COOLING | NEWS AND APPLICATIONS Musical revival for abandoned retail units Liverpool Music Academy moves into shopping centre with new air conditioning system A 15m conversion project has transformed disused retail space at Liverpools Metquarter shopping centre into education facilities for the Liverpool Music Academy (LMA). The project involved the conversion of empty retail units and communal space, on the upper floors of the complex, into a new 4,645m2 learning facility for the LMA, which offers courses in music, musical theatre, film and television, games animation, acting and dance. The new campus, which LMA moved into in September 2020, has classrooms, recording studios, rehearsal rooms, and dance and performance spaces. An R-32-based air conditioning solution from Toshiba was installed as part of the project, while air conditioning specialist Select Air Services was commissioned to carry out a full dilapidation report on the empty retail units. This revealed that individual units had been air conditioned with ad hoc systems mainly based on R-407C and R-410A refrigerants installed by tenants over many years. Some dated back to the opening of the shopping centre in 2006, and were well past their operational life, according to Select Air Services. The company proposed installing a new cooling and heating system using Toshiba heat pump cassettes and heat-recovery VN ventilation units, while removing and decommissioning legacy systems according to F-Gas requirements. As a result, the LMA campus now features an air conditioning system installed by Select Air Services The air conditioning system at the Liverpool Music Academy is charged with R-32 and supplied by Cool Design. It is based on Toshiba Super Digital Inverter and Digital Inverter split systems, using inverter controlled variable speed compressors. The system is charged with R-32 that has a GWP of 675, two-thirds that of R-410A, which it replaces. R-32 not only has a lower GWP, but can deliver an equal capacity to R-410a, with a 30% smaller refrigerant charge. Indoor units are ceiling-suspended cassettes, which were considered to be ideal for the application because they leave floors and walls unobstructed. Classrooms and studios are served by either one or two cassettes and a fresh air, heat-recovery ventilation system under the control of remote controllers with onboard energy monitoring. To further improve efficiency, the system employs matched exhaust air heat-recovery systems. In winter, the heat-recovery systems operate in combination with the heat pump-based air conditioning, warming incoming air to maintain comfort conditions and energy efficiency. In total, 95 ceiling suspended cassettes were used in a combination of single, double and triple split systems along with 30 heat-recovery ventilation units. EU regulations governing HFCs now under UK law Regulations that address the production and use of chemical substances such as HFCs used in refrigerants have been brought into UK law following Brexit. The EU Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (Reach) Regulation has been brought into UK law under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, following the UKs withdrawal from the EU. As of 1 January 2021, the UK Reach and the EU Reach regulations operate independently from each other. Under the Northern Ireland Protocol, the EU Reach Regulation continues to apply to Northern Ireland, while UK Reach will regulate the access of substances to the Great Britain market. Companies that supply and purchase substances and mixtures to and from the EU/EEA/Northern Ireland and Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) will need to ensure relevant duties are met under both pieces of legislation. Firms are required to identify and manage the risks presented by substances they manufacture and market in Great Britain. They must be able to demonstrate how the substance can be used safely and communicate risk management measures to users. To be compliant, companies need to consider how to use chemicals and what their obligations may be. UK Reach covers all sectors that manufacture, import, distribute or use chemicals as raw materials or finished products. Reach UK requires everyone in the supply chain to communicate information on the safe use of chemicals. Samsung adds PM1.0 filter to air con unit A new wall-mounted air conditioner with an electrostatic PM1.0 filter for air purification has been launched for the residential market by Samsung. According to the manufacturer, WindFree Pure 1.0 can filter dust particles up to 0.3m and sterilise microorganisms using an electrostatic charger. Its brush discharger generates negative ions, which give the dust particles, and certain bacteria, a negative charge, so they attach to the ground electrode because of the electrostatic force of the collector. The freeze wash function also removes certain types of bacteria. The indoor units heat exchanger is cooled to -15C to cover it with frost. When put into defrost mode, the melting ice removes up to 90% of certain bacteria within the heat exchanger. 42 March 2021 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE March 21 pp41-42 Air con news.indd 42 19/02/2021 17:48