Improvements in the ModSCA simulator: A tool helping to analyze energy efficiency of a compressed air system

Abstract

This paper reports the improvement of ModSCA, a simulation model for compressed air systems (CAS). It was conceived to figure out how CAS work and what their weaknesses are, either in a design or in a retrofitting phase, from an energy conversion standpoint. It can be used to evaluate energy savings resulting from retrofitting works, before setting them in place, or to design a new compressed air system from scratches, hence the aim is not only educational, but it is functional to support facility managers. The original ModSCA frame is designed in Simulink in a modular way suitable for further developments, as the ones described in such a work. Special attention is focused on the following topics: (i) further development of the network layout, implementation of new modules (ii) to dynamically assess pressure drops in filters and (iii) to assess the energy role of mass losses. A new control scheme, based on Model Predictive Control (MPC), for variable speed compressors, has been included and some simulations are shown. Besides, an electrical equivalence of the CAS is introduced and its effectiveness shown, as a standalone simulation; this approach shows to be suitable to be embedded in ModSCA, in a further release. The improvements in the behavior of the simulator against real complex system make it keen to be used both by industry and academia.