Open Access

ARTICLE

Energy Efficiency Effectiveness of Smart Thermostat Based BEMS

Koushik Mandlem, Bhaskaran Gopalakrishnan^*, Ashish Nimbarte, Roseline Mostafa, Rupa Das

Industrial and Management Systems Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, 26505, USA

* Corresponding Author: Bhaskaran Gopalakrishnan. Email:

Energy Engineering 2020, 117(4), 165-183. https://doi.org/10.32604/EE.2020.011406

Received 07 May 2020; Accepted 18 June 2020; Issue published 31 July 2020

Abstract

The research details the design and development of a spreadsheet based software system that has been built using the principles of Monte Carlo simulation. The simulation has been applied to a residential building with a certain number of rooms, each with specific characteristics pertaining to volume, occupancy, and thermostat set point. The consideration of variables related to the building envelope and weather, and the HVAC system have provided a realistic view that enables the accurate estimation of annual energy usage and costs. The main findings of the research are reflected in the sensitivity analysis that estimates energy use and cost based on variance in the set point of thermostats that operate based on occupancy levels in various times of the year when the weather pattern could change drastically with respect to time, under the inherent weatherization levels of the building. The most important conclusion is that, upon analyzing the results of the sensitivity analysis, specifically with respect to the operations of the thermostats and occupancy levels under constant building envelope characteristics, decision makers will be able to incorporate energy efficiency measures and infrastructure improvements over time, in order to save energy and cost.

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Keywords

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