Energy4buildings

Forty per cent of total energy consumption today is generated in buildings - that is more than in industry. For building services engineers, this means a major challenge to further improve the energy efficiency of buildings.

An innovative test stand has now been put into operation at the Pinkafeld study centre of FH Burgenland. In the "energy4buildings" project, systems such as chillers or heat pumps interact with simulation programmes.

The measurement of energy flows allows the individual devices to be optimised through repeated simulation runs. The interaction of systems, such as heat pumps and chillers or electricity produced in the house itself with that coming from outside, can also be measured and optimised in several test runs.

Devices that can cover both heating and cooling functions are becoming increasingly important for greater energy efficiency. Simulation cycles are now being created with a "hardware-in-the-loop test stand": For example, the flow temperature of a heat pump is measured and the value is communicated to the building and system simulation software. The model of an office building, for example with underfloor heating, is then calculated there. The calculated return temperature is in turn fed to the heat pump as the real temperature. The next hardware-in-the-loop simulation cycle then begins. The special interface between hardware and simulation software plays an innovative role here. With this hardware-in-the-loop principle, the Burgenland University of Applied Sciences is taking on a pioneering role in the field of building technology laboratory infrastructure.

The five-year "energy4buildings" project, which has been running since May 2013 and will be completed in April 2018, will benefit students at the Burgenland University of Applied Sciences as well as companies. The test stand is used for teaching and laboratory exercises as well as a basis for Master's theses. Companies can use the test stand to test prototypes or control strategies for product development in order to further improve energy efficiency.