A novel thermoeconomic analysis under dynamic operating conditions for space heating and cooling systems

Ana Picallo-Perez, Pietro Catrini, Antonio Piacentino and José-Mª Sala

Energy, 2019, vol. 180, issue C, 819-837

Abstract: Thermoeconomic analysis allows for a deep understanding of the cost formation process within an energy system, providing insights into the possible routes for improvement. Several thermoeconomic approaches are well-established for application in systems with steady operating conditions, such as power plants, while a limited number of applications to air-conditioning systems in buildings have been proposed, due to the difficulties in dealing with very irregular load profiles and unsteady plant operating conditions. This study investigates the potential of Thermoeconomics as a support for decision making in building energy systems, proving its capability to identify trade-offs between cost fractions related to capital investment and efficiency. The proposed approach to thermoeconomic analysis of dynamic systems introduces some methodological novelties, such as the use of a preliminary dynamic simulation to calculate “averaged energy flows” on an arbitrary time basis and the adoption of a flexible super-structure, capable to reflect the different operating conditions throughout the year. That is then applied to a school dwelling, supplied with space heating and cooling and a mechanical ventilation Air Handling Unit. The sources of irreversibility are evaluated and the main targets for improvement are identified, calculating the trends of exergetic, exergoeconomic and exergoenvironmental costs on a monthly basis.

Keywords: HVAC performance; Buildings; Dynamic thermoeconomic analysis; Irreversibilities; Exergoeconomic costs (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360544219309752
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:energy:v:180:y:2019:i:c:p:819-837

DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2019.05.098

Access Statistics for this article

Energy is currently edited by Henrik Lund and Mark J. Kaiser

More articles in Energy from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().