Several improvements still need to be made to complete this demonstration project and to achieve the goal of reducing fossil fuel consumption by at least 80%. Proposed renewable energy – green technology demonstration enhancements to Vermont Green Offices include:
Installation of a Building Management System (monitoring + control)
A BMS will be installed to maximize green technology efficiency and to document the path to net zero. The BMS will quantify the impact of further energy efficiency measures and renewable energy generation. It will also be used to assess the passive solar thermal properties of the second floor space for increased building efficiency. The BMS will comprise a Sentalis™ 1000 Hybrid Basestation and submetering.
The BMS will also include a 1000PV Basestation. This Basestation will include smart string combiner boxes, AC-coupled storage monitoring and Net Energy options.
Ultra-high efficiency outdoor lighting
This will include new LED and cold cathode florescent technologies for improved outdoor visibility and security for tenants and the public. Draker Solar will test and document the performance of new lighting technologies in cold climates. High intensity LED lights connected to a photosensor will be used to continuously light the front of the building during periods of low light and will use less than 50 Watts of electricity. Two competing florescent technologies and one LED technology will be used in flood light applications used to increase security in the parking lot and back yard of Vermont Green Offices – a definite plus for the Old North End community as this is a high pedestrian use area.
Thermal Modeling and Visualization for Improving Passive Solar Features
Building modeling will be conducted by TBD. This will drive the system sizing for the solar furnace and radiant heating demonstrations. The model outputs will be ‘visualized’ using animated 3D graphics.
- Software licenses
- Modeling time
Geothermal Ground Source Heat Pump
A ground source heat pump will be installed to heat the building in summer and cool it in the summer. Vertical wells will be installed in the parking lot of the building. The system will be monitored using the BMS including the energy used by heat pumps to calculate real-time COP.
Educational Kiosk Display for Tenant Awareness and Behavior Change
Proposed is a web-based educational display that that includes a 42” LED monitor and smaller touch screen monitor. This display will also be available to the public at the www.vermontgreenoffices.com website. This kiosk will include:
- Enhanced visual representation of PV array in real-time and historical plots of PV generation and building consumption data
- User’s manual to ensure that tenants and visitors are helping the building reach its green potential
- An interactive page that explains each of the building’s green design elements
- Dynamic community calendar of events in the building
- Video documentation of the renovation process
- Pages describing each of the building’s tenants
A touch screen display will be located in the building’s front lobby with public access during normal business hours and will be used to the various sustainable technology performance visible for educational purposes. The motto at Vermont Green Offices is ‘We Make Renewable Energy Visible™’ and this project will definitely do this both on the ground in the cold northern climate of Vermont and on the Internet for all to see. This will also be something for all tenants to show to their clients and potential clients when they visit the common conference room.
Phase II of Solar Furnace
Completion of the solar furnace will require:
- Mounting of air-water heat exchangers on top of wall in enclosed sunspace. The innards of standard solar hot water panels will be used for the heat exchangers.
- Radiant heating demonstration using recycled floor covering in solar furnace.
- Connection to heating system
- Floor filler to cover PEX tubing that has already been purchased
- Floor covering using recycled materials with good thermal properties – most likely reclaimed VT slate
- Monitoring system with real-time web graphics showing room temperature profile and energy put into floor for comparison to current rules of thumb of how much energy is needed to heat room to a reference temperature profile.
- Purchasing and installing energy efficient equipment to move heat from the solar furnace to the 1st floor for storage and distribution. Water and air will be the heat transfer fluids. This equipment will include pumps and fans to move the heat into a storage tank, radiators and radiant flooring.
- Integration into BMS. The BMS will be used to optimize the solar furnace performance. The equipment will measure and record key temperatures and flow rates to adjust fans and pumps. This system will also be used for solar furnace performance documentation. We know the solar furnace will dramatically decrease the building’s reliance on natural gas, Vermont Green Offices and Draker Laboratories want to prove it to the world quantifiably using scientifically defensible data. This will include a natural gas meter with pulse outputs for high resolution trending.
Project Administration to manage construction schedule and organize and publish data collected from all the projects listed above. This will include submission to peer-reviewed journals.