Weather-adaptive rule-based mixed-mode ventilation in a tropical climate: simulation and real-world validation

초록

This study proposed and validated a weather-adaptive, fan-assisted mixed-mode ventilation (MMV) strategy for reducing energy consumption in a tropical office building. The strategy integrates adaptive window-opening thresholds, a weather-adaptive cooling setpoint, and an optimal fan speed function in a hierarchical rule-based control manner. Its performance was first optimized in simulation and then tested in a high-metered office testbed. To ensure robust evaluation under limited baseline data, energy savings were quantified using an Elastic Net-based measurement and verification model that mitigates overfitting through combined L-1/L-2 regularization. The proposed strategy was benchmarked against two baselines: (1) fixed cooling at 26 degrees C with fan assistance, and (2) setpoint relaxation between 26-28 degrees C with fan assistance but without NV. Simulation predicted 48.9 % energy savings, while field validation achieved 31.2 % savings against fixed cooling baseline for the proposed strategy during occupied periods. In contrast, Simulation predicted 31.7 % energy savings, while field validation achieved 11.4 % savings for the proposed strategy against fixed cooling baseline during occupied periods. The additional savings (17 %) relative to the relaxation baseline were driven by MMV operation, with natural ventilation (NV) covering up to 25 % of occupied hours without exceeding thermal comfort limits (>30 degrees C). These findings confirm that adaptive, fan-assisted MMV control can deliver substantial and reliable energy reductions under real-world tropical conditions, providing a practical and interpretable alternative to complex controls.

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