Appliance and Equipment Efficiency Standards

2002 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 159-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Nadel
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Minimum Energy ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
The United States ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Air Conditioners ◽  
Adverse Impacts ◽  
Setting Process ◽  
Energy Efficiency Standards

▪ Abstract  Minimum energy efficiency standards are regulations that require products to meet specific energy efficiency requirements. Standards have been adopted in 17 countries plus the European Union. Standards have been set on more than 35 products, with refrigerators, air conditioners, ballasts, and freezers being the most common. Based on the available evidence, standards appear to be a very effective energy-saving policy. They have reduced energy use substantially in the United States and made good initial progress in other countries. The standards that have been implemented thus far appear to be cost effective to consumers and result in minimal adverse impacts on manufacturers. Available evidence indicates that the costs of actually implementing standards are commonly less than estimates made by manufacturers and government agencies during the standard-setting process. Standards are frequently a useful complement to other policies such as product labeling, incentives, and voluntary agreements. However, standards are not appropriate for all products and situations.

scholarly journals Comparison of nZEB indicators for hotel renovations under different European climatic conditions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filipe O Cunha ◽  
Armando C Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Minimum Energy ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Energy Model ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Building Stock ◽  
Efficiency Measures

Abstract Hotels hold an important role in the energy efficiency policies of the European Union (EU), as they are typically ranked among the top energy consumers in the non-residential sector. However, a significant amount of the energy used in hotels is wasted, leaving ample room for enhancing energy-efficiency and resource conservation. Indeed, energy refurbishment of the hotel building stock is crucial in order to reach the nearly zero energy building (nZEB) status imposed by EU Directives for energy efficiency, and also an important pillar to achieve the energy targets for 2030 and the transition towards climate-neutral levels by 2050. A typical 4-star hotel in operation in Faro (Portugal) was used as a case study in order to establish energy performance indicators for nZEB hotels in three European cities, taking into account the influence of the climatic context, the technical feasibility and cost effectiveness of the best energy retrofit packages. The study started after the calibration of the building energy model by means of an energy audit and measured data, in order to have a baseline model that represents well the actual energy use of the hotel in the reference location. The building energy model was developed by using DesignBuilder/EnergyPlus software. The validated model was then used to assess the effect of the best retrofit interventions (energy efficiency measures and active solar systems) in order to set minimum energy performance requirements and to reach cost-optimal levels and nZEB levels for refurbished hotels. A significant energy-saving potential was found for the cost-optimal benchmarks, and the obtained nZEB levels can be achieved under technically and economically conditions for the selected cities: Faro, London and Athens.

scholarly journals Spatial and Behavioral Thermal Adaptation in Net Zero Energy Buildings: An Exploratory Investigation

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (19) ◽  
pp. 7961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shady Attia
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Thermal Adaptation ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
Building Energy Efficiency ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Net Zero Energy ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Energy Efficiency Standards

Climate responsive design can amplify the positive environmental effects necessary for human habitation and constructively engage and reduce the energy use of existing buildings. This paper aims to assess the role of the thermal adaptation design strategy on thermal comfort perception, occupant behavior, and building energy use in twelve high-performance Belgian households. Thermal adaptation involves thermal zoning and behavioral adaptation to achieve thermal comfort and reduce energy use in homes. Based on quantitative and qualitative fieldwork and in-depth interviews conducted in Brussels, the paper provides insights on the impact of using mechanical systems in twelve newly renovated nearly- and net-zero energy households. The article calls for embracing thermal adaptation as a crucial design principle in future energy efficiency standards and codes. Results confirm the rebound effect in nearly zero energy buildings and the limitation of the current building energy efficiency standards. The paper offers a fresh perspective to the field of building energy efficiency that will appeal to researchers and architects, as well as policymakers.

scholarly journals Energy Use Efficiency Past-to-Future Evaluation: An International Comparison

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (19) ◽  
pp. 3804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-Nan Wang ◽  
Thi-Duong Nguyen ◽  
Min-Chun Yu
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
The United States ◽  
Total Energy Consumption ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Status ◽  
Energy Efficiency Evaluation

Despite the many benefits that energy consumption brings to the economy, consuming energy also leads nations to expend more resources on environmental pollution. Therefore, energy efficiency has been proposed as a solution to improve national economic competitiveness and sustainability. However, the growth in energy demand is accelerating while policy efforts to boost energy efficiency are slowing. To solve this problem, the efficiency gains in countries where energy consumption efficiency is of the greatest concern such as China, India, the United States, and Europe, especially, emerging economies, is central. Additionally, governments must take greater policy actions. Therefore, this paper studied 25 countries from Asia, the Americas, and Europe to develop a method combining the grey method (GM) and data envelopment analysis (DEA) slack-based measure model (SMB) to measure and forecast the energy efficiency, so that detailed energy efficiency evaluation can be made from the past to the future; moreover, this method can be extended to more countries around the world. The results of this study reveal that European countries have a higher energy efficiency than countries in Americas (except the United States) and Asian countries. Our findings also show that an excess of total energy consumption is the main reason causing the energy inefficiency in most countries. This study contributes to policymaking and strategy makers by sharing the understanding of the status of energy efficiency and providing insights for the future.

scholarly journals The Strategy of Implementing Energy Efficiency Standards and Labels for Domestic Air Conditioners in Libya

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Salah M Alabani ◽  
Ibrahim H Tawil
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Energy Savings ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Total Energy Consumption ◽  
Air Conditioners ◽  
Improve Energy Efficiency ◽  
Reduce Energy Consumption ◽  
Two Stages ◽  
Energy Efficiency Standards

The residential sector in Libya has grown over the past decade in the construction of residential buildings due to the increase in the population. Moreover, the increase in the level of income has contributed to the increase in the purchase of household appliances, which leads to increased demand for energy. Energy consumption in the household sector accounted for 31% of total energy consumption during 2010, and the share of air conditioners in this sector consumed 18.35%. To reduce energy consumption and improve energy efficiency in this sector, policies should be considered to apply energy efficiency standards and markers to household electrical appliances, as they are considered one of the most successful programs used in the world. Countries are implementing such programs to reduce energy consumption in the domestic sector. This paper presents the possibility of implementing such programs to introduce the importance of energy efficiency standards and labeling programs for home appliances in Libya. The calculations required to design such programs show the energy savings that can be achieved during cooling loads in the summer period of 4 months July, August, September). A strategic plan has been developed during 10-year (2020-2030) to estimate the expected savings of energy consumed and to identify possible obstacles and difficulties by gradually increasing the energy efficiency ratio for comestic air conditioners in two stages, from EER10 to EER11 in the first stage is then raised to EER12 as the second stage.

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