People or Systems: Does Productivity Enhancement Matter More than Energy Management in LEED Certified Buildings?

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 13863
Author(s):  
Yana Akhtyrska ◽  
Franz Fuerst
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Management ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Occupant Comfort ◽  
Energy Use Intensity ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Advanced Metering ◽  
The Impact

This study examines the impact of energy management and productivity-enhancing measures, implemented as part of LEED Existing Buildings Operations and Management (EBOM) certification, on source energy use intensity and rental premiums of office spaces using data on four major US markets. Energy management practices, comprised of commissioning and advanced metering, may reduce energy usage. Conversely, improving air quality and occupant comfort in an effort to increase worker productivity may in turn lead to higher overall energy consumption. The willingness to pay for these features in rental office buildings is hypothesised to depend not only on the extent to which productivity gains enhance the profits of a commercial tenant but also on the lease arrangements for passing any energy savings to the tenant. We apply a difference-in-differences method at a LEED EBOM certification group level and a multi-level modelling approach with a panel data structure. The results indicate that energy management and indoor environment practices have the expected effect on energy consumption as described above. However, the magnitude of the achieved rental premiums appears to be independent of the lease type.

scholarly journals Energy Minimisation in a Protected Cropping Facility Using Multi-Temperature Acquisition Points and Control of Ventilation Settings

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (19) ◽  
pp. 6014
Author(s):  
Premaratne Samaranayake ◽  
Chelsea Maier ◽  
Sachin Chavan ◽  
Weiguang Liang ◽  
Zhong-Hua Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Management ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Canopy Temperature ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Plant Canopy ◽  
Cooling Strategy ◽  
The Impact

Energy management in protected cropping is critical due to the high cost of energy use in high-tech greenhouse facilities. The main purpose of this research was to investigate the optimal strategy to reduce cooling energy consumption, by regulating the settings (opening/closing) of either vents or curtains during the day, at the protected cropping facility at Western Sydney University. We measured daily changes in air temperature and energy consumption under four treatments (open/closed combinations of vents and shade screens) and developed an optimal cooling strategy for energy management using multi-temperature acquisition points at different heights within a greenhouse compartment. The optimal treatment (vents open/curtains closed) reduced energy load at the rooftop, thereby maintaining a desirable plant canopy temperature profile, and reducing cooling energy. Daily energy consumption was lowest for vents open/curtains closed (70.5 kWh) and highest for vents closed/curtains open (121 kWh). It was also found that delaying the operation of opening and closing of vents and curtains until the plant canopy temperature reached 25 °C reduced cooling energy consumption and decreased heating energy consumption in the morning (e.g., 08:00 to 10:00). The estimated savings of 1.83 kWh per 1 °C cooling between the optimal (vents open/curtains closed) and least optimal (vents closed/curtains open) conditions had the potential for significant energy savings at 494 kWh per °C over a crop cycle of nine months in warm weather conditions. However, selection of the optimal cooling strategy utilising control of vents and curtains must also account for the impact from other greenhouse environmental factors, including light, humidity, and CO2 concentration, which may be crop specific.

The impact of urbanization on energy consumption and efficiency

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (7) ◽  
pp. 673-686 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pengfei Sheng ◽  
Yaping He ◽  
Xiaohui Guo
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Method Of Moments ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Generalized Method Of Moments ◽  
Method Of Moments Estimation ◽  
Process Of Urbanization ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Impact Of Urbanization ◽  
The Impact

There is no consensus about the impact of urbanization on energy efficiency. We seek to fill this gap in literature using data from 78 countries for the period of 1995 through 2012. Extending the Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology model, we identify the impact of urbanization on energy consumption and efficiency. Results of generalized method of moments estimation indicate that the process of urbanization leads to substantial increases in both the actual and the optimal energy consumption, but a decrease in efficiency of energy use. In addition, we find that the extent to which energy inefficiency correlates with urbanization is greater in countries with higher gross domestic product per capita.

scholarly journals Design and Application of Cellular Concrete on a Mexican Residential Building and Its Influence on Energy Savings in Hot Climates: Projections to 2050

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (22) ◽  
pp. 8225
Author(s):  
Ana C. Borbon-Almada ◽  
Jorge Lucero-Alvarez ◽  
Norma A. Rodriguez-Muñoz ◽  
Manuel Ramirez-Celaya ◽  
Samuel Castro-Brockman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Dynamic Simulations ◽  
Conventional Concrete ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Cellular Concrete

The thermal performance of economical housing located in hot climates remains a pending subject, especially in emerging economies. A cellular concrete mixture was designed, considering its thermophysical properties, to apply the new material into building envelopes. The proposed materials have low density and thermal conductivity to be used as a nonstructural lightweight construction element. From the design stage, a series of wall systems based on cellular concrete was proposed. Whereas in the second phase, the materials were analyzed to obtain the potential energy savings using dynamic simulations. It is foreseen that the energy consumption in buildings located in these climates will continue to increase critically due to the temperature increase associated with climate change. The temperatures predicted mean vote (PMV), electric energy consumption, and CO2 emissions were calculated for three IPCC scenarios. These results will help to identify the impact of climate change on the energy use of the houses built under these weather conditions. The results show that if the conventional concrete blocks continue to be used, the air conditioning energy requirements will increase to 49% for 2030 and 61% by 2050. The proposed cellular concrete could reduce energy consumption between 15% and 28%, and these saving rates would remain in the future. The results indicate that it is necessary to drive the adoption of lightweight materials, so the impact of energy use on climate change can be reduced.

scholarly journals The impact of building envelope retrofit measures on postwar MURBS in Toronto

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Damyar
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Saving ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Simulation Software ◽  
Energy Simulation ◽  
Reduce Energy Consumption ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Current Standards

Building envelope retrofits is one of the options available to reduce energy consumption of postwar MURBs in Toronto. This study evaluates the impact of building envelope retrofits that meet current standards on energy consumption of a Toronto postwar MURB; utilizing eQUEST energy simulation software. Further upgrades also take place to evaluate how the impact of building envelope retrofits on energy use can be increased and optimized for all assemblies of building envelope and airtightness. Moreover, the retrofit strategies are ranked based on cost and energy-saving effectiveness. The results of the analysis reveal that building envelope retrofit based on OBC-2012 standards can reduce the energy consumption by up to 44%. Furthermore, the optimal RSI values of all building envelope components were found to be equal or less than code requirements which outcomes significant energy savings. Lastly, the ranking of the strategies helps to identify the best option according to the priorities of a project.

scholarly journals Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Energy Use at the University of Almeria (Spain)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 5843
Author(s):  
Mehdi Chihib ◽  
Esther Salmerón-Manzano ◽  
Mimoun Chourak ◽  
Alberto-Jesus Perea-Moreno ◽  
Francisco Manzano-Agugliaro
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Electricity Consumption ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Energy Sector ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
University Buildings ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused chaos in many sectors and industries. In the energy sector, the demand has fallen drastically during the first quarter of 2020. The University of Almeria campus also declined the energy consumption in 2020, and through this study, we aimed to measure the impact of closing the campus on the energy use of its different facilities. We built our analysis based upon the dataset collected during the year 2020 and previous years; the patterns evolution through time allowed us to better understand the energy performance of each facility during this exceptional year. We rearranged the university buildings into categories, and all the categories reduced their electricity consumption share in comparison with the previous year of 2019. Furthermore, the portfolio of categories presented a wide range of ratios that varied from 56% to 98%, the library category was found to be the most influenced, and the research category was found to be the least influenced. This opened questions like why some facilities were influenced more than others? What can we do to reduce the energy use even more when the facilities are closed? The university buildings presented diverse structures that revealed differences in energy performance, which explained why the impact of such an event (COVID-19 pandemic) is not necessarily relevant to have equivalent variations. Nevertheless, some management deficiencies were detected, and some energy savings measures were proposed to achieve a minimum waste of energy.

scholarly journals The impact of building envelope retrofit measures on postwar MURBS in Toronto

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Damyar
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Saving ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Building Envelope ◽  
Simulation Software ◽  
Energy Simulation ◽  
Reduce Energy Consumption ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Current Standards

Building envelope retrofits is one of the options available to reduce energy consumption of postwar MURBs in Toronto. This study evaluates the impact of building envelope retrofits that meet current standards on energy consumption of a Toronto postwar MURB; utilizing eQUEST energy simulation software. Further upgrades also take place to evaluate how the impact of building envelope retrofits on energy use can be increased and optimized for all assemblies of building envelope and airtightness. Moreover, the retrofit strategies are ranked based on cost and energy-saving effectiveness. The results of the analysis reveal that building envelope retrofit based on OBC-2012 standards can reduce the energy consumption by up to 44%. Furthermore, the optimal RSI values of all building envelope components were found to be equal or less than code requirements which outcomes significant energy savings. Lastly, the ranking of the strategies helps to identify the best option according to the priorities of a project.

scholarly journals Industrial Decarbonization by a New Energy-Baseline Methodology. Case Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1960
Author(s):  
Rosaura Castrillón-Mendoza ◽  
Javier M. Rey-Hernández ◽  
Francisco J. Rey-Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Management ◽  
Energy Efficient ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Industrial Sector ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Management Plans ◽  
The Impact

The main target of climate change policies in the majority of industrialized countries is to reduce energy consumption in their facilities, which would reduce the carbon emissions that are generated. Through this idea, energy management plans are developed, energy reduction targets are established, and energy-efficient technologies are applied to achieve high energy savings, which are environmentally compatible. In order to evaluate the impact of their operations and investments, companies promote measures of performance in their energy management plans. An integral part of measuring energy performance is the establishment of energy baselines applicable to the complete facility that provide a basis for evaluating energy efficiency improvements and incorporating energy performance indicators. The implementation of energy management systems in accordance with the requirements of ISO Standard 50001 is a contribution to the aim and strategies for improving cleaner production in industries. This involves an option for the industry to establish energy benchmarks to evaluate performance, predict energy consumption, and align production with the lowest possible consumption of primary and secondary forms of energy. Ultimately, this goal should lead to the manufacturing of cleaner products that are environmentally friendly, energy efficient, and are in accordance with the global environmental targets of cleaner manufacturing. This paper discusses an alternative for establishing energy baselines for the industrial sector in which several products are produced from a single raw material, and we determined the energy consumption of each product and its impact on the overall efficiency of the industry at the same time. The method is applied to the plastic injection process and the result is an energy baseline (EBL) in accordance with the requirements of ISO 50001, which serves as a reference for determining energy savings. The EBL facilitates a reduction in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in sectors such as plastics, a sector which accounts for 15% of Colombia’s manufacturing GDP.

scholarly journals ANALYSIS OF RESULTS OF MEASURES PERFORMED TO INCREASE ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN VASIL KARAGIOZOV HIGH SCHOOL OF YAMBOL, BULGARIA

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 306-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Binev
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Saving ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Improve Energy Efficiency ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Impact

The report analyzes the results of the implemented measures to improve energy efficiency in Vasil Karagiozov High school of Yambol, Bulgaria. Energy savings are determined by measuring and/or calculating energy consumption with previously adopted baseline levels, implementing a measure or program to improve energy efficiency by providing normalized corrections corresponding to the impact of specific climatic conditions on energy use. A reference heating energy consumption of 38.62 kWh/m2 was determined after the renovation of the building. Comparing the reference energy costs for heating before and after the implementation of the energy saving measures show a real decrease of the energy consumption for heating by 53.44%. Compared to the reference energy consumption for heating before and after the energy saving measures show an actual reduction of energy consumption for heating by 47.86%.

scholarly journals THE OBSTACLES TO ENERGY SAVING IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS IN NIGERIA: STAKEHOLDERS’ PERSPECTIVES

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.T. Ibrahim ◽  
◽  
N.G. Fernando ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Saving ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Sustainable Energy ◽  
Behavioural Change ◽  
Consumption Behaviour ◽  
The Impact

Over the past three decades research on energy use in buildings has become significant due to increasing scientific and political pressure on issues concerning global warming and climate change. As part of the impact by climate change, tropical nations are faced with several challenges in achieving energy savings, particularly the energy consumption behaviour of building occupants, with very little research coming from Africa. Previous research has shown that variations due to occupant behaviour is substantial. To address these challenges in line with the objectives of some of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (namely, clean and sustainable energy, as well as climate action) in residential buildings, this paper explores the perceptions of stakeholders by identifying the barriers which affect energy use from different cultural perspectives. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured telephone interviews with experts in the energy and construction fields in Nigeria. The purpose of the interviews was to provide an insight into residential energy consumption behaviour and the barriers faced in the adoption of sustainable energy sources. The results were analysed using an energy cultural framework. An analysis of the results shows that continuous awareness of energy saving behavioural change, government subsidies for renewable energy, government checks, and the standardization of energy-efficient appliances imported into the country can improve people’s trust regarding sustainable choices and can promote efficient energy use. The outcome from this work is expected to give a better understanding of energy use behaviour and inform future energy policies and interventions related to household energy saving.

scholarly journals Decrease of the Maximum Speed in Highway Tunnels as a Measure to Foster Energy Savings and Sustainability

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 685 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Peña-García ◽  
Ferdinando Salata ◽  
Iacopo Golasi
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Traffic Safety ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Maximum Speed ◽  
Speed Reduction ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Co2 ◽  
The Impact

The high energy consumption of the lighting installations in highway tunnels has become a hot topic in the last few years due to the high figures in terms of money, consumed energy, use of raw materials, emissions of greenhouse gases due to the remarkable number of manufactured elements, and maintenance, among others. In spite of the different strategies proposed up to date and their savings, the potential benefits of decreasing the maximum speed allowed in tunnels have not been considered in depth as a complementary measure yet. In this work, the impact of such a decrease in terms of energy consumption, number projectors, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and yearly costs in energy is analyzed and discussed. The results strongly suggest the convenience of introducing maximum speed reduction in traffic regulations which, in addition, could create positive synergies with traffic safety.

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