20Th Century Air Conditioning Transformed the 20Th Modern World Century Air Conditioning for Comfort in Buildings Developed Rapidly Over the 20Th Century

Air Conditioning 20th Century Air Conditioning Transformed the 20th Modern World Century Air conditioning for comfort in buildings developed rapidly over the 20th century. From the earliest approaches of blowing air through cheesecloth filters and over blocks of ice, through the movie theatre boom of the 1920s Air that spurred advancement in ventilation technologies, to the sophisticated mechanical refrigeration systems of the mid and late century, air conditioning has driven change in many of the world’s institutions of industry and leisure. Conditioning The pioneers and innovators among air-conditioning design engineers, equipment manufacturers, mechanical contractors, and the teams of maintenance engineers that keep the systems operating have allowed architects to design buildings that would not have been possible before them. This book tells their story—what they accomplished and how they did it. Arnold

ISBN 978-1-947192-60-7 (paperback) ISBN 978-1-947192-61-4 (PDF)

Product Code: 90359 1/21

ASHRAE 180 Technology Parkway, Peachtree Corners, GA 30092 David Arnold ashrae.org | 404-636-8400 (worldwide) 20th Century Air Conditioning This publication was prepared under the auspices of ASHRAE’s Historical Committee.

Updates and errata for this publication will be posted on the ASHRAE website at www.ashrae.org/publicationupdates. ABOUT THE AUTHOR David Arnold, FREng, PhD, MSc (Arch), Fellow ASHRAE, CIBSE, Member IMechE, has served many roles in ASHRAE and other built environment societies. For ASHRAE, he has served as Director at Large, Regional Director, Chair of the Historical Committee, and Distinguished Lecturer, and he is a recip- ient of the John James Award International Award. He is a Past President of The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE), was a Visiting Professor London University of the South Bank 2011–2018, and has been a Partner at Troup Bywaters + Anders, Consulting Engineers, since 1973. Arnold is the author of several papers and articles about the history of air conditioning, including two of the six articles published in ASHRAE Journal to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the foundation of ASHRAE, including “The First Century of Air Conditioning, Part 1: The Evolution of Modern Office Buildings and Air Conditioning” and “The First Century of Air Conditioning, Par 2: Air Conditioning in Office Buildings After World War II.” ASHRAE Founded in 1894, ASHRAE is a global professional society committed to serve humanity by advancing the arts and sciences of heating ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration and their allied fields. As an industry leader in research, standards writing, publishing, certification and continuing education, ASHRAE and its members are dedicated to promoting a healthy and sustainable built environment for all, through strategic partnerships with organizations in the HVAC&R community and across related industries. ASHRAE was formed as the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers by the merger in 1959 of American Society of Heating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHAE) founded in 1894 and The American Society of Refrigerating Engineers (ASRE) founded in 1904. 180 Technology Parkway Peachtree Corners, GA 30092 1-800-527-4723 www.ashrae.org

CIBSE The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) received its Royal Charter in 1976. It is the professional body that exists to “support the Science, Art and Practice of building services engineering, by providing our members and the public with first class information and education services and promoting the spirit of fellowship which guides our work.” CIBSE promotes the career of building services engineers by accrediting courses of study in further and higher education, by approving workbased training programmes and providing routes to full professional Registration and Membership, including Chartered Engineer, Incorporated Engineer and Engineering Technician. Once qualified, CIBSE offers a range of services, all focussed on maintaining and enhancing professional excellence throughout a career. 222 Balham High Road London SW12 9BS United Kingdom www.cibse.org 20th Century Air Conditioning

David Arnold

Completed in celebration of ASHRAE’s 125th Anniversary ISBN 978-1-947192-60-7 (paperback) ISBN 978-1-947192-61-4 (PDF)

Published in cooperation with CIBSE.

ASHRAE 180 Technology Parkway Peachtree Corners, GA 30092 www.ashrae.org

Cover image created by Everett Collection via Shutterstock

ASHRAE is a registered trademark in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, owned by the American Society of Heating, Refriger- ating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. ASHRAE has compiled this publication with care, but ASHRAE and its publishing partners have not investigated, and ASHRAE and its publishing partners expressly disclaim any duty to investigate, any product, service, process, procedure, design, or the like that may be described herein. The appearance of any technical data or editorial material in this publication does not constitute endorse- ment, warranty, or guaranty by ASHRAE and its publishing partners of any product, service, process, procedure, design, or the like. ASHRAE and its publishing partners do not warrant that the information in the publication is free of errors, and ASHRAE and its publishing partners do not necessarily agree with any statement or opinion in this publication. The entire risk of the use of any information in this publication is assumed by the user. No part of this book may be reproduced without permission in writing from ASHRAE, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credit; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any way or by any means—electronic, photocopying, recording, or other—without permission in writing from ASHRAE. Requests for permission should be submitted at www.ashrae.org/permissions.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Arnold, David, FREng, 1943- author. Title: 20th century air conditioning / David Arnold. Other titles: Twentieth century air conditioning Description: Atlanta, GA : ASHRAE, [2020] | Includes bibliographical references. | Summary: "This book explores how air conditioning technology for cool comfort in buildings developed from the late nineteenth century approach of blowing air through cheesecloth filters and over blocks of ice to the mechanical refrigeration systems of the early twentieth century that created temperature and humidity conditions suitable for both leisure and industry"-- Provided by publisher. Identifiers: LCCN 2020038963 | ISBN 9781947192607 (paperback) | ISBN 9781947192614 (adobe pdf) Subjects: LCSH: Air conditioning--History. Classification: LCC TH7687 .A77 2020 | DDC 697.9/30904--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020038963

ASHRAE Staff

Special Publications Cindy Sheffield Michaels, Editor James Madison Walker, Managing Editor of Standards Lauren Ramsdell, Associate Editor Mary Bolton, Assistant Editor Michshell Phillips, Senior Editorial Coordinator Publishing Services David Soltis, Group Manager of Electronic Products & Publishing Services Jayne Jackson, Publication Traffic Administrator Director of Publications and Education Mark S. Owen Contents

Preface xi Acknowledgments xiii

CHAPTER 1—Evolution of Mechanical Cooling in Buildings (1890–1904) ...... 1 Alfred R. Wolff 1 The Louisiana Purchase Exhibition 17

CHAPTER 2—Air Washers and Dehumidifiers (1905–1910) ...... 21 City Pollution—The Impetus for Cleaning Air 21 Willis H. Carrier 24 Air Conditioning—Stuart W. Cramer 30

CHAPTER 3—Air Washers and Comfort Cooling (1905–1930) ...... 33 The Larkin Administrative Building 33 Rapid Adoption of Air Washers—Theatres 37 Air Washers and Surface Cooling—Fred Wittenmeier 41 The Science of Air Washers and Humidity Control 45 Otto Armspach 47 Carrier Engineering Corporation 48 The ASHVE Research Facility 48

CHAPTER 4—Nickelodeons to movie Theatres— Air conditioning Takes Off (1905–1930) ...... 51 Nickelodeons and Silent Movies 51 The Roaring 20s—Mechanical Cooling in Theatres 54 viii 20th Century Air Conditioning

Tivoli Theatre, Chicago 57 Orpheum Theatre, Minneapolis, MN 58 McVickers Theatre, Chicago 60 The Science of Comfort 61 Exporting Air Conditioning 67

CHAPTER 5—The Fully AIr-Conditioned Building (1924–1940)...... 71 The New Madison Square Garden, New York 71 Air-Conditioning Multistory Buildings 72 The Milam Building, San Antonio 73 Union Trust Building, Detroit 76 Le Corbusier’s Alternative Method of Air Conditioning: L’aire Ponctuel 78 The PSFS Building, Philadelphia 79 Rockefeller Center, New York 81 Windowless Buildings and Air Conditioning (1934–1939) 84

CHAPTER 6—Unit Air Conditioners— From Homes to Skyscrapers (1929–1943)...... 93 The Advent of Fan-Coil Unit Room Coolers and Air Conditioners 93 Chicago Heat Waves and Unit Air Conditioners 95 Home Air Conditioners 101 Induction Unit Systems 101

CHAPTER 7—Air Conditioning and Curtain Walling (1943–1960)...... 107 Belluschi’s Design Study for an Office Building in 194X 107 The Equitable Building, Portland 108 Double Duct (Multizone Air Conditioning) 112 High-Velocity Induction Unit Air Conditioning 112 United Nations Secretariat Building, New York 113 Lever House, New York 114 Radiant Heating and Cooling 115 Manufacturers Life Building, Toronto 116 Shell Centre, London 117 Prudential Building, Chicago 118 Dual-Duct High-Velocity Air Conditioning 118 Inland Steel Building, Chicago 119 Air Conditioning Older Buildings 120 Contents ix

New York Life Building, New York 120 Empire State Building, New York 121 High-Velocity Air Conditioning in Europe 121

CHAPTER 8—The European Postwar Building Boom (1950–1970) ...... 125 Rinascente Department Store, Rome 125 Air-Conditioned Buildings in the United Kingdom 126 Variable Air Volume (VAV) 130 Induction Unit Air Conditioning 132 The All-Electric Skyscraper 133 VAV Exported 134

CHAPTER 9—The Oil Crisis, Thermal Energy Conservation, and Storage (1970–1990) ...... 137 The 1973 Oil Crisis and Energy Conservation 137 Thermal Energy Storage 138 State of Illinois Center 141 Lake and Aquifer Thermal Storage 142 Encapsulated Ice Storage 143 Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) 144 Building Mass Thermal Storage 146 Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage 146

CHAPTER 10—Low-Energy Air Conditioning and Green Buildings (1990–2000) ...... 149 Green Buildings 149 Environmental Assessment Methods 149 Low-Energy Cooling—Demonstration Projects 150 Prototype Low-Energy Buildings versus Commercial Realty 153

REFERENCES ...... 157

INDEX ...... 179

Preface

Air conditioning, in the sense commonly used today meaning to provide thermal comfort, was not invented nor did it begin in the early 20th century, as often portrayed. The history of how engineers and scientists found ways of providing heating and cooling for thermal comfort before that time is described extensively in Heat and Cold: Mas- tering the Great Indoors, published to celebrate ASHRAE’s 100th anniversary in 1995. This publication is part of celebrations to mark the 125th anniversary of ASHRAE and intended to explore how air conditioning developed from the late 19th century, when outdoor air was blown through cheesecloth filters and the dust removed swept back into the street, then over trays of ice to provide some cool comfort in a few music halls and theatres. At the beginning of the 20th century, mechanical refrigeration was mainly used to provide conditions of temperature and humidity suitable for manufacturing processes such as processing cotton into yarn, high quality printing, tobacco manufacture, brewing, and so on. Stuart W. Cramer, a cotton mill contractor recognized the quality of yarn processed in cotton mills varied significantly with changes in the temperature and humidity and, by conditioning the air in the processing rooms, he could control the quality of the final product. He described this process as the “Cramer System of Air Conditioning” with the subtitle, “Humidity and Temperature Automatically and Positively Regulated According to Any Predetermined Scale.” Willis Carrier, probably the most well-known pioneer of air conditioning, had around the same time joined the Buffalo Forge Company straight from university and carried out some research on controlling humidity for a high- quality printing firm. Changes in humidity and temperature affect the dimensions of printing paper and precise and constant register is required for high-quality lithographic printing. While the firm could control the temperature of the air, it had no control of its humidity, and control of humidity was required to control the dimensions of the printing paper through the color printing process. Having read Cramer’s publication, Carrier recognized the benefits air conditioning could bring to the textile industry and, of course the commercial opportunities and persuaded his employer to establish a subsidiary firm called Carrier Air Conditioning Co. in 1907. Movie theaters championed air-conditioning technology to create a public awareness that would translate into ticket sales and in turn demonstrated to the public the benefit of a healthy, comfortable, temperature-controlled environment. Movies first started being shown in the United States in the early 1900s; entrepreneurs with projectors trav- eled to halls or anywhere they could show their movie shorts, typically 10- to 15-minute travelogues. The low cost and the ease of projecting short films anywhere without much equipment gave one entrepreneur the idea to use an empty store front and only charge a five cents, which allowed the customers to stay as long as they wanted. The entrepreneurs christened their first theatres nickelodeons, a portmanteau of the admission cost—a nickel—and the Greek word for theatre, odeon. Calling the nickelodeons theatres was a bit of an exaggeration as it was soon realized the conditions, without ventilation, were less than sanitary and presented serious fire risks. Some entrepreneurs soon recognized the attraction of movie-going and began building palatial movie theatres as early as the mid-1910s to improve conditions and attract a wider audience. These theatres were usually built with blast heating systems, where heated air was ducted through large plenums beneath the seats. The warm air was sup- plied through mushroom outlets beneath the seats and exhausted through the roof of the auditorium. An enterprising refrigeration engineer, Fred Wittenmeier, who had already introduced mechanical cooling to public rooms in some hotels, added refrigeration to the air supply in two newly built movie theatres in Chicago that reopened with “air refrigerating systems” in 1919. This allowed the theatres to remain open during the hottest days of summer. However, xii 20th Century Air Conditioning introducing cold air around the ankles of movie-goers was not universally welcomed, especially by ladies, and Logan L. Lewis of Carrier Engineering Corporation, decided to reverse the system and supply cool air from the ceiling in Grauman’s Metropolitan Theatre that opened in January 1923. The popularity and attractions of mechanical cooling soon spread to hotels, department stores, offices, factories, and even some homes by the 1930s. Growth of the air-conditioning industry took off after World War II, prompted by major construction projects and, in some parts of the world, reconstruction. The growth accelerated when the cost of air conditioning homes became affordable and, in the United States, encouraged a population shift to the Sun Belt. The oil crises in the 1970s and the environmental issues of ozone depletion and global warming identified in the 1980s triggered research into using alternative refrigerant gases with less damaging effects, and designing comfort cooling systems with lower car- bon emissions and minimizing the use of refrigeration where natural cooling could work. This book explores how air conditioning for cool comfort in buildings developed from ice blocks, delivered daily by horse and cart in the 1890s, to the sophisticated systems of the 20th century. These systems allowed architects to design all types of buildings that would simply not be possible without the inventiveness and innovations of air-conditioning design engineers, equipment manufacturers, mechanical contractors, and the teams of maintenance engineers that keep the systems operating. The book is based on publications and information generally available in the public domain; in the early days of air conditioning, the pioneers such as Wolff, Carrier, Wittenmeier, and others were treated as celebrities, their activi- ties and even those of their families were published in the society columns and sometimes even on the front pages. Technical papers such as those presented at annual meetings of technical societies and institutions were published in transactions and the discussions faithfully recorded, sometimes including written contributions from people who did not even attend. The papers and discussions are a rich source of information, as are the newspapers that described air- conditioning systems, cooling by mechanical refrigeration as it was known, in detail with the pioneer engineers attributed. In the first half of the 20th Century, when the subject was new, there was much public interest in air conditioning with some newspapers even publishing detailed descriptions and diagrams that few of their readers were likely to understand. These records, many of which are freely available online, provide a wealth of information on the develop- ment of air conditioning and the pioneers that were the foundation of the industry. The focus of the book is air conditioning systems and design and their contribution to human comfort in buildings. This is not to forget the contributions from engineers in refrigeration, heating, ventilation, controls, and other disciplines on which providing thermal comfort in buildings relies. Acknowledgments

Many people have helped me to research this book and given their time willingly over the last three years. Steve Comstock, as Director of Publishing at ASHRAE, first mentioned the idea to me in 2014 at an ASHRAE meeting in Madrid, asking if I would be interested. I was and was happy to accept the challenge, having never written a book before. I am particularly grateful to Bern Nagengast, who helped me enor- mously, replying to every question and inquiry and floating ideas I might like to use. Not only were we in contact regularly by email, he even invited me to spend a couple of days browsing through his extensive library at his home in Ohio. I thank Emily Sigman of ASHRAE staff, who helped by scanning reams of records and sending me the PDFs, and Cindy Michaels and her colleague Lauren Ramsdell as editors were a great help collating the publication and ensuring I did things correctly. I am also grateful for the help and suggestions of many members, past and present, of the ASHRAE Historical Committee, especially the late Tom Kroeschell, who drove me to Racine, WI, from Chicago to view the Johnson Wax Administration Building. My thanks also to members of CIBSE, especially Brian Roberts of the Heritage Group who shared his extensive knowledge and, like Bern, invited me to his home to browse his diverse collections of books and historical HVAC artifacts. Other members of the group include Mike Barber, Frank Ferris, and Paul Yun- nie, who has been encouraging me for nearly 20 years to write a book. Other members of CIBSE who helped include Tim Dwyer, Doug Oughton, and others too numerous to mention individually. I greatly appreciate their help and hope they will forgive me if I have not managed to include their contributions. I also thank Joseph M. Siry, professor of modern architectural history at Wesleyan University, Connecticut, for providing copies of articles I could not find elsewhere, and Professor Jack Quinan, former distinguished service professor at the University of Buffalo, for allowing me to reproduce text and drawings from his book on the Larkin Building. I also recognize the help I received from staff at the British Library and the anonymous people behind Hathitrust, Archive.com, and USModernist® for making so many publications available online. My special thanks to my wife Jean, for putting up with me spending nearly all my spare time on my laptop over the last three years.

David Arnold