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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Machine Learning for Automated Metadata Assignment in Buildings: Cooperative Research and Development (Final Report, CRADA Number CRD-18-00767)

RealTerm Energy and NREL have identified a shared vision to evaluate opportunities to facilitate the organization and assignment of metadata to building control system (BCS) data via industry-informed machine learning (ML). Manual metadata assignment is labor intensive and costly, slowing down any Energy Management and Information System (EMIS) deployment in the building space. This project aims to develop methodologies to accurately assign this metadata and significantly decrease the level of effort associated with deploying EMIS. The objective of this project is to identify/design methodologies to assign metadata to HVAC control points automatically. The identified methodologies will be programmed in analytics algorithms so they can ingest a list of points and produce a detailed tagging following the Haystack classification nomenclature. To validate the efficacy of each methodology, tagging results will be compared utilizing a list of points extracted from RealTerm's building database-as well as data extracted from the NREL campus via the Intelligent Campus program-enabling testing against large datasets with real world challenges. The developed methodologies may leverage building manager/operator input on a limited basis to add context to the classifying algorithms. The partnership aims to advance global efforts in areas related to the DOE missions through improving operational performance of commercial buildings. It is well documented that buildings fall out of commission after they are occupied, wasting significant energy and incurring associated costs simply due to poor operational performance. Emerging EMIS technologies that perform continuous commissioning help to address this issue, yet integration of these systems can be labor intensive both for the technology vendor and the building owner/operator. This project will enable more efficient and cost-effective analytics for buildings, enabling improvement in building operations at lower cost points.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2021

How Can Floor Covering Influence Buildings’ Demand Flexibility?

Although the thermal mass of floors in buildings has been demonstrated to help shift cooling load, there is still a lack of information about how floor covering can influence the floor’s load shifting capability and buildings’ demand flexibility. To fill this gap, we estimated demand flexibility based on the daily peak cooling load reduction for different floor configurations and regions, using EnergyPlus simulations. As a demand response strategy, we used precooling and global temperature adjustment. The result demonstrated an adverse impact of floor covering on the building’s demand flexibility. Specifically, under the same demand response strategy, the daily peak cooling load reductions were up to 20–34% for a concrete floor whereas they were only 17–29% for a carpet-covered concrete floor. This is because floor covering hinders convective coupling between the concrete floor surface and the zone air and reduces radiative heat transfer between the concrete floor surface and the surrounding environment. In hot climates such as Phoenix, floor covering almost negated the concrete floor’s load shifting capability and yielded low demand flexibility as a wood floor, representing low thermal mass. Sensitivity analyses showed that floor covering’s effects can be more profound with a larger carpet-covered area, a greater temperature adjustment depth, or a higher radiant heat gain. With this effect ignored for a given building, its demand flexibility would be overestimated, which could prevent grid operators from obtaining sufficient demand flexibility to maintain a grid. Our findings also imply that for more efficient grid-interactive buildings, a traditional standard for floor design could be modified with increasing renewable penetration.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2021

Making Data-Driven Policy Decisions for the Nation’s First Building Energy Performance Standards

Nearly every major U.S. city has committed itself to ambitious climate action goals – for Washington, DC this means a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2032 and carbon neutrality by 2050. In support of these goals, Washington, DC has passed one of the most aggressive and practical climate action bills in the nation—with the Clean Energy DC Omnibus Act, DC became the first city in the U.S. to adopt energy performance standards for existing buildings. DC’s Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require energy efficiency improvements for all commercial and multifamily buildings that do not meet a sector-specific minimum ENERGY STAR score or equivalent metric, with iterative compliance cycles every five years that will accelerate the pace of whole building retrofits. This paper explores this revolutionary policy framework and uses two data analysis projects that DC conducted to evaluate the potential impact of the BEPS and move towards carbon neutrality. First, we analyze the potential energy savings and greenhouse gas reductions, as well as potential cost impacts, from the implementation of a BEPS policy in DC We then examine the role of BEPS in a carbon neutrality strategy, how BEPS savings iterate over time, and what additional existing building improvements will be driven by the gravitational pull of new building codes on median performance. The paper highlights the benefits and limitations of such data-driven approaches to support policy decisions. Finally, we will review ongoing BEPS implementation, including expected policy directions, critical supportive programs, and lessons learned to date.

Bergfeld, Katie↗
DOE OSTI2024

Advanced Building Technologies for Energy Savings and Decarbonization

The building sector is a major consumer of energy, making it essential to explore innovative strategies for reducing its environmental impact. As we shift our focus toward decarbonization and electrification, the need for advanced building operation techniques and equipment becomes increasingly urgent. These advancements are crucial for maintaining or enhancing indoor environmental quality while simultaneously minimizing energy consumption. This Special Issue aims to showcase cutting-edge technologies in building energy management, alongside effective measurement and verification methods. It will also address fault detection and diagnosis approaches, leveraging both simulation and experimental studies. The ultimate goal is to highlight solutions that not only reduce CO₂ emissions but also improve indoor environmental quality, creating healthier and more sustainable living and working spaces. By presenting a diverse array of research contributions, this Special Issue will provide valuable insights into the latest advancements in building energy technologies. It will drive the discussion around effective strategies for energy efficiency and environmental sustainability in the building sector. These efforts can help transform buildings from energy consumers into more efficient spaces that contribute to reducing our overall carbon footprint.

Im, Piljae↗
DOE OSTI2014

Achieving 50% Energy Savings in Office Buildings, Advanced Energy Design Guides: Office Buildings (Brochure)

This fact sheet summarizes recommendations for designing new office buildings that result in 50% less energy use than conventional designs meeting minimum code requirements. The recommendations are drawn from the Advanced Energy Design Guide for Small to Medium Office Buildings, an ASHRAE publication that provides comprehensive recommendations for designing low-energy-use office buildings with gross floor areas up to 100,000 ft2 (see sidebar). Designed as a stand-alone document, this fact sheet provides key principles and a set of prescriptive design recommendations appropriate for smaller office buildings with insufficient budgets to fully implement best practices for integrated design and optimized performance. The recommendations have undergone a thorough analysis and review process through ASHRAE, and have been deemed the best combination of measures to achieve 50% savings in the greatest number of office buildings.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2011

Energy Use Intensity and its Influence on the Integrated Daylighting Design of a Large Net Zero Energy Building: Preprint

Net-zero energy buildings generate as much energy as they consume and are significant in the sustainable future of building design and construction. The role of daylighting (and its simulation) in the design process becomes critical. In this paper we present the process the National Renewable Energy Laboratory embarked on in the procurement, design, and construction of its newest building, theResearch Support Facility (RSF) - particularly the roles of daylighting, electric lighting, and simulation. With a rapid construction schedule, the procurement, design, and construction had to be tightly integrated; with low energy use. We outline the process and measures required to manage a building design that could expect to operate at an efficiency previously unheard of for a building ofthis type, size, and density. Rigorous simulation of the daylighting and the electric lighting control response was a given, but the oft-ignored disconnect between lighting simulation and whole-building energy use simulation had to be addressed. The RSF project will be thoroughly evaluated for its performance for one year; preliminary data from the postoccupancy monitoring efforts will also bepresented with an eye toward the current efficacy of building energy and lighting simulation.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2013

Small Buildings = Big Opportunity for Energy Savings [Fact Sheet]

This fact sheet describes the Small Buildings and Small Portfolios roadmap, which outlines approaches and strategic priorities for the U.S. Department of Energy's Building Technologies Office to pursue over the next three to five years that will support the implementation of high-potential energy efficiency opportunities for small business and building owners and operators.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2018

Multifamily Tool for Energy Audits (MulTEA) Engineering Manual (Version 1)

The Multifamily Tool for Energy Audits (MulTEA) is an energy audit tool designed to provide auditors with an improved energy simulation tool for multifamily buildings and an improved tool for identifying cost-effective energy-efficiency retrofit measures for multifamily buildings. MulTEA is designed specifically to help states and local weatherization agencies implement the Department of Energy (DOE) Weatherization Assistance Program. MulTEA was developed jointly by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). MulTEA is part of ORNL’s web-based Weatherization Assistant suite of audit tools (https://weatherization.ornl.gov/softwaredescription/). The energy calculation engine including the DOE- 2 simulation model and supplementary calculation modules is shared by MulTEA and LBNL’s Home Energy Saver pro (HESpro) (http://hespro.lbl.gov/pro/). On the ORNL side, the energy calculation engine is coupled with a user interface and output reporting capabilities based on Weatherization Assistance Program regulations and guidelines pertinent to MulTEA. On the LBNL side, the same engine will be used in HESpro to expand it to handle multifamily buildings. MulTEA is designed to address small and large multifamily buildings with decentralized and centralized heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) and domestic hot water (DHW) systems. Version 1 of MulTEA addresses small multifamily buildings with decentralized HVAC systems, and decentralized or centralized DHW systems. The capability to model large buildings and centralized HVAC systems will be incorporated in Version 2.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2024

The Building Business Network (B-Biz): Addressing Gaps in the High-Performance Building Technology Market, Especially for Underserved Customers

Increased market intelligence and business model innovation is needed to build contractor confidence in high-performance building technologies in order to increase the speed and scale of adoption to meet the U.S. Department of Energy's building stock decarbonization goals. Although there have been important innovations in energy efficiency, affordability, and decarbonization of building technologies, consumers are not purchasing these technologies at the necessary speed and scale partially due to a gap in institutional understanding around barriers contractors face in providing and servicing these technologies. Small businesses in this market must mitigate risk around high-performance building technologies, limiting their opportunities in the market and impacting the rate of adoption. The Building Business Network (B-Biz) aims to provide high-performance building technology solutions to underserved customers by collaborating with local small businesses that provide and service high-performance building technologies in communities with the lowest rates of adoption. This research explores the current market, the importance of business models, and the opportunity to utilize small businesses to address market gaps in underserved communities.

B-Biz↗
DOE OSTI2020

The SONATA data format for efficient description of large-scale network models

Increasing availability of comprehensive experimental datasets and of high-performance computing resources are driving rapid growth in scale, complexity, and biological realism of computational models in neuroscience. To support construction and simulation, as well as sharing of such large-scale models, a broadly applicable, flexible, and high-performance data format is necessary. To address this need, we have developed the Scalable Open Network Architecture TemplAte (SONATA) data format. It is designed for memory and computational efficiency and works across multiple platforms. The format represents neuronal circuits and simulation inputs and outputs via standardized files and provides much flexibility for adding new conventions or extensions. SONATA is used in multiple modeling and visualization tools, and we also provide reference Application Programming Interfaces and model examples to catalyze further adoption. SONATA format is free and open for the community to use and build upon with the goal of enabling efficient model building, sharing, and reproducibility.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2023

Conducting Field Validations of Commercial Energy Efficiency Technologies with Underserved Communities: Preprint

Underserved communities in the United States often experience the negative impacts of climate change and environmental degradation but enjoy few of the benefits of technological and environmental advances. The White House has addressed this inequity through the Justice40 initiative, which requires 40% of the benefits of select federal investments to be directed to underserved communities (The White House, 2022). Clean energy and energy efficiency are two highlighted investment categories, so the U.S. Department of Energy will guide implementation of the Justice40 initiative by, among other things, decreasing energy burdens, increasing parity in clean energy technology access and adoption, and increasing energy resiliency. A strategy for reaching these goals is to evaluate and validate new energy efficiency technologies in commercial buildings in underserved communities, where buildings may be older, smaller, and have deferred maintenance due to historical underinvestment. This paper assesses the proficiency of the technologies under these conditions and increases awareness of the benefits to the communities. In addition, historical redlining and past negative experiences with government and large institutions may make residents wary of participating in these field validations. Researchers, therefore, may need to spend more time building relationships and matching technologies to buildings. In this paper, we analyzed technical reports to identify common required and desired field validation building characteristics, and conducted semi-structured expert conversations to identify key stages and major themes of engaging underserved communities. Our results indicate that the benefits to both the community and energy efficiency research justify the effort. The White House. (2022). Justice40. https://www.whitehouse.gov/environmentaljustice/justice40/

ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION↗
DOE OSTI2016

Developing Commercial Code Precalculated Packages

ACEEE Building Summer Study Conference paper to discuss the Developing Commercial Code Precalculated Packages as related to Building Energy codes and standards.

2016 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Bu↗
DOE OSTI2013

Jcpenney is Sold on Energy Efficiency

Jcpenney partnered with the Department of Energy (DOE) to develop and implement solutions to retrofit existing buildings to reduce energy consumption by at least 30% versus requirements set by Standard 90.1-2004 of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) as part of DOE’s Commercial Building Partnerships (CBP) Program.

energy efficiency↗
DOE OSTI2026

ResStock Measure Documentation: Residential Variable-Speed Geothermal Heat Pump (4.4 COP, 30.9 EER)

The goal of this work is to develop energy efficiency, demand flexibility, and other retrofit end-use load shapes (electricity, gas, propane, or fuel oil) that cover a majority of the high-impact, market-ready (or nearly market-ready) measures. "Measures" refers to retrofits that can be applied to buildings during modeling. An "end-use savings shape" is the difference in energy consumption between a baseline building and a building with an energy efficiency, demand flexibility, or other retrofit measure applied. It results in a time-series profile that is broken down by end use and fuel (electricity or on-site gas, propane, or fuel oil use) at each time step. ResStock (TM) is a highly granular, physics-based, bottom-up model that uses multiple data sources, statistical sampling methods, and advanced building energy simulations to estimate the annual subhourly energy consumption of the residential building stock across the United States. The baseline model intends to represent the U.S. residential building stock as it existed in 2018. Technical documentation for the inputs and assumptions in the baseline building stock model is available in Reyna et al. (2025). Calibration and validation of the baseline model results are available in the final technical report of the End-Use Load Profiles project (Wilson et al. 2022). This documentation focuses on a single end-use savings shape measure: Residential Variable-Speed Geothermal Heat Pump (GHP). This document provides the relevant new modeling information for variable-speed systems not previously covered in either the single-stage or two-stage documents. Variable-speed GHPs represent the most efficient option available for this technology: They provide the most savings, with up to 46% for the applicable portion of the housing stock, compared to 31% for less efficient single-stage GHPs. Additional results shown here detail how the savings change for sections of the housing stock with different base heating fuels and in different climate zones, and they show the savings potential by state for both heating and cooling. Utility bills and electric panel impacts are also shown and discussed.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2013

New Whole-House Solutions Case Study: Affordable Cold Climate Infill Housing with Hybrid Insulation Approach, Wyandotte, Michigan

Even builders who are relatively new to energy-efficient construction can consistently reach a target whole house airtightness of 1.5 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals (ACH50) with high R-value enclosures that use a hybrid insulation approach. In 2010, the City of Wyandotte, Michigan, started construction to build affordable, energy-efficient homes on lots in existing neighborhoods. A goal was to engage local builders in energy-efficient construction and be able to deliver the new houses for less than $100/ft2. By the end of 2012, approximately 25 new houses were built by five local builders under this program. To help builders consistently achieve the airtightness target, a local architect worked with researchers from Building Science Corporation, a Building America team, to develop a technology specification with several key pieces. A high R-value wall and roof assembly made use of 2 ×6 advanced framing and a hybrid insulation approach that included insulating sheathing to control thermal bridging and closed cell spray polyurethane foam insulation (ccSPF) for its airtightness and vapor control benefits. This approach allows the air barrier to be completed and tested before any finishing work occurs, ensuring that problems are spotted and corrected early in the construction process.

BSC↗
DOE OSTI2014

Calculating Impacts of Energy Standards on Energy Demand in U.S. Buildings under Uncertainty with an Integrated Assessment Model: Technical Background Data

This report presents data and assumptions employed in an application of PNNL’s Global Change Assessment Model with a newly-developed Monte Carlo analysis capability. The model is used to analyze the impacts of more aggressive U.S. residential and commercial building-energy codes and equipment standards on energy consumption and energy service costs at the state level, explicitly recognizing uncertainty in technology effectiveness and cost, socioeconomics, presence or absence of carbon prices, and climate impacts on energy demand. The report provides a summary of how residential and commercial buildings are modeled, together with assumptions made for the distributions of state–level population, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per worker, efficiency and cost of residential and commercial energy equipment by end use, and efficiency and cost of residential and commercial building shells. The cost and performance of equipment and of building shells are reported separately for current building and equipment efficiency standards and for more aggressive standards. The report also details assumptions concerning future improvements brought about by projected trends in technology.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Pathways to Carbon Neutrality 2050 in Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia has recently set an ambitious target of achieving carbon neutrality as early as 2050. To accomplish this, the country will need to strategically reduce its emissions across all sectors. In 2020, Malaysia emitted approximately 368 MtCO2e, with the largest sources of emissions including electricity (36% of total emissions), transportation (17%), and industry (15%)1. We find that the greatest reductions in emissions can therefore come from decarbonizing power generation and electrifying end-use sectors. Digitalization, smart technologies, and improved energy efficiency will significantly reduce economy-wide energy consumption. By leveraging efficient technologies, both Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur can address the challenges posed by rapid urbanization and climate change. Digitalization is a broad category that includes a variety of measures; for example, the wide adoption of high-efficiency appliances and lighting or improved building energy codes in the buildings sector. Similarly, technological improvements can advance industrial energy efficiency, and for transportation, smart technologies cover a shift from private to public transportation and the greater use of electric vehicles. While renewable energy (RE) will play a crucial role in decarbonization, achieving carbon neutrality in certain sectors will be difficult without emerging technologies like carbon capture and storage (CCS) and innovative fuel sources such as hydrogen. In order for Malaysia to rely on CCS as a mitigation option, early investment and incentives to the private sector will be critical. This holds for the use of hydrogen as well: investing in the necessary technology, infrastructure, and human capital will allow Malaysia to position itself as an innovator in the region and leverage these advanced technologies as a key part of its climate strategy. Another possible carbon removal option other than CCS would be a land-use sink; however, given that Malaysia is still developing and may deforest in the near-term, this report does not focus on the mitigation potential of land-use change. With its innovative and bold climate plans, Kuala Lumpur is primed to be a leader in regional climate change efforts. Kuala Lumpur is also engaged in several international collaborations to ensure sustainable city development such as the C40 network and the ASEAN Smart Cities Partnership. As such, the city will play a critical role in contributing to Malaysia’s overall climate goals and as a policy trendsetter through ambitious, scalable plans. One key factor in these emissions reductions is that Kuala Lumpur has full control over its building guidelines, allowing for ambitious policies resulting in significant emissions reductions. However, in other sectors, Kuala Lumpur has less direct control over regulations; for example, power generation and integration of RE are largely in the hands of the Malaysian government. With limited and primarily light industry, Kuala Lumpur’s contributions to emissions reductions here are curbed. And, while Kuala Lumpur has control over local transportation policies like increasing access to and quality of public transportation, broad shifts in transportation will stem from national-level policies. As such, multi-level governance is an integral component of Malaysia’s climate strategy and coordination between local and national governments will be essential in reducing emissions and achieving other climate goals. This report addresses these and other key challenges and opportunities Malaysia faces on the road to carbon neutrality.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2013

Colorado Better Buildings Project. Final Report

The Colorado Better Buildings project intended to bring new and existing energy efficiency model programs to market with regional collaboration and funding partnerships. The goals for Boulder County and its program partners were to advance energy efficiency investments, stimulate economic growth in Colorado and advance the state’s energy independence. Collectively, three counties set out to complete 9,025 energy efficiency upgrades in 2.5 years and they succeeded in doing so. Energy efficiency upgrades have been completed in more than 11,000 homes and businesses in these communities. Boulder County and its partners received a $25 million BetterBuildings grant from the U.S. Department of Energy under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in the summer of 2010. This was also known as the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants program. With this funding, Boulder County, the City and County of Denver, and Garfield County set out to design programs for the residential and commercial sectors to overcome key barriers in the energy upgrade process. Since January 2011, these communities have paired homeowners and business owners with an Energy Advisor – an expert to help move from assessment to upgrade with minimal hassle. Pairing this step-by-step assistance with financing incentives has effectively addressed many key barriers, resulting in energy efficiency improvements and happy customers. An expert energy advisor guides the building owner through every step of the process, coordinating the energy assessment, interpreting results for a customized action plan, providing a list of contractors, and finding and applying for all available rebates and low-interest loans. In addition to the expert advising and financial incentives, the programs also included elements of social marketing, technical assistance, workforce development and contractor trainings, project monitoring and verification, and a cloud-based customer data system to coordinate among field advisors and across local governments and local service vendors. A portion of the BetterBuildings grant went to the Metro Mayors Caucus (MMC) who worked in partnership with the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) to conduct a series of 10 energy efficiency workshops for local government officials and other interested parties. The workshops helped showcase lessons learned on energy efficiency and helped guide other local governments in the establishment of similar programs. The workshops covered a wide range of energy efficiency and renewable energy topics such as clean energy finance, social mobilization and communications, specific case studies of Colorado towns, energy efficiency codes, net zero buildings and solar power. Since the programs launched in January 2011, these communities have collectively spurred economic investments in energy efficiency, achieved greater than 5:1 leveraging of grant funds, saved energy and reduced greenhouse gas emissions, provided trainings for a robust local energy contractor network, and proved out viable and replicable program models that local utilities and other communities are adopting, with long lasting market transformation.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗