The maritime full-service provider Imtech Marine was selected as supplier of the new research vessel »Sonne«. The company designs[ds_preview] and installs the complete HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system for accommodation areas, laboratories and machinery spaces, as well as the redundant cold and warm water supply system with a combination of turbo chillers and absorption chillers.
After 44 years the current German research vessel »Sonne« will be replaced by a new, eco-friendly successor in 2015, carrying the same name. By applying dynamic simulation techniques, Imtech Marine claims to achieve substantial energy savings on the HVAC system. The project requires specific technical expertise, for example with regard to the demands of two
climate laboratories on board at a temperature range between 0°C and 28°C. Further challenges are limited space available and the complexity to combine new green systems with conventional ones.
In order to simulate the new HVAC system, simulation tools Dymola and Modelica were used. The first approach comprises the combination of turbo and absorption chilling units providing cold water with a sliding supply temperature for the vessel’s varying heat loads, which mostly depend on outside weather conditions. The chiller’s automation and control system increases the cold water supply temperature at lower cooling demand and decreases the temperature again at higher cooling loads. According to Imtech Marine the electrical power consumption of the chiller and cold water
supply pumps will decrease by 15–20 %. The second simulation uses the »Sonne« as an example and analyzes energy savings for future projects by help of demand controlled ventilation (DCV) in galleys. The idea of DCV is to connect the cooking equipment with the exhaust air hoods. »That means if only 50 % of the equipment is in use, only 50 % of exhaust air is needed,« says Eike Higgen from Imtech Marine. This results in less electrical power consumption of all fans and less cooling demand.
