Optimal Operation of Climate Control Systems of Produce Storage Facilities in Smart Grids

This paper presents mathematical optimization models of produce storage facilities to optimize the operation of their energy systems in the context of smart grids. In the storage facilities, climate control of the storage rooms consumes considerable energy; thus, in this paper, a mathematical model of storage facilities appropriate for their optimal operation is developed, so that it can be implemented as a supervisory control in existing climate controllers. The proposed model incorporates weather forecasts, electricity price information, and the end-user preferences to optimally operate existing climate control systems in storage facilities. The objective is to minimize total energy costs and demand charges while considering important parameters of storage facilities, i.e., inside temperature and humidity should be kept within acceptable ranges. The performance of the proposed model for various electricity prices and weather conditions and their variations are studied via Monte Carlo Simulations (MCS). The presented simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed model to reduce total energy costs while maintaining required operational constraints.