Conference Paper

Proceedings of SimBuild Conference 2024

Model Predictive Control for a Multi-modal Nocturnal Radiative Cooling System

Manuel Koch ^1,2, Parantapa Sawant ², Ralph Eismann ², Colin N. Jones ^1
1 École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
² Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz Muttenz, Switzerland

Abstract: In light of the rapidly increasing global energy demand for cooling, energy-efficient cooling methods should be investigated. We use chiller-assisted nocturnal radiative cooling with photovoltaic-thermal collectors to cool a single-family house in Central European summer climate. A model predictive controller chooses between active and passive operation to cool a radiant slab at night to stay below an upper zone temperature limit during the following day. This goal is achieved with a high energy-efficiency ratio, compared to a conventional cooling system, while keeping the computational demands of the model predictive controller low.
Keywords: HVAC, nocturnal radiative cooling, model predictive control, system identification
Pages: 778 - 789
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