Courret G., Egolf P.W., Sari O.
Year:
2002
Bibliographic info:
23rd AIVC and EPIC 2002 Conference (in conjunction with 3rd European Conference on Energy Performance and Indoor Climate in Buildings) "Energy efficient and healthy buildings in sustainable cities", Lyon, France, 23-26 October 2002

A condensing device allows to avoid condensation on cooling ceilings in rooms with humid air. It uses thermoelectric modules in contact with the cooling panels. The pumped heat is transferred into the cooling ceiling to keep its temperature above the dew point. Tests have been performed in a full-scale chamber. A set of condensing units was mounted on a standard hydraulic cooling ceiling. The control of temperature is achieved by regulating the mass flow of the water. By this method the loss of efficiency of the cooling panels is fully compensated. Without the condensers, the temperature of the water would have to be increased. This would cause 12 % less cooling power. But with the condensers, the total cooling power is 9 % higher in comparison to panels - without condensers - which are operated in dry air. Finally, we can state that the cooling power is increased by 20 % due to the condensers. If the system is sized to replace the entire (convective) air conditioning system, the following advantages are obtained: No noise Perfect adaptation to building retrofits (no air ducts, only water piping) Less restriction on window opening.