The South African economy, which is largely based on heavy industry such as minerals
extraction and processing, is by nature very energy intensive. Based on the abundance of coal
resources, electricity in South Africa remains amongst the cheapest in the world. Whilst the
low electricity price has contributed towards a competitive position, it has also meant that our
existing electricity supply is often taken for granted. The economic and environmental
benefits of energy efficiency have been well documented. Worldwide, nations are beginning
to face up to the challenge of sustainable energy - in other words to alter the way that energy
is utilised so that social, environmental and economic aims of sustainable development are
supported.
South Africa as a developing nation recognises the need for energy efficiency, as it is the most
cost effective way of meeting the demands of sustainable development. South Africa, with its
unique economic, environmental and social challenges, stands to benefit the most from
implementing energy efficiency practices. The Energy Efficiency Strategy for South Africa
takes its mandate from the South African White Paper on Energy Policy. It is the first
consolidated governmental effort geared towards energy efficiency practices throughout
South Africa. The strategy allows for the immediate implementation of low-cost and no-cost
interventions, as well as those higher-cost measures with short payback periods. An initial
target has been set for an across sector energy efficiency improvement of 12% by 2014.
Thermal and energy system simulation is globally recognised as one of the most effective and
powerful tools to improve overall energy efficiency. However, because of the usual extreme
mathematical nature of most simulation algorithms, coupled with the historically academic
environment in which most simulation software is developed, valid perceptions exist that
system simulation is too time consuming and cumbersome. It is also commonly known that
system simulation is only effective in the hands of highly skilled operators, which are
specialists in their prospective fields. Through previous work done in the field, and the design
of a dynamic thermal and energy system simulation scheme for cross industry applications, it
was shown that system simulation has evolved to such an extent that these perceptions are not
valid any more.
The South African mining and commercial building industries are two of the major
consumers of electricity within South Africa. By improving energy efficiency practices within
the building and mining industry, large savings can be realised. An extensive investigation of
the literature showed that no general suitable computer simulation software for cross industry
mining and building thermal and energy system simulation could be found. Because the
heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) of buildings, closely relate to the ventilation
and cooling systems of mines, valuable knowledge from this field was used to identify the
requirements and specifications for the design of a new single cross industry dynamic
integrated thermal and energy system simulation tool.
VISUALQEC was designed and implemented to comply with the needs and requirements
identified. A new explicit system component model and explicit system simulation engine,
combined with a new improved simulation of mass flow through a system procedure,
suggested a marked improvement on overall simulation stability, efficiency and speed. The
commercial usability of the new simulation tool was verified for building applications by
doing an extensive building energy savings audit. The new simulation tool was further
verified by simulating the ventilation and cooling (VC) and underground pumping system of a
typical South African gold mine. Initial results proved satisfactory but, more case studies to
further verify the accuracy of the implemented cross industry thermal and energy system
simulation tool are needed. Because of the stable nature of the new VISUALQEC simulation
engine, the power of the simulation process can be further extended to the mathematical
optimisation of various system variables.
In conclusion, this study highlighted the need for new simulation procedures and system
designs for the successful implementation and creation of a single dynamic thermal and
energy system simulation tool for cross industry applications. South Africa should take full
advantage of the power of thermal and energy system simulation towards creating a more
energy efficient society. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Mechanical Engineering))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NWUBOLOKA1/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/592 |
| Date | January 2004 |
| Creators | Bouwer, Werner |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | North-West University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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