Predictive control of intermittently operated radiant floor heating systems

A predictive control strategy as a means of improving the energy efficiency of intermittently heated radiant floor heating systems is explored. Both computer simulations and experiments are conducted to assess and compare the energy performance of the predictive control strategy with an existing conventional control strategy. The results show that use of the predictive control strategy could save between 10% and 12% energy during the cold winter months. The energy savings are somewhat higher during mild weather conditions. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.