scholarly journals Model Predictive Control Optimization via Genetic Algorithm Using a Detailed Building Energy Model

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Germán Ramos Ruiz ◽  
Eva Lucas Segarra ◽  
Carlos Fernández Bandera

There is growing concern about how to mitigate climate change in which the reduction of CO2 emissions plays an important role. Buildings have gained attention in recent years since they are responsible for around 30% of greenhouse gases. In this context, advance control strategies to optimize HVAC systems are necessary because they can provide significant energy savings whilst maintaining indoor thermal comfort. Simulation-based model predictive control (MPC) procedures allow an increase in building energy performance through the smart control of HVAC systems. The paper presents a methodology that overcomes one of the critical issues in using detailed building energy models in MPC optimizations—computational time. Through a case study, the methodology explains how to resolve this issue. Three main novel approaches are developed: a reduction in the search space for the genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) thanks to the use of the curve of free oscillation; a reduction in convergence time based on a process of two linked stages; and, finally, a methodology to measure, in a combined way, the temporal convergence of the algorithm and the precision of the obtained solution.

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 1731
Author(s):  
Dan Montoya ◽  
Elisabetta Tedeschi ◽  
Luca Castellini ◽  
Tiago Martins

Wave energy is nowadays one of the most promising renewable energy sources; however, wave energy technology has not reached the fully-commercial stage, yet. One key aspect to achieve this goal is to identify an effective control strategy for each selected Wave Energy Converter (WEC), in order to extract the maximum energy from the waves, while respecting the physical constraints of the device. Model Predictive Control (MPC) can inherently satisfy these requirements. Generally, MPC is formulated as a quadratic programming problem with linear constraints (e.g., on position, speed and Power Take-Off (PTO) force). Since, in the most general case, this control technique requires bidirectional power flow between the PTO system and the grid, it has similar characteristics as reactive control. This means that, under some operating conditions, the energy losses may be equivalent, or even larger, than the energy yielded. As many WECs are designed to only allow unidirectional power flow, it is necessary to set nonlinear constraints. This makes the optimization problem significantly more expensive in terms of computational time. This work proposes two MPC control strategies applied to a two-body point absorber that address this issue from two different perspectives: (a) adapting the MPC formulation to passive loading strategy; and (b) adapting linear constraints in the MPC in order to only allow an unidirectional power flow. The results show that the two alternative proposals have similar performance in terms of computational time compared to the regular MPC and obtain considerably more power than the linear passive control, thus proving to be a good option for unidirectional PTO systems.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. 3608
Author(s):  
Yang Yuan ◽  
Neng Zhu ◽  
Haizhu Zhou ◽  
Hai Wang

To enhance the energy performance of a central air-conditioning system, an effective control method for the chilled water system is always essential. However, it is a real challenge to distribute exact cooling energy to multiple terminal units in different floors via a complex chilled water network. To mitigate hydraulic imbalance in a complex chilled water system, many throttle valves and variable-speed pumps are installed, which are usually regulated by PID-based controllers. Due to the severe hydraulic coupling among the valves and pumps, the hydraulic oscillation phenomena often occur while using those feedback-based controllers. Based on a data-calibrated water distribution model which can accurately predict the hydraulic behaviors of a chilled water system, a new Model Predictive Control (MPC) method is proposed in this study. The proposed method is validated by a real-life chilled water system in a 22-floor hotel. By the proposed method, the valves and pumps can be regulated safely without any hydraulic oscillations. Simultaneously, the hydraulic imbalance among different floors is also eliminated, which can save 23.3% electricity consumption of the pumps.


Author(s):  
Faten Ben Aicha ◽  
Faouzi Bouani ◽  
Mekki Ksouri

Predictive control of MIMO processes is a challenging problem which requires the specification of a large number of tuning parameters (the prediction horizon, the control horizon and the cost weighting factor). In this context, the present paper compares two strategies to design a supervisor of the Multivariable Generalized Predictive Controller (MGPC), based on multiobjective optimization. Thus, the purpose of this work is the automatic adjustment of the MGPC synthesis by simultaneously minimizing a set of closed loop performances (the overshoot and the settling time for each output of the MIMO system). First, we adopt the Weighted Sum Method (WSM), which is an aggregative method combined with a Genetic Algorithm (GA) used to minimize a single criterion generated by the WSM. Second, we use the Non- Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) as a Pareto method and we compare the results of both the methods. The performance of the two strategies in the adjustment of multivariable predictive control is illustrated by a simulation example. The simulation results confirm that a multiobjective, Pareto-based GA search yields a better performance than a single objective GA.


Author(s):  
Meysam Razmara ◽  
Mehdi Maasoumy ◽  
Mahdi Shahbakhti ◽  
Rush D. Robinett

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document