Evo-control 2.0 project

First-time development of a process for the energy-efficient, automated control of a membrane roof consisting of 32 5-layer ETFE cushions with the following objectives:

• Setting and ensuring a defined air quality in the cushion (humidity, purity, et cetera)
• Minimisation of energy consumption for pressurisation and de-humidification
• Optimal operation management (adjustment of pressure level)
• Remote monitoring of the entire roof surface for performance and possible damage

How can the defined goals be mapped by hardware and software in such a way that an economical, robust and reliable solution can be offered?

To what extent can the solutions found be used internationally in very different projects (different sizes, geometries, climate zones, et cetera)?

The development will be advanced via the construction of prototypes in various stages (individual components and overall system), their testing and parallel theoretical investigations (using simulation tools and computational estimations). The development of suitable control software will play an important role.

On the part of the industry partner, the aim is:

• Development of the hardware to control the air holding (inlets and outlets).
• Hardware development of the control system
• Development of a preliminary prototype
• Development of test series and execution of tests to investigate the flow dynamics depending on the geometry of the inlets
• Development of test series and execution of tests for pressure stabilisation and drying of the cushions
• Analysis of the test results and iterative optimisation of the hardware components

On the part of the HFT is planned:

• Development of a simulation environment for the calculation of thermodynamic limit parameters for the operation of the cushions
• Development of a simulation environment for calculating the flow dynamics within the cushions
• Development of a control algorithm
• Development of an interface for the integration of current weather data