English

Occupant controlled HVAC systems offer inhabitants of open office spaces some degree of control over their immediate microclimate typically by control of air supplied at floor or desk top level. Productivity gains have been attributed to these systems but it is unclear whether these systems will use less energy than conventional HV AC systems. It is also not clear what the controlling parameters will be. To study energy consumption, a simplified model of the thermal environment was created for an occupant controlled system.

This paper reviews the development of performance indices for fabric thermal storage from the original BRE office research data to the two mixed mode design options currently available, each having different design priorities, namely naturally ventilated or mechanically ventilated. Naturally ventilated mixed mode designs appear to be less suitable for UK locations and also appear to have significantly greater annual energy consumption. In addition to the comparison of energy consumption criteria, the paper also reviews recent Scandinavian indoor climate classifications.

A five-year initiative between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) demonstrated the feasibility of improving the energy efficiency of publicly assisted housing. Twenty-seven projects and activities undertaken during 1990-95 involved research and field demonstrations, institutional and administrative changes to HUD policies and procedures, innovative financing and leveraging of federal dollars with non-federal money, and education, training, and technical assistance.

The provision of ventilation air for high-rise multifamily housing has plagued retrofit practitioners and researchers alike. How does one determine whether sufficient levels of outdoor air are being provided to all apartments in a building? And how does one know whether the systems can be retrofit to improve their energy efficiency without compromising air quality?

Comparative energy information is one method energy policymakers have employed to motivate consumers to reduce their energy use. The US appliance labeling program, for example, has used graphical displays to illustrate the differences in energy consumption among home appliances. Little is known, however, about how consumers interpret various graphical displays and/or how they use the information. Additionally, subtleties in the accuracy with which these graphical displays convey the underlying data have yet to be addressed in the research literature.

Energy efficiency was a significant by-condition in the design work of the New Block (23, 700 m²; 255, 100 ft²) of the University Hospital in the city of Linkoping in Sweden. The block is made up of several interconnecting buildings of between two to four floors, and contains the Heart Centre, the Ear Centre and the Clinic for Infectious Diseases. The principal aim of the design work was to decrease the electrical energy end-uses for air distribution, cooling and lighting (electronic ballasts, occupancy sensors).

Interest in the UK regarding the design of passively ventilated and cooled buildings has resulted in much work on the thermal performance and likely environmental impact of such buildings. Little work assessing the impact of the passive design approach on the construction process has been undertaken. This issue is examined herein, through the initial development of a methodology quantifying the relationship between passive environmental control (PEC) and the construction process, leading to a means of classifying buildings according to their prefabrication strategy.

This paper compares energy and environmental awareness in two small towns in Sweden and Minnesota over time. In the early 1980s, Minnesotans were more anxious and exerted greater conservation efforts than the Swedes, but both are now bored with energy issues. They focus instead on environment-namely, recycling. Saving money continues to dominate decisions, but time is gaining priority in tradeoffs of energy, money, and time. Environmental concern is usually sacrificed to economics. Certain culturally-valued behaviors override both more conserving alternatives and economic considerations.

This authors draw upon 16 years of evaluation experience in conducting energy service marketing evaluations and market assessment research in the commercial and small industrial sectors to present real-life experiences and results of marketing efforts for energy services. The paper covers the use of mass and targeted media, community groups, trade allies, social groups and networks, demonstrations, one-on-one appeals and other methods to market energy services.

This paper describes a building analysis model for Russian multi-family housing, an array of possible retrofits, and the energy analyses for these buildings. It also describes the Russian retrofit project that will use these analyses to specify more than $300M of retrofits across six cities. The research was done under the Enterprise Housing Divestiture Project, a Government of Russia project with partial financing from the World Bank. A special version of the Facility Energy Decision System [FEDS] model was developed for use on Russian multi-family buildings.