Experimental validation of graph-based modeling for thermal fluid power flow systems

Model-based control design has the ability to meet the strict closed-loop control requirements imposed by the rising performance and efficiency demands on modern engineering systems. While many modeling frameworks develop controloriented models based on the underlying physics of the system, most are energy domain specific and do not facilitate the integration of models across energy domains or dynamic timescales. This paper presents a graph-based modeling framework, derived from the conservation of mass and energy, which captures the structure and interconnections in the system. Subsequently, these models can be used in model-based control frameworks for thermal management. This framework is energy-domain independent and inherently captures the exchange of power among different energy domains. A thermal fluid experimental system demonstrates the formulation of the graph-based models and the ability to capture the hydrodynamic and thermodynamic behaviors of a physical system.