Wednesday, 29 June 2016: 9:45 AM-10:45 AM
Renewable Energy Systems and Net Zero Buildings
Chair:
Joshua Rhodes, Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin
Technical Committee: 07.05 Smart Building Systems
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon challenges collegiate teams to design, build and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, net-zero and attractive. This seminar hosts two teams, including the overall winners as they talk about what worked and what didn't in the competition. Many teams tried moon-shot ideas including residential hydronic TES HVAC systems and fully connected, occupant-responding homes. This seminar gives the audience a deep look at some of the submissions to the competition.
1 The Nest Home: Successes, Failures and Lessons Learned
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Steve Rusakiewicz |
Winner of the 2015 US Dept of Energy Solar Decathlon, The Stevens Institute of Technology's SURE HOUSE is a residential prototype for a truly sustainable and resilient home for the New Jersey shore. This student-designed and -built home uses 90% less energy than a typical New Jersey home through Passive House measures, is flood-proofed using a high-performance plastic and fiber-composite protective shell, and is fully solar powered. These measures combine to create a home which seeks to reduce its contribution to global climate change while also bracing for the effects of rising sea levels and increasingly severe storms.
2 Nexushaus: A Net-Zero Energy and Water Urban Infill Home
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Charles Upshaw, Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin |
Nexushaus is a new residential housing prototype that is responsive to the challenges of the energy-water “nexus” in the context of growth in the United States from Texas all the way west to California. Nexushaus offers residents the following features: A modular design system that can change as residents’ needs change over time, smaller, well designed interior spaces combined with generous outdoor living spaces, a photovoltaic array designed for maximum efficiency and flexibility, a hydronic air conditioning and heating system, a potable rainwater collection system with integrated thermal storage and a greywater garden irrigation system.