Optimal temperature-actuated control of a thermally-insulated roller blind
H. Alkhatib, Philippe Lemarchand, Brian Norton, Dominic O’Sullivan
Abstract
By altering the thermal equilibria between internal and ambient environments, dynamic insulation can minimize heating and cooling building energy requirements. The performance of a thermally-insulated roller blind was evaluated both experimentally and via simulation studies. The variation of blind position was optimized to minimize building energy consumption, maintain thermal comfort, and minimize daylight discomfort for a particular system, location and conditions. The roller blind was adjusted between four positions, from fully-open to fully-closed, optimal indoor temperature switching thresholds found for moving to these blind positions were 15 °C, 18.4 °C, 19.4 °C and 21.4 °C, respectively. Using these resulted in 15.3% energy savings and a 7% reduction in occupancy daylight discomfort compared with no blind.