Student Health

Air Quality

Indoor environmental quality (IAQ) has a major impact on health, performance and attendance of students and teachers. Displacement ventilation has shown significant improvements of the air quality in classrooms on a number of studies conducted.*

In December 2022, Price Industries published an article in one of the continent’s leading HVAC publications, ASHRAE Journal. This article revealed how the airflow patterns created by displacement ventilation improve indoor air quality. Read the full article here.

Affordability & Sustainability

Energy Savings

A displacement system can produce significant annual electrical savings, because it:

1. 1. Lowers fan horsepower generated to move air throughout the space.
      1. Displacement ventilation relies on natural convection to move air through a space. The cool air is drawn towards the heat sources within the space such as occupants and then rises up across the person or equipment conditioning the space in a very efficient manner.
      2. For this reason, the air speed from the diffuser does not need to be delivered into the space at a high velocity resulting in a lower amount of energy needed for the fan equipment to consume.
   2. Requires less cooling load to condition a space because of warmer supply air temperature.
      1. Displacement ventilation delivers air directly into the breathing zone and, as a result, supplies air at an air temperature much closer to the space room temperature. This improves space comfort but also helps reduce the energy consumed to cool the air down to lower temperatures similar to a conventional system.
      2. By only cooling the area where the occupants are located the system will not spend energy to cool air outside of the occupied space. The heat generated by ceiling lighting and perimeter walls and windows will stratify upwards away from the occupants and be removed from the space efficiently. The result is better efficiency at the air handler and equipment (such as chillers).

Affordability & Sustainability

Low Maintenance

With limited operating budgets, schools can save by installing a displacement system. Due to the reduction in moving parts and mechanical equipment (fans, filters, drain pans, and condensate the control batteries pumps) found in displacement units, these systems typically have lower maintenance costs compared to other systems.

Other Student Benefits

Thermal Comfort

Some traditional systems, like unit ventilators, can create uncomfortable thermal conditions over time if they are not attentively and regularly serviced. Eventually, leakage can lead to cold air entering the classroom, and can be costly for schools to fix.

Displacement systems supply warmer air at ground level – providing superior comfort for occupants – and displacement products have no moving parts to service. This creates even and optimal thermal comfort for students and teachers, whether they are assigned a seat by a window or in proximity to a diffuser.

Other Student Benefits

Acoustics

Lowering background noise levels can help reduce the impact on concentration levels of both teachers and students.

Displacement systems have no moving parts and they release air slowly, making them inherently very quiet. This helps achieve the standard for classroom noise levels of 35dBA, from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI, S12.60).

Unfortunately for most students and teachers, this standard is not being met. The results from a recent study found that only 1 out of 54 classrooms met the <35dBA ANSI target**.  A major contributor to noisy and distracting classrooms is the traditional installed HVAC systems with built-in fans and other moving parts.