Heat metering for central thermal energy installation

Virtual heat-meter system for estimating the thermal energy exchanged between a plurality of heat exchanger devices of a central thermal installation for generating and supplying thermal energy and a user complex during a predetermined period of time;

• said user complex including a plurality of thermal users to be monitored;
• said central thermal installation including:
• a supply circuit, adapted to have a heat carrier fluid passing through the supply circuit and arranged for selectively assuming a plurality of operating configurations in which the supply circuit defines respective supply paths for said heat carrier fluid;
• and
• a thermal unit arranged for generating a desired variation in thermal energy in the heat carrier fluid flowing from the supply circuit;
• a pumping device for creating a forced circulation of said heat carrier fluid through said supply circuit;
• a plurality of heat exchanger devices connected to said supply circuit, allocated among said thermal users, and intended to have said heat carrier fluid passing through the heat exchanger devices selectively according to the operating configuration assumed by said supply circuit, and adapted to allow the exchange of heat between said heat carrier fluid and said thermal users;
• the system comprising:
• first sensor means, adapted to be associated with the supply circuit and arranged for supplying main signals indicative of physical quantities representing the operation of said supply circuit in said period of time,
• wherein said main signals comprise signals representing the following physical quantities:
• the flow rate of heat carrier fluid flowing in a main delivery portion of the supply circuit;
• a first temperature and a second temperature of the heat carrier fluid in the main delivery portion and in the main return portion, respectively, of the supply circuit;
• the operating configuration assumed by the supply circuit;
• and
• the pressure difference which the heat carrier fluid has between the main delivery portion and the main return portion, respectively, of the supply circuit, and
• control means comprising:
• memory means arranged for storing:
• a thermal and fluid dynamic model defined initially and representing the central thermal installation, identified on the basis of physical quantities representing the operation of the supply circuit and the heat exchanger devices, detected in specified conditions of operation and stimulation of the installation;
• and
• data representing the variation of said main signals in the period of time;
• and
• processing means, arranged for receiving at their input said data representing the variation of said main signals in the period of time from said memory means, and configured to process said data according to the thermal and fluid dynamic model and to supply at their output data which represent the estimate of the thermal energy individually exchanged between each heat exchanger device and the corresponding thermal user.