Impact of energy efficiency upgrade retrofits on the residential energy consumption in Canada

The impact of various energy efficiency upgrade scenarios on the annual energy consumption of the Canadian housing stock is assessed using the Canadian Residential Energy End‐use Model (CREEM). The energy efficiency upgrade scenarios that are considered include major retrofits, such as the improvement of the house envelope by adding insulation, and the replacement of the existing heating system and appliances by higher efficiency units, as well as minor retrofits, such as lighting fixture, thermostat, showerhead and aerator upgrades that reduce energy consumption. The economic feasibility of each upgrade was assessed using the indicator ‘energy savings per dollar investment’. The results indicate that the energy savings potential of the retrofits is rather small, resulting in savings of 0–8 per cent of the total energy consumption of the Canadian housing stock. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A state-of-the-art review of the sustainability and energy efficiency of buildings in Saudi Arabia

Sustainable buildings have an important role in achieving sustainable development by improving energy utilization and environmental performance. Buildings are considered as the biggest single contributor to world energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In Saudi Arabia, the significance of the building sector can be described on the basis of per capita electricity consumption, per capita carbon dioxide emissions, and the increasing number of buildings because of economic and population growth. Therefore, the country should consider establishing energy-efficient buildings to promote sustainable development. Efforts in developing energy-efficient technologies should increase for the national energy policy. This article comprehensively describes the current challenges and opportunities of energy consumption and various energy conservation options that are viable for the Saudi building sector. Current policy efforts for improving energy efficiency in Saudi buildings have been analyzed to enhance the sustainable development in the country. The study reveals that the energy conservation policy of the country has fairly improved in the past decades. However, the country has to focus on this area and perform urgent measures to adopt energy-efficient technologies in the building sector.     

Impact of energy efficiency measures on the economic value of buildings

A main objective of energy policies is to make all levels of the society, from governments to citizen, interested in increasing the energy efficiency of buildings. One of the most important barriers in implementation of energy policies is that the cost of potential energy savings, typically considered being the only financial benefit, does not sufficiently motivate investments. The target is therefore to identify further possible drivers pushing positive reaction according to energy saving action.The paper discusses whether a market-based instrument, capturing the increase of the economic value of energy efficient buildings, can be also used. Methods that quantify the added value due to energy performance, including recommendations on how they can be incorporated in the financial analysis of investments in weatherization, are developed. By applying the proposed methods, the payback period of investments in energy efficiency measures depends on two factors: potential energy savings and the added value to the property. Case studies on some existing condominiums from Romania are analyzed and provide evidence to the research question.The market sensitivity to energy efficiency measures, the possibility of an intangible added value as well as the impact to financial investment decisions is subsequently in the focus.     

Impact of energy efficiency gains on output and energy use with Cobb–Douglas production function

A special issue of Energy Policy—28 (2000)—was devoted to a collection of papers, edited by Dr. Lee Schipper. The collection included a paper entitled “A view from the macro side: rebound, backfire, and Khazzoom–Brookes” in which it was argued that the impact of fuel efficiency gains on output (roughly, GDP) is likely to be relatively small by Cobb–Douglas production function. However, an error in the analysis leads to under-estimation of the long-term impact. This paper first provides a partial equilibrium analysis by an alternative method for the same case and then proceeds to an analysis on the issue in a two-sector general equilibrium system. In the latter analysis, energy price is internalized. Both energy use efficiency and energy production efficiency are involved.     

Impact of energy policy instruments on the estimated level of underlying energy efficiency in the EU residential sector

The promotion of energy efficiency is seen as one of the top priorities of EU energy policy (EC, 2010). In order to design and implement effective energy policy instruments, it is necessary to have information on energy demand price and income elasticities in addition to sound indicators of energy efficiency. This research combines the approaches taken in energy demand modelling and frontier analysis in order to econometrically estimate the level of energy efficiency for the residential sector in the EU-27 member states for the period 1996 to 2009. The estimates for the energy efficiency confirm that the EU residential sector indeed holds a relatively high potential for energy savings from reduced inefficiency. Therefore, despite the common objective to decrease ‘wasteful’ energy consumption, considerable variation in energy efficiency between the EU member states is established. Furthermore, an attempt is made to evaluate the impact of energy-efficiency measures undertaken in the EU residential sector by introducing an additional set of variables into the model and the results suggest that financial incentives and energy performance standards play an important role in promoting energy efficiency improvements, whereas informative measures do not have a significant impact.     

Energy efficiency,sustainability and economic growth

This paper explores two linked theses related to the role energy in economic development, and potential sources of increased energy efficiency for continued growth with reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The first thesis is that, while reduced GHG emissions are essential for long-term global sustainability, the usual policy recommendation of increasing energy costs by introducing a carbon tax may be relatively ineffective under current market structures and have an unnecessarily adverse impact on economic growth. Our second thesis is that there exists a practical near-term strategy for reducing GHG emissions while simultaneously encouraging continued technology-driven economic growth. Moreover, this strategy does not require radical new technologies, but rather improved regulation or—more precisely—better deregulation of the electric power sector.     

Broadening to sustainability the perspective of industrial decision-makers on the energy efficiency measures adoption: some empirical evidence

The industry should take further efforts towards increased energy efficiency, that is a major contributor to improve industrial sustainability performance, by implementing energy efficiency measures (EEMs). However, the rate of adoption of these measures is still quite low. Hitherto, EEMs and barriers to their adoption have been evaluated almost exclusively from the viewpoint of energy efficiency decision-makers, not accounting for the broader sustainability perspective. This work aims at understanding whether an industrial sustainability perspective can better address issues related to EEMs adoption, analyzing the question through different viewpoints and insights offered by industrial decision-makers of different industrial sustainability areas within a firm. By doing this, we aim at offering a contribution in the understanding of the low rate of adoption of EEMs. As case studies, we investigated 12 firms from Northern Italy. In comparison to previous literature, results show that an industrial sustainability perspective can better explain the real decision-making process of adopting an EEM. Indeed, people knowledgeable about different industrial sustainability areas may perceive different barriers about the same EEM. EEMs may be negatively affected by reasons related to other areas of industrial sustainability, while positive reciprocal impacts may exist among areas of industrial sustainability; thus, EEMs may have effects on areas other than energy efficiency, and these effects may be perceived only by such areas. The study concludes with some remarks for policy and industrial decision-makers and advice for further research.     

The dual sustainability of wind energy

Academics, practitioners, and policy makers continue to debate the benefits and costs of alternative sources of energy. Environmental and economic concerns have yet to be fully reconciled. One view is that decisions that incorporate both society's concern with the environment and investors’ desire for shareholder value maximization are more likely to be truly sustainable. We coin the term dual sustainability to mean the achievement of environmental and financial sustainability simultaneously.Many experts believe that wind energy can help to meet society's needs without harming future generations. It is clean and renewable. Because the fuel is free it provides the ultimate in energy independence. Wind energy has emerged as a leading prospect, in part, because it is considered by many to be environmentally sustainable.However, a key question that remains is whether wind energy is financially sustainable without the extensive government support that has helped to create and nurture this growth industry. Using reliable, proprietary data from field research, our analysis employs a capital budgeting framework to evaluate the financial economics of investments in wind energy. We find that because of the convergence of improved technology, greater efficiency, and with the increasing cost of traditional, competing sources such as oil and natural gas, wind energy is close to becoming self-sustaining financially without the extensive federal government support that exists today.Wind energy can provide the best of both worlds. It is sustainable from an environmental perspective and it is becoming sustainable financially. In short, those companies investing in wind energy will be able to do well by doing good. Perhaps the achievement of dual sustainability is true sustainability.Our research findings and dual sustainability have several interesting and important implications for public policy towards wind energy. All imply that public policy can now be executed in a more effective and efficient manner. In the paper we outline and offer these better and cheaper public policy alternatives for consideration.     

Green nanotechnology of trends in future energy: a review

It is well known that current fossil fuel usage is unsustainable and associated with greenhouse gas production. The amount of the world's primary energy supply provided by renewable energy technologies is urgently required. Therefore, the relevant technologies such as hydrogen fuel, solar cell, biotechnology based on nanotechnology, and the relevant patents for exploiting the future energy for the friendly environment are reviewed. At the same time, it is pointed out that the significantly feasible world's eco‐energy for the foreseeable future should not only be realized, but also methods for using the current energy and their by‐products more efficiently should be found correspondingly, alongside technologies that will ensure minimal environmental impact. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Renewable energy sources in Turkey for climate change mitigation and energy sustainability

In Turkey, there is a much more potential for renewables, but represent about 37% of total energy production and 10% of total energy consumption. This share is not enough for the country and the governments should be increase to this situation. Renewable energy technologies of wind, biomass, hydropower, geothermal, solar thermal and photovoltaics are finally showing maturity and the ultimate promise of cost competitiveness. With respect to global environmental issues, Turkey's carbon dioxide emissions have grown along with its energy consumption. States have played a leading role in protecting the environment by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. In this regard, renewable energy resources appear to be the one of the most efficient and effective solutions for clean and sustainable energy development in Turkey. Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of most of these renewable energy sources. Certain policy interventions could have a dramatic impact on shaping the relationship between geological, geographic and climatic conditions and energy production. This study shows that there is enough renewable energy potential in Turkey for fuels and electricity. Especially hydropower and biomass are very well.     

Nuclear energy and sustainability: Understanding ITER

Deregulation and new environmental requirements combined with the growing scarcity of fossil resources and the increasing world energy demand lead to a renewal of the debate on tomorrow's energies. Specifically, nuclear energy, which has undeniable assets, faces new constraints. On the one hand, nuclear energy is very competitive and harmless to greenhouse effect. From this point, it seems to be an ideal candidate to reach future objectives of sustainability, availability and acceptability. On the other hand, its technology of production — based on fission — remains imperfect and generates risks for environment and health. In this respect, it is less desirable. Therefore, world researchers turn today towards another type of nuclear technique, fusion, on which the project ITER is founded. This worldwide project is interesting for our analysis because, as a technological revolution, it takes into consideration all the global challenges of nuclear energy for the future, and particularly its capacity to meet the increasing energy needs of developing countries. It is the example par excellence of a successful international scientific collaboration oriented towards very long-run energy ends that involve huge technological, economic and political stakes. Focusing on this project, we thus have to reconsider the future place of nuclear energy in a more and more demanding world. Considering the magnitude of the efforts undertaken to implement ITER, this paper aims at analysing, in a detailed way, its goals, its challenges and its matter.     

Industrial energy analysis,thermodynamics and sustainability

Thermodynamic methods of (energy and exergy) analysis are employed to illustrate energy use in industry. The scope for increasing energy efficiency, and the extent of exergetic ‘improvement potential’ are examined. Poor thermodynamic performance is principally the result of exergy losses in combustion and heat-transfer processes. The late Professor Willem van Gool (a distinguished Dutch physical chemist) was at the forefront of the development and application of energy and exergy methods. He also explored the link between energy and economics. The work of van Gool and others researchers who laid down the foundations of industrial energy analysis are reviewed. These contributions are placed in the broader context of the modern paradigm of sustainable development, and their implications for the future direction of European Union energy and environmental strategies are discussed. Thermodynamic concepts have been utilised by practitioners in a variety of disciplines with interests in environmental sustainability, including ecology, economics and engineering. Widespread concern about resource depletion and environmental degradation are common to them all. Van Gool was instrumental in stimulating a dialogue across the economic and physical sciences. Some researchers view thermodynamic parameters as mirroring energy transformations within society. However, it is argued (after Hammond GP. Engineering sustainability: thermodynamics, energy systems, and the environment. Int J Energy Res 2004;28:613–639.) that they may simply reflect a weak analogy or metaphor, rather than representing thermodynamic limits in a physical sense.     

Role of exergy in increasing efficiency and sustainability and reducing environmental impact

The use of exergy is described as a measure for identifying and explaining the benefits of sustainable energy and technologies, so the benefits can be clearly understood and appreciated by experts and non-experts alike, and the utilization of sustainable energy and technologies can be increased. Exergy can be used to assess and improve energy systems, and can help better understand the benefits of utilizing green energy by providing more useful and meaningful information than energy provides. Exergy clearly identifies efficiency improvements and reductions in thermodynamic losses attributable to more sustainable technologies. A new sustainability index is developed as a measure of how exergy efficiency affects sustainable development. Exergy can also identify better than energy the environmental benefits and economics of energy technologies. The results suggest that exergy should be utilized by engineers and scientists, as well as decision and policy makers, involved in green energy and technologies in tandem with other objectives and constraints.     

A review on clean energy solutions for better sustainability

This paper focuses on clean energy solutions in order to achieve better sustainability, and hence discusses opportunities and challenges from various dimensions, including social, economic, energetic and environmental aspects. It also evaluates the current and potential states and applications of possible clean‐energy systems. In the first part of this study, renewable and nuclear energy sources are comparatively assessed and ranked based on their outputs. By ranking energy sources based on technical, economic, and environmental performance criteria, it is aimed to identify the improvement potential for each option considered. The results show that in power generation, nuclear has the highest (7.06/10) and solar photovoltaic (PV) has the lowest (2.30/10). When nonair pollution criteria, such as land use, water contamination, and waste issues are considered, the power generation ranking changes, and geothermal has the best (7.23/10) and biomass has the lowest performance (3.72/10). When heating and cooling modes are considered as useful outputs, geothermal and biomass have approximately the same technical, environmental, and cost performances (as 4.9/10), and solar has the lowest ranking (2/10). Among hydrogen production energy sources, nuclear gives the highest (6.5/10) and biomass provides the lowest (3.6/10) in ranking. In the second part of the present study, multigeneration systems are introduced, and their potential benefits are discussed along with the recent studies in the literature. It is shown that numerous advantages are offered by renewable energy‐based integrated systems with multiple outputs, especially in reducing overall energy demand, system cost and emissions while significantly improving overall efficiencies and hence output generation rates. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How ICT investment influences energy demand in South Korea and Japan

This empirical study examines substitute/complementary relationships in the demands for ICT capital, non-ICT capital, energy, materials, and labor in the industrial sectors in Japan and South Korea during 1973–2006 and 1980–2009, respectively. In doing so, a dynamic factor demand model is applied to link intertemporal production decisions by explicitly recognizing that the level of certain factors of production (referred to as quasi-fixed factors: ICT and non-ICT capital) cannot be changed without incurring so-called adjustment costs, defined in terms of forgone output from current production. Special emphasis is on the effects of ICT investment on energy use through the substitute/complementary relationships. This study quantifies how ICT capital investment in South Korea and Japan affects industrial energy demand. We find that ICT and non-ICT capital investment serve as substitutes for the inputs of labor and energy use. The results also demonstrate significant cost differences across industries in both countries.     

浅谈建筑能耗模拟与建筑节能

建筑能耗模拟是建筑节能设计的重要技术手段。本文介绍了建筑能耗模拟的原理，模拟软件及其特点，列举了建筑能耗模拟的应用。     

The paradigm of sustainability in the Brazilian energy sector

The concept of sustainability can be a way to understand the dynamics of reality and to consider not only the economic growth but also the social, environmental and cultural aspects of development. This new paradigm questions the role of nature as an instrument only to satisfy the human needs and brings into consideration the rational use of natural resources through responsible environmental policies keeping in mind the needs of the future generations. The economic growth, considered as the notion of progress, brings intrinsically not only the extensive nature exploitation but also the intensification of the energy use. Energy sources become, then, a strategic variable for the economic development. The Brazilian energy policy is an appropriate case study for the paradigm of sustainability overview as it is characterized by isolated initiatives and programs, which culminated into a huge crisis. So, this paper aims to discuss the concepts of sustainability and ethics through the analysis of the Brazilian energy policy and its social and environmental implications.     

Marketing energy efficiency: perceived benefits and barriers to home energy efficiency

Energy efficiency contributes significantly to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the associated mitigation of climate change. The uptake of energy efficiency measures in the residential sector requires significant effort on the part of homeowners or residents. Past research has revealed that cost savings and social interaction motivate energy efficiency behavior. This study expands on this research by examining the hypothesis that there are regional differences in what motivates individuals to implement home energy efficiency upgrades. Two surveys (N?=?320 and N?=?423) examine the perceived benefits of and barriers to undertaking home energy efficiency improvements in varying geographic regions across the USA and test marketing materials that target these benefits and barriers. The hypothesis that there are regional differences in perceptions of energy efficiency was confirmed. Cost savings were found to be the most important benefit to individuals across the country. Energy efficiency being a good investment is either the second or third most important benefit across all regions. Increased comfort is the last of the top three most important benefits to those in the South and Midwest, while those in the Northeast demonstrated interest in the increase in home retail value associated with energy efficiency, and those in the West found the environmental benefits to be important. High costs of energy efficiency improvements were found to be the most commonly perceived barrier. Reported likelihood to enroll in a home energy efficiency program offered by one’s employer was predicted by perceived likelihood that coworkers would enroll, income level, and personal opinions about the importance of energy efficiency.     

Thermodynamic parameters for energy sustainability of urban areas

This paper presents some thermodynamic indicators useful for energy planning of urban areas, and for defining the scenarios of integrated low environmental impact energy strategies and actions in an urban area. It is based on the results of the energy balance of a reference volume obtained by the Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques applied to the built-up area studied. The defined parameters allow evaluation of the sustainability of energy use in an urban area and its areal distribution in different building meshes superimposed on the area considered, using entropy.