Impacts of HVAC Cleaning on Energy Consumption and Supply Airflow: A Multi-Climate Evaluation

NASIM ILDIRI, Mark Hernandez, University of Colorado Boulder

     Abstract Number: 695
     Working Group: Control and Mitigation Technology

Abstract
Energy-efficiency interventions are crucial for sustainable building operations that integrate emerging indoor air quality (IAQ) criteria into their engineering life cycles. While several studies address building energy consumption and IAQ considerations separately, few provide integrated analysis of these aspects in response to building hygiene practices. In response this study evaluates the effectiveness of routine heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) cleaning on the energy consumption and supply airflow patterns in non-residential public buildings. This study juxtaposes HVAC energy consumption and ventilation performance before, during and after routine HVAC cleaning, across four groups of buildings situated in different climate zones in cooling mode. Each site had nearly identical HVAC systems serving similar architectural features and occupational loads, which were segregated into an intervention (cleaned HVAC system) that could be compared to an otherwise identically operating HVAC (control system), which was not cleaned. Cleaned HVAC systems exhibited a significant reduction in energy consumption and consistently delivered higher airflow compared to uncleaned counterparts. This research demonstrates how a generation of affordable IAQ and HVAC system monitors can compile IOT archives to show immediate energy consumption benefits associated with cleaning the HVAC components and the ductwork in relatively high occupancy commercial and educational spaces.