Bookmark and Share

Energy Newsbriefs

Articles for November 12, 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.


BUILDINGS

"Energy-Saving Homes, Buildings, & Manufacturing," by David Moore, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is a five-page, September 2012, fact sheet from the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) at DOE. It reviews EERE programs and the energy savings associated with each for buildings in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors.

The following three case studies appeared in the Fall 2012 issue of High Performing Buildings:

  1. "Defining Performance," by George Denise Sr., Global Account Manager, Cushman & Wakefield, is a case study of Adobe headquarters in San Jose, California. The headquarters consists of three interconnected towers. In what already were very energy efficient buildings, an earlier CFL relamping was upgraded by an LED relamping; new controls and sensors cut the energy use of both the HVAC and the lighting systems; and newly-installed fuel cells were added to generate on-site energy. Into the mix, a number of strategies were implemented including a new open-plan office design whereby almost all walls were removed and desks arranged into "neighborhoods"; the extra space gained is used by an increased number of workers. The sum of all the efforts resulted in buildings that are now 65% more efficient than they had been.

  2. "Green Show-and-Tell," a case study of Dr. David Suziki Elementary School in Windsor, Ontario, was jointly authored by Stephen Carpenter, PE, LEED Fellow, President, and Victor Halder, Energy Efficient Specialist, and David Braun, PE, Commissioning Agent; all are of Kitchener, Ontario's Enermodel Engineering. The school's efficiency, conservation, and renewables efforts include heat pump, earth tubes, light wells, photovoltaics, wind turbines, and much more. Every attempt has been made to make these things visible so teachers can use them as learning opportunities for their students.

  3. "Spreading the Word" describes the Tanimura & Antle Family Memorial Library at California State University Monterey Bay; it was written by Jeff Blaevoet, PE, C Eng (Chartered Engineer [UK]), Principal and Director of Innovation, and Luay Yanes, LEED AP, Associate Principal; both of Guttmann & Blaevoet Consulting Engineers. This article includes a focus on daylight harvesting with protection from solar glare and heat. The mechanical systems described are highly efficient and well-described.

DAYLIGHTING

"Successful Daylighting Isn't Simply about the Numbers" was authored by Eric Truelove, PE, LEED APBD+C, The Renschler Company; it was published in the October 2012 (Vol. 5 No. 5) issue of Enlighten. The author cites several examples of attempts at daylighting that have fallen short and explains why. Then, he lists nine design rules that are likely, in most situations, to result in successful daylighting.

INDUSTRIAL

Improving Steam System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry, Second Edition, Revised October 2012, is a 64-PDF-page document from the Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) at the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office. It is a valuable work, a How-To for the industrial sector.

POLICY – focusing on TRANSPORTATION

"Demand for Public Transport in Germany and the USA: An Analysis of Rider Characteristics" is a 27-page scholarly paper, written by Ralph Buehler, School of Public and International Affairs, Virginia Tech, and John Pucher, Bloustein, School of Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers University; it was published in the September 2012 issue (Vol. 32, No. 5, pp. 541–567) of Transport Reviews. The paper's abstract states briefly the conclusions drawn from the study, which show that the preference for public transport is substantially greater in Germany than in the United States. Government policy in Germany fosters that strong preference while government policy in the U.S. does not.

"Sustainable Transportation" is a five-page, September 2012, fact sheet from the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE); it was authored by David Moore, DOE. This fact sheet reviews the work of DOE to reduce energy expended by private-sector vehicles (personal cars, commercial trucks) by expanding the use of advanced technologies.

TRANSPORTATION

The following three articles were published in the Fall 2012 (September 2012) issue of Clean Cities Now; the first two concern the Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC), a newly-designed online transportation clearinghouse:

  1. "A Brand New Alternative Fuels Data Center" (scroll to the top of page 6), by staff, describes a website that is both user friendly and an excellent source of information for specialists in the field of alternative fuels and AF vehicles.

  2. "10 Ways to Get Started" (scroll to the top of page 7), by staff, elaborates on the data center featured in the article summarized immediately above. It links to the data center site and to one specific and extremely popular feature of that site: an app for desktop computers and mobile devices known as the Alternative Fueling Station Locator.

  3. "Partnerships Spark Biodiesel Success for Essential Baking Co." (scroll to the top of page 4), by staff, tells the story of how Essential Baking Company of Seattle transitioned from a fleet of traditionally-fueled vans to B99 vans (99% biodiesel to 1% petroleum).


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.

© 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.