Energy performance enhancement of Hong Kong International Airport through chilled water system integration and control optimization

Abstract Poor energy performances of building systems in practice are often observed, especially under off-design conditions (i.e. at low part load ratios). In order to overcome such problem, most of existing methods are developed merely considering single system or building. Unlike them, a method integrating the chilled water systems in the neighboring buildings is proposed to enhance the overall energy performance of the Hong Kong International Airport. The system integration allows the excessive cooling from one building to be delivered to the other. In addition, one 1000 RT chiller is relocated from Terminal 2 to Terminal 1. After the system integration and chiller relocation, three different sized chillers can be selected to satisfy the overall cooling load with higher part load ratios. Meanwhile, the control optimizations of chillers and seawater pumps also contribute to the system energy performance improvement. With limited investment cost and easy implementation, the proposed method and the control optimization significantly enhance the airport system energy performance. The direct field data comparison demonstrated the average chiller plant COP value is improved by 5.93%. The simulated case studies indicated an annual energy saving about 4.70 M kWh is achievable.

[1]  J. C. Lam,et al.  Building energy audits and site surveys , 1995 .

[2]  Thomas Hartman,et al.  All-Variable Speed Centrifugal Chiller Plants , 2001 .

[3]  Robert Sabourin,et al.  Optimization of HVAC Control System Strategy Using Two-Objective Genetic Algorithm , 2005 .

[4]  W. L. Lee,et al.  Energy saving by realistic design data for commercial buildings in Hong Kong , 2001 .

[5]  Savvas A. Tassou,et al.  VARIABLE-SPEED CAPACITY CONTROL IN REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS , 1996 .

[6]  Yung-Chung Chang,et al.  Genetic algorithm based optimal chiller loading for energy conservation , 2005 .

[7]  Yongjun Sun,et al.  Chiller sequencing control with enhanced robustness for energy efficient operation , 2009 .

[8]  Yung-Chung Chang,et al.  An innovative approach for demand side management—optimal chiller loading by simulated annealing , 2006 .

[9]  Fu Xiao,et al.  A data fusion scheme for building automation systems of building central chilling plants , 2009 .

[10]  R. J. Hackner,et al.  HVAC system dynamics and energy use in existing buildings. I , 1984 .

[11]  William P. Bahnfleth,et al.  Energy use and economic comparison of chilled-water pumping system alternatives , 2006 .

[12]  Bo Fan,et al.  Optimal control strategies for multi-chiller system based on probability density distribution of coo , 2011 .

[13]  Siaw Kiang Chou,et al.  Achieving better energy-efficient air conditioning - A review of technologies and strategies , 2013 .

[14]  Yung-Chung Chang,et al.  Optimal chiller sequencing by branch and bound method for saving energy , 2005 .

[15]  W. L. Lee,et al.  Developing a simplified model for evaluating chiller-system configurations , 2007 .