Emerging Technologies Program Factsheet

Emerging TechnologiesCapturing Innovation with Technology

Emerging Technologies focuses on the following technology areas and activities:

• SolidStateLighting • WaterHeating

• ThermalEnvelope • Appliances

• Windows • EnergyModelingTools

• Heating,VentilationandAirConditioning • BuildingSensorsandControls

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Building Technologies Office

(BTO), partners with national laboratories, universities, manufacturers, and industry to advance research,

development, and tech-to-market opportunities of energy efficient and cost effective building technologies. These partnerships help foster American ingenuity to develop cutting-edge technologies that have less than 5 years to market readiness.

BTO’s Emerging Technologies (ET) research and development activities drive deployment of emerging energy efficient technologies into the marketplace. The

Commercial Building Integration, Residential Building Integration, Appliance Standards, and Building Codes

teams within BTO focus on enabling technology deployment.

ET team research results are critical to achieving 50% energy savings across U.S. buildings within the next two decades. The ET

team focuses on supporting research, development, and tech-to-market opportunities of high impact technologies, or those that demonstrate potential

for achieving significant energy savings cost effectively.

For more information, please visit: buildings.energy.gov.

Solid-State LightingWith the promise of efficiency ten times greater than incandescent lighting, solid-state lighting (SSL) is changing the way we light our homes and offices. SSL efforts provide commercialization support and establish a number of strategies to protect a growing yet relatively fragile new market from low-quality products.

Research, development, and tech-to-market activities:

• Light emitting diodes

• Organic light emitting diodes

• Manufacturing improvements

Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning, Water Heating, and AppliancesToday’s appliances and HVAC equipment are more efficient than earlier generations. HVAC and water heating services to U.S. buildings are still responsible for about 56% of all residential and 44% of all commercial buildings energy consumption. DOE seeks to build on a record of successful technology development by designing and demonstrating technologies that enhance performance and save energy. For example, the ET team is pursuing the development of Integrated Heat Pump (IHP) technologies of both ground-source and air-source versions. These technologies are able to provide 50% or greater annual energy savings for space conditioning, dehumidification, and water heating services when integrated into a single piece of equipment. In 2012, this effort resulted in the market introduction of a ground-source IHP product.

Research, development, and tech-to-market activities:

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Emerging Technologies

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Emerging Technologies

TheLPrizecompetitionchallengesthelightingindustrytodevelophighperformance,energy-savingreplacementsforconventionallightbulbs.TheLPrizecompetitionlaunchedinMay2008tospurdevelopmentoftwonewhigh-performance,ultra-efficientlightemittingdiodealternatives.ThefirstLPrizewasawardedinthe60-wattreplacementcategoryinAugust2011toPhilipsLightingNorthAmerica.Thenextphase,forconventionalparabolicaluminizedreflectorlamps,alsoknownasfloodlamps,wasannouncedMarch2012.

GeneralElectric’s(GE’s)prototypefortheGeoSpringHybridWaterHeaterswasinspiredbyDOEresearcheffortsinthelate-1990sthroughtheearly2000s.Theproductunderwentsuccessiveiterationsoftestinganddesignchangesuntiltestresultsonthefinalmodelindicateditcouldlast10yearsanduselessthanhalftheenergyofaconventional50-gallontankwaterheater.In2008,GEenteredintoacooperativeR&DagreementwithOakRidgeNationalLaboratorytotesttheirelectricheatpumpwaterheater,resultinginthefinalmodelthatuseslessthanhalftheenergyofaconventional50-gallontankwaterheater.TheGeoSpringwaterheatersavesfamilies$325peryearonenergybills.

• Heat pumps

• Heat exchangers

• Working fluids

• Water heaters

• Appliances

Sensors and ControlsWith advancements in sensors and controls, buildings will be able to operate automatically and continuously at peak energy efficiency over their lifetimes, leading to lower overall building operating costs and higher asset valuation. A relatively new focus for the ET team, sensors and controls is now receiving greater attention due to the proven potential for significant energy savings through the implementation of low cost solutions in both commercial and residential buildings of all sizes.

Research, development, and tech-to-market activities:

Emerging Technologies

Abreakthroughinresidentialwindowmanufacturingcutdownproductiontime,whilecreatingbetter-insulating,moreenergy-efficientwindows.DOEhelpedfundthedesignanddevelopmentofahighvolume,efficientmanufacturingsystemtobuildhighperformance,energy-savinginsulatingglassunitsforresidentialwindows.TheinnovativenewsystemmanufacturedbyGEDIntegratedSolutions,Inc.enhancesthewindowindustry’sabilitytoprovidehomeownerswithwindowsthatcanreducetheirenergybills.

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Thermal Envelope and Windows Within the residential buildings sector, more than 42% of primary energy used is spent on space heating and cooling. A large fraction of this energy is lost or gained through the thermal envelope, specifically the windows, doors, roofs, attics, walls, floors and foundations. Thermal envelope and windows research efforts reduce building energy losses through collaboration partnerships that bring innovative technology solutions to market for commercial and residential buildings, thereby improving overall building energy performance through energy research.

Research, development, and tech-to-market activities:

Packagedair-conditionersandheatpumpsservemorethan60%ofthecommercialbuildingfloorspaceintheUnitedStates,contributingtoabout230trillionBtusofenergyconsumptionannually.DOEsupportedthetestingandevaluationofseveralinnovativecontrolstrategiesthatimprovetheoperationalefficiencyofpackagedHVACequipment.Theresultsshowsignificantenergy(24%to35%)andcostsavings(38%).Retrofittingone-halfofthepackagedHVACunitswiththemodifiedcontrolpackageoptionisestimatedtosaveapproximately55trillionBtusforthecountry.

• Highly insulating and dynamic windows

• Cool roofs

• Building thermal insulation

• Façades, daylighting, and fenestration

• Low-cost smart sensors and sensor systems

• Management of energy consuming assets and systems

• Fault detection and diagnostic algorithm development

• Smart buildings that self-configure, self-commission, and self-optimize

• Open architecture building controls platform to enable enhanced communication and control within and outside the building

Energy Modeling ToolsEnergyPlus is the most advanced whole-building energy modeling tool available, simulating new and low-energy building

features like natural ventilation and radiant cooling. Whole-building energy simulation helps architects and engineers compare design alternatives and to optimize building design. DOE helps with EnergyPlus modeling enhancements, which include activities to improve its execution speed, facilitate access via front-end “wizard” applications, and provide training and user help. In addition, DOE supports OpenStudio, an open-source, cross-platform middleware for EnergyPlus to facilitate community development, extension, and private sector adoption.

Research, development, and tech-to-market activities:

• Building energy modeling software enhancements

• Building energy modeling calibration and verification

• User interface and middleware applications for building energy modeling

Emerging Technologies

Concept3D,asoftwareandservicescompanyusedEnergyPlusandOpenStudiotodevelopSimuWatt,aphotovoltaic(PV)assessmentmobileapplicationdesignedtolowerthecostofPVinstallation.Becauseofthisapplication,Concept3DhasbeenselectedaspartoftheDOESunShotIncubator,whichprovidesearlystageassistancetostartupcompaniestoovercometechnologicalbarrierstocommercialization.

Lookingforfundingopportunities?

EERE/ Building Technologies Financial Assistance: eere.energy.gov/financing/

Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR): sbir.gov/solicitations

Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E): arpa-e-foa.energy.gov/

DOE Office of Science: science.energy.gov/funding-opportunities/

DOE/EE-0795 • December 2012Printed with a renewable-source ink on paper containing at least 50% wastepaper, including 10% post consumer waste.

Photocredits:Main cover photo: iStock/20520347 Boxes on cover from left to right: DOE; iStock/3871954; GED Integrated Solutions, Inc.

Page 2: iStock/17631161

Page 3: DOE; iStock/17675458

Page 4: GED Integrated Solutions, Inc.; iStock/13768857

Page 5: General Electric

Page 6: iStock/3871954; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)

Page 7: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL); DOE EnergyPlus logo

Formoreinformation,pleasevisit:

Building Technologies Office buildings.energy.gov

Emerging Technologies buildings.energy.gov/tech