Energy Efficiency Opportunities in Biotech, Medical, and Pharmaceutical Lab Facilities William Tschudi October 13,
LBNL’s high-tech buildings initiative – a wide breadth of activities 2
3 Cleanrooms Healthcare Data Centers Laboratories Energy intensive high-tech buildings
Up to 100x more energy-intensive than typical buildings (Class-1 cleanroom can be up to 600 ac-h) Promising Measures Govern ventilation by performance rather than rules of thumb Improved process load projection More efficient HVAC Low-pressure-drop design 4 Cleanrooms: The Opportunity
Benchmarking and Best Practices Fan-filter unit test procedure Demand-controlled filtration Minienvironments 5 Current cleanroom activities Cleanroom Measured Electricity End-use
6 We see a wide range of efficiencies: For example: cleanroom recirculation systems Avg: Pressurized Plenum Ducted & FFU Choice of air delivery strategy strongly influences energy intensity
7 Wide range of efficiencies: For example: make-up air systems Choices in the design of air systems strongly influences energy intensity
8 Wide range of efficiencies: For example: fan-filter units Efficiencies vary by a factor-of-four Need for test standards
9 Working with benchmark results Benchmarking & Best Practices Wide variation in performance Benchmarking results being reviewed to identify best practices Efficiency opportunity was found at each benchmarking site (see case study reports) Chiller performance ranged from 0.5 to 5 kW/ton over range of 5 to 50 tons Air-change rates suggest possible reduction without compromising process)
Labs are up to 5x as energy- intensive as typical buildings; fume hoods use >3x as much energy as typical home Promising Measures Low-pressure-drop design Ventilation and hood flows governed by performance rather than rules of thumb 10 Laboratories: the opportunity Berkeley Hood installed at UCSF
Laboratories - current LBNL activities Benchmarking and Best Practices Laboratories for the 21 st Century High-Performance Fume Hood Working towards CAL/OSHA acceptance Side-by-side testing including non-standard dynamic tests Demonstrations in three industrial settings 11 LBNL’s Geoffrey Bell performing dynamic side-by-side tests comparing 6-foot Berkeley Hood with a standard hood.
What are the big opportunities? 12 “Right sizing systems” Low pressure drop systems Low face velocity in air handlers Low pressure drop filters Large duct/plennum Air change rates Lower airflow in fume hoods Variable speed chillers Minimize or eliminate reheat Free cooling for process loads Energy efficient Uninterruptable Power Supplies Recirculation air setback
LBNL high-tech buildings website: