the system most suitable for your space.

Window Air Conditioner

Window air conditioner is the most commonly used air conditioner for single rooms. In this air conditioner all the components, namely the compressor, condenser, expansion valve or coil, evaporator and cooling coil are enclosed in a single box. This unit is fitted in a slot made in the wall of the room, or often a window sill. Must Read: Parts of Window Air Conditioners

Split Air Conditioner

The split air conditioner comprises of two parts: the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. The outdoor unit, fitted outside the room, houses components like the compressor, condenser and expansion valve. The indoor unit comprises the evaporator or cooling coil and the cooling fan. For this unit you dont have to make any slot in the wall of the room. Further, the present day split units have aesthetic looks and add to the beauty of the room. The split air conditioner can be used to cool one or two rooms.

Packaged Air Conditioner

Packaged air conditioner: An HVAC designer will suggest this type of air conditioner if you want to cool more than two rooms or a larger space at your home or office. There are two possible arrangements with the package unit. In the first one, all the components, namely the compressor, condenser (which can be air cooled or water cooled), expansion valve and evaporator are housed in a single box. The cooled air is thrown by the high capacity blower, and it flows through the ducts laid through various rooms. In the second arrangement, the compressor and condenser are housed in one casing. The compressed gas passes through individual units, comprised of the expansion valve and cooling coil, located in various rooms. Must read: 1) Packaged Air Conditioners - Types of Packaged AC

2) Compressors and Capacity Control System in the Packaged Air Conditioners

Central Air Conditioning System

4) Central air conditioning system: The central air conditioning system is used for cooling big buildings, houses, offices, entire hotels, gyms, movie theaters, factories etc. If the whole building is to be air conditioned, HVAC engineers find that putting individual units in each of the rooms is very expensive initially as well in the long run. The central air conditioning system is comprised of a huge compressor that has the capacity to produce hundreds of tons of air conditioning. Cooling big halls, malls, huge spaces, galleries etc is usually only feasible with central conditioning units. Must Read: 1) Central Air Conditioning Plants 2) Direct Expansion or DX Type of Central Air Conditioning Plant 3) Chilled Water Type of Central Air Conditioning Plant

Types of Air Conditioners

Chapter 2 : Window Air Conditioning System

Window air conditioners are one of the most commonly used and cheapest type of air conditioners. To install one of these units, you need the space to make a slot in the wall, and there should also be some open space behind the wall.
Window air conditioners are one of the most popular types of air conditioners being used. Whether its your study room, bedroom, or hall, the window air conditioner can be used for

almost all types of spaces. To fit the window air conditioner in your room, you need to make a slot in one of the walls of the room that is to be cooled. This system extends around two feet beyond the wall in the back side; hence behind the wall some free space should be available so that the hot air can be thrown easily from the condenser. The dew collected from the room is also thrown from the back of the air conditioner. Thus window air conditioners can be used only if there is place available in the wall to make the slot, and there is free space behind the wall for dissipating the heat and dripping water. Window air conditioners are comprised of components like the compressor, condenser, expansion valve or expansion coil, and the evaporator or the cooling coil, all housed in a single box. There is also a motor which has shafts on both sides. On one side of the shaft the blower is connected, which sucks hot air from the room and blows it over the cooling coil, thus cooling it and sending it to the room. On the other shaft the fan is connected, which blows the air over Freon gas passing through the condenser. The window air conditioner is the cheapest of all air conditioning systems. If your room or office size is about less than 100 sq. ft. a window air conditioner of about 0.8 ton can be good enough. If the size of room is more than this but less than 200 sq. ft. your HVAC designer will recommend a window air conditioner of about 1 ton. For rooms of bigger sizes but less than 300 sq. ft. the system of about 1.5 ton is advisable. However, these sizes may change depending upon the number of people occupying the space, its alignment with respect to sun, and other sources of heat generation inside the room. It is better to consult your HVAC designer to find out the exact size of window air conditioner suitable for your space. One of the complaints that window air conditioners have had is that they tend to make noise inside the room. But this problem has been greatly overcome by the present day efficient and less noisy rotary compressors, which also consume less electricity. Today a number of fancy and elegant looking models of window air conditioners are available that enhance the beauty of your rooms.

Chapter 3 : Split Air Conditioner System

Split air conditioners are used for small rooms and halls, usually in places where window air conditioners cannot be installed. However, these days many people prefer split air conditioner units even for places where window air conditioners can be fitted. Do you have a single room but no place to make a slot for the window air conditioner?
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No problem, there is an excellent option in the form of a split air conditioner. The split air conditioner can be installed in rooms and offices where you dont want to disturb the setup of the room and avoid demolitions in your favorite space. The split air conditioner takes up a very small space of your room, looks aesthetically cool and makes very little noise, ensuring sound sleep for you when you return from your days hard work. There are two main parts of the split air conditioner. These are: 1) Outdoor unit: This unit houses important components of the air conditioner like the compressor, condenser coil and also the expansion coil or capillary tubing. This unit is installed outside the room or office space which is to be cooled. The compressor is the maximum noise making part of the air conditioner, and since in the split air conditioner, it is located outside the room, the major source of noise is eliminated. In the outdoor unit there is a fan that blows air over the condenser thus cooling the compressed Freon gas in it. This gas passes through the expansion coil and gets converted into low pressure, low temperature partial gas and partial liquid Freon fluid. 2) Indoor unit: It is the indoor unit that produces the cooling effect inside the room or the office. This is a beautiful looking tall unit usually white in color, though these days a number of stylish models of the indoor unit are being launched. The indoor unit houses the evaporator coil or the cooling coil, a long blower and the filter. After passing from the expansion coil, the chilled Freon fluid enters the cooling coil. The blower sucks the hot, humid and filtered air from the room and it blows it over the cooling coil. As the air passes over cooling coil its temperature reduces drastically and also loses the excess moisture. The cool and dry air enters the room and maintains comfortable conditions of around 25-27 degree Celsius as per the requirements.

The temperature inside the space can be maintained by thermostat setting. The setting should be such that comfortable conditions are maintained inside the room, and there is also chance for the compressor to trip at regular intervals. If the compressor keeps running continuously without break, its life will reduce. These days multi-split air conditioners are also being used commonly. In units for one outdoor unit there are two indoor units which can be placed in two different rooms or at two different locations inside a large room.

Since there is long distance between the indoor and the outdoor unit, there is always loss of some cooling effect; hence for the same tonnage, split air conditioners produce somewhat less cooling effect than window air conditioners. However, with modern insulation material this gap has been reducing between the two. In any case, there are number of instances where there is just no alternative to the split air conditioners. Must read: 1) Parts of the Split Air Conditioner

1- Parts of the Split Air Condioners: Outdoor Unit The split air conditioner is one of the most widely used type of the air conditioners. The major reasons behind the popularity if split air conditioner are their silent operation and elegant looks. Let us see the various parts of these units. Introduction
The split air conditioner is one of the most widely used type of the air conditioners. Earlier window air conditioner was used most widely, but the split air conditioner is now catching up with it. The major reasons behind the popularity if split air conditioner are their silent operation and elegant looks. Another advantage of the split air conditioner is that you don't have to make the hole in the wall of the air conditioner and destroy the beauty of the room. These days the indoor units of the split air conditioner are available in wide range of color and designs. There are two main parts of the split air conditioner: the indoor unit and the outdoor unit (see fig below). The indoor unit of the split AC is installed inside the room that is to be air conditioned or cooled while the outdoor unit is installed outside the room in open space where the unit can be installed and maintained easily. Apart from these two major parts there is copper tubing connecting the indoor and the outdoor units. Let us see the various parts of the indoor and the outdoor units of the split ACs.

Parts of Split Conditioner

Outdoor Unit
As mentioned previously the outdoor unit is installed outside the room to be air conditioned in the open space. In outdoor unit lots of heat is generated inside the compressor and the condenser, hence there should be sufficient flow of the air around it. The outdoor unit is usually installed at the height above the height of the indoor unit inside the room though in many cases the outdoor is also installed at level below the indoor unit. The outdoor unit contains the important parts of the split AC like compressor, condenser, expansion valve etc. Let us see these parts in more details:

1) Compressor:
The compressor is most important part of the any air conditioner. It compresses the refrigerant and increases its pressure before sending it to the condenser. The size of the compressor varies depending on the desired air conditioning load. In most of the domestic split air conditioners hermetically sealed type of compressor is used. In such compressors the motor used for driving the shaft is located inside the sealed unit and it is not visible externally. External power has to be supplied to the compressor, which is utilized for compressing the refrigerant and during this process lots of heat is generated in the compressor, which has to be removed by some means.

2) Condenser:
The condenser used in the outdoor unit of split air conditioners is the coiled copper tubing with one or more rows depending on the size of the air conditioning unit and the compressor. Greater the tonnage of the air conditioner and the compressor more are the coil turns and rows. The high temperature and high pressure refrigerant from the compressor comes in the condenser where it has to give up the heat. The tubing is made up of copper since it rate of conduction of heat is high. The condenser is also covered with the aluminum fins so that the heat from the refrigerant can be removed at more faster rate.

3) Condenser Cooling Fan:

The heat generated within the compressor has to be thrown out else the compressor will get too hot in the long run and its motor coils will burn leading to complete breakdown of the compressor and the whole air conditioner. Further, the refrigerant within the condenser coil has to be cooled so that after expansion its temperature become low enough to produce the cooling effect. The condenser cooling fan is an ordinary fan with three or four blades and is driven by a motor. The cooling fan is located in front of the compressor and the condenser coil. As the blades of the fan rotate it absorbs the surrounding air from the open space and blows it over the compressor and the condenser with the aluminum fins thus cooling them. The hot air is thrown back to the open space and the circulation of air continues unhindered.

4) Expansion Valve:
The expansion valve is usually a copper capillary tubing with several rounds of coils. In the split air conditioners of bigger capacities thermostatic expansion valve is used which is operated electronically automatically. The high pressure and medium temperature refrigerant leaves the condenser and enters the expansion valve, where its temperature and pressure drops suddenly.
Parts of the Split Air Conditioner: Refrigerant Piping or Tubing

2- The refrigerant piping is made up of copper tubing and it connects the indoor and the outdoor unit. Let us see the importance of refrigerant tubing and its materials. Split Air Conditioner

Refrigerant Piping or Tubing

The refrigerant piping is made up of copper tubing and it connects the indoor and the outdoor unit (see images above). The refrigerant at low temperature and low pressure leaves the expansion valve and enters the copper tubing, which is connected to the evaporator or the cooling coil at the other end. The distance between the indoor and the outdoor unit can be short or long depending on the distance at which the open space is available in the home or office building. The longer the distance longer is the refrigerant piping between the two. When the refrigerant flows from the outdoor unit to the indoor unit in the tubing there is some loss of the cooling effect on the way, hence the distance between the indoor and the outdoor unit should be kept as minimum as possible. For the distance up to 15 meters there is not much appreciable loss of the cooling effect, however beyond that the losses become higher. The refrigerant inside the tubing is at very low temperature and length of piping between and outdoor unit and indoor unit is quite long. Further, the tubing is exposed to the open atmosphere which is at very high temperature. Due to this, if the tubing is left uncovered all the cooling effect will be lost to the open atmosphere and by the time the refrigerant enters the cooling coil its temperature will already be too high and the purpose of producing the cooling effect will not be served. To avoid this, the refrigerant tubing connecting the indoor and the outdoor unit is covered with the insulation. This prevents the loss of the cooling effect to the atmosphere and low temperature refrigerant will produce the desired cooling effect inside the room. After producing the cooling effect inside the room in the indoor unit, the refrigerant has to come back to the outdoor unit for getting compressed and re-circulating. There is another refrigerant tubing that connects the indoor and the outdoor unit so that the refrigerant can travel from cooling coil back to the compressor. This tubing is also covered with insulation so that the refrigerant enters the compressor at minimum possible temperature to increase the refrigeration efficiency of the air conditioner. Thus there are two tubing connecting the indoor and the outdoor unit and both are covered with the insulation tape. The refrigerant tubing are made up of copper since it is highly ductile and malleable element. The tubing can be easily manufactured from this material and they are flexible

enough so they can turned into angles and coiled easily. The copper tubing used for condenser and evaporator facilitate high rate of heat conduction.
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Parts of the Split Air Conditioner: Wall Mounted Indoor Unit

The indoor unit of the split air conditioner is a box type housing in which all the important parts of the air conditioner are enclosed. The most common type of the indoor unit is the wall mounted type though other types like ceiling mounted and floor mounted are also used.

Split Air Conditioner with Wall Mounted Indoor Unit

Wall Mounted Indoor Unit

It is the indoor unit that produces the cooling effect inside the room. The indoor unit of the split air conditioner is a box type housing in which all the important parts of the air conditioner are enclosed. The most common type of the indoor unit is the wall mounted type though other types like ceiling mounted and floor mounted are also used. We shall discuss all these types in separate articles, here we shall discuss the wall mounted type of the indoor unit. These days the companies give utmost importance to the looks and aesthetics of the indoor unit. In the last couple few years the purpose of the indoor unit has changed from being a mere cooling effect producing devise to a beautiful looking cooling devise adding to the overall aesthetics of the room. This is one of the major reasons that the popularity of the split units has increased tremendously in the last few years. Let us see the various parts enclosed inside the indoor unit of the split air conditioner:

1) Evaporator Coil or the Cooling Coil:

The cooling coil is a copper coil made of number turns of the copper tubing with one or more rows depending on the capacity of the air conditioning system. The cooling coil is

covered with the aluminum fins so that the maximum amount of heat can be transferred from the coil to the air inside the room. The refrigerant from the tubing at very low temperature and very low pressure enters the cooling coil. The blower absorbs the hot room air or the atmospheric air and in doing so the air passes over the cooling coil which leads to the cooling of the air. This air is then blown to the room where the cooling effect has to be produced. The air, after producing the cooling effect is again sucked by the blower and the process of cooling the room continues. After absorbing the heat from the room air, the temperature of the refrigerant inside the cooling coil becomes high and it flows back through the return copper tubing to the compressor inside the outdoor unit. The refrigerant tubing supplying the refrigerant from the outdoor unit to the indoor unit and that supplying the refrigerant from indoor unit to the outdoor unit are both covered with the insulation tape.

2) Air Filter:
The air filter is very important part of the indoor unit. It removes all the dirt particles from the room air and helps supplying clean air to the room. The air filter in the wall mounted type of the indoor unit is placed just before the cooling coil. When the blower sucks the hot room air, it is first passed through the air filter and then though the cooling coil. Thus the clean air at low temperature is supplied into the room by the blower.

3) Cooling Fan or Blower:

Inside the indoor unit there is also a long blower that sucks the room air or the atmospheric air. It is an induced type of blower and while is sucks the room air it is passed over the cooling coil and the filter due to which the temperature of the air reduces and all the dirt from it is removed. The blower sucks the hot and unclean air from the room and supplies cool and clean air back. The shaft of the blower rotates inside the bushes and it is connected to a small multiple speed motor, thus the speed of the blower can be changed. When the fan speed is changed with the remote it is the speed of the blower that changes.

4) Drain Pipe:
Due to the low temperature refrigerant inside the cooling coil, its temperature is very low, usually much below the dew point temperature of the room air. When the room air is passed over the cooling due the suction force of the blower, the temperature of the air becomes very low and reaches levels below its dew point temperature. Due to this the water vapor present in the air gets condensed and dew or water drops are formed on the surface of the cooling coil. These water drops fall off the cooling coil and are collected in a small space inside the indoor unit. To remove the water from this space the drain pipe is connected from this space extending to the some external place

outside the room where water can be disposed off. Thus the drain pipe helps removing dew water collected inside the indoor unit. To remove the water efficiently the indoor unit has to be a tilted by a very small angle of about 2 to 3 degrees so that the water can be collected in the space easily and drained out. If this angle is in opposite direction, all the water will get drained inside the room. Also, if the tilt angle is too high, the indoor unit will shabby inside the room.

5) Louvers or Fins:
The cool air supplied by the blower is passed into the room through louvers. The louvers help changing the angle or direction in which the air needs to be supplied into the room as per the requirements. With louvers one easily change the direction in which the maximum amount of the cooled air has to be passed. There are two types of louvers: horizontal and vertical. The horizontal louvers are connected to a small motor and there position can set by the remote control. Once can set a fixed position for the horizontal louvers so that chilled air is passed in a particular direction only or one can keep it in rotation mode so that the fresh air is supplied throughout the room. The vertical louvers are operated manually and one can easily change their position as per the requirements. The horizontal louvers control flow of air in upper and downward directions of the room, while vertical louvers control movement of air in left and right directions.

Image Courtesy
1) 220V Appliances 2) The Elite Home

2) Installation of the Split Air Conditioners

Installation of the Split Air Conditioners: Deciding the Location of Indoor and Outdoor Units The installation of the split air conditioners is the most important and crucial part. If it is done properly your air conditioner will give you optimum

performance, but if it is not done properly you won't get the desired cooling effect and there may be frequent maintenance problems. Introduction
By now we have seen the different parts of the split air conditioners, now let us the installation of these Acs. The installation of the split air conditioners is the most important and crucial part. If it is done properly your air conditioner will give you optimum performance, but if it is not done properly you won't get the desired cooling effect and there may be frequent maintenance problems of which the most prominent can be the gas or refrigerant leakage. The installation of the split air conditioner should be done by an expert air conditioning technician and the task should not be left to a novice person who is experimenting with your AC. It requires lots of practice to become an expert split AC installation and erection technician. Various factors have to be considered during the installation of any split air conditioner, here we are going to consider how to do the installation of wall mounted split air conditioner. In other articles we would consider installation of other types of split air conditioners also.

Location of Indoor and Outdoor Units

Location of the Indoor and the Outdoor Units

The first step in the installation of split AC is deciding the location of the indoor and the outdoor units, only then the next important steps of the installation can be initiated. Let us see the factors to be considered when deciding the location of these units (see the images below):

1) Indoor Unit:
Here are the important suggestions when deciding the location of indoor unit inside the room:

a) The indoor unit is located inside the room at the location from where the air can be distributed evenly throughout the room. b) As far as possible the indoor should be installed above the bed so that the maximum cooling effect can be obtained. It should be located directly above the bed. If one has to avoid the direct flow of chilled air on the body, one can always change the direction of the louvers. The indoor unit can also be installed on wall towards your feet though it can be installed on other side walls also. c) The wall mounted indoor unit should be located at the height of about 8 to 10 feet from the floor so that that most of the chilled air is used for cooling the room and not merely for cooling the hot roof. d) The indoor unit should be accessible easily so that one can conveniently clean the filter every fortnight and the whole unit and also that one can manually change the position of the louvers easily. e) If the indoor unit is installed above certain window, make sure that it is in symmetry with the window, else the unit will look shabby. The indoor unit is meant to add to the aesthetics of the room and not destroy it.

2) Outdoor Unit:
Here are some points to consider when deciding the location of the outdoor unit: a) The outdoor unit should be located in the open space preferably on the terrace so that the air can flow freely over the compressor and the condenser. If the terrace is not available it can be kept on the awning above the wall or it can be hanged on the external wall supported by the angles. b) The location of outdoor unit should be such that it is easily accessible for carrying out the maintenance works of the compressor, condenser, and other devices. The installation and gas charging also should be convenient. c) There should not be any hindrances in front of the outdoor that would block the passage of fan air from passing to the open space. Any blockages will seriously affect the performance of the AC and can also lead to the burning of hermetically sealed compressor coil. d) The surface on which the outdoor unit is to be installed should be rigid enough to avoid its vibration. The vibration of the outdoor unit will raise excessive noise and also lead to the breaking of the copper tubing and leakage of the refrigerant. It is always advisable to keep the outdoor unit at the height above the indoor unit. If the outdoor unit is kept at level below the indoor, some of the compressor power is used in pumping the refrigerant against the gravity, thus reducing the overall performance of the

compressor. Most of the outdoor units are quite silent so one does not have to worry about their noise. The internal parts of the outdoor unit are shielded against the rain and sun rays, so one can rest assured about their safety in different climatic conditions. The refrigerant at very low temperature flows inside the tubing between indoor and the outdoor unit, and there is always some loss of refrigerant effect to the atmosphere from these tubing, hence the distance between the indoor and the outdoor unit should be kept as minimum as possible to reduce the loss of the cooling effect. The maximum distance between the indoor and the outdoor units can be about 15 meters.

Installation of the Wall Mounted Indoor Unit

After deciding the location of the indoor and the outdoor unit, the installation of indoor unit is started. Here are the steps for the installation of wall mounted indoor unit of the split air conditioner.

Installation of the Wall Mounted Indoor Unit

Once the location of the indoor unit is decided its installation can be started. As such the installation of the indoor unit is quite easy, but only for those who have mastered the technique. The newbie may find the process quite a bit complicated and it requires some extra efforts to actually install the unit. The wall mounted indoor unit can be installed on the wall of the room or the partition at the height of about 8-10 feets from the floor. Here are the steps for installation of the indoor unit:

Installation of the Wall Mounted Indoor Unit

1) Make the markings as per the wall hook bracket:

The installation of indoor unit is made easier by the wall hook bracket. It is a sort of the aluminum template with all the necessary holes and the attachments. All one has to do it make the holes in the wall as per the template and then fit the template with screws.

For this the air conditioning technician makes the marking of the wall hook bracket on the wall coinciding with the holes on the bracket. When making the markings for the holes, make sure that the bracket is given slight tilt angle, so that the indoor unit, when fitted is also at a slight angle to enable unhindered flow of the dew water from the drain pipe.

2) Fit the bracket:

After making the markings for the holes, remove the wall hook bracket and make the holes in the wall with drilling machine at these markings. Thereafter, keep the bracket in place again on the wall and fit it with the screws in the drilled holes.

3) Make a hole in the wall or partition:

Make a small hole of about 3 inches near the bracket across the wall or partition. Through this hole the refrigerant tubing connecting the indoor and the outdoor will pass. These tubing are insulated hence they need hole of large diameter. The drain pipe though which the dew water is drained also passes through this whole. Through this hole the power supply cable and electric cable connecting the indoor and the outdoor unit also pass.

4) Installing the indoor unit:

Now, the indoor unit is ready to be fitted on the bracket. Just lift up the unit, it is usually not too heavy, and fit it on the wall hook brake bracket. There are some male extensions on the bracket on which the female counterpart of the indoor unit can be fitted. When fitting the indoor unit the copper tubing extending from the unit has to be passed through the hole and to outside the room for connecting it do the outdoor unit. The drain pipe is connected to one end of the indoor unit; it is passed through the hole and left free in the open space where the water can be drained. The power supply cable connecting the indoor and outdoor unit and to the main supply is also passed through the hole.

5) Tilting the indoor unit:

The indoor unit is given slight tilt of about 2-3 degree towards the drain pipe. This enables unhindered flow of dew water towards the water space where drain water is collected and drain pipe is connected for removal of water. This angle should be just sufficient to enable flow of water without disturbing the looks of the indoor unit due to high angle of tilt. Too small angle will not serve the purpose and high angle will make the easy looks shabby and also unbalance the blower inside the unit. The level of the unit can be checked with the level bubble gauge.

With this the installation of the indoor unit is almost over. It is now ready to be connected to the refrigerant tubing and the outdoor unit. The power supply cable is yet to be connected.

Image Courtesy
1) Friedrich

Installation of the Outdoor Unit of Split Air Conditioners

During installation of the outdoor unit of split AC, selecting the proper location of the unit is very important the rest of the things are not too complicated. Let us the factors affecting the location of the outdoor unit and steps for the installation of the unit. In the previous article we saw the installation of the indoor unit of split AC, now let us see the installation of the outdoor unit. While the indoor unit is light in weight, the outdoor unit is quite heavy since it comprises of the heavy components like the compressor, condenser, fan motor with fan etc. In most of the cases the outdoor unit of split AC has to be installed at certain height so lifting the unit can be a tough task requiring about three to four people.

Installation of the Outdoor Unit

Location of the Outdoor Unit of Split AC

We have seen some important points regarding the location of the indoor and the outdoor unit, here we have summarized these points for the outdoor units and have added a few more. 1) Install the outdoor unit on flat rigid surface: The outdoor unit should be installed on the flat rigid or concrete base since it is quite heavy. The unit will vibrate excessively

if it is installed on some loose, vibrating or hanging base. If the unit vibrates due to weak base, the compressor and condenser coil will also vibrate, which can lead to the breakage of the copper tubing over certain period of time and leakage of the refrigerant. Inside the vibrating compressor the shaft may get unbalanced leading to its unsymmetrical movement and ultimately burning of the electric coil. Further, the vibrating unit makes lots of noise which could disturb not only your room but also the neighbors. 2) Free flow of air: The outdoor unit should be installed in the open space on the terrace, above the awning of the window or any other convenient location where there is free flow of air. There should not be any hindrance to the flow of air around the outdoor unit. There should not be any blockage to the flow of air in front of the outdoor from where the heat is dissipated by hot air. The unit should be easily accessible for installation, wiring, and carrying out any maintenance works in future. As far as possible the outdoor unit should not be exposed directly to the sun, however, if this cannot be avoided, one can make sunshade to protect it from direct sunlight. 3) No water should collect around outdoor unit: The location of the outdoor unit should be such that during rains, water is not collected around the unit. The large pond of water can drown the parts of the unit and destroy them. Even the small level of water collected around outdoor unit for long time can corrode its body and eventually the internal parts. 4) Dont install the outdoor unit on the tilted surface: One should avoid installing the outdoor units on the tilted surfaces. The outdoor unit is quite heavy and if it placed in angular position, there will be unbalanced forces that would increase the vibrations of the unit, which may eventually result in total uprooting of the unit. 5) Installing the outdoor unit on the external wall: The outdoor unit can also be hanged on the external wall on some angle supports. The angles can be fitted on the wall by using special bolts called anchor bolts. On these angles the outdoor unit can be fitted easily and can be accessible conveniently. Make sure that the wall on which the outdoor unit is being fitted is strong enough to bear its weight and vibrations. Installing the outdoor unit on the wall is one of the best available options.

Steps for the Installation of the Outdoor Unit of Ductless Split AC

1) First of all, bring the outdoor unit to the location where it has to be installed. This unit is quite heavy, so it should be handled carefully and there should be about two to three people for moving it. 2) Lift the unit to the place where it has to be installed. If the outdoor unit has to be installed on the angles fitted on the wall, make sure that the angles have been fitted

properly. Since the unit is too heavy, about three to five people may be needed for lifting it and it should be lifted carefully with proper coordination. 3) Next, the outdoor unit can be fitted at the suitable location. It is can be placed on the rubber bushing and fitted with the anchor bolts to avoid vibrations or it can also be placed directly on the flat rigid surface (since it is quite heavy the chances of its vibrations are very less). The outdoor unit to be fitted on the wall can be fitted directly on the angles by nut and bolts. With this the installation of the outdoor unit is done. In the next article we shall see the installation of refrigerant tubing and gas charging.

Installation of the Refrigerant Tubing in Split Air Conditioners

In the previous articles of this series on installation of the ductless split AC we saw the installation of the indoor unit and the outdoor unit. In this article we shall see installation of the refrigerant tubing, and electric connections.

In the previous articles of this series on installation of the ductless split AC we saw the factors to be considered for selecting the location of the indoor and outdoor units and the step-by-step installation of the indoor unit and the outdoor unit. In this article we shall see the installation of the refrigerant tubing, and electric connections.

Installation of the Refrigerant Tubing

Installation of the Refrigerant Tubing

Once the indoor and the outdoor units of the split air conditioner have been installed, the refrigerant tubing connecting the two units can be installed. The refrigerant tubing is

the flexible copper piping that can be bent easily by bending instruments. Various connections can also be made easily at the end of the copper tubing by using flaring tool. The copper tubing are connected to the indoor and the outdoor units by flare nuts and other flaring fittings using male and female connections. The copper tubing can also be connected to each other by brazing. The refrigerant tubing comes along with the new split air conditioner, and you dont have to purchase the new one unless the distance between the indoor and outdoor units is too long. There are two connections between the indoor and the outdoor units. The first connection carries refrigerant at low temperature from the outdoor unit to the indoor unit and the other one carrying return refrigerant at medium temperature from the indoor unit to the outdoor unit. The refrigerant tubing is laid over long distance and in open atmosphere, which is at very temperature. If the tubing is exposed directly to the sun, the refrigerant flowing from the outdoor unit to the indoor unit will get heated and loose all the refrigerating effect before producing the cooling effect in the indoor unit. To prevent this loss of the cooling effect, the tubing is covered with the insulation material. Similarly, the refrigerant travelling through return tubing from indoor unit to outdoor unit is also at medium temperature and may get superheated when exposed directly to the atmosphere. This can lead to the reduction in the compressor efficiency, and overall reduction in cooling effect. To avoid this, the return tubing is also covered with the insulation material so that the refrigerant enters compressor at lowest possible temperature in gaseous state. The insulation material is also accompanied with the new split AC. The material used for insulation is foam which is in the form of the tube inside which the copper tubing can be easily fitted. To make the fitting more rigid, the insulation tape is covered with sticky tape though this may not be necessary all the times.

Connecting the Refrigerating Tubing to the Indoor Unit

Here are the steps for connecting refrigerating tubing to the indoor unit of split AC: 1) From the indoor unit of the split AC two copper tubing emerge which are passed through the hole made in the wall, these two tubing have flaring connections at their ends. 2) The distance between the indoor and outdoor unit is measured, and two copper tubing of this length are cut. 3) On one of the ends of the these two tubing flaring connections are made for connecting into the flare nut already available on the tubing emerging from the indoor unit. One can also directly connect the two newly cut tubing to the indoor unit tubing by brazing without making flare connections. One end of each of the two tubing is now connected to the indoor unit.

4) Next, extend these tubing to the outdoor unit. On the way, you can provide support to these tubing to the wall by using brackets so that they wont keep on hanging here and there. This is to avoid the breakage of connections due to vibrations resulting in leakage of the refrigerant. 5) Before connecting the refrigerant tubing to the outdoor unit, it should be covered with the insulation material, which is usually the foam tube.

Connecting Refrigerant Tubing to the Outdoor Unit

Here are steps for connecting the refrigerant tubing to the outdoor unit: 1) Make the flare connections at the two free ends of the two tubing using flaring tool and inserting the female flare nut. 2) Connect the nuts of each of the tubing to the connector provided outside the outdoor unit and tighten the connection. The indoor and outdoor units are now connected by the refrigerant tubing. The two units can now be connected together by the electric wiring which is finally connected to the main supply. Now the final process of gas charging and starting of the split air conditioner can be started.

Gas Charging in Split Air Conditioners

In the previous articles we was the factors affecting the location of indoor and outdoor units of split AC, the installation of the indoor unit, the outdoor unit and the refrigerant tubing. In this article we shall see the final step of installation of split air conditioner, the gas charging. In the previous articles we was the factors affecting the location of the indoor and outdoor units of split AC, the installation of the indoor unit, the outdoor unit and the refrigerant tubing. In this article we shall see the final step of the installation of split air conditioner, the gas charging. If the installation of the indoor unit, outdoor unit and the refrigerant tubing is done properly, the process of gas charging in the new split air conditioner is very simple. In fact in the new split air conditioners no process like gas charging is involved. In the new units, the indoor and the outdoor units are prefilled with the gas. When indoor unit is connected to the outdoor unit via refrigerant tubing, the tip of tubing originally attached to the indoor unit has to be opened, which leads to the leakage of

refrigerant that comes with the unit prefilled from the factory. Thus this gas cannot be used in the split air conditioner for the cooling purposes.

Gas Charging from the Outdoor Unit

The outdoor unit is also prefilled with the refrigerant or the gas from the factory. Most of the gas is filled in the condenser coil at very high pressure. Since the gas is filled at high pressure sufficiently large quantity of gas can be filled in the condenser, which is good enough to produce the desired cooling effect in the room. Since the refrigerant is already present in the air conditioning system, we dont have charge the extra gas, however, if the distance between the indoor and the outdoor units is large, some external gas charging may be necessary. The gas present within the outdoor unit has to be released to the whole system including the refrigerant tubing and the indoor unit. Thus in the new split unit there is no actual gas charging in real sense, it is only distributing the gas compressed in the outdoor unit to the whole air conditioning system. There are two valves located at the lower end of the outdoor unit, one for supplying the compressed gas from the outdoor unit to the indoor unit and other one for receiving the return gas from the indoor unit. Initially, both the valves are closed. During gas charging both the valves are opened slowly. With this the refrigerant gets distributed in the whole air conditioning system including the indoor unit, the outdoor unit and the refrigerant tubing.

Checking for the Gas Leakages

The gas charged into the system is like the life blood for the whole unit. Even slight leakages of the gas can hamper the performance of the system and it continuous leakage can render the unit useless. Further, even the cost of the gas is very high, so its leakage will not only lead to the breakdown of the air conditioning system, but also high costs of repairing. Hence it is vital to check right at the installation of the system that there are no leakages of the gas. The leakages have to be mostly checked at the joints of the refrigerant tubing. There are four joints in the split air conditioner: two at the indoor unit and two at the outdoor unit, connecting the refrigerant tubing and the indoor and the outdoor units. Since the gas is now present in the air conditioning system, it is at high pressure. To check for the leakages soap solution is applied to the joints. If there are any leakages, you will see the gas leaking in the form of the bubbles and if there are no leakages the soap solution remains stable. If there is some gas leakage the connections have to be tightened. If the leakage doesnt stops, the leakage point may have to be dismantled and reinstalled.

Starting the Air Conditioning System

Once the gas has been charged in the air conditioning system and it has been checked for the leakages, the system can now be started. It is assumed here that everything is goes well with the installation. When the system is started you can feel the cool air coming from the indoor unit within a minute or two. You can adjust the position of the louvers of the indoor unit to evenly distribute the cool air inside the room or you can keep them at fix position to divert the cool air in particular direction. You can also adjust the speed of the fan. If you dont need the cooling effect, you can keep the AC on fan mode. Most of the settings can be done from the remote control.

Chapter 4: Central Air Conditioning Plants

Central air conditioning plants are used for applications like big hotels, large buildings having multiple floors, hospitals, etc, where very high cooling loads are required. The article describes various possible arrangements of central air conditioning plants. The central air conditioning plants or the systems are used when large buildings, hotels, theaters, airports, shopping malls etc are to be air conditioned completely. The window and split air conditioners are used for single rooms or small office spaces. If the whole building is to be cooled it is not economically viable to put window or split air conditioner in each and every room. Further, these small units cannot satisfactorily cool the large halls, auditoriums, receptions areas etc. In the central air conditioning systems there is a plant room where large compressor, condenser, thermostatic expansion valve and the evaporator are kept in the large plant room. They perform all the functions as usual similar to a typical refrigeration system. However, all these parts are larger in size and have higher capacities. The compressor is of open reciprocating type with multiple cylinders and is cooled by the water just like the automobile engine. The compressor and the condenser are of shell and tube type. While in the small air conditioning system capillary is used as the expansion valve, in the central air conditioning systems thermostatic expansion valve is used. The chilled is passed via the ducts to all the rooms, halls and other spaces that are to be air conditioned. Thus in all the rooms there is only the duct passing the chilled air and there are no individual cooling coils, and other parts of the refrigeration system in the rooms. What is we get in each room is the completely silent and highly effective air conditions system in the room. Further, the amount of chilled air that is needed in the

room can be controlled by the openings depending on the total heat load inside the room. The central air conditioning systems are highly sophisticated applications of the air conditioning systems and many a times they tend to be complicated. It is due to this reason that there are very few companies in the world that specialize in these systems. In the modern era of computerization a number of additional electronic utilities have been added to the central conditioning systems.

There are two types of central air conditioning plants or systems: 1) Direct expansion or DX central air conditioning plant: In this system the huge compressor, and the condenser are housed in the plant room, while the expansion valve and the evaporator or the cooling coil and the air handling unit are housed in separate room. The cooling coil is fixed in the air handling unit, which also has large blower housed in it. The blower sucks the hot return air from the room via ducts and blows it over the cooling coil. The cooled air is then supplied through various ducts and into the spaces which are to be cooled. This type of system is useful for small buildings. 2) Chilled water central air conditioning plant: This type of system is more useful for large buildings comprising of a number of floors. It has the plant room where all the important units like the compressor, condenser, throttling valve and the evaporator are housed. The evaporator is a shell and tube. On the tube side the Freon fluid passes at extremely low temperature, while on the shell side the brine solution is passed. After passing through the evaporator, the brine solution gets chilled and is pumped to the various air handling units installed at different floors of the building. The air handling units comprise the cooling coil through which the chilled brine flows, and the blower. The blower sucks hot return air from the room via ducts and blows it over the cooling coil. The cool air is then supplied to the space to be cooled through the ducts. The brine solution which has absorbed the room heat comes back to the evaporator, gets chilled and is again pumped back to the air handling unit. To operate and maintain central air conditioning systems you need to have good operators, technicians and engineers. Proper preventative and breakdown maintenance of these plants is vital.

Must Read
1) Direct Expansion or DX Type of Central Air Conditioning Plant Direct Expansion (DX) Type of Central Air Conditioning Plant or System There are two types of central air conditioning systems: Direct Expansion (DX) type of central air condition plants and Chilled Water type of the central air conditioning plants. This article describes the DX central air conditioning system.

Introduction
There are two types of central air conditioning systems: Direct Expansion (DX) type of central air condition plants and Chilled Water type of the central air conditioning plants. In the DX system the air used for cooling the room or space is directly passed over the cooling coil of the refrigeration plant. In case of the chilled water system the refrigeration system is used to first chill the water, which is then used to chill the air used for cooling the rooms or spaces. Both these systems have been discussed in details; this article discusses DX system, while the next one describes chilled water system.

Direct Expansion (DX) Type of Central Air Conditioning Plant

In the direct expansion or DX types of air central conditioning plants the air used for cooling space is directly chilled by the refrigerant in the cooling coil of the air handling unit. Since the air is cooled directly by the refrigerant the cooling efficiency of the DX plants is higher. However, it is not always feasible to carry the refrigerant piping to the large distances hence, direct expansion or the DX type of central air conditioning system is usually used for cooling the small buildings or the rooms on the single floor. There are three main compartments of the DX type of central conditioning systems (please refer the fig below):

DX Central Air Conditioning Plant

1) The Plant Room:

The plant room comprises of the important parts of the refrigeration system, the compressor and the condenser. The compressor can be either semi-hermetically sealed or open type. The semi-hermetically sealed compressors are cooled by the air, which is blown by the fan, while open type compressor is water cooled. The open compressor can be driven directly by motor shaft by coupling or by the belt via pulley arrangement.

The condenser is of shell and tube type and is cooled by the water. The refrigerant flows along the tube side of the condenser and water along the shell side, which enables faster cooling of the refrigerant. The water used for cooling the compressor and the condenser is cooled in the cooling tower kept at the top of the plant room, though it can be kept at other convenient location also.

2) The Air Handling Unit Room:

The refrigerant leaving the condenser in the plant room enters the thermostatic expansion valve and then the air handling unit, which is kept in the separate room. The air handling unit is a large box type of unit that comprises of the evaporator or the cooling coil, air filter and the large blower. After leaving the thermostatic expansion valve the refrigerant enters the cooling coil where it cools the air that enters the room to be air conditioned. The evaporator in the air handling unit of the DX central air conditioning system is of coil type covered with the fins to increasing the heat transfer efficiency from the refrigerant to the air. There are two types of ducts connected to the air handling unit: for absorbing the hot return air from the rooms and for sending the chilled air to the rooms to be air conditioned. The blower of the air handling unit enables absorbing the hot return air that has absorbed the heat from the room via the ducts. This air is then passed through the filters and then over the cooling coil. The blower then passes the chilled air through ducts to the rooms that are to be air conditioned.

3) Air Conditioned Room:

This is the space that is to be actually cooled. It can be residential room, room of the hotel, part of the office or any other suitable application. The ducts from the air handling room are passed to all the rooms that are to be cooled. The ducts are connected to the grills or diffusers that supply the chilled air to the room. The air absorbs the heat and gets heated and it passes through another set of the grill and into the return air duct that ends into the air handling unit room. This air is then re-circulated by the air handling unit. Though the efficiency of the DX plants is higher, the air handling units and the refrigerant piping cannot be kept at very long distance since there will be lots of drop in pressure of the refrigerant along the way and there will also be cooling losses. Further, for the long piping, large amounts of refrigerant will be needed which makes the system very expensive and also prone to the ma instance problems like the leakage of the refrigerant. Due to these reasons the DX type central air conditioning systems are used for small air conditioning systems of about 5 to 15 tons in small buildings or the number of rooms on

a single floor. If there are large air conditioning loads, then multiple direct expansion systems can be installed. In such cases, when there is lesser heat load one of the plants can be shut down and the other can run at full load. The DX expansion system runs more efficiently at higher loads. Even in case of the breakdown of the plants, the other plants can be used for the cooling purpose. The DX types of central air conditioning plants are less popular than the chilled water type of central conditioning plants.

Image Courtesy and Reference

1) Basic Refrigeration and Air-conditioning by P N Ananthanarayanan, Tata McGrawHill Publishing Company Limited.

Chilled Water Central Air Conditioning Systems

In the previous article we saw DX type of central air conditioning plant, this article describes chilled water type of central air conditioner.

Chilled Water Central Air Conditioning Plants

The chilled water types of central air conditioning plants are installed in the place where whole large buildings, shopping mall, airport, hotel, etc, comprising of several floors are to be air conditioned. While in the direct expansion type of central air conditioning plants, refrigerant is directly used to cool the room air; in the chilled water plants the refrigerant first chills the water, which in turn chills the room air. In chilled water plants, the ordinary water or brine solution is chilled to very low temperatures of about 6 to 8 degree Celsius by the refrigeration plant. This chilled water is pumped to various floors of the building and its different parts. In each of these parts the air handling units are installed, which comprise of the cooling coil, blower and the ducts. The chilled water flows through the cooling coil. The blower absorbs return air from the air conditioned rooms that are to be cooled via the ducts. This air passes over the cooling coil and gets cooled and is then passed to the air conditioned space.

Chilled Central Air Conditioners

Various Parts of the Chilled Water Air Conditioning Plant

All the important parts of the chilled water air conditioning plant are shown in the above figure and described in detail below:

1) Central Air Conditioning Plant Room:

The plant room comprises of all the important components of the chilled water air conditioning plant. These include the compressor, condenser, thermostatic expansion valve and the evaporator or the chiller. The compressor is of open type and can be driven by the motor directly or by the belt via pulley arrangement connected to the motor. It is cooled by the water just like the automotive engine. The condenser and the evaporator are of shell and tube type. The condenser is cooled by the water, with water flowing along the shell side and refrigerant along the tube side.The thermostatic expansion valve is operated automatically by the solenoid valve. The evaporator is also called as the chiller, because it chills the water. If the water flows along the shell side and refrigerant on the tube side, it is called as the dry expansion type of chiller. If the water flows along tube side and the refrigerant along the shell side, it is called as the flooded chiller. The water chilled in the chiller is pumped to various parts of the building that are to be air conditioned. It enters the air handling unit, cools the air in cooling coil, absorbs the heat and returns back to the plant room to get chilled again. The amount of water passing into the chiller is controlled by the flow switch. In the central air conditioning plant room all the components, the compressor, condenser, thermostatic expansion valve, and the chiller are assembled in the structural steel framework making a complete compact refrigeration plant, known as the chiller package. Piping required to connect these parts is also enclosed in this unit making a highly compact central air conditioning plant.

2) Air Handling Unit Rooms:

The air handling units are installed in the various parts of the building that are to be air conditioned, in the place called air handling unit rooms. The air handling units comprise of the cooling coil, air filter, the blower and the supply and return air ducts. The chilled water flows through the cooling coil. The blower absorbs the return hot air from the air conditioned space and blows it over the cooling coil thus cooling the air. This cooled air passes over the air filter and is passed by the supply air ducts into the space which is to be air conditioned. The air handling unit and the ducts passing through it are insulated to reduce the loss of the cooling effect.

3) Air Conditioned Rooms:

These are the rooms or spaces that are to be air conditioned. These can be residential or hotel rooms, halls, shops, offices, complete theater, various parts of the airport etc. At the top of these rooms the supply and the return air ducts are laid. The supply air ducts supply the cool air to the room via one set of the diffusers, while the return air ducts absorbs the hot return air from the room by another set of the diffusers. The hot return air enters the air handling unit, gets cooled and again enters the room via supply duct to produce air conditioning effect.

4) Cooling Tower:
The cooling tower is used to cool the water that absorbs heat from the compressor and the condenser. When water flows through these components some water gets evaporated, to make up this loss some water is also added in the cooling tower. The cooling tower is of evaporative type. Here the water is cooled by the atmospheric air and is re-circulated through the compressor and the condenser.

Image Courtesy and Reference

1) Basic Refrigeration and Air-conditioning by P N Ananthanarayanan, Tata McGrawHill Publishing Company Limited. 2) http://www.peoplesgasdelivery.com/business/DisplayESource.aspx?type=PA&page=PA _15

Comparison of DX and Chilled Water Central Air Conditioning Plants

The Direct Expansion (DX) and Chilled Water central air conditioning plants are both used at different places depending on the applications and size of the place to be air conditioned. Let us see the comparison of DX and chilled water central air conditioning plants.

Introduction
The Direct Expansion (DX) and Chilled Water central air conditioning plants are both used at different places depending on the applications and size of the place to be air conditioned. Both of them have their own advantages and disadvantages. Let us see the comparison of DX and chilled water central air conditioning plants.

1) DX Central Air Conditioning Plants are more Efficient

In the DX type of central air conditioning plants the air used for cooling the room is directly chilled by the refrigerant in the cooling coil of the air handling unit. Due to this heat transfer process is more efficient, since there is no middle agency involved for the heat transfer resulting in higher cooling efficiency. In case of the chilled water system, the cooling effect from the refrigerant is first transferred to the chilled water, which is then used to chill the air used for cooling the room. There is some loss of the cooling effect when it is being transferred from the refrigerant to the chilled water and from there to the air due to which the chilled water systems have lesser cooling efficiency. The chilled water acts as the secondary medium for cooling the room air in air handling unit. Further, the chilled water has to flow long distance along the whole building. On its way it tends to get heated due to friction of flow and also due to surrounding heat absorption. The chilled water also has to be pumped by the pump, which adds more heat to it. Thus as the chilled water flows from the chiller to the air handling unit and again back to the chiller, apart from the heat from air, it also absorbs lots of additional heat, which leads to high increase in its temperature. The chiller has to remove this additional heat from the water due to which its efficiency decreases or rather additional power is required to remove this additional heat. In the DX type of central air conditioning plants the refrigerant travels only through the small distances and there is no pump involved so the additional heat absorption is less, which makes the DX plants even more efficient.

2) The Chilled Water Plants can be used for the Large Multi Storey Buildings

In the direct expansion types of the central air conditioning plant, the refrigerant like R22 flows through the whole air conditioning system including the air handling unit. When the refrigerant flows in the refrigeration piping there is lots of drop in its pressure. Due to this the length of the refrigeration tubing and the distance between the condenser and the air handling unit should be kept minimum possible. If the air handling unit is kept at the height more than the condenser, the loss in pressure is pronounced since refrigerant travelling from the condenser to the air handling unit is in liquid state. As the distance between the air handling unit and the condenser increases the loss in pressure also increases. At certain point the losses may be so high that the refrigerant may not be able to reach the air handling unit, leading to complete failure of the system. At the larger height difference there is also oil return problem from the refrigerant to the compressor. Due to these reasons, in direct expansion type of the central air conditioning plant there is limitation on the distance between the condenser and the air handling unit. The distance between the two cannot be too high. This limits the application of the direct expansion type of central air conditioning systems to the small buildings or a number of rooms on the single floor. In such cases the plant room and air handling room and the rooms to be cooled are located on the same floor. The height difference between the condenser and the air handling units has to be quite reasonable so that they can function well. One of the solutions to increase the capacity of the DX systems can be to increase the number of air handling units on upper floors. But with this will be additional number of joints in the refrigerant tubing from which there will be higher chances of leakage of highly expensive refrigerant. This leads to too many operational and maintenance problems. One may think that we can employ compressor of very high capacity to increase the refrigerant pressure, but this will lead to highly excessive capital and running costs of the plant. This is because we will have to install the compressor of capacity much higher than needed. Thus the direct expansion types of the air conditioning plants can be used only for smaller buildings or various rooms on the same floor. There are no pressure loss problems in the chilled water system. In this system chilled water is pumped by the pump at very high pressure, which is good enough to carry it to various floors of the multi storey building. The losses in the pressure of water are accommodated by the sufficient capacity of the pump, which has low capital and running cost. Further, the water doesnt carry any oil so there are no oil return problems. In case of the chilled water system the compressor, condenser, expansion valve and the chiller are all kept at the same level in the single plant room. There is no problem as such of the height difference between the condenser and the air handling unit since the

refrigerant does not travels to the air handling unit. The flow of the refrigerant is limited to the chiller plant. The water chilled in the chilled flows to the various air handling units kept on different floors of the building. The whole arrangement and the structure of the chilled water type of central air conditioning plant makes it more suitable for cooling the large multi storey buildings and even for very long distances along the same floor level. This makes the chilled water central air conditioners more popular than the direct expansion type ones.

Reference
1) Basic Refrigeration and Air-conditioning by P N Ananthanarayanan, Tata McGrawHill Publishing Company Limited.

Air Handling Units or Fan Coil Units

As the name suggests air handling unit is the box type of unit that handles the room air. This article describes various parts of the air handling unit, its working and types.

What are Air Handling Units or Fan Coil Units?

The air handling units are very important parts of the central air conditioning plants, packaged air conditioning plants and also the roof mounted split air conditioning systems. As the name suggests air handling unit is the box type of unit that handles the room air. It comprises of the cooling coil over which the hot return air from the room flows, gets cooled and flows back to the room to cool it. The circulation of the air is carried out by the blower. The filter in the air handling unit enables cleaning of the air. The air handling units are also called as fan coil units in case of roof mounted split AC units, since they comprise of the fan and the cooling coil. The air handling units are installed at the different places in the building to be air conditioned. They are connected to the cool air supply and return air ducts which are laid in all the rooms to be cooled. In case of the central air conditioning plants the air handling units are installed on the floor, while in case of the split air conditioners, they are mounted on the roof inside the room above the false ceiling. In case of packaged units they can be installed on the floor or the roof. The various parts of the air handling unit and their working are discussed in details below:

Air Handling Units

1) Box Enclosure:
All the parts of the air handling unit are enclosed in the box type of enclosure. This ensures compactness of the unit and protection of all the components inside it. The whole box is insulated to prevent the loss of heat from the unit.

2) Cooling Coil:
The cooling is one of the most important parts of the air handling units. It is made up of copper tubing of several turns and covered with the fins to increase the heat transfer efficiency of the cooling coil. In direct expansion (DX) type of the central air conditioning plants the refrigerant flows though the cooling coil, which also acts as the evaporator of the plant. In case of the chilled water system the chilled water from the chiller flows through the cooling coil. In packaged and the split air conditioners also the refrigerant flows directly through the cooling coil, thus acting as the evaporator of the system. The hot return air from the room flows over the cooling and gets cooled. This air is supplied to various rooms via the ducts. The flow of chilled water or the refrigerant to the cooling coil is controlled by the solenoid valve.

3) Ducts:
The air handling is connected to the supply air and return air ducts. The supply air duct supplies the cool air from the air handling unit to various rooms, while the return air supplies hot return air from various rooms back to the air handling unit. There is one main supply duct that bifurcates into various small ducting that are laid in all the rooms that are to be cooled. The return ducts from all the rooms also end into one main duct. All the supply and return air ducts are covered with the insulation material to prevent the loss of the cooling effect. The ducts are designed and laid such that there is even distribution of the cooled air to the rooms as per their heat loads and there is least wastage of the cooling effect.

3) Fan or Blower:
The fan or the blower sucks the hot return air from the room and blows it over cooling coil, cools it and sends it to the room to be air conditioned. There are two possible arrangements of the fans in air handling units: draw though arrangement and blow through arrangement. In the draw through arrangement the fan sucks the return air through the filter and the cooling coil. As the air passes over the cooling coil its gets chilled, it is then passed to the rooms to be cooled. In case of the blow through arrangement the fan absorbs the return air and blows it over the air filter and the cooling coil. The air then flows to the rooms to be air conditioned. The draw through arrangement is used more commonly due to its compactness. The fans are of centrifugal types. The capacity of the air handling units is rated in terms of the amount of air that can be handled by its fan. The capacity of the fan can be 30,000cfm (cubic feet per minute) with the static pressure of about 75 to 100mm of water gauge.

Air Handling Unit Fan

4) Air Filter:
Air filter is one the important parts of any air conditioning system. The air filter removes dirt, dust, smoke and other impurities from the air and cleans. The air filter is usually attached to the cooling air and before it. The air is first absorbed or pushed over the air filter and then over the cooling coil.

Image Courtesy
1) http://www.maxifiltration.co.uk/products_airhandlingunits_filters.html 2) http://pdf.nauticexpo.com/pdf/flakt-woods/air-handling-unit-for-ships/31013-9432_4.html 3) http://www.allproducts.com/manufacture98/wsk/product3.html

Central Air Washer or Central Evaporative Air Cooling Plant

This article describes central evaporative air cooling plant that can be used for cooling the whole. It is very cheap and highly effective alternative to the central air conditioning plants.

Introduction to Central Evaporative Air Cooling Plant

In the previous articles of this series we saw DX and Chilled types of central air conditioning plants. In these plants the regular refrigeration cycle is used comprising of components like compressor, condenser, expansion valve and the cooling coil or evaporator. The central air washer is nothing but an evaporative or desert cooler. The small desert cooler is used for rooms and halls, just like the window and split air conditioners. Its elder brother, the central cooler is used for cooling the whole building just like the central air conditioning plants. Just as the central air conditioner has all components similar to the window or split AC, the central air washer has the components similar to the desert coolers. All the components of the central air washer are enclosed in the box which is also called as the air handling unit. In this unit the water is sprayed from the spray nozzles. There is a large blower that sucks the atmospheric air and blows it over the spray of water. As the air flows over the water, the particles of water absorb heat from the air and get evaporated. Due to loss of heat the temperature of air reduces and it gets humidified. The cool and humidified air leaves the washer and enters rooms to be cooled via the ducts. The whole air washer unit should be kept in open space so that fresh air can be absorbed continuously. All the important components of central air washer are discussed below:

Central Air Cooling Plant

Parts of the Central Air Washer or Central Evaporative Air Cooler

1) Water Tank: The water tank is located at the bottom of the air washer. It is connected to the water pipe from suitable source for continuous supply of water. The central air washers need large quantities of water, which increases as the number of rooms to be cooled increases. For proper performance of the central air washer one has to ensure abundant supply of water continuously. The water in the water tank can be ordinary water or it can be chilled water. Usually ordinary water is used. 2) Spray nozzles: The water from the water tank is pumped to the spray nozzles via plastic or mild steel piping. The spray nozzles spray the water inside the central air washer. 3) Water pump: The water pump pumps the water from water tank to the spray nozzles. It is the heart of the central evaporative cooling system. 4) Blower: The blower sucks the atmospheric air and blows it over the spray of water. During this process the particles of water get evaporated as they absorb heat from the air. Due to loss of heat the temperature of atmospheric air reduces and its humidity increases. The air at low temperature and high humidity enters the rooms to be cooled via the ducts. 5) Air filter: Air filter is placed towards the external part of the box of the air washer. This ensures that the air sucked by the blower gets filtered before finally entering into the rooms. 6) Ducts: Ducts are laid from the air washer to all the rooms of the building that are to be cooled. The ducts end in the diffuser that delivers the chilled air to the rooms. The central evaporative cooling systems are highly effective in hot and dry climates. One can get excellent cooling effect similar to the air conditioning systems from these units. While the central air conditioning plants have very high initial and running costs, these costs of the central evaporative cooler are meager since there is no compressor, the most expensive and most power consuming unit of the central air conditioning plant. The central evaporative air cooling plants is an excellent alternative to the central air conditioning plant in suitable conditions.

2) Chilled Water Type of Central Air Conditioning Plant

Chapter 5 : Packaged Air Conditioners - Types of Packaged AC The second part of this series describes important parts of the window air conditioner like control system, thermostat, front panel, air filter, etc. Packaged Air Conditioners
The window and split air conditioners are usually used for the small air conditioning capacities up to 5 tons. The central air conditioning systems are used for where the cooling loads extend beyond 20 tons. The packaged air conditioners are used for the cooling capacities in between these two extremes. The packaged air conditioners are available in the fixed rated capacities of 3, 5, 7, 10 and 15 tons. These units are used commonly in places like restaurants, telephone exchanges, homes, small halls, etc. As the name implies, in the packaged air conditioners all the important components of the air conditioners are enclosed in a single casing like window AC. Thus the compressor, cooling coil, air handling unit and the air filter are all housed in a single casing and assembled at the factory location. Depending on the type of the cooling system used in these systems, the packaged air conditioners are divided into two types: ones with water cooled condenser and the ones with air cooled condensers. Both these systems have been described below:

Packaged Air Conditioners with Water Cooled Condenser

In these packaged air conditions the condenser is cooled by the water. The condenser is of shell and tube type, with refrigerant flowing along the tube side and the cooling water flowing along the shell side. The water has to be supplied continuously in these systems to maintain functioning of the air conditioning system. The shell and tube type of condenser is compact in shape and it is enclosed in a single casing along with the compressor, expansion valve, and the air handling unit including the cooling coil or the evaporator. This whole packaged air conditioning unit externally looks like a box with the control panel located externally. In the packaged units with the water cooled condenser, the compressor is located at the bottom along with the condenser (refer the figure below). Above these components the evaporator or the cooling coil is located. The air handling unit comprising of the centrifugal blower and the air filter is located above the cooling coil. The centrifugal blower has the capacity to handle large volume of air required for cooling a number of rooms. From the top of the package air conditioners the duct comes out that extends to the various rooms that are to be cooled. All the components of this package AC are assembled at the factory site. The gas charging is also done at the factory thus one does not have to perform the complicated operations of the laying the piping, evacuation, gas charging, and leak testing at the site. The unit can be transported very easily to the site and is installed easily on the plane surface. Since all the components are assembled at the factory, the high quality of the packaged unit is ensured.

Package AC with Water Cooled Condenser

Packaged Air Conditioners with Air Cooled Condensers

In this packaged air conditioners the condenser of the refrigeration system is cooled by the atmospheric air. There is an outdoor unit that comprises of the important

components like the compressor, condenser and in some cases the expansion valve (refer the figure below). The outdoor unit can be kept on the terrace or any other open place where the free flow of the atmospheric air is available. The fan located inside this unit sucks the outside air and blows it over the condenser coil cooling it in the process. The condenser coil is made up of several turns of the copper tubing and it is finned externally. The packaged ACs with the air cooled condensers are used more commonly than the ones with water cooled condensers since air is freely available it is difficult maintain continuous flow of the water. The cooling unit comprising of the expansion valve, evaporator, the air handling blower and the filter are located on the floor or hanged to the ceiling. The ducts coming from the cooling unit are connected to the various rooms that are to be cooled.

Package Air Conditioner Air Cooled Condenser

Reference
1) Book: Basic Refrigeration and Air Conditioning by P. N. Ananthanarayanan, Second Edition, Tata Mc-Graw-Hill Publishing Company Limited

Images Courtesy
1) Book: Basic Refrigeration and Air Conditioning by P. N. Ananthanarayanan, Second Edition, Tata Mc-Graw-Hill Publishing Company Limited

Compressors and Capacity Control System in the Packaged Air Conditioners

This article describes the arrangement of compressors in the package air conditioners with multiple compressors. It also describes the capacity control system in these units.

Compressors and Control System in the Packaged Air Conditioners

The packaged air conditioners are used for the low to medium tonnage of air conditioning load ranging from 5 to 20 tons also higher. For smaller loads up to 5 tons single compressor is used. For the higher load of more than 5 tons two compressor are used in the package air conditioning system forming two independent refrigeration systems. Though the two systems are independent they are housed in the same supporting framework. The evaporator systems of these two systems are entwined together. With the two compressors installed in the system there is facility for the capacity control of the air conditioning plant thus one can run the plant fully or partially as per the heating load or as per the number of rooms to be cooled. At full capacity both the compressors can be kept running, while at the partial load one of the compressors can be kept off. The capacity control can also be done automatically by thermostat. The two compressors also ensure that the air conditioning plant won't stop completely when one of the compressor breaks down, for the system can still keep on running though on partial capacity. The water cooled condenser used with the two compressor system can be single shell but partitioned inside it for different passages for the refrigerant from the two compressors. There can also be two different water cooled condensers for two different systems. If the condenser is of air cooled type, there would be two condensers either placed side-by-side or entwined together just like the evaporator of the system.

Thermostat Setting for Two Compressor Systems

For controlling the operation of the two compressor packaged air conditioning system, two different thermostats can be connected to the two cooling systems. This will allow for the capacity control of both the compressors to ensure optimum running of the plant. In many cases the thermostat is connected to the compressor of one cooling system only. In this case one compressors keeps on running at full capacity and the other compressor remains shut or runs at partial or full capacity depending on the cooling load. To ensure that one compressor won't wear and tear at the fast rate, the compressor running at the full capacity is interchanged from time-to-time. The two compressor system is used for the cooling loads between 5 to tons 15 tons, for higher loads more than two units can be installed as per the requirements. There can be multiple air handling units in these systems sending the chilled air to different parts of the building. The compressor and the condenser units are housed in the same location of the building thus there is one common place for the return air. If these units have water cooled condenser, the hot water coming out from them is cooled in the single cooling tower.

During the full load all the compressors run at the full capacity, and when the load reduces one or more compressors are stopped manually or automatically, which makes the other compressors to run at the full load. When the compressor runs at full capacity it runs more efficiently. Whether the packaged air conditioner consists of single compressor or the multiple compressors, most of the components are assembled at the factory site, so the installation of the package AC is quite easy.

2) Cooper's Heating & Air

Package Units

Package units are self-contained units. That means that the entire system (condensor and airhandler) comes in one package that is located outside the building. The ductwork connects from the outside unit into the building. They come in many shapes and sizes, but the surest way to tell if you have a package unit is if you dont see any freon lines (copper tubing) that runs from the outside unit to the inside of the building.

Package System Facts

Package units are compact, all-in-one systems that supply both cooling and heating equipment in one "package." These units sit on the ground or rooftop outside of your home or business. Package units come in three forms: 1. Packaged Heat Pumps offer heating and cooling using heat pump technology. 2. Packaged Air Conditioners cool your home and can heat it as well, using electrical strip heat. 3. Packaged Gas-Electric Units offer all-in-one air conditioning and natural gas-powered furnace performance. Benefits Space efficiency: Unlike split-system units, all components of a complete heating and cooling system are contained in one location, making package units ideal for situations in which indoor space is at a premium.