Use of Thermal Mass in Building Energy Storage

Abstract

Abstract Thermal mass in buildings can be used to protect the building against temperature fluctuations. As batteries store energy chemically, buildings store heat (or retain coolness) in their thermal mass. Use of thermal mass allows buildings to act as energy storage devices. In addition, the use of thermal mass has enormous potential to increase the effectiveness of building systems for load shifting and peak energy demand reduction. This article introduces the basic concept of thermal mass in buildings and presents several techniques for measuring and modeling thermal mass. The use of thermal mass in buildings is characterized into two groups based on its passive and active uses. With a focus on the modeling of precooling using thermal mass, this article discusses two modeling methods for simulating the precooling control in buildings: data‐driven (inverse) modeling and forward (physical) modeling, in terms of each approach's methodology and challenges. Finally, a case study of precooling a building in a warm climate is presented for demonstrating the effect of various precooling control strategies on the energy and demand savings and those impacts on thermal comfort.