Energy Systems Commons^™

Energy Efficiency Technology Demonstration Project For Florida Educational Facilities: Occupancy Sensors, Florida Solar Energy Center, David Floyd

FSEC Energy Research Center®

In 1995 the Florida Department of Education and the Florida Solar Energy Center jointly sponsored a test of occupancy sensors used to control lighting in a Florida school. Occupancy sensors replace conventional light switches and use passive infrared or ultrasonic sensing to control lighting in classroom and other spaces. The test was intended to demonstrate the performance of such controls in saving energy in Florida educational facilities.

The evaluation was performed at Northwest Elementary School in Pasco County on Florida's west central coast. A before and after monitoring protocol was utilized for the study which saw lighting circuits for 33 …

Photovoltaic Applications For Disaster Relief, Florida Solar Energy Center, William Young

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, and earthquakes are natural disasters that can happen at any time destroying homes, businesses, and natural surroundings. One such disaster, Hurricane Andrew, devastated South Florida leaving several hundred-thousand people homeless. Many people were without electrical service, functioning water and sewage systems, communications, and medical services for days, even weeks in the aftermath of the storm. Emergency management teams, the military and countless public and private organizations staged a massive relief effort. Dependency on electrical utility power became a pronounced problem as emergency services were rendered to survivors and the rebuilding process started.

Many of the energy needs …

Indoor Air Quality Impacts Of Uncontrolled Air Flow And Depressurization In Eight Commercial Buildings In Central Florida, Florida Solar Energy Center, James Cummings

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Field investigations were done in 68 commercial buildings to identify uncontrolled air flows and pressure imbalances. Results from eight buildings (six restaurants and two sports facilities) are reported in this paper. Testing included building airtightness tests, identification of building air barrier location, duct system airtightness, characterization of pressure differentials, building air flow balance, and infiltration/ventilation rates. Six restaurants and one sports facility were found to operate at negative pressures which ranged from -0.003 inWC (-0.8 Pa) to -0.173 inWC (-43 Pa) and averaged -0.051 inWC (-12.7 Pa) under normal operation. A second sports facility operates partially at positive pressure and …

Field Commissioning Of A Daylight-Dimming Lighting System, Florida Solar Energy Center, David Floyd

FSEC Energy Research Center®

An Elementary School cafeteria in Florida was commissioned with a fluorescent lighting system that dims in response to available daylight. The lighting system's performance and commissioning aspects were evaluated through real time measurement of lighting and air conditioning power, work plane illumination, and interior/exterior site conditions. The new system produced a 27% reduction in lighting power due to dimming. Lower than expected dimming system performance was observed prior to effective commissioning. Difficulties encountered are discussed as well as recommendations for performance improvements.

Photovoltaic Applications For Disaster Relief. 11-95. Copies 1, 2&3., Florida Solar Energy Center, William Young

FSEC Energy Research Center®

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Infiltration Practices In The Florida Energy Code, Florida Solar Energy Center, James Cummings

FSEC Energy Research Center®

The Florida Department of Community Affairs has contracted with the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) to review the current infiltration practices of the Florida Energy Code to determine, based on analysis of the best currently available infiltration data, whether there is need for three infiltration practices, and to make recommendations of what "point multipliers" should be applied to the infiltration practice(s). An advisory committee of industry, utility, and research representatives was formed to review the findings of the project and express opinions about the form the infiltration practices should take. This committee met twice, reviewed each of the reports produced …

Solar Photovoltaic Air Conditioning Of Residential Buildings, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

The use of photovoltaics (PV) for residential air conditioning (AC) represents an attractive application due to the close match between the diurnal cooling load and the availability of solar radiation. Conventional wisdom suggests that air conditioning is a process too energy intensive to be addressed by PV. Previous investigations have concentrated on the feasibility of matching PV output to vapor-compression machines, and the cost effectiveness of other solar cooling options. Recently, Japanese manufacturers have introduced small (8,000 Btu/hr) grid-connected solar assisted AC systems. These small room-sized systems are inadequately sized to meet air conditioning peak demands in larger U.S. homes …

Barriers To Commercialization Of Solar Energy In Florida, Florida Solar Energy Center, Colleen Mccann Kettles

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Florida has a distinct history of solar system development and use. Solar systems have been operating in the State since the 1920s. During the past several decades, solar technologies have advanced and matured, as have the business entities that deliver solar products to the end user. Solar products made in Florida are U.S. and world industry leaders. Quality control measures, such as collector and system testing and certification, contractor training and licensing, and follow-up site inspection, have assured consumer confidence in solar equipment and installation.

Real Life Applications Of Photovoltaic Power To Hurricane Andrew Relief, Florida Solar Energy Center, William Young

FSEC Energy Research Center®

On August 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew struck the coast of South Florida and devastated Dade County leaving several hundred-thousand people homeless. Over a million residences were without electrical service, functional water and sewage systems and medical services for days and weeks in the aftermath of the storm. Emergency management teams, medical personnel, the military and countless public and private organizations staged a massive relief effort.

The staff at the Florida Solar Energy Center and SANDIA National Laboratory responded to the disaster with photovoltaics (solar electric) powered equipment to assist in the relief effort. Electricity generated by these systems were used …

Laboratory Testing Of The Reflectance Properties Of Roofing Materials, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Past simulation and test cell studies have shown potential reduction to building cooling loads from higher exterior surface solar reflectances (Givoni and Hoffman, 1968; Givoni, 1976; Chuan and Busching, 1983; Griggs and Shipp, 1988; Anderson, 1989; Akbari et al., 1990; Chandra and Moalla, 1991; Bansal et al., 1992). Furthermore, simulation analysis of macro-climatic effects have shown that light colored surfaces may reduce the magnitude of the urban heat island (Taha et al., 1988; Akbari et al, 1989; Akbari et al., 1992).

Figure 1 shows a graphic illustration of the potential influence of surface reflectance on roof solar heat gain. The …

Selecting Windows For South Florida Residences, Florida Solar Energy Center, Ross Mccluney

FSEC Energy Research Center®

To provide some guidance to the victims of hurricane Andrew in Dade County, we performed a study of various types of modern glazing systems that might be incorporated in windows for south Florida residences.

The dominant energy impact of residential windows in south Florida comes from the solar radiant heat gain entering these windows and the corresponding heat loads on cooling systems. Thus any extra dollars spent by homeowners to purchase improved replacement windows should be spent in lowering the solar gains of the windows purchased (by reducing glazing shading coefficients or by adding exterior shading devices or vegetation) rather …

The Implementation Of Photovoltaic Transportation Devices, Florida Solar Energy Center, William Young

FSEC Energy Research Center®

The Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) are currently involved in a program to implement solar electric (photovoltaic) powered applications in the transportation sector. The objective of the program is to encourage the widespread use of cost-effective, transportation related, photovoltaic-powered systems in all areas of traffic control.

Transportation departments have generally relied on conventional practices of using generators, primary batteries, and extensions of utility grid to fulfil their power needs. There exist many remote and conventional electric power requirements within the FDOT that may be effectively satisfied by photovoltaic (PV) power. Applications ranging from …

Rebuilding For Efficiency: Improving The Energy Use Of Reconstructed Residences In South Florida, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

On August 24th, 1992, Hurricane Andrew devastated a large part of South Dade County in Florida. With over 35,000 homes to be rebuilt, there is interest in seeing if these reconstructed residences can be made more energy-efficient.

This report provides a comprehensive assessment of potential energy efficiency improvements for both new and existing homes in South Florida. Over forty energy-efficiency measures were considered in the analysis. Many homes in the effected zone experienced damage to their windows, roofs and the surrounding landscape. As a result, the analysis closely examined options associated with these design aspects. All major end-uses of electricity …

Hurricane Andrew Photovoltaic Traffic Control Relief, Florida Solar Energy Center, William Young

FSEC Energy Research Center®

On August 24, 1992 Hurricane Andrew damaged and destroyed much of South Florida. The storm destroyed buildings, structures, and traffic devices along the highway. Travel was hazardous with debris in the roadway, traffic signals damaged or not working, and signs missing. This disaster offered a unique opportunity to research and evaluate the potential for using photovoltaic power systems in emergency traffic control situations. This report describes the findings of this study completed by the Florida Solar Energy Center sponsored by the Florida Department of Transportation.

Measured Electricity Savings Of Refrigerator Replacement: Case Study And Analysis, Florida Solar Energy Center, Ted Stedman

FSEC Energy Research Center®

There are approximately seven million refrigerator-freezers in the State of Florida. The average demand of these units is at least 1,000 MW. The average life of a residential refrigerator is approximately 20 years (U.S. DOE, 1989). At least 25% of Florida's existing stock are old inefficient units built before the advent of recent appliance efficiency standards. The least efficient are existing models of which approximately 5% of the stock is replaced each year. This represents a significant opportunity for efficiency improvement since recently established standards will greatly improve refrigerator efficiency by 1993 (NAECA, 1987). A number of studies have identified …

Fsec 3.0: Florida Software For Enervironment Computation: V3.0 Draft User's Manual. 01-92, Florida Solar Energy Center, Alp Kerestecioglu

FSEC Energy Research Center®

FSEC 3.0 was developed to support research. It is a general-purpose software package especially designed to simulate complex building science problems. The program offers several unique features.

The major feature is its ability to solve user-defined systems of governing equations. Up to 250 coupled differential equations and their corresponding boundary conditions may be either selected from libraries or defined by the user. The equations may be linear or nonlinear; spatially-lumped or spatially-distributed; steady-state or transient; ordinary or partial. The structure of the software also allows users to incorporate their own routines or programs. Thus, researchers may define their specific problem …

Simplified Sizing Procedure For Solar Domestic Hot Water Systems, Florida Solar Energy Center, Public Information Office

FSEC Energy Research Center®

This procedure was developed to size residential solar water heating systems in Florida.

Energy-Efficient Lighting For Florida Homes, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Although lighting doesn't constitute a major portion of the average homeowner's electric bill (generally from 3 to 15 percent), you can cut your lighting costs significantly by installing new energy-efficient bulbs. As an added plus for Florida residents, these new bulbs produce less heat, meaning less work for your air conditioner.

Measured Natural Cooling Enhancement Of A Whole House Fan, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

An experimental study was carried out in the summer of 1991 to investigate the natural cooling potential of use of a whole house fan in Central Florida's hot and humid climate. The residential building, in Cocoa Beach, FL, is typical of much of the existing housing stock in Florida: a concrete block structure with R-11 ceiling insulation. The building was ventilated with all windows open during the three month summer test period (June-August). Air temperatures and relative humidity inside the home interior along with exterior meteorological conditions (insolation, wind speed, air temperature, relative humidity) were scanned every five seconds with …

Limiting Solar Radiation Effects On Outdoor Air Temperature Measurement, Florida Solar Energy Center, Robin Vieira

FSEC Energy Research Center®

This experimental study compares various methods of reducing the effects of solar radiation on outdoor air temperature measurements. It indicates that radiation effects can introduce significant measurement error, even with the use of shielding devices and aspiration, and outlines efforts that were taken to lessen the error caused by radiation.

Two separate tests were conducted, one comparing naturally ventilated and fan-aspirated radiation shields, the other comparing seven identical fan-aspirated shields. Results from the first test showed that one of the naturally ventilated shields was generally more effective than a fan- aspirated unit-at some instances of high radiation giving daytime temperatures …

Energy Use In Attached And Detached Residential Developments: Survey Results, Florida Solar Energy Center, Robin Vieira

FSEC Energy Research Center®

The relationship between land use, density, dwelling types and energy use in Florida has never been comprehensively examined. Few people consider both energy used in housing and energy used for local transportation. Florida state officials and some land planners have called for compact urban growth to reduce traffic congestion and travel distances. However, energy is rarely mentioned in these arguments. Local governments are trying to respond to the state's concern for compact growth. Developers, on the other hand, are concerned with meeting the local regulations. Unfortunately, energy use is seldom considered and there is little data available to guide decision …

Investigation Of Air Distribution System Leakage And Its Impacts In Central Florida Homes, Florida Solar Energy Center, James B. Cummings

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Testing for air leakage in air distribution systems was done in 160 central Florida homes. Tracer gas tests found that infiltration rates were three times greater when the air handler was operating that when it was off, indicating that there are large leaks in the air distribution system. Infiltration averaged 0.91 air changes per hour (ach) with the air handler (AH) operating continuously and 0.28 ach with the AH off. Return leaks were measured by tracer gas and found to average 10.7% of AH total flow. House airtightness, in 99 of these homes, determined by blower door testing, averaged 12.7 …

Measuring Thermostat And Air Conditioner Performance In Florida Homes, Florida Solar Energy Center, Hugh Henderson, Jr.

FSEC Energy Research Center®

This report summarizes the experimental results from 30 field tests in 23 Central Florida homes during the Summer of 1990. Detailed thermostat measurements were made at each site for a one to three day period. The purpose of this study was to determine how thermostats operate in actual buildings. This knowledge is necessary to understand the part load performance of air conditioners (ACs).

Monitored Energy Use Characteristics Of A Florida Residence: Demonstration Of A Research Monitoring Protocol, Data Acquisition System And Associated Analysis Methods, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

This report summarizes the first four months of data collection on the author's home in Cocoa Beach, Florida. This project was designed to develop and test a residential monitoring protocol for a cooling dominated climate. The project has demonstrated that useful research results can be obtained from the detailed monitoring of a single occupied residential home.

Impacts Of Duct Leakage On Infiltration Rates, Space Conditioning Energy Use, And Peak Electrical Demand In Florida Homes, Florida Solar Energy Center, James Cummings

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Testing for duct leakage was done in 91 homes. Tracer gas tests found that infiltration rates were four times greater when the air handler was operating than when it was off. Return leaks were found to average 10.0% of air handler total flow. House airtightness, in 63 of these homes, determined by blower door testing, averaged 12.38 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals (ACH50). When the duct registers were sealed, ACH50 decreased to 10.93, indicating that 11.7% of the house leaks were in the duct system.

Duct repairs were made on 25 homes. Blower door tests found 12.30 air …

A Stratified Air Model For Simulation Of Attic Thermal Performance, Florida Solar Energy Center, Danny Parker

FSEC Energy Research Center®

An improved computer simulation model for attics has been developed. The model accounts for detailed radiation, buoyancy and wind driven air flows and thermal stratification within the attic airspace. Through comparison with measured data, the paper examines the relative importance of the various modeling parameters and assumptions upon simulation accuracy. Stratification of the attic air was found to be a critical modeling characteristic which is typically ignored in building energy simulations. Both model and measurement results shows that air stratification increases significantly when low-emittance surfaces are included.

The Planet Janitor: A Symbol Of Global Concerns, Florida Solar Energy Center, Public Information Office

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Meet the Planet Janitor. A kindly, yet determined gentleman. He works at the Florida Solar Energy Center where he is a spokesman for energy-related issues. He illustrates the need to sweep up all environmental messes we've made. He reminds us to maintain our home - Planet Earth. He dramatizes our role as custodians of our children's inheritance. He knows and he shows how the individual can make a difference.

Renewable Energy Activities For Middle Grades, Florida Solar Energy Center, David Lahart

FSEC Energy Research Center®

The Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) is a research and education arm of the State University System hosted by the University of Central Florida. The Florida legislature established FSEC in 1974 to conduct research in alternative energy technologies, to ensure the quality of solar energy equipment sold in Florida, and to educate people about renewable energy technology.

One method of disseminating research results has been through teacher education programs and the development of instructional materials. FSEC-developed materials are designed to teach science and social studies research methods and/or process skills. The units have been field-tested and correlated with student performance …

Radon Pressure Differential Project; Phase Ii Infiltration, Florida Solar Energy Center, James Cummings

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Testing has been done on 50 central Florida homes to assess and characterize house infiltration rates in new (age five years or less) Florida homes. These 50 were drawn randomly from a sample of 70 homes which had been previously tested to determine house airtightness, air distribution system leakage, and pressure differentials. The 50 homes had an average airtightness of 7.31 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals (ACH50). Significant leaks were found in the ductwork in a majority of homes tested, both on the supply and return sides of the air handler. When the air distribution system was sealed …

Radon Pressure Differential Project, Phase I, Florida Solar Energy Center, James Cummings

FSEC Energy Research Center®

Testing has been done on 70 central Florida homes to assess and characterize pressure differentials in new (age five years or less) Florida homes. Blower door testing was done to determine house airtightness and air distribution system leakage. The 70 homes had an average airtightness of 7.23 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals (ACH50). Significant leaks were found in the ductwork in a majority of homes tested, both on the supply and return sides of the air handler. When the air distribution system was sealed off, house ACH50 decreased to 6.42, indicating that 11.2% of the house leak area …