Modelling of the coefficient of performance of an air-cooled screw chiller with variable speed condenser fans

Air-cooled chillers are generally recognized as energy intensive equipment in air-conditioned buildings in the subtropical climate. This paper considers how the use of variable speed condenser fans enables these chillers to operate more efficiently. The thermodynamic model of an air-cooled screw chiller was developed using the simulation program TRNSYS and validated using the field data and specifications of the chiller. The staging of condenser fans and the control of their speed in various operating conditions were described. A comparison was made on the coefficient of performance of the chiller in the steady state with various control strategies: head pressure control with constant or variable speed condenser fans; condensing temperature control (CTC) with constant or variable speed condenser fans. Potential improvements in the chiller COP due to the use of CTC with variable speed condenser fans were discussed. The findings of this paper are useful in developing more energy efficient air-cooled chillers.     

An alternative approach for the performance rating of air-cooled chillers used in air-conditioned buildings

Air-cooled chillers are widely used to provide cooling energy for air-conditioned buildings at the expense of considerable electricity. The (Air-Conditioning & Refrigeration Institute) ARI standard 550/590 sets out a rating condition to specify the coefficient of performance (COP) of the chillers under part-load conditions. This condition was found to be insufficient to deal with diverse operating conditions under the multiple chiller arrangement. This paper proposes an alternative approach to specifying more precisely the chiller COP under part-load conditions. It is desirable to establish a set of part-load performance curves showing how the chiller COP varies with the condensing temperature at various combinations of chiller loads and outdoor temperatures. The results of this paper will give engineers and researchers a better idea about how to specify the upper limit of condensing temperature for more energy efficient chillers and how chiller COP curves help compare air-cooled chillers for buildings in any climate zone and to estimate the annual electricity consumption of chillers satisfying any given building cooling load profile.     

Strategy for designing more energy efficient chiller plants serving air-conditioned buildings

In cities located in the subtropical regions, air-cooled chillers are commonly used to cool commercial buildings almost year-round, which accounts for considerable electricity consumption in the long term. This paper explains how a chiller plant should be designed to enable the chillers to operate frequently with maximum performance. Four design options with respect to the number and size of chillers were studied for a chiller plant satisfying the year-round cooling demand of a hotel. For each design option, the annual electricity consumption of chillers and pumps was assessed using a sophisticated chiller model. The assessment showed that an electricity saving of 10.1% can be achieved by installing a chiller plant with six chillers of three different sizes instead of four equally sized chillers. The results of this paper will give engineers and researchers a better idea about how to select chillers of different sizes and how chiller part load performance curves can be used to evaluate improvements in the energy performance of a chiller plant with alternative designs.     

Low-energy design for air-cooled chiller plants in air-conditioned buildings

Chillers are widely used for cooling buildings in the subtropical regions at the expense of considerable energy. This paper discusses how the number and size of air-cooled chillers in a chiller plant should be designed to improve their energy performance. Using an experimentally verified chiller model, four design options were studied for a chiller plant handling the cooling load profile of an office building. Using chillers of different sizes is desirable to increase the number of steps of total cooling capacity. This enables the chillers to operate frequently at or near full load to save chiller power. Pumping energy can also be saved because of the improved control of chilled water flow whereby the chilled water supplied by the staged chillers can match with that required by air side equipment for most of the operating time. It is estimated that the annual electricity consumption of chiller plants could drop by 9.4% with the use of unequally sized chillers. The findings of this research will offer guidance on how to select chillers of different sizes for a low-energy chiller plant.     

Advanced control of condensing temperature for enhancing the operating efficiency of air-cooled chillers

Air-cooled chillers are commonly used to provide cooling energy in commercial buildings in the subtropical climate. These chillers have long been considered inefficient because they operate under head pressure control where the condensing temperature is kept high in the refrigeration cycle. This paper considers a novel method to strategically lower the condensing temperature to enhance chiller efficiency at any outdoor temperature. An experiment is carried out on an air-cooled reciprocating chiller to confirm that an electronic expansion valve enables refrigerant to be adequately fed into the evaporator in all operating conditions, even when the condensing temperature falls to around 20 °C. By enhancing the heat rejection airflow of the condenser, both the condensing temperature and chiller power can decrease considerably with less fluctuation. According to the algorithm of staging condenser fans, this enhancement corresponds to resetting the set point of the condensing temperature based on any outdoor temperature. The potential and benefits of implementing this reset strategy are discussed.     

Economic benefits of optimal control for water-cooled chiller systems serving hotels in a subtropical climate

A water-cooled chiller system in an air-conditioned hotel can take up about one-quarter of the total electricity consumption and considerable amounts of water in the heat rejection process. This paper evaluates operating cost savings of a chiller system integrated with optimal control of cooling towers and condenser water pumps. A sophisticated chiller system model was used to ascertain how different control methods influence the annual electricity and water consumption of chillers operating for the cooling load profile of a reference hotel. It is estimated that applying load-based speed control to the cooling tower fans and condenser water pumps could reduce the annual system electricity use by 8.6% and operating cost by 9.9% relative to the equivalent system using constant speed fans and pumps with a fixed set point of 29.4 °C for cooling water temperature control. The ways to implement this advanced control for system optimization are discussed.     

Energy signatures for assessing the energy performance of chillers

This paper investigates how energy signatures can be used as an alternative to an energy use intensity (describing the annual electricity consumption of chillers in kWh per unit floor area of a building in m²) to assess the energy performance of chillers with various design options and operating strategies. An energy signature is a best-fit straight line relating chiller power to a climatic index when chillers operate for a building cooling load profile. Sixteen combinations of four design options and four operating strategies for chillers serving a hypothetical hotel are studied by simulation. For each combination, an energy signature for the chillers is determined. The slope and intercept of the energy signature can be used to accurately predict the annual electricity consumption of the chillers and to evaluate the extent to which this consumption can drop when chiller efficiency is improved. It is desirable to develop reference energy signatures in relation to different characteristics of building cooling load as a yardstick for the minimum requirement of chiller performance. With this yardstick, the effectiveness of energy efficient measures in the operation of chillers could be identified.     

An integrated model for the design of air-cooled chiller plants for commercial buildings

Cooling load calculation is the first step in designing the air-conditioning system of a building. The calculated cooling capacity with appropriate buffer is then used to select the number and size of chillers in the system. N + 1 is a common formula used by designers to size the chiller plants in Hong Kong buildings, where N is the actual number of chillers required and 1 is a redundant chiller provided to ensure reliability. This paper reviews the problem of excess capacity and discusses the risk exposure of chiller systems without redundant chillers. The cooling load profiles of the chiller plants of four medium-sized commercial buildings in Hong Kong are reviewed. The risk exposure of chiller systems without redundant chillers can be minimized by applying risk-based preventive maintenance. The just-in-demand design reduces capital cost of the building and frees up funds for continuous energy measurement and improving the energy efficiency of chiller plant systems. This paper presents a model for designing chiller plants that improves the energy efficiency of the plant in a cost effective and thoughtful manner. It is designed with consideration of the life cycle of the plant and real-time continuous commissioning, monitoring, measurement, comparison and execution for better energy management.     

Part load performance of air-cooled centrifugal chillers with variable speed condenser fan control

Air-cooled centrifugal chillers are commonly used in commercial buildings but their performance analysis is lacking. This paper investigates the part load performance of the chillers via a thermodynamic model. The model was validated using a wide range of operating data from an existing chiller with specific settings of outdoor temperature and condensing pressure in controlling the condensing temperature. The validated model was developed specifically to ascertain the maximum coefficient of performance of chiller (COP) together with the strategy for optimizing the condensing temperature under various operating conditions. It is found that the highest COP occurs at a part load ratio (PLR) of 0.71–0.84, depending on the outdoor temperature and the control of condensing temperature, rather than at full load. Yet the chillers operating at such part load conditions will cause extra energy used for the early staging of chilled water pumps. To minimize the overall chiller plant energy consumption, it is still preferable to implement chiller sequencing based on the full load condition than on the aforementioned PLRs. The results of this paper present criteria for implementing low-energy strategies for operating air-cooled chillers satisfying a given building cooling load profile.     

Electricity end-use characteristics of air-cooled chillers in hotels in Hong Kong

This paper presents the operating efficiency of air-cooled chillers in three existing hotels and investigates the extent to which the annual electricity consumption can decrease by improving their efficiency. Chillers in these hotels tend to be improperly staged, causing their seasonal efficiency to rise by 0.05–0.12 kW/kW from a full load efficiency of 0.32 kW/kW. When chiller sequencing is restored, their seasonal efficiency could be enhanced to 0.34 kW/kW, which corresponds to an 8.8–22.7% drop in their annual electricity consumption. It is possible to further decrease the annual electricity consumption by 27.0–38.6% when the chillers operate under floating condensing temperature control instead of head pressure control. The implications of improved chiller efficiency for reducing the electricity demand of hotels are discussed.     

Optimum load sharing strategy for multiple-chiller systems serving air-conditioned buildings

Many central cooling systems in air-conditioned buildings have multiple chillers to meet various cooling load requirements. This paper further develops optimum load sharing strategies for the chillers in order to maximize their aggregate coefficient of performance (COP). Based on the part load performance curves of air-cooled screw chillers, it is ascertained that for two equally sized chillers operating, one should carry a full load and the other should be partially loaded to meet the system load. When two chillers of different sizes are running, the larger chiller should be fully loaded and the smaller chiller should operate at part load in order that their combined capacity satisfies the system load. Such an uneven load sharing strategy for achieving maximum COP is independent of ambient conditions and the control of condensing temperature. The variable primary flow of chilled water should be applied to chillers in order to implement the strategy. The results of this paper are useful in developing low-energy chiller plants.     

太原某数据机房空调系统设计与节能分析

介绍了太原某数据机房空调系统设计,分析了相关的节能方法与手段。对使用常规冷水机组和带自然冷源的风冷冷水机组两种情况进行了能耗对比分析,得出节能率指标和节电费,为北方地区数据机房空调系统的节能设计提供了参考和依据。     

风冷冷水机组和水冷冷水机组的选择

本文从六个方面对风冷和水冷冷水机组的选用进行了比较，列举了风冷机组布置实例，并提出了冷水机组选择建议。     

基于建筑全年动态冷负荷的冷水机组优化配置方案

提出一种在设计阶段对冷水机组方案进行优化配置的方法.首先,冷水机组的能耗计算简化为制冷机的实际制冷量和冷却水进口温度两个独立变量的函数.进一步,通过建筑动态负荷计算获得全年冷负荷频率特性以及相应的室外湿球温度分布,其中湿球温度决定了冷却水最低进口温度.最终,计算出各种冷水机组配置方案的全年以及不同冷负荷需求工况下的运行电耗,并得出最优化的节能方案.     

变频制冷系统的应用探讨

介绍变频制冷系统的节能原理及适用条件.基于不同冷冻水系统,不同类型制冷机组在不同工况下的能效、耗电量,分析了一次泵变流量冷冻水系统及变频离心式冷水机组在实际应用中的节能效果.     

基于模型的离心式制冷机组系统优化控制策略研究

本文提出了基于模型的离心式制冷机组系统台数优化控制策略。该优化控制策略充分利用系统日常调试与机组自身提供的可靠数据,采用简化模型来评估单台机的最大制冷量、计算单台机的瞬时制冷量,并预测一定负荷下不同台数机组运行时的系统总电功率,寻求制冷机台数的优化组合,以使得制冷机组系统的性能系数最大化。     

空调冷却水变流量控制方法研究

指出冷却水的出水温度和进出水温差的可变范围实际可以选取得较大,论述了冷凝温度控制法的特点,并将其与常规的定温差控制方式进行了比较,结论是当水泵相对于主机的电功率大于10%时,冷凝温度控制节能效果较好,控制上也简便易行.同时指出,虽然冷却水变流量对于冷水机组性能系数的影响是负面的和不可忽略的,但这一负面影响较之对水泵节能的正面影响要小.     

离心式制冷机系统优化控制策略研究

提出了基于模型的离心式制冷机系统台数优化控制策略。该优化控制策略充分利用机组系统的日常调试与制冷机组自身提供的可靠数据,采用简化模型来评估单台机的最大制冷量、计算单台机的瞬时制冷量、并且预测在一定负荷下不同台数机组运行时系统的总电功率,从而寻求制冷机台数的优化组合使得制冷机组系统性能系数最大化。     

多台不同冷量冷水机组并联节能运行及控制

针对多台不同制冷量冷水机组并联运行的情况,分析了影响系统能耗的各因素,结合实例对比了不同运行方案的能耗,提出了制定节能运行方案的方法。对冷水机组群控的逻辑判据进行分析,从兼顾节能效果和设备使用寿命的角度,提出了将节能运行方案与负荷变化趋势预测相结合的群控策略。     

Analysis of district cooling system with chilled water thermal storage in hot summer and cold winter area of China

A typical district cooling system (DCS) with a chilled water storage system is analyzed in hot summer and cold winter area in China. An analysis method concerning operation modes is proposed based on measured data, which is obtained by long term monitoring and on-site measurements of cooling season. The DCS operates at partial load for a large proportion of the cooling time; in particular, the partial-load rate (PLR) can be less than 25% for more than 50% of the total cooling season. In the night, PLR reaches 5% of the peak load. Thus, it is critical to achieve efficient operation under partial-load conditions of the DCS. Installation of chilled water thermal storage presents a solution to improve the working condition of the DCS and chillers. From the beginning to the end of the cooling season, the DCS operation can be summarized by typical operation modes according to cooling demand and chiller operation. For each mode, the base-load chiller operated at a high-load rate, with an average value of 0.88, and the coefficient of performance (COP) remained in a small range, between 4.2 and 5.2. The average energy efficiency ratio (EER) of the DCS for the cooling season was 3.65 and 3.81 for Years A and B, respectively. With respect to the economics, chillers used 90.2% of off-peak electricity, at only half the price of peak electricity.