WorldWideScience

Sample records for commercial type buildings

  1. Commercial Buildings Characteristics, 1992

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1994-04-29

    Commercial Buildings Characteristics 1992 presents statistics about the number, type, and size of commercial buildings in the United States as well as their energy-related characteristics. These data are collected in the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS), a national survey of buildings in the commercial sector. The 1992 CBECS is the fifth in a series conducted since 1979 by the Energy Information Administration. Approximately 6,600 commercial buildings were surveyed, representing the characteristics and energy consumption of 4.8 million commercial buildings and 67.9 billion square feet of commercial floorspace nationwide. Overall, the amount of commercial floorspace in the United States increased an average of 2.4 percent annually between 1989 and 1992, while the number of commercial buildings increased an average of 2.0 percent annually.

  2. Trends in energy use in commercial buildings -- Sixteen years of EIA's commercial buildings energy consumption survey

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Davis, J.; Swenson, A.

    1998-07-01

    The Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) collects basic statistical information on energy consumption and energy-related characteristics of commercial buildings in the US. The first CBECS was conducted in 1979 and the most recent was completed in 1995. Over that period, the number of commercial bindings and total amount of floorspace increased, total consumption remained flat, and total energy intensity declined. By 1995, there were 4.6 million commercial buildings and 58.8 billion square feet of floorspace. The buildings consumed a total of 5.3 quadrillion Btu (site energy), with a total intensity of 90.5 thousand Btu per square foot per year. Electricity consumption exceeded natural gas consumption (2.6 quadrillion and 1.9 quadrillion Btu, respectively). In 1995, the two major users of energy were space heating (1.7 quadrillion Btu) and lighting (1.2 quadrillion Btu). Over the period 1979 to 1995, natural gas intensity declined from 71.4 thousand to 51.0 thousand Btu per square foot per year. Electricity intensity did not show a similar decline (44.2 thousand Btu per square foot in 1979 and 45.7 thousand Btu per square foot in 1995). Two types of commercial buildings, office buildings and mercantile and service buildings, were the largest consumers of energy in 1995 (2.0 quadrillion Btu, 38% of total consumption). Three building types, health care, food service, and food sales, had significantly higher energy intensities. Buildings constructed since 1970 accounted for half of total consumption and a majority (59%) of total electricity consumption.

  3. LEARNING FROM COMMERCIAL VERNACULAR BUILDING TYPES: A NORTH AMERICAN CASE STUDY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen Verderber

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available A substantial literature exists on commercial vernacular architecture in North America. This literature has examined everyday places and iconic building types including suburbia, roadside motels, vintage diners, fast food franchises, residential trailer parks, signage, unique commercial establishments, and shopping malls. These places and buildings are generally classified as expressions of folk vernacular culture. In response, Attention Restoration Theory, an environmental cognition perspective based in human information processing research, provided the foundation for an investigation of the food truck/ trailer and its immediate installation context within a North American case study context. Visual documentation, interviews, and archival fieldwork provided the basis for the articulation of a typology. These structures were found to express automaticity, as satisfying the timeless human preference for association with nature, a sense of psychological respite, and as a physical setting visually distinct from its larger urban environment context. Directions for future research on this topic are outlined together with insights for application by architects and urban planners.

  4. U.S. Department of Energy Commercial Reference Building Models of the National Building Stock

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Deru, M.; Field, K.; Studer, D.; Benne, K.; Griffith, B.; Torcellini, P.; Liu, B.; Halverson, M.; Winiarski, D.; Rosenberg, M.; Yazdanian, M.; Huang, J.; Crawley, D.

    2011-02-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Building Technologies Program has set the aggressive goal of producing marketable net-zero energy buildings by 2025. This goal will require collaboration between the DOE laboratories and the building industry. We developed standard or reference energy models for the most common commercial buildings to serve as starting points for energy efficiency research. These models represent fairly realistic buildings and typical construction practices. Fifteen commercial building types and one multifamily residential building were determined by consensus between DOE, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and represent approximately two-thirds of the commercial building stock.

  5. California commercial building energy benchmarking

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kinney, Satkartar; Piette, Mary Ann

    2003-07-01

    Building energy benchmarking is the comparison of whole-building energy use relative to a set of similar buildings. It provides a useful starting point for individual energy audits and for targeting buildings for energy-saving measures in multiple-site audits. Benchmarking is of interest and practical use to a number of groups. Energy service companies and performance contractors communicate energy savings potential with ''typical'' and ''best-practice'' benchmarks while control companies and utilities can provide direct tracking of energy use and combine data from multiple buildings. Benchmarking is also useful in the design stage of a new building or retrofit to determine if a design is relatively efficient. Energy managers and building owners have an ongoing interest in comparing energy performance to others. Large corporations, schools, and government agencies with numerous facilities also use benchmarking methods to compare their buildings to each other. The primary goal of Task 2.1.1 Web-based Benchmarking was the development of a web-based benchmarking tool, dubbed Cal-Arch, for benchmarking energy use in California commercial buildings. While there were several other benchmarking tools available to California consumers prior to the development of Cal-Arch, there were none that were based solely on California data. Most available benchmarking information, including the Energy Star performance rating, were developed using DOE's Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS), which does not provide state-level data. Each database and tool has advantages as well as limitations, such as the number of buildings and the coverage by type, climate regions and end uses. There is considerable commercial interest in benchmarking because it provides an inexpensive method of screening buildings for tune-ups and retrofits. However, private companies who collect and manage consumption data are concerned that the

  6. Characterization of commercial building appliances. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Patel, R.F.; Teagan, P.W.; Dieckmann, J.T.

    1993-08-01

    This study focuses on ``other`` end-uses category. The purpose of this study was to determine the relative importance of energy end-use functions other than HVAC and lighting for commercial buildings, and to identify general avenues and approaches for energy use reduction. Specific energy consuming technologies addressed include non-HVAC and lighting technologies in commercial buildings with significant energy use to warrant detailed analyses. The end-uses include office equipment, refrigeration, water heating, cooking, vending machines, water coolers, laundry equipment and electronics other than office equipment. The building types include offices, retail, restaurants, schools, hospitals, hotels/motels, grocery stores, and warehouses.

  7. A look at commercial buildings in 1995: Characteristics, energy consumption, and energy expenditures

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1998-10-01

    The commercial sector consists of business establishments and other organizations that provide services. The sector includes service businesses, such as retail and wholesale stores, hotels and motels, restaurants, and hospitals, as well as a wide range of facilities that would not be considered commercial in a traditional economic sense, such as public schools, correctional institutions, and religious and fraternal organizations. Nearly all energy use in the commercial sector takes place in, or is associated with, the buildings that house these commercial activities. Analysis of the structures, activities, and equipment associated with different types of buildings is the clearest way to evaluate commercial sector energy use. The Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is a national-level sample survey of commercial buildings and their energy suppliers conducted quadrennially (previously triennially) by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The target population for the 1995 CBECS consisted of all commercial buildings in the US with more than 1,000 square feet of floorspace. Decision makers, businesses, and other organizations that are concerned with the use of energy--building owners and managers, regulators, legislative bodies and executive agencies at all levels of government, utilities and other energy suppliers--are confronted with a buildings sector that is complex. Data on major characteristics (e.g., type of building, size, year constructed, location) collected from the buildings, along with the amount and types of energy the buildings consume, help answer fundamental questions about the use of energy in commercial buildings.

  8. Energy savings potential from improved building controls for the US commercial building sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fernandez, Nick; Katipamula, Srinivas; Wang, Weimin; Xie, Yulong; Zhao, Mingjie

    2017-09-27

    The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Technologies Office (BTO) sponsored a study to determine the potential national savings achievable in the commercial building sector through widespread deployment of best practice controls, elimination of system and component faults, and use of better sensing. Detailed characterization of potential savings was one source of input to set research, development, and deployment (RD&D) goals in the field of building sensors and controls. DOE’s building energy simulation software, EnergyPlus, was employed to estimate the potential savings from 34 measures in 9 building types and across 16 climates representing almost 57% of commercial building sector energy consumption. In addition to estimating savings from individual measures, three packages of measures were created to estimate savings from the packages. These packages represented an 1) efficient building, 2) typical building, and 3) inefficient building. To scale the results from individual measures or a package to the national scale, building weights by building type and climate locations from the Energy Information Administration’s 2012 Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) were used. The results showed significant potential for energy savings across all building types and climates. The total site potential savings from individual measures by building type and climate location ranged between 0% and 25%. The total site potential savings by building type aggregated across all climates (using the CBECS building weights) for each measure varied between 0% and 16%. The total site potential savings aggregated across all building types and climates for each measure varied between 0% and 11%. Some individual measures had negative savings because correcting underlying operational problems (e.g., inadequate ventilation) resulted in increased energy consumption. When combined into packages, the overall national savings potential is estimated to be 29

  9. High-performance commercial building systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Selkowitz, Stephen

    2003-10-01

    This report summarizes key technical accomplishments resulting from the three year PIER-funded R&D program, ''High Performance Commercial Building Systems'' (HPCBS). The program targets the commercial building sector in California, an end-use sector that accounts for about one-third of all California electricity consumption and an even larger fraction of peak demand, at a cost of over $10B/year. Commercial buildings also have a major impact on occupant health, comfort and productivity. Building design and operations practices that influence energy use are deeply engrained in a fragmented, risk-averse industry that is slow to change. Although California's aggressive standards efforts have resulted in new buildings designed to use less energy than those constructed 20 years ago, the actual savings realized are still well below technical and economic potentials. The broad goal of this program is to develop and deploy a set of energy-saving technologies, strategies, and techniques, and improve processes for designing, commissioning, and operating commercial buildings, while improving health, comfort, and performance of occupants, all in a manner consistent with sound economic investment practices. Results are to be broadly applicable to the commercial sector for different building sizes and types, e.g. offices and schools, for different classes of ownership, both public and private, and for owner-occupied as well as speculative buildings. The program aims to facilitate significant electricity use savings in the California commercial sector by 2015, while assuring that these savings are affordable and promote high quality indoor environments. The five linked technical program elements contain 14 projects with 41 distinct R&D tasks. Collectively they form a comprehensive Research, Development, and Demonstration (RD&D) program with the potential to capture large savings in the commercial building sector, providing significant economic benefits to

  10. Transactive Control of Commercial Buildings for Demand Response

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hao, He; Corbin, Charles D.; Kalsi, Karanjit; Pratt, Robert G.

    2017-01-01

    Transactive control is a type of distributed control strategy that uses market mechanism to engage self-interested responsive loads to achieve power balance in the electrical power grid. In this paper, we propose a transactive control approach of commercial building Heating, Ventilation, and Air- Conditioning (HVAC) systems for demand response. We first describe the system models, and identify their model parameters using data collected from Systems Engineering Building (SEB) located on our Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) campus. We next present a transactive control market structure for commercial building HVAC system, and describe its agent bidding and market clearing strategies. Several case studies are performed in a simulation environment using Building Control Virtual Test Bed (BCVTB) and calibrated SEB EnergyPlus model. We show that the proposed transactive control approach is very effective at peak clipping, load shifting, and strategic conservation for commercial building HVAC systems.

  11. Procedure for Measuring and Reporting Commercial Building Energy Performance

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Barley, D.; Deru, M.; Pless, S.; Torcellini, P.

    2005-10-01

    This procedure is intended to provide a standard method for measuring and characterizing the energy performance of commercial buildings. The procedure determines the energy consumption, electrical energy demand, and on-site energy production in existing commercial buildings of all types. The performance metrics determined here may be compared against benchmarks to evaluate performance and verify that performance targets have been achieved.

  12. Commercial building energy use in six cities in Southern China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu, Peng; Huang, Joe; Shen, Pengyuan; Ma, Xiaowen; Gao, Xuefei; Xu, Qiaolin; Jiang, Han; Xiang, Yong

    2013-01-01

    With China’s continuing economic growth, the percentage of government offices and large commercial buildings has increased tremendously; thus, the impact of their energy usage has grown drastically. In this survey, a database with more than 400 buildings was created and analyzed. We researched energy consumption by region, building type, building size and vintage, and we determined the total energy use and performed end use breakdowns of typical buildings in six cities in southern China. The statistical analysis shows that, on average, the annual building electricity use ranged from 50 to 100 kW h/m 2 for office buildings, 120 to 250 kW h/m 2 for shopping malls and hotels, and below 40 kW h/m 2 for education facilities. Building size has no direct correlation with building energy intensity. Although modern commercial buildings built in the 1990s and 2000s did not use more energy on average than buildings built previously, the highest electricity intensive modern buildings used much more energy than those built prior to 1990. Commercial buildings in China used less energy than buildings in equivalent weather locations in the US and about the same amount of energy as buildings in India. However, commercial buildings in China provide comparatively less thermal comfort than buildings in comparable US climates. - Highlights: ► The worst modern buildings use more energy than the worst old buildings. ► Government office buildings did not use more energy than private office buildings. ► Commercial buildings in China use less energy than buildings in the US. ► Modern commercial buildings don't use more energy than old buildings.

  13. Indoor-Outdoor Air Leakage of Apartments and Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Price, P.N.; Shehabi, A.; Chan, R.W.; Gadgil, A.J.

    2006-06-01

    We compiled and analyzed available data concerning indoor-outdoor air leakage rates and building leakiness parameters for commercial buildings and apartments. We analyzed the data, and reviewed the related literature, to determine the current state of knowledge of the statistical distribution of air exchange rates and related parameters for California buildings, and to identify significant gaps in the current knowledge and data. Very few data were found from California buildings, so we compiled data from other states and some other countries. Even when data from other developed countries were included, data were sparse and few conclusive statements were possible. Little systematic variation in building leakage with construction type, building activity type, height, size, or location within the u.s. was observed. Commercial buildings and apartments seem to be about twice as leaky as single-family houses, per unit of building envelope area. Although further work collecting and analyzing leakage data might be useful, we suggest that a more important issue may be the transport of pollutants between units in apartments and mixed-use buildings, an under-studied phenomenon that may expose occupants to high levels of pollutants such as tobacco smoke or dry cleaning fumes.

  14. Load shape development for Swedish commercial and public buildings - methodologies and results

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Noren, C.

    1999-06-01

    The knowledge concerning electricity consumption, and especially load demand, in Swedish commercial buildings is very limited. The current study deals with methods for electricity consumption indicator development and application of the different methodologies on measured data. Typical load shapes and consumption indicators are developed for four different types of commercial buildings: schools, hotels, grocery stores and department stores. Two different methodologies for consumption indicator development are presented and discussed. The influence on load demand from different factors such as, installations, outdoor temperature and building activities is studied. It is suggested that building floor area is not an accurate determinant of building electricity consumption and it is necessary to consider other factors as those just mentioned to understand commercial building electricity consumption. The application of the two methodologies on measured data shows that typical load shapes can be developed with reasonable accuracy. For most of the categories it is possible to use the typical load shapes for approximation of whole-building load shapes with error rates about 10-25% depending on day-type and building type. Comparisons of the developed load shapes with measured data show good agreement 49 refs, 22 figs, 3 tabs

  15. End-use energy consumption estimates for U.S. commercial buildings, 1992

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Belzer, D.B.; Wrench, L.E.

    1997-03-01

    An accurate picture of how energy is used in the nation`s stock of commercial buildings can serve a variety of program planning and policy needs of the US Department of Energy, utilities, and other groups seeking to improve the efficiency of energy use in the building sector. This report describes an estimation of energy consumption by end use based upon data from the 1992 Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS). The methodology used in the study combines elements of engineering simulations and statistical analysis to estimate end-use intensities for heating, cooling, ventilation, lighting, refrigeration, hot water, cooking, and miscellaneous equipment. Statistical Adjusted Engineering (SAE) models were estimated by building type. The nonlinear SAE models used variables such as building size, vintage, climate region, weekly operating hours, and employee density to adjust the engineering model predicted loads to the observed consumption (based upon utility billing information). End-use consumption by fuel was estimated for each of the 6,751 buildings in the 1992 CBECS. The report displays the summary results for 11 separate building types as well as for the total US commercial building stock. 4 figs., 15 tabs.

  16. ISO 50001 for US Commercial Buildings - Current Status and Opportunities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, Jingjing; Sheaffer, Paul

    2017-12-01

    ''ISO 50001: 2011 Energy management systems – Requirements with guidance for use'' is a voluntary International Standard which provides organizations a proven framework to manage energy and continuously improve their energy performance. Implementing ISO 50001 in the commercial building sector has its unique opportunities and challenges in comparison with the industrial sector. The energy footprint of a portfolio of commercial buildings can be just as significant as a large industrial facility in comparison. There are many energy-saving opportunities in commercial buildings that can be addressed without capital investments, and the perceived risks for making energy improvements can be lower than in the industrial sector. In addition, the energy-consuming systems in commercial buildings are limited in types and have many similarities across buildings, which makes it much easier to standardize many ISO 50001 required processes, 5 procedures and documents to simplify implementation. There are also some sector-unique challenges, such as less familiar with ISO systems and the certification process. Another challenge arises from the complexity in some buildings’ ownership, tenancy, and O&M responsibilities. This whitepaper discusses these opportunities and issues in detail. The paper also recommends the characteristics of organizations in the commercial building sector that can benefit the most from adopting the ISO 50001 standard – namely the “suitable market”. Eight segments (education, food sales, retail, inpatient health care, hospitality, office buildings, laboratories and data centers) within the commercial building sector are highlighted.

  17. Challenges in Commercial Buildings | Buildings | NREL

    Science.gov (United States)

    systems Assessing the energy and economic impacts of various technologies, giving priority to those that standardized language for commercial building energy audit data that can be used by software developers to exchange data between audit tools, and can be required by building owners and audit program managers to

  18. Commercial Buildings Energy Performance within Context

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lazarova-Molnar, Sanja; Kjærgaard, Mikkel Baun; Shaker, Hamid Reza

    2015-01-01

    Existing commercial buildings represent a challenge in the energy efficiency domain. Energy efficiency of a building, very often equalized to a building’s performance should not be observed as a standalone issue. For commercial buildings, energy efficiency needs to be observed and assessed within...

  19. Regression Tree-Based Methodology for Customizing Building Energy Benchmarks to Individual Commercial Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaskhedikar, Apoorva Prakash

    According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, commercial buildings represent about 40% of the United State's energy consumption of which office buildings consume a major portion. Gauging the extent to which an individual building consumes energy in excess of its peers is the first step in initiating energy efficiency improvement. Energy Benchmarking offers initial building energy performance assessment without rigorous evaluation. Energy benchmarking tools based on the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) database are investigated in this thesis. This study proposes a new benchmarking methodology based on decision trees, where a relationship between the energy use intensities (EUI) and building parameters (continuous and categorical) is developed for different building types. This methodology was applied to medium office and school building types contained in the CBECS database. The Random Forest technique was used to find the most influential parameters that impact building energy use intensities. Subsequently, correlations which were significant were identified between EUIs and CBECS variables. Other than floor area, some of the important variables were number of workers, location, number of PCs and main cooling equipment. The coefficient of variation was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the new model. The customization technique proposed in this thesis was compared with another benchmarking model that is widely used by building owners and designers namely, the ENERGY STAR's Portfolio Manager. This tool relies on the standard Linear Regression methods which is only able to handle continuous variables. The model proposed uses data mining technique and was found to perform slightly better than the Portfolio Manager. The broader impacts of the new benchmarking methodology proposed is that it allows for identifying important categorical variables, and then incorporating them in a local, as against a global, model framework for EUI

  20. Green commercial building insurance in Malaysia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Yu Xin Ou; Chew, Boon Cheong; Loo, Heoy Shin; Tan, Lay Hong

    2017-03-01

    Green building construction is growing tremendously globally even in Malaysia. Currently, there are approximate 636 buildings have registered and to be certified with Green Building Index. Among these buildings, 45 buildings have already fulfilled the requirements and fully certified. The other buildings still under provisional certification stage. Malaysia had adopted Green Building Index in 2009 to support a move to promote green building concept. Malaysia starts to move towards green building because Malaysian construction and building industry realizes that both energy consumed and waste produced are reduced without irreversible impacts to ecosystems. Consequently, insurance companies such as Fireman's Fund from America has started the green building insurance policies for their green building in the year of 2006, while Malaysia still remain the coverage for green buildings using conventional property insurance. There are lacks of efforts to be seen from insurance companies to propose green building insurance for these green buildings. There are a few factors which can take into consideration for insurance companies to start the very first green building insurance in Malaysia. Although there are challenges, some efficient strategies have been identified to overcome the problems. The methods used in this research topic is qualitative research. The results obtained shows that green commercial building insurance has a huge business opportunity in Malaysia because the number of green commercial buildings are increasing tremendously in Malaysia. It is a favor to implement green building insurance in Malaysia. Furthermore, insurance companies can consider to add in extra coverage in standard building policy to provide extra protection for non-certified green buildings which have the intention to rebuilt in green when damage happens. Generally, it is very important to introduce green commercial buildings insurance into Malaysia so that all of the green commercial

  1. Commercial Building Partnership General Merchandise Energy Savings Overview

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    2013-03-01

    The Commercial Building Partnership (CBP) paired selected commercial building owners and operators with representatives of DOE, national laboratories and private sector exports to explore energy efficiency measures across general merchandise commercial buildings.

  2. 76 FR 63913 - Commercial Building Workforce Job/Task Analyses

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-10-14

    ... were developed for the following six job classifications: Commercial Building Energy Auditor.... Workshops were held for each of the following job classifications: Commercial Building Energy Auditor... field (e.g., commercial building energy auditor, commercial building energy modeler, commissioning/retro...

  3. A Retrofit Tool for Improving Energy Efficiency of Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Levine, Mark; Feng, Wei; Ke, Jing; Hong, Tianzhen; Zhou, Nan

    2013-06-06

    Existing buildings will dominate energy use in commercial buildings in the United States for three decades or longer and even in China for the about two decades. Retrofitting these buildings to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy use is thus critical to achieving the target of reducing energy use in the buildings sector. However there are few evaluation tools that can quickly identify and evaluate energy savings and cost effectiveness of energy conservation measures (ECMs) for retrofits, especially for buildings in China. This paper discusses methods used to develop such a tool and demonstrates an application of the tool for a retrofit analysis. The tool builds on a building performance database with pre-calculated energy consumption of ECMs for selected commercial prototype buildings using the EnergyPlus program. The tool allows users to evaluate individual ECMs or a package of ECMs. It covers building envelope, lighting and daylighting, HVAC, plug loads, service hot water, and renewable energy. The prototype building can be customized to represent an actual building with some limitations. Energy consumption from utility bills can be entered into the tool to compare and calibrate the energy use of the prototype building. The tool currently can evaluate energy savings and payback of ECMs for shopping malls in China. We have used the tool to assess energy and cost savings for retrofit of the prototype shopping mall in Shanghai. Future work on the tool will simplify its use and expand it to cover other commercial building types and other countries.

  4. An analysis of heating and cooling conservation features in commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sutherland, R.J.

    1990-01-01

    One purpose of this study is to estimate the relationship in commercial buildings between conservation investments, fuel prices, building occupancy and building characteristics for new buildings and for existing buildings. The data base is a nationwide survey of energy in commercial buildings conducted by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in 1986. Some simple cross-tabulations indicate that conservation measures vary with building size, building age, type of building, and fuel used for building heating. Regression estimates of a conservation model indicate that the number of conservation features installed during construction is a positive function of the price of the heating fuel at the time of construction. Subsequent additions of conservation features are positively correlated with increases in heating fuel prices. Given the EIA projection of relatively stable future energy prices, the number of retrofits may not increase significantly. Also, energy efficiency in new buildings may not continue to increase relative to current new buildings. If fuel prices affect consumption via initial conservation investments, current fuel prices, marginal or average, are not the appropriate specification. The fuel price regression results indicate that conservation investments in new buildings are responsive to market signals. Retrofits are less responsive to market signals. The number of conservation features in a building is not statistically related to the type of occupancy (owner versus renter), which implies that conservation strategies are not impeded by the renting or leasing of buildings

  5. Commercial Building Energy Saver: An energy retrofit analysis toolkit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hong, Tianzhen; Piette, Mary Ann; Chen, Yixing; Lee, Sang Hoon; Taylor-Lange, Sarah C.; Zhang, Rongpeng; Sun, Kaiyu; Price, Phillip

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Commercial Building Energy Saver is a powerful toolkit for energy retrofit analysis. • CBES provides benchmarking, load shape analysis, and model-based retrofit assessment. • CBES covers 7 building types, 6 vintages, 16 climates, and 100 energy measures. • CBES includes a web app, API, and a database of energy efficiency performance. • CBES API can be extended and integrated with third party energy software tools. - Abstract: Small commercial buildings in the United States consume 47% of the total primary energy of the buildings sector. Retrofitting small and medium commercial buildings poses a huge challenge for owners because they usually lack the expertise and resources to identify and evaluate cost-effective energy retrofit strategies. This paper presents the Commercial Building Energy Saver (CBES), an energy retrofit analysis toolkit, which calculates the energy use of a building, identifies and evaluates retrofit measures in terms of energy savings, energy cost savings and payback. The CBES Toolkit includes a web app (APP) for end users and the CBES Application Programming Interface (API) for integrating CBES with other energy software tools. The toolkit provides a rich set of features including: (1) Energy Benchmarking providing an Energy Star score, (2) Load Shape Analysis to identify potential building operation improvements, (3) Preliminary Retrofit Analysis which uses a custom developed pre-simulated database and, (4) Detailed Retrofit Analysis which utilizes real-time EnergyPlus simulations. CBES includes 100 configurable energy conservation measures (ECMs) that encompass IAQ, technical performance and cost data, for assessing 7 different prototype buildings in 16 climate zones in California and 6 vintages. A case study of a small office building demonstrates the use of the toolkit for retrofit analysis. The development of CBES provides a new contribution to the field by providing a straightforward and uncomplicated decision

  6. Analysis of variables that influence electric energy consumption in commercial buildings in Brazil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Carvalho, M.M.Q. [Technical Drawing Department, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Energy Planning Program, Alberto Luiz Coimbra Institute for Research and Graduate Studies in Engineering - COPPE, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); La Rovere, E.L. [Energy Planning Program, Alberto Luiz Coimbra Institute for Research and Graduate Studies in Engineering - COPPE, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Goncalves, A.C.M. [Program for Graduate Studies in Architecture, School of Architecture and Urbanism, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

    2010-12-15

    Air conditioning systems in commercial buildings in Brazil are responsible for about 70% share of their energy consumption. According to BEN 2009 (The Brazilian Energy Balance), energy consumption in the residential, commercial and public sectors, where most buildings are found, represents 9.3% of the final energy consumption in Brazil. This paper aims to examine design factors that could contribute to greater reductions of electric energy consumption in commercial buildings, with emphasis on air conditioning. Simulations were carried out using shades and different types of glass, walls, flooring and roofing. The VisualDOE 2.61 was used as a simulation tool for calculating energy consumption of the analyzed building. This paper shows that the energy performance of the building is considerably influenced by the facade protection and shows, through tables, the impact that decisions related to the top-level and facades have on the energy consumption of the building. The authors concluded that the results confirm the importance of taking energy use into account in the very first design stages of the project, since appropriate choices of types of glass, external shading and envelope materials have a significant impact on energy consumption. (author)

  7. Development of a California commercial building benchmarking database

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kinney, Satkartar; Piette, Mary Ann

    2002-01-01

    Building energy benchmarking is a useful starting point for commercial building owners and operators to target energy savings opportunities. There are a number of tools and methods for benchmarking energy use. Benchmarking based on regional data can provides more relevant information for California buildings than national tools such as Energy Star. This paper discusses issues related to benchmarking commercial building energy use and the development of Cal-Arch, a building energy benchmarking database for California. Currently Cal-Arch uses existing survey data from California's Commercial End Use Survey (CEUS), a largely underutilized wealth of information collected by California's major utilities. Doe's Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is used by a similar tool, Arch, and by a number of other benchmarking tools. Future versions of Arch/Cal-Arch will utilize additional data sources including modeled data and individual buildings to expand the database

  8. Commercial Building Partnership Retail Food Sales Energy Savings Overview

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    2013-03-01

    The Commercial Building Partnership (CBP) paired selected commercial building owners and operators with representatives of DOE, national laboratories and private sector exports to explore energy efficiency measures across general merchandise commercial buildings.

  9. Predictive Solar-Integrated Commercial Building Load Control

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Glasgow, Nathan [EdgePower Inc., Aspen, CO (United States)

    2017-01-31

    This report is the final technical report for the Department of Energy SunShot award number EE0007180 to EdgePower Inc., for the project entitled “Predictive Solar-Integrated Commercial Building Load Control.” The goal of this project was to successfully prove that the integration of solar forecasting and building load control can reduce demand charge costs for commercial building owners with solar PV. This proof of concept Tier 0 project demonstrated its value through a pilot project at a commercial building. This final report contains a summary of the work completed through he duration of the project. Clean Power Research was a sub-recipient on the award.

  10. Strategies for Demand Response in Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Watson, David S.; Kiliccote, Sila; Motegi, Naoya; Piette, Mary Ann

    2006-06-20

    This paper describes strategies that can be used in commercial buildings to temporarily reduce electric load in response to electric grid emergencies in which supplies are limited or in response to high prices that would be incurred if these strategies were not employed. The demand response strategies discussed herein are based on the results of three years of automated demand response field tests in which 28 commercial facilities with an occupied area totaling over 11 million ft{sup 2} were tested. Although the demand response events in the field tests were initiated remotely and performed automatically, the strategies used could also be initiated by on-site building operators and performed manually, if desired. While energy efficiency measures can be used during normal building operations, demand response measures are transient; they are employed to produce a temporary reduction in demand. Demand response strategies achieve reductions in electric demand by temporarily reducing the level of service in facilities. Heating ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) and lighting are the systems most commonly adjusted for demand response in commercial buildings. The goal of demand response strategies is to meet the electric shed savings targets while minimizing any negative impacts on the occupants of the buildings or the processes that they perform. Occupant complaints were minimal in the field tests. In some cases, ''reductions'' in service level actually improved occupant comfort or productivity. In other cases, permanent improvements in efficiency were discovered through the planning and implementation of ''temporary'' demand response strategies. The DR strategies that are available to a given facility are based on factors such as the type of HVAC, lighting and energy management and control systems (EMCS) installed at the site.

  11. Commercial Buildings Partnerships - Overview of Higher education projects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Parrish, Kristen [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Robinson, Alastair [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Regnier, Cindy [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2013-02-01

    The Commercial Building Partnership (CBP), a public/private, cost-shared program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), paired selected commercial building owners and operators with representatives of DOE, its national laboratories, and private-sector technical experts. These teams explored energy-saving measures across building systems – including some considered too costly or technologically challenging – and used advanced energy modeling to achieve peak whole-building performance. Modeling results were then included in new construction or retrofit designs to achieve significant energy reductions. CBP design goals aimed to achieve 50 percent energy savings compared to ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2004 for new construction, while retrofits are designed to consume at least 30 percent less energy than either Standard 90.1-2004 or current consumption. After construction and commissioning of the project, laboratory staff continued to work with partners to collect and analyze data for verification of the actual energy reduction. CBP projects represent diverse building types in commercial real estate, including lodging, grocery, retail, higher education, office, and warehouse/storage facilities. Partners also commit to replicating low-energy technologies and strategies from their CBP projects throughout their building portfolios. As a result of CBP projects, five sector overviews (Lodging, Food Sales, General Merchandise, Higher Education, Offices) were created to capture successful strategies and recommended energy efficiency measures that could broadly be applied across these sectors. These overviews are supplemented with individual case studies providing specific details on the decision criteria, modeling results, and lessons learned on specific projects. Sector overviews and CBP case studies will also be updated to reflect verified data and replication strategies as they become available.

  12. Development of a California commercial building benchmarking database

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kinney, Satkartar; Piette, Mary Ann

    2002-05-17

    Building energy benchmarking is a useful starting point for commercial building owners and operators to target energy savings opportunities. There are a number of tools and methods for benchmarking energy use. Benchmarking based on regional data can provides more relevant information for California buildings than national tools such as Energy Star. This paper discusses issues related to benchmarking commercial building energy use and the development of Cal-Arch, a building energy benchmarking database for California. Currently Cal-Arch uses existing survey data from California's Commercial End Use Survey (CEUS), a largely underutilized wealth of information collected by California's major utilities. Doe's Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is used by a similar tool, Arch, and by a number of other benchmarking tools. Future versions of Arch/Cal-Arch will utilize additional data sources including modeled data and individual buildings to expand the database.

  13. BEPS redesign of 168 commercial buildings: summary report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Stoops, J.L.; Deringer, J.J.; Moreno, S.; Misuriello, H.P.

    1984-05-01

    The objective of this report is to present, in usable form, summary data from the Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) Phase II commercial buildings energy research conducted in 1978-1979. Summary data presented were obtained from two major research efforts: the BEPS Phase II Redesign experiment; and the related research on ASHRAE Standard 90-75R. The bulk of this report consists of data tabulations of key energy parameters for the 168 sample buildings, which were tabulated from computer-stored files of the 1978-1979 data. Two kinds of tabulations are included: numerical tabulations that extracted information from the computer-stored data base for the 168 sample buildings; and graphic presentations of the computer-generated data, plus data extracted from other sources. The intent is to provide a single data compendium of key energy-related factors from the 1978 redesign experiment and the associated 1978-1979 ASHRAE Standard 90-75R research. This report also supplements the information for which there was not space in the magazine articles. Thus, for some building types, additional analysis, comments, and data tabulations are included that could not be included in the articles because space was limited. These additional analysis items are not consistent across building types because both the energy conservation opportunities and the design strategies applied by the building designers varied considerably by building type. The chapters have been entered individually into EDB and ERA.

  14. Industry Research and Recommendations for New Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hendron, B.; Leach, M.; Gregory, N.; Pless, S.; Selkowitz, S.; Matthew, P.

    2014-05-01

    Researchers evaluated industry needs and developed logic models to support possible future commercial new construction research and deployment efforts that could be led or supported by DOE's Commercial Building Integration program or other national initiatives. The authors believe that these recommendations support a proposed course of action from the current state of commercial building energy efficiency to a possible long-term goal of achieving significant market penetration of cost-effective NZE buildings in all building sectors and climates by 2030.

  15. Technology data characterizing water heating in commercial buildings: Application to end-use forecasting

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sezgen, O.; Koomey, J.G.

    1995-12-01

    Commercial-sector conservation analyses have traditionally focused on lighting and space conditioning because of their relatively-large shares of electricity and fuel consumption in commercial buildings. In this report we focus on water heating, which is one of the neglected end uses in the commercial sector. The share of the water-heating end use in commercial-sector electricity consumption is 3%, which corresponds to 0.3 quadrillion Btu (quads) of primary energy consumption. Water heating accounts for 15% of commercial-sector fuel use, which corresponds to 1.6 quads of primary energy consumption. Although smaller in absolute size than the savings associated with lighting and space conditioning, the potential cost-effective energy savings from water heaters are large enough in percentage terms to warrant closer attention. In addition, water heating is much more important in particular building types than in the commercial sector as a whole. Fuel consumption for water heating is highest in lodging establishments, hospitals, and restaurants (0.27, 0.22, and 0.19 quads, respectively); water heating`s share of fuel consumption for these building types is 35%, 18% and 32%, respectively. At the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, we have developed and refined a base-year data set characterizing water heating technologies in commercial buildings as well as a modeling framework. We present the data and modeling framework in this report. The present commercial floorstock is characterized in terms of water heating requirements and technology saturations. Cost-efficiency data for water heating technologies are also developed. These data are intended to support models used for forecasting energy use of water heating in the commercial sector.

  16. Space Heaters, Computers, Cell Phone Chargers: How Plugged In AreCommercial Buildings?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sanchez, Marla; Webber, Carrie; Brown, Richard; Busch, John; Pinckard, Margaret; Roberson, Judy

    2007-02-28

    Evidenceof electric plug loads in commercial buildings isvisible everyday: space heaters, portable fans, and the IT technician'stwo monitors connected to one PC. The Energy Information Administrationestimates that office and miscellaneous equipment together will consume2.18 quads in 2006, nearly 50 percent of U.S. commercial electricity use.Although the importance of commercial plug loads is documented, its verynature (diverse product types, products not installed when buildinginitially constructed, and products often hidden in closets) makes itdifficult to accurately count and categorize the end use.We auditedsixteen buildings in three cities (San Francisco, Atlanta, Pittsburgh)including office, medical and education building types. We inventoriedthe number and types of office and miscellaneous electric equipment aswell as estimated total energy consumption due to these product types. Intotal, we audited approximately 4,000 units of office equipment and 6,000units of miscellaneous equipment and covered a diverse range of productsranging from electric pencil sharpeners with a unit energy consumption(UEC) of 1 kWh/yr to a kiln with a UEC of 7,000 kWh/yr. Our paperpresents a summary of the density and type of plug load equipment foundas well as the estimated total energy consumption of the equipment.Additionally, we present equipment trends observed and provide insightsto how policy makers can target energy efficiency for this growing enduse.

  17. Energy Efficiency Building Code for Commercial Buildings in Sri Lanka

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Busch, John; Greenberg, Steve; Rubinstein, Francis; Denver, Andrea; Rawner, Esther; Franconi, Ellen; Huang, Joe; Neils, Danielle

    2000-09-30

    1.1.1 To encourage energy efficient design or retrofit of commercial buildings so that they may be constructed, operated, and maintained in a manner that reduces the use of energy without constraining the building function, the comfort, health, or the productivity of the occupants and with appropriate regard for economic considerations. 1.1.2 To provide criterion and minimum standards for energy efficiency in the design or retrofit of commercial buildings and provide methods for determining compliance with them. 1.1.3 To encourage energy efficient designs that exceed these criterion and minimum standards.

  18. Energy Efficiency Building Code for Commercial Buildings in Sri Lanka

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Busch, John; Greenberg, Steve; Rubinstein, Francis; Denver, Andrea; Rawner, Esther; Franconi, Ellen; Huang, Joe; Neils, Danielle

    2000-01-01

    1.1.1 To encourage energy efficient design or retrofit of commercial buildings so that they may be constructed, operated, and maintained in a manner that reduces the use of energy without constraining the building function, the comfort, health, or the productivity of the occupants and with appropriate regard for economic considerations. 1.1.2 To provide criterion and minimum standards for energy efficiency in the design or retrofit of commercial buildings and provide methods for determining compliance with them. 1.1.3 To encourage energy efficient designs that exceed these criterion and minimum standards

  19. Weather Correlations to Calculate Infiltration Rates for U. S. Commercial Building Energy Models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ng, Lisa C; Quiles, Nelson Ojeda; Dols, W Stuart; Emmerich, Steven J

    2018-01-01

    As building envelope performance improves, a greater percentage of building energy loss will occur through envelope leakage. Although the energy impacts of infiltration on building energy use can be significant, current energy simulation software have limited ability to accurately account for envelope infiltration and the impacts of improved airtightness. This paper extends previous work by the National Institute of Standards and Technology that developed a set of EnergyPlus inputs for modeling infiltration in several commercial reference buildings using Chicago weather. The current work includes cities in seven additional climate zones and uses the updated versions of the prototype commercial building types developed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for the U. S. Department of Energy. Comparisons were made between the predicted infiltration rates using three representations of the commercial building types: PNNL EnergyPlus models, CONTAM models, and EnergyPlus models using the infiltration inputs developed in this paper. The newly developed infiltration inputs in EnergyPlus yielded average annual increases of 3 % and 8 % in the HVAC electrical and gas use, respectively, over the original infiltration inputs in the PNNL EnergyPlus models. When analyzing the benefits of building envelope airtightening, greater HVAC energy savings were predicted using the newly developed infiltration inputs in EnergyPlus compared with using the original infiltration inputs. These results indicate that the effects of infiltration on HVAC energy use can be significant and that infiltration can and should be better accounted for in whole-building energy models.

  20. The Role of Energy Storage in Commercial Building

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kintner-Meyer, Michael CW; Subbarao, Krishnappa; Prakash Kumar, Nirupama; Bandyopadhyay, Gopal K.; Finley, C.; Koritarov, V. S.; Molburg, J. C.; Wang, J.; Zhao, Fuli; Brackney, L.; Florita, A. R.

    2010-09-30

    Motivation and Background of Study This project was motivated by the need to understand the full value of energy storage (thermal and electric energy storage) in commercial buildings, the opportunity of benefits for building operations and the potential interactions between a building and a smart grid infrastructure. On-site or local energy storage systems are not new to the commercial building sector; they have been in place in US buildings for decades. Most building-scale storage technologies are based on thermal or electrochemical storage mechanisms. Energy storage technologies are not designed to conserve energy, and losses associated with energy conversion are inevitable. Instead, storage provides flexibility to manage load in a building or to balance load and generation in the power grid. From the building owner's perspective, storage enables load shifting to optimize energy costs while maintaining comfort. From a grid operations perspective, building storage at scale could provide additional flexibility to grid operators in managing the generation variability from intermittent renewable energy resources (wind and solar). To characterize the set of benefits, technical opportunities and challenges, and potential economic values of storage in a commercial building from both the building operation's and the grid operation's view-points is the key point of this project. The research effort was initiated in early 2010 involving Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to quantify these opportunities from a commercial buildings perspective. This report summarizes the early discussions, literature reviews, stakeholder engagements, and initial results of analyses related to the overall role of energy storage in commercial buildings. Beyond the summary of roughly eight months of effort by the laboratories, the report attempts to substantiate the importance of

  1. The potential for energy efficiency gains in the Canadian commercial building sector: A stochastic frontier study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Buck, J.; Young, D.

    2007-01-01

    The achievement of energy efficiency in commercial buildings is a function of the activities undertaken, the technology in place, and the extent to which those technologies are used efficiently. We study the factors that affect efficient energy use in the Canadian commercial sector by applying a stochastic frontier approach to a cross-section of Canadian commercial buildings included in the Commercial and Institutional Building Energy Use Survey (CIBEUS). Structural and climate-control features of the buildings as well as climatic conditions are assumed to determine the location of the frontier, while management-related variables including such factors as ownership type and activities govern whether or not the maximally attainable efficiency along the frontier is achieved. Our results indicate that although, on average, buildings appear to be fairly efficient, certain types of operations are more likely than others to exhibit energy efficiencies that are significantly worse than average. These results, along with those related to the effects of physical characteristics on the stochastic efficiency frontier, suggest that there is scope for focused policy initiatives to increase energy efficiency in this sector

  2. Overview of Commercial Building Partnerships in Higher Education

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schatz, Glenn [Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Washington, DC (United States)

    2013-03-01

    Higher education uses less energy per square foot than most commercial building sectors. However, higher education campuses house energy-intensive laboratories and data centers that may spend more than this average; laboratories, in particular, are disproportionately represented in the higher education sector. The Commercial Building Partnership (CBP), a public/private, cost-shared program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), paired selected commercial building owners and operators with representatives of DOE, its national laboratories, and private-sector technical experts. These teams explored energy-saving measures across building systems–including some considered too costly or technologically challenging–and used advanced energy modeling to achieve peak whole-building performance. Modeling results were then included in new construction or retrofit designs to achieve significant energy reductions.

  3. Characterization of changes in commercial building structure, equipment, and occupants: End-Use Load and Consumer Assessment Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lucas, R.G.; Taylor, Z.T.; Miller, N.E.; Pratt, R.G.

    1990-12-01

    Changes in commercial building structure, equipment, and occupants result in changes in building energy use. The frequency and magnitude of those changes have substantial implications for conservation programs and resource planning. For example, changes may shorten the useful lifetime of a conservation measure as well as impact the savings from that measure. This report summarizes the frequency of changes in a commercial building sample that was end-use metered under the End-Use Load and Consumer Assessment Program (ELCAP). The sample includes offices, dry good retails, groceries, restaurants, warehouses, schools, and hotels. Two years of metered data, site visit records, and audit data were examined for evidence of building changes. The observed changes were then classified into 12 categories, which included business type, equipment, remodel, vacancy, and operating schedule. The analysis characterized changes in terms of frequency of types of change; relationship to building vintage and floor area; and variation by building type. The analysis also examined the energy impacts of various changes. The analysis determined that the rate of change in commercial buildings is high--50% of the buildings experienced one type of change during the 2 years for which monitoring data were examined. Equipment changes were found to be most frequent in offices and retail stores. Larger, older office buildings tend to experience a wider variety of changes more frequently than the smaller, newer buildings. Key findings and observations are presented in Section 2. Section 3 provides the underlying motivation and objectives. In Section 4, the methodology used is documented, including the commercial building sample and the data sources used. Included are the definitions of change events and the overall approach taken. Results are analyzed in Section 5, with additional technical details in Appendixes. 2 refs., 46 figs., 22 tabs. (JF)

  4. Commercial Building Partnerships Replication and Diffusion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Antonopoulos, Chrissi A.; Dillon, Heather E.; Baechler, Michael C.

    2013-09-16

    This study presents findings from survey and interview data investigating replication efforts of Commercial Building Partnership (CBP) partners that worked directly with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). PNNL partnered directly with 12 organizations on new and retrofit construction projects, which represented approximately 28 percent of the entire U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) CBP program. Through a feedback survey mechanism, along with personal interviews, PNNL gathered quantitative and qualitative data relating to replication efforts by each organization. These data were analyzed to provide insight into two primary research areas: 1) CBP partners’ replication efforts of technologies and approaches used in the CBP project to the rest of the organization’s building portfolio (including replication verification), and, 2) the market potential for technology diffusion into the total U.S. commercial building stock, as a direct result of the CBP program. The first area of this research focused specifically on replication efforts underway or planned by each CBP program participant. Factors that impact replication include motivation, organizational structure and objectives firms have for implementation of energy efficient technologies. Comparing these factors between different CBP partners revealed patterns in motivation for constructing energy efficient buildings, along with better insight into market trends for green building practices. The second area of this research develops a diffusion of innovations model to analyze potential broad market impacts of the CBP program on the commercial building industry in the United States.

  5. Nationwide Analysis of U.S. Commercial Building Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Breakeven Conditions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Davidson, Carolyn [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Gagnon, Pieter [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Denholm, Paul [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Margolis, Robert [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2015-10-01

    The commercial sector offers strong potential for solar photovoltaics (PV) owing to abundant available roof space suitable for PV and the opportunity to offset the sector's substantial retail electricity purchases. This report evaluated the breakeven price of PV for 15 different building types and various financing options by calculating electricity savings based on detailed rate structures for most U.S. utility territories (representing approximately two thirds of U.S. commercial customers). We find that at current capital costs, an estimated 1/3 of U.S. commercial customers break even in the cash scenario and approximately 2/3 break even in the loan scenario. Variation in retail rates is a stronger driver of breakeven prices than is variation in building load or solar generation profiles. At the building level, variation in the average breakeven price is largely driven by the ability for a PV system to reduce demand charges.

  6. Saving energy by using underfloor-air-distribution (UFAD) system in commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alajmi, Ali; El-Amer, Wid

    2010-01-01

    The number of attempts by researchers to reduce building energy consumption has increased, ever since global warming became a serious issue. In this trend, a relatively new approach of air distribution, underfloor-air-distribution system (UFAD), has been widely used in new commercial buildings. This technique is simply accomplished by supplying air through a raised floor using different types of distribution configurations and outlets. In UFAD, the air is directly supplied to the occupants' area (occupied zone) causing occupants plumes and zone heat load stratify to the upper layer of the zone (unoccupied zone), which are later extracted from return points at high level. This flow pattern gives UFAD the advantage of using less energy than a conventional air-distribution system, ceiling-based air distribution (CBAD) due to lower pressure drop and lower air flow rate. This paper investigates the effectiveness of UFAD systems in commercial buildings for various types of application and at different air supply temperatures in a hot climate (The State of Kuwait). The findings show that UFAD has a significant saving of energy compared to CBAD (∼30%); in particular with high ceiling building types, as well as providing satisfactory comfort conditions for the occupants. Ultimately, more investigations should be done on conventional building heights (offices) to optimize the utilization of thermal stratification at design and operation stages.

  7. In-Depth Analysis of Energy Efficiency Related Factors in Commercial Buildings Using Data Cube and Association Rule Mining

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Byeongjoon Noh

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Significant amounts of energy are consumed in the commercial building sector, resulting in various adverse environmental issues. To reduce energy consumption and improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings, it is necessary to develop effective methods for analyzing building energy use. In this study, we propose a data cube model combined with association rule mining for more flexible and detailed analysis of building energy consumption profiles using the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS dataset, which has accumulated over 6700 existing commercial buildings across the U.S.A. Based on the data cube model, a multidimensional commercial sector building energy analysis was performed based upon on-line analytical processing (OLAP operations to assess the energy efficiency according to building factors with various levels of abstraction. Furthermore, the proposed analysis system provided useful information that represented a set of energy efficient combinations by applying the association rule mining method. We validated the feasibility and applicability of the proposed analysis model by structuring a building energy analysis system and applying it to different building types, weather conditions, composite materials, and heating/cooling systems of the multitude of commercial buildings classified in the CBECS dataset.

  8. Accelerating the energy retrofit of commercial buildings using a database of energy efficiency performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Sang Hoon; Hong, Tianzhen; Piette, Mary Ann; Sawaya, Geof; Chen, Yixing; Taylor-Lange, Sarah C.

    2015-01-01

    Small and medium-sized commercial buildings can be retrofitted to significantly reduce their energy use, however it is a huge challenge as owners usually lack of the expertise and resources to conduct detailed on-site energy audit to identify and evaluate cost-effective energy technologies. This study presents a DEEP (database of energy efficiency performance) that provides a direct resource for quick retrofit analysis of commercial buildings. DEEP, compiled from the results of about ten million EnergyPlus simulations, enables an easy screening of ECMs (energy conservation measures) and retrofit analysis. The simulations utilize prototype models representative of small and mid-size offices and retails in California climates. In the formulation of DEEP, large scale EnergyPlus simulations were conducted on high performance computing clusters to evaluate hundreds of individual and packaged ECMs covering envelope, lighting, heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, plug-loads, and service hot water. The architecture and simulation environment to create DEEP is flexible and can expand to cover additional building types, additional climates, and new ECMs. In this study DEEP is integrated into a web-based retrofit toolkit, the Commercial Building Energy Saver, which provides a platform for energy retrofit decision making by querying DEEP and unearthing recommended ECMs, their estimated energy savings and financial payback. - Highlights: • A DEEP (database of energy efficiency performance) supports building retrofit. • DEEP is an SQL database with pre-simulated results from 10 million EnergyPlus runs. • DEEP covers 7 building types, 6 vintages, 16 climates, and 100 energy measures. • DEEP accelerates retrofit of small commercial buildings to save energy use and cost. • DEEP can be expanded and integrated with third-party energy software tools.

  9. Using DOE Commercial Reference Buildings for Simulation Studies: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Field, K.; Deru, M.; Studer, D.

    2010-08-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy developed 256 EnergyPlus models for use in studies that aim to characterize about 70% of the U.S. commercial building stock. Sixteen building types - including restaurants, health care, schools, offices, supermarkets, retail, lodging, and warehouses - are modeled across 16 cities to represent the diversity of U.S. climate zones. Weighting factors have been developed to combine the models in proportions similar to those of the McGraw-Hill Construction Projects Starts Database for 2003-2007. This paper reviews the development and contents of these models and their applications in simulation studies.

  10. Climate impacts on extreme energy consumption of different types of buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Mingcai; Shi, Jun; Guo, Jun; Cao, Jingfu; Niu, Jide; Xiong, Mingming

    2015-01-01

    Exploring changes of building energy consumption and its relationships with climate can provide basis for energy-saving and carbon emission reduction. Heating and cooling energy consumption of different types of buildings during 1981-2010 in Tianjin city, was simulated by using TRNSYS software. Daily or hourly extreme energy consumption was determined by percentile methods, and the climate impact on extreme energy consumption was analyzed. The results showed that days of extreme heating consumption showed apparent decrease during the recent 30 years for residential and large venue buildings, whereas days of extreme cooling consumption increased in large venue building. No significant variations were found for the days of extreme energy consumption for commercial building, although a decreasing trend in extreme heating energy consumption. Daily extreme energy consumption for large venue building had no relationship with climate parameters, whereas extreme energy consumption for commercial and residential buildings was related to various climate parameters. Further multiple regression analysis suggested heating energy consumption for commercial building was affected by maximum temperature, dry bulb temperature, solar radiation and minimum temperature, which together can explain 71.5 % of the variation of the daily extreme heating energy consumption. The daily extreme cooling energy consumption for commercial building was only related to the wet bulb temperature (R2= 0.382). The daily extreme heating energy consumption for residential building was affected by 4 climate parameters, but the dry bulb temperature had the main impact. The impacts of climate on hourly extreme heating energy consumption has a 1-3 hour delay in all three types of buildings, but no delay was found in the impacts of climate on hourly extreme cooling energy consumption for the selected buildings.

  11. Results and Lessons Learned From the DOE Commercial Building Partnerships: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hirsch, A.; Deru, M.; Langner, R.; Stark, G.; Doebber, I.; Scheib, J.; Sheppy, M.; Bonnema, E.; Pless, S.; Livingood, B.; Torcellini, P.

    2014-09-01

    Over the course of 5 years, NREL worked with commercial building owners and their design teams in the DOE Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) to cut energy consumption by 50% in new construction (versus code) and by 30% in existing building pilot projects (versus code or pre-retrofit operational energy use depending on the preference of the Partner) using strategies that could be replicated across their building portfolios. A number of different building types were addressed, including supermarket, retail merchandise, combination big box (general merchandise and food sales), high rise office space, and warehouse. The projects began in pre-design and included a year of measurement data to evaluate performance against design expectations. Focused attention was required throughout the entire process to achieve a design with the potential to hit the energy performance target and to operate the resulting building to reach this potential. This paper will report quantitative results and cover both the technical and the human sides of CBP, including the elements that were required to succeed and where stumbling blocks were encountered. It will also address the impact of energy performance goals and intensive energy modeling on the design process innovations and best practices.

  12. Recovery Act: Training Program Development for Commercial Building Equipment Technicians

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leah Glameyer

    2012-07-12

    The overall goal of this project has been to develop curricula, certification requirements, and accreditation standards for training on energy efficient practices and technologies for commercial building technicians. These training products will advance industry expertise towards net-zero energy commercial building goals and will result in a substantial reduction in energy use. The ultimate objective is to develop a workforce that can bring existing commercial buildings up to their energy performance potential and ensure that new commercial buildings do not fall below their expected optimal level of performance. Commercial building equipment technicians participating in this training program will learn how to best operate commercial buildings to ensure they reach their expected energy performance level. The training is a combination of classroom, online and on-site lessons. The Texas Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) developed curricula using subject matter and adult learning experts to ensure the training meets certification requirements and accreditation standards for training these technicians. The training targets a specific climate zone to meets the needs, specialized expertise, and perspectives of the commercial building equipment technicians in that zone. The combination of efficient operations and advanced design will improve the internal built environment of a commercial building by increasing comfort and safety, while reducing energy use and environmental impact. Properly trained technicians will ensure equipment operates at design specifications. A second impact is a more highly trained workforce that is better equipped to obtain employment. Organizations that contributed to the development of the training program include TEEX and the Texas Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) (both members of The Texas A&M University System). TEES is also a member of the Building Commissioning Association. This report includes a description of the project

  13. Climate impacts on extreme energy consumption of different types of buildings.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mingcai Li

    Full Text Available Exploring changes of building energy consumption and its relationships with climate can provide basis for energy-saving and carbon emission reduction. Heating and cooling energy consumption of different types of buildings during 1981-2010 in Tianjin city, was simulated by using TRNSYS software. Daily or hourly extreme energy consumption was determined by percentile methods, and the climate impact on extreme energy consumption was analyzed. The results showed that days of extreme heating consumption showed apparent decrease during the recent 30 years for residential and large venue buildings, whereas days of extreme cooling consumption increased in large venue building. No significant variations were found for the days of extreme energy consumption for commercial building, although a decreasing trend in extreme heating energy consumption. Daily extreme energy consumption for large venue building had no relationship with climate parameters, whereas extreme energy consumption for commercial and residential buildings was related to various climate parameters. Further multiple regression analysis suggested heating energy consumption for commercial building was affected by maximum temperature, dry bulb temperature, solar radiation and minimum temperature, which together can explain 71.5 % of the variation of the daily extreme heating energy consumption. The daily extreme cooling energy consumption for commercial building was only related to the wet bulb temperature (R2= 0.382. The daily extreme heating energy consumption for residential building was affected by 4 climate parameters, but the dry bulb temperature had the main impact. The impacts of climate on hourly extreme heating energy consumption has a 1-3 hour delay in all three types of buildings, but no delay was found in the impacts of climate on hourly extreme cooling energy consumption for the selected buildings.

  14. Project materials [Commercial High Performance Buildings Project

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    2001-01-01

    The Consortium for High Performance Buildings (ChiPB) is an outgrowth of DOE'S Commercial Whole Buildings Roadmapping initiatives. It is a team-driven public/private partnership that seeks to enable and demonstrate the benefit of buildings that are designed, built and operated to be energy efficient, environmentally sustainable, superior quality, and cost effective.

  15. Commercial Building Energy Asset Rating Tool User's Guide

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Na; Makhmalbaf, Atefe; Matsumoto, Steven W.

    2012-05-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy’s Commercial Building Energy Asset Rating Tool is a web-based system that is designed to allow building owners, managers, and operators to more accurately assess the energy performance of their commercial buildings. This document provide a step-by-step instruction on how to use the tool.

  16. Assessment of Energy Impact of Window Technologies for Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hong, Tianzhen [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Environmental Energy Technologies Division; Selkowitz, Stephen [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Environmental Energy Technologies Division; Yazdanian, Mehry [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Environmental Energy Technologies Division

    2009-10-01

    Windows play a significant role in commercial buildings targeting the goal of net zero energy. This report summarizes research methodology and findings in evaluating the energy impact of windows technologies for commercial buildings. The large office prototypical building, chosen from the DOE commercial building benchmarks, was used as the baseline model which met the prescriptive requirements of ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2004. The building simulations were performed with EnergyPlus and TMY3 weather data for five typical US climates to calculate the energy savings potentials of six windows technologies when compared with the ASHRAE 90.1-2004 baseline windows. The six windows cover existing, new, and emerging technologies, including ASHRAE 189.1 baseline windows, triple pane low-e windows, clear and tinted double pane highly insulating low-e windows, electrochromic (EC) windows, and highly insulating EC windows representing the hypothetically feasible optimum windows. The existing stocks based on average commercial windows sales are included in the analysis for benchmarking purposes.

  17. Development of a Training Program for Commercial Building Technicians

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rinholm, Rod

    2013-05-31

    This project focused on developing and deploying a comprehensive program of 22 training modules, including certification requirements, and accreditation standards for commercial building technicians, to help achieve the full savings potential of energy efficient buildings, equipment, and systems. This curriculum extended the currently available commercial building technician programs -- training a labor force in a growing market area focused on energy efficiency. The program helps to remove a major market impediment to low energy/zero energy commercial building system acceptance, namely a lack of operating personnel capable of handling more complex high efficiency systems. The project developed a training curriculum for commercial building technicians, with particular focus on high-efficiency building technology, and systems. In Phase 1, the project team worked collaboratively in developing a draft training syllabus to address project objectives. The team identified energy efficiency knowledge gaps in existing programs and plans and plans to address the gaps with either modified or new curricula. In Phase 2, appropriate training materials were developed to meet project objectives. This material was developed for alternative modes of delivery, including classroom lecture materials, e-learning elements, video segments, exercises, and hands-on training elements. A Certification and Accreditation Plan and a Commercialization and Sustainability Plan were also investigated and developed. The Project Management Plan was updated quarterly and provided direction on the management approaches used to accomplish the expected project objectives. GTI project management practices tightly coordinate project activities using management controls to deliver optimal customer value. The project management practices include clear scope definition, schedule/budget tracking, risk/issue resolution and team coordination.

  18. Software-Defined Solutions for Managing Energy Use in Small to Medium Sized Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Peffer, Therese [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Council on International Education Exchange (CIEE), Portland, ME (United States); Blumstein, Carl [Council on International Education Exchange (CIEE), Portland, ME (United States); Culler, David [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (EECS); Modera, Mark [Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States). Western Cooling Efficiency Center (WCEC); Meier, Alan [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2015-09-10

    The Project uses state-of-the-art computer science to extend the benefits of Building Automation Systems (BAS) typically found in large buildings (>100,000 square foot) to medium-sized commercial buildings (<50,000 sq ft). The BAS developed in this project, termed OpenBAS, uses an open-source and open software architecture platform, user interface, and plug-and-play control devices to facilitate adoption of energy efficiency strategies in the commercial building sector throughout the United States. At the heart of this “turn key” BAS is the platform with three types of controllers—thermostat, lighting controller, and general controller—that are easily “discovered” by the platform in a plug-and-play fashion. The user interface showcases the platform and provides the control system set-up, system status display and means of automatically mapping the control points in the system.

  19. Towards a Very Low Energy Building Stock: Modeling the U.S. Commercial Building Sector to Support Policy and Innovation Planning

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Coffey, Brian; Borgeson, Sam; Selkowitz, Stephen; Apte, Josh; Mathew, Paul; Haves, Philip

    2009-07-01

    This paper describes the origin, structure and continuing development of a model of time varying energy consumption in the US commercial building stock. The model is based on a flexible structure that disaggregates the stock into various categories (e.g. by building type, climate, vintage and life-cycle stage) and assigns attributes to each of these (e.g. floor area and energy use intensity by fuel type and end use), based on historical data and user-defined scenarios for future projections. In addition to supporting the interactive exploration of building stock dynamics, the model has been used to study the likely outcomes of specific policy and innovation scenarios targeting very low future energy consumption in the building stock. Model use has highlighted the scale of the challenge of meeting targets stated by various government and professional bodies, and the importance of considering both new construction and existing buildings.

  20. Methodology for Modeling Building Energy Performance across the Commercial Sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Griffith, B.; Long, N.; Torcellini, P.; Judkoff, R.; Crawley, D.; Ryan, J.

    2008-03-01

    This report uses EnergyPlus simulations of each building in the 2003 Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) to document and demonstrate bottom-up methods of modeling the entire U.S. commercial buildings sector (EIA 2006). The ability to use a whole-building simulation tool to model the entire sector is of interest because the energy models enable us to answer subsequent 'what-if' questions that involve technologies and practices related to energy. This report documents how the whole-building models were generated from the building characteristics in 2003 CBECS and compares the simulation results to the survey data for energy use.

  1. Establishing a commercial building energy data framework for India

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Iyer, Maithili [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Kumar, Satish [Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy, New Delhi (India); Mathew, Sangeeta [Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy, New Delhi (India); Stratton, Hannah [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Mathew, Paul A. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Singh, Mohini [Synurja, Inc. (India)

    2018-04-18

    Buildings account for over 40% of the world’s energy consumption and are therefore a key contributor to a country’s energy as well as carbon budget. Understanding how buildings use energy is critical to understanding how related policies may impact energy use. Data enables decision making, and good quality data arms consumers with the tools to compare their energy performance to their peers, allowing them to differentiate their buildings in the real estate market on the basis of their energy footprint. Good quality data are also essential for policy makers to prioritize their energy saving strategies and track implementation. The United States’ Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is an example of a successful data framework that is highly useful for governmental and nongovernmental initiatives related to benchmarking energy forecasting, rating systems and metrics, and more. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) in India developed the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) and launched the Star Labeling program for a few energy-intensive building segments as a significant first step. However, a data driven policy framework for systematically targeting energy efficiency in both new construction and existing buildings has largely been missing. There is no quantifiable mechanism currently in place to track the impact of code adoption through regular reporting/survey of energy consumption in the commercial building stock. In this paper we present findings from our study that explored use cases and approaches for establishing a commercial buildings data framework for India.

  2. Lost opportunities: Modeling commercial building energy code adoption in the United States

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nelson, Hal T.

    2012-01-01

    This paper models the adoption of commercial building energy codes in the US between 1977 and 2006. Energy code adoption typically results in an increase in aggregate social welfare by cost effectively reducing energy expenditures. Using a Cox proportional hazards model, I test if relative state funding, a new, objective, multivariate regression-derived measure of government capacity, as well as a vector of control variables commonly used in comparative state research, predict commercial building energy code adoption. The research shows little political influence over historical commercial building energy code adoption in the sample. Colder climates and higher electricity prices also do not predict more frequent code adoptions. I do find evidence of high government capacity states being 60 percent more likely than low capacity states to adopt commercial building energy codes in the following year. Wealthier states are also more likely to adopt commercial codes. Policy recommendations to increase building code adoption include increasing access to low cost capital for the private sector and providing noncompetitive block grants to the states from the federal government. - Highlights: ► Model the adoption of commercial building energy codes from 1977–2006 in the US. ► Little political influence over historical building energy code adoption. ► High capacity states are over 60 percent more likely than low capacity states to adopt codes. ► Wealthier states are more likely to adopt commercial codes. ► Access to capital and technical assistance is critical to increase code adoption.

  3. Maintenance and Safety Practices of Escalator in Commercial Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Afida Isnaini Janipha, Nurul; Nur Aina Syed Alwee, Sharifah; Ariff, Raihan Mohd; Ismail, Faridah

    2018-02-01

    The escalator is very crucial to transport a person from one place to another. Nevertheless, there are many cases recorded the accidents in relation to escalator. These may occur due to lack of maintenance which leads to systems breakdown, poor safety practices, wear and tear, users’ negligence and others. Thus, proper maintenance systems need to be improvised to prevent and reduce escalator accident in future. This research was aimed to determine the escalator maintenance activities and safety practices in a commercial building. Three case studies were selected within Selangor area. Semi-structured interviews were conducted for collecting data from these three case studies. To achieve the aim of this research, the study was carried out on the maintenance activities, safety practices and cost related to escalator maintenance. As one of the important means of access in building, it is very crucial to increase effectiveness of escalator particularly in commercial building. It is expected that readers will get clear information on the maintenance activities and safety practices of escalator in commercial building.

  4. Web-based energy information systems for energy management and demand response in commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Motegi, Naoya; Piette, Mary Ann; Kinney, Satkartar; Herter, Karen

    2003-04-18

    Energy Information Systems (EIS) for buildings are becoming widespread in the U.S., with more companies offering EIS products every year. As a result, customers are often overwhelmed by the quickly expanding portfolio of EIS feature and application options, which have not been clearly identified for consumers. The object of this report is to provide a technical overview of currently available EIS products. In particular, this report focuses on web-based EIS products for large commercial buildings, which allow data access and control capabilities over the Internet. EIS products combine software, data acquisition hardware, and communication systems to collect, analyze and display building information to aid commercial building energy managers, facility managers, financial managers and electric utilities in reducing energy use and costs in buildings. Data types commonly processed by EIS include energy consumption data; building characteristics; building system data, such as heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) and lighting data; weather data; energy price signals; and energy demand-response event information. This project involved an extensive review of research and trade literature to understand the motivation for EIS technology development. This study also gathered information on currently commercialized EIS. This review is not an exhaustive analysis of all EIS products; rather, it is a technical framework and review of current products on the market. This report summarizes key features available in today's EIS, along with a categorization framework to understand the relationship between EIS, Energy Management and Control Systems (EMCSs), and similar technologies. Four EIS types are described: Basic Energy Information Systems (Basic-EIS); Demand Response Systems (DRS); Enterprise Energy Management (EEM); and Web-based Energy Management and Control Systems (Web-EMCS). Within the context of these four categories, the following characteristics of EIS

  5. Analysis of institutional mechanisms affecting residential and commercial buildings retrofit

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1980-09-01

    Barriers to energy conservation in the residential and commercial sectors influence (1) the willingness of building occupants to modify their energy usage habits, and (2) the willingness of building owners/occupants to upgrade the thermal characteristics of the structures within which they live or work and the appliances which they use. The barriers that influence the willingness of building owners/occupants to modify the thermal efficiency characteristics of building structures and heating/cooling systems are discussed. This focus is further narrowed to include only those barriers that impede modifications to existing buildings, i.e., energy conservation retrofit activity. Eight barriers selected for their suitability for Federal action in the residential and commercial sectors and examined are: fuel pricing policies that in the short term do not provide enough incentive to invest in energy conservation; high finance cost; inability to evaluate contractor performance; inability to evaluate retrofit products; lack of well-integrated or one-stop marketing systems (referred to as lack of delivery systems); lack of precise or customized information; lack of sociological/psychological incentives; and use of the first-cost decision criterion (expanded to include short-term payback criterion for the commercial sector). The impacts of these barriers on energy conservation are separately assessed for the residential and commercial sectors.

  6. Accuracy of CO2 sensors in commercial buildings: a pilotstudy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fisk, William J.; Faulkner, David; Sullivan, Douglas P.

    2006-10-01

    Carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) sensors are often deployed in commercial buildings to obtain CO{sub 2} data that are used to automatically modulate rates of outdoor air supply. The goal is to keep ventilation rates at or above code requirements, but to also to save energy by avoiding over ventilation relative to code requirements. However, there have been many anecdotal reports of poor CO{sub 2} sensor performance in actual commercial building applications. This study evaluated the accuracy of 44 CO{sub 2} sensors located in nine commercial buildings to determine if CO{sub 2} sensor performance, in practice, is generally acceptable or problematic. CO{sub 2} measurement errors varied widely and were sometimes hundreds of parts per million. Despite its small size, this study provides a strong indication that the accuracy of CO{sub 2} sensors used in commercial buildings is frequently less than is needed to measure peak indoor-outdoor CO{sub 2} concentration differences with less than a 20% error. Thus, we conclude that there is a need for more accurate CO{sub 2} sensors and/or better sensor maintenance or calibration procedures.

  7. Assessing Potential Energy Cost Savings from Increased Energy Code Compliance in Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rosenberg, Michael I.; Hart, Philip R.; Athalye, Rahul A.; Zhang, Jian; Wang, Weimin

    2016-02-15

    The US Department of Energy’s most recent commercial energy code compliance evaluation efforts focused on determining a percent compliance rating for states to help them meet requirements under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. That approach included a checklist of code requirements, each of which was graded pass or fail. Percent compliance for any given building was simply the percent of individual requirements that passed. With its binary approach to compliance determination, the previous methodology failed to answer some important questions. In particular, how much energy cost could be saved by better compliance with the commercial energy code and what are the relative priorities of code requirements from an energy cost savings perspective? This paper explores an analytical approach and pilot study using a single building type and climate zone to answer those questions.

  8. Impacts of Commercial Building Controls on Energy Savings and Peak Load Reduction

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fernandez, Nicholas E.P. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Katipamula, Srinivas [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Wang, Weimin [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Xie, YuLong [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Zhao, Mingjie [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Corbin, Charles D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2017-05-30

    Commercial buildings in the United States use about 18 Quadrillion British thermal units (Quads) of primary energy annually . Studies have shown that as much as 30% of building energy consumption can be avoided by using more accurate sensing, using existing controls better, and deploying advanced controls; hence, the motivation for the work described in this report. Studies also have shown that 10% to 20% of the commercial building peak load can be temporarily managed/curtailed to provide grid services. Although many studies have indicated significant potential for reducing the energy consumption in commercial buildings, very few have documented the actual savings. The studies that did so only provided savings at the whole building level, which makes it difficult to assess the savings potential of each individual measure deployed.

  9. Commercial Building Energy Asset Score Program Overview and Technical Protocol (Version 1.1)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Na; Goel, Supriya; Makhmalbaf, Atefe

    2013-08-09

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is developing a voluntary national scoring system for commercial buildings to help building owners and managers assess a building’s energy-related systems independent of operations. The goal of the score is to facilitate cost-effective investment in energy efficiency improvements of commercial buildings. The system, known as the Commercial Building Energy Asset Score, will allow building owners and managers to compare their building infrastructure against peers and track building upgrades over time. The system will also help other building stakeholders (e.g., building investors, tenants, financiers, and appraisers) understand the relative efficiency of different buildings in a way that is independent from operations and occupancy. This report outlines the technical protocol used to generate the energy asset score, explains the scoring methodology, and provides additional details regarding the energy asset scoring tool. The alternative methods that were considered prior to developing the current approach are described in the Program Overview and Technical Protocol Version 1.0.

  10. Ventilation Relevant Contaminants of Concern in Commercial Buildings Screening Process and Results

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Parthasarathy, Srinandini [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); McKone, Thomas E. [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Apte, Michael G. [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2011-04-29

    This report summarizes the screening procedure and its results for selecting contaminants of concern (COC), whose concentrations are affected by ventilation in commercial buildings. Many pollutants comprising criteria pollutants, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and biological contaminants are found in commercial buildings. In this report, we focus primarily on identifying potential volatile organic COC, which are impacted by ventilation. In the future we plan to extend this effort to inorganic gases and particles. Our screening considers compounds detected frequently in indoor air and compares the concentrations to health-guidelines and thresholds. However, given the range of buildings under consideration, the contaminant sources and their concentrations will vary depending on the activity and use of the buildings. We used a literature review to identify a large list of chemicals found in commercial-building indoor air. The VOCs selected were subject to a two stage screening process, and the compounds of greater interest are included in priority List A. Other VOCs that have been detected in commercial buildings are included in priority List B. The compounds in List B, were further classified into groups B1, B2, B3, B4 in order of decreasing interest.

  11. The analysis of energy consumption of a commercial building in Tianjin, China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao Jing; Zhu Neng; Wu Yong

    2009-01-01

    According to statistics and field investigation, the energy consumption situation and reality of commercial building is described in this paper. As the first step of large-scale public building energy efficiency supervision system encouraged by central government of China, the energy consumption of several typical commercial buildings and public buildings was analyzed in detail. The main contents of investigation are as follows: basic information of building, operational record of energy consumption equipment, energy consumption of indoor equipments, energy-efficiency assessment of energy consumption systems and equipments, investigation of behavior energy saving, etc. On this basis further analysis and diagnosis including indoor thermal and humid environment, operation state of air-conditioning water system, operation state of air-conditioning duct system and operation management of air-conditioning system were implemented. The results show that the most energy consumption of buildings in this city is commercial buildings, which can reach to about 240 W/m 2 per year. Further analysis tells that air conditioning systems play the major role of building energy consumption, and building energy saving has great potential in this city. In this paper, the ways of diagnosis work for building energy consumption are also described and discussed. Reasonable test, diagnosis and analysis are meaningful for building energy efficiency retrofit and management.

  12. Courthouse Prototype Building

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Malhotra, Mini [ORNL; New, Joshua Ryan [ORNL; Im, Piljae [ORNL

    2018-02-01

    As part of DOE's support of ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1 and IECC, researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) apply a suite of prototype buildings covering 80% of the commercial building floor area in the U.S. for new construction. Efforts have started on expanding the prototype building suite to cover 90% of the commercial building floor area in the U.S., by developing prototype models for additional building types including place of worship, public order and safety, public assembly. Courthouse is courthouse is a sub-category under the “Public Order and Safety" building type category; other sub-categories include police station, fire station, and jail, reformatory or penitentiary.ORNL used building design guides, databases, and documented courthouse projects, supplemented by personal communication with courthouse facility planning and design experts, to systematically conduct research on the courthouse building and system characteristics. This report documents the research conducted for the courthouse building type and proposes building and system characteristics for developing a prototype building energy model to be included in the Commercial Building Prototype Model suite. According to the 2012 CBECS, courthouses occupy a total of 436 million sqft of floor space or 0.5% of the total floor space in all commercial buildings in the US, next to fast food (0.35%), grocery store or food market (0.88%), and restaurant or cafeteria (1.2%) building types currently included in the Commercial Prototype Building Model suite. Considering aggregated average, courthouse falls among the larger with a mean floor area of 69,400 sqft smaller fuel consumption intensity building types and an average of 94.7 kBtu/sqft compared to 77.8 kBtu/sqft for office and 80 kBtu/sqft for all commercial buildings.Courthouses range in size from 1000 sqft to over a million square foot building gross square feet and 1 courtroom to over 100 courtrooms. Small courthouses

  13. Energy and Energy Cost Savings Analysis of the IECC for Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Jian; Athalye, Rahul A.; Hart, Philip R.; Rosenberg, Michael I.; Xie, YuLong; Goel, Supriya; Mendon, Vrushali V.; Liu, Bing

    2013-08-30

    The purpose of this analysis is to assess the relative energy and energy cost performance of commercial buildings designed to meet the requirements found in the commercial energy efficiency provisions of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). Section 304(b) of the Energy Conservation and Production Act (ECPA), as amended, requires the Secretary of Energy to make a determination each time a revised version of ASHRAE Standard 90.1 is published with respect to whether the revised standard would improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings. As many states have historically adopted the IECC for both residential and commercial buildings, PNNL has evaluated the impacts of the commercial provisions of the 2006, 2009, and 2012 editions of the IECC. PNNL also compared energy performance with corresponding editions of ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1 to help states and local jurisdictions make informed decisions regarding model code adoption.

  14. The Reality and Future Scenarios of Commercial Building Energy Consumption in China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhou, Nan; Lin, Jiang

    2007-08-01

    While China's 11th Five Year Plan called for a reduction of energy intensity by 2010, whether and how the energy consumption trend can be changed in a short time has been hotly debated. This research intends to evaluate the impact of a variety of scenarios of GDP growth, energy elasticity and energy efficiency improvement on energy consumption in commercial buildings in China using a detailed China End-use Energy Model. China's official energy statistics have limited information on energy demand by end use. This is a particularly pertinent issue for building energy consumption. The authors have applied reasoned judgments, based on experience of working on Chinese efficiency standards and energy related programs, to present a realistic interpretation of the current energy data. The bottom-up approach allows detailed consideration of end use intensity, equipment efficiency, etc., thus facilitating assessment of potential impacts of specific policy and technology changes on building energy use. The results suggest that: (1) commercial energy consumption in China's current statistics is underestimated by about 44%, and the fuel mix is misleading; (2) energy efficiency improvements will not be sufficient to offset the strong increase in end-use penetration and intensity in commercial buildings; (3) energy intensity (particularly electricity) in commercial buildings will increase; (4) different GDP growth and elasticity scenarios could lead to a wide range of floor area growth trajectories , and therefore, significantly impact energy consumption in commercial buildings.

  15. Energy Efficiency Potential in Existing Commercial Buildings: Review of Selected Recent Studies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Belzer, David B.

    2009-04-03

    This report reviews six recent studies (from 2002 through 2006) by states and utilities to assess the energy saving potential in existing commercial buildings. The studies cover all or portions of California, Connecticut, Vermont, Colorado, Illinois, and the Pacific Northwest. The studies clearly reveal that lighting remains the single largest and most cost effective end use that can be reduced to save energy. Overall the study indicated that with existing technologies and costs, a reasonable range of economic savings potential in existing commercial buildings is between 10 and 20 percent of current energy use. While not a focus of the study, an additional conclusion is that implementation of commercial building monitoring and controls would also play an important role in the nation’s efforts to improve energy efficiency of existing buildings.

  16. Radon concentrations inside public and commercial buildings in the Pittsburgh area

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cohen, B L; Kulwicki, D R; Warner, Jr, K R; Grassi, C L

    1984-09-01

    Radon concentrations in ambient air from numerous schools, stores and other public and commercial buildings in the Pittsburgh, PA, area were measured by grab sampling. This is more appropriate than using long-term integrating monitors because of the correlation between times of occupancy and Rn levels. Results indicate that Rn concentrations in these buildings are nearly an order of magnitude less than in homes, and not much higher than outdoors. Variations among sites is also much less than for homes, probably because there is less variability in ventilation and building maintenance practices. Colleges and universities have somewhat higher Rn levels and a larger degree of variability than commercial buildings or hospitals. There was no indication of higher Rn levels in cold weather than in warm weather, or of correlations with the age of the building.

  17. Radon concentrations inside public and commercial buildings in the Pittsburgh area.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, B L; Kulwicki, D R; Warner, K R; Grassi, C L

    1984-09-01

    Radon concentrations in ambient air from numerous schools, stores and other public and commercial buildings in the Pittsburgh, PA, area were measured by grab sampling. This is more appropriate than using long-term integrating monitors because of the correlation between times of occupancy and Rn levels. Results indicate that Rn concentrations in these buildings are nearly an order of magnitude less than in homes, and not much higher than outdoors. Variations among sites is also much less than for homes, probably because there is less variability in ventilation and building maintenance practices. Colleges and universities have somewhat higher Rn levels and a larger degree of variability than commercial buildings or hospitals. There was no indication of higher Rn levels in cold weather than in warm weather, or of correlations with the age of the building.

  18. Commercial Building Energy Asset Rating Program -- Market Research

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McCabe, Molly J.; Wang, Na

    2012-04-19

    Under contract to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, HaydenTanner, LLC conducted an in-depth analysis of the potential market value of a commercial building energy asset rating program for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The market research objectives were to: (1) Evaluate market interest and need for a program and tool to offer asset rating and rapidly identify potential energy efficiency measures for the commercial building sector. (2) Identify key input variables and asset rating outputs that would facilitate increased investment in energy efficiency. (3) Assess best practices and lessons learned from existing national and international energy rating programs. (4) Identify core messaging to motivate owners, investors, financiers, and others in the real estate sector to adopt a voluntary asset rating program and, as a consequence, deploy high-performance strategies and technologies across new and existing buildings. (5) Identify leverage factors and incentives that facilitate increased investment in these buildings. To meet these objectives, work consisted of a review of the relevant literature, examination of existing and emergent asset and operational rating systems, interviews with industry stakeholders, and an evaluation of the value implication of an asset label on asset valuation. This report documents the analysis methodology and findings, conclusion, and recommendations. Its intent is to support and inform the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy on the market need and potential value impacts of an asset labeling and diagnostic tool to encourage high-performance new buildings and building efficiency retrofit projects.

  19. SUPERVISORY CONTROL FOR PEAK REDUCTION IN COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS WHILE MAINTAINING COMFORT

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nutaro, James J [ORNL; Olama, Mohammed M [ORNL; Kuruganti, Teja [ORNL

    2016-01-01

    This paper describes a supervisory control strategy for limiting peak power demand by small and medium commercial buildings while still meeting the business needs of the occupants. This control strategy has two features that make it relevant to new and existing buildings. First, it is designed to operate with building equipment, such as air conditioning and refrigeration systems, as they are presently installed in most small and medium commercial buildings. Because of this, the supervisory control could be realized as a software-only retrofit to existing building management systems. Second, the proposed control acts as a supervisory management layer over existing control systems, rather than replacing them outright. The primary idea of this approach is that the controls for individual building equipment request energy resources for a control action and the supervisory control examines the requests and decides which control actions to allow while satisfying a limit on peak power demand.

  20. Solar-Energy System for a Commercial Building--Topeka, Kansas

    Science.gov (United States)

    1982-01-01

    Report describes a solar-energy system for space heating, cooling and domestic hot water at a 5,600 square-foot (520-square-meter) Topeka, Kansas, commercial building. System is expected to provide 74% of annual cooling load, 47% of heating load, and 95% of domestic hot-water load. System was included in building design to maximize energy conservation.

  1. Energy consumption in commercial buildings: A comparison with BEPS budgets

    Science.gov (United States)

    1980-09-01

    Metered energy consumption data were collected on existing commercial buildings to help establish the proposed building energy performance standards (BEPS). The search has identified 84 buildings whose metered energy consumption is equal to or less than that proposed for their BEPS budgets and another 7 buildings whose metered consumption is less than 20 percent above their BEPS budgets. The methodology used to identify the buildings and to collect their metered energy consumption data are described. The data are analyzed and summarized and conclusions are drawn.

  2. Energy Savings Potential and Research, Development, & Demonstration Opportunities for Commercial Building Appliances

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zogg, Robert [Navigant Consulting, Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Goetzler, William [Navigant Consulting, Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Ahlfeldt, Christopher [Navigant Consulting, Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Hiraiwa, Hirokazu [Navigant Consulting, Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Sathe, Amul [Navigant Consulting, Inc., Burlington, MA (United States); Sutherland, Timothy [Navigant Consulting, Inc., Burlington, MA (United States)

    2009-12-01

    This study characterizes and assesses the appliances used in commercial buildings. The primary objectives of this study were to document the energy consumed by commercial appliances and identify research, development and demonstration (RD&D) opportunities for efficiency improvements, excluding product categories such as HVAC, building lighting, refrigeration equipment, and distributed generation systems. The study included equipment descriptions, characteristics of the equipment’s market, national energy consumption, estimates of technical potential for energy-saving technologies, and recommendations for U.S. Department of Energy programs that can promote energy savings in commercial appliances.

  3. Project Management Plan/Progress Report UT/GTKS Training Program Development for Commercial Building Operators

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None, None

    2013-03-31

    Universidad del Turabo (UT), in a collaborative effort with Global Turn Key Services, Inc. (GTKS), proposed to develop a training program and a commercialization plan for the development of Commercial Building Operators (CBOs). The CBOs will operate energy efficient buildings to help maintain existing buildings up to their optimal energy performance level, and ensure that net-zero-energy buildings continuously operate at design specifications, thus helping achieve progress towards meeting BTP Strategic Goals of creating technologies and design approaches that enable net-zero-energy buildings at low incremental costs by 2025. The proposed objectives were then: (1) Develop a Commercial Building Operator (CBO) training program and accreditation that will in turn provide a certification to participants recognized by Accreditation Boards such as the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) and Leadership in Energy & Environmental Designs (LEED). (2) Develop and implement a commercialization and sustainability plan that details marketing, deployment, financial characterization, job placement, and other goals required for long-term sustainability of the project after the funding period. (3) After program development and deployment, provide potential candidates with the knowledge and skill sets to obtain employment in the commercial building green energy (net-zero-energy building) job market. The developed CBO training program will focus on providing skills for participants, such as displaced and unemployed workers, to enter the commercial building green energy (net-zeroenergy building) job market. This course was designed to allow a participant with minimal to no experience in commercial building green technology to obtain the required skill sets to enter the job market in as little as 12 weeks of intensive multi-faceted learning. After completion of the course, the CBO staff concluded the participant will meet minimum established accreditation

  4. Technology data characterizing refrigeration in commercial buildings: Application to end-use forecasting with COMMEND 4.0

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sezgen, O.; Koomey, J.G.

    1995-12-01

    In the United States, energy consumption is increasing most rapidly in the commercial sector. Consequently, the commercial sector is becoming an increasingly important target for state and federal energy policies and also for utility-sponsored demand side management (DSM) programs. The rapid growth in commercial-sector energy consumption also makes it important for analysts working on energy policy and DSM issues to have access to energy end-use forecasting models that include more detailed representations of energy-using technologies in the commercial sector. These new forecasting models disaggregate energy consumption not only by fuel type, end use, and building type, but also by specific technology. The disaggregation of the refrigeration end use in terms of specific technologies, however, is complicated by several factors. First, the number of configurations of refrigeration cases and systems is quite large. Also, energy use is a complex function of the refrigeration-case properties and the refrigeration-system properties. The Electric Power Research Institute`s (EPRI`s) Commercial End-Use Planning System (COMMEND 4.0) and the associated data development presented in this report attempt to address the above complications and create a consistent forecasting framework. Expanding end-use forecasting models so that they address individual technology options requires characterization of the present floorstock in terms of service requirements, energy technologies used, and cost-efficiency attributes of the energy technologies that consumers may choose for new buildings and retrofits. This report describes the process by which we collected refrigeration technology data. The data were generated for COMMEND 4.0 but are also generally applicable to other end-use forecasting frameworks for the commercial sector.

  5. Energy Performance and CO2 Emissions of HVAC Systems in Commercial Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rafat Al-Waked

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Energy performance of buildings has attracted much attention among building physicists and engineers worldwide. The effects of building heating; ventilation; and air conditioning (HVAC systems’ design upgrade on the building energy performance are the focus of the current study. The adopted HVAC system consisted of chilled ceiling and chilled beam systems served by a centrifugal water chiller. An energy simulation study was undertaken in accordance with the national Australian built environment rating system-rules for collecting and using data. A three-dimensional simulation study was carried out utilizing the virtual environment-integrated environmental solutions software. Results from the current study have shown the importance of utilizing energy-efficient HVAC systems and HVAC strategies for achieving a high building energy star rating. Recommended strategies in order to achieve the nominated star rating; as predicted by the simulation analysis; were presented. Moreover; the effects of solar radiation inside the building atrium were significant; which cannot be overcome by simply installing a low shading coefficient glazing type at the atrium skylight. In addition to providing chilled ceiling technology; a high efficiency chiller and low energy lighting; it is recommended that the building be well tuned during the commissioning period. The current approach could be extended to accommodate higher energy ratings of commercial buildings at different locations worldwide.

  6. Building energy, building leadership : recommendations for the adoption, development, and implementation of a commercial building energy code in Manitoba

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Akerstream, T. [Manitoba Hydro, Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Allard, K. [City of Thompson, Thompson, MB (Canada); Anderson, N.; Beacham, D. [Manitoba Office of the Fire Commissioner, Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Andrich, R. [The Forks North Portage Partnership, MB (Canada); Auger, A. [Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Office of Energy Efficiency; Downs, R.G. [Shindico Realty Inc., Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Eastwood, R. [Number Ten Architectural Group, Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Hewitt, C. [SMS Engineering Ltd., Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Joshi, D. [City of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Klassen, K. [Manitoba Dept. of Energy Science and Technology, Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Phillips, B. [Unies Ltd., Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Wiebe, R. [Ben Wiebe Construction Ltd., Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Woelk, D. [Bockstael Construction Ltd., Winnipeg, MB (Canada); Ziemski, S. [CREIT Management LLP, Winnipeg, MB (Canada)

    2006-09-15

    This report presented a strategy and a set of recommendations for the adoption, development and implementation of an energy code for new commercial construction in Manitoba. The report was compiled by an advisory committee comprised of industry representatives and government agency representatives. Recommendations were divided into 4 categories: (1) advisory committee recommendations; (2) code adoption recommendations; (3) code development recommendations; and (4) code implementation recommendations. It was suggested that Manitoba should adopt an amended version of the Model National Energy Code for Buildings (1997) as a regulation under the Buildings and Mobile Homes Act. Participation in a national initiative to update the Model National Energy Code for Buildings was also advised. It was suggested that the energy code should be considered as the first step in a longer-term process towards a sustainable commercial building code. However, the code should be adopted within the context of a complete market transformation approach. Other recommendations included: the establishment of a multi-stakeholder energy code task group; the provision of information and technical resources to help build industry capacity; the establishment of a process for energy code compliance; and an ongoing review of the energy code to assess impacts and progress. Supplemental recommendations for future discussion included the need for integrated design by building design teams in Manitoba; the development of a program to provide technical assistance to building design teams; and collaboration between post-secondary institutions to develop and deliver courses on integrated building design to students and professionals. 17 refs.

  7. Energy consumption quota management of Wanda commercial buildings in China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, D. B.; Xiao, H.; Wang, X.; Liu, J. J.; Wang, X.; Jin, X. Q.; Wang, J.; Xie, X. K.

    2016-08-01

    There is limited research of commercial buildings’ energy use data conducted based on practical analysis in China nowadays. Some energy consumption quota tools like Energy Star in U.S or VDI 3807 in Germany have limitation in China's building sector. This study introduces an innovative methodology of applying energy use quota model and empirical management to commercial buildings, which was in accordance of more than one hundred opened shopping centers of a real estate group in China. On the basis of statistical benchmarking, a new concept of “Modified coefficient”, which considers weather, occupancy, business layout, operation schedule and HVAC efficiency, is originally introduced in this paper. Our study shows that the average energy use quota increases from north to south. The average energy use quota of sample buildings is 159 kWh/(m2.a) of severe cold climate zone, 179 kWh/(m2.a) of cold zone, 188 kWh/(m2.a) of hot summer and cold winter zone, and 200 kWh/(m2.a) of hot summer and warm winter zone. The energy use quota model has been validated in the property management for year 2016, providing a new method of commercial building energy management to the industry. As a key result, there is 180 million energy saving potential based on energy quota management in 2016, equals to 6.2% saving rate of actual energy use in 2015.

  8. Typical load shapes for six categories of Swedish commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Noren, C.

    1997-01-01

    In co-operation with several Swedish electricity suppliers, typical load shapes have been developed for six categories of commercial buildings located in the south of Sweden. The categories included in the study are: hotels, warehouses/grocery stores, schools with no kitchen, schools with kitchen, office buildings, health, health buildings. Load shapes are developed for different mean daily outdoor temperatures and for different day types, normally standard weekdays and standard weekends. The load shapes are presented as non-dimensional normalized 1-hour load. All measured loads for an object are divided by the object`s mean load during the measuring period and typical load shapes are developed for each category of buildings. Thus errors were kept lower as compared to use of W/m{sup 2}-terms. Typical daytime (9 a.m. - 5 p.m.) standard deviations are 7-10% of the mean values for standard weekdays but during very cold or warm weather conditions, single objects can deviate from the typical load shape. On weekends, errors are higher and depending on very different activity levels in the buildings, it is difficult to develop weekend load shapes with good accuracy. The method presented is very easy to use for similar studies and no building simulation programs are needed. If more load data is available, a good method to lower the errors is to make sure that every category only consists of objects with the same activity level, both on weekdays and weekends. To make it easier to use the load shapes, Excel load shape workbooks have been developed, where it is even possible to compare typical load shapes with measured data. 23 refs, 53 figs, 20 tabs

  9. VOLTTRON™: Tech-to-Market Best-Practices Guide for Small- and Medium-Sized Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cort, Katherine A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Haack, Jereme N. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Katipamula, Srinivas [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Nicholls, Andrew K. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2016-07-11

    VOLTTRON™ is an open-source distributed control and sensing platform developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy. It was developed to be used by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy to support transactive controls research and deployment activities. VOLTTRON is designed to be an overarching integration platform that could be used to bring together vendors, users, and developers and enable rapid application development and testing. The platform is designed to support modern control strategies, including the use of agent- and transaction-based controls. It also is designed to support the management of a wide range of applications, including heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems; electric vehicles; and distributed-energy and whole-building loads. This report was completed as part of the Building Technologies Office’s Technology-to-Market Initiative for VOLTTRON’s Market Validation and Business Case Development efforts. The report provides technology-to-market guidance and best practices related to VOLTTRON platform deployments and commercialization activities for use by entities serving small- and medium-sized commercial buildings. The report characterizes the platform ecosystem within the small- and medium-sized commercial building market and articulates the value proposition of VOLTTRON for three core participants in this ecosystem: 1) platform owners/adopters, 2) app developers, and 3) end-users. The report also identifies key market drivers and opportunities for open platform deployments in the small- and medium-sized commercial building market. Possible pathways to the market are described—laboratory testing to market adoption to commercialization. We also identify and address various technical and market barriers that could hinder deployment of VOLTTRON. Finally, we provide “best practice” tech-to-market guidance for building energy-related deployment efforts serving small- and

  10. Implementation of Energy Code Controls Requirements in New Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rosenberg, Michael I. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Hart, Philip R. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Hatten, Mike [Solarc Energy Group, LLC, Seattle, WA (United States); Jones, Dennis [Group 14 Engineering, Inc., Denver, CO (United States); Cooper, Matthew [Group 14 Engineering, Inc., Denver, CO (United States)

    2017-03-24

    Most state energy codes in the United States are based on one of two national model codes; ANSI/ASHRAE/IES 90.1 (Standard 90.1) or the International Code Council (ICC) International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). Since 2004, covering the last four cycles of Standard 90.1 updates, about 30% of all new requirements have been related to building controls. These requirements can be difficult to implement and verification is beyond the expertise of most building code officials, yet the assumption in studies that measure the savings from energy codes is that they are implemented and working correctly. The objective of the current research is to evaluate the degree to which high impact controls requirements included in commercial energy codes are properly designed, commissioned and implemented in new buildings. This study also evaluates the degree to which these control requirements are realizing their savings potential. This was done using a three-step process. The first step involved interviewing commissioning agents to get a better understanding of their activities as they relate to energy code required controls measures. The second involved field audits of a sample of commercial buildings to determine whether the code required control measures are being designed, commissioned and correctly implemented and functioning in new buildings. The third step includes compilation and analysis of the information gather during the first two steps. Information gathered during these activities could be valuable to code developers, energy planners, designers, building owners, and building officials.

  11. Ready to Retrofit: The Process of Project Team Selection, Building Benchmarking, and Financing Commercial Building Energy Retrofit Projects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sanders, Mark D. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Parrish, Kristen [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Mathew, Paul [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2012-05-01

    This guide presents a process for three key activities for the building owner in preparing to retrofit existing commercial buildings: selecting project teams, benchmarking the existing building, and financing the retrofit work. Although there are other essential steps in the retrofit process, the three activities presented in this guide are the critical elements where the building owner has the greatest influence on the outcome of the project.

  12. Opportunities for low carbon sustainability in large commercial buildings in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jiang Ping; Keith Tovey, N.

    2009-01-01

    China's building sector consumes one quarter of total energy consumption in the country and plays an important role in long-term ability of the country to achieve sustainable development. This paper discusses a comprehensive approach to achieving low carbon sustainability in large commercial buildings in China incorporating both energy and carbon-reduction strategies. The approach concentrates primarily on three complementary aspects: (a) the introduction of an effective energy management system; (b) the incorporation of relevant advanced energy saving technologies and measures and (c) the promotion of awareness among occupants to make changes in their behaviour towards a more environmental-friendly behaviour. However, reference is also made to the role that renewable energy and offsetting may have in the effective management and environmental performance of buildings. Nine examples of large commercial buildings in Beijing and Shanghai were studied and the average electricity consumption of around 153 kWh/m 2 per annum is about 5 times higher than average electricity use in residential buildings. At the same time the associated green house gas (GHG) emissions are around 158 kg/m 2 per annum.

  13. Energy Code Compliance in a Detailed Commercial Building Sample: The Effects of Missing Data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Biyani, Rahul K.; Richman, Eric E.

    2003-09-30

    Most commercial buildings in the U.S. are required by State or local jurisdiction to meet energy standards. The enforcement of these standards is not well known and building practice without them on a national scale is also little understood. To provide an understanding of these issues, a database has been developed at PNNL that includes detailed energy related building characteristics of 162 commercial buildings from across the country. For this analysis, the COMcheck? compliance software (developed at PNNL) was used to assess compliance with energy codes among these buildings. Data from the database for each building provided the program input with percentage energy compliance to the ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-1999 energy as the output. During the data input process it was discovered that some essential data for showing compliance of the building envelope was missed and defaults had to be developed to provide complete compliance information. This need for defaults for some data inputs raised the question of what the effect on documenting compliance could be due to missing data. To help answer this question a data collection effort was completed to assess potential differences. Using the program Dodge View, as much of the missing envelope data as possible was collected from the building plans and the database input was again run through COMcheck?. The outputs of both compliance runs were compared to see if the missing data would have adversely affected the results. Both of these results provided a percentage compliance of each building in the envelope and lighting categories, showing by how large a percentage each building either met or fell short of the ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-1999 energy code. The results of the compliance runs showed that 57.7 % of the buildings met or exceeded envelope requirements with defaults and that 68 % met or exceeded envelope requirements with the actual data. Also, 53.6 % of the buildings met or surpassed the lighting requirements

  14. Small- and Medium-Sized Commercial Building Monitoring and Controls Needs: A Scoping Study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Katipamula, Srinivas; Underhill, Ronald M.; Goddard, James K.; Taasevigen, Danny J.; Piette, M. A.; Granderson, J.; Brown, Rich E.; Lanzisera, Steven M.; Kuruganti, T.

    2012-10-31

    Buildings consume over 40% of the total energy consumption in the U.S. A significant portion of the energy consumed in buildings is wasted because of the lack of controls or the inability to use existing building automation systems (BASs) properly. Much of the waste occurs because of our inability to manage and controls buildings efficiently. Over 90% of the buildings are either small-size (<5,000 sf) or medium-size (between 5,000 sf and 50,000 sf); these buildings currently do not use BASs to monitor and control their building systems from a central location. According to Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS), about 10% of the buildings in the U.S. use BASs or central controls to manage their building system operations. Buildings that use BASs are typically large (>100,000 sf). Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) were asked by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Technologies Program (BTP) to identify monitoring and control needs for small- and medium-sized commercial buildings and recommend possible solutions. This study documents the needs and solutions for small- and medium-sized buildings.

  15. Monitoring the Energy-Use Effects of Cool Roofs on California Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Akbari, Hashem; Levinson, Ronnen; Konopaki, Steve; Rainer, Leo

    2004-07-01

    Solar-reflective roofs stay cooler in the sun than solar-absorptive roofs. Such ''cool'' roofs achieve lower surface temperatures that reduce heat conduction into the building and the building's cooling load. The California Energy Commission has funded research in which Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) has measured the electricity use and peak demand in commercial buildings to document savings from implementing the Commission's Cool Roofs program. The study seeks to determine the savings achieved by cool roofs by monitoring the energy use of a carefully selected assortment of buildings participating in the Cool Roofs program. Measurements were needed because the peak savings resulting from the application of cool roofs on different types of buildings in the diverse California climate zones have not been well characterized to date. Only a few occupancy categories (e.g., office and retail buildings) have been monitored before this, and those were done under a limited number of climatic conditions. To help rectify this situation, LBNL was tasked to select the buildings to be monitored, measure roof performance before and after replacing a hot roof by a cool roof, and document both energy and peak demand savings resulting from installation of cool roofs. We monitored the effects of cool roofs on energy use and environmental parameters in six California buildings at three different sites: a retail store in Sacramento; an elementary school in San Marcos (near San Diego); and a 4-building cold storage facility in Reedley (near Fresno). The latter included a cold storage building, a conditioning and fruit-palletizing area, a conditioned packing area, and two unconditioned packing areas (counted as one building).

  16. Energy and Energy Cost Savings Analysis of the 2015 IECC for Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Jian [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Xie, YuLong [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Athalye, Rahul A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Zhuge, Jing Wei [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Rosenberg, Michael I. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Hart, Philip R. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Liu, Bing [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-06-01

    As required by statute (42 USC 6833), DOE recently issued a determination that ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013 would achieve greater energy efficiency in buildings subject to the code compared to the 2010 edition of the standard. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) conducted an energy savings analysis for Standard 90.1-2013 in support of its determination . While Standard 90.1 is the model energy standard for commercial and multi-family residential buildings over three floors (42 USC 6833), many states have historically adopted the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) for both residential and commercial buildings. This report provides an assessment as to whether buildings constructed to the commercial energy efficiency provisions of the 2015 IECC would save energy and energy costs as compared to the 2012 IECC. PNNL also compared the energy performance of the 2015 IECC with the corresponding Standard 90.1-2013. The goal of this analysis is to help states and local jurisdictions make informed decisions regarding model code adoption.

  17. Energy and Energy Cost Savings Analysis of the 2015 IECC for Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Jian [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Xie, YuLong [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Athalye, Rahul A. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Zhuge, Jing Wei [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Rosenberg, Michael I. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Hart, Philip R. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Liu, Bing [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-09-01

    As required by statute (42 USC 6833), DOE recently issued a determination that ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013 would achieve greater energy efficiency in buildings subject to the code compared to the 2010 edition of the standard. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) conducted an energy savings analysis for Standard 90.1-2013 in support of its determination . While Standard 90.1 is the model energy standard for commercial and multi-family residential buildings over three floors (42 USC 6833), many states have historically adopted the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) for both residential and commercial buildings. This report provides an assessment as to whether buildings constructed to the commercial energy efficiency provisions of the 2015 IECC would save energy and energy costs as compared to the 2012 IECC. PNNL also compared the energy performance of the 2015 IECC with the corresponding Standard 90.1-2013. The goal of this analysis is to help states and local jurisdictions make informed decisions regarding model code adoption.

  18. 41 CFR 101-29.214 - Commercial-type product.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Commercial-type product... Regulations System FEDERAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS SUPPLY AND PROCUREMENT 29-FEDERAL PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS 29.2-Definitions § 101-29.214 Commercial-type product. A commercial-type product is defined as: (a...

  19. A comprehensive framework to quantify energy savings potential from improved operations of commercial building stocks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Azar, Elie; Menassa, Carol C.

    2014-01-01

    While studies highlight the significant impact of actions performed by occupants and facility managers on building energy performance, current policies ignore the importance of human actions and the potential energy savings from a more efficient operation of building systems. This is mainly attributed to the lack of methods that evaluate non-technological drivers of energy use for large stocks of commercial buildings to support policy making efforts. Therefore, this study proposes a scientific approach to quantifying the energy savings potential due to improved operations of any stock of commercial buildings. The proposed framework combines energy modeling techniques, studies on human actions in buildings, and surveying and sampling methods. The contributions of this study to energy policy are significant as they reinforce the role of human actions in energy conservation, and support efforts to integrate operation-focused solutions in energy conservation policy frameworks. The framework's capabilities are illustrated in a case study performed on the stock of office buildings in the United States (US). Results indicate a potential 21 percent reduction in the current energy use levels of these buildings through realistic changes in current building operation patterns. - Highlights: • Human actions highly influence energy performance of commercial building stocks. • It is challenging to quantify operation-related energy savings potential. • The proposed framework quantifies potential energy savings from improved operations. • The framework can be applied on any stock of commercial buildings. • Applications include support for operation-focused solutions in energy policies

  20. India Commercial Buildings Data Framework: A Summary of Potential Use Cases

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mathew, Paul [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Mathew, Sangeeta [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Kumar, Satish [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Singh, Mohini [Synurja, LLC, Vienna, VA (United States); Stratton, Hannah [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Iyer, Maithili [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2016-05-01

    This report details a potential set of use cases for India’s Commercial Buildings Data Framework. The use cases are aimed at enabling data-driven, evidence-based policy making and at transforming the market for energy efficiency in the building sector by facilitating the adoption of (1) superior energy-efficient building design and operation and maintenance practices, and (2) better specification and procurement of end-use equipment and systems.

  1. 40 CFR 745.228 - Accreditation of training programs: public and commercial buildings, bridges and superstructures...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 30 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Accreditation of training programs: public and commercial buildings, bridges and superstructures. [Reserved] 745.228 Section 745.228... Accreditation of training programs: public and commercial buildings, bridges and superstructures. [Reserved] ...

  2. Potential for energy technologies in residential and commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Glesk, M.M.

    1979-11-01

    The residential-commercial energy technology model was developed as a planning tool for policy analysis in the residential and commercial building sectors. The model and its procedures represent a detailed approach to estimating the future acceptance of energy-using technologies both in new construction and for retrofit into existing buildings. The model organizes into an analytical framework all relevant information and data on building energy technology, building markets, and government policy, and it allows for easy identification of the relative importance of key assumptions. The outputs include estimates of the degree of penetration of the various building energy technologies, the levels of energy use savings associated with them, and their costs - both private and government. The model was designed to estimate the annual energy savings associated with new technologies compared with continued use of conventional technology at 1975 levels. The amount of energy used under 1975 technology conditions is referred to as the reference case energy use. For analytical purposes the technologies were consolidated into ten groupings: electric and gas heat pumps; conservation categories I, II, and III; solar thermal (hot water, heating, and cooling); photovoltaics, and wind systems. These groupings clearly do not allow an assessment of the potential for individual technologies, but they do allow a reasonable comparison of their roles in the R/C sector. Assumptions were made regarding the technical and economic performances of the technologies over the period of the analysis. In addition, the study assessed the non-financial characteristics of the technologies - aesthetics, maintenance complexity, reliability, etc. - that will also influence their market acceptability.

  3. Indoor air quality issues related to the acquisition of conservation in commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Baechler, M.C.; Hadley, D.L.; Marseille, T.J.

    1990-09-01

    The quality of indoor air in commercial buildings is dependent on the complex interaction between sources of indoor pollutants, environmental factors within buildings such as temperature and humidity, the removal of air pollutants by air-cleaning devices, and the removal and dilution of pollutants from outside air. To the extent that energy conservation measures (ECMs) may affect a number of these factors, the relationship between ECMs and indoor air quality is difficult to predict. Energy conservation measures may affect pollutant levels in other ways. Conservation measures, such as caulking and insulation, may introduce sources of indoor pollutants. Measures that reduce mechanical ventilation may allow pollutants to build up inside structures. Finally, heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems may provide surface areas for the growth of biogenic agents, or may encourage the dissemination of pollutants throughout a building. Information about indoor air quality and ventilation in both new and existing commercial buildings is summarized in this report. Sick building syndrome and specific pollutants are discussed, as are broader issues such as ventilation, general mitigation techniques, and the interaction between energy conservation activities and indoor air quality. Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) prepared this review to aid the Bonneville Power Administration (Bonneville) in its assessment of potential environmental effects resulting from conservation activities in commercial buildings. 76 refs., 2 figs., 19 tabs.

  4. "Watts per person" paradigm to design net zero energy buildings: Examining technology interventions and integrating occupant feedback to reduce plug loads in a commercial building

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yagi Kim, Mika

    As building envelopes have improved due to more restrictive energy codes, internal loads have increased largely due to the proliferation of computers, electronics, appliances, imaging and audio visual equipment that continues to grow in commercial buildings. As the dependency on the internet for information and data transfer increases, the electricity demand will pose a challenge to design and operate Net Zero Energy Buildings (NZEBs). Plug Loads (PLs) as a proportion of the building load has become the largest non-regulated building energy load and represents the third highest electricity end-use in California's commercial office buildings, accounting for 23% of the total building electricity consumption (Ecova 2011,2). In the Annual Energy Outlook 2008 (AEO2008), prepared by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) that presents long-term projections of energy supply and demand through 2030 states that office equipment and personal computers are the "fastest growing electrical end uses" in the commercial sector. This thesis entitled "Watts Per Person" Paradigm to Design Net Zero Energy Buildings, measures the implementation of advanced controls and behavioral interventions to study the reduction of PL energy use in the commercial sector. By integrating real world data extracted from an energy efficient commercial building of its energy use, the results produce a new methodology on estimating PL energy use by calculating based on "Watts Per Person" and analyzes computational simulation methods to design NZEBs.

  5. Destruction of Spores on Building Decontamination Residue in a Commercial Autoclave▿

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemieux, P.; Sieber, R.; Osborne, A.; Woodard, A.

    2006-01-01

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted an experiment to evaluate the effectiveness of a commercial autoclave for treating simulated building decontamination residue (BDR). The BDR was intended to simulate porous materials removed from a building deliberately contaminated with biological agents such as Bacillus anthracis (anthrax) in a terrorist attack. The purpose of the tests was to assess whether the standard operating procedure for a commercial autoclave provided sufficiently robust conditions to adequately destroy bacterial spores bound to the BDR. In this study we investigated the effects of several variables related to autoclaving BDR, including time, temperature, pressure, item type, moisture content, packing density, packing orientation, autoclave bag integrity, and autoclave process sequence. The test team created simulated BDR from wallboard, ceiling tiles, carpet, and upholstered furniture, and embedded in the BDR were Geobacillus stearothermophilus biological indicator (BI) strips containing 106 spores and thermocouples to obtain time and temperature profile data associated with each BI strip. The results indicated that a single standard autoclave cycle did not effectively decontaminate the BDR. Autoclave cycles consisting of 120 min at 31.5 lb/in2 and 275°F and 75 min at 45 lb/in2 and 292°F effectively decontaminated the BDR material. Two sequential standard autoclave cycles consisting of 40 min at 31.5 lb/in2 and 275°F proved to be particularly effective, probably because the second cycle's evacuation step pulled the condensed water out of the pores of the materials, allowing better steam penetration. The results also indicated that the packing density and material type of the BDR in the autoclave could have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the decontamination process. PMID:17012597

  6. Destruction of spores on building decontamination residue in a commercial autoclave.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemieux, P; Sieber, R; Osborne, A; Woodard, A

    2006-12-01

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted an experiment to evaluate the effectiveness of a commercial autoclave for treating simulated building decontamination residue (BDR). The BDR was intended to simulate porous materials removed from a building deliberately contaminated with biological agents such as Bacillus anthracis (anthrax) in a terrorist attack. The purpose of the tests was to assess whether the standard operating procedure for a commercial autoclave provided sufficiently robust conditions to adequately destroy bacterial spores bound to the BDR. In this study we investigated the effects of several variables related to autoclaving BDR, including time, temperature, pressure, item type, moisture content, packing density, packing orientation, autoclave bag integrity, and autoclave process sequence. The test team created simulated BDR from wallboard, ceiling tiles, carpet, and upholstered furniture, and embedded in the BDR were Geobacillus stearothermophilus biological indicator (BI) strips containing 10(6) spores and thermocouples to obtain time and temperature profile data associated with each BI strip. The results indicated that a single standard autoclave cycle did not effectively decontaminate the BDR. Autoclave cycles consisting of 120 min at 31.5 lb/in2 and 275 degrees F and 75 min at 45 lb/in2 and 292 degrees F effectively decontaminated the BDR material. Two sequential standard autoclave cycles consisting of 40 min at 31.5 lb/in2 and 275 degrees F proved to be particularly effective, probably because the second cycle's evacuation step pulled the condensed water out of the pores of the materials, allowing better steam penetration. The results also indicated that the packing density and material type of the BDR in the autoclave could have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the decontamination process.

  7. New Air Cleaning Strategies for Reduced Commercial Building Ventilation Energy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sidheswaran, Meera; Destaillats, Hugo; Sullivan, Douglas P.; Fisk, William J.

    2010-10-27

    Approximately ten percent of the energy consumed in U.S. commercial buildings is used by HVAC systems to condition outdoor ventilation air. Reducing ventilation rates would be a simple and broadly-applicable energy retrofit option, if practical counter measures were available that maintained acceptable concentrations of indoor-generated air pollutants. The two general categories of countermeasures are: 1) indoor pollutant source control, and 2) air cleaning. Although pollutant source control should be used to the degree possible, source control is complicated by the large number and changing nature of indoor pollutant sources. Particle air cleaning is already routinely applied in commercial buildings. Previous calculations indicate that particle filtration consumes only 10percent to 25percent of the energy that would otherwise be required to achieve an equivalent amount of particle removal with ventilation. If cost-effective air cleaning technologies for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were also available, outdoor air ventilation rates could be reduced substantially and broadly in the commercial building stock to save energy. The research carried out in this project focuses on developing novel VOC air cleaning technologies needed to enable energy-saving reductions in ventilation rates. The minimum required VOC removal efficiency to counteract a 50percent reduction in ventilation rate for air cleaning systems installed in the HVAC supply airstream is modest (generally 20percent or less).

  8. Evaluation of a energy consumption index for commercial buildings in Brazil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Silva, Jose Eduardo Correa Santana; Hernandez Neto, Alberto [Universidade de Sao Paulo (EP/USP), SP (Brazil). Escola Politecnica], Emails: jose.edu@gmail.com, ahneto@usp.br

    2010-07-01

    The present paper proposes a energy consumption index for commercial buildings located in four different Brazilian climates. For such evaluations, the building simulation tool EnergyPlus was used and a sensitivity analysis was made for some of the main parameters of an air-conditioned building. The analysis showed that the electrical power and lighting density as well as the COP of the air conditioning system promotes the higher variations on the proposed energy index. (author)

  9. Measured energy savings and cost-effectiveness of conservation retrofits in commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Greely, K.M.; Harris, J.P.; Hatcher, A.M.

    1990-01-01

    In this study, the authors examine the measured savings and cost-effectiveness of 447 commercial retrofit projects in the US, Canada, and Europe, representing over 1,700 buildings. For these projects, they examine savings and cost-effectiveness by building type and retrofit strategy, savings from individual measures, peak electric demand savings, comparisons of measured vs. predicted savings, and the persistence of savings in the years following a retrofit. Median annual site energy savings amounted to 20 kBtu/ft 2 , or 18% of whole-building usage; median retrofit cost was $0.56/ft 2 (1988 $), the median payback time was 3.1 years, and the median cost of conserved energy was $3.10/site MBtu. When examined by retrofit strategy, they found that projects with only HVAC and/or lighting retrofits had median payback times of one to three years, while those affecting the building shell, either alone or in combination with other types of measures, had payback times of five or more years. Projects in which only maintenance practices were changed typically saved 12% of their pre-retrofit consumption, often using in-house labor. Their research suggests that, despite significant savings and short payback times for the majority of projects, optimum savings are often not being achieved, due to limited owner willingness to invest in all cost-effective measures, as well as to improper retrofit installation and/or maintenance. A comprehensive understanding of energy management as a process is needed, including both inspection and commissioning of installed retrofits and ongoing tracking of energy consumption as an indicator of operating problems

  10. Commercializing Government-sponsored Innovations: Twelve Successful Buildings Case Studies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, M. A.; Berry, L. G.; Goel, R. K.

    1989-01-01

    This report examines the commercialization and use of R and D results funded by DOE's Office of Buildings and Community Systems (OBCS), an office that is dedicated to improving the energy efficiency of the nation's buildings. Three goals guided the research described in this report: to improve understanding of the factors that hinder or facilitate the transfer of OBCS R and D results, to determine which technology transfer strategies are most effective and under what circumstances each is appropriate, and to document the market penetration and energy savings achieved by successfully-commercialized innovations that have received OBCS support. Twelve successfully-commercialized innovations are discussed here. The methodology employed involved a review of the literature, interviews with innovation program managers and industry personnel, and data collection from secondary sources. Six generic technology transfer strategies are also described. Of these, contracting R and D to industrial partners is found to be the most commonly used strategy in our case studies. The market penetration achieved to date by the innovations studied ranges from less than 1% to 100%. For the three innovations with the highest predicted levels of energy savings (i.e., the flame retention head oil burner, low-E windows, and solid-state ballasts), combined cumulative savings by the year 2000 are likely to approach 2 quads. To date the energy savings for these three innovations have been about 0.2 quads. Our case studies illustrate the important role federal agencies can play in commercializing new technologies.

  11. The role of grid-connected, building-integrated photovoltaic generation in commercial building energy and power loads in a warm and sunny climate

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Braun, P.; Ruether, R.

    2010-01-01

    For large commercial buildings, power load delivery limits are contracted with the local electricity distribution utility, and are usually fixed at one or more levels over the year, according to the seasonal building loads, and depending on the specific country regulations. Especially in warm and sunny climates, solar electricity generation using building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) can assist in reducing commercial building loads, offering peak-shaving (power) benefits on top of the on-site generation of electricity (energy). This on-site power delivery capability gives these consumers the possibility of renegotiating demand contracts with their distribution utility. Commercial buildings that operate during daytime quite often have an energy consumption profile that is well matched by solar radiation availability, and depending on the building's available surface areas, BIPV can generate considerable portions of the energy requirements. In this work we present the role of grid-connected BIPV in reducing the load demands of a large and urban commercial building located in a warm climate in Brazil. The building and adjacent car parking lots can accommodate a 1 MWp BIPV generator, which closely matches the building's typical maximum power demands. Based on real solar radiation data and simultaneous building electricity demands for the year 2007, simulation of the annual solar generation profile of this on-site generator showed that the 1 MWp BIPV system could account for around 30% of the total building's energy consumption. In addition to the energy benefit, maximum power demands were reduced due to a good match between midday air-conditioning cooling loads and solar radiation availability on both a daily and seasonal basis. Furthermore, we have simulated the effect of this considerably large urban-sited generator on the local distribution network load, and have shown that the 1 MWp BIPV installation can also offer considerable benefits to the local utility in

  12. Analysis of Potential Benefits and Costs of Adopting a Commercial Building Energy Standard in South Dakota

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Belzer, David B.; Cort, Katherine A.; Winiarski, David W.; Richman, Eric E.

    2005-03-04

    The state of South Dakota is considering adopting a commercial building energy standard. This report evaluates the potential costs and benefits to South Dakota residents from requiring compliance with the most recent edition of the ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA 90.1-2001 Energy Standard for Buildings except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. These standards were developed in an effort to set minimum requirements for the energy efficient design and construction of new commercial buildings. The quantitative benefits and costs of adopting a commercial building energy code are modeled by comparing the characteristics of assumed current building practices with the most recent edition of the ASHRAE Standard, 90.1-2001. Both qualitative and quantitative benefits and costs are assessed in this analysis. Energy and economic impacts are estimated using results from a detailed building simulation tool (Building Loads Analysis and System Thermodynamics [BLAST] model) combined with a Life-Cycle Cost (LCC) approach to assess corresponding economic costs and benefits.

  13. Energy Savings Modeling and Inspection Guidelines for Commercial Building Federal Tax Deductions for Buildings in 2016 and Later

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Deru, Michael [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Field-Macumber, Kristin [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2016-09-01

    This document provides guidance for modeling and inspecting energy-efficient property in commercial buildings for certification of the energy and power cost savings related to Section 179D of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) enacted in Section 1331 of the 2005 Energy Policy Act (EPAct) of 2005, noted in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Notices 2006-52 (IRS 2006), 2008-40 (IRS 2008) and 2012-26 (IRS 2012), and updated by the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act of 2015. Specifically, Section 179D provides federal tax deductions for energy-efficient property related to a commercial building's envelope; interior lighting; heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC); and service hot water (SHW) systems. This document applies to buildings placed in service on or after January 1, 2016.

  14. Energy retrofit of commercial buildings. Case study and applied methodology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Aste, N.; Del Pero, C. [Department of Building Environment Science and Technology (BEST), Politecnico di Milano, Via Bonardi 3, 20133 Milan (Italy)

    2013-05-15

    Commercial buildings are responsible for a significant share of the energy requirements of European Union countries. Related consumptions due to heating, cooling, and lighting appear, in most cases, very high and expensive. Since the real estate is renewed with a very small percentage each year and current trends suggest reusing the old structures, strategies for improving energy efficiency and sustainability should focus not only on new buildings, but also and especially on existing ones. Architectural renovation of existing buildings could provide an opportunity to enhance their energy efficiency, by working on the improvement of envelopes and energy supply systems. It has also to be noted that the measures aimed to improve the energy performance of buildings should pay particular attention to the cost-effectiveness of the interventions. In general, there is a lack of well-established methods for retrofitting, but if a case study achieves effective results, the adopted strategies and methodologies can be successfully replicated for similar kinds of buildings. In this paper, an iterative methodology for energy retrofit of commercial buildings is presented, together with a specific application on an existing office building. The case study is particularly significant as it is placed in an urban climatic context characterized by cold winters and hot summers; consequently, HVAC energy consumption is considerable throughout the year. The analysis and simulations of energy performance before and after the intervention, along with measured data on real energy performance, demonstrate the validity of the applied approach. The specifically developed design and refurbishment methodology, presented in this work, could be also assumed as a reference in similar operations.

  15. Modeling and Analysis of Commercial Building Electrical Loads for Demand Side Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berardino, Jonathan

    In recent years there has been a push in the electric power industry for more customer involvement in the electricity markets. Traditionally the end user has played a passive role in the planning and operation of the power grid. However, many energy markets have begun opening up opportunities to consumers who wish to commit a certain amount of their electrical load under various demand side management programs. The potential benefits of more demand participation include reduced operating costs and new revenue opportunities for the consumer, as well as more reliable and secure operations for the utilities. The management of these load resources creates challenges and opportunities to the end user that were not present in previous market structures. This work examines the behavior of commercial-type building electrical loads and their capacity for supporting demand side management actions. This work is motivated by the need for accurate and dynamic tools to aid in the advancement of demand side operations. A dynamic load model is proposed for capturing the response of controllable building loads. Building-specific load forecasting techniques are developed, with particular focus paid to the integration of building management system (BMS) information. These approaches are tested using Drexel University building data. The application of building-specific load forecasts and dynamic load modeling to the optimal scheduling of multi-building systems in the energy market is proposed. Sources of potential load uncertainty are introduced in the proposed energy management problem formulation in order to investigate the impact on the resulting load schedule.

  16. 29 CFR 779.336 - Sales of building materials for commercial property construction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... property construction. Sales of building materials to a contractor or speculative builder for the... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Sales of building materials for commercial property construction. 779.336 Section 779.336 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION...

  17. Correlation between temperature satisfaction and unsolicited complaint rates in commercial buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, D; Federspiel, C C; Arens, E

    2005-02-01

    This paper analyzes the relation between temperature satisfaction ratings expressed on a questionnaire and unsolicited complaint rates recorded in a maintenance database. The key findings are as follows: (i) the satisfaction ratings and complaint rates are negatively correlated with a moderate magnitude (r(s) = -0.31 to -0.36), and the correlation is statistically significant (P = 0.01-0.005), and (ii) the percent dissatisfied with temperature and the complaint rate are positively correlated with moderate magnitude (r(s) = 0.31-0.36), and the correlation is statistically significant (P = 0.01-0.004). Both data sets contain 'real-world' measures of temperature satisfaction, with the complaints contributing directly to the cost of operations and maintenance. The relationship between two validates a new method of assessing the economic cost of thermal discomfort in commercial buildings. Complaints in commercial buildings indicate occupants' dissatisfaction to their environments. It not only deteriorates occupants' performance and organization productivity, but also increases building maintenance and operating cost. Nailing economic consequences of complaints will enable monetary comparison of discomfort cost with building and operating costs. This comparison may be desirable for building owners and tenants to make well-informed decisions on construction, rental, and retrofit. It may also be used to evaluate complaint diagnostic and eliminating techniques.

  18. Commercializing government-sponsored innovations: Twelve successful buildings case studies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brown, M.A.; Berry, L.G.; Goel, R.K.

    1989-01-01

    This report examines the commercialization and use of R and D results funded by DOE's Office of Buildings and Community Systems (OBCS), an office that is dedicated to improving the energy efficiency of the nation's buildings. Three goals guided the research described in this report: to improve understanding of the factors that hinder or facilitate the transfer of OBCS R and D results, to determine which technology transfer strategies are most effective and under what circumstances each is appropriate, and to document the market penetration and energy savings achieved by successfully-commercialized innovations that have received OBCS support. Twelve successfully-commercialized innovations are discussed here. The methodology employed involved a review of the literature, interviews with innovation program managers and industry personnel, and data collection from secondary sources. Six generic technology transfer strategies are also described. Of these, contracting R and D to industrial partners is found to be the most commonly used strategy in our case studies. The market penetration achieved to date by the innovations studied ranges from less than 1% to 100%. For the three innovations with the highest predicted levels of energy savings (i.e., the flame retention head oil burner, low-E windows, and solid-state ballasts), combined cumulative savings by the year 2000 are likely to approach 2 quads. To date the energy savings for these three innovations have been about 0.2 quads. Our case studies illustrate the important role federal agencies can play in commercializing new technologies. 27 refs., 21 figs., 4 tabs.

  19. Energy Savings Potential and Research, Development, & Demonstration Opportunities for Commercial Building Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    none,

    2011-09-01

    This report covers an assessment of 182 different heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) technologies for U.S. commercial buildings to identify and provide analysis on 17 priority technology options in various stages of development. The analyses include an estimation of technical energy-savings potential, description of technical maturity, description of non-energy benefits, description of current barriers for market adoption, and description of the technology’s applicability to different building or HVAC equipment types. From these technology descriptions, are suggestions for potential research, development and demonstration (RD&D) initiatives that would support further development of the priority technology options.

  20. Assessment of the Technical Potential for Achieving Net Zero-Energy Buildings in the Commercial Sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Griffith, B.; Long, N.; Torcellini, P.; Judkoff, R.; Crawley, D.; Ryan, J.

    2007-12-01

    This report summarizes the findings from research conducted at NREL to assess the technical potential for zero-energy building technologies and practices to reduce the impact of commercial buildings on the U.S. energy system. Commercial buildings currently account for 18% of annual U.S. energy consumption, and energy use is growing along with overall floor area. Reducing the energy use of this sector will require aggressive research goals and rapid implementation of the research results.

  1. Comparative study of commercial building energy-efficiency retrofit policies in four pilot cities in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hou, Jing; Liu, Yisheng; Wu, Yong; Zhou, Nan; Feng, Wei

    2016-01-01

    The energy efficiency of existing commercial buildings is more challenging to regulate and improve than the energy efficiency of new constructions. In 2011 and 2012, the Chinese Government selected four cities- Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenzhen, and Chongqing- to implement pilot commercial building energy efficiency retrofit program. Based on site surveys and expert interviews in these pilot cities, this research conducted a comparative analysis on incentive policies of local city level. The analysis results show that policy designs of existing commercial buildings should be further improved. The aspects that influence the implementation effect in the future, such as subsidy level, installments, and business model promotion, should be specified in the policy clauses. Referring to the technical solution and cost-benefit in Chongqing, we found that lighting system is the most common retrofit objects while envelope system is the least common one. And the subsidy incentive is greatest for educational buildings, followed by office buildings. In the end, we further discussed the problems and obstacles in commercial building retrofit market, and provided a series of recommendations. - Highlights: • Data and information were collected through site surveys to the four pilot cities. • Policy design and effectiveness in four cities were comparatively analyzed. • Well-designed policy increases market response, energy savings and EMC adoption. • Lighting is the most common retrofit while envelope is the least common one. • Subsidy incentive is greatest for educational buildings due to the utility tariff.

  2. Using EMIS to Identify Top Opportunities for Commercial Building Efficiency

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lin, Guanjing [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Singla, Rupam [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Granderson, Jessica [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2017-04-11

    Energy Management and Information Systems (EMIS) comprise a broad family of tools and services to manage commercial building energy use. These technologies offer a mix of capabilities to store, display, and analyze energy use and system data, and in some cases, provide control. EMIS technologies enable 10–20 percent site energy savings in best practice implementations. Energy Information System (EIS) and Fault Detection and Diagnosis (FDD) systems are two key technologies in the EMIS family. Energy Information Systems are broadly defined as the web-based software, data acquisition hardware, and communication systems used to analyze and display building energy performance. At a minimum, an EIS provides daily, hourly or sub-hourly interval meter data at the whole-building level, with graphical and analytical capability. Fault Detection and Diagnosis systems automatically identify heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system or equipment-level performances issues, and in some cases are able to isolate the root causes of the problem. They use computer algorithms to continuously analyze system-level operational data to detect faults and diagnose their causes. Many FDD tools integrate the trend log data from a Building Automation System (BAS) but otherwise are stand-alone software packages; other types of FDD tools are implemented as “on-board” equipment-embedded diagnostics. (This document focuses on the former.) Analysis approaches adopted in FDD technologies span a variety of techniques from rule-based methods to process history-based approaches. FDD tools automate investigations that can be conducted via manual data inspection by someone with expert knowledge, thereby expanding accessibility and breath of analysis opportunity, and also reducing complexity.

  3. 2020 Leadership Agenda for Existing Commercial and Multifamily Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Burr, Andrew [Dept. of Energy (DOE), Washington DC (United States). Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Goldthwaite, Carolyn Sarno [Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP), Boston, MA (United States). High Performance Buildings; Coffman, Eric [Montgomery County Dept. of General Services, Rockville, MD (United States). Office of Energy and Sustainability

    2016-01-21

    Leadership by state and local governments is critical to unlock national energy efficiency opportunities and deliver the benefits of efficiency to all Americans. But related to building energy efficiency, what will it mean to be a public sector leader over the next several years? What are the energy efficiency solutions that cities, counties, and states are implementing today that will make their communities more affordable, livable, healthy, and economically competitive? The SEE Action Network 2020 Leadership Agenda for Existing Commercial and Multifamily Buildings establishes a benchmark for state and local government leadership on improving the energy efficiency of buildings and seeks two-way collaboration among state, local, and federal officials. It defines a suite of innovative, yet practical policies and programs for policymakers to consider implementing by 2020, focusing on six important areas.

  4. Energy Savings Potential and RD&D Opportunities for Commercial Building HVAC Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Goetzler, William [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Shandross, Richard [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Young, Jim [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Petritchenko, Oxana [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Ringo, Decker [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); McClive, Sam [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States)

    2017-12-01

    The Building Technologies Office (BTO) commissioned this characterization and technology assessment of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems for commercial buildings. The main objectives of this study: Identify a wide range of technology options in varying stages of development that could reduce commercial HVAC energy consumption; Characterize these technology options based on their technical energy-savings potential, development status, non-energy benefits, and other factors affecting end-user acceptance and the ability to compete with conventional HVAC technologies; Make specific recommendations to DOE and other stakeholders on potential research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities that would support further development of the most promising technology options.

  5. BizWatts: A modular socio-technical energy management system for empowering commercial building occupants to conserve energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gulbinas, R.; Jain, R.K.; Taylor, J.E.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • We developed a socio-technical commercial building energy management system. • It was designed for directly engaging and connecting building occupants via feedback. • We collected an array of clickstream data for internal design validation. • A pilot study validated its ability to drive energy savings in commercial buildings. - Abstract: Commercial buildings represent a significant portion of energy consumption and environmental emissions worldwide. To help mitigate the environmental impact of building operations, building energy management systems and behavior-based campaigns designed to reduce energy consumption are becoming increasingly popular. In this paper, we describe the development of a modular socio-technical energy management system, BizWatts, which combines the two approaches by providing real-time, appliance-level power management and socially contextualized energy consumption feedback. We describe in detail the physical and virtual architecture of the system, which simultaneously engages building occupants and facility managers, as well as the main principles behind the interface design and component functionalities. A discussion about how the data collection capabilities of the system enable insightful commercial building energy efficiency studies and quantitative network analysis is also included. We conclude by commenting on the validation of the system, identifying current system limitations and introducing new research avenues that the development and deployment of BizWatts enables

  6. Better Buildings Neighborhood Program: BetterBuildings Lowell Final Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heslin, Thomas

    2014-01-31

    The City of Lowell set four goals at the beginning of the Better Buildings Neighborhood Program: 1. Improve the Downtown Historic Park District’s Carbon Footprint 2. Develop a sustainable and replicable model for energy efficiency in historic buildings 3. Create and retain jobs 4. Promote multi-stakeholder partnerships The City of Lowell, MA was awarded $5 million in May 2010 to conduct energy efficiency retrofits within the downtown National Historical Park (NHP). The City’s target was to complete retrofits in 200,000 square feet of commercial space and create 280 jobs, while adhering to the strict historical preservation regulations that govern the NHP. The development of a model for energy efficiency in historic buildings was successfully accomplished. BetterBuildings Lowell’s success in energy efficiency in historic buildings was due to the simplicity of the program. We relied strongly on the replacement of antiquated HVAC systems and air sealing and a handful of talented energy auditors and contractors. BetterBuildings Lowell was unique for the Better Buildings Neighborhood Program because it was the only program that focused solely on commercial properties. BetterBuildings Lowell did target multi-family properties, which were reported as commercial, but the majority of the building types and uses were commercial. Property types targeted were restaurants, office buildings, museums, sections of larger buildings, mixed use buildings, and multifamily buildings. This unique fabric of building type and use allows for a deeper understanding to how different properties use energy. Because of the National Historical Park designation of downtown Lowell, being able to implement energy efficiency projects within a highly regulated historical district also provided valuable research and precedent proving energy efficiency projects can be successfully completed in historical districts and historical buildings. Our program was very successful in working with the local

  7. Start point to savings - Better load demand analysis in commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abaravicius, Juozas; Pyrko, Jurek [Lund Univ., Dept of Energy Sciences (Sweden)

    2007-07-01

    Existing installations and energy systems in most commercial buildings could be used in a more efficient way to provide savings - both in terms of energy and load demand. The key for effective operation is a thorough and detailed analysis of energy use patterns that creates essential baseline for energy savings and the development of demand response (DR) strategies. The knowledge of energy demand variations is still very limited and the use of methods to analyse the load demand is rare. Many utilities have recently installed interval (hourly) metering even for smaller commercial users and households. This is a big step forward; however, experience shows that the data is being used only to a limited extent, mostly for billing purposes only. This paper reports about a study conducted with the objective of developing a detailed load demand analysis for commercial buildings. The study results should provide essential information for the formation and evaluation of future DR and energy efficiency strategies. This study was performed in collaboration with IKEA and E.ON and contributes to an ongoing IKEA energy efficiency programme. Two sample department stores in Sweden were selected and analysed within this project. The demand data analysis covers almost 3 years period, 2004-2006.This study contributes to new knowledge of energy use patterns (load demand) in commercial buildings. It proposes solutions of load-related problems, evaluates energy and load savings potential, identifies and analyses the needs, motives and barriers for participation in DR programmes. The study provides recommendations for ongoing and future efficiency and DR strategies and discusses the potential economic benefits from the DR measures.

  8. Regulation proposal for voluntary energy efficiency labelling of commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lamberts, Roberto; Goulart, Solange; Carlo, Joyce; Westphal, Fernando

    2006-01-01

    Despite of Brazil not being between the major world energy consumers, the consumption of electricity has significantly increased in the late years. The National Energy Balance of 2005, published by the Brazilian Ministry of Energy, showed an increasing of the participation of electricity in the final energy consumption of 15.7% in 2002 to 16.2% in 2004. Initially, a brief review of the initiatives taken by Brazilian Government aiming to limit and control the energy consumption in buildings is presented. Then, the regulation proposal containing the technical requirements to classify the energy efficiency level of buildings is shown. The purpose of this voluntary regulation is to provide conditions to certify the energy efficiency level of Brazilian buildings (commercial and public). It specifies the methods for energy efficiency rating of buildings and includes requirements to attend energy conservation measures in three main issues: lighting system; air conditioning system and envelope. The regulation applies to large buildings (minimum total area of 500 m 2 or when the energy demand is greater than or equal to 2,3 kV, including: Conditioned buildings; Partially conditioned buildings and Naturally ventilated buildings. (author)

  9. Using the fuzzy linear regression method to benchmark the energy efficiency of commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chung, William

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Fuzzy linear regression method is used for developing benchmarking systems. ► The systems can be used to benchmark energy efficiency of commercial buildings. ► The resulting benchmarking model can be used by public users. ► The resulting benchmarking model can capture the fuzzy nature of input–output data. -- Abstract: Benchmarking systems from a sample of reference buildings need to be developed to conduct benchmarking processes for the energy efficiency of commercial buildings. However, not all benchmarking systems can be adopted by public users (i.e., other non-reference building owners) because of the different methods in developing such systems. An approach for benchmarking the energy efficiency of commercial buildings using statistical regression analysis to normalize other factors, such as management performance, was developed in a previous work. However, the field data given by experts can be regarded as a distribution of possibility. Thus, the previous work may not be adequate to handle such fuzzy input–output data. Consequently, a number of fuzzy structures cannot be fully captured by statistical regression analysis. This present paper proposes the use of fuzzy linear regression analysis to develop a benchmarking process, the resulting model of which can be used by public users. An illustrative example is given as well.

  10. Energy optimization methodology of multi-chiller plant in commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thangavelu, Sundar Raj; Myat, Aung; Khambadkone, Ashwin

    2017-01-01

    This study investigates the potential energy savings in commercial buildings through optimized operation of a multi-chiller plant. The cooling load contributes 45–60% of total power consumption in commercial and office buildings, especially at tropics. The chiller plant operation is not optimal in most of the existing buildings because the chiller plant is either operated at design condition irrespective of the cooling load or optimized locally due to lack of overall chiller plant behavior. In this study, an overall energy model of chiller plant is developed to capture the thermal behavior of all systems and their interactions including the power consumption. An energy optimization methodology is proposed to derive optimized operation decisions for chiller plant at regular intervals based on building thermal load and weather condition. The benefits of proposed energy optimization methodology are examined using case study problems covering different chiller plant configurations. The case studies result confirmed the energy savings achieved through optimized operations is up to 40% for moderate size chiller plant and around 20% for small chiller plant which consequently reduces the energy cost and greenhouse gas emissions. - Highlights: • Energy optimization methodology improves the performance of multi-chiller plant. • Overall energy model of chiller plant accounts all equipment and the interactions. • Operation decisions are derived at regular interval based on time-varying factors. • Three case studies confirmed 20 to 40% of energy savings than conventional method.

  11. COMPREHENSIVE DIAGNOSTIC AND IMPROVEMENT TOOLS FOR HVAC-SYSTEM INSTALLATIONS IN LIGHT COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abram Conant; Mark Modera; Joe Pira; John Proctor; Mike Gebbie

    2004-10-31

    Proctor Engineering Group, Ltd. (PEG) and Carrier-Aeroseal LLP performed an investigation of opportunities for improving air conditioning and heating system performance in existing light commercial buildings. Comprehensive diagnostic and improvement tools were created to address equipment performance parameters (including airflow, refrigerant charge, and economizer operation), duct-system performance (including duct leakage, zonal flows and thermal-energy delivery), and combustion appliance safety within these buildings. This investigation, sponsored by the National Energy Technology Laboratory, a division of the U.S. Department of Energy, involved collaboration between PEG and Aeroseal in order to refine three technologies previously developed for the residential market: (1) an aerosol-based duct sealing technology that allows the ducts to be sealed remotely (i.e., without removing the ceiling tiles), (2) a computer-driven diagnostic and improvement-tracking tool for residential duct installations, and (3) an integrated diagnosis verification and customer satisfaction system utilizing a combined computer/human expert system for HVAC performance. Prior to this work the aerosol-sealing technology was virtually untested in the light commercial sector--mostly because the savings potential and practicality of this or any other type of duct sealing had not been documented. Based upon the field experiences of PEG and Aeroseal, the overall product was tailored to suit the skill sets of typical HVAC-contractor personnel.

  12. Development of whole-building energy design targets for commercial buildings: Phase 1, Planning: Volume 1, Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Crawley, D.B.; Briggs, R.S.; Jones, J.W.; Seaton, W.W.; Kaufman, J.E.; Deringer, J.J.; Kennett, E.W.

    1987-04-01

    This report describes background research for preparation of a plan for development of whole-building energy targets for new commercial buildings. The lead laboratory for this program is the Pacific Northwest Laboratory. A wide variety of expertise and resources from industry, academia, other government entities, and other DOE laboratories are used in planning, reviewing and conducting research activities. Cooperative and complementary research development, and technology transfer activities with other interested organizations are actively pursued.

  13. Review of California and National Methods for Energy PerformanceBenchmarking of Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Matson, Nance E.; Piette, Mary Ann

    2005-09-05

    This benchmarking review has been developed to support benchmarking planning and tool development under discussion by the California Energy Commission (CEC), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and others in response to the Governor's Executive Order S-20-04 (2004). The Executive Order sets a goal of benchmarking and improving the energy efficiency of California's existing commercial building stock. The Executive Order requires the CEC to propose ''a simple building efficiency benchmarking system for all commercial buildings in the state''. This report summarizes and compares two currently available commercial building energy-benchmarking tools. One tool is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star National Energy Performance Rating System, which is a national regression-based benchmarking model (referred to in this report as Energy Star). The second is Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's Cal-Arch, which is a California-based distributional model (referred to as Cal-Arch). Prior to the time Cal-Arch was developed in 2002, there were several other benchmarking tools available to California consumers but none that were based solely on California data. The Energy Star and Cal-Arch benchmarking tools both provide California with unique and useful methods to benchmark the energy performance of California's buildings. Rather than determine which model is ''better'', the purpose of this report is to understand and compare the underlying data, information systems, assumptions, and outcomes of each model.

  14. Ventilation, temperature, and HVAC characteristics in small and medium commercial buildings in California.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bennett, D H; Fisk, W; Apte, M G; Wu, X; Trout, A; Faulkner, D; Sullivan, D

    2012-08-01

    This field study of 37 small and medium commercial buildings throughout California obtained information on ventilation rate, temperature, and heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system characteristics. The study included seven retail establishments; five restaurants; eight offices; two each of gas stations, hair salons, healthcare facilities, grocery stores, dental offices, and fitness centers; and five other buildings. Fourteen (38%) of the buildings either could not or did not provide outdoor air through the HVAC system. The air exchange rate averaged 1.6 (s.d. = 1.7) exchanges per hour and was similar between buildings with and without outdoor air supplied through the HVAC system, indicating that some buildings have significant leakage or ventilation through open windows and doors. Not all buildings had sufficient air exchange to meet ASHRAE 62.1 Standards, including buildings used for fitness centers, hair salons, offices, and retail establishments. The majority of the time, buildings were within the ASHRAE temperature comfort range. Offices were frequently overcooled in the summer. All of the buildings had filters, but over half the buildings had a filter with a minimum efficiency reporting value rating of 4 or lower, which are not very effective for removing fine particles. Most U.S. commercial buildings (96%) are small- to medium-sized, using nearly 18% of the country's energy, and sheltering a large population daily. Little is known about the ventilation systems in these buildings. This study found a wide variety of ventilation conditions, with many buildings failing to meet relevant ventilation standards. Regulators may want to consider implementing more complete building inspections at commissioning and point of sale. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  15. An Examination of the Performance Based Building Code on the Design of a Commercial Building

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John Greenwood

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available The Building Code of Australia (BCA is the principal code under which building approvals in Australia are assessed. The BCA adopted performance-based solutions for building approvals in 1996. Performance-based codes are based upon a set of explicit objectives, stated in terms of a hierarchy of requirements beginning with key general objectives. With this in mind, the research presented in this paper aims to analyse the impact of the introduction of the performance-based code within Western Australia to gauge the effect and usefulness of alternative design solutions in commercial construction using a case study project. The research revealed that there are several advantages to the use of alternative designs and that all parties, in general, are in favour of the performance-based building code of Australia. It is suggested that change in the assessment process to streamline the alternative design path is needed for the greater use of the performance-based alternative. With appropriate quality control measures, minor variations to the deemed-to-satisfy provisions could easily be managed by the current and future building surveying profession.

  16. Job/Task Analysis: Enhancing the Commercial Building Workforce Through the Development of Foundational Materials; Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Studer, D.; Kemkar, S.

    2012-09-01

    For many commercial building operation job categories, industry consensus has not been reached on the knowledge, skills, and abilities that practitioners should possess. The goal of this guidance is to help streamline the minimum competencies taught or tested by organizations catering to building operations and maintenance personnel while providing a basis for developing and comparing new and existing training programs in the commercial building sector. The developed JTAs will help individuals identify opportunities to enhance their professional skills, enable industry to identify an appropriately skilled workforce, and allow training providers to ensure that they are providing the highest quality product possible.

  17. Valuation of Green Commercial Office Building: A Preliminary Study of Malaysian Valuers' Insight

    OpenAIRE

    Tuti Haryati Jasimin; Hishamuddin Mohd Ali

    2015-01-01

    Malaysia's green building development is gaining momentum and green buildings have become a key focus area, especially within the commercial sector with the encouragement of government legislation and policy. Due to the emerging awareness among the market players' views of the benefits associated with the ownership of green buildings in Malaysia, there is a need for valuers to incorporate consideration of sustainability into their assessments of property market value to e...

  18. A review study of maintenance and management issues in Malaysian commercial building towards sustainable future practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nawi, Mohd Nasrun Mohd; Baharum, Faizal; Ibrahim, Siti Halipah; Riazi, Salman Riazi Mehdi

    2017-10-01

    Good management of the building will be able to influence the quality of the buildings that remain long, safe and beautiful without any damage and problems. This research paper aims to explore the issue of maintenance and management that appear in managing the commercial building in Malaysian construction and property industry. The data in this research has been gathered through the reviewing process of secondary data such as journals, proceeding, thesis etc. in the area that related to maintenance and management issue in commercial building. As highlighted by previous study, building a good management can ensure that the facilities available in the building are well and meet the standard. Thus, exposure to the problems and needs in the management of the building would be able to improve the quality of building management systems to be more effective and fulfil the client needs and features.

  19. Measurement Issues for Energy Efficient Commercial Buildings: Productivity and Performance Uncertainties

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jones, D.W.

    2002-05-16

    In previous reports, we have identified two potentially important issues, solutions to which would increase the attractiveness of DOE-developed technologies in commercial buildings energy systems. One issue concerns the fact that in addition to saving energy, many new technologies offer non-energy benefits that contribute to building productivity (firm profitability). The second issue is that new technologies are typically unproven in the eyes of decision makers and must bear risk premiums that offset cost advantages resulting from laboratory calculations. Even though a compelling case can be made for the importance of these issues, for building decision makers to incorporate them in business decisions and for DOE to use them in R&D program planning there must be robust empirical evidence of their existence and size. This paper investigates how such measurements could be made and offers recommendations as to preferred options. There is currently little systematic information on either of these concepts in the literature. Of the two there is somewhat more information on non-energy benefits, but little as regards office buildings. Office building productivity impacts can be observed casually, but must be estimated statistically, because buildings have many interacting attributes and observations based on direct behavior can easily confuse the process of attribution. For example, absenteeism can be easily observed. However, absenteeism may be down because a more healthy space conditioning system was put into place, because the weather was milder, or because firm policy regarding sick days had changed. There is also a general dearth of appropriate information for purposes of estimation. To overcome these difficulties, we propose developing a new data base and applying the technique of hedonic price analysis. This technique has been used extensively in the analysis of residential dwellings. There is also a literature on its application to commercial and industrial

  20. Strategies for Controlling Plug Loads. A Tool for Reducing Plug Loads in Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Torcellini, Paul [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Bonnema, Eric [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Sheppy, Michael [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Pless, Shanti [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2015-09-01

    Plug loads are often not considered as part of the energy savings measures in Commercial Buildings; however, they can account for up to 50% of the energy used in the building. These loads are numerous and often scattered throughout a building. Some of these loads are purchased by the owner and some designed into the building or the tenant finishes for a space. This document provides a strategy and a tool for minimizing these loads.

  1. California Commercial End-Use Survey - CEUS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Efficiency in Existing Buildings Energy Efficiency Program Contacts Financing Opportunities Home Energy Rebates and Incentives Energy Efficiency Financing Energy Innovations Small Grant (EISG) EPIC Funding commercial building type categories. Download the CEUS Project Final Report. Publication # CEC-400-2006-005

  2. Residential and commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svendsen, Svend; Furbo, S.

    2012-11-15

    Low-energy buildings can make a major contribution to general sustainable development by providing a solution to problems related to the use of fossil fuels. The EPBD (EU Directive on Energy Performance of Buildings) requirements that by 2020 new building shall be constructed to use nearly zero energy, and no fossil fuels, can be accomplished by combining low-energy buildings with renewable energy via low-temperature district heating in cities and suburbs, and via heat pumps for low-density settlements. Based on experience with passive houses, low-energy buildings meeting the energy performance requirements of 2020 are expected to cost only a few percent more than conventional buildings. The very large and rapid changes needed in the energy performance of buildings is a challenge for the building sector, but one that can be overcome by better methods of developing products and designing, constructing and operating buildings. Simulation-based analysis and optimisation, and considerations of durability, will be important here. Building may thus be transformed from an experience-based sector to one based on knowledge and research, with high-quality sustainable products and good business opportunities. (Author)

  3. Development of an Online Toolkit for Measuring Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Performance -- Scoping Study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Na

    2013-03-13

    This study analyzes the market needs for building performance evaluation tools. It identifies the existing gaps and provides a roadmap for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop a toolkit with which to optimize energy performance of a commercial building over its life cycle.

  4. Building the Commercial Education Professional Competency Profile

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Isabel Araya-Muñoz

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper provides a complete description of the Commercial Education Professional Competency Profile that resulted from the curricular diagnosis of the Licenciatura en Educación Comercial , at the Universidad Nacional, Costa Rica.  The methodological strategy used relies on the principles of research on education. Upon expert validation, written questionnaires were applied to first-year students, students of the licenciatura, practicing professionals and employers. The objective was to describe a particular education situation. Data was analyzed according to two categories: intentions/principles and scope/development. The findings resulted in the characteristics of the Commercial Education professionals, i.e. characteristics related to the discipline, characteristics related to the administrative management of teaching, specific and general characteristics of education and pedagogy, and characteristics associated to human development. Based on those criteria, on the curricular requirements of the information sources and on the curricular perspectives of the Academic Unit, ideas were put into practice to build the competency profile. The ideas proposed comprise the curricular fundamentals of the educational project on which the profile is set out, which include the subject of the study program, the global competency or training goal, the generic competencies as cross-cutting approaches, as well as the –pedagogical and disciplinary− specific competencies. The specific competencies of the discipline are focused on four competency areas: document production, organizational support, technological resources and information management. (1 Translator’s Note: One-year post-Bachelor study program in Commercial Education.

  5. Lux level enhancement and reduction in electricity cost in commercial buildings by retrofitting with PMR luminaries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mariun, N.; Mohibullah; Jasni, J.; Lam, S.Y.

    2006-01-01

    Most of the existing commercial buildings are illuminated by luminaries systems during broad daylight and night which is provided by the renowned lighting industry. However, back in 1980s, the installed luminaries within the office compound were limited in choice of luminaire selection and cost factor impact. Some of the old commercial building are still using prismatic acrylic lens diffuser luminaries in order to brighten up the building for their business activities and a large number of luminaries are needed to illuminate equivalent illumination level as per requirement of the building bye-laws code. With the advancement in luminaries technology, the lighting industries have offered better solution to reduce energy costs by 50% or more, also able to improve the quality of light and reducing the quantity of luminaries requirement by introducing the parabolic mirror reflector (PMR) luminaries system. The selected commercial building as a case study to support this luminaries retrofitting program by comparing the existing luminaries with the retrofit luminaries in terms of the lux measurement and energy cost saving calculation is presented in this paper. Nevertheless, some general lighting design principle rules are also discussed

  6. A Statistical Analysis of the Economic Drivers of Battery Energy Storage in Commercial Buildings: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Long, Matthew; Simpkins, Travis; Cutler, Dylan; Anderson, Katie

    2016-11-01

    There is significant interest in using battery energy storage systems (BESS) to reduce peak demand charges, and therefore the life cycle cost of electricity, in commercial buildings. This paper explores the drivers of economic viability of BESS in commercial buildings through statistical analysis. A sample population of buildings was generated, a techno-economic optimization model was used to size and dispatch the BESS, and the resulting optimal BESS sizes were analyzed for relevant predictor variables. Explanatory regression analyses were used to demonstrate that peak demand charges are the most significant predictor of an economically viable battery, and that the shape of the load profile is the most significant predictor of the size of the battery.

  7. Commercial mitigation techniques used in remediating a 2200 pCi/L public building

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Davidson, J.G.

    1990-01-01

    This paper reports on commercial mitigation techniques used in remediating a 2200 pCi/L public building. In March of 1989 EPA and Pa. DER officials were amazed to discover a school in Pennsylvania with levels in its library of 2200 pCi/L. The library was a 30 year old, three story slab-on-grade structure more like a commercial building than a typical school structure. It had three separate and complex HVAC systems. Initial diagnostics indicated radon levels under the slab at over 80,000 pCi/L. Further investigations revealed major entry routes and a HVAC system terribly out of balance. Remediation consisted of installing a complex sub-slab depressurization system with an exterior commercial fan unit, major entry route sealing, and working closely with a mechanical contractor to bring the HVAC systems back into balance. Initial post remediation testing showed a 99% drop in radon levels. Refinements to the system are still in progress

  8. Building communities and social potential: Between and beyond organizations and individuals in commercial properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Janda, Kathryn B.

    2014-01-01

    Axon et al., (2012) argue that maximizing the potential for energy efficiency and demand reduction in tenanted commercial properties requires a “building communities” approach. This paper develops and extends Axon et al.′s proposed framework in two ways. First, by extending its applicability from tenanted to owner-occupied properties. Second, by situating it within the literature related to organizational culture, occupant behaviours, and technology adoption. The paper begins with a brief review of the existing research on people, energy and commercial buildings. This literature tends to address either organizational choices, or occupant behavior, but it rarely crosses the analytical boundaries between these two groups. The paper then explores these different levels of analysis within a 3Cs – “concern, capacity, and conditions” – framework, which was developed to describe and distinguish organizational responses to an energy crisis. The combination of the “building communities” and 3Cs frames reveals gaps and grey areas between organizational culture, occupant behaviour, and technology adoption where further conservation opportunities may lie. These understudied areas suggest that there may be “social potential” for change that is between and beyond the frames used by previous research in the field. - Highlights: • We discuss literature on occupant behaviour and organisational factors in commercial buildings. • We introduce two frameworks drawn from previous research: “3Cs” (concern, capacity, and conditions) and “building communities”. • Gaps in the literature call for a “building communities” approach to the 3Cs, which we recommend for near-term research. • We introduce the concept of “social potential” as a counterpoint to technical potential for longer-term research

  9. The Power of Flexibility: Autonomous Agents That Conserve Energy in Commercial Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwak, Jun-young

    Agent-based systems for energy conservation are now a growing area of research in multiagent systems, with applications ranging from energy management and control on the smart grid, to energy conservation in residential buildings, to energy generation and dynamic negotiations in distributed rural communities. Contributing to this area, my thesis presents new agent-based models and algorithms aiming to conserve energy in commercial buildings. More specifically, my thesis provides three sets of algorithmic contributions. First, I provide online predictive scheduling algorithms to handle massive numbers of meeting/event scheduling requests considering flexibility , which is a novel concept for capturing generic user constraints while optimizing the desired objective. Second, I present a novel BM-MDP ( Bounded-parameter Multi-objective Markov Decision Problem) model and robust algorithms for multi-objective optimization under uncertainty both at the planning and execution time. The BM-MDP model and its robust algorithms are useful in (re)scheduling events to achieve energy efficiency in the presence of uncertainty over user's preferences. Third, when multiple users contribute to energy savings, fair division of credit for such savings to incentivize users for their energy saving activities arises as an important question. I appeal to cooperative game theory and specifically to the concept of Shapley value for this fair division. Unfortunately, scaling up this Shapley value computation is a major hindrance in practice. Therefore, I present novel approximation algorithms to efficiently compute the Shapley value based on sampling and partitions and to speed up the characteristic function computation. These new models have not only advanced the state of the art in multiagent algorithms, but have actually been successfully integrated within agents dedicated to energy efficiency: SAVES, TESLA and THINC. SAVES focuses on the day-to-day energy consumption of individuals and

  10. Thermal energy storage for cooling of commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Akbari, H. (Lawrence Berkeley Lab., CA (USA)); Mertol, A. (Science Applications International Corp., Los Altos, CA (USA))

    1988-07-01

    The storage of coolness'' has been in use in limited applications for more than a half century. Recently, because of high electricity costs during utilities' peak power periods, thermal storage for cooling has become a prime target for load management strategies. Systems with cool storage shift all or part of the electricity requirement from peak to off-peak hours to take advantage of reduced demand charges and/or off-peak rates. Thermal storage technology applies equally to industrial, commercial, and residential sectors. In the industrial sector, because of the lack of economic incentives and the custom design required for each application, the penetration of this technology has been limited to a few industries. The penetration rate in the residential sector has been also very limited due to the absence of economic incentives, sizing problems, and the lack of compact packaged systems. To date, the most promising applications of these systems, therefore, appear to be for commercial cooling. In this report, the current and potential use of thermal energy storage systems for cooling commercial buildings is investigated. In addition, a general overview of the technology is presented and the applicability and cost-effectiveness of this technology for developed and developing countries are discussed. 28 refs., 12 figs., 1 tab.

  11. Findings from Seven Years of Field Performance Data for Automated Demand Response in Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kiliccote, Sila; Piette, Mary Ann; Mathieu, Johanna; Parrish, Kristen

    2010-05-14

    California is a leader in automating demand response (DR) to promote low-cost, consistent, and predictable electric grid management tools. Over 250 commercial and industrial facilities in California participate in fully-automated programs providing over 60 MW of peak DR savings. This paper presents a summary of Open Automated DR (OpenADR) implementation by each of the investor-owned utilities in California. It provides a summary of participation, DR strategies and incentives. Commercial buildings can reduce peak demand from 5 to 15percent with an average of 13percent. Industrial facilities shed much higher loads. For buildings with multi-year savings we evaluate their load variability and shed variability. We provide a summary of control strategies deployed, along with costs to install automation. We report on how the electric DR control strategies perform over many years of events. We benchmark the peak demand of this sample of buildings against their past baselines to understand the differences in building performance over the years. This is done with peak demand intensities and load factors. The paper also describes the importance of these data in helping to understand possible techniques to reach net zero energy using peak day dynamic control capabilities in commercial buildings. We present an example in which the electric load shape changed as a result of a lighting retrofit.

  12. ANALYZING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MOVIES AND TV COMMERCIALS TYPES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frank Van Der Valk

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to shed some light on whether there is any connection between the types of movies broadcasted on TV and types of commercials or not. A total of 20 different movies of Polish channels have been recorded and visually analyzed including the contents of the commercials broadcasted before, after and, during them. The different types of movies examined include comedies of manners, romantic comedies, thrillers, action movies, dramas, crimes, science-fiction and adventures. The research results show that there is a relationship between the types of movies broadcasted and the commercials before, during and after them. This connection is based on the needs and consuming behavior of each movie’s viewers.

  13. Automated Demand Response Technology Demonstration Project for Small and Medium Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Page, Janie; Kiliccote, Sila; Dudley, Junqiao Han; Piette, Mary Ann; Chiu, Albert K.; Kellow, Bashar; Koch, Ed; Lipkin, Paul

    2011-07-01

    Small and medium commercial customers in California make up about 20-25% of electric peak load in California. With the roll out of smart meters to this customer group, which enable granular measurement of electricity consumption, the investor-owned utilities will offer dynamic prices as default tariffs by the end of 2011. Pacific Gas and Electric Company, which successfully deployed Automated Demand Response (AutoDR) Programs to its large commercial and industrial customers, started investigating the same infrastructures application to the small and medium commercial customers. This project aims to identify available technologies suitable for automating demand response for small-medium commercial buildings; to validate the extent to which that technology does what it claims to be able to do; and determine the extent to which customers find the technology useful for DR purpose. Ten sites, enabled by eight vendors, participated in at least four test AutoDR events per site in the summer of 2010. The results showed that while existing technology can reliably receive OpenADR signals and translate them into pre-programmed response strategies, it is likely that better levels of load sheds could be obtained than what is reported here if better understanding of the building systems were developed and the DR response strategies had been carefully designed and optimized for each site.

  14. Optimization and Performance Study of Select Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning Technologies for Commercial Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamal, Rajeev

    Buildings contribute a significant part to the electricity demand profile and peak demand for the electrical utilities. The addition of renewable energy generation adds additional variability and uncertainty to the power system. Demand side management in the buildings can help improve the demand profile for the utilities by shifting some of the demand from peak to off-peak times. Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning contribute around 45% to the overall demand of a building. This research studies two strategies for reducing the peak as well as shifting some demand from peak to off-peak periods in commercial buildings: 1. Use of gas heat pumps in place of electric heat pumps, and 2. Shifting demand for air conditioning from peak to off-peak by thermal energy storage in chilled water and ice. The first part of this study evaluates the field performance of gas engine-driven heat pumps (GEHP) tested in a commercial building in Florida. Four GEHP units of 8 Tons of Refrigeration (TR) capacity each providing air-conditioning to seven thermal zones in a commercial building, were instrumented for measuring their performance. The operation of these GEHPs was recorded for ten months, analyzed and compared with prior results reported in the literature. The instantaneous COPunit of these systems varied from 0.1 to 1.4 during typical summer week operation. The COP was low because the gas engines for the heat pumps were being used for loads that were much lower than design capacity which resulted in much lower efficiencies than expected. The performance of equivalent electric heat pump was simulated from a building energy model developed to mimic the measured building loads. An economic comparison of GEHPs and conventional electrical heat pumps was done based on the measured and simulated results. The average performance of the GEHP units was estimated to lie between those of EER-9.2 and EER-11.8 systems. The performance of GEHP systems suffers due to lower efficiency at

  15. Development of a methodology for defining whole-building energy design targets for commercial buildings: Phase 2, Development concept stage report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jones, J.W. (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Atlanta, GA (USA)); Deringer, J.J. (Deringer Group, Riva, MD (USA)); Hall, J.D. (American Inst. of Architects, Washington, DC (USA)) (comps.)

    1990-09-01

    The Whole-Building Energy Design Targets project is being conducted for the US Department of Energy (DOE) by the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL). The objective of the project is to develop a flexible methodology for setting energy performance guidelines with which architects, engineers, planners, and owners can assess energy efficiency in commercial building design. This volume, the third in the four-volume report on the Targets project concept stage, contains the minutes of the workshops as well as summaries of the expert's written comments prepared at the close of each workshop. In Section 2, the building energy simulation workshop is summarized. Section 3 provides a summary of the building cost workshop.

  16. Implementation of life cycle costing for a commercial building: case of a residential apartment at Yogyakarta

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kaming Peter F

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Analysis of a design process is very important in controlling the initial costs and future costs in possession of an investment project such as commercial building. Therefore, it should be wise to perform a life cycle cost analysis to determine the cost of any category contained in future cost of the building. The analysis also provide information to see how much the total cost incurred by a development project from initial to the future cost by implementing BS ISO 15686 part 5: 2008, regarding life cycle costing. The purpose of this study is to identify the cost proportion and make long-term plans of a commercial building in term of its life cycle costing from a case of a residential apartment in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Results of the study show that there are three groups that make up the life cycle cost: the cost of development of the building, the operating costs, and the cost of maintenance and replacement. For a long-term plan the life cycle cost for 25 years the percentage obtained as follows, initial development cost of 42%, operational costs 39%, maintenance and replacement costs 19%. The results would also make comparison with other existing commercial buildings.

  17. Development of whole-building energy design targets for commercial buildings: Phase 1, Planning: Volume 2, Technical report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Crawley, D.B.; Briggs, R.S.; Jones, J.W.; Seaton, W.W.; Kaufman, J.E.; Deringer, J.J.; Kennett, E.W.

    1987-08-01

    This is the second volume of the Phase 1 report and discusses the 10 tasks performed in Phase 1. The objective of this research is to develop a methodology for setting energy design targets to provide voluntary guidelines for the buildings industry. The whole-building energy targets project is being conducted at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) for the US Department of Energy (DOE) to encourage the construction of energy-efficient buildings by informing designers and owners about cost-effective goals for energy use in new commercial buildings. The outcome of this research will be a flexible methodology for setting such targets. The tasks are listed and discussed in this report as follows: Task 1 - Develop Detailed Project Goals and Objectives; Task 2 - Establish Buildings-Industry Liaison; Task 3 - Develop Approaches to the Energy Targets Model, Building Operations, and Climate; Task 4 - Develop an Approach for Treating Economic Considerations; Task 5 - Develop an Approach for Treating Energy Sources; Task 6 - Collect Energy-Use Data; Task 7 - Survey Energy Expert Opinion; Task 8 - Evaluation Procedure Specification and Integration; Task 9 - Phase 1 Report Development; and Task 10 - Phase 1 Review Planning.

  18. Comparison of Standard 90.1-2007 and the 2009 IECC with Respect to Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Conover, David R.; Bartlett, Rosemarie; Halverson, Mark A.

    2009-12-11

    The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Energy Codes Program (BECP) has been asked by some states and energy code stakeholders to address the comparability of the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code® (IECC) as applied to commercial buildings and ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007 (hereinafter referred to as Standard 90.1-07). An assessment of comparability will help states respond to and implement conditions specified in the State Energy Program (SEP) Formula Grants American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funding Opportunity, Number DE-FOA-0000052, and eliminate the need for the states individually or collectively to perform comparative studies of the 2009 IECC and Standard 90.1-07. The funding opportunity announcement contains the following conditions: (2) The State, or the applicable units of local government that have authority to adopt building codes, will implement the following: (A) A residential building energy code (or codes) that meets or exceeds the most recent International Energy Conservation Code, or achieves equivalent or greater energy savings. (B) A commercial building energy code (or codes) throughout the State that meets or exceeds the ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007, or achieves equivalent or greater energy savings . (C) A plan to achieve 90 percent compliance with the above energy codes within eight years. This plan will include active training and enforcement programs and annual measurement of the rate of compliance. With respect to item (B) above, many more states, regardless of the edition date, directly adopt the IECC than Standard 90.1-07. This is predominately because the IECC is a model code and part of a coordinated set of model building codes that state and local government have historically adopted to regulate building design and construction. This report compares the 2009 IECC to Standard 90.1-07 with the intent of helping states address whether the adoption and application of the 2009 IECC for commercial

  19. Field Experience with and Potential for Multi-time Scale Grid Transactions from Responsive Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Piette, Mary Ann; Kiliccote, Sila; Ghatikar, Girish

    2014-08-01

    The need for and concepts behind demand response are evolving. As the electric system changes with more intermittent renewable electric supply systems, there is a need to allow buildings to provide more flexible demand. This paper presents results from field studies and pilots, as well as engineering estimates of the potential capabilities of fast load responsiveness in commercial buildings. We present a sector wide analysis of flexible loads in commercial buildings, which was conducted to improve resource planning and determine which loads to evaluate in future demonstrations. These systems provide important capabilities for future transactional systems. The field analysis is based on results from California, plus projects in the northwest and east coast. End-uses considered include heating, ventilation, air conditioning and lighting. The timescales of control include day-ahead, as well as day-of, 10-minute ahead and even faster response. This technology can provide DR signals on different times scales to interact with responsive building loads. We describe the latency of the control systems in the building and the round trip communications with the wholesale grid operators.

  20. 76 FR 48152 - Commercial Building Asset Rating Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-08-08

    ... European Union, although the meaning of each grade could be very different across regions. A series of.... Year built. Climate zone. Building type. Year rating is issued. Report serial number (for tracking...

  1. Peak reduction for commercial buildings using energy storage

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chua, K. H.; Lim, Y. S.; Morris, S.

    2017-11-01

    Battery-based energy storage has emerged as a cost-effective solution for peak reduction due to the decrement of battery’s price. In this study, a battery-based energy storage system is developed and implemented to achieve an optimal peak reduction for commercial customers with the limited energy capacity of the energy storage. The energy storage system is formed by three bi-directional power converter rated at 5 kVA and a battery bank with capacity of 64 kWh. Three control algorithms, namely fixed-threshold, adaptive-threshold, and fuzzy-based control algorithms have been developed and implemented into the energy storage system in a campus building. The control algorithms are evaluated and compared under different load conditions. The overall experimental results show that the fuzzy-based controller is the most effective algorithm among the three controllers in peak reduction. The fuzzy-based control algorithm is capable of incorporating a priori qualitative knowledge and expertise about the load characteristic of the buildings as well as the useable energy without over-discharging the batteries.

  2. Enabling VOLTTRON: Energy Management of Commercial Buildings at the University of Maryland

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebhojiaye, Itohan Omisi

    Buildings waste approximately 30% of energy they consume due to inefficient HVAC and lighting operation. Building Automation Systems (BAS) can aid in reducing such wasted energy, but 90% of U.S. commercial buildings lack a BAS due to their high capital costs. This thesis demonstrates how VOLTTRON, an open source operating system developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, was used to disable the mechanical cooling of a rooftop unit (RTU) during unoccupied hours, on a building without a BAS. With cooling off, the RTU's electricity dropped from 18 kW to 7kW. These results indicate 450 to 550 can be saved on the monthly electric bill of the building during the summer, compared to when the RTU operated in cooling mode continuously. The installation cost of the equipment that enabled the RTU to be controlled via VOLTTRON was $6,400, thus the project has a payback period of 13 months.

  3. Techno-Economic Analysis of Solar Absorption Cooling for Commercial buildings in India

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muthalagappan Narayanan

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Space cooling and heating always tends to be a major part of the primary energy usage. By using fossil fuel electricity for these purposes, the situation becomes even worse. One of the major electricity consumptions in India is air conditioning. There are a lot of different technologies and few researchers have come up with a debate between solar absorption cooling and PV electric cooling. In a previous paper, PV electric cooling was studied and now as a continuation, this paper focuses on solar thermal absorption cooling systems and their application in commercial/office buildings in India. A typical Indian commercial building is taken for the simulation in TRNSYS. Through this simulation, the feasibility and operational strategy of the system is analysed, after which parametric study and economic analysis of the system is done. When compared with the expenses for a traditional air conditioner unit, this solar absorption cooling will take 13.6 years to pay back and will take 15.5 years to payback the price of itself and there after all the extra money are savings or profit.  Although the place chosen for this study is one of the typical tropical place in India, this payback might vary with different places, climate and the cooling demand. Article History: Received May 12th 2017; Received in revised form August 15th 2017; Accepted 1st Sept 2017; Available online How to Cite This Article: Narayanan, M. (2017. Techno-Economic Analysis of Solar Absorption Cooling for Commercial Buildings in India.  International Journal of Renewable Energy Development, 6(3, 253-262. https://doi.org/10.14710/ijred.6.3.253-262

  4. Energy Management in Small Commercial Buildings: A Look at How HVAC Contractors Can Deliver Energy Efficiency to this Segment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hult, Erin; Granderson, Jessica; Mathew, Paul

    2014-07-01

    While buildings smaller than 50,000 sq ft account for nearly half of the energy used in US commercial buildings, energy efficiency programs to-date have primarily focused on larger buildings. Interviews with stakeholders and a review of the literature indicate interest in energy efficiency from the small commercial building sector, provided solutions are simple and low-cost. An approach to deliver energy management to small commercial buildings via HVAC contractors and preliminary demonstration findings are presented. The energy management package (EMP) developed includes five technical elements: benchmarking and analysis of monthly energy use; analysis of interval electricity data (if available), a one-hour onsite walkthrough, communication with the building owner, and checking of results. This data-driven approach tracks performance and identifies low-cost opportunities, using guidelines and worksheets for each element to streamline the delivery process and minimize the formal training required. This energy management approach is unique from, but often complementary to conventional quality maintenance or retrofit-focused programs targeting the small commercial segment. Because HVAC contractors already serve these clients, the transaction cost to market and deliver energy management services can be reduced to the order of hundreds of dollars per year. This business model, outlined briefly in this report, enables the offering to benefit the contractor and client even at the modest expected energy savings in small buildings. Results from a small-scale pilot of this approach validated that the EMP could be delivered by contractors in 4-8 hours per building per year, and that energy savings of 3-5percent are feasible through this approach.

  5. What drives the carbon mitigation in Chinese commercial building sector? Evidence from decomposing an extended Kaya identity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Minda; Cai, Weiguang

    2018-09-01

    Energy efficiency in the building sector is expected to contribute >50% to the nationwide carbon mitigation efforts for achieving China's carbon emission peak in 2030, and carbon mitigation in Chinese commercial buildings (CMCCB) is an indicator of this effort. However, the CMCCB assessment has faced the challenge of ineffective and inadequate approaches; therefore, we have followed a different approach. Using the China Database of Building Energy Consumption and Carbon Emissions as our data source, our study is the first to employ the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) to decompose five driving forces from the Kaya identity of Chinese commercial building carbon emissions (CCBCE) to assess the CMCCB values in 2001-2015. The results of our study indicated that: (1) Only two driving forces (i.e., the reciprocal of GDP per capita of Tertiary Industry in China and the CCBCE intensity) contributed negatively re m i to CCBCE during 2001-2015, and the quantified negative contributions denoted the CMCCB values. Specifically, the CMCCB values in 2001-2005, 2006-2010, and 2011-2015 were 123.96, 252.83, and 249.07 MtCO 2 , respectively. (2) The data quality control involving the CMCCB values proved the reliability of our CMCCB assessment model, and the universal applicability of this model was also confirmed. (3) The substantial achievements of the energy efficiency project in the Chinese commercial building sector were the root cause of the rapidly growing CMCCB. Overall, we believe that our model successfully bridges the research gap of the nationwide CMCCB assessment and that the proposed model is also suitable either at the provincial level or in different building climate zones in China. Meanwhile, a global-level assessment of the carbon mitigation in the commercial building sector is feasible through applying our model. Furthermore, we consider our contribution as constituting significant guidance for developing the building energy efficiency strategy in China in the

  6. Development and Evaluation of Algorithms to Improve Small- and Medium-Size Commercial Building Operations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Woohyun [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Katipamula, Srinivas [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Lutes, Robert G. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Underhill, Ronald M. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2016-10-31

    Small- and medium-sized (<100,000 sf) commercial buildings (SMBs) represent over 95% of the U.S. commercial building stock and consume over 60% of total site energy consumption. Many of these buildings use rudimentary controls that are mostly manual, with limited scheduling capability, no monitoring or failure management. Therefore, many of these buildings are operated inefficiently and consume excess energy. SMBs typically utilize packaged rooftop units (RTUs) that are controlled by an individual thermostat. There is increased urgency to improve the operating efficiency of existing commercial building stock in the U.S. for many reasons, chief among them is to mitigate the climate change impacts. Studies have shown that managing set points and schedules of the RTUs will result in up to 20% energy and cost savings. Another problem associated with RTUs is short-cycling, where an RTU goes through ON and OFF cycles too frequently. Excessive cycling can lead to excessive wear and lead to premature failure of the compressor or its components. The short cycling can result in a significantly decreased average efficiency (up to 10%), even if there are no physical failures in the equipment. Also, SMBs use a time-of-day scheduling is to start the RTUs before the building will be occupied and shut it off when unoccupied. Ensuring correct use of the zone set points and eliminating frequent cycling of RTUs thereby leading to persistent building operations can significantly increase the operational efficiency of the SMBs. A growing trend is to use low-cost control infrastructure that can enable scalable and cost-effective intelligent building operations. The work reported in this report describes three algorithms for detecting the zone set point temperature, RTU cycling rate and occupancy schedule detection that can be deployed on the low-cost infrastructure. These algorithms only require the zone temperature data for detection. The algorithms have been tested and validated using

  7. Developing empirical collapse fragility functions for global building types

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaiswal, K.; Wald, D.; D'Ayala, D.

    2011-01-01

    Building collapse is the dominant cause of casualties during earthquakes. In order to better predict human fatalities, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program requires collapse fragility functions for global building types. The collapse fragility is expressed as the probability of collapse at discrete levels of the input hazard defined in terms of macroseismic intensity. This article provides a simple procedure for quantifying collapse fragility using vulnerability criteria based on the European Macroseismic Scale (1998) for selected European building types. In addition, the collapse fragility functions are developed for global building types by fitting the beta distribution to the multiple experts’ estimates for the same building type (obtained from EERI’s World Housing Encyclopedia (WHE)-PAGER survey). Finally, using the collapse probability distributions at each shaking intensity level as a prior and field-based collapse-rate observations as likelihood, it is possible to update the collapse fragility functions for global building types using the Bayesian procedure.

  8. Hybrid Model-Based and Data-Driven Fault Detection and Diagnostics for Commercial Buildings: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Frank, Stephen; Heaney, Michael; Jin, Xin; Robertson, Joseph; Cheung, Howard; Elmore, Ryan; Henze, Gregor

    2016-08-01

    Commercial buildings often experience faults that produce undesirable behavior in building systems. Building faults waste energy, decrease occupants' comfort, and increase operating costs. Automated fault detection and diagnosis (FDD) tools for buildings help building owners discover and identify the root causes of faults in building systems, equipment, and controls. Proper implementation of FDD has the potential to simultaneously improve comfort, reduce energy use, and narrow the gap between actual and optimal building performance. However, conventional rule-based FDD requires expensive instrumentation and valuable engineering labor, which limit deployment opportunities. This paper presents a hybrid, automated FDD approach that combines building energy models and statistical learning tools to detect and diagnose faults noninvasively, using minimal sensors, with little customization. We compare and contrast the performance of several hybrid FDD algorithms for a small security building. Our results indicate that the algorithms can detect and diagnose several common faults, but more work is required to reduce false positive rates and improve diagnosis accuracy.

  9. Quantitative Analysis of the Principal-Agent Problem in Commercial Buildings in the U.S.: Focus on Central Space Heating and Cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Blum, Helcio; Sathaye, Jayant

    2010-05-14

    We investigate the existence of the principal-agent (PA) problem in non-government, non-mall commercial buildings in the U.S. in 2003. The analysis concentrates on space heating and cooling energy consumed by centrally installed equipment in order to verify whether a market failure caused by the PA problem might have prevented the installation of energy-efficient devices in non-owner-occupied buildings (efficiency problem) and/or the efficient operation of space-conditioning equipment in these buildings (usage problem). Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) 2003 data for single-owner, single-tenant and multi-tenant occupied buildings were used for conducting this evaluation. These are the building subsets with the appropriate conditions for assessing both the efficiency and the usage problems. Together, these three building types represent 51.9percent of the total floor space of all buildings with space heating and 59.4percent of the total end-use energy consumption of such buildings; similarly, for space cooling, they represent 52.7percent of floor space and 51.6percent of energy consumption. Our statistical analysis shows that there is a usage PA problem. In space heating it applies only to buildings with a small floor area (<_50,000 sq. ft.). We estimate that in 2003 it accounts for additional site energy consumption of 12.3 (+ 10.5 ) TBtu (primary energy consumption of 14.6 [+- 12.4] TBtu), corresponding to 24.0percent (+- 20.5percent) of space heating and 10.2percent (+- 8.7percent) of total site energy consumed in those buildings. In space cooling, however, the analysis shows that the PA market failure affects the complete set of studied buildings. We estimate that it accounts for a higher site energy consumption of 8.3 (+-4.0) TBtu (primary energy consumption of 25.5 [+- 12.2]TBtu), which corresponds to 26.5percent (+- 12.7percent) of space cooling and 2.7percent (+- 1.3percent) of total site energy consumed in those buildings.

  10. Indoor particle levels in small- and medium-sized commercial buildings in California.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Xiangmei May; Apte, Michael G; Bennett, Deborah H

    2012-11-20

    This study monitored indoor and outdoor particle concentrations in 37 small and medium commercial buildings (SMCBs) in California with three buildings sampled on two occasions, resulting in 40 sampling days. Sampled buildings included offices, retail establishments, restaurants, dental offices, and hair salons, among others. Continuous measurements were made for both ultrafine and fine particulate matter as well as black carbon inside and outside of the building. Integrated PM(2.5), PM(2.5-10), and PM(10) samples were also collected inside and outside the building. The majority of the buildings had indoor/outdoor (I/O) particle concentration ratios less than 1.0, indicating that contributions from indoor sources are less than removal of outdoor particles. However, some of the buildings had I/O ratios greater than 1, indicating significant indoor particle sources. This was particularly true of restaurants, hair salons, and dental offices. The infiltration factor was estimated from a regression analysis of indoor and outdoor concentrations for each particle size fraction, finding lower values for ultrafine and coarse particles than for submicrometer particles, as expected. The I/O ratio of black carbon was used as a relative measure of the infiltration factor of particles among buildings, with a geometric mean of 0.62. The contribution of indoor sources to indoor particle levels was estimated for each building.

  11. A Techno-Economic Analysis of Photovoltaic System Design as Specifically Applied to Commercial Buildings in Ireland

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jonathan Blackledge

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper evaluates the viability of installing photovoltaic (PV systems in existing commercial buildings in Dublin. Data collected from previously installed photovoltaic systems at the Dublin Institute of Technology was analysed in order to determine the potential solar resource available in Ireland. A 1.1 kWp photovoltaic system installed in Dublin can produce over 900 kWh of electricity in a given year depending on the available solar resource for that year. A feasibility study was conducted in Dublin city centre in order to evaluate the technical, financial and environmental aspects of integrating a PV system into an existing building. The intention is that the results from this work will help in demonstrating the benefits and challenges associated with installing PV systems in existing commercial buildings in Ireland.

  12. Classification of Building Object Types

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jørgensen, Kaj Asbjørn

    2011-01-01

    made. This is certainly the case in the Danish development. Based on the theories about these abstraction mechanisms, the basic principles for classification systems are presented and the observed misconceptions are analyses and explained. Furthermore, it is argued that the purpose of classification...... systems has changed and that new opportunities should be explored. Some proposals for new applications are presented and carefully aligned with IT opportunities. Especially, the use of building modelling will give new benefits and many of the traditional uses of classification systems will instead...... be managed by software applications and on the basis of building models. Classification systems with taxonomies of building object types have many application opportunities but can still be beneficial in data exchange between building construction partners. However, this will be performed by new methods...

  13. Analysis of impact of large commercial aircraft on a prestressed containment building

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Kyoungsoo; Han, Sang Eul; Hong, Jung-Wuk

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • Aircraft impact analyses are performed using the missile–target interaction method. • A large commercial B747 aircraft is considered with erosion effect. • The rigid wall impact test shows the validity of the developed aircraft model. • The parametric studies on the fictitious containment building are performed. • The plastic failure of the target is governed by the impulse of aircraft at the first momentum peak. - Abstract: In this paper, the results of nonlinear dynamic analyses of a concrete containment building under extreme loads are presented. The impact of a large commercial B747 airliner is investigated as the extreme load, and a rigid wall impact test is performed using commercial nonlinear finite element codes. The impact forces exerted by the aircraft are verified compared with the time-dependent impact force provided by OECD/NEA (2002), which was calculated based on the so-called Riera method. The rigid wall impact analysis shows that the finite element model of a B747 is appropriate for the purpose of the aircraft crash analysis exposed to the external hazard of “Beyond Design-Basis Events” defined by U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Finally, the applicability of this methodology is further studied and verified by conducting parametric studies on the critical infrastructures of nuclear power plant containment structures

  14. Analysis of impact of large commercial aircraft on a prestressed containment building

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Kyoungsoo, E-mail: kylee@pvamu.edu [Center for Energy and Environmental Sustainability, Prairie View A and M University, Prairie view, TX, 77446 (United States); Han, Sang Eul, E-mail: hsang@inha.ac.kr [Department of Architectural Engineering, School of Architecture, Inha University, 253 Yonghyundong Nam-gu, Incheon, 402-751 (Korea, Republic of); Hong, Jung-Wuk, E-mail: j.hong@kaist.ac.kr [Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, KAIST, 373-1 Guseon-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-701 (Korea, Republic of)

    2013-12-15

    Highlights: • Aircraft impact analyses are performed using the missile–target interaction method. • A large commercial B747 aircraft is considered with erosion effect. • The rigid wall impact test shows the validity of the developed aircraft model. • The parametric studies on the fictitious containment building are performed. • The plastic failure of the target is governed by the impulse of aircraft at the first momentum peak. - Abstract: In this paper, the results of nonlinear dynamic analyses of a concrete containment building under extreme loads are presented. The impact of a large commercial B747 airliner is investigated as the extreme load, and a rigid wall impact test is performed using commercial nonlinear finite element codes. The impact forces exerted by the aircraft are verified compared with the time-dependent impact force provided by OECD/NEA (2002), which was calculated based on the so-called Riera method. The rigid wall impact analysis shows that the finite element model of a B747 is appropriate for the purpose of the aircraft crash analysis exposed to the external hazard of “Beyond Design-Basis Events” defined by U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Finally, the applicability of this methodology is further studied and verified by conducting parametric studies on the critical infrastructures of nuclear power plant containment structures.

  15. Economic analysis of solar assisted absorption chiller for a commercial building

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antonyraj, Gnananesan

    Dwindling fossil fuels coupled with changes in global climate intensified the drive to make use of renewable energy resources that have negligible impact on the environment. In this attempt, the industrial community produced various devices and systems to make use of solar energy for heating and cooling of building space as well as generate electric power. The most common components employed for collection of solar energy are the flat plate and evacuated tube collectors that produce hot water that can be employed for heating the building space. In order to cool the building, the absorption chiller is commonly employed that requires hot water at high temperatures for its operation. This thesis deals with economic analysis of solar collector and absorption cooling system to meet the building loads of a commercial building located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Computer simulations are employed to predict the hourly building loads and performance of the flat plate and evacuated tube solar collectors using the hourly weather data. The key variables affecting the economic evaluation of such system are identified and the influence of these parameters is presented. The results of this investigation show that the flat plate solar collectors yield lower payback period compared to the evacuated tube collectors and economic incentives offered by the local and federal agencies play a major role in lowering the payback period.

  16. Energy Savings Potential and RD&D Opportunities for Commercial Building Appliances (2015 Update)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Goetzler, William [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Guernsey, Matt [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Foley, Kevin [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Young, Jim [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States); Chung, Greg [Navigant Consulting, Burlington, MA (United States)

    2016-06-01

    The Department of Energy commissioned a technology characterization and assessment of appliances used in commercial buildings for cooking, cleaning, water heating, and other end-uses. The primary objectives of this study were to document the energy consumed by commercial appliances and identify research, development, and demonstration opportunities to improve energy efficiency in each end-use. This report serves as an update to a 2009 report of the same name by incorporating updated data and sources where possible and updating the available technology options that provide opportunities for efficiency improvements.

  17. Commercial Building Energy Asset Score System: Program Overview and Technical Protocol (Version 1.0)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Na; Gorrissen, Willy J.

    2013-01-11

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is developing a national voluntary energy asset score system that includes an energy asset score tool to help building owners evaluate their buildings with respect to the score system. The goal of the energy asset score system is to facilitate cost-effective investment in energy efficiency improvements of commercial buildings. The system will allow building owners and managers to compare their building infrastructure against peers and track building upgrade progress over time. The system can also help other building stakeholders (e.g., building operators, tenants, financiers, and appraisers) understand the relative efficiency of different buildings in a way that is independent from their operations and occupancy. This report outlines the technical protocol used to generate the energy asset score, explains the scoring methodology, and provides additional details regarding the energy asset score tool. This report also describes alternative methods that were considered prior to developing the current approach. Finally, this report describes a few features of the program where alternative approaches are still under evaluation.

  18. Energy Efficiency, Building Productivity and the Commercial Buildings Market

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jones, D.W.

    2002-05-16

    The energy-efficiency gap literature suggests that building buyers are often short-sighted in their failure to apply life-cycle costing principles to energy efficient building technologies, with the result that under investment in these advanced technology occurs. This study examines the reasons this behavior may occur, by analyzing the pressures that market forces place on purchasers of buildings. Our basic conclusion is that the fundamental manner in which the buildings sector does business creates pressures to reduce initial capital outlays and to hedge against a variety of risks, including the ability of building owners to capture benefits from energy efficiency. Starting from the position that building buyers' willingness to pay drives choices over building attributes, we examine basic market principles, the structure of the buildings market, including the role of lenders, and policies that promote penetration of energy efficient technologies. We conclude that greater attention to buyers, and to the incentives and constraints they face, would promote a better understanding of building investment choices and contribute to better policies to promote the penetration of these technologies into markets.

  19. Experience implementing energy standards for commercial buildings and its lessons for the Philippines

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Busch, John; Deringer, Joseph

    1998-10-01

    Energy efficiency standards for buildings have been adopted in over forty countries. This policy mechanism is pursued by governments as a means of increasing energy efficiency in the buildings sector, which typically accounts for about a third of most nations' energy consumption and half of their electricity consumption. This study reports on experience with implementation of energy standards for commercial buildings in a number of countries and U.S. states. It is conducted from the perspective of providing useful input to the Government of the Philippines' (GOP) current effort at implementing their building energy standard. While the impetus for this work is technical assistance to the Philippines, the intent is to shed light on the broader issues attending implementation of building energy standards that would be applicable there and elsewhere. The background on the GOP building energy standard is presented, followed by the objectives for the study, the approach used to collect and analyze information about other jurisdictions' implementation experience, results, and conclusions and recommendations.

  20. Peak load shifting control using different cold thermal energy storage facilities in commercial buildings: A review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sun, Yongjun; Wang, Shengwei; Xiao, Fu; Gao, Diance

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • Little study reviews the load shifting control using different facilities. • This study reviews load shifting control using building thermal mass. • This study reviews load shifting control using thermal energy storage systems. • This study reviews load shifting control using phase change material. • Efforts for developing more applicable load shifting control are addressed. - Abstract: For decades, load shifting control, one of most effective peak demand management methods, has attracted increasing attentions from both researchers and engineers. Different load shifting control strategies have been developed when diverse cold thermal energy storage facilities are used in commercial buildings. The facilities include building thermal mass (BTM), thermal energy storage system (TES) and phase change material (PCM). Little study has systematically reviewed these load shifting control strategies and therefore this study presents a comprehensive review of peak load shifting control strategies using these thermal energy storage facilities in commercial buildings. The research and applications of the load shifting control strategies are presented and discussed. The further efforts needed for developing more applicable load shifting control strategies using the facilities are also addressed

  1. Enabling Energy Efficiency in South Africa's Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2016-04-01

    South Africa is leading a number of efforts to support a thriving economy while also reducing energy use. Increasing energy demand coupled with a highly energy intensive economy and energy inefficient industries provide the backdrop for strong government action underway in South Africa. This brochure details how the Clean Energy Solutions Center supported development of the Regulations on Allowance for the Energy Efficiency Savings legislation designed to provide a framework for effective energy efficiency regulation, incentives and energy reduction targets for South Africa's commercial buildings sector.

  2. Benchmarking the energy efficiency of commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chung, William; Hui, Y.V.; Lam, Y. Miu

    2006-01-01

    Benchmarking energy-efficiency is an important tool to promote the efficient use of energy in commercial buildings. Benchmarking models are mostly constructed in a simple benchmark table (percentile table) of energy use, which is normalized with floor area and temperature. This paper describes a benchmarking process for energy efficiency by means of multiple regression analysis, where the relationship between energy-use intensities (EUIs) and the explanatory factors (e.g., operating hours) is developed. Using the resulting regression model, these EUIs are then normalized by removing the effect of deviance in the significant explanatory factors. The empirical cumulative distribution of the normalized EUI gives a benchmark table (or percentile table of EUI) for benchmarking an observed EUI. The advantage of this approach is that the benchmark table represents a normalized distribution of EUI, taking into account all the significant explanatory factors that affect energy consumption. An application to supermarkets is presented to illustrate the development and the use of the benchmarking method

  3. An energy systems engineering approach to the optimal design of energy systems in commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, Pei; Pistikopoulos, Efstratios N. [Centre for Process Systems Engineering (CPSE), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ (United Kingdom); Li, Zheng [Department of Thermal Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

    2010-08-15

    Energy consumption in commercial buildings accounts for a significant proportion of worldwide energy consumption. Any increase in the energy efficiency of the energy systems for commercial buildings would lead to significant energy savings and emissions reductions. In this work, we introduce an energy systems engineering framework towards the optimal design of such energy systems with improved energy efficiency and environmental performance. The framework features a superstructure representation of the various energy technology alternatives, a mixed-integer optimization formulation of the energy systems design problem, and a multi-objective design optimization solution strategy, where economic and environmental criteria are simultaneously considered and properly traded off. A case study of a supermarket energy systems design is presented to illustrate the key steps and potential of the proposed energy systems engineering approach. (author)

  4. An energy systems engineering approach to the optimal design of energy systems in commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Pei; Pistikopoulos, Efstratios N.; Li Zheng

    2010-01-01

    Energy consumption in commercial buildings accounts for a significant proportion of worldwide energy consumption. Any increase in the energy efficiency of the energy systems for commercial buildings would lead to significant energy savings and emissions reductions. In this work, we introduce an energy systems engineering framework towards the optimal design of such energy systems with improved energy efficiency and environmental performance. The framework features a superstructure representation of the various energy technology alternatives, a mixed-integer optimization formulation of the energy systems design problem, and a multi-objective design optimization solution strategy, where economic and environmental criteria are simultaneously considered and properly traded off. A case study of a supermarket energy systems design is presented to illustrate the key steps and potential of the proposed energy systems engineering approach.

  5. An energy systems engineering approach to the optimal design of energy systems in commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu Pei [Centre for Process Systems Engineering (CPSE), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ (United Kingdom); Pistikopoulos, Efstratios N., E-mail: e.pistikopoulos@imperial.ac.u [Centre for Process Systems Engineering (CPSE), Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ (United Kingdom); Li Zheng [Department of Thermal Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

    2010-08-15

    Energy consumption in commercial buildings accounts for a significant proportion of worldwide energy consumption. Any increase in the energy efficiency of the energy systems for commercial buildings would lead to significant energy savings and emissions reductions. In this work, we introduce an energy systems engineering framework towards the optimal design of such energy systems with improved energy efficiency and environmental performance. The framework features a superstructure representation of the various energy technology alternatives, a mixed-integer optimization formulation of the energy systems design problem, and a multi-objective design optimization solution strategy, where economic and environmental criteria are simultaneously considered and properly traded off. A case study of a supermarket energy systems design is presented to illustrate the key steps and potential of the proposed energy systems engineering approach.

  6. ISO 50001 for Commercial Buildings: Lessons Learned From U.S. DOE Pilot Project: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Deru, M.; Field, K.; Punjabi, S.

    2014-08-01

    In the U.S., the ISO 50001 Standard, which establishes energy management systems (EnMSs) and processes, has shown uptake primarily in the industrial sector. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) undertook a pilot program to explore ISO 50001 implementation in commercial buildings. Eight organizations participated as pilots, with technical assistance provided by DOE, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), and the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech). This paper shares important lessons learned from the pilot. Staff time was the most critical resource required to establish effective EnMSs in commercial buildings. The pilot also revealed that technical support and template/example materials were essential inputs. Crucial activities included evaluating performance, identifying goals, making connections, communicating operational controls, and tracking/reviewing progress. Benefits realized included enhanced intra-organizational connections, greater energy awareness, increased process efficiencies, and improved ability to make business cases. Incremental benefits for ISO 50001 certification were greater accountability, assurance of best practices, public relations opportunities, and potential to unlock verified savings credits or incentive money. Incremental certification costs included more staff/consultant time, money for certification, and a tendency to limit EnMS scope in order to ensure favorable audit results. Five best practices were identified - utilizing expert technical assistance, training, and other resources; focusing on implementation over documentation; keeping top management involved; considering organizational structure when selecting EnMS scope; and matching the implementation level to an EnMS's scope and scale. The last two practices are particularly relevant to the commercial buildings sector.

  7. Quantification protocol for energy efficiency in commercial and institutional buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2010-10-15

    Alberta Environment has developed an approved methodology that can be used to quantify the reduction of direct and indirect greenhouse gas emission observed after the implementation of energy efficiency measures in commercial and institutional buildings. This methodology concerns energy conservation measures that target the heating system, the ventilation, the air conditioning and lightning systems, but also includes building envelope, tap water heating, elevators, occupant small electrical equipment, outdoor lighting, swimming pool pumping or heating. Calculation methodologies for energy conservation proposed by the Efficiency Valuation Organization were adapted by Alberta Environment. The protocol detailed in this document is based on the fact that emissions reductions are represented by the difference between the energy use in the project condition and a baseline. This approach proposes simple and advanced calculation methodologies that allow project developers to use one or the other, depending on the availability of data and on the limitations of the project, to maximize the greenhouse gas emissions reductions quantified. 14 refs., 11 tabs., 5 figs.

  8. Commercial demand for energy: a disaggregated approach. [Model validation for 1970-1975; forecasting to 2000

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jackson, J.R.; Cohn, S.; Cope, J.; Johnson, W.S.

    1978-04-01

    This report describes the structure and forecasting accuracy of a disaggregated model of commercial energy use recently developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The model forecasts annual commercial energy use by ten building types, five end uses, and four fuel types. Both economic (utilization rate, fuel choice, capital-energy substitution) and technological factors (equipment efficiency, thermal characteristics of buildings) are explicitly represented in the model. Model parameters are derived from engineering and econometric analysis. The model is then validated by simulating commercial energy use over the 1970--1975 time period. The model performs well both with respect to size of forecast error and ability to predict turning points. The model is then used to evaluate the energy-use implications of national commercial buildings standards based on the ASHRAE 90-75 recommendations. 10 figs., 12 tables, 14 refs.

  9. Effects of coagulating enzyme types (commercial calf rennet ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Effects of coagulating enzyme types (commercial calf rennet, Aspergillus niger var. awamori as recombinant chymosin and rhizomucor miehei as microbial rennet) on the chemical and sensory characteristics of white pickled cheese.

  10. High-performance commercial building facades

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Eleanor; Selkowitz, Stephen; Bazjanac, Vladimir; Inkarojrit, Vorapat; Kohler, Christian

    2002-06-01

    This study focuses on advanced building facades that use daylighting, sun control, ventilation systems, and dynamic systems. A quick perusal of the leading architectural magazines, or a discussion in most architectural firms today will eventually lead to mention of some of the innovative new buildings that are being constructed with all-glass facades. Most of these buildings are appearing in Europe, although interestingly U.S. A/E firms often have a leading role in their design. This ''emerging technology'' of heavily glazed fagades is often associated with buildings whose design goals include energy efficiency, sustainability, and a ''green'' image. While there are a number of new books on the subject with impressive photos and drawings, there is little critical examination of the actual performance of such buildings, and a generally poor understanding as to whether they achieve their performance goals, or even what those goals might be. Even if the building ''works'' it is often dangerous to take a design solution from one climate and location and transport it to a new one without a good causal understanding of how the systems work. In addition, there is a wide range of existing and emerging glazing and fenestration technologies in use in these buildings, many of which break new ground with respect to innovative structural use of glass. It is unclear as to how well many of these designs would work as currently formulated in California locations dominated by intense sunlight and seismic events. Finally, the costs of these systems are higher than normal facades, but claims of energy and productivity savings are used to justify some of them. Once again these claims, while plausible, are largely unsupported. There have been major advances in glazing and facade technology over the past 30 years and we expect to see continued innovation and product development. It is critical in this process to be able to

  11. Sources of indoor air contamination on the ground floor of a high-rise commercial building

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nayebzadeh, A.; Cragg-Elkouh, S.; Rancy, R.; Dufresne, A.

    1999-01-01

    Indoor air quality is a subject of growing concern in the developed world. Many sources of indoor air contamination in commercial and office buildings are recognised and have been investigated. In addition to the usual internal sources of air contaminants, other external sources from attached facilities can find their way into the building. This report presents the results of an indoor air quality survey in a high-rise office building which demonstrated an obvious seasonal change in regard to the concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ). Furthermore, a complementary survey in the same building was carried out to identify the relevant sources of air contamination in the building and the results indicated that an attached train station and the nearby street traffic had a significant impact on indoor air quality. (author)

  12. Analysis of Potential Benefits and Costs of Updating the Commercial Building Energy Code in Iowa

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cort, Katherine A.; Belzer, David B.; Richman, Eric E.; Winiarski, David W.

    2002-09-07

    The state of Iowa is considering adpoting ASHRAE 90.1-1999 as its commercial building energy code. In an effort to evaluate whether or not this is an appropraite code for the state, the potential benefits and costs of adopting this standard are considered. Both qualitative and quantitative benefits are assessed. The energy simulation and economic results suggest that adopting ASHRAE 90.1-1999 would provide postitive net benefits to the state relative to the building and design requirements currently in place.

  13. Analysis of Potential Benefits and Costs of Adopting ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001 as the Commercial Building Energy Code in Tennessee

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cort, Katherine A.; Winiarski, David W.; Belzer, David B.; Richman, Eric E.

    2004-09-30

    ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001 Energy Standard for Buildings except Low-Rise Residential Buildings (hereafter referred to as ASHRAE 90.1-2001 or 90.1-2001) was developed in an effort to set minimum requirements for the energy efficient design and construction of new commercial buildings. The State of Tennessee is considering adopting ASHRAE 90.1-2001 as its commercial building energy code. In an effort to evaluate whether or not this is an appropriate code for the state, the potential benefits and costs of adopting this standard are considered in this report. Both qualitative and quantitative benefits and costs are assessed. Energy and economic impacts are estimated using the Building Loads Analysis and System Thermodynamics (BLAST) simulations combined with a Life-Cycle Cost (LCC) approach to assess corresponding economic costs and benefits. Tennessee currently has ASHRAE Standard 90A-1980 as the statewide voluntary/recommended commercial energy standard; however, it is up to the local jurisdiction to adopt this code. Because 90A-1980 is the recommended standard, many of the requirements of ASHRAE 90A-1980 were used as a baseline for simulations.

  14. Roadmap for the Future of Commercial Energy Codes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rosenberg, Michael I. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Hart, Philip R. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Zhang, Jian [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Athalye, Rahul A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-01-01

    Building energy codes have significantly increased building efficiency over the last 38 years, since the first national energy code was published in 1975. The most commonly used path in energy codes, the prescriptive path, appears to be reaching a point of diminishing returns. The current focus on prescriptive codes has limitations including significant variation in actual energy performance depending on which prescriptive options are chosen, a lack of flexibility for designers and developers, the inability to handle optimization that is specific to building type and use, the inability to account for project-specific energy costs, and the lack of follow-through or accountability after a certificate of occupancy is granted. It is likely that an approach that considers the building as an integrated system will be necessary to achieve the next real gains in building efficiency. This report provides a high-level review of different formats for commercial building energy codes, including prescriptive, prescriptive packages, capacity constrained, outcome based, and predictive performance approaches. This report also explores a next generation commercial energy code approach that places a greater emphasis on performance-based criteria.

  15. Analysis of Potential Benefits and Costs of Updating the Commercial Building Energy Code in North Dakota

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cort, Katherine A.; Belzer, David B.; Winiarski, David W.; Richman, Eric E.

    2004-04-30

    The state of North Dakota is considering updating its commercial building energy code. This report evaluates the potential costs and benefits to North Dakota residents from updating and requiring compliance with ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001. Both qualitative and quantitative benefits and costs are assessed in the analysis. Energy and economic impacts are estimated using the Building Loads Analysis and System Thermodynamics (BLAST simulation combined with a Life-cycle Cost (LCC) approach to assess correspodning economic costs and benefits.

  16. Comparison of Actual Costs to Integrate Commercial Buildings with the Grid

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Piette, Mary Ann [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Energy Technologies Area; Black, Doug [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Energy Technologies Area; Yin, Rongxin [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Energy Technologies Area

    2016-05-01

    During the past decade, the technology to automate demand response (DR) in buildings and industrial facilities has advanced significantly. Automation allows rapid, repeatable, reliable operation. This study focuses on costs for DR automation in commercial buildings with some discussion on residential buildings and industrial facilities. DR automation technology relies on numerous components, including communication systems, hardware and software gateways, standards-based messaging protocols, controls and integration platforms, and measurement and telemetry systems. This paper discusses the impact factors that contribute to the costs of automated DR systems, with a focus on OpenADR 1.0 and 2.0 systems. In addition, this report compares cost data from several DR automation programs and pilot projects, evaluates trends in the cost per unit of DR and kilowatts (kW) available from automated systems, and applies a standard naming convention and classification or taxonomy for system elements. In summary, median costs for the 56 installed automated DR systems studied here are about $200/kW. The deviation around this median is large with costs in some cases being an order of magnitude greater or less than median. Costs to automate fast DR systems for ancillary services are not fully analyzed in this report because additional research is needed to determine the total such costs.

  17. Developing evidence-based prescriptive ventilation rate standards for commercial buildings in California: a proposed framework

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mendell, Mark J.; Fisk, William J.

    2014-02-01

    Background - The goal of this project, with a focus on commercial buildings in California, was to develop a new framework for evidence-based minimum ventilation rate (MVR) standards that protect occupants in buildings while also considering energy use and cost. This was motivated by research findings suggesting that current prescriptive MVRs in commercial buildings do not provide occupants with fully safe and satisfactory indoor environments. Methods - The project began with a broad review in several areas ? the diverse strategies now used for standards or guidelines for MVRs or for environmental contaminant exposures, current knowledge about adverse human effects associated with VRs, and current knowledge about contaminants in commercial buildings, including their their presence, their adverse human effects, and their relationships with VRs. Based on a synthesis of the reviewed information, new principles and approaches are proposed for setting evidence-based VRs standards for commercial buildings, considering a range of human effects including health, performance, and acceptability of air. Results ? A review and evaluation is first presented of current approaches to setting prescriptive building ventilation standards and setting acceptable limits for human contaminant exposures in outdoor air and occupational settings. Recent research on approaches to setting acceptable levels of environmental exposures in evidence-based MVR standards is also described. From a synthesis and critique of these materials, a set of principles for setting MVRs is presented, along with an example approach based on these principles. The approach combines two sequential strategies. In a first step, an acceptable threshold is set for each adverse outcome that has a demonstrated relationship to VRs, as an increase from a (low) outcome level at a high reference ventilation rate (RVR, the VR needed to attain the best achievable levels of the adverse outcome); MVRs required to meet each

  18. Establishing a Commercial Buildings Energy Data Framework for India: A Comprehensive Look at Data Collection Approaches, Use Cases and Institutions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Iyer, Maithili [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Kumar, Satish [Synurja, LLC, Vienna, VA (United States); Mathew, Sangeeta [Synurja, LLC, Vienna, VA (United States); Stratton, Hannah [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Mathew, Paul [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Singh, Mohini [Synurja, LLC, Vienna, VA (United States)

    2016-10-01

    Enhancing energy efficiency of the commercial building stock is an important aspect of any national energy policy. Understanding how buildings use energy is critical to formulating any new policy that may impact energy use, underscoring the importance of credible data. Data enables informed decision making and good quality data is essential for policy makers to prioritize energy saving strategies and track implementation. Given the uniqueness of the buildings sector and challenges to collecting relevant energy data, this study characterizes various elements involved in pertinent data collection and management, with the specific focus on well-defined data requirements, appropriate methodologies and processes, feasible data collection mechanisms, and approaches to institutionalizing the collection process. This report starts with a comprehensive review of available examples of energy data collection frameworks for buildings across different countries. The review covers the U.S. experience in the commercial buildings sector, the European experience in the buildings sector and other data collection initiatives in Singapore and China to capture the more systematic efforts in Asia in the commercial sector. To provide context, the review includes a summary and status of disparate efforts in India to collect and use commercial building energy data. Using this review as a key input, the study developed a data collection framework for India with specific consideration to relevant use cases. Continuing with the framework for data collection, this study outlines the key performance indicators applicable to the use cases and their collection feasibility, as well as immediate priorities of the participating stakeholders. It also discusses potential considerations for data collection and the possible approaches for survey design. With the specific purpose of laying out the possible ways to structure and organize data collection institutionally, the study collates existing

  19. A cash flow model of development activity and the scope for energy savings. [Commercial office buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leifer, D [Queensland Univ., St. Lucia (AU). Dept. of Architecture

    1991-01-01

    When proposing energy saving measures to the developers of large commercial office projects, it is necessary to appreciate what the developers' goals and perceptions are. This paper looks at a simple cash-flow model of development activity, and illustrates the potential for energy savings with reference to some data from two major Australian cities. This data was collected between July and November 1989 by surveys which were carried out on the basic design of 26 of the tallest Brisbane commercial office buildings. This survey followed an extensive investigation into the premises needs of modern office building tenants in Brisbane, in which over 200 CBD tenants were questioned. This investigation showed that there was an increasing need for air conditioning capacity and electrical power; greater tendencies for ''after hours'' office work; a desire for larger floor-plates to cater for expanding tenant organizations, and the emergence of ''professional tenants''. These observations have been documented elsewhere in the orbit reports amongst others. The buildings surveyed represent 60% of the estimated Brisbane central business district (CBD) office stock of area 1,256,000 m{sup 2}. (author).

  20. Bonneville Power Administration`s Commercial Sector Conservation Market.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gordan, Frederick M. [Pacific Energy Associates, Inc. (United States)

    1992-11-10

    Bonneville has, as part of its resource plan, accepted targets for commercial conservation which are quite ambitious. To meet these targets, Bonneville will need to acquire as much cost-effective conservation as possible over the next twelve years. With this in mind, this document explores the relative importance of different commercial market segments and the types of assistance each market needs to install as many cost-effective conservation measures in as many buildings as possible. This document reviews Bonneville`s marketing environment and position, and suggests goals for commercial sector conservation marketing at Bonneville. Then it presents a broad market segmentation and series of additional demographic analyses. These analyses assess what groups of consumers Bonneville must reach to achieve most of the commercial conservation potential and what is needed to reach them. A final section reviews the success of Bonneville programs at reaching various markets. The market segmentation identifies different types of consumers and opportunities which would require distinct program approaches. Four large market segments are identified that have distinct program needs. Then four ``building life-cycle events`` are identified which provide important conservation opportunities and also require distinct program services. This creates a matrix of 16 cells which delineate distinct needs for program marketing. Each of the four key market segments manages at least 20% of the Region`s commercial floorspace.

  1. Identifying Critical Factors in the Cost-Effectiveness of Solar and Battery Storage in Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McLaren, Joyce A. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Anderson, Katherine H. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Laws, Nicholas D. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Gagnon, Pieter J. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); DiOrio, Nicholas A. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Li, Xiangkun [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2018-02-21

    This analysis elucidates the emerging market for distributed solar paired with battery energy storage in commercial buildings across the United States. It provides insight into the near-term and future solar and solar-plus-storage market opportunities as well as the variables that impact the expected savings from installing behind-the-meter systems.

  2. Proven commercial reactor types: an introduction to their principal advantages and disadvantages

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alesso, H.P.

    1981-01-01

    This study deals with the principal advantages and disadvantages of the five types of proven commercial reactors. A description of each class of commercial reactor (light water, gas-cooled, and heavy water) and their proven reactors is followed by a comparison of reactor types on the basis of technical merit, economics of operation, availability of technology, and associated political issues. (author)

  3. Building Energy Management Open Source Software

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rahman, Saifur [Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ. (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA (United States)

    2017-08-25

    Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy in November 2013, a Building Energy Management Open Source Software (BEMOSS) platform was engineered to improve sensing and control of equipment in small- and medium-sized commercial buildings. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), small- (5,000 square feet or smaller) and medium-sized (between 5,001 to 50,000 square feet) commercial buildings constitute about 95% of all commercial buildings in the U.S. These buildings typically do not have Building Automation Systems (BAS) to monitor and control building operation. While commercial BAS solutions exist, including those from Siemens, Honeywell, Johnsons Controls and many more, they are not cost effective in the context of small- and medium-sized commercial buildings, and typically work with specific controller products from the same company. BEMOSS targets small and medium-sized commercial buildings to address this gap.

  4. Understanding the potential of facilities managers to be advocates for energy efficiency retrofits in mid-tier commercial office buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Curtis, Jim; Walton, Andrea; Dodd, Michael

    2017-01-01

    Realising energy efficiency opportunities in new commercial office buildings is an easier task than retrofitting older, mid-tier building stock. As a result, a number of government programs aim to support retrofits by offering grants, upgrades, and energy audits to facilitate energy efficiency opportunities. This study reports on a state government program in Victoria, Australia, where the uptake of such offerings was lower than expected, prompting the program team to consider whether targeting facilities managers (FMs), rather than building owners, might be a better way of delivering the program. The influences and practices of FMs that impact on their ability to be advocates for energy efficiency were explored. The results revealed that complex building ownership arrangements, poor communication skills, isolation from key decision making processes, a lack of credible business cases and information, split incentives, and the prospect of business disruptions can all impact on FMs’ ability to drive organizational change. Future program efforts should continue to interrogate the social context of retrofits in mid-tier buildings, including other influences and influencers beyond FMs, and adapt accordingly. - Highlights: • Energy efficiency retrofits of older commercial buildings can be a challenge. • Government support for retrofits is not always taken up by building owners. • Targeting facilities managers (FMs) to encourage retrofits is proposed. • FMs’ ability to be advocates for energy efficiency is constrained. • Government offerings need to better fit with the realities of the problem.

  5. Small Commercial Building Re-tuning: A Primer

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cort, Katherine A.; Hostick, Donna J.; Underhill, Ronald M.; Fernandez, Nicholas; Katipamula, Srinivas

    2013-09-30

    To help building owners and managers address issues related to energy-efficient operation of small buildings, DOE has developed a Small Building Re-tuning training curriculum. This "primer" provides additional background information to understand some of the concepts presented in the Small Building Re-tuning training. The intent is that those who are less familiar with the buidling energy concepts will review this material before taking the building re-tuning training class.

  6. Alliance for Sustainable Colorado Renovation Raises Its Energy Performance to New Heights, Commercial Building Energy Efficiency (Fact Sheet); Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    2015-03-01

    The Alliance for Sustainable Colorado (The Alliance) is a nonprofit organization aiming to transform sustainability from vision to reality. Part of its mission is to change the operating paradigms of commercial building design to make them more sustainable. Toward that end The Alliance uses its headquarters, The Alliance Center at 1536 Wynkoop Street in Denver, as a living laboratory, conductingpilot studies of innovative commercial-building-design solutions for using and generating energy.

  7. The buildings networks' energy statistics 2003; Bygningsnettverkets energistatistikk 2003

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2004-07-01

    The report presents analyses and statistics for the energy consumption in various types of building, mostly commercial buildings. It shows how the energy consumption varies with the type of heating system, cooling, size of building, age etc. Also shown are figures for the energy consumption in relation to function, such as number of students in schools, number of people in nursing homes etc. The climate in Norway was the 6th warmest in 137 years. Energy consumption is given for different climatic zones.

  8. Assessing Energy Efficiency Opportunities in US Industrial and Commercial Building Motor Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rao, Prakash; Sheaffer, Paul; McKane, Aimee; Scheihing, Paul

    2015-09-01

    In 2002, the United States Department of Energy (USDOE) published an energy efficiency assessment of U.S. industrial sector motor systems titled United States Industrial Electric Motor Systems Market Opportunities Assessment. The assessment advanced motor system efficiency by providing a greater understanding of the energy consumption, use characteristics, and energy efficiency improvement potential of industrial sector motor systems in the U.S. Since 2002, regulations such as Minimum Energy Performance Standards, cost reductions for motor system components such as variable frequency drives, system-integrated motor-driven equipment, and awareness programs for motor system energy efficiency have changed the landscape of U.S. motor system energy consumption. To capture the new landscape, the USDOE has initiated a three-year Motor System Market Assessment (MSMA), led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). The MSMA will assess the energy consumption, operational and maintenance characteristics, and efficiency improvement opportunity of U.S. industrial sector and commercial building motor systems. As part of the MSMA, a significant effort is currently underway to conduct field assessments of motor systems from a sample of facilities representative of U.S. commercial and industrial motor system energy consumption. The Field Assessment Plan used for these assessments builds on recent LBNL research presented at EEMODS 2011 and EEMODS 2013 using methods for characterizing and determining regional motor system energy efficiency opportunities. This paper provides an update on the development and progress of the MSMA, focusing on the Field Assessment Plan and the framework for assessing the global supply chain for emerging motors and drive technologies.

  9. Walmart - Saving Energy, Saving Money Through Comprehensive Retrofits, Commercial Building Energy Efficiency (Fact Sheet); Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    2015-03-01

    Walmart partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in 2009 to develop and demonstrate energy retrofits for existing buildings. The goal was to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% versus ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2007, as part of DOE's Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program. The project presented here, the retrofit of a 213,000 square foot store in Centennial, Colorado, withefficiency measures across multiple building systems, is part of Walmart's ongoing environmental sustainability program, which originated in 2005.

  10. Accuracy of automated measurement and verification (M&V) techniques for energy savings in commercial buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Granderson, Jessica; Touzani, Samir; Custodio, Claudine; Sohn, Michael D.; Jump, David; Fernandes, Samuel

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • A testing procedure and metrics to asses the performance of whole-building M&V methods is presented. • The accuracy of ten baseline models is evaluated on measured data from 537 commercial buildings. • The impact of reducing the training period from 12-months to shorter time horizon is examined. - Abstract: Trustworthy savings calculations are critical to convincing investors in energy efficiency projects of the benefit and cost-effectiveness of such investments and their ability to replace or defer supply-side capital investments. However, today’s methods for measurement and verification (M&V) of energy savings constitute a significant portion of the total costs of efficiency projects. They also require time-consuming manual data acquisition and often do not deliver results until years after the program period has ended. The rising availability of “smart” meters, combined with new analytical approaches to quantifying savings, has opened the door to conducting M&V more quickly and at lower cost, with comparable or improved accuracy. These meter- and software-based approaches, increasingly referred to as “M&V 2.0”, are the subject of surging industry interest, particularly in the context of utility energy efficiency programs. Program administrators, evaluators, and regulators are asking how M&V 2.0 compares with more traditional methods, how proprietary software can be transparently performance tested, how these techniques can be integrated into the next generation of whole-building focused efficiency programs. This paper expands recent analyses of public-domain whole-building M&V methods, focusing on more novel M&V 2.0 modeling approaches that are used in commercial technologies, as well as approaches that are documented in the literature, and/or developed by the academic building research community. We present a testing procedure and metrics to assess the performance of whole-building M&V methods. We then illustrate the test procedure

  11. Capability and deficiency of the simplified model for energy calculation of commercial buildings in the Brazilian regulation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Melo, A.P.; Lamberts, R.; Costola, D.; Hensen, J.L.M.

    2011-01-01

    This paper provides a preliminary assessment on the accuracy of the Brazilian regulation simplified model for commercial buildings. The first step was to compare its results with BESTEST. The study presents a straightforward approach to apply the BESTEST in other climates than the original one

  12. A Model of U.S. Commercial Distributed Generation Adoption

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    LaCommare, Kristina Hamachi; Ryan Firestone; Zhou, Nan; Maribu,Karl; Marnay, Chris

    2006-01-10

    Small-scale (100 kW-5 MW) on-site distributed generation (DG) economically driven by combined heat and power (CHP) applications and, in some cases, reliability concerns will likely emerge as a common feature of commercial building energy systems over the next two decades. Forecasts of DG adoption published by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in the Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) are made using the National Energy Modeling System (NEMS), which has a forecasting module that predicts the penetration of several possible commercial building DG technologies over the period 2005-2025. NEMS is also used for estimating the future benefits of Department of Energy research and development used in support of budget requests and management decisionmaking. The NEMS approach to modeling DG has some limitations, including constraints on the amount of DG allowed for retrofits to existing buildings and a small number of possible sizes for each DG technology. An alternative approach called Commercial Sector Model (ComSeM) is developed to improve the way in which DG adoption is modeled. The approach incorporates load shapes for specific end uses in specific building types in specific regions, e.g., cooling in hospitals in Atlanta or space heating in Chicago offices. The Distributed Energy Resources Customer Adoption Model (DER-CAM) uses these load profiles together with input cost and performance DG technology assumptions to model the potential DG adoption for four selected cities and two sizes of five building types in selected forecast years to 2022. The Distributed Energy Resources Market Diffusion Model (DER-MaDiM) is then used to then tailor the DER-CAM results to adoption projections for the entire U.S. commercial sector for all forecast years from 2007-2025. This process is conducted such that the structure of results are consistent with the structure of NEMS, and can be re-injected into NEMS that can then be used to integrate adoption results into a full forecast.

  13. Construction cost impact analysis of the U.S. Department of Energy mandatory performance standards for new federal commercial and multi-family, high-rise residential buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Di Massa, F.V.; Hadley, D.L.; Halverson, M.A.

    1993-12-01

    In accordance with federal legislation, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has conducted a project to demonstrate use of its Energy Conservation Voluntary Performance Standards for Commercial and Multi-Family High-Rise Residential Buildings; Mandatory for New Federal Buildings; Interim Rule (referred to in this report as DOE-1993). A key requisite of the legislation requires DOE to develop commercial building energy standards that are cost effective. During the demonstration project, DOE specifically addressed this issue by assessing the impacts of the standards on (1) construction costs, (2) builders (and especially small builders) of multi-family, high-rise buildings, and (3) the ability of low-to moderate-income persons to purchase or rent units in such buildings. This document reports on this project

  14. Pilot project for a commercial buildings Energy Analysis and Diagnostic Center (EADC) program. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Capehart, B.L.

    1996-02-01

    Commercial energy use costs businesses around $70 billion annually. Many of these businesses are small and medium sized organizations that do not have the resources to help themselves, or to pay for professional engineering services to help reduce their energy costs and improve their economic competitiveness. Energy cost reduction actions with payback times of around two years could save the commercial sector 15--20%, or $10--$15 billion per year. This project was initially intended to evaluate the feasibility of performing commercial energy audits as an adjunct to the industrial audit program run by the US Department of Energy Industrial Office. This program is housed in 30 universities throughout the United States. Formerly known as Energy Analysis and Diagnostic Centers (EADC`s), the university programs are now called Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC`s) to reflect their expansion from energy use analyses to include waste and productivity analyses. The success of the EADC/IAC program in helping the manufacturing sector provides an excellent model for a similar program in the commercial buildings sector. This project has investigated using the EADC/IAC approach to performing energy audits for the commercial sector, and has determined that such an approach is feasible and cost effective.

  15. High Performance Commercial Fenestration Framing Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mike Manteghi; Sneh Kumar; Joshua Early; Bhaskar Adusumalli

    2010-01-31

    A major objective of the U.S. Department of Energy is to have a zero energy commercial building by the year 2025. Windows have a major influence on the energy performance of the building envelope as they control over 55% of building energy load, and represent one important area where technologies can be developed to save energy. Aluminum framing systems are used in over 80% of commercial fenestration products (i.e. windows, curtain walls, store fronts, etc.). Aluminum framing systems are often required in commercial buildings because of their inherent good structural properties and long service life, which is required from commercial and architectural frames. At the same time, they are lightweight and durable, requiring very little maintenance, and offer design flexibility. An additional benefit of aluminum framing systems is their relatively low cost and easy manufacturability. Aluminum, being an easily recyclable material, also offers sustainable features. However, from energy efficiency point of view, aluminum frames have lower thermal performance due to the very high thermal conductivity of aluminum. Fenestration systems constructed of aluminum alloys therefore have lower performance in terms of being effective barrier to energy transfer (heat loss or gain). Despite the lower energy performance, aluminum is the choice material for commercial framing systems and dominates the commercial/architectural fenestration market because of the reasons mentioned above. In addition, there is no other cost effective and energy efficient replacement material available to take place of aluminum in the commercial/architectural market. Hence it is imperative to improve the performance of aluminum framing system to improve the energy performance of commercial fenestration system and in turn reduce the energy consumption of commercial building and achieve zero energy building by 2025. The objective of this project was to develop high performance, energy efficient commercial

  16. Functional Testing Protocols for Commercial Building Efficiency Baseline Modeling Software

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jump, David; Price, Phillip N.; Granderson, Jessica; Sohn, Michael

    2013-09-06

    This document describes procedures for testing and validating proprietary baseline energy modeling software accuracy in predicting energy use over the period of interest, such as a month or a year. The procedures are designed according to the methodology used for public domain baselining software in another LBNL report that was (like the present report) prepared for Pacific Gas and Electric Company: ?Commercial Building Energy Baseline Modeling Software: Performance Metrics and Method Testing with Open Source Models and Implications for Proprietary Software Testing Protocols? (referred to here as the ?Model Analysis Report?). The test procedure focuses on the quality of the software?s predictions rather than on the specific algorithms used to predict energy use. In this way the software vendor is not required to divulge or share proprietary information about how their software works, while enabling stakeholders to assess its performance.

  17. Computer modeling of commercial refrigerated warehouse facilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nicoulin, C.V.; Jacobs, P.C.; Tory, S.

    1997-01-01

    The use of computer models to simulate the energy performance of large commercial refrigeration systems typically found in food processing facilities is an area of engineering practice that has seen little development to date. Current techniques employed in predicting energy consumption by such systems have focused on temperature bin methods of analysis. Existing simulation tools such as DOE2 are designed to model commercial buildings and grocery store refrigeration systems. The HVAC and Refrigeration system performance models in these simulations tools model equipment common to commercial buildings and groceries, and respond to energy-efficiency measures likely to be applied to these building types. The applicability of traditional building energy simulation tools to model refrigerated warehouse performance and analyze energy-saving options is limited. The paper will present the results of modeling work undertaken to evaluate energy savings resulting from incentives offered by a California utility to its Refrigerated Warehouse Program participants. The TRNSYS general-purpose transient simulation model was used to predict facility performance and estimate program savings. Custom TRNSYS components were developed to address modeling issues specific to refrigerated warehouse systems, including warehouse loading door infiltration calculations, an evaporator model, single-state and multi-stage compressor models, evaporative condenser models, and defrost energy requirements. The main focus of the paper will be on the modeling approach. The results from the computer simulations, along with overall program impact evaluation results, will also be presented

  18. Commercial Building Tenant Energy Usage Aggregation and Privacy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Livingston, Olga V.; Pulsipher, Trenton C.; Anderson, David M.; Wang, Na

    2014-10-31

    A growing number of building owners are benchmarking their building energy use. This requires the building owner to acquire monthly whole-building energy usage information, which can be challenging for buildings in which individual tenants have their own utility meters and accounts with the utility. Some utilities and utility regulators have turned to aggregation of customer energy use data (CEUD) as a way to give building owners whole-building energy usage data while protecting customer privacy. Meter profile aggregation adds a layer of protection that decreases the risk of revealing CEUD as the number of meters aggregated increases. The report statistically characterizes the similarity between individual energy usage patterns and whole-building totals at various levels of meter aggregation.

  19. The analysis of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of a large-scale commercial building in Shanghai, China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xin Wang

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Reasonable test, diagnosis, and analysis are meaningful for building energy efficiency retrofit and management. Energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission of a large-scale commercial building are described in this article. Basic information about energy consumption equipment is included in the investigation. Further diagnoses about the operational state of air-conditioning water systems, and ducted systems were implemented. Energy consumption decreased 200 kWh/m2 per year from 2007 to 2009 after energy-saving reconstruction in 2006. Next, a carbon audit was carried out; this comprised CO2 emission statistics associated with the energy use and categorization and structural analysis (categorization refers to energy categorization and structural analysis means the composition and its proportion relationship of all kinds of primary energy and secondary energy in energy production or consumption. Greenhouse gas emissions could be less than 150 kg/m2 per year from 2007 to 2009. An analysis of the correlation between CO2 emissions, building gross domestic product, and energy efficiency is also presented. This article makes an analysis on the energy utilization and energy-saving reconstruction of a public commercial building in Shanghai and then makes an analysis of carbon audit about greenhouse gas emissions related to energy utilization (it analyzes the status of building’s energy utilization and greenhouse gas emissions, to have a more comprehensive understanding on the internal relationship between energy consumption and its greenhouse gas emissions and provide researchful reference data for the development with reduction strategies of greenhouse gas emission in future building.

  20. Radon investigations - Soil and commercial projects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goodwin, R.W.

    1987-01-01

    The liability issues of radon exposure have prompted potential purchasers of vacant land for commercial/industrial development, and commercial landlords, renting large commercial buildings, to determine the radon gas levels at such sites. This paper deals with both pre-construction sites subject to freezing conditions and to large commercial structures. A correlation of radon gas levels within a commercial building and a sister pre-construction site confirms the validity of using activated charcoal canisters as a cost effective means to combating radon in large structures

  1. Building energy governance in Shanghai

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kung, YiHsiu Michelle

    With Asia's surging economies and urbanization, the region is adding to its built environment at an unprecedented rate, especially those population centers in China and India. With numerous existing buildings, plus a new building boom, construction in these major Asian cities has caused momentous sustainability challenges. This dissertation focuses on China's leading city, Shanghai, to explore and assess its existing commercial building energy policies and practices. Research estimates that Shanghai's commercial buildings might become a key challenge with regard to energy use and CO2 emissions as compared to other major Asian cities. Relevant building energy policy instruments at national and local levels for commercial buildings are reviewed. In addition, two benchmarks are established to further assess building energy policies in Shanghai. The first benchmark is based on the synthesis of relevant criteria and policy instruments as recommended by professional organizations, while the second practical benchmark is drawn from an analysis of three global cities: New York, London and Tokyo. Moreover, two large-scale commercial building sites - Shanghai IKEA and Plaza 66 - are selected for investigation and assessment of their efforts on building energy saving measures. Detailed building energy savings, CO2 reductions, and management cost reductions based on data availability and calculations are presented with the co-benefits approach. The research additionally analyzes different interventions and factors that facilitate or constrain the implementation process of building energy saving measures in each case. Furthermore, a multi-scale analytical framework is employed to investigate relevant stakeholders that shape Shanghai's commercial building energy governance. Research findings and policy recommendations are offered at the close of this dissertation. Findings and policy recommendations are intended to facilitate commercial building energy governance in Shanghai and

  2. Sport Commercialism and its Impact on Sponsorship Strategy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tracy Trachsler

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Sport commercialism has increased tremendously over the past twenty years. Major sporting events and organizations are at the point where most cannot survive without outside sponsor- ship revenue. This study on American attitudes towards sport sponsorships analyzes the increased sport commercialism’s impact on sport fans. Previous studies on sport sponsorship and commercialism showed that increased sport commercial- ism leads to a negative purchase intent although a younger fan may be resistant to the negative influence of over-commercial- ism. This study builds upon such research by comparing gen- der, age, type of sport (professional versus amateur and fan- avidity. Perhaps paradoxically, this research suggests there is no correlation between over-commercialism and sport interest across numerous demographic categories. This data of corporate influence on sport commercialism may provide insights for sport sponsors as they best position their brands to the sport avid consumer.

  3. Distributed Flexibility Characterization and Resource Allocation Strategies for Multi-zone Commercial Buildings in the Smart Grid

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hao, He; Lian, Jianming; Kalsi, Karanjit; Stoustrup, Jakob

    2015-12-15

    The HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air- Conditioning) system of commercial buildings is a complex system with a large number of dynamically interacting components. In particular, the thermal dynamics of each zone are coupled with those of the neighboring zones. In this paper, we study a multi-agent based approach to model and control commercial building HVAC system for providing grid services. In the multi-agent system (MAS), individual zones are modeled as agents that can communicate, interact, and negotiate with one another to achieve a common objective. We first propose a distributed characterization method on the aggregated airflow (and thus fan power) flexibility that the HVAC system can provide to the ancillary service market. Then, we propose a Nash-bargaining based airflow allocation strategy to track a dispatch signal (that is within the offered flexibility limit) while respecting the preference and flexibility of individual zones. Moreover, we devise a distributed algorithm to obtain the Nash bargaining solution via dual decomposition and average consensus. Numerical simulations illustrate that the proposed distributed protocols are much more scalable than the centralized approaches especially when the system becomes larger and more complex.

  4. Assessment of the Energy Impacts of Outside Air in the Commercial Sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Benne, K.; Griffith, B.; Long, N.; Torcellini, P.; Crawley, D.; Logee, T.

    2009-04-01

    The enormous quantity of energy consumed by U.S. commercial buildings places a significant burden on the energy supply and is a potential source of economic strain. To address this, the DOE Building Technologies Program has established the goal of developing market-viable zero energy buildings by 2025. This study focuses on the effects of outside air, and considers various outside air sources, types of building construction, building subsectors, and climates. Based on the information about energy consumption attributed to outside air, it identifies topics for further research that have the greatest potential to achieve energy savings.

  5. Natural radionuclide distribution in Brazilian commercial granites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anjos, R.M.; Veiga, R.; Soares, T.; Santos, A.M.A.; Aguiar, J.G.; Frasca, M.H.B.O.; Brage, J.A.P.; Uzeda, D.; Mangia, L.; Facure, A.; Mosquera, B.; Carvalho, C.; Gomes, P.R.S.

    2005-01-01

    The dimension stones sector in Brazil produces several varieties of granites, marbles, slates and basalts. More than half of this production corresponds to around 200 different commercial types of granites with specific names, geographical and geological origins and mineral compositions. The well-known natural radioactivity present in rocks, where high radiation levels are associated with igneous rocks such as granite, can be used to determine their general petrologic features. This subject is important in environmental radiological protection, since granites are widely used as building and ornamental stones. In this paper, it is applied to correlate the petrographic characteristics of commercial granites with their corresponding dose rates for natural radioactivity. Amounts of thorium, uranium and potassium concentrations have been reported in several Brazilian commercial granite samples

  6. Emergency destruction of a panel residence building, type series 1-115

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Malakhova Anna Nikolaevna

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The co-authors consider the design solution developed for a panel residence building, type series 1-115, and provide a description of the emergency destruction of structural elements of a 9-storey panel residence building of this type (built in 1979, following a gas explosion. The overall length of the building is 86.4 m; its width is 12 m. The structural system in this building represents a longitudinal wall. Its external longitudinal walls are wade of ceramsite concrete, while its interior walls are made of concrete. Its reinforced concrete hollow slabs rest on the longitudinal load-bearing walls. The transverse walls of staircases are made of concrete blocks. The strip foundation supports the load-bearing walls of the building. The epicenter of the explosion was located in the kitchen on the eighth floor of the building. The kitchen was immediately adjacent to the staircase of the building. Partial destruction of the building followed the gas explosion. Exterior walls of its eighth and ninth floors and the attic were destroyed. Panel buildings designed in pursuance of the longitudinal structural system are more vulnerable to explosive loads compared to buildings designed to the cross-wall structural system, where bearing slabs rest on three interior walls. Thus, all slabs rest on each of the three internal walls of the building on both sides. In the buildings designed to the longitudinal wall structural system, slabs rest on the two walls, one of which is external. The article is based on the report following the inspection of the technical condition of the building, undertaken subsequent to its emergency destruction.

  7. Greenhouse Gas Abatement with Distributed Generation in California's Commercial Buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stadler, Michael; Marnay, Chris; Cardoso, Goncalo; Megel, Olivier; Siddiqui, Afzal; Lai, Judy

    2009-01-01

    Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBL) is working with the California Energy Commission (CEC) to determine the role of distributed generation (DG) in greenhouse gas reductions. The impact of DG on large industrial sites is well known, and mostly, the potentials are already harvested. In contrast, little is known about the impact of DG on commercial buildings with peak electric loads ranging from 100 kW to 5 MW. We examine how DG with combined heat and power (CHP) may be implemented within the context of a cost minimizing microgrid that is able to adopt and operate various smart energy technologies, such as thermal and photovoltaic (PV) on-site generation, heat exchangers, solar thermal collectors, absorption chillers, and storage systems. We use a mixed-integer linear program (MILP) that has the minimization of a site's annual energy costs as objective. Using 138 representative commercial sites in California (CA) with existing tariff rates and technology data, we find the greenhouse gas reduction potential for California's commercial sector. This paper shows results from the ongoing research project and finished work from a two year U.S. Department of Energy research project. To show the impact of the different technologies on CO2 emissions, several sensitivity runs for different climate zones within CA with different technology performance expectations for 2020 were performed. The considered sites can contribute between 1 Mt/a and 1.8 Mt/a to the California Air Resources Board (CARB) goal of 6.7Mt/a CO2 abatement potential in 2020. Also, with lower PV and storage costs as well as consideration of a CO2 pricing scheme, our results indicate that PV and electric storage adoption can compete rather than supplement each other when the tariff structure and costs of electricity supply have been taken into consideration. To satisfy the site's objective of minimizing energy costs, the batteries will be charged also by CHP systems during off-peak and mid-peak hours and

  8. Nonresidential buildings energy consumption survey: 1979 consumption and expenditures. Part 2. Steam, fuel oil, LPG, and all fuels

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Patinkin, L.

    1983-12-01

    This report presents data on square footage and on total energy consumption and expenditures for commercial buildings in the contiguous United States. Also included are detailed consumption and expenditures tables for fuel oil or kerosene, liquid petroleum gas (LPG), and purchased steam. Commercial buildings include all nonresidential buildings with the exception of those where industrial activities occupy more of the total square footage than any other type of activity. 7 figures, 23 tables.

  9. Two-stage commercial evaluation of engineering systems production projects for high-rise buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bril, Aleksander; Kalinina, Olga; Levina, Anastasia

    2018-03-01

    The paper is devoted to the current and debatable problem of methodology of choosing the effective innovative enterprises for venture financing. A two-stage system of commercial innovation evaluation based on the UNIDO methodology is proposed. Engineering systems account for 25 to 40% of the cost of high-rise residential buildings. This proportion increases with the use of new construction technologies. Analysis of the construction market in Russia showed that the production of internal engineering systems elements based on innovative technologies has a growth trend. The production of simple elements is organized in small enterprises on the basis of new technologies. The most attractive for development is the use of venture financing of small innovative business. To improve the efficiency of these operations, the paper proposes a methodology for a two-stage evaluation of small business development projects. A two-stage system of commercial evaluation of innovative projects allows creating an information base for informed and coordinated decision-making on venture financing of enterprises that produce engineering systems elements for the construction business.

  10. Two-stage commercial evaluation of engineering systems production projects for high-rise buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bril Aleksander

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper is devoted to the current and debatable problem of methodology of choosing the effective innovative enterprises for venture financing. A two-stage system of commercial innovation evaluation based on the UNIDO methodology is proposed. Engineering systems account for 25 to 40% of the cost of high-rise residential buildings. This proportion increases with the use of new construction technologies. Analysis of the construction market in Russia showed that the production of internal engineering systems elements based on innovative technologies has a growth trend. The production of simple elements is organized in small enterprises on the basis of new technologies. The most attractive for development is the use of venture financing of small innovative business. To improve the efficiency of these operations, the paper proposes a methodology for a two-stage evaluation of small business development projects. A two-stage system of commercial evaluation of innovative projects allows creating an information base for informed and coordinated decision-making on venture financing of enterprises that produce engineering systems elements for the construction business.

  11. Improving building energy efficiency in India: State-level analysis of building energy efficiency policies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yu, Sha; Tan, Qing; Evans, Meredydd; Kyle, Page; Vu, Linh; Patel, Pralit L.

    2017-11-01

    India is expected to add 40 billion m2 of new buildings till 2050. Buildings are responsible for one third of India’s total energy consumption today and building energy use is expected to continue growing driven by rapid income and population growth. The implementation of the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) is one of the measures to improve building energy efficiency. Using the Global Change Assessment Model, this study assesses growth in the buildings sector and impacts of building energy policies in Gujarat, which would help the state adopt ECBC and expand building energy efficiency programs. Without building energy policies, building energy use in Gujarat would grow by 15 times in commercial buildings and 4 times in urban residential buildings between 2010 and 2050. ECBC improves energy efficiency in commercial buildings and could reduce building electricity use in Gujarat by 20% in 2050, compared to the no policy scenario. Having energy codes for both commercial and residential buildings could result in additional 10% savings in electricity use. To achieve these intended savings, it is critical to build capacity and institution for robust code implementation.

  12. Radiometric analysis of Chinese commercial granites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xinwei, L.; Lingqing, W.; Xiaodan, J.

    2006-01-01

    Due to the widespread use of granites as building and ornamental materials, measurements of 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K activities in commercial granites have been carried out using a NaI(Tl) γ-ray spectrometer with a matrix-inversion-based spectral stripping technique. The concentrations of 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K in Chinese commercial granite range from 14.5 to 204.7 Bq x kg -1 , 16.7 to 186.7 Bq x kg -1 and 185.7 to 1745.6 Bq x kg -1 , respectively. The mean values of the activity concentrations of 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K in red and pink commercial granites are all higher than those in black and gray commercial ones. The radium equivalent activity (Ra eq ), the external hazard index (H ex ), the internal hazard index (H in ) and the annual gonadal dose equivalent (AGDE) were also calculated and compared to the international recommended values. Six types of red commercial granites (CBR, MLR, QXR, PBR, JXR, LQR, YDR and TSR) of China do not satisfy the universal standards. (author)

  13. Improving flow patterns and spillage characteristics of a box-type commercial kitchen hood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Rong Fung; Chen, Jia-Kun; Han, Meng-Ji; Priyambodo, Yusuf

    2014-01-01

    A conventional box-type commercial kitchen hood and its improved version (termed the "IQV commercial kitchen hood") were studied using the laser-assisted smoke flow visualization technique and tracer-gas (sulfur hexafluoride) detection methods. The laser-assisted smoke flow visualization technique qualitatively revealed the flow field of the hood and the areas apt for leakages of hood containment. The tracer-gas concentration detection method measured the quantitative leakage levels of the hood containment. The oil mists that were generated in the conventional box-type commercial kitchen hood leaked significantly into the environment from the areas near the front edges of ceiling and side walls. Around these areas, the boundary-layer separation occurred, inducing highly unsteady and turbulent recirculating flow, and leading to spillages of hood containment due to inappropriate aerodynamic design at the front edges of the ceiling and side walls. The tracer-gas concentration measurements on the conventional box-type commercial kitchen hood showed that the sulfur hexafluoride concentrations detected at the hood face attained very large values on an order of magnitude about 10(3)-10(4) ppb. By combining the backward-offset narrow suction slot, deflection plates, and quarter-circular arcs at the hood entrance, the IQV commercial kitchen hood presented a flow field containing four backward-inclined cyclone flow structures. The oil mists generated by cooking were coherently confined in these upward-rising cyclone flow structures and finally exhausted through the narrow suction slot. The tracer-gas concentration measurements on the IQV commercial kitchen hood showed that the order of magnitude of the sulfur hexafluoride concentrations detected at the hood face is negligibly small--only about 10(0) ppb across the whole hood face.

  14. Evaluating the benefits of commercial building energy codes and improving federal incentives for code adoption.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gilbraith, Nathaniel; Azevedo, Inês L; Jaramillo, Paulina

    2014-12-16

    The federal government has the goal of decreasing commercial building energy consumption and pollutant emissions by incentivizing the adoption of commercial building energy codes. Quantitative estimates of code benefits at the state level that can inform the size and allocation of these incentives are not available. We estimate the state-level climate, environmental, and health benefits (i.e., social benefits) and reductions in energy bills (private benefits) of a more stringent code (ASHRAE 90.1-2010) relative to a baseline code (ASHRAE 90.1-2007). We find that reductions in site energy use intensity range from 93 MJ/m(2) of new construction per year (California) to 270 MJ/m(2) of new construction per year (North Dakota). Total annual benefits from more stringent codes total $506 million for all states, where $372 million are from reductions in energy bills, and $134 million are from social benefits. These total benefits range from $0.6 million in Wyoming to $49 million in Texas. Private benefits range from $0.38 per square meter in Washington State to $1.06 per square meter in New Hampshire. Social benefits range from $0.2 per square meter annually in California to $2.5 per square meter in Ohio. Reductions in human/environmental damages and future climate damages account for nearly equal shares of social benefits.

  15. Next-generation heat pump systems in residential buildings and commercial premises; Naesta generations vaermepumpssystem i bostaeder och lokaler

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Haglund Stignor, Caroline; Lindahl, Markus; Alsbjer, Markus; Nordman, Roger; Rolfsman, Lennart; Axell, Monica

    2009-07-01

    Summarising, the following conclusions can be drawn from this work. - Installation of a heat pump system is a very efficient way of reducing a building's energy demand without making any greater changes to the building's climate screen, and can therefore assist Sweden's achievement of its energy efficiency improvement targets. - A new generation of cost-effective smaller heat pumps is needed for installation in new detached houses or those being renovated and upgraded. - There also seems to be an excellent market potential for heat pumps that are larger than has previously been common: there should be good prospects for selling them for use in apartment buildings and in commercial or similar premises. - Heat pump installations are particularly competitive in applications where there are simultaneous heating and cooling demands in the property, and also in those cases where heating is required for most of the year and cooling for some other part of the year. If these suggested system arrangements are to be fully realised, there will be a need for further research in certain cases. Particularly, there is a need for research and development of more efficient pumps, fans and speed-controlled compressors in order to get such products on to the market. Performance measurements and follow-up of real systems are needed in order to obtain a clear picture of the efficiency of both present-day and proposed systems. This knowledge is essential for further development of systems, not only for residential buildings but also, even more importantly, for commercial and similar premises. Actual heating and cooling requirements in different types of non-residential premises need to be known more accurately in order to decide how systems should be controlled in order to minimise total energy use. Much indicates that future detached houses will be more energy-efficient, which could have the undesirable result of greater use of direct electric heating, as the investment

  16. Membrane versus shell type elements in F.E. analysis of box type buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Canetta, G.

    1979-01-01

    Finite element analysis of box-type buildings is discussed under typical loading conditions - gravity, seismic and temperature loads. The computation effort is recognized to be noticeably different, according to whether membrane or shell type elements are used. The relevance of membrane and bending stress components to the total stress distribution is outlined in the table below; the different role of the typical members under the various loading conditions is emphasized. (orig.)

  17. Dataset on the energy performance of atrium type hotel buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vujosevic, Milica; Krstic-Furundzic, Aleksandra

    2018-04-01

    The data presented in this article are related to the research article entitled "The Influence of Atrium on Energy Performance of Hotel Building" (Vujosevic and Krstic-Furundzic, 2017) [1], which describes the annual energy performance of atrium type hotel building in Belgrade climate conditions, with the objective to present the impact of the atrium on the hotel building's energy demands for space heating and cooling. This dataset is made publicly available to show energy performance of selected hotel design alternatives, in order to enable extended analyzes of these data for other researchers.

  18. Effects of bedrock type on the indoor radon concentrations at the office buildings in Gyeongju, Korea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Park Hee Chan

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available This study measured the indoor radon concentrations at 23 administrative office buildings in Gyeongju, Korea, which consists of 23 administrative districts. Using the Korean geological information system, the type of bedrock under the administrative office buildings was identified and classified in 3 major types: granite, sedimentary rock, and sedimentary rock-based fault. The changes in the indoor concentrations at the 23 administrative office buildings were analyzed according to the type of bedrock. As a result, the radon concentration in the areas with the granite bedrock was generally higher than that in the region of two other types of bedrock. In addition, the radon concentration was evaluated according to surface area and construction timing of the building. The indoor radon concentration generally increased with decreasing surface area of the building, particularly in granite distributed areas. For a building aged more than 15 years, the radon concentration in the building in the granite area was much higher. For the building aged 1 or 2 years, the radon concentration was high regardless of the type of the bedrock due to radon emanation from the building material, such as concrete.

  19. Commercial/industrial photovoltaic module and array requirement study. Low-cost solar array project engineering area

    Science.gov (United States)

    1981-01-01

    Design requirements for photovoltaic modules and arrays used in commercial and industrial applications were identified. Building codes and referenced standards were reviewed for their applicability to commercial and industrial photovoltaic array installation. Four general installation types were identified - integral (replaces roofing), direct (mounted on top of roofing), stand-off (mounted away from roofing), and rack (for flat or low slope roofs, or ground mounted). Each of the generic mounting types can be used in vertical wall mounting systems. This implies eight mounting types exist in the commercial/industrial sector. Installation costs were developed for these mounting types as a function of panel/module size. Cost drivers were identified. Studies were performed to identify optimum module shapes and sizes and operating voltage cost drivers. The general conclusion is that there are no perceived major obstacles to the use of photovoltaic modules in commercial/industrial arrays.

  20. Scenarios of building energy demand for China with a detailed regional representation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu, Sha; Eom, Jiyong; Zhou, Yuyu; Evans, Meredydd; Clarke, Leon

    2014-01-01

    Building energy consumption currently accounts for 28% of China's total energy use and is expected to continue to grow induced by floorspace expansion, income growth, and population change. Fuel sources and building services are also evolving over time as well as across regions and building types. To understand sectoral and regional difference in building energy use and how socioeconomic, physical, and technological development influence the evolution of the Chinese building sector, this study developed a building energy use model for China downscaled into four climate regions under an integrated assessment framework. Three building types (rural residential, urban residential, and commercial) were modeled specifically in each climate region. Our study finds that the Cold and Hot Summer Cold Winter regions lead in total building energy use. The impact of climate change on heating energy use is more significant than that of cooling energy use in most climate regions. Both rural and urban households will experience fuel switch from fossil fuel to cleaner fuels. Commercial buildings will experience rapid growth in electrification and energy intensity. Improved understanding of Chinese buildings with climate change highlighted in this study will help policy makers develop targeted policies and prioritize building energy efficiency measures. - Highlights: • We conduct integrated assessment of Chinese building energy use at sub-regional level. • The C and HSCW regions each account for one-third of China's building energy use. • China's building energy use with climate change would decrease by 5% in 2050. • With climate change energy use rises in HSWW region and declines in other regions

  1. Analysis of Potential Benefits and Costs of Adopting ASHRAE Standard 90.1-1999 as a Commercial Building Energy Code in Illinois Jurisdictions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Belzer, David B.; Cort, Katherine A.; Winiarski, David W.; Richman, Eric E.; Friedrich, Michele

    2002-05-01

    ASHRAE Standard 90.1-1999 was developed in an effort to set minimum requirements for energy efficienty design and construction of new commercial buildings. This report assesses the benefits and costs of adopting this standard as the building energy code in Illinois. Energy and economic impacts are estimated using BLAST combined with a Life-Cycle Cost approach to assess corresponding economic costs and benefits.

  2. Calculation of the yearly energy performance of heating systems based on the European Building Energy Directive and related CEN Standards

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olesen, Bjarne W.; de Carli, Michele

    2011-01-01

    According to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) all new European buildings (residential, commercial, industrial, etc.) must since 2006 have an energy declaration based on the calculated energy performance of the building, including heating, ventilating, cooling and lighting syst......–20% of the building energy demand. The additional loss depends on the type of heat emitter, type of control, pump and boiler. Keywords: Heating systems; CEN standards; Energy performance; Calculation methods......According to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) all new European buildings (residential, commercial, industrial, etc.) must since 2006 have an energy declaration based on the calculated energy performance of the building, including heating, ventilating, cooling and lighting...... systems. This energy declaration must refer to the primary energy or CO2 emissions. The European Organization for Standardization (CEN) has prepared a series of standards for energy performance calculations for buildings and systems. This paper presents related standards for heating systems. The relevant...

  3. Estimating energy impacts of residential and commercial building development. A manual for the Pacific Northwest and Alaska

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-02-22

    This energy-impact manual presents information on energy implications of new building design and operation, providing a reasonably accurate means of assessing the total energy impact of new construction in the commercial and residential sectors. While developed specifically for the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, much of the data used are national averages; the procedures described are applicable to other regions of the nation, with appropriate adjustments for climatic differences. The manual is organized into three parts, each covering one aspect of the energy impacts of building development. Part I addresses the energy impact of erecting the building(s). This includes the energy cost of grading and excavating and other site preparation. It also takes into account the energy embodied in the fabrication of materials used in building construction, as well as the energy cost of transporting materials to the site and assembling them. Part II focuses on the end use of energy during normal building operation, i.e., the energy consumed for space heating, cooling, lighting, water heating, etc. A simplified calculation sequence is provided which allows the user to estimate the consumption of most combinations of building orientation, characteristics, and operating conditions. Part III examines the relationship of land use to energy consumption, principally the transportation energy impact of various land-development patterns, the embodied energy impacts of infrastructure requirements, and the impacts of various orientation and siting schemes. (MCW)

  4. Evaluation of infectious bronchitis virus Arkansas-type vaccine failure in commercial broilers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roh, Ha-Jung; Hilt, Deborah A; Williams, Susan M; Jackwooda, Mark W

    2013-06-01

    Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) causes an upper respiratory tract disease in chickens and is highly contagious. Many different types of the virus exist, but only a few types are used as attenuated live vaccines in the commercial poultry industry. Of the vaccine types used, the Arkansas (Ark)-type virus is most frequently reisolated from vaccinated broilers. Previous research has suggested that incomplete clearance of Ark-type vaccine virus plays a role in the inadequate protection observed when vaccinated broilers are challenged with pathogenic Ark virus. In this study, we examine routes of vaccine administration using multiple IBV types including Ark in an effort to understand why Ark vaccines do not provide good protection and persist in commercial broilers. We found that interference between different types of IBV vaccines was not occurring when combined and administered using a commercial hatchery spray cabinet. Also, Ark vaccine virus was not efficacious in 1-day-old broilers when sprayed using a hatchery spray cabinet, but it gave good protection when administrated by eyedrop inoculation. We also found that the amount of Ark vaccine virus was low or undetectable in choanal swabs out to 35 days postvaccination when vaccine was administered by eyedrop or drinking water. Alternatively, a subpopulation of the Ark vaccine isolated from a vaccinated bird, Ark-RI-EP1, showed a peak titer at 7-10 days of age when given by the same routes, suggesting that the Ark-RI-EP1 was more fit with regard to infection, replication in the birds, or both. Moreover, we found that detection of IBV vaccine virus early after administration, regardless of strain or route, correlated with protection against homologous challenge and may thus be a good indicator of vaccine efficacy in the field because humoral antibody titers are typically low or undetectable after vaccination. These experiments provided key findings that can be used to direct efforts for improving the efficacy of IBV

  5. Hawaii demand-side management resource assessment. Final report, Reference Volume 1: Building prototype analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-04-01

    This report provides a detailed description of, and the baseline assumptions and simulation results for, the building prototype simulations conducted for the building types designated in the Work Plan for Demand-side Management Assessment of Hawaii`s Demand-Side Resources (HES-4, Phase 2). This report represents the second revision to the initial building prototype description report provided to DBEDT early in the project. Modifications and revisions to the prototypes, based on further calibration efforts and on comments received from DBEDT Staff have been incorporated into this final version. These baseline prototypes form the basis upon which the DSM measure impact estimates and the DSM measure data base were developed for this project. This report presents detailed information for each of the 17 different building prototypes developed for use with the DOE-21E program (23 buildings in total, including resorts and hotels defined separately for each island) to estimate the impact of the building technologies and measures included in this project. The remainder of this section presents some nomenclature and terminology utilized in the reports, tables, and data bases developed from this project to denote building type and vintage. Section 2 contains a more detailed discussion of the data sources, the definition of the residential sector building prototypes, and results of the DOE-2 analysis. Section 3 provides a similar discussion for the commercial sector. The prototype and baseline simulation results are presented in a separate section for each building type. Where possible, comparison of the baseline simulation results with benchmark data from the ENERGY 2020 model or other demand forecasting models specific to Hawaii is included for each building. Appendix A contains a detailed listing of the commercial sector baseline indoor lighting technologies included in the existing and new prototypes by building type.

  6. CO2 MONITORING FOR DEMAND CONTROLLED VENTILATION IN COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fisk, William J.; Sullivan, Douglas P.; Faulkner, David; Eliseeva, Ekaterina

    2010-03-17

    Carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) sensors are often deployed in commercial buildings to obtain CO{sub 2} data that are used, in a process called demand-controlled ventilation, to automatically modulate rates of outdoor air ventilation. The objective is to keep ventilation rates at or above design specifications and code requirements and also to save energy by avoiding excessive ventilation rates. Demand controlled ventilation is most often used in spaces with highly variable and sometime dense occupancy. Reasonably accurate CO{sub 2} measurements are needed for successful demand controlled ventilation; however, prior research has suggested substantial measurement errors. Accordingly, this study evaluated: (a) the accuracy of 208 CO{sub 2} single-location sensors located in 34 commercial buildings, (b) the accuracy of four multi-location CO{sub 2} measurement systems that utilize tubing, valves, and pumps to measure at multiple locations with single CO{sub 2} sensors, and (c) the spatial variability of CO{sub 2} concentrations within meeting rooms. The field studies of the accuracy of single-location CO{sub 2} sensors included multi-concentration calibration checks of 90 sensors in which sensor accuracy was checked at multiple CO{sub 2} concentrations using primary standard calibration gases. From these evaluations, average errors were small, -26 ppm and -9 ppm at 760 and 1010 ppm, respectively; however, the averages of the absolute values of error were 118 ppm (16%) and 138 ppm (14%), at concentrations of 760 and 1010 ppm, respectively. The calibration data are generally well fit by a straight line as indicated by high values of R{sup 2}. The Title 24 standard specifies that sensor error must be certified as no greater than 75 ppm for a period of five years after sensor installation. At 1010 ppm, 40% of sensors had errors greater than {+-}75 ppm and 31% of sensors has errors greater than {+-}100 ppm. At 760 ppm, 47% of sensors had errors greater than {+-}75 ppm and 37% of

  7. Commercial thermal distribution systems, Final report for CIEE/CEC

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu, Tengfang; Bechu, Olivier; Carrie, Remi; Dickerhoff, Darryl; Fisk, William; Franconi, Ellen; Kristiansen, Oyvind; Levinson, Ronnen; McWilliams, Jennifer; Wang, Duo; Modera, Mark; Webster, Tom; Ring, Erik; Zhang, Qiang; Huizenga, Charlie; Bauman, Fred; Arens, Ed

    1999-12-01

    According to the California Energy Commission (CEC 1998a), California commercial buildings account for 35% of statewide electricity consumption, and 16% of statewide gas consumption. Space conditioning accounts for roughly 16,000 GWh of electricity and 800 million therms of natural gas annually, and the vast majority of this space conditioning energy passes through thermal distribution systems in these buildings. In addition, 8600 GWh per year is consumed by fans and pumps in commercial buildings, most of which is used to move the thermal energy through these systems. Research work at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) has been ongoing over the past five years to investigate the energy efficiency of these thermal distribution systems, and to explore possibilities for improving that energy efficiency. Based upon that work, annual savings estimates of 1 kWh/ft{sup 2} for light commercial buildings, and 1-2 kWh/ft{sup 2} in large commercial buildings have been developed for the particular aspects of thermal distribution system performance being addressed by this project. Those savings estimates, combined with a distribution of the building stock based upon an extensive stock characterization study (Modera et al. 1999a), and technical penetration estimates, translate into statewide saving potentials of 2000 GWh/year and 75 million thermal/year, as well as an electricity peak reduction potential of 0.7 GW. The overall goal of this research program is to provide new technology and application knowledge that will allow the design, construction, and energy services industries to reduce the energy waste associated with thermal distribution systems in California commercial buildings. The specific goals of the LBNL efforts over the past year were: (1) to advance the state of knowledge about system performance and energy losses in commercial-building thermal distribution systems; (2) to evaluate the potential of reducing thermal losses through duct sealing, duct

  8. Urban Renewable Building And Neighborhood Optimization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2016-09-07

    URBANopt is a user interface for creating and running district and city scale building energy simulations. The framework is built around the OpenStudio Urban Measures which are part of the OpenStudio project. Building footprints, building height, building type, and other data can be imported from public records or other sources. Footprints and locations for new buildings and district systems can also be specified. OpenStudio Measures are used to create starting point energy models and to model energy design features and efficiency measures for each building. URBANopt allows a user to pose several scenarios such as “what if 30% of the commercial retail buildings added roof top solar” or “what if all elementary schools converted to ground source heat pumps” and then visualize the impacts at a district or city scale. URBANopt is capable of modeling existing buildings, new construction, and district energy systems. URBANopt can be used to explore options for achieving Zero Energy across a collection of buildings (e.g., Zero Energy Districts).

  9. Refrigeration Playbook: Natural Refrigerants; Selecting and Designing Energy-Efficient Commercial Refrigeration Systems That Use Low Global Warming Potential Refrigerants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nelson, Caleb [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Reis, Chuck [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Nelson, Eric [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Armer, James [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Arthur, Rob [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Heath, Richard [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Rono, James [CTA Architects Engineers, Boise, ID (United States); Hirsch, Adam [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Doebber, Ian [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2015-03-01

    This report provides guidance for selecting and designing energy efficient commercial refrigeration systems using low global warming potential refrigerants. Refrigeration systems are generally the largest energy end use in a supermarket type building, often accounting for more than half of a building's energy consumption.

  10. Can envelope codes reduce electricity and CO2 emissions in different types of buildings in the hot climate of Bahrain?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Radhi, H.

    2009-01-01

    The depletion of non-renewable resources and the environmental impact of energy consumption, particularly energy use in buildings, have awakened considerable interest in energy efficiency. Building energy codes have recently become effective techniques to achieve efficiency targets. The Electricity and Water Authority in Bahrain has set a target of 40% reduction of building electricity consumption and CO 2 emissions to be achieved by using envelope thermal insulation codes. This paper investigates the ability of the current codes to achieve such a benchmark and evaluates their impact on building energy consumption. The results of a simulation study are employed to investigate the impact of the Bahraini codes on the energy and environmental performance of buildings. The study focuses on air-conditioned commercial buildings and concludes that envelope codes, at best, are likely to reduce the energy use of the commercial sector by 25% if the building envelope is well-insulated and efficient glazing is used. Bahraini net CO 2 emissions could drop to around 7.1%. The simulation results show that the current energy codes alone are not sufficient to achieve a 40% reduction benchmark, and therefore, more effort should be spent on moving towards a more comprehensive approach

  11. Closing the Loop with Sensors in Commercial Building Systems: Applying Lessons from Automotive Vehicles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mantese, Joseph

    2011-01-01

    Automotive systems have evolved extensively over the past 50 years, providing a fully integrated system of sub-systems that work in concert for optimal vehicle level closed loop control. In this talk we look at several automotive sub-systems: stability and control, safety and security, emissions and comfort, diagnostics and maintenance, infotainment and communications; with an eye toward understanding their technology drivers and associated value propositions. Conversely, we examine how commercial building systems currently are represented as a collection of sub-systems that often work independently of each other for local optimization, often relying upon open loop control systems developed and installed decades ago. Reasoning primarily by analogy we explore opportunities for energy and efficiency, comfort and environment, and safety/security; asking whether there is sufficient value associated with a new class of building sensors and how those technologies might be brought to bear in improving performance. Finally, we examine the fundamental architecture of detection systems built upon sensing elements, with the aim of understanding trade-offs between: detection, false alarm rate, power, and cost.

  12. Integration of Real-Time Data Into Building Automation Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mark J. Stunder; Perry Sebastian; Brenda A. Chube; Michael D. Koontz

    2003-04-16

    The project goal was to investigate the possibility of using predictive real-time information from the Internet as an input to building management system algorithms. The objectives were to identify the types of information most valuable to commercial and residential building owners, managers, and system designers. To comprehensively investigate and document currently available electronic real-time information suitable for use in building management systems. Verify the reliability of the information and recommend accreditation methods for data and providers. Assess methodologies to automatically retrieve and utilize the information. Characterize equipment required to implement automated integration. Demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of using the information in building management systems. Identify evolutionary control strategies.

  13. Costs and Operating Dynamics of Integrating Distributed Energy Resources in Commercial and Industrial Buildings with Electric Vehicle Charging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flores, Robert Joseph

    Growing concerns over greenhouse gas and pollutant emissions have increased the pressure to shift energy conversion paradigms from current forms to more sustainable methods, such as through the use of distributed energy resources (DER) at industrial and commercial buildings. This dissertation is concerned with the optimal design and dispatch of a DER system installed at an industrial or commercial building. An optimization model that accurately captures typical utility costs and the physical constraints of a combined cooling, heating, and power (CCHP) system is designed to size and operate a DER system at a building. The optimization model is then used with cooperative game theory to evaluate the financial performance of a CCHP investment. The CCHP model is then modified to include energy storage, solar powered generators, alternative fuel sources, carbon emission limits, and building interactions with public and fleet PEVs. Then, a separate plugin electric vehicle (PEV) refueling model is developed to determine the cost to operate a public Level 3 fast charging station. The CCHP design and dispatch results show the size of the building load and consistency of the thermal loads are critical to positive financial performance. While using the CCHP system to produce cooling can provide savings, heat production drives positive financial performance. When designing the DER system to reduce carbon emissions, the use of renewable fuels can allow for a gas turbine system with heat recovery to reduce carbon emissions for a large university by 67%. Further reductions require large photovoltaic installations coupled with energy storage or the ability to export electricity back to the grid if costs are to remain relatively low. When considering Level 3 fast charging equipment, demand charges at low PEV travel levels are sufficiently high to discourage adoption. Integration of the equipment can reduce demand charge costs only if the building maximum demand does not coincide

  14. Analysis of Potential Benefits and Costs of Adopting ASHRAE Standard 90.1-1999 as a Commercial Building Energy Code in Michigan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cort, Katherine A.; Belzer, David B.; Halverson, Mark A.; Richman, Eric E.; Winiarski, David W.

    2002-09-30

    The state of Michigan is considering adpoting ASHRAE 90.1-1999 as its commercial building energy code. In an effort to evaluate whether or not this is an appropraite code for the state, the potential benefits and costs of adopting this standard are considered. Both qualitative and quantitative benefits are assessed. The energy simulation and economic results suggest that adopting ASHRAE 90.1-1999 would provide postitive net benefits to the state relative to the building and design requirements currently in place.

  15. A Conversation on Zero Net Energy Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Torcellini, Paul A [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Eley, Charles [Consultant; Gupta, Smita [Itron; McHugh, Jon [McHugh Energy Consultants; Lui, Bing [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Higgins, Cathy [New Buildings Institute; Iplikci, Jessica [Energy Trust of Oregon; Rosenberg, Michael [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

    2017-06-01

    Recently, zero net energy (ZNE) buildings have moved from state-of-the-art small project demonstrations to a more widely adopted approach across the country among various building types and sizes. States such as California set policy goals of all new residential construction to be NZE by 2020 and all commercial buildings to be NZE by 2030. However, the market for designing, constructing, and operating ZNE buildings is still relatively small. We bring together distinguished experts to share their thoughts on making ZNE buildings more widespread and mainstream from a broad perspective, including governments, utilities, energy-efficiency research institutes, and building owners. This conversation also presents the benefits of ZNE and ways to achieve that goal in the design and operation of buildings. The following is a roundtable conducted by ASHRAE Journal and Bing Liu with Charles Eley, Smita Gupta, Cathy Higgins, Jessica Iplikci, Jon McHugh, Michael Rosenberg, and Paul Torcellini.

  16. Study on vertical seismic response model of BWR-type reactor building

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Konno, T.; Motohashi, S.; Izumi, M.; Iizuka, S.

    1993-01-01

    A study on advanced seismic design for LWR has been carried out by the Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), under the sponsorship of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) of Japan. As a part of the study, it has been investigated to construct an accurate analytical model of reactor buildings for a seismic response analysis, which can reasonably represent dynamic characteristics of the building. In Japan, vibration models of reactor buildings for horizontal ground motion have been studied and examined through many simulation analyses for forced vibration tests and earthquake observations of actual buildings. And now it is possible to establish a reliable horizontal vibration model on the basis of multi-lumped mass and spring model. However, vertical vibration models have not been so much studied as horizontal models, due to less observed data for vertical motions. In this paper, the vertical seismic response models of a BWR-type reactor building including soil-structure interaction effect are numerically studied, by comparing the dynamic characteristics of (1) three dimensional finite element model, (2) multi-stick lumped mass model with a flexible base-mat, (3) multi-stick lumped mass model with a rigid base-mat and (4) single-stick lumped mass model. In particular, the BWR-type reactor building has the long span truss roof which is considered to be one of the critical members to vertical excitation. The modelings of the roof trusses are also studied

  17. Solar + Storage Synergies for Managing Commercial-Customer Demand Charges

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gagnon, P. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Govindarajan, A. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Bird, L. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Barbose, G. L. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Darghouth, N. R. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Mills, A. D. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2017-10-18

    Demand charges, which are based on a customer’s maximum demand in kilowatts (kW), are a common element of electricity rate structures for commercial customers. Customer-sited solar photovoltaic (PV) systems can potentially reduce demand charges, but the level of savings is difficult to predict, given variations in demand charge designs, customer loads, and PV generation profiles. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are collaborating on a series of studies to understand how solar PV can impact demand charges. Prior studies in the series examined demand charge reductions from solar on a stand-alone basis for residential and commercial customers. Those earlier analyses found that solar, alone, has limited ability to reduce demand charges depending on the specific design of the demand charge and on the shape of the customer’s load profile. This latest analysis estimates demand charge savings from solar in commercial buildings when co-deployed with behind-the-meter storage, highlighting the complementary roles of the two technologies. The analysis is based on simulated loads, solar generation, and storage dispatch across a wide variety of building types, locations, system configurations, and demand charge designs.

  18. Innovation in the U.S. building sector: An assessment of patent citations in building energy control technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Altwies, Joy E.; Nemet, Gregory F.

    2013-01-01

    Buildings are crucial to addressing energy problems because they are large consumers of end-use energy, and potential exists to dramatically improve their efficiencies. However, the pace of innovation in buildings is generally characterized as inadequate, despite the implementation of an array of policy instruments aimed at promoting efficiency. The literature on innovation in the building industry provides several explanations including: fragmented decision-making, principal agent problems, inadequate information, and limited learning across heterogeneous projects. We investigate the innovation process for buildings in the U.S. with a case study of patenting in energy management control systems (EMCS) for commercial buildings and programmable thermostats (PT) for residential buildings. Using U.S. patent data, we find that: (1) patenting activity peaked around 1980, subsequently declined, and then increased considerably in the past decade; (2) commercial, rather than residential, buildings account for the recent increase; and (3) building control technologies have benefitted from inventions originating outside the industry, notably from electronics and computers, with a shift toward the latter in recent years. - Highlights: ► We investigate the innovation process for buildings in the U.S. using patents. ► We use commercial and residential building controls technology as a case study. ► Patenting peaked around 1980, declined, and then increased in the past decade. ► Commercial building control patents account for most of the recent increase. ► Inventions in electronics and computers have led to innovation in building controls.

  19. Buildings interoperability landscape - Draft

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hardin, Dave B. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Stephan, Eric G. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Wang, Weimin [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Corbin, Charles D. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Widergren, Steven E. [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-02-01

    Buildings are an integral part of our nation’s energy economy. The advancement in information and communications technology (ICT) has revolutionized energy management in industrial facilities and large commercial buildings. As ICT costs decrease and capabilities increase, buildings automation and energy management features are transforming the small-medium commercial and residential buildings sectors. A vision of a connected world in which equipment and systems within buildings coordinate with each other to efficiently meet their owners’ and occupants’ needs, and where buildings regularly transact business with other buildings and service providers (such as gas and electric service providers) is emerging. However, while the technology to support this collaboration has been demonstrated at various degrees of maturity, the integration frameworks and ecosystems of products that support the ability to easily install, maintain, and evolve building systems and their equipment components are struggling to nurture the fledging business propositions of their proponents.

  20. Emergency building temperature restrictions. Final evaluation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    1980-11-01

    On July 5, 1979, DOE promulgated final regulations of the Emergency Building Temperature Restrictions program, placing emergency restrictions on thermostat settings for space heating, space cooling, and hot water in commercial, industrial, and nonresidential public buildings. The final regulations restricted space heating to a maximum of 65/sup 0/F, hot water temperature to a maximum of 105/sup 0/F, and cooling temperature to a minimum of 78/sup 0/F. A comprehensive evaluation of the entire EBTF program for a nine-month period from July 16, 1979 is presented. In Chapter 1, an estimate of the population of buildings covered by EBTR is presented. In Chapter 2, EBTR compliance by building type and region is reported. Exemptions are also discussed. In Chapter 3, the simulations of building energy use are explained and the relative impact of various building characteristics and effectiveness of different control strategies are estimated. Finally, in Chapter 4, the methodology for scaling the individual building energy savings to the national level is described, and estimated national energy savings are presented.

  1. Automated Continuous Commissioning of Commercial Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-10-01

    through an Ethernet connection. The sampling interval is 5 minutes. The data then is transferred to the Postgre structured query language (SQL...and how corrective actions should be prioritized. BACnet Interface EnergyPlus Interface EnergyPlus Building Model Matlab Data Diagnostics Postgre

  2. Low Carbon Design Research on the Space Layout Types of Office Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xia, Bing

    2018-01-01

    It is beneficial to find out the relationship of the spatial layout and low-carbon design in order to reduce buildings’ carbon emissions in the conceptual design phase. This paper analyzes and compares shape coefficient values, annual energy consumption and lighting performance of office buildings of different space layout types in Shanghai. Based on morphological characteristics of different types, the study also analyzes and presents low-carbon design strategies for each single type. This study assumes that architects should conduct passive and active design according to the specific building space layout, so that to make best use of the advantages and bypassing the disadvantages, in order to maximally reduce buildings’ carbon emissions.

  3. Energy Efficiency Requirements in Building Codes, Energy Efficiency Policies for New Buildings. IEA Information Paper

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Laustsen, Jens

    2008-03-15

    The aim of this paper is to describe and analyse current approaches to encourage energy efficiency in building codes for new buildings. Based on this analysis the paper enumerates policy recommendations for enhancing how energy efficiency is addressed in building codes and other policies for new buildings. This paper forms part of the IEA work for the G8 Gleneagles Plan of Action. These recommendations reflect the study of different policy options for increasing energy efficiency in new buildings and examination of other energy efficiency requirements in standards or building codes, such as energy efficiency requirements by major renovation or refurbishment. In many countries, energy efficiency of buildings falls under the jurisdiction of the federal states. Different standards cover different regions or climatic conditions and different types of buildings, such as residential or simple buildings, commercial buildings and more complicated high-rise buildings. There are many different building codes in the world and the intention of this paper is not to cover all codes on each level in all countries. Instead, the paper details different regions of the world and different ways of standards. In this paper we also evaluate good practices based on local traditions. This project does not seek to identify one best practice amongst the building codes and standards. Instead, different types of codes and different parts of the regulation have been illustrated together with examples on how they have been successfully addressed. To complement this discussion of efficiency standards, this study illustrates how energy efficiency can be improved through such initiatives as efficiency labelling or certification, very best practice buildings with extremely low- or no-energy consumption and other policies to raise buildings' energy efficiency beyond minimum requirements. When referring to the energy saving potentials for buildings, this study uses the analysis of recent IEA

  4. Commercial equipment loads: End-Use Load and Consumer Assessment Program (ELCAP)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pratt, R.G.; Williamson, M.A.; Richman, E.E.; Miller, N.E.

    1990-07-01

    The Office of Energy Resources of the Bonneville Power Administration is generally responsible for the agency's power and conservation resource planning. As associated responsibility which supports a variety of office functions is the analysis of historical trends in and determinants of energy consumption. The Office of Energy Resources' End-Use Research Section operates a comprehensive data collection program to provide pertinent information to support demand-side planning, load forecasting, and demand-side program development and delivery. Part of this on-going program is known as the End-Use Load and Consumer Assessment Program (ELCAP), an effort designed to collect electricity usage data through direct monitoring of end-use loads in buildings. This program is conducted for Bonneville by the Pacific Northwest Laboratory. This report provides detailed information on electricity consumption of miscellaneous equipment from the commercial portion of ELCAP. Miscellaneous equipment includes all commercial end-uses except heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and central lighting systems. Some examples of end-uses covered in this report are office equipment, computers, task lighting, refrigeration, and food preparation. Electricity consumption estimates, in kilowatt-hours per square food per year, are provided for each end-use by building type. The following types of buildings are covered: office, retail, restaurant, grocery, warehouse, school, university, and hotel/motel. 6 refs., 35 figs., 12 tabs.

  5. The use of energy management and control systems to monitor the energy performance of commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heinemeier, Kristin Elizabeth [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Architecture

    1994-12-01

    Monitored data play a very important part in the implementation and evaluation of energy conservation technologies and programs. However, these data can be expensive to collect, so there is a need for lower-cost alternatives. In many situations, using the computerized Energy Management and Control Systems (EMCSs)--already installed in many buildings--to collect these commercial building performance data has advantages over more conventional methods. This method provides data without installing incremental hardware, and the large amounts of available operational data can be a very rich resource for understanding building performance. This dissertation addresses several of these issues. One specific objective is to describe a monitoring-project planning process that includes definition of objectives, constraints, resources and approaches for the monitoring. The choice of tools is an important part of this process. The dissertation goes on to demonstrate, through eight case studies, that EMCS monitoring is possible, and to identify and categorize the problems and issues that can be encountered. These issues lead to the creation, use, and testing of a set of methods for evaluation of EMCS monitoring, in the form of guidelines. Finally, EMCS monitoring is demonstrated and compared with conventional monitoring more methodically in a detailed case study.

  6. Commercial Building Energy Baseline Modeling Software: Performance Metrics and Method Testing with Open Source Models and Implications for Proprietary Software Testing

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Price, Phillip N.; Granderson, Jessica; Sohn, Michael; Addy, Nathan; Jump, David

    2013-09-01

    The overarching goal of this work is to advance the capabilities of technology evaluators in evaluating the building-level baseline modeling capabilities of Energy Management and Information System (EMIS) software. Through their customer engagement platforms and products, EMIS software products have the potential to produce whole-building energy savings through multiple strategies: building system operation improvements, equipment efficiency upgrades and replacements, and inducement of behavioral change among the occupants and operations personnel. Some offerings may also automate the quantification of whole-building energy savings, relative to a baseline period, using empirical models that relate energy consumption to key influencing parameters, such as ambient weather conditions and building operation schedule. These automated baseline models can be used to streamline the whole-building measurement and verification (M&V) process, and therefore are of critical importance in the context of multi-measure whole-building focused utility efficiency programs. This report documents the findings of a study that was conducted to begin answering critical questions regarding quantification of savings at the whole-building level, and the use of automated and commercial software tools. To evaluate the modeling capabilities of EMIS software particular to the use case of whole-building savings estimation, four research questions were addressed: 1. What is a general methodology that can be used to evaluate baseline model performance, both in terms of a) overall robustness, and b) relative to other models? 2. How can that general methodology be applied to evaluate proprietary models that are embedded in commercial EMIS tools? How might one handle practical issues associated with data security, intellectual property, appropriate testing ‘blinds’, and large data sets? 3. How can buildings be pre-screened to identify those that are the most model-predictable, and therefore those

  7. Lessons Learned from Case Studies of Six High-Performance Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Torcellini, P.; Pless, S.; Deru, M.; Griffith, B.; Long, N.; Judkoff, R.

    2006-06-01

    Commercial buildings have a significant impact on energy use and the environment. They account for approximately 18% (17.9 quads) of the total primary energy consumption in the United States (DOE 2005). The energy used by the building sector continues to increase, primarily because new buildings are added to the national building stock faster than old buildings are retired. Energy consumption by commercial buildings will continue to increase until buildings can be designed to produce more energy than they consume. As a result, the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Building Technologies Program has established a goal to create the technology and knowledge base for marketable zero-energy commercial buildings (ZEBs) by 2025.

  8. An estimation framework for building information modeling (BIM)-based demolition waste by type.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Young-Chan; Hong, Won-Hwa; Park, Jae-Woo; Cha, Gi-Wook

    2017-12-01

    Most existing studies on demolition waste (DW) quantification do not have an official standard to estimate the amount and type of DW. Therefore, there are limitations in the existing literature for estimating DW with a consistent classification system. Building information modeling (BIM) is a technology that can generate and manage all the information required during the life cycle of a building, from design to demolition. Nevertheless, there has been a lack of research regarding its application to the demolition stage of a building. For an effective waste management plan, the estimation of the type and volume of DW should begin from the building design stage. However, the lack of tools hinders an early estimation. This study proposes a BIM-based framework that estimates DW in the early design stages, to achieve an effective and streamlined planning, processing, and management. Specifically, the input of construction materials in the Korean construction classification system and those in the BIM library were matched. Based on this matching integration, the estimates of DW by type were calculated by applying the weight/unit volume factors and the rates of DW volume change. To verify the framework, its operation was demonstrated by means of an actual BIM modeling and by comparing its results with those available in the literature. This study is expected to contribute not only to the estimation of DW at the building level, but also to the automated estimation of DW at the district level.

  9. Commercial and Multifamily Building Tenant Energy Usage Aggregation and Privacy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Livingston, Olga V.; Pulsipher, Trenton C.; Wang, Na

    2014-11-17

    In a number of cities and states, building owners are required to disclose and/or benchmark their building energy use. This requires the building owner to possess monthly whole-building energy usage information, which can be challenging for buildings in which individual tenants have their own utility meters and accounts with the utility. Some utilities and utility regulators have turned to aggregation of customer data as a way to give building owners the whole-building energy usage data while protecting customer privacy. However, no utilities or regulators appear to have conducted a concerted statistical, cybersecurity, and privacy analysis to justify the level of aggregation selected. Therefore, the Tennant Data Aggregation Task was established to help utilities address these issues and provide recommendations as well as a theoretical justification of the aggregation threshold. This study is focused on the use case of submitting data for ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager (ESPM), but it also looks at other potential use cases for monthly energy consumption data.

  10. Building Air Quality Guide: A Guide for Building Owners and Facility Managers

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Building Air Quality, developed by the EPA and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, provides practical suggestions on preventing, identifying, and resolving indoor air quality (IAQ) problems in public and commercial buildings.

  11. NASA commercial programs

    Science.gov (United States)

    1990-01-01

    Highlights of NASA-sponsored and assisted commercial space activities of 1989 are presented. Industrial R and D in space, centers for the commercial development of space, and new cooperative agreements are addressed in the U.S. private sector in space section. In the building U.S. competitiveness through technology section, the following topics are presented: (1) technology utilization as a national priority; (2) an exploration of benefits; and (3) honoring Apollo-Era spinoffs. International and domestic R and D trends, and the space sector are discussed in the section on selected economic indicators. Other subjects included in this report are: (1) small business innovation; (2) budget highlights and trends; (3) commercial programs management; and (4) the commercial programs advisory committee.

  12. ImBuild: Impact of building energy efficiency programs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Scott, M.J.; Hostick, D.J.; Belzer, D.B.

    1998-04-01

    As part of measuring the impact of government programs on improving the energy efficiency of the Nation`s building stock, the Department of Energy Office of Building Technology, State and Community Programs (BTS) is interested in assessing the economic impacts of its portfolio of programs, specifically the potential impact on national employment and income. The special-purpose version of the IMPLAN model used in this study is called ImBuild. In comparison with simple economic multiplier approaches, such as Department of Commerce RIMS 2 system, ImBuild allows for more complete and automated analysis of the economic impacts of energy efficiency investments in buildings. ImBuild is also easier to use than existing macroeconomic simulation models. The authors conducted an analysis of three sample BTS energy programs: the residential generator-absorber heat exchange gas heat pump (GAX heat pump), the low power sulfur lamp (LPSL) in residential and commercial applications, and the Building America program. The GAX heat pump would address the market for the high-efficiency residential combined heating and cooling systems. The LPSL would replace some highly efficient fluorescent commercial lighting. Building America seeks to improve the energy efficiency of new factory-built, modular, manufactured, and small-volume, site-built homes through use of systems engineering concepts and early incorporation of new products and processes, and by increasing the demand for more energy-efficient homes. The authors analyze a scenario for market penetration of each of these technologies devised for BTS programs reported in the BTS GPRA Metrics Estimates, FY99 Budget Request, December 19, 1997. 46 figs., 4 tabs.

  13. Reactor building seismic analysis of a PWR type - NPP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kakubo, Masao

    1983-01-01

    Earthquake engineering studies raised up in Brazil during design licensing and construction phases of Almirante Alvaro Alberto NPP, units 1 and 2. State of art of soil - structure interaction analysis with particular reference to the impedance function calculation analysis with particular reference to the impedance function calculation of a group of pile is presented in this M.Sc. Dissertation, as an example the reactor building dynamic response of a 1325 MWe NPP PWR type is calculated. The reactor building is supported by a pile foundation with 2002 end bearing piles. Upper and lower bound soil parameters are considered in order to observe their influence on dynamic response of structure. Dynamic response distribution on pile heads show pile-soil-pile interaction effects. (author)

  14. Experimental building with new types of building envelope structures. Part 1: Structures/systems. Building system: Brick walls; Forsoegshus med nye typer klimaskaermskonstruktioner. Del 1: Konstruktioner/systemer - Byggesystem: Fuldmuret

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2003-07-01

    The house described in this report is one of several experimental houses forming part of the project 'Experimental buildings with new types of building envelope structures'. One purpose of the project is to demonstrate that it is possible to build typical single-family houses with an energy consumption that meets expected increased building regulations. Furthermore, it is important that the houses can be made securely as regards construction technology and within reasonable financial limits. Thus, the purpose is also to contribute to strengthen the development of improved building envelope structures. Another purpose is to carry out detailed measurements of energy consumption in order to validate thermal performance of future building envelope structures. The report describes the constructive design and energy systems of the house plus heat loss calculations and expected energy consumption. (BA)

  15. PROCEDURES FOR SEISMIC CHARACTERIZATION OF TRADITIONAL AND MODERN WOODEN BUILDING TYPES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ario Ceccotti

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper analyzes different wooden buildings types used in past and nowadays to realized low-rise and mid-rise timber structures from the seismic point of view. A preliminary overview about the procedures prescribed by codes for the seismic characterization of the timber building systems is given. Then the definition of the behaviour q-factor in the literature and its relevance in design of structures in seismic areas is treated. Available research methods for estimating the q-factor based on the verification of the nonlinear seismic response of entire buildings by means of experimental tests and numerical simulations are presented and analyzed. The relevance of a proper definition of the yielding limit and of failure condition in the seismic characterization of wooden building systems is treated. Moreover, a comparison between the q-factor estimations obtained using different calculation methods is presented. Lastly, the appropriate q-factor values are given for a reliable and safe seismic design of buildings realized using the examined wooden constructive systems.

  16. Scenario for commercialization of fast breeder reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumaoka, Yoshio; Sato, Morihiko

    1989-01-01

    To realize the commercialization of fast breeder reactors (FBRs), it is essential to reduce construction costs to the same level as those for the current light water reactors. For this target to be attained, a highly important factor is to reduce to the lowest-levels possible the quantities of materials and volume of the buildings required for the primary and secondary sodium loops of the FBR. In this direction, an innovative compact FBR plant concept which holds promise for commercialization has been developed by introducing the pooltype reactor concept with the shortest possible secondary sodium loops, realized by coupling electromagnetic pumps with the steam generators. In comparison with the French Super Phenix reactor, for example, the construction of this 1,300-MWe FBR plant could be achieved with half the material quantities and plant volume required by the former type. (author)

  17. Commercial facilities in future cities and urban redevelopment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1988-07-01

    The future trends of commercial facilities were clarified by interviewing the people concerned in the commercial facilities with large floor area and relatively large energy consumption per unit area such as office building, hospital, hotel, department store, restaurant, educational facilities, sports facilities and urban redevelopment. Since an intelligent building will basically employ the office automation, it is estimated that most of the commercial buildings constructed for the future redevelopment will be intelligent buildings. Hospitals will require the system maintaining the quality of life of individual patient. It is expected that high quality hotels focusing on a touch of high class will be constructed. Department stores will aim at the daily living industry. Future restaurants will need a definite concept. Universities will have to increase new sections according to new students and change in social conditions. It is expected that high quality businesses districts and living quarters in business-centered cities will be planned for urban redevelopment. (4 figs. 3 tabs.)

  18. Commercialization of nanotechnology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hobson, David W

    2009-01-01

    The emerging and potential commercial applications of nanotechnologies clearly have great potential to significantly advance and even potentially revolutionize various aspects of medical practice and medical product development. Nanotechnology is already touching upon many aspects of medicine, including drug delivery, diagnostic imaging, clinical diagnostics, nanomedicines, and the use of nanomaterials in medical devices. This technology is already having an impact; many products are on the market and a growing number is in the pipeline. Momentum is steadily building for the successful development of additional nanotech products to diagnose and treat disease; the most active areas of product development are drug delivery and in vivo imaging. Nanotechnology is also addressing many unmet needs in the pharmaceutical industry, including the reformulation of drugs to improve their bioavailability or toxicity profiles. The advancement of medical nanotechnology is expected to advance over at least three different generations or phases, beginning with the introduction of simple nanoparticulate and nanostructural improvements to current product and process types, then eventually moving on to nanoproducts and nanodevices that are limited only by the imagination and limits of the technology itself. This review looks at some recent developments in the commercialization of nanotechnology for various medical applications as well as general trends in the industry, and explores the nanotechnology industry that is involved in developing medical products and procedures with a view toward technology commercialization. (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

  19. Open Automated Demand Response for Small Commerical Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dudley, June Han; Piette, Mary Ann; Koch, Ed; Hennage, Dan

    2009-05-01

    This report characterizes small commercial buildings by market segments, systems and end-uses; develops a framework for identifying demand response (DR) enabling technologies and communication means; and reports on the design and development of a low-cost OpenADR enabling technology that delivers demand reductions as a percentage of the total predicted building peak electric demand. The results show that small offices, restaurants and retail buildings are the major contributors making up over one third of the small commercial peak demand. The majority of the small commercial buildings in California are located in southern inland areas and the central valley. Single-zone packaged units with manual and programmable thermostat controls make up the majority of heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems for small commercial buildings with less than 200 kW peak electric demand. Fluorescent tubes with magnetic ballast and manual controls dominate this customer group's lighting systems. There are various ways, each with its pros and cons for a particular application, to communicate with these systems and three methods to enable automated DR in small commercial buildings using the Open Automated Demand Response (or OpenADR) communications infrastructure. Development of DR strategies must consider building characteristics, such as weather sensitivity and load variability, as well as system design (i.e. under-sizing, under-lighting, over-sizing, etc). Finally, field tests show that requesting demand reductions as a percentage of the total building predicted peak electric demand is feasible using the OpenADR infrastructure.

  20. A cross-sectional study of the temporal evolution of electricity consumption of six commercial buildings.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ethan M Pickering

    developed herein adequately accounts for these issues and enables discovery of strong linear pair-wise correlation R values. TSAOV correlations lay the foundation for a new approach to building studies, that mitigates plug load interferences and identifies more accurate insights into weather-energy relationship for all building types. Over all six buildings analyzed the TSAOV method reported very significant average correlations per building of 0.94 to 0.82 in magnitude. Our rigorous statistics-based methods applied to 15-minute-interval electricity data further enables virtual energy audits of buildings to quickly and inexpensively inform energy savings measures.

  1. Transnational Degree Program Franchising and the Challenge of Commercial Franchisees

    Science.gov (United States)

    Juusola, Katariina; Rensimer, Lee

    2018-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the interrelationship of branding practices and legitimacy-building of commercial degree program franchising within transnational higher education (TNHE). It aims to understand how commercial franchisees' branding practices employ discursive and symbolic strategies for building legitimacy, and how…

  2. Commercial lumber

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kent A. McDonald; David E. Kretschmann

    1999-01-01

    In a broad sense, commercial lumber is any lumber that is bought or sold in the normal channels of commerce. Commercial lumber may be found in a variety of forms, species, and types, and in various commercial establishments, both wholesale and retail. Most commercial lumber is graded by standardized rules that make purchasing more or less uniform throughout the country...

  3. Transactive Control of Commercial Building HVAC Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Corbin, Charles D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Makhmalbaf, Atefe [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Huang, Sen [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Mendon, Vrushali V. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Zhao, Mingjie [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Somasundaram, Sriram [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Liu, Guopeng [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Ngo, Hung [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Katipamula, Srinivas [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2016-12-30

    This document details the development and testing of market-based transactive controls for building heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. These controls are intended to serve the purposes of reducing electricity use through conservation, reducing peak building electric demand, and providing demand flexibility to assist with power system operations. This report is the summary of the first year of work conducted under Phase 1 of the Clean Energy and Transactive Campus Project. The methods and techniques described here were first investigated in simulation, and then subsequently deployed to a physical testbed on the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) campus for validation. In this report, we describe the models and control algorithms we have developed, testing of the control algorithms in simulation, and deployment to a physical testbed. Results from physical experiments support previous simulation findings, and provide insights for further improvement.

  4. Facility overview for commercial application of selected Rocky Flats facilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-11-01

    The purpose of this Facility Overview is to support the Rocky Flats Local Impacts Initiative's Request for Interest, to solicit interest from commercial corporations for utilizing buildings 865 and 883, and the equipment contained within each building, for a commercial venture. In the following sections, this document describes the Rocky Flats Site, the buildings available for lease, the equipment within these buildings, the site services available to a tenant, the human resources available to support operations in buildings 865 and 883, and the environmental condition of the buildings and property. In addition, a brief description is provided of the work performed to date to explore the potential products that might be manufactured in Buildings 865 and 883, and the markets for these products

  5. Future comfort cooling in domestic and commercial buildings in Sweden; Naesta generations klimatkyla i bostaeder och lokaler

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nordman, Roger; Haglund Stignor, Caroline; Rolfsman, Lennart; Lindahl, Markus; Alsbjer, Markus; Axell, Monica

    2010-09-15

    This report presents results from a national project on future potential for comfort cooling in the built sector. Results from an interview study are presented. Future changes in energy demand for comfort cooling in different building types based on scenarios are also presented and discussed. It is clear from the simulated results that the future need for comfort cooling will decrease due to a number of factors, including user behavior, regulations and new building codes

  6. Photovoltaic electricity generation: Value for residential and commercial sectors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhattacharjee, Ujjwal

    The photovoltaic (PV) industry in the US has seen an upsurge in recent years, and PV holds great promise as a renewable technology with no greenhouse gas emissions with its use. We aim to assess the value of PV based electricity for users in the residential and commercial sectors focusing on the financial impacts it has, which may not be greatly recognized. Specifically, we pursue two goals. First, the emerging 'renewable portfolio standard (RPS)' adopted in several states in the country has been a driving force for large scale PV deployment, but financial incentives offered to PV in different RPS states differ considerably. We use life cycle cost model to estimate the cost of PV based electricity for thirty-two RPS states in the country. Results indicate that the levelized cost of PV electricity is high (40 to 60 Cents/kWh). When the contribution of the financial incentives (along with the cost of energy saved) is taken into account, the cost of PV based electricity is negative in some RPS states such as California, New Jersey, New York, while for most of the RPS states the cost of PV electricity continues to remain high. In addition, the states with negative or low cost of PV electricity have been driving the PV diffusion in the residential sector. Therefore, a need to adjust the financial incentive structure in different RPS states is recommended for homogenous development of the residential PV market in the country. Second, we assess the value of the PV in reducing the highest peak load demand in commercial buildings and hence the high value demand charge. The Time-of-Use (TOU) based electricity tariff is widely used by electric utilities in the commercial sector. Energy and peak load are two important facets of the TOU tariff regime. Tools are well established to estimate the energy contribution from a PV system (installed in a commercial building), but not power output on a short time interval. A joint conditional probability model has been developed that

  7. Advanced LWR technology for commercial application

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Redding, J.R.

    1993-01-01

    Advanced Light Water Reactors (ALWRs) are now being deployed and commercialized around the world. In Japan, the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) is building the world's first ALWRs, two 1300 MWe Advanced BWRs (ABWRs). In the United States, the Department of Energy, utilities and suppliers are undertaking a cooperative program called First of a Kind Engineering (FOAKE). The purpose of FOAKE is to perform the detailed engineering of ALWRs to that they will be commercially available to U.S. utilities in the mid-1990s. The U.S. industry is in the second year of its strategic plan to have an ALWR in commercial operation by the year 2000. Elsewhere, the Taiwan Power Company has issued a Request for Proposal for two ALWRs so be built at its Lungmen site, with commercial operation of the first unit to be in the year 2000. Korea is formulating plans for an ALWR and other countries, such as Indonesia and Mexico, are looking into the feasibility of building ALWRs

  8. Computational design of metal-organic frameworks with paddlewheel-type secondary building units

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schwingenschlogl, Udo; Peskov, Maxim V.; Masghouni, Nejib

    We employ the TOPOS package to study 697 coordination polymers containing paddlewheel-type secondary building units. The underlying nets are analyzed and 3 novel nets are chosen as potential topologies for paddlewheel-type metal organic frameworks (MOFs). Dicarboxylate linkers are used to build basic structures for novel isoreticular MOF series, aiming at relatively compact structures with a low number of atoms per unit cell. The structures are optimized using density functional theory. Afterwards the Grand Canonical Monte Carlo approach is employed to generate adsorption isotherms for CO2, CO, and CH4 molecules. We utilize the universal forcefield for simulating the interaction between the molecules and hosting MOF. The diffusion behavior of the molecules inside the MOFs is analyzed by molecular dynamics simulations.

  9. A preliminary study on the relevancy of sustainable building design ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This preliminary study aims to explore the relationship between sustainable building design paradigms and commercial property depreciation, to assist in the understanding of sustainable building design impact towards commercial building value and rental de employs the qualitative method and analyses valuers' current ...

  10. Distributed Generation potential of the U.S. commercial sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hamachi LaCommare, Kristina; Edwards, Jennifer L.; Gumerman, Etan; Marnay, Chris

    2005-01-01

    Small-scale (100 kW - 5 MW) on-site distributed generation (DG) economically driven by combined heat and power (CHP) applications and, in some cases, reliability concerns will likely emerge as a common feature of commercial building energy systems in developed countries over the next two decades. In the U.S., private and public expectations for this technology are heavily influenced by forecasts published by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), most notably the Annual Energy Outlook (AEO). EIA's forecasts are typically made using the National Energy Modeling System (NEMS), which has a forecasting module that predicts the penetration of several possible commercial building DG technologies over the period 2005-2025. Annual penetration is forecast by estimating the payback period for each technology, for each of a limited number of representative building types, for each of nine regions. This process results in an AEO2004 forecast deployment of about a total 3 GW of DG electrical generating capacity by 2025, which is only 0.25% of total forecast U.S. capacity. Analyses conducted using both the AEO2003 and AEO2004 versions of NEMS changes the baseline costs and performance characteristics of DG to reflect a world without U.S. Dept. of Energy (DOE) research into several thermal DG technologies, which is then compared to a case with enhanced technology representative of the successful achievement of DOE research goals. The net difference in 2025 DG penetration is dramatic using the AEO2003 version of NEMS, but much smaller in the AEO2004 version. The significance and validity of these contradictory results are discussed, and possibilities for improving estimates of commercial U.S. DG potential are explored

  11. A Review of Influence of Various Types of Structural Bracing to the Structural Performance of Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Razak, S. M.; Kong, T. C.; Zainol, N. Z.; Adnan, A.; Azimi, M.

    2018-03-01

    Excessive lateral drift can contribute significantly towards crack formation, leading to structural damage. The structural damage will in turn reduce the capacity of the structure and weaken it from the intended design capacity. Generally, lateral drift is more pronounced in higher and longer structure, such as high rise buildings and bridges. A typical method employed to control lateral drift is structural bracing, which works by increasing stiffness and stability of structure. This paper reviews the influence of various types of structural bracing to structural performance of buildings. The history of structural bracing is visited and the differences between numerous structural bracing in term of suitability to different types of buildings and loading, mechanisms, technical details, advantages and limitations, and the overall effect on the structural behaviour and performance are dissected. Proper and efficient structural bracing is pertinent for each high rise building as this will lead towards safer, sustainable and more economical buildings, which are cheaper to maintain throughout the life of the buildings in the future.

  12. Effect of Heat and Electricity Storage and Reliability on Microgrid Viability:A Study of Commercial Buildings in California and New York States

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Stadler, Michael; Marnay, Chris; Siddiqui, Afzal; Lai, Judy; Coffey, Brian; Aki, Hirohisa

    2008-12-01

    In past work, Berkeley Lab has developed the Distributed Energy Resources Customer Adoption Model (DER-CAM). Given end-use energy details for a facility, a description of its economic environment and a menu of available equipment, DER-CAM finds the optimal investment portfolio and its operating schedule which together minimize the cost of meeting site service, e.g., cooling, heating, requirements. Past studies have considered combined heat and power (CHP) technologies. Methods and software have been developed to solve this problem, finding optimal solutions which take simultaneity into account. This project aims to extend on those prior capabilities in two key dimensions. In this research storage technologies have been added as well as power quality and reliability (PQR) features that provide the ability to value the additional indirect reliability benefit derived from Consortium for Electricity Reliability Technology Solutions (CERTS) Microgrid capability. This project is intended to determine how attractive on-site generation becomes to a medium-sized commercial site if economical storage (both electrical and thermal), CHP opportunities, and PQR benefits are provided in addition to avoiding electricity purchases. On-site electrical storage, generators, and the ability to seamlessly connect and disconnect from utility service would provide the facility with ride-through capability for minor grid disturbances. Three building types in both California and New York are assumed to have a share of their sensitive electrical load separable. Providing enhanced service to this load fraction has an unknown value to the facility, which is estimated analytically. In summary, this project began with 3 major goals: (1) to conduct detailed analysis to find the optimal equipment combination for microgrids at a few promising commercial building hosts in the two favorable markets of California and New York; (2) to extend the analysis capability of DER-CAM to include both heat and

  13. Evaluation and simulation of event building techniques for a detector at the LHC

    CERN Document Server

    Spiwoks, R

    1995-01-01

    The main objectives of future experiments at the Large Hadron Collider are the search for the Higgs boson (or bosons), the verification of the Standard Model and the search beyond the Standard Model in a new energy range up to a few TeV. These experiments will have to cope with unprecedented high data rates and will need event building systems which can offer a bandwidth of 1 to 100GB/s and which can assemble events from 100 to 1000 readout memories at rates of 1 to 100kHz. This work investigates the feasibility of parallel event building sys- tems using commercially available high speed interconnects and switches. Studies are performed by building a small-scale prototype and by modelling this proto- type and realistic architectures with discrete-event simulations. The prototype is based on the HiPPI standard and uses commercially available VME-HiPPI interfaces and a HiPPI switch together with modular and scalable software. The setup operates successfully as a parallel event building system of limited size in...

  14. Carcass Characteristics and Meat Quality of Korean Native Ducks and Commercial Meat-type Ducks Raised under Same Feeding and Rearing Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. J. Kwon

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This study was conducted to compare carcass characteristics and physico-chemical meat quality in two different genotype ducks raised under identical feeding and rearing conditions. A total of ninety 1-d-old Korean native ducks (KND, n = 45 and commercial meat-type ducks (Grimaud, n = 45 were fed same experimental diets during 56 d and 42 d, respectively to obtain similar slaughter weights. The experimental diet for starter period contained 20% crude protein (CP and 2,900 kcal nitrogen corrected true metabolizable energy (TMEn/kg of diet and that for grower period contained 17% CP and 3,050 TMEn/kg of diet. Average daily gain and feed efficiency of KND were inferior to those of commercial meat-type ducks (p<0.05. Carcass weight was not different between two genetically different ducks, but carcass yield of KND was significantly higher (p<0.05 than that of commercial meat-type ducks. There were no significant differences in cooking loss and pH of breast meat between two genetically different ducks, but water holding capacity of KND was significantly higher than that of commercial meat-type ducks. The linoleic acid and total polyunsaturated fatty acid of breast meat from KND were significantly higher (p<0.05 than the corresponding part from commercial meat-type ducks. Significant differences were detected in water holding capacity and the content of linoleic acid and polyunsaturated fatty acid, which were significantly higher in KND, whereas growth performance tended to be superior in commercial ducks. At the market weight, the meat from KND was judged to have better qualities with regard to higher water holding capacity and greater content of polyunsaturated fatty acid compare with meat from commercial meat-type duck.

  15. Research Support Facility (RSF): Leadership in Building Performance (Brochure)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2011-09-01

    This brochure/poster provides information on the features of the Research Support Facility including a detailed illustration of the facility with call outs of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. Imagine an office building so energy efficient that its occupants consume only the amount of energy generated by renewable power on the building site. The building, the Research Support Facility (RSF) occupied by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) employees, uses 50% less energy than if it were built to current commercial code and achieves the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED{reg_sign}) Platinum rating. With 19% of the primary energy in the U.S. consumed by commercial buildings, the RSF is changing the way commercial office buildings are designed and built.

  16. Potential benefits of cool roofs on commercial buildings. Conserving energy, saving money, and reducing emission of greenhouse gases and air pollutants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Levinson, R.; Akbari, H.

    2010-01-01

    Cool roofs - roofs that stay cool in the sun by minimizing solar absorption and maximizing thermal emission - lessen the flow of heat from the roof into the building, reducing the need for space cooling energy in conditioned buildings. Cool roofs may also increase the need for heating energy in cold climates. For a commercial building, the decrease in annual cooling load is typically much greater than the increase in annual heating load. This study combines building energy simulations, local energy prices, local electricity emission factors, and local estimates of building density to characterize local, state average, and national average cooling energy savings, heating energy penalties, energy cost savings, and emission reductions per unit conditioned roof area. The annual heating and cooling energy uses of four commercial building prototypes - new office (1980+), old office (pre-1980), new retail (1980+), and old retail (pre-1980) - were simulated in 236 US cities. Substituting a weathered cool white roof (solar reflectance 0.55) for a weathered conventional gray roof (solar reflectance 0.20) yielded annually a cooling energy saving per unit conditioned roof area ranging from 3.30 kWh/m 2 in Alaska to 7.69 kWh/m 2 in Arizona (5.02 kWh/m 2 nationwide); a heating energy penalty ranging from 0.003 therm/m 2 in Hawaii to 0.14 therm/m 2 in Wyoming (0.065 therm/m 2 nationwide); and an energy cost saving ranging from USD 0.126/m 2 in West Virginia to USD 1.14/m 2 in Arizona (USD 0.356/m 2 nationwide). It also offered annually a CO2 reduction ranging from 1.07 kg/m 2 in Alaska to 4.97 kg/m 2 in Hawaii (3.02 kg/m 2 nationwide); an NOx reduction ranging from 1.70 g/m 2 in New York to 11.7 g/m 2 in Hawaii (4.81 g/m 2 nationwide); an SO2 reduction ranging from 1.79 g/m 2 in California to 26.1 g/m 2 in Alabama (12.4 g/m 2 nationwide); and an Hg reduction ranging from 1.08 μg/m 2 in Alaska to 105 μg/m 2 in Alabama (61.2 μg/m 2 nationwide). Retrofitting 80% of the 2

  17. Mixed strategies for energy conservation and alternative energy utilization (solar) in buildings. Final report. Volume III. Appendixes. [10 appendices

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    1977-06-01

    This appendix summarizes building characteristics used to determine heating and cooling loads for each of the five building types in each of the four regions. For the selected five buildings, the following data are attached: new and existing construction characteristics; new and existing construction thermal resistance; floor plan and elevation; people load schedule; lighting load schedule; appliance load schedule; ventilation schedule; and hot water use schedule. For the five building types (single family, apartment buildings, commercial buildings, office buildings, and schools), data are compiled in 10 appendices. These are Building Characteristics; Alternate Energy Sources and Energy Conservation Techniques Description, Costs, Fuel Price Scenarios; Life Cycle Cost Model; Simulation Models; Solar Heating/Cooling System; Condensed Weather; Single and Multi-Family Dwelling Characteristics and Energy Conservation Techniques; Mixed Strategies for Energy Conservation and Alternative Energy Utilization in Buildings. An extensive bibliography is given in the final appendix. (MCW)

  18. Control of disturbing loads in residential and commercial buildings via geometric algebra.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castilla, Manuel-V

    2013-01-01

    Many definitions have been formulated to represent nonactive power for distorted voltages and currents in electronic and electrical systems. Unfortunately, no single universally suitable representation has been accepted as a prototype for this power component. This paper defines a nonactive power multivector from the most advanced multivectorial power theory based on the geometric algebra (GA). The new concept can have more importance on harmonic loads compensation, identification, and metering, between other applications. Likewise, this paper is concerned with a pioneering method for the compensation of disturbing loads. In this way, we propose a multivectorial relative quality index δ(~) associated with the power multivector. It can be assumed as a new index for power quality evaluation, harmonic sources detection, and power factor improvement in residential and commercial buildings. The proposed method consists of a single-point strategy based of a comparison among different relative quality index multivectors, which may be measured at the different loads on the same metering point. The comparison can give pieces of information with magnitude, direction, and sense on the presence of disturbing loads. A numerical example is used to illustrate the clear capabilities of the suggested approach.

  19. Integrated fuel cell energy system for modern buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Moard, D.M.; Cuzens, J.E.

    1998-07-01

    Energy deregulation, building design efficiency standards and competitive pressures all encourage the incorporation of distributed fuel cell cogeneration packages into modern buildings. The building marketplace segments to which these systems apply include office buildings, retail stores, hospitals, hotels, food service and multifamily residences. These applications represent approximately 60% of the commercial building sector's energy use plus a portion of the residential sector's energy use. While there are several potential manufacturers of fuel cells on the verge of marketing equipment, most are currently using commercial hydrogen gas to fuel them. There are few suppliers of equipment, which convert conventional fuels into hydrogen. Hydrogen Burner Technology, Inc. (HBT) is one of the few companies with a proven under-oxidized-burner (UOB) technology, patented and already proven in commercial use for industrial applications. HBT is developing a subsystem based on the UOB technology that can produce a hydrogen rich product gas using natural gas, propane or liquid fuels as the feed stock, which may be directly useable by proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells for conversion into electricity. The combined thermal output can also be used for space heating/cooling, water heating or steam generation applications. HBT is currently analyzing the commercial building market, integrated system designs and marketplace motivations which will allow the best overall subsystem to be designed, tested and introduced commercially in the shortest time possible. HBT is also actively involved in combined subsystem designs for use in automotive and small residential services.

  20. 4 CFR 25.11 - Photographs for news, advertising, or commercial purposes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 4 Accounts 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Photographs for news, advertising, or commercial purposes... GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE BUILDING AND ON ITS GROUNDS § 25.11 Photographs for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs may be taken in the GAO Building only with the approval or authorization of...

  1. Straw insulated buildings. Nature building materials; Strohgedaemmte Gebaeude. Naturbaustoffe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2013-06-01

    Straw is one of the major agricultural by-products and is mainly used as litter in animal husbandry and to compensate the balance of humus. A relatively recent development is the use of straw bales for the construction of buildings. The brochure under consideration documents the technical development of straw construction in Germany. Possibilities of the use of straw in single family homes up to commercial buildings are described.

  2. Energy performance of building fabric - Comparing two types of vernacular residential houses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Draganova, Vanya Y.; Matsumoto, Hiroshi; Tsuzuki, Kazuyo

    2017-10-01

    Notwithstanding apparent differences, Japanese and Bulgarian traditional residential houses share a lot of common features - building materials, building techniques, even layout design. Despite the similarities, these two types of houses have not been compared so far. The study initiates such comparison. The focus is on houses in areas with similar climate in both countries. Current legislation requirements are compared, as well as the criteria for thermal comfort of people. Achieving high energy performance results from a dynamic system of 4 main key factors - thermal comfort range, heating/cooling source, building envelope and climatic conditions. A change in any single one of them can affect the final energy performance. However, it can be expected that a combination of changes in more than one factor usually occurs. The aim of this study is to evaluate the correlation between the thermal performance of building envelope designed under current regulations and a traditional one, having in mind the different thermal comfort range in the two countries. A sample building model is calculated in Scenario 1 - Japanese traditional building fabric, Scenario 2 - Bulgarian traditional building fabric and Scenario 3 - meeting the requirements of the more demanding current regulations. The energy modelling is conducted using EnergyPlus through OpenStudio cross-platform of software tools. The 3D geometry for the simulation is created using OpenStudio SketchUp Plug-in. Equal number of inhabitants, electricity consumption and natural ventilation is assumed. The results show that overall low energy consumption can be achieved using traditional building fabric as well, when paired with a wider thermal comfort range. Under these conditions traditional building design is still viable today. This knowledge can reestablish the use of traditional building fabric in contemporary design, stimulate preservation of local culture, building traditions and community identity.

  3. Sporulation and survival of Toxoplasma gondii oocysts in different types of commercial cat litters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toxoplasma gondii oocysts are environmentally resistant and can survive outdoors for months in the dry and cold climates. In the present study, sporulation and survival of T. gondii oocysts was studied in different types of cat litters commercially available in the US. Oocysts sporulated within 2-...

  4. Distributed Energy Resources On-Site Optimization for Commercial Buildings with Electric and Thermal Storage Technologies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lacommare, Kristina S H; Stadler, Michael; Aki, Hirohisa; Firestone, Ryan; Lai, Judy; Marnay, Chris; Siddiqui, Afzal

    2008-01-01

    The addition of storage technologies such as flow batteries, conventional batteries, and heat storage can improve the economic as well as environmental attractiveness of on-site generation (e.g., PV, fuel cells, reciprocating engines or microturbines operating with or without CHP) and contribute to enhanced demand response. In order to examine the impact of storage technologies on demand response and carbon emissions, a microgrid's distributed energy resources (DER) adoption problem is formulated as a mixed-integer linear program that has the minimization of annual energy costs as its objective function. By implementing this approach in the General Algebraic Modeling System (GAMS), the problem is solved for a given test year at representative customer sites, such as schools and nursing homes, to obtain not only the level of technology investment, but also the optimal hourly operating schedules. This paper focuses on analysis of storage technologies in DER optimization on a building level, with example applications for commercial buildings. Preliminary analysis indicates that storage technologies respond effectively to time-varying electricity prices, i.e., by charging batteries during periods of low electricity prices and discharging them during peak hours. The results also indicate that storage technologies significantly alter the residual load profile, which can contribute to lower carbon emissions depending on the test site, its load profile, and its adopted DER technologies

  5. Review of Building Data Frameworks across Countries: Lessons for India

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Iyer, Maithili [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Stratton, Hannah [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Mathew, Sangeeta [Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy, New Delhi (India); Kumar, Satish [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Mathew, Paul [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Singh, Mohini [Synurja, LLC, New Delhi (India)

    2017-07-31

    The report outlines the initial explorations carried out by LBNL on available examples of energy data collection frameworks for buildings. Specifically, this monograph deals with European experience in the buildings sector, the US experience in the commercial buildings sector, and examples of data collection effort in Singapore and China to capture the Asian experience in the commercial sector. The review also provides a summary of the past efforts in India to collect and use commercial building energy data and its strengths and weaknesses. The overall aim of this activity is to help understand the use cases that drive the granularity of data being collected and the range of methodologies adopted for the data collection effort. This review is a key input and reference for developing a data collection framework for India, and also clarifies general thinking on the institutional structure that may be amenable for data collection effort to match the needs and requirements of commercial building sector in India.

  6. Bellanca building, Yellowknife : building envelope retrofit project

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rajewski, G. [A.D. Williams Engineering Inc., Edmonton, AB (Canada)

    2008-07-01

    The Bellanca building is a ten-story, commercial office building, located in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The owner was concerned about annual fuel consumption, relative to other buildings of similar size. Tenants reported cold drafts and some ice build-up had been reported in the past, on the exterior of the cladding. In addition, some water penetration had occurred during rainfall. This presentation provided background information on the Bellanca building and discussed a building envelope retrofit project. A.D. Williams was hired in late 2006 in order to provide an opinion on the present condition of the building envelope. This presentation described the site investigation and presented an interior and exterior review of the building. It also presented a thermographic survey in order to map thermal anomalies and establish trends. Following acceptance of the report on findings, one of five options was selected for further development. This included removal of existing cladding, exterior gypsum wallboard, fiberglass insulation and application of BASF Walltite CT foam, sheathing, rigid insulation, drainage plane and new cladding. The preliminary design was then presented. This paper also described the tender and award of the contract; construction phase; and substantial completion of the project. tabs, figs.

  7. Commercial Building Loads Providing Ancillary Services in PJM

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    MacDonald, Jason; Kiliccote, Sila; Boch, Jim; Chen, Jonathan; Nawy, Robert

    2014-06-27

    The adoption of low carbon energy technologies such as variable renewable energy and electric vehicles, coupled with the efficacy of energy efficiency to reduce traditional base load has increased the uncertainty inherent in the net load shape. Handling this variability with slower, traditional resources leads to inefficient system dispatch, and in some cases may compromise reliability. Grid operators are looking to future energy technologies, such as automated demand response (DR), to provide capacity-based reliability services as the need for these services increase. While DR resources are expected to have the flexibility characteristics operators are looking for, demonstrations are necessary to build confidence in their capabilities. Additionally, building owners are uncertain of the monetary value and operational burden of providing these services. To address this, the present study demonstrates the ability of demand response resources providing two ancillary services in the PJM territory, synchronous reserve and regulation, using an OpenADR 2.0b signaling architecture. The loads under control include HVAC and lighting at a big box retail store and variable frequency fan loads. The study examines performance characteristics of the resource: the speed of response, communications latencies in the architecture, and accuracy of response. It also examines the frequency and duration of events and the value in the marketplace which can be used to examine if the opportunity is sufficient to entice building owners to participate.

  8. Demand side management for commercial buildings using an in line heat pump water heating methodology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rankin, Riaan; Rousseau, Pieter G.; Eldik, Martin van

    2004-01-01

    Most of the sanitary hot water used in South African buildings is heated by means of direct electrical resistance heaters. This is one of the major contributors to the undesirably high morning and afternoon peaks imposed on the national electricity supply grid. For this reason, water heating continues to be of concern to the electricity supplier, ESCOM. Previous studies, conducted by the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education in South Africa, indicated that extensive application of the so called inline heat pump water heating methodology in commercial buildings could result in significant demand side management savings to ESKOM. Furthermore, impressive paybacks can be obtained by building owners who choose to implement the design methodology on existing or new systems. Currently, a few examples exist where the design methodology has been successfully implemented. These installations are monitored with a fully web centric monitoring system that allows 24 h access to data from each installation. Based on these preliminary results, a total peak demand reduction of 108 MW can be achieved, which represents 18% of the peak load reduction target set by ESKOM until the year 2015. This represents an avoided cost of approximately MR324 (ZAR) [Int J Energy Res 25(4) (1999) 2000]. Results based on actual data from the monitored installations shows a significant peak demand reduction for each installation. In one installation, a hotel with an occupancy of 220 people, the peak demand contribution of the hot water installation was reduced by 86%, realizing a 36% reduction in peak demand for the whole building. The savings incurred by the building owner also included significant energy consumption savings due to the superior energy efficiency of the heat pump water heater. The combined savings result in a conservatively calculated straight payback period of 12.5 months, with an internal rate of return of 98%. The actual cost of water heating is studied by

  9. TRENDS REGARDING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY IN ROMANIA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Catana Adina

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available World economy is experiencing some important transformations, mainly due to the rapid evolution of the informational and communication technologies. In the last years, new technologies flooded the production processes. They have allowed the improvement of the processing and use of the economic information and the general accelaration of the economic flows. The technological revolution is presented in all its trade forms, either the wholesale trade or the retail trade. The technical progress interferes with the economic activity through the re-engineering of the production lines, the revolution in the field of building materials and store, shopping center, malls and industrial hall building, the considerably shorter time period these are being built and they become available for the commercial activity, the revolution in the field of supply, merchandise storage and manipulation, the appearance of different types of intelligent machineries and equipment, merchandise storage software improving the way the client is served at the counter. The industrial revolution determines a reorganization of the economic activity, a resetting of the trade economic activity by directing the trader towards the client using new commercial techniques and strategies.

  10. Energy Efficiency Building Systems Regional Innovation Cluster Initiative

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Krebs, Martha [Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park, PA (United States)

    2016-07-29

    The Consortium for Building Energy Innovation (CBEI) was established through a Funding Opportunity Announcement led by the U.S. Department of Energy, under a cooperative agreement managed by the National Energy Technology Laboratory. CBEI is led by The Pennsylvania State University and is composed of partners from academia, the private sector, and economic development agencies. The Consortium has included as many as 24 different partners over the five years, but 14 have been core to the work over the five year cooperative agreement. CBEI primarily focused on developing energy efficiency solutions for the small and medium commercial building market, with a focus on buildings less than 50,000 square feet. This market has been underserved by the energy efficiency industry, which has focused on larger commercial buildings where the scale of an individual retrofit lends itself to the use of sophisticated modeling tools and more advanced solutions. Owners/operators and retrofit providers for larger buildings have a greater level of understanding of, and experience with different solutions. In contrast, smaller commercial building retrofits, like residential retrofits, often have owners with less knowledge about energy management and less time to learn about it. This market segment is also served by retrofit providers that are smaller and often focused on particular building systems, e.g. heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), lighting, roofing, or insulation. The size of a smaller commercial building retrofit does not lend itself, from a cost perspective, to the application of multiple, sophisticated design and modeling tools, which means that they are less likely to have integrated solutions.

  11. Wireless Infrastructure for Performing Monitoring, Diagnostics, and Control HVAC and Other Energy-Using Systems in Small Commercial Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Patrick O' Neill

    2009-06-30

    This project focused on developing a low-cost wireless infrastructure for monitoring, diagnosing, and controlling building systems and equipment. End users receive information via the Internet and need only a web browser and Internet connection. The system used wireless communications for: (1) collecting data centrally on site from many wireless sensors installed on building equipment, (2) transmitting control signals to actuators and (3) transmitting data to an offsite network operations center where it is processed and made available to clients on the Web (see Figure 1). Although this wireless infrastructure can be applied to any building system, it was tested on two representative applications: (1) monitoring and diagnostics for packaged rooftop HVAC units used widely on small commercial buildings and (2) continuous diagnosis and control of scheduling errors such as lights and equipment left on during unoccupied hours. This project developed a generic infrastructure for performance monitoring, diagnostics, and control, applicable to a broad range of building systems and equipment, but targeted specifically to small to medium commercial buildings (an underserved market segment). The proposed solution is based on two wireless technologies. The first, wireless telemetry, is used for cell phones and paging and is reliable and widely available. This risk proved to be easily managed during the project. The second technology is on-site wireless communication for acquiring data from sensors and transmitting control signals. The technology must enable communication with many nodes, overcome physical obstructions, operate in environments with other electrical equipment, support operation with on-board power (instead of line power) for some applications, operate at low transmission power in license-free radio bands, and be low cost. We proposed wireless mesh networking to meet these needs. This technology is relatively new and has been applied only in research and tests

  12. An analysis of factors affecting the high radon concentration in different types of houses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gulan Ljiljana

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents an analysis of indoor radon measurements carried out in municipality of Zubin Potok, northwestern part of Kosovo and Metohija. Annual measurements in two rooms of each house were performed by solid state nuclear track detectors commercially known as Gammadata. Average indoor radon concentration in different type of houses varied from 29-326 Bq/m3. A different year of house's construction including various types of building materials were selected for survey. A detail analysis showed that the differences in radon concentration occur between various building materials used for construction, flooring level, type of room and behavior of inhabitants. It was found that building materials in some houses contribute additionally to indoor radon.

  13. Analysis for Building Envelopes and Mechanical Systems Using 2012 CBECS Data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Winiarski, David W.; Halverson, Mark A.; Butzbaugh, Joshua B.; Cooke, Alan L.; Bandyopadhyay, Gopal K.; Elliott, Douglas B.

    2018-03-14

    This report describes the aggregation and mapping of certain building characteristics data available in the most recent Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) (DOE EIA 2012) to describe most typical building construction practices. This report provides summary data for potential use in the support of modifications to the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s commercial building prototypes used for building energy code analysis. Specifically, this report outlines findings and most typical design choices for certain building envelope and heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system choices.

  14. Technology for Building Systems Integration and Optimization – Landscape Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    William Goetzler, Matt Guernsey, Youssef Bargach

    2018-01-31

    BTO's Commercial Building Integration (CBI) program helps advance a range of innovative building integration and optimization technologies and solutions, paving the way for high-performing buildings that could use 50-70% less energy than typical buildings. CBI’s work focuses on early stage technology innovation, with an emphasis on how components and systems work together and how whole buildings are integrated and optimized. This landscape study outlines the current body of knowledge, capabilities, and the broader array of solutions supporting integration and optimization in commercial buildings. CBI seeks to support solutions for both existing buildings and new construction, which often present very different challenges.

  15. Methodology to Assess No Touch Audit Software Using Simulated Building Utility Data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cheung, Howard [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States); Braun, James E. [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States); Langner, M. Rois [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2016-10-01

    This report describes a methodology developed for assessing the performance of no touch building audit tools and presents results for an available tool. Building audits are conducted in many commercial buildings to reduce building energy costs and improve building operation. Because the audits typically require significant input obtained by building engineers, they are usually only affordable for larger commercial building owners. In an effort to help small building and business owners gain the benefits of an audit at a lower cost, no touch building audit tools have been developed to remotely analyze a building's energy consumption.

  16. Differences in quality parameters between types of commercial tea from Argentina

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Eugenia Thea

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Normal 0 21 false false false ES X-NONE X-NONE To determine differences in quality parameters between different types of tea elaborated in Argentina, water extract, crude fibre, caffeine, total polyphenol content, antioxidant activity, sorption isotherms and colour parameters (L, a, b were determined. Fifty-one industrial samples of commercially available teas including green tea, semifermented tea, black tea and black tea sub-product (BTSP were used for this study.Water extract contents were significantly higher in black tea and green tea (40.3% and 40.7% w/w, respectively, while semifermented tea and BTSP showed higher levels of crude fibre (22.3% and 20.4% w/w, respectively. Caffeine contents of black teas (2.7% w/w were significantly higher than in the other types of tea. Green teas revealed the highest concentrations of phenolic compounds and the major antioxidant activities (14.9 g GAE/100g dm and 30.0 g AAE/100g dm, respectively. The results also highlighted significant differences (p<0.05 in colour values between the different types of tea.

  17. The Commercial Energy Consumer: About Whom Are We Speaking?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Payne, Christopher

    2006-05-12

    Who are commercial sector customers, and how do they make decisions about energy consumption and energy efficiency investment? The energy policy field has not done a thorough job of describing energy consumption in the commercial sector. First, the discussion of the commercial sector itself is dominated by discussion of large businesses/buildings. Second, discussion of this portion of the commercial sectors consumption behavior is driven primarily by theory, with very little field data collected on the way commercial sector decision-makers describe their own options, choices, and reasons for taking action. These limitations artificially constrain energy policy options. This paper reviews the extant literature on commercial sector energy consumption behavior and identifies gaps in our knowledge. In particular, it argues that the primary energy policy model of commercial sector energy consumption is a top-down model that uses macro-level investment data to make conclusions about commercial behavior. Missing from the discussion is a model of consumption behavior that builds up to a theoretical framework informed by the micro-level data provided by commercial decision-makers themselves. Such a bottom-up model could enhance the effectiveness of commercial sector energy policy. In particular, translation of some behavioral models from the residential sector to the commercial sector may offer new opportunities for policies to change commercial energy consumption behavior. Utility bill consumption feedback is considered as one example of a policy option that may be applicable to both the residential and small commercial sector.

  18. Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model (I-BEAM), released in 2002, is a guidance tool designed for use by building professionals and others interested in indoor air quality in commercial buildings.

  19. Equipment and building structures ageing management for WWER type NPPs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mayboroda, O.

    2001-01-01

    This report presents the working group 'Equipment and building structures ageing management for WWER type NPPs' activities. The analysis of experience in ageing management, recommendations for regulatory guidelines on ageing management, investigation of case studies, definition suitable communication channels among regulators for ageing related data are given. Analyses of water chemistry, inspection data (safety margins criteria), plugging criteria, volume and time of ECT implementation in all WWER countries are presented. The results of Working group activity show that it is advisable to concentrate efforts on: set up the permanent communication channel among regulators, collection of regulatory criteria for WWER type NPP key components based on understanding of ageing mechanisms and data collection

  20. Review of Literature for Inputs to the National Water Savings Model and Spreadsheet Tool-Commercial/Institutional

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Whitehead, Camilla Dunham; Melody, Moya; Lutz, James

    2009-05-29

    Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) is developing a computer model and spreadsheet tool for the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help estimate the water savings attributable to their WaterSense program. WaterSense has developed a labeling program for three types of plumbing fixtures commonly used in commercial and institutional settings: flushometer valve toilets, urinals, and pre-rinse spray valves. This National Water Savings-Commercial/Institutional (NWS-CI) model is patterned after the National Water Savings-Residential model, which was completed in 2008. Calculating the quantity of water and money saved through the WaterSense labeling program requires three primary inputs: (1) the quantity of a given product in use; (2) the frequency with which units of the product are replaced or are installed in new construction; and (3) the number of times or the duration the product is used in various settings. To obtain the information required for developing the NWS-CI model, LBNL reviewed various resources pertaining to the three WaterSense-labeled commercial/institutional products. The data gathered ranged from the number of commercial buildings in the United States to numbers of employees in various sectors of the economy and plumbing codes for commercial buildings. This document summarizes information obtained about the three products' attributes, quantities, and use in commercial and institutional settings that is needed to estimate how much water EPA's WaterSense program saves.

  1. Fire Risk Analysis and Optimization of Fire Prevention Management for Green Building Design and High Rise Buildings: Hong Kong Experience

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yau Albert

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available There are many iconic high rise buildings in Hong Kong, for example, International Commercial Centre, International Financial Centre, etc. Fire safety issue in high rise buildings has been raised by local fire professionals in terms of occupant evacuation, means of fire-fighting by fire fighters, sprinkler systems to automatically put off fires in buildings, etc. Fire risk becomes an important issue in building fire safety because it relates to life safety of building occupants where they live and work in high rise buildings in Hong Kong. The aim of this research is to identify the fire risk for different types of high rise buildings in Hong Kong and to optimise the fire prevention management for those high rise buildings with higher level of fire risk and to validate the model and also to carry out the study of the conflict between the current fire safety building code and the current trend of green building design. Survey via the 7-point scale questionnaire was conducted through 50 participants and their responses were received and analysed via the statistical tool SPSS software computer program. A number of statistical methods of testing for significantly difference in samples were adopted to carry out the analysis of the data received. When the statistical analysis was completed, the results of the data analysis were validated by two Fire Safety Experts in this area of specialisation and also by quantitative fire risk analysis.

  2. FY 17 Q1 Commercial integrated heat pump with thermal storage milestone report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abu-Heiba, Ahmad [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Baxter, Van D. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Shen, Bo [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Rice, C. Keith [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

    2017-01-01

    The commercial integrated heat pump with thermal storage (AS-IHP) offers significant energy saving over a baseline heat pump with electric water heater. The saving potential is maximized when the AS-IHP serves coincident high water heating and high space cooling demands. A previous energy performance analysis showed that the AS-IHP provides the highest benefit in the hot-humid and hot-dry/mixed dry climate regions. Analysis of technical potential energy savings for these climate zones based on the BTO Market calculator indicated that the following commercial building market segments had the highest water heating loads relative to space cooling and heating loads education, food service, health care, lodging, and mercantile/service. In this study, we focused on these building types to conservatively estimate the market potential of the AS-IHP. Our analysis estimates maximum annual shipments of ~522,000 units assuming 100% of the total market is captured. An early replacement market based on replacement of systems in target buildings between 15 and 35 years old was estimated at ~136,000 units. Technical potential energy savings are estimated at ~0.27 quad based on the maximum market estimate, equivalent to ~13.9 MM Ton CO2 emissions reduction.

  3. Organizational-economic model of formation of socio-commercial multifunctional complex in the construction of high-rise buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirillova, Ariadna; Prytkova, Oksana O.

    2018-03-01

    The article is devoted to the features of the formation of the organizational and economic model of the construction of a socio-commercial multifunctional complex for high-rise construction. Authors have given examples of high-altitude multifunctional complexes in Moscow, analyzed the advantages and disadvantages in the implementation of multifunctional complexes, stressed the need for a holistic strategic approach, allowing to take into account the prospects for the development of the city and the creation of a comfortable living environment. Based on the analysis of multifunctional complexes features, a matrix of SWOT analysis was compiled. For the development of cities and improving the quality of life of the population, it is proposed to implement a new type of multifunctional complexes of a joint social and commercial direction, including, along with the implementation of office areas - schools, polyclinics, various sports facilities and cultural and leisure centers (theatrical, dance, studio, etc.). The approach proposed in the article for developing the model is based on a comparative evaluation of the multifunctional complex project of a social and commercial direction implemented at the expense of public-private partnership in the form of a concession agreement and a commercial multifunctional complex being built at the expense of the investor. It has been proved by calculations that the obtained indicators satisfy the conditions of expediency of the proposed organizational-economic model and the project of the social and commercial multifunctional complex is effective.

  4. Organizational-economic model of formation of socio-commercial multifunctional complex in the construction of high-rise buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kirillova Ariadna

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the features of the formation of the organizational and economic model of the construction of a socio-commercial multifunctional complex for high-rise construction. Authors have given examples of high-altitude multifunctional complexes in Moscow, analyzed the advantages and disadvantages in the implementation of multifunctional complexes, stressed the need for a holistic strategic approach, allowing to take into account the prospects for the development of the city and the creation of a comfortable living environment. Based on the analysis of multifunctional complexes features, a matrix of SWOT analysis was compiled. For the development of cities and improving the quality of life of the population, it is proposed to implement a new type of multifunctional complexes of a joint social and commercial direction, including, along with the implementation of office areas - schools, polyclinics, various sports facilities and cultural and leisure centers (theatrical, dance, studio, etc.. The approach proposed in the article for developing the model is based on a comparative evaluation of the multifunctional complex project of a social and commercial direction implemented at the expense of public-private partnership in the form of a concession agreement and a commercial multifunctional complex being built at the expense of the investor. It has been proved by calculations that the obtained indicators satisfy the conditions of expediency of the proposed organizational-economic model and the project of the social and commercial multifunctional complex is effective.

  5. Better Building Alliance, Plug and Process Loads in Commercial Buildings: Capacity and Power Requirement Analysis (Brochure)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2014-09-01

    This brochure addresses gaps in actionable knowledge that can help reduce the plug load capacities designed into buildings. Prospective building occupants and real estate brokers lack accurate references for plug and process load (PPL) capacity requirements, so they often request 5-10 W/ft2 in their lease agreements. This brochure should be used to make these decisions so systems can operate more energy efficiently; upfront capital costs will also decrease. This information can also be used to drive changes in negotiations about PPL energy demands. It should enable brokers and tenants to agree about lower PPL capacities. Owner-occupied buildings will also benefit. Overestimating PPL capacity leads designers to oversize electrical infrastructure and cooling systems.

  6. Outbreak of Type C Botulism in Commercial Layer Chickens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sato, Yuko; Wigle, William L; Gallagher, Susan; Johnson, Amy L; Sweeney, Raymond W; Wakenell, Patricia S

    2016-03-01

    This report describes an outbreak of type C botulism in two organic, free-range commercial layer farms in the Midwest. Hens affected were 64-wk-old Hy-Line brown hens and 34-wk-old Hy-Line brown hens owned by the same company, but housed on different premises, with approximately 20,000 birds per house. Mortality over the 2 wk of investigation was estimated to be up to 8% and 2.8%, respectively, with birds acting listless, lethargic, and depressed. Clinical signs consisted of progressive paralysis, and severely affected birds were moribund and laterally recumbent. Hens had ruffled feathers that easily epilated, with loss of muscular tone in the neck, tail, and wings. Hens had closed eyes and were reluctant to move. There were no significant gross or histopathologic lesions. Intestinal samples were submitted to the University of Pennsylvania Botulism Diagnostic Laboratory for real-time PCR and were positive for Clostridium botulinum organisms containing the Type C neurotoxin gene. Speculations on the source of the botulinum toxins include poor mortality removal leading to cannibalism of decomposing carcasses, as well as birds on the farm having access to putrid carcasses in the compost pile from a hole in their outdoor access fence.

  7. 1998 ACEEE summer study on energy efficiency in buildings: Proceedings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1998-07-01

    These proceedings are contained in the following 10 volumes: (1) Residential buildings--Technologies, design and performance analysis; (2) Residential buildings--Program design, implementation and evaluation; (3) Commercial buildings--Technologies, design and performance analysis; (4) Commercial buildings--Program design, implementation and evaluation; (5) International collaborations and global market issues; (6) Deregulation of the utility industry and role of energy services companies; (7) Market transformation; (8) Information technologies, consumer behavior, and non-energy benefits; (9) Sustainable development, climate change, energy planning, and policy; and (10) Building industry trends. Papers have been processed separately for inclusion on the data base.

  8. Localized Electrical Heating System for Various Types of Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shelehov, I. Y.; Smirnov, E. I.; Inozemsev, V. P.

    2017-11-01

    The article presents an overview of the factors determining the establishment of zones with high temperature in industrial, public and administrative buildings. The authors state the task on the improvement of the electric energy use efficiency and cost savings associated with the heating of these buildings by infrared electric heater devices. Materials and methods: The experiments were conducted in a room with the sizes of 3x6 m2 with a ceiling height of 3 m, the concrete floor was covered with laminate, in which increments of 250 mm were drilled and installed the thermocouple. In the process, had used the patented heating element with distributed heating layer. Signals from the thermocouples were recorded by instruments of the firm “ARIES” brand TPM138 with the standard software delivered together with devices (Owen Process Manager). The obtained distributions of the temperature fields were imported into MS Excel. Control voltage, current consumption, power was carried out by the device of firm “ARIES” brand of IMS. The results of the study: the article defines the purpose of the study and carried out the characterization of infrared heaters with various types of heating elements. The authors detail the main parameters of different types of infrared heaters, evaluated its possibility for application in other areas where the need to create areas of increased temperature. Discussion and conclusion: the result of this work it was determined that heating appliances that use patented heating element with distributed heating layer, improve thermal performance and bring you maximum comfort at a much greater distance compared to existing similar devices

  9. Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model Forms

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model (I-BEAM) is a guidance tool designed for use by building professionals and others interested in indoor air quality in commercial buildings.

  10. Ash-Based Building Panels Production and Demonstration of Aerock Decking Building Product

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alan E. Bland; Jesse Newcomer

    2007-01-01

    Western Research Institute (WRI) of Laramie, Wyoming and AeRock, LLC of Eagar, Arizona (formerly of Bellevue, Washington) partnered, under sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Energy National Energy Technology Laboratory (U.S. DOE-NETL), to support the development of rapid-setting, ash-based, fiber-incorporated ''green'' building products. Green building materials are a rapidly growing trend in the building and construction industry in the US. A two phase project was implemented wherein Phase I assessed, through chemical and physical testing, ash, ash-based cement and fiber composites exhibiting superior structural performance when applied to the AeRock mixing and extrusion process and involved the conduct of pilot-scale production trials of AeRock products, and wherein Phase II involved the design, construction, and operation of a commercial-scale plant to confirm production issues and to produce panels for performance evaluations. Phase I optimized the composite ingredients including ash-based cement, Class F and Class C DFGD ash, and various fiber reinforcements. Additives, such as retardants and accelerators, were also evaluated as related to extruder performance. The optimized composite from the Phase I effort was characterized by a modulus of rupture (MOR) measured between 1,931 and 2,221 psi flexural strength, comparable to other wood and non-wood building materials. Continuous extrusion of the optimum composite in the AeRock pilot-scale facility produced an excellent product that was assembled into a demonstration for exhibit and durability purposes. Finishes, from plain to marbled, from bright reds to muted earth tones and with various textures, could easily be applied during the mixing and extrusion process. The successful pilot-scale demonstration was in turn used to design the production parameters and extruder dies for a commercial scale demonstration at Ultrapanel Pty, Ltd of Ballarat, Australia under Phase II. The initial commercial-scale production

  11. Buildings R&D Breakthroughs. Technologies and Products Supported by the Building Technologies Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    none,

    2012-04-01

    This report identifies and characterizes commercially available products and emerging (near-commercial) technologies that benefited from the support of the Building Technologies Program (BTP) within the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The investigation specifically focused on technology-oriented research and development (R&D) projects sponsored by BTP’s Emerging Technologies subprogram from 2005-2009.

  12. Economic, Energetic, and Environmental Performance of a Solar Powered Organic Rankine Cycle with Electric Energy Storage in Different Commercial Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emily Spayde

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents an analysis to determine the economic, energetic, and environmental benefits that could be obtained from the implementation of a combined solar-power organic Rankine cycle (ORC with electric energy storage (EES to supply electricity to several commercial buildings including a large office, a small office, and a full service restaurant. The operational strategy for the ORC-EES system consists in the ORC charging the EES when the irradiation level is sufficient to generate power, and the EES providing electricity to the building when there is not irradiation (i.e., during night time. Electricity is purchased from the utility grid unless it is provided by the EES. The potential of the proposed system to reduce primary energy consumption (PEC, carbon dioxide emission (CDE, and cost was evaluated. Furthermore, the available capital cost for a variable payback period for the ORC-EES system was determined for each of the evaluated buildings. The effect of the number of solar collectors on the performance of the ORC-EES is also studied. Results indicate that the proposed ORC-EES system is able to satisfy 11%, 13%, and 18% of the electrical demand for the large office, the small office and the restaurant, respectively.

  13. MARKETING STRATEGY OF COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Savelyeva Irina Petrovna

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of the article is to develop an original approach to the formation of a marketing strategy of commercialization of innovations. The existing views on the process of creating marketing strategies were examined and classified and the algorithm of building marketing strategies for the processes commercialization of innovations was offered. The results can be used by industrial companies and in the educational process of marketing, strategic marketing and innovation management disciplines.

  14. The potential for distributed generation in Japanese prototype buildings: A DER-CAM analysis of policy, tariff design, building energy use, and technology development (English Version)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhou, Nan; Marnay, Chris; Firestone, Ryan; Gao, Weijun; Nishida, Masaru

    2004-10-15

    global optimization, albeit idealized, that shows how the necessary useful energy loads can be provided for at minimum cost by selection and operation of on-site generation, heat recovery, cooling, and efficiency improvements. This study examines five prototype commercial buildings and uses DER-CAM to select the economically optimal DER system for each. The five building types are office, hospital, hotel, retail, and sports facility. Each building type was considered for both 5,000 and 10,000 square meter floor sizes. The energy consumption of these building types is based on building energy simulation and published literature. Based on the optimization results, energy conservation and the emissions reduction were also evaluated. Furthermore, a comparison study between Japan and the U.S. has been conducted covering the policy, technology and the utility tariffs effects on DER systems installations. This study begins with an examination of existing DER research. Building energy loads were then generated through simulation (DOE-2) and scaled to match available load data in the literature. Energy tariffs in Japan and the U.S. were then compared: electricity prices did not differ significantly, while commercial gas prices in Japan are much higher than in the U.S. For smaller DER systems, the installation costs in Japan are more than twice those in the U.S., but this difference becomes smaller with larger systems. In Japan, DER systems are eligible for a 1/3 rebate of installation costs, while subsidies in the U.S. vary significantly by region and application. For 10,000 m{sup 2} buildings, significant decreases in fuel consumption, carbon emissions, and energy costs were seen in the economically optimal results. This was most noticeable in the sports facility, followed the hospital and hotel. This research demonstrates that office buildings can benefit from CHP, in contrast to popular opinion. For hospitals and sports facilities, the use of waste heat is particularly

  15. A Study on the Revitalizing of technology commercialization in KAERI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choi, J. I.; Jang, S. K.; Hong, G. P.; Lee, E. S.

    2009-02-01

    The TEC training program should be implemented for researches who want to commercialize their own technologies. To build creative organization culture is essential for technology commercialization. Collaboration strategy is related to analyze how KAERI is catching up their technological capabilities in nuclear technology, and what the success factors of KAERI in technology commercialization are.

  16. Distributing Knight. Using Type-Based Publish/Subscribe for Building Distributed Collaboration Tools

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Damm, Christian Heide; Hansen, Klaus Marius

    2002-01-01

    more important. We present Distributed Knight, an extension to the Knight tool, for distributed, collaborative, and gesture-based object-oriented modelling. Distributed Knight was built using the type-based publish/subscribe paradigm. Based on this case, we argue that type-based publish......Distributed applications are hard to understand, build, and evolve. The need for decoupling, flexibility, and heterogeneity in distributed collaboration tools present particular problems; for such applications, having the right abstractions and primitives for distributed communication becomes even....../subscribe provides a natural and effective abstraction for developing distributed collaboration tools....

  17. Evaluating the Cost of Line Capacity Limitations in Aggregations of Commercial Buildings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ziras, Charalampos; Delikaraoglou, Stefanos; Kazempour, Jalal

    2017-01-01

    -ahead optimization strategy to assess the cost of imposing capacity limitations in the total consumption of individual buildings, as well as aggregations of buildings. We show that such capacity limitations lead to an increase for the buildings operational costs, which can be interpreted as the value...... of these limitations. Based on such calculations, the aggregator can value capacity-limitation services to the distribution system operator. Moreover, the value of aggregation is also highlighted, since it leads to lower costs than imposing the same total capacity limitation on individual buildings....

  18. Indoor environmental quality differences between office types in LEED-certified buildings in the US

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Young S. [School of Planning, Design, and Construction, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823 (United States); Guerin, Denise A. [College of Design, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, MN 55108 (United States)

    2010-05-15

    The study compared IAQ, thermal quality, and lighting quality between 5 different office types in LEED-certified buildings in relation to employees' environmental satisfaction and their job performance. This was to provide workplaces where workers in each specific office environment could be provided with appropriate office settings regarding these IEQ criteria when organizations comply with LEED standards. The five types of office included private enclosed, private shared, open-plan with high cubicle over 5', open-plan with low cubicle lower than 5', and open-plan with no partitions (bullpen) offices. The study found IAQ enhanced workers' job performance in enclosed private offices more than both high cubicles and low cubicles. All four office types had higher satisfaction with the amount of light and visual comfort of light as well as more enhancement with job performance due to lighting quality than high cubicles. There was no difference in thermal quality between the five office types. IAQ and lighting quality were not different between enclosed private, enclosed shared, and bullpen office types, either. The study findings suggest a careful workplace design considering the height of partitions in LEED-certified buildings to improve employee's environmental satisfaction and job performance. (author)

  19. Life cycle cost analysis of commercial buildings with energy efficient approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nilima N. Kale

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available In any construction project, cost effectiveness plays a crucial role. The Life Cycle Cost (LCC analysis provides a method of determining entire cost of a structure over its expected life along with operational and maintenance cost. LCC can be improved by adopting alternative modern techniques without much alteration in the building. LCC effectiveness can be calculated at various stages of entire span of the building. Moreover this provides decision makers with the financial information necessary for maintaining, improving, and constructing facilities. Financial benefits associated with energy use can also be calculated using LCC analysis. In the present work, case study of two educational buildings has been considered. The LCC of these buildings has been calculated with existing condition and with proposed energy efficient approach (EEA using net present value method. A solar panel having minimum capacity as well as solar panel with desired capacity as per the requirements of the building has been suggested. The comparison of LCC of existing structure with proposed solar panel system shows that 4% of cost can be reduced in case of minimum capacity solar panel and 54% cost can be reduced for desired capacity solar panel system, along with other added advantages of solar energy.

  20. Net-Zero Building Technologies Create Substantial Energy Savings -

    Science.gov (United States)

    only an estimated 1% of commercial buildings are built to net-zero energy criteria. One reason for this Continuum Magazine | NREL Net-Zero Building Technologies Create Substantial Energy Savings Net -Zero Building Technologies Create Substantial Energy Savings Researchers work to package and share step

  1. Recovery Act. Advanced Load Identification and Management for Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yang, Yi [Eaton Corporation, Menomonee Falls, WI (United States); Casey, Patrick [Eaton Corporation, Menomonee Falls, WI (United States); Du, Liang [Eaton Corporation, Menomonee Falls, WI (United States); He, Dawei [Eaton Corporation, Menomonee Falls, WI (United States)

    2014-02-12

    In response to the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE)’s goal of achieving market ready, net-zero energy residential and commercial buildings by 2020 and 2025, Eaton partnered with the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Georgia Institute of Technology to develop an intelligent load identification and management technology enabled by a novel “smart power strip” to provide critical intelligence and information to improve the capability and functionality of building load analysis and building power management systems. Buildings account for 41% of the energy consumption in the United States, significantly more than either transportation or industrial. Within the building sector, plug loads account for a significant portion of energy consumption. Plug load consumes 15-20% of building energy on average. As building managers implement aggressive energy conservation measures, the proportion of plug load energy can increase to as much as 50% of building energy leaving plug loads as the largest remaining single source of energy consumption. This project focused on addressing plug-in load control and management to further improve building energy efficiency accomplished through effective load identification. The execution of the project falls into the following three major aspects; An intelligent load modeling, identification and prediction technology was developed to automatically determine the type, energy consumption, power quality, operation status and performance status of plug-in loads, using electric waveforms at a power outlet level. This project demonstrated the effectiveness of the developed technology through a large set of plug-in loads measurements and testing; A novel “Smart Power Strip (SPS) / Receptacle” prototype was developed to act as a vehicle to demonstrate the feasibility of load identification technology as a low-cost, embedded solution; and Market environment for plug-in load control and management solutions

  2. Analysis of Plug Load Capacities and Power Requirements in Commercial Buildings: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sheppy, M.; Torcellini, P.; Gentile-Polese, L.

    2014-08-01

    Plug and process load power requirements are frequently overestimated because designers often use estimates based on 'nameplate' data, or design assumptions are high because information is not available. This generally results in oversized heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems; increased initial construction costs; and increased energy use caused by inefficiencies at low, part-load operation. Rightsizing of chillers in two buildings reduced whole-building energy use by 3%-4%. If an integrated design approach could enable 3% whole-building energy savings in all U.S. office buildings stock, it could save 34 TBtu of site energy per year.

  3. Techno-economic feasibility analysis of solar photovoltaic power generation for buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Xiongwen; Li, Menyu; Ge, Yuanfei; Li, Guojun

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • A model for optimal component sizes of hybrid energy system (HES) is presented. • The techno-economic feasibility of PV for building in context of China is studied. • The use of PV reduces COE by 46% for customers in the commercial building. • The use of PV increases COE by 9.55% for customers in the residential building. - Abstract: The Building Added PV (BAPV) plays an important role for developing green buildings. This work conducts a techno-economic feasibility study of BAPV for commercial and residential building hybrid energy systems (HES). A component sizing model based on the optimal power dispatch simulations with the objective of minimum cost of energy (COE) is used to determine the component sizes of HES. The techno-economic performances of two HES composed of BAPV and batteries for residential and commercial buildings are investigated. The results show that the use of BAPV in the commercial building HES can reduce the electricity bill for customers owing to the government subsidies on PV as well as due to the similar characteristics of the load profile as to the solar radiation profile. However, due to temporal dislocation between the load and solar radiation patterns, the use of PV in the residential building HES may significantly increase the initial capital cost and replacement cost of battery, resulting in the COE of the residential building HES with BAPV even higher than the residential electricity price. The techno-economic performances of battery (e.g., the lifetime and capital cost) have more effect on the COE of the residential building HES than that of PV.

  4. Radon in large buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilson, D.L.; Dudney, C.S.; Gammage, R.B.

    1993-01-01

    Over the past several years, considerable research has been devoted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and others to develop radon sampling protocols for single family residences and schools. However, very little research has been performed on measuring radon in the work place. To evaluate possible sampling protocols, 833 buildings throughout the United States were selected for extensive radon testing. The buildings tested (warehouses, production plants and office buildings) were representative of commercial buildings across the country both in design, size and use. Based on the results, preliminary radon sampling protocols for the work place have been developed. (orig.). (5 refs., 3 figs.)

  5. Design and development of Building energy simulation Software for prefabricated cabin type of industrial building (PCES)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Jun; Li, Ri Yi

    2018-06-01

    Building energy simulation is an important supporting tool for green building design and building energy consumption assessment, At present, Building energy simulation software can't meet the needs of energy consumption analysis and cabinet level micro environment control design of prefabricated building. thermal physical model of prefabricated building is proposed in this paper, based on the physical model, the energy consumption calculation software of prefabricated cabin building(PCES) is developed. we can achieve building parameter setting, energy consumption simulation and building thermal process and energy consumption analysis by PCES.

  6. Buildings R&D Breakthroughs: Technologies and Products Supported by the Building Technologies Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Weakley, Steven A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2012-04-01

    The purpose of the project described in this report is to identify and characterize commercially available products and emerging (near-commercial) technologies that benefited from the support of the Building Technologies Program (BTP) within the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The investigation specifically focused on technology-oriented research and development (R&D) projects funded by BTP’s Emerging Technologies subprogram from 2005-2011.

  7. Photoperiod effect on commercial fishes cultured in different types of experimental systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aragón-Flores, E.A.

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available The influence on the abiotic factors in aquaculture has been widely studied in order to control growing variables. Studies have been made to assess the positive or negative influence of photoperiod in the different life stages of some fish species. The photoperiod can influence feed visualization and social behavior in fishes; these responses influence fish growth and survival. Similarly, photoperiod plays an important role in the release of hormones that stimulate sexual development and reproduction. The aim of this review was to research the influence of photoperiod in different commercial fish species cultured in different types of experimental systems.

  8. Life-Cycle Evaluation of Concrete Building Construction as a Strategy for Sustainable Cities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Stadel, Alexander [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Drexel Univ., Philadelphia, PA (United States); Gursel, Petek [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Masanet, Eric [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2012-01-18

    Structural materials in commercial buildings in the United States account for a significant fraction of national energy use, resource consumption, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Robust decisions for balancing and minimizing these various environmental effects require that structural materials selections follow a life-cycle, systems modeling approach. This report provides a concise overview of the development and use of a new life-cycle assessment (LCA) model for structural materials in U.S. commercial buildings-the Berkeley Lab Building Materials Pathways (B-PATH) model. B-PATH aims to enhance environmental decision-making in the commercial building LCA, design, and planning communities through the following key features: (1) Modeling of discrete technology options in the production, transportation, construction, and end of life processes associated U.S. structural building materials; (2) Modeling of energy supply options for electricity provision and directly combusted fuels across the building life cycle; (3) Comprehensiveness of relevant building mass and energy flows and environmental indicators; (4) Ability to estimate modeling uncertainties through easy creation of different life-cycle technology and energy supply pathways for structural materials; and (5) Encapsulation of the above features in a transparent public use model. The report summarizes literature review findings, methods development, model use, and recommendations for future work in the area of LCA for commercial buildings.

  9. The Feasibility of Utilizing Wind Energy in Commercial Buildings With Special Reference to the Kingdom of Bahrain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdulrahim Saeed, Saeed

    2017-11-01

    This article shall investigate the feasibility of utilizing wind energy for commercial buildings with special reference to the Kingdom of Bahrain. Bahrain World Trade Center which was built in 2008, is located in the city of Manama. The fifty-story complex contains identical twin towers that rise over 240 meters in height. The towers are connected by three bridges which hold three turbines each 29 meters long. The three turbines were originally design to provide electric energy required for lighting. The Bahrain World Trade Center was selected as a case study to investigate the feasibility of utilizing wind energy technologies in skyscrapers with special reference to the Kingdom of Bahrain. It is hoped that the findings and conclusion of the study shall be of some value for future utilization of wind energy in the GCC countries and the world at large.

  10. Radioactivity measurement in different types of fabricated building materials used in Palestine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dabayneh, K.M.

    2007-01-01

    The natural radionuclides ( 238 U, 232 Th and 40 K) and the manmade radiation levels were measured in samples of different types of fabricated building materials in Palestine. Concentration of radionuclide in samples were determined by γ -ray spectrometry using hyper-pure germanium (HPGe) detector in Bq/Kg dry weight. In this paper samples of commonly building materials (granite, clay brick (karmeed), lime stone, marble, cement, white cement, sea sand, gravel powder, gravel, glue ceramic, gypsum powder and hydrated lime) used in Palestinian buildings were collected. the concentration values of 238 U, 232 Th and 40 K in these samples ranged between 13.9-97.3,7.2-78.6 and 2.0-1139.0 Bq/Kg.respectively. The 137 Cs isotope was detected in some samples. Radium equivalent activity (Ra e q) dose rate in air (Dr), external hazard index (Hex), radioactivity Level index (I y ) and annual gonadal equivalent dose (D) in all samples were calculated. The activity concentration data were discussed are compared with other experimental values in some countries

  11. Technical-financial evaluation of rainwater harvesting systems in commercial buildings-case ase studies from Sonae Sierra in Portugal and Brazil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sousa, Vitor; Silva, Cristina Matos; Meireles, Inês C

    2017-11-10

    Water is an essential and increasingly scarce resource that should be preserved. The evolution of the human population and communities has contributed to the global decrease of potable water availability and the reduction of its consumption is now compulsory. Rainwater harvesting systems (RWHS) are emerging as a viable alternative source for water consumption in non-potable uses. The present study aims to contribute to the promotion of water efficiency, focusing on the application of rainwater harvesting systems in commercial buildings, and comprises four stages: (i) development of a technical evaluation tool to aid the design of RWHS and support their financial evaluation; (ii) validation of the tool using operational data from an existing RWHS installed at Colombo Shopping Center, in Lisbon, Portugal; (iii) assessment of the sensibility of the technical evaluation tool results to the variation of the inputs, namely the precipitation and consumption, through a parametric analysis for the Colombo Shopping Center; and (iv) comparison of the performance and financial feasibility of hypothetical RWHS in two existing commercial buildings. The technical tool was applied to two Sonae Sierra's shopping centers, one in Portugal and one in Brazil. The installation of a 200-m 3 tank is advised for the first case study, allowing non-potable water savings of 60% but a payback period of about 19 years. In the Brazilian shopping, the implementation of a tank with a capacity ranging from 100 to 400 m 3 leads to non-potable savings between 20 and 50%, but with smaller payback period, under 2 years, due to the relatively lower investment costs and higher water fees.

  12. Building Evidence for Health: Green Buildings, Current Science, and Future Challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cedeño-Laurent, J G; Williams, A; MacNaughton, P; Cao, X; Eitland, E; Spengler, J; Allen, J

    2018-04-01

    Civilizational challenges have questioned the status quo of energy and material consumption by humans. From the built environment perspective, a response to these challenges was the creation of green buildings. Although the revolutionary capacity of the green building movement has elevated the expectations of new commercial construction, its rate of implementation has secluded the majority of the population from its benefits. Beyond reductions in energy usage and increases in market value, the main strength of green buildings may be the procurement of healthier building environments. Further pursuing the right to healthy indoor environments could help the green building movement to attain its full potential as a transformational public health tool. On the basis of 40 years of research on indoor environmental quality, we present a summary of nine environment elements that are foundational to human health. We posit the role of green buildings as a critical research platform within a novel sustainability framework based on social-environmental capital assets.

  13. Performance evaluation of gas-power strategies for building energy conservation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gabbar, Hossam A.; Runge, Jason; Bondarenko, Daniel; Bower, Lowell; Pandya, Devarsh; Musharavati, Farayi; Pokharel, Shaligram

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Comparison of natural gas and hydrogen fuels for energy conservation in buildings. • Comparison between hydrogen and natural gas fuel cell is performed. • Simulations of building energy supply. • Performance evaluation of two potential gas-power supply scenarios in buildings. • Natural gas fuel cell showed better performance over hydrogen fuel cell. - Abstract: The work provided herein involves a comparison of natural gas and hydrogen fuels for the purpose of energy conservation for buildings via alternative energy generation methodologies. A case study simulation was developed for an average type of commercial building, a nine storey hotel located in Toronto. The two alternative energy source case studies involved the generation of hydrogen via the wind turbine for the fuel cell, and the use of natural gas directly in the steam reforming fuel cell. The simulations for both scenarios were run and the recorded results were compared to the original case study, as well as between the scenarios. To supply for the base load of the building the fuel cells were given the same kW rating for both scenarios. The identification of all existing technologies for hydrogen gas and natural gas has been carried out, and the similar technologies between the two gases were found. For the purpose of realism, only existing purchasable technologies were considered in this paper. Due to the lack of commercially available technologies for hydrogen gas, only a comparison of fuel cell systems could be accomplished. Over the course of the investigative work it was found that when there is no direct supply of hydrogen to the site of utilization, the natural gas fuel cell is beneficial to the building due to its greater efficiency and lower cost. The major drawback for the hydrogen gas fuel cell, when the on-site generation is involved, is that no thermal power extraction systems currently exist for purchase and utilization in the buildings

  14. Gas-cooled reactor commercialization study. Interim report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1977-01-01

    This report of the gas-cooled reactor commercialization study completes the technical and cost evaluation portions of this study contract. A final report in December will update the status of the incentive analyses and the issues of commercialization. This study was designed to bring together potential industry participants (utilities and suppliers) to evaluate the commercial potential of the HTGR-SC and to build channels of communication among the participating organizations at the same time that technical, economic and institutional issues were being evaluated. RAMCO, Inc., in suggesting and using this study approach, believes its application extends to any commercialization problem involving multi-party involvement in high capital, intensive, high risk energy technologies

  15. Energy Innovations for Healthy Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bogucz, Edward A. [Syracuse Univ., NY (United States)

    2016-09-23

    Healthy buildings provide high indoor environmental quality for occupants while simultaneously reducing energy consumption. This project advanced the development and marketability of envisioned healthy, energy-efficient buildings through studies that evaluated the use of emerging technologies in commercial and residential buildings. The project also provided resources required for homebuilders to participate in DOE’s Builders Challenge, concomitant with the goal to reduce energy consumption in homes by at least 30% as a first step toward achieving envisioned widespread availability of net-zero energy homes by 2030. In addition, the project included outreach and education concerning energy efficiency in buildings.

  16. Energy performance of solar-assisted liquid desiccant air-conditioning system for commercial building in main climate zones

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qi, Ronghui; Lu, Lin; Huang, Yu

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Simulation of solar liquid desiccant AC system in four climate regions was conducted. • System performance was determined by relationship of sensible and latent cooling load. • For humid area, saving amount is large by handling latent load with solar energy. • For dry area, electricity saving rate is considerable due to the high COP of chillers. • For buildings with mild SHR, the system performance was not as good as others. - Abstract: Liquid desiccant air-conditioning (LDAC) system, which consists of a liquid desiccant ventilation system for dehumidification and an air-handling unit for cooling, has become a promising alternative for conventional technology. To evaluate its feasibility and applicability, the simulation of solar-assisted LDAC (SLDAC) in commercial buildings in five cities of four main climate regions were conducted, including Singapore in Tropical, Houston and Beijing in Temperate, Boulder in Arid and Los Angeles in Mediterranean. Results showed that the system’s performance was seriously affected by the ratios of building’s sensible and latent cooling load. For buildings located in humid areas with low sensible-total heat ratio (SHR), the electricity energy reduction of SLDAC was high, about 450 MW h in Houston and Singapore, which accounted for 40% of the total energy consumption in cooling seasons. The cost payback period was as short as approximately 7 years. The main reason is that the energy required for handling the moisture could be saved by liquid desiccant dehumidification, and the regeneration heat could be covered by solar collectors. For buildings in dry climate with high SHR, the total cooling load was low, but up to 45% electricity of AC system could be saved in Boulder because the chiller COP could be significantly improved during more than 70% operation time. The cost payback period was around 22 years, which was acceptable. However, for the buildings with mild SHR, such as those in Beijing and Los

  17. Industry Research and Recommendations for Small Buildings and Small Portfolios

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Langner, Rois [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Hendron, Bob [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Pless, Shanti [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Huppert, Mark [National Trust for Historic Preservation, Washington, DC (United States); Cochrane, Ric [National Trust for Historic Preservation, Washington, DC (United States)

    2013-12-01

    Small buildings have been left behind in the energy efficiency marketplace because financial and technical resources have flowed to larger commercial buildings. DOE's Building Technologies Office works with the commercial building industry to accelerate the uptake of energy efficiency technologies and techniques in existing and new commercial buildings (DOE 2013). BTO recognizes the SBSP sector'spotential for significant energy savings and the need for investments in resources that are tailored to this sector's unique needs. The industry research and recommendations described in this report identify potential approaches and strategic priorities that BTO could explore over the next 3-5 years that will support the implementation of high-potential energy efficiency opportunities for thisimportant sector. DOE is uniquely positioned to provide national leadership, objective information, and innovative tools, technologies, and services to support cost-effective energy savings in the fragmented and complex SBSP sector. Properly deployed, the DOE effort could enhance and complement current energy efficiency approaches. Small portfolios are loosely and qualitatively defined asportfolios of buildings that include only a small number of small buildings. This distinction is important because the report targets portfolio owners and managers who generally do not have staff and other resources to track energy use and pursue energy efficiency solutions.

  18. Luminescent solar concentrators for building-integrated photovoltaics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meinardi, Francesco; Bruni, Francesco; Brovelli, Sergio

    2017-12-01

    The transition to fully energetically sustainable architecture through the realization of so-called net zero-energy buildings is currently in progress in areas with low population density. However, this is not yet true in cities, where the cost of land for the installation of ground photovoltaic (PV) is prohibitively high and the rooftop space is too scarce to accommodate the PV modules necessary for sustaining the electrical requirements of tall buildings. Thus, new technologies are being investigated to integrate solar-harvesting devices into building façades in the form of PV windows or envelope elements. Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) are the most promising technology for semi-transparent, electrodeless PV glazing systems that can be integrated 'invisibly' into the built environment without detrimental effects to the aesthetics of the building or the quality of life of the inhabitants. After 40 years of research, recent breakthroughs in the realization of reabsorption-free emitters with broadband absorption have boosted the performance of LSCs to such a degree that they might be commercialized in the near future. In this Perspective, we explore the successful strategies that have allowed this change of pace, examining and comparing the different types of chromophores and waveguide materials, and discuss the issues that remain to be investigated for further progress.

  19. The Impact of Individual Differences, Types of Model and Social Settings on Block Building Performance among Chinese Preschoolers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Mi; Deng, Zhu; Meng, Zhaokun; Li, Rui; Zhang, Zhiyi; Qi, Wenhui; Wang, Rui; Yin, Tingting; Ji, Menghui

    2018-01-01

    Children's block building performances are used as indicators of other abilities in multiple domains. In the current study, we examined individual differences, types of model and social settings as influences on children's block building performance. Chinese preschoolers ( N = 180) participated in a block building activity in a natural setting, and performance was assessed with multiple measures in order to identify a range of specific skills. Using scores generated across these measures, three dependent variables were analyzed: block building skills, structural balance and structural features. An overall MANOVA showed that there were significant main effects of gender and grade level across most measures. Types of model showed no significant effect in children's block building. There was a significant main effect of social settings on structural features, with the best performance in the 5-member group, followed by individual and then the 10-member block building. These findings suggest that boys performed better than girls in block building activity. Block building performance increased significantly from 1st to 2nd year of preschool, but not from second to third. The preschoolers created more representational constructions when presented with a model made of wooden rather than with a picture. There was partial evidence that children performed better when working with peers in a small group than when working alone or working in a large group. It is suggested that future study should examine other modalities rather than the visual one, diversify the samples and adopt a longitudinal investigation.

  20. BUILDING MECHATRONICS SIMULATION SYSTEM

    OpenAIRE

    HUSI Géza; SZÁSZ Csaba; HASHIMOTO Hideki; NIITSUMA Mihoko

    2014-01-01

    In international references a net zero-energy building (NZEB) is defined as a residential or commercial building with greatly reduced energy needs through efficiency gains such that the balance of energy needs can be supplied with renewable technologies. According to this general term definition, the essence of the concept is that by using low-cost and locally available nonpolluting sources, they generate energy onsite, in a quantity equal or greater than the total amo...

  1. Office Buildings: Assessing and Reducing Plug and Process Loads in Office Buildings (Fact Sheet)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2013-04-01

    Plug and process loads (PPLs) in commercial buildings account for almost 5% of U.S. primary energy consumption. Minimizing these loads is a primary challenge in the design and operation of an energy-efficient building. PPLs are not related to general lighting, heating, ventilation, cooling, and water heating, and typically do not provide comfort to the occupants. They use an increasingly large fraction of the building energy use pie because the number and variety of electrical devices have increased along with building system efficiency. Reducing PPLs is difficult because energy efficiency opportunities and the equipment needed to address PPL energy use in office spaces are poorly understood.

  2. Retail Buildings: Assessing and Reducing Plug and Process Loads in Retail Buildings (Fact Sheet)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2013-04-01

    Plug and process loads (PPLs) in commercial buildings account for almost 5% of U.S. primary energy consumption. Minimizing these loads is a primary challenge in the design and operation of an energy-efficient building. PPLs are not related to general lighting, heating, ventilation, cooling, and water heating, and typically do not provide comfort to the occupants. They use an increasingly large fraction of the building energy use pie because the number and variety of electrical devices have increased along with building system efficiency. Reducing PPLs is difficult because energy efficiency opportunities and the equipment needed to address PPL energy use in retail spaces are poorly understood.

  3. Bibliography for the Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model (I-BEAM) is a guidance tool designed for use by building professionals and others interested in indoor air quality in commercial buildings.

  4. Effect of the addition of different types of oenological commercial tannins on phenolic and sensorial red wine characteristics evolution

    OpenAIRE

    Jordão, António; Muxagata, Sara; Fontes, Luísa; Correia, Ana Cristina; Nunes, Fernando; Cosme, Fernanda

    2016-01-01

    The main objective of this work was to understand the effect of the addition of different commercial types of oenological tannins on red wine phenolic compounds and sensorial characteristics evolution. So, six different commercial oenological tannins obtained from different sources at an average dosage recommended by the manufactures were added to a red wine. During 120 wine aging days several phenolic parameters were analyzed (including several individual phenolic compounds by HPLC) and also...

  5. Type approval and real-world CO_2 and NO_x emissions from EU light commercial vehicles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zacharof, Nikiforos; Tietge, Uwe; Franco, Vicente; Mock, Peter

    2016-01-01

    In the European Union, light duty vehicles (LDVs) are subject to emission targets for carbon dioxide (CO_2) and limits for pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NO_x). CO_2 emissions are regulated for both passenger vehicles (PV) and light commercial vehicles (LCV), as individual manufacturers are required to reach fleet averages of 130 g/km by 2015 and 175 g/km by 2017, respectively. In the case of PVs, it has been found that there is a significant divergence between real-world and type-approval CO_2 emissions, which has been increasing annually, reaching 40% in 2014. On-road exceedances of regulated NO_x emission limits for diesel passenger cars have also been documented. The current study investigated the LCV characteristics and CO_2 and NO_x emissions in the European Union. A vehicle market analysis found that LCVs comprise 17% of the diesel LDV market and while there were some data for CO_2 emissions, there were hardly any data publicly available for NO_x emissions. Monitoring the divergence in CO_2 emissions revealed that it increased from 14% in 2006 to 33% in 2014, posing an additional annual fuel cost from 120€ in 2006 to 305€ in 2014, while a significant percentage of Euro 5 vehicles exceeded NO_x emission standards. - Highlights: • Light commercial vehicles comprise 17% of diesel light duty vehicle market. • On-road CO_2 emissions were found to be on average 33% higher than compared to type approval measurements. • The annual additional fuel cost due to the on-road and type approval divergence is estimated at 400€. • Data indicates exceedances in on-road NO_x emissions. • Little attention has been given to light commercial vehicles compared to passenger vehicles.

  6. Natural radioactivity in different commercial ceramic samples used in Yemeni buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Amin, Sahar A.; Naji, Mustafa

    2013-01-01

    In this work we calculated the radioactivity concentrations of the natural radioactive nuclides 238 U, 232 Th, 226 Ra and 40 K for 10 commercial samples collected from 10 different companies which are used in the construction of Yemeni buildings. Gamma ray spectroscopy was used to analyze the samples and the concentrations of radioisotopes were determined using a hyper-pure germanium (HPGe) detector in Bq/kg dry-weight. The average concentrations of 238 U, 232 Th, 226 Ra and 40 K were found to be 131.4, 83.55, 131.88 and 400.7 Bq/kg respectively. Different hazard indices were also determined. The results showed that the average radium equivalent activity (Ra eq ), the absorbed dose rate (D r ), the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), the external hazard index (H ex ) and representation level index (I γ ) were: 307.52 Bq/kg, 139.31 nGy/h, 1.40 mSv/yr, 0.83 and 2.15 respectively. The mean value of (Ra eq ) obtained in this study is in good agreement with that of the international value while the mean values of the other indices are found to be higher than the international reference values. The measured activity concentrations for these radionuclide were compared with the reported data obtained from similar materials used in other countries. - Highlights: ► Concentrations of the natural radioactive nuclides 238 U, 232 Th, 226 Ra and 40 K were measured. ► Ten samples collected from 10 different companies have been analyzed. ► Gamma ray spectroscopy is used to analyze the samples. ► Concentrations in Bq/kg were determined using a HPGe detector. ► Different hazard indices (Ra eq ), (D r ), (AEDE), (H ex ) and (I γ ) were also determined

  7. The Impact of Individual Differences, Types of Model and Social Settings on Block Building Performance among Chinese Preschoolers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mi Tian

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Children’s block building performances are used as indicators of other abilities in multiple domains. In the current study, we examined individual differences, types of model and social settings as influences on children’s block building performance. Chinese preschoolers (N = 180 participated in a block building activity in a natural setting, and performance was assessed with multiple measures in order to identify a range of specific skills. Using scores generated across these measures, three dependent variables were analyzed: block building skills, structural balance and structural features. An overall MANOVA showed that there were significant main effects of gender and grade level across most measures. Types of model showed no significant effect in children’s block building. There was a significant main effect of social settings on structural features, with the best performance in the 5-member group, followed by individual and then the 10-member block building. These findings suggest that boys performed better than girls in block building activity. Block building performance increased significantly from 1st to 2nd year of preschool, but not from second to third. The preschoolers created more representational constructions when presented with a model made of wooden rather than with a picture. There was partial evidence that children performed better when working with peers in a small group than when working alone or working in a large group. It is suggested that future study should examine other modalities rather than the visual one, diversify the samples and adopt a longitudinal investigation.

  8. Country Report on Building Energy Codes in China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shui, Bin; Evans, Meredydd; Lin, H.; Jiang, Wei; Liu, Bing; Song, Bo; Somasundaram, Sriram

    2009-04-15

    This report is part of a series of reports on building energy efficiency codes in countries associated with the Asian Pacific Partnership (APP) - Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, India, and the United States of America (U.S.). This reports gives an overview of the development of building energy codes in China, including national energy policies related to building energy codes, history of building energy codes, recent national projects and activities to promote building energy codes. The report also provides a review of current building energy codes (such as building envelope and HVAC) for commercial and residential buildings in China.

  9. Country Report on Building Energy Codes in Japan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Evans, Meredydd; Shui, Bin; Takagi, T.

    2009-04-15

    This report is part of a series of reports on building energy efficiency codes in countries associated with the Asian Pacific Partnership (APP) - Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, India, and the United States of America (U.S.). This reports gives an overview of the development of building energy codes in Japan, including national energy policies related to building energy codes, history of building energy codes, recent national projects and activities to promote building energy codes. The report also provides a review of current building energy codes (such as building envelope, HVAC, and lighting) for commercial and residential buildings in Japan.

  10. Country Report on Building Energy Codes in Australia

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shui, Bin; Evans, Meredydd; Somasundaram, Sriram

    2009-04-02

    This report is part of a series of reports on building energy efficiency codes in countries associated with the Asian Pacific Partnership (APP) - Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, India, and the United States of America (U.S.). This reports gives an overview of the development of building energy codes in Australia, including national energy policies related to building energy codes, history of building energy codes, recent national projects and activities to promote building energy codes. The report also provides a review of current building energy codes (such as building envelope, HVAC, and lighting) for commercial and residential buildings in Australia.

  11. Country Report on Building Energy Codes in Canada

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shui, Bin; Evans, Meredydd

    2009-04-06

    This report is part of a series of reports on building energy efficiency codes in countries associated with the Asian Pacific Partnership (APP) - Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, India, and the United States of America . This reports gives an overview of the development of building energy codes in Canada, including national energy policies related to building energy codes, history of building energy codes, recent national projects and activities to promote building energy codes. The report also provides a review of current building energy codes (such as building envelope, HVAC, lighting, and water heating) for commercial and residential buildings in Canada.

  12. Energy Efficiency Trends in Residential and Commercial Buildings - August 2010

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    none,

    2010-08-01

    This report overviews trends in the construction industry, including profiles of buildings and the resulting impacts on energy consumption. It begins with an executive summary of the key findings found in the body of the report, so some of the data and charts are replicated in this section. Its intent is to provide in a concise place key data points and conclusions. The remainder of the report provides a specific profile of the construction industry and patterns of energy use followed by sections providing product and market insights and information on policy efforts, such as taxes and regulations, which are intended to influence building energy use. Information on voluntary programs is also offered.

  13. MARKETING STRATEGY OF COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ирина Петровна Савельева

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of the article is to develop an original approach to the formation of a marketing strategy of commercialization of innovations. The existing views on the process of creating marketing strategies were examined and classified and the algorithm of building marketing strategies for the processes commercialization of innovations was offered. The results can be used by industrial companies and in the educational process of marketing, strategic marketing and innovation management disciplines.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-4-4

  14. NET-ZERO ENERGY BUILDING OPERATOR TRAINING PROGRAM (NZEBOT)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brizendine, Anthony; Byars, Nan; Sleiti, Ahmad; Gehrig, Bruce; Lu, Na

    2012-12-31

    The primary objective of the Net-Zero Energy Building Operator Training Program (NZEBOT) was to develop certificate level training programs for commercial building owners, managers and operators, principally in the areas of energy / sustainability management. The expected outcome of the project was a multi-faceted mechanism for developing the skill-based competency of building operators, owners, architects/engineers, construction professionals, tenants, brokers and other interested groups in energy efficient building technologies and best practices. The training program draws heavily on DOE supported and developed materials available in the existing literature, as well as existing, modified, and newly developed curricula from the Department of Engineering Technology & Construction Management (ETCM) at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC-Charlotte). The project goal is to develop a certificate level training curriculum for commercial energy and sustainability managers and building operators that: 1) Increases the skill-based competency of building professionals in energy efficient building technologies and best practices, and 2) Increases the workforce pool of expertise in energy management and conservation techniques. The curriculum developed in this project can subsequently be used to establish a sustainable energy training program that can contribute to the creation of new “green” job opportunities in North Carolina and throughout the Southeast region, and workforce training that leads to overall reductions in commercial building energy consumption. Three energy training / education programs were developed to achieve the stated goal, namely: 1. Building Energy/Sustainability Management (BESM) Certificate Program for Building Managers and Operators (40 hours); 2. Energy Efficient Building Technologies (EEBT) Certificate Program (16 hours); and 3. Energy Efficent Buildings (EEB) Seminar (4 hours). Training Program 1 incorporates the following

  15. Comparison of experimental and calculated shielding factors for modular buildings in a radioactive fallout scenario

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hinrichsen, Yvonne; Finck, Robert; Östlund, Karl

    2018-01-01

    building used was a standard prefabricated structure obtained from a commercial manufacturer. Four reference positions for the gamma radiation detectors were used inside the building. Theoretical dose rate calculations were performed using the Monte Carlo code MCNP6, and additional calculations were......Experimentally and theoretically determined shielding factors for a common light construction dwelling type were obtained and compared. Sources of the gamma-emitting radionuclides 60Co and 137Cs were positioned around and on top of a modular building to represent homogeneous fallout. The modular...... performed that compared the shielding factor for 137Cs and 134Cs. This work demonstrated the applicability of using MCNP6 for theoretical calculations of radioactive fallout scenarios. Furthermore, the work showed that the shielding effect for modular buildings is almost the same for 134Cs as for 137Cs....

  16. Energy conservation in selected buildings, Gdansk. 1. final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-02-01

    This Final Report marks the end of the implementation stage of the project: 'Energy Conservation in Selected Buildings in Gdansk, Poland' supported by the Danish Environment-related Energy Sector Programme for Poland under the Danish Energy Agency. The residential and commercial sectors together with public buildings account for 40-45% of the total energy consumption and are dominated by the use of space heating and hot water. The sector has a significant over-consumption of energy, which first of all is due to the lack of or too weak incentives for the individual tenants to decrease the energy consumption. Bad thermal insulation of buildings and inefficient central heating systems with a widespread lack of measurement and automatic control systems give cause for extensive heat losses. The objective of the project has been to document the effects of energy savings in 18 multi-family houses when different types of energy saving measures are applied. These measures include thermal insulation of buildings, refurbishment of the heating system and introduction of individual billing system for heating and hot tap water. Energy audits of 18 buildings were performed by combination of on-site inspection of all buildings and data collection from the available drawings, technical descriptions, etc. The on-site inspection was carried out by use of an energy audit scheme specially developed for this project. (EG)

  17. Energy conservation in selected buildings, Gdansk. 1. final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-02-01

    This Final Report marks the end of the implementation stage of the project: `Energy Conservation in Selected Buildings in Gdansk, Poland` supported by the Danish Environment-related Energy Sector Programme for Poland under the Danish Energy Agency. The residential and commercial sectors together with public buildings account for 40-45% of the total energy consumption and are dominated by the use of space heating and hot water. The sector has a significant over-consumption of energy, which first of all is due to the lack of or too weak incentives for the individual tenants to decrease the energy consumption. Bad thermal insulation of buildings and inefficient central heating systems with a widespread lack of measurement and automatic control systems give cause for extensive heat losses. The objective of the project has been to document the effects of energy savings in 18 multi-family houses when different types of energy saving measures are applied. These measures include thermal insulation of buildings, refurbishment of the heating system and introduction of individual billing system for heating and hot tap water. Energy audits of 18 buildings were performed by combination of on-site inspection of all buildings and data collection from the available drawings, technical descriptions, etc. The on-site inspection was carried out by use of an energy audit scheme specially developed for this project. (EG)

  18. Building integrated PV for commercial and institutional structures, a sourcebook for architects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eiffert, P.; Kiss, G.

    2000-02-14

    This sourcebook on building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) is intended for architects and designers interested in learning more about today's sustainable solar buildings. The booklet includes 16 design briefs describing actual structures; they illustrate how electricity-generating BIPV products (such as special roofing systems, vertical-wall systems, skylights, and awnings, all of which contain PV cells, modules, and films) can be integrated successfully into many different kinds of buildings. It also contains basic information about BIPV technologies, an overview of US product development activities and development programs, descriptions of major software design tools, and a bibliography.

  19. Prediction of Indoor Air Exposure from Outdoor Air Quality Using an Artificial Neural Network Model for Inner City Commercial Buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Challoner, Avril; Pilla, Francesco; Gill, Laurence

    2015-12-01

    NO₂ and particulate matter are the air pollutants of most concern in Ireland, with possible links to the higher respiratory and cardiovascular mortality and morbidity rates found in the country compared to the rest of Europe. Currently, air quality limits in Europe only cover outdoor environments yet the quality of indoor air is an essential determinant of a person's well-being, especially since the average person spends more than 90% of their time indoors. The modelling conducted in this research aims to provide a framework for epidemiological studies by the use of publically available data from fixed outdoor monitoring stations to predict indoor air quality more accurately. Predictions are made using two modelling techniques, the Personal-exposure Activity Location Model (PALM), to predict outdoor air quality at a particular building, and Artificial Neural Networks, to model the indoor/outdoor relationship of the building. This joint approach has been used to predict indoor air concentrations for three inner city commercial buildings in Dublin, where parallel indoor and outdoor diurnal monitoring had been carried out on site. This modelling methodology has been shown to provide reasonable predictions of average NO₂ indoor air quality compared to the monitored data, but did not perform well in the prediction of indoor PM2.5 concentrations. Hence, this approach could be used to determine NO₂ exposures more rigorously of those who work and/or live in the city centre, which can then be linked to potential health impacts.

  20. Effect of Heat and Electricity Storage and Reliability on Microgrid Viability: A Study of Commercial Buildings in California and New York States

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Stadler, Michael; Marnay, Chris; Siddiqui, Afzal; Lai, Judy; Coffey, Brian; Aki, Hirohisa

    2009-03-10

    Berkeley Lab has for several years been developing methods for selection of optimal microgrid systems, especially for commercial building applications, and applying these methods in the Distributed Energy Resources Customer Adoption Model (DER-CAM). This project began with 3 major goals: (1) to conduct detailed analysis to find the optimal equipment combination for microgrids at a few promising commercial building hosts in the two favorable markets of California and New York, (2) to extend the analysis capability of DER-CAM to include both heat and electricity storage, and (3) to make an initial effort towards adding consideration of power quality and reliability (PQR) to the capabilities of DER-CAM. All of these objectives have been pursued via analysis of the attractiveness of a Consortium for Electric Reliability Technology Solutions (CERTS) Microgrid consisting of multiple nameplate 100 kW Tecogen Premium Power Modules (CM-100). This unit consists of an asynchronous inverter-based variable speed internal combustion engine genset with combined heat and power (CHP) and power surge capability. The essence of CERTS Microgrid technology is that smarts added to the on-board power electronics of any microgrid device enables stable and safe islanded operation without the need for complex fast supervisory controls. This approach allows plug and play development of a microgrid that can potentially provide high PQR with a minimum of specialized site-specific engineering. A notable feature of the CM-100 is its time-limited surge rating of 125 kW, and DER-CAM capability to model this feature was also a necessary model enhancement.

  1. The effect of fabric structural parameters and fiber type on the comfort-related properties of commercial apparel fabrics

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Stoffberg, ME

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available The effect of fabric structural parameters and fiber type on the comfort-related properties, namely water vapor resistance and thermal resistance, of commercial apparel (suiting) fabrics, containing both natural and man-made fibers have been studied...

  2. A life cycle multi-objective economic and environmental assessment of distributed generation in buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Safaei, Amir; Freire, Fausto; Henggeler Antunes, Carlos

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • A lifecycle optimization model for distributed energy systems is developed. • Model estimates costs and environmental impacts of meeting the building energy demand. • Design and operating strategies to reduce costs and environmental impacts are discussed. • Pareto frontiers of costs vis-à-vis environmental impacts are presented. • Distributed generation can reduce the environmental impacts of the building sector. - Abstract: Distributed generation, namely cogeneration and solar technologies, is expected to play an important role in the future energy supply mix in buildings. This calls for a methodological framework to assess the economic and environmental performance of the building sector when such technologies are employed. A life-cycle model has been developed, combining distributed generation and conventional sources to calculate the cost and environmental impacts of meeting the building energy demand over a defined planning period. Three type of cogeneration technologies, solar photovoltaic and thermal, as well as conventional boilers along with the Portuguese electricity generation mix comprise the energy systems modeled. Pareto optimal frontiers are derived, showing the trade-offs between different types of impacts (non-renewable cumulative energy demand, greenhouse gas emissions, acidification, eutrophication) and cost to meet the energy demand of a commercial building. Our analysis shows that according to the objective to employ distributed generation (reducing cost or environmental impacts), a specific design and operational strategy for the energy systems shall be adopted. The strategies to minimize each type of impact and the associated cost trade-offs by exploring the solutions located on the Pareto optimal frontiers are discussed

  3. From comfort to kilowatts: An integrated assessment of electricity conservation in Thailand's commercial sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Busch, J.F. Jr.

    1990-08-01

    Thailand serves as a case study of the potential to conserve electricity in the fast-growing commercial sectors of the tropical developing world. We performed a field study of over 1100 Thai office workers in which a questionnaire survey and simultaneous physical measurements were taken. Both air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned buildings were included. We analyzed Thai subjective responses on the ASHRAE, McIntyre and other rating scales, relating them to Effective Temperature, demographics, and to rational indices of warmth such as PMV and TSENS. These results suggest that without sacrificing comfort, significant energy conservation opportunities exist through the relaxation of upper space temperature limits. To investigate the potential for conserving energy in a cost-effective manner, we performed a series of parametric simulations using the DOE-2.1D computer program on three commercial building prototypes based on actual buildings in Bangkok; an office, a hotel, and a shopping center. We investigated a wide range of energy conservation measures appropriate for each building type, from architectural measures to HVAC equipment and control solutions. The best measures applied in combination into high efficiency cases can generate energy savings in excess of 50%. Economic analyses performed for the high efficiency cases, resulted in costs of conserved energy of less than and internal rates of return in excess of 40%. Thermal cool storage, cogeneration, and gas cooling technology showed promise as cost-effective electric load management strategies.

  4. Commercial paper--not just for the Fortune 500.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beith, C

    1996-01-01

    The capital needs of medical practices are shifting from the traditional working capital, buildings and equipment to management information systems, practice acquisitions and integrated delivery systems. Among the capital options for physician groups is commercial paper. Generally backed by major New York City banks, commercial paper notes usually mature within 270 days of issue. They also usually return 1/4 percent to 3/4 percent above comparable Treasury bills. Often viewed as the province of large corporations with unquestionable credit ratings, commercial paper can be structured to provide medical group practices a flexible financing option enjoyed by major corporate borrowers. The commercial paper market may be the cheapest, most efficient wource of funding for some medical groups.

  5. Energy consumptions in existing buildings; Les consommations d'energie des batiments existants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nuss, St. [Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts et Industries de Strasbourg, 78 - Saint-Remy-Les-Chevreuse (France)]|[Costic, 78 - Sainte Remy les Chevreuses (France)

    2002-05-01

    This document presents a sectoral analysis of the energy consumptions in existing French buildings: 1) - residential sector: social buildings, private dwellings; 2) - tertiary sector: office buildings, hotels, commercial buildings, school buildings, hospitals; 3) - industry; 4) - general status. (J.S.)

  6. Links Related to the Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Indoor Air Quality Building Education and Assessment Model (I-BEAM) is a guidance tool designed for use by building professionals and others interested in indoor air quality in commercial buildings.

  7. Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) - Better Buildings Neighborhood Program at Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance: Home Performance with Energy Star® and Better Buildings Performance

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Holzhauser, Andy; Jones, Chris; Faust, Jeremy; Meyer, Chris; Van Divender, Lisa

    2013-12-30

    The Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance (Energy Alliance) is a nonprofit economic development agency dedicated to helping Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky communities reduce energy consumption. The Energy Alliance has launched programs to educate homeowners, commercial property owners, and nonprofit organizations about energy efficiency opportunities they can use to drive energy use reductions and financial savings, while extending significant focus to creating/retaining jobs through these programs. The mission of the Energy Alliance is based on the premise that investment in energy efficiency can lead to transformative economic development in a region. With support from seven municipalities, the Energy Alliance began operation in early 2010 and has been among the fastest growing nonprofit organizations in the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area. The Energy Alliance offers two programs endorsed by the Department of Energy: the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® Program for homeowners and the Better Buildings Performance Program for commercial entities. Both programs couple expert guidance, project management, and education in energy efficiency best practices with incentives and innovative energy efficiency financing to help building owners effectively invest in the energy efficiency, comfort, health, longevity, and environmental impact of their residential or commercial buildings. The Energy Alliance has raised over $23 million of public and private capital to build a robust market for energy efficiency investment. Of the $23 million, $17 million was a direct grant from the Department of Energy Better Buildings Neighborhood Program (BBNP). The organization’s investments in energy efficiency projects in the residential and commercial sector have led to well over $50 million in direct economic activity and created over 375,000 hours of labor created or retained. In addition, over 250 workers have been trained through the Building Performance Training

  8. Intelligent Facades for High Performance Green Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dyson, Anna [Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst., Troy, NY (United States)

    2017-03-01

    Progress Towards Net-Zero and Net-Positive-Energy Commercial Buildings and Urban Districts Through Intelligent Building Envelope Strategies Previous research and development of intelligent facades systems has been limited in their contribution towards national goals for achieving on-site net zero buildings, because this R&D has failed to couple the many qualitative requirements of building envelopes such as the provision of daylighting, access to exterior views, satisfying aesthetic and cultural characteristics, with the quantitative metrics of energy harvesting, storage and redistribution. To achieve energy self-sufficiency from on-site solar resources, building envelopes can and must address this gamut of concerns simultaneously. With this project, we have undertaken a high-performance building integrated combined-heat and power concentrating photovoltaic system with high temperature thermal capture, storage and transport towards multiple applications (BICPV/T). The critical contribution we are offering with the Integrated Concentrating Solar Façade (ICSF) is conceived to improve daylighting quality for improved health of occupants and mitigate solar heat gain while maximally capturing and transferring onsite solar energy. The ICSF accomplishes this multi-functionality by intercepting only the direct-normal component of solar energy (which is responsible for elevated cooling loads) thereby transforming a previously problematic source of energy into a high quality resource that can be applied to building demands such as heating, cooling, dehumidification, domestic hot water, and possible further augmentation of electrical generation through organic Rankine cycles. With the ICSF technology, our team is addressing the global challenge in transitioning commercial and residential building stock towards on-site clean energy self-sufficiency, by fully integrating innovative environmental control systems strategies within an intelligent and responsively dynamic building

  9. Sustainable Building in China—A Green Leap Forward?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jialiang Wang

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available China is constructing new commercial buildings at an enormous rate—roughly 2 billion square meters per year, with considerable interest and activity in green design and construction. We review the context of commercial building design and construction in China, and look at a specific project as an example of a high performance, sustainable design, the Shenzhen Institute of Building Research (IBR. The IBR building incorporates over 40 sustainable technologies and strategies, including daylighting, natural ventilation, gray-water recycling, solar-energy generation, and highly efficient Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC systems. We present measured data on the performance of the building, including detailed analysis by energy end use, water use, and occupant comfort and satisfaction. Total building energy consumption in 2011 was 1151 MWh, with an Energy Use Intensity (EUI of 63 kWh/m2 (20 kBtu/ft2, which is 61% of the mean EUI value of 103 kWh/m2 (33 kBtu/ft2 for similar buildings in the region. We also comment on the unique design process, which incorporated passive strategies throughout the building, and has led to high occupant satisfaction with the natural ventilation, daylighting, and green patio work areas. Lastly we present thoughts on how the design philosophy of the IBR building can be a guide for low-energy design in different climate regions throughout China and elsewhere.

  10. Building Energy Management Open Source Software

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2017-06-20

    This is the repository for Building Energy Management Open Source Software (BEMOSS), which is an open source operating system that is engineered to improve sensing and control of equipment in small- and medium-sized commercial buildings. BEMOSS offers the following key features: (1) Open source, open architecture – BEMOSS is an open source operating system that is built upon VOLTTRON – a distributed agent platform developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). BEMOSS was designed to make it easy for hardware manufacturers to seamlessly interface their devices with BEMOSS. Software developers can also contribute to adding additional BEMOSS functionalities and applications. (2) Plug & play – BEMOSS was designed to automatically discover supported load controllers (including smart thermostats, VAV/RTUs, lighting load controllers and plug load controllers) in commercial buildings. (3) Interoperability – BEMOSS was designed to work with load control devices form different manufacturers that operate on different communication technologies and data exchange protocols. (4) Cost effectiveness – Implementation of BEMOSS deemed to be cost-effective as it was built upon a robust open source platform that can operate on a low-cost single-board computer, such as Odroid. This feature could contribute to its rapid deployment in small- or medium-sized commercial buildings. (5) Scalability and ease of deployment – With its multi-node architecture, BEMOSS provides a distributed architecture where load controllers in a multi-floor and high occupancy building could be monitored and controlled by multiple single-board computers hosting BEMOSS. This makes it possible for a building engineer to deploy BEMOSS in one zone of a building, be comfortable with its operation, and later on expand the deployment to the entire building to make it more energy efficient. (6) Ability to provide local and remote monitoring – BEMOSS provides both local and remote monitoring

  11. To Investigate the Influence of Building Envelope and Natural Ventilation on Thermal Heat Balance in Office Buildings in Warm and Humid Climate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kini, Pradeep G.; Garg, Naresh Kumar; Kamath, Kiran

    2017-07-01

    India’s commercial building sector is witnessing robust growth. India continues to be a key growth market among global corporates and this is reflective in the steady growth in demand for prime office space. A recent trend that has been noted is the increase in demand for office spaces not just in major cities but also in smaller tier II and Tier III cities. Growth in the commercial building sector projects a rising trend of energy intensive mechanical systems in office buildings in India. The air conditioning market in India is growing at 25% annually. This is due to the ever increasing demand to maintain thermal comfort in tropical regions. Air conditioning is one of the most energy intensive technologies which are used in buildings. As a result India is witnessing significant spike in energy demand and further widening the demand supply gap. Challenge in India is to identify passive measures in building envelope design in office buildings to reduce the cooling loads and conserve energy. This paper investigates the overall heat gain through building envelope components and natural ventilation in warm and humid climate region through experimental and simulation methods towards improved thermal environmental performance.

  12. Global Trends and Current Status of Commercial Urban Rooftop Farming

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Devi Buehler

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to analyze current practices in commercial urban rooftop farming (URF. In recent years, URF has been experiencing increasing popularity. It is a practice that is well-suited to enhancing food security in cities and reducing the environmental impact that results from long transportation distances that are common in conventional agriculture. To date, most URF initiatives have been motivated by social and educational factors rather than the aim of creating large sustainable food production systems in cities. The commercial operation of urban rooftop farms, should they become profitable, is likely to attract notable private investment, allowing a significant level of high quality urban food production to be achieved. There is a reasonable amount of literature available on urban farming that deals with its potential, and its limitations. However, it does not focus on commercial operations. In contrast to other surveys and theoretical papers, this study of URF focuses on large and commercial operations. The analysis showed that commercial URFs can be grouped into two main types: Firstly, hydroponic systems in greenhouses where mostly leafy greens, tomatoes, and herbs are grown; secondly, soil-based open-air farms that grow a large variety of vegetables. Hydroponics is frequently seen as the key technology for commercial urban food production. While the technology is not in and of itself sustainable, hydroponic farms often make an effort to implement environmentally friendly technologies and methods. However, there is still untapped potential to systemically integrate farms into buildings. The findings of this study identified where future research is needed in order to make URF a widespread sustainable solution.

  13. Maintenance considerations of the STARFIRE commercial tokamak

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trachsel, C.A.; Zahn, H.S.; Field, R.E.; Stevens, H.C.

    1979-01-01

    This paper presents the maintenance approach, the commercial tokamak design features that enhance maintenance and preliminary repair time and required mean-time-between-failures for major subsystems. Reactor hall building and maintenance equipment requirements including hot cells, coil rewinding, and cranes are discussed

  14. Sustainable development in city districts: BaLaLuZ project - Building ecology; Schlussbericht 'Gebaeudeoekologie' - Phase 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Binz, A.; Mueller, W.; Voyame, J.-P.

    2004-07-01

    This final report for the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) is one of a series of reports concerning municipal development in various cities in Switzerland. The four city districts involved include Basel (Gundeldinger Feld), Lausanne (Bellevaux), Lucerne (Basel-/Bernstrasse) and Zurich (Werdwies). This paper takes a look at aspects of building ecology. In the four areas, the following building types and projects were examined with respect to their ecology: Basel: conversion of commercial premises to a community centre, Lausanne and Lucerne: Enhancement of residential areas, Zurich: a new residential building. Criteria examined include general building ecology, building materials, raw materials, toxic substances, recycling, maintenance and deconstruction, energy for heating and hot water, grey energy, electricity, ground usage, water, wastes and public infrastructure. Knowledge gained along with questions and problems still to be addressed are summarised and suggestions are made for further projects.

  15. A long-term, integrated impact assessment of alternative building energy code scenarios in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu, Sha; Eom, Jiyong; Evans, Meredydd; Clarke, Leon

    2014-01-01

    China is the second largest building energy user in the world, ranking first and third in residential and commercial energy consumption. Beginning in the early 1980s, the Chinese government has developed a variety of building energy codes to improve building energy efficiency and reduce total energy demand. This paper studies the impact of building energy codes on energy use and CO 2 emissions by using a detailed building energy model that represents four distinct climate zones each with three building types, nested in a long-term integrated assessment framework GCAM. An advanced building stock module, coupled with the building energy model, is developed to reflect the characteristics of future building stock and its interaction with the development of building energy codes in China. This paper also evaluates the impacts of building codes on building energy demand in the presence of economy-wide carbon policy. We find that building energy codes would reduce Chinese building energy use by 13–22% depending on building code scenarios, with a similar effect preserved even under the carbon policy. The impact of building energy codes shows regional and sectoral variation due to regionally differentiated responses of heating and cooling services to shell efficiency improvement. - Highlights: • We assessed long-term impacts of building codes and climate policy using GCAM. • Building energy codes would reduce Chinese building energy use by 13–22%. • The impacts of codes on building energy use vary by climate region and sub-sector

  16. The correlation of Acanthamoeba from the ventilation system with other environmental parameters in commercial buildings as possible indicator for indoor air quality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ooi, Soo Shen; Mak, Joon Wah; Chen, Donald K F; Ambu, Stephen

    2017-02-07

    The free-living protozoan Acanthamoeba is an opportunistic pathogen that is ubiquitous in our environment. However, its role in affecting indoor air quality and ill-health of indoor occupants is relatively unknown. The present study investigated the presence of Acanthamoeba from the ventilation system and its correlation with other indoor air quality parameters, used in the industry code of practice and its potential as an indicator for indoor air quality. Indoor air quality assessments were carried out in nine commercial buildings with approval from the building management, and the parameters assessed were as recommended by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health. The presence of Acanthamoeba was determined through dust swabs from the ventilation system and indoor furniture. Logistic regression was performed to study the correlation between assessed parameters and occupants' complaints. A total of 107 sampling points were assessed and 40.2% of the supplying air diffuser and blowing fan and 15% of the furniture were positive for cysts. There was a significant correlation between Acanthamoeba detected from the ventilation system with ambient total fungus count (r=0.327; p=0.01) and respirable particulates (r=0.276; p=0.01). Occupants' sick building syndrome experience also correlated with the presence of Acanthamoeba in the ventilation system (r=0.361; p=0.01) and those detected on the furniture (r=0.290; p=0.01). Logistic regression showed that there was a five-fold probability of sick building syndrome among occupants when Acanthamoeba was detected in the ventilation system.

  17. 2013 Building Technologies Office Program Peer Review Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    none,

    2013-11-01

    The 2013 Building Technologies Office Program Peer Review Report summarizes the results of the 2013 Building Technologies Office (BTO) peer review, which was held in Washington, D.C., on April 2–4, 2013. The review was attended by over 300 participants and included presentations on 59 BTO-funded projects: 29 from BTO’s Emerging Technologies Program, 20 from the Commercial Buildings Integration Program, 6 from the Residential Buildings Integration Program, and 4 from the Building Energy Codes Program. This report summarizes the scores and comments provided by the independent reviewers for each project.

  18. Dampness in buildings and health. Building characteristics as predictors for dampness in 8681 Swedish dwellings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hagerhed, L.; Bornehag, Carl-Gustaf; Sundell, Jan

    2002-01-01

    Questionnaire data on 8681 dwellings included in the Swedish study "Dampness in Buildings and Health" have been analysed for associations between dampness indicators, perceptions of indoor air quality and building characteristics such as time of construction, type of ventilation and type of found......Questionnaire data on 8681 dwellings included in the Swedish study "Dampness in Buildings and Health" have been analysed for associations between dampness indicators, perceptions of indoor air quality and building characteristics such as time of construction, type of ventilation and type...... of "Dry air" in 17.3 and 33.7% respectively. Older buildings and the use of natural ventilation were associated with increased frequency of dampness indicators as well as to increased frequencies of complaints on bad indoor air quality....

  19. City of Indianapolis Better Buildings Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Trovillion, Kristen [City of Indianapolis, IN (United States)

    2014-11-04

    In June 2010, the City of Indianapolis’ Office of Sustainability was awarded $10 million in grant funds through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Neighborhood Program (CFDA 81.128) funded by the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The purpose of the grant funds was to achieve energy savings in residential and commercial buildings through energy efficiency upgrades such as air sealing and insulation.

  20. Major models and data sources for residential and commercial sector energy conservation analysis. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1980-09-01

    Major models and data sources are reviewed that can be used for energy-conservation analysis in the residential and commercial sectors to provide an introduction to the information that can or is available to DOE in order to further its efforts in analyzing and quantifying their policy and program requirements. Models and data sources examined in the residential sector are: ORNL Residential Energy Model; BECOM; NEPOOL; MATH/CHRDS; NIECS; Energy Consumption Data Base: Household Sector; Patterns of Energy Use by Electrical Appliances Data Base; Annual Housing Survey; 1970 Census of Housing; AIA Research Corporation Data Base; RECS; Solar Market Development Model; and ORNL Buildings Energy Use Data Book. Models and data sources examined in the commercial sector are: ORNL Commercial Sector Model of Energy Demand; BECOM; NEPOOL; Energy Consumption Data Base: Commercial Sector; F.W. Dodge Data Base; NFIB Energy Report for Small Businesses; ADL Commercial Sector Energy Use Data Base; AIA Research Corporation Data Base; Nonresidential Buildings Surveys of Energy Consumption; General Electric Co: Commercial Sector Data Base; The BOMA Commercial Sector Data Base; The Tishman-Syska and Hennessy Data Base; The NEMA Commercial Sector Data Base; ORNL Buildings Energy Use Data Book; and Solar Market Development Model. Purpose; basis for model structure; policy variables and parameters; level of regional, sectoral, and fuels detail; outputs; input requirements; sources of data; computer accessibility and requirements; and a bibliography are provided for each model and data source.

  1. Prediction of Indoor Air Exposure from Outdoor Air Quality Using an Artificial Neural Network Model for Inner City Commercial Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Avril Challoner

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available NO2 and particulate matter are the air pollutants of most concern in Ireland, with possible links to the higher respiratory and cardiovascular mortality and morbidity rates found in the country compared to the rest of Europe. Currently, air quality limits in Europe only cover outdoor environments yet the quality of indoor air is an essential determinant of a person’s well-being, especially since the average person spends more than 90% of their time indoors. The modelling conducted in this research aims to provide a framework for epidemiological studies by the use of publically available data from fixed outdoor monitoring stations to predict indoor air quality more accurately. Predictions are made using two modelling techniques, the Personal-exposure Activity Location Model (PALM, to predict outdoor air quality at a particular building, and Artificial Neural Networks, to model the indoor/outdoor relationship of the building. This joint approach has been used to predict indoor air concentrations for three inner city commercial buildings in Dublin, where parallel indoor and outdoor diurnal monitoring had been carried out on site. This modelling methodology has been shown to provide reasonable predictions of average NO2 indoor air quality compared to the monitored data, but did not perform well in the prediction of indoor PM2.5 concentrations. Hence, this approach could be used to determine NO2 exposures more rigorously of those who work and/or live in the city centre, which can then be linked to potential health impacts.

  2. The effectiveness of energy management system on energy efficiency in the building

    Science.gov (United States)

    Julaihi, F.; Ibrahim, S. H.; Baharun, A.; Affendi, R.; Nawi, M. N. M.

    2017-10-01

    Energy plays a key role in achieving the desired economic growth for the country. Worldwide industries use 40 percent energy for material and consumption protection to fulfil human needs which contributes almost 37 percent of global greenhouse gases emissions. One of the approach in order to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases to the environment is by conserving energy. This could be executed by implementing energy management especially in commercial and office buildings as daily electricity consumption is high in this type of building. Energy management can also increase the efficiency of energy in the building. Study has been conducted to investigate the performance on implementation of energy management system in office building. Energy management is one of the contemporary challenges, thus study adopts an exploratory approach by using a tool developed by UNIDO called EnMS or Energy Management System. Findings show that by implementing energy management can reduce electricity consumption up to 30%. However, serious initiatives by the organization are needed to promote the effectiveness of energy management.

  3. The Polyvalent Heat Supply System for Experimental Building of the Passive Type (area of 300 m2 Based on Renewable and Alternative Energy Sources

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Basok, B.I.

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Results of the development and implementation of heat supply system for experimental building of the passive type are presented, optimal operating conditions are investigated, guidelines for the creation of heat supply systems for passive type buildings are provided.

  4. Progress on Enabling an Interactive Conversation Between Commercial Building Occupants and Their Building To Improve Comfort and Energy Efficiency: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schott, M.; Scheib, J.; Long, N.; Fleming, K.; Benne, K.; Brackney, L.

    2012-06-01

    Many studies have reported energy savings after installing a dashboard, but dashboards provide neither individual feedback to the occupant nor the ability to report individual comfort. The Building Agent (BA) provides an interface to engage the occupant in a conversation with the building control system and the building engineer. Preliminary outcomes of the BA-enabled feedback loop are presented, and the effectiveness of the three display modes will be compared to other dashboard studies to baseline energy savings in future research.

  5. Danish building typologies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wittchen, Kim Bjarne; Kragh, Jesper

    The objective of TABULA is to develop a harmonised building typology for European countries. Each national building typology will consist of a set of residential model buildings with characteristic energy-related properties (element areas of the thermal building envelope, U-values, supply system...... efficiencies). The model buildings will each represent a specific construction period of the country in question and a specific building size. Furthermore the number of buildings, flats and the overall floor areas will be given, which are represented by the different building types of the national typologies....

  6. An open-source automated continuous condition-based maintenance platform for commercial buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Katipamula, Srinivas; Gowri, Krishnan; Hernandez, George

    2016-09-09

    This paper describes one such reference process that can be deployed to provide continuous automated conditioned-based maintenance management for buildings that have BIM, a building automation system (BAS) and a computerized maintenance management software (CMMS) systems. The process can be deployed using an open source transactional network platform, VOLTTRON™, designed for distributed sensing and controls and supports both energy efficiency and grid services.

  7. Sustainable Building in China -- A Green Leap Forward?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Diamond, Richard [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Ye, Qing [Shenzhen Inst. of Building Research (China); Feng, Wei [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Yan, Tao [Shenzhen Inst. of Building Research (China); Mao, Hongwei [Shenzhen Inst. of Building Research (China); Li, Yutong [Shenzhen Inst. of Building Research (China); Guo, Yongcong [Shenzhen Inst. of Building Research (China); Wang, Jialiang [Shenzhen Inst. of Building Research (China)

    2013-09-01

    China is constructing new commercial buildings at an enormous rate -- roughly 2 billion square meters per year, with considerable interest and activity in green design and construction. We review the context of commercial building design and construction in China, and look at a specific project as an example of a high performance, sustainable design, the Shenzhen Institute of Building Research (IBR). The IBR building incorporates over 40 sustainable technologies and strategies, including daylighting, natural ventilation, gray-water recycling, solar-energy generation, and highly efficient Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems. We present measured data on the performance of the building, including detailed analysis by energy end use, water use, and occupant comfort and satisfaction. Total building energy consumption in 2011 was 1151 MWh, with an Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of 63 kWh/m2 (20 kBtu/ft2), which is 61% of the mean EUI value of 103 kWh/m2 (33 kBtu/ft2) for similar buildings in the region. We also comment on the unique design process, which incorporated passive strategies throughout the building, and has led to high occupant satisfaction with the natural ventilation, daylighting, and green patio work areas. Lastly we present thoughts on how the design philosophy of the IBR building can be a guide for low-energy design in different climate regions throughout China and elsewhere.

  8. Building Coverage Ratio at the Eastern Corridor of Jalan Ir. H. Djuanda Bandung

    Science.gov (United States)

    Megayanti, T.; Widaningsih, L.; Minggra, R.; Dewi, N. I. K.

    2018-01-01

    Historically in the Colonial period, the Corridor of Jalan Ir. H. Juanda or better known as Jalan Dago was designed as a residential area. As the high development of commercial activity along of Bandung City, almost all of buildings in this area are turned its’ function to supported commercial activity. The change is shown in many aspects from the shape of the building and even occur in changing the old building into a new one due to a high intensity of this commercial activity. This paper investigates the use of Building Coverage Ratio regulation related to functional change in the Corridor of Jalan Ir. H. Juanda Bandung. The aim is to what extent the regulations related to Building Coverage area are implemented. This study used a descriptive qualitative method by conducting observation to identify buildings on the Corridor by dividing it into three segments. The results show quantitatively there is a lot of irrelevancies to Building Coverage Ratio regulation which is shown in the second and third segment. Most of the building in the first segment has in compliance with the regulation. However, to build a harmony in characters of City corridor is not only created by Building Coverage Ratio but also others parameters such as the land use, the shape of buildings, façade, and design concept. Thus, it is highly recommended to create a detail regulation regarding those parameters.

  9. ENERGY STAR and Green Buildings--Using ENERGY STAR Resources for Green Building Rating Systems: LEED[R], Green Globes[R] and CHPS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utebay, Kudret

    2011-01-01

    Every building, from the smallest school to the tallest skyscraper, uses energy. This energy is most often generated by burning fossil fuels, which releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and contributes to climate change. Existing commercial buildings offer a significant opportunity for low-cost, immediate emissions and energy cost…

  10. Solar building

    OpenAIRE

    Zhang, Luxin

    2014-01-01

    In my thesis I describe the utilization of solar energy and solar energy with building integration. In introduction it is also mentioned how the solar building works, trying to make more people understand and accept the solar building. The thesis introduces different types of solar heat collectors. I compared the difference two operation modes of solar water heating system and created examples of solar water system selection. I also introduced other solar building applications. It is conv...

  11. Teaching Commercial Law in the Third Year: A Short Report on a Business Organizations and Commercial Law Clinic.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dolan, John F.; McNair, Russell A., Jr.

    1995-01-01

    The development and implementation of a clinic to offer advanced study in business organizations and commercial law transactions for third-year law students at Wayne State University (Michigan) are described. The course builds vertically on prior study and puts students in contact with practicing lawyers in an academic setting. Considerations…

  12. Commercial Discount Rate Estimation for Efficiency Standards Analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fujita, K. Sydny [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

    2016-04-13

    Underlying each of the Department of Energy's (DOE's) federal appliance and equipment standards are a set of complex analyses of the projected costs and benefits of regulation. Any new or amended standard must be designed to achieve significant additional energy conservation, provided that it is technologically feasible and economically justified (42 U.S.C. 6295(o)(2)(A)). A proposed standard is considered economically justified when its benefits exceed its burdens, as represented by the projected net present value of costs and benefits. DOE performs multiple analyses to evaluate the balance of costs and benefits of commercial appliance and equipment e efficiency standards, at the national and individual building or business level, each framed to capture different nuances of the complex impact of standards on the commercial end user population. The Life-Cycle Cost (LCC) analysis models the combined impact of appliance first cost and operating cost changes on a representative commercial building sample in order to identify the fraction of customers achieving LCC savings or incurring net cost at the considered efficiency levels.1 Thus, the choice of commercial discount rate value(s) used to calculate the present value of energy cost savings within the Life-Cycle Cost model implicitly plays a key role in estimating the economic impact of potential standard levels.2 This report is intended to provide a more in-depth discussion of the commercial discount rate estimation process than can be readily included in standard rulemaking Technical Support Documents (TSDs).

  13. Enhancement of global flood damage assessments using building material based vulnerability curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Englhardt, Johanna; de Ruiter, Marleen; de Moel, Hans; Aerts, Jeroen

    2017-04-01

    This study discusses the development of an enhanced approach for flood damage and risk assessments using vulnerability curves that are based on building material information. The approach draws upon common practices in earthquake vulnerability assessments, and is an alternative for land-use or building occupancy approach in flood risk assessment models. The approach is of particular importance for studies where there is a large variation in building material, such as large scale studies or studies in developing countries. A case study of Ethiopia is used to demonstrate the impact of the different methodological approaches on direct damage assessments due to flooding. Generally, flood damage assessments use damage curves for different land-use or occupancy types (i.e. urban or residential and commercial classes). However, these categories do not necessarily relate directly to vulnerability of damage by flood waters. For this, the construction type and building material may be more important, as is used in earthquake risk assessments. For this study, we use building material classification data of the PAGER1 project to define new building material based vulnerability classes for flood damage. This approach will be compared to the widely applied land-use based vulnerability curves such as used by De Moel et al. (2011). The case of Ethiopia demonstrates and compares the feasibility of this novel flood vulnerability method on a country level which holds the potential to be scaled up to a global level. The study shows that flood vulnerability based on building material also allows for better differentiation between flood damage in urban and rural settings, opening doors to better link to poverty studies when such exposure data is available. Furthermore, this new approach paves the road to the enhancement of multi-risk assessments as the method enables the comparison of vulnerability across different natural hazard types that also use material-based vulnerability curves

  14. Building the institutional capacity for managing commercial high-level radioactive waste

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    1982-05-01

    In July 1981, the Office of Nuclear Waste Management of the Department of Energy contracted with the National Academy of Public Administration for a study of institutional issues associated with the commercial radioactive waste management program. The two major sets of issues which the Academy was asked to investigate were (1) intergovernmental relationships, how federal, state, local and Indian tribal council governments relate to each other in the planning and implementation of a waste management program, and (2) interagency relationships, how the federal agencies with major responsibilities in this public policy arena interact with each other. The objective of the study was to apply the perspectives of public administration to a difficult and controversial question - how to devise and execute an effective waste management program workable within the constraints of the federal system. To carry out this task, the Academy appointed a panel composed of individuals whose background and experience would provide the several types of knowledge essential to the effort. The findings of this panel are presented along with the executive summary. The report consists of a discussion of the search for a radioactive waste management strategy, and an analysis of the two major groups of institutional issues: (1) intergovernmental, the relationship between the three major levels of government; and (2) interagency, the relationships between the major federal agencies having responsibility for the waste management program.

  15. Building the institutional capacity for managing commercial high-level radioactive waste

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1982-05-01

    In July 1981, the Office of Nuclear Waste Management of the Department of Energy contracted with the National Academy of Public Administration for a study of institutional issues associated with the commercial radioactive waste management program. The two major sets of issues which the Academy was asked to investigate were (1) intergovernmental relationships, how federal, state, local and Indian tribal council governments relate to each other in the planning and implementation of a waste management program, and (2) interagency relationships, how the federal agencies with major responsibilities in this public policy arena interact with each other. The objective of the study was to apply the perspectives of public administration to a difficult and controversial question - how to devise and execute an effective waste management program workable within the constraints of the federal system. To carry out this task, the Academy appointed a panel composed of individuals whose background and experience would provide the several types of knowledge essential to the effort. The findings of this panel are presented along with the executive summary. The report consists of a discussion of the search for a radioactive waste management strategy, and an analysis of the two major groups of institutional issues: (1) intergovernmental, the relationship between the three major levels of government; and (2) interagency, the relationships between the major federal agencies having responsibility for the waste management program

  16. Energy efficient direct current distribution in commercially used buildings with smart power link to the AC distribution grid; Energieeffiziente Gleichstromverteilung in kommerziell genutzten Gebaeuden mit intelligenter Kopplung zum Niederspannungsnetz

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Weiss, Roland [Siemens AG, Erlangen (Germany); Boeke, Ulrich [Philips Group Innovation-Research, Eindhoven (Netherlands); Maurer, Wilhelm [Infineon Technologies AG, Neubiberg (Germany); Zeltner, Stefan [Fraunhofer-Inst. fuer Integrierte Systeme und Bauelementetechnologie (IISB), Erlangen (Germany)

    2012-07-01

    The joint undertaking ''Direct Current Components and Grid'' (DCC+G) takes on the strategic challenge to reduce energy consumption and thus the reduction of CO{sub 2} emission caused by commercially used buildings through research in the fields of Direct Current distribution at a voltage level of {+-} 380 V. The major energy consumers in commercially used buildings, ready for the ''net-zero-energy'' goal of the European Union, are heat pumps for heating, ventilation systems, air conditioning units, cooling units (HVAC), lighting systems and information technology. All these components and subsystems have in common, that the most efficient versions would benefit from a direct current supply. Additionally the local producers of electric energy like photovoltaic systems usually generate DC-current. A Direct Current distribution grid within buildings would avoid the repeating conversion from DC and AC an vice versa and therefore reduce conversion losses. Important components of a direct current distribution grid are central, smart, high efficient, bidirectional rectifiers replacing the large number of small, less efficient rectifiers used today. Such large central rectifiers units could additionally be used to actively improve the power quality of the smart local AC distribution grid. One major part of the described activities is to show energy savings of about 5 % of electrical energy with a 2-phase direct current distribution grid using a voltage level of {+-} 380 V. (orig.)

  17. Energy efficiency outlook in China’s urban buildings sector through 2030

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McNeil, Michael A.; Feng, Wei; Rue du Can, Stephane de la; Khanna, Nina Zheng; Ke, Jing; Zhou, Nan

    2016-01-01

    This study uses bottom-up modeling framework in order to quantify potential energy savings and emission reduction impacts from the implementation of energy efficiency programs in the building sector in China. Policies considered include (1) accelerated building codes in residential and commercial buildings, (2) increased penetration of district heat metering and controls, (3) district heating efficiency improvement, (4) building energy efficiency labeling programs and (5) retrofits of existing commercial buildings. Among these programs, we found that the implementation of building codes provide by far the largest savings opportunity, leading to an overall 17% reduction in overall space heating and cooling demand relative to the baseline. Second are energy efficiency labels with 6%, followed by reductions of losses associated with district heating representing 4% reduction and finally, retrofits representing only about a 1% savings. - Highlights: • We use a bottom-up modeling approach to quantify emission reduction from efficiency programs. • Heating and cooling are the main focus of this study. • We find that building codes lead to 17% reduction compare to the baseline. • Other programs analyzed concern district heat, building labeling and retrofits of buildings.

  18. Reducing Building HVAC Costs with Site-Recovery Energy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pargeter, Stephen J.

    2012-01-01

    Building owners are caught between two powerful forces--the need to lower energy costs and the need to meet or exceed outdoor air ventilation regulations for occupant health and comfort. Large amounts of energy are wasted each day from commercial, institutional, and government building sites as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC)…

  19. Commercial mortgages: An underutilized channel for scaling energy efficiency investments?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mathew, Paul; Wallace, Nancy; Alschuler, Elena; Kolstad, Leonard

    2016-02-01

    Commercial mortgages currently do not fully account for energy factors in underwriting and valuation, particularly as it relates to the impact of energy costs and volatility on an owner’s net operating income. As a consequence, energy efficiency is not properly valued and energy risks are not properly assessed and mitigated. Commercial mortgages are a large lever and could be a significant channel for scaling energy efficiency investments. A pilot analysis of loans with different mortgage contract structures and locations showed that when energy cost volatility was included in mortgage valuation, a 20% reduction in energy use resulted in a 1.3% average increase in mortgage value. This suggests that the explicit inclusion of energy use and volatility in mortgage valuation can send a strong price signal that financially rewards and values energy efficiency in commercial properties. This paper presents findings from a scoping study addressing energy factors in commercial mortgages. First, we present a review of current practices as it relates to incorporating energy factors into commercial mortgage underwriting and valuation. Next, we detail the impacts of energy factors on property values, net operating income and mortgage valuation. Building operational practices alone can result in energy use variations from -17% to 87%. Finally, we present a set of proposed interventions to properly address energy factors in commercial mortgages, based on extensive discussions with stakeholders including mortgage originators, underwriters, building owners and regulators.

  20. Modeling and Control of AHUs in Building HVAC Systems

    OpenAIRE

    Liang, Wei

    2014-01-01

    Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) is a mechanical system that provides thermal comfort and accepted indoor air quality often instrumented for large-scale buildings. The HVAC system takes a dominant portion of overall building energy consumption and accounts for 50% of the energy used in the U.S. commercial and residential buildings in 2012. The performance and energy saving of building HVAC systems can be significantly improved by the implementation of better and smarter contro...

  1. New Phenomenon of Commercial Corruption

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Krzysztof Nowakowski

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available This article is about increase corruption in private sector as commercial corruption. This establishes a wide understanding of that phenomenon in social science and law. Corruption and bribery are types of fraud and are linked with the private sector too. Although certain types of corruption will decline as the private sector grows and consolidates, other new types involving private sector firms may increase. The commercial corruption can be described as relation inside of an organization and as relation between firms. Corruption in private sector in Poland is connected with social distrust and specific organizational culture, too. Commercial corruption is a familiar feature of their societies and has been the focus of law enforcement and institutional reform. Many others problems do not change the fact that such corruption is a new important problem and causes lost of competitiveness and creates a substitute for fair market and competition in Polish economy and abroad.

  2. Minimum radwaste system to support commercial operation-what equipment can be deferred

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Marshall, R.W.; Tafazzoli, M.M.

    1984-01-01

    Because of cash flow problems being experienced by utilities as nuclear power stations approach completion, areas of the plant for which the completion of the construction effort could be deferred past commercial operation should be reviewed. The radwaste treatment systems are prime candidates for such a deferral because of the availability, either temporary or permanent, of alternative treatment methods for the waste streams expected to be produced. In order to identify the radwaste equipment, components and associated hardware in the radwaste building which could be deferred past commercial operation, a study was performed by Impell Corporation to evaluate the existing radwaste treatment system and determine the minimum system necessary to support commercial operation of a typical BWR. The study identified the minimum-installed radwaste treatment system which, in combination with portable temporary equipment, would accommodate the waste types and quantities likely to be produced in the first few years of operation. In addition, the minimum-installed system had to be licensable and excessive radiation exposures should not be incurred during the construction of the deferred portions of the system after commercial operation. From this study, it was concluded that a significant quantity of radwaste processing equipment and the associated piping, valves and instrumentation could be deferred. The estimated savings, in construction manhours (excluding field distributables) alone, was over 102,000 M-H

  3. Chemical surveillance of commercial fast breeder reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stamm, H.H.; Stade, K.Ch.

    1988-01-01

    After BN-600 (USSR) and SUPERPHENIX (France) were started succesfully, the international development of LMFBRs is standing at the doorstep of commercial use. For commercial use of LMFBRs cost reductions for construction and operation are highly desirable and necessary. Several nations developing breeder reactors have joined in a common effort in order to reach this aim by standardization and harmonization. On the base of more than 20 years of operation experience of experimental reactors (EBR-II, FFTF, RAPSODIE, DFR, BR-5/BR-10, BOR-60, JOYO, KNK-II) and demonstration plants (PHENIX, PFR, BN-350), possibilities for standardization in chemical surveillance of commercial breeder reactors without any loss of availability, reliability and reactor safety will be discussed in the following chapters. Loop-type reactors will be considered as well as pool-type reactors, although all commercial plants under consideration so far (SUPERPHENIX II, BN-800, BN-1600, CFBR, SNR-2, EFR) include pool-type reactors only. Table 1 gives a comparison of the Na inventories of test reactors, prototype plants and commercial LMFBRs

  4. Marginal Productivity Gained Through Prefabrication: Case Studies of Building Projects in Auckland

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wajiha Shahzad

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available Several studies have documented benefits of prefabrication system (prefab compared to the traditional building system (TBS. However, the documented benefits have been anecdotal or fragmented with reports of isolated case study projects. Few studies have looked at the objectively quantified benefits from statistical significance point of view and across building types in New Zealand. This study contributes to filling this knowledge gap by analyzing cost and time-savings, and productivity improvement achievable by the use of prefab in place of the TBS. Records of completion times and final contract values of 66 building projects implemented using prefab in Auckland were collected. The building types included commercial, houses, apartments, educational, and community buildings. The project details included final contract sums, completion dates, gross floor areas, and number of floors. Based on these details, the equivalent completion times and the final cost estimates for similar buildings implemented using the TBS were obtained from the Rawlinsons construction data handbook and feedback from some designers and contractors. Marginal productivity outcome for each building project was computed as the product of the cost and time-savings achieved using the prefab. Results showed that the use of prefab in place of TBS resulted in 34% and 19% average reductions in the completion times and costs, respectively. This also translated to overall 7% average improvement in the productivity outcomes in the building projects. Univariate ANOVA-based hypothesis test results showed that ‘building type’ had no significant effects on the cost and productivity improvement outcomes, but had significant effect on the time savings analyzed in the case study projects. The greatest productivity gain of 11% was achieved in house projects. These evidence-based results could guide optimized use of prefab for specific building application. The hypothesis-testing outcome

  5. Prismatic louver active façades for natural illumination and thermal energy gain in high-rise and commercial buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vlachokostas, A.; Volkmann, C.; Madamopoulos, N.

    2013-06-01

    High-rise and commercial buildings in urban centers present a great challenge in terms of their energy consumption. Due to maximization of rentable square footage, the preferred urban façade system over the past 50 years has been the "curtain wall", only a few inches thick and comprised of modular steel or aluminum framing and predominant glass infills. The perceived Achilles heel of these modern glass façade systems is their thermal inefficiency: They are inadequate thermal barriers and exhibit excessive solar gain. The excessive solar gain has a negative impact on lighting and cooling loads of the entire building. This negative impact will be further exacerbated with rising energy costs. However, rather than view the glass façade's uncontrolled solar gain merely as a weakness contributing to higher energy consumption, the condition could indeed be considered as related to an energy solution. These glass façades can be retrofitted to operate as a provider of daylight and energy for the rest of the building, taking advantage of the overexposure to the sun. With today's technology, the sun's abundant renewable energy can be the driving force for the energy transition of these building envelopes. Illumination, thermal energy, and electricity production can be directly supplied from the sun, and when correctly and efficiently managed, they can lead to a significantly less energy-intensive building stock. We propose a multi-purpose, prismatic, louver-based façade to perform both daylight and thermal energy harvesting with a goal of offering a better daylight environment for the occupants, and reduce the energy consumption and carbon footprint of the building. While decentralized air-conditioning units are commonly accepted as façade "plug-ins", such decentralization could be utilized with more benefits by passively managing the interior space conditions, without using any extra power. Just as living organisms respond and adapt to the environmental changes in

  6. Buildings Interoperability Landscape

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hardin, Dave [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Stephan, Eric G. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Wang, Weimin [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Corbin, Charles D. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Widergren, Steven E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-12-31

    Through its Building Technologies Office (BTO), the United States Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (DOE-EERE) is sponsoring an effort to advance interoperability for the integration of intelligent buildings equipment and automation systems, understanding the importance of integration frameworks and product ecosystems to this cause. This is important to BTO’s mission to enhance energy efficiency and save energy for economic and environmental purposes. For connected buildings ecosystems of products and services from various manufacturers to flourish, the ICT aspects of the equipment need to integrate and operate simply and reliably. Within the concepts of interoperability lie the specification, development, and certification of equipment with standards-based interfaces that connect and work. Beyond this, a healthy community of stakeholders that contribute to and use interoperability work products must be developed. On May 1, 2014, the DOE convened a technical meeting to take stock of the current state of interoperability of connected equipment and systems in buildings. Several insights from that meeting helped facilitate a draft description of the landscape of interoperability for connected buildings, which focuses mainly on small and medium commercial buildings. This document revises the February 2015 landscape document to address reviewer comments, incorporate important insights from the Buildings Interoperability Vision technical meeting, and capture thoughts from that meeting about the topics to be addressed in a buildings interoperability vision. In particular, greater attention is paid to the state of information modeling in buildings and the great potential for near-term benefits in this area from progress and community alignment.

  7. The concentration of natural radionuclides in various types of building materials in Slovakia

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cabanekova, H [Inst. of Peventive and Clinical Medicine, Bratislava (Slovakia)

    1996-12-31

    The concentration of the natural radionuclides in various types of building materials was determined by the gamma spectrometry analysis using 130 cm{sup 3} high purity germanium detector and MCA LIVIUS 2000. Radium-226 and thorium-232 was assessed through their progeny photo peaks. The specific activity of both nuclides as weighted average of their photo peaks was determined. Potassium-40 was measured directly via its 1460 keV peak. The radium equivalent activity was calculate from specific activities of radium-226, thorium-232 and potassium-40. All samples were measured in 4{sup p}i{sup g}eometry. The building materials and products were milled and screened with 2-3 mm sieve. After drying the samples were stored in 450 cm{sup 3} sealed polyethylene container for 30 days ingrowing period. The results of analysis are corrected to the background distribution and to the self absorption in the volume of the samples. The efficiency calibration is realized using the reference sources distributed by IAEA in Vienna and by the Institute for Radionuclide Production in Prague The measured activity concentrations of the buildings materials are given. There are shown the minimum and maximum values for different investigated materials. (J.K.) 4 tabs., 5 refs.

  8. 15 CFR 265.42 - Photography for advertising or commercial purposes; advertising and soliciting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Photography for advertising or commercial purposes; advertising and soliciting. 265.42 Section 265.42 Commerce and Foreign Trade Regulations... COLLINS, COLORADO Buildings and Grounds § 265.42 Photography for advertising or commercial purposes...

  9. Commercial lumber, round timbers, and ties

    Science.gov (United States)

    David E. Kretschmann

    2010-01-01

    When sawn, a log yields round timber, ties, or lumber of varying quality. This chapter presents a general discussion of grading, standards, and specifications for these commercial products. In a broad sense, commercial lumber is any lumber that is bought or sold in the normal channels of commerce. Commercial lumber may be found in a variety of forms, species, and types...

  10. Demand Shifting With Thermal Mass in Large Commercial Buildings:Field Tests, Simulation and Audits

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu, Peng; Haves, Philip; Piette, Mary Ann; Zagreus, Leah

    2005-09-01

    The principle of pre-cooling and demand limiting is to pre-cool buildings at night or in the morning during off-peak hours, storing cooling in the building thermal mass and thereby reducing cooling loads and reducing or shedding related electrical demand during the peak periods. Cost savings are achieved by reducing on-peak energy and demand charges. The potential for utilizing building thermal mass for load shifting and peak demand reduction has been demonstrated in a number of simulation, laboratory, and field studies (Braun 1990, Ruud et al. 1990, Conniff 1991, Andresen and Brandemuehl 1992, Mahajan et al. 1993, Morris et al. 1994, Keeney and Braun 1997, Becker and Paciuk 2002, Xu et al. 2003). This technology appears to have significant potential for demand reduction if applied within an overall demand response program. The primary goal associated with this research is to develop information and tools necessary to assess the viability of and, where appropriate, implement demand response programs involving building thermal mass in buildings throughout California. The project involves evaluating the technology readiness, overall demand reduction potential, and customer acceptance for different classes of buildings. This information can be used along with estimates of the impact of the strategies on energy use to design appropriate incentives for customers.

  11. Analysis of Embodied Environmental Impacts of Korean Apartment Buildings Considering Major Building Materials

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Seungjun Roh

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Because the reduction in environmental impacts (EIs of buildings using life-cycle assessment (LCA has been emphasized as a practical strategy for the sustainable development of the construction industry, studies are required to analyze not only the operational environmental impacts (OEIs of buildings, but also the embodied environmental impacts (EEIs of building materials. This study aims to analyze the EEIs of Korean apartment buildings on the basis of major building materials as part of research with the goal of reducing the EIs of buildings. For this purpose, six types of building materials (ready-mixed concrete, reinforcement steel, concrete bricks, glass, insulation, and gypsum for apartment buildings were selected as major building materials, and their inputs per unit area according to the structure types and plans of apartment buildings were derived by analyzing the design and bills of materials of 443 apartment buildings constructed in South Korea. In addition, a life-cycle scenario including the production, construction, maintenance, and end-of-life stage was constructed for each major building material. The EEIs of the apartment buildings were quantitatively assessed by applying the life-cycle inventory database (LCI DB and the Korean life-cycle impact assessment (LCIA method based on damage-oriented modeling (KOLID, and the results were analyzed.

  12. Sanitary hot water consumption patterns in commercial and industrial sectors in South Africa: Impact on heating system design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rankin, R.; Rousseau, P.G.

    2006-01-01

    peak in hot water consumption. This leads to a requirement for bigger heating and storage capacities in commercial buildings like hotels. A summary of the results are provided in the form of minimum design parameters for different hot water consumption profiles. This study emphasizes the importance of understanding the trends of hot water consumption in buildings, especially when demand side management projects are done on these types of systems

  13. Building stock dynamics and its impacts on materials and energy demand in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hong, Lixuan; Zhou, Nan; Feng, Wei; Khanna, Nina; Fridley, David; Zhao, Yongqiang; Sandholt, Kaare

    2016-01-01

    China hosts a large amount of building stocks, which is nearly 50 billion square meters. Moreover, annual new construction is growing fast, representing half of the world's total. The trend is expected to continue through the year 2050. Impressive demand for new residential and commercial construction, relative shorter average building lifetime, and higher material intensities have driven massive domestic production of energy intensive building materials such as cement and steel. This paper developed a bottom-up building stock turnover model to project the growths, retrofits and retirements of China's residential and commercial building floor space from 2010 to 2050. It also applied typical material intensities and energy intensities to estimate building materials demand and energy consumed to produce these building materials. By conducting scenario analyses of building lifetime, it identified significant potentials of building materials and energy demand conservation. This study underscored the importance of addressing building material efficiency, improving building lifetime and quality, and promoting compact urban development to reduce energy and environment consequences in China. - Highlights: •Growths of China's building floorspace were projected from 2010 to 2050. •A building stock turnover model was built to reflect annual building stock dynamics. •Building related materials and energy demand were projected.

  14. Potential of building-scale alternative energy to alleviate risk from the future price of energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bristow, David; Kennedy, Christopher A.

    2010-01-01

    The energy used for building operations, the associated greenhouse gas emissions, and the uncertainties in future price of natural gas and electricity can be a cause of concern for building owners and policy makers. In this work we explore the potential of building-scale alternative energy technologies to reduce demand and emissions while also shielding building owners from the risks associated with fluctuations in the price of natural gas and grid electricity. We analyze the monetary costs and benefits over the life cycle of five technologies (photovoltaic and wind electricity generation, solar air and water heating, and ground source heat pumps) over three audience or building types (homeowners, small businesses, large commercial and institutional entities). The analysis includes a Monte Carlo analysis to measure risk that can be compared to other investment opportunities. The results indicate that under government incentives and climate of Toronto, Canada, the returns are relatively high for small degrees of risks for a number of technologies. Ground source heat pumps prove to be exceptionally good investments in terms of their energy savings, emission, reductions, and economics, while the bigger buildings tend also to be better economic choices for the use of these technologies.

  15. Impacts of Climate Change on Energy Consumption and Peak Demand in Buildings: A Detailed Regional Approach

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dirks, James A.; Gorrissen, Willy J.; Hathaway, John E.; Skorski, Daniel C.; Scott, Michael J.; Pulsipher, Trenton C.; Huang, Maoyi; Liu, Ying; Rice, Jennie S.

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents the results of numerous commercial and residential building simulations, with the purpose of examining the impact of climate change on peak and annual building energy consumption over the portion of the Eastern Interconnection (EIC) located in the United States. The climate change scenario considered (IPCC A2 scenario as downscaled from the CASCaDE data set) has changes in mean climate characteristics as well as changes in the frequency and duration of intense weather events. This investigation examines building energy demand for three annual periods representative of climate trends in the CASCaDE data set at the beginning, middle, and end of the century--2004, 2052, and 2089. Simulations were performed using the Building ENergy Demand (BEND) model which is a detailed simulation platform built around EnergyPlus. BEND was developed in collaboration with the Platform for Regional Integrated Modeling and Analysis (PRIMA), a modeling framework designed to simulate the complex interactions among climate, energy, water, and land at decision-relevant spatial scales. Over 26,000 building configurations of different types, sizes, vintages, and, characteristics which represent the population of buildings within the EIC, are modeled across the 3 EIC time zones using the future climate from 100 locations within the target region, resulting in nearly 180,000 spatially relevant simulated demand profiles for each of the 3 years. In this study, the building stock characteristics are held constant based on the 2005 building stock in order to isolate and present results that highlight the impact of the climate signal on commercial and residential energy demand. Results of this analysis compare well with other analyses at their finest level of specificity. This approach, however, provides a heretofore unprecedented level of specificity across multiple spectrums including spatial, temporal, and building characteristics. This capability enables the ability to

  16. Enova's building statistics 2009; Enovas byggstatistikk 2009

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2011-07-01

    Building statistics for 2009 is the thirteenth based Enova Building Network. The report is based on data collected through Building Networks, Enova's web-based reporting tools. Report presents analysis and statistics on energy consumption on various building types, as well as variations in energy use depending on the type of heating systems, cooling, space and more. For 2009, 2,493 buildings, located in 256 of municipalities, which have reported energy and that simultaneously satisfies the minimum requirements for energy reporting. This is 14 percent more than in 2008. Overall energy consumption for all buildings in 2009 is 3,105 GWh spread of 12.7 million m2 of heated floor space. Average temperature and location corrected specific energy supplied to all buildings in this year's range is 244 kWh / m2. This is a reduction of 10 percent from 2008. The highest average specific transferred energy can be found in telecommunications group building, which had an energy consumption of 546 kWh / m2. The lowest specific energy consumption is provided in school buildings, which on average uses 168 kWh / m2. As expected, the dominant electricity energy carrier. Overall, for all buildings are over 87 percent of energy use from electricity. District heating is the second-largest energy carrier, this covers about 10 percent of energy use. With liquid fuel means heating oil and kerosene. With a share of around 3 percent is liquid fuel is a relatively low energy carrier for this year's buildings. The use of biological fuel is also very small - it covers only 2 percent of the total energy use. With a share of 4 per cent of total energy use is also not a particularly gas widespread as an energy carrier. It is not easy to draw conclusions related to conversion from one energy carrier to another using of data. It may still indicate that it has been a considerable shift from liquid fuels for district heating in industrial buildings from 2008 to 2009. Furthermore, it

  17. Unintended anchors: Building rating systems and energy performance goals for U.S. buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klotz, Leidy; Mack, Daniel; Klapthor, Brent; Tunstall, Casey; Harrison, Jennilee

    2010-01-01

    In the U.S., where buildings account for 40% of energy use, commercial buildings use more energy per unit area than ever before. However, exemplary buildings demonstrate the feasibility of much better energy performance at no additional first cost. This research examines one possible explanation for this inconsistency. The aim is to investigate whether the anchoring bias, which refers to our tendency to gravitate towards a pre-defined standard regardless of its relevance, influences energy performance goals in building design. The scope examines professionals who help set energy performance goals for U.S. buildings. Prior to being asked to set an energy performance goal, these professionals were randomly directed to one of three series of questions. One series set an anchor of 90% energy reduction beyond standard practice, one set a 30% anchor, and one set no anchor. Respondents exposed to the 90% anchor, and respondents exposed to no anchor at all, set higher energy performance goals than respondents exposed to the 30% anchor. These results suggest that building rating systems that only reward incremental energy improvements may inadvertently create anchors, thereby discouraging more advanced energy performance goals and inhibiting energy performance that is technically and economically feasible.

  18. Country Report on Building Energy Codes in the United States

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Halverson, Mark A.; Shui, Bin; Evans, Meredydd

    2009-04-30

    This report is part of a series of reports on building energy efficiency codes in countries associated with the Asian Pacific Partnership (APP) - Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, India, and the United States of America (U.S.). This reports gives an overview of the development of building energy codes in U.S., including national energy policies related to building energy codes, history of building energy codes, recent national projects and activities to promote building energy codes. The report also provides a review of current building energy codes (such as building envelope, HVAC, lighting, and water heating) for commercial and residential buildings in the U.S.

  19. Phase Change Materials (PCMs) applications in buildings for human thermal comfort

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Kumirai, Tichaona

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available end-use contribution to energy consumption especially in commercial buildings (includes office buildings, shopping centers, restaurants, and others) is from Heating, Ventilation and Air conditioning (HVAC) accounting as much as 26% of the total energy...

  20. Literature Review of the Effects of Natural Light on Building Occupants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Edwards, L.; Torcellini, P.

    2002-07-01

    This paper presents summary findings from a literature search of the term ''daylighting''-using natural light in a building to offset or replace electric lighting. According to the Department of Energy's Office of Building Technology, State and Community Programs 2000 BTS Core Databook, in 1998, commercial buildings consumed 32% of the total electricity in the United States, of which more than one-third went to lighting. Using daylighting systems and turning off the lights will help reduce this energy load. Electrical lighting adds to both the electrical and cooling loads in a commercial building. Utility costs can be decreased when daylighting is properly designed to replace electrical lighting. Along with the importance of energy savings, studies have demonstrated the non-energy-related benefits of daylighting. We compiled the data from books, periodicals, Internet articles, and interviews. The books, periodicals, and Internet articles provided the background information used to identify the main subjects of the paper. The interviews provided us with details related to specific buildings and companies that have integrated daylighting into their buildings.

  1. 7 CFR 51.3741 - U.S. Commercial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false U.S. Commercial. 51.3741 Section 51.3741 Agriculture... Standards for Grades of Honey Dew and Honey Ball Type Melons Grades § 51.3741 U.S. Commercial. “U.S. Commercial” consists of honey dew or honey ball type melons which meet the requirements of U.S. No. 1 grade...

  2. Solar energy in buildings solved by building information modeling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chudikova, B.; Faltejsek, M.

    2018-03-01

    Building lead us to use renewable energy sources for all types of buildings. The use of solar energy is the alternatives that can be applied in a good ratio of space, price, and resultant benefits. Building Information Modelling is a modern and effective way of dealing with buildings with regard to all aspects of the life cycle. The basis is careful planning and simulation in the pre-investment phase, where it is possible to determine the effective result and influence the lifetime of the building and the cost of its operation. By simulating, analysing and insert a building model into its future environment where climate conditions and surrounding buildings play a role, it is possible to predict the usability of the solar energy and establish an ideal model. Solar systems also very affect the internal layout of buildings. Pre-investment phase analysis, with a view to future aspects, will ensure that the resulting building will be both low-energy and environmentally friendly.

  3. Re-conceiving building design quality: A review of building users in their social context.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watson, Kelly J; Evans, James; Karvonen, Andrew; Whitley, Tim

    2016-05-01

    Considerable overlap exists between post-occupancy research evaluating building design quality and the concept of 'social value', popularised by its recent application to issues of the public realm. To outline this potential research agenda, the paper reviews design quality research on buildings in relation to users and their social context where the term 'social context' refers to building user group dynamics, a combination of organisational cultures, management strategies, and social norms and practices. The review is conducted across five key building types, namely housing, workplaces, healthcare, education, and the retail/service sector. Research commonalities and gaps are identified in order to build a more comprehensive picture of the design quality literature and its handling of users in their social context. The key findings concerning each building type are presented visually. It is concluded that the design quality field comprises a patchwork of relatively isolated studies of various building types, with significant potential for theoretical and empirical development through interdisciplinary collaboration. Users tend to be conceived as anonymous and autonomous individuals with little analysis of user identity or interaction. Further, the contextual impact of user group dynamics on the relationship between building design and building user is rarely addressed in the literature. Producing a more nuanced understanding of users in situ is proposed as an important area for future design quality research.

  4. 78 FR 54197 - Energy Efficiency Program for Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Energy Conservation Standards...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-09-03

    .... EERE-2013-BT-STD-0030] RIN 1904-AD01 Energy Efficiency Program for Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Energy Conservation Standards for Commercial Packaged Boilers AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and..., Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies Office, EE-2J, 1000 Independence...

  5. System-Level Monitoring and Diagnosis of Building HVAC System

    OpenAIRE

    Wu, Siyu

    2013-01-01

    Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) is an indoor environmental technology that is extensively instrumented for large-scale buildings. Among all subsystems of buildings, the HVAC system dominates the energy consumption and accounts for 57% of the energy used in U.S. commercial and residential buildings. Unfortunately, the HVAC system may fail to meet the performance expectations due to various faults, including not only complete hardware failures, but also non-optimal operations....

  6. Cost analysis of LEED certified United States navy buildings

    OpenAIRE

    Kirar, Carl V.

    2011-01-01

    CIVINS (Civilian Institutions) Thesis document A study was completed at UW-Madison in 2010 that reviewed the energy consumption of US Navy buildings which earned Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). The research compared LEED certified buildings to a commercial counterpart within the US Navy inventory against Executive Order (EO) 13423. The EO mandated that all federal agencies meet a 30 percent reduction of...

  7. A REVIEW OF FACTORS AFFECTING BUILDING DEFECTS IN SINGAPORE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Po Seng Kian

    2001-01-01

    Full Text Available In developing countries, building maintenance technology is currently vastly underrated and ignored by owners, managers, and professionals. The building and construction authority of Singapore (BCA has identified that the complaints about building defects have gone up in recent years with common problems such as leaky roof and walls, floor defect, and improper outlet pipe. This paper presents a brief description on building defect in use for commercial building as well as residential buildings in Singapore. The main objective is to highlight the important problems and suggest a greater participation of professionals in building maintenance. It also provides some site investigations photographs of various defects, which is expected to be useful for builders, architects, and others who deal with building materials.

  8. Fayette County Better Buildings Initiative

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Capella, Arthur [County of Fayette, Uniontown, PA (United States)

    2015-03-04

    The Fayette County Better Buildings Initiative represented a comprehensive and collaborative approach to promoting and implementing energy efficiency improvements. The initiative was designed to focus on implementing energy efficiency improvements in residential units, while simultaneously supporting general marketing of the benefits of implementing energy efficiency measures. The ultimate goal of Fayette County’s Better Buildings Initiative was to implement a total of 1,067 residential energy efficiency retrofits with a minimum 15% estimated energy efficiency savings per unit. Program partners included: United States Department of Energy, Allegheny Power, and Private Industry Council of Westmoreland-Fayette, Fayette County Redevelopment Authority, and various local partners. The program was open to any Fayette County residents who own their home and meet the prequalifying conditions. The level of assistance offered depended upon household income and commitment to undergo a BPI – Certified Audit and implement energy efficiency measures, which aimed to result in at least a 15% reduction in energy usage. The initiative was designed to focus on implementing energy efficiency improvements in residential units, while simultaneously supporting general marketing of the benefits of implementing energy efficiency measures. Additionally, the program had components that involved recruitment and training for employment of persons in the energy sector (green jobs), as well as marketing and implementation of a commercial or community facilities component. The residential component of Fayette County’s Better Buildings Initiative involved a comprehensive approach, providing assistance to low- moderate- and market-rate homeowners. The initiative will also coordinate activities with local utility providers to further incentivize energy efficiency improvements among qualifying homeowners. The commercial component of Fayette County’s Better Building Initiative involved grants

  9. The role of the U.S. Department of Energy in indoor air quality and building ventilation policy development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Traynor, G.W. [Lawrence Berkeley Lab., Berkeley, CA (United States). Indoor Environment Program; Talbott, J.M. [U.S. Dept. of Energy, Washington, DC (United States). Office of Building Technologies; Moses, D.O. [U.S. Dept. of Energy, Washington, DC (United States). Office of Environmental Analysis

    1993-12-31

    Building ventilation consumes about 5.8 exajoules of energy each year in the U.S. The annual cost of this-energy, used for commercial building fans (1.6 exajoules/yr) and the heating and cooling of outside air (4.2 exajoules/yr), is about $US 33 billion per year. Energy conservation measures that reduce heating and cooling season ventilation rates 15 to 35 % in commercial and residential buildings can result in a national savings of about 0.6 to 15 exajoules (doll US 3-8 billion) per year assuming no reduction of commercial building fan energy use. The most significant adverse environmental impact of reduced ventilation and infiltration is the potential degradation of the building`s indoor air quality. Potential benefits to the U.S from the implementation of sound indoor air quality and building ventilation reduction policies include reduced building-sector energy consumption; reduced indoor, outdoor, and global pollution; reduced product costs; reduced worker absenteeism; reduced health care costs; reduced litigation; increased worker well-being and absenteeism; reduced health care costs; reduced litigation; increased productivity; and increased product quality and competitiveness. (author)

  10. Drinking Water Quality in Hospitals and Other Buildings ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drinking water quality entering large buildings is generally adequately controlled by the water utility, but localized problems may occur within building or “premise” plumbing. Particular concerns are loss of disinfectant residual and temperature variability, which may enhance pathogen activity and metallic corrosion. Disinfection systems are available to building managers and are being installed in a variety of commercial buildings (hospitals, hotels, office buildings.) Yet our understanding of such additional treatment and of how to monitor end water quality at these buildings is limited. This class lecture will discuss challenges in maintaining acceptable water quality in hospitals, schools and other buildings. To give a lecture to a class of graduate students (ENVE 6054: Physical/Chemical Processes for Water Quality Control) at the University of Cincinnati, by presenting past research projects.

  11. ACEEE 1990 summer study on energy efficiency in buildings: Proceedings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1990-01-01

    This panel on commercial data, design, and technologies offers both an archival set of data analyses that capture much of what is known today about commercial building energy use and a look into new technologies. The emphasis on data appears to be a trend likely to continue in the coming years. Utilities are sponsoring load research to produce, at a local level, building energy use intensities and load shapes. Data analysis techniques, many of which have been and continue to be reported in the Performance Measurement and Analysis panel, are stronger and are increasingly grounded in solid data. Ongoing programs that have produced rich data sets are now yielding useful results area such issues as the cost of energy conservation measures. Finally, data analysis should naturally lead to improved technologies and building designs, as architects and engineers profit from what is shaping up as a very fruitful period of building performance assessment. For these conference proceedings, individual papers are processed separately for the Energy Data Base

  12. Energy Factors in Commercial Mortgages: Gaps and Opportunities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mathew, Paul [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Coleman, Philip [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Wallace, Nancy [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Issler, Paulo [Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States); Kolstad, Lenny [Inst. for Market Transformation, Washington, DC (United States); Sahadi, Robert [Inst. for Market Transformation, Washington, DC (United States)

    2016-09-01

    The commercial real estate mortgage market is enormous, with almost half a trillion dollars in deals originated in 2015. Relative to other energy efficiency financing mechanisms, very little attention has been paid to the potential of commercial mortgages as a channel for promoting energy efficiency investments. The valuation and underwriting elements of the business are largely driven by the “net operating income” (NOI) metric – essentially, rents minus expenses. While NOI ostensibly includes all expenses, energy factors are in several ways given short shrift in the underwriting process. This is particularly interesting when juxtaposed upon a not insignificant body of research revealing that there are in fact tangible benefits (such as higher valuations and lower vacancy and default rates) for energy-efficient and “green” commercial buildings. This scoping report characterizes the current status and potential interventions to promote greater inclusion of energy factors in the commercial mortgage process.

  13. Building Energy Efficiency in India: Compliance Evaluation of Energy Conservation Building Code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yu, Sha; Evans, Meredydd; Delgado, Alison

    2014-03-26

    India is experiencing unprecedented construction boom. The country doubled its floorspace between 2001 and 2005 and is expected to add 35 billion m2 of new buildings by 2050. Buildings account for 35% of total final energy consumption in India today, and building energy use is growing at 8% annually. Studies have shown that carbon policies will have little effect on reducing building energy demand. Chaturvedi et al. predicted that, if there is no specific sectoral policies to curb building energy use, final energy demand of the Indian building sector will grow over five times by the end of this century, driven by rapid income and population growth. The growing energy demand in buildings is accompanied by a transition from traditional biomass to commercial fuels, particularly an increase in electricity use. This also leads to a rapid increase in carbon emissions and aggravates power shortage in India. Growth in building energy use poses challenges to the Indian government. To curb energy consumption in buildings, the Indian government issued the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) in 2007, which applies to commercial buildings with a connected load of 100 kW or 120kVA. It is predicted that the implementation of ECBC can help save 25-40% of energy, compared to reference buildings without energy-efficiency measures. However, the impact of ECBC depends on the effectiveness of its enforcement and compliance. Currently, the majority of buildings in India are not ECBC-compliant. The United Nations Development Programme projected that code compliance in India would reach 35% by 2015 and 64% by 2017. Whether the projected targets can be achieved depends on how the code enforcement system is designed and implemented. Although the development of ECBC lies in the hands of the national government – the Bureau of Energy Efficiency under the Ministry of Power, the adoption and implementation of ECBC largely relies on state and local governments. Six years after ECBC

  14. Research and Development Needs for Building-Integrated Solar Technologies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    none,

    2014-01-01

    The Building Technologies Office (BTO) has identified Building Integrated Solar Technologies (BIST) as a potentially valuable piece of the comprehensive pathway to help achieve its goal of reducing energy consumption in residential and commercial buildings by 50% by the year 2030. This report helps to identify the key research and development (R&D) needs that will be required for BIST to make a substantial contribution toward that goal. BIST include technologies for space heating and cooling, water heating, hybrid photovoltaic-thermal systems (PV/T), active solar lighting, and building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV).

  15. Building-owners energy-education program. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1981-12-01

    The objectives of the program are to develop and test market a cogent education program aimed specifically at building owners to help them be more decisive and knowledgeable, and to motivate them to direct their managers and professionals to implement a rational plan for achieving energy conservation in their commercial office buildings and to establish a plan, sponsored by the Building Owners and Managers Association International (BOMA) to implement this educational program on a nation-wide basis. San Francisco, Chicago, and Atlanta were chosen for test marketing a model program. The procedure used in making the energy survey is described. Energy survey results of participating buildings in San Francisco, Chicago, and Atlanta are summarized. (MCW)

  16. Energy consumption of electricity end uses in Malaysian historic buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kamaruzzaman, Syahrul N.; Edwards, Rodger E.; Zawawi, Emma M.A.

    2007-07-15

    Malaysia has inherited hundreds of heritage buildings from the past including those from the Indian, Chinese and Colonial eras apart from the indigenous traditional buildings. These buildings have the most unique ecstatic value from the viewpoint of architecture, culture, art, etc. Malaysian economy boom in 1980s spurred the need for more buildings especially in large cities. As a result, most of the historic buildings have been converted and transformed into commercial use. As reported by METP, Malaysian buildings energy uses are reflected by the energy consumption in the industrial and commercial sectors. Most of the buildings' energy consumption is electricity, used for running and operating the plants, lighting, lifts and escalators and other equipment in the buildings. These are amongst the factors that have resulted in the high demand for electricity in Malaysia. As outlined in the eighth Malaysia Plan, Malaysia is taking steps in conserving energy and reducing energy consumption on electricity consumption in building. This paper aims to present the breakdown of the major electricity end uses characteristics of historic buildings in Malaysia. The analysis was performed on annual data, allowing comparison with published benchmarks to give an indication of efficiency. Based on data collected a 'normalisation' calculated electricity consumption was established with the intention of improving the comparison between buildings in different climatic regions or with different occupancy patterns. This is useful for identifying where the design needed further attention and helped pinpoint problem areas within a building. It is anticipated that this study would give a good indication on the electricity consumption characteristics of historic buildings in Malaysia. (Author)

  17. Life Comparative Analysis of Energy Consumption and CO2 Emissions of Different Building Structural Frame Types

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sangyong; Moon, Joon-Ho; Shin, Yoonseok; Kim, Gwang-Hee; Seo, Deok-Seok

    2013-01-01

    The objective of this research is to quantitatively measure and compare the environmental load and construction cost of different structural frame types. Construction cost also accounts for the costs of CO2 emissions of input materials. The choice of structural frame type is a major consideration in construction, as this element represents about 33% of total building construction costs. In this research, four constructed buildings were analyzed, with these having either reinforced concrete (RC) or steel (S) structures. An input-output framework analysis was used to measure energy consumption and CO2 emissions of input materials for each structural frame type. In addition, the CO2 emissions cost was measured using the trading price of CO2 emissions on the International Commodity Exchange. This research revealed that both energy consumption and CO2 emissions were, on average, 26% lower with the RC structure than with the S structure, and the construction costs (including the CO2 emissions cost) of the RC structure were about 9.8% lower, compared to the S structure. This research provides insights through which the construction industry will be able to respond to the carbon market, which is expected to continue to grow in the future. PMID:24227998

  18. Life Comparative Analysis of Energy Consumption and CO2 Emissions of Different Building Structural Frame Types

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sangyong Kim

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this research is to quantitatively measure and compare the environmental load and construction cost of different structural frame types. Construction cost also accounts for the costs of CO2 emissions of input materials. The choice of structural frame type is a major consideration in construction, as this element represents about 33% of total building construction costs. In this research, four constructed buildings were analyzed, with these having either reinforced concrete (RC or steel (S structures. An input-output framework analysis was used to measure energy consumption and CO2 emissions of input materials for each structural frame type. In addition, the CO2 emissions cost was measured using the trading price of CO2 emissions on the International Commodity Exchange. This research revealed that both energy consumption and CO2 emissions were, on average, 26% lower with the RC structure than with the S structure, and the construction costs (including the CO2 emissions cost of the RC structure were about 9.8% lower, compared to the S structure. This research provides insights through which the construction industry will be able to respond to the carbon market, which is expected to continue to grow in the future.

  19. An overview of solar energy applications in buildings in Greece

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papamanolis, Nikos

    2016-09-01

    This work classifies and describes the main fields of solar energy exploitation in buildings in Greece, a country with high solar energy capacities. The study focuses on systems and technologies that apply to residential and commercial buildings following the prevailing design and construction practices (conventional buildings) and investigates the effects of the architectural and constructional characteristics of these buildings on the respective applications. In addition, it examines relevant applications in other building categories and in buildings with increased ecological sensitivity in their design and construction (green buildings). Through its findings, the study seeks to improve the efficiency and broaden the scope of solar energy applications in buildings in Greece to the benefit of their energy and environmental performance.

  20. Building Technologies Program Multi-Year Program Plan Technology Validation and Market Introduction 2008

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None, None

    2008-01-01

    Building Technologies Program Multi-Year Program Plan 2008 for technology validation and market introduction, including ENERGY STAR, building energy codes, technology transfer application centers, commercial lighting initiative, EnergySmart Schools, EnergySmar

  1. Nuclear reactor buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nagashima, Shoji; Kato, Ryoichi.

    1985-01-01

    Purpose: To reduce the cost of reactor buildings and satisfy the severe seismic demands in tank type FBR type reactors. Constitution: In usual nuclear reactor buildings of a flat bottom embedding structure, the flat bottom is entirely embedded into the rock below the soils down to the deck level of the nuclear reactor. As a result, although the weight of the seismic structure can be decreased, the amount of excavating the cavity is significantly increased to inevitably increase the plant construction cost. Cross-like intersecting foundation mats are embedded to the building rock into a thickness capable withstanding to earthquakes while maintaining the arrangement of equipments around the reactor core in the nuclear buildings required by the system design, such as vertical relationship between the equipments, fuel exchange systems and sponteneous drainings. Since the rock is hard and less deformable, the rigidity of the walls and the support structures of the reactor buildings can be increased by the embedding into the rock substrate and floor responsivity can be reduced. This enables to reduce the cost and increasing the seismic proofness. (Kamimura, M.)

  2. 7 CFR 1726.150 - Headquarters buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 11 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Headquarters buildings. 1726.150 Section 1726.150... AGRICULTURE ELECTRIC SYSTEM CONSTRUCTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Buildings § 1726.150 Headquarters buildings. This section includes headquarters buildings such as warehouses and equipment service type buildings...

  3. Intelligent Commercial Lighting: Demand-Responsive Conditioning and Increased User Satisfaction

    OpenAIRE

    Agogino, Alice M.

    2005-01-01

    Energy efficiency has recently come to the forefront of energy debates, especially in the state of California. This focus on efficiency has been driven by the deregulation of electrical-energy distribution, the increasing price of electricity, and the implementation of rolling blackouts. Currently, buildings consume over 1/3 of primary energy, and 2/3 of all electricity produced in the U.S. Commercial buildings consume roughly half of this, and lighting is responsible for approximately 40% of...

  4. Improving the accuracy of energy baseline models for commercial buildings with occupancy data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liang, Xin; Hong, Tianzhen; Shen, Geoffrey Qiping

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • We evaluated several baseline models predicting energy use in buildings. • Including occupancy data improved accuracy of baseline model prediction. • Occupancy is highly correlated with energy use in buildings. • This simple approach can be used in decision makings of energy retrofit projects. - Abstract: More than 80% of energy is consumed during operation phase of a building’s life cycle, so energy efficiency retrofit for existing buildings is considered a promising way to reduce energy use in buildings. The investment strategies of retrofit depend on the ability to quantify energy savings by “measurement and verification” (M&V), which compares actual energy consumption to how much energy would have been used without retrofit (called the “baseline” of energy use). Although numerous models exist for predicting baseline of energy use, a critical limitation is that occupancy has not been included as a variable. However, occupancy rate is essential for energy consumption and was emphasized by previous studies. This study develops a new baseline model which is built upon the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) model but includes the use of building occupancy data. The study also proposes metrics to quantify the accuracy of prediction and the impacts of variables. However, the results show that including occupancy data does not significantly improve the accuracy of the baseline model, especially for HVAC load. The reasons are discussed further. In addition, sensitivity analysis is conducted to show the influence of parameters in baseline models. The results from this study can help us understand the influence of occupancy on energy use, improve energy baseline prediction by including the occupancy factor, reduce risks of M&V and facilitate investment strategies of energy efficiency retrofit.

  5. Development of a methodology for defining whole-building energy design targets for commercial buildings: Phase 2, Development Concept Stage Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McKay, H.N. (Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, New York, NY (USA)); Deringer, J.J. (American Inst. of Architects, Washington, DC (USA)); Jones, J.W. (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc., Atlanta, GA (USA)); Hall, J.D. (Deringer Group, Riva, MD (USA))

    1990-09-01

    This report documents eight tasks performed as part of the Whole-Building Energy Design Targets project, in which detailed conceptual approaches were produced for each element of the proposed Targets model. The eight task reports together describe the important modules proposed for inclusion in the Targets model: input module, energy module, characteristic development moduel, building cost module, analysis control module, energy cost module, search routines module, and economic analysis module. 16 refs., 16 figs., 5 tabs.

  6. National outbreak of type a foodborne botulism associated with a widely distributed commercially canned hot dog chili sauce.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Juliao, Patricia C; Maslanka, Susan; Dykes, Janet; Gaul, Linda; Bagdure, Satish; Granzow-Kibiger, Lynae; Salehi, Ellen; Zink, Donald; Neligan, Robert P; Barton-Behravesh, Casey; Lúquez, Carolina; Biggerstaff, Matthew; Lynch, Michael; Olson, Christine; Williams, Ian; Barzilay, Ezra J

    2013-02-01

    On 7 and 11 July 2007, health officials in Texas and Indiana, respectively, reported 4 possible cases of type A foodborne botulism to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Foodborne botulism is a rare and sometimes fatal illness caused by consuming foods containing botulinum neurotoxin. Investigators reviewed patients' medical charts and food histories. Clinical specimens and food samples were tested for botulinum toxin and neurotoxin-producing Clostridium species. Investigators conducted inspections of the cannery that produced the implicated product. Eight confirmed outbreak associated cases were identified from Indiana (n = 2), Texas (n = 3), and Ohio (n = 3). Botulinum toxin type A was identified in leftover chili sauce consumed by the Indiana patients and 1 of the Ohio patients. Cannery inspectors found violations of federal canned-food regulations that could have led to survival of Clostridium botulinum spores during sterilization. The company recalled 39 million cans of chili. Following the outbreak, the US Food and Drug Administration inspected other canneries with similar canning systems and issued warnings to the industry about the danger of C. botulinum and the importance of compliance with canned food manufacturing regulations. Commercially produced hot dog chili sauce caused these cases of type A botulism. This is the first US foodborne botulism outbreak involving a commercial cannery in >30 years. Sharing of epidemiologic and laboratory findings allowed for the rapid identification of implicated food items and swift removal of potentially deadly products from the market by US food regulatory authorities.

  7. Methodological proposal of grounding in commercial and industrial installations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rodriguez Araya, Michael Eduardo

    2013-01-01

    A methodology is elaborated for the design of methods of commercial and industrial grounding. International standards and technical documents related with the grounding in the electrical design are studied in commercial and industrial installations. The design techniques of earthing systems are investigated. The topics that were covered to develop a design proposal have been: the analysis of resistivity, soil types, calculations of step voltages, contact and voltage of mesh. A field visit is programmed in nearby of the Escuela de Ingenieria Electrica at the Universidad de Costa Rica, to realize the pertinent measurements of resistivity for the design of a hypothetical grounding mesh for a future installation. The tellurometer (GP-1 model) of the brand Amprobe Instrument was used to provide the data from ground resistivity. The equipment has used four electrodes and has implemented the Wenner method for calculations. A earthing design is realized in a company in the industrial or commercial sector of Costa Rica. The earthing designs are realized to protect equipments found at the site and are affected by conditions such as: atmospheric overloads, transients, sags, interruptions or any event that may to affect the quality of the energy. The resistivity of an ground has depended largely on the amount of moisture that has presented. A correct earthing system should cover the greater amount of the total area of the building, and to comply with the voltage of mesh necessary for the design has been optimal. The design of any earthing has depended on unique characteristics that have been indicated by the location of industry [es

  8. Energy management systems in buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lush, D. M.

    1979-07-01

    An investigation is made of the range of possibilities available from three types of systems (automatic control devices, building envelope, and the occupants) in buildings. The following subjects are discussed: general (buildings, design and personnel); new buildings (envelope, designers, energy and load calculations, plant design, general design parameters); existing buildings (conservation measures, general energy management, air conditioned buildings, industrial buildings); man and motivation (general, energy management and documentation, maintenance, motivation); automatic energy management systems (thermostatic controls, optimized plant start up, air conditioned and industrial buildings, building automatic systems). (MCW)

  9. Radon in large buildings: The development of a protocol

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilson, D.L.; Dudney, C.S.; Gammage, R.B.

    1993-01-01

    Over the past several years, considerable research has been devoted by the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and others to develop radon sampling protocols for single family residences and schools. However, very little research has been performed on measuring radon in the work place. To evaluate possible sampling protocols, 833 buildings throughout the United States were selected for extensive radon testing. The buildings tested (warehouses, production plants and office buildings) were representative of commercial buildings across the country both in design, size and use. Based on the results, preliminary radon sampling protocols for the work place have been developed

  10. New Hampshire Better Buildings - Final Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cramton, Karen [NH Office of Energy and Planning; Peters, Katherine

    2014-11-01

    With $10 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Better Buildings Neighborhood Program, the NH Better Buildings program was established as an initiative that initially empowered the three “Beacon Communities” of Berlin, Nashua and Plymouth to achieve transformative energy savings and reductions in fossil fuel use and greenhouse gases through deep energy retrofits and complementary sustainable energy solutions. The program also enabled those Communities to provide leadership to other communities around the state as “beacons” of energy efficiency. The goal of the program was to reduce energy use by a minimum of 15% through energy efficiency upgrades in residential and commercial buildings in the communities. The program expanded statewide in April 2012 by issuing a competitive solicitation for additional commercial projects non-profit, and municipal energy efficiency projects from any community in the state, and a partnership with the state’s utility-run, ratepayer-funded residential Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® (HPwES) program. The NH Better Buildings program was administered by the New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning (OEP) and managed by the NH Community Development Finance Authority (CDFA). The program started in July 2010 and the last projects funded with American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) funds were completed in August 2013. The program will continue after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act program period as a Revolving Loan Fund, enabling low-interest financing for deep energy retrofits into the future.

  11. Intelligent Buildings and pervasive computing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grønbæk, Kaj; Kyng, Morten; Krogh, Peter Gall

    2001-01-01

    computers are everywhere, for everyone, at all times. Where IT becomes a still more integrated part of our environments with processors, sensors, and actuators connected via high-speed networks and combined with new visualiza-tion devices ranging from projections directly in the eye to large panorama......Intelligent Buildings have been the subject of research and commercial interest for more than two decades. The different perspectives range from monitoring and controlling energy consumption over interactive rooms supporting work in offices and leisure in the home, to buildings providing...... information to by-passers in plazas and urban environments. This paper puts forward the hypothesis that the coming decade will witness a dramatic increase in both quality and quantity of intelligent buildings due to the emerging field of pervasive computing: the next generation computing environments where...

  12. Sustainable design in the contemporary architecture of tall buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gil-Mastalerczyk Joanna

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The tall buildings in Singapore - one of the main financial centers of the world - reflect the metropolitan character of the city. These buildings emphasize the importance of the center in the urban landscape. They determine and create a new landscape of the city. Objects, mainly about the function of commercial and prestigious, distinguished by the natural environment-friendly image. Through financial expenditures, they excel in the implementation of innovative solutions in the field ecology. The applied design, facade systems and functional systems are subject to the use of renewable energy sources. Promoting the idea the development of the city “inside”. Ecological aspect is the durability of the structure. Modern tall buildings have completely changed the image of the spatial part of the city-state of Singapore and contributed to enhance the individual character and highlight the specifics of the layout and position of the center (combining functions of business, commercial, recreational and residential.

  13. 21 CFR 226.20 - Buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Buildings. 226.20 Section 226.20 Food and Drugs... Facilities and Equipment § 226.20 Buildings. Buildings in which Type A medicated article(s) are manufactured... operation for their intended purpose. The building shall: (a) Provide adequate space for the orderly...

  14. Strengthening IAEA safeguards using high-resolution commercial satellite imagery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Hui

    2001-01-01

    Full text: In May 1997, the IAEA Board of Governors adopted the Additional Safeguards Protocol to improve its ability to detect the undeclared production of fissile material. This new strengthened safeguards system has opened the door for the IAEA to use of all types of information, including the potential use of commercial satellite imagery. We have therefore been investigating the feasibility of strengthening IAEA safeguards using commercial satellite imagery. Based on our analysis on a number of one-meter resolution IKONOS satellite images of military nuclear production facilities at nuclear states including Russia, China, India, Pakistan and Israel, we found that the new high-resolution commercial satellite imagery would play a new and valuable role in strengthening IAEA safeguards. Since 1999, images with a resolution of one meter have been available commercially from Space Imaging's IKONOS satellite. One-meter images from other companies are expected to enter the market soon. Although still an order of magnitude less capable than military imaging satellites, the capabilities of these new high-resolution commercial satellites are good enough to detect and identify the major visible characteristics of nuclear production facilities and sites. Unlike the classified spy satellite photos limited to few countries, the commercial satellite imagery is commercially available to anyone who wants to purchase it. Therefore, the new commercial satellite open a new chance that each state, international organizations, and non-governmental groups could use the commercial images to play a more proactive role in monitoring the nuclear activities in related countries and verifying the compliance of non-proliferation agreements. This could help galvanize support for intensified efforts to slow the pace of nuclear proliferation. To produce fissile materials (plutonium and highly enriched uranium) for weapons, a country would operate dedicated plutonium-production reactors and the

  15. Environmental Assessment Methodologies for Commercial Buildings: An Elicitation Study of U.S. Building Professionals’ Beliefs on Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jasmin Kientzel

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Voluntary environmental programs (VEPs have become increasingly popular around the world to address energy efficiency issues that mandatory building codes have not been able to tackle. Even though the utility of voluntary schemes is widely debated, they have become a de facto reality for many professionals in the building and construction sector. One topic that is neglected, however, in both academic and policy discussions, relates to how professionals (architects, engineers, real estate developers, etc. perceive the rise of voluntary rating schemes. In order to fill this gap in the literature, the present study investigates beliefs underlying adoption behavior regarding one of the most prominent voluntary assessment and certification programs in the U.S. building industry, the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED scheme. In this paper, an elicitation study, based on 14 semi-structured interviews with building professionals in the North East of the United States, was conducted to analyze this question. Building on the Reasoned Action Approach, this paper shows that, in addition to more conventional factors such as financial calculations and marketing aspects, the understanding of beliefs held by building professionals offers important insights into their decisions to work with Voluntary Environmental Assessment and Rating Programs.

  16. End use technology choice in the National Energy Modeling System (NEMS): An analysis of the residential and commercial building sectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilkerson, Jordan T.; Cullenward, Danny; Davidian, Danielle; Weyant, John P.

    2013-01-01

    The National Energy Modeling System (NEMS) is arguably the most influential energy model in the United States. The U.S. Energy Information Administration uses NEMS to generate the federal government's annual long-term forecast of national energy consumption and to evaluate prospective federal energy policies. NEMS is considered such a standard tool that other models are calibrated to its forecasts, in both government and academic practice. As a result, NEMS has a significant influence over expert opinions of plausible energy futures. NEMS is a massively detailed model whose inner workings, despite its prominence, receive relatively scant critical attention. This paper analyzes how NEMS projects energy demand in the residential and commercial sectors. In particular, we focus on the role of consumers' preferences and financial constraints, investigating how consumers choose appliances and other end-use technologies. We identify conceptual issues in the approach the model takes to the same question across both sectors. Running the model with a range of consumer preferences, we estimate the extent to which this issue impacts projected consumption relative to the baseline model forecast for final energy demand in the year 2035. In the residential sector, the impact ranges from a decrease of 0.73 quads (− 6.0%) to an increase of 0.24 quads (+ 2.0%). In the commercial sector, the impact ranges from a decrease of 1.0 quads (− 9.0%) to an increase of 0.99 quads (+ 9.0%). - Highlights: • This paper examines the impact of consumer preferences on final energy in the Commercial and Residential sectors of the National Energy Modeling System (NEMS). • We describe the conceptual and empirical basis for modeling consumer technology choice in NEMS. • We offer a range of alternative parameters to show the energy demand sensitivity to technology choice. • We show there are significant potential savings available in both building sectors. • Because the model uses its own

  17. COTS low-cost 622-Mb/s free-space laser communications link for short-distance commercial applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morrison, Kenneth A.

    2000-05-01

    The results from a low cost 622 Mb/s, free-space laser communication link operating at 850 nm for short distance commercial applications is presented. The test results demonstrate the use of a free-space laser communications transceiver for building to building applications such as LAN, WAN and ATM operations, etc. This illustrates the potential for wide-use commercial computer network applications. The transceiver is constructed of commercial off-the-shelf materials for the development of a low-cost laser communications data link. The test system configuration utilizes standard Personal Computers with network cards and signal conversion cards for the copper to optical medical conversion. These tests precede the development of an increased data rate device operating at 2.5 Gb/s.

  18. Policy Pathways: Energy Performance Certification of Buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2010-07-01

    Improving energy efficiency is one of the most effective measures to address energy security, climate change and economic objectives. The Policy Pathways series can help countries capture this potential by assisting with the implementation of the 25 energy efficiency policy recommendations that were published by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in 2008. This policy pathway on energy performance certification of buildings is the second in the series. It aims to provide a 'how-to' guide to policy makers and relevant stakeholders on the essential elements in implementing energy performance certification of buildings programmes. Energy performance certification of buildings is a way to rate the energy efficiency of individual buildings -- whether they be residential, commercial or public. It is a key policy instrument that can assist governments in reducing energy consumption in buildings. This policy pathway showcases experiences from countries around the world to show examples of good practice and delivers a pathway of ten critical steps to implement energy performance certification of buildings programmes.

  19. STRUCTURAL VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT OF MASONRY BUILDINGS IN TURKEY

    OpenAIRE

    KORKMAZ, Kasım Armagan; CARHOGLU, Asuman Isıl

    2011-01-01

    Turkey is located in an active seismic zone. Mid to high rise R/C building and low rise masonry buildings are very common construction type in Turkey. In recent earthquakes, lots of existing buildings got damage including masonry buildings. Masonry building history in Turkey goes long years back. For sure, it is an important structure type for Turkey. Therefore, earthquake behavior and structural vulnerability of masonry buildings are crucial issues for Turkey as a earthquake prone country. I...

  20. Radiation Characterization of Commercial GaN Devices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, Richard D.; Scheick, Leif Z.; Hoffman, James P.; Thrivikraman, Tushar; Jenabi, Masud; Gim, Yonggyu; Miyahira, Tetsuo

    2011-01-01

    Radiative feedback from primordial protostars and final mass of the first star Commercially available devices fabricated from GaN are beginning to appear from a number of different suppliers. Based on previous materials and prototype device studies, it is expected that these commercial devices will be quite tolerant to the types of radiation encountered in space. This expectation needs to be verified and the study described herein was undertaken for that purpose. All of the parts discussed in this report are readily available commercially. The parts chosen for study are all targeted for RF applications. Three different studies were performed: 1) a preliminary DDD/TID test of a variety of part types was performed by irradiating with 50 MeV protons, 2) a detailed DDD/TID study of one particular part type was performed by irradiating with 50 MeV protons, and 3) a SEB/SEGR test was performed on a variety of part types by irradiating with heavy ions. No significant degradation was observed in the tests performed in this study.

  1. Breaking barriers to interoperability: assigning spatially and temporally unique identifiers to spaces and buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pyke, Christopher R; Madan, Isaac

    2013-08-01

    The real estate industry routinely uses specialized information systems for functions, including design, construction, facilities management, brokerage, tax assessment, and utilities. These systems are mature and effective within vertically integrated market segments. However, new questions are reaching across these traditional information silos. For example, buyers may be interested in evaluating the design, energy efficiency characteristics, and operational performance of a commercial building. This requires the integration of information across multiple databases held by different institutions. Today, this type of data integration is difficult to automate and propone to errors due, in part, to the lack of generally accepted building and spaces identifiers. Moving forward, the real estate industry needs a new mechanism to assign identifiers for whole buildings and interior spaces for the purpose of interoperability, data exchange, and integration. This paper describes a systematic process to identify activities occurring at building or within interior spaces to provide a foundation for exchange and interoperability. We demonstrate the application of the approach with a prototype Web application. This concept and demonstration illustrate the elements of a practical interoperability framework that can increase productivity, create new business opportunities, and reduce errors, waste, and redundancy. © 2013 New York Academy of Sciences.

  2. Deformation behavior of commercial Mg-Al-Zn-Mn type alloys under a hydrostatic extrusion process at elevated temperatures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoon, Duk Jae; Lee, Sang Mok; Lim, Seong Joo; Kim, Eung Zu

    2010-01-01

    This paper presents the deformation behavior of commercial Mg-Al-Zn-Mn type alloys during hydrostatic extrusion process at elevated temperatures. In the current study commercial Mg-Al-Zn-Mn type alloys with different Al contents were subjected to hydrostatic extrusion process at a range of temperatures and at ram speeds of 4.5, 10 and 17 mm/sec. Under the hydrostatic condition at 518K, the alloy with Al contents of 2.9 wt% was successfully extruded at all applied speeds. The alloys with Al content of 5.89 and 7.86 wt% were successful up to 10mm/sec, and finally extrusion of alloy with Al content 8.46wt% was successful only at 4.5 mm/sec. These results show that the deformation limit in the Mg alloys in terms of extrusion speed greatly extended to higher value in the proximity of lower Al content. It is presumed that deformation becomes harder as Al content increases because of strengthening mechanism by solute drag to increase of supersaturated Mg 17 Al 12 precipitates. Also, microstructures of cast and extruded Mg alloys were compared. Defect-wide microstructure of cast alloy completely evolved into dense and homogeneous microstructure with equiaxed grains

  3. Periodic Safety Review of Tendon Pre-stress of Concrete Containment Building for a CA U-Type clear Power Plant

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Joo, Kwang Ho; Lim, Woo Sang [Korea Hydro and clear Power Co., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2009-10-15

    Generally, as the tendon pre-stress of concrete containment buildings at nuclear power plants decreases as time passes due to the concrete creep, concrete shrinkage and the relaxation of tendon strands, the tendon pre-stress must secure the structural integrity of these buildings by maintaining its value higher than that of the designed pre-stress during the overall service life of the nuclear power plants. Moreover, if necessary, the degree of tendon pre-stress must also guarantee the structural integrity of concrete containment buildings over their lifetimes. This paper evaluated the changes in the tendon pre-stress of a concrete containment building subject to time-limited aging as an item in a periodic safety review (PSR) of Wolsong unit 1, a CANDU-type nuclear power plant to ensure that the structural integrity can be maintained until the next PSR period after the designed lifetime.

  4. MPRS (URBOT) commercialization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ciccimaro, Donny; Baker, William; Hamilton, Ian; Heikkila, Leif; Renick, Joel

    2003-09-01

    The Man Portable Robotic System (MPRS) project objective was to build and deliver hardened robotic systems to the U.S. Army"s 10 Mountain Division in Fort Drum, New York. The system, specifically designed for tunnel and sewer reconnaissance, was equipped with visual and audio sensors that allowed the Army engineers to detect trip wires and booby traps before personnel entered a potentially hostile environment. The MPRS system has shown to be useful in government and military supported field exercises, but the system has yet to reach the hands of civilian users. Potential users in Law Enforcement and Border Patrol have shown a strong interest in the system, but robotic costs were thought to be prohibitive for law enforcement budgets. Through the Center for Commercialization of Advanced Technology (CCAT) program, an attempt will be made to commercialize the MPRS. This included a detailed market analysis performed to verify the market viability of the technologies. Hence, the first step in this phase is to fully define the marketability of proposed technologies in terms of actual market size, pricing and cost factors, competitive risks and/or advantages, and other key factors used to develop marketing and business plans.

  5. Building codes : obstacle or opportunity?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alberto Goetzl; David B. McKeever

    1999-01-01

    Building codes are critically important in the use of wood products for construction. The codes contain regulations that are prescriptive or performance related for various kinds of buildings and construction types. A prescriptive standard might dictate that a particular type of material be used in a given application. A performance standard requires that a particular...

  6. Classification of low energy houses in Danish Building Regulations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rose, Jørgen; Svendsen, Svend

    2005-01-01

    The new Danish Building Regulations (Building Regulations, 2005) introduces the total energy consumption, i.e. energy use for heating, ventilation, cooling and domestic hot water, for buildings as a measure for the energy efficiency of new buildings, i.e. moving away from the former U-value demands....... In addition to the minimum requirements for new buildings, the new Building Regulations also specify requirements for characterizing a building as either low energy building class 1 or low energy building class 2. This paper describes a type-house that is presently being built in Denmark. The type......-house easily meets the requirements for being categorized as a low energy building class 1, and the paper investigates how much U-values can be increased if the type-house were to fulfil the requirements for a low energy building class 2 or a building that just fulfils the minimum demands....

  7. The effects of climate on commercial activities in Southern Nigeria ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Four years (2000 and 2003) climatic data of temperature and rainfall were collected from Nigeria Meteorological Station, Lagos and monthly sales record from six commercial sectors (Ice cream, soft drinks, and water; transportation; building/construction; recreation; departmental stores and newspaper) between 2000 and ...

  8. Suitability assessment of building energy saving technologies for office buildings in cold areas of China based on an assessment framework

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Geng, Geng; Wang, Zhaoxia; Zhao, Jing; Zhu, Neng

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • An assessment method considering economy, environment and technology is proposed. • Office buildings are classified into 3 types and weights are calculated respectively. • BESTs were summed up as 3 suitability levels. • Recommendations are proposed for adopting in design stage. - Abstract: Blind application and extensive copy of building energy saving technologies have been found very common through investigation in China. Emphases should be put on the suitability assessment when selecting and optimizing building energy saving technologies. This paper created an assessment method, namely an assessment framework to assess the suitability level of building energy saving technologies from a holistic point of view. Fuzzy analytic hierarchy process was adopted. 3 factors and 8 sub-factors were included in the framework. The office buildings were classified into 3 types to calculate weights of factors and sub-factors. The assessment framework was established for each type of office buildings. 20 energy saving technologies from surveyed cases was selected as case study. Ranks of suitability level of the assessment objects were obtained for each type of office buildings. The assessment results could be referred when selecting building energy saving technologies in the design stage

  9. Trki ptic v stekleno pročelje poslovne stavbe v Ljubljani (osrednja Slovenija jeseni 2012/ Bird collisions with glass façade of a commercial building in Ljubljana (central Slovenia in autumn 2012

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Šumrada Tanja

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available From 28 Sep to 7 Oct 2012, bird collisions with the glass façade of a commercial building in the centre of Ljubljana were monitored. The observations lasted 45-60 minutes in the morning (7.00-10.00 hrs, around midday (11.00-14.00 hrs and in the afternoon (15.00-18.00 hrs. Behaviour of all birds and scavengers, which could potentially be looking for bird carcasses in the vicinity of the building, was noted. In 27.25 hours of observation, 16 collisions (3 resulting in death, 13 cases with birds flying away seemingly unharmed and 19 near collisions, when birds avoided the building at the last moment before collision, were recorded. The total collision rate was 0.59 collisions per hour of observation. All birds that collided with the building, except Feral Pigeon Columba livia f. domestica, were passerines, among which tits Paridae predominated (62.5% of birds that collided with the building. The glass façade functioned as a mirror, reflecting tree crowns from across the street. Data show that most collisions occurred in the middle part of the building during the morning. Among potential scavengers, domestic cat Felis domesticus and Hooded Crow Corvus cornix were observed. The latter regularly flew around the building during the observation period, possibly looking for bird carcasses.

  10. Energy-efficient buildings program evaluations. Volume 1: Findings and recommendations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, A.D.; Mayi, D.; Edgemon, S.D.

    1997-04-01

    This study was conducted for the US Department of Energy (DOE) by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). DOE operates the Building Standards and Guidelines Program (BSGP) to increase the effectiveness of building energy codes, standards, and guidelines. The main purpose of this report is to lay the groundwork for conducting an overall evaluation of the program and its effectiveness. Another purpose of this report is to summarize an extensive set of relevant evaluations and provide a building efficiency and program evaluation information resource for program designers, managers, and evaluators. This study presents information from 119 evaluations that have been conducted of both utility and code programs related to energy efficiency in new residential and commercial buildings. The authors used the information in these evaluations to identify major themes and lessons learned from utility and code programs. They also used the information to gain insights into appropriate evaluation methodologies and establish guidelines for designing future evaluations and an evaluation of the BSGP. The report presents general lessons about evaluating programs that have implications for future evaluations included the following. The evaluations provided the basis for developing an effective evaluation approach for residential building energy-efficiency codes and other energy-efficiency programs and other insights for conducting commercial building program evaluations. The findings for conducting effective evaluations are categorized by steps in the evaluation process.

  11. New type low loss, strong field, RF coils for commercial nuclear fusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ikegami, Shigetaka

    1990-01-01

    New RF coils of L-C-R connection loops type are proposed. One of the coils is only a bundle of μ order diameter isolated conductor, facing the both sides of the bundle ends each other for a capacity. The next characters were found by experiments. (1) This type coils show a sharp first resonance mode and few other modes are measured. (2) The complete proportional relation between the number of the conductors and the conductance of the bundle. (3) The ratio of the RF current resistance to the direct current resistance can be 1. Variational principle for eigenvalue problem was considered for it. The loss due to the vortex current in the conductor itself when exposed in the magnetic field was calculated accurately. And it was found that when the diameter of the conductor is 1/3 of the high frequency skin depth δ, the vortex current is very small. The litz wire can be used below 10 kHz. But this coil can be used above 100 MHz(δ≅7μ), because this coil need not to be stranded. For example, the turbulent heating at the axis of a tokamak plasma in μs order is possible, when a large amplitude stationary magnetosonic wave is excited by the magnetic piston of these coils array around the plasma. And the distance between the plasma and the coils can be large. The commercial nuclear fusion is thought to be possible. (author)

  12. University of Utah, Energy Commercialization Center

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thompson, James [Univ. of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)

    2014-01-17

    culture all played a role in inhibiting the development and distribution of a regional ecosystem and commercialization process. Had the University and the ECC been able to develop a software platform, some of these challenges may have been overcome, but without the final development and release of the Western Innovation Network, the ECC realistically could not scale and distribute a commercialization platform. Further, cleantech startups need to engage in a more intensive customer validation process, and establish strong community connections if they are to succeed in commercializing their products. The university system incentivizes research and access to research funding and risk capital is competitive, so by nature collaboration on commercialization was difficult. Each of the local ecosystems within the Rocky Mountain West was unique. Utah did not, and does not, have a system outside of the universities to support entrepreneurs and cleantech commercialization. Through the ECC’s efforts developing a regional ecosystem, it became clear that successful ecosystems had a community and associated mechanisms that supported local entrepreneurs and startups. Most importantly the ECC aided in the creation of Utah’s cleantech ecosystem, one that supports entrepreneurs and startup companies that need help and support in their efforts to commercialize clean technologies. The absence of support for clean tech from state government and local organizations was a significant impediment to cleantech commercialization. To overcome this challenge, the ECC has formed Sustainable Startups. Sustainable Startups is a new non-profit organization designed to build a culture and community in Utah that supports and understands the importance of cleantech and sustainable development. While the ECC generated mixed success in building a regional commercialization ecosystem for cleantech, the organization did provide tremendous benefit to startups and the broader public. Over 60 companies were

  13. Commercial Building Motor Protection Response Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    James, Daniel P. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Kueck, John [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2015-06-17

    When voltages recover, motors may immediately reenergize and reaccelerate, or delay for a few minutes, or stay stalled. The estimated motor response is given for both the voltage sag magnitude and voltage sag duration. These response estimates are based on experience and available test data. Good data is available for voltage sag response for many components such as relays and contactors, but little data is available for both voltage sag and recovery response. The tables in Appendix A include data from recent voltage sag and recovery tests performed by SCE and BPA on air conditioners and energy management systems. The response of the motor can vary greatly depending on the type of protection and control. The time duration for the voltage sag consists of those times that are of interest for bulk power system modelers.

  14. 324 building safety analysis report supplement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dodd, A.O.; Wittenbrock, N.G.

    1977-01-01

    Process engineering designs, major equipment and plant facilities to be utilized in commercial nuclear waste preparation and vitrification in the 324 Radiochemical Engineering Building are reviewed with regard to accident potential and consequences. This Safety Analysis Report Supplement compares calculated environmental doses anticipated from the Commercial Nuclear Waste Vitrification Project (CNWVP) routine operations with the average doses from past waste management operations conducted at the Hanford Project and finds them to be significantly less. The calculated CNWVP environmental doses are found to be far below presently applicable ERDA standards and standards proposed by the EPA for nuclear power operations

  15. Strategies for the commercial introduction of modular low power fuel cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miranda, H.V.; Laufer, A. [EnergiaH, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Miranda, P.E.V. [Coppe-Federal Univ., Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). Hydrogen Lab.

    2010-07-01

    The reality of the infrastructure in emerging economies brings the opportunity to build up a hydrogen compatible economy. For the Brazilian case, the fast development in many fields coexists with a considerable amount of potential renewable fuels available. Costs of energy distribution and of power grid maintenance throughout a continental size country may lead to a distributed generation system based in a diversified fuels matrix. This pathway drives attention to simpler low power fuel cell devices, with easier maintenance procedures, friendly integration with small power demands, and the capability of being applied separately or integrated to deliver higher power demands. Big cities and small distant agriculture based locations, such as Rio de Janeiro or rain forest extractive communities, could be able to produce fuel and energy in their own infrastructure projects. This article presents a market roadmap for the commercial introduction of direct oxidation type solid oxide fuel cells in Brazil, specifying fuel cell technological features and the specificities for each type of application, either in grid connected or in stand alone low power electric energy generation. (orig.)

  16. Moisture Control Guidance for Commercial and Public Buildings (EPA 402-F-13053)

    Science.gov (United States)

    This document provides guidance to designers, construction mangers, and building operation/maintenance managers to improve IEQ and reduce risks of encountering IEQ problems due to insufficient moisture control. EPA will be producing a document entitled "Moisture Control Guida...

  17. 77 FR 52067 - NASA Advisory Council; Commercial Space Committee; Meeting

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-08-28

    ... NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION [12-069] NASA Advisory Council; Commercial Space.... DATES: Tuesday, September 18, 2012, 11:45 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; Local Time. ADDRESSES: NASA Ames Research Center (ARC), The Showroom, Building M-3, NASA Ames Conference Center, 500 Severyns Road, NASA Research...

  18. Energy Consumption Forecasting for University Sector Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khuram Pervez Amber

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Reliable energy forecasting helps managers to prepare future budgets for their buildings. Therefore, a simple, easier, less time consuming and reliable forecasting model which could be used for different types of buildings is desired. In this paper, we have presented a forecasting model based on five years of real data sets for one dependent variable (the daily electricity consumption and six explanatory variables (ambient temperature, solar radiation, relative humidity, wind speed, weekday index and building type. A single mathematical equation for forecasting daily electricity usage of university buildings has been developed using the Multiple Regression (MR technique. Data of two such buildings, located at the Southwark Campus of London South Bank University in London, have been used for this study. The predicted test results of MR model are examined and judged against real electricity consumption data of both buildings for year 2011. The results demonstrate that out of six explanatory variables, three variables; surrounding temperature, weekday index and building type have significant influence on buildings energy consumption. The results of this model are associated with a Normalized Root Mean Square Error (NRMSE of 12% for the administrative building and 13% for the academic building. Finally, some limitations of this study have also been discussed.

  19. Nonperturbative type IIB model building in the F-theory framework

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jurke, Benjamin Helmut Friedrich

    2011-02-28

    This dissertation is concerned with the topic of non-perturbative string theory, which is generally considered to be the most promising approach to a consistent description of quantum gravity. The five known 10-dimensional perturbative string theories are all interconnected by numerous dualities, such that an underlying non-perturbative 11-dimensional theory, called M-theory, is postulated. Due to several technical obstacles, little is known about the fundamental objects in this theory. There exists an alternative non-perturbative description to type IIB string theory, namely F-theory. Here the SL(2;Z) self-duality of IIB theory is geometrized in the form of an elliptic fibration over the space-time. Moreover, higher-dimensional objects like 7-branes are included via singularities into the geometric picture. This formally elegant description, however, requires significant technical effort for the construction of suitable compactification geometries, as many different aspects necessarily have to be dealt with at the same time. On the other hand, the generation of essential GUT building blocks like certain Yukawa couplings or spinor representations is easier compared to perturbative string theory. The goal of this study is therefore to formulate a unified theory within the framework of F-theory, that satisfies basic phenomenological constraints. Within this thesis, at first E3-brane instantons in type IIB string theory - 4-dimensional objects that are entirely wrapped around the invisible dimensions of space-time - are matched with M5-branes in F-theory. Such objects are of great importance in the generation of critical Yukawa couplings or the stabilization of the free parameters of a theory. Certain properties of M5-branes then allow to derive a new criterion for E3-branes to contribute to the superpotential. In the aftermath of this analysis, several compactification geometries are constructed and checked for basic properties that are relevant for semi

  20. Nonperturbative type IIB model building in the F-theory framework

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jurke, Benjamin Helmut Friedrich

    2011-01-01

    This dissertation is concerned with the topic of non-perturbative string theory, which is generally considered to be the most promising approach to a consistent description of quantum gravity. The five known 10-dimensional perturbative string theories are all interconnected by numerous dualities, such that an underlying non-perturbative 11-dimensional theory, called M-theory, is postulated. Due to several technical obstacles, little is known about the fundamental objects in this theory. There exists an alternative non-perturbative description to type IIB string theory, namely F-theory. Here the SL(2;Z) self-duality of IIB theory is geometrized in the form of an elliptic fibration over the space-time. Moreover, higher-dimensional objects like 7-branes are included via singularities into the geometric picture. This formally elegant description, however, requires significant technical effort for the construction of suitable compactification geometries, as many different aspects necessarily have to be dealt with at the same time. On the other hand, the generation of essential GUT building blocks like certain Yukawa couplings or spinor representations is easier compared to perturbative string theory. The goal of this study is therefore to formulate a unified theory within the framework of F-theory, that satisfies basic phenomenological constraints. Within this thesis, at first E3-brane instantons in type IIB string theory - 4-dimensional objects that are entirely wrapped around the invisible dimensions of space-time - are matched with M5-branes in F-theory. Such objects are of great importance in the generation of critical Yukawa couplings or the stabilization of the free parameters of a theory. Certain properties of M5-branes then allow to derive a new criterion for E3-branes to contribute to the superpotential. In the aftermath of this analysis, several compactification geometries are constructed and checked for basic properties that are relevant for semi

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