Another example of growth in Clean Energy business, WorldChanging asks, “Can buildings use zero net energy, be carbon neutral, and still be commercially viable?”
Jan van Dokkum, president of UTC Power, a United Technologies company, thinks so:
“This can be done by incorporating renewable energy sources into a building’s design, optimizing energy efficiency of support systems, and taking advantage of geographic and culturally acceptable building practices. Additionally, this aim is enhanced by using the ‘cradle to cradle’ concept of producing, using and later re-using building materials. This vision of energy and carbon neutral designs is a necessary evolution we need to embrace to achieve sustainability for buildings.”
Joel Makower notes two leading members of WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development) Connecticut-based UTC, which earned $42 billion in 2005, and Paris-based Lafarge, which earned €16 billion ($19.4 billion), seem to be profiting by “talking the net-zero talk.” In other words, global corporations are looking for “green profits” as eco-innovation moves into the mainstream. As an example, on 24 February in Paris the WBCSD (Tiny URL) held its first core group meeting regarding Energy Efficiency in Buildings.
Net-zero buildings make use of emerging technologies, to include:
- Sealing methods that address unseen air leaks
- Electrochromic windows offering the dynamic control of infrared energy
- Unconventional water heaters (solar, heat pump, gas condensing, and tankless)
- Inexpensive highly efficient nanocomposite materials for solar energy conversion
- Thermoelectric materials that can transform heat directly into electrical energy
- Solid state lighting that uses the emission of semi-conductor diodes to directly produce light at a fraction of the energy of current fluorescent lighting
- Selective water sorbent technologies that offer the performance of ground-coupled heat pumps at the cost of traditional systems
- Abundant sensors dispersed through buildings with continuously optimizing control devices
- 80-90 percent efficient integrated energy systems that provide on-site power as well as heating, cooling, and dehumidification.
When the return-on-investment warrant such energy efficient technologies requires accurate projections.
Applying currently available technologies can cost-effectively save 30 to 40 percent of energy use and GHG emissions in new buildings, when evaluated on a life-cycle basis. Technology opportunities are more limited for the existing building stock, and the implementation rate depends on the replacement cycles for building equipment and components. However, several opportunities worth noting apply to existing as well as new buildings, including efficiencies in roofing, lighting, home heating and cooling, and appliances. Emerging building technologies, especially new lighting systems and integrated thermal and power systems, could lead to further cost-effective energy savings.
