Research that modeled increased heat pump adoption alongside climate change impacts in Texas showed that high-efficiency heat pumps buffer the strain that electric heating might put on the power grid.
Pyrocumulonimbus clouds are increasing in frequency as large wildfires become more prevalent in a warming climate. These clouds can inject smoke particles into the atmosphere, where they can remain suspended for several months.
Using numerical simulations to reproduce the laboratory experiments, this study reveals that liquid droplets are present near the bottom surface, which warms and moistens the air in the chamber.
PNNL researchers are exploring the kinds of flicker waveforms that the eye and brain can detect, seeking to understand the different visual and non-visual effects that result.
PNNL has developed a decision tool that provides contractors and installers with the information they need to properly select and install cold climate heat pumps, which are a key technology for achieving decarbonization.
Researchers show how satellite observations from the MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer and CloudSat radar can be used to constrain the ACI radiative forcing that is linked to droplet collection in marine liquid clouds.
Tennessee State University received Department of Energy funding to establish an academy focused on preparing students and professionals to work in an emerging field: clean energy systems. PNNL is helping with that effort and others.
Researchers at PNNL devised a new workflow for integrating life cycle analysis into building design, aided by a computational method that adapts existing software to net-zero energy, carbon-negative homes.
GUV can reduce transmission of airborne disease while reducing energy use and carbon emissions. But fulfilling that promise depends on having accurate and verifiable performance data.
Researchers devised a quantitative and predictive understanding of the cloud chemistry of biomass-burning organic gases helping increase the understanding of wildfires.
PNNL helps deliver efficiency-related rules and requirements that steadily improve performance of America’s buildings, saving energy and costs and reducing carbon emissions.
Mandy Mahoney, director of the DOE Building Technologies Office, visited PNNL in late November. One key agenda item involved meeting with staff for a discussion of effective equity and justice integration in buildings-related research.
This study revealed that fresh organic vapors are soluble in particulate organics that are actively growing in size. However, if the particulate matter ages, fresh organic vapors can no longer mix with the organic matter.
A larger HVAC workforce with training on modern heat pump technology will be pivotal to achieving the mass-scale electrification of household HVAC systems needed to meet building decarbonization goals.
