Category: saranya

Journal Article on Operational Strategies to Enhance Steam District Heating Systems

Nathan Kurtz on

SBS Lab member Saranya Anbarasu and former lab member Katy Hinkelman have led groundbreaking research into operational strategies to enhance efficiency and sustainability of steam District Heating Systems (DHS) by utilizing existing resources. Over 97% of district heating systems in the United States rely on steam technology, during the transition to hot water and ambient temperature systems, efficiency of existing steam systems must be addressed.

Our paper was published in the Journal of Energy Conservation and Management, introducing new operational strategies for DHS. The study presents new dynamic Modelica models and methods used to streamline modeling complexities for practical applications. Simulation results from a district heating system of a university show improvements: 13.3% reduction in condensation loss, 13.1% decrease in fuel consumption during peak winter loads, 15.3% reduction during shoulder periods, and a 49.6% decrease in boiler runtime. This amazing and groundbreaking research was done in collaboration with Victor Mendez Ferreira from the University of Colorado Boulder. It offers innovative solutions for enhancing the efficiency of steam DHS. It can be accessed for free until January 31, 2025 at this link.

 

Research Paper Published on Efficient Smart and Connected Community

Nathan Kurtz on

An efficient smart and connected community (SCC) depends on the interconnectivity of essential infrastructure systems. However, current modeling tools cannot determine which interconnections are most important to include, particularly as system dynamics become more complex with high-order effects.

As a joint effort of current and former SBS Lab Ph.D. students Saranya Anbarasu, Kathryn Hinkelman, and Jing Wang, our new paper in the Journal of Energy and Buildings proposes a comprehensive framework that incorporates multi-layers, multi-blocks, and multi-agents to model interdependent infrastructure systems. Interconnections span cyber, physical, and logical aspects, including human interactions. With the equation-based object-oriented language Modelica, we model energy, transportation, communication, and water systems for a hypothetical SCC and assess higher-order interdependency effects during normal operation. Additionally, we develop a quasi-Monte Carlo sensitivity analysis framework and use variance-based sensitivity metrics to assess the impact of interdependencies on energy system operation.

This paper can be accessed freely until September 5, 2024 at this link.

 

SBS Lab Member Saranya Anbarasu to Present Research at SimBuild 2024

Nathan Kurtz on

We are excited to have Saranya Anbarasu present her poster on “Optimization Operational Costs in Combined Heat and Power Integrated District Heating Systems: A Reinforcement Learning Approach.” This poster shows the application of cutting-edge AI technology to complex district energy systems. This is the outcome of our DOE project “Optimal Co-Design of Integrated Thermal-Electrical Networks and Control Systems for Grid-Interactive Efficient District (GED) Energy Systems.” This research was co-authored with current lab members Rosina Adhikari, Katy Hinkelman, Zhanwei Hu, and former lab members Ardeshir Moftakhari and Tanmay Ambadkar.

We are so excited to see our lab members presenting their work. To see a summary of the presentation and details for where it will be held follow this link.

SBS Lab Member Saranya Anbarasu Receives Marlene & Joseph Borda Architectural Engineering Graduates Travel Fellowship.

Nathan Kurtz on

Congratulations to SBS lab member Saranya Anbarasu on receiving the Marlene & Joseph Borda Architectural Engineering Graduates Travel Fellowship. This fellowship is supporting her to present her paper “Optimizing Operational Costs in Combined Heat and Power Integrated District Heating Systems: A Reinforcement Learning Approach” at IBPSA-USA SimBuild 2024 Conference in Denver, Colorado. We appreciate all the generous donors for supporting the lab members to have these experiences.

Saranya’s paper is joint research of Tanmay Ambadkar, Rosina Adhikari, Kathryn Hinkleman, Zhanwei He, and Ardeshir Moftakhari from our DOE project.

SBS Lab Member Saranya Anbarasu Passes Her Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam

Nathan Kurtz on

Congratulations to SBS lab member Saranya Anbarasu on passing her Ph.D. comprehensive exam. Her research is focused on developing innovative models for integrated community energy systems. She has worked on multiple U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and National Science Foundation (NSF) projects on community energy systems and smart & connected communities. She has published papers and developed Modelica models for community energy systems, which have been publicly released in the open source Modelica Buildings Library (MBL).

SBS Lab Members Katy Hinkelman and Saranya Anbarasu Publishes Paper

Nathan Kurtz on

SBS lab members Katy Hinkelman and Saranya Anbarasu published a paper applying innovative solutions to building decarbonization. In the newly published paper by Energy and Buildings, they applied ecological network analysis (ENA) for buildings. Exergy is proposed as the best for ENA dynamic systems with multiple types of energy. They also demonstrate how ENA can add novel complex network information for buildings.

They then performed case studies to redesign the heating and cooling systems for an office and data center, coupling the systems together via ambient-loop district energy. These redesigns achieved 84% heating/cooling energy savings. The paper can be accessed freely until January 24, 2024 at this link.

Opensource Modelica models related to this work have been publicly released at:

  1. Modelica Buildings Library (MBL): https://simulationresearch.lbl.gov/modelica/
  2. Biomimetic Integrated Community Energy and Power Systems (BICEPS) Library: https://sites.psu.edu/sbslab/tools/biceps-library/

This research led by Katy Hinkelman and Saranya Anbarasu at Penn State University is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) IBUILD program and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Other related papers can be found at this link.

 

Lab Member Saranya Anbarasu Becomes Modelica Buildings Library Developer

Nathan Kurtz on

With the release of Modelica Buildings Library v10.0.0, lab member Saranya Anbarasu became a model developer for the Modelica Buildings Library, an open-source modeling repository for building and district energy systems and controls that is managed by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Congratulations to Saranya for achieving this role! As part of the GED Research Project, Saranya contributed a numerically efficient pressure-reducing valve for steam heating systems. She also made improvements to several steam district heating models for fast and accurate simulation of these large-scale thermofluid systems. We are excited to see all of the contributions she will make continue to make towards the Modelica Buildings Library. To learn more about our lab’s work with the Modelica Buildings Library click here.

SBS Lab Member Saranya Anbarasu Selected to Present at UNL Durham

Nathan Kurtz on

Congratulations to Saranya Anbarasu on being selected to present at UNL Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction Ph.D. Symposium. She presented her research on “System Synergy: Modeling the Interdependencies of Smart Community Infrastructure”. We are thankful to Professor Lily Wang and others at UNL Durham for providing Saranya and other Ph.D. students with this unique and amazing opportunity to share their research.

Saranya Anbarasu Receives 2023 ASHRAE Travel Grant

Julia Ho on

Congratulations to SBS Lab PhD student Saranya Anbarasu for receiving ASHRAE’s Student Travel Grant to attend their 2023 Winter Conference in Atlanta! Saranya is one of only five award recipients this year.

Saranya uses advanced modeling techniques to explore dependencies between critical infrastructure systems, such as transportation, water, and electrical systems. She also works on optimizing design and controls for district heating and cooling systems. To learn more about Saranya’s work, you can visit her SBS lab page here. Congrats again, Saranya!

Saranya Anbarasu and Julia Ho Receive Penn State Scholarships

Julia Ho on

Congratulations to PhD students Saranya Anbarasu and Julia Ho for receiving Penn State scholarships this year. Saranya received the Keefauver Scholarship in Engineering, and Julia received the Keefauver Scholarship in Engineering and the Max and Joan Schlienger Graduate Scholarship in Engineering.

We thank the Penn State Department of Architectural Engineering and its donors for their generous support. Julia and Saranya are currently developing open source Modelica models for district heating and cooling systems to improve energy efficiency and decrease carbon emissions in the GED project, a joint research project with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, UT Austin, and CU Boulder.