Category Archives: News
WCEC Newly Published Journal Article on Greenhouse Gas Emission Forecasts for Residential Heat Pumps
This study aims to inform policymakers about the greenhouse gas emission impacts of heat pump deployment in residential homes. Electric heat pumps eliminate direct burning of fossil fuels in homes but result in indirect emissions due to fossil fuels burned for electricity production. This paper presents the first detailed emission forecasts for operating either a heat pump or gas furnace for residential heating over a 15-year period, starting in year 2022 through 2036, in six regions across the US. The study accounted for long-run marginal emissions from electricity generation, emissions from natural gas combustion in homes, and fugitive methane and refrigerant emissions from leaks. The population weighted US average results show emission reductions for a heat pump over furnace to be 38–53% for carbon dioxide, 53–67% for 20-Year global warming potential (GWP), and 44–60% for 100-Year GWP, with reductions increasing over time. The impact of fugitive emissions from the furnace is significantly higher than that of the heat pump. While more energy efficient construction reduces overall emissions for both heating types, the forecasted percent emission reduction for replacement of a gas furnace with heat pump was not impacted by changes in home construction parameters.
Institute Executive Director Benjamin Finkelor to Serve “On Loan” as Special Advisor at the California Energy Commission
Benjamin Finkelor, Executive Director for UC Davis’ Energy and Efficiency Institute (EEI), will serve “on loan” to the California Energy Commission as a Special Advisor to Vice Chair Siva Gunda. The appointment starts February 1st and will extend for 14 months. Ben has been Executive Director of the EEI since its inception in 2016 (then the Energy and Efficiency Center). His leadership has helped the campus’ energy programs grow and advance over the past 15 years.
“Ben has played a tremendous role in developing and strengthening UC Davis’ energy research, education and engagement,” said Kelly Kissock, Faculty Director of the Energy and Efficiency Institute. “We have been fortunate to have him on our team and will miss him during his assignment. At the same time, we know that his work at the Commission will help us all further achieve our common goal of building a more sustainable, accessible, and resilient energy system and we are excited for him.”
While on loan to the Commission, Finkelor will continue to teach the Sustainable Energy Industry Immersion Course at the UC Davis Graduate School of Management in Winter quarters 2022 and 2023.
“I am honored to have this opportunity to support the California Energy Commission and Vice Chair Gunda and his team, especially as the State takes on the challenge of decarbonizing our energy in an equitable way, while maintaining safety and reliability,” Finkelor said. “It is a privilege to be able to contribute at such a critical time, and I’ll be delighted to bring my experiences back to UC Davis when I return.”
During Ben’s absence, Alan Meier will serve as Acting Executive Director. Alan is a Research Scientist at EEI, an Adjunct Faculty member in the Department of Environmental Science & Policy, and a Senior Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. “I am pleased to take on this role for the Institute and look forward to continuing to engage with students, faculty, and partners to advance our work,” said Meier. When on campus, he will occupy Ben’s former office at 1605 Tilia Street.
R-466A Refrigerant Demonstration and Performance
Refrigerants used in vapor-compression air conditioners and heat pumps have been the subject of environmental regulations requiring the need to develop alternative solutions with lower global warming potential (GWP). In general, there is a trade-off when choosing alternative refrigerants between safety, performance, and GWP.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has approved a new regulation requiring refrigerants used in all new stationary residential air conditioning systems to have a 100-year GWP value of 750 or less. For reference, the most common refrigerant currently used in unitary air conditioning equipment is R-410A, which has a 100-year GWP of 2,088.
A number of refrigerant solutions have been developed to meet the CARB GWP requirement, but the majority of these refrigerants have a low level of flammability (A2L). While there are strategies for mitigating the risk of using flammable refrigerants, finding a non-flammable solution presents the easiest path to market and would not require additional safety controls and updates to codes and standards.
Testing Different Configurations of Do-It-Yourself Portable Air Cleaners
A recent case study by the Western Cooling Efficiency Center (WCEC) seeks to answer: does making your own portable air cleaner match the cleaning performance of off-the shelf products and do so in a cost effective way?
Portable air cleaners are increasingly in demand to reduce concentrations of particulates and respiratory aerosols indoors. Researchers at the UC Davis Western Cooling Efficiency Center (WCEC) tested two types of Do-It-Yourself (DIY) portable air cleaners (standard box fans modified with added filtration on the suction side of the box fan) and documented the power draw, airflow, and noise for each configuration. Researchers calculated the clean air delivery rate based on filter test reports and reported energy efficiency and cost metrics for each configuration.
Note that while DIY portable air cleaners are a useful and easily accessible tool to reduce particulates in buildings, they should not be considered a substitute for ensuring adequate ventilation and filtration is provided by central building heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.