Date of Award

3-14-2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Department of Systems Engineering and Management

First Advisor

Alfred E. Thal, PhD.

Abstract

The building sector in the United States accounted for 41% of domestic and 7% of global energy consumption in 2010, with heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) activities consuming approximately 41.4% of the total facility energy consumption. Within the HVAC system, the parasitic energy accounts for one-third of the total energy consumed while heating and cooling accounts for the balance. The fan energy is approximately 85% of the total parasitic energy in the HVAC system. In a laboratory, energy related to ventilation can account for nearly half of the electrical energy demand. A carbon dioxide (CO2)-based demand controlled ventilation (DCV) strategy can reduce the ventilation requirement by monitoring the indoor air quality (IAQ) of a space and modulating the ventilation based on the real-time occupancy. This research presents a tool for laboratory managers to quickly determine if employing a DCV system is potentially life-cycle cost effective. The tool presented is not to be used as sole justification for implementing a DCV system; instead, laboratory managers using this tool will be able to quickly determine if further investigation into DCV installation is warranted. The results show that a DCV system is life-cycle cost effective for many different HVAC system total pressure and square footage combinations.

AFIT Designator

AFIT-ENV-14-M-16

DTIC Accession Number

ADA598468

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