The Basics of Heating,

Ventilation and Air Conditioning

BY

RAJNEESH VACHASPATI

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR , NPTI( ER),DURGAPUR

 H.V.A.C – Heating, Ventilation and Air
Conditioning system

 The HVAC regulates:

• Room Temperature
• Humidity
• Air Quality
• Air Flow
 Provides comfort for
people
 Allows humans to exist
under adverse conditions.
 Comfort is primary
intent of HVAC
systems.
 Productivity
 Building Durability
 Health
 Fans / Blowers
 Furnace / Heating unit
 Filters
 Compressor
 Condensing units
 Evaporator (cooling coil)
 Control System
 Air Distribution System
 Chillers
 Boilers
 Cooling Towers
 Condenser
Compressor

Expansion
Valve

Evaporator
3 2

4 1

Enthalpy
kJ/kg

Vapour Compression Cycle

• It may be defined as supply of fresh outside air
into an enclosed space or the removal of inside air
from the enclosed space. Ventilation may be
achieved either by natural or artificial means.
• Ventilation is essential for the following reasons:
• For Human respiration
• To dilute air to prevent vitiation of
body heat and odors.
• To remove product of combustion
• To provide such thermal environment as will assist
in the maintenance of the heat balance of the body in
order to prevent discomfort and injury to the health of
the occupants
• To prevent suffocation condition in conference
rooms, committee halls and cinema halls, power
plants.
• Ventilation system provided for any building should meet
the following functional requirements
Humidity
• Air contains certain amount of water vapor or humidity
in it relative humidity is defined as the ratio of amount
of water vapor if the air is saturated at the same
temperature.
Thus, the relative humidity of saturated air is 100 %. Relative
humidity within the range of 30 to 70 % at the working
temperature of 21 0C is considered to be desirable.
• For higher temperatures, low humidity and greater air
movements are necessary for removing greater portion
of heat from the body.
• Evaporative Cooling
• Evaporative cooling is used in the region where
high day temperature prevail with reasonably
low humidity.
• This system may be employed effectively to
lower the temperature of the air to near the
wet bulb temperature.
• It produces an air supply cool enough to take
care of the indoor sensible heat loads without
exceeding the upper safe limits.
To Maintain Quality of Air
•The air habitat room should never contain more
than 0.06 % of CO2, this can be achieved by
proper ventilation
Effective Temperature
•The general temperature difference between
inside & outside is kept not more than 8 0C.
•The effective temperature, affects the human
body, is an index, which combines into a single
value, the effect of air movement, humidity and
temperature. This is a temperature at which a
person will experience sensation of some degree
of cold or warmth.
The common value of effective temperatures in
winter and summer are 22 0C and 20 0C
• There are two systems by which desired ventilation can
be obtained-
• Natural and Artificial.
• Natural ventilation is one which is effected by the
elaborate use of doors, windows, ventilators and
skylights. It is suitable for residential buildings and
small houses.
• Artificial ventilation is the one, in which some
mechanical arrangements are made to increase the
rate of airflow. This system is more
useful for large buildings, assemblies, theatres
etc. It involves the use
of some mechanical equipment's offering effective air
circulations.
• The following rules are broadly followed for
obtaining the efficient natural ventilation
• Inlet opening in the building should be well
distributed and should be located on the
windward side at a low level and outlet
openings should be located on the leeward
side near the top.
• When outlet serves also as inlets, they
should be located at the same level.
• Inlet opening should be free from all obstructions- trees,
buildings, signboards etc.
• Greatest flow per unit area can be achieved when inlet and
outlet are equal in areas;
• Openings may be arranged to take advantage of
constant and dependable stream of winds. In case of
variables wind directions, openings have to be provided in
all directions.
• The amount of outside air entering by natural
infiltration through doors/ windows and other openings
depend on direction and velocity of wind outside and /or
convection
effects arising from temperature or vapor pressure
difference between inside and outside of the workroom.
• Artificial ventilation involves the use of some
mechanical equipment's for effective air
circulation.
• It is applied when natural ventilation is
unsatisfactory in respect of quality, quantity
and controllability.
• This system is costly but improves on the
situation extraction (Exhaust), Plenum (Supply),
extraction- Plenum and evaporative cooling and
air conditioning.
• It is based on creation of Vacuum in the room
by exhaust the vitiated inside air by means of
propeller type (exhaust) fans.
• The extraction of air from the room permits
the
fresh air to flow from outside to inside through
openings (Windows). The system is more useful
in removing smoke, dust, odors etc. from kitchen,
toilets and industrial plants.
• The exhaust fans are not located near the
windows openings to avoid short-circuiting of
the air.
Plenum System
• In this system fresh air is forced into the
room and the vitiated air is allowed to
leave through ventilators, Air is Passed
through a fine gauge screen or filter.
• A constant stream of water is kept flowing
down the screen by means of a blowing fan.
Thus all impurities are removed from the air,
and one can get fresh air.
Celling Fans
•Almost all types of houses and offices use fan in
bedrooms, living rooms and offices area.
•Variety of fans like ceiling, table mounted, and
wall mounted, pedestal fans are available in the
market. Air circulation by ceiling fans cover
normal area of 9 to 10 sq. m. Ceiling fans are
widely used in all premises for the purpose of
ventilation. The ceiling fans are effective only over
certain limited areas
• Extraction –Plenum System
• This is an extension of plenum system in
which extraction (Exhaust) fans are used for
exit of the vitiated air from the rooms and
fresh air supplied through system.
Evaporative Cooling
• Evaporative cooling is used in the region where
high day temperature prevail with reasonably
low humidity.
• This system may be employed effectively to
lower the temperature of the air to near the
wet bulb temperature.
• It produces an air supply cool enough to take
care of the indoor sensible heat loads without
exceeding the upper safe limits.
Air Conditioning
•It is the process of treating air
so to control simultaneously its
temperature, humidity, purity, and
distribution to meets the requirement of the conditioned
space.
•W.H.Carriers who is known as the
‘Father of Air Conditioning’
engineered and installed the first year
around air conditioning system, providing for the the
major functions of heating, cooling, humidifying and
dehumidifying. He made use of air washers for
controlling the dew point of air by heating or chilling
recirculate water.
WHAT IS AIR CONDITIONING ?
It is the process of treating air in an internal environment to establish
and maintain required standards of temperature , humidity,
cleanliness and motion
How following parameters are controlled?
• Temperature :-Air temperature is controlled by heating
and cooling ,the Air
• Humidity :- Air humidity ,the water vapor content of air is
controlled
• Cleanliness :- air cleanliness or air quality is controlled
by either filtration, the removal of undesirable
containminant using filters or other devices or by
ventilation
• Motion :- Air motion refers to air velocity and to where
the air is distributed. It is controlled by appropriate air
distributing equipment
The human body creates heat when it metabolizes(oxidizes) food.
This body heat is continually lost to its cooler surroundings.
RATE OF BODY HEAT LOSS
The factor that determines whether one feels cold or hot is called
the rate of body heat loss. When the rate of body heat loss is within
certain limit, a comfortable feeling comes. If the rate of heat loss
is too large ,cold is felt,if the rate is too low ,one feels hot.
The process by which the body loses heat to the surroundings are
(a) Convection (b) Conduction ‘© Radiation

FACTORS AFFECTING BODY HEAT LOSS

(a) Air Temperature (b) Air Humidity © Air Motion (d)
Temperature of surrounding objects (e) Clothing
 Heating and Cooling
 Accuracy important!
 Design conditions
 Building shell load
 R, U value
 Internal load
 Ventilation load
 Infiltration
 Occupancy schedules
 Conduction
 Convection
 Radiation
 Resistance (R-Value)
U =1/R
U-Value is the rate of
 Q = U x A x T heat flow in Btu/h
through a one ft2 area
when one side is 1oF
warmer
All heat loads are divided into Sensible heat load and latent head
load and on the basis of total heat load Design of HVAC system
takes place
ROOM HEAT GAINS
• Conduction through exterior walls ,roof and glass.

• Conduction through interior partitions , ceilings and

floors.

• Solar radiation through glass.

• Lighting.

• People.

• Equipment.

• Heat from infiltration of outside air through openings

 Dry bulb temp.
 Wet bulb temp.
 Humidity
 Dew point
 Moisture content
 Heating
 Cooling
 Humidify
 De-Humidify

Psychrometric Chart
• DBT : The temperature of the air ,as sensed by a thermometer. The
words temperature and dry bulb temperature will be used to mean the
same thingh with regard to air.

• WBT :The temperature sensed by a thermometer whose bulb

is wrapped with a water – socked wick in rapidly moving air

• DP : The temperature at which the water vapor in the air

would begin to condense if the air were cooled ,at constant
pressure.

• Humidity Ratio : This is also called the moisture content. The

weight of water vapor per kg of dry air , in kg/kg of dry air.

• RH: The ratio of actual water vapor pressure in the air to the
vapor pressure if the air were saturated at the dry bulb
temperature. It is expressed in %ge.
• Moist air is the working substance in air-
conditioning system. It is a mixture of two
gases dry air and water vapor.
• Dry air is a mixture of a number of gases
and water vapor may exist in a saturated or
supersaturated state. Dry air is considered
as fixed part and water vapor is considered
as the variable part.
• Therefore, the air conditioning must be able to
vary the temperature and humidity of the air
conditioning space according to the outside
conditions. That means:-
• In hot arid regions it must reduce temperature
and increase humidity;
• In hot-humid regions, reduce both temperature
and humidity;
• In cold humid regions, increase both
temperature and humidity
• Air Conditioning helps in the following ways-
whether for comfort air conditioning or
industrial air- conditioning;
• Preserving or maintaining health, and comfort
of human beings;
• Comfortable entertainment in theatres,
assembly halls;
• Journey on roads/ rails become comfortable.
• Improving the quality of industrial products,
such as artificial silk, cotton cloth, etc.
Summer Air Conditioning
In most of the places the summer season is hot and humid. Hence, in
order to provide comfortable conditions to the occupants during
summer, it is required to supply cold and dry air to the occupied space.
This requires systems wherein the hot and humid air can be cooled to
temperatures lower than the dew point temperature, so that the water
vapour in air can be removed by condensation, and the resulting cold
and dehumidified air supplied to the conditioned space in required
quantity for providing thermal comfort. Thus it can be seen that a
typical summer air conditioning system requires a refrigeration system
that reduces the temperature of the air to temperatures much lower
than the surroundings. Of course, in some areas such as deserts, the
summer is hot and dry. Air conditioning systems for these hot and dry
climates also require cooling of air below the ambient temperatures,
however, in stead of removing water vapour it may be required to add
water to the air supplied to the conditioned space.
The outside air flows through the damper, and
mixes up with recirculated air (which is obtained
from the conditioned space). The mixed air passes
through a filter to remove dirt, dust and other
impurities. The air now passes through a cooling
coil. The coil has a temperature much below the
required dry bulb temperature of the air in the
conditioned space. The cooled air passes through a
perforated membrane and looses its moisture in
the condensed from which is collected in a sump.
After that, the air is made to pass through a
heating coil which heats up the air slightly. This is
done to bring the air to the designed dry bulb
temperature and relative humidity
Winter Air Conditioning
•In winter, outside temperature is low and
hence heating of air is required for comfort.
The cycle of operation consists of air cleaning,
air heating, and humidification and air
distribution/ circulation.
Direct Expansion System
•It is the system where the refrigerant is utilized
to cool the air directly the common example are
room air conditioners, packaged units, and
central direct expansion plants.
• A room air conditioner is a factory made assembly
designed unit for mounting on a window, through a
wall,.
• It is designed to deliver conditioned air without
ducts.
• It is the prime source of refrigeration and
dehumidification and circulates and cleanses the air.
It may also include means for ventilation and heating.
Normal capacities of room air conditioners in KWH
are 1 tonne to 10 tonne. Electrical consumption is a
critical performance factor in air conditioning.
• Purifying filters and de-odouring filters are
just some examples of the extra filters
provided to convince consumers of the better
performance and capacity to these filters. The
function of the main filter is mainly to protect
several components inside the system, of large
particles that may get inside the appliance and
damage it.
• The constant humming sounds of the AC, even
if not very loud ( between 44 dB to 51 dB); can
be quite annoying to the ear.
• While Installing an air conditioner, its place of
installation is an important criterion, which
affects the performance of the air conditioner.
• An AC should optimally distributed air with
the
same air speed and temperature in all points of
the room. This allows for even cooling of the
room.
• An AC should be located on shady side of the
house or building and direct sunlight does not
fall on AC as this reduces its efficiency. An AC
should be protected from dust and rain.
Packaged Air Conditioners
•It comprises of a compressor, water cooled condenser,
evaporator and fan and all mounted in a sheet metal
cabinet.
•They are ideally suited for residence, shops, banks, offices
and some industrial applications. Window units are
available up to a limited capacity.
•For large capacities floor mounted self-contained
packaged units are made to meet to meet the
requirements. They are normally mounted on a resilient pad,
which prevents
vibration of the compressor from being transmitted to the
building. It is used for both comfort
purpose as well as
process control of temperature and
humidity for manufacturing purposes.
A split air conditioning System
•It has a coil and fan inside the
room and the
nosier components ( the compressor, fan and
condenser) are on the outside.
•Split air conditioners are slightly more
expansive to buy and install,but they are
much quiter on
the inside, more versatile than conventional
types, and if you need air conditioning in more
than one room, some models have an outside
unit that can supply two or more fan/coils units on
the inside.
• In cold region, it is necessary to keep warmth
in the building; therefore some artificial
measures need to be taken.
• The primary sources of heat for buildings
heating-systems are fossil fuels, natural gas, and
various grades of fuel oils and coal.
• Electricity is used under certain circumstances
for heating in commercial buildings including
perimeter zone heating and service water
heating.
• The heating plant produces heat and
distribution systems like ducts, fans and
pumps, terminal devices and auxiliary
equipment distributed to the intended
places. The equipment that produces heat are
furnace, boilers and furnaces, heat pumps,
heat exchangers, etc.
Furnaces
•Furnaces are used to heat air streams that are used
for heating the interior of buildings. Boiler are pressure
vessels used to transfer heat produced by burning a fuel
to a fluid. The most common fluid used for this
purpose in buildings is water liquid or vapor.
•The key distinction between furnace and boiler is that
air is heated in furnace and water is heated in the
boilers. The fuel used for producing heat in boilers and
furnace include natural gas (i.e. methane),propane, fuel
oil, wood, coal and other fuels.
• Modern furnaces use forced convection to
remove heat produced within the
firebox from its outer
surface. The up-flowdesign is used in
fully sized
mechanical rooms where sufficient floor –to ceiling
space for the connecting ductwork.
• Down-flow furnace works in
reverse, airflows, downward as itis
heated by passingover the heat
exchanger. This design is used in residences without
basements or in upstairs mechanical spaces
in two story buildings.
• In addition tonatural gas, liquefied
propane gas
• Boilers for buildings are classified as – low
pressure and high pressure boilers.
Low pressure boilers
• Steam boilers with operating pressure below 100
kPa and hot water boilers with pressure below
1000 kPa, temperature are limited t 120 0C.
High pressure boilers
• Steam boilers with operating pressure above 100
kPa and hot water boilers with pressure below
1000 kPa, temperature are limited to 120 0C
• ISHRAE
• The Indian Society of Heating, Refrigerating
and Air Conditioning Engineers (ISHRAE),
was founded in 1981
• ISHRAE’s primary objective is the
advancement of the art and sciences of
Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning,
Refrigeration Engineering & other related
Building Services.
 In powerhouse HVAC is required to maintain temperature and air
quality conditions suitable for operating equipment, plant
personnel and visitors.
 For accuracy and precision of equipment installed in power house
it is essential to maintain required operating condition in all
weather.
 For any HVAC system the energy conservation is important.

 HVAC system of underground power houses is an essential

requirement.
 The structure of underground powerhouses are generally located
well below the ground level.This needs suitable ventilation system
which can makeup the requirement for sufficient fresh air below
ground level and maintain temperature and humidity for human
comfort
• In chamera power house for proper ventilation and air-
conditioning 16 nos of AHU(Air handling Units),9 nos
MAU(Makeup air unit) and 2 nos of AC’s are installed at various
locations in power house.
• Other accessories like exhaust fans,Transfer fans ,pressure Fans
and humidifiers are also installed at different locations as per
design criteria.