HVAC Best Practices in Arctic Climates

¹ Design Alaska, Fairbanks, AK ( USA )
² US Army Engineer R&D Center, Champaign, IL ( USA )
³ Ramboll, Denmark
⁴ Cold Climate Engineering, LLC
⁵ Danfoss, Denmark
⁶ U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Alaska District, Fairbanks, AK ( USA )

^* Corresponding author: emilyw@designalaska.com

Abstract

Arctic climates provide unique challenges for designers of HVAC, plumbing, and thermal energy systems. The importance of considering the operation outside air temperatures, system reliability, and building resiliency cannot be understated. The paper describes best practice examples of robust and reliable systems with the emphasis on their redundancy, durability, and functionality. The paper also discusses the most common heating and ventilation system approaches used in arctic climate with the emphasis on the importance of a maintenance program that allows building operators to successfully troubleshoot and maintain buildings in the arctic. More detailed discussion of concepts presented in this paper can be found in the Guide [1] where these concepts are illustrated by best practice examples from U.S. military bases in Alaska and Søndre Strømfjord, the international airport of Greenland that previously was used as a U.S. military base. The paper results from experts’ discussions during the Consultation Forum “Thermal Energy Systems Resilience in Cold/Arctic Climates” [2] and research conducted under the IEA EBC Annex 73, the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) Project “Technologies Integration to Achieve Resilient, Low-Energy Military Installations” and U.S. Army Program project 633734T1500 under Military Engineering Technology Demonstration. The paper is complementary to the ASHRAE Cold Climate Design Guide [3] with a focus on resilience of thermal energy systems.