Modeling of residential centralized and baseboard space heating systems

The Smart grid scenario in the local side imposes a responsible utilization of energy consumption with the participative behavior of the end-users. Utilities offer nowadays many alternatives to their clients in order to prevent peak power demand that greatly affects the electricity supplier when the grid capacity is exceeded. The residential energy profiles in Nordic countries have a particular behavior concerning their energy consumption; in fact, most of the energy is employed in water heater systems and space heating systems during winter time. This paper focuses on the modeling and simulation of space heating systems commonly employed in Canadian residences. In this study, the centralized and baseboard systems models are compared in order to provide a better comprehension of technical and operational aspects. The impact of thermostat types and their setup applied to the two heating systems is evaluated in terms of the peak power and energy consumption. Simulation results demonstrate the potential of the proposed modeling approach for multi-residential energy and power analysis.