ABCs of Laboratory

Challenges for Sustainability

Ralph Stuart

Env. Safety Manager

Environmental Aspects and Impacts of Laboratories

!  Ventilation !  35-50% of energy for 15% of campus floor space at UVM.

Larger proportions elsewhere, depending on campus building types.

!  Electricity Use !  Similar to ventilation impact relative to the rest of campus

!  Solid and Hazardous Wastes !  Low carbon impact, high regulatory impact

!  Regulation !  EPA’s Higher education enforcement initative

!  Teaching and Research !  Environmental awareness of science curriculum; green

chemistry

!  Others: !  Water !  Transportation

Ventilation

!  Campus wide impact:

!  Between 4 and 8 times as much energy per sq foot relative to other campus spaces

!  Energy use associated with labs is high value – 10 times as much income as energy expense

!  Design Issues

!  Ventilation rates range from 6 to 10 air changes per hour

!  Ventilation rates are speculative and primarily based on control of odors

!  There are behavior changes opportunities with regard to ventilation, but facility design is the driving force in the environmental footprint

!  EPA Labs-21 program for lab design http://www.labs21century.gov/

Electricity Use

!  Proliferation of instrumentation drives electrical demand

!  Electrical equipment in the laboratory creates a lot of waste heat, which can drive ventilation rates even in non-hazardous areas

!  Example: storage of biological samples at cold temperatures or in freezer farms

!  Labs are not part of the Energy Star universe (See the Labs-21 wiki at http://tinyurl.com/labs21wiki)

Solid and Hazardous Waste

!  Disposal of trash from lab buildings creates the concern of potential contamination with chemical or biological materials.

!  Community perception can drive choices rather than cost or greening opportunities

!  Chemical wastes are regulated by the states and EPA very tightly, which creates significant practical challenges

!  Biowaste regulations are less organized but have practical challenges as well

Environmental Regulations

!  RCRA and state variations for hazardous waste

!  CERCLA for emergency planning

!  CWA and local regulations for sewer disposal

!  CAA and local regulations for fume hood exhaust

!  HAZWOPER for spill clean up

!  Whatever carbon rules come down

!  Miscellaneous materials (asbestos, PCBs, Hg, pharmaceuticals, etc.)

!  Electronic virtual campus http://www.c2e2.org/evc/

Education and Research: Green Chemistry

!  EPA / American Chemical Society chemical studies research and education linked to environmental issues

!  Laboratory operations are not thought of as part of this aspect yet

! MIT green alternatives web site:

!  http://tinyurl.com/mitgcwiz

Sustainability Tools with Laboratory Potential

!  Behavior change

!  Facility design and LEED

!  Connecting with regulatory considerations through an Environmental Management System

Track: Energy, Buildings & Transportation Session: The ABCs of Labs

Influencing Fume Hood Practices: Feedback and Behavior Change

Steven M. Lanou Deputy Director - Sustainability Program Environmental Programs Office Massachusetts Institute of Technology 617-452-2907 slanou@mit.edu

6th Annual Northeast Campus Sustainability Consortium Conference

Can You Spot the Labs?

MIT Building 18: Dept of Chemistry

…at 5PM

…and at 2AM

Source:MIT, Amanti

•  No. 2 energy consumer per sq. ft. on campus

CO2 emissions Cost

$1.8 million 8500 metric tons Emissions equal to over 300 SUVs driving 60 mph

Where does the energy go?

Source: MIT, Wesolowski

! Electric use breakdown (approximate)

Source: MIT, Amanti

!

Where does the energy go?

Heat or Cool

Intake fan

Outside air

Exhaust fan Vented air

Fume Hoods in Building 18

The “Engineered Solution” for Energy Conservation

Sash Position Sensor

Phoenix Control Valve

Variable Air Volume & Monitoring and Control

! Did we left out the human aspect? ! Can we make better use of the VAV by

supplementing with behavior change? " Collaboration: EPO, LFEE, EHS, Chemistry, students,

faculty and staff " New fume hood training module developed and

delivered Nov. " E-mail from “The Boss” " Monitoring of avg. sash position ever since " Information feedback starting following July

The “Behavioral Solution” for Energy Conservation: Information, Monitoring & Feedback

15 Min Sash Position

Data Point

TAC Data Storage

Custom Data Conversion

Program

Excel Spreadsheet Back to MIT

Grad Student/EHS Charts and Email

Data Collection and Distribution

Feedback Intervention: Average Sash Position

Before intervention

Current

Average sash position Post-implementation

Baseline sash position

*

* Winter holiday season

*

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

16%

18%

20%

Oct-06 May-07 Dec-07 Jun-08

Ave

rage

sas

h po

sitio

n

300

320

340

360

380

400

Air

flow

/ ho

od (C

FM)

Impact

Impact

! Average sash height was lowered by 26% " 16% ± 0.85% open to 12% ± 0.39% open

throughout the department " saving an estimated $41,000/yr. (Bldg18 $24,000/

yr) – about half the potential ! Sash position during inactive periods was

lowered from 9% to 6% open. ! Half of all department savings occurred in

four (of 25) labs.

Conclusions

!  Feedback can influence positive behavior change !  Energy savings were less than original expectations

because over estimation of open sashes; most installed fume hoods use combination sashes

!  Pilot lab group was pretty efficient to begin with !  Labs with vertical sashes use the most energy, and saw

the most savings from the intervention. !  More active labs can be penalized unfairly !  Design programs that are sustainable, e.g. not too

complicated !  Impact of static feedback, e.g. stickers, may be limited

What Else Should We Do?

! Emphasize lower night time use ! Reduce face velocity requirements (100/80/60) ! Reduce air change rate requirements ! Install occupancy sensors in ventilation systems ! Retrofit older hoods to VAV ! Decommission unused hoods ! Social pressure – ambassadors program, signs ! Take your Industrial Hygienist to lunch ! Whole building HVAC cont. commissioning

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Michelle Smith Green Building Coordinator The University of Vermont

NECSC Conference October 27, 2009

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! Labs 21 Environmental Performance Criteria ! Considerations for early planning !  James M. Jeffords Hall as a case study

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! Labs 21 EPC: a rating system to assess the environmental performance of laboratory facilities.

! Builds on the LEED® Green Building Rating System that was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.

! The EPC was produced by a series of working groups that included more than 40 architects, engineers, facility managers, and health and safety professionals.

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!  Co-sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE)

!  Voluntary partnership program dedicated to improving the environmental performance of U.S. laboratories.

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!  Prerequisite 3: Laboratory Ventilation Intent Ensure that minimum requirements for IAQ and safety are met

Requirements Prerequisite 3.0 Meet the minimum requirements of ANSI Z9.5 (latest version).

Technologies & Strategies !  Provide monitoring and control of fume hoods and room

pressure. Technologies include fume hood monitors and alarms, volume metering, and automated laboratory room pressure control.

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! Ventilation/fume hood rate discussions when planning lab and space use !  Occupancy sensors/ Motion detectors !  CO2 sensors !  Heat recovery

! What chemicals will be used? How frequently? ! Movable flammable materials cabinets instead of

permanent ! Local materials: exterior as well as case-work ! Site/Landscaping: Academic partnership

opportunities?

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! Early discussions re: “how low could the fume hood exchange go”

! Presentations from fume hood manufacturers to project team, including maintenance

! Final system integrated into comprehensive HVAC allows for greater energy savings

! Heat recovery from labs via convection transfer to liquid glycol loop

! Return-air system for administrative/classroom space

! Building dashboard?

/!(-$"('!8K$79"7a$+-$&%0"- $$

! Thank you!