Reducing Household Electricity Consumption Research Articles

STUDI EKSPERIMENTAL NATURAL REFIGERANT DENGAN VARIASI DIAMETER TiT-HEAT EXCHANGER TERHADAP REFRIGERATOR PERFORMANCE

ABSTRACT
 Almost all households in Indonesia use a refrigerator as a place to store food that is more durable. But behind these needs, refrigerators are identified as one of the household appliances that use high electrical energy. Therefore, this study aims to examine the use of Tube in Tube Heat Exchanger (TiTHX) with refrigerant R290 in the refrigerator system to reduce household electricity consumption. This research was conducted experimentally by varying the 3 diameter ratios on TiTHX. The results showed that the use of TiTHX with the most optimum value was obtained at the variation diameter ¼ : ½ increasing refrigerator performance by 3.7%. and also reduce the consumption of electricity costs up to Rp. 17,544.44 per month. This is because the difference between the evaporation pressure and condensation pressure is smaller in systems using TiTHX which then results in lower compression work.

The Status of Household Electricity Use Behaviour Research in South Africa between 2000 and 2022

Unsustainable use of electricity has severe implications on the environment and human well-being. With an estimated consumption of about 20% of total global electricity demand, the household sector is a key player in efforts for crafting interventions for reducing electricity consumption. Despite increasing calls for behavioural solutions to electricity conservation at the household level, more attention has been paid to technical than behavioural interventions. Yet a deeper understanding of electricity use behaviour is needed to design interventions and engender integration of behavioural interventions into demand-side management and decision making. Although South Africa is energy insecure and a major greenhouse gas emitter, less attention has been paid to household electricity use using behavioural lenses. Using a scoping review approach, this study inductively reviewed publications to examine the state of research on household electricity use in South Africa, focussing on (1) research trends and contexts, (2) conceptual focus, (3) proposed interventions for reducing electricity consumption and (4) future research needs. Very few publications considered reported and actual electricity use behaviour. Most publications (65%) paid attention to technical dimensions for reducing household electricity consumption such as economic nudges and technical retrofits, rather than behavioural strategies. Of the publications that focussed on behaviour, very few explicitly examined reported electricity use behaviour. Most publications did not consider the role of partnerships in designing interventions for reducing electricity consumption but rather employed individualistic perspectives. Overall, the results suggest that calls for behaviour change research have not been fully heeded. More studies on electricity use behaviour in different contexts, including across an income heterogeneity gradient, and the role of context dependent collective settings in drafting interventions, are required to better inform pathways to sustainable electricity use.

Measurement of the Rebound Effect on Urban Household Energy Consumption Savings

This research investigated consumer behavior patterns on energy conservation and energy efficiency. We investigated the factors that influence the rebound effect based on common characteristics and Socio-economic household characteristics in urban communities. This paper also explored the conservation of electricity through the idea of "nudge." The authors used the word "encouragement" in the chosen architectural program, designed to reduce household electricity consumption so that the rebound effect did not occur in household consumption. By utilizing the 'social norms and curtailment,' households given a "nudge" can save more on their electricity consumption costs. The condition of "nudge" that we included was through information on the costs incurred by households, 'social norms and curtailment,' and energy efficiency through replacing conventional lamps with energy-efficient lamps. The research took place in urban areas in the Bantul, Jogjakarta, between December 2021 and April 2022. Sixty-two respondents divide into two groups of households, i.e., observe households (self-selected) and control households (randomly selected). Both observe and control households must have an active electricity account for at least one year and have owned a house between 50 and 200 square meters. The model used a t-paired sample through the "Non-Equivalent Groups Design" (NEGD) framework for the two comparisons. The research found that 'social norms and curtailment' can reduce household electricity consumption, has cost savings over electricity consumption on average to 16.3049% for three months, and no rebound effect on savings happened.

Electricity consumption in the digital era: Micro evidence from Chinese households

This paper studies the impact of internet access on household electricity consumption, using three waves (six years) of China Family Panel Study survey data. We separately explore short-, medium-, and long-term effects. The panel fixed regression results indicate that after gaining access to the internet, individual electricity consumption declines about 1.2% as the short-run effect (around two years). Difference-in-differences (DID) estimation shows that after using the internet for four years, individual electricity demand declines on average a total of 12.5% as the medium-term effect. For all internet users during the entire survey period, propensity score matching (PSM) shows that electricity consumption decreases 16.3% on average compared to nonusers, which can be seen as the long-term effect. Substitution and optimization of household appliances and individual pro-environmental behaviors and green lifestyles promoted by digitalization may explain the results. Our findings suggest that policies to enhance access to high-speed, affordable, and reliable internet services contribute to reducing household electricity consumption, thereby helping cut CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions from fossil fuel-based power plants while also alleviating problems of insufficient electricity production capacity.

Reducing household electricity consumption during evening peak demand times: Evidence from a field experiment

Peak demand reduction is a key element in demand management programs targeting the stabilization of the electricity grid. This study examines a field experiment in Austria that investigated rebates and non-monetary incentives to reduce household electricity consumption during evening peak demand times. The experiment was conducted on 1,257 Austrian households using a smart-phone application and smart-meter data recorded in 15-minutes intervals. Our results show the strongest behavioral change in households who received the monetary incentive, with only weak evidence of changes in the non-monetary treatment groups. Households reduced their consumption in response to the monetary incentive but were then subject to a substantial rebound effect whereby their electricity consumption increased overall.

Reducing household electricity consumption during evening peak demand times: Evidence from a field experiment.

Reducing household electricity consumption during evening peak demand times: Evidence from a field experiment.

Research on a Demand Response Interactive Scheduling Model of Home Load Groups

In order to solve the problem that the potential between electrical appliances and each power supply is not timely in the current scheduling model, which may leads to high energy consumption and poor interaction performance, the research of interactive scheduling model for demand response of home load group is proposed. Four types of household appliances are obtained from the home load group structure diagram: core electrical appliances, electrical appliances capable of providing storing energy, electrical appliances of any use time, and load aggregators. By selecting multiple indicators, a load group response potential index system is constructed to measure the household based on the impacts of electrical and power response potentials; and two load-aggregate demand response models are established by integrating demand response resources through load aggregation. Furthermore, By combining the above two models with home load aggregation, the improved tabu search algorithm is used to determine the objective function and constraints, such that an interactive scheduling model for the family load group demand response is constructed. The experimental results show that the energy consumption of this model can be low after dispatching household load group. It can reduce household electricity consumption, and have good application performance. The model can effectively complete the interactive scheduling of the demand response of the home load group. It solves the problem of electricity wasting so as to save energy. In the meantime, it improves the user's real-time and convenient experience.

Peer influence on household energy behaviours

Studies across multiple disciplines demonstrate the importance of peers in shaping energy-related behaviours. Research on this process is wide ranging, from documenting spatial peer effects in the adoption of rooftop solar—when an individual’s behaviour is influenced by the behaviours of neighbours—to showing how neighbour comparisons can be used to reduce household electricity consumption. However, gaps exist in our understanding of how and why these peer effects occur. In this Review, we examine recent findings on social influence in energy behaviour and discuss pathways through which social influence can result in peer effects. We propose a conceptual framework for predicting which social influence processes will most often result in peer effects, depending on the targeted energy behaviour. We also review the limitations of social influence as well as evidence for when it is expected to be the strongest. Household energy behaviours are influenced by the behaviour of others. In this Review, the authors review recent findings on social influence in energy consumption and technology adoption and discuss pathways through which social influence can result in peer effects.

Does it last? Long-term impacts of an app-based behavior change intervention on household electricity savings in Switzerland

While various approaches are shown to be effective in reducing electricity use of end consumers during an intervention, few studies continue to track participants to evaluate whether these effects last and whether the same factors are still impactful in the long term. The present paper describes results one year after a behavior change intervention, called Social Power, aimed at reducing household electricity consumption using a gamified mobile application connected to a household’s smart meter. Between February and May 2016, forty-two households in two Swiss cities were actively involved and monitored along with corresponding control group of forty households. The intervention engaged app users in a neighborhood challenge to complete electricity saving activities and realize their progress through electricity use visualization. One year after the intervention, electricity consumption was measured, and follow-up online surveys measured reported behavior and perceived injunctive norms of the participants. During the intervention, participants significantly reduced their electricity use, with respect to both historical consumption and the control groups. However, after one year it was found that the electricity savings achieved during the intervention were not maintained. In contrast, the participants reported their behavior as more efficient compared to before the intervention and still perceived the impact of the intervention in their community. This counter intuitive relation between the three measured variables is discussed, along with possible strategies to maintain the positive effects achieved in the short-term.

Explaining electricity demand and the role of energy and investment literacy on end-use efficiency of Swiss households

This paper estimates the level of transient and persistent efficiency in the use of electricity in Swiss households using the newly developed generalized true random effects model (GTREM). An unbalanced panel dataset of 1994 Swiss households from 2010 to 2014 collected via a household survey is used to estimate an electricity demand frontier function. We further investigate whether energy and investment literacy have an influence on the household electricity consumption. The results show significant inefficiencies in the use of electricity among Swiss households, both transient (11%) and persistent (22%). We note that the high persistent inefficiency is indicative of structural problems faced by households and systematic behavioral shortcomings in residential electricity consumption. These results indicate a considerable potential for electricity savings and thus reaching the reduction targets defined by the Swiss federal council as part of the Energy Strategy 2050, wherein end-use efficiency improvement is one of the main pillars. The results support a positive role of energy and, in particular, investment literacy in reducing household electricity consumption. Policies targeting an improvement of these attributes could help to enhance efficiency in the use of energy within households.

The Role of Energy and Investment Literacy for Residential Electricity Demand and End-use Efficiency

This paper estimates the level of transient and persistent efficiency in the use of electricity in Swiss households using the generalized true random effects model (GTREM). A panel dataset of 1,994 Swiss households from 2010 to 2014 collected via a household survey is used to estimate an electricity demand frontier function. We further investigate whether energy and investment literacy have an influence on the household electricity consumption. The results show significant inefficiencies in the use of electricity among Swiss households, both transient (11%) and persistent (22%). We note that the high persistent inefficiency is indicative of structural problems faced by households and systematic behavioral shortcomings in residential electricity consumption. These results indicate a considerable potential for electricity savings and thus reaching the reduction targets defined by the Swiss federal council as part of the Energy Strategy 2050, wherein end-use efficiency improvement is one of the main pillars. The results support a positive role of energy and, in particular, investment literacy in reducing household electricity consumption. Policies targeting an improvement of these attributes could help to improve efficiency in the use of energy within households.

The impact of Singapore’s residential electricity conservation efforts and the way forward. Insights from the bounds testing approach

This article provides fresh empirical evidence of residential electricity demand in Singapore over the period of 1980–2014, using the bounds testing procedure to cointegration. The residential electricity demand comprises of income, price, temperature, rainy days, old-age dependency and the impact of energy efficiency policies. Our results are consistent with previous studies, where income and price elasticities are inelastic. Hence, from a policy perspective, subsidies will not be effective in reducing electricity demand. We also found that old-age dependency is an important determinant that reduces electricity consumption at least in the short-run, suggesting that policies that target the younger population may bring more savings.The model findings suggest that in general, energy efficiency interventions introduced after 2007, which comprises of both informational strategies and efficiency standards, were effective in reducing household electricity consumption. However, in order to realise greater electricity reduction potential, policy efforts have to intensify into the future, with the main objectives being to permanently change energy habits, and consider the role of hassle ‘costs’ when rolling out energy saving measures.

Using in-home displays to provide smart meter feedback about household electricity consumption: A randomized control trial comparing kilowatts, cost, and social norms

A randomized control field experiment is reported using in-home displays to reduce household electricity consumption. Custom-coded in-home displays (IHDs) were created to provide real-time household electricity consumption feedback, and were framed as either (a) simple kW consumption, or (b) kW consumption and the corresponding cost, or (c) kW consumption and a dynamically-derived social normative frame. Analyses focused on household electricity consumption in the first week following deployment, and again over a 3-month time span. Findings showed that households receiving simple feedback, and feedback framed as cost did not differ significantly from the randomized control at either the 1-week or the 3-month time points. Similarly, results showed that educational materials alone did not reduce electricity consumption. However, significant effects were found for households receiving the normative frame, which consumed 9% less than control households during the initial 1-week evaluation period, and 7% less during the full 3-month evaluation period. Yet despite these findings, residents reported more positive experiences and more obligations to conserve electricity with the cost and feedback IHDs. The results suggest that in-home displays offer promise for encouraging energy conservation, but careful consideration should be given to the way that the feedback is framed.

Reducing Household Electricity Consumption through Demand Side Management: The Role of Home Appliance Scheduling and Peak Load Reduction

Abstract One of the key issues arising from extended smart metering roll-out across Europe is how the data obtained from the meters may be used to provide end users with important information on energy-saving advice, which is one of the main principles of demand side management (DSM). The investigation of the potential for demand side management to reduce peak load were evaluated in this study. One four-person household was surveyed with the aim to find out user activities within the house, in particular, the use of appliances. Two appliances – a washing machine and dishwasher - were selected for assessing the potential for load shifting. The derived results show that, as a result of washing machine and dishwasher load shifting, the peak load of a dwelling can be reduced on average by 24% and 13.5%, respectively.

Modeling Domestic Lighting Energy Consumption in Romania and Integrating Consumers’ Behavior

Sustainable energy consumption is a research area of a large interest in the last years. New energy-efficient lighting technologies exist, and can significantly reduce household electricity consumption, but their adoption has been slow. A considerable number of international studies show that sustainable development scenarios will be realistic if they involve the human behavior. The paper provides a solution to integrate consumer behavior with techno-economic energy issues, inside a complex energy model. This approach aims to reduce the systematic error on the demand side of the energy model that stems from the hypotheses of perfect information and of perfect economic rationality. These hypotheses are common to all optimization models based on the concept of economic equilibria. The TIMES energy modeling software tool has been used to integrate the techno-economic energy specific data and consumer behavior. Consumer behavior in energy consumption is described using specific attributes of energy technologies as virtual technologies. Technical coefficients of virtual technologies come from a sociological survey about Romanians’ behavior in energy consumption. This approach, known as “Social MARKAL”, allows the analyst to evaluate the possible contribution of information campaigns in changing lighting consumers’ behavior and effect of technology switch. The model is developed for the period 2010-2026, and is implemented by using TIMES/VEDA software platform. The implementation presented this paper focuses on the household lighting technologies but the approach can be extended to other demand sectors as well.

Modelling Domestic Lighting Energy Consumption in Romania by Integrating Consumers Behavior

Sustainable energy consumption is a research area of a large interest in last years. New energy-efficient lighting technologies exist, which can significantly reduce household electricity consumption, but their adoption has been slow. A considerable number of international studies show that sustainable development scenarios will be realistic if they involve the human behavior.The paper provides a solution to integrate consumer behavior with techno-economic energy issues, inside a complex energy model. This approach aims to reduce the error, from the demand side of the energy model. Consumer behavior in energy consumption is described by using specific attributes of energy technologies, namely virtual technologies. The GAMS/TIMES/VEDA energy modelling software tool has been used to integrate the techno-economic energy specific data and consumer behavior, in order to achieve the research purposes. A sociological survey about Romanians’ behavior in energy consumption has been conducted and its results have been integrated in the energy based model, in form of virtual technologies. This approach, known as “Social MARKAL”, allows the analyst to evaluate the possible contribution of information campaigns in changing lighting consumers’ behavior and effect of technology switch. The model is developed for the period 2010-2026, and is implemented by using GAMS/TIMES/VEDA software platform. The results presented this paper focuses on the household lighting technologies.

Household transitions to energy efficient lighting

New energy efficient lighting technologies can significantly reduce household electricity consumption, but adoption has been slow. A unique dataset of German households is used in this paper to examine the factors associated with the replacement of old incandescent lamps (ILs) with new energy efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and light emitting diodes (LEDs). The ‘rebound’ effect of increased lamp luminosity in the transition to energy efficient bulbs is analyzed jointly with the replacement decision to account for household self-selection in bulb-type choice. Results indicate that the EU ban on ILs accelerated the pace of transition to CFLs and LEDs, while storage of bulbs significantly dampened the speed of the transition. Higher lighting needs and bulb attributes like energy efficiency, environmental friendliness, and durability spur IL replacement with CFLs or LEDs. Electricity gains from new energy efficient lighting are mitigated by 23% and 47% increases in luminosity for CFL and LED replacements, respectively. Model results suggest that taking the replacement bulb from storage and higher levels of education dampen the magnitude of these luminosity rebounds in IL to CFL transitions.

Household norms and their role in reducing household electricity consumption

AbstractResearchers have only recently begun to investigate the role of the norms of the household or family group in energy‐efficiency decisions. These researchers have demonstrated that these norms can influence the behaviour and attitudes of children within the household. We contribute to their findings by providing a characterization of the use of household norms in household decisions about electricity efficiency. For our qualitative research, we conducted focus groups with three different household types: (1) share houses/young couples with no children; (2) households with children; and (3) empty nest/elderly households in three regional centres in New South Wales, Australia (total of 76 respondents in nine focus groups). Specifically, we found that household norms were evident in the decision‐making process through rules and expectations about behaviour and the use of sanctions to enforce or shaped that behaviour. We identified several drivers of household norms including a household member taking the role of ‘efficiency champion’ and the occurrence of critical incidents in the household. In addition, we found that household members try to establish household norms to socialize household members with the goal of the intergenerational transmission of desirable behaviours. Based on these observations, we conclude that household members employ norms to regulate and reduce their electricity consumption, and as a mechanism for consumer socialization. As such, our findings are important for marketers and policy makers tasked with regulating household consumption.

A micro gas turbine for UK domestic combined heat and power

Various micro-radial compressor configurations were investigated using one-dimensional meanline and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques for use in a micro gas turbine (MGT) domestic combined heat and power (DCHP) application. Blade backsweep, shaft speed, and blade height were varied at a constant pressure ratio. Shaft speeds were limited to 220 000 r/min, to enable the use of a turbocharger bearing platform. Off-design compressor performance was established and used to determine the MGT performance envelope; this in turn was used to assess potential cost and environmental savings in a heat-led DCHP operating scenario within the target market of a detached family home. A low target-stage pressure ratio provided an opportunity to reduce diffusion within the impeller. Critically for DCHP, this produced very regular flow, which improved impeller performance for a wider operating envelope. The best performing impeller was a low-speed, 170 000 r/min, low-backsweep, 15° configuration producing 71.76 per cent stage efficiency at a pressure ratio of 2.20. This produced an MGT design point system efficiency of 14.85 per cent at 993 W, matching prime movers in the latest commercial DCHP units. Cost and CO2 savings were 10.7 per cent and 6.3 per cent, respectively, for annual power demands of 17.4 MWht and 6.1 MWhe compared to a standard condensing boiler (with grid) installation. The maximum cost saving (on design point) was 14.2 per cent for annual power demands of 22.62 MWht and 6.1 MWhe corresponding to an 8.1 per cent CO2 saving. When sizing, maximum savings were found with larger heat demands. When sized, maximum savings could be made by encouraging more electricity export either by reducing household electricity consumption or by increasing machine efficiency.