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Cooling season full and part load performance evaluation of variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system using an occupancy simulated research building.

Number: pap. 2541

Author(s) : IM P., MALHOTRA M., MUNK J., et al.

Summary

Variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems are touted for their superior part-load performance compared to conventional HVAC systems. An on-going study evaluates the full and part-load performance of a VRF system compared with a conventional roof top unit (RTU) variable air volume (VAV) system in a multi-zone building with emulated office occupancy. To accomplish this, full and part-load conditions (i.e., 100%, 75% and 50% loads) in the building are maintained alternately by conditioning either the entire building or selected zones, and emulating the occupancy accordingly. To compare the performance of the two systems, each system is operated alternately for a weeklong period during which each of the three load conditions are maintained for 2-3 days, and the system parameters, indoor and outdoor conditions, loads, and energy use are monitored. This paper presents the cooling season performance and energy use of both systems based on the monitored data during the summer of 2015. System performance is compared in terms of weather-normalized HVAC energy consumption and seasonal average COP. In addition, the ability of each system to maintain the indoor temperature in the conditioned zones is also evaluated. Based on the analysis, the energy savings for the VRF system compared with the RTU system for the cooling season are estimated to be 29%, 36%, and 46% under the 100%, 75%, and 50% load conditions, respectively. The average cooling COP was 4.2, 3.9, and 3.7 for the VRF system and 3.1, 3.0, 2.5 for the RTU system under the 100%, 75% and 50% load conditions, respectively. Both systems maintained the indoor temperature very well. However, the VRF system maintained the indoor temperature in a slightly tighter range compared to the RTU system.

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Pages: 10 p.

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Details

  • Original title: Cooling season full and part load performance evaluation of variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system using an occupancy simulated research building.
  • Record ID : 30019008
  • Languages: English
  • Source: 2016 Purdue Conferences. 16th International Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Conference at Purdue.
  • Publication date: 2016/07/11

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