Abstract:
Examining methods for controlling the electricity demand in Kuwait was the main
objective and motivation of this researchp roject. The extensiveu se of air-conditioning
for indoor cooling in office and large commercial buildings in Kuwait and the Gulf
States represents a major part of the power and electricity consumption in such
countries. The rising electricity generation cost and growing rates of consumption
continuously demand the construction new power plants. Devising and enforcing
Demand-SideM anagemen(t DSM) in the form of energye fficient operations trategies
was the response of this research project to provide a means to rectify this situation
using the demand-side management technique known as demand levelling or load
shifting. State of the art demand-sidem anagementte chniquesh ave been examined
through the developmenot f a model basedp redictive control optimisations trategyf or
an integrateda ndm odulara pproachto the provisiono f ice thermals torage.
To evaluate the potential of ice-storage assisted air-conditioning systems in flattening
the demand curve at peak times during the summer months in Kuwait, a model of a
Heating, Ventilation, and Air-conditioning (HVAC) plant was developed in Matlab. The
model engaged the use of model based predictive control (MPQ as an optimisation tool
for the plant as a whole. The model with MPC was developed to chose and decide on
which control strategy to operate the integrated ice-storage HVAC plant. The model
succeeded in optimising the operation of the plant and introduced encouraging
improvement of the performance of the system as a whole.
The concept of the modular ice-storage system was introduced through a control zoning
strategy based on zonal orientation. It is believed that such strategy could lead to the
modularisation of ice-storage systems. Additionally, the model was examined and tested
in relation to load flattening and demonstrated promising enhancement in the shape of
the load curve and demonstrated flattened demand curves through the employed
strategy. When compared with measured data from existing buildings, the model
showed potential for the techniques utilised to improve the load factor for office
buildings.
