Air Conditioning— New Prospects for an Established Industry
By
Willis H. Carrier
Indoor Air Quality— Bill Bahnfleth on HPAC History and ASHRAE 241
By Rob
McManamy
Next Generation— How ‘Lucy’s Engineering Adventure’ Came to Be
By Danielle Passaglia, PE
SEPT/OCT 2024
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What’s Behind This Issue’s Cover?
This issue is dedicated to our founding in 1929. Its distinctive cover design purposely evokes the covers of our first year of publication, when the HVACR world was relatively new.
22 How ‘Lucy’s Engineering Adventure’ Came to Be
The author of ASHRAE’s first children’s book series tells us how her own engineering experience is driving this creative STEM outreach. By Danielle
Passaglia,
PE, LEED
NEWS & NOTES
8 Air Conditioning— New Prospects for an Established Industry
A look back at an article from the inaugural (May 1929) issue of HPAC Engineering by the man known for inventing modern air conditioning. By Willis H. Carrier.
12 Vintage HVAC Advertisements—1929
In May 1929, the first issue of HPAC Engineering, then called Heating Piping and Air Conditioning, was published. Here is a look at some vintage advertisements from our first year. Truly a time capsule worth opening!
HPAC Engineering (USPS Permit 464-930, ISSN 0039-0895 print, ISSN 1930-8957 online) is published 6x a year (Jan/ Feb, Mar/Apr, May/Jun, Jul/Aug, Sep/Oct, Nov/Dec) by Endeavor Business Media, LLC. 201 N Main St 5th Floor, Fort Atkinson, WI 53538. Periodicals postage paid at Fort Atkinson, WI, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to HPAC Engineering, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 60065-3257. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Publisher reserves the right to reject non-qualified subscriptions. Subscription prices: U.S. ($ 111.25); Canada/Mexico ($ 123.75); All other countries ($148.75). All subscriptions are payable in U.S. funds. Send subscription inquiries to HPAC Engineering, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 60065-3257. Customer service can be reached toll-free at 877-382-9187 or at HPACengineering@ omeda.com for magazine subscription assistance or questions.
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30 Hydrogen: Steam Generation’s Alternative Fuel Burning H2 to make steam can significantly reduce fuel costs while also helping to meet aggressive new carbon emissions regulations.
By By John Guarco, Bob Langstine, and William Gurski
6 Editor’s Notes Deck By Rob McManamy
16
HPAC History, ASHRAE 241, and Higher Ed with Bill Bahnfleth By Rob McManamy
Clark’s Remarks
Heliostats, Mirrors Offer Evaporative Heating Potential By Larry Clark
R-32 IS ALREADY USED IN OVER 130 COUNTRIES, INSTALLED IN OVER 230 MILLION SYSTEMS, AND BY MORE THAN 50 MANUFACTURERS WORLDWIDE. FACT
HPAC ‘On The Air’: Women Marching Forward, with ASHRAE’s Nancy Kohout *PODCAST* In June, we spoke with the inaugural event chair of the upcoming ‘Women in ASHRAE Leadership Symposium’, set for Chicago this fall. www.hpac.com/55055767
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Our industry’s accelerated transition to low-GWP refrigerants is kicking into high gear. Here, selected articles from HPAC Engineering and Contracting Business offer your firm the latest guidance for staying in compliance. www.hpac.com/21279312
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HPAC 2024: Our September Quiz!
This month’s quiz focuses on the American Society of Plumbing Engineers. To celebrate its 60th anniversary, we look at some of the milestones of its founding! www.hpac.com/55136498
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BY ROB MCMANAMY, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Heeding History’s Clarion Call
Once again, current events conspired to take the pen out of my hand as I wrote this bimonthly message. But this time, I refused to yield in the ongoing wrestling match.
After all, job one here is to explain this issue’s throwback cover design, an updated tribute to our very first issue from 95 years ago. At that time, of course, this publication went by its full name, Heating, Piping and Air Conditioning, a title we kept for seven decades before switching to HPAC Engineering in 1999. With that in mind, this special issue leads with an iconic article from that inaugural edition, written by the legendary Willis H. Carrier , assessing the bright prospects for our up and coming industry. It’s quite a time capsule.
Indeed, history pulses through this issue across multiple stories, from a collection of vintage 1929 advertisements to reflections by ASHRAE’s Bill Bahnfleth about his father’s influence here as HPAC editor throughout the 1960s. And engineer Danielle Passaglia shares her own history with us about how her popular children’s book series Lucy’s Engineering Adventure came to be in 2021, and how it is now helping to fire the imaginations of young girls all over the world about potential careers in STEM.
Given her story’s placement in this issue, that prompted me to review a hard copy of our very first from May 1929 to see if I could find any women even mentioned on its pages. I could not.
With that in mind, today, albeit belated, I am pleased to announce that HPAC Engineering is finally adding female perspectives to its Editorial Advisory Board. Over the last two months, I had invited ASHRAE leaders Ginger Scoggins, Nancy Kohout, and Elise Kiland, all accomplished engineers, to join our board. I was thrilled that all three accepted without hesitation.
Scoggins, of course, is ASHRAE’s immediate past president and its lead emissary to multiple global climate conferences. For her part, Kohout is chairing the Society’s first-ever Women in ASHRAE
Leadership Symposium in Chicago this fall. And Kiland is in the pipeline to be national president of the Young Engineers of ASHRAE (YEA), starting next June. A wonderful trio to be sure, so HPAC Engineering is fortunate to be able to draw upon their counsel in the months and years to come.
They represent a diversity of industry perspective and wisdom that we have deprived ourselves of for far too long.
Of course, history like that is happening all around us during this enormously consequential autumn. Just since our last print issue, the U.S. political world has been upended in extraordinary fashion.
By the time our next print issue goes to press near Thanksgiving, the United States of America may well have elected its first woman chief executive. Miles to go before that ending is written, of course, but history is guaranteed to be made regardless of the ultimate outcome.
That said, more immediate big news for our industry, and every other, broke on Sept. 18, when the Federal Reserve finally announced that it would lower interest rates. It marked the first downward move in 18 months, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell was unusually aggressive in reducing the rate by a half point, not just a quarter.
Fed watchers now even expect rates to come down by another half point by the end of this year. This was all music to Wall Street’s ears, of course, which saw record market rallies on Sept. 22nd and 23rd.
The bold action was the Fed’s clearest signal yet that it believes inflation is heading in the right direction and that an economic recession is no longer on the horizon. And that provides a remarkably stable foundation now for an exhausted nation still stressed daily by a raucous political season unlike any since a young engineer named Carrier even thought air could be mechanically “conditioned.”
May our agitated American psyche take that to heart and stay as cool and as positive as possible in the trying months ahead.
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD:
William P. Bahnfleth, PhD, PE The Pennsylvania State University Glenn Barrett, PE DC Engineering
James P. Waltz, PE, CEM, ACFE Energy Resource Associates Inc.
Michael K. West, PhD, PE Advantek Consulting
Ron Wilkinson, PE, LEED AP Wilkinson Commissioning Management
Gerald J. Williams, PE, LEED AP 8760 Engineering LLC
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Air Conditioning—New Prospects for an Established Industry
A look back at an article from the inaugural (May 1929) issue of HPAC Engineering by the man known for inventing modern air conditioning, Willis H. Carrier.
By Willis H. Carrier
EDITOR’S NOTE: Ninety-five years ago, the first issue of HPAC Engineering, then called Heating Piping and Air Conditioning, was published in May 1929. Among the inaugural issue’s articles was “Air Conditioning—New Prospects for an Established Industry,” by the man known for inventing modern air conditioning, Willis Carrier. For this special commemorative issue, we reprint his article in full.
Twenty-five years ago, “air conditioning” was an unknown quantity, either in theory or practice. Now it is a well-established industry.
Today, air conditioning is recognized as a scientific method by which it is possible to control manufacturing conditions in certain industries, so that the products do not vary in quality from day to day and from season to season. Not only is quality maintained, but the production is not interrupted due to unfavorable weather conditions. Thus the cost of production is decreased.
Air conditioning undoubtedly is effecting an economic gain in various industries throughout this country of millions of dollars annually. In some industries, air conditioning equipment has been known to pay for itself in the first month of operation, while in others, calculable savings are found to pay for the equipment in the first three or four years.
The intangible advantages may be even of greater value. On the estimated amount of air conditioning equipment in use, and the average return to the user which it produces, it is probable that the present economic saving in the United States alone is nearly $15,000,000 annually.
Any normally healthy industry, especially if it be a relatively new industry, will show each year a geometric progression in its curve of increase. The curve of the air conditioning industry is one which shows a doubling in volume about every five years. This, of course, is much more rapid than the geometric curve of the growth in population of the country. While this may be explained in part by the increasing per capita purchasing power of the individual, the principal reason lies in the fact that air conditioning has decreased greatly the labor as well
as the capital required per unit of production in such industries. Thus, air conditioning, by lessening the cost of production, has not only increased the profits of the manufacturer, but it has ultimately increased the purchasing capacity of the individual.
A Contributing Factor to Prosperity
Air conditioning may thus be classed with industrial electrification, automatic labor saving machinery, and increased transportation facilities, as one element contributing to the
Willis H. Carrier
present day prosperity of the people of these United States.
Perhaps the most striking way of visualizing the economic contributions of air conditioning to the country’s wealth and prosperity is to state, as we may be permitted to do on the foregoing basis, that it actually increases the average purchasing capacity of every man, woman and child in the United States twelve cents a year. Furthermore, taking into account the relative growth of air conditioning with respect to population and amortization of equipment, we may expect that the effect of this art
upon the purchasing capacity of the American people will double every six years for some time to come. That is, in eighteen years from the present time, air conditioning may be expected to put into the pocketbook of each and every person in the United States annually one additional dollar.
From the standpoint of possible industrial economy, air conditioning is in its infancy. Air conditioning in conjunction with improved equipment has made it possible for one cigarette manufacturer to increase the output of his automatic machines four fold. During a temporary shutdown
of air conditioning equipment in the factory of a prominent silk manufacturer, the lack of air conditioning reduced production 27 per cent. Never before had this manufacturer appreciated the significance of this new science.
The researches of the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers at its laboratory in Pittsburgh, have studied the effects of temperature, humidity and air motion in relation to human comfort so that such applications are now placed on the basis of an exact science, and the effects which may be expected from air conditioning equipment are readily determined. This may be said to be one of the outstanding achievements of the research work of this society and it is becoming recognized in scientific circles throughout the world.
Will Become a Necessity
In the past we have given attention to the heating of our dwellings, offices and factories for the purpose of human comfort. In what now seems to us the “dark ages,” this was considered a luxury rather than a necessity, as today. Similarly, in years to come, air conditioning and cooling for summer may become a necessity rather than a luxury, and we will look upon present times as marking the end of that “dark age” in which there was but relatively little cooling for human comfort.
The office skyscrapers of the future may find it preferable to dispense with windows and the street noises and dust which they admit, and avoid the great wastes in congested cities due to unoccupied courts and areaways now used for purposes of window ventilation and light. Sun-ray electric lighting may prove equally good and much more dependable than sunlight itself. Ventilation both in summer and winter can be made much better than outside conditions which at present permit either excessive dryness or an intolerable humidity within enclosures.
Cover of the May 1929 issue of Heating Piping and Air Conditioning.
Use of Refrigeration Growing
The use of refrigeration in connection with air conditioning is growing apace. Motion picture theaters have found that air conditioning with refrigeration not only gives comfort to the patrons in summer, but, instead of showing an operative loss, has made the summer months the most profitable part of the year. People flock in to become cool and be comfortable as well as to see the show. At present, only a very small percentage of the total theaters are thus equipped. Eventually all theaters having a capacity of over a thousand seats will, of necessity, be equipped with air conditioning and refrigeration.
The larger department stores have found air conditioning essential to an effective campaign for summer sales. In fact, it is a producer of sales the year around. The Hudson stores of Detroit, Mich., were pioneers in this field. The installation in their basement required a capacity of six hundred tons of refrigeration, or the equivalent of fifty truck loads of ice in ten hours of operation during the hottest summer day. Their new building, which is now just being completed, will require practically twice this amount. Banks and offices are finding that air conditioning, with refrigeration for summer, is desirable. It is presumed that many other industries will eventually find such applications to their advantage.
Press Button—Heat or Cool Your Home
The use of refrigeration for maintaining comfortable living conditions in the home during extremes of summer heat will be a development of the very near future. It will be an improvement which can be applied to the home of the average man as well as to that of the wealthy. The application of thermal equipment for comfort in the home is of more importance than for office buildings or theaters, yet it has received far less engineering attention.
Carrier Engineering Corp. advertisement from the May 1929 issue of Heating Piping and Air Conditioning.
The home of the future will, in my opinion, be heated largely by air warmed directly by a gas or an oil-fired furnace, the warm air being distributed by noiseless, low-pressure fans. Such furnaces can now be built of rustproof, light-weight steel at a relatively low cost, and will operate with an efficiency of approximately 90 per cent under all conditions. With this type of heating it is a relatively simple matter to attach air cooling by refrigeration, permitting the entire equipment to be located centrally in the basement.
Gas affords a suitable means for the production of such refrigeration. Some
safe and simple absorption system may be developed, or an ejector type of system, using water as a refrigerant, may be the ultimate design; but, in any case, I venture to predict that it will soon be possible to press a button and place your house-heating system in operation under automatic control or to press another button to start your house-cooling system, as required.
This will bring the benefits and comforts of the mountains or seashore to our homes in summer, as well as the climate of Florida and other warm localities to our dwellings in winter.
The Fairbanks Co. November 1929
Union Carbide and Carbon Corp. June 1929
Jas. P. Marsh & Co. May 1929
Vintage HVAC Advertisements
In May 1929, the first issue of HPAC Engineering, then called Heating Piping and Air Conditioning, was published. Here is a look at some vintage advertisements from our first year. Truly a time capsule worth opening!
Ames Pump Company Inc. August 1929
Heggie-Simplex. June 1929
The McAlear Mfg. Co.. December 1929
Carrier Engineering Corp. December 1929
F. I. Raymond Co. August 1929
Parks-Cramer Co. October 1929
Keasbey & Mattison Co. May 1929
Warren Webster & Co. September 1929
Midwest Piping Service July 1929
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Talking HPAC History, ASHRAE 241, Engineering Education and A.I., with Bill Bahnfleth
Son of a former HPAC editor, ASHRAE’s past president and former Epidemic Task Force chair joined us for a wide-ranging discussion of our shared past and future.
This September, HPAC
‘On The Air’ spoke with Dr. William Bahnfleth, ASHRAE past president, former chair of the recent ASHRAE Epidemic Task Force, and longtime professor of architectural engineering at Penn State University.
Coincidentally, Bill’s father Donald Bahnfleth also served as editor of HPAC Engineering throughout the 1960s, and later became ASHRAE president, himself. That made them the first and only father-son pair to ever both serve atop the Society. So there is much to unpack in this entertaining episode that covers everything from slide rules and sick buildings to COVID and ChatGPT.
What follows is an edited transcript. Listen to the full show at hpac.com...
HPAC : Bill, as we look back on the history of HPAC Engineering over the last century, it occurs to me that you have a unique perspective as the son of one of HPAC Engineering’s more accomplished editors, Donald Bahnfleth. Do you have any recollections of his time at Heating, Piping and Air-Conditioning?
Bahnfleth: The time that he was at HPAC was from when I was about two or three years old until I was a freshman in high school. So I had no idea at that point that I’d be an engineer for a career. I was aware of a lot of it just in the way that any of us are aware of what your parents are doing. But I do have a lot of memories because my father was really into his career in a lot of ways... He would talk
about work and he had a number of professional friends who we would have coffee with on the weekends. They would just talk for hours about technical things.
He actually started as an academic, as a research assistant professor at the University of Illinois where he was good friends with a colleague named Bob Roose who was the editor before him. And at some point, my father decided that he and my mother wanted to be closer to both sets of their parents in the suburbs of Chicago. And Bob said, “Well, why don’t you come work with me?” So, that’s how he got into the magazine.
My father was one of those people who kind of worked to live and it was woven through the fabric of his life. What I got from him was that it was really important to be rigorous in what you did in engineering. I really saw the magazine in those days as being one of the main places that solid technical information could be published. You look back at the articles that were written back then, there weren’t a lot of competitors and it was really high quality. I still refer to some of the articles published from those days.
When my father decided to move on, to be honest, it was really because he was afraid the magazine was going to move. He liked his job well enough, but it was bought and sold a few times back then, and it looked like I might be going to Connecticut. That was when he left and went to Cincinnati and became a consulting engineer.
And it turned out that even with all the years in publishing, that he was extremely good at (engineering). So
he made the transition and was a wellknown practitioner for the rest of his career. I would say what he contributed to HPAC was kind of a lasting legacy. He really raised the level of the content and created a magazine that professionals could trust.
HPAC: Of course, you two are also the only father-son pair in ASHRAE history to both serve separately as Society president. Talk a bit about that, if you would. How did your father help mentor you in the engineering profession? How did he feel when you followed in his path as president some three decades later?
Bahnfleth: Well, he could not have been happier that I wound up becoming the first son of a former ASHRAE president to become president, myself (in 2013-14). How did he mentor me? The way a lot of good mentors do, mostly just by being a good example. There’s a lot to be said for simply being a good role model. And as with his role at the magazine and his role at the company that he came to lead eventually, ZBA in Cincinnati, he always had high standards.
It was another one of those things that really went on seven days a week, 12 months of the year. So I heard a lot of discussions about what was going on in ASHRAE as I was going up, got a sense of the politics, a sense of the issues that they were involved in, and I started 30 years later to get into technical committees and those sorts of things and to move up.
I think the benefit that I got from all of that was that I was already primed on what it was like to be in leadership of a technical society, and my father was there in some pretty interesting times.
I think what happened during his time on the board and when he was a senior technical leader in ASHRAE were things like the oil embargo and energy crisis that happened in the
1970s. So he was involved in the not-so-successful but important emergency building temperature regulations that were issued during the Carter Administration. He was around but not directly involved in the development of the first ASHRAE Standard 90. And he was there when “sick building syndrome” became an issue, partly due to the energy crisis.
It wasn’t until much later that I learned that he was probably as much of an advocate for indoor air quality
Donald Bahnfleth, from 1960, early in his tenure as editor of Heating, Piping and Air Conditioning magazine, based in downtown Chicago.
in his way as I am today. I didn’t discover that until I was asked to do a keynote for an ASHRAE IEQ conference. There, I learned that he had been a central figure in getting the Environmental Health Committee of ASHRAE started and promoting better air quality. You can go back and find that in his (1985-86) Presidential Address. In fact, the committee a few years ago even renamed its Environmental Health Award after my father. And I was very honored to be the first recipient of that renamed award.
So it’s kind of amazing the scope of what he did in his career, both as a practitioner and as a leader in ASHRAE. (Don died in 2016 at age 89.)
HPAC : Bill, your day job, of course, is focused on the next generation as a professor of architectural engineering at Penn State, where you have been teaching since 1994. Since the fall semester is now underway, can you speak for a moment about the current state of engineering programs in higher ed. What sort of trends are you seeing with students and recent graduates? As an educator, how does it all make you feel about the next generation and the state of our industry in 2024?
Bahnfleth: Well, we always get bright students here, and I think my experience over 30 years is that they’ve always been welcomed by industry and are doing a good job and growing in their careers. [But] higher education, at least in the U.S., is really going through a period of crisis and readjustment today. Part of that is due to the Baby Boom ending and the natural drop that has caused in enrollments which now is making it harder for schools to cover costs.
And so Penn State and others are struggling to make ends meet right now. I’m sure they’ll come out of it, but it’s still a little bit of a tough time when you look at engineering from the point of view of the construction industry, and HVAC specifically, which I’m involved in. I think over several decades we’ve seen a lot of mechanical engineering programs pretty much divest themselves of HVAC as being kind of low-tech: Not quite trades from their point of view, but not really the sexy materials and rocket science kind of stuff that they like.
My department at Illinois used to be mechanical and industrial engineering, and now it’s mechanical science
HPAC ON THE AIR
and engineering, and they’ve merged with theoretical and applied mechanics. So they still do some things that are related, but turning out actual practitioners, I think, has been left to other kinds of programs.
Architectural engineering is certainly the bright spot in engineering education in the U.S., not just at Penn State. A lot of other schools that have been around for a long time like Kansas and Kansas State and some of the newer ones like Nebraska, also are doing really well in that area. So I think that’s promising. But there isn’t enough capacity and that’s reflected in the current ASHRAE president Dennis Knight’s focus this year on “workforce development.” I think that’s an important theme to have right now.
It’s really kind of top to bottom. We are short on the engineers that we need in the business. But because there’s been so much emphasis on four-year college degrees as the only way to a successful life, we are also really short on skilled tradespeople.
You go to Denmark where I was on sabbatical, and they’re not “tradespeople.” They’re craftsmen and that’s appropriate. They get better pay and it’s a totally respectable kind of career where they have a system for producing those people. So we’re having kind of an infrastructure problem within our industry here.
HPAC: Nowadays, workplace shortage conversations almost always end up involving discussions of how technology can fill the gap. How are those types of issues being addressed in engineering schools now?
Bahnfleth: Information technology is changing the way that we look at education. I’m an engineer educated in the 1970s and 1980s, and I still believe in fundamentals and the basic physical sciences and mathematics and all of that. But we’ve now got so much software that, in practice, you
have to be able to use. So there’s a lot of pressure to produce students who not only know the fundamentals but are basically competent in a lot of software tools.
And now A.I. is coming along, creating both headaches and opportunities. It seems that in industry, they’ll be using it to help them do their jobs faster, which is going to make them more productive. But within the academy, A.I. is creating real problems in terms of developing the skills you want students to have instead of having them shortcut to ChatGPT or some other tools. So yes, those are some of the things that are going on. There’s always challenges, of course, but I think there’s always hope, as well, because the students who come in are really enthusiastic and motivated.
HPAC : Thanks for that perspective, Bill. Turning back to ASHRAE for a moment. I would be remiss if I didn’t ask you more about your recent,
intensive, extended role as head of the ASHRAE Epidemic Task Force during the pandemic. Then you chaired the committee that developed the remarkably accelerated National Pathogen Control Standard, ASHRAE Standard 241- 2023, and that was at the request of the White House COVID-19 response team. Could you please just update us a little bit on what the Society’s doing now and what role you’re playing in the ongoing effort to mitigate airborne infection transmission in buildings?
Bahnfleth: Sure. The last four years have been a total surprise to me. About the time that COVID came ashore, I was starting to think about how I was going to coast to the finish line of my career in ASHRAE and at the university. But then, from about March of 2020 on, I was working seven days a week and getting maybe four hours of sleep per night. My wife got used to me coming to bed around 3 AM.
In 1989, Bill Bahnfleth received his PhD from the University of Illinois, joined by parents Don and Joan, wife Mary, and doctoral advisor Curt Pedersen.
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After we let the ETF sunset, I thought, “Well, okay, now I can recover from that and get myself back in shape and get the pounds off that I put on living in my office for a couple of years.” But a few months later, in November 2022, the White House came along and said, “We really need this standard and we’d like it very soon.”
And that became the same kind of accelerated effort again to just grind it out. ASHRAE’s board approved the project in December of 2022, and it took me until about February, about the time of the ASHRAE winter meeting, to get a roster approved. And we started working on it at the end of February, and then we delivered a final draft of the standard that was approved at the ASHRAE annual meeting that year in June.
So it was basically four months of very intensive development time, and it was only possible to do that because of a couple of the things. One was that I had my committee, at least the leadership of my committee, fully trained from having been on the ETF. A lot of the working group leaders came from similar positions on the ETF. And the other thing was — and I can’t give ASHRAE enough credit for this — they just let us do what we needed to do.
I don’t think anyone’s ever had a carte blanche on such a level to develop a standard. We’ve got great staff support
and we were able to cut a few corners to get it done quickly. One of them was that we did not seek ANSI approval for the first version, and that’s something that’s going on now. So we got the Standard out in July of 2023.
HPAC : So what has happened since then?
Bahnfleth : Well, we’ve started working on a work plan to fill in some gaps that we couldn’t address in the first version, and we intend to send the whole thing out for ANSI Public Review, the full standard in 2025, so that it will have that imprimatur on it. And that it is something that a lot of people care about from the point of view of adoption.
So we’ve been doing extensive efforts to talk about it, to publicize it to all kinds of audiences, not just to ASHRAE chapter meetings and conferences. I’ve spoken around the world on 241. In fact, I got my second case of COVID while I was in Madrid at an IAQ Conference, giving a talk about it.
So yeah, we’re doing a good job of getting the word out on it, and we certainly see that there’s a lot of interest in it. The heavy lift right now, and I think it’s going to be successful, is to get formal adoption in state or local or federal law. And there’s a huge effort going on there right now to understand where the opportunities are and to gather the stakeholders who are interested in supporting that kind of work and then to take the right actions to make things happen.
So glimmers of hope there, but it takes a long time to go from a new standard to adopted regulations.
To listen to all previous ‘HPAC On The Air’ podcasts, visit our Members Only page at www.hpac.com.
How ‘Lucy’s Engineering Adventure’ Came to Be
The author of ASHRAE’s first children’s book series tells us how her own engineering experience is driving this creative STEM outreach.
By DANIELLE PASSAGLIA, PE, LEED, Senior Mechanical Engineer
Iwas a senior in high school the first time I was told that engineering may not be for me.
It came from a professor at a university panel and he had made this comment without knowledge on my background, grades, or the fact that I had already been accepted into his school’s freshman engineering program. That represented just the first obstacle I would face as a “potential” woman in STEM.
Occurrences like the one I experienced, however, are not uncommon. And throughout my years in the industry, I have noticed familiar trends that were marketing engineering as an “elite” club that not everyone can get into.
Indeed, engineering could be considered an elite club for women considering only 15% of working engineers are female. This statistic is not surprising to me, especially since we are discouraging young women early and often from pursuing STEM.
I was a freshman in college when our professor told us “look to your left, and look to your right… Only one of you will be here at graduation.” This would be another scare tactic to weed out young hopefuls in engineering. And it worked.
Four years later, I was a grad student when I was the only female mechanical student in my architectural engineering program. It would not be the last time I was an “only” in a room and it’s not an uncommon occurrence in our industry. In fact, a recent McKinsey
workplace study indicates that 32% of women describe themselves as “onlies” in the room.
All of these experiences and data led me to the same conclusion: We needed to see a change in this industry.
Indeed, my interest in STEM outreach was sparked on that day the visiting professor told me to rethink my major. I would not let one person dictate to me what I could or could not do. I was a late bloomer in learning about engineering and STEM. So I thought if I could get into young girls’ minds at an earlier age, and show them all of the unique possibilities that come with an engineering degree, I could instill in them a curiosity, a confidence, and a spark to pursue STEM... despite all the discouraging fodder they might hear along the way.
In college, I joined the Engineering Ambassadors Network. That encompassed two of my loves: engineering and talking.
With the network, I was able to visit grade schools and middle schools within my area and talk to kids about engineering, different types of engineers, what kind of jobs engineers can do, and even conduct a fun engineering exercise to help spark their interest. While many kids enjoyed making roller coasters out of pipe insulation, for example, or robotic hands out of cardboard and string, their questions were always the highlight of my visits.
For many, they had never heard of engineering beyond a train conductor. So their questions were vast and entertaining, but all had a common thread. They wanted to know if they could be an engineer. Was it attainable? “I thought you had to be really smart… Math isn’t my best subject, though… I don’t know anyone who’s been an engineer… I still don’t really understand what they do…”
To each question, I’d ask in return, “Do you like to solve puzzles? Do you like asking questions? Do you like to build or create things? Because these qualities are the backbone to what makes a great engineer.”
Curiosity, creativity, and problem solving are the building blocks that make up great engineers. They are also the
foundation upon which I wrote the Lucy’s Engineering Adventure series. This is the first children’s book ASHRAE has ever published, and it is now their best selling publication. Ever.
Lucy’s Engineering Adventure is Born
I first came up with the idea of a chil-ties Training session at an ASHRAE regional conference. At the time, I wasnois ASHRAE chapter, and part of that role was to provide STEM outreach for
K-8, high school, and collegiate levels. During this training, we realized there was a gap in serviceability for K-5. Despite attending STEM fairs, or going on sporadic class visits, we were very limited in what we could provide to students of that very young age. ASHRAE is a technical organization and didn’t have material to bridge that gap. With that in mind, I had suggested a children’s book might help. While my idea was well-received, the process to make it come to fruition was unknown. So, we left the training
As a visual learner myself, I found being on site and seeing things first-hand is the best educational tool. Also, I knew that I wanted the book to rhyme. Trying to explain technical ideas to kids in an exciting and approachable way can be dry. Rhyming created an automatic cadence and rhythm that would engage and interest both child and parent while taking them through this journey with me.
The first book in the series takes the reader and Lucy on a site visit with her father, an engineer, where he goes on to explain how buildings work and what the systems inside a building do by personifying the building. It was a way to show the current generation of engineers, Lucy’s father,
Lucy goes on to discover, and learn to use her deductive reasoning to ask questions and solve problems. All of this with
the overarching theme to show kids to be curious, and ask questions while learning about what we engineers in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry do.
While I could have self-published, my motivation was to provide this resource for students, so I ended up publishing the first book through ASHRAE as a volunteer effort. The success of the first book gave way to demand for a second book, Lucy Goes Green.
The intent was for the first book to introduce our industry, and then to have the follow-up books describe larger concepts that we so often hear about, invloving subjects like sustainability, renewables, decarbonization, etc... I wanted those to be terms kids could understand and relate to. Hopefully, that way, as they grow older, the terms would not just become buzz words in the media, but rather be familiar, meaningful phrases describing the important topic of our impact on the environment.
Not only did I want to de-sensitize our future pipeline of engineers, but I also wanted to show young students that anyone can be an engineer now.
With that in mind, the Lucy series shows the title character as mixed race, being raised by an engineer father, and a commissioning mother. I often feel that two working successful parents aren’t depicted enough, so I wanted to challenge the norm and show both parents as technical minded and challenge those archetypes.
I also wanted Lucy to represent what we are missing in this industry. More women, and more diversity. Throughout
the series, you’ll notice I challenge the archetypes not just in STEM. For instance, I wanted Lucy’s teacher to be a man since they are underrepresented in our education system today. My hope is that anyone can open the books and identify with these characters.
Admittedly, I am proud to see Lucy grace the shelves of engineers across the U.S., and even the world via multiple translations. There was clearly a need for this type of series and I’m hopeful we’ll see even more interest next year, with the release of my third book, Lucy’s Carbon Footprint
That said, I truly hope that our young readers and their parents will continue to get as much enjoyment out of this series as I do. And like me, more than a few will decide that a career in engineering really does suit them, after all.
Based in Chicago, Danielle Passaglia holds a Masters in Architectural Engineering, focused on Mechanical Engineering, from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is the current president of the ASHRAE Illinois Chapter, and an energetic advocate for STEM outreach, and Women in STEM. Passaglia is the creator and author of the “Lucy’s Engineering Adventure” series, which published its first children’s book in 2021. (Available on Amazon and the ASHRAE Bookstore.)
Gabriella Vagnoli is an award-winning illustrator of multiple children’s books. Born and raised in Italy, she is both Italian and Brazilian and lives in Illinois. To see more of her work, go to: gabriellavagnoli.com.
Hydrogen: Steam Generation’s Alternative Fuel
Burning H2 to make steam can significantly reduce fuel costs while also helping to meet aggressive new carbon emissions regulations.
By JOHN GUARCO, BOB LANGSTINE, and WILLIAM GURSKI, Zeeco Inc.
Today’s steam generation market is continuously reshaped by rising fuel costs and new regulations requiring carbon footprint reductions. New regulations require steam generators to reduce, and in some cases eliminate, their carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
The two main methods that exist to reduce CO and CO2 emissions are designed to either capture and sequester the carbon in the fuel gas or remove carbon from the fuel prior to firing. Carbon capture is becoming the more cost-effective method. Removal of the carbon prior to firing involves reforming natural gas — mainly methane (CH4) — and capturing the carbon atom while utilizing the hydrogen (H2) atoms as a fuel source.
Capturing the carbon prior to combustion eliminates the need to outfit each boiler with costly equipment for capturing and sequestering the carbon.
Fuel cost instability also factors into pushing end users to consider alternative fuel sources they may already have at their disposal, such as H2 left over from various reforming and refining processes. Instead of flaring or releasing this excess H2, it can be injected into the fuel gas stream to supplement the main fuel supply. Applying the proper expertise and experience,
burning H2 in steam generation systems can greatly reduce operating fuel costs while also helping to meet new carbon emissions regulations.
Design Considerations
Burner designs must be evaluated for compatibility with H2 firing to ensure proper and safe operation while firing. The combustion characteristics of H2 are vastly different from those of natural gas. The flame speed in H2 combustion is approximately 5.7 feet per second, while the flame speed of natural gas is significantly slower at only 1.3 ft/s. H2 firing is also characterized by a higher stoichiometric adiabatic flame temperature of 3,960°F, while natural gas measures 3,518°F, according to Combustion – Second Edition by Irvin Glassman (1987).
These differences in combustion characteristics require engineers to
evaluate the materials used in burner construction and the type being built.
Typical burner construction is comprised of metal components and a refractory throat or tile, which require an examination to determine material suitability for H2 firing. The increased flame temperature will require the steel used for nozzle construction, throat construction, and flame stabilizers to be upgraded to a higher grade stainless or alloy capable of withstanding these elevated operating temperatures. Furthermore, the refractory used within the burner will need to be carefully evaluated and its composition modified to withstand the elevated temperatures characteristic of H2 firing.
Beyond withstanding elevated temperatures, the steel used in H2 firing burners needs to be chosen carefully to ensure it is not susceptible to hydrogen embrittlement and high-temperature
All employees of Zeeco Inc., Guarco is technical director, boiler burners; Langstine is regional sales manager, North America, (Southeastern U.S. & Eastern Canada); and Gurski is director, global sales, and applications engineering. www.zeeco.com
Above, a Zeeco GB low-NOX burner firing 100% H2 gas.
hydrogen attack. Both phenomenon can prematurely degrade an improperly chosen steel, leading to early failure of the burner parts.
Hydrogen’s flame speed, which is nearly five times that of natural gas, is a fundamental cause of concern when evaluating burner design. Burner designs that utilize lean premix, premix, or rapid pre-mix designs are not suited for a fuel stream that varies in H2 composition. As the composition of H2 increases in the fuel stream, these types of burners become more susceptible to flashback. Flashback occurs when the gas velocity exiting the burner nozzle is slower than the flame speed in a premixed application. Damage to the burner components can result when flashback occurs.
Emission Considerations
The next essential topic to understand is the impact on burner emissions. Hydrogen’s high flame propagation speed allows the combustion process to occur more rapidly than natural gas. The rapid combustion process releases energy in a small area, leading to localized, elevated, near-flame region temperatures, which compound the effect of the inherently high adiabatic flame temperatures on NOX emission rates.
Any region with temps above 2,500°F is conducive to NOX formation. Field and test facility data have shown that standard low-NOX burners firing H2 can see an increase in NOX emission rates by up to a factor of 3.
Flue gas recirculation (FGR), steam injection, and/or ultra-low-NOX (ULN) burner technology are required to decrease NOX. FGR is the process that diverts a portion of the flue gas exiting the boiler (typically after the economizer) and introduces it into the combustion air supply. The combustion air supply dilutes with the spent combustion products, which lowers the peak flame temp during combustion. Small quantities of steam injection can also help with polishing NOX by
cooling the flame and introducing a small amount of inerting.
Staged ULN burners are another option to combat the increased NOX emissions characteristics associated with firing H2. These burners generally use both air and fuel staging mechanisms to lower peak flame temperature.
Properly staged fuel increases the amount of furnace gas able to be entrained into the fuel stream prior to interacting with the air. Entraining furnace gas into the fuel stream is similar to the way FGR mitigates NOX. Properly staging air within the combustion zone delays the mixing of the fuel and air, stretching the combustion process over the furnace’s length. The drawn-out combustion process decreases overall peak temperatures, thereby reducing NOX formation.
Care should be taken to note the differences between staged ULN burners and premix ULN burners. As explained earlier, premix ULN burners are typically not constructed of materials capable of withstanding H2 firing, nor are they able to prevent flashback while firing high H2 fuels.
The H2 content in the fuel stream also has a significant impact on CO and CO2 emissions. As H2 replaces hydrocarbons in the fuel composition, the number of carbon atoms decreases. A fuel stream composed of 100% H2 cannot generate CO nor CO2 as a byproduct of combustion due to the lack of carbon in the combustion reaction. Therefore, the higher the H2 content of a fuel, the lower the overall CO and CO2 emissions.
Here are the basic stoichiometric combustion reaction of a hydrocarbonbased fuel, natural gas, and the combustion reaction of pure H2.
Whenever a new fuel is considered, a boiler impact study can ensure there are no detriments to performance. The combustion characteristics of H2 can lead to changes in where and how radiative and convective heat transfer occurs, which may impact steam generation rate and temperatures.
Based on Equations 1 & 2, the stoichiometric air requirement for natural gas is ~720 lbs. of air/ MMBtu, and the requirement for H2 is ~560 lbs. of air/ MMBtu, respectively. Therefore, H2 firing needs approximately 30% less mass flow of air as compared to natural gas. Furthermore, H2 can operate with a lower excess air ratio than natural gas due to its higher flammability limit. A lower excess air ratio further reduces the required mass flow of air as compared to natural gas. H2 firing also increases the furnace gas exit temperature (FEGT), primarily due to the higher flame temperatures.
When firing H2, the resulting mass flow reduction through the boiler, combined with higher FEGT, can adversely impact the boiler’s convective heat transfer portions, jeopardizing both steam production and steam quality. However, the addition of mass flow to the system via external FGR can mitigate concerns about higher FEGT and reduced convective heat transfer. The additional FGR mass flow lowers the FEGT and negates any adverse effects on convective heat transfer.
Instrumentation & Controls
When utilizing H2 as a fuel source, any burner designed to have a varying fuel composition spanning from natural gas to high H2 content should have a fully metered combustion control system coupled with a Wobbe Index Meter or specific gravity meter in some cases.
For more on the Wobbe Index Meter and Zeeco’s experience in this area, visit us online at www.hpac.com/heating/ article/55141681/hydrogen-steam-generations-alternative-fuel.
THE EVENT FOR HVACR / FEB 10-12
Orlando
NEW PRODUCTS
Factory-Installed HVAC Leak Detection Systems
TruClimate 900 Heat Pump Chiller
WaterFurnace introduces the TruClimate 900 heat pump chiller that can operate as a hot water or chiller water system or a simultaneous heating and cooling source. Featuring a variablespeed compressor with OptiHeat technology, it delivers 44° F chilled water and 140° F hot water simultaneously from a single chiller. Offers continuous operation at temperatures as low as -25° F. Available in 30-ton sizes, up to 10 units can be banked to achieve a total capacity of up to 300 tons.
WaterFurnace International
Trane adds factory-installed leak detection systems to ducted HVAC models with more than 3.91 pounds of refrigerant charge. In addition, those systems will be equipped with building automation systems points so building engineers can use the integrated Symbio Controller to help detect and mitigate leaks. Affects IntelliPak 3 rooftop units, Axiom horizontal and vertical water-source heat pumps and Axiom vertical stack water-source heat pumps.
Trane
TubiX S Pipe Cutter
The TubiX S pipe cutter from Knipex Tools features a minimal cutting radius for cutting pipes in confined spaces, and a QuickLock mechanism for single-handed adjustment to securely hold and clamp onto the pipe. Cuts copper and stainless steel pipe from 1/8 in. to 1 1/8 in. and a wall thickness up to 5/64 in. Pipe diameter can be preset with the scale and clipped onto the pipe. The optimized turning knob with textured thumb recess provides 20% higher torque and prevents slipping. Spring-loaded cutting wheel for quick and precise positioning; five needle bearings for easy cutting.
Preferred Cloud remote boiler room monitoring platform from Preferred Utilities allows facility managers, engineers and other stakeholders to monitor all equipment in their boiler rooms with security, regardless of equipment manufacturer. With data access from anywhere in the world, on any device (desktop, laptop or mobile). It provides immediate issue notification, centralized monitoring and control, historical trend analysis and efficiency optimization. The platform offers three tailored service levels: ReAct, ContAct and ProAct. Each is designed to meet specific operational needs from notification-only, to secure remote access, to advanced analytics, and more.
Preferred Utilities Mfg. Corp.
NEW PRODUCTS
HBT-321 Rectangular Bubble-Tight Isolation Damper
Greenheck adds the HBT-321 rectangular bubble-tight damper that can withstand velocities up to 4,000 fpm and a temperature range from -40° F to 250° F. Available in sizes up to 48 in. x 42 in., the unit allows larger openings to be filled with one preengineered damper to provide zero leakage rather than a multisection assembly that can add significant pressure drop to the system. It can be supplied with electric, pneumatic or manual actuator options. Other features include a fully welded frame; full-length axles; a field-replaceable, sweep-style blade seal mechanically fastened to the blade; and a flanged damper frame for easy mounting. Greenheck Fan Corp.
Webstone G-Series End Connections
Catalytic Hydrogen Heating System
HYTING introduces patent-pending technology using a specially developed catalyst where hydrogen and oxygen from the air react to release heat. This allows CO2-free heating across all performance ranges, even at high heating capacity requirements. As the heated air is used directly and without a heat exchanger, it can generate 37.4 kWh of thermal energy from 1 kg of hydrogen. The modular, scalable technology is offered in 10 to 300 kW heating capacity. Can be used as a primary, peak load or backup heating system; also easily retrofitted into existing ventilation systems.
HYTING
Webstone G-Series end connections from NIBCO enable users the flexibility to create a variety of connection combinations for hydronic, plumbing, hydronic, radiant, solar and geothermal applications. These lead-free, dezincificationresistant brass valves and fittings feature G-threads and G-unions, making it easy to mix and match end connections. Available in FIP, MIP, SWT, Press, Push, F1960 PEX or F1807 PEX, in piping sizes 1/2 in. to 2 in. Includes two ball valves, two Pro-Pal Ball Drains, two pressure gauge fittings, an isolation valve, a union fitting and an end cap. Press transition bodies are also available on select products.
NIBCO
Haymaker Tankless Water Heater Descaler Kit
The Haymaker tankless water heater descaler kit from Hercules/Oatey includes solution, pump, hoses and a bucket—to remove scale and maintain optimal performance of a tankless water heater. The solution quickly and easily dissolves inorganic deposits that restrict flow to restore circulation and heat transfer efficiency. Dissolves three times the amount of scale as a gallon of white vinegar without the foul odor. The solution is citric acid-based, noncorrosive and VOC-free. Removing carbonates, sulfates, phosphates, rust, oxides and other mineral deposits, the kit is compatible with most commonly found plumbing-related materials, including PVC, CPVC, ABS, rubber, steel and most metals.
Oatey Co./Hercules
Nanobubble Generator for Scale Removal
Armstrong International launches its Nanobubble Generator, a patentpending technology developed specifically to address mineral deposition on pipework and critical equipment within industrial process and commercial/ institutional hot water systems. Existing noncondensable gases naturally present in the water are transformed into nanoscopic bubbles through a static, side stream application. The nanobubbles flow throughout the hot water system, naturally removing existing deposits and inhibiting scale formation without adding anything to the water. It has no moving parts and requires no maintenance or additional electrical inputs. Results in a cleaner, healthier hot water system, significantly improving operational efficiency and reducing equipment maintenance costs.
Armstrong International
E6 Pro Thermography Camera
The E6 Pro thermography camera from Teledyne FLIR is designed for close-up, professionalgrade mechanical, building, and electrical thermal inspection scenarios. Features include a 3.5-in. touchscreen display, a 240 × 180 thermal resolution, and built-in 5MP digital cameras and LED lamps to help users better understand their inspection area and capture visual details in low light. Users can share captured images with colleagues, partners, and clients over Wi-Fi via the FLIR Ignite Cloud software. Includes an IP54 rating, 25G-shock and 2G vibration test ratings, along with a built-in lens cap for added protection.
Teledyne FLIR
Shadow 0.8 and 1.28 GPF Toilets
Shadow 0.8 and 1.28 gpf toilets from Niagara are ADA-compliant and powered by patented Stealth Technology. They use only half the water of traditional models, leading to water efficiency. Feature an innovative air transfer tube for a powerful, clean flush. The 0.8 gpf models deliver exceptional clog-free performance. Sleek design is ideal for multifamily residences, single-family homes and hotels. Easy and quick to install with preassembled tanks preferred by builders and plumbing pros.
Niagara Conservation Corp.
L4000 Lorawan Display for Hot/Cold Water
The L4000 Lorawan display for hot/cold water from H2O Degree provides tenants in submetered, multifamily buildings and multitenant retail/ commercial facilities with access to accurate, real-time hot and cold water consumption information for their specific units to avoid tenant/landlord billing disputes over water usage. It enables long-range (10-mile, line-of-site) transmission of all the property’s submeter monitoring data, accessible over an online dashboard by property managers or third-party billing companies. Tenants, using individualized passcodes, can instantly view fully encoded meter data from the lobby of a building or other convenient area. H2O Degree
NEW PRODUCTS
PK100 LevelSafe Pro Extension Ladder Accessory
The PK100 LevelSafe Pro extension ladder accessory from Werner features sophisticated technology that automatically adjusts the ladder to a level position upon placement. When the ladder is positioned on soft ground, its precision micro-adjust system enables users to make fine modifications without the need to lift or reposition the ladder. It can be installed up to 50% faster than other ladder leveling accessories. The no-nonsense installation is simple, straightforward and doesn’t require cutting the ladder. Works with most Werner fiberglass and aluminum extension ladders. Werner Co.
Redesigned Upblast Powered Roof Ventilators
Greenheck’s model CUE directdrive and CUBE belt-drive upblast powered roof ventilators have been redesigned to include new nextgeneration features on fan sizes 060 to 240: removeable power pack motor/wheel assembly that makes motor replacement and servicing faster, toolless hood entry lets the motor cover be quickly removed by the push of two buttons, and lower hoodband height allows easier access to the motor compartment and serviceable components. A variety of options and accessories are available. Ideal for new or replacement fan installations for clean air, emergency smoke control, light contaminants, seismic, and high wind and hurricane applications. Greenheck Fan Corp.
(2) In-County Nonrequested Copies Stated on PS Form 3541 (include Sample copies, Requests Over
years old, Requests induced by a Premium, Bulk Sales and Requests including Association Requests, Names obtained from Business Directories, Lists, and other sources) (3) Nonrequested Copies Distributed Through the USPS by Other Classes of
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AeroTherm® Series Heat Pump Water Heaters provide the advanced efficiency, comfort and control you and your customers demand.
To decarbonize industrial processes on a global scale, one manufacturer is innovating for a more sustainable heat source.
Larry Clark
A regular contributor to HPAC Engineering and a member of its editorial advisory board since 2012, the author is a principal at Sustainable Performance Solutions LLC, a south Florida-based engineering firm focusing on energy and sustainability. Email him at larry@ sustainflorida.com.
As readers of this column know by now, sharing innovative technologies that in some way improve sustainability is a regular focus. In the interests of full disclosure and transparency, this one is close to home.
Our firm recently had the opportunity to partner with LightManufacturing (LM), a California-based manufacturer of heliostats and heliostat-based solar rotomolding systems used to mold durable plastic parts. LM holds several patents for its processes, which the firm developed to help suppliers meet the demand for sustainable plastic products.
Traditional plastic molders were using highly polluting processes that emitted millions of pounds of greenhouse gases, and LM’s zerocarbon emissions technology represents the first break-through improvement in 50 years.
According to LM CEO Karl von Kries, “Heliostats offer huge opportunities to decarbonize industrial processes on a global scale, but their potential has so far largely been misunderstood. Heliostat arrays are well-known as the heat source for large power tower systems.”
NOTE: A recent Clark’s Remarks highlighted the use of heliostats to provide heat in the production of synthetic fuels.
“Sun-tracking mirrors have far greater potential in smaller scale, mid-temperature applications,” notes von Kries. “Small to midsize heliostat arrays enable plastic molding, evaporation acceleration, agricultural drying and processing, desalination, and many other industrial processes that are hard to decarbonize by other methods.”
One such application, that our firm and LM are pursuing is the use of heliostats to enhance the evaporation of brine water in engineered impoundments/ponds. The evaporation rate is directly proportional to air and water temperatures, so an increase in those temperatures increases the rate of evaporation.
Using solar energy, this approach is both carbon- and pollutant-free, since there is no external power required (the only energy
consuming components are the controls and motors associated with the axial motions of the mirrors, and those are powered by on-board solar PV). Operational expenses are relatively low, since they are limited to labor and mobilization costs.
Although our firms teamed to propose a specific solution for a single client, the approach is viable for any requirement to increase evaporation of stored or standing water without the use of standard mechanical evaporator/mister (aerosol) technologies, that require mitigation of overspray.
Initial investigations have demonstrated that a single heliostat with a 4-ft-x-6-ft mirror, directly targeting the water with a minimum 50 degree angle of incidence, could – in the southwestern U.S. location provided by the client –provide 2,730 Btuh of additional evaporative heating to the surface of the water. Depending on the size of the pond, an array of hundreds of heliostats could be deployed, providing a significant amount of heat.
The downside of this solution is a slight loss of power midday, when the sun is largely vertical (overhead). That results in the effective mirror size, since it is also largely vertical, being reduced. The good news is that at solar noon, the pond is already getting ‘best heat’ from natural light and the heliostat will provide enhanced morning and afternoon heating, resulting in a higher evaporation rate.
The jury is still out here on our contemplated project, but I have to confess that I am excited about the potential of using heliostats for other heating applications in which solar energy probably had never even been considered.
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HPAC ENGINEERING’S MONTHLY PODCASTS
HPAC ON THE AIR
Our monthly Podcast series offers unique and compelling industry insights for engineers in the HVACR market. Each month, we talk with engaging thought leaders and practitioners like ASHRAE’s Bill Bahnfleth and Legionella expert Dr. Janet Stout. Produced by HPAC Engineering magazine and hosted by Editor-in-Chief Rob McManamy, this series is just one of several exciting Members Only features, designed to enhance your HPAC multimedia experience.
