ARLINGTON, Virginia, United States, 9 January 2024: The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) announced that it will co-sponsor and exhibit at the 2024 edition of AHR Expo. Making the announcement through a Press release, AHRI said the Expo will be held from January 22 to 24, at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago, Illinois.

AHRI said that the AHR Expo is the world’s largest HVACR marketplace event and will host more than 1,600 exhibitors across more than 550,000 square feet of exhibit space, attracting more than 50,000 attendees, including a diverse group of international industry professionals. AHRI said, its staff will be at booth S6910, to discuss the value of the Association’s globally recognised certification and standards programs, membership, industry educational scholarships, and more. The Association also said that, individuals interested in participating in one or more of AHRI’s free educational sessions do not need to pre-register, and the sessions will be held in the CST time zone.

The Association also shared the details of the sessions, and are as follows:

1. What You Need to Know – A Closer Look at the Ongoing Implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act Incentives 

A panel of five HVACR and water heating industry representatives and stakeholders will provide the latest rule-making guidance and information about the ongoing implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) programs, including tax credits and home appliance rebate programs important to our industry and customers. The session will be held on January 22, from 9 to 10 am in room S403a.

2. Thermal Energy Storage: Current Technologies and Innovations

Attendees will learn about the latest innovations in thermal energy storage and why they are important, especially with the new investment tax credit in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. The presentation will cover the types of products that are commercialised (e.g., rooftop packaged units, chillers, campus-wide tanks), the economic and carbon-reduction benefits, as well as the benefits to the electric grid. The session will be held on January 22, from 10:30 to 11 am in room S403a.

3. VRF Test Procedure and Efficiency Rating Update 

This session will provide a summary of the most notable changes in the new VRF test procedure, such as sensible heat ratio limits, the hierarchy of indoor units to be used, air-flow control settings, and the controls verification procedure (CVP). Walt Hunt, Manager of Environmental Science at Daikin, will also conduct an in-depth review of definitions, calculations, and other requirements to meet the CVP. The session will be held on January 22, from 11 am to 12 pm in room S401d.

4. What You Need to Know – An Update on the Transition to Low-GWP (or A2L) Refrigerants 

An expert panel will present and explain the current status of the transition to low-global warming potential (or A2L) refrigerants. It will feature AHRI Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Samantha Slater, AHRI Director of Codes Thomas Deary, and Glencoe Strategies LLC founder Scott Stone. The session will be held on January 23, from 9 am to 10 am in room S404bc.

5. Supporting Healthy Buildings through Humidity Control 

This session will explore the links between humidity and health in schools, workplaces, and homes and provide practical approaches for achieving optimal humidity levels. With ASHRAE Standard 241 drawing an increased focus toward infectious aerosol controls, humidity, filtration, and ventilation have been identified by recent and historical research as an important component of a healthy indoor environment. Topics covered will be of interest to building owners, designers and retrofit professionals, facility managers, and anyone interested in healthy indoor environments. The session will be held on January 23, from 9 am to 10 am in room S401d.

6. Adiabatic Humidification Technologies for Decarbonisation 

To face the environmental challenges of tomorrow, we must begin decarbonising our buildings today, taking into consideration recent lessons in healthy indoor environments. In this presentation, we will explore how humidification and evaporation technologies intersect with decarbonisation strategies, with a particular focus on energy efficiency benefits that can be unlocked with evaporative technologies. The session will examine indoor humidity terminology, theory and traditional applications for humidity control and commonly available technologies, decarbonisation drivers, and how various humidity control products may assist decarbonisation strategies. Rounding out the session will be a detailed discussion of evaporative humidification and cooling technologies, including examples of direct and indirect evaporative cooling applications. Attendees can expect to gain a deeper understanding of:

• Humidity control in buildings

• How decarbonisation and humidity control technologies interact

• Approaches for reducing energy usage with evaporative cooling

• Modern evaporative technologies

The session will be held on January 23, from 9 am to 10 am in room S401d.

7. What Manufacturers Can Get Out of It: The Value in Partnering with Voluntary Programs 

This session will involve a panel discussion of representatives from the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) and equipment manufacturers. Attendees will learn about the benefits to manufacturers of partnering with regional energy efficiency entities, the basics of market transformation, the relationship between voluntary programs and regulation (including codes and standards), and what products and technologies are on the horizon for energy efficiency programs. The session will be held on January 23, from 3:30 to 4:30 pm in room S401a.

AHRI said that the full AHR Expo educational session schedule is available here.