Predicting yearly energy savings using BIN weather data with heat-pipe heat exchangers with indirect evaporative cooling

Conference · Wed Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 1998

OSTI ID:20000168

Mathur, G D

Heat-Pipe Heat-Exchangers (HPHE) are passive systems that have recently seen application in energy recovery (Mathur, 1997). A HPHE consists of individual closed end heat pipe tubes that are charged with a suitable working fluid. In these systems, the working fluid evaporates on one side of the heat exchanger and condenses over the other end of the heat exchanger. The condensed fluid returns back to the evaporator section through the capillary action of the wick. The performance of a HPHE system can be improved by the raising the condenser portion of the heat exchanger which facilitates effective return of the condensate back to the evaporator. HPHE can be used with air conditioning systems as retrofits and in new applications. For retrofit applications, the operating costs are reduced because of the reduction in the energy (kWh) and peak demand (kW) consumptions. For new installations, the heating and cooling equipment can be of smaller capacity which will result in lower equipment and operating costs. During the summer season, indirect evaporative cooling can also be used to further enhance the performance of the air conditioning system. When operated during both the heating and cooling seasons, a HPHE yields four types of savings: (i) Heating equipment savings (ii) Cooling equipment savings (iii) Heating operating savings (iv) Cooling operating savings. Savings in the energy consumption for both heating and cooling were calculated with the HPHE for 30 cities with widely different climactic conditions. The payback periods for most of the cities were less than 1 year. If indirect evaporative cooling is used during the summer season, more energy savings would be realized on an yearly basis along with further reductions in the peak demand. In this paper, the author has simulated the performance of a HPHE with indirect evaporative cooling using the BIN weather data.

• Research Organization: Zexel USA Corporation, Decatur, IL (US)
• OSTI ID: 20000168
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
ENERGY CONSERVATION
HEAT EXCHANGERS
HEAT PIPES
HEAT RECOVERY
HEAT RECOVERY EQUIPMENT
PAYBACK PERIOD
SPACE HVAC SYSTEMS