Smart Operations of Air-Conditioning and Lighting Systems in Government Buildings for Peak Power Reduction

Abstract

During the summer 2007 smart operation strategies for air-conditioning (A/C) and lighting systems were developed and tested in a number of governmental buildings in Kuwait as one of the solutions to reduce the national peak demand for electrical power that commonly occur around 15:00 h. The working hours for these building are generally between 07:00 and 14:00 h and their peak demand exceeds 600 MW. The smart operation strategies implemented in these buildings included pre-closing treatment (PCT) between 13:00 and 14:00 h and time-of-day control (TDC) after 14:00 h. Also de-lamping was carried out in some of the buildings to readjust the higher than recommended illumination levels. This paper presents the achievements of implementing these smart operations strategies in Justice Palace Complex (JPC) as a case study. The peak load of this building was 3700 kW. The achievements are summarized as an all time saving of 22 kW by de-lamping, an additional saving of 27 kW through TDC of lighting, direct savings between 13:00 and 22:00 h by closing supply and return air fans of 52 air-handling units with a connected load 400 kW, and an additional saving of 550 kW during the same period by optimizing the cooling production and distribution. In conclusion project achieved an overall reduction in power demand of around 20% between 13:00 to 17:00 h and reduction ranging from 7% to 15% between 17:00 to 20:00 h.