Design of a cost-effective building microgrid: load modeling and optimization of the energy performance

En este proyecto, el objetivo principal es reducir los costes totales de un edificio del campus de Colorado School of Mines en un periodo de 25 años. Para ello, se desarrolla un problema de optimización consistente en tres partes fundamentales: la factura eléctrica, los costes asociados a las luces LED y los costes asociados a las fluorescentes. El edificio está recién construido y ha sido equipado con luces fluorescentes. Es conocido que las lámparas LED tienen mayor durabilidad y son más eficientes. Sin embargo, las luces fluorescentes son más baratas. Estos tres factores y la influencia de cada uno de ellos en el coste final van a ser examinados para obtener la solución más rentable. Después de que el problema haya sido resuelto, se espera que los ahorros económicos vengan acompañados de ahorros energéticos y de emisiones al medio ambiente. El impacto ambiental de la mejora en el edificio será examinada al final.

In this project, the main objective is to reduce the total costs of a building from Colorado School of Mines campus in a period of 25 years. For this, an optimization problem was developed with three main parts: the electricity bill, LED associated costs and fluorescent associated costs. The building has been recently constructed and is equipped with fluorescent fixtures. It is known that LED lamps have a longer lifespan and are more efficient. However, fluorescent fixtures are cheaper. These three factors and their influence in the final costs will be examined in order to obtain the most profitable solution. After this problem is solved, it is expected that the economic savings also incur in energy and environmental savings. The environmental impact of the building's enhancement will be studied at last.