Hooman Azad

Using a Passivhaus-certified office building as a case study, I worked with operational data collected during both summer and winter. The building was heated by an air source heat pump and ventilated by a Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery (MVHR) system. Thus, my research directly addresses the challenges of modelling real buildings under realistic operating conditions.

Analysing the operational data of the HVAC systems provided me with a strong understanding of their real-time performance. The models developed are tailored for and applicable to advanced control systems. This project, therefore, sits at the intersection of two cutting-edge domains in building energy research: the development of predictive models that underpin advanced control strategies and the study of low-energy buildings. The results of this research can be useful for two critical challenges in ensuring comfort and sustainability in modern, future-oriented communities: mitigating overheating in summer, and enabling smart building-to-grid integration during the heating season to optimise and balance energy consumption with the grid and the increasing share of renewable power generation.

This multi-dimensional project strengthened my expertise in building physics and broadened my skills in machine learning, time series analysis, optimisation algorithms, numerical integration, and model predictive control (MPC). It also allowed me to develop programming proficiency in R and Python, complementing my previous experience with MATLAB. In addition, I am proficient in modelling and analysing buildings using DesignBuilder and EnergyPlus.

• Gilani HA, Hoseinzadeh S. Techno-economic study of compound parabolic collector in solar water heating system in the northern hemisphere. Applied Thermal Engineering. 2021 May 25;190:116756. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2021.116756 
• Gilani HA, Hoseinzadeh S, Karimi H, Karimi A, Hassanzadeh A, Garcia DA. Performance analysis of integrated solar heat pump VRF system for the low energy building in Mediterranean island. Renewable Energy. 2021 Aug 1;174:1006-19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2021.04.081
• Gilani HA, Hoseinzadeh S, Esmaeilion F, Memon S, Garcia DA, Assad ME. A solar thermal driven ORC-VFR system employed in the subtropical Mediterranean climatic building. Energy. 2022 Jul 1;250:123819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2022.123819 

Postgraduate

• Building energy modelling
• Passivhaus standard
• Computational fluid mechanics (CFD)

I investigated the technical feasibility of integrating solar energy (both solar thermal collectors and PV panels) with advanced cooling/heating systems in locations with high levels of solar radiation to devise solar cooling (and heating) systems.

I joined the ERBE CDT program in October 2021. I am a member of the Building Energy Research Group (BERG), which aims to transform the performance of buildings for a healthy, sustainable, and zero-carbon future. I am an expert in building energy modelling (BEM), with a special interest in low-energy buildings such as Passivhaus buildings. Also, I am a member of Energy Resilience and the Built Environment (ERBE) CDT. My research is focused on developing and validating data-driven models on low-energy buildings for predicting indoor temperature. Dr Vanda Dimitriou is my principal supervisor. My skills include:

• Building physics
• Building energy modelling
• Data-driven modelling
• HVAC systems and equipment

Professional affiliations

• The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), Nov 2021 to present
• Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE), May 2022 to present

Awards

Second place in the 2022 ASHRAE Doctoral Researcher Student Competition, hosted by Loughborough University in May 2022.

Key collaborators

My research and enterprise activities are conducted with a range of academic and stakeholder partners, including:

• ERBE CDT (https://erbecdt.ac.uk/)