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Energy Newsbriefs

Articles for October 1, 2012

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.


BUILDING SCIENCE

"Dry-Bulb? Wet-Bulb? What’s the Difference?" was written by Alex Wilson and published in the July 2012 issue of Environmental Building News. The article includes a clear explanation of how heating water gives rise to the phenomenon of latent heat and why it is so important for that to be taken into consideration. The author shows how both wet- and dry-bulb thermometers are used to take the measure of heat – the dry-bulb thermometer measures sensible heat while the wet-bulb thermometer measures latent heat.

"ORNL Roof and Attic Design Proves Efficient in Summer and Winter," by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, was posted in Energy on September 10, 2012. It describes the roof system that accomplishes the unusual feat of efficiency in hot and cold seasons. An undated, but recent, 28-page slide presentation provides extensive illustrations of the system: "Prototype Roof Decks Next Generation of Attic Systems," from the Building Envelope Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, written by Dr. William Miller et al. at the University of Tennessee and by Billy Ellis of Billy Ellis Roofing.

HVAC/R (HEATING, VENTILATION, AIR CONDITIONING, AND REFRIGERATION)

"Drive Your HVAC System to High Performance," by J. Robert Howard, Facility Manager Administrator, Certified Facility Manager, and LEED AP, was carried in the August 2012 issue of Buildings. The author elaborates on three actions that can bring an older HVAC system to a possibly higher level of efficiency than it met when it was first installed.

LIGHTING

Life-Cycle Assessment of Energy and Environmental Impacts of LED Lighting Products is a two-part report from the Building Technologies Program of the Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Office at the U.S. Department of Energy:

Part 1: "Review of the Life-Cycle Energy Consumption of Incandescent, Compact Fluorescent, and LED Lamps" was published February 2012 and updated August 2012. It is a 54-page document with an Executive Summary on document-pages 1-3 (PDF-pages 9-11).

Part 2: "LED Manufacturing and Performance" was published June 2012. It is a 79-page document with an Executive Summary on document-pages 1-5 (PDF-pages 9-13).

"Seamless Switches for Lighting Controls," by Janelle Penny, Associate Editor, Buildings, was published in the August 2012 issue of that journal. It lists and discusses eight strategies for the selection of the lighting control system most appropriate to a specific building.

ROOFING

"Cost-Efficient Roofing Insulation for the Right Thermal Rating," by Christopher Curtland, Assistant Editor of Buildings, appeared in the August 2012 issue of Buildings. It includes the sidebar "Aspects of Efficient Roofing Insulation" and a map of the U.S. showing the old and new thermal ratings for various climate regions.

RESIDENTIAL EFFICIENCY STRATEGIES

"Shopping for light bulbs? Learning about Lumens is a Bright Idea" is a two-page fact sheet from the Federal Trade Commission; it is undated but likely published in 2011. It explains that until fairly recently, shopping for a light bulb involved knowing how much electricity (watts) it uses. With very energy-efficient types of light bulbs, the wattage of each bulb has plummeted. Now, it is necessary to know how bright the light is that the bulb gives off. The number of lumens tells how bright the bulb is. The fact sheet includes a helpful chart that gives the corresponding lumens for commonly known wattage numbers to help consumers make the conversion as they buy non-traditional bulbs.

TRANSPORTATION

"Smith Newton Vehicle Performance Evaluation" is a four-page brochure by Adam Duran, Laurie Ramroth, and Mike Simpson, all of NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory); it was published August 2012. It shows the performance of electric and plug-in hybrid drive systems that are being tested in medium-duty trucks. This is a prelude to the building of 500 all-electric trucks to be operated around the country.

"Sustainable Transportation" is a five-page, September 2012, fact sheet, by David Moore, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) from the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office (EERE) at DOE. It discusses advances is transportation-related technologies.

WORKFORCE – WIND

"The Impact of Wind Development on County-Level Income and Employment: A Review of Methods and an Empirical Analysis" is a two-page, September 2012, fact sheet from the Wind and Water Power Program (WWPP), a program of the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Office (EERE) of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The research was done for 130 counties in 12 states.


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© 2012 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.