Energy and Atmosphere Flashcards
Use this deck to learn about energy efficient technologies and practices within building, as well as associated environmental issues.
The LEED category with the most available LEED points is ________________.
Energy and Atmosphere
List some examples of renewable energy systems.
- Photovoltaics
- Solar Thermal
- Geothermal
- Wind
- Biomass
- Biogas
Define chlorofluorocarbons.
Chlorofluorocarbons are hydrocarbons that are used as refrigerants and cause depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer.
What is the standard that describes the structure of measurement and verification plan?
IPMVP Volume III: Concepts and Options for Determining Energy Savings in New Construction
Define global warming potential.
Global Warming Potential (GWP) is an action’s or item’s impact on global warming.
When are CFC-based refrigerants permitted for use in a LEED project?
CFC-based refrigerants are permitted for use in a LEED project if a CFC phase-out is economically infeasible.
List some examples of fossil fuels.
- oil
- natural gas
- coal
Another term for Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) is _____.
Green Tags
How do Hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) affect the environment?
HFC is the refrigerant with the highest global warming potential.
List two ways in which green buildings address the environmental drawbacks of conventional energy production?
- Green buildings reduce the amount of energy required to operate a building.
- Green buildings use more benign forms of energy.
The most common way to meet the requirements of off-site renewable energy is by _____.
Purchasing Renewable Energy Credits (RECs)
_____ involves developing a building plan that identifies current operating requirements, conducting tests to determine whether the building systems are operating in accordance with the plan, and identifying any necessary changes or repairs.
Commissioning
List two of the main objectives of the Montreal Protocol.
- Phase out of all CFCs by 2010
- Phase out of all HCFCs by 2030
What is a BAS?
A building automations system (BAS) is a computer-based monitoring system that coordinates, organizes, and optimizes building control subsystems.
What is the specific refrigerant that has the highest global warming potential of all the common refrigerants?
HFC-23
The _____ defines the delivered conditions required for the successful operation of a building. This document describes the installed energy consuming systems, how they should operate, and the environmental building requirements they should meet.
building operating plan
The standard that governs building energy use and performance is _____.
ASHRAE 90.1 – 2007
The organization that certifies and verifies renewable energy products is _____.
Green-e
Define an energy audit.
An energy audit identifies how much energy a building uses and the purposes for which it is used, and identifies efficiency and cost-reduction opportunities.
What is ENERGY-10?
ENERGY-10 is a software tool for designing low-energy buildings.
Which region of the United States is least suited for on-site solar-based energy generation?
North-East
What are the three level of energy audits that ASHRAE uses?
- walk-through analysis
- energy survey and analysis
- detailed analysis of capital-intensive modifications
List three refrigerants that are considered natural.
- Propane
- Ammonia
- Carbon Dioxide
_____ is routinely scheduled equipment, cleaning, and repair conducted to detect and prevent equipment failure and keep material and systems in working order.
Preventive maintenance
Another term for plug load is _____.
receptacle load
Define an economizer.
An economizer is a device used to make building systems more energy efficient.
An example is HVAC enthalpy contols, which are based on humidity and temperature.
_____ measure all energy use throughout a building.
Energy meters
Which fuel source produces the most carbon dioxide emissions?
coal
What are the four fundamental strategies that can increase energy performance?
- Reduce demand
- Harvest free energy
- Increase efficiency
- Recover waste energy
Buildings consume about __% of the total energy use in the United States.
36
Define site energy.
Site energy is the amount of heat and electricity consumed by a building, as reflected by utility bills.
In the northern hemisphere ______-facing windows receive maximum daylight.
south
These are examples of what design technique?
- windows
- exterior doors
- skylights
Fenestration
Define source energy.
Source energy is the total amount of raw fuel required to operate a building; it incorporates all transmission, delivery, and production losses for a complete assessment of a building’s energy use.
_____ is the most common, cheapest lighting fixture type.
Incandescent lighting
_____ have similar illumination level but use ¼ the energy of incandescents. However, they contain mercury and require special disposal.
Compact Fluorescents (CFLs)
The _____ is the length of time required to recoup the initial investment from an operational improvement or capital investment.
simple payback period
What perform the following functions?
- Remove impurities from indoor air
- Protect HVAC equipment
- Require proper installation and frequent replacement
Air filters
How does commissioning optimize energy efficiency and water efficiency?
Commissioning optimizes energy efficiency and water efficiency by ensuring that systems are operating as intended, thereby reducing the environmental impacts associated with energy and water use.
_____ is technically a natural ventilation technique, but it uses air pressure outdoors to facilitate air circulation indoors.
Passive stack
_____ is the ratio of cost savings generated by an improvement or upgrade relative to the amount of money invested to perform this improvement.
Rate of return, or return on investment
_____ is the U.S. law that responds to the Montreal Protocol and defines EPA’s responsibilities for protecting and improving the nation’s air quality and the stratospheric ozone layer.
The Clean Air Act
What is the International Energy Conservation Code?
It is a model code adopted by many state and municipal governments in the U.S. for the establishment of minimum design and construction requirements pertaining to energy efficiency.
Define retrofit
A retrofit is any change to an existing facility, such as the addition or removal of equipment or an adjustment, connection, or disconnection of equipment.
Define refrigerants.
Refrigerants are substances used to absorb heat at low temperatures and reject heat at higher temperatures.
_____ is the phenomenon that traps heat in the atmosphere.
The greenhouse effect
What are biofuel-based systems?
Biofuel-based systems are power systems that run on renewable fuels derived from organic materials, such as wood byproducts and agricultural waste.
Whose responsibilities are listed below?
- review construction documents and submittals
- evaluate installation and performance of equipment
- prepares summary report
Commissioning authority (CxA)
_____ commissioning begins from start of project and reviews building operations within 10 months of substantial completion.
Enhanced
What is common among the following electrical systems in terms of EA credits?
- Burning municipal waste
- Ground source heat pumps or geo-exchange
- Incinerating treated or painted wood
- Nuclear
- Architectural features/daylighting
They are all ineligible as on-site renewable energy systems.
_____ uses walls, floors, and thermal mass to collect, store, and distribute the sun’s heat in the winter and reduce a building’s energy demand for cooling in the summer.
Passive solar
According to LEED, if a _____ or _____ is present, the geothermal system is not eligible for an on-site renewable energy credit.
- vapor-compression cycle
- heat pump
As it relates to Off-Site Renewable Energy, indirect purchasing is also called _____.
green pricing
_____ represent positive attributes of electricity generation separate from the actual electrons themselves.
Renewable Energy Certificates
What is the general cost impact of the equipment and installation of submeters for electrical service?
Minor
Define Fundamental Commissioning.
Fundamental Commissioning is a set of essential best practices used to ensure that building performance requirements have been identified early in the project’s development and that the designed systems have been installed in compliance with those requirements.
These are all examples of what?
- Photovoltaics
- Solar Thermal
- Geothermal
- Wind
- Biomass
- Biogas
Renewable energy systems
_____ are hydrocarbons that are used as refrigerants and cause depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer.
Chlorofluorocarbons
What Does IPMVP Volume III describe?
The structure of the measurement and verification plan.
_____ is an action’s or item’s impact on global warming.
Global Warming Potential (GWP)
Green Tags are also called _____.
Renewable Energy Certificates
_____ is the refrigerant with the highest global warming potential (GWP).
Hydrofluorocarbons
The following are objectives of what?
- Phase out of all CFCs by 2010
- Phase out of all HCFCs by 2030
Montreal Protocol
A _____ is a computer-based monitoring system that coordinates, organizes, and optimizes building control subsystems.
building automations system (BAS)
What is HFC-23?
HFC-23 is the specific refrigerant that has the highest global warming potential of all the common refrigerants.
What purpose does ASHRAE 90.1-2007 serve in the Energy and Atmosphere category?
It is the standard that governs building energy use and performance.
_____ is a software tool for designing low-energy buildings.
ENERGY-10
What is a device used to make building systems more energy efficient?
An economizer
List some examples of fenestration.
- windows
- exterior doors
- skylights
Define the passive stack technique.
Passive stack is technically a natural ventilation technique, using air pressure outdoors to facilitate air circulation indoors.
What is the Clean Air Act?
The Clean Air Act is a U.S. law that responds to the Montreal Protocol and defines EPA’s responsibilities for protecting and improving the nation’s air quality and the stratospheric ozone layer.
The _____ is a model code adopted by many state and municipal governments in the U.S. for the establishment of minimum design and construction requirements pertaining to energy efficiency.
International Energy Conservation Code (IECC)
What are substances used to absorb heat at low temperatures and reject heat at higher temperatures?
Refrigerants
How does the greenhouse effect occur?
The greenhouse effect occurs from CO2 buildup in the troposphere.
Define passive solar design.
Passive solar uses walls, floors, and thermal mass to collect, store, and distribute the sun’s heat in the winter and reduce a building’s energy demand for cooling in the summer.
According to LEED, when is a geothermal considered nonrenewable?
The geothermal system is nonrenewable if a vapor-compression cycle or heat pump is present.
_____ is a set of essential best practices used to ensure that building performance requirements have been identified early in the project’s development and that the designed systems have been installed in compliance with those requirements.
Fundamental Commissioning
The combustion of _____ releases carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere that contribute to climate change.
fossil fuels
What does commissioning a building involve?
Developing a building plan that identifies current operating requirements, conducting tests to determine whether the building and its fundamental systems are operating in accordance with the plan, and identifying any necessary changes or repairs.
What does a building operating plan define and describe?
The building operating plan defines the delivered conditions required for the successful operation of a building. This document describes the installed energy consuming systems, how they should operate, and the environmental building requirements they should meet.
_____ identify how much energy a building uses and the purposes for which it is used, as well as efficiency and cost-reduction opportunities.
Energy audits
Define preventive maintenance.
Preventive maintenance is routinely scheduled equipment, cleaning, and repair conducted to detect and prevent equipment failure and keep material and systems in working order.
_____ is the amount of heat and electricity consumed by a building, as reflected by utility bills.
Site energy
_____ is the total amount of raw fuel required to operate a building; it incorporates all transmission, delivery, and production losses for a complete assessment of a building’s energy use.
Source energy
Define the simple payback period.
The simple payback period is the length of time required to recoup the initial investment from an operational improvement or capital investment.
Define the rate of return.
Rate of return is the ratio of cost savings generated by an improvement or upgrade relative to the amount of money invested to perform this improvement.
A _____ is any change to an existing facility, such as the addition or removal of equipment or an adjustment, connection, or disconnection of equipment.
retrofit
