Applying simulation of optimal systems in building energy management

The technical systems of buildings have become increasingly complex during the last years. This has led to new challenges both in developing tools for operation, monitoring, fault detection and optimal dynamic control of the systems. The mathematical theory of optimal systems offers a means of tackling these problems in a formal and efficient way. This paper presents a conseptual framework for applying simulation of optimal systems in building energy management and optimization. The two main application areas discussed are simulation for obtaining reference data of the optimal performance of the system for fault detection purposes and simulation for the realization of optimal control. The discussion is based on work carried out in the Technical Research Centre of Finland within the frameworks of the national research programme LVIS-2000 Future Building Services and IEA Annex 25.