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Results for “Mixed-Humid Climate”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

Field Study of Performance, Comfort, and Sizing of Two Variable-Speed Heat Pumps Installed in a Single 2-Story Residence

With the recent advancements in the application of variable-speed (VS) compressors to residential HVAC systems, opportunities are now available to size heat pumps (HPs) to more effectively meet heating and cooling loads in many of the climate zones in the US with limited use of inefficient resistance heat. This is in contrast to sizing guidance for traditional single-speed HPs that limits the ability to oversize with regard to cooling loads, because of risks of poor dehumidification during the cooling season and increased cycling losses. VS-drive HPs can often run at 30-40% of their rated cooling capacity to reduce cycling losses, and can adjust fan speed to provide better indoor humidity control. Detailed air-side performance data was collected on two VS-drive heat pumps installed in a single unoccupied research house in Knoxville, TN, a mixed-humid climate. One system provided space conditioning for the upstairs, while the other unit provided space conditioning for the downstairs. Occupancy was simulated by operating the lights, shower, appliances, other plug loads, etc. to simulate the sensible and latent loads imposed on the building space by internal electric loads and human occupants according to the Building America Research Benchmark (2008). The seasonal efficiency and energy use of the units are calculated. Annual energy use is compared to that of the single speed minimum efficiency HPs tested in the same house previously. Sizing of the units relative to the measured building load and manual J design load calculations is examined. The impact of the unit sizing with regards to indoor comfort is also evaluated.

Munk, Jeffrey D↗
DOE OSTI2014

Optimization of Ventilation Energy Demands and Indoor Air Quality in High-Performance Homes

High-performance homes require that ventilation energy demands and indoor air quality (IAQ) be simultaneously optimized. We attempted to bridge these two areas by conducting tests in a research house located in Oak Ridge, TN, that was 20 months old, energy-efficient (i.e., expected to consume 50% less energy than a house built per the 2006 IRC), tightly-built (i.e., natural ventilation rate ~0.02 h-1), unoccupied, and unfurnished. We identified air pollutants of concern in the test home that could generally serve as indicators of IAQ, and conduced field experiments and computer simulations to determine the effectiveness and energy required by various techniques that lessened the concentration of these contaminants. Formaldehyde was selected as the main pollutant of concern among the contaminants that were sampled in the initial survey because it was the only compound that showed concentrations that were greater than the recommended exposure levels. Field data indicate that concentrations were higher during the summer primarily because emissions from sources rise with increases in temperature. Furthermore, supply ventilation and gas-phase filtration were effective means to reduce formaldehyde concentrations; however, exhaust ventilation had minimal influence on this pollutant. Results from simulations suggest that formaldehyde concentrations obtained while ventilating per ASHRAE 62.2-2010 could be decreased by about 20% from May through September through three strategies: 1) increasing ASHRAE supply ventilation by a factor of two, 2) reducing the thermostat setpoint from 76 to 74 F, or 3) running a gas-phase filtration system while decreasing supply ventilation per ASHRAE by half. In the mixed-humid climate of Oak Ridge, these strategies caused increases in electricity cost of ~$5 to ~$15/month depending on outdoor conditions.

Hun, Diana E↗
DOE OSTI2014

New Whole-House Solutions Case Study: Nexus EnergyHomes, Frederick, Maryland

With this new home—which achieved the highest rating possible under the National Green Building Standard—Nexus EnergyHomes demonstrated that green and affordable can go hand in hand. The mixed-humid climate builder, along with the U.S. Department of Energy Building America team Partnership for Home Innovation, embraced the challenge to create a new duplex home in downtown Frederick, Maryland, that successfully combines affordability with state-of-the-art efficiency and indoor environmental quality. To limit costs, the builder designed a simple rectangular shape and kept interesting architectural features such as porches outside the building’s structure. This strategy avoided the common pitfall of creating potential air leakage where architectural features are connected to the structure before the building is sealed against air infiltration. To speed construction and limit costs, the company chose factory-assembled components such as structural insulated panel walls and floor and roof trusses. Factory-built elements were key in achieving continuous insulation around the entire structure. Open-cell spray foam at the rim joist and attic roofline completed the insulation package, and kept the heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning system in conditioned space.

affordable↗
DOE OSTI2015

DOE ZERH Case Study: United Way of Long Island Housing Development Corporation, Patchogue, NY

Case study of a DOE 2015 Housing Innovation Award winning affordable home in the mixed-humid climate that got HERS 40 without PV, -3 with PV, with 2x4 16: on center walls with R-13.5 dense packed cellulose and 1.5” polyiso rigid; basement with 2.5: polyiso on interior; unvented attic with R-48 ocsf under roof deck; ERV tied to wall hung boiler with hydro coil.

Building America↗
DOE OSTI2015

DOE ZERH Case Study: Heirloom Design Build, Euclid Avenue, Atlanta, GA

Case study of a DOE 2015 Housing Innovation Award winning custom home in the mixed-humid climate that got a HERS 50 without PV, with 2x6 16” on center walls with R-19 ocsf; basement with R-28 ccsf, R-5 rigid foam under slab; sealed attic with R-28 ocsf under roof deck; 22.8 SEER; 12.5 HSPF heat pump.

Building America↗
DOE OSTI2017

Quantifying Systemic Efficiency using Exergy and Energy Analysis for Ground Source Heat Pumps: Domestic Space Conditioning and Water Heating Applications.

Although air temperatures over land surfaces show wide seasonal and daily variations, the ground, approximately 10 meters below the earth s surface, remains relatively stable in temperature thereby serving as an energy source or sink. Ground source heat pumps can heat, cool, and supply homes with hot water efficiently by utilizing the earth s renewable and essentially inexhaustible energy resources, saving fossil fuels, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and lowering the environmental footprint. In this paper, evidence is shown that ground source heat pumps can provide up to 79%-87% of domestic hot water energy needs, and up to 77% of space heating needs with the ground s thermal energy resources. The case refers to a 12-month study conducted at a 253 m2 research house located in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 36.01 N 84.26 W in a mixed-humid climate with HDD of 2218 C-days and CDD of 723 C-days under simulated occupancy conditions. A single 94.5m vertical bore interfaced the heat pump with the ground. The research shows that this technology is capable of achieving US DOE targets of 25 % and 35% energy savings in HVAC, and in water heating, respectively by 2030. It is also a viable technology to meet greenhouse gas target emissions under the IECC 2012 Standard, as well as the European Union (EU) 2020 targets of using renewable energy resources. The paper quantifies systemic efficiencies using Exergy analysis of the major components, clearly pointing areas for further improvement.

exergy↗
DOE OSTI2020

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Case Study HIA 2020: United Way of Long Island, Net Positive All Electric Home, Port Jefferson Station, NY

Case study of a DOE 2020 Housing Innovation Award winning custom home in a mixed-humid climate that got a HERS -2 with PV, with 2,500 square feet, featuring a novel attic truss specifically designed to accommodate a ducted mini-split heat pump tucked into an insulated chase in the vented attic. The walls are constructed of 2x6 studs installed at 24 inches on center and incorporating advanced framing techniques to reduce the amount of lumber needed and to provide more room for insulation.

Building America, residential construction, home b↗
DOE OSTI2021

DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Case Study HIA 2021: Insight Homes, The Brenner, Felton, DE

Case study of a DOE 2021 Housing Innovation Award winning custom home in a mixed-humid climate that got a HERS 51 without PV, with 1,940 square feet, MERV 13 filters and low-emission paints, adhesives, and carpeting; plus a sealed, conditioned crawl space, and a high-efficiency gas furnace and heat pump.

Building America, residential construction, home b↗
DOE OSTI2018

Integrating diagnostics and model-based optimization

Energy Management and Information Systems are a family of analytics technologies that include energy information systems, fault detection and diagnostics (FDD), and automated system optimization tools. Such systems have the potential to enable buildings to meet energy management goals of reducing total energy consumption and cost. Most current market offerings use data-driven and rule-based analytics. However, the use of physics-based models in the analytics offers potential improvements by providing an accurate estimation of outputs based on representation of the physical principles governing the building system behaviors. This also permits the use of design stage models to inform commissioning and operation. This paper describes the development and testing of a hybrid data-driven and physics model-based operational tool for energy efficiency in central cooling plants. The tool offers FDD functionality, setpoint optimization, and visualization of key performance parameters. It was demonstrated at a university campus in the mixed-humid ASHRAE Climate Zone 4A. Key performance metrics that were analyzed include plant electricity use reduction, plant model calibration, and system economics. Annual simulations indicate the tool can provide electricity savings of greater than 10% for approximately six months of the year, mainly during the winter season when wet bulb temperatures are low, though only 1.38% savings for the entire year. Additionally, over a 4-day period in April, recommended optimal setpoints were implemented, resulting in 17% savings versus metered baseline consumption. With respect to model calibration, the difference between model-predicted and measured parameters was less than 10% for 90% of data points acquired for three of six chillers, and for each ten cooling towers. Finally, the tool users reported that satisfaction with the capabilities was equal to or better than that with the preexisting BAS system.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2026

Durability of ABC Team Wall Assemblies

This study evaluates the long-term hygrothermal durability of four advanced retrofit wall systems using a field test facility located in Hollywood, South Carolina, representative of a mixed-humid coastal climate (Zone 3). The research focuses on assessing the thermal and moisture performance of a baseline wall assembly retrofitted with (1) Tremco/Dryvit prefabricated panel systems (Revitalite and Fedderlite), (2) Reinforced Fiberglass Plastic (RFP) panels developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), and (3) Vacuum Insulated Panels (VIP) integrated with EPS by Home Innovation Research Labs (HIRL) and ORNL. A baseline wall representing a typical uninsulated wood-frame construction was used for comparison.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2025

Shedding light on U.S. small and midsize data centers: Exploring insights from the CBECS survey

As demand for digital services accelerates, the energy and environmental footprint of data centers faces increasing scrutiny. While hyperscale cloud facilities have driven efficiency gains, small and midsize U.S. data centers remain a critical yet underexamined segment with significant untapped potential for energy savings. This study leverages data from the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) to analyze trends in server stocks, computing customers, cooling system adoption and efficiency, and geospatial distribution from 2012 to 2018. Findings reveal a sharp decline in small and midsize data centers, from 1.764 million to 1.398 million, with server counts dropping from 5.177 million to 4.262 million—aligning with the broader shift toward cloud computing. More than 40 % of servers in small data centers and 55 % in midsize data centers are housed in office buildings, and over half of all servers are concentrated in climate zones 5A (cold), 3A (mixed-humid), and 4A (mixed-humid), with the highest densities in metropolitan hubs. While direct expansion units remain the dominant cooling system, a clear transition toward more energy-efficient solutions, particularly air economizers, is evident. By integrating server and cooling system distributions, we estimate Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) and Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE) for U.S. data centers by size and year. Results show that midsize data centers are more energy-efficient but more water-intensive due to the widespread use of water-cooled chillers. These findings highlight the trade-offs in cooling system selection and provide a critical foundation for policies aimed at enhancing efficiency in an evolving data center landscape.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗