creating more value from your solar array - green technology · creating more value from your solar...
TRANSCRIPT
Creating More Value from your
Solar ArrayThe Financial, Operational, and
Educational Benefits of Solar Monitoring
The Value of Solar Monitoring
Benchmarking
Performance-Based Incentives
Ensure Financial Accuracy
Fulfill certification requirements (LEED)
Ensure Proper and Timely O+M
What type of monitoring system to use?
• SCADA • Web-based monitoring
Benchmarking
Benchmarking is different than energy management in that it pertains to creating the plan to monitor data
Energy management is acting on that data collected from benchmarking
Because energy management plans will be different based on varying organizational goals and systems, we will focus on benchmarking
Benchmarking
Select Select a benchmarking tool
Identify Identify data inputs
Identify Identify output metrics
Build Build a benchmarking team
Secure Secure buy-in from leadership
Establish Establish the goal for benchmarking
Benchmarking
Plan Plan for change
Communicate Communicate the plan
Evaluate Evaluate analysis techniques
Consider Consider a data verification process
Determine Determine the collection method
Benchmarking
Why benchmark? Energy expenditures average more than $2 per square foot in commercial and government buildings, making energy a cost worth managing (https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2017/09/f36/tap_designing_a_benchmarking_plan.pdf)
ENERGY STAR Building Upgrade Manual Chapter 2: Benchmarking (https://www.energystar.gov/buildings/tools-and-resources/energy-star-building-upgrade-manual-chapter-2-benchmarking)
ISO 50001 Energy Management (https://ecenter.ee.doe.gov/_layouts/ecenter/ppc.eguide/home.aspx#)
Performance-Based
Incentives
• Under the expired DSIRE program started in 2007, PBI were offered to all systems sizes, and required for systems greater than 30kW
o Incentives were $0.39/kWh for this first five years for taxable entities, $0.50/kWh for the first five years for government entities and nonprofits
o The incentive declines as the aggregate capacity of PV installations increases (encourages early adopters)
o The incentive was paid monthly based on the actual amount of energy produced for a period of five years
o Program was managed by PG&E, SCE, and the Center for Sustainable Energy on behalf of SDG&E
http://programs.dsireusa.org/system/program/detail/2362
Ensure Financial
Accuracy of Performance
Guarantees and Methods to
Receive Further Savings
• Monitoring ensures the financial accuracy of solar savings
• If a Performance Guarantee is agreed upon, monitoring keeps the guarantee provider honest
• If the school is located in area with approved net-metering policies, proper monitoring allows energy to be sold back to the utility
• Some monitoring systems provide alerts when on-peak rates occur, rate increases, etc.
“Protecting against performance risk is key to ensuring the school receives the full financial benefits of their solar investment. Some schools noted their realized cost savings was sometimes a bit less than what was expected, which can be due to lower solar energy system production than was expected or promised. However, when comparing the actual amount of electricity generated with estimates provided by the installer, it is important to keep in mind that the solar resource varies from year to year.”
http://www.thesolarfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/SOLAR-SCHOOLS-REPORT-FINAL.pdf
LEED Certification
• Within the Energy and Atmosphere (EA) section:
o With 20 percent of all points allocated to building energy efficiency, LEED has an increased emphasis on energy and the associated impacts.
o Emphasis on enhanced building commissioning for greater energy and operational performance.
o Benefits of smart-grid thinking through an option that rewards projects for participating in demand-response programs.
• Installation of meters (through the metering prerequisite and credit) allows teams to meter, monitor and verify their energy use to set and meet building performance goals
https://new.usgbc.org/leed
http://www.everbluetraining.com/blog/how-can-solar-help-leed-certification
LEED Certification
School as a Teaching Tool – 1 Point
• Purpose is to “integrate the sustainable features of a school facility with the school’s educational mission.”
Requirements
• For Teachers, either:o Provide access to the Green Classroom Professional Certificate
program (http://www.usgbc.org/classroom/gcp)
o OR provide teachers with training on primary elements of green schools
• For Students, either:o Provide an annual subscription to the K-12 Learning Lab
(www.learninglab.usgbc.org)
o OR design curriculum based on the high performance of the buildings
https://www.usgbc.org/node/10558965?return=/credits/new-construction/v4
Ensure Proper and Timely
O+M
• Monitoring helps installers fulfill O+M contracts and more easily find potential problems with the solar system
o The software will send alerts and status reports via email (gives greater visibility into PV array)
o Technicians do not need to visit a site every time there is an issue, but can pinpoint the cause remotely (less intrusion on the part of the installer)
o Most monitoring programs identify the issue by piece of equipment, ie an inverter issue or a module issue (more efficient fixes)
o Monitoring programs display a map of installer’s systems (way to keep track of a fleet of systems)
o The software will track the financial performance and energy output of a fleet (allows the installer to see if there is an issue like shading)
Using the Sun to Advance Environmental StewardshipCase Study – Cathedral Catholic High School
Cathedral Catholic High
School
Cathedral Catholic High School
• 1.15 MW with 3,142 panels and 38 inverters
• $80,000-100,000 in savings provided annually
• Since the campus has Tuscan style architecture, “Padres stucco brown” split-block face installed around support piers to blend with campus design
“We’re focusing on being a green school. We want to be responsible citizens and good caretakers of the earth. The savings we realize as a result of going solar will reduce our energy costs and help keep tuition increases to a minimum. This will enable broader community access to the amazing education we provide here.” said Cathedral Catholic President, Stevan R. Laaperi.
Cathedral Catholic High
School
Sal Aiello– Director of Facilities
• Uses the provided energy monitoring software (Also Energy Mini Sites) – also shows equivalent offsets such as water and carbon
• They want to show how much the solar produces vs. the total campus usage on their website
• One of the inverters went down, and Sal noticed the issue because he was monitoring the system
• They plan on incorporating the solar monitoring into their environmental science curriculum
Cathedral Catholic High
School
Steve Laaperi – President
• Cathedral Catholic already awarded the “Energy Champion” award by SDG&E for its commitment to reducing water and energy use – in which solar is a part
• Going to use monitoring to prove how much of their energy usage is offset by the solar array to build a case for becoming SDGE’s “Grand Champion” at the utility’s energy showcase
Other Resources
• The Center for Green Schools - https://www.centerforgreenschools.org/
• The National Plan for Educating Sustainability -http://centerforgreenschools.org/sites/default/files/resource-files/National-Action-Plan-Educating-Sustainability.pdf
• The Whole School Sustainability Framework -http://centerforgreenschools.org/sites/default/files/resource-files/Whole-School_Sustainability_Framework.pdf
• Brighter Future: A Study on Solar in U.S. Schools -http://www.thesolarfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/SOLAR-SCHOOLS-REPORT-FINAL.pdf
Educational Benefits
“In partnership with local environmental nonprofits, the Parkway School (MO) district has provided teachers with curriculum resources to complement the system, which some teachers have already incorporated into their lesson plans. In addition, students have access to solar system performance data in every classroom. Mr. Lueders’ advice to other schools who are considering going solar is to just “do it,” as he believes that the financial, educational, and environmental benefits make solar energy something behind which people in the community can rally.”
Educational Benefits
“At Woodstock Union High School in central Vermont, Jen Stainton, a science teacher, led the effort to install a 10 kW solar PV array and has helped incorporate the system into science and math lesson plans. Students have access to system performance data in order to understand how much electricity is being produced, the amount of carbon emissions offset by the system, and how much money has been saved. The school has also incorporated a unit into its science classes designed to teach students about the physics of solar energy and how the technology compares with conventional sources of electricity. This unit incorporates lessons on system tilt angles and orientation and how changes in these variables affect system production, providing students with a real-world situation to further develop their math and science skills.”
Educational Benefits
“Milford High School (UT) seized a unique educational opportunity that arose from complications with the tracking system installed at the school… As part of an effort to overcome this technical issue, students devised and proposed their own engineering solutions. Though none of these solutions were ultimately implemented, this unanticipated problem provided students with a unique and valuable STEM educational experience.”
Educational Benefits
“…teachers at Drury High School (MA) plan to build on what students have learned about solar and other clean energy options in the classroom through a summer program in which students will conduct an energy audit of a local homeless shelter and make recommendations to reduce its energy consumption…”
Educational Benefits
“Jurupa Unified School District (CA) received a number of high-quality science kits containing PV system components, meters to measure system output, interconnection devices, and water pumps to provide students with a hands-on learning experience and use solar energy as a means of teaching key science and math topics.”
All quotes from http://www.thesolarfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/SOLAR-SCHOOLS-REPORT-FINAL.pdf
