Abstract

During the past years, the increase of energy costs has led to the development of energy calculation models for the prediction of the energy performance of buildings. Ice rinks are buildings using significant quantities of energy because they have simultaneous refrigerating and heating needs. However, only a limited amount of information related to the simulation of ice rink refrigeration systems has been published so far. This thesis presents the development of a computer model for the simulation of the refrigeration system of an ice rink by using the TRNSYS environment. Thermodynamic principles and empirical relations are used to identify the parameters of the compressor and heat exchangers from manufacturer's data and measurements collected in an ice rink located in Montreal. The model used to simulate the chiller is based on the ASHRAE Toolkit-I. The ice-concrete slab is simulated using an analytical and a correlation-based model. The controller model uses empirical relations to determine the number of compressors in operation based on the brine temperature. The thesis present the analysis of the collected data and the mathematical description of the models developed for the refrigeration system. Simulations are performed using several days of measurements. The effects of a heat recovery system on the reduction of energy use and the corresponding CO 2 emissions are also investigated