Lab Hood Control

From temperature to efficiency, the requirements and risks

demand a lot of both the system and designer.

March 2, 2015
Paul Ehrlich, P.E.

The use of chemical and biological agents often requires a laboratory fume hood for
conducting experiments and storage of dangerous materials. You will find these hoods in
facilities ranging from research centers to hospitals and schools. Controlling these
laboratory areas is a challenge, since proper control needs to focus on protecting the lab
occupants as well as those in adjacent spaces. Labs may also have specific requirements
for temperature and humidity that need to be maintained. While all of this is challenging,
it is even more complicated to do it in a manner that is reliable and as energy-efficient as
possible.

Basics

The basic concept for labs is to utilize exhaust to safely remove contaminants from the
occupants and away from the space. Exhaust is usually provided at the fume hood, but it
can also be provided in other areas including general and bench exhaust. The lab space
needs to be provided with adequate makeup air to balance the exhaust and should remain
slightly negative to adjacent spaces. Of course, at the same time, temperature (and
optionally humidity) conditions need to be maintained as well.

Hood Control

Fume hoods generally consist of an enclosed bench with a movable sash. The sash is
generally opened to set up and access work on the bench and should be kept closed (or
near to closed) the rest of the time. Hoods are usually provided with an integrated
controller that measures the sash position and air velocity, and can then adjust an air
valve to vary the flow rate from the hood. The sash controller also provides indication for
the lab occupants of air velocity (or differential pressure) and may also include an alarm
if the sash is left open. Most hood controllers can be integrated into a BAS using open
protocols such as BACnet or LonTalk.

Room Control

The control of the room air includes both temperature control as well as pressurization
control. While there are several ways to do this, ideally lab pressure should be controlled
in relation to adjacent spaces so that the lab can maintain an overall slight negative
pressure.

Efficiency

The challenge with labs is that they need to be designed for safe removal of
contaminants, which is energy intense. In reality, though, the usage of lab spaces varies
greatly. At times, there may be a lot of experiments or materials present. At other times,
there may be little activity going on in the lab. This requires careful design to make sure
that systems are able to react appropriately to changes in key factors like hood mode and
sash position.

It also requires ongoing coordination with the lab users so that they understand the
systems and how to operate them in a safe and efficient manner. For example, practices
such as closing sashes at night can have a large impact on the efficiency of a lab
environment. Ideally, the more data that can come back into the BAS, the better the
facility operations team can work with the lab staff to make sure things are being
operated efficiently.