Header image

NEWS | TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM Heat networks suffering from poor water quality Around one in six district heating and cooling systems could have significant issues with water quality, according to a major survey of 185heating and cooling systems in the UK. The study, presented by Jon Greaves, national technical manager at Hydro-X Water Treatment, found that 28 networks had major problems with poor-quality water. This was leading to plant failure, pipe replacement, inefficient heat transfer, and a shortening of the systems life. Twelve systems had poor-quality water at handover, while four experienced full loss of system water because of corrosion and scaling. Incorrect dosing with a high-PH solution led to the corrosion of aluminium plate heat exchangers in three of the latter systems. Greaves revealed that four combined heat and power (CHP) systems and two biomass boilers had never been switched on and had not been decommissioned properly. He identified a number of key findings across design, pre-commission and management, including no consideration of the metallurgy of the system, no pre-commissioning cleaning, and system leaks not being monitored. District heating industry needs regulator A leading figure in the UK industry has called for a regulator to ensure heat networks operate successfully. Phil Jones, former chair of the CIBSE CHP & District Heating Group, said the UK government could map out a path for the industry. People dont have enough certainty to invest in innovation if there is no direction of markets, he said. Jones was speaking at a session on fifthgeneration heat and cooling networks, which are being piloted in Plymouth by the city council and BuroHappold. He said that such networks, which balance heating and cooling between buildings, could be viable across the UK. More details will appear in a future issue of CIBSE Journal. Engineers urged to be more people-centric Designers commitment to end users debated at symposium Engineers should be trained to be more people-centric, according to delegates at a debate on whether engineers design for the needs of occupiers. Hoare Leas Ashley Bateson said engineers must understand how designs affect end users. Eimear Moloney, associate director at Hoare Lea, agreed, and said modules on the psychology of building users were already on some building services courses. IERCs Tony Day said communication across the supply chain was an issue. Wemust have a common understanding of what we want to achieve, he said. Design engineers need to learn more about the kit they specify, Day said: They need to be able to explain to a maintenance technician how its been designed to operate. Past ASHRAE president Richard Rooley said engineers had a responsibility to get on site and ensure buildings are easy to commission, while Moloney said designers were thwarted by a broken system that always put engineers one link away from end users. Bill Bordass agreed that the issue was systemic. Designers dont focus on outcomes they design on compliance and just focus on getting the project done, he said. Shell: Give control to occupants Engineers wont be able to deliver healthy buildings unless they get emotional buy-in from the client, according to symposium keynote speaker Stuart Shell. BranchPattern senior associate Shell said buildings that offered physiological and psychological benefits were perceived by clients as being more of a risk, so designers have to explain the benefits in more human terms. End users should be given control of their buildings with features such as openablewindows, he added: The occupants should be the locus of control, not buildingautomation systems. Designers often got lost in the weeds because of the pressures imposed by contracts around schedules and costs, said Shell, who believes standards are being interpreted in a way that prevents buildings from being designed for end users. Weve focused on meeting standards that create a defence for designs, he said. 3803,1*6(/(&7,216)25 38%/,&+($/7+(1*,1((56 6SHFLDOLVWLQZDVWHZDWHUDQGVHZDJHSXPSLQJ 5DSLGUHVSRQVHSXPSDGYLFHVHOHFWLRQVGDWDVKHHWV %HVWWHFKQLFDODQGFRPPHUFLDOSXPSVROXWLRQV ROXWLR &DOORXUH[SHULHQFHGWHDPWRVSHFLI\\RXUSXPSLQJVROXWLRQ )ORRU0RXQWHG/LIWLQJ6WDWLRQV 32:(5( %< ZZZSXPSWHFKQRORJ\FRXN N