Design and Optimization of Control Strategies and Parameters by Building and System Simulation

Abstract

Control parameters for HVAC systems are usually set during the Initial Commissioning Process within the Acceptance Phase of buildings. The quality of the Testing, Adjusting and Balancing (TAB) depends primarily on the specifications of the designer and on the knowledge of the constructor (commissioning personnel). Often the TAB and thus the Initial Commissioning is considered as completed after the functionality and performance of the systems are proven. Therefore, further optimization concerning the energy consumption does not take place. The building and system simulation usually is used during the pre-design of buildings to determine and optimize the influence of the building envelope relating to the energy demand for heating and cooling. Furthermore it is sometimes used for dimensioning the HVAC systems and particular components during the design phase. Additional abilities of the simulation models to predict or even control the building operations are not used. The purpose of the chosen approach is to use the dynamic building and system simulation to design and verify control strategies and determine the exact setup for the control parameters. Therefore the models from the former design phases have to be adapted and extended so that the control strategies can be considered in the right way. This paper presents an example how to use the dynamic simulation to optimize the characteristic of a heating and cooling system of a school building.