Operation and configuration optimization of a CCHP system for general building load

Currently, the analysis of cooling, heating and power (CCHP) system is usually based on operation strategy (such as following the electric load) and optimization criterion (such as operation cost reduction) without considering the match between sources and loads distributions from the perspective of the allocation proportion of waste heat between cooling and heating units. And this issue is taken into consideration in this paper. An objective function of minimum cost is proposed, along with constrains of the capacity and parameters of the CCHP system, including four different operation strategies. This optimization model is then used to optimize the configuration along with operation strategies for specific load profiles. The proposed method is tested by the developing CCHP simulation platform under Labview environment, in which the detail model of micro-turbine, waste heat boiler and absorption chiller is included. Simulation results show that the cost of the hotel building are reduced by 30% to 40% if equipped with the optimized CCHP system.