Assessing the Energy Demand Reduction in a Surgical Suite by Optimizing the HVAC Operation During Off-Use Periods

Abstract

Hospital surgical suites are high consumers of energy due to the strict indoor air quality (IAQ) conditions. However, by varying the ventilation strategies, the potential for energy savings is great, particularly during periods without activity. In addition, there is no international consensus on the ventilation and hygrothermal requirements for surgical areas. In this work, a dynamic energy model of a surgical suite of a Spanish hospital is developed. This energy model is calibrated and validated with experimental data collected during real operation. The model is used to simulate the yearly energy performance of the surgical suite under different ventilation scenarios. The common issue in the studied ventilation strategies is that the hygrothermal conditions ranges are extended during off-use hours. The maximum savings obtained are around 70% of the energy demand without compromising the safety and health of patients and medical staff, as the study complies with current heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) regulations.

Untitled

“…Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) is typically responsible for the greatest proportion of end-use energy in hospitals173 and has been shown to be responsible for 90%–99% of theatre energy use 174. While there are no data on HVAC energy requirements for an endoscopy room, they are required to be negatively pressurised resulting in significant energy usage 175. While there are specific ventilation requirements, hospital ventilation is often left running during non-occupation (eg, overnight).…”

“…174 While there are no data on HVAC energy requirements for an endoscopy room, they are required to be negatively pressurised resulting in significant energy usage. 175 While there are specific ventilation requirements, hospital ventilation is often left running during non-occupation (eg, overnight). Several studies have looked at air cleanliness in unoccupied operating rooms.…”

Analysis and Evaluation of Indoor Environment, Occupant Satisfaction, and Energy Consumption in General Hospital in China

“…Other researchers have proposed energy-saving strategies for hospital buildings from another perspective, such as air conditioning energy conservation [18][19][20] and innovative retrofitting strategies [21][22][23]. Given that different IEQ levels can lead to different levels of satisfaction and energy consumption, it is crucial to evaluate IEQ, satisfaction, and energy consumption at different building levels simultaneously [2].…”

Sustainable Savings Applied to Operating Room Ventilation at Hospitals Located in Different Climatic Zones, through Control and Regulation Strategies

“…If hygrothermal treatment is added to the supply air, IAQ control involves a high economic cost. Studies carried out by Cacabelos-Reyes et al [11] estimate that thermal energy consumption in Spanish ORs is between 1685 kWh/m 2 •y to 1021 kWh/m 2 •y, excluding adjacent areas. This represents a high energy consumption.…”

“…To reduce the cost of maintaining the IAQ in an OR, different scenarios can be studied. Cacabelos-Reyes et al [11] conducted a model in TRNSYS to study energy consumption in ORs. The model was validated with experimental data collected in a real facility, obtaining results of savings of 50%.…”