TY - JOUR
T1 - Ambient Energy for Buildings: Beyond Energy Efficiency
T2 - Article No. 100076
AU - Adua, Lazarus
AU - Asamoah, Amma
AU - Barrow, John
AU - Brookstein, Pamela
AU - Chen, Bing
AU - Coleman, Debra
AU - Denzer, Anthony
AU - Desjarlais, Andre
AU - Falconer, Whit
AU - Fernandes, Luis
AU - Fisler, Diana
AU - Foley, Craig
AU - Gaillard, Clement
AU - Gladen, Adam
AU - Goswami, Yogi
AU - Guzowski, Mary
AU - Hamilton, Bruce
AU - Hill, Terence
AU - Hun, Diana
AU - Kar, Bandana
AU - Kishore, Ravi
AU - Klingenberg, Katrin
AU - Kosny, Jan
AU - Levinson, Ronnen
AU - McGinley, Mark
AU - Mumme, Sven
AU - Myer, Michael
AU - Nicodemus, Julia
AU - Rempel, Alexandra
AU - Riggins, Jim
AU - Riggs, Russel
AU - Robinson, Brian
AU - Ruan, Xiulin
AU - Schwarz, Robby
AU - Sharp, M. Keith
AU - Shrestha, Som
AU - Sofos, Marina
AU - Tabares, Paulo
AU - Tenent, Robert
AU - Toye, Cory
AU - Usher, Todd
AU - Walker, Andy
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - The following Key Messages comprise the salient findings of this study: 1. Ambient energy (from sun, air, ground, and sky) can heat and cool buildings; provide hot water, ventilation and daylighting; dry clothes; and cook food. These services account for about three-quarters of building energy consumption and a third of total US demand. Biophilic design (direct and indirect connections with nature) is an intrinsic adjunct to ambient energy systems, and improves wellness and human performance. 2. The current strategy of electrification and energy efficiency for buildings will not meet our climate goals, because the transition to an all-renewable electric grid is too slow. Widespread adoption of ambient energy is needed. Solar-heated buildings also flatten the seasonal demand for electricity compared to all-electric buildings, reducing required production capacity and long-term energy storage. In addition, ambient-conditioned buildings improve resilience by remaining livable during power outages. 3. National policies, incentives, and marketing should be enacted to promote ambient energy use. Federal administrative priorities should reflect the importance of ambient energy for buildings. Use of ambient energy should be encouraged through existing and new building codes and standards. 4. Ambient energy system design tools are needed for architects, engineers, builders, building scientists, realtors, appraisers, and consumers. PVWatts is used over 100 million times per year for photovoltaic system design. A similar, simple, and accessible tool for ambient design is crucial. 5. Training on ambient energy is needed throughout secondary, post-secondary, and continuing education for workforce development. Currently, only about 10% of colleges teach courses on passive heating and cooling systems. 6. Ambient-conditioned buildings should be demonstrated in all US climate zones. Performance should be monitored and reported, with quantitative case studies made widely available. 7. While current technology is sufficient to build high-performance ambient buildings now, research is needed to develop new technologies to harness ambient energy more effectively and more economically. Such advancements will facilitate adoption of ambient energy technologies in a wider range of buildings, including retrofits. Examples include windows with much lower thermal losses, use of the building shell as thermal storage, alternative light-weight thermal storage systems, sky radiation cooling systems, automated controls for solar gains and passive cooling, and ground coupling.
AB - The following Key Messages comprise the salient findings of this study: 1. Ambient energy (from sun, air, ground, and sky) can heat and cool buildings; provide hot water, ventilation and daylighting; dry clothes; and cook food. These services account for about three-quarters of building energy consumption and a third of total US demand. Biophilic design (direct and indirect connections with nature) is an intrinsic adjunct to ambient energy systems, and improves wellness and human performance. 2. The current strategy of electrification and energy efficiency for buildings will not meet our climate goals, because the transition to an all-renewable electric grid is too slow. Widespread adoption of ambient energy is needed. Solar-heated buildings also flatten the seasonal demand for electricity compared to all-electric buildings, reducing required production capacity and long-term energy storage. In addition, ambient-conditioned buildings improve resilience by remaining livable during power outages. 3. National policies, incentives, and marketing should be enacted to promote ambient energy use. Federal administrative priorities should reflect the importance of ambient energy for buildings. Use of ambient energy should be encouraged through existing and new building codes and standards. 4. Ambient energy system design tools are needed for architects, engineers, builders, building scientists, realtors, appraisers, and consumers. PVWatts is used over 100 million times per year for photovoltaic system design. A similar, simple, and accessible tool for ambient design is crucial. 5. Training on ambient energy is needed throughout secondary, post-secondary, and continuing education for workforce development. Currently, only about 10% of colleges teach courses on passive heating and cooling systems. 6. Ambient-conditioned buildings should be demonstrated in all US climate zones. Performance should be monitored and reported, with quantitative case studies made widely available. 7. While current technology is sufficient to build high-performance ambient buildings now, research is needed to develop new technologies to harness ambient energy more effectively and more economically. Such advancements will facilitate adoption of ambient energy technologies in a wider range of buildings, including retrofits. Examples include windows with much lower thermal losses, use of the building shell as thermal storage, alternative light-weight thermal storage systems, sky radiation cooling systems, automated controls for solar gains and passive cooling, and ground coupling.
KW - ambient energy
KW - buildings
KW - passive solar
KW - sky cooling
KW - solar thermal
KW - ventilation cooling
KW - windows
U2 - 10.1016/j.solcom.2024.100076
DO - 10.1016/j.solcom.2024.100076
M3 - Article
SN - 2772-9400
VL - 11
JO - Solar Compass
JF - Solar Compass
ER -