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Office Tower AHU Heat Recovery with Plate Exchanger (Case Study)

A 30-floor office tower conditions 100,000 m3/h of outdoor air through its air-handling units. EN159 added plate recovery to cut heating and cooling load.

The Challenge

The tower needed large outdoor-air volumes year round. Conditioning that air drove peak heating and cooling demand. The owner wanted high effectiveness with simple maintenance.

Why Plate Air-to-Air Recovery

For clean commercial outdoor air, a plate exchanger gives high sensible effectiveness with no rotating parts. A rotary wheel is optional here, but the owner chose plate for the lowest lifecycle service.

The EN159 Solution

EN159 BXB plate modules across three AHUs, 100,000 m3/h total, 72 percent effectiveness, aluminium plates with summer bypass.

Measured Results

  • Recovered heat: about 1.1 MW
  • Peak heating load cut by 34 percent
  • Peak cooling load cut by 22 percent
  • Estimated payback: 15 months

Compliance and Selection Notes

Plate sensible recovery for clean outdoor air. Rotary wheel optional but not required for this duty.

Frequently Asked Questions

Summer bypass?

Yes, a bypass damper lets the plate be bypassed in mild weather to avoid overcooling.

Why plate over wheel?

Lower maintenance and no cross-leakage concern for a commercial tenant building.

Related Guides and Tools

Plate Heat Exchangers · Commercial HVAC Heat Recovery · Air-to-Air Heat Exchangers · Central AC Heat Recovery · Contact EN159

Get a Site-Specific Recovery Estimate

Talk to an EN159 application engineer about your office tower HVAC exhaust stream. Call 15753355505 or visit our contact page for a site-specific recovery estimate.

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