Monodraught has been developing natural ventilation and daylight solutions for over 30 years that both improve the quality of the environment and reduce energy consumption and our carbon footprint. The COOL-PHASE® passive ventilation system is an exciting new development of this tradition; a revolutionary new ventilation, cooling and heat recovery system. Following trials in central London over the last two years the system has been shown to reduce energy consumption by up to 90%, as well as creating a fresh and healthy indoor environment.
The system uses a thermal energy store utilising a phase change material (PCM) in combination with intelligent mechanical ventilation to actively ventilate, cool and heat the building. The material inside each unit has an equivalent thermal mass of 32 tonnes of concrete, which is charged and discharged by passing air over a heat exchanger.
The effect of adding thermal mass to a building is a well understood principle, effectively increasing the time that it takes to either cool or heat the building up. However a problem associated with adding thermal mass to a building is that temperatures will invariably rise over time as there is no method of actively dissipating the heat built up during the day.
Unlike passive applications, because the system is able to intelligently control how energy is stored and released, the heat built up during the day can be released at night, and the thermal energy store recharged. When this is combined with the effects of free cooling and night time ventilation the result is a system that can reliably maintain temperatures within comfort zones while radically reducing energy consumption by as much as 90% compared to a conventional air conditioning system.
COOL-PHASE is a unique offering in that it is able to meet building regulation requirements for thermal comfort, ventilation and energy efficiency in a single easy to retrofit system. Since no compressors or hazardous coolants are used, the system does not fall foul of the servicing requirements and statutory checks required of air conditioning systems, further reducing running costs.
The capital cost of a COOL-PHASE system is similar to either a conventional cooling or mechanical ventilation system and so the system can save money from day one, and make an impressive financial payback over the life of the building.
However COOL-PHASE has a number of practical benefits beyond the financial savings and return on investment. Unlike conventional cooling systems, no external units are required, meaning the system is applicable even when planning permission is an issue or outside space is at a premium. The system is modular and scalable in nature meaning it can just as easily be installed in small spaces or scaled up for larger areas or densely populated environments. The system can be installed as a stand-alone system or alongside the buildings existing HVAC solution so improving its performance and reducing the buildings energy usage.