184 REFRIGERATION AND AIR CONDITIONING

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The control pressures from all zones are connected to a pressure selector that selects
the highest pressure and uses it to reset the hot-duct temperature in a schedule typically
as follows:

Highest control pressure, kPa 50 55 60

Hot-duct setting, °C 30 35 40t

t Design setting.

When at least one zone is calling for full heating, the hot-duct setting moves to its de-
sign value of 40°C, but when all warm-air dampers are partially closed, the setting of
the warm-air temperature drops. A comparable control scheme can be applied to raise
the cool-air supply temperature so that one zone has a fully open cool-air damper.

9-21 Electric, electronic, and computer control This chapter concentrated on pneu-
matic controls because of their widespread application in large-building air condition-
ing. Residential and small commercial air-conditioning systems are regulated mostly by
on-off electric controls. Pneumatic systems begin appearing when the system consists
of more than several dozen components. Pneumatic control systems are inherently
modulating in character, which is a desirable feature. In very large buildings or in multi-
building complexes computer control becomes competitive. In computer-controlled
systems the transmission of information is in digital form or characterized by the
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frequency of pulses. The computer is programmed to perform the standard sequences )

described in this chapter but is also capable of much more sophisticated decisions and
calculations. Even in computer control systems the final exercise of power at a damper
or valve might be pneumatic~
When an air-conditioning system is functioning improperly, the control system is
often the first segment blamed-rightly or wrongly. Many engineers yearn for simple
control systems that are easy to understand and maintain. Unfortunately, to achieve
good control of the space conditions and do so in an energy-effective manner the
control system must be sophisticated. Educating the building operators in the func-
tioning of the control system is imperative. .
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PROBLEMS

9-1 A space thermostat regulates the damper in the cool-air supply duct and thus
provides a variable airflow rate. Specify whether the damper should be normally open '\•
or normally closed and whether the thermostat is direct- or reverse-acting.
9-2 On the outdoor-air control system of Example 9-4, add the necessary features to
close the outdoor-air damper to the minimum position when the outdoor temperature
rises above 24°C. Ans. Use a diverting relay
9-3 The temperature transmitter in an air-temperature controller has a range of 8 to
30°C through which range the pressure output changes from 20 to 100 kPa. If the gain
of the receiver-controller is set at 2 to 1 and the spring range of the cooling-water valve
the controller regulates is 28 to 5 5 kPa, what is the throttling range of this control?
Ans. 3.7 K