Air changes per hour


Air changes per hour, abbreviated ACPH or ACH, or air change rate is a measure of the air volume added to or removed from a space divided by the volume of the space. If the air in the space is either uniform or perfectly mixed, air changes per hour is a measure of how many times the air within a defined space is replaced.
In many air distribution arrangements, air is neither uniform nor perfectly mixed. The actual percentage of an enclosure's air which is exchanged in a period depends on the airflow efficiency of the enclosure and the methods used to ventilate it. The actual amount of air changed in a well mixed ventilation scenario will be 63.2% after 1 hour and 1 ACH. In order to achieve pressure, the amount of air leaving the space and entering the space must be the same.
Where:
Where:
Ventilation rates are often expressed as a volume rate per person. The conversion between air changes per hour and ventilation rate per person is as follows:
Where:
Air change rates are often used as rules of thumb in ventilation design. However, they are seldom used as the actual basis of design or calculation. For example, laboratory ventilation standards indicate recommended ranges for air change rates, as a guideline for the actual design. Residential ventilation rates are calculated based on area of the residence and number of occupants. Non-residential ventilation rates are based on floor area and number of occupants, or a calculated dilution of known contaminants. Hospital design standards use air changes per hour, although this has been criticized.
Basement Parking15–30
Residential Basement3–4
Bedroom5-6
Residential Bathroom6-7
Residential Living Rooms6-8
Residential Kitchen7-8
Residential Laundry8-9
Business Offices6-8
Business Lunch Break Rooms7-8
Business Conference Rooms8-12
Business Copy Rooms10-12
Computer Rooms10-14
Restaurant Dining Area8-10
Restaurant Food Staging Area10-12
Restaurant Bar15-20
Public Hallway6-8
Public Retail Store6-10
Public Foyer8-10
Church8-12
Public Auditorium12-14
Commercial kitchens & Restrooms15–30
Smoking rooms15-20
Laboratories6–12
Classrooms3–4
Warehousing3-10

Measure of Airtightness

Many if not most uses of ACH are actually referring to results of a standard blower door test in which 50 pascals of pressure are applied, rather than the volume of air changed under normal conditions. The Passive House standard requires airtightness so that there will be less than 0.6 ACH with a pressure difference between inside and outside of 50 Pa.

Effects of ACH due to forced ventilation in a dwelling

Forced ventilation to increase ACH becomes a necessity to maintain acceptable air quality as occupants become reluctant to open windows due to behavioural changes such as keeping windows closed for security.
Air changes are often cited as a means of preventing condensation in houses with forced ventilation systems often rated from 3 - 5 ACH though without referencing the size of the house. However, where ACH is already greater than 0.75 a forced ventilation system is unlikely to be of use at controlling condensation and instead insulation or heating are better remedies. Seven out of eight houses studied in NZ in 2010 had an ACH of 0.75 or greater. The presence of forced ventilation systems has been shown in some cases to actually increase the humidity rather than lower it. By displacing air inside a dwelling with infiltrated air, positive pressure ventilation systems can increase heating or cooling requirements in a house. For example, to maintain a 15 °C temperature in a certain dwelling about 3.0 kW of heating are required at 0 ACH, 3.8 kW at 1 ACH and 4.5 kW are required at 2 ACH. The use of roof space for heating or cooling was seen as ineffectual with the maximum heating benefits occurring in winter in more southerly regions but being equivalent only to about 0.5 kW or the heating provided by about five 100 W incandescent light bulbs; cooling effects in summer were similarly small and were more pronounced for more northerly homes ; in all cases the values assumed that the ventilation system automatically disengaged when the infiltrating air was warmer or cooler than the air already in the dwelling as it would otherwise exacerbate the undesirable conditions in the house.