An Integrated Energy Simulation Model of a Compressed Air System for Sustainable Manufacturing: A Time-Discretized Approach

A compressed air system (CAS) is one of the most common and energy-consuming systems in manufacturing. To practice more economically and environmentally sustainable manufacturing, manufacturers need ways to reduce the energy costs and carbon footprint, resulting from a CAS in their production systems. While preliminary energy studies on a CAS and on machining processes are available separately, existing research studies rarely analyze energy costs using a tool that considers both a CAS and production systems. Therefore, in this study, we propose an energy simulation tool that combines a CAS and a production system to evaluate the effects of a CAS and production parameters on energy consumption and costs at a factory level. In particular, we develop a time-discretized algorithm for simulating a CAS to accurately consider the dynamics of CAS parameters such as pressure and flow rate. From 48 simulation case studies, we show that changes in a CAS such as proper HP sizing, a reduction in compressed air leaks, and a decrease in the discharge pressure can increase productivity and reduce energy costs by up to 11%. The simulation analysis from this study suggests a way to help manufacturers and researchers find more sustainable ways to achieve energy-efficient configurations for production systems including a CAS.