Modelling of air handling unit subsystem in a commercial building

Abstract

A real-time energy management system was developed to improve the energy efficiency of an Air Handling Unit (AHU). The system consists of models to analyse the performance of subsystems in an AHU, which was tested using actual data collected from AHU operation via wireless monitoring. The system detects control-related malfunctions such as simultaneously turning on the cooling coil and the pre-heating coil. The system estimated that this type of control malfunction wastes 63,455 kWh within the cooling coil and the pre-heating coil. Furthermore, the system helped identify other energy saving opportunities through set point changes. For the tested case, the opportunities identified had the potential of 77,141 kWh of energy saving during the same study period.