Marc Rosenbaum
Username
Marc Rosenbaum
Proposer First Name
Marc
Proposer Email
marc@energysmiths.com
Proposer Last Name
Rosenbaum
Proposer Company/Organization
Energysmiths
Proposer Phone
(508) 693-1440
Proposer Job Title
Emperor
Boston 2023 Areas of Focus
Proposed Session Description
A client for a new small commercial building wanted to see how much solar electricity (PV) could be used onsite rather than exported and re-imported with net metering. An hourly model was built in Excel, with building space conditioning loads, internal electricity use for lights/plug loads/hot water, and EV charging. Hourly PV generation was modeled for two PV array sizes. A hydronic radiant floor supplied by an air-to-water heat pump was modeled, and five heated water storage scenarios, from zero to 10,000 gallons, were analyzed, for a total of ten cases. Results were obtained for PV used onsite; PV energy into thermal storage; PV energy exported to the grid; and PV energy imported from the grid.
Learning Objectives
Describe the grid generation issues inherent in widespread use of renewable electricity
Describe the potential strategies to use more PV energy onsite
Define the key inputs of a functional energy model to analyze thermal storage as a way to use more PV energy onsite
Examine the modeling results and describe the effects of increasing storage capacity and PV array size
Has this session been presented before?
No
Additional Comments
One of the benefits of this session is showing people that some things that need to be analyzed and understood can't easily be modeled by canned software, and that useful models can be built in a spreadsheet
Session Format
Presentation followed by facilitated discussion or breakout groups
Session Format Details
This is proposed as a presentation with clarification questions being taken throughout, and then at least 25 minutes of the hour dedicated to open discussion
Recommended Length
60-minute session
Strongest Content Connection - Boston 2023
Reviewer 1
Schow, Mark
Reviewer 2
Carlson, Kurt
Curator
Schow, Mark
Proposal #
127
Session #
301
Committee Decision
Accepted
Presenters
Full Description
The utility grid is likely the largest barrier to widespread usage of renewable energy and electrification of buildings to reduce GHG emissions. A critical strategy is to use and store renewable energy onsite, minimizing the export and re-import process that stresses the stability of the grid as renewable energy generation changes. Batteries are one solution, and thermal storage within buildings is another. The latter has been less analyzed - this session shows the process and results of adding thermal storage to increase the onsite usage of PV energy.