Comparison Evaluations of VRF and RTU Systems Performance on Flexible Research Platform

Journal Article · Thu Apr 05 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · Advances in Civil Engineering

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/7867128· OSTI ID:1432140

Lee, Je-hyeon ^[1]; Im, Piljae ^[2]; Munk, Jeffrey D. ^[2]; Malhotra, Mini ^[2]; Kim, Min-seok ^[3]; Song, Young-hak ^[4]

---

1. Samsung Electronics, Suwon (Korea, Republic of). Dept. of Digital Appliances R&D Team
2. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Building Technologies Research and Integration Center (BTRIC)
3. National Univ., Jinju (Korea, Republic of). Dept. of Architectural Engineering, Graduate School of Gyeongsang
4. Gyeongsang National Univ., Jinju (Korea, Republic of). Dept. of Architectural Engineering, ERI

The energy performance of a variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system was evaluated using an occupancy-emulated research building in the southeastern region of the United States. Full- and part-load performance of the VRF system in heating and cooling seasons was compared with a conventional rooftop unit (RTU) variable-air-volume system with electric resistance heating. During both the heating and cooling seasons, full- and part-load conditions (i.e., 100%, 75%, and 50% thermal loads) were maintained alternately for 2 to 3 days each, and the energy use, thermal conditions, and coefficient of performance (COP) for the RTU and VRF system were measured. During the cooling season, the VRF system had an average COP of 4.2, 3.9, and 3.7 compared with 3.1, 3.0, and 2.5 for the RTU system under 100%, 75%, and 50% load conditions and resulted in estimated energy savings of 30%, 37%, and 47%, respectively. Finally, during the heating season, the VRF system had an average COP ranging from 1.2 to 2.0, substantially higher than the COPs of the RTU system, and resulted in estimated energy savings of 51%, 47%, and 27% under the three load conditions, respectively.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 1432140
• Journal Information: Advances in Civil Engineering, Journal Name: Advances in Civil Engineering Vol. 2018; ISSN 1687-8086
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING