Sports Arena Design

[bagleaso]

I am starting the design of a sports arena and was wondering, first of all, if there are any general design issues to be aware of that are unique to this type of space (this is my first arena). I am particularly interested in the ventilation of the arena. It would seem with a densely occupated space such as this, the air handler(s) or rtu(s) serving this space could just about be 100% OA. My thought is to size coils for 100%OA, provide ahu/rtu with energy recovery wheel, 2-position oa damper with CO2 control - min setting is for "non-event" and in the event of high levels of CO2 (sporting event) the ahu/rtu will go into economizer mode until levels are brought back down and the oa damper will then go back to min (non-event) setting. Let me know your thoughts on this philosophy and any other suggestions you may have. Thanks so much.

 

[MintJulep]

Very complex, because the usage of the space can vary greatly.

Will they play hockey in there?

Will they ever shoot off fireworks inside?

Will they host the circus?

Rock concerts?

What will you do when the place is not in use?

 

[bagleaso]

This arena will mainly host college basketball (women's) and volleyball. In some occasions it will likely host high school sports tournaments (regionals, sectionals, state...) It may also do a small concert here and there - community event stuff. I believe the seating capacity is ~4200. There will be no hockey, fireworks, circus or large rock concerts. In the "non-event/non-spectator" mode the arena will be used as 4 practice courts for men's basketball. My thought is to set the min position for oa damper to whatever is required in the "non-event/non-spectator mode" - let's say 20%. In the "event" mode, the CO2 sensor will trip the unit into econmozier mode. The fan will be constant volume (sized for max ventilation air required) so there will be some wasted fan energy, but there should be a good deal of energy savings with the energy recovery/CO2 control strategy.

 

[bagleaso]

As I've looked into the design of this space a bit further, it looks as if I'll need ~60,000CFM supply with ~20,000CFM OA (max). I'd like to be able to use energy recovery with CO2, setting the min OA for 10,000CFM and max to 20,000CFM. Looking at a Trane Indoor Climate Changer Air Handling Unit, the option for an energy wheel is not available for this large of a unit...so it looks like I may want to do a dedicated outdoor air unit with a vfd. I may also have some VAV air handlers wanting some outdoor air from the dedicated unit, so I think I will need an air monitoring station for each air handling unit to insure I get either the min or max cfm (based on CO2) for the arena and the min cfm oa for the other AHUs. I will use system and building (if allowed) exhaust for energy recovery. Please let me know if this strategy is sound or if there may be some other ideas that would create a better, perhaps simpler system. I apologize for my rambling here, it seems to really help to verbalize my ideas...a lot of times I just need to speak and answer my own questions, but it's really nice when someone agrees with what I'm thinking and/or finds a flaw that they can help with. Thanks.

 

[lilliput1]

See also SEMCO. Provide extra OA for wheel purge & arrange supply & exhaust fans per SEMCO recommendation to avoid exhaust air infiltrating the supply air side. SEMCO should have the large wheel size available & they can give you estimate of energy cost savings. Consider reliability requirement. Can failure of AHU be tolerated. Should there be (2) systems so one unit can provide about 60% capacity while one is down (will require interconnecting ductwork).

 

[cme]

I'd use filtartion systems to reduce the amount of OSA. I've seen some designs with Cosatron units and 5 cfm/person OSA.

Also you need to provide a smoke evacuation system.

Good luck.