A Machine Learning-Assisted Framework to Control Thermally Anisotropic Building Envelopes in Residential Buildings

Zhenglai Shen, Som Shrestha, Daniel Howard, Tianli Feng, Diana Hun, Buxin She

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

Abstract

To curb the energy consumption of buildings and their related CO2 emissions, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) developed the thermally anisotropic building envelope (TABE) —a multi-layer design comprising insulation materials and metal foils connected to thermal loops. This study developed a machine learning-assisted framework to control the TABE in residential buildings to reduce the computation load for future optimal rule-based control and application. First, a 2D finite element model was established in COMSOL to calculate the hourly heat flux through exterior walls installed with the TABE. Then, TABE wall heat fluxes were simulated for various indoor and outdoor boundary conditions, thermal loops fluid temperatures and flow rates. Since the finite element simulations are computationally expensive, an artificial neural network (ANN) was then trained to use as a proxy of the finite element (COMSOL) modeling. Finally, the trained ANN model was coupled with the EnergyPlus model to predict the energy consumption of a US Department of Energy prototype single-family house installed with the TABE. An optimal simple rule-based control was determined from predefined rules for a case study. The results demonstrate that the developed machine learning–assisted framework can reduce 99.9% of the computation time while efficiently managing residential building energy for installed TABE walls.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationThermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings XV International Conference
PublisherAmerican Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers
Pages65-75
Number of pages11
ISBN (Electronic)9781955516280
StatePublished - 2022
Event15th International Conference on Thermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings 2022 - Clearwater Beach, United States
Duration: Dec 5 2022Dec 8 2022

Publication series

NameThermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings
ISSN (Electronic)2166-8469

Conference

Conference15th International Conference on Thermal Performance of the Exterior Envelopes of Whole Buildings 2022
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityClearwater Beach
Period12/5/2212/8/22

Funding

This manuscript has been authored in part by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The publisher acknowledges the US government license to provide public access under the DOE Public Access Plan (http://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan). The authors thank Sven Mumme for his This manuscript has been authored in part by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The publisher acknowledges the US government license to provide public access under the DOE Public Access Plan (http://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan). The authors thank Sven Mumme for his support and guidance and Olivia Shafer for formatting and technical editing.

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