Center for the Built Environment

High thermal mass radiant systems as a hydronic thermal mass activation method have many opportunities for cost-effective demand management. The system is regarded with the possibility of long-term transferring peak heating and cooling loads to off-peak hours and peak load reductions. This study conducted over 300,000 case calculations for a sensitivity analysis of load shifting parameters in radiant space conditioning systems across 16 climate zones in California, 14 different climatic cities outside California. The parameters analyzed include building geometric parameters (building length, width, window-to-wall ratio, orientation), internal heat source levels (from people, lights, plugs), control parameters (start and stop times), and the design construction of radiant terminals. A comparative analysis was also conducted across cities in different climatic conditions to explore the impact of climate on the load shifting capabilities of radiant space conditioning. The results of this study will aid in the formulation of strategies and the optimization design for load shifting in radiant cooling systems.