Page 29 - Climate Control News December 2018

Future of Cooling
A BOOMING TRADE
The report, entitled the Future of Cooling, warns that the world faces a 'cold crunch'. Here are some of the facts at a glance:
By 2050, two thirds of the world's households could have an air conditioner. China, India and Indonesia together will account for half of the total number;
Without action to address energy efficiency, energy demand for space cooling will more than triple by 2050 – consuming as much electricity as all of China and India today;
Investing in more efficient air conditioners could cut future energy demand in half. The report outlines a number of scenarios showing how this could be achieved.
Between 1990 and 2016, annual sales of air conditioners nearly quadrupled to 135 million units. The bulk of these units were packaged and split system air conditioners. By the end of 2016 around
1.6 billion air conditioners were in use. Household ownership of air conditioners
varies enormously across countries from around four per cent in India, less than 10 per cent in Europe to over 90 per cent in the United States and Japan, and close to 100 per cent in a few Middle Eastern countries.
Today, there are twice as many fans in use as air conditioners in households, but the ratio is falling quickly as air conditioner ownership expands. Fans typically use less than 10 per cent of the energy consumed by a packaged or split-system AC for an equivalent space.
This would greatly reduce the need to build new electricity infrastructure to meet rising demand.
“Setting higher efficiency standards for cooling is one of the easiest steps governments can take to re- duce the need for new power plants, and allow them at the same time to cut emissions and reduce costs,” Dr Birol said.
The report found significant variations in efficien- cy based on the type of equipment used and the size of the cooling system. For example, it found large chillers and split air conditioners tend to be signifi- cantly more efficient compared to rooftop and pack- aged units.
Most countries that have sizeable cooling loads have introduced Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) with 85% of the air conditioners sold worldwide in 2016 covered by MEPS.
“There are several areas where efficiency of exist- ing AC technologies could be improved, including aerodynamically efficient fan blades, more efficient compressors, improved inverter technology to con- trol the speed of the compressor motor, and the use of variable speed drives on fan motors,” the report said.
It also suggests thermal zoning, enhanced con- trols and predictive control as well as better sizing, installation and maintenance. ✺
CLIMATE CONTROL NEWS
DECEMBER – JANUARY 2019
29