IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v11y2018i7p1643-d154099.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Artificial Neural Network–Based Control of a Variable Refrigerant Flow System in the Cooling Season

Author

Listed:
  • Insung Kang

    (Department of Architectural Engineering, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Korea)

  • Kwang Ho Lee

    (Department of Architectural Engineering, Hanbat National University, Daejeon 34158, Korea)

  • Je Hyeon Lee

    (Department of Digital Appliance R&D Team, Samsung Electronics, Suwon 16677, Korea)

  • Jin Woo Moon

    (School of Architecture and Building Science, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Korea)

Abstract

This study aimed to develop a control algorithm that can operate a variable refrigerant flow (VRF) cooling system with optimal set-points for the system variables. An artificial neural network (ANN) model, which was designed to predict the cooling energy consumption for upcoming next control cycle, was embedded into the control algorithm. By comparing the predicted energy for the different set-point combinations of the control variables, the control algorithm can determine the most energy-effective set-points to optimally operate the cooling system. Two major processes were conducted in the development process. The first process was to develop the predictive control algorithm which embedded the ANN model. The second process involved performance tests of the control algorithm in terms of prediction accuracy and energy efficiency in computer simulation programs. The results revealed that the prediction accuracy between simulated and predicted outcomes proved to have a low coefficient of variation root mean square error (CVRMSE) value (10.30%). In addition, the predictive control algorithm markedly saved the cooling energy consumption by as much as 28.44%, compared to a conventional control strategy. These findings suggest that the ANN model and the control algorithm showed potential for the prediction accuracy and energy-effectiveness of VRF cooling systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Insung Kang & Kwang Ho Lee & Je Hyeon Lee & Jin Woo Moon, 2018. "Artificial Neural Network–Based Control of a Variable Refrigerant Flow System in the Cooling Season," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-15, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:11:y:2018:i:7:p:1643-:d:154099
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/11/7/1643/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/11/7/1643/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Joanna Ferdyn-Grygierek & Krzysztof Grygierek, 2017. "Multi-Variable Optimization of Building Thermal Design Using Genetic Algorithms," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-20, October.
    2. Zhang, Guoqiang & Eddy Patuwo, B. & Y. Hu, Michael, 1998. "Forecasting with artificial neural networks:: The state of the art," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 14(1), pages 35-62, March.
    3. Kalogirou, Soteris A., 2000. "Applications of artificial neural-networks for energy systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 67(1-2), pages 17-35, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Seunghui Lee & Sungwon Jung & Jaewook Lee, 2019. "Prediction Model Based on an Artificial Neural Network for User-Based Building Energy Consumption in South Korea," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-18, February.
    2. Zhang, Zi-Yang & Zhang, Chun-Lu & Xiao, Fu, 2020. "Energy-efficient decentralized control method with enhanced robustness for multi-evaporator air conditioning systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Leung, Philip C.M. & Lee, Eric W.M., 2013. "Estimation of electrical power consumption in subway station design by intelligent approach," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 634-643.
    2. Jani, D.B. & Mishra, Manish & Sahoo, P.K., 2017. "Application of artificial neural network for predicting performance of solid desiccant cooling systems – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 352-366.
    3. Ata, Rasit, 2015. "Artificial neural networks applications in wind energy systems: a review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 534-562.
    4. Gang, Wenjie & Wang, Jinbo & Wang, Shengwei, 2014. "Performance analysis of hybrid ground source heat pump systems based on ANN predictive control," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 1138-1144.
    5. Niemierko, Rochus & Töppel, Jannick & Tränkler, Timm, 2019. "A D-vine copula quantile regression approach for the prediction of residential heating energy consumption based on historical data," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 233, pages 691-708.
    6. Harish Kumar Ghritlahre & Purvi Chandrakar & Ashfaque Ahmad, 2021. "A Comprehensive Review on Performance Prediction of Solar Air Heaters Using Artificial Neural Network," Annals of Data Science, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 405-449, September.
    7. Mohanraj, M. & Jayaraj, S. & Muraleedharan, C., 2012. "Applications of artificial neural networks for refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pump systems—A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(2), pages 1340-1358.
    8. Balkin, Sandy, 2001. "On Forecasting Exchange Rates Using Neural Networks: P.H. Franses and P.V. Homelen, 1998, Applied Financial Economics, 8, 589-596," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 139-140.
    9. Barrow, Devon & Kourentzes, Nikolaos, 2018. "The impact of special days in call arrivals forecasting: A neural network approach to modelling special days," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 264(3), pages 967-977.
    10. Daniel Buncic, 2012. "Understanding forecast failure of ESTAR models of real exchange rates," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 399-426, August.
    11. Mehleri, E.D. & Zervas, P.L. & Sarimveis, H. & Palyvos, J.A. & Markatos, N.C., 2010. "A new neural network model for evaluating the performance of various hourly slope irradiation models: Implementation for the region of Athens," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 35(7), pages 1357-1362.
    12. Apostolos Ampountolas & Titus Nyarko Nde & Paresh Date & Corina Constantinescu, 2021. "A Machine Learning Approach for Micro-Credit Scoring," Risks, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-20, March.
    13. Ebrahimpour, Reza & Nikoo, Hossein & Masoudnia, Saeed & Yousefi, Mohammad Reza & Ghaemi, Mohammad Sajjad, 2011. "Mixture of MLP-experts for trend forecasting of time series: A case study of the Tehran stock exchange," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 27(3), pages 804-816, July.
    14. Hewamalage, Hansika & Bergmeir, Christoph & Bandara, Kasun, 2021. "Recurrent Neural Networks for Time Series Forecasting: Current status and future directions," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 388-427.
    15. Guoqiang Xu & Hong Jin & Jian Kang, 2019. "Experimental Study on the Indoor Thermo-Hygrometric Conditionsof the Mongolian Yurt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-20, January.
    16. Jorge E. De León-Ruiz & Ignacio Carvajal-Mariscal & Antonin Ponsich, 2019. "Feasibility Analysis and Performance Evaluation and Optimization of a DXSAHP Water Heater Based on the Thermal Capacity of the System: A Case Study," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-38, October.
    17. Selimefendigil, Fatih & Öztop, Hakan F., 2020. "Identification of pulsating flow effects with CNT nanoparticles on the performance enhancements of thermoelectric generator (TEG) module in renewable energy applications," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 1076-1086.
    18. Donya Rahmani & Saeed Heravi & Hossein Hassani & Mansi Ghodsi, 2016. "Forecasting time series with structural breaks with Singular Spectrum Analysis, using a general form of recurrent formula," Papers 1605.02188, arXiv.org.
    19. Wei Sun & Yujun He & Hong Chang, 2015. "Forecasting Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption for Power Generation Using QHSA-Based LSSVM Model," Energies, MDPI, vol. 8(2), pages 1-21, January.
    20. Saman, Corina, 2011. "Scenarios of the Romanian GDP Evolution With Neural Models," Journal for Economic Forecasting, Institute for Economic Forecasting, vol. 0(4), pages 129-140, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:11:y:2018:i:7:p:1643-:d:154099. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.