Advisory Committee Chair
Robert Peters
Advisory Committee Members
Jason Kirby
Kathleen Leonard
Virginia Sisiopiku
Christopher Waldron
Document Type
Dissertation
Date of Award
2013
Degree Name by School
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) School of Engineering
Abstract
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor (University of Nebraska at Lincoln, 2011), the majority of the Southeastern states are classified as being in a state of moderate, severe, extreme, and or exceptional drought. The northern part of Alabama including Jefferson County falls into the "abnormal" drought category. Due to the prevailing drought conditions in the Southeastern U.S. in the recent past, it is necessary to conserve water resources by using them as efficiently and responsibly as possible. The increasing population, socioeconomic developments, and industrialization could have significant impacts on the way we consume water today. There will be an imbalance in the water supply and demand if potable water is not used more efficiently. Water and energy are interdependent and hence it is necessary that building operators and industry leaders realize that water conservation is as important as energy conservation. This research investigated the effect of weather parameters on the condensate production of four air handling units in campus research buildings in Birmingham, Alabama. Condensate production of four air handlers was recorded at one minute intervals to obtain the hourly condensate production. Hourly data of dry-bulb temperature, humidity, dew point temperature, and rainfall was obtained from the Wunderground website (Weather Underground, Inc, 2013). Multiple regression analysis was performed using both the ordinary least square method and autoregressive error method to compare their ability in predicting and forecasting the most accurate estimation of the condensate production. The model developed in this study can be used to estimate the potential condensate recovery from any air handling unit with known weather parameters. This study also investigated the feasibility of the condensate recovery system (CRS) for the city of Birmingham, Alabama since this has not been studied by previous research. This study also involved the financial aspect of the CRS by evaluating the potential reduction in water and energy usage resulting a in reduction in the operating cost of the buildings.
Recommended Citation
Kajale, Atul Nandkumar, "Estimation And Forecasting Of Air Handling Condensate Recovery Using Multiple Regression Analysis And Time-Series Autoregressive Models" (2013). All ETDs from UAB. 2093.
https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/etd-collection/2093