ASHRAE Journal - March 2021 - 17

2021 ASHRAE AWARD OF ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE

The Oregon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Research Building in Portland,
Ore., houses 650 elite, multidisciplinary scientiﬁc researchers who ﬁnd cures for
cancer. The net 260,000 ft2 (24 155 m2) building, which includes 75,000 ft2 (6968 m2)
of wet lab space and 25,000 ft2 (2322 m2) of computational lab space, achieved an EUI
of 95 kBtu/ft2·yr (1083 MJ/m2·yr) for the ﬁrst year of operation, in part by lowering
the minimum speed of lab exhaust fans during calm wind conditions. Other energy
reducing strategies include an innovative way to provide makeup air that increased
ventilation in the ofﬁces and reduced reheat energy in the labs. This project received
the 2021 ASHRAE Award of Engineering Excellence.
The LEED Platinum building
houses a gathering lobby, large auditorium and retail restaurant on the
main level. Floors 2 through 5 are
split, with ofﬁces on the northern
half and laboratory spaces on the
southern half. Floors 6 and 7 have a
smaller footprint and house ofﬁces
and meeting rooms. Two basement
levels include parking and 15,000 ft2
(1,394 m2) of laboratory space.

Energy Efﬁciency
Baseline and proposed buildings were simulated with the
Department of Energy's eQuest
Version 3.65 software following the modeling guidelines of
ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007,
Appendix G.
Building geometry was based
on the architectural plans and
was modeled identically between
baseline and proposed cases. All
operational schedules, occupancy
proﬁles and miscellaneous receptable equipment were also identical
between models.
Lighting was modeled via the
space-by-space method using typical
ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007
space types. For the proposed model,
actual ﬁxture wattage was tabulated for each space, and lighting

power density for each space type
was determined. Occupancy sensors
are installed in all occupied spaces,
except for stairwells, allowing for a
10% lighting power credit for all such
spaces, with the exception of conference rooms.
Daylighting is directly modeled in
the laboratories on the south façade
as well as some northern ofﬁces
and conference rooms. Dimming
is controlled to a 50 fc illuminance
setpoint, down to a minimum of 20%
lighting power.
The building uses centralized service hot water systems that provide
140°F (60°C) water for domestic and
industrial (e.g., laboratory sinks)
applications. A pair of 94% efﬁcient
condensing gas water heaters are
installed for each of the domestic
and industrial systems. The domestic water system assumes a 45%
demand savings from low-ﬂow ﬁxtures, including 0.5 gpm (1.9 L/min)
metering sensor faucet lavatories
and 1.5 gpm (5.7 L/min) showers.
Flow rates for industrial hot water
were modeled identically, as were
recirculation pumps and auxiliary
electric booster heaters serving
remote pressure zones.
The building HVAC system
includes four central air-handling

units (AHU): AHU-1 serves the basement laboratory spaces, AHU-2
serves laboratory spaces on Floors 2
through 5, AHU-3 serves ofﬁce and
non-lab spaces, and AHU-4 is dedicated to the auditorium. AHUs 1 and
2 are 100% outdoor air units. Heat
recovery from the variable speed
laboratory exhaust system is used to
pretreat outdoor air serving AHUs 1,
2 and 3 via a run-around loop.
The building hydronic system
(Figure 1) includes two high efﬁciency water-cooled centrifugal
chillers, plus one water-cooled heat
recovery chiller. The heat recovery
chiller preferentially rejects heat to
the building's heating water loop,
PHOTO 1 Lab exhaust heat recovery unit adjacent
to boiler flues on the roof.

Ned Greene, P.E., is an associate principal and Christine Sandall is a senior marketing coordinator at PAE in Portland, Ore.
MARCH 2021

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ASHRAE Journal - March 2021

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