Recommissioning methodology for the evaluation of airport air conditioning systems

The processes of commissioning new and existing buildings and continuous commissioning are important tools to identify low performance and high-energy consumption problems, contributing to their solutions, energy conservation and research of more efficient systems. Considering the important contribution of air conditioning systems in the energy consumption of buildings, this paper presents the proposed methodology based on recommissioning concepts to evaluate the operational and energy performance of these systems. The methodology is demonstrated through its application to an airport air conditioning system in Rio de Janeiro. The operational data collected daily are used to demonstrate the phases of the proposed methodology. The evaluation of the system was carried out by using the process capability analysis, operational mode in use and coefficient of performance (COP). As a result, opportunities for improvement were identified, with an increase of COP from 5.95 to 6.84 and reduction of energy consumption on chillers by up to 13.0%. Finally, a comparison of the results with the reference values presented enabled the conclusion to be drawn that the proposed methodology is suitable for direct application in similar systems, such as shopping malls and airport terminals. With some adaptation it can be expanded to other ventures.