Energy Newsbriefs
Articles for November 15, 2010
ENERGY NEWSBRIEFS is a weekly current awareness service provided by the WSU Extension Energy Program Library and written by Angela Santamaria, WSU Energy Library Manager, to assist users in tracking developments in the energy field. To view past issues or to subscribe to receive an email notification of the publication of a new issue, go to the Energy Newsbriefs home.
Please be aware that although every URL is checked for accuracy prior to the publication of Energy Newsbriefs, URLs are, for various reasons, subject to change. Further, servers sometimes fail to connect to working URLs.
APPLIANCES
The following three articles appeared in the October 2010 issue of Appliance Design:
1. "Energy Saving Trends in Water Pumping" was written by Terry Day, Technical Director at New Fluid Technology, Queensland, Australia. This article addresses energy reductions, specifically, for the pool pump industry.
2. "A New Alternative to Full-Custom ASICs," by Jim Kemerling, Founder and CTO, Triad Semiconductor, suggests that a via-configurable array (VCA) may be an acceptable alternative to full-custom, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), given that the ASICs are so expensive. In appropriate applications, VCAs can contribute to power reduction in appliances, just as ASICs do.
3. "Touch Sensing Technology Takes Form" was authored by Alfred Woo, Senior Strategic Marketing Manager, Synaptics. The author explains what capacitive touch technology is and what sets it apart from other inputs on consumer appliances such as the mechanical button, membrane switch, and resistive touch technologies. Capacitive touch (or sensing) technology brings several benefits, among them is durability. Capacitive sensors, properly protected with a suitable cover, simply last indefinitely, thereby, avoiding the need to use energy to manufacture replacements.
BIOFUELS
"Waste Oil’s New World" was written by Luke Geiver, Associate Editor,Biodiesel Magazine, and published in the October 2010 issue of that publication. New businesses have sprouted in response to new needs: the pick-up of waste oil from restaurants and the transformation of that oil into biodiesel. This article describes the businesses that are involved and the expertise that is needed all the way from the restaurant to the biofuel producers.
CONSUMER EFFICIENCY STRATEGIES
EnergySavers.gov: Stay Warm, Save Money is a website, revised (and re-named) seasonally, from the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office of the U.S. Department of Energy. The site is now offering many tips for energy savings for the fall and winter.
LivingEfficiently.org is a website developed by the Alliance to Save Energy. It offers advice for achieving energy savings at home, at work, at school, and on the road.
LIGHTING
"Seeing Lighting Design in a Whole New Light" was written by John E. Reichardt, LC, LEED AP, Wiley|Wilson, and posted September 28, 2010, on the EC&M (Electrical Design, Construction & Maintenance) website. The author addresses, in depth, the major activities (phases) that contribute to any lighting design project: programming, schematic design, design development, contract material, bidding, construction, and post-occupancy. The article includes a sidebar, "Seeing the Light."
NET-ZERO ENERGY
"Objective: Net-Zero Energy" was jointly written by Kevin Cail, Director of Sustainability & Commercial Innovation, and Constant van Aerschot, Director of Construction Trends; both of LaFarge; it was published in the October 2010 issue of ED+C (Environmental Design + Construction). Energy Efficiency in Buildings (EEB) is a project of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Its aim is to transform the market so that all new buildings are net-zero energy by 2050. This article explains EEB's plan to accomplish that goal.
"Targeting Net-Zero" was written by Michael Cockram, Adjunct Professor of Architecture, University of Oregon, and carried on a McGraw Hill Construction website; it was originally published in the September/October 2010 issue of GreenSource. This five-web-page article is a Continuing Education opportunity as is explained on the first web page, but it also stands on its own as an interesting and informative piece on the design of net-zero-energy buildings. It includes clear definitions of four types of net-zero-energy buildings: net-zero site, net-zero source, net-zero cost, and net-zero emissions.
The following brief case studies were published in the September 2010 issue of Green Building News:
1. "DOE Opens Net-Zero Office," by staff, focuses on the new Research Support Facility of the United States Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), which is likely to earn LEED-Platinum certification. Aggressively energy efficient, the shape of the building was designed for the maximum use of daylighting; it is located in Boulder, Colorado.
2. "N.Y. College Targets Platinum," by staff, highlights the Gateway Building of the College of Environmental Science and Forestry at the State University of New York, in Syracuse. Currently under construction, its design aims for LEED-Platinum certification. In addition to various energy efficiencies, the building will use on-site renewables to generate more energy than it needs.
POLICY
The European Union (EU) is developing its Energy Strategy Plan for the coming decade:
1. The EU issued the 17-page "stock-taking document," "Towards a New Energy Strategy for Europe 2011-2020," on May 7, 2011.
2. The Board of Energy Cities, an association of local authorities (cities and towns) in EU countries, issued a position paper on the EU document, "Public consultation on the Energy Strategy for Europe – It’s Time to Encourage a Bottom-Up EU Energy Policy Based on Territorial Cohesion," on July2, 2010. [Territorial Cohesion, like Economic Cohesion and Social Cohesion, refers to a balance across the EU. Territorial Cohesion is, specifically, fair access to Services of General Economic Interest (SGEI).]
3. An article in the September-October issue of Cogeneration & On-Site Power Production (and posted on the Power-Gen website), "Time to Encourage a Bottom-Up EU Energy Policy Based on 'Territorial Cohesion'," is an explication of the Energy Cities' position paper, and it, also, provides background information about the EU's energy strategy.
Past issues of Energy Newsbriefs are available here.
Generally, subscription information for the journals cited above can be found at the home page of their web sites.
© 2010 Washington State University Extension Energy Program. This publication contains material written and produced for public distribution. Permission to copy or disseminate all or part of this material is granted, provided that the copies are not made or distributed for commercial advantage, and that each is referenced by title with credit to the Washington State University Extension Energy Program. Copying, reprinting or dissemination, electronic or otherwise, for any other use requires prior written permission from the Washington State University Extension Energy Program.