A handy model for the dynamic thermal response of the building-plant system

Abstract

This paper presents a novel approach for predicting the unsteady indoor room temperature as resulting from the interrelation among the characteristics of the thermal plant, the temperature regulation system, and the envelope, allowing an easy-to-handle but meaningful description. A finite element model is built by dividing the analysis domain into two separate sub-systems suitably coupled. The former represents the 1D unsteady composite wall, the latter describes the inner ambient regarded as a lumped thermal system. The development of optimal thermal regulation strategies in terms of comfort and energy savings is made easier. Simulation results revealed that a good level of comfort can be ensured by adopting different thermal regulation strategies for ‘light’ and ‘massive’ envelopes.