HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering. The goal of HVAC design is to balance indoor environmental comfort with other factors such as installation cost, ease of maintenance, and energy efficiency. The discipline of HVAC includes a large number of specialized terms and acronyms, many of which are summarized in this glossary.
air changes per hour
air conditioner
air handler
air handling unit
British thermal unit (BTU)
centrifugal fan
chiller
coil
condenser
constant air volume
controller
damper
deep lake water cooling
ΔT
duct
dehumidifier
diffuser
dry bulb temperature
dry bulb thermometer
economizer
enthalpy
evaporator
fan coil unit
flow
fresh air fan
fresh air fraction
fresh air intake
furnace
gas furnace heat exchanger
grille
heating coil
heat exchanger
heat gain
heat load
heat loss
heat pump
heat transfer
hspf - (Heating Seasonal Performance Factor)
intermediate fluid
louver
makeup air unit
minimum outside air
outside air damper
outside air temperature
packaged terminal air conditioner
packaged unit
plenum space
psychrometric
rooftop unit (RTU)
radiant ceiling panels
radiant floor
radiation
SEER
The SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) rating of a unit is the cooling output during a typical cooling-season divided by the total electric energy input during the same period. The higher the unit's SEER rating the more energy efficient it is.
smoke damper
split system
superheat
subcooling
system
terminal unit
thermal zone
thermostat
two-stage (cooling and heating)
txv - Thermostatic Expansion Valve
underfloor air distribution
unitary controller
variable air volume
zoning system
