Effective heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) design in oil and gas facilities is critical to ensuring a safe and comfortable working environment, and can help make substantial improvements in energy efficiency and minimising an operation’s carbon footprint.
Working offshore can expose oil and gas personnel to some of the harshest working environments around the world, who typically face extreme temperatures, high humidity, and corrosive saltwater. To combat this, a comprehensive and effective HVAC is required inside living quarters and workspaces, while ventilation needs to both provide fresh air and prevent the accumulation of explosive or toxic gases.
A common feature of oil and gas facilities is the presence of confined spaces, which are areas with limited entry and exit points, not designed for continuous occupancy, and may pose significant hazards to workers. These areas can contain tanks, vessels, silos, pipelines, andvarious types of equipment or machinery and are intended for prolonged human presence, potentially being oxygen-deficient, containing hazardous gases or vapours, or having extreme temperatures.
New innovations and emerging technologies are supporting the growth of the HVAC industry, with the rise of intelligent monitoring through increasingly accurate Internet of Things enabled sensors and the application of automated and AI-based control systems. Sensors are now able to measure temperature and air quality with great precision, and use algorithms that continually monitor changes in air quality.
This real-time air data is fed into the AI control, which adjusts operating parameters to ensure maximum efficiency for the cooling system; importantly, it is able to detect sudden changes and respond immediately with appropriate adjustments. Consumer preference has also shaped the direction of innovation, with growing popularity around modular and scalable systems that offer flexibility and adaptability. Modular systems are easily installed, expanded, and reconfigured, enabling businesses to adjust their cooling capacity based on changing needs.
As companies are increasingly seeking energy-efficient cooling solutions – to reduce operational costs and minimise their environmental impacts – manufacturers are keeping pace with innovative technologies, including variable speed drives,intelligent controls, and advanced refrigerants.
A review published earlier this year in the International Journal of Applied Research in Social Sciences explored the challenges climate change poses to HVAC system design, primarily due to its impact on temperature patterns, extreme weather events, and evolving energy demands.
The researchers noted that rising global temperatures necessitated innovative approaches to cooling systems, with a focus on energy efficiency and sustainable practices, and that the increasing frequency and intensity of heatwaves and extreme cold spells demanded HVAC systems that could adaptdynamically to fluctuating environmental conditions.
They said: “The future of HVAC system design lies in embracing resilience, sustainability, and innovation to address the challenges posed by climate change.
“Resilience involves designing systems that can withstand and recover from disruptions caused by extreme weather events, supply chain interruptions, and regulatory changes.
“Sustainability focuses on reducing the environmental impact of HVAC systems through energy efficiency, renewable energy integration, and carbon footprint reduction. “Innovation drives the development of new technologies, materials, and design strategies to improve system performance, enhance indoor comfort, and mitigate climate change impacts.”
Industrial HVAC systems often require significant upfront investment as well as costs associated with installation, such as modifications to existing infrastructure, piping, electrical connections, and automation systems.
This is on top of the costs of running the system, making it vital for companies to implement energy efficient cooling systems to minimise operational costs, particularly with a high and fluctuating price of energy. Energy price instability is an ongoing concern for the industrial cooling industry, while other short- and medium-term challenges include shifting consumer preferences, amendments to industrial policies to align with growing environmental concerns, huge fluctuations in raw material costs, and expected economic turbulence.
Evaporative cooling is the most energy-efficient method, which works through the evaporation of water and can use up to 70 per cent less energy compared to air cooling systems. Recent innovations in these systems include corrosionresistant heat exchangers, which limit corrosion and further reduce energy consumption, as well as the implementation of more efficient and quieter fans.
These heat exchangers use specialised alloy materials that inhibit the corrosion of cooling fluid and provide protection against mechanical damage, extending the system’s lifespan and minimising maintenance costs. Advances in heat transfer solutions for cooling applications have also helped create more efficient systems, with examples being the development of higher-efficiency materials for heat exchangers as well as the use of thermoelectric heat pumps.
These pumps transfer heat between different locations, helping reduce energy consumption, and are environmentally friendly and cost effective due to operating without any additional power generation. Furthermore, new cooling fans that use DC motors have been developed, which use less energy and make less noise than conventional AC motors.
Along with being cheaper to run, evaporative cooling systems are also cheaper to build overall and can create humidity, which is beneficial for dry environments. However, evaporative cooling requires a constant supply of water, is less efficient in areas with high humidity, and requires air circulation. Air cooling systems, which work by cooling the air directly and dissipating heat externally, are the least energy and cost efficient, but do not need air circulation, are flexible in their application, and dehumidify the cooled area instead.
Water tower cooling systems, on the other hand, draw cold water from a nearby water source and use it to cool down the air. This makes them more environmentally friendly than traditional cooling systems, as they reduce waste water and carbon dioxide emissions, allowing operators to reduce their overall footprint.