Image courtesy of DLR Group
DLR Group Architects (http://www.dlrgroup.com/home/) have incorporated Bio-PCM ENRG blankets into walls and ceilings of a classroom and its performance will be compared with a similar, non-PCM containing classroom (see http://schoolconstructionnews.com/2018/02/16/thermal-mass-2-0-reinventing-energy-design-user-experience/). The project is based at Canyon View High School in Waddell, Arizona. Both rooms will monitor HVAC energy, overall building energy use, thermal comfort in one room on each floor with thermocouples on all six surfaces. Additional sensors will monitor heat transfer in ceilings and exterior walls. The Bio-PCM blankets have been applied to ~10% of the school.
In 2010 Arizona State University tested the Bio-PCM blankets in a demonstration house in Arizona and found energy savings of 9% to 29%, depending on the month. It was also found that peak electricity demand could be shifted by up to six hours. DLR Group also tested the Bio-PCM blankets in modular classrooms at another Californian school. HVAC energy savings of 31% were achieved compared to a similar modular classroom without PCM.
The aims of the Canyon View project are for the school to operate 78% more effectively than the traditional Energy Star benchmark (under the same climatic conditions) and to provide a more comfortable environment for the occupants.
