There is No Such Thing as a Free Thermodynamic Lunch

At the most basic level a building is an environmental separator - it keeps the outside out and the inside in. Why? Well, sometimes the outside is not nice, and we want to keep it from getting into the inside or into the thing that separates the inside from the outside. Sometimes the inside is not nice, and we want to keep it from getting into the thing that separates the inside from the outside. It can be cold and miserable outside. It can be hot and humid and miserable outside. Inside is also often an issue. There is a big difference between a warehouse and an indoor swimming pool or humidified pressurized hospital or art gallery and the environmental separator you use matters. Copyright 2022 ASHRAE.