Cooperation of Horizontal Ground Heat Exchanger with the Ventilation Unit During Summer – Case Study

Renewable energy sources are used in the modern energy-efficient buildings to improve their energy balance. One of them is used in the mechanical ventilation system ground air heat exchanger (earth-air heat exchanger - EAHX). This solution, right after heat recovery from exhaust air (recuperation), allows the reduction in the energy needed to obtain the desired temperature of supply air. The article presents the results of "in situ" measurements of pipe ground air heat exchanger cooperating with the air handling unit, supporting cooling the building in the summer season, in Polish climatic conditions. The laboratory consists of a ventilation unit intake - exhaust with rotor for which the source of fresh air is the air intake wall and two air intakes field cooperating with the tube with ground air heat exchangers. Selection of the source of fresh air is performed using sprocket with actuators. This system is part of the ventilation system of the Malopolska Laboratory of Energy-Efficient Building (MLBE) building of Cracow University of Technology. The measuring system are, among others, the sensors of parameters of air inlets and outlets of the heat exchanger channels EAHX and weather station that senses the local weather conditions. The measurement data are recorded and archived by the integrated process control system in the building of MLBE. During the study measurements of operating parameters of the ventilation unit cooperating with the selected source of fresh air were performed. Two cases of operation of the system: using EAHX heat exchanger and without it, were analyzed. Potentially the use of ground air heat exchanger in the mechanical ventilation system can reduce the energy demand for heating or cooling rooms by the pre-adjustment of the supply air temperature. Considering the results can be concluded that the continuous use of these exchangers is not optimal. This relationship is appropriate not only on an annual basis for the transitional periods (spring and autumn), but also in individual days in the potentially most favorable periods of work exchanger (summer and winter). Inappropriate operation of the heat exchanger, will lead to a temporary increase in energy consumption for the preparation of the desired air temperature, relative to the fresh air unit which is non-pretreated. For optimal energy system operation: exchanger EAHX - air handling unit, to preserve the most favourable parameters of inlet air to handling unit, there is a need to dynamically adjust the source of fresh air, depending on changing external conditions and the required outlet temperature of central unit (temperature of air forced to the rooms). (paper)