The Proven Persistence of Very High Efficiency Dedicated Outdoor Air Systems

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), a leading science and technology lab funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, recently validated the long-term performance of the very high efficiency dedicated outdoor air system (very high efficiency DOAS) approach to commercial HVAC. As described in their technical report published in December 2023, PNNL evaluated eight buildings that participated in field evaluation studies sponsored by the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) and the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) from 2015 to 2020. The study found that the systems: 1) consistently saved energy over the long term, 2) improved occupant comfort, and 3) received positive feedback from building operators.

Further, the study confirmed long-term enhancements to the buildings’ Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), as well as a persistent reduction to the electric load through decarbonized heating systems. These results showcase the sustained nature of the many benefits of this leading approach to efficient and healthy commercial building HVAC.

To learn more about this evaluation study, including a technology overview, project summary, and description of methodology, visit PNNL’s website.