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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 325 records · Page 18
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

An international review of occupant-related aspects of building energy codes and standards

In light of recent research, it is evident that occupants are playing an increasingly important role in building energy performance. Furthermore, despite the important role of building energy codes and standards in design, the occupant-related aspects are typically simple and have not kept up with the leading research. This paper reviews 23 regions’ building energy codes and standards by first comparing their quantitative aspects and then analyzing their mandated rules and approaches. While the present paper focuses on offices, general recommendations are applicable to other building types as well. The review revealed a wide range of occupant-related values, approaches, and attitudes. For example, code-specified occupant density varies by nearly a factor of three between different codes. This underlines the need for development of advancement in occupant behavior modeling approaches for future occupant-centric building performance codes and standards. Moreover, occupants are often referred to only implicitly; underlying expectations about energy-saving occupant behavior from building occupants varies greatly; and, only a few codes address occupant feedback and system usability. Based on the findings of the review, a set of initial recommendations for future building energy codes is proposed.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

Virtual Reality for Shoot/No-Shoot Decision Training in Law Enforcement: A Literature Review and Research Agenda

Virtual reality (VR) can materially improve “shoot / no-shoot” (SNS) training by giving officers realistic, repeatable practice making high-stakes decisions under pressure. Traditional tools—live-fire ranges and video simulators—build basics, but they cannot adapt to each officer in real time or fully mirror the complexity of the field. VR closes that gap by creating immersive scenarios that are safer, more flexible, easier to scale across units, and able to capture objective performance data. SNS decisions are not just about marksmanship; they rely on perception, judgment, memory, and the ability to hold fire when a threat is uncertain. Effective training therefore needs realism, decision complexity, and branching outcomes that reflect the true consequences of choices. These elements strengthen recognition of hostile intent while reducing false positives and building the self-control required in ambiguous situations. VR brings specific advantages: dynamic environments, full-body interaction, and the ability to measure performance with precision—enabling targeted feedback and better transfer of learning to the street. At the same time, responsible deployment must address scenario quality (credible environments and behaviors), lawful decision models, and user wellbeing (appropriate stress levels, comfort, and safety). Sandia’s VIPER Lab is positioned to lead this work. The team combines human-performance science, AI/ML, and VR/AR development with a deep equipment bench (e.g., omnidirectional treadmill, eye-tracking, haptics, multiple HMDs). This ecosystem supports building and validating next-generation SNS training that is immersive, measurable, and trustworthy. Bottom line: Investment in VR-enabled SNS training that blends evidence-based design with careful validation and legal safeguards is expected to pay off in safer, more consistent decision-making and improved community trust, delivered through training that is practical to deploy at scale.

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗
DOE OSTI2021

The Architecture of Area 12 Camp - Nevada's Atomic Ghost Town. An Architectural Survey of Area 12 Camp, Nevada National Security Site, Nye County, Nevada

The U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Field Office (NNSA/NFO) plans to demolish 10 buildings and one structure in Area 12 Camp at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) in Nye County, Nevada, to meet current and future National Weapons Science, Global and Homeland Security Program, and Environmental Management mission requirements and to reduce dangers to site workers from some of these resources. These demolitions constitute an undertaking subject to review under Title 54 U.S.C. § 306108, commonly known as Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, Title 54 U.S.C. § 300101, et seq., and its implementing regulations, 36 C.F.R. Part 800. These resources were recorded and evaluated as individually ineligible for the National Register of Historic Places (National Register or NRHP) by Menocal and Shaw (2019). Upon review by the Nevada State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and internal review by Desert Research Institute (DRI) and NNSA/NFO staff, it was determined that these resources needed to be rerecorded and evaluated in relation to what appeared to be a National Register-eligible Historic District made up of the entirety of Area 12 Camp. Based on preliminary information, it appeared that all 11 resources would likely be contributing elements of that historic district. With that assumption in mind, recording of the entire proposed Area 12 Camp Historic District was done for three purposes. First, it would result in a definitive significance evaluation of the 11 resources in question. Second, recording of the entire camp would be offered as an appropriate mitigation measure for the demolition of these resources. Third, it would present an essential background for future management of resources within the district boundaries. Prior to the present survey, Area 12 Camp had not yet been systematically recorded; therefore, DRI surveyed an area of approximately 229 acres for architectural resources. This effort resulted in the identification, recording, and evaluation of the Area 12 Camp Historic District (SHPO Resource No. D372), including the identification of its contributing components. This district is recommended eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under Criteria A and C. It is unevaluated under Criteria B and D. The Area 12 Historic District contains 71 Principal Resources, which include landscapes, buildings, and structures. Of these resources, 69 (including 10 of the 11 resources to be removed) are recommended as contributing elements of the historic district during its period of significance corresponding to nuclear testing from 1960 through 1992. During most of the Cold War, the government reservation now called the NNSS was named the Nevada Test Site (NTS).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

An Energy Calculator for Simple Commercial Buildings

According to the EIA, simple commercial buildings account for 97% of total commercial building stock. However, most simple commercial buildings for example small- to mid-sized offices, retail, schools and warehouses do not benefit from the data-driven decision-making capabilities of whole-building energy modeling. The high cost of custom modeling limits the use of energy modeling of simple buildings for new construction or retrofit measures. Lack of tools providing helpful information on interactive savings estimates creates difficulties in meeting aggressive decarbonization and energy efficiency goals for simple building designers and utility program managers. This paper reviews a beta phase Simple Building Calculator with the ability to generate relatively accurate and interactive modeling results based on a limited but robust set of inputs. It can evaluate whole-building or single measure savings in new or existing buildings, compare measure package choices, or provide simplified performance modeling for energy codes and utility incentives. The tool combines physical (annual whole building prototype simulation) and statistical modeling techniques to predict annual energy performance. It supports a variety of building characteristics for envelope, HVAC, and lighting with parameters ranging from vintage to max tech configurations, as well as support for single-zone and simple multi-zone HVAC systems. The Simple Building Calculator was designed to provide immediate feedback for otherwise computationally intensive tasks like measure comparison, development of multiple measure package combinations, or verification that measures meet efficiency targets—all with the goal of providing a tool for quick annual energy simulation of simple commercial buildings.

Hart, Reid↗
DOE OSTI2025

Residential Building Stock Characterization in Palm Beach County, Florida

This building stock characterizations is intended to help Palm Beach County (PBC) Office of Resilience (OOR) and municipalities composing the Municipal Resilience Partnership prioritize building energy efficiency investments to reduce energy costs and increase resilience for the county's most vulnerable residents. The analysis utilizes NREL’s ResStock model to characterize PBC’s residential building stock, including building type, renter/owner status, size (square footage), age of buildings (vintage), HVAC system types, and, for multi-family buildings, number of units. Building energy efficiency, weatherization, and electrification upgrade packages were assessed for approximate cost, customer bill-savings, and emissions reductions potential and findings will help guide OOR financial assistance program design.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2026

Dataset describing two reference models for full-spectral lighting and daylight simulations together with implementations for two software systems

A dataset of two spectral lighting simulation reference models - one office and one factory hall - is presented. It aims to demonstrate and support full-spectral daylight and electric lighting simulations and facilitate evaluation of non-visual effects of light. The dataset includes Rhino CAD geometry, comprehensive spectral material and light source data and window system BSDF data. Example implementations in the two software tools, Radiance and OWL, enable reproducible workflows and support adoption in other software. The dataset is openly available on Zenodo. The office model reproduces Room 518 at the University of Innsbruck, including a west-facing façade and interior furnishings. The factory hall model follows the proposed geometry in the European standard 15193 for building energy performance. Interior reflectances in the office were measured in-situ using a handheld spectrometer. Exterior spectra and factory hall materials matching specified reflectances were obtained from an online spectral materials database. Glazing transmittance was derived from IGDB data using LBNL Optics/WINDOW. BSDFs for venetian blinds at various tilt angles, and for a diffusing pane adapted from the Complex Glazing Database, were generated in WINDOW. Luminaires in both models are specified with photometric files (Eulumdat/IES) and lamp spectra (Fluorescent 840, 4000 K LED). The provided example implementations (Radiance, OWL) include prepared input data and scripts to run first spectral simulations; example results are also included. The dataset is prepared to support reuse by researchers, designers and software developers for method validation, software engineering and comparison, and development of spectral metrics and controls.

Geisler-Moroder, David↗
DOE OSTI2022

Impact of WELL certification on occupant satisfaction and perceived health, well-being, and productivity: A multi-office pre- versus post-occupancy evaluation

The WELL Building Standard (WELL) is currently one of the most comprehensive building certification programs that aim to enhance the health and well-being of building occupants. However, there is a lack of systematic evaluation of the effectiveness of WELL in achieving its goal. This study investigates the impact of WELL certification on occupant satisfaction with the workplace and occupant perceived health, well-being, and productivity. More than 1300 pre- and post-occupancy survey responses provided by the nearly same cohort of occupants from six companies in North America were quantitatively analyzed. The results showed that transitioning to WELL certified offices from non-WELL certified offices had a positive impact on occupant satisfaction with the workplace and occupant perceived health, well-being, and productivity, with increases in means from pre-to post-occupancy being highly statistically significant. The majority of the studied occupant satisfaction parameters as well as occupant perceived mental health had large effect sizes. While they improved from pre-to post-occupancy, the analysis revealed small effect sizes for occupant perceived physical health and self-assessed productivity. The majority of the effect sizes for the perceived well-being parameters were large and medium. In addition to analyzing the survey responses in aggregate, the responses were examined at the individual company level to confirm the by-company and aggregate findings aligned.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2022

Designing for Zero Energy and Zero Carbon on a Multi-Building Scale Using URBANopt: Preprint

Groundbreaking efforts are necessary to mitigate contributors increasing impacts of climate change. In parallel to inventing pioneering clean energy technologies it is even more fundamental to rethink designing energy systems within a singular facility and collectively to function as a district. Facilities should not be continuously passive by just consuming; there is a need to shift to perform more dynamically. Designing for zero energy and zero carbon on a multi-building scale can uncover opportunities for building energy efficiency, decarbonization, demand flexibility, and resiliency that are not accessible at an individual building scale. This approach can be challenging without innovative tools to evaluate the multitude of possibilities. As an investigated result, we highlight the use of a campus-scale energy modeling platform - URBANopt™ - for the expansion of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) South Table Mountain campus in Golden, Colorado. Programmatic growth included the design of three new all-electric, zero-energy, and zero-carbon, mixed used buildings (a combination of research laboratories and office space). This investigation is critical to NREL reaching net-zero emissions for its operational footprint, which will occur in phases over the next decade. Leveraging URBANopt's capabilities, we evaluate 1) high-performance building energy efficiency and decarbonization measures, 2) 4th generation district heating and cooling (4th GDHC) systems, 3) optimized onsite generation and energy storage assets that meet zero-energy and zero-carbon targets at minimum life-cycle costs, and 4) cost-optimal distributed energy technology mixes, dispatch strategies, and associated capacities that increase resiliency to grid outages. This work demonstrates the use and capabilities of URBANopt through a real-world case study on a multi-building scale.

community energy model↗
DOE OSTI2025

Mitigation for roof alterations to building 06-cp-65 at the area 6 control point, nevada national security site, nye county, nevada

Building 06-CP-65 has been determined to be a contributing element to the Area 6 Control Point Historic District (O’Neill et al. 2021; Reed 2022). It contributes to the significance of the historic district under Criterion A as one of the principal buildings that supported timing and firing operations for nuclear testing on the NNSS from 1966 to 1992. As such, the building served as a major warehouse with office space within the district. It was used by both REECo, a long-time general contractor at the NNSS, as well as EG&G, which provided technical support to the national laboratories and the DOD. The building served as an important staging area and electrical power supply point for the NNSS diagnostic trailer fleet and its unique location immediately along Mercury Highway allowed easy accessibility to the forward areas of the NNSS. The building also contributes to the historic district under Criterion C as it is one of the large, unadorned, precast concrete buildings at the Control Point. These types of buildings were the prominent elements of the compound that convey the district’s overall utilitarian, military-industrial character. Building 06-CP-65 retains all aspects of integrity to a high degree and easily conveys its significance as a warehouse that supported Control Point operations. Building 06-CP-65 is not recommended eligible for listing in the NRHP as an individual resource. While it served an important support function as part of the Control Point Historic District, an archival and literature review did not reveal information linking it to any specific test, series of tests, programs, or for any specific role on the NNSS other than as a warehouse (Criterion A). It has no direct association with any important individual (Criterion B). It also is not architecturally significant in its own right beyond reflecting the overall aesthetic of the Control Point Historic District (Criterion C), and it does not have potential to yield information important to the history of nuclear testing beyond what can be learned from historic texts, drawings, and other documents (Criterion D).

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

TA-16-306: A Plastics Components Development Facility (Volumes 1 & 2)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Los Alamos Field Office (Field Office), has prepared final documentation for the resolution of adverse effects to Building 306 in Technical Area (TA) 16 at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL or the Laboratory). This documentation is being submitted to the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO). TA-16-306 was determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (Register) in 1995 in the report, TA-16 Heating System Replacement (LA-CP-95-0180). TA-16- 306 was identified as an excess property to be decontaminated, decommissioned, and demolished by the LANL Footprint Reduction Program in fiscal year 2021, an adverse effect to Register eligible building 16-306 requiring mitigation. To bring a resolution to the adverse effects to Building TA-16-306, the Field Office initiated consultation with the SHPO on December 4, 2017. The New Mexico Historic Preservation Division concurred with the mitigation actions outlined in the Programmatic Agreement among the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration, Los Alamos Field Office, the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office, and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation Concerning Management of Historic Properties of Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico (PA) in correspondence dated January 30, 2018. The PA states in Appendix D.2.A that adverse effects to Register-eligible buildings and structures will be resolved according to the procedures defined in A Plan for the Management of the Cultural Heritage at Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico (CRMP) (LA-UR-19-21590, formerly LA-UR-15-27624) and within the PA itself. Volume 2 contains a collection of photos of building TA-16-306 with index.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Big Hole Drilling Support for Nuclear Testing, 1985-1992: An Architectural Survey of the Area 1 Subdock, Nevada National Security Site, Nye County, Nevada

The U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Field Office (NNSA/NFO) planned to demolish two buildings at the Area 1 Subdock at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) in Nye County, Nevada, to meet environmental management mission requirements. A review was conducted under Title 54 United States Code (USC) § 306101 (commonly known as Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act) and its implementing regulations, 36 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 800. As a result, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was developed to mitigate the effects of the building demolitions. Stipulation III.B of the MOA requires an architectural survey of the Area 1 Subdock. Prior to this survey, the Subdock had not been systematically recorded. Therefore, an area of approximately 33 hectares (81 acres) was surveyed for historic properties by Desert Research Institute personnel. This effort resulted in the identification, recording, and evaluation of the potential Area 1 Subdock Historic District (SHPO Resource No. D377), including the identification of its contributing components. This district is recommended as eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) under Criteria A and C. It contains 14 primary resources which include individual buildings, structures, storage yards, and infrastructure. Of these resources, all except one are recommended as elements that contribute to the district during its period of significance corresponding to nuclear testing from 1985 through 1992. Four of the resources (B18847, B18848, S2772, S2773) are recommended as individually eligible for the NRHP.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Powering America’s Non-Powered Dams, One Byte at a Time

Compared with other hydropower development opportunities, powering underutilized water infrastructure provides an attractive option for expanding clean energy in the 21st century. Research conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) targets hydropower development at non-powered dams (NPD) from several angles and is increasingly looking to new and improved data sources to inform decision-making. Sponsored by the DOE Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), ORNL’s latest efforts build on a decade of work to advance understanding and data access for improved decision-making. Outcomes of the most recent research are geared toward better informing NPD stakeholders across a wide spectrum of interests. Furthermore, these outcomes are paving the way for additional federal investments to power NPDs in the U.S., including investments in innovative new technologies that incorporate ecological and social objectives while achieving cost reductions, commercialization and deployment. Here, this research centers around improving the breadth and accessibility of NPD data. These new digital information tools and associated tools can lead to a better decision-making process and support new hydropower development, helping to power America’s NPDs, one “byte” at a time.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Building 871 and 874 Retaining Wall Project Soil Sampling and Analysis Plan

This Soil Sampling and Analysis Plan (SAP) was prepared by the Environmental Functional Area (EFA)/Technical Services Department (TSD) of the Environment, Safety & Health (ES&H) Directorate for the Project Management Office (PMO) for the proposed retaining wall near Buildings 871 and 874 (project) (Figure 1). The purpose of the SAP is to describe the procedures for collection and analysis of environmental samples and evaluation of analytical data (chemical and radiological) to determine management options of excavated soil during project construction. This SAP follows criteria established in Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL) Soils Screening and Management Plan (SSMP) (LLNL 2022), which was formalized in accordance with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidance for developing Data Quality Objectives for environmental data (EPA 2006) and the Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual (MARSSIM) guidance (U.S. NRC, U.S. EPA, U.S. DOE, and U.S. DOD 2000). The scope of this SAP is based on preliminary design information provided by PMO.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2026

Field Validation of a Grid-Interactive Efficient Building Software Solution

The U.S. General Services Administration's (GSA's) Green Proving Ground (GPG) program, in partnership with the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), completed a field study of a Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEB) software solution. The study focused on a single testbed facility to test the GEB functionality of the software solution, along with other features. The testbed facility - a courthouse - is a common building type in GSA's vast building portfolio, offering potentially impactful findings on a scalable level. The study evaluated Prescriptive Data's technology, Nantum OS, a connected building operating system ("GEB Solution") which aggregates multiple sources of previously siloed building data and combines that data with external sources, such as weather information or utility signals, into a single integrated platform. A GEB Solution is a type of Energy Management Information System (EMIS). EMIS is defined as a system of devices, data services, and software applications that communicates with any building system or third-party data source to aggregate and transform data into new capabilities to aid in the optimization of energy use at the building, campus, or agency level. This specific GEB Solution is an EMIS with ASO, automated system optimization, offering supervisory control of certain aspects of the Building Automation System (BAS). Multiple features were evaluated including, but not limited to, Continuous Demand Management to avoid setting new monthly kilowatt (kW) peaks, energy efficiency for reduction of kilowatt hours (kWh) and natural gas consumption, and automated demand response (ADR) for purposes of lowering demand during a utility called Demand Response (DR) event. The testbed facility was the Foley Federal Building and US Courthouse ("Foley Federal Building") located in Las Vegas, NV. This is a 209,496 sq. ft. building constructed in the 1960s with major renovations in 2004. The facility was a good candidate due to the large prevalence of office and courthouse spaces in the GSA portfolio of buildings. It also has many features which allow integration into and control of the building and a strong facilities team to assist with the study. Quantitative and qualitative performance objectives were developed using GSA's GPG GEB project template along with input from the vendor and building facility staff; these are outlined in Table 1. The quantitative performance objectives focused on continuous demand management, energy efficiency, and automated demand response. The qualitative performance objectives focused on the ease of installation and commissioning as well as the operability of the GEB solution. Other performance metrics that are reported on include carbon reduction, cost effectiveness, and occupant acceptance.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2020

Post-occupancy evaluation of indoor environmental quality in ten nonresidential buildings in Chongqing, China

Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) is an essential element of sustainable building performance. To advance knowledge of indoor environmental quality in Chinese nonresidential buildings, this study conducted post-occupancy evaluation (POE) in varied use areas within schools, hospitals, offices, hotels and shopping malls through environmental measurements and occupant surveys in 10 buildings over four seasons in Chongqing, China. Measured thermal conditions were more frequently within comfort standards in winter than in summer according to the predicted mean vote – predicted percentage dissatisfied model; but the model did not reliably predict thermal satisfaction. There was insufficient illuminance in 28% of studied areas and high illuminance in shopping malls led to complaints about glare. Sound pressure exceeded the Chinese guideline in all buildings with shopping malls having significantly higher levels than other buildings. CO 2 was generally below the Chinese national guideline of 1000 ppm; the two percent of measurements that exceeded the guideline occurred in classrooms, hospital wards and underground supermarkets. Formaldehyde did not exceed the limit level of 0.1 mg/m3 in any space. Most of the buildings did not provide effective protection from outdoor fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and infiltration from outdoors was the main factor for exceeding health-based guidelines indoors. Shopping malls had lower IEQ satisfaction than offices, schools and hospitals. Sound was the factor with the lowest satisfaction level among the four principal environmental factors. Overall, this study demonstrates value of POE on identifying deficiencies in indoor environment and provides a reference for assessment of IEQ in nonresidential buildings.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2021

Evaluation of Topology Optimization to Achieve Energy Savings at the Urban District Level: Preprint

Advanced district thermal energy systems have the potential to achieve significant energy savings and facilitate the integration of renewable thermal resources and waste heat, contributing to reductions in carbon emissions. Such systems, also known as fifth generation district heating and cooling (5GDHC) systems, circulate water at temperatures close to ambient, and leverage electrically-driven water-source heat pumps located at connected buildings to further temper the water. However, barriers exist to the adoption of 5GDHC systems, including the factorial growth in potential network configurations as a function of the number of considered buildings. Topology optimization, which seeks to answer the questions, “Which is the best subset of buildings, if any, to connect to a district thermal energy system, and by what network should they be connected, to minimize life cycle cost?” can accelerate the adoption of 5GDHC systems. This study is part of an effort to develop a topology optimization framework for district thermal energy systems. In this study, a heuristic for one aspect of the topology optimization problem---the use of the minimal spanning tree network to connect a given set of buildings at the least life cycle cost---is validated.

28 EE - Advanced Manufacturing Office (EE-5A)↗
DOE OSTI2024

Analysis of Ground Source Heat Pump ECMs: Implemented Under DOE ESPC IDIQ Contract

Several federal performance and decarbonization objectives are driving the U.S. government to transition to net-zero emissions across the federal building portfolio. The overarching purpose of this Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP)-Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO) work is to support federal facilities in accomplishing the administration’s federal building decarbonization goals. Creating awareness of existing geothermal (or ground-source) heat pump (GHP) systems deployed on federal property, implemented using performance contracts and evaluating the energy and environmental impacts of these systems, this work will assist federal facilities in considering inclusion of GHP technology energy conservation measures (ECMs) in future performance contracting project awards. This report summarizes analyses of data from GHP ECMs installed under the DOE ESPC IDIQ contract across various climate areas and geographic locations, agencies, and building use types. Through the analysis of proposed GHP ECMs and understanding key metrics on implemented GHP systems in a variety of applications, FEMP and GTO can further support federal agencies in meeting decarbonization and net-zero building goals by evaluating and incorporating GHP systems into performance contracts and communicate the benefits of this technology.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Quantification of Load Flexibility in Residential Buildings Using Home Energy Management Systems

With increasing penetration of renewable energy resources, the flexibility of operating behind-the-meter (BTM) resources plays a key role in enhancing grid reliability and resilience. Residential buildings with home energy management systems (HEMS) can provide desired flexibility for the distribution system operator (DSO) while considering customer comfort and preferences. This paper discusses a methodology to quantify the flexibility of BTM resources of residential buildings using HEMS. First, we propose a model predictive control framework to formulate the flexibility band comprising nominal, upper, and lower demand profiles. Second, the paper proposes a dispatch method for HEMS to compute the control signals for each BTM resource (e.g., air conditioner, water heater, home battery system) upon receiving a flexibility service request from the DSO. The case study provides insight into the flexibility provided at the whole-home level with different user preferences and seasons. The results demonstrate that HEMS is capable of providing flexibility service at the request of the DSO while delivering primary services to the building occupants.

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗