Universiti Teknologi Brunei air handling unit conversion

This project focused on the technical methods to convert an existing Air Handling Unit (AHU) from using a chiller system to a Direct Expansion (DX) system in Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB) Academic Building. The design and calculations were based on the guidelines and standards from building regulations in Brunei and ASHRAE. The current status of UTB air-conditioning system was compared with these standards. It was observed that UTB air-conditioning system did not comply with the health and safety standards, particularly in providing fresh air into the system. A DX cooling system which used Refrigerant 410A was chosen as the alternative to replace the existing cooling coil. Cooling Load Temperature Difference (CLTD) Method was primarily applied to calculate the cooling load required for the tutorial rooms and hallways, assisted by a Design Engineer from Jurutera OMC. Design parameters with common engineering practice were applied for sizing the cooling coil. A 3D model design of the cooling coil was then constructed using SolidWorks 2019. ANSYS Fluent 2019 was used to simulate the temperature at the cooling coil outlet. The supply temperature of the new design was 21°C, which meant it could provide comfort air conditioning to the tutorial rooms and hallways. The project was also initiated to provide the cooling support for the existing wall mounted split DX air conditioning units in each room.