Energy-Saving in Air Conditioners Using PLC Control and the SCADA Monitoring System
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The promotion of energy-saving air conditioners (ACs) continues to increase. Therefore, this research proposes the implementation of automatic control and monitoring for AC fan evaporator and compressor speeds using a programmable logic controller (PLC) along with supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA). The proposed system uses a room-temperature sensor, connected to the PLC and programmed with a ladder diagram. It is connected to a SCADA installed computer for monitoring and data logging. The testing involves three methods: conventional, manual, and automatic PLC-based. Over a four-week period, the conventional method consumed 193.6 kW⋅h, 198.7 kW⋅h, and 206.6 kW⋅h in energy, while the manual method consumed 160.5 kW⋅h, 160.1 kW⋅h, and 161.9 kW⋅h, and the automatic method 150.8 kW⋅h, 152.6 kW⋅h, and 154.8 kW⋅h using the trapezoidal composite rule, Simpson's composite rule, and ordinary methods, respectively. The main research contribution is the provision of an energy-saving system for air conditioners over a long duration using PLC. The PLC-based automatic-to-manual energy savings equate to 6.0%, 5.8%, and 4.4%; whereas 22.0%, 24.0%, and 25.0% for the PLC-based automatic-to-conventional method. Therefore, the PLC-based automatic control is deemed appropriate for electrical energy-saving.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.
- Creative Commons Copyright License
The journal allows readers to download and share all published articles as long as they properly cite such articles; however, they cannot change them or use them commercially. This is classified as CC BY-NC-ND for the creative commons license.
- Retention of Copyright and Publishing Rights
The journal allows the authors of the published articles to hold copyrights and publishing rights without restrictions.
References
J. Tomczyk, E. Silberstein, B. Whitman, and B. Johnson, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Technology, 8th ed. Boston, MA, USA: Cengage Learning, 2016.
G. F. Hundy, A. R. Trott, and T. C. Welch, Refrigeration, Air Conditioning, and Heat Pumps, 5th ed. Oxford, UK: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2016.
N. E. Wijeysundera, Principles Of Heating, Ventilation And Air Conditioning with Worked Examples. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing, 2016.
G. Lippsmeier, Tropenbau: Building in the Tropics. Munich, Germany: Callway Verlag, 1980.
W. Song, J. Yang, Y. Ji, and C. Zhang, “Experimental study on characteristics of a dual temperature control valve in the chilled water system of an air-conditioning unit,” Energy and Buildings, vol. 202, Nov. 2019, Art. no. 109369.
G. Escrivá-Escrivá, “Basic actions to improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings in operation,” Energy and Buildings, vol. 43, no. 11, pp. 3106–3111, Nov. 2011.
M. Batić, N. Tomašević, G. Beccuti, T. Demiray, and S. Vraneš, “Combined energy hub optimisation and demand side management for buildings,” Energy and Buildings, vol. 127, pp. 229–241, Sep. 2016.
M. Verde, K. Harby, R. de Boer, and J. M. Corberán, “Performance evaluation of a waste-heat driven adsorption system for automotive air-conditioning: Part I – modeling and experimental validation,” Energy, vol. 116, pp. 526–538, Dec. 2016.
X. Li, T. Zhao, P. Fan, and J. Zhang, “Rule-based fuzzy control method for static pressure reset using improved mamdani model in VAV systems,” Journal of Building Engineering, vol. 22, pp. 192–199, Mar. 2019.
X. Li, T. Zhao, J. Zhang, and T. Chen, “Development of network control platform for energy saving of fan coil units,” Journal of Building Engineering, vol. 12, pp. 155–160, Jul. 2017.
Z. Wu, Q.-S. Jia, and X. Guan, “Optimal control of multiroom HVAC system: An event-based approach,” IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 662–669, Mar. 2016.
N. Radhakrishnan, S. Srinivasan, R. Su, and K. Poolla, “Learning-based hierarchical distributed HVAC scheduling with operational constraints,” IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology, vol. 26, no. 5, pp. 1892–1900, Sep. 2018.
H.-C. Jo, S. Kim, and S.-K. Joo, “Smart heating and air conditioning scheduling method incorporating customer convenience for home energy management system,” IEEE Transactions on Consumer Electronics, vol. 59, no. 2, pp. 316–322, May 2013.
W. Bolton, Programmable Logic Controllers, 6th ed. Oxford, UK: Newnes, 2015.
C. Chiou, C. Chiou, C. Chu, and S. Lin, “The application of fuzzy control on energy saving for multi-unit room air-conditioners,” Applied Thermal Engineering, vol. 29, no. 2-3, pp. 310–316, Feb. 2009.
S. Soyguder and H. Alli, “Predicting of fan speed for energy saving in HVAC system based on adaptive network based fuzzy inference system,” Expert Systems with Applications, vol. 36, no. 4, pp. 8631–8638, May 2009.
Q. P. Ha and V. Vakiloroaya, “Modeling and optimal control of an energy-efficient hybrid solar air conditioning system,” Automation in Construction, vol. 49, Part B, pp. 262–270, Jan. 2015.
P. Zhang, D. Zhou, W. Shi, X. Li, and B. Wang, “Dynamic performance of self-operated three-way valve used in a hybrid air conditioner,” Applied Thermal Engineering, vol. 65, no. 1–2, pp. 384–393, Apr. 2014.
Z. Meng, H. Zhang, M. Lei, Y. Qin, and J. Qiu, “Performance of low GWP r1234yf/r134a mixture as a replacement for r134a in automotive air conditioning systems,” International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, vol. 116, pp. 362–370, Jan. 2018.
Q. P. Ha and V. Vakiloroaya, “A novel solar-assisted air-conditioner system for energy savings with performance enhancement,” Procedia Engineering, vol. 49, pp. 116–123, 2012.
D. La, Y. Dai, Y. Li, T. Ge, and R. Wang, “Study on a novel thermally driven air conditioning system with desiccant dehumidification and regenerative evaporative cooling,” Building and Environment, vol. 45, no. 11, pp. 2473–2484, Nov. 2010.
I. Sarbu and M. Adam, “Experimental and numerical investigations of the energy efficiency of conventional air conditioning systems in cooling mode and comfort assurance in office buildings,” Energy and Buildings, vol. 85, pp. 45–58, Dec. 2014.
S. Somasundaram, S. R. Thangavelu, and A. Chong, “Improving building efficiency using low-e coating based retrofit double glazing with solar films,” Applied Thermal Engineering, vol. 171, May 2020, Art. no. 115064.
A. Spagnuolo, A. Petraglia, C. Vetromile, R. Formosi, and C. Lubritto, “Monitoring and optimization of energy consumption of base transceiver stations,” Energy, vol. 81, pp. 286–293, Mar. 2015.
X. Su, S. Tian, X. Shao, and X. Zhang, “Experimental and numerical study on low temperature regeneration desiccant wheel: Parameter analysis with a comprehensive energy index,” International Journal of Refrigeration, vol. 120, pp. 237–247, Dec. 2020.
M. K. Jain, S. R. K. Iyengar, and R. K. Jain, Numerical Methods (Problems and Solutions), 2nd ed. Delhi, India: New Age International, 2007.
C. Zhao and J. Yang, “A robust skewed boxplot for detecting outliers in rainfall observations in realtime flood forecasting,” Advances in Meteorology, vol. 2019, 2019, Art. no. 1795673.
E. Hosseinian, P.-O. Theillet, and O. Pierron, “Temperature and humidity effects on the quality factor of a silicon lateral rotary micro-resonator in atmospheric air,” Sensors and Actuators A: Physical, vol. 189, pp. 380–389, Jan. 2013.