Research
Efficiency
| Enhancing Energy Efficiency and Conservation Research Projects: | |
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Title:Innovative Proton Conducting Membranes for Fuel Cell Applications |
| PI: Ongi Englander Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Co-PIs: Anant Paravastu, Subramanian Ramakrishnian | |
| Description: This project was initiated in January 2009 as an interdisciplinary effort among Englander (Mechanical Engineering), Paravastu (Chemical and Biomedical Engineering) and Ramakrishnan (Chemical and Biomedical Engineering). The work was divided into two main tasks: (1) the fabrication and characterization of silica and latex-supported membranes, and (2) the incorporation of protein nanomaterials inside the silica membranes. Three female students have participated and contributed to the project (see below). | |
| Budget:$30,000 | |
| Universities: FSU | |
| This project has been completed | |
| November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report May 2010 Progress Report |
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Title:Sustainably Integrated Advanced Building Subsystems (OGZEB) |
| PI: Anjaneyulu Krothapalli Research Interests and Contact Information |
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| Co-PI: Justin Kramer |
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| Description: This project focuses on the development of building subsystems that minimize the use of natural resources and carbon-based energy in Florida while also using materials that are renewable and sustainable. A key component of this project is the Off-Grid Zero Emissions Building, which will allow for the testing of these subsystems.This team forms the engineering team participating in the Team Florida’s Solar Decathlon Competition. Lessons learned from the Off-Grid Zero Emission Building are incorporated into Team Florida’s design. |
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| Budget: $503,168 | |
| Universities: FSU | |
| This project has been completed | |
| November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report May 2010 Progress Report |
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Title:Insight into Membrane Degradation Mechanisms Through Verification of Chemical and Mechanical Degradation Test Capabilities. PI: Darlene Slattery Co-PIs: Len Bonville, Marianne Rodgers Description: The objectives of the program were to gain insight into fuel cell membrane degradation mechanisms including both chemical and mechanical degradations. In order to achieve this objective, the Membrane Electrode Assembly Durability Test System, MEADS, was verified, after which chemical degradation tests were conducted. By performing post mechanical testing and analyzing the data,the impact of accelerated degradation tests on the cell performance decay, chemical decomposition and mechanical weakening of the membranes were evaluated. Budget: $351,518 Universities: UCF/FSEC External Collaborators: U. S. Department of Energy This project has been completed November 2011 Annual Report |
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Title:Energy Efficient Building Technologies and Zero Energy Homes |
| PI: R. Vieira Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Co-PIs: P. Fairey, J. Sonne | |
| Description: The project consists of two elements: 1) the construction of two flexible research homes at FSEC to conduct research on advanced building energy efficiency technologies under controlled conditions; and 2) a staged, field retrofit study in a small number of unoccupied homes to measure and document the effectiveness of a series of retrofit measures that can be deployed using current technology. The project will also conduct an annual meeting where other FESC participants, other university members and utility, industry, the U.S. Department of Energy and other stake holders who will be briefed on plans and progress. Inputs from meeting participants will be sought.Budget:$1,224,000 | |
| Universities: UCF/FSEC | |
| External Collaborators: Building America Industrialized Housing Partnership | |
| This project has been completed. | |
| November 2012 Annual Report November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report May 2010 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report |
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Title:Joint Optimization of Urban Energy-Water Systems in Florida |
| PI: James P. Heaney Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Description:Urban water infrastructure systems for providing water supply, collecting and treating wastewater, collecting and managing stormwater, and reusing wastewater and stormwater require major energy inputs. End users of the water require even more energy to heat this water for showers and baths, clothes washing, cooking and other uses. Increasingly, cities will rely on alternative water supplies such as desalination that require much more energy per gallon of water produced. Conservation is the ideal way to save energy and water by managing the demand for these precious commodities. Major strides have been made in reducing indoor water use from about 75 gallons per person per day to as low as 40 gallons per person per day. However, these gains are being offset by concurrent increases in outdoor water use for irrigation that range from 30 to 300 gallons per person per day depending on irrigation practices and the size of the landscape. From a water use perspective, perhaps the greatest challenge will be the expected growing competition for water if certain energy options are implemented in order to reduce our current dependence on foreign oil. Several recent national studies warn of this impending energy-water crisis. This project will build on our extensive experience in evaluating urban water conservation options to include the implications for energy use and to develop integrated energy-water management systems that are compatible. | |
| Budget: $72,000 | |
| Universities: UF | |
| External Collaborators: Florida Department of Environmental Protection, South Florida, Southwest Florida and St. Johns River Water Management Districts, Gainesville Regional Utilities, Hillsborough County Water Utility Department, Sanford Water Utility, Water Research Foundation, Austin, Texas, Intelligent Software Development | |
| This project has been completed. | |
| November 2012 Annual Report November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report May 2010 Progress Report |
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Title:High Performance and Low Cost Fuel Cells for Future Vehicles |
| PI: Jim Zheng Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Co-PI: Richard Liang, Chuck Zhang, Ben Wang | |
| Description: The objective of this project is to provide an innovative approach to revolution of current energy storage and conversion technology and greatly leverage FSU position in the strategic important area for sustainable energy. The project was performed by Drs. Jim Zheng and Richard Liang at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Department of Industrial Engineering, respectively. First to demonstrate preliminary results in high performance of energy storage and conversion materials and devices in order to seek outside funding consistent with the vision of IESES. The deliverables were conference proceedings and journal papers and proposal submissions for additional funding. | |
| Budget: $15,000 | |
| Universities: FSU | |
| Research Integration (collaboration): NCSU and NHMFL, Industrial Engineering, Maxwell Technologies, Inc. and Ionova Technologies, Inc., CAPS, MARTECH, Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics | |
| This project has been completed | |
| November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report May 2010 Progress Report |
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Title: NIRT: C-MEMS/CNEMS for Miniature Biofuel Cells |
| PI: Marc Madou (UC Irvine) | |
| Co-PIs: Chunlei Wang, Sylvia Daunert and Leonidas Bachas | |
| Description: In recent years, the quest for alternative sources that can autonomously power bioMEMS devices, especially those geared for in vivo applications, such as monitoring and drug delivery, has been the focus of research by scientists and engineers as new power sources will prove critical for the advancement of the field. Current batteries are still less than optimal and often present drawbacks related to safety, reliability and scalability. An ideal power source for implantable devices should take advantage of natural compounds present in the body of an individual and use them as fuel to produce power in a continuous and reproducible manner, as long as the patient’s physiological functions remain steady. Biofuel cells, which are capable of converting biochemical energy into electrical energy, have been deemed as a potential solution to the drawbacks presented by conventional batteries, but the power density and operational lifetime requirements for implanted devices have not been met yet. To that end, we propose to integrate genetically engineered catalytic proteins and carbon-based 3 dimensional (3D) MEMS/NEMS structures to create new biofuel cells. The biofuel cell electrode surfaces, especially fractal electrode array, presents significantly increased surface area as compared to traditional architecture, increasing the biocatalyst loading capacity considerably for high power throughput. The genetically engineered enzymes inherently increase enzyme stability, consequently increasing biofeul cell lifetime. The scaled fractal electrode surface plays a role in wiring the enzymes to the biofuel cell anode, which increases the electron transfer efficiency from the enzyme to the electrode for an increase in the overall performance of the biofuel cells. Furthermore, C-MEMS/C-NEMS architectures will enable the reproducible fabrication of low cost carbon-based electrode structures. | |
| Budget: $171,432 (PI portion) (total amount: $1,000,000) (not funded by FESC) | |
| Universities: FIU | |
| External Collaborators: Marc Madou, University of California Irvine, Leonidas Bachas and Sylvia Daunert, University of Kentucky | |
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Title:Fabrication of Nano Fractal Electrodes for On-Chip Supercapacitors |
| PI: Chunlei Wang Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Description:Nature has always strived for the highest efficiency in all organisms. Just as nature has benefited from fractal structures in almost all of its organisms, biomimetic fractal designs in electrochemical devices such as power conversion & storage devices and sensors can also lead to benefits in scaling. Our proposed concept is geared to take advantage of the scaling relationship between interface area and overall volume. Fractal electrode design is believed as a promising solution to optimize surface area while minimizing the internal resistance. We will fabricate and characterize carbon-based microelectrodes pyrolyzed from photolithographically patterned photoresist, which exhibits nano fractal geometry by design. In contrast with the current research trend of, first fabricating carbon nanostructures (CNTs, CNFs, etc), and then lithographically defining an electrode at the convenient location on the substrate, our novel methods will integrate the fabrication of the micro and the nano- structures using simple process thus bridging the gap that separates these two scales. Since the fabrication methods are all based on IC manufacturing methods, it will be easy to integrate into microchips. | |
| Budget: $150,000 (not funded by FESC) | |
| Universities: FIU | |
| External Collaborators: NA | |
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Title:Energy Efficient Technologies and The Zero Energy Home Learning Center |
| PI: Stanley Russell Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Co-PIs:Yogi Goswami | |
| Description: The project is to create and evaluate an affordable residential scale Zero Energy building that will function as an exhibition of energy efficiency and Zero Energy Home [ZEH] technology on or near the University of South Florida campus. The project will feature the most cost-effective combination of renewable solar energy with high levels of building energy efficiency. The building will incorporate a carefully chosen package of the latest energy – efficiency technologies and renewable energy systems to achieve the most successful and reliable results.The building will utilize Photovoltaic solar electricity and solar domestic hot water heating systems using the grid as an energy storage system, producing more energy than needed during the day and relying on the grid at night. Plug-in hybrid automobile technology offers a promising means of providing distributed energy storage for such homes but has not been sufficiently tested. Using a systems approach to couple zero energy home technology with PHEVs we will explore opportunities to develop marketable products that meet Florida’s energy and environmental goals. | |
| Budget: $344,600 | |
| Universities: USF-School of architecture, College of Engineering, College of Mass Communications, School of Business, FSU-College of Engineering, UF- Department of Interior Design, UF-Rinker School of Building Construction, UCF-Florida Solar Energy Center | |
| External Collaborators: Palm Harbor Homes, Beck Construction, Hees and Associates Structural Engineers | |
| This project has been completed. | |
| November 2011 Annual Report May 2010 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report |
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Title:Unifying Home Asset & Operations Ratings: Adaptive Management via Open Data & Participation |
| PI: Mark Hostetler Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Co-PI: Hal S. Knowles, III | |
| Description:Recent environmental, social, and economic challenges are fostering a wave of interest in maximizing energy efficiency and conservation (EE+C) in existing U.S. homes. Long standing programs, ratings, and metrics are being reapplied into new stimulus initiatives such as the Recovery through Retrofit1 program. Simultaneously, electric and gas utilities are expanding their demand side management (DSM) programs from weatherization and conventional technology replacement incentives to include conservation behavior campaigns with “recommendation algorithms” designed to assist in homeowner energy retrofit decision making. Furthermore, loan programs are emerging to address the financial barriers that commonly limit initiation of the necessary retrofits.Collectively, these approaches most often project future home energy performance based on engineering models of the physical characteristics of homes (i.e., “asset ratings”). Yet to date, the marketplace is inadequately integrating historical household energy consumption patterns (i.e., “operational ratings”) into the decision tree to optimize retrofit program efficacy and consumer benefits. Moving toward the unification of asset and operational ratings is crucial for successful program management, proper monitoring/measurement/verification (MMV), loan risk assessment, and for the persistence of reduced home energy use over time. However, unification will not be easy. This research project combines qualitative and quantitative research methods in social science and building science using Florida case studies to evaluate the opportunities and constraints of asset and operational rating unification and the steps necessary to get there. Relationships between our project and the collaborative, transparent, and participatory nature of “open government” initiatives are also being explored.This project began in January 2011.Budget: $24,000 | |
| Lead University: UF | |
| External Collaborators: Nick Taylor (Ph.D. Student, UF School of Natural Resources &Environment), Jennison Kipp (Assistant In, UF Program for Resource Efficient Communities) | |
| May 2015 Progress Report November 2014 Annual Report May 2014 Progress Report November 2013 Annual Report May 2013 Progress Report November 2012 Annual Report November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report |
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Title:Meteorological Factors Affecting Solar Energy Efficiency in the Tropics |
| PI: Paul Ruscher Research Interests and Contact Information | |
| Co-PIs: (formerly Yaw Owusu, Hans Chapman) | |
| Description: There are numerous meteorological factors that limit the efficiency of solar energy systems in the tropics. Depletion of available solar energy at the surface by increased water vapor, cloudiness, temperature of the solar panel system, pollution, are sometimes overlooked, because engineering specifications for design are often based upon midlatitude continental air masses. The typical tropical atmospheric reduction factors are reviewed in this paper, using a state-of-the-art solar energy model. In addition, meteorological variability can be quite extreme in the tropics and many engineering studies on feasibility of renewable energy sources in general are often based upon “typical” year criteria, rather than longer term climatologies. It is suggested that climatological data be utilized to more accurately portray the variability of output to be expected at a typical installation. Many of these variables are already widely available from a combination of surface and upper air meteorological stations, as well as remote sensing data from satellites. We will demonstrate the sources for these data as well as strategies for teaching about solar energy efficiency using routine observations from school-based weather stations. | |
| Budget: $14,481 | |
| Universities: FSU | |
| External Collaborators: NA | |
| This project has been completed | |
| November 2011 Annual Report May 2011 Progress Report November 2010 Annual Report May 2010 Progress Report |
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