Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration
Research focus
The Peer review has evaluated this group as Average
The ever-increasing request of comfort and better control of the indoor environment and of the presence of contaminants, leads to a larger penetration of ventilation and air conditioning systems. This penetration spans from the residential and commercial building climatic control to leading-edge industrial applications (clean room for micro-electronics and pharmaceutics productive plants and for bio-research labs), to the emerging sector of human protection from physical, chemical and biological (virus, bacteria, etc.) agents, up to the microclimate control in the field of cultural heritage preservation. The research belonging to this topic is currently focused on the following items. - Use of Electric Fields to Increase Dehumidification and/or to Control Frost Formation. Use of DC electric field to control frost formation either on a simple geometry such as an horizontal/vertical flat plate, or a complex geometry such as a fin-and-tube evaporator. Use of DC electric field to enhance heat transfer of a cold surface under dehumidification regime (both on a flat plate or a finned evaporator). Analysis of the influence of the main parameters (electric field intensity, air temperature, humidity and velocity, cold surface temperature, duration) on the phenomenon. Analysis of the energy consumption and of the potential energy savings. - Natural Working Fluids. Thermodynamic analysis of inverse cycles using natural working fluids (carbon dioxide, propane, ammonia etc.). Theoretical study of the best cycle configuration, determination of the operating parameters (evaporation and condensation pressures, vapor superheat and liquid subcooling) and numerical simulation of different working conditions. - Filters and Filtration Study of particle and gas filtration. Characterization of mechanical filters of different classes by measurements of particle concentration and pressure drop. Experimental study of electrostatic air filters either for the particle filtration or for the particle and gas filtration by measurements of particle and toluene concentration. Analysis of new distribution systems to control pollutants concentration in air (i.e. push-pull system). Theoretical and experimental analysis of the influence of the main parameters (air temperature, velocity and turbulence intensity). Development of mathematical model and comparison with those presents in literature. - Contamination Control and Clean Room Analysis of air flow distribution in a clean room. Experimental characterization of laminar or mixed distribution with particle and gas concentration measurements and numerical verification with commercial CFD software. Development of mathematical model to calculate the main operating parameters of clean rooms. - Air Conditioning and Thermal Comfort. - Climatic control of reliquaries and museums. Museum microclimate control: techniques, measurements, equipments and systems.
Dipartimento di afferenza
Docenti afferenti
Full Professors
Joppolo Cesare Maria
Assistant Professors
Pedranzini Federico