The comfort zone: Academic havens incorporate silent, energy-efficient fans to improve surroundings
by Jonathan McGaha | March 31, 2009 12:00 am
Musty, windowless study halls; greasy food; the cacophony of students rushing
to class. Student centers at colleges or universities often conjure up these
familiar images. But modern-day student centers popping up at progressive
institutions nationwide are anything but mundane. Plasma screen televisions,
world-class dining, inviting couches and environmentally friendly features work
in concert to make academic havens contemporary, convenient and comfortable.
Campus Cases
One such student center is the newly remodeled Lavin-Bernick Center on the uptown campus of Tulane University in New Orleans. This city is known for its Old World charm, which often means antiquated heating and cooling systems that are no match for the sweltering heat and humidity. But the environmentally friendly LBC design incorporates natural air and lighting, along with various shading and ventilation, techniques to ventilate and cool the area. Foregoing the installation of a traditional HVAC system, this 151,000-square-foot (14,028-m2)center incorporates these passive cooling techniques and three 10-foot- (3-m-) diameter, energy-efficient Big Ass Fans, providing a comfortable environment for its 10,000 daily visitors. Relying on their immense size, not speed, the fans-from Big Ass Fans in Lexington, Ky.-effectively circulate air throughout the mezzanine area of LBC, replacing 16 small and ineffi cient traditional ceiling fans.
In 2008, the project was chosen as one of the AIA/COTE Top Ten Green Projects from the American Institute of Architects committee on the environment, which awards projects incorporating sustainable, effi cient, community and environmental attributes.
According to Leland Bennet, director of the LBC, Big Ass Fans certainly contribute to the environment. “Big Ass Fans are a unique addition that add to the ambience and comfort of the building,” Bennet affirmed.
Chandler-Gilbert Community College in Chandler, Ariz., was one of four colleges nationwide to receive the Campus Sustainability Award in 2007 from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. In fact, sustainability efforts are even part of the institution’s strategic goals as faculty, staff and students have committed themselves to water conservation, energy management, and the recycling and use of biodegradable products to improve their campus environment. The Student Center Pavilion incorporates another unique feature to enhance the comfort and energy efficiency of the 4,000- square-foot (372-m2) space: three 20-foot- (2-m-) diameter Big Ass Fans.
According to Bruce Scharbach, director of facilities services for the college, the fans provide a comfort zone for students and staff throughout the year. “There is a direct relationship to our sustainability initiative and utilizing the fans, definitely with consideration to energy conservation. During the summer months, when we use air conditioning, the fans supplement the cooling in our space. Moving air and evaporatively cooling the folks down below is always a good thing,” Scharbach said.
Technical Aspects
So how do Big Ass Fans work? From a technical perspective, Big Ass Fans function on a simple physical principal: Unlike small, high-velocity fans that create small turbulent air streams that dissipate quickly, a large, slow-moving fan entrains a significant amount of air. The air current from a Big Ass Fan approaches floor level in a conical column that radiates out in all directions.The horizontal air jet continues until it reaches walls or airflow from another fan, at which point the airflow is turned upward and back in toward the fan. This creates convection-like air currents that gather inertia as the fan continues to spin. The increased air circulation improves heat loss by removing hot, humid air from contact with the skin and replacing it with relatively drier air. The end result is a silent, non-disruptive distribution of 3- to 5-mph breezes over large spaces.
Because of its size, the large, low-velocity fans in these student centers are both effective and efficient. Using 3/4- to 2-horsepower motors, the fans consume power at a fraction of the cost that small ceiling fans require. During the winter, the temperature between the floor and the ceiling may vary by 15 Fahrenheit degrees (27 Celsius degrees). Big Ass Fans are slowed to redistribute warm air collecting at the ceiling level down to the occupancy level. The rule of thumb is that for every degree dialed down on the thermostat, you can enjoy a 3 percent reduction in energy costs. As a result, many customers accrue savings of 25 percent or more during a heating season.
Earning Credits
Tulane University and Chandler-Gilbert Community College are just two of the more than 100 universities nationwide to install Big Ass Fans, citing a range of uses, including conversation starters to energy reduction to heat recirculation. Sustainability-focused construction can even apply Big Ass Fans for LEED credits in seven categories, making them a useful addition to any green building project.
Laci Poulter is the manager of media relations for Big Ass Fans, Lexington, Ky. More information is available at www.bigassfans.com or www.elementfan.com.
Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/projects/the-comfort-zone-academic-havens-incorporate-silent-energy-efficient-fans-to-improve-surroundings/