Project - Modulating Ventilation

Low cost VAV for Office Buildings

Project start May 2009. Expected completion autumn 2011.

The project is completed.

Despite relatively large energy consumption as concerns ventilation / cooling for major renovation and modernisation projects (primarily in older office buildings), there is some reservation regarding comprehensive renovation / changes of the existing systems.

The consequences for the atmospheric and thermal climate, and the interaction between the components, can be difficult to assess, even for professionals with knowledge on ventilation technology and the physics of construction.

This is most obvious in the early ELO reports and in the current Energy Consultant reports, where recommended initiatives in the area of ventilation are sparse and mostly directed at basic things, such as replacement of fan motor, pump etc. In other words, the focus is on the ventilation unit and its components.   

Project Objectives
The objective of the project is to develop low-cost ventilation solutions for use when renovating existing CAV installations in office buildings. 

The concept of the solution is to optimise the side of the diffuser (fittings & canal structure), so that the quantity of air supply and the temperature of the diffuser can be varied according to need. It is expected that the energy saving potential will be as large as with a complete VAV re-installation, but at about 20 % of the cost.  

The solution is demonstrated in an office building.

Participants

• Dansk Energinet (Danish Energy Association)
• Aalborg University
• Lindab A/S
• Trend Control System A/S
• DAN – Properties  
• Danish Technological Institute