Radiant Slab Systems Research Update

Radiant slab systems, often referred to as thermally activated building systems (TABS), have the potential to achieve significant energy savings, peak demand reduction, load shifting, and thermal comfort improvements compared to conventional all-air systems.

This presentation will provide an overview of the Center for the Built Environment's (CBE) at UC Berkeley multi-year $3M research project on radiant slab systems funded by California’s Electric Program Investment Charge (EPIC) Grant Program. The research project includes laboratory experiments, simulation studies, field studies, and occupant surveys. The talk will highlight the results of a recent full-scale laboratory study to investigate an integrated ceiling design solution that can both improve the acoustical quality of the space while also enhancing the cooling performance of a chilled radiant ceiling system.

Fred Bauman, P.E., is a Project Scientist at the Center for the Built Environment at UC Berkeley. Fred led the development of CBE’s world renowned UFAD research program and was the author of the first Underfloor Air Distribution (UFAD) Design Guide, published by ASHRAE in 2003. He is currently leading CBE’s research program on advanced integrated systems with a focus on radiant slab cooling (Thermally Activated Building Systems, TABS).