@Article{ee.2025.068586,
AUTHOR = {Alya Penta Agharid, Indra Permana, Linlan Chang, Yi-Han Luo, Fujen Wang},
TITLE = {Impact of Duty Cycling HVAC Systems on Thermal Comfort, Energy Consumption, and Operational Costs},
JOURNAL = {Energy Engineering},
VOLUME = {122},
YEAR = {2025},
NUMBER = {9},
PAGES = {3839--3866},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/energy/v122n9/63471},
ISSN = {1546-0118},
ABSTRACT = {Air conditioning (AC) is essential for maintaining indoor comfort during Taiwan’s hot and humid summers but significantly contributes to increased energy consumption. This study evaluates the effects of AC duty-cycling strategies on energy performance, thermal comfort, and operational costs in office environments. Duty-cycling was implemented using a building energy management system (BEMS), which remotely controlled the ON/OFF cycles of AC units. Five duty-cycling modes were tested, with some modes incorporating air circulation during OFF periods. Field measurements of energy consumption, temperature, humidity, and air velocity were conducted and integrated with thermal comfort analysis tools to calculate predicted mean vote (PMV) and percentage of dissatisfied (PPD) values. The objective was to achieve energy savings while maintaining acceptable thermal comfort levels. Results show that Mode A achieved the highest energy savings, reducing monthly consumption by 40.79%; however, it slightly exceeded the PMV threshold (+0.5) and recorded a PPD greater than 10%, indicating reduced occupant comfort. In contrast, Mode C provided a better balance, achieving a 27.61% reduction in energy consumption while maintaining a PMV of +0.28 and a PPD of 7.49%, both within acceptable comfort limits. Despite the energy-saving benefits, not all duty-cycling modes ensured satisfactory thermal comfort. Additionally, the cost analysis revealed that Mode A achieved the lowest monthly electricity cost (NTD 8476.18/USD 263.38), while Mode C incurred a higher cost (NTD 10,363.00/USD 322.01), highlighting the trade-off between energy savings, comfort, and economic impact.},
DOI = {10.32604/ee.2025.068586}
}