Univar to improve the working environment at the European Commission’s Berlaymont building

Univar N.V., one of the world’s leading independent distributors of industrial chemicals and providers of related specialty services, is supplying the secondary heat transfer fluid (HTF) for the HVAC system in one of the best known and most frequently featured structures in Europe, the Berlaymont building which previously housed the European Commission in Brussels.

The Berlaymont building was closed in the early 1990’s for major structural renewal and since 2000 Univar has played a co-ordinating role in the supply process of the building’s new HVAC system, liasing with the equipment manufacturer, chemical producer, chemical transport company and the system’s installation contractor.

Now in the final stage of installation, the Berlaymont represents the largest HVAC installation ever undertaken in the Benelux and Univar’s expertise has been key in bringing together each of the system’s elements. At the logistical centre of the project, the company’s principal responsibility is the supply of DOWCAL® 10. Having identified DOWCAL® 10 as the ideal HTF for the selected HVAC system, Univar undertakes the blending of the fluid to optimise its performance. And, ensuring continuity, Univar also provides technical delivery management to support the safe filling of the system.

“The Berlaymont represents a major HVAC challenge,” says Dimitri van Crombruggen, Sales Engineer HTF and Project Leader, Univar Benelux. “The scale of the project demands the highest level of skill from each of the disciplines involved. The building comprises more than 200,000 m2 of office and ancillary accommodation on 13 floors above ground and four levels below ground, where it also connects with road tunnels, pedestrian walkways and both the metro and main railway.”

This is confirmed by Karim Bakkouche, project engineer at Axima, the contractor responsible for the technical installations: “From the basement level where the pumps are situated, up to the roof where the heat transfer units are located, is a height difference of more than 74 meters. Just filling the system with HTF is a three day operation in itself.”

To meet the environmental, performance and cost efficiency criteria demanded, Baltimore Aircoil’s 30 Mw ice storage system was selected as the core of the HVAC system. Ice thermal storage uses the latent heat of frozen water to store thermal energy as ice. This means that electrical energy can be used to run chillers and generate ice during the off-peak, least expensive periods, usually at night, and use the ice to cool the building during the daytime when energy cost is at its peak.

According to Georges Hoeterickx, development manager at BAC: “For the 10 Mw heat rejection, Baltimore AirCoil’s closed circuit coolers with fully finned coils were selected. This is in order to minimize the water consumption and maximize dry operation. From an ambient temperature of 14°C or below, these coolers will operate dry. To prevent the water in the coolers from freezing during the winter, the heat rejection system is also filled with DOWCAL®.”

DOWCAL®, from Dow Chemical Company, was selected as the heat transfer fluid as it provides an ideal complement to the BAC ice storage system. A highly engineered glycol-based fluid, DOWCAL® protects the system fully against corrosion, frost and bacterial growth prolonging system life and improving process efficiency and/or reducing operating costs. Furthermore, when the concentration of DOWCAL® fluid in the loop remains constant, its properties remain unchanged even over many years of use thereby providing for lower overall system cost.

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