The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has expanded its collaboration with Alaska’s Cold Climate Housing Research Center (CCHRC).
“The Arctic environment, with its high cost of energy in remote communities and challenging climates, provides a strategic platform for NREL’s research into renewable power, sustainable transportation, energy efficiency, and energy systems integration,” NREL says. Based in Fairbanks, Alaska, CCHRC has designed energy efficient, healthy homes in some of the harshest conditions on Earth.
Temperatures in the Fairbanks area range from minus 50 degrees to 80 degrees Fahrenheit each year. NREL and CCHRC have complementary research capabilities—whole-building energy use, building energy system integration, health and indoor air quality, and energy technology design and deployment in extreme and rural environments.
NREL’s 10-year strategy includes a focus on Integrated Energy Pathways, an expanding research area that guides solutions to enable the efficient and reliable operation of our future energy system. “The expanded collaboration between the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Cold Climate Housing Research Center will allow us to test the resiliency and reliability of energy-efficient and renewable energy technologies in extreme weather conditions,” said Daniel R. Simmons, assistant secretary for the office of energy efficiency and renewable energy.
Related Stories
| Apr 18, 2014
First international buildings among 700-plus certified by BOMA 360 Performance Program
In the first quarter of 2014, the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International certified 66 properties in the BOMA 360 Performance Program for commercial real estate markets across the U.S and, for the first time, abroad.
| Apr 16, 2014
OSHA proposes $2.3 million in fines against Olivet Management for exposing workers to asbestos and lead
Olivet Management LLC, a real estate development and management company, faces $2.3 million in proposed fines from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
| Apr 10, 2014
Green Building Certification Institute partners with Well Building Institute on standard
The Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), which administers third-party certification for the LEED standard, and the Well Building Institute will collaborate to promote the WELL Building Standard.
| Apr 10, 2014
OSHA’s construction safety advisory committee invites input on construction regulations
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will hold a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health May 7-8, 2014, in Washington, D.C.
| Apr 10, 2014
ASTM’s International Standards in Building Codes now available in DVD and online
The compilation ASTM Standards in Building Codes contains more than 1,300 ASTM construction specifications, practices and test methods, and is now available in DVD and online.
| Apr 10, 2014
New California energy code requires building systems to be ready for demand response energy management
Starting in June, California’s latest version of its Title 24 building code kicks in, requiring several systems come with demand response capability.
| Apr 4, 2014
Green Building Initiative moves to include locally sourced materials in Green Globes
The Green Building Initiative group based in Portland, Ore., met with the Department of Agriculture on a plan to include locally sourced materials in its green building standards.
| Apr 4, 2014
White roofs outperform green roofs in reducing heat-island effect, says Lawrence Berkeley Lab
A new report from LBNL says that white roofs are three times more effective than green roofs at “cooling the globe.”
| Apr 4, 2014
ASHRAE standard aims for consistency in measuring building energy use
The standard answers such questions as: Should the measurements of a building’s area used in the equation to derive energy use per square foot be taken from the exterior dimensions or to the centerline of the wall? And, should storage spaces be included even though they are unoccupied?
| Apr 4, 2014
Cleveland’s sewer authority to pay developers for green solutions to stormwater runoff
The district’s intent to use natural features to absorb stormwater reflects an urban trend that other cities including Philadelphia and Detroit have embraced.