New building energy codes could reduce utility bills by $138 billion and prevent 900 million metric tons of CO2 emissions coming from buildings. Now, they will be easier to adopt.
PNNL has received 119 R&D 100 Awards since 1969, when the laboratory began submitting entries in the contest that recognizes top 100 inventions each year.
PNNL will play a key role in advancing Connected Communities made up of efficient homes and buildings that communicate with the grid to produce energy and environmental benefits.
PNNL has paired one of its offshore wind research buoys with its ThermalTracker-3D technology to correlate avian activity with ocean and weather conditions off the California coast.
Researchers at PNNL examined heat pump water heater (HPWH) operation in Pacific Northwest residences, gaining insights into HPWH electricity use patterns. Part of the study captured trends during a COVID-19 stay-at-home order.
Researchers developed two solutions for air-conditioning—a novel, energy-efficient dehumidification system and a technology to detect refrigerant leaks. Both help increase energy-efficiency and reduce costs.
PNNL’s energy-efficient dehumidifier may reduce energy consumption by up to 50% in residential A/C systems and increase the range of electric vehicles by up to 75%. The system has been licensed to Montana Technologies.
Study says planners need to account for climate impacts on renewable energy during capacity development planning to fully understand investment implications to the power sector.
A new study projects that electricity demand tied to cooling U.S. buildings will grow as peak temperatures rise, and so too would the need for an expanded power sector.
PNNL provided expert analysis and technical background for some of the most ambitious building energy efficiency codes proposed for this year's International Energy Conservation Code updates.
A special issue of the Marine Technology Society Journal, titled “Utilizing Offshore Resources for Renewable Energy Development,” focuses on research and development efforts including those at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL).
PNNL researchers say that offshore wind energy can add value to the electric grid, beyond just the power it can produce, if locations and strategies are optimized.
PNNL deployed two research buoys in waters off the West Coast for the first time in deep water, supporting a DOE and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management effort to gather measurements that support offshore wind locations and technologies.
PNNL building energy-efficiency expert Theresa Gilbride has been invited to participate in a new task group that will provide guidance to make homes more resistant to hurricanes and high winds.
PNNL ocean engineer Alicia Gorton was invited to serve on the advisory board of the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering at the Stevens Institute of Technology.