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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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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1997

Tankless Water Heater

Kennedy Space Center specialists aided Space, Energy, Time Saving (SETS) Systems, Inc. in working out the problems they encountered with their new electronic "tankless" water heater. The flow switch design suffered intermittent problems. Hiring several testing and engineering firms produced only graphs, printouts, and a large expense, but no solutions. Then through the Kennedy Space Center/State of Florida Technology Outreach Program, SETS was referred to Michael Brooks, a 21-year space program veteran and flowmeter expert. Run throughout Florida to provide technical service to businesses at no cost, the program applies scientific and engineering expertise originally developed for space applications to the Florida business community. Brooks discovered several key problems, resulting in a new design that turned out to be simpler, yielding a 63 percent reduction in labor and material costs over the old design.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2023

Grid Resilient, Self-Powered, Fuel Flexible, High Efficiency Heating System (Final Report)

The Grid Independent High Efficiency System (GIHES) delivers a heating system that operates free from the power grid and provides ultra-low emissions and high efficiency heating for residential and commercial buildings. The project demonstrated two weeks of continuous grid independent operation of a storage water heater equipped with a powered damper. The Thermoelectric Generator (TEG) integrated GIHES technology revolutionizes heating systems to provide grid resilient hot water production, while delivering significant value to the end user by eliminating impacts of power interruption and enhancing comfort, convenience and productivity. The system maximizes the thermal-to-electric conversion efficiency by optimizing location and orientation of the TEGs and durability while lowering system costs. The TEGs generate enough power to charge a battery and run the storage water heater unit with a powered damper uninterrupted by providing the required parasitic electrical power for start-up, shutdown and during idling. Several TEGs were analytically and experimentally evaluated based on the size, surface area and the power being generated before designing and fabricating a complete multi-TEG assembly for integration with the water heater. The GIHES technology can be extended to boilers, furnaces and tankless water heaters and integrated with heat pump to further increase the overall equipment efficiency. The technology has the potential to reduce the amount of dispatch power and peak power plant operation. An advanced burner was designed, developed and 3D printed for fuel flexible operation. The burner was designed to enable tighter integration with TEGs for potentially higher TEG output, should this be necessary. A bench-scale test rig to perform testing of a 200,000 Btu/h burner and capable of handling up to 10% H2 (by volume) was setup at GTI’s laboratory with appropriate safety and controls to ensure smooth and safe operation. Testing of the 3D burner showed < 5 ppm NOx emissions can be achieved for the entire firing range and with different levels of hydrogen blends with natural gas. The burner will enable a more integrated TEG-burner module design for improved system performance, should this be required in the future. Techno-economic analysis (TEA) of the TEG integrated with the water heaters was performed. The testing data and the power output were used to develop the TEA. The analysis for the storage unit with damper showed that the TEG integrated system costs $95. This is much lower than a one-time charge needed to wire and install dedicated power. Discussions with TEG manufacturers and OEM’s will provide more detailed information and methods to further lower these costs.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2026

ResStock Measure Documentation: Natural Gas Water Heater

This report is part of a series describing different ResStock measures. "Measures" refers to energy efficiency retrofits that can be applied to buildings during modeling. This documentation covers the "Natural Gas Water Heater" measure upgrade methodology and briefly discusses key results.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2026

Hot Water Recirculation Systems: Designing for Success [Slides]

This presentation will focus on on-demand hot water recirculation systems and how they contribute to energy and water conservation in residential buildings. This work illustrates best practices for designing, installing, and operating these systems, drawing from research and field testing to provide practical recommendations. The ultimate goal is to reduce wait times for hot water, comply with current energy codes, and lower both energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, while improving user satisfaction. In the upcoming slides, we'll dive into case studies and explore the latest technological advancements that help achieve these objectives.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗