Energy Efficiency最新文献

Due to the environmental impacts caused by increasing energy consumption, energy efficiency has become an important policy objective for various countries and governments. While many studies have explored the determinants of energy intensity, the question of how economic complexity and the shadow economy affect energy efficiency has received inadequate attention. This paper connects these issues by studying the direct and complementary effects of economic complexity and the shadow economy on energy efficiency in G7 countries. The empirical findings indicate that both economic sophistication and the shadow economy exert adverse impacts on energy intensity. However, each factor has a harmonizing effect on the other’s influence on energy intensity. While the expansion of the shadow economy reduces the harmful effect of economic complexity on energy intensity, economic sophistication diminishes the damaging impact of the shadow economy. Therefore, the effect of either economic complexity or the shadow economy on energy intensity depends on their interactions and their influence on total energy use. These findings provide governments with policy implications for handling the interrelations between these economic, social, and energy issues.

To accomplish net-zero carbon emissions in the built environment by 2050, we must equitably decarbonize commercial buildings, including reducing plug and process loads (PPLs). PPLs are plug-in or hardwired electric and gas loads that are not associated with major building end uses like lighting and HVAC. Research shows PPL energy reduction strategies and control technologies have the potential to save energy. But even when implemented, these savings have rarely been achieved and there has not been widespread uptake in U.S. commercial buildings. We investigate why these technologies and strategies have not seen widespread adoption and identify behavior and technology pathways to increase PPL reduction in U.S. commercial buildings. We examined behaviors of commercial building stakeholders through 44 interviews and cross-referenced qualitative analysis findings with in-depth technical knowledge of existing PPL control technologies and reduction strategies. PPL control implementation must be paired with management strategies, such as occupant engagement and training, to achieve optimal savings, and best practices should be disseminated across the industry. We found that increasing access to cost and energy savings data will promote uptake of PPL control technologies and allow designers to better incorporate PPLs into building design. Improving access to funding for PPL energy efficiency projects and addressing the split-incentive problem will increase adoption of PPL efficiency and control. Code bodies should continue to include PPL monitoring and reduction measures in energy codes. Key building stakeholders, including cybersecurity and information technology teams, should be involved in PPL monitoring and reduction strategy processes for successful implementation.

This work proposes a new model to evaluate the air changes per hour (ach) due to natural infiltrations in buildings. This modeling already exists at building scale, but the new model will implement the hourly ventilation load in a physical-based modeling for space heating and cooling in buildings at urban scale. The proposed improvement considers the wind and buoyancy effects in the calculation of hourly achs in a high-density urban context. A three-zone air flow lumped modeling is applied to describe the air flow in buildings; the air flow rate due to infiltrations is calculated depending only on leakages’ characteristics and pressure variations in various climate conditions. The non-linear equations system of mass and energy conservation is solved by an iterative procedure using the Newton-Raphson numerical method. Besides, two different methodologies are compared to evaluate the external dynamic and static pressure conditions on building façades: experimental values (pressure coefficients Cp) and CFD simulations. For the latter, the air flow field in the urban canyons is described by the windy conditions and by imposing a temperature gradient due to solar irradiation between the windward and leeward facades. This methodology is applied to three urban canyons in Turin, with typical aspect ratios and orientations for some local climate conditions considering both heating and cooling seasons. Comparing the results of hourly ach obtained from the Cp method, the CFD technique allows to modulate the ach considering the impact of the canyon dimension, wind and buoyancy effect of non-isothermal condition, in varying the wind speed on the façades of buildings for different scenarios. It also overcomes the limit of field of applications of Cp, especially in high-density built urban environments. The encouraging results of this work will lead to future developments of the three-zone lumped model and its numerical solution techniques.

Energy feedback is recognized in energy literature as vital for altering and curbing energy usage. However, recent studies highlight the limitation of energy feedback, questioning its real capacity to promote energy-saving behaviours. Meanwhile, micro-generation, such as photovoltaic panels (PVs), is deemed more effective in reshaping daily practices by encouraging time-shifting of activities, as a way to reduce the load of energy consumed in the grid, while increasing the one from renewable resources. This study explores the impacts of appliance-level consumption feedback combined with micro-generation on everyday practices; it adopts a practice theoretical perspective, viewing households as practitioners rather than mere rational agents. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected between 2022 and 2023 in households with PVs on two islands located off the west coast of Ireland. Smart plugs were installed and connected to different home appliances to collect energy data and provide feedback on their energy usage through a webapp. Our analysis focuses on pre- and post- plugs’ installation and feedback delivery periods, to assess households’ responses both in relation to their practices and to PV usage. While appliance-level feedback showed potential in enhancing PV use and practice changes, heightened awareness does not guarantee change, and households’ responses to feedback depend on various influencing factors deeply embedded in everyday practices – including the (non) negotiability of practices, app design, household dynamics and previous experience with the PV system. Our findings suggest opportunities for energy research to develop more tailored strategies for cutting energy consumption, taking into consideration people’s practices.

The link between energy and economic growth has been investigated for several nations and periods. Today, with global warming, it has been emphasized that governments should focus on energy policies by considering an environmentalist approach to energy use, and it has been observed that many researchers are now examining issues such as ecological footprint and reduction of carbon emissions in energy-related studies. This study aims to include clues about how Türkiye, a foreign-dependent country in energy, should follow its energy policies. For this purpose, the relationship between energy consumption, environmental technologies, energy intensity, GDP (Gross Domestic Product) per capita, urbanization, and trade openness for Türkiye (1980–2020) is examined by Fourier ARDL (Auto-Regressive Distributed Lags) cointegration and Fourier Toda-Yamamoto causality tests, which take into account structural breaks. According to the results, there is a bidirectional causality relationship between energy intensity and environment-related technologies. There is also a bidirectional relationship between energy consumption and energy intensity. Turkish policymakers should prioritize green and sustainable approaches to increasing industrial energy efficiency.

Micro-Zonal Occupant-Centric Control (MZOCC) saves HVAC energy by creating comfortable virtual micro-zones around occupants and controlling diffusers using occupant centric control (OCC). This is needed in modern open-plan offices with flexible work schedules to avoid energy wasted in air-conditioning unoccupied regions. Despite this, there is no clarity yet on how micro-zones are to be planned within thermal zones. There exist knowledge gaps between established methods of thermal zoning for HVAC design and micro-zoning. Several temporal and spatial factors influence the transient thermal exchanges between virtual micro-zones which increases the complexity of micro-zoning. This study develops protocols for micro-zoning to simplify the process of MZOCC. The study first outlines factors critical in micro-zoning open-plan offices which are identified from literature and survey of Indian offices. Results indicate that Indian open-plan offices are diverse and caters to a variety of activities within each thermal zone. Occupancy survey shows that office spaces are partially occupied, most of the time. The second part delineates protocols for micro-zoning following assumptions derived from literature and survey data. In the third stage, these protocols are used to shortlist the best micro-zonal layouts for MZOCC from numerous possible layouts. The effectiveness of the protocols is confirmed using CFD simulations where it is observed that the shortlisted layouts perform better than others. These layouts act as a starting point, on which airflow control can be strategized to further improve MZOCC. Results also show that planned MZOCC saves 73% energy compared to zone level OCC.

The transition from energy consumers to prosumers, who produce, store, and sell energy, is crucial for sustainable energy systems. This study investigates the barriers and motivations for households in Kogi State, Nigeria, to adopt prosumption, utilizing a mixed-methods approach. Data were collected through questionnaires administered via the Kobo-collect tool and personal interviews. Factor analysis was used to develop summated scales for motivational and barrier factors, followed by cluster analysis to identify distinct consumer/prosumer groups. The findings revealed that 85.3% (384 individuals) within the study area do not generate energy within their households, while 14.7% (66 individuals) were already engaged in energy production and two primary clusters emerged: passive consumers, with little interest in energy-related investments, and green consumers, motivated by environmental concerns and cost savings. Key barriers to prosumption include financial constraints, lack of information, and the absence of supportive policies such as net metering. Motivational factors are linked to environmental self-identity and energy literacy. The study highlights the need for targeted policies and effective information dissemination to address these barriers and promote prosumption. This research provides valuable insights for policymakers and energy companies aiming to encourage the adoption of renewable energy technologies in developing regions. It underscores the importance of supportive infrastructure, financial incentives, and comprehensive information campaigns to enhance prosumption adoption.

European governments have implemented various policies to mitigate the impact of rising energy prices on households and businesses. However, these policies have often failed to promote energy savings or target the most vulnerable energy users, and they have incentivized fossil fuels against green alternatives. Yet the urgency of climate change compels governments to not delay or counteract climate policy any further. The article highlights the need for better "green targeting" of fiscal measures to accelerate the energy transition. As energy prices in Europe are expected to remain volatile in the near term, governments should focus on designing fiscal measures that prioritize a fair and green transition. The article proposes a "Green triple T" criterion for such measures. Namely, we recommend tailored, targeted and transition-proof support.

This paper develops a new model for measuring technical efficiency of energy based on the input distance function. This new model not only measures the technical efficiency levels of energy and other inputs simultaneously but also distinguishes the differences in technical efficiency levels among various inputs. Additionally, we have constructed a two-step Bayesian method to estimate this model. We applied the method proposed in this paper to study the technical efficiency of energy of Chinese provinces from 1997 to 2022. Among other findings, we observed that China’s technical efficiency of energy during this period exhibited an inverted U-shaped trend. The level of technical efficiency of energy was higher than that of capital and labor, and the differences in technical efficiency levels among different input factors did not diminish over time.

Demand-response is essential for balancing electricity grids with increasing proportions of intermittent renewable sources of generation. Harnessing the potential for demand-response in domestic settings could deliver widespread benefits for electricity systems and householders. This study applies domestication theory to a major national domestic electricity demand-response programme in Great Britain, exploring how participants integrate demand-response sessions into their everyday routines. The study uses empirical data from twenty-five participants who completed diaries reflecting on their experience of taking part in thirteen demand-response sessions scheduled over a five-month period in winter 2022–23. The study identifies and analyses five pathways for domesticating demand-response, making recommendations to support system-actors in boosting and sustaining the adoption of demand-response. The study concludes that designing electricity demand-response programmes, as a staple of secure low-carbon energy systems, will need to take full account of users’ non-financial motivations, previous experiences of demand-response, and access to enabling technology.