IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v16y2023i12p4775-d1173303.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

On the Use of Ultrasonic Flowmeters for Cooling Energy Metering and Sub-Metering in Direct Expansion Systems

Author

Listed:
  • Ciro Aprea

    (Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II 132, 84084 Fisciano, SA, Italy)

  • Laura Canale

    (Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Via G. Di Biasio 43, 03043 Cassino, FR, Italy)

  • Marco Dell’Isola

    (Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Via G. Di Biasio 43, 03043 Cassino, FR, Italy)

  • Giorgio Ficco

    (Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Via G. Di Biasio 43, 03043 Cassino, FR, Italy)

  • Andrea Frattolillo

    (Department of Civil, Environmental and Architecture Engineering, University of Cagliari, Via Marengo 2, 09123 Cagliari, CA, Italy)

  • Angelo Maiorino

    (Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II 132, 84084 Fisciano, SA, Italy)

  • Fabio Petruzziello

    (Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II 132, 84084 Fisciano, SA, Italy)

Abstract

The Energy Efficiency Directive (EED, Directive 2012/27/EU) has made mandatory the installation of individual metering systems in the case of buildings with centralized heating/cooling and hot water sources (multi-apartment and multi-purpose buildings), provided it is economically and technically feasible. Individual metering of heating/cooling systems is mainly based on thermal energy meters (TEM), which are widely used for direct metering in heating applications. On the other hand, direct metering of energy consumption in cooling systems still represents a challenge, given the different types of cooling units and the lack of regulations from the technical and legal points of view. In this context, this paper briefly overviews the available centralized cooling systems and the possible solutions for metering and sub-metering, which depend on the specific application. Vapour Compression Refrigeration (VCR) systems are spreading worldwide for air conditioning applications. Particular attention has been paid to the direct metering of cooling energy and specifically to refrigerant flow rate measurement, which represents a critical issue because of the small-diameter pipes and the different thermodynamic properties of the fluid used. Thus, an experimental campaign has been developed and carried out in order to compare a clamp-on ultrasonic flowmeter with a more accurate Coriolis one in a direct expansion (DE) system. The experimental tests have been performed at two different temperature conditions, showing a relative error in the mass flow rate measurements within ±10%.

Suggested Citation

  • Ciro Aprea & Laura Canale & Marco Dell’Isola & Giorgio Ficco & Andrea Frattolillo & Angelo Maiorino & Fabio Petruzziello, 2023. "On the Use of Ultrasonic Flowmeters for Cooling Energy Metering and Sub-Metering in Direct Expansion Systems," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-16, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:12:p:4775-:d:1173303
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/12/4775/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/12/4775/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shaikh, Pervez Hameed & Nor, Nursyarizal Bin Mohd & Nallagownden, Perumal & Elamvazuthi, Irraivan & Ibrahim, Taib, 2014. "A review on optimized control systems for building energy and comfort management of smart sustainable buildings," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 409-429.
    2. Costa, Andrea & Keane, Marcus M. & Torrens, J. Ignacio & Corry, Edward, 2013. "Building operation and energy performance: Monitoring, analysis and optimisation toolkit," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 310-316.
    3. Zhao, Deyin & Zhong, Ming & Zhang, Xu & Su, Xing, 2016. "Energy consumption predicting model of VRV (Variable refrigerant volume) system in office buildings based on data mining," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 660-668.
    4. Alice Mugnini & Gianluca Coccia & Fabio Polonara & Alessia Arteconi, 2019. "Potential of District Cooling Systems: A Case Study on Recovering Cold Energy from Liquefied Natural Gas Vaporization," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-13, August.
    5. Yu, Xinqiao & Yan, Da & Sun, Kaiyu & Hong, Tianzhen & Zhu, Dandan, 2016. "Comparative study of the cooling energy performance of variable refrigerant flow systems and variable air volume systems in office buildings," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 725-736.
    6. She, Xiaohui & Cong, Lin & Nie, Binjian & Leng, Guanghui & Peng, Hao & Chen, Yi & Zhang, Xiaosong & Wen, Tao & Yang, Hongxing & Luo, Yimo, 2018. "Energy-efficient and -economic technologies for air conditioning with vapor compression refrigeration: A comprehensive review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 232(C), pages 157-186.
    7. Aprea, Ciro & Maiorino, Angelo, 2011. "An experimental investigation of the global environmental impact of the R22 retrofit with R422D," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 1161-1170.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Afroz, Zakia & Urmee, Tania & Shafiullah, G.M. & Higgins, Gary, 2018. "Real-time prediction model for indoor temperature in a commercial building," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 231(C), pages 29-53.
    2. Paulína Šujanová & Monika Rychtáriková & Tiago Sotto Mayor & Affan Hyder, 2019. "A Healthy, Energy-Efficient and Comfortable Indoor Environment, a Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-37, April.
    3. Lyons, Ben & O’Dwyer, Edward & Shah, Nilay, 2020. "Model reduction for Model Predictive Control of district and communal heating systems within cooperative energy systems," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 197(C).
    4. Stephen Adams & Steven Greenspan & Maria Velez-Rojas & Serge Mankovski & Peter A. Beling, 2019. "Data-driven simulation for energy consumption estimation in a smart home," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 39(3), pages 281-294, September.
    5. Gökhan Demirdöğen & Zeynep Işık & Yusuf Arayici, 2020. "Lean Management Framework for Healthcare Facilities Integrating BIM, BEPS and Big Data Analytics," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-33, August.
    6. Gilani, Hooman Azad & Hoseinzadeh, Siamak & Karimi, Hirou & Karimi, Ako & Hassanzadeh, Amir & Garcia, Davide Astiaso, 2021. "Performance analysis of integrated solar heat pump VRF system for the low energy building in Mediterranean island," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 174(C), pages 1006-1019.
    7. Rongjiang Ma & Xianlin Wang & Ming Shan & Nanyang Yu & Shen Yang, 2020. "Recognition of Variable-Speed Equipment in an Air-Conditioning System Using Numerical Analysis of Energy-Consumption Data," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-14, September.
    8. Luo, X.J. & Oyedele, Lukumon O. & Ajayi, Anuoluwapo O. & Akinade, Olugbenga O. & Owolabi, Hakeem A. & Ahmed, Ashraf, 2020. "Feature extraction and genetic algorithm enhanced adaptive deep neural network for energy consumption prediction in buildings," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    9. Reynolds, Jonathan & Rezgui, Yacine & Kwan, Alan & Piriou, Solène, 2018. "A zone-level, building energy optimisation combining an artificial neural network, a genetic algorithm, and model predictive control," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 729-739.
    10. Shunling Ruan & Haiyan Xie & Song Jiang, 2017. "Integrated Proactive Control Model for Energy Efficiency Processes in Facilities Management: Applying Dynamic Exponential Smoothing Optimization," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-22, September.
    11. Kasaeian, Alibakhsh & Hosseini, Seyed Mohsen & Sheikhpour, Mojgan & Mahian, Omid & Yan, Wei-Mon & Wongwises, Somchai, 2018. "Applications of eco-friendly refrigerants and nanorefrigerants: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 91-99.
    12. Amasyali, Kadir & El-Gohary, Nora M., 2018. "A review of data-driven building energy consumption prediction studies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 1192-1205.
    13. Sameh Monna & Adel Juaidi & Ramez Abdallah & Aiman Albatayneh & Patrick Dutournie & Mejdi Jeguirim, 2021. "Towards Sustainable Energy Retrofitting, a Simulation for Potential Energy Use Reduction in Residential Buildings in Palestine," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-13, June.
    14. Gianluca Serale & Massimo Fiorentini & Alfonso Capozzoli & Daniele Bernardini & Alberto Bemporad, 2018. "Model Predictive Control (MPC) for Enhancing Building and HVAC System Energy Efficiency: Problem Formulation, Applications and Opportunities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-35, March.
    15. Stefano Villa & Claudio Sassanelli, 2020. "The Data-Driven Multi-Step Approach for Dynamic Estimation of Buildings’ Interior Temperature," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(24), pages 1-23, December.
    16. Li, Wei & Sun, Wen & Li, Guomin & Cui, Pengfei & Wu, Wen & Jin, Baihui, 2017. "Temporal and spatial heterogeneity of carbon intensity in China's construction industry," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 162-173.
    17. Jing Zhao & Yu Shan, 2020. "A Fuzzy Control Strategy Using the Load Forecast for Air Conditioning System," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-17, January.
    18. Shu Su & Xiaodong Li & Borong Lin & Hongyang Li & Jingfeng Yuan, 2019. "A Comparison of the Environmental Performance of Cooling and Heating among Different Household Types in China’s Hot Summer–Cold Winter Zone," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-17, October.
    19. Ruparathna, Rajeev & Hewage, Kasun & Sadiq, Rehan, 2016. "Improving the energy efficiency of the existing building stock: A critical review of commercial and institutional buildings," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 1032-1045.
    20. Georges Atallah & Faris Tarlochan, 2021. "Comparison between Variable and Constant Refrigerant Flow Air Conditioning Systems in Arid Climate: Life Cycle Cost Analysis and Energy Savings," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-13, September.

    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:16:y:2023:i:12:p:4775-:d:1173303. 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.