Two-stage optimization for the air conditioning system in public buildings with flexible control of indoor load

The purpose of the air conditioning system (A/C system) is to meet the cooling capacity needs of individual rooms. In order to optimize energy-saving in the A/C system, it is essential to conduct a study on the operational status of various equipment, considering the comfort demand of the human body and dynamic electricity prices. This feature will enable collaborative control of the A/C system. Consequently, this paper presents a two-stage operational optimization strategy. Firstly, the comfort requirement is taken into consideration, and the room's set temperature is treated as a decision variable. An optimization strategy is proposed to meet real-time electricity prices and indoor cooling demand. Furthermore, by optimizing the cooling demand, the operation of the main equipment in the A/C system is also optimized, leading to the derivation of an optimal cooling strategy at the minute level. According to this strategy, there are significant reductions in the energy consumption and the carbon emission relative to the rated operating conditions at each time period. The energy consumption can be reduced by up to 4.11%, and the carbon emission can be reduced by up to 30.81%.