Reduce Electricity Demand Research Articles

Energy Efficiency: Efficiency or Monopsony?

The cliche in the electricity sector, the cheapest power is the one we don't build, seems to neglect the benefits of the energy that would generate. Those overall benefits could be countered by benefits to consumers if building that plant was the result of monopsony. A regulator acting as a monopsonist may need to avoid rationing demand at monopsony prices. Subsidizing energy efficiency to reduce electricity demand at the margin can solve that problem, if energy efficiency and electricity use are substitutes. We may not observe these effects if the regulator can set price as well as quantity, lacks buyer-side market power, or is legally precluded from denying generators a reasonable return on capital. Nevertheless, the possibility of monopsony remains significant in light of the debate as to whether antitrust enforcement should maximize consumer welfare or total welfare.

CHP Microturbine Configuration Model and Economic Analysis

Energy produced at the power plant has losses until it reaches theend-use site. Approximately two thirds of source energy is lost on theway. These are thermal losses at the power plant and losses in trans-mission and distribution systems. Energy prices are constantly rising.Energy security is another major issue for industry. All these aspectsforce industries to produce their own energy onsite.The use of mainframe gas turbines for power generation hasincreased in recent years and is likely to continue to increase. The pro-portion of power generation using combined heat and power is alsogrowing mainly because of efficiency improvements and environmentalbenefits. Mini- and microturbines offer a number of potential advan-tages compared to other technologies for small-scale power genera-tion, particularly for distributed power generation, although there aresome technical and non-technical barriers to the implementation of thetechnology. Small turbines could be used for power generation in theindustrial, commercial and residential sectors.The best common use of source energy is the production of com-bined heat and power (CHP). To optimize return on investment, sys-tems are sized to have maximum utilization and minimum idle time. Adetailed study considering the electrical and thermal energy needs of ahotel building located in Istanbul was carried out. Thermal and electri-cal peak loads of the building were measured and recorded. The peakelectricity demand of the building was found to be 694 kW. Domestic hotwater (DHW) and heating loads are 487 kW. Seven micro turbines of 65kW (nominal electric power) are required to meet all the thermal energyneeds of the building. The electricity generated by the microturbines isto be used to reduce electricity demand of the building. The analysis showed that 100% of thermal load and, 55% of electrical load is metwith the selected capacity.Investment and operational costs are taken into account in calcu-lating the feasibility of the project. In this study the net present valuemethod is used for detailed life cycle cost economic analysis.

Potential for reducing electricity demand for lighting in households: An exploratory socio-technical study

Illuminance data were collected from 18 UK dwellings during 1-week periods in spring 2007, to establish when luminaires were used and to calculate electricity consumption for lighting. Householders were also interviewed about lighting use and choices. The potential for reducing lighting electricity consumption by replacing incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) is assessed. Mean weekly electricity consumption for lighting was 3.756 kW h and mean proportion of total electricity consumption used for lighting was 6.55%. It is notable, however, that participants generally expressed high levels of environmental awareness and that electricity consumption figures for less environmentally-aware households may differ. On average, households could have reduced lighting electricity consumption by 50.9% if all incandescent bulbs were replaced with CFLs. Even householders making extensive use of efficient lighting technologies expressed concerns about these technologies’ performance, but seemed willing to tolerate perceived shortcomings for environmental reasons. However, the study raises questions about whether people without strong environmental motivations can be convinced that efficient lighting technologies will meet their needs. It also raises questions about the effectiveness of policies phasing out general lighting service incandescent bulbs, as there is a risk that householders may switch to tungsten halogen bulbs rather than low-energy options.

Spatial Assessment of Net Mercury Emissions from the Use of Fluorescent Bulbs

While fluorescent lighting is an important technology for reducing electrical energy demand, mercury used in the bulbs is an ongoing concern. Using state and country level data, net emissions of mercury from the marginal use of fluorescent lightbulbs are examined for a base year of 2004 for each of the 50 United States and 130 countries. Combustion of coal for electric power generation is generally the largest source of atmospheric mercury pollution; reduction in electricity demand from the substitution of incandescent bulbs with fluorescents leads to reduced mercury emissions during the use of the bulb. This analysis considers the local mix of power sources, coal quality, thermal conversion efficiencies, distribution losses, and any mercury control technologies that might be in place. Emissions of mercury from production and end-of-life treatment of the bulbs are also considered, providing a life-cycle perspective. Net reductions in mercury over the entire life cycle range from -1.2 to 97 mg per bulb depending on the country. The consequences for atmospheric mercury emissions of several policy scenarios are also discussed.

Detection and Acceptance of Demand-Responsive Lighting in Offices with and without Daylight

Participants (N = 33) in an office laboratory were exposed to an initial baseline electric lighting level of 400 lx on the desktop. The electric lighting was dimmed smoothly over 10 seconds. During the dim, and for 30 seconds afterwards, the participant performed a computer-based proofreading task. The participants indicated if they had noticed the change, and whether the lighting conditions were acceptable. This was repeated over multiple trials, with dimming from 0 to 80 percent, and with or without daylight. The level of dimming not noticed by occupants was 20 percent with no daylight, 40 percent with relatively low prevailing daylight, and 60 percent with high prevailing daylight (or, alternatively, an amount which represents 20 percent of total light level). The level of dimming that resulted in conditions that were still acceptable was 40 percent with no or low daylight, and 80 percent with high prevailing daylight These results may be used to develop guidelines for using lighting in demand response actions. They suggest that dimming lights can contribute large electricity demand reductions during periods of grid stress without major inconvenience to occupants.

The commercial sector demand for energy in Kuwait

AbstractThis paper models and estimates the energy demand by the commercial sector, using an error correction model. It also simulates the estimated model under three pricing scenarios and presents an analysis of the results.The empirical results indicate that short and long term energy consumption and the level of economic activity are entwined. The forecasts show that electricity consumption varies directly with economic growth. It also suggests that an increase of 100 per cent in nominal electricity prices will lead to a reduction in commercial sector electricity demand by about 27 per cent by the year 2015. The simulation of the model under the different pricing scenarios demonstrates that there is a great potential for energy conservation by the commercial sector.

Sustainable development policies and measures: institutional issues and electrical efficiency in South Africa

An innovative approach is introduced for helping developing countries to make their development more sustainable, and also to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as a co-benefit. Such an approach is proposed as part of the multilateral framework on climate change. The concept of sustainable development policies and measures (SD-PAMs) is outlined, making clear that it is distinct from many other approaches in starting from development rather than explicit climate targets. The potential of SD-PAMs is illustrated with a case-study of energy efficiency in South Africa, drawing on energy modelling for the use of electricity in industry. The results show multiple benefits both for local sustainable development and for mitigating global climate change. The benefits of industrial energy efficiency in South Africa include significant reductions in local air pollutants; improved environmental health; creation of additional jobs; reduced electricity demand; and delays in new investments in electricity generation. The co-benefit of reducing GHG emissions could result in a reduction of as much as 5% of SA's total projected energy CO2 emissions by 2020. Institutional support and policy guidance is needed at both the international and national level to realize the potential of SD-PAMs. This analysis demonstrates that if countries begin to act early to move towards greater sustainability, they will also start to bend the curve of their emissions path.

The Potential for Demand-Responsive Lighting in Non-daylit Offices

Participants (N = 30) in an office laboratory had personal dimming control over lighting, and were then exposed to a simulated demand response (or “load shed”) involving dimming lighting by 2 percent per minute. Participants were given no expectation that the dimming would occur, and the principal measure used was the point at which participants intervened to restore light levels after the demand-response dimming began. Results showed that 20 percent of participants intervened by the time that desktop illuminance declined ∼35 percent from their initial preferred level, and 50 percent of participants intervened by the time that desktop illuminance declined ∼50 percent. Therefore, during a power supply emergency, dimming lights can contribute relatively large electricity demand reductions before lighting declines to a level where a substantial fraction of people would be motivated to seek a change.

Opening address to Wind, Fire and Water: Renewable Energy and Birds

Opening address to Wind, Fire and Water: Renewable Energy and Birds

Hybrid HVAC systems with chemical dehumidification for supermarket applications

HVAC systems in supermarkets must assure both thermal comfort for occupants and suitable climatic conditions for refrigerated cases, which operate better with low ambient relative humidity (40–45%). Since open display cases substantially reduce sensible load and moderately reduce latent load, ambient sensible/total heat load ratio is less than usual. Thus, if dehumidification is carried out with a traditional cooling coil, over-sizing of the coil and re-heating of the treated air are necessary, with energy and economic waste. To offset these disadvantages, hybrid HVAC systems with chemical dehumidification may be employed. In this paper a case study is presented in which a traditional HVAC system is compared to hybrid systems with chemical dehumidification. Dynamic simulation codes (DOE and DesiCalc ™) and test reference year data (TRY), opportunely elaborated, have been used. Annual operating costs have been estimated and large savings have been obtained with hybrid systems. Considerable reduction of electric energy demand as well as better control of thermal-hygrometric conditions were noted. A simple payback of about 1 year has been obtained. Finally, a virtual retrofitting operation on 30% of the existing HVAC systems in Italian supermarkets has shown significant operating cost savings.

Interactions between electricity-saving measures and carbon emissions from power generation in England and Wales

The relationship between electricity demand reduction and the consequent change in carbon emissions is central to greenhouse gas emissions policy. This paper examines this relationship for the power system of England and Wales. Previous analysis showed that the commonly used conversion factor based on the system average emission factor significantly underestimates these savings (Hitchin and Pout, 2002. The carbon intensity of electricity: how many kgC per kWhe?. Building Serv. Eng. Res. Technol. 23(4)). Thus any policy analysis based on the system-average emission factor will under-estimate the potential for carbon savings from reductions in electricity demand. The present paper extends the previous analysis by using more detailed modelling to explore differences between demand reductions of differing load shape and magnitude; and the sensitivity of these figures to changes of the fuel mix of the generation system. The new analysis confirms that the carbon savings are consistently greater than those calculated from the annual system average emission factors, and that they vary with end use and scale of demand reduction. However, no systematic differences between end-uses could be discerned. It is therefore recommended that a general incremental carbon emission factor should be used for initial assessments irrespective of end-use. Under current expectations of changes to the generation fuel mix, the incremental carbon intensity will fall more rapidly than the system-average mix. A similar reduction in carbon intensity is also present in the other scenarios explored, but is sometimes more and sometimes less marked.

Electricity Demand by the Commercial Sector in Kuwait: An Econometric Analysis

This paper models and estimates electricity demand by the Kuwaiti commercial sector, using an error correction model. It also simulates the estimated model under three scenarios and presents an analysis of the results.The empirical results indicate that short‐ and long‐run electricity consumption and the level of economic activity are interrelated. The forecasts show that electricity consumption varies directly with economic growth. They also suggest that an increase of 100 per cent in nominal electricity prices will lead to a reduction in commercial sector electricity demand of 45 per cent by the year 2010. The simulation of the model under the different scenarios demonstrates that the potential for energy conservation exists in the commercial sector.

LCP/IRP strategy development using an optimising energy-emission model

This paper proposes an energy-emission modelling approach for the development of least-cost planning and integrated resource planning strategies for electric utilities, and presents results of the model application to the municipal electric utilities of Karlsruhe and Rottweil. The LCP/IRP strategy employed is based on the regulatory practice in Germany, also with regard to liberalisation issues. Furthermore, emphasis is given to the adequate modelling of demand-side management (DSM) programmes, including their effects on electricity generation, capacity expansion and electricity purchase. The results show that selected DSM programmes in the household sector lead to a cost-effective reduction of electricity demand. When ecological considerations, such as a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions, are included, the cost of electricity generation increases, as does the potential for DSM savings. However, when a revenue-based approach is used, it is evident that extrinsic economic incentives for DSM need to be given by, for example, regulatory authorities.

Reduction of Waste and Electricity Demand in The Netherlands: A Hypothetical Intervention

An important question in the present reorganization and liberalization of infrastructure networks in many countries is what kind of regulatory regimes can provide incentives for demand management and reduction in a future situation. In this paper, the present situation in the Dutch waste and electricity sectors is analysed. It is concluded that a quantity-based tariff system and the entwined interests of organizations are key impediments to effective demand management in these two sectors. A hypothetical intervention is proposed which aims to remove these two fundamental drawbacks. Some likely consequences of the suggested intervention are discussed.

Time dynamics of electricity demand in air-distribution systems for commercial buildings in Sweden

This paper illustrates the potential for reducing future electricity demand for air distribution in commercial buildings in Sweden. We have developed a general, quantitative, scenario-based framework to describe electricity demand for air distribution and to analyze how governmental and utility-sponsored policy measures affect electricity demand. The results suggest that higher electricity prices will not be very effective in reducing electricity demand, whereas significant electricity savings can be achieved by implementing desirable policy programs.

Hydro-Québec energy savings programs: ‘Watt’ are they worth?

Hydro-Québec, a large government-owned electric utility serving the Province of Quebec, launched several energy savings programs as part of its 1992 development plan. It will be replacing investment in new hydro-electric power projects with investment in energy savings and intends to spend $1.9 billion from 1992 to 2000 and $2.0 billion from 2001 to 2010 on the venture. This is expected to reduce electricity demand by 9.3 TWh in 2000 (5.4% of the business as usual forecast) and by 18.0 TWh in 2010 (9.1% of the business as usual forecast). We perform a cost-benefit analysis of the programs, taking into account the financial criteria underlying electricity rates paid by consumers. We find that the programs should lead to present value benefits ranging from $2097 million to $4493 million over the 1992–2010 period, depending on the size of the electricity savings. Annual benefits range from $181.0 million to $387.7 million. Consumers are the main beneficiaries and Hydro-Québec is a marginal beneficiary. Government, however, is a net loser. The precise size of the benefits and their distribution among the three parties are sensitive to the extent of the electricity demand reduction effected by the programs.

Patterns in Residential Gas and Electricity Consumption: An Econometric Analysis

In this article, we investigate individual consumption data of natural gas and electricity using modified multiple regression techniques. Because a subset of households have zero gas consumption, the purpose of the study is to ask two empirical questions: 1. How can we quantify potential energy conservation from increasing gas availability? 2. Is it appropriate to estimate and compare electricity demands of gas users and nonusers by the same regression function? We began our investigation based on the methodology of generalized tobit models. Our empirical results indicate that the probit equation for gas connection is exogenous to the amount of potential energy consumption. To answer question 2, we obtain heteroscedasticity-efficient estimates of the electricity-demand equations by a nearest-neighbor estimator to deal with heteroscedasticity of unknown form. The prediction of energy conservation is that electricity demand could be reduced by 2,473.57 kilowatt-hours a year per household if a gas connection is available to nonusers. To reduce electricity demand by this amount, the utility company would need to supply 611.09 Therms of natural gas.

Low-airflow Drying of Fungicide-treated Shelled Corn

This investigation involved the use of a fungicide, iprodione (trade name ROVRAL 4F, Rhone-Poulenc Ag Company), to retard mold growth in shelled corn while it was being dried with unheated ambient air at lower-than-normal airflow rates. The lowest airflow of about half of normal recommended airflow resulted in savings for drying of 50% and electrical demand reduction of 75%, compared with drying with normal airflow. In conducting this research, corn of approximately 24% moisture was loaded into five different drying bins. Each of the bins was divided vertically down the center, with one half of the corn being treated with a fungicide and the other half left untreated. Mold damage levels in the treated corn were appreciably lower than in the untreated corn in all the bins, averaging 7.2% mold damage for treated corn and 10.9% for untreated corn. The drying cost (including energy, fungicide, and estimated typical damage discounts) was lower for treated corn in two of the five bins.

The Role of Evaluation When Electric Utilities Get Financial Incentives for Their Dsm Programs

Electric utility demand-side management (DSM) programs affect the efficiency and timing of customer electricity use. As the number and cost of these programs increase, evaluations will become increasingly important. A key challenge is the role of evaluation in determining the amount of financial incentive that a utility earns for its DSM programs. Most regulatory incen tives for DSM programs depend on the net benefits provided by these programs. The total benefit is the reductions in electricity use and demand multiplied by the appropriate avoided costs (energy or capacity). The net benefit is the difference between total benefit and program cost. Evaluations determine the total benefits of DSM programs. This article presents a hypothetical example of problems that might arise when evaluations are subject to litigation, a likely occurrence when utility earnings depend on evaluation results. A hypothetical illustration is used because such incentives are so new that they have yet to be tested in regulatory proceedings. Possible resolutions to the problems raised by the hypothetical example are discussed.

A Case Study of Electric Utility Demand Reduction With Commercial Solar Water Heaters

The City of Austin is studying the impact of solar water heaters on summer peak electric demand. One passive and two active solar water heating systems were installed on city-owned commercial buildings which had electric water heaters in 1985 and have been monitored for two years. A method has been developed to determine the peak demand reduction attributable to the solar systems. Results show that solar water heating systems are capable of large demand reductions as long as there is a large hot water demand to displace. The average noncoincident demand reduction (during the water heater’s peak output) ranged from 0.8 to 5.8 kilowatts per system. However, the coincident demand reduction during the utility peak demand period was 0.3 to 0.8 kilowatts per system. Thus, a critical factor when assessing the benefit to the electric utility is the time of hot water demand.