%0 Conference Paper
%K Demand shifting (pre-cooling)
%A Peng Xu
%A Leah Zagreus
%B 2009 ASHRAE Annual Conference
%C Louisville, KY
%D 2009
%G eng
%T Demand Shifting with Thermal Mass in Light and Heavy Mass Commercial Buildings
%1 <p>ASHRAE Transactions, Vol. 116, part 1</p>
%2 LBNL-2301E
%4 <p>June 20-24, 2009</p>
%# <p>demand response</p>
%$ <p>Commercial Building Systems</p>
%] <p>y</p>
%X <p>The potential for utilizing building thermal mass for load shifting and peak demand reduction has been demonstrated in a number of simulation, laboratory, and field studies. This project studied the potential of pre-cooling and demand limiting in a heavy mass and a light mass building in the Bay Area of California. The conclusion of the work to date is that pre-cooling has the potential to improve the demand responsiveness of commercial buildings while maintaining acceptable comfort conditions. Results indicate that pre-cooling increases the depth (kW) and duration (kWh) of the shed capacity of a given building, all other factors being equal. Due to the time necessary for pre-cooling, it is only applicable to day-ahead demand response programs. Pre-cooling can be very effective if the building mass is relatively heavy. The effectiveness of night pre-cooling under hot weather conditions has not been tested. Further work is required to quantify and demonstrate the effectiveness of pre-cooling in different climates. Research is also needed to develop screening tools that can be used to select suitable buildings and customers, identify the most appropriate pre-cooling strategies, and estimate the benefits to the customer and the utility.</p>