Multi-Residential, Recladding, High-Rise Solar Air Heating Projects - Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) Apartments
Project : Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) Apartments, a 180-unit senior housing development owned by the Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA) and located at 150 Erie St | Installed: 2011 |
MatrixAir TR (transpired) solar collector area (total) : | 2,250 ft 2 |
Preheated fresh air delivered : | 10,000 CFM of fresh air |
Operation : | 5 days/wk, 24 hours per day |
Energy Savings : | Cutting annual natural gas consumption by more than 100,000 kWh – more than $5,000 in savings |
Architect : | Skanska USA Building |
The installation of a 2250 ft2 unglazed, transpired MatrixAir™ solar air heating system was part of the retrofit project at the Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) Apartments, a 180-unit senior housing development in Cambridge, MA owned by the Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA).
According to ASHRAE Standard 55, the temperature of the air in a building should range from 20 to 24° C during the winter and transpired solar air collectors serve to pre-heat ventilation air by up to 23° C without using other fuels thereby reducing energy demand.
The black wall-mounted transpired solar air heating collector rose twelve stories covering the south-facing wall of the building, harnessing solar radiation to cost-effectively and continuously pre-heat 10,000 CFM of fresh air as it is drawn into the building’s ventilation system, providing substantial energy savings during the heating season. The solar air heating system custom-designed for LBJ Apartments by Matrix Energy will produce approximately 300 million BTUs of solar heating during each heating season, cutting annual natural gas consumption by more than 100,000 kWh resulting in more than $5,000 in savings -while providing an annual 18-ton reduction in CO2 emissions. Architect: Skanska USA Building.
(See https://www.altenergymag.com/article/2015/04/case-study-lyndon-b-johnson-public-housing-complex-in-cambridge/19781 )
MatrixAir® systems are patented in the United Sates and Canada : 8276580 (US), 2559641 and 2690650 (CA); other patents are pending.