Alternative to the Conventional Heating and Cooling Systems in Public Buildings

The paper presents an alternative system for heating and cooling in public buildings. The system was designed for the retrofitted building of the Slovene Ethnographic Museum (SEM) where it was also extensively tested. The installed system includes radiant wall mounted panels for heating and cooling, localized automated tangential fans for cooling and ventilation and a centralized building management system for the regulation and supervision of the performance. The efficiency of the system was thoroughly investigated through a series of experiments conducted prior to the renovation of the building as well as after the museum was put into service. The application of the described system resulted in substantial reduction of energy consumption, better internal thermal conditions and lower investment costs for the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system of the entire building. (C)2010 Journal of Mechanical Engineering. All rights reserved.