Household Energy Use Research Articles

Impacts of Global Warming on Regional Energy and Economy: Uneven consequences arising from global warming-induced heating and cooling demand of households

The impacts of global warming vary across regions. This paper studies the distributional implications of global warming impacts on household energy use for heating and cooling and the induced macroeconomic responses under different scenarios. Our research updates the direct impact of global warming on household energy demand in 140 regions worldwide by utilizing existing estimations of damage functions related to temperature changes. Subsequently, the updated direct impact is used in a global static computable general equilibrium (CGE) model to evaluate the macroeconomic responses. We find that at the global level, the market effects cause a reduction in the direct impact on the demand for oil and gas, while that for electricity displays a positive but moderate growth. Whereas the regional effects vary across countries and lead to changes in both directions, in which the autonomous adaptation embodied in the global market plays a vital role. Furthermore, we find strong inequality in the socioeconomic responses to global warming across regions. Notably, low-income countries are most strongly affected by increased primary energy use and decreased gross domestic product (GDP). Disparities in the impacts on carbon-based energy sources yield a near-perfect inequality as per the adjusted Gini index for CO2 emission changes, which potentially intensify the distributional consequences of global climate change.

Household fuel and direct carbon emission disparity in rural China

Universal access to clean fuels in household use is one explicit indicator of sustainable development while currently still billions of people rely on solid fuels for daily cooking. Despite of the recognized clean transition trend in general, disparities in household energy mix in different activities (e.g. cooking and heating) and historical trends remain to be elucidated. In this study, we revealed the historical changing trend of the disparity in household cooking and heating activities and associated carbon emissions in rural China. The study found that the poor had higher total direct energy consumption but used less modern energy, especially in cooking activities, in which the poor consumed 60 % more energy than the rich. The disparity in modern household energy use decreased over time, but conversely the disparity in total residential energy consumption increased due to the different energy elasticities as income increases. Though per-capita household CO2 and Black Carbon (BC) emissions were decreasing under switching to modern energies, the disparity in household CO2 and BC deepened over time, and the low-income groups emitted ∼ 10 kg CO2 more compared to the high-income population. Relying solely on spontaneous clean cooking transition had limited impacts in reducing disparities in household energy and carbon emissions, whereas improving access to modern energy had substantial potential to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions and its disparity. Differentiated energy-related policies to promote high-efficiency modern heating energies affordable for the low-income population should be developed to reduce the disparity, and consequently benefit human health and climate change equally.

Determinants of Household Energy Use for Cooking in Tanzania

Abstract This article aims to examine determinants that influence the choice of energy fuel for cooking among households in Tanzania mainland. The study employed descriptive and inferential statistics to analyse data from the 2017/18 Tanzania Household Budget Survey. Regarding the main source of energy used for cooking descriptive statistics revealed that the majority (66.5%) of the households use firewood for cooking and 24.6% use charcoal while only 8.8% use other (non-biomass fuels). This indicates that the majority (91.1%) relies on traditional fuel(biomass) for Cooking in Tanzania. Based on Inferential statistics, the chi-square test found that all independent variables except Marital status and income variables were statistically significant predictors of the study dependent variable in Tanzania at a 5 per cent significant level. On the other hand, multinomial logistic model results showed that households with few members, younger heads, male-headed, not employed heads, heads having a higher level of education, located in urban and married heads were less likely to use firewood and charcoal as the main fuel type for cooking than the other types of energy such as electricity, kerosene, industrial gas, coal, generator, and solar. The researcher recommends the use of these findings in formulating appropriate policies to improve access to affordable modern energy to lessen the environmental and health impact of biomass energy use. Keywords: Households Traditional energy, Modern Energy fuel, Multinomial Logistic Model

Increased home energy use: unintended outcomes of energy efficiency focused policy

ABSTRACT Residential energy policies for individual dwellings predominantly provide minimum design standards for thermal performance and energy efficiency on a square metre basis. This paper quantifies predicted dwelling energy use on a national scale to enable evaluation of the effectiveness of this policy model. Utilizing Australia as a case study, analysis of 580,956 thermal energy design certificates for new detached dwellings verifies that, although minimum energy efficiency design standards were achieved, predicted energy use for thermal comfort increased by 10.4% per dwelling and 5.6% nationally in 2022 compared to 2018. The study examines the impact of both the number and floor area of new dwellings on dwelling energy use and highlights the disparate jurisdictional outcomes resulting from inconsistent implementation of national policy across multi-state governance. To deliver reductions in household energy use it is imperative that residential energy policies target household energy use, rather than only energy efficiency, of new dwellings, of which floor area is a key determinant. Furthermore, to achieve global climate change objectives, there is a need for complementary policy mechanisms that consider the collective energy use of the residential dwelling sector.

Beyond short-term savings: A ten-year analysis of energy efficiency program outcomes in swiss households

This paper investigates the enduring impacts of Swiss energy efficiency programs on household electricity use and on the continuation of energy-conserving practices. Employing a mixed-methods research design, we analyzed electricity consumption data from 2009 to 2019 and incorporated insights from 2840 survey responses collected in 2018. Findings reveal sustained reductions in electricity use and continued adoption of energy-efficient appliances among program participants, underscoring the role of non-financial incentives—particularly environmental awareness—in promoting long-lasting energy conservation behaviors. Socio-cultural factors emerged as more indicative of household energy use than social status. Scaling the results to the national level, we estimate a potential annual energy saving of 2400 GWh, equivalent to 13 % of Swiss household electricity consumption in 2009. The paper advocates energy policies that prioritize engagement and periodic reinforcement to enhance long-term program efficacy.

Determinants of household energy use in the Fergana Valley

В июле – августе 2023 года Институт ЦАРЭС, Исследовательский институт «Общественное мнение» и Институт АБР провели социологическое исследование по потреблению энергии домашними хозяйствами в Ферганской долине, расположенной на территории Кыргызской Республики, Таджикистана и Узбекистана. На основе результатов данного исследования проанализированы факторы, определяющие выбор того или иного источника энергии для отопления домохозяйств. Данный анализ представлен в настоящей статье. Авторы статьи приходят к заключению, что высокие расходы домохозяйств на покупку угля и осведомленность населения о вреде, который ископаемое топливо наносит окружающей среде и здоровью членов семьи, недостаточны для стимулирования крупномасштабного перехода на экологически чистую энергию. Реальным стимулом к переходу на более чистые виды энергии могло бы стать значительное повышение цен на ископаемое топливо по сравнению с электроэнергией и другими видами экологически чистой энергии. Это могло бы быть осуществлено посредством введения налога на уголь, но нужно обратить внимание на то, что расходы на отопление уже составляют до одной трети всех расходов домохозяйств. В связи с этим во избежание социальных потрясений и негативной реакции на такой налог увеличенные расходы домохозяйств с низким и средним уровнем доходов должны быть компенсированы.

The Statistic Analysis of Instruments and Temperature Measurement of Freezer Wall Attached by Dry Ice Gel

The need for electrical energy in Indonesia is increasing rapidly, and the use of electrical energy will increase carbon dioxide gas emissions by around 1.3% each year, which causes environmental damage. The electricity usage sector in households is higher than in industry and transportation. The need for electricity in households will increase from 49% in 2018 to 58% in the BAU (business as usual) scenario and 61% in the RK (low carbon) scenario in 2050. The leading cause of the high use of electrical energy in households is the use of cooling equipment such as air conditioners, refrigerators, and freezers. One strategy to increase energy efficiency that can be used in cooling equipment such as freezers is using phase change materials (PCM). The method in this research used phase change material of dry ice gel to maintain the temperature in the freezer although the electricity was off. The results showed that the dry ice gel PCM maintained the temperature under zero degree.

Does internet use promote clean energy use for cooking by women-headed rural households in China?

Using the China Family Panel Studies, this study examined the effect of internet use on women-headed rural households' clean energy use with the Probit model and examined the mechanism of action of this effect. The results found that women-headed rural households were more likely to use clean energy than male-headed households. Furthermore, internet access greatly facilitated women-headed rural household use of clean energy. The mechanism analysis found that internet use expands residents' access to information, engages participation in off-farm employment, enhances the frequency of social interaction, and thus leads to clean energy use in women-headed rural households.

Monitoring Tool for Electricity Usage in Residential Homes Based on the Internet of Things (IoT) Using BLYNK Application

Electricity is a basic need of human beings. The consumption of electricity usage is getting bigger and bigger. Electricity usage is usually wasteful due to lack of public awareness and ineffective use of electricity. With this problem, the author aims to design loT-based electric power usage monitoring system in home electrical appliances. This tool is designed using sensors to detect the value of the voltage and current of the load attached to the electricity but still using the BLYNK application as a server and application to monitor the use of electric power through a smartphone application. The measurement results include the data of current, voltage, and electrical power used. This system can also remotely switch appliances ON/OFF. The test was conducted by comparing the results of the power value from the power meter with the power value in BLYNK application. After the test, the results of the comparison between the monitoring tool and the power meter measuring instrument obtained an average power error value of 0.5%. So that the accuracy value of the tool can also be 99.5%. With a large accuracy value, it means that the tool works well and can be used to monitor the use of electrical energy in households.

Impact of energy affordability on the decision-making of rural households in ecologically fragile areas of Northwest China regarding clean energy use

BackgroundHighly carbonized energy use in ecologically fragile areas of Northwest China seriously endangers the health of residents and the ecological environment. However, poor energy affordability remains a major obstacle to the promotion of clean energy use in rural households in this region.MethodsBased on survey data of 1118 households in ecologically fragile areas of Northwest China, this study constructed a household-level database of energy use, measured energy affordability in two dimensions: endogenous income (annual per capita household income) and external inputs (government energy subsidies). It uses logistic and threshold regression to empirically test the impact, threshold, and heterogeneity of energy affordability on the decision-making of rural households regarding clean energy use for cooking, heating, and heating water.Results(1) The energy use structures of rural households in different ecologically fragile areas differ because of different household characteristics. (2) Energy affordability affects cooking significantly more than it affects heating and subsidy growth is a stronger incentive than income growth. Moreover, for both cooking and heating, energy affordability has a greater impact on electricity use than on gas use. (3) The thresholds for energy transformation for heating are greater than those for cooking and heating water. When the subsidy increases by 2400 yuan/year, heating can catch up to other types of use, whereas, based on the current level of income growth, it requires more than 5 years. (4) This effect is higher in high-income, purely agricultural, highly educated, young, and middle-aged households.ConclusionsPromoting the use of clean energy in rural households only by increasing income will be a slow process. Subsidies should be used to accelerate this process by improving the energy affordability of rural households and a compensation policy should be implemented considering the energy types and periods. Taking into account the differences in the basic characteristics of rural households in different ecologically fragile areas, clean energy policies should be adopted from various perspectives to better leverage the enhancement effect of energy affordability.

Do skills enable the reduction of emissions from household energy use? Findings from a survey of households in rural India

ABSTRACT We use new survey data from 1,203 households in rural Eastern India to estimate cross-sectional models of overall energy use and embedded emissions. Findings indicate that the primary driver of household energy use is household size and affluence. This is unsurprising and consistent with findings from the engineering literature on energy demand. However, there is also a substantial and significant moderating influence of skills on energy use. For emissions, we observe a bifurcated relationship in line with educational attainment. For those that have completed secondary education or more, skills are negatively associated with energy use and emissions, whereas for those with lesser qualifications more skills are associated with more energy use and emissions. The results are consistent with the environmental Kuznets curve, which implies that a critical level of affluence is required before environmental impacts start lessening. The results also echo a sociological critique of human capital theory − that individual abilities are not productive in and of themselves, but rather in relation to socially determined opportunity structures. Our findings show that this could also hold for greenhouse gas emissions.

From buildings to cities: How household demographics shape demand response and energy consumption

In the face of rapidly evolving energy landscapes, driven by increasing integration of renewable energy and the transition towards a more sustainable grid, the role of demand response (DR) programs in maintaining grid stability and efficiency has become increasingly critical. This study presents an in-depth methodology for assessing the nexus between household demographics and engagement in demand response (DR) programs, investigating their impact on energy consumption and financial outcomes at both building and urban scales. Six household archetypes are defined: single working individual, single retired individual, working couple, retired couple, nuclear family, and lone parent household. Additionally, three energy-use archetypes— austere, average, and wasteful—are considered. Employing a stochastic load profile generator, the study examined variables like annual occupancy hours, thermal energy needs, and appliance consumption. In a Canadian residential context, a shift from a single working adult to a nuclear family occupant archetype led to an increase in annual occupancy by 24%, causing a 21% fluctuation in Energy Use Intensity (EUI). Additionally, diverse consumption behaviors led to a 41% EUI variance. The study evaluated load curtailment capabilities across various household archetypes; notably, a ‘wasteful’ household could reduce their load by 32% through a 2 °C-thermostat adjustment during DR events, and this rose to 54% with pre-heating. At the urban scale, demographic shifts substantially influence load profiles and cause variable peak load times. Areas with more retirees have higher mid-day energy usage. The research quantified DR benefits in load reduction and fiscal gains. By raising DR participation from 10% to 50%, load curtailment grew by 69% in areas with younger families. Pre-heating further enhanced load curtailment by 12% and reduced energy rebound by 4%. Economically, ‘wasteful’ households could accumulate 11% more credits compared to average homes. This research introduced a flexible framework for incorporating household demographics and energy use behavior into DR studies, which can be adapted and re-applied to different case studies based on the availability of relevant data.

Moving Beyond Clean Cooking Energy adoption: Using Indian ACCESS panel data to understand solid fuel suspension

Household solid fuel use has adverse impacts on health and the environment. The Indian government's Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) subsidy promoted the adoption of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) by millions of Indian households. There is little knowledge, however, regarding decision-making to reduce solid fuel use after adopting cleaner fuels. Leveraging panel data on household energy use in rural India we jointly estimated LPG adoption and consumption to study the reduction in solid fuel use. Our results indicate that exclusive LPG use increased from 4.5% to 17.8% between 2015 and 2018 while fuel stacking (use of multiple fuels) doubled from 18% to 39%. The household's wealth index, self-reported higher social strata, business ownership, head of household's educational level, and the proportion of LPG-using households in the village were positively associated with LPG consumption and suspension of solid fuels. Distance to LPG refill delivery, household size and PMUY subsidy were negatively associated with LPG share though LPG share was positively associated with the interaction of PMUY with wealth index. Policy efforts should target sustained LPG consumption by making refill delivery more accessible and implementing a pro-poor refill subsidy as well as general poverty alleviation (e.g., by creating income generation opportunities).

Labor mobility and clean energy use: Evidence from rural households in China

One of the critical challenges facing China is environmental pollution caused by insufficient use of clean energy. This paper empirically investigates the impact of rural labor mobility on household clean energy use using data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). The results indicate that labor mobility significantly promotes the adoption of clean energy by rural households, with income effects and information channel effects serving as the underlying mechanisms. The study also finds that health risks, as an important consideration for household energy use choices, enhance this positive effect. Furthermore, heterogeneity analysis reveals that labor mobility has a greater impact on households with lower levels of education, lack of social security, and those located in central and western regions. Therefore, the government should take measures to increase the income of the rural migrant population and continuously widen the information channels for rural households to promote clean energy use. The findings of this study provide a new perspective and evidence for understanding household energy use behavior in China, offering valuable insights for policymakers aiming to expand the use of clean energy.

HOUSEHOLD COOKING ENERGY CONSUMPTION SITUATION IN GOMBE METROPOLIS, NIGERIA: A MIX OF QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH APPROACHES


 Household energy use accounts for one-third of worldwide primary energy demand, and has a considerable impact on the environment and human health. This study investigated the household energy consumption situation in Gombe Metropolis, Gombe State, Nigeria. The study used a mix of quantitative and qualitative research methods concurrently. Four hundred households were selected using systematic sampling technique. Questionnaire and Key Informant Interviews (KII) were used to collect data, while secondary data was obtained from the Gombe State Bureau of Statistics. Descriptive statistics was used to analyzed the quantitative data while thematic approach was used in qualitative data analysis. Result revealed that the majority of respondents obtained energy for domestic cooking from hydrocarbon sources, which are charcoal (33.2%) fuelwood (27.5%) and liquefied petroleum gas (22.9%) of the energy mix while 76.5% of respondents used a mixed of traditional (charcoal/fuelwood) and modern (LPG) energy sources. Similarly, result from the KII revealed that households in Gombe Metropolis rely heavily on traditional energy sources, such as fuelwood and charcoal, for cooking because of its affordability and availability. The choice of cooking fuel is influenced by factors such as affordability, household size, availability, and accessibility. The study recommended that Regular awareness campaigns through the media and public gatherings should be conducted to emphasize the significance of utilizing modern energy systems for domestic cooking. These efforts will encourage individuals in the study area to move away from heavily relying on hydrocarbon-based fuels towards cleaner and more sustainable energy sources.

GOVERNANCE OF IOT DEVICES USING NODE-RED ORCHESTRATOR AND WEB-BASED DASHBOARD

High electricity bills are often caused by a lack of monitoring the use of electronic equipment in the household. One common problem is forgetting to turn off appliances that are not in use, which causes electricity to continue flowing and increases electricity bills. Currently, although there are several technologies that allow the control of appliances, their features are still limited, especially in lamps. This research focuses on developing Internet of Things (IoT) technology in the field of energy and control. One of the implementations is using a Raspberry Pi microcontroller to monitor the use of electrical energy in households. In order to make the use of IoT components more efficient and easier, a NODE-RED-based system is used which serves as a link between end users and IoT equipment. For monitoring IoT components, a web dashboard using the Laravel framework was also built. This allows users to view the components used and the activities that occur on their IoT equipment. High electricity bills are often caused by a lack of monitoring the use of electronic equipment in the household. One common problem is forgetting to turn off appliances that are not in use, which causes electricity to continue flowing and increases electricity bills. Currently, although there are several technologies that allow the control of appliances, their features are still limited, especially in lamps. This research focuses on developing Internet of Things (IoT) technology in the field of energy and control. One of the implementations is using a Raspberry Pi microcontroller to monitor the use of electrical energy in households. In order to make the use of IoT components more efficient and easier, a NODE-RED-based system is used which serves as a link between end users and IoT equipment. For monitoring IoT components, a web dashboard using the Laravel framework was also built. This allows users to view the components used and the activities that occur on their IoT equipment.

Household green consumption: Does digital inclusion matter?

The rise in household consumption has raised concerns about meeting energy requirements to fulfill the demand for goods and services and the subsequent increase in carbon emissions. This study examines the relationship between digital inclusion and household energy use and carbon emissions, concluding that households with greater digital inclusion tend to have higher carbon emissions. Digital inclusion could improve the household’s consumption, leading to higher energy use and carbon emissions. We further find that digital inclusion reshapes consumption patterns and heterogeneously affects household consumption among categories, which explains how digital inclusion works on household carbon emissions. Furthermore, digital inclusion could also improve green consumption of high energy efficiency. Our findings could benefit policymakers aiming to improve digital infrastructure to achieve carbon emission targets.

Study on optimization of household energy use considering photovoltaic access

Home access to photovoltaic and configuration energy storage can reduce the cost of energy consumption and suppress grid fluctuations. At the same time, various loads in the family can be divided into base loads and flexible loads according to their functional characteristics, some of them also be gas and electricity dual-use loads. This paper aims to reduce the energy consumption cost of households. Firstly, it classifies the loads in photovoltaic-connected households, optimizes the energy source selection of gas and electricity dual-use loads, and optimizes the scheduling of flexible loads’ working hours. Setting reasonable constraints while ensuring the primary energy demand of family members for each load reduces households’ dependence on external energy and energy expenditure. Moreover, the pressure on the regional energy supply can be alleviated by stabilizing the working time of flexible loads.

Environmental impacts of household energy use in ASEAN-5 countries: Are there asymmetric effects?

Although there have been many recent studies on the impact of energy use on carbon dioxide emissions, the ASEAN region has not received much attention. It is important to understand the relationship between energy use and emissions in these countries because their energy demands are growing quickly due to urbanization and electrification. In this study, we focused on the five largest ASEAN economies, known as ASEAN-5, and used a non-linear autoregressive distributed lag model to analyze the asymmetric effects of per capita energy consumption on carbon dioxide emissions. We found that there is a significant long-term asymmetrical effect in Thailand, and a significant short-term asymmetrical effect in Malaysia. These results suggest that there is a need for more ambitious energy efficiency policies to improve building, equipment, and appliance efficiency, which will ultimately help to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Intelligent energy management system for smart home with grid-connected hybrid photovoltaic/ gravity energy storage system

A dynamic smart home energy management system (SHEMS) is proposed in this study to address the growing concerns of energy conservation and environmental preservation. This study contributes a novel one-week dynamic forecasting model for a hybrid PV/GES system integrated into a smart house energy management system, encompassing dynamic electricity pricing, smart appliance control, PV generation forecasting, and gravity energy storage state of charge prediction. The findings of this study demonstrate that the developed dynamic SHEMS model significantly reduces household energy use and lowers the cost of power. With this SHEMS model, the hybrid PV/GES can supply the house's energy needs for eight and a half hours each day. In addition, it offers the advantage of low electricity price for charging the battery of the electric vehicle. Performance indicators such as RMSE and MAPE are employed, yielding forecast error results ranging from 13.45 % to 23.16 % for RMSE and 4.06 % to 11.27 % for MAPE.