Review of standards for energy performance of chiller systems serving commercial buildings

A prescriptive approach is primarily used to establish energy benchmarks for energy systems in buildings. This paper reviews national standards and guidelines for the energy performance of chiller systems which provide cooling energy in commercial buildings but their operation causes the major proportion of electricity consumption in the building sector. The standards reviewed are currently adopted in nine places (in alphabetical order): Australia, California, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, the EU, Hong Kong, New Zealand and the USA. Under standard rating conditions at full load operation, the minimum required coefficient of performance (COP) ranges from 2.40 to 3.06 for air-cooled chillers and from 3.80 to 6.39 for water-cooled chillers. Some standards state also the COP requirements at part load operation with integrated part load values or seasonal energy efficiency ratios. A classification scheme is provided in the EU and Chinese standards which helps labeling and certifying high efficient chiller products. Criteria for enhancing energy ratings of chiller systems are suggested.