Source: HVAC Systems Design Handbook

Chapter

22
Indoor Air Quality
22.1 Introduction Indoor air quality (IAQ) has become a major issue within the built environment since the issue of the 1989 edition of ASHRAE Standard 62.1, 1989, Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality. This landmark edition of the Standard greatly increased the amount of outside air requirements for a variety of building types and ultimately became part of most state building codes. This IAQ design standard has been revised several times since the 1989 version. The current version, as of this writing, is the 2007 edition. The history of IAQ dates back to the time when people became aware of the health issues involved with air that contains contaminants (gaseous and particulate). In the early part of the 20th century, it was thought that windows should be open most of the time in order to control indoor air pollutants and to help prevent the spread of diseases. Heating systems were greatly oversized to accommodate opened windows. Some buildings in the 1920s included either (or both) an ozone generator or a 100 percent outdoor air ventilation system that was used for decontamination of the building during the nighttime hours. All of these seemed to be good ideas for the time. In the 1970s to the mid-1980s, although ventilation air was required by all building codes (typically ve CFM per person), verication, through air ow measuring devices, of the actual amount of outside being intro-

485

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

486

Chapter Twenty-Two

duced to the building was not required. Lacking measurement of the required minimum outside air and automatic control to maintain a minimum outside quantity, variable air volume (VAV) systems could not maintain the minimum outside air requirement due to the varying pressure relationships within the system. Many building owners/operators reduced or completely shut-down the outside ventilation systems in many buildings due to the 1970s energy crisis and the ever-increasing cost of energy. (This author personally witnessed many buildings in the 1980s that had the outside air intakes either completely or partially shut. This included schools and ofce buildings.) At the same time, building construction techniques were focused on creating tighter building envelopes (walls, roofs, doors, windows, etc.) to minimize the inltration of outside air. This helped set the stage for many buildings to become sick due to the reduced amount of fresh outside air that was being introduced into the building by the ventilation system and inltration and the increased use of various building materials that were made with volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Volatile organic compounds, such as formaldehyde, can cause many health issues. These compounds can be found in many construction-related items such as carpeting, paints, treated lumber, building insulation, ductwork adhesive and sealant, and new furniture. These VOCs are released into the indoor environment over a period of time. Much emphasis has been placed on the reduction or elimination of VOCs in new buildings and building-related components by the green building movement. (See Chapter 23.) While air consists of primarily two gases (nitrogen and oxygen) plus trace amounts of several other gases, it is the amount of unwanted gases and particulate contamination and its impact on human health that we are concerned with. This chapter is a basic reference for designing modern HVAC systems that are in compliance with the current ASHRAE Standard 62.1.1 We will discuss the accepted standard of care that we, as HVAC engineers and designers, must adhere to when calculating, selecting, and designing our HVAC systems. 22.2 Basics of IAQ Design

The fundamentals of incorporating IAQ design in HVAC systems in the rst and second decades of the 21st century involve an understanding of ASHRAE Standard 62.11 (and future editions) and how to apply it. IAQ has been dened as indoor air judged acceptable by at least 80 percent of the building occupants. The quality of the outside air must meet certain criteria to be used for the ventilation of buildings. Table 22.1 shows the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maximum levels of common contaminate concentrations.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

Table 22.1 National Primary Ambient Air Quality Standards for Outdoor Air as Set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

487

SOURCE: Copyright 2007 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., www.ashrae.org. Abstracted by permission from ASHRAE Standard 62.1 2007 Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, Table 4.1

22.3

Methods of Providing Acceptable IAQ

There are three different methods of achieving acceptable IAQ. The rst is through natural ventilation. This requires window openings to be open, with a maximum distance from windows to the occupants not exceeding a given distance and with a prescribed number of windows and interior openings to all areas of the building. (See ASHRAE Standard 62.1 for more information).1

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

488

Chapter Twenty-Two

Sustainable building design seems to emphasize this method. However, this approach is not reasonable in many areas of the U.S. due to weather, humidity, and environmental impacts. Care must be used with this method to ensure that additional outdoor contaminants that may be introduced into the building are minimized. These contaminants include seasonal allergens, airborne dust, and animal droppings. Even though ASHRAE Standard 62.11 does not specically address these and other possible respiratory irritants, building occupants with hypersensitivity to allergens (mold spores, ragweed, tree pollen, ower pollen, and others) may be adversely affected, and this method may lead to complaints and illnesses. Filtering of the outside air with high-efciency air lters (MERV-13) is recommended by this writer for all outside air intake systems. If natural ventilation is desired, this writer recommends the use of free cooling or economizer outside air systems through the main air handling systems. Many state building codes (except some coastal states) require the use of outside air for cooling when the outside air conditions are favorable. Economizer systems can use outside air from the minimum required up to the maximum supply air design CFM. The second method is the prescriptive method as dened in ASHRAE Standard 62.1.1 This method is the most widely used today for IAQ in new and existing retrotted buildings. This method (similar to natural ventilation in its intention) is based upon the use of outside air in a prescribed quantity to dilute the level of indoor contaminants. The prescribed air ow rate to the breathing zone (discussed later in this chapter) is based on two separate factors that are added together to arrive at the amount of outside air to be provided. The rst part is based on a prescribed outside air ow rate per person multiplied by the number of occupants based on the usage of the space. The second part is a prescribed outside air ow rated per square foot of oor area based on the usage of the space. Example: Classroom for students 9 years of age Area 1000 ft2 Occupants 25 students 1 teacher Equation from ASHRAE 62.1-2007 for unused outside air to the occupied space: Vbz Where Vbz Rpz Pz Raz Az Rpz Pz Raz Az1 (22.1)

uncorrected outside air to the breathing zoneCFM CFM/person (see Table 22.2) zone/room population CFM/ft2 of the zone/room (see Table 22.2) oor area of the zone/roomft2

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

489

Required outside air to the breathing zone: CFM CFM Vbz = 10 26 person + 0.10 1000 ft person ft 2 = 360 CFM The outside air required to be delivered to the room is based on the required outside air to the breathing zone divided by the zone air distribution efciency factor Ez (Table 22.4). In this example, the outside air required to be delivered to the space is: Outsidespace = Where Ez Vbz 360 CFM = = 450 CFM 0.8 Ez 15F above the room temperature

0.8 for ceiling supply air set point

In this example, the required outside air to the breathing zone is 360 CFM. This may not be the amount of outside air that the system must intake for this space. The other factors that could increase the amount of outside are dependent on the delivery method to the occupied space and the systems efciency of delivering the air to the breathing zone (Figure 22.2 and Table 22.4). The breathing zone is dened as the region within an occupied space between planes 3 and 72 inches above the oor and more than 2 feet from walls or xed air conditioning equipment (Figure 22.1).1

Plenum Ceiling 72 Above Floor

24 From Wall

Floor 3 Above Floor

Figure 22.1

Breathing zone diagram.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

490

Chapter Twenty-Two

Outside Air

AHU Ceiling

72 Above Floor 24 From Wall Breathing Zone

Floor

Zone Ventilation Efficency Ez = 1.0 Ceiling Supply/Return

3 Above Floor

Figure 22.2

Zone ventilation efciency diagram.

The third method is the IAQ method as dened by ASHRAE Standard 62.1.1 This method requires acceptance of the building occupants after the building is in operation. In most cases it is recommended to adhere to the prescriptive method of the Standard, unless the engineer has a method of determining acceptable outside ow, with gaseous ltration system, that will prove equivalent. This method should be discussed with the local code ofcials before implementation. As a result, a lower outside rate may be achieved through the use of gaseous ltration systems that are specically designed to remove gaseous contaminants from the supply air to the building. 22.4 Design Considerations for Acceptable IAQ

The following items must be addressed by the HVAC engineer or designer at the beginning of the project in order to determine the amount of outside air required per air handling system: 1. The type of HVAC system proposed for the building. All of the systems could have different results for the outside air calculations due to differences or potential differences in the paths that the air must take to reach the breathing zone. In other words, the more the outside air is blended and diluted with building air, the more outside air is required to be brought in by the system.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

Table 22.2 Standard Outdoor Air Rates

491

Space type Art classroom Auditorium seating area Bank vaults/ safe deposit Barber shop Barracks sleeping areas Bars, cocktail lounges Beauty and nail salons Bedroom/ living Room Booking/waiting Bowling alley (seating) Cafeteria/fast food dining Cell Classrooms (age 9 plus) Classrooms (ages 5-8) Coin-operated laundries Computer (not printing) Computer lab Conference/ meeting Corridors Courtrooms Day room Daycare (through age 4) Disco/ dance oors Gambling casinos Game arcades Guard stations Gym, stadium (play area) Health club/ aerobics room Health club/ weight rooms Lecture classroom Lecture hall (xed seats) Legislative chambers Libraries Lobbies Lobbies/ prefunction (hotel, resort) Main entry lobbies Mall common areas Media center Multi-purpose assembly Multi-use assembly Museums (childrens) Museums/ galleries Music/theater/ dance Ofce space

IP Rp Ra (CFM/per) (CFM/ft2) 10 0.18 5 0.06 5 0.06 7.5 0.06 5 0.06 7.5 0.18 20 0.12 5 0.06 7.5 0.06 10 0.12 7.5 0.18 5 0.12 10 0.12 10 0.12 7.5 0.06 5 0.06 10 0.12 5 0.06 0 0.06 5 0.06 5 0.06 10 0.18 20 0.06 7.5 0.18 7.5 0.18 5 0.06 0 0.3 20 0.06 20 0.06 7.5 0.06 7.5 0.06 5 0.06 5 0.12 5 0.06 7.5 0.06 5 7.5 10 5 7.5 7.5 7.5 10 5 0.06 0.06 0.12 0.06 0.06 0.12 0.06 0.06 0.06

Default Occupant SI Density Rp Ra #/1000 ft2 (L/s-per) (L/s-m2) (#/1000 m2) 5 0.9 20 2.5 0.3 150 2.5 0.3 5 3.8 0.3 25 2.5 0.3 20 3.8 0.9 100 10 0.6 25 2.5 0.3 10 3.8 0.3 50 5 0.6 40 3.8 0.9 100 2.5 0.6 25 5 0.6 35 5 0.6 25 3.8 0.3 20 2.5 0.3 4 5 0.6 25 2.5 0.3 50 0 0.3 0 2.5 0.3 70 2.5 0.3 30 5 0.9 25 10 0.3 100 3.8 0.9 120 3.8 0.9 20 2.5 0.3 15 0 1.5 30 10 0.3 40 10 0.3 10 3.8 0.3 65 3.8 0.3 150 2.5 0.3 50 2.5 0.6 10 2.5 0.3 150 3.8 0.3 30 2.5 3.8 5 2.5 3.8 3.8 3.8 5 2.5 0.3 10 0.3 40 0.6 25 0.3 120 0.3 100 0.6 40 0.3 40 0.3 35 0.3 5 (Continued on next page)

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

492

Chapter Twenty-Two
(Continued)

Table 22.2

Default Occupant IP SI Density Rp Ra #/1000 ft2 Rp Ra (L/s-m2) (#/1000 m2) Space type (CFM/per) (CFM/ft2) (L/s-per) Pet shops (animal areas) 7.5 0.18 3.8 0.9 10 Pharmacy (prep. area) 5 0.18 2.5 0.9 10 Photo studios 5 0.12 2.5 0.6 10 Places of religious workshop 5 0.06 2.5 0.3 120 Reception areas 5 0.06 2.5 0.3 30 Restaurant dining rooms 7.5 0.18 3.8 0.9 70 Sales (except as below) 7.5 0.12 3.8 0.6 15 Science laboratories 10 0.18 5 0.9 25 Shipping/ receiving 0 0.12 0 0.6 0 Spectator areas 7.5 0.06 3.8 0.3 150 Sports arena (play area) 0 0.3 0 1.5 0 Stages, studios 10 0.06 5 0.3 70 Storage rooms 0 0.12 0 0.6 0 Supermarket 7.5 0.06 3.8 0.3 8 Swimming (pool & deck) 0 0.48 0 2.4 0 Telephone/ data entry 5 0.06 2.5 0.3 60 Transportation waiting 7.5 0.06 3.8 0.3 100 Warehouses 0 0.06 0 0.3 0 Wood/metal shop 10 0.18 5 0.9 20 SOURCE: Copyright 2007 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., www.ashrae.org. Abstracted by permission from ASHRAE Standard 62.1 2007 Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality Table 6.1.

a. VAV systems: i. Single duct with terminal heating/reheat ii. Single duct with series fan-powered VAV terminals iii. Dual-duct VAV single supply fan. iv. Dual-duct with dual supply fans b. Constant volume systems: i. Single-zone system ii. Multizone systems iii. Dual-duct constant volume iv. Terminal units 2. The suitability of the local outside air quality for introduction into the building: a. Is the location of the building in an area where ozone (O3) has been determined to exceed the limit set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency? b. The second highest daily maximum limit is 0.160 PPM. If this is exceeded, gaseous lters are required.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Table 22.3

Ventilaion Air Requirements for Medical Facilities

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

SOURCE: Copyright 2007 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., www.ashrae.org. Abstracted by permission from ASHRAE Standard 62.1 2007 Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, Table E-1.

493

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

494

Chapter Twenty-Two
Zone Air Distribution Efciency

Table 22.4

SOURCE: Copyright 2007 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, Inc., www.ashrae.org. Abstracted by permission from ASHRAE Standard 62.1 2007, Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, Table 6.2.

c. Particulate concentration: There are two ratings, PM10 and PM2.5, per ASHRAE Standard 62.1. A minimum lter efciency of MERV 6 is required. However, this author recommends MERV 13 lters for all central air handling systems. The use of MERV 6 prelters will greatly extend the life of the MERV 13 lters. d. Additional outside contaminants include carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, lead, and others resulting from proximity to industrial plants, cooling tower mist, and other sources.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

495

3. Determine the method or path for introducing outside air from the outside air intake to the occupant breathing zone. 4. Determine the number of recirculation paths for the type of HVAC system that is being considered. Stated another way, how many blending paths for outside air with return air are required by the HVAC system and the chosen outside air path? Below are some of the possible outside paths to the occupied spaces: a. Direct discharge into the occupied space from a dedicated outside air system. Air is fully conditioned (dehumidied and reheated) and supplied to the space at neutral or room conditions (sensible temperature and relative humidity). There are no blending paths with this system other than the air being directly delivered and mixed with the room air. b. The air can be mixed at the air handling return air duct system before entering the lters. c. The air can enter via a separate outside air path where it is ltered and fully conditioned to the duct supply air temperature and humidity and then blended downstream of the (conditioned return air) cooling/heating/preheat coils and upstream of the supply air fan before delivery to the supply air ductwork system. d. The air can be indirectly supplied to the space through the return air plenum. e. Below are some typical outside and blending paths with the return air paths: i. VAV single duct, nonmixing VAV terminal box ii. Outside air path direct to the main air handing system and blended with return airone blending path (Figure 22.3) iii. Outside air path direct to the occupied space with no blending before introduction to the breathing zone; consideration must be given to the distribution of outside air within the occupied space. f. VAV system single-duct with series fan-powered VAV terminal box ducting room return air for the bypass side of the VAV terminal box. i. Outside air path direct to the main air handing system and blended with one return air blending path number one; fan-powered VAV box fans are constant volume with VAV primary side and variable recirculated or bypass air as a second blending path. 5. Determine the occupancy number and diversity for the system. If an ofce building has one VAV air handling system that serves both ofce and conference meeting spaces, a signicant reduction in the

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

496

Chapter Twenty-Two
Air Flow Measuring Station Filters MERV-6 to 13 Supply Fan Coils M

VAV Terminal

AFM

Outside Air Single Blending Path for Outside Air M Relief M

Cooling/Dehumidifying/Preheat/Heating Modulating Dampers

Return/Relief Fan

Room Ceiling Supply/Return

Figure 22.3

VAV single-duct with nonmixing VAV terminal box.

actual occupancy for the outside air requirement can be realized and may be used for the total outside air calculations. 6. Determine the supply air and return air delivery method. Is it a typical ceiling supply and return air system, or will the air be supplied at the ceiling with return air being low in the space? This is a determining factor for the zone air distribution effectiveness (Table 22.4). 7. Using the ofcial outside air calculation spreadsheet that is provided with ASHRAE Standard 62.1, determine the total system outside air requirements. The spreadsheet will determine the critical ventilation zone. The critical ventilation zone is the zone that requires the most outside air per cubic foot of supply air. This zone is typically a conference room or a place of assembly such as a training room or auditorium where the number of people per square foot of oor area is the highest for the system. The outside requirements for the entire system are adjusted to meet the requirements of the critical zone. a. Example: Use three classrooms as in the example above, an 800 ft2 ofce space and a 200 ft2 conference room. Figures 22.5 and 22.6 give the summer and winter conditions, respectively. The resulting outside CFM for summer, using a ceiling supply and return with one mixing path (no blending of the supply air at the room terminal box), is 1278 CFM. All three classrooms are the critical ventilation zones. The resulting outside air CFM for winter use (all terminal boxes at a predetermined minimum position) is 1436 CFM. In this case, 1436 cfm would be provided for the system. b. For larger systems, the HVAC engineer or designer might consider two set points for outside air ow based on the summer and winter requirements.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

497

Air Flow Measuring Station

AFM Outside Air M First Blending Path= System Return Air + System Outside Air

Second Blending Path System Supply Air to the Room (System RA + System OA)% of Room Maximum CFM+ Room Return Air (VAV Terminal Fan CFMSeries Fan Powered VAV Terminal System Supply Air) Filters MERV-6 to 13 Supply Fan Coils Cooling/Dehumidifying/ Preheat/Heating M Modulating Dampers Return Air By-Pass To Series Fan-Powered VAV Terminal Box

Relief M Return/Relief Fan

Room Ceiling Supply/Return

Figure 22.4

Fan-powered VAV terminal box with bypass return air.

c. Demand-controlled ventilation may be used to adjust the amount of outside air based on a common indoor contaminant as an indicator of indoor air quality. In ofces and schools this contaminant is typically carbon dioxide (CO2). 22.5 Additional Design Considerations for Acceptable IAQ

Additional design considerations include the following: 1. Humidity control for both summer and winter conditions: a. Summer humidity control requires careful design consideration, especially in the south and southeastern costal regions where humidity tends to be high for most of the cooling season. Many single coil cooling systems (chilled water or direct-expansion) do not remove adequate amounts of humidity during partial load periods. As the cooling load falls, the air volume (with a VAV system) reduces; ow from a chilled water coil slows, and direct-expansion coil compressors are cycled more to provide 55F supply air temperature. This can result in less moisture removal on a cool, humid day. In these regions, separate outside paths should be considered to condition the outside air before blending it with return air. Another method is to condition the outside air and supply it directly to the space as neutral conditioned room air at the room dry-bulb and wet-bulb temperatures.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

498

Chapter Twenty-Two
Example Classroom Building AHU-1 Summer IP Name As Ps Vpsd Ras Rps Units sf P cfm cfm/sf cfm/p System 4,000 87 4,650 0.11 9.0

Building: System Tag/Name: Operating Condition Description: Units (select from pull-down list) Inputs for System Floor area served by system System population (including diversity) Design primary supply fan airflow rate Average outdoor airflow rate per unit area for the system Average outdoor airflow rate per person for the system Inputs for Potentially Critical Zones Zone Name Zone Tag Space type Floor Area of zone Design population of zone Design discharge airflow to zone (total primary plus local recirculated) Induction Terminal Unit, Dual Fan Dual Duct or Transfer Fan? Local recirc.air fraction representative of ave system return air Inputs for Operating Condition Analyzed Percent of total design airflow rate at conditioned analyzed Air distribution type at conditioned analyzed Zone air distribution effectiveness at conditioned analyzed Primary air fraction of supply air at conditioned analyzed Results System Ventilation Efficiency Outdoor air intake airflow rate required at condition analyzed Outdoor air intake rate per unit floor area Outdoor air intake rate per person served by system (including diversity) Outdoor air intake rate as a % of design primary supply air Uncorrected outdoor air intake airflow rate Detailed Calculations Initial Calculations for the System as a whole Primary supply air flow to system at conditioned analyzed UncorrectedOA requirement for system Uncorrected OA req'd as a fraction of primary SA Initial Calculations for individual zones OA rate per unit area for zone OA rate per person for zone Total supply air to zone (at condition being analyzed) Unused OA req'd to breathing zone Unused OA requirement for zone Fraction of supply air to zone from sources outside the zone Fraction of supply air to zone from fully mixed primary air Fraction of outdoor air to zone from sources outside the zone Outdoor air fraction required in air discharged to zone System Ventilation Efficiency Zone Ventilation Efficiency System Ventilation Efficiency

Zone title turns purple italic for critical zone(s)

Az Pz Vdzd Er Ds Ez Ep Ev Vot Vot/As Vot/Ps Vot/Vpsd Vou

Select from pull-down list sf P (default value listed; may be overridden) cfm Select from pull-down list or leave blank if N/A

% Select from pull-down list

100%

cfm cfm/sf cfm/p % cfm

0.94 1278 0.32 14.7 27% 1205

Vps Vou Xs Ra Rp Vdz Vbz Voz Fa Fb Fc Zd Evz Ev

cfm cfm

= = =

Vpsd Ds Rps Ps + Ras As Vou / Vps

= = =

4650 1205 0.26

cfm/sf cfm/p cfm cfm cfm

= = = = = = = = =

Vdsd Ds Rpz Pz + Raz Az Vbz/Ez Ep + (1-Ep)Er Ep 1-(1-Ez)(1-Ep)(1-Er) Voz / Vdz (Fa + FbXs - FcZ) / Fa min (Evz)

= = = = = = = =

0.94

Summer outside air calculations. Abstracted from ASHRAE Standard 62.1 spreadsheet.
Figure 22.5

b. In winter, humidity should be added in cold climates to help alleviate dry indoor air. The maximum indoor winter relative humidity should not exceed 30 percent at 72F dry-bulb indoor temperature. Exceeding 30 percent could cause respiratory health issues and possibly building damage if an improper or no vapor barrier exists. The term relative humidity is the humidity level (as a percentage) in relation to the maximum amount of moisture the air can hold at the given dry-bulb temperature. The colder the air, the less moisture it can retain. 2. Duct construction: a. Avoid unfaced berglass in the air stream. b. Use duct sealing compounds with low volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

499

Check Figures 21.8 1.16 0.11 9.0 P/1000 sf cfm/sf ave cfm/sf ave cfm/p

Potentially Critical Zones Classroom 1 Classroom 2 Office space Conference Classroom 3 Totals/averages 1 2 3 4 5 Classrooms Office space Conference/ Classrooms Classrooms meeting (age 9 plus) (age 9 plus) (age 9 plus) 4000 total sf 1,000 1,000 800 200 1,000 97 total P 26 26 4 15 26 4650 total cfm 1,200 1,200 700 350 1,200 None None None None None 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 1.00 average 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% average 1.00 average 1.00 average Primary airflow rate to zones 4650 cfm 100% Percent of design

97 System population without diversity 0.90 System population diversity, D

0.12 10.00 1200 380.0 380 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.32 0 .9 4

0.12 10.00 1200 380.0 380 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.32 0.94

0.06 5.00 700 68.0 68 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.10 1.16

0.06 5.00 350 87.0 87 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.25 1.01

0.12 10.00 1200 380.0 380 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.32 0.94

4650 1295 1295

0.32 Maximum Zd

c. Design outside air intake louvers with low velocity to minimize moisture intake from rain or snow. Provide sloped outside air plenums behind the louvers with low point drains. d. Locate building exhaust fans to minimize the amount of positively pressurized exhaust ductwork within the building. Use roofmounted fans where practical to maintain all of the exhaust ductwork within the building under negative pressure. (See ASHRAE Standard 62.1 for classications of contaminated air to determine exhaust ductwork planning and routing.) 22.6 Protection of Outside Air Intakes

Since the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and the subsequent anthrax scare, the protection of building systems has become a
Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

500

Chapter Twenty-Two

Building: System Tag/Name: Operating Condition Description: Units (select from pull-down list) Inputs for System Floor area served by system System population (including diversity) Design primary supply fan airflow rate Average outdoor airflow rate per unit area for the system Average outdoor airflow rate per person for the system Inputs for Potentially Critical Zones Zone Name Zone Tag Space type

Example Classroom Building AHU-1 Winter IP Name As Ps Vpsd Ras Rps Units sf P cfm cfm/sf cfm/p System 4,000 87 2,550 0.11 9.0

Zone title turns purple italic for critical zone(s)

Az Floor Area of zone Pz Design population of zone Design discharge airflow to zone (total primary plus local recirculated) Vdzd Induction Terminal Unit, Dual Fan Dual Duct or Transfer Fan? Er Local recirc.air fraction representative of ave system return air Inputs for Operating Condition Analyzed Ds Percent of total design airflow rate at conditioned analyzed Air distribution type at conditioned analyzed Ez Zone air distribution effectiveness at conditioned analyzed Ep Primary air fraction of supply air at conditioned analyzed Results System Ventilation Efficiency Ev Outdoor air intake airflow rate required at condition analyzed Vot Outdoor air intake rate per unit floor area Vot/As Outdoor air intake rate per person served by system (including diversity Vot/Ps Outdoor air intake rate as a % of design primary supply air Vot/Vpsd Vou Uncorrected outdoor air intake airflow rate Detailed Calculations Initial Calculations for the System as a whole Primary supply air flow to system at conditioned analyzed UncorrectedOA requirement for system Uncorrected OA req'd as a fraction of primary SA Initial Calculations for individual zones OA rate per unit area for zone OA rate per person for zone Total supply air to zone (at condition being analyzed) Unused OA req'd to breathing zone Unused OA requirement for zone Fraction of supply air to zone from sources outside the zone Fraction of supply air to zone from fully mixed primary air Fraction of outdoor air to zone from sources outside the zone Outdoor air fraction required in air discharged to zone System Ventilation Efficiency Zone Ventilation Efficiency System Ventilation Efficiency

Select from pull-down list sf P (default value listed; may be overridden) cfm Select from pull-down list or leave blank if N/A

% Select from pull-down list

100%

cfm cfm/sf cfm/p % cfm

0.84 1436 0.36 16.5 56% 1205

Vps Vou Xs Ra Rp Vdz Vbz Voz Fa Fb Fc Zd Evz Ev

cfm cfm

= = =

Vpsd Ds Rps Ps + Ras As Vou / Vps

= = =

2550 1205 0.47

cfm/sf cfm/p cfm cfm cfm

= = = = = = = = =

Vdsd Ds Rpz Pz + Raz Az Vbz/Ez Ep + (1-Ep)Er Ep 1-(1-Ez)(1-Ep)(1-Er) Voz / Vdz (Fa + FbXs - FcZ) / Fa min (Evz)

= = = = = = = =

0.84

Figure 22.6

Winter outside calculations.

concern. Outside air intakes can be prime targets for gas or biological terrorism. Therefore, protection of outside air intakes should be a concern of the HVAC engineer/designer. The federal government requires protection of all outside air intakes in all federally owned buildings, including Army, Navy, and Air Force structures. Regardless of the ownership of the building, protection of the outside air intake systems should be a consideration. Methods of protection include the following: 1. Locate outside intakes on the roof of the building. Advise the owner to restrict access to the roof to authorized personnel. 2. Locate outside air intakes with the bottom at a minimum of 12 feet above the surrounding grade if a roof location is not achievable (Figures 22.7, 22.8, and 22.9).

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

501

Check Figures 21.8 0.64 0.11 9.0 P/1000 sf cfm/sf ave cfm/sf ave cfm/p

Potentially Critical Zones Classroom 1 Classroom 2 Office space Conference Classroom 3 Totals/averages 1 3 4 5 2 Classrooms Classrooms Office space Conference/ Classrooms (age 9 plus) (age 9 plus) (age 9 plus) meeting 4000 total sf 1,000 1,000 800 200 1,000 97 total P 26 26 4 15 26 2550 total cfm 600 600 400 350 600 None None None None None 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 1.00 average 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% CS 1.00 1.00 100% average 1.00 average 1.00 average Primary airflow rate to zones 2550 cfm 100% Percent of design

97 System population without diversity 0.90 System population diversity, D

0.12 10.00 600 380.0 380 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.63 0.84

0.12 10.00 600 380.0 380 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.63 0.84

0.06 5.00 400 68.0 68 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.17 1.30

0.06 5.00 350 87.0 87 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.25 1.22

0.12 10.00 600 380.0 380 1.00 1.00 1.00 0.63 0.84

2550 1295 1295

0.63 Maximum Zd

3. Enclose low-mounted outside air intakes in protective enclosures and raise to a high level (Figure 22.9). 4. Protect outside air intakes from objects that that can be thrown into the intake louver (Figure 22.10). 5. Outside air intakes can also be the entry point for other sources of contamination. These sources include: a. Cooling tower mist or drift b. Plumbing vents c. General building exhaust d. Emergency generator exhaust e. Bird and rodent feces Outside intake louvers should be placed to avoid intake of cooling tower mist and drift. Cooling towers can be a source of bacteria that causes

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

502

Chapter Twenty-Two

AHU

AHU

AHU

Vulnerable

Better

Best

Figure 22.7 Protecting outside air intakes. Courtesy of the Center for Disease Control.2

Legionnaires disease if proper chemical treatment of the open water system is not maintained. Plumbing vents can be another source of contamination of outside air, especially for roof-mounted outside air intakes. Common practice, which is usually dictated by building codes, requires a minimum separation of 10 feet from the outside air intake point to the source of any contaminant. This author has seen warmer than ambient sewer gas ow along a at
High-sidewall Outdoor Air Intake

Protecting outside air intakes. Courtesy of the Center for Disease Control.2
Figure 22.8

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

503

Enclosing a Vulnerable Outdoor Air Intake

Protecting lowmounted outside air intakes. Courtesy of the Center for Disease Control.2
Figure 22.9

roof (with parapet walls) to the roof-mounted outside air intake on a cold winter day. Experimenting with the location of the plumbing vent using a PVC piping extension on the vent pipe leads to the conclusion that as long as the vent piping was discharging on the roof (the discharge was moved up to 40 feet away), it would eventually be drawn into the outside air intake and make a portion of the building unt for habitation. The problem was resolved by relocating the sanitary vent piping to a lower roof. General building exhaust must maintain the minimum accepted 10 feet of separation from outside air intakes. However, many building codes have removed the separation requirement to allow for code ofcials and building inspectors to make a judgment on the distance of separation. Apparently, the reason for the deletion of the minimum was due to the contamination of outside air when sources of contamination are located 10 or more feet away. Thus, the HVAC engineer/designer must take additional care in the placement of the outside air intakes and use sound judgment based on the actual project conditions. There may also be other sources of contamination that could enter the buildings outside air intake system from nearby sources such as factories,
Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

504

Chapter Twenty-Two

Sloped metal mesh should protect inlet from thrown objects without creating excessive pressure drop

45

This figure shows the minimum recommended inlet angle of 45 degrees. Extensions with greater inlet angles may provide greater inlet protection while increasing the inlet face area.

Figure 22.10 Protecting outside air intakes. Courtesy of the Center for Disease Control.2

highways, or sewage treatment plants that are not under the control of the HVAC engineer/designer or the buildings owner. The HVAC engineer/designer must take these into consideration when designing the outside air intake system. Special air ltration may be required for removal of certain contaminants. Emergency generator exhaust is an intermittent source of outside air contamination during the required weekly or monthly engine trial run. It can be a constant source of outside air intake system contamination during a real emergency. If the outside air intake cannot be located at an acceptable location that is upwind of the generator exhaust, specially treated carbon air lters may need to be used to remove the diesel fuel odor. Carbon lters must be preceded by high-efciency particulate lters (MERV 13 or greater) to remove the particulate matter in the exhaust fumes and to protect the gaseous removal carbon lters. Birds and rodents can be another source of contamination of the outside air intake system. They can carry several diseases. Provide all outside air intake devices with metal bird screens (usually 0.5-inch mesh galvanized hardware cloth). Locate outside intakes above building components where birds or rodents can roost or build nests. 22.7 IAQ and Energy Conservation

Higher amounts of outside air, as dictated by ASHRAE Standard 62.1 and by most state and model building codes, require more energy to condition. However, ASHRAE Standard 90.1, 2007 Energy Standard for Buildings

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality

505

Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, as well as state and model building codes, require the HVAC designer to design an energy-efcient building. Many states require proof of minimal compliance to the Standard. ASHRAE, the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) are being aggressive about reducing energy usage in all buildings. The term net-zero energy buildings is an ASHRAE goal by the year 2030. The goal is for buildings to have a net energy usage of zero. This will be accomplished by building and equipment design and on-site generation of energy that can be sold to power companies. Buildings will reduce consumption and generate their own energy to offset usage. IAQ obviously requires energy to condition the high amounts of outside air needed to allow for a healthy building environment. How do we meet both ASHRAE Standard 62.11 and ASHRAE Standard 90.13 requirements now and over the next 21 years? It seems like they oppose each other. This is the challenge that every HVAC engineer/designer, architect, consulting engineering rm, and architectural rm must be ready to accept and incorporate into new and renovated buildings if they want to compete now and in the future building market. Below are a few suggested design philosophies: 1. Energy recovery/reclaim systems a. Total enthalpy recovery devices for outside air and relief/exhaust air systems, including at plate or cartridge heat exchangers and desiccant heat recovery wheels b. Boiler ue gas heat recovery devices c. Reducing the size of the central cooling or heating plant by the amount of recovered energy from the energy recovery devices (Many HVAC engineers/designers are not willing to do this for fear that the energy recovery device will fail to meet the manufacturers stated performance or actually fail in operation. However, testing and certication of device performance (by third-party testing agencies) and device reliability have increased over the past several years. Therefore, the HVAC engineer/designer should consider the reduction in sizing of heating and cooling equipment afforded by the heat recovery equipment. The State of Ohio Board of Education school design manual requires use of heat recovery equipment and the reduction of heating and cooling plant capacity by the recoverable energy amount. This writer wrote this portion of the State of Ohio School Design Requirements in the mid 1990s.) 2. Room occupancy sensors for lighting and HVAC control (Occupancy sensors can be used to adjust the space temperature set point as well as the systems outside air requirements.) 3. Sustainable design methods (See Chapter 23.)

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

Indoor Air Quality

506

Chapter Twenty-Two

22.8

Summary

In this chapter, the importance of IAQ to HVAC system design along with proper methods of calculating the acceptable amount of outside air based on occupancy and building type have been discussed. Achieving this requires compliance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1, 2007 Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality. This chapter has included examples of the ASHRAE Standard 62.11 outside air spreadsheet and some of the terms required for understanding IAQ. This spreadsheet should be used for all building outside air calculations. Examples for protection of the buildings outside air system in regards to acts of terrorism should be considered for all public and nonpublic buildings. Finally, different considerations for energy efciency and conservation have been covered. The HVAC engineer/designer must be able to bridge the gap between IAQ requirements and the 2030 goal of net-zero buildings. References
1. ASHRAE Standard 62.1, 2007 Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality. 2. NIOSH, Center for Disease Control. 3. ASHRAE Standard 90.1, 2007 Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings,

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.accessengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.