Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus

Energy is a critical resource, and its optimization is central to sustainable building design. Occupant comfort, significantly influenced by factors, including mean radiant temperature (MRT), alongside air temperature, velocity, and humidity, is another key consideration. This paper introduces a hyb...

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Main Authors: Reza Akraminejad, Tianyi Zhao, Yacine Rezgui, Ali Ghoroghi, Yousef Shahbazi Razlighi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Buildings
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/15/14/2568
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author Reza Akraminejad
Tianyi Zhao
Yacine Rezgui
Ali Ghoroghi
Yousef Shahbazi Razlighi
author_facet Reza Akraminejad
Tianyi Zhao
Yacine Rezgui
Ali Ghoroghi
Yousef Shahbazi Razlighi
author_sort Reza Akraminejad
collection DOAJ
description Energy is a critical resource, and its optimization is central to sustainable building design. Occupant comfort, significantly influenced by factors, including mean radiant temperature (MRT), alongside air temperature, velocity, and humidity, is another key consideration. This paper introduces a hybrid crow search optimization (CSA) and penguin search optimization algorithm (PeSOA), termed (HCRPN), designed to simultaneously optimize building energy consumption and achieve MRT levels conducive to thermal comfort by adjusting HVAC system parameters. We first validate HCRPN using ZDT-1 and Shaffer N1 multi-objective benchmarks. Subsequently, we employ EnergyPlus simulations, utilizing a single-objective Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) for initial parameter analysis to generate a dataset. Following correlation analyses to understand parameter relationships, we implement our hybrid multi-objective approach. Comparative evaluations against state-of-the-art algorithms, including MoPso, NSGA-II, hybrid Nsga2/MOEAD, and Mo-CSA, validated the effectiveness of HCRPN. Our findings demonstrate an average 7% reduction in energy consumption and a 3% improvement in MRT-based comfort relative to existing methods. While seemingly small, even minor enhancements in MRT can have a noticeable positive impact on well-being, particularly in large, high-occupancy buildings.
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spelling doaj-art-8f515afbe89940828be690e7904e3d1e2025-08-20T03:58:30ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092025-07-011514256810.3390/buildings15142568Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlusReza Akraminejad0Tianyi Zhao1Yacine Rezgui2Ali Ghoroghi3Yousef Shahbazi Razlighi4Department of Computer Engineering, University of Science and Culture, Tehran 1461968151, IranInstitute of Building Energy, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, ChinaSchool of Engineering, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 3AA, UKSchool of Engineering, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 3AA, UKDepartment of Civil Engineering, University of Science and Culture, Tehran 1461968151, IranEnergy is a critical resource, and its optimization is central to sustainable building design. Occupant comfort, significantly influenced by factors, including mean radiant temperature (MRT), alongside air temperature, velocity, and humidity, is another key consideration. This paper introduces a hybrid crow search optimization (CSA) and penguin search optimization algorithm (PeSOA), termed (HCRPN), designed to simultaneously optimize building energy consumption and achieve MRT levels conducive to thermal comfort by adjusting HVAC system parameters. We first validate HCRPN using ZDT-1 and Shaffer N1 multi-objective benchmarks. Subsequently, we employ EnergyPlus simulations, utilizing a single-objective Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) for initial parameter analysis to generate a dataset. Following correlation analyses to understand parameter relationships, we implement our hybrid multi-objective approach. Comparative evaluations against state-of-the-art algorithms, including MoPso, NSGA-II, hybrid Nsga2/MOEAD, and Mo-CSA, validated the effectiveness of HCRPN. Our findings demonstrate an average 7% reduction in energy consumption and a 3% improvement in MRT-based comfort relative to existing methods. While seemingly small, even minor enhancements in MRT can have a noticeable positive impact on well-being, particularly in large, high-occupancy buildings.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/15/14/2568building energy optimizationEnergyPlusthermal comfortmean radiant temperaturehybrid meta-heuristiccrow search algorithm
spellingShingle Reza Akraminejad
Tianyi Zhao
Yacine Rezgui
Ali Ghoroghi
Yousef Shahbazi Razlighi
Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus
Buildings
building energy optimization
EnergyPlus
thermal comfort
mean radiant temperature
hybrid meta-heuristic
crow search algorithm
title Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus
title_full Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus
title_fullStr Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus
title_full_unstemmed Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus
title_short Hybrid Metaheuristic Optimization of HVAC Energy Consumption and Thermal Comfort in an Office Building Using EnergyPlus
title_sort hybrid metaheuristic optimization of hvac energy consumption and thermal comfort in an office building using energyplus
topic building energy optimization
EnergyPlus
thermal comfort
mean radiant temperature
hybrid meta-heuristic
crow search algorithm
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/15/14/2568
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