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Weekly Energy Newsbriefs

Articles for June 8, 2009


ENERGY NEWSBRIEFS is a weekly current awareness service provided by the Washington State University 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 Energy Newsbriefs archives at http://www.energy.wsu.edu/library/newsbriefs.cfm.


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

"Measures of Appliance Energy Efficiency That Reflect the Full Fuel Cycle Would Provide Consumers with Clearer Picture of Energy Use, Environmental Impacts" is a May 27, 2009 press release from the National Academies. The Academies are urging the U.S. Department of Energy to change the measurement of energy used by appliances from point-of-use to full-fuel-cycle. The former measures how much energy an appliance uses during operation; the latter takes point-of-use into consideration, but, further, includes other energy used such as "upstream energy," which is the energy lost in transmission. The press release includes a link to the place where one can choose to read the report on one's desktop (chapter by chapter) or download the entire report with free registration. See the release at http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=12670.


BIOMASS

Each of the following two articles discusses a pilot project of interest; they appeared in the May 15, 2009, edition of Biomass Week:

  1. "Algae Project Removes Toxins, Produces Biomass," by Lisa Gibson, describes the effort to clean wastewater and produce biomass for biofuels. This project involves specific types of algae that, without added nutrients, can grow in wastewater. See this article at http://www.biomassmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=2668.

  2. "Green Plains to Install Photobioreactor," by Erin Voegele, reports on the attempt to use waste (water, heat and CO2) at an ethanol manufacturing plant to produce algae, likely for animal feed. See this article at http://www.biomassmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=2659.



BUILDINGS

The Spring 2009 issue of High Performance Buildings includes five in-depth case studies of interest:

  1. "Canada's Green Prototype: Normand-Maurice Building" was jointly written by Ashly Lyons, Junior Engineer, Frederic Genest, Associate, and Jacques De Grace, Principal Associate; all ASRAE members and all of Pageau Morel. This 168 sq. ft. government building employs as much natural ventilation as Montreal's climate permits. Additionally, the building is, in part, a recycled version of the abandoned foundry it replaces on the same site. See this case study at http://www.hpbmagazine.org/images/stories/articles/Spring2009NormandMaurice.pdf.

  2. "A Home for the Next 100 Years: Concord House Retrofit" was authored by Betsy Pettit, FAIA, Founding Principal, Building Science Corporation. The author chronicles the successful effort to upgrade the mechanical systems and more of this one hundred year-old home, while keeping the integrity of its original design intact. The upgrade included roof photovoltaics. See this case study at http://www.hpbmagazine.org/images/stories/articles/Spring2009ConcordRetrofit.pdf.

  3. "Lake Superior's Remedy: Two Harbors High School" was written by David Toshio Williams, PE, High Performance Projects Principal, LHB, Inc. A beautiful new high school was built in Two Harbors, Minnesota, to replace two older facilities. The new school is so energy-efficient that it costs much less to run than other Minnesota schools. See this case study at http://www.hpbmagazine.org/images/stories/articles/Spring2009TwoHarborsRev2_experiment2.pdf.

  4. "Operational Excellence: VSP Vision Care" was co-authored by Laurie Gilmer, PE, Associate, and Maureen Roskoski, Senior Professional, both of Facility Engineering Associates; and Cynthia Smith Leon, Facility Manager, VSP. An effort to reduce energy and water consumption and achieve a 95% waste diversion rate in a 150,000 sq. ft. facility in Rancho Cordova, California, has resulted in Platinum certification from LEED EB (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Buildings, a program of the U.S. Green Building Council). This case study is at http://www.hpbmagazine.org/images/stories/articles/Spring2009VSP.pdf.

  5. "Transparent Performance: Szencorp Building," by Stuart West, shows the conversion of a 22 year-old, energy- and water-inefficient, nearly 14,000 sq. ft. office building into a model of efficiency, one that continues to increase its resources reductions. The building, in Melbourne, Australia, now has vastly improved mechanical systems which are described. This case study is at http://www.hpbmagazine.org/images/stories/articles/Spring2009Szencorp.pdf.


RECYCLING

"Avoiding the Landfill: the Recycling of Vinyl Roof Membranes" was written by Cary Black, Chairman, Technical Committee, at the Vinyl Roofing Division of the Chemical Fabrics & Film Association. The author reports that, as a result of several pilot projects, the nation's vinyl industry will embark on a study to evaluate the feasibility of recycling the roof membranes on a large scale. See this article in ED+C (Environmental Design + Construction), May 2009, at http://www.edcmag.com/CDA/Articles/Cool_Roof/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000574851.


TRANSPORTATION

"Smart Charger Controller Simplifies Electric Vehicle Recharging" is an April 30, 2009, press release from PNNL (Pacific Northwest National Lab) that describes the Smart Charger Controller. This is a newly-developed product that does not recharge its electric vehicle during peak times of the day but the hours when electricity is at lowest demand and, therefore, lowest cost. As a result, it should reduce energy costs for the electric plug-in car owner. Additionally, by preventing high demand during peak hours from overloading the grid, such devices, if used on a large scale, would help protect against grid failure. See this press release at http://www.pnl.gov/news/release.asp?id=365.

Past issues of Energy Newsbriefs are available at http://www.energy.wsu.edu/library/newsbriefs.cfm.

Generally, subscription information for the journals cited above can be found at the home page of their web sites.

© 2009 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.