COOLING LOAD CALCULATION

PRINCIPLES
Cooling loads result from heat transfer processes through the
building envelope (External emelents) and from internal sources
and system components.

Building components are:

External: Walls, roofs, windows, partitions, ceilings, and floors
Internal: Lights, people, appliances, and equipment
Infiltration: Air leakage and moisture migration

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Components of the heat gain
Space Heat Gains
Instantaneous value of heat gain is the value which enters
into a space and/or is generated within a space.

The mode
of entry:

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Heat gain is classified

• by its mode of entry into the space and

• whether it is sensible or latent.

Sensible heat gain is added directly to the conditioned space

by conduction, convection, and/or radiation.

Latent heat gain occurs when humidity is added to the space

(e.g., from vapor emitted by occupants and equipment).

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Radiant Heat Gain

Radiant energy first must be absorbed by surfaces that enclose

the space (walls, floor, and ceiling) and the objects in the space
(furniture, etc.).
When these surfaces and objects become warmer than the
surrounding air, some of them transfers heat to the air by
convection.
The heat storage capacity of these surfaces and objects
determines the heat gain.

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Space Cooling Load
This is the gain which must be removed from the space
to maintain a constant space air temperature.
The sum of all space instantaneous heat gains in any
given time does not necessary (or even frequently)
equal the cooling load for the space at that same time.

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HEAT GAIN THROUGH EXTERIOR SURFACES

Heat gain through exterior opaque surfaces is derived from solar

radiation.

Sol-Air Temperature
Sol-air temperature is the outdoor air temperature which gives the
same rate of heat entry into the surface as would the combination
of incident solar radiation, radiant energy exchange with the sky
and other outdoor surroundings, and convective heat exchange
with outdoor air.

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 Heat Flow into Exterior Sunlit Surfaces
The heat balance at a sunlit surface gives the heat flow into
the surface:

Q
= αE t + ho (t o − ts ) − ε∆R
A

where
α – absorptance of surface for solar radiation;
Et – total solar radiation incident on surface, W/(m2·K) ;
ho – coefficient of heat transfer by long-wave radiation
and convection at outer surface, W/(m2·K);
to – outdoor air temperature, °C;
ts – surface temperature, °C;
ε – hemispherical emittance of surface;
∆R – difference between long-wave radiation incident on
surface from sky and surroundings and radiation
emitted by blackbody at outdoor air temperature, W/m2
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The rate of heat transfer can be expressed

Q
= ho (to − ts )
A

and from these equations the sol-air temperature:

αE t ε∆R
te = to + −
ho ho

Horizontal surfaces: they receive long-wave radiation from the

sky only, value of ∆R is about 63 W/m2, ε = 1 and ho = 17
W/(m2·K), the long-wave correction term is about 4 K.
Vertical surfaces: they receive long-wave radiation from the
ground and surrounding buildings as well as from the sky, ∆R
values are difficult to determine. When solar radiation intensity is
high, surfaces have a haigher temperature than the outdoor air,
thus their long-wave radiation compensates to the sky’s low
emittance. --> it means ε∆R = 0
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 Total fenestration heat gain

Q = Qdir + Qdiff + Qcondactive

1 – reflection in outer plane,

2 – absorption in outer plane,
3 – reflection in inner plane,
4 – absorption in inner plane,
5 – directly transmitted solar
energy

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 FENESTRATION DIRECT SOLAR, DIFFUSE
SOLAR AND CONDUCTIVE HEAT GAINS
Parts of fenestration heat gain:

Direct solar heat gain

Qdir = A ⋅ Edir ⋅ SHGC (θ ) ⋅ IAC

A – window area, [m2]

Edir – direct irradiance, [W/m2] (calculated value)
SHGC(θ) – direct solar heat gain coefficient as a function of
incident angle θ, [-] -> Table
IAC – inside shading attenuation coefficient, = 1.0 if
no inside shading device, [-]
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Diffuse solar heat gain

Qdiff = A ⋅ ( Ediff + Er ) ⋅ ( SHGC ) diff ⋅ IAC

A – window area, [m2]

Ediff – diffuse irradiance, [W/m2] (calculated value)
Er – ground-reflected irradiance, [W/m2]
(SHGC)diff – diffuse solar heat gain coefficient (also
referred to as hemispherical SHGC)
IAC – inside shading attenuation coefficient, = 1.0
if no inside shading device

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Conductive heat gain

Qc = U ⋅ A ⋅ (to − ti )

A – window area, m2
U – overall U-factor, W/m2K
to – outside temperature, °C
ti – inside temperature, °C

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HEAT GAIN THROUGH INTERIOR SURFACES

Whenever a conditioned space is adjacent to a space

with a different temperature, heat transfer through the
separating physical section must be considered.

The heat transfer rate: Q = U ⋅ A ⋅ (t b − ti )

where
Q – heat transfer rate, W
U – coefficient of overall heat transfer between adjacent and
conditioned space, W/(m2·K)
A – area of separating section concerned, m2
tb – average air temperature in adjacent space, °C
ti – air temperature in conditioned space, °C

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 INTERNAL HEAT GAINS
OCCUPANTS (PEOPLE)

Occupants:
Heat and
Moisture
are emitted by humans in different states of activity.

Sensible and latent heat gains often comprise a large fraction

of the total load.
The conversion of sensible heat gain from people to space
cooling load is affected by the thermal storage characteristics
of that space because some percentage of the sensible load
is radiant energy.
Latent heat gains are considered instantaneous.

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 LIGHTING
The primary source of heat from lighting comes from light-
emitting elements, or lamps, significant additional heat may be
generated from associated parts of light fixtures, house of lamps.

Instantaneous Heat Gain from Lighting

Generally, the instantaneous rate of heat gain from electric
lighting may be calculated from
Qel = W ⋅ Ful ⋅ Fsa

where
Qel – heat gain from electric lighting, W
W – total light wattage, W
Ful – lighting use factor
Fsa – lighting special allowance factor

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 Qel = W ⋅ Ful ⋅ Fsa
The total light wattage is obtained from the ratings of all lamps
installed, both for general illumination and for display use.

The lighting use factor is the ratio of wattage in use to total

installed wattage. For commercial applications such as stores,
the use factor is generally 1.0.

The special allowance factor is for fluorescent fixtures and/or

fixtures that are either ventilated or installed so that only part of
their heat goes to the conditioned space.

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 ELECTRIC MOTORS

Instantaneous heat gain from equipment operated by electric

motors in a conditioned space is calculated as

P
Qem = ⋅ FUM ⋅ FLM
EM
where
Qem – heat equivalent of equipment operation, W
P – motor power rating, W
EM – motor efficiency
FUM – motor use factor
FLM – motor load factor

The motor use factor may be applied when motor use is known
to be intermittent with significant nonuse during all hours of
operation (e.g., overhead door operator).

The motor load factor is the fraction of the rated load being
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delivered under the conditions of the cooling load estimate
 APPLIANCES
In a cooling load estimate, heat gain from all appliances
(electrical, gas, or steam) should be taken into account.
Because of the variety of appliances, applications,
schedules, use, and installations, estimates can be very
subjective.

Often, the only information available about heat gain from

equipment is that on its nameplate.
The sensible heat gain of appliance

Qs = qinput ⋅ FL

where
qinput – energy input
FL – ratio of sensible heat gain to the manufacturer’s
rated energy input.
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 INFILTRATION HEAT GAINS

1. Total heat

Total heat gain corresponding to the change of a given standard

flow rate Qs through an enthalpy difference ∆h is

Qt = 1.2 ⋅ Qs ⋅ ∆h
where

1.2 – density of dry air, kg/m3

Qs – air flow rate through leakages of envelope of
buildings, l/s
∆h – enthalpy difference, kJ/kg
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2. Sensible heat

Sensible heat gain corresponding to the change of dry-bulb

temperature ∆t for given airflow (standard conditions) Qs is

Qt = 1.2 ⋅ (1.006 + 1.84W ) ⋅ Qs ⋅ ∆t

where

1.006 – specific heat of dry air, kJ/(kg·K)

W – humidity ratio, kg (water)/kg (air)
1.84 – specific heat of water vapor, kJ/(kg·K)
∆t – change of dry-bulb temperature, K

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3. Latent heat

Latent heat gain corresponding to the change of humidity ratio

Qt = 1.2 ⋅ 2500 ⋅ Qs ⋅ ∆W

where
2500 kJ/kg is the approximate heat content of 50% relative
humidity vapor,
∆W – the change of humidity ratio
∆t – change of dry-bulb temperature, K

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 LATENT HEAT GAIN FROM MOISTURE
DIFFUSION

Diffusion of moisture through building materials is a natural

phenomenon that is always present.
Moisture transfer through walls is often neglected in comfort
air conditioning because the actual rate is quite small and the
corresponding latent heat gain is insignificant.

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 LATENT HEAT GAIN FROM MOISTURE
DIFFUSION

Diffusion of moisture through building materials is a natural

phenomenon that is always present.
Moisture transfer through walls is often neglected in comfort
air conditioning because the actual rate is quite small and the
corresponding latent heat gain is insignificant.

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 Cooling Load Calculation Methods

There are various cooling calculation methods developed over the

years. These methods are briefly described below in chronological
order of development, along with the reason why they are or not
suitable to be used in this case.
The total equivalent temperature differential method with time
averaging (TETD/TA) which has been a highly reliable method of
load estimating since 1967. It is suitable only as a computer
application because of the need to calculate an extended profile of
hourly heat gain values from which the radiant components have
to be averaged over a time perceived to represent the general
mass of the building involved.

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The transfer function method (TFM) was originally designed in
1972 for energy analysis with emphasis on daily, monthly, and annual
energy use and, thus, is more oriented to average hourly cooling
loads than peak design loads. It requires many calculation steps
which make it very time consuming.

The cooling load temperature differential method with solar

cooling load factors (CLTD/SCL/CLF) was developed in 1975, by
simplifying the two-step methods described above into a single-step
technique that allows proceeding directly from raw data to cooling
load without the intermediate conversion of radiant heat gain to
cooling load. Since this method is simpler than the other two above it
since it does not require special software as the following two.

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The heat balance (HB) method in which the calculation
procedures and scientific principles are explained in equation
format. These equations are coded in a generic computer program
named Hbfort, released with Cooling and Heating Load Calculation
Principles (Pedersen et al. 1998), and linked to a user interface
program to allow input and output in either inch-pound or SI units.

The radiant time series (RTS) method is a new simplified

method for performing design cooling load calculations that is
derived from the heat balance (HB) method described above. It
effectively replaces all other simplified methods but while simple in
concept, it involves too many calculations to be used practically as
a manual method

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Thank you for your attention !

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