Exergy-Wise Predictive Control of Building and Automotive Energy Systems

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Building and automotive energy systems account for 57% of total energy use by consumers in Canada, while causing 36% of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions in Canada. The goal of this program is to develop new control methods to minimize energy consumption and GHG emissions from building and automotive energy systems. The short term objective of this program is to create a unified modeling and control theory for energy systems based on an ordered metric, “exergy,” i.e., the maximum theoretically available energy that can do work. This program will create a new paradigm for exergy-wise control through a novel theory based on the Second Law of Thermodynamics, Exergy Flow Controls, and Feedback Control Stability. The PI's recent results show exergy-wise control of Mechanical-Thermal-Chemical (MTC) energy systems provides opportunity for significant (7-36%) energy savings. Building upon the PI's results, the proposed research approach will include fundamental multi-physics exergy destruction modeling, exergy surface shaping, and thermodynamic flow control. The research program will center on MTC energy systems; applications of the theory will be demonstrated for internal combustion engines (ICEs) and building heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems that cause over 46% of total energy use by consumers in Canada.***The long term goal is to extend the unified modeling and control theory framework from this program to include broad Mechanical-Thermal-Chemical & Electrical (MTCE) energy systems (e.g., hybrid electric vehicles) and connected MTCE energy systems (e.g., buildings-to-power grid systems). ******This program will train 11 Doctoral, Master of Science (MSc), and Bachelor of Science (BSc) students for developing unique skills to minimize energy consumption of MTC systems by using novel and powerful techniques of exergy-wise controls. The resulting knowledge from this program will be transferred to the relevant industry through planned industry short courses. In addition, new courses will be developed that will become available on-line for public use and outreach to the global research community.******Intellectual Merit: There is a significant knowledge gap between the controls research community and the thermodynamic research community that must be filled to enable exergy-wise control methods for energy systems. This research program aims to fill this knowledge gap.******Broader Impacts: The new exergy-wise control theory will be applicable to all mechanical-thermal-chemical systems. In particular, the application of the theory to ICEs in this program is anticipated to make a major contribution to the development of fuel-efficient ICEs that are widely used in automotive, power generation, oil & gas, marine, and rail industries. The second direct impact area includes energy saving for commercial & residential buildings HVAC systems that cause over 16% of the total energy use by consumers in Canada. **