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New Eni-MIT center brings high-tech tools to solar research
Engineering fat-making bacteria:A road to plentiful biodiesel
Tailored lighting: Reducing wasted watts
ARPA-E clean energy awards: MIT leads again
New design-build class weaves nature into rural Cambodian school
Energy FuturesM I T E N E R G Y I N I T I A T I V E S P R I N G 2 0 1 0
I N T H I S I S S U E
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A L E T T E R F R O M T H E D I R E C T O R S
2 UpdateontheMITEnergyInitiative
R E S E A R C H R E P O R T S
4 NewEni-MITcenterbringshigh-techtoolstosolarresearch
6 Tailoredlighting:Reducingwastedwatts
9 Engineeringfat-makingbacteria:Aroadtoplentifulbiodiesel
12 Improvingthetransistor:Smalldevice,bigenergysavings
15 Smallspringscouldprovidebigpower
17 Urbanmetabolism:Helpingcitiesmakescarcebasicresourcesgofurther
R E S E A R C H N E W S
20 ARPA-Ecleanenergyawards:MITleadsagain
21 MITEIawardsfifthroundofseedgrantsforenergyresearch
22 Tsinghua/Cambridge/MITallianceawardsfirstresearchgrants
23 MITEIpressbriefingshowcasesenergyresearch
23 MoniznamedtoBlueRibbonCommissiononAmerica’sNuclearFuture
E D U C A T I O N
24 Newdesign-buildclassweavesnatureintoruralCambodianschool
27 TwomajorgiftsbolsterMITenergyminor
29 Summeropportunitiesforenergyprofessionals
30 EnergyFuturesWeek2010
C A M P U S E N E R G Y A C T I V I T I E S
31 Fundhelpsenergyefficiencybloomacrosscampus
32 MITambassadorsspreadthewordonwaysto“walkthetalk”
O U T R E A C H
34 StudentstackletheclimatecrisisfromCambridgetoCopenhagen
36 AsilverliningtotheCopenhagencloud?
38 Americansonclimatechange:Stillconcerned,lesssupportfor
majoraction,findsMITsurvey
40 MITteamrecommendsstrategyforreducingautomotivefueluse,emissions
LFEE • LaboratoryforEnergyandtheEnvironment
42 Lisbon’sbuildingsgetmoreenergyefficient,thankstoMITstudents
44 MartinFellows,2010–2011
M I T E I M E M B E R S
45 MITEIFounding,Sustaining,Associate,andAffiliatemembers
Energy FuturesC O N T E N T S
Energy Futures ispublishedtwiceyearlybytheMITEnergyInitiative.Itreportsonresearchresultsandenergy-relatedactivitiesacrosstheInstitute.Tosubscribe,[email protected] .
Copyright©2010MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology.Forpermissiontoreproducematerialinthisnewsletter,pleasecontacttheeditor.
NancyW.Stauffer,[email protected]
ISSN1942-4671(OnlineISSN1942-468X)
MIT Energy InitiativeTheMITEnergyInitiativeisdesignedtoaccelerateenergyinnovationbyintegratingtheInstitute’scutting-edgecapabilitiesinscience,engineering,management,planning,andpolicy.
MITEnergyInitiativeMassachusettsInstituteofTechnology77MassachusettsAvenue,E19-307Cambridge,MA02139-4307
617.258.8891web.mit.edu/mitei
Coverphoto:JustinKnight,storypage4Design:TimBlackburnProofreading:LindaWalshPrinting:PuritanPress,Inc.PSB 10.05.0262
Printedonpapercontaining30%post-consumerrecycledcontent,withthebalancecomingfromresponsiblymanagedsources.
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Update on the MIT Energy Initiative
Dear Friends,
ThreewordscapturethefocusofMITEI’sworksinceourlastupdateinfall2009—innovation,education,andoutreach.Allthreesupportourcoremission:tohelpspeedtransformationoftheglobalenergysystemtoalow-carbonfutureandtohelpimprovetoday’senergysystemsasabridgetothatend.
TheimportanceofinnovationwasunderscoredbyDecember’sCopenha-genconference,wheretheworld’sleadersmettoaddressglobalclimatechange.Thegoalofachievingabindinginternationaltreatyforlimitinggreenhousegasemissionswasnotrealized.Indeed,somebelievethat—post-Copenhagen—thisgoalappearsevenfurtheraway.ThatoutcomeprovidesadditionalimpetusforMITEI’sworkonsynergistictechnology,busi-ness-model,andpolicyinnovationthatwilllowerthecostofclean,low-carbonenergyoptionsandacceleratetheirdiffusionintothemarketplace.
Duringthelastsemester,MITEIworkedwithitsmembersandMITfacultyto“filltheinnovationpipeline”inmultipleways.MITfacultygarneredmorethan10%ofthesecondroundofUSDepart-mentofEnergyARPA-Eawards,whichareintendedtomovecleantechnologieswithhighimpactpotentialfromthelaboratorytoprivatecapitalinvestmentoverafewyears(seepage20).TheMITEIFoundingandSustainingMemberprogramsarenowbeginningtogener-ateresultsandmakethempublic.Forexample,worksupportedbyFoundingMemberEnihasledtonewbiologicallyconstructedcatalystsforwatersplitting,andresearchfundedbyFoundingMemberBPhasyieldedapatentfora
gasificationsystemthatachieveshighefficiencywhileseparatingcarbondioxideforeasycapture.WecontinuetowelcomenewMITEImemberssuchasSustainingMemberWeatherfordandseveralaffiliatemembers.
Farther“upstream”inthepipeline,MITEIawardedanewroundofseedgrants,bringingthetotalto67novelandearly-stageinnovationprojectsfundedprincipallybyourmembers,withadditionalsupportfromdonors(seepage21).Onceagain,theseedgrantsusherednewfacultyintoMITEIpartici-pation,amongthemAssistantProfes-sorsCynthiaRudin(Management),whowilladvancemachinelearningforelectricsystemreliability,andEvelynWang(MechanicalEngineering),whowillexaminenanofilm-basedthermalmanagementforconcentratedsolarsystems.Weestimatethatnearly
25%ofMIT’sfacultyarenowengagedwithMITEIinsomecapacity.
ResearchawardsfromaseparateseedfundprogramhavebeenmadeundertheauspicesoftheLowCarbonEnergyUniversityAlliance,aresearchcollabo-rationamongMIT,TsinghuaUniversityinChina,andCambridgeUniversityintheUnitedKingdom(seepage22).ThisissueofEnergy Futures presentsfurtherdescriptionoftheseandotherresearchactivities,includingdetailedresultsfromfiveearlierMITEIseedgrantprojects(seethefeaturestoriesstartingonpage6).
EnergyeducationatMITisbeingsignificantlyenhancedbyanothersourceofsupport:philanthropy.Twosubstantialgifts,onefromtheS.D.Bechtel,Jr.Foundationandtheotherfromananonymousalumnus,areadvancingthedevelopmentofMIT’snovelenergyminor.Manyincomingfreshmenfornextfallindicatedaninterestintheenergyminor,andthesegiftsareenablingthecreationofenergyclasses,projects,andteach-ingmaterialsthatwillimpactstudentsandfacultybothwithinandbeyondMIT(seepage27).
MITEI’scampusenergymanagementprogramhasbenefitedfrombothphilanthropyandafirst-of-its-kindutilitypartnership.TheSilvermanEvergreenEnergyFund,establishedbyJeffreySilverman‘68in2009,isbeingusedtoimproveenergyefficiencyoncampusandincludesopportunitiesforcapturingthesavingsfromthesemeasuresandreinvestingthemintechnologiesandactivitiesthatfurtherreduceenergydemandoncampus.ThateffortwassubsequentlyenhancedbyasignificantgiftfromDaviddesJardins‘83(see
MITEI’sresearch,education,campusenergy,andoutreachprogramsarespearheadedbyProfessorErnestJ.Moniz,director(right),andProfessorRobertC.Armstrong,deputydirector.
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page31).InMay,MITanditselectricutility,NSTAR,announcedanambitiousthree-yearpartnershiptoreduceMIT’selectricityuseby34millionkilowatt-hours,or15%,throughinnovativeefficiencyandconservationactivities;substantialstudent,faculty,andstaffengagement;andthepilotingofnewtechnologiesandapproaches.
MITEI’soutreachcontinuestoprovideindustryleaders,governmentpolicy-makers,andotherinterestedpartieswithtechnicallygroundedanalysisandinformation.ExamplesofoutreachtoadvancecriticalunderstandingincludeAn Action Plan for Cars, producedbyateamledbyProfessorJohnHeywood(MechanicalEngineering—seepage40),andasymposiumontheelectrificationofthetransportationsystem,sponsoredbyfourMITEIassociatemembers.Inaddition,laterthisyearweexpecttoreleasetheresultsofmulti-year,multidisciplinaryanalysesofthefutureofnaturalgas,ofnuclearfuelcycles,andofsolarenergy.
Wealsosupport“inreach”tothecampus.ArecentfeaturedvisitorwasHisSereneHighnessPrinceAlbertIIofMonaco,whodiscussedhisAntarc-tictrekandtheimportanceofthatcontinentasa“canaryinthecoalmine”fortheglobalimpactsofclimatechange.Campusforumsfacilitatecommunitydiscussionsofcriticalenergytopics.Notablewasthe“TheRoadfromCopenhagen”forumatwhichMITProfessorsHenryJacoby(Management),EdwardSteinfeld(PoliticalScience),andMichaelGreen-stone(Economics)werejoinedbyHarvardProfessorsRobertStavins(Government)andStephenAnsolabe-here(PoliticalScience)toleadadiscussionoftheactionstakenat
OnApril13,HisSereneHighnessPrinceAlbertIIofMonacovisitedMITtosharehisobservationsonthepotentialimpactsofglobalclimatechange,basedonhisvisitstoboththeNorthandSouthPoles.TheprincelaterattendedasalonhostedbytheMITEnergyInitiativeinhishonorattheMITMuseum.(Moreatweb.mit.edu/mitei/news/spotlights/continent-warning.html.)
PaoloScaroni,left,CEOoftheItalianenergycompanyEniS.p.A.,andMITPresidentSusanHockfieldcuttheribbontocelebratetheopeningoftheEni-MITSolarFrontiersCenter,headquarteredontheMITcampus.(Moreonpage4.)
DuringapresentationtotheMITEnergyClubonDecember9,2009,ArunMajumdar,directoroftheAdvancedResearchProjectsAgency-Energy(ARPA-E),announcedthecreationoftheARPA-EFellowsProgramforpostdoctoralstudentsandrecentPhDgraduates.Helateraddressedaninvitation-onlyMITEnergyInitiativeSalonforMITEImembers,faculty,andlocaldignitaries.(Moreatweb.mit.edu/mitei/news/spotlights/majumdar-announce.html.)
Phot
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Copenhagenandtheirimplicationsfortheenergyfuture(seepage36).
Thesupport,hardwork,andcommit-mentofallofMITEI’sfriendsandparticipantsarewhatmakesthislevelofactivitypossible,andwearegratefulforallthatyoudo.WehopethatyouenjoythisfiftheditionofEnergy Futures asasnapshotofsomeoftheoutcomesthatwillhelpshapeourenergyfuture.
Sincerely,
Professor Ernest J. MonizMITEIDirector
Professor Robert C. ArmstrongMITEIDeputyDirector
June2010
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New Eni-MIT center brings high-tech tools to solar researchTheEni-MITSolarFrontiersCenter(SFC)unveiledfacilitiesMay4thatwillprovideresearchersaroundtheInstituteunprecedentedopportunitiestotestnewmaterials,integratetheirwork,andpinpointnewdirectionsforground-breakingadvancesinsolarenergy.
ThenewlaboratoriesandmeetingspaceinBuilding13markthenextstepinanongoingpartnershipbetweentheItalianenergycompanyEniS.p.A.andMIT.Inearly2008,thetwobeganafar-reachingcollaborationaimedattransformingglobalenergysystemsthroughadvancedsolarenergytechnologies.ThenewfacilitiesareexpectedtospeedtheprogressofMIT’ssolartechnologyadvancesandtoevaluateandvalidatetheirpotentialinthemarketplace.
“Ifonly10%ofwhatIhaveseeninMITlaboratoriesmaterializes,itwillchangetheworld,”saidEniS.p.A.CEOPaoloScaroniatribbon-cuttingceremo-niesatMIT.Scaronisaidsolarpowerisapromisingchoicetohelpreplacehydrocarbon-basedfuelsinthecomingcentury.Eni,afoundingmemberoftheMITEnergyInitiative(MITEI)andasupporterofsolar-relatedresearchacrossMIT,intendstoleadthefieldsofinnovationandadvancedtechnolo-giesinrenewableenergy,hesaid.
“ThepairingofEni’slong-termstrategicvisionandMIT’sincrediblecapacityforinnovationhasthepotentialtofunda-mentallytransformhowtheworldproducesandconsumesenergy,”saidMITPresidentSusanHockfield.
Hockfield,Scaroni,andErnestJ.Moniz,directorofMITEIandtheCecilandIdaGreenProfessorofPhysicsandEngi-neeringSystems,spokeatceremoniesinauguratingtheSFC’snewPhotovoltaicsCharacterizationLaboratory.“Havinga
centralhands-onfacilitywherestudentscangatherforaninteractiveexchangeofinformationisinvaluablefortheMITsolarresearchcommunity,”saidSFCco-directorVladimirBulovic,professorintheDepartmentofElectricalEngi-neeringandComputerScience.
InadditiontotheSFC,EnisupportsprojectsinenergyresearchatMITontraditionalhydrocarbons,methanehydrates,globalclimatechange,andtransportationoptions.ThealliancewithMIThasadurationoffiveyearsandinvolvesafinancialcommitmentfromEnifor$50millionintotal,equallydistributedbetweentheSolarFrontiersprogramandotherMITEIprojects.
TheEni-MITSolarFrontiersresearchprogramfocusesoninitiativesrangingfromthedevelopmentofphotovoltaic(PV)devicestodesigningsolarplantsthatareeconomicaltobuildandoperate.
“WhatEnihasbroughttothetableisanunprecedentedabilitytomaketesting
R E S E A R C H R E P O R T S
andevaluationassessmentsaboutmaterialsandinstrumentsinastandardway,”saidDanielG.Nocera,theHenryDreyfusProfessorofEnergy,professorofchemistry,andco-directoroftheSFC.“Theresearchinitiatedtwoyearsagowiththeinaugurationofthecenterisnowmaturing.TherearetremendousnumbersofMITstudentsworkinginconcertwithEniwithaheavyemphasisonsolarenergycaptureandconversion.”
Morethan20MITfacultyand40graduatestudentswillusethenewlabstodevelopandtestsolardevicesandmaterials—somethatcapturesunlightontheirownandsomethatboosttheperformanceofexistingsilicon-basedstructures.Thesun’senergycanbe
Lefttoright:SalvatoreMeli,executivevicepresident,ResearchandTechnologicalInnovation,Eni;ErnestMoniz,directoroftheMITEnergyInitiative(MITEI);UmbertoVergine,seniorexecutivevicepresident,StudiesandResearches,Eni;MelanieKenderdine,executivedirector,MITEI;NicolaDeBlasio,vicepresidentforR&DInternationalDevelopment,Eni,andMITvisitingscientist;andRobertArmstrong,deputydirector,MITEI.MonizandVergineareholdingupsolarcellsdepositedonpapersubstrateswithelectrodesshapedaslogosofEniandMIT.
EniCEOPaoloScaroniandMITPresidentSusanHockfieldatapressconferenceheldduringtheinaugurationoftheEni-MITSolarFrontiersCenter.
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• astandardmethodofdevicetestingthatwillenableresearcherstosharedatameasuredunderidenticalconditionsacrossdifferentdeviceplatforms;
• anatomic-forcemicroscopewiththeabilitytomeasuretheelectronicstructureofnanostructuredPVcellsandtheelectronicbehaviorwithinthematthelevelofindividualatomsandmolecules;and
• thin-filmdevicegrowthandfabrica-tioncapabilitiesnototherwiseavailabletoSFCresearchersoncampus.
“Withthesetools,wecandiscernthefastdynamicsofphotonsandelec-tronswithinsolarcells,wecanidentifywhichprocessesareworkingandwhicharenot,andthenproducethenextsetofdevicesusingonlythemosteffectivestructures,”Bulovicsaid.“Measuringtheelectronicphenomenawithinnanostructuredmaterialsisthekeyforinformingthedesignofimproveddevices.”
capturedandstoredinfuelsandbatter-ies,whileefficientlyconvertingthesun’sraysintoelectricalcurrentinvolvestheinnovativeadoptionofPVmaterials.Capture,conversion,andstoragemustworktogethertomakesolarenergyaviableglobalpowersource.
“Wenowhaveaplacewherepeopleworkingaroundcampusinmechanicalengineering,chemistry,materialsscience,electricalengineering,andotherdepartmentscanperformastandardassessmentoftheperfor-manceoftheirinventions.Thiscapabil-ityismissinginsolarenergyresearchperformedinseparatelaboratoriesorwithoff-sitecollaboratorsthatallusedifferentassessmentstandardsandtools.Thesecomponentsmustworktogethertobeeffective,”Nocerasaid.
Maximizing returns
ThePhotovoltaicsCharacterizationLaboratorywillprovide:
• specializedequipmentsuchaspowerfullaserstoconductprecisesolarmeasurementsundercon-trolledenvironmentalconditions;
Aboveleft:ProfessorVladimirBulovic(right),SFCco-director,explainstoEniCEOPaoloScaronithecoatingprocessthatProfessorKarenGleason’sandhisgroupusedtodepositonpaperasolarcellthathasan“Eni”-shapedelectrode.Abovecenter:GraduatestudentsJillRowehl(left)ofmaterialsscienceandengineeringandPatrickBrownofphysicsusethenewultra-fastlaser—shownaboverightinclose-up—toexaminehowelectronsinnanomaterialsforsolarcellsbehavewhenblastedbypulsedlightofwell-definedwavelengths.Right:PostdoctoralassociatesAlexiArango(left)andNiZhaooftheResearchLaboratoryofElectronicsusethenewSFCatomic-forcemicroscopetostudythesurfacetextureofananostructuredthinfilm.
Partnerships across disciplines
ThenewlaboratoryandconferencespacebuildsonpartnershipsamongEniandMITresearchers,Nocerasaid.Thephotovoltaicslab’sdedicatedresearchequipmentisexpectedtoenhanceeffectivehybridsolutionsinseparatebutrelatedfieldsofinterdisci-plinarysolarenergyresearchatMIT,hesaid.“We’vehadalotofgreatresults.Thenextstepistointegrate,andthat‘swhatthelabisallowingustodo.Itmakesalotofsensethatthisiscomingonlinenowatthisstageofresearch,whenwe’reatapointofsystemintegration,focusedonhowweactuallymakeadevicethatembodiestheprogressinmultiplelaboratories.”
“What’suniqueaboutthelabisthatitbringsEniandMITpeopletogetheroncommonground,takingdifferentprojectsandintegratingthemalongapathtowardforward-lookingtechnol-ogy,”Nocerasaid.“That’stheexcitingthingforme.”
• • •
By Deborah Halber, MITEI correspondent
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Tailored lighting: Reducing wasted watts
Imaginewalkingdownadimlylithallandhavinglightsaboveyougetbrightasyoupassandthengodimagain.Ifyoustandstill,thelightsstayon—noneedtowaveyourarmsaround.Afteryouleave,thelightsgooff,savingenergynowoftenwastedonlightingunoccupiedspaces.
KeytothisscenarioisanewMIT“proximitydetector”thatusesafluores-centlamp’sownelectricfieldtodeter-minewhensomeoneispresent.Thedetectoreasilyfitsintoexistingornewlightfixtures,withnoneedforextrapowerorspeciallyinstalledcontrolnetworks.Sinceeachlighthasadetec-tor,thesystemcanturnononeorafewlightsinanoverheadbankoffluores-cents,tailoringthelightingtothelocationsofindividualsintheroom.
Thepotentialenergysavingsofsuchtailoredlightingcouldbeconsiderable,especiallyintheresidentialandcom-mercialsectors,whereoperatinglightsconsumesaboutathirdofalltheelectricityused.ThathighconsumptionisaconcerntoStevenLeeb,professorofelectricalandmechanicalengineeringandaMacVicarFacultyFellow.Todemonstrate,hepointstohisofficeceiling,where400to800wattsoflightingisrunningallthetime.“That’sanappallingnumberifyouthink,forexample,thata400-wattradiostationcouldserveasmalltown,”hesays.
HeandgraduatestudentsJohnCooleyandAl-ThaddeusAvestruzandunder-graduateDanielVickery,allofelectricalengineeringandcomputerscience,arethereforetryingtofindopportunitiestotakethosefixturesandwattsandusethemtoprovideotherfunctions—withnointerruptionordistortionintheprimaryfunctionofdeliveringlight.“It’sanapproachwecalldualuse,”Leebsays.“Wetakeenergyorinformation
fromanelectricalapplianceanduseitforanotherpurpose.Inthiscase,wewouldn’tchangethequalityofthelightbutwouldaddanotherfeaturethatmighthelpsaveenergy.”
Thefeaturetheyareaddingistheabilitytodetectthepresenceofpeoplenearby.Theycouldusethatinformationtocontrolheatingandairconditioningsystemsbasedonoccupancyortoactasasecuritysystemtolookforintruders.Buttheirprimaryfocushasbeenonusingittoshutoffunnecessarylights—inparticular,fluorescentandother“gas-discharge”lampsthatproduceabouthalfoftheartificiallightintheUnitedStatesinallsectors.
Usingmotionsensorstodetectoccu-pancyandcontrollightingishardlyanewidea,butcurrentsystemshaveseveraldrawbacks.Theytypicallyinvolveawirednetworkofcontrollersthatisdifficultandexpensivetoinstallandrequiresextraelectricitytooperate.Tominimizeexpense,asinglemotionsensormaycontrolallthelightsinanarea—aninefficientapproachiftheroomislargeandsparselyoccu-pied.Finally,theydependonmotionratherthanpresence,soifoccupantsremainstillfortoolong,thelightsmayturnoff.
Withtheirnewdevice,Leebandhisstudentsaddressallthoseproblems,andtheydoitbyusingastheirdetectoranaturallyoccurringphenomenon—theelectricfieldthatpermeatesthespacearoundanoperatingelectric-dischargelamp.Putapersoninthatspace,andtheelectricfieldchanges.Thechangeistinybutdetectable.
Monitoring natural interactions
Thekeyisthatweareallslightlycapacitive,thatis,wecanholdandconductelectriccharge—afactthatLeebdemonstrateswithasimpleexample.Thinkofwalkingacrossacarpet,touchingadoorknob,andgettingashock.Asyouwalkalong,saysLeeb,youscrapeupelectronsandaccumulatecharge.Touchingthedoorknob“closesthecircuit,”creatingareturnpathforthatcharge,andelectronsjumptotheknobasaspark.You’vebeendischarged.
Whenapersonenterstheelectricfieldaroundafluorescentlamp,heorshebecomespartofaverycomplicatedcircuitthatinvolvesinteractionsbetweenthepersonandthelamp,thelampandthewalls,thewallsandtheground,thegroundandtheperson,andmore.Sotheelectricfieldcanbeviewedastheresultofacomplexcircuitthatisconnectedfromeveryconductortoeveryotherconductor.Therefore,asoneconductor—theperson—movesaround,theelectricfieldintheareachanges.
Thestudentsdesignedandbuiltadevicethatcandetectsuchchangesintheelectricfieldandcontrolthelightaccordingly.Theirdetector—asimplecircuitboard—replacestheconventionallampballastandisconnectedtotwoelectrodesmountedseveralfeetapartonthecoverofthelightfixture.Measuringanelectricfieldrequiresfindingthevoltagesimultaneouslyattwopoints—herethetwoelectrodes—andthencalculatingthedifferencebetweenthem.Bymonitoringthatdifferenceovertime,thestudents’devicecandetectsmallchangesintheelectricfieldwhenapersonwalksby.
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Includedinthedeviceisa“softwarelayer”—computerprogrammingthatinterpretstheobservedchanges.Forexample,itknowstorejectcertaintypesofchangesasfalseandthereforenotrelevant.Itknowswhentoturnthelightfullonorbacktodim.Anditknowswhenapersonispresentbutstandingstill—orisstandingexactlybetweentheelectrodessothatthedifferenceintheirmeasurementsiszero.Thekey:thepersoncannotgettothemiddlewithoutgoingbyoneoftheends,andthedetectorremembers.
“It’sverycleveraboutthechangesitlooksfor,”saysLeeb.Andhestressesthatitisperfectlysafe.“Wehaven’tchangedthelightatallorchangedtheinteractionbetweenanyobjectintheroomandthelight,”hesays.“Allwe’vedoneisputinadetector.”
Simulations and demonstrations
Computersimulationsofthedevicehaveproducedimagessuchasthoseshownabove.Thelampisatthetop,andtheverticalbaratthebottomisasix-foot-tallconductivecolumnrepre-sentingaperson.Thecolorsrepresentthestrengthoftheelectricfieldintheregionofthelamp.Theseriesofimagesshowshowthe“person”walkingunderthelampdisturbstheelectricfield.
Theresearchteamhasconstructedtwoprototypedetectors.Onehangsverti-callyinsideatwo-bulbfixturefortestinginareal-worldconfiguration,whiletheotherismountedhorizontallyandcaneasilybemovedforexperimenta-tionanddemonstration.
Testswiththehorizontalprototypeconfirmitsabilitytodetectapersonwalkingby.Thephotosandfigureonpage8presentsampleresults.Asthepersonwalksbythelamp,thevoltagedifferencemeasuredbythedetectorgoesup.Itthengoesbackdown,returningtoneutral—hereabout–62millivolts—whenhereachesthemid-point.Thevoltagedifferencegoesdownashepassesbytheotherhalfofthelampandthenbackuptowardneutralasheleaves.Thesystembeginstodetectthepersonatadistanceof8to12feet—plentyoftimeforthelamptobrightenandcreateapooloflighttoguidetheway.
Theresearchershavealsotriedusingtheirdevicewithdimmingballasts.Thedetectionsystemdemonstrateshighsensitivityevenwhenthelampisdimmedtojust1.3%ofitsmaximumpower.Thatoutcomeimpliesa98.7%powersavingsforeachlampwhileitisdimmed.
Looking to the future
Theyarenowworkingonawirelesslinkthatwillenablecommunicationsbetweenadjacentlampssothatasinglelampcancommandaclusterofauto-dimminglamps.Suchcommandlampscouldbedistributedthroughoutaspacetoachieveadesiredlightingscheme.
Theyareinvestigatingtwoschemesforlargeroomswithmanyoverheadfluorescents.Inonescheme,allthelightsareturnedonbutdimmed,andeachonecontainstheproximity-sensingelectronics.Ifanoccupantisdetectedbelowanylamp,thatlampturnsfullonuntilthepersonmovesaway.Intheotherscheme,onlysomeofthelightsinanarrayareleftonforsensing.Theothersareturnedoffbutarelinkedbyawirelessnetworktotheoneswithsensors.Ifasensorinalightdetectsanoccupant,itturnsontheadjoininglights.Criticaltothisschemeiscarefulspacingofthelightswiththesensorstogetfullcoverageoftheroom,leavingno“blindspots”whereapersonwouldnotbedetected.
“Givingfluorescentlightstheabilitytorespondtothepresenceofpeopleisjustthefirststep,”saysLeeb.“Nowwe’reworkingtodefinelightingprofilesforspecificsettingsthatwillensurethecomfortandsafetyoftheoccupants
Theseimagesaretheresultofacomputersimulationoftheresearchers’proximitydetectorinaction.Theverticaldark-bluebarisasix-foot-tallconduc-tivecolumnrepresentingaperson.Thebrighthorizontalbaratthetoprepresentsthefluorescentlamp.Thecolorsindicatethecalculatedstrengthoftheelectricfieldaroundthelamp.Intheseriesofphotos,the“person”walksfromrighttoleftbelowthelamp,intheprocesscausingasignificantdisturbanceintheelectricfield.Theimagesonpage8showwhathappenswhenarealpersonfollowsthesamepathwayinfrontofaprototypedetector.
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whileminimizingenergyconsumption.We’realsolookingataddingphotosen-sorsthatwillcontrolthelevelsoflightingasappropriatetothetimeofdayorambientlight.Andwe’reworkingtoextendourapproachtosolid-statelightingbasedonLEDs.Theenergysavingsshouldbesignificant.”
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
This research was supported by a seed grant from the MIT Energy Initiative, by the US Department of Energy, and by the Grainger Foundation. More information can be found in:
J. Cooley, A. Avestruz, and S. Leeb. An Autonomous Distributed Demand-side Energy Management Network Using Fluorescent Lamps. IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Conference, Rhodes, Greece, June 2008.
J. Cooley, A. Avestruz, S. Leeb, and L. Norford. A Fluorescent Lamp with Integral Proximity Sensor for Building Energy Management. IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Confer-ence, Orlando, Florida, June 2007.
(A) (B) (C)
ThesephotosshowprojectdirectorProfessorStevenLeebwalkinginfrontofaprototypefluorescentlampequippedwiththeproximitydetector.Thecurvebelowshowstheoutputvoltagefromthedetector,withlettersmarkingpositionscorrespondingtothephotos.AsLeebwalksby,theoutputgoesupandthendown,returningtoneutral(about–62millivolts)whenhereachesthemidpoint.Theoutputthengoesdownashepassestheotherhalfofthelampandfinallybackuptowardneutralasheleaves.Whilethechangeinvoltageissmall,thedevicesendsaclearmessagethatsomebodyisnearby.
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Engineering fat-making bacteria:A road to plentiful biodieselAnMITteamisgettingtoknowalittle-studiedbacteriumthatconsumesmaterialsrangingfromsoilcontami-nantstocornhusksandstoresthemasglobulesoffatidealformakingbiofuels.Usingavarietyofapproaches,theresearchershavebeengaininginsightsintothebiologicalprocessesandgeneticpathwaysthatcontrolthatconversion,enablingthemtofurtherenhancethebacterium’sfat-makingability.
Bestofall,theyareconvertingthefatintofuelsthat—unlikeethanol—containenoughenergyperlitertobeusedintrucks,trains,ships,andevenairplanes.“We’realreadymakingfatfromourbacteriaintojetfuel,”saysAnthonySinskey,professorofbiologyanddirectoroftheresearch.“We’regoingtoflyanairplaneonit!”
Asthenationstrugglestoreplacefossilfuelsusedintransportation,muchattentionhasfocusedonethanolandhydrogen.ButSinskey’steamisinsteadaimingforbiodiesel,afuelwithseveraladvantages.Ithasamuchhigherenergydensitythanethanolhas(seethechartaboveright).Itdoesnothavethenationalsecurityissues—orthepollutantemissions—associatedwithdieselmadefrompetroleum.Andunlikehydrogen,itisa“drop-in”fuel.“Wealreadyhavetheinfrastructurefortransporting,storing,andpumpingbiodieselandthevehicleenginesthatcanburnit,”saysSinskey.
Mostpeoplemakingbiodieselstartwithafatcalledtriacylglycerol,orTAG.FamiliarsourcesofTAGsincludeleftoversfromdeepfatfryersandgreasetraps,fatsfrommeatrendering,andvegetableoils.Theconversiontobiodieselissosimplethatpeoplearedoingitintheirgaragesandbarns,accordingtoDanielMacEachran,a
postdoctoralassociateintheDepartmentofBiology.Asabonus,TAGscanalsobeconvertedintojetfuel.“Butwe’renevergoingtopowerthecountryortheworldongreasetrapsandanimalrenderings,”saysMacEachran.Growingalgaeonbiomassisanothernon-foodapproachtoproducingTAGs,butthetechnologyisstillunderdevelopment,andthereareproblemstobesolved.
Fat-producing bacteria
AnothernaturalsourceofTAGsisbacteria.Givebacterialotsofcarbon(cropwasteandthelike)andnotmuchnitrogen,andtheywillstoreexcesscarbonforfutureuse.Inabout90%ofbacteria,thestoredcarbonisintheformofapolymer,whichsomemembersoftheSinskeyLabareusingtomake“bioplastics.”
ButasmallgroupofbacteriainsteadstoresthecarbonintheformofTAGs,andoneofthemthatdoesitreallywellisRhodococcus opacus.Thisbacteriumisnotwellunderstoodandismoredifficulttoworkwiththan,say,E. coli.Butitgrowsquickly;itisnotpathogenic;anditproducesremarkablequantitiesofTAGs—insometests,asmuchas75%ofitsdryweight.More-over,itcanmetabolizeawiderangeofcarbonsources.Indeed,itwasfirstfoundgrowingonhydrocarboncon-taminantsinsandatagasworksfacilityinGermany.“Sothesebacterianotonlysurvivebutactuallythriveoncompoundsthatwouldkillmostotherorganisms,”saysMacEachran.
Expanding their appetites
Intheidealfermentationprocess,Rho-dococcuswouldquicklyandcompletelyconsumemixturesofcarbon“feed-stocks”andproducelargequantitiesofTAGs.Buttherearesomethings
thateventhisbacteriumdoesnoteat.Oneofthemisxylose,akeyconstitu-ent—alongwithglucose—ofthecellwallsofplants.IfRhodococcusbacteriaaregoingtoconsumecellulosicsourcessuchascornstoverandswitchgrass,theyneedtometabolizexyloseaswellasglucose.
Toachievethatgoal,KazuhikoKuro-sawa,aresearchscientistinbiology,turnedtogeneticengineering.HetookcarefullychosengenesfrombacteriathatnaturallymetabolizexyloseandinsertedthemintoRhodococcus.Theresult:astrainofRhodococcusthatmetabolizesxylosetoproduceTAGs.Betterstill,thisnewstrainconsumesglucoseandxyloseatthesametimeandataboutthesamerate.Mostbacteria,ifpresentedwithtwocarbonsources,willconsumefirstoneandthentheother,withalagingrowthastheyswitchgearsinthemiddle.BecauseKurosawa’sorganism“co-utilizes”xyloseandglucose,thereisnopausetoswitchgears,sotheoverallratesofgrowthandfatproduc-tionaredramaticallyhigher—andallthefeedstockisconsumed.
Inaddition,thebacteriummakesaboutthesameamountofTAGsonthemixtureasitdoesonglucoseorxylosealone,andthecompositionoftheTAGsisthesame.“Sotheremustbe
Energy values for various transportation fuels
• Ethanol 22–24 MJ/liter
• Gasoline 32–35 MJ/liter
• Petro-diesel 36.4 MJ/liter
•Biodiesel 33–36 MJ/liter
BioenergyFeedstockDevelopmentProgram,OakRidgeNationalLaboratory
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somecommonintermediatethat’sformedfromallcarbonfeedstocks,andthatintermediate—notthefeedstockitself—controlstheTAGssynthesis,”saysSinskey.“That’saninterestingphenomenon.”
Identifying fat-making genes
AnotherapproachtoincreasingRhodo-coccus’sabilitytometabolizecarbonandmakefatistoworkwiththebacterium’sowngenes.ThechallengethereistodeterminewhichgenesplayaroleinproducingandstoringTAGsandtodefineexactlywhateachgeneorsetofgenesdoes.Asacriticalfirststep,JasonHolder,postdoctoralassociateinbiology,sequencedthegenomeofRhodococcus opacus,identifyingalloftheDNAandmorethan7,000genesthatmakeupitschromosome.
MacEachranthendevelopedageneticscreeningtechniquetolocatethegenesofinterest.Thetechniqueinvolvestheuseofa“transposon,”ashortstretchofDNAthatcanintegrateanywhereamongthegenesonachromosome.Thepresenceofthetransposondisruptsthefunctionofwhatevergeneithap-penstolandin.SoifaRhodococcusbacteriumisexposedtoatransposonandthenstopsorslowsitsproduction
ofTAGs,thetransposonhaslandedinageneessentialforTAGmetabolism.SequencingtheDNAofthatbacteriumwillshowwherethetransposon—withitsrecognizableDNA—islocatedandthereforewhichgenehasbeenaffected.
ButmanygenesarelikelytoplayaroleinTAGmetabolism,soMacEachrandevelopeda“high-throughput”screen-ingtechnique.Heusesatransposonthatcarriesresistancetotheantibiotickanamycin.Hetakesabatchofbac-teria—billionsofindividualcells—andmixesthemwithabatchoftranspo-sons.Mostofthebacteriacellswillremainunchanged,butasmallfractionwillpickupatransposon.Whenthecellsareexposedtokanamycin,onlythosecontainingatransposonwillbeimmunetothekanamycinandsowilllive.
Inapainstakingprocess,theresearch-ersthenseparatetheremainingcells,spreadthemoutonaplatewithglucose,andletthemdivideandreplicatetoformdistinctcolonies.Eachcolonywillcontaintensofthousandsofidenticalcells,everyonewithatransposoninthesamelocationinitsgenome.Thecoloniesarenextgrownundercarefullyoptimizedhigh-carbon,low-nitrogenconditionsandthen
stainedwithachemicaldyethatisreadilyabsorbedbyfat.Mostofthecoloniesbecomedark—asignthatthetransposonhasnotinterferedwiththeirproductionofTAGs.Butafewwillremainpale.Inthosecolonies,thetransposonhaslodgedinanddisruptedagenethatplayssomecriticalroleintheformationofTAGs.
Key genes: What do they do?
ThatscreeningtechniquehaspermittedtheresearcherstoidentifyasetofgenesthataffectTAGformation.“ButnowwehavetodothehardscienceofcharacterizingeachgeneandfiguringoutexactlywhatroleitplaysinTAGmetabolism,”saysMacEachran.
Hehasbeenparticularlyintriguedbyagenehecalls“tadA”(from“TAGaccumulationdefective”).GenessimilartothetadAgenehavebeenfoundinseveralotherorganismsthatalsomakefat,butitsexactfunctionisunknown.“NooneelsehasworkedontadAbefore,sowe’removingintonewterritory,”saysMacEachran.
TogetacloserlookattadA,heusesatechniquecalledfluorescentmicroscopycombinedwithadyecalledNilered.Withinabacterium,TAGsarecontainedinlargesphericalstructuresknownaslipidbodies.ThoselipidsreadilytakeupNileredandbecomefluorescent,thuseasilydifferentiatedfromtherestofthecellunderthemicroscope.
TheimagesaboveshowthreetypesofRhodococcusbacteria,eachwithitslipidbodiesappearingasglowingspheres.Attheleftisthe“wildtype,”anatural,unalteredRhodococcusbacterium.Thelipidsarefairlyuniforminsizeanddistribution.ThebacteriuminthemiddleimagelacksthetadAgene.Nowtherearebothsmalland
AnMITteamhasbeenworkingtounderstandthegeneticpathwayswherebythebacteriumRhodococcusconvertscropwasteandothercarbonmaterialsintolargequantitiesoffat—or“lipids”—idealformakingbiodieselandjetfuel.Here,theyshowtheeffectonlipidformationofagenetheyisolatedanddubbedtadA.Ineachcase,thelipidsglowwithafluorescentdye.Theleft-handimageshowsanatural,unalteredRhodococcusbacterium.ThebacteriuminthemiddleimagelacksthetadAgene,whiletheoneintheright-handimagehasexcesstadA.Itappearsthatthisgene’sprimaryroleisnotinmakinglipidsbutratherincontrollinghowtheyarestored.
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largelipids,andratherthanbeinguniformlydistributed,theyappearstucktothewalls.Theright-handimageshowsabacteriumthatcontainslotsofextratadAgene.Nowtherearemassivelipidbodiesthatsitrightdownthemiddleofthecell.
Takentogether,theseobservationssuggestthatthetadAgene’sprimaryrolemaynotbeinmakingfatbutratherinstoringit.“LosingthetadAgeneseemstomessuptheorganism’sabilitytoassemblethelipidsproperly,”saysMacEachran.“Andhavingtoomuchofitproducesbig,singlelipidbodies.Sowebelievethatthisgeneproducesaproteinthatactsassortofashepherdtopullallofthelipidbodiestogetherintofewer,largerbodies.”
Continuing investigations
Theresearchersarecontinuingtogaininsightsintotheworkingsoftheirbacterium.Studiesof“neighbors”oftadAshowthatthosegenesalsoinfluencelipidbodystructure,eachoneinaslightlydifferentway.AndanalysesofsimilargenesinotherorganismssuggestamodelforcertainRhodococcusgenesthatmayhelplipidbodiesattachtooneanotherandcoalesce.FurtherscreeninghasidentifiedgenesinvolvedintheactualproductionofTAGs.
Thefeedstockstudiesalsocontinue.Theresearchershavenowtestedalmost200carbonsources,lookingforlow-cost,high-yieldonesthatcouldimproveprocesseconomics.TheyhaveidentifiedspecificcomponentsinfeedstocksthatinhibitcellgrowthandinterferewithTAGproduction.AndtheyhaveengineeredastrainofRhodococcusthatmetabolizesglycerol,awasteproductofbiodieselproduction.Withtheengineeredstrain,theglycerol
couldberecycledasafeedstockformorebiodieselproduction.
Finally,SinskeyandhisteamareworkingwithindustrytodevelopTAG-extractionmethodsthatwillyieldhighlyenrichedTAGfractionsandlowconcentrationsofproductsknowntointerferewiththeconversionofTAGsintobiodiesel.Inaddition,theyareexaminingchemicalandbiologicalcatalystsforconvertingTAGstofuelsandareworkingtoscaleupproduction.
Ifallgoesasplanned,SinskeyestimatesthatwithinafewyearstheRhodococcus-basedbiofuelswillbecommerciallyavailableasaviable,sustainablealternativetotoday’spetroleum-basedtransportationfuels.
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
This research was funded by a seed grant from the MIT Energy Initiative; by Shell International Exploration & Production, Inc.; and by Logos Technologies, Inc. More information can be found in:
K. Kurosawa, P. Boccazzi, N. de Almeida, and A. Sinskey. “High glucose cultivation of Rhodococcus opacus PD630 in batch-culture for biodiesel production,” Journal of Biotechnology, in press 2010.
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Improving the transistor:Small device, big energy savingsMITresearchershavedesignedanewtransistorthatcouldsignificantlyreducewastedelectricitywhenevervoltagemustbemodified,forexample,whenrechargingalaptoporhookingsolarpanelsintothepowergrid.WidespreaduseofthenoveltransistorcouldcutUSelectricityconsumptionaswellasgivenewlifetoemergingenergytechnolo-giesrangingfromelectriccarsandsolarcellstorevolutionarypowergenerationandtransmissionsystems.Powerelectronicsareusedtochangetheformofelectricalenergytomatchagivenneed.Inparticular,manynewelectronicdevicesandenergytechnolo-giesrequireswitchingalternatingcurrent(AC)todirectcurrent(DC)orviceversa.Forexample,batteriesandsolarcellsdealonlyinDC.Therefore,rechargingalaptoporcellphonebatteryrequireschangingtheACelectricitycomingfromthewalloutlettoDC.Conversely,connectingsolarcellstothepowergridandrunningthemotorinanelectriccarbothrequireconvertingDCtoAC.Atalargerscale,high-voltageDCtransmissionlinescantransferlargeamountsofpowerwithlowerelectricallossesthanAClinescan,buttheiruseisnowlimitedbecauseconvertingDCtoACisexpensive.
“Powerelectronicsareusedinmanydifferentplacesinourlives,”saysTomásPalacios,assistantprofessorofelectricalengineeringandcomputerscience.“Butanytimeyoutransformelectricity,therearealwaysenergylosses—andwithtoday’sdevices,thoselossesarehigh.”Ifwecouldreducethelossesinallpowerelectroniccircuits,Palaciossays,wecouldsavebetween10%and20%ofthetotalelectricitynowusedintheUnitedStates.Andifwecouldmakethepowerelectronicssmall,wecouldintegratethemintotheequipmentthatneedsthem.Small,
efficientpowerelectronicsthatcouldswitchACtoDCandbackagainwouldbeagame-changerforelectriccars,powergrids,renewableenergytech-nologies—indeed,fortheworld’sabilitytomeettheoverallenergychallenge.
Tohelpimprovepowerelectronics,PalaciosandgraduatestudentBinLuofelectricalengineeringandcomputerscienceareworkingononeofthekeycomponents—thetransistor.Thisbasicbuildingblockcanserveaseitheraswitchoranamplifier;itcanturnonandofforincreaseordecreasethecurrentflowinginanelectroniccircuit.
Atransistorconsistsofseverallayersofsemiconductorlinkedtothecircuit
bythreeterminals.Theelectronsthatcarrytheelectriccurrententerthetransistorthroughthefirstterminal(calledthesource).Theythentravelthrougharegionofthesemiconductorcalledthechannelandexitviathesecondterminal(thedrain).Asmallelectricalchargeonthethirdterminal(thegate)influencesthechannel’sabilitytoconductelectricity.Atransistorthususesasmallchargetoregulatetheflowofalargecurrent.
Howwellthetransistorperformsdependsinlargepartontwopropertiesofthesemiconductor.First,itmusthavelowresistancesoelectronscanflowthroughitwithease.Anyimpedi-menttothatflowproducesheat,
Si substrate
GaN
AlGaN Drain
Gate Al2O3
Electron channel
Source
MIT’s novel transistor
MIT’s novel gallium nitride power transistor
ThisschematicshowsanovelMITtransistorbasedonthesemiconductorgalliumnitride(GaN).Electronsenterviathesourceterminal(upperleft),flowthroughthelayerofGaN,andexitviathedrainterminal(upperright).Asmallelectricalchargeonthegateterminal(centertop)regulatestheflow.Toreducecosts,thetransistorisbuiltonaninexpensivesilicon(Si)substrate.Otherdesignfeaturespreventelectronsfromescapingwithinthedevice,soelectricallossesarelow.Andwhenthereisnochargeonthegate,theelectronsstopflowing—acriticalsafetyfeaturenottypicalofotherGaNtransistordesignsnowbeingconsidered.(Seetextfordetails.)
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whichtranslatesintowastedelectricity.Second,thesemiconductormustbeabletohandlehighvoltageswithout“breakingdown,”thatis,withoutallowingthecurrenttojumpfromthesourcetothedrainasaspark.Ifthebreakdownvoltageofthesemiconduc-torishigh,thesourceanddraincanbelocatedclosetooneanotherwithoutsparking;asaresult,thetransistorcanbesmaller,whichpermitstheoverallpowercircuittobesmallerandmoreefficient.
AccordingtoPalacios,thedesiredpropertiescanbefoundinafamilyofcompoundsandalloysbasedonnitridesemiconductors.Galliumnitride(GaN),forexample,isarelativelynewsemiconductorthathasaresistance100to1,000timeslowerthanthebestsemiconductorsnowbeingusedcommercially.Inaddition,itsbreak-downvoltagecanbe10timeshigherthaninconventionaldevices.
However,despitetheirpromise,GaN-basedtransistorsforpowerelectronicsarenotyetcommerciallyavailable.Palacioscitesthreeproblemswiththedesignsnowbeingconsidered.First,thebestdevicestodatearegrownonasubstrateofsiliconcarbide,anextremelyexpensivematerial.Second,inthosedevices,electronscanescapefromthechannelviathegateterminal,therebybeinglostfromthecircuit.Andfinally,ifthereisnochargeonthegate,electronscontinuetoflowthroughthetransistor.Thatcharacteristic—knownasbeing“normallyon”—isasafetyhazard.If,forexample,thegatestopsfunctioningwhilealaptopisrecharging,householdcurrentcouldflowatfullvoltageintothecomputerandquicklydestroyit.
The MIT design
PalaciosandhisteamthereforesetthreegoalsfortheirGaNtransistor:tousealessexpensivesubstrate,tokeepresistancelowwhilepreventingelectronsfromescapingviathegate,andtomakeadevicethatis“normallyoff.”Theyhavenowachievedallofthosegoals.
Theirdesignisshownonpage12.Electrons—indicatedbybluedashes—enterthroughthesourceattheupperleft,passthroughtheGaNsemiconduc-tor,andexitthroughthedrainattheupperright.Theamountofchargeonthegateatthetopregulatestheflowofelectronsfromthesourcetothedrain.
Specificfeaturesaddresstheresearch-ers’threegoals.Tobringdowncosts,theybuildtheirtransistoronasiliconsubstratesimilartothatusedbymuchoftoday’selectronicsindustry.Itisinexpensiveandcanbemanufac-turedusingstandardtechnologyformakingcommercialsiliconchips.
TolowertheresistanceintheGaNchannel,theresearchersputalayerofaluminumgalliumnitride(AlGaN)ontopoftheGaN.ThatlayerproducesahighdensityofelectronsintheGaNjustbelowtheGaN/AlGaNinterface,easingtheflowofcurrentthroughthechannelandreducingthetotalresistanceofthedevice.“TheelectronsreallyliketomovethroughtheGaNveryclosetothatinterface,”saysPalacios.Inaddition,topreventelectronsfromgoingintothegatecontact,theyaddathinlayerofadielectric—aluminumoxide(Al2O3),ahighlyinsulatingmaterialthatcompletelystopstheflowofelectronstothegate.
Finally,theyhavedevelopedanewfabricationtechnology—called“dual-gatetechnology”—tomakethetransis-tornormallyoff.TraditionalapproachestoachievingnormallyofftransistorsinvolvethinningdowntheAlGaNlayerunderthegate.ThatchangereducestheelectrondensityintheGaNchanneltothepointthatelectronswillnotflowintheabsenceofchargeonthegate.How-ever,thatapproachintroducesvery
Phot
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Top-viewopticalmicrographofoneofthegalliumnitridepowertransistorsfabricatedatMIT.
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highresistance,whichleadstoheatingandthusenergylossesinthedevice.
Toovercomethisproblem,theMITresearchersmakethegate“T”shapedandthenomittheAlGaNlayercompletelyfromaverynarrowregionbeneaththefootoftheT(seethedrawingonpage12).BecausenoAlGaNisdepositedinthatregion,noelectronsareleftneartheinterface;andwhenthereisnochargeonthegate,currentnolongerflows.ButtheremovedsectionofAlGaNislessthan100nm—justwideenoughtocreatethenormallyoffconditionsbutstillsonarrowthatitdoesnotsignificantlyincreasetheresistanceofthetransistor.AndbecausethethinlayerofAl2O3insulatorseparatesthegatefromthechannelinthatregion,whenelectronsdoflow,theycannotescapetothegate.
Fabricating prototypes
Palaciosandhisteamhavenowsuccessfullyachievedeachstepneededtofabricatetheirnoveltransistor.TheyhavedevelopedmethodsofusingthinlayersofGaNonsiliconwafers,ofdepositingtheAl2O3insulator,andoffabricatingnormallyofftransistorsusingthenewdual-gatetechnology.TestsofinitialprototypesconfirmthattheirdeviceisnormallyoffandthatelectronsareeffectivelyconfinedtothechannelneartheGaN-AlGaNinterface.“Infact,ourpreliminarymeasurementsshowthattheelectronsmovealongthatchannel10timesfasterthantheydoinotherpowerdevices,”saysPalacios.
Encouragedbyresultstodate,PalaciosisalreadyindiscussionwithotherMITresearcherswhomightbenefitfromthesmall,efficientpowerelec-tronicsmadepossiblebythenewGaN
transistor.Amongthepossibilities:newcircuitdesignsforhigh-efficiencyinvertersandconvertersforthepowerindustry,powermodulesforhybrid-vehicleandfuel-celltechnologies,and—becauseoftheirtoleranceforhightemperatures—high-performancepowerelectronicsfornewsolarconcentrators.
“Withournewdevicesweshouldbeabletomaximizeandoptimizepowerconversionandaddmoreintelligencetocurrentandnewpowersystemsatawiderangeofvoltagelevels,”saysPalacios.“Transistorsandpowersystemsareubiquitous,sothepotentialforsavingenergyanddevelopingandimplementingnewenergytechnologiesissubstantial.”
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
This research was funded by a seed grant from the MIT Energy Initiative and by the US Department of Energy. Further information can be found in:
B. Lu and T. Palacios. “New enhancement-mode GaN HEMT based on dipole-Engineering.” IEEE Electron Device Letters, forthcoming 2010.
B. Lu, E. Piner, and T. Palacios. High-Performance Dual-Gate AlGaN/GaN Enhancement-Mode Transistor. Presented at the 37th International Symposium on Compound Semiconductors (ISCS), Kagawa, Japan, May 31–June 4, 2010.
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Small springs could provide big power
Energy density of selected energy storage devices
Current CNT fibers
Ideal CNT fibers
Steelsprings
Lithium-ionbatteries
0.1
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Thebarontheleftshowstheenergydensityof“current”carbonnanotube(CNT)fibersnowbeingpreparedandtestedbyMITresearchers.Thebaratthefarrightshowstheenergydensityof“ideal”CNTfibers,aspredictedbytheiranalyticalstudies.Asthecentralbarsshow,theenergydensityoftheresearchers’CNTspringsalreadyexceedsthatofsteelspringsandmayeventuallyexceedthatoftypicallithium-ionbatteries—withtheaddedadvantageofpotentiallyhigherdurabilityandreliability.
NewresearchbyMITscientistssuggeststhatcarbonnanotubes—tube-shapedmoleculesofpurecarbon—couldbeformedintotinyspringscapableofstoringasmuchenergy,poundforpound,asstate-of-the-artlithium-ionbatteries,andpotentiallymoredurablyandreliably.
Imagine,forexample,anemergencybackuppowersupplyoralarmsystemthatcanbeleftinplaceformanyyearswithoutlosingits“charge,”portablemechanicaltoolslikeleafblowersforyardclean-upthatworkwithoutthenoiseandfumesofsmallgasolineengines,ordevicestobesentdownoilwellsorintootherharshenvironmentswheretheperformanceofordinarybatterieswouldbedegradedbytem-peratureextremes.Thatisthekindofpotentialthatcarbonnanotubespringscouldhold,accordingtoCarolLiver-more,associateprofessorofmechanicalengineering.Carbonnanotubesprings,shefound,canpotentiallystorefarmoreenergyfortheirweightthansteelspringscan(seethechartonthispage).
Indeed,theoreticalanalysisperformedbyLivermore,graduatestudentFrancesHillofmechanicalengineering,andresearchaffiliateTimothyHavelSM’07showedthatthecarbonnanotubespringscouldultimatelyhaveanenergydensity—ameasureoftheamountofenergythatcanbestoredinagivenweightofmaterial—morethan1,000timesthatofsteelspringsandcompa-rabletothatofthebestlithium-ionbatteries.LaboratorytestsbythesameteamplusA.JohnHartSM’02,PhD’06demonstratedthatthenanotubesreallycanexceedtheenergystoragepotentialofsteel.
With a snap or a tick-tock
Forsomeapplications,springscanhaveadvantagesoverotherwaysofstoringenergy,Livermoreexplains.Unlikebatteries,forexample,springscandeliverthestoredenergyeffectivelyeitherinarapid,intenseburstorslowlyandsteadilyoveralongperiod—asexemplifiedbythedifferencebetweenthespringinamousetrapandinawindupclock.Also,unlikebatteries,storedenergyinspringsnormallydoesnotslowlyleakawayovertime;amousetrapcanremainpoisedtosnapforyearswithoutdissipatinganyofitsenergy.
Forthatreason,suchsystemsmightlendthemselvestoapplicationsforemergencybackupsystems.Withbatter-ies,suchdevicesneedtobetestedfrequentlytomakesuretheystillhavefullpower,andthebatteriesmustbereplacedorrechargedwhentheyrun
down.Butwithaspring-basedsystem,inprinciple“youcouldstickitonthewallandforgetit,”Livermoresays.Carbonnanotubespringsalsohavetheadvantagethattheyarerelativelyunaffectedbydifferencesintempera-tureandotherenvironmentalfactors,whereasbatteriesneedtobeoptimizedforaparticularsetofconditions,usuallytooperateatnormalroomtemperature.Nanotubespringsmightthusfindapplicationsinextremeconditions,suchasfordevicestobeusedinanoilboreholesubjectedtohightemperatureandpressure,oronspacevehicleswheretemperaturecanfluctuatebetweenextremeheatandextremecold.
“Theyshouldalsobeabletochargeandrechargemanytimeswithoutalossofperformance,”Livermoresays,althoughtheactualperformanceovertimestillneedstobetested.
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Shesaysthatthespringsmadefromtheseminusculetubesmightfindtheirfirstusesinlargedevicesratherthaninmicro-electromechanicaldevices.Foronething,thebestusesofsuchspringsmaybeincaseswheretheenergyisstoredmechanicallyandthenusedtodriveamechanicalload,ratherthanconvertingittoelectricityfirst.
Anysystemthatrequiresconversionfrommechanicalenergytoelectricalandbackagain,usingageneratorandthenamotor,willlosesomeofitsenergyintheprocessthroughfrictionandotherprocessesthatproducewasteheat.Forexample,aregenerativebrakingsystemthatstoresenergyasabicyclecoastsdownhillandthenreleasesthatenergytoboostpowerwhilegoinguphillmightbemoreefficientifitstoresandreleasesitsenergyfromaspringinsteadofanelectricalsystem,shesays.Inadditiontothedirectenergylosses,abouthalftheweightofsuchelectromechanicalsystemscurrentlyisinthemotor-generatorusedfortheconversion—somethingthatwouldnotbeneededinapurelymechanicalsystem.Harvesting carbon nanotubesTomaketheirsprings,theresearchersusecarbonnanotube“forests.”Eachforestcontainsbillionsofcarbon
nanotubesgrownverticallyupwardfromaflat,one-square-centimetersiliconsubstratebythermalchemicalvapordeposition.Fromthisforest,theypeeloffasmallstrand,creatingafiberofafewmillionalignednanotubes.Tomakethefibermorestable,theyincreaseitsdensitybyplacingadropofacetoneortolueneonit.Astheliquidevaporates,thenanotubesaredrawntogetherbycapillaryeffects.Theresearchersthenstretchthefiber,therebystoringmechanicalenergyinthestrainedcarbonbondsofeachnanotube.Todeliverthestoredenergytoadesiredload,theyallowthefibertocontract—eithersuddenlyorslowly—sothatitreturnstoitsoriginallength.
Onereasonthemicroscopictubeslendthemselvestobeingmadeintolongerfibersthatcanmakeeffectivespringsisthatthenanotubemoleculesthem-selveshaveastrongtendencytosticktoeachother.Thatmakesitrelativelyeasytospinthemintolongfibers—muchasstrandsofwoolcanbespunintoyarn—andthisissomethingmanyresearchersaroundtheworldareworkingon.“Infact,”Livermoresays,thefibersaresostickythat“wehadsomecomicalmomentswhenyou’retryingtogetthemoffyourtweezers.”Butthatqualitymeansthatultimatelyitmaybepossibleto“makesomethingthatlookslikeacarbonnanotubeandisaslongasyouwantittobe.”
Livermoresaysthattocreatedevicesthatcomeclosetoachievingthetheoreticallypossiblehighenergydensityofthematerialwillrequireplentyofadditionalbasicresearch,followedbyengineeringwork.Amongotherthings,theinitiallabtestsusedfibersofcarbonnanotubesjoinedinparallel,butcreatingapracticalenergystoragedevicewillrequireassemblingnanotubesintolonger
andlikelythickerfiberswithoutlosingtheirkeyadvantages.
“Thesescaled-upspringsneedtobelarge(i.e.,incorporatingmanycarbonnanotubes),butthoseindividualcarbonnanotubesneedtoworkwellenoughtogetherintheoverallassemblyoftubesforittohavecomparableproper-tiestotheindividualtubes,”Livermoresays.“Thisisnoteasytodo.”
Livermoreandherteamarenowworkingoncreatingnew,higher-performingcarbonnanotubespringsandondemonstratingtheirusetodriverealloads—featsthatwouldmakepossiblemanyexcitingopportunitiesfortheiruseasflexible,durable,andreliableenergystoragedevices.
• • •
By David L. Chandler, MIT News Office, with additional reporting by Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
This research was funded by an MIT Energy Initiative seed grant and by Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation Ignition and Innovation grants. Further information can be found in:
F. Hill, T. Havel, A. Hart, and C. Livermore. “Characterizing the failure processes that limit the storage of energy in carbon nanotube springs under tension.” Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, forthcoming 2010.
C. Livermore, F. Hill, and A. Hart. “Storing elastic energy in carbon nanotubes.” Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, September 2009.
C. Livermore, F. Hill, and T. Havel. “Modeling mechanical energy storage in springs based on carbon nanotubes.” Nanotechnology, June 2009.
Thespringstestedinthisworkconsistoffibersmadeofdenselypackedarraysofcarbonnanotubes,harvestedfrommulti-walledcarbonnanotubeforestsgrownbythermalchemicalvapordeposition.Thisscanningelectronmicroscopeimageshowsthelong,alignedarraysofcarbonnanotubesthatmakeupeachfiber.Eachcarbonnanotubehasanouterdiameterof10nmandfourtofiveinnershells.
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Urban metabolism: Helping cities make scarce basic resources go furtherManycitiesindevelopingregionsoftheworldarefacingcriticalshortagesofwater,energy,andotherbasicresources—andthoseshortageswillrapidlyintensifyastheirpopulationsexplodeincomingdecades.Tohelpalleviatesuchhardship,MITresearchersareworkingwithleadersintheIcaregionofPerutodeveloptwointeract-ingcomputationalmodelsthatwillhelpthemfindwaystousetheirlimitedresourcesmoreefficientlyandtotakebestadvantageoftheirabundantnaturalsourcesofenergy,includingsunshine,wind,andwaves.
Inrelatedwork,theMITteamisusingthesameanalyticaltechniquestostudyresourceflowsinancientcitiesasapossiblewindowintohowourpost-fossil-fuelscitiesmaylook.
Muchdiscussionisfocusingonmakingcitiesintheindustrializedworldsustain-able.Buzzwordsincludezero-energybuildings,photovoltaicinstallations,andplug-inhybridcars.Suchattentioniswellwarranted,accordingtoJohnFernández,associateprofessorofbuildingtechnology,becauseoverthenextthreedecades,95%ofpopulationgrowthworldwideisprojectedtooccurincities,addinganother2.5billionpeopletotoday’s3billioncitydwellers.
Butthevastmajorityofthosenewcitydwellerswillliveindevelopingcoun-tries,whereconcernfocusesonprovid-ingthebasics—food,water,housing,andthelike.“Thegreatestgrowthinurbanpopulationwillbeinthemostresource-constrainedareasoftheworld,”saysFernández.“Thelimitsthatthoseregionswillfacearelikenothingwewillseeintheindustrializedworld.It’sawholedifferentlevelofdiscussion.”
Facedwith“cripplingresourcelimits,”plannersandengineersinsuchcities
desperatelyneedtoolstohelpthemmakedesign,planning,andtechnologydecisionsthatensurethemostefficientuseoftheresourcestheyhave.Suchtoolscouldalsohelpthemfindwaystomaketheircitiesmoreresilienttoshockssuchasearthquakesandothercrisesthatmayinterrupttheflowofgoodstoapopulacelikelytoliveclosetothemarginingoodtimes.
Focus on Peru
OneplacewithanurgentneedforsuchplanningtoolsistheIcaregionofsouthernPeru.Thecoastalcitiesinthatregionarenetexportersofnaturalresources,includingoil,naturalgas,andcopper,buttheyareneverthelessextremelypoor—andin2007theyweredevastatedbyaseriesofearthquakes.InJanuary2008,teamsfromMITbeganworkingwithresearchersandgovern-mentleadersinPerutohelpwiththeredevelopmentprocess,andtwothingsbecameclear:managingflowsofresourcestoensuretheirmostefficientuseiscritical,andatooltoguidepolicymakersinachievingthatgoalwouldbeinvaluable.
Accordingly,FernándezhasbeendevelopingacomputationalmodelthatwillenableleadersinPeru—andincitiesworldwide—toseetheimpactsofpossiblepolicyoptionsontheavailabil-ityofcriticalresources.Hehasbeenworkingcloselywithacademicresearch-ers,localcommunities,andgovernmentofficialsinPerutoformulatetheessen-tialarchitectureofthemodel.
Theworkbuildsonaconceptknownasurbanmetabolism,whichusesaholisticviewofthewaycitiesconsumeresources.“Thinkofacityasanorganismthatconsumesrawmaterials,fuel,andwaterandgenerateswaste,”saysFernández.“Howdoesthis
complexorganismusetherawmateri-alsthatitacquires—andcanitusethemmoreefficiently?”
Toanswerthosequestions,Fernándezandhiscollaboratorsuseamethodol-ogycalledmaterialsflowanalysis(MFA)tocreateaphysicalaccounting(inmeasurablequantitiessuchasweightorvolume)ofspecificresourcesentering,passingthrough,andleavingacityand—mostimportant—exactlyhowtheyareusedwithinthecitylimits.AdiagramoftheMITmodelappearsonpage18.
Thesystemboundaryisthecityitself—the“urbaneconomy.”Thetophalfisthe“biogeochemicalcontext,”thebottomhalf,the“socioeconomiccontext.”TheMITworkfocusesmainlyonthesocioeconomicsection.
Enteringfromtheleftarealltheimports.“Activeinputs”enteringtheurbanzonearewater,energy,materials(fuelandnon-fuel),andbiomass.Addingtothosebulkmaterialsisthe“municipalextraction”ofsand,gravel,andthelikewithincitybounds.Threefundamentalurbanactivitiesdriveallofthoseresourceflows,namely,goodsandservices,thebuiltenvironmentandinfrastructure,andtransportation.Thosethreeactivitiesaretheresultofanthropogenicaction—ofpeoplemakingdecisionsandactingonthem.
Mostofthematerialinputsleavetheurbanboundaryasoutputs.Thelargestportionofmaterialsremainingintheurbanspaceisusedinthemakingofbuildingsandinfrastructure.Thisadditiontothedurablestockaccountsforthemateriallegacyofoursociety.Somewasteremainsinthe“municipalsink”aswell(forexample,materialputintolandfills),andsootandotherpollutantsareleftbehindintheair.
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“Environmentaldispersion”accountsfornaturalprocessesthatremoveheat,materials,air,andwateroutoftheurbanzone.
Afinalitemamongtheactiveinputsis“regionalhiddenflows,”whichmeasuresresourcesthatsimplypassthroughthecity—forexample,ifthecityisaport.Thoseinputsmayproducesignificantfinancialflowsbutnonetphysicalflowsofmaterials.
Thetophalfofthediagramencom-passespassiveflowsthroughtheurbaneconomy—flowsnotactivatedbyhumandecisions.Thenaturalinputsincludewater(groundwater,rain),air,andsolarradiation.Thoseinputsareaffectedbythebehavioroffloraandfaunawithinthecityandbynaturalbiogeochemicalprocesses,includingthecarbon,nitrogen,phosphorus,andwatercycles.Passiveoutputsarewater,air,andheat.
Inpresentingthemodelframework,Fernándeznotesthe“socio-environ-mentalinterface”betweenthetopand
thebottomofthediagram.Thatinterfacepermitspassiveinputstomovetotheactivepartofthemodel,andviceversa.“WithMFA,wecandefinehowacitycantakeadvantageofpassiveflows,forexample,usingsolarradiationtorunsolar-thermalandphotovoltaicsystemstogeneratepower,”saysFernández.“Suchusesofpassiveflowscanmakeacitygreenerandlessdependentontheavailabilityofactiveflowssuchasfossilfuels.”
Taking a closer look
Identifyingtheflowsandusesofresourcesinacityisonlythefirststep.Thenextquestionsare:Wherearethepotentialsavingsinthissystem?Andwhereinthissystemwouldinterventionbemostpractical?
Toanswerthosequestions,theMITresearchersapplyanothermodelingtechnique—systemdynamics—tospecificresourcesflowingintothethreeurbanactivitieswithintheMFAmodel.Systemdynamicsisdesignedtohandlecomplexsystemsthatchangeover
time,withinterlinkedcomponentsthatinfluenceoneanotherandfeedbackloopsthatdrivehowthesystembehaves.
Onesystemdynamicsmodel,forexample,tracksironasaninputforconstructionandexaminesthepotentialforsavingsbyincreasingreclaimedorrecyclediron.Inthemodel,ironflowsintoconstruction,which—controlledbythedemandforhousing—generatesthehousingstock.Ironisembeddedinthehousingstockuntilabuildingisdemolished.Then,basedonthecurrentpriceofiron,theironbecomesdemoli-tionwasteorisreclaimed.Thereclaimedirononceagainbecomesaninputforconstruction—oritcanbesenttoanironstockpilewithinthecity.
Withsuchananalysis,policymakerscanexploredifferentwaystodeliverandmaintainrawmaterialsandcanassessthepossibilityofstockpilingresourcesasameansofmakingtheircitymoreresilienttosupplyinterruptions.“Itmaynotbepracticalforalotofmaterials,”notesFernández.“Howdoyoustore
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materialthat’susefulandvaluablenowforsomepossiblefutureoccurrence?Buthavingameansofidentifyingwhatstocksshouldbestoredandhavinganexplicitprogramfordoingitcanbecritical.”
Next steps—and broadening the view
TheMITteamisnowworkingtoimplementtheirnewmodelusingdataforthecitiesofsoutherncoastalPeru.Gettingverifiableandrigorousdataonspecificresourcesisprovingtobethebiggestchallengesofar,accordingtoFernández.Heandhiscollaboratorsareusingeverysourceofdatatheycanfind,bothformalandinformal.Insomecases,theyextrapolatefromnationaldata;inothers,theyuseeconomicdataasaproxy.Forexample,ifanaveragepurchasingpowerhasbeendefinedforagivendemographic,theyassumethatthosepeoplebuyacertainamountoffood,wood,textiles,andsoon.
Meanwhile,theyareusingtheiranalyti-calframeworkforotherapplications.Inoneproject,ArtessaSaldivar-Sali,agraduatestudentinMIT’sDepartmentofArchitecture,isdevelopinga“typol-ogy”ofcitiesandderivingresourceprofilesforeachtype.Sheissurveying500citiesworldwide,groupingthemaccordingtotheirbasicattributes(forexample,location,climate,population,anddevelopmentlevel),andthendevelopingaresourceprofileappropri-ateforallthecitiesinagiven“cluster.”
Withsuchadatabase,policymakerswillbeabletocompareresourceflowsintheirowncitywithresourceflowsinothercitiesintheircluster.Ifothercitiesaremoreresourceefficient,theycanseenotonlythepotentialforimprovementbutalsowherethegreatestopportunityformakingpositivechangeis.
Looking back
Inanotherproject,Fernándezandhisteamareusingtheirmodelingframeworkplusarcheologicaldatatoestablishthematerialandenergyflowsthatservedtheurbanpopulationinanancient,pre-IncancitycalledCaral.This5,000-year-oldcity,locatednorthwestofpresent-dayLima,isthoughttohavebeenthefirstlarge-scaleurbancenterintheAmericas.Ithadapopulationofmanythousandsandasophisticatedagriculturaleconomybasedoncotton,otherplantfibercrops,andtextiles.
WhileitmightseemhardertoperformMFAforanancientcitythanforamodernone,Fernándezsaysthatinsomewaysitisactuallyeasier.“TheeconomyofCaralwasmuchlessdiversethantoday’surbaneconomiesare,sotherearefarfewerproductstomap.Also,archeologistssurveyingthesiteworkhardtodeterminethedetailsoftheeconomy.”Forexample,teamshavesiftedthroughwastepitstodetermineeveryplantspeciesthatwasbroughtin.“That’sawholelotmoredetailthanwecangetforacontemporarycityoflikesizeinPeru,”saysFernández.
Henotesthattheonlygoodexampleswehaveoftrulysustainablecitiesarethepre-fossil-fuelcities.“Interestingly,resultsfromstudyingtheancientcityofCaralmayprovideinsightsintohowourpost-fossil-fuel,‘sustainable’citiesmightlookintermsofresourceflows,houses,products,transportationmethods,andsoon,”hesays.“Cluesaboutourpathwayforwardmaybederivedfromthislookbackward.”
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
Research on the urban metabolism of cities—both modern and ancient—in the Ica region of Peru was supported by a seed grant from the MIT Energy Initiative. Additional funding has come from the MIT-Portugal Program. The MITEI seed grant also helped support a two-day workshop in January 2010 at which an international group of people working in urban metabolism began to define common standards and conventions for materials flow analysis. Work to benchmark cities around the world is now being supported by the MIT-Portugal Program. The study of urban metabolism of ancient cities is continuing with seed funding from the Holcim Foundation and funding from an Integrated Research Grant with the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) Centre. Further information can be found in:
J. Fernández. Urban Metabolism and a Resource Efficient Built Environment. Invited lecture. Centre for African Cities, University of Cape Town, South Africa, May 7, 2010.
J. Fernández. Urban Metabolism of Ancient Caral, Peru. Presented at the 3rd Forum 2010 Re-Inventing Construction, sponsored by the Holcim Foundation, Mexico City, April 12–17, 2010.
J. Fernández. Urban Metabolism: Past, Present and Future Resource Flows. Presented at the Alliance for Global Sustainability Annual Conference, Tokyo, Japan, March 15, 2010.
J. Fernández, P. Ferrão, and L. Rosado. Unified Methodology for Evaluating Sustainable Consumption Options in an Urban Metabolism Context. Presented at the International Society of Industrial Ecology Conference, Lisbon, Portugal, June 22, 2009.
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ARPA-E clean energy awards: MIT leads again
OnceagaintheUSDepartmentofEnergy(DOE)hasrecognizedMITasanengineofenergyinnovation.OnApril29,itawarded$11millioningrantstoMIT-ledresearchprojectsfocusingonbacterialproductionofmotorfuels,anovelcarboncapturetechnology,anew“semi-solidflowbattery,”andteamsofmicrobesthatworktogethertoproducebiodiesel.AccordingtoDOE,those“ambitiousresearchprojectscouldfundamentallychangethewaythecountryusesandproducesenergy.”
ThenewgrantsarepartofthesecondroundofawardsfromDOE’sAdvancedResearchProjectsAgency-Energy(ARPA-E)—fundingthatisintendedtoaccelerateinnovationincleanenergytechnologies,increaseAmerica’scompetitiveness,andcreatejobs.
Thistime,ARPA-Eawardedatotalof$106millionto37energyresearchprojectsin17states.MITwastheleaderonfourprojectsandnamedacollaboratorononemore.Anadditionalthreewereawardedtootherorganiza-tionsinMassachusetts.
ShortdescriptionsofthefourMITprojectswiththeirleadresearchersfollow.TheprojectsspanthethreeareasoffundingdefinedintheARPA-Ecallforproposals:electrofuels—biofuelsfromelectricity;batteriesforelectricalenergystorageintransportation;andinnovativematerialsandprocessesforadvancedcarboncapturetechnologies.ThefirsttwoproposalsweresubmittedthroughtheMITEnergyInitiative(MITEI).
—ProfessorAnthonySinskeyofbiologyandhealthsciencesandtechnologyreceived$1.7milliontoengineerabacteriumthatcanmetabo-lizehydrogen,carbondioxide,andoxygenandproducebutanol,whichcanbeusedasamotorfuel.Keychallengesincludegettingtheorganismtomakeabundantamountsofbutanol—withoutthenbeingpoisonedbyit—anddesign-ingahigh-performancebioreactorsystemthatcandeliverthemixofgasesneededforthebiologicalprocesstooccur.Theresearchisbeingper-formedincollaborationwithMichiganStateUniversity.
—ProfessorAlanHattonofchemicalengineeringandSeniorResearchEngineerHowardHerzogofMITEIreceived$1milliontodevelopanewprocesscalledelectrochemicallymediatedseparation(ECMS)forthepost-combustioncaptureofcarbondioxideatcoal-firedpowerplants.AccordingtoDOE’sannouncementoftheawards,the“anticipatedbenefitsincludegreatlyincreasedenergyefficiencyforcarbondioxidecapture,easierretrofittingofexistingcoal-firedpowerplants,andsimplerintegrationwithnewfacilities.”ElectronicsconglomerateSiemensisinvolvedintheresearch.
—ProfessorYet-MingChiangofmaterialsscienceandengineeringwasawarded$5milliontodesignarevolu-tionarysemi-solidflowbatteryfortransportationthatcombinesthebestcharacteristicsofrechargeablebatteriesandfuelcells.Thisnewconceptcouldenablelighter,smaller,andcheaperbatteriesforelectricvehicles.AccordingtoDOE,theflowbattery“potentiallycouldcostlessthanone-eighthoftoday’sbatteries,whichcouldleadtowidespreadadoptionofaffordableelectricvehicles.”Collaboratorsinthe
workareRutgersUniversityandA123SystemsInc.,anMITspinoffcompanythatdevelopsandmanufactureslithium-ionbatteriesandsystems.
—ProfessorGregoryStephanopoulosofchemicalengineeringreceived$3.2milliontodevelopatwo-stagemicrobe-basedprocessthatwouldmakeoilfromhydrogenandcarbondioxide,orelectricity.Inthefirststageoftheprocess,ananaerobicorganismwouldutilizehydrogenandcarbondioxidetoproduceanorganiccom-pound,suchasacetate.Inthesecondstage,theacetatewouldbeusedbyanaerobicmicrobe,whichwouldgrowandintheprocessproduceoilthatcaneasilybeconvertedintobiodiesel.HarvardUniversityandtheUniversityofDelawarearecollaboratingontheresearch.
Inaddition,MITisnamedasacollabo-ratoronaprojecttodevelopaninex-pensive,rechargeablemagnesium-ionbatteryforelectricandhybrid-electricvehicleapplications.Theprojectwasawarded$3.2millionandisledbyPellionTechnologiesInc.,anMITspinoffcompany,withcollaborationfromBar-IlanUniversityaswellasMIT.
“ThenewARPA-EawardsfurtherinvigorateMIT’spursuitofthebestbreakthroughideasinenergy,accelerat-ingadvancesfromthebeginningoftheinnovationpipelinetotheend,”saidErnestMoniz,directorofMITEIandtheCecilandIdaGreenProfessorofPhysicsandEngineeringSystems.“Thetech-nologieschosenforsupportholdgreatpotentialforreducingcarbonemissionsinboththetransportationandthepowersectors.”
Threeawards—allintheareaofelectro-fuels—wenttootherorganizationsinMassachusetts,joiningtheregion’s
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growingenergytechnologyinnovationcluster.TheUniversityofMassachusettsAmherst,withtheUniversityofCaliforniaSanDiegoandGenomatica,received$1millionfor“Electrofuelsviadirectelectrontransferfromelectrodestomicrobes”;GinkgoBioWorks,withtheUniversityofCaliforniaBerkeleyandtheUniversityofWashington,received$4millionfor“EngineeringE. coli asanelectrofuelschassisforisooctaneproduction”;andHarvardMedicalSchool—WyssInstitutereceived$4millionfor“Engineeringabacterialreversefuelcell.”
“InthefirstroundofARPA-EawardslastOctober,Massachusettscompaniesreceivedalargershareoffunding—22percent—thananyotherstate,and,onceagainwiththisround,theCommonwealthisshowingitscolorsasaclearleaderincleantechnologyinnovation,”EnergyandEnvironmentalAffairsSecretaryIanBowlessaid.“IcongratulateMITandtheotherMassachusettsARPA-Ewinners—allofwhicharepartnersinourpursuitofacleanenergyfuture.”
Inthefirstround,selectedprojectsincludedoneMITresearchlabandfiveMassachusetts-basedcompanies,fourofthemMITspinoffsandonewithstronglinkstoMIT.
ThenewawardsweremadethroughtheAmericanRecoveryandRein-vestmentAct,amultibillion-dollarinvestmentintendedtostimulateeconomicgrowththroughinnovation,science,andtechnology.Ofthatmoney,$400millionwasdesignatedforARPA-Eandwillsupportthreeroundsofawards.
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
MITEI awards fifth round of seed grants for energy researchRecipients of MITEI seed grants, Spring 2010
Energy-efficient desalination by shock electro-dialysis in porous media Martin Bazant Chemical Engineering
Energy-efficient algorithms Erik Demaine, Martin DemaineComputer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL)
Solar energy conversion using the phenomenon of thermal transpiration Nicolas HadjiconstantinouMechanical Engineering
Synthesis of bimetallic nanoparticle structures as catalysts for fuel cellsKlavs JensenChemical Engineering
Advanced multi-core processor architectures for power electronics controls and simulation: enabling efficient integration of renewables into the smart grid John JoannopoulosPhysics Ivan CelanovicInstitute for Soldier Nanotechnologies Srini DevadasElectrical Engineering and Computer Science
Multi-functional self-assembled photonic crystal nanotexture for energy-efficient solid state lighting Lionel KimerlingMaterials Science and Engineering
Subsurface change detection for CO2 sequestration Alison Malcolm, Michael FehlerEarth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Self-assembled polymer-enzyme nanostructures for low-temperature CO2 reduction Bradley OlsenChemical Engineering
A novel framework for electrical grid maintenance Cynthia Rudin Management
Novel bioprocess for complete conversion of carbon feedstocks to biofuels Gregory StephanopoulosChemical Engineering
Ultra-low drag hydrodynamics using engineered nanostructures for efficiency enhancements in energy, water, and transportation systems Kripa VaranasiMechanical Engineering
Nanofilm-based thermal manage-ment device for concentrated solar energy conversion systemsEvelyn Wang Mechanical Engineering
Experimental study of millimeter-wave rock ablation Paul Woskov Plasma Science and Fusion Center
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Tsinghua/Cambridge/MIT alliance awards first research grantsOnOctober1,2009,TsinghuaUniversityinChina,theUniversityofCambridgeinEngland,andMITintheUnitedStatesjoinedforcestocreatetheLowCarbonEnergyUniversityAlliance(LCEUA).Throughthiscooperativerelationship,thethreeworld-classinstitutionswillconductcollaborativescientificresearchonlow-carbonenergytechnologiesandcarryoutpolicyresearchandanalysisonlow-carbonenergysolutions,withaparticularfocusonChina.
OnMarch25,2010,theLCEUAannounceditsfirstseedgrantawards.Theprojectsandtheirleadinvestigatorsareasfollows.
Geo-energy systems simulator: From building scale to city scale (Er-xiangSong,Tsinghua;KenichiSoga,Cam-bridge;AndrewWhittle,MIT).Districtenergysystemsbasedongeothermalenergyhavebeenavailableformorethantwodecades,butapplicationsaregenerallylimitedtobuildingsorsmallcommunities.Theirfeasibilityatthecityscalerequiresanewgenerationofmultidisciplinaryandmultiscaleassess-mentmethods.Thisresearchwilldeveloptoolsforexaminingtechnology,management,policy,andlegislationissuesrelatingtotheuseofgeothermalsystemstoprovidelow-carbon,renew-ableenergyatthecityscaleforheatingandcoolingbuildingsandinfrastructure.Thesetoolswillbuildconfidenceinlarge-scaleapplicationsofgeothermalsystemsintegratedwithurbaninfra-structureandalsowillallowcompari-sonswithothercandidatetechnologiessuchascombinedheatandpowersystemsandsolarthermalsystems.
Technology development for total conversion of sweet sorghum feedstock to biofuels(Shi-ZhongLi,Tsinghua;PaulDupree,Cambridge;GregoryStephanopoulos,MIT).Sweetsorghum
isanidealnon-foodfeedstockforethanolproduction.Tooptimizetheconversion,thisresearchwillimprovetheefficiencyofthefermentationprocess;investigatethestructureofplantcellwallstoimproveplantsforbiofuelproduction;andengineeryeaststhatcansimultaneouslyutilizepentoseandhexose(constituentsofcellwalls)andcantoleratehighlevelsoftheethanolproduced.Theoutcomecouldsurpassanycellulosicethanoltechnol-ogypresentlyunderdevelopmentduetotheutilizationofboththesolublesugarsandthecellulosicmaterialofthesorghumplant.
Innovative power generation technolo-gies for low-grade energy sources (MinZhu,Tsinghua;LipingXu,Cambridge).Industrialproductionisamajorcon-sumerofenergyinChina,andindustrialprocessesgeneratehugeamountsofwasteheatandcombustibleresidualgaseswithlowcalorificvalue.Whilesuchlow-graderesidualgasesareoftenusedinsteamboilers,muchhigherefficiencycouldbeachievedinprinciplebyusingthemincombinedcyclegasturbines.Oneobjectiveofthisprojectistoprovidenewinsightsintothedesignandoperationofgasturbinecombus-torsforlow-calorific-valuegases,inparticular,fromthepointofviewofflamefundamentalsandcombustionstability.AnotherobjectiveistoexplorethepotentialoforganicRankinecycleenginesforefficientlyconvertingwasteheattoelectricpower.TheseobjectivesarecloselyalignedwiththeChinesegovernment’spoliciestoextendgasturbinetechnologyandtoreduceemissionsandsaveenergy.
Biphasic sorbents for carbon mitigation: materials and process development (GuangshengLuo,Tsinghua;T.AlanHatton,MIT).Aminescrubbingwithselectedsolventsisaneffectivemeans
ofremovingdilutecarbondioxide(CO2)fromfluegasstreamsofcoal-firedpowerplants—thefirststepincarboncaptureandstorage.Usinghighsolventconcentrationswouldreducetheenergypenaltyandaddedcostofsuchscrub-bingbutwouldcauseunacceptableequipmentcorrosion.Thisprojectaimstodesignandengineersorbentsthatencapsulatetheconcentratedaminesolutionwithinahighlyporoussolidsupport.Becausethesolutionwillhaveminimalcontactwithequipmentsurfaces,amineconcentrationscanbehighwithnoadverseeffects.TheR&Dprogramincludessorbentdevelop-mentandprocessengineeringandreactordesignfortheeffectivecaptureandregenerationofCO2.
TheawardsareUS$400,000foratwo-waycollaborationandUS$600,000forathree-waycollaboration.Projectdurationistwotothreeyears.
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Moniz named to Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future
Why an alliance?
FormationoftheLCEUAwasmotivatedbythebeliefthatreducinggreenhousegasemissionsrequiresgoingtothesource.Together,China,theUnitedStates,andtheEuropeanUnionareresponsibleformorethanhalftheworld’senergyuseandassociatedcarbonemissions.Accordingly,thethreeinstitutionsofscienceandtech-nology—Tsinghua,Cambridge,andMIT—decidedtojoinforcestoestablishacooperative,multiregionalprogramtotakeonthechallengeofclimatechange.
Initsinitialstagesofoperation,theallianceisfocusingoneconomicandpolicymodelingforalow-carbonfuture,combustionandcarboncapture,low-carboncitiesandefficientindustry,biofuels,thermalenergyconversion,andnuclearpower.Thefirstcallforproposals,issuedinJanuary2010,elicited26proposalsinthosesixresearchareas,eachinvolvingresearch-ersatTsinghuaincollaborationwiththoseatCambridgeorMITorboth.
TheLCEUAwasinitiatedwithaninvestmentofaboutUS$10millionfromtheChinesegovernmenttofundcoreoperationsincludingcollaborativeseedprojects.Afundraisingcommitteeisnowactivelyseekingtobuildonthisinvestment.Theallianceismanagedbyasteeringcommitteemadeupoftwomembersfromeachuniversity.Thesteeringcommitteeisresponsibleforreviewingsubmittedproposalsandselectingthosetobefunded.
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
MITEnergyInitiativeDirectorErnestMonizhasbeennamedtotheBlueRibbonCommissiononAmerica’sNuclearFuture,whichwillproviderecommendationsfordevelopingasafe,long-termsolutiontomanagingthenation’susednuclearfuelandnuclearwaste,theUSDepartmentofEnergy(DOE)announcedonJanuary29.
MonizcurrentlyservesasamemberofPresidentBarackObama’sCouncilofAdvisersonScienceandTechnology(PCAST).MonizservedasDOEunder-secretaryfromOctober1997untilJanuary2001.From1995to1997,hewasassociatedirectorforscienceintheOfficeofScienceandTechnologyPolicyintheExecutiveOfficeofthePresident.MonizisalsodirectorofMIT’sLaboratoryforEnergyandtheEnvironment.HeistheCecilandIdaGreenProfessorofPhysicsandEngi-neeringSystemsatMIT,wherehehasbeenonthefacultysince1973.HehasservedasheadoftheDepart-mentofPhysicsandasdirectoroftheBatesLinearAcceleratorCenter.
Thecommission,whichwillbechairedbyformerCongressmanLeeH.HamiltonandformerNationalSecurityAdvisorBrentScowcroft,willproduceaninterimreportwithin18monthsandafinalreportwithin24months.Formoreinformation,gotohttp://www.energy.gov/news/8584.htm.
MITEI press briefing showcases energy research
OnFriday,March5,ProfessorErnestMoniz,directoroftheMITEnergyInitiative(MITEI),hostedapressbriefingonthelatestadvancesinenergyresearchatMIT.MonizkickedoffthebriefingwithanoverviewofMITEI.Morethan20journaliststhenlistenedasprominentMITenergyresearchersdescribedtheirworkandansweredquestionsfromtheaudience.Topicscoveredrangedfromnano-structuredmaterialsandliquidmetalbatteriestothermopowerwavesandanewcomputersimulationprogramthatcanshowthelong-termclimateconsequencesofemissions-reductionproposals.Thespeakersandtheirtopicsarelistedbelow.Forvideosofthepresentations,gotohttp://web.mit.edu/mitei/news/seminars/press-brief-3-5-10.html.
• Ernest MonizWelcomeandMITEIoverview
• Marc BaldoCenterforExcitonicsatMIT:anoverview
• Daniel NoceraCatalystforahighlymanufacturableandinexpensivestoragemechanismforsolarenergy
• Paula HammondMaterialsforenergyapplicationsusingelectrostaticassembly
• Gang ChenNanostructuredmaterialsforenergyapplications
• Michael StranoDiscoveryandapplicationofthermopowerwaves
• John StermanC-ROADS(ClimateRapidOverviewandDecisionSupport)policysimulationmodel
• Luis OrtizTheliquidmetalbattery,agrid-storagesolutionfordispatchablerenewableenergy
• Michael GreenstoneUnequalburdens:predictingthemortalityimpactsofclimatechangeintheUSandIndia
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New design-build class weaves nature into rural Cambodian schoolRebeccaGouldwasintriguedbyane-maildescribinganewclasswhereshecouldworkwithgraduatestudentsoutsideherdisciplineanddosome-thingthatcouldaffectpeople.“WeweretodesignaclassroominruralCambodiawithnaturallighting,noairconditioning,naturalventilation,noglass,andlownoiselevelbetweenclassrooms,”saysGould,ajuniorincivilengineering.Shejumpedattheopportunityandsignedupfor“DesignforaSustainableFuture.”
“Ourclasswasprimarilygradstudentsandpeopleinthearchitecturedepart-mentorbuildingtechnology,soIwasworkingwithpeoplewhohadbeenoutinthefieldandworkedbefore,”addsGould.“Ididn’tknowhowtocreateamasterplanbeforetheclass.”
Duringthefallsemester,shelearnedhowtoanalyzeabuildinganddesignacampus.Then,duringIndependentActivitiesPeriod(IAP)inJanuary,sheandherclassmatestraveledtoCambodiafor15daystoseehowwelltheirbuildingplanswouldworkonlocationandhowastructurecanbebuiltfromscratch—avaluableexperiencefortheundergraduateandgraduatestudentsalike.
“Physicalbuildingonsiteisincredible,”saysLisaPauli,athird-yearmaster’sstudentinarchitecturewhohadworkedforthreeyearsinNewYorkasadesigner.“Inschool,wetendtobelimitedtolearningaboutconstructioninoneortwodimensions.Butworkingonsiteoffersanentirelynewunderstand-ingofhowtopouraconcreteslaborlevelasite.”
AndreaLove,afirst-yeargraduatestudentinarchitecturewhohadworkedatasustainablearchitecturefirmforsevenyears,saysshelearnsbetterby
seeinganddoingthanbyreading.“There’salotyoucanlearninthefield.Whenyouactuallytryadesigninthefieldtoseeifitworks,itgivesyoualotofexperience.”Sheaddsthatsincethestudentswereworkingwithlocalunskilledlaborers,theymodifiedtheirdesignstoadapttolocalskillsets.
Duringtheproject,the15studentsintheclassandtheirthreeinstructorscollaboratedwithaCambodianarchi-tecturefirmandpeoplefromthelocalschool.TheMITgroupalsogotsomeunexpectedhelponsite.Thelocalschoolkidswatchingthemwetbricksinasmallpondsoonjoinedin.“Thekidsdidit,too,intheircuteschooluni-forms,”saysPauli.
Project-based learning
Thedesign-buildprojectstartedasaclassrunlastfallbyMarilyneAndersen,associateprofessorofbuilding
technologyandaphysicsengineer;JohnOchsendorf,associateprofessorofbuildingtechnologyandastructuralengineer;andJ.MeejinYoon,associateprofessorinarchitecturaldesignandalicensedarchitect.Theclasswasdividedintothreeteams,eachtaskedwithdesigningaK–12greenschoolintheprovinceofSiemReap,hometothefamousAngkorWattemplecom-plex.Theyalsowereaskedtosuggestimprovementstoanexistingschoolandtobuildakitchenforagovernment-runschoolnearby.
Intheclassroom,thestudentslearnedtouseLightsolve,MIT’shome-growndaylightingsimulationprogram,andRhinoceros,acommercial3Dmodelingprogram,tohelpguidetheirprojectdevelopment.Oneteamalsousedacomputationalfluiddynamicspro-gramtomodelandanalyzeairflowsaroundthebuildingsinitsproposedcampusdesign.“Theundergraduates’
Aspartofasustainabledesignclass,ateamofMITstudentstraveledtoCambodiatotestsomeoftheinnovativeideastheyhaddevelopedintheclassroom.Onechallengewastouseavailablelow-cost,low-energymaterialswhereverpossible.Here,schoolchildreneattheirlunchwhilesittingonnewrammed-earthbenchesmadefromsoilplus5%cementbinder.
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enthusiasmwasthroughtheroof,”Paulisays.“Theyjumpedintolearningthenewsoftwareprograms.”EverydesignwentthroughmanyiterationsbeforetheteamsheadedtoCambodia.
“Thisclassillustratestheextraordinaryimpactthatproject-basedlearninghasonstudentsateverylevel,”saysDonaldLessard,theEpochFoundationProfes-sorofInternationalManagementandco-chairoftheEnergyEducationTaskForce.“It’sverydifferentfromalectureinroom10-250andhasapositiveinfluenceontheirmotivationandhowtheylearninthefuture.Theygettoknowreal-worldstakeholdersandchallenges,givingtheirlearningexperiencenewrelevance.”
TheCambodianschool,knownastheJayPritzkerAcademy,isfundedbyDanPritzker,anentrepreneurwhoisbuildingEnglishK–12collegeprepara-toryschoolsinthecountry.Theschoolsarefreeandlookforbrightstudentsfromlow-incomefamiliesinSiemReap.TheaimistograduatestudentswhocouldeventuallyattendMITorothercollegesoverseas.Cambodia’seducatedclasswasdecimatedbytherulingKhmerRougeinthe1970s,leavingbehindalargelyagriculturalanduneducatedpopulation.
“ThePritzkerFoundationislookingathowtogetfromhumbleagriculturetotakingSATs,”explainsOchsendorf.ThePritzkersrevieweddesignspreparedbyeachofthethreeMITteams,plusonebyalocaldesigncompanyinCambo-dia,andmayultimatelypickelementsfromeachdesignforthenewschool.
Using what nature offers
Ochsendorfsaysstudentsandthegeneralpublicknowalotabouttheperformanceofcars,butdonotthinkofbuildingsashavingperformanceinthewaytheyuseenergyaswell.“Oneoftheprimarythingswehopefullyconveyedto[thearchitecture]studentsisthenotionthatbuildingperformanceshouldbepartofthewaytheydothings,”hesays.
InCambodia,thestudentshadtoconsiderthehumid,hotclimatewheretemperaturesoftenclimbto100°F,regionaltasteindesign,andtheorientationofbuildingsforcooling.“Theyhadtolookathowtheenviron-mentandlimitedresourcesdictatethedesignofabuilding,”hesays.
Usingavailablematerialsalsoledtosomecreativesolutions,accordingtoOchsendorf.Inthekitchenbuiltinthegovernmentschool,thestudentsreplaced30%oftheconcretewithlocal
ashfromburningricehuskstomakethefloorslab.ThisissimilartoRomanconcrete,whichismadewithvolcanicash,hesays.Themixturerecyclestheashandmakesforastrongconcrete,withlowergreenhousegasemissions.Anothermaterialinnovationwasaddinga5%cementbindertosoiltomakerammed-earthbenches.
Ochsendorfhopesthestudentswillcarryonwithsuchcreativethinkingwithinagivenenvironmentalsettingbecausedesignconsiderationsinadeveloped,colderarealikeMassa-chusettsaremuchdifferentthaninCambodia’stropical,low-infrastructureenvironment.
Multidisciplines are key
Yoonsaysthatwhiletherearedesign-buildprojectsatMITallthetime,theytypicallydon’thavethediversityoffacultyaswellaspublicserviceandsustainabilityaspectsofthisnewclass.“Ilearnedsomuchfrommycolleagues,”shesays.“AtMITweteachinside-by-sideclassrooms,butwedon’tteachallthreedisciplines[engineering,buildingphysics,andarchitecture]atthesametimeinthesameclassroom.”
Andersensaysshenoticedhowharditistoworkinaninterdisciplinaryway.“Therearelanguagedifferences.Itwas
Inadditiontodesigningalternativesforanewlow-energyschoolcampusfor800students,theMITstudentsconductedaserviceprojectbybuildingakitchenforasmalllocalschool.Intheleft-handphoto,MITgraduatestudentsinarchitecture(lefttoright)JosephNunez,AdamGalletly,ZacharyLamb,Yan-PingWang,andLeeDykxhoornmoveaconcretecisternintoplace.Intheright-handphoto,SamanthaCohen’11ofcivilandenvironmentalengineeringlaysbricksforthevaultedroofofthepantry.
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tohavereachedouttoabroaderrangeofengineeringstudentsbyadvertisingtheclassearlier,buttheverylargenumberofapplicantsfromarchitectureitselfshowsthatthiswasthekindofclassstudentswereeagertoseeoffered,”shesays.Shejudgestheclassasuccessbecauseitforcedallofthestudents—thegraduatestudents,whowereprimarilyinarchitecture,andtheundergraduatesincivilengi-neering—tothinkoutsidetheirusualcomfortzone.“Itwasarichlearningexperienceforboththemandus.Theyhadtothinkcross-boundaryandhadtoincorporatenewkindsofdesignobjectives.Ultimately,itenhancescreativity,”shesays.“Thehopeistheywillnowseedesigninamoreholisticway.”
• • •
By Lori Fortig, MITEI correspondent
asuccessonlybecausethethreeprofessorsworkedtogetherverywell,”shesays.
“Workingacrossdisciplineswassoimportant,aswasworkingwiththepeoplewhoworkandlivethere,”addsPauli.“Wewentthroughthefullcycleofadesign.”Oneexamplewastheroofforthenewschool.“Weuseddigitalmodelingsoftwaretoanalyzethebuildingandthenadjustedourroofoverhangsandwindowopeningstocreateanidealindoortemperatureforthestudents,”saysPauli.Toventilatetheclay-tiledroof,theMITteamcameupwithalayereddesignofclaytiles,avaporbarrier,corrugatedmetal,insulationboard,anairgap,andmoreinsulationboard.
Andersensaysshehadhopedtheclass,whichwascompetitive—therewere40applicants—wouldhaveattractedmoreengineers.“Wewouldhaveliked
Here,teammembersfinishbuildingthevaultthatisatthecoreofthekitchen.Afewdayslater,theschoolchildrenwereservedtheirfirstmealinthenewkitchen.
This class was supported in part by the Dirk (SB 1975) and Charlene (SB 1979) Kabcenell Foundation.
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UndergraduateenergyeducationatMITwastransformedthisyearwiththelaunchofthemultidisciplinary,Institute-wideEnergyStudiesMinor.Nowthattransformationhastheresourcesitneedstomoveoutofthestartupphase,thankstotwomajorgiftstotheMITEnergyInitiative(MITEI):$5.37millionfromtheS.D.Bechtel,Jr.Foundationand$2.4millionfromananonymousdonor.
Thosegiftsaddtothe$1milliongrantprovidedbytheDirk(SB1975)andCharlene(SB1979)KabcenellFounda-tioninJune2007—beforetheminorwasestablished—todevelopnewenergy-relatedcurriculaandstrengthenexistingprograms.Todate,theMITEIEnergyEducationTaskForcehasputtheKabcenellgranttouseinthecreationorrevisionof10classesandfourworkshopsspanningthepriorityareasoftheminor:energyscience,energytechnologyandengineering,andenergysocialscience.
Oneoftheoriginalgoalsoftheminorwastotransformundergraduateenergyeducationfromadiffusesetofofferingstoacoherentandcoordinatedcurricu-lumaccessibletoallundergraduates.Therewasaprofusionofenergy-relatedclasses,buttherewasnoclearpathwayforstudentsinterestedinenergy.“MIThasavastcoursecatalogthatcanbedauntingforanystudentlookingforaclassthatinterestshimorher,”saysseniorChristopherCarper.“ThecurriculumoftheEnergyStudiesMinorpointsoutrelevantcoursesforinter-estedstudents,regardlessofmajor.”
TheenergyminorisintendedtocomplementanymajorinanyMITschool,inparttoencouragestudentstotakeclassesindisciplinesthattheymaynototherwiseexplore.Thatrequirementwasaneye-openerfor
Carper,amechanicalengineeringmajor.Inchoosinganelectivefromalistofabouttwodozenpossibilities,hesettledonanarchitectureclass.Itwasfullofnewtopicsforhim—fromstudyingthevaporandthermalpermeabilityofafaçadeinordertopinpointcondensa-tionriskstodeterminingtheeffectofafaçade’sthermalmassontemperaturestabilization.“BeforetakingIntroduc-tiontoBuildingTechnology,Ineverunderstoodhowapplicablemechanicalengineeringistosustainablebuildingdesign,”hesays.
Focus on project-based learning
Overfiveyears,thegiftfromtheS.D.Bechtel,Jr.Foundationwillsupportthecreationandimplementationofeightnewenergy-relatedclasses,halfofwhichwillbeproject-basedclasseswithanemphasisonappliedskills.Thegoalistoensurethatthecurriculum
coversthewidestpossiblespectrumofenergy-relatedtopicsandthatitissufficientlyflexibletoaccommodateanyinterestedstudent.Eachyear,acallwillbeissuedtoalldepartmentsforproposalsfromfacultyinterestedindevelopingeitherproject-basedortraditionalclasses.“MIT’snewenergyminor,withitsmultidisciplinaryapproachandemphasisonproblem-focusedlearning,isjustthekindofeducationthatengineersneedtomakeadifferenceinenergy,”saysLaurenDachs,presidentoftheS.D.Bechtel,Jr.Foundation.“Weareexcitedtohelptheminormoveintoitsnextphaseofdevelopment.”
Thegiftwillalsobeusedtoidentifyandrenovateproject-basedteachingspacetoservemultipleclassesanddisciplines.Project-basedclassesmayinvolveactivitiesrangingfromfeasibilitystudiesandsystemsimula-
Two major gifts bolster MIT energy minor
“D-Lab:Energy”labinstructorSarahReedGofmechanicalengineering(secondfromright)andmentorGwynJones,instructorintheEdgertonCenter(secondfromleft),discussmaterialoptionsforatoolthatTylerLiechty’10(left)andJulianaVelez’11designedtoimprovethespeedandeffectivenessofphotovoltaicpanelcuttingataNicaraguanmanufacturerofsolarcellphonechargers.
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tionstothedesignandconstructionofprototypedevices.Suchactivitiesoftenhaveneedsnotmetbytraditionalclassrooms—fromlaboratoryequip-mentandspacetosimplestoragefacilities.Project-basedlearningisonewaytheminorhelpsstudentsdevelopabroadviewofenergyandtheskillstotacklereal-worldchallenges.JeffreyMekler,aseniorinaeronauticsandastronautics,wantedtogetabetterunderstandingofenergyalternativesafterbeinginvolvedinaclassprojectonhowtoimprovewindturbineperformance.“Theminorfocusednotonlyonenergytechnologiesbutalsoonthelargersocial,political,andeconomiccontextsthatenergytechnologies—andperhapsmoreimportantlyengineers—mustoperatein,”hesays.“Myclassesencouragedmetothinkaboutsolutionstoourenergychallengesthatcombinetechnologieswithpolicyandmarketsolutions.”
Thethirdcomponentofthegiftfocusesonsharingthenewapproachesandmaterialsoftheenergyminorwithfaculty,students,andhighschoolteachers.MechanismsforsharingincludeMIT’sOpenCourseWare(OCW),webresources,andprintandelectronictextbooks.Afterthreeyears,15classeswillbeofferedonanewOCW“energyplatform.”Withtheseactivities,thesupportfromtheS.D.Bechtel,Jr.Foundationwillhelpimproveenergyeducationaroundtheglobe.
AsignificantachievementoftheenergyminorhasbeentosupportclassesthatbringtogetherfacultyandstudentsfromdiverseareasoftheInstitute.However,thatintegrationcreatesdifficultiesbecauseaclassspanningdisciplinesdoesnotfallwithinany
singledepartment’sareaofrespon-sibility.Facultyleadersareabletoengagecolleaguesfromacrosscampustoco-teachtheirclasses,butthereisnoclearsourceoffundingtosupportgraduateteachingassistants.Theanonymousgifthashelpedestablishafundforthatimportantpurpose.
RobertArmstrong,ChevronProfessorofChemicalEngineeringanddeputydirectorofMITEI,says,“TheenergyminorishavingatransformativeeffectonoureducationprogramandwillhavealastingimpactonMIT.Thetworecentgiftsarehelpingustoensurethattheminorisrobustandthatwecansustainanenvironmentofeducationalinnovationinthisimportantarea.”
ForoneofthefirstMITstudentstograduatewiththeminor,thatinnova-tionhasbothpersonalandpracticalimplications.“IcanonlyimaginethattheEnergyStudiesMinorwillhaveapositiveimpactonmycareeropportunities,”saysCarper.“ItmaybethemostvaluableminoratMITbecauseoftherapidgrowthofenergy-relatedindustriesaroundtheworld.”
Teaching and learning about energy...
JuliePaul’10,astudentin“D-Lab:Energy,”showsoffherteam’sprototypeofa“stove-within-a-stove,”aninsertfabricatedofaluminumsheetingtoenableresidentsofruralNicaraguatosubstitutecleaner-burningcharcoalforwoodasacookingfuel.
ProfessorVladimirBulovicofelectricalengineeringandcomputersciencedescribeselectron“tunneling,”aquantum-mechanicalphenomenonthatgovernschargetransportinsemiconductingmaterialsusedinphotovoltaicsolarcells,duringalecturein“Electromag-neticEnergy:FromMotorstoLasers.”
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...from the lab to the lecture hall
StudentsdiscussenergyefficiencypoliciesandpoliticswithProfessorJudyLayzerofurbanstudiesandplanning(atfarleft)inhernewundergraduateseminar,“ThePoliticsofEnergyandtheEnvironment.”
MargaretLloyd’12reviewsfindingsontravelemissionsduringherteam’spresentationofanupdatedMIT“carbonfootprint”studycompletedduring“ProjectsinEnergy,”across-disciplinaryclasstargetingfreshmenandsophomoresandsupportedbythed’ArbeloffFundforExcellenceinEducation.
Summer opportunities for energy professionals
MITProfessionalEducation—ShortProgramsofferscoursesoftwotofivedaysinlengthontheMITcampusduringthesummer.ShortProgramsaregearedtoworkingprofessionalsinengineeringandscience,andtheyattractaworldwidestudentbodywithmanydifferentinterests.Professionalsfromindustry,government,andaca-demiacometolearnfromMITexpertsandbringactionableinformationbacktotheirorganizations.MITShortProgramsreachabroadspectrumofprofessionalswhocancommunicateindustryperspectives.Inkeepingwiththestronginterestinenergyonaswellasoffcampus,ShortProgramswillofferthefollowingcoursesforsummer2010.
• Biofuelsfrombiomass:technologyandpolicyconsiderations(G.Stephanopoulos)
• Carboncaptureandstorage:science,technology,andpolicy(R.Juanes,H.Herzog)
• Cleanenergytechnology:understand-ingmaterialslimitationsandopportuni-ties(G.Ceder,J.Grossman,H.Tuller)
• Designofmotors,generators,anddrivesystems(J.Kirtley,S.Leeb)
• Energyinthecontextofclimatepolicy:strategicchallengesandopportunities(M.Webster)
• Modelingandsimulationoftransportationnetworks(M.Ben-Akiva)
• Nuclearplantsafety(M.Kazimi,N.Todreas)
• Organic,molecular,andnanostructuredelectronics:physicsandtechnology(V.Bulovic,M.Baldo)
• Presentandfutureinternalcombustionengines:performance,efficiency,emissions,andfuels(J.Heywood,W.Cheng)
• Solarenergy:capturingthesun(D.Nocera)
Formoreinformation,[email protected] .
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Energy Futures Week 2010
EnergyFuturesWeek2010wasfilledwithenergy-relatedeventstoinspireandeducatetheMITcommunityaswelooktothefutureofsustainableenergy.TheweekwaspartofMIT’sIndependentActivitiesPeriod(IAP)inJanuary,whichoffersabreakfromtheacademicroutineofthefallandspringsemesters.Morethan20events—includinglectures,paneldiscussions,tours,informationses-sions,strategygames,andworkingsessions—ensuredthatEnergyFuturesWeekembodiedthespiritofIAP.
Above:ProfessorJohnStermandescribesC-ROADS,asimulationmodelthatcanquicklycalculatetheclimateimpactsofspecificmitigationproposals.Aboveright:AfterSterman’spresentation,participantsinthesessiondividedintoregionalgroups,negotiatedemissions-reductionproposals,reconvenedforplenarypresentations,andrantheirproposalsthroughthesimulation.TheUSDepartmentofStateusesC-ROADStoanalyzetheclimateimpactsofvariouscountry-levelproposalsandsharedthatunderstandingwithotherpartiestothe2009UNClimateChangeConferenceinCopenhagen.Seehttp://climateinteractive.orgformoreinformation.
Left:LucyFan’12helpstomakeBuildingE52moreenergyefficientbyapplyingcaulktoawindowgap.Duringthisworkshop,stafffromMIT’sDepartmentofFacilitiesdiscussedanddemonstratedbuildingweatherizationtechniques.
Clockwisearoundtablefromleft:LindaPattonofHousing,RuthDavisofFacilities,RyanGrayandPeterNormanoftheMITLibraries,andWilliamVanSchalkwykoftheEnvironment,Health,andSafetyOfficebrainstormstrategiestopromotegreenerpracticesfortheoffice.TheinteractiveGreenAmbassadorsworkshopprovidedinsightsonbehaviorchangeresearchtostudentsandstafffromallcornersoftheInstitute.(Seepage32formoreonMIT’sGreenAmbassadors.)
KellyRan’12discussesdetailsoftheMITSolarElectricVehicleTeam’slatestcar,Eleanor,atthestudentprojectsshowcaseduringEnergyFuturesWeek.Theeventfeaturedtheworkofstudentsactiveinresearchandgroupsoncampusthatrevolvearoundenergy,theenvironment,andsustainability.
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ITEI
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Fund helps energy efficiency bloom across campusOnehurdlecollegesanduniversitiesfaceastheytrytoimproveenergyefficiencyisfiguringouthowtopayforit.Thelong-termsavingsfromthesekindsofprojectscanbesignificantforalargeinstitution—doneright,suchaplancouldsaveMITseveralmilliondollarsonitsenergybilleachyear.Buttheseenergyprojectsrequiresubstantialup-frontinvestment,andthatcanbechallengingforschoolsstrugglingwithbudgetcuts.
MITisonapathtomeetthischallenge,thankstoa$1milliongiftfromJeffreySilverman‘68aboutoneyearago.Withthismoney,theInstitutehasestablishedafundtosupportcampusenergyandefficiencyprojectsthathaverapid“paybacks”—orsavingsthataccrueandthencanbereinvestedintoadditionalprojects.
Silvermanwasintriguedbythisgivingopportunitybecauseitallowedhimtomakeamajordifferenceathisalmamaterwhilealsoleveraginghisinitialinvestmentsothatitcouldgrowandbeusedindifferentways.“Theideaofprovidingtheseedmoneythatwasgoingtocreatesavingsandthengetreinvestedintomoresavingsinterestedme,”hesaid.Hewasalsoimpressedthatthefundwasdesignedsothatthesavingswouldberigorouslymeasured,documented,andverified.
Silverman,asuccessfulcommoditiestrader,firstheardabouttheinvestmentopportunityfromTheresaM.Stone,MIT’sexecutivevicepresidentandtreasurer,whoalsoco-chairstheCampusEnergyTaskForce.ThetaskforcewasestablishedbytheMITEnergyInitiativetohelpMIT“walkthetalk”onenergyuse.Stonebudgeted$500,000inseedmoneyin2008topromoteenergyconservationworkinresponsetoareviewbytheDepartmentof
FacilitiesandastudentteamfromtheMITSloanSchoolofManagement’sLaboratoryforSustainableBusiness.ThatreviewdeterminedthattheInstitutecouldsaveabout$6millioneachyear—or10%ofitsannualenergybill—throughconservationprojectsthathavequickpaybacks.Stone’steamthendevelopedalistofappropriatepaybackprojects,estimatingtheywouldcostMIT$14millioninoneupfrontinvestment.
SilvermanwaseagertocontributetoStone’seffort,andsoinApril2009heformedtheSilvermanEvergreenEnergyFund.DaviddesJardins‘83,aconsultantandinvestorwhoisalsopassionateaboutcampusenergyissues,hassincedonatedanadditional$500,000totheeffort.
“ThegiftsmadebyJeffandDavidmarkedvotesofconfidenceinourcommitmenttoimplementdisciplined,measurableimprovementsdesignedtoimprovecampusenergyefficiency,”Stonesays.“Theirseedmoneycontin-uestobearfruitfortheMITcommunityandforthosewhovalueourexample.”
Todate,thefundhaspaidtoupgradethelightingsystemsintheRayandMariaStataCenterforComputer,Information,andIntelligenceSciences,aswellastheStrattonStudentCenter.Thetwoprojectsrequiredacombinedinvestmentofnearly$600,000andhaveresultedinestimatedannualsavingsofabout$185,000,meaning
theywillhavepaidforthemselvesafteraboutthreeyears.
AnothermajorfocusoftheSilvermanfundhasbeentorecalibratethenearly200fumehoodsintheDreyfusChemis-tryBuilding(Building18).Fumehoodsaremassiveventilationdevicesthatprotectresearchersfrompotentialchemicalexposurebysuckingupairandexhaustingitoutside—andtheyrequirealotofenergy.Asignificantamountofthisenergyconsumptioncanbereducedbyloweringthevolumeofairthatmovesthroughthehoodswhilestillprovidingthesamelevelofprotec-tion.Thisprojectcostabout$430,000andwillsaveabout$160,000annually.
ThesavingsfromthefirstroundofprojectsfinancedbytheSilvermanfundwillbereinvestedintoasecondroundofenergyconservationwork.Theseadditionalprojectswillmostlikelyincludemorelightingretrofitsandfumehoodwork.Theycouldalsoinvolvestrategiesforreducingheating,ventilation,andair-conditioningneedsinunoccupiedspaces.Afterthissecondroundofinvestmentsisdeployed,Stonewillexaminethefund’seffectivenessinmeetingtheInstitute’sgoalsforpaybackopportunities.
InformationonotherinnovativecampusenergyprogramsatMITandanewlyreleasedtaskforceupdatereportareavailableathttp://web.mit.edu/mitei/campus.
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By Morgan Bettex, MIT News Office
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MIT ambassadors spread the word on ways to “walk the talk” JessicaE.GarrettwasalreadygivingherEdgertonCentercolleaguestipsongoinggreen—takethestairs,bringreusablecontainerstothelunchtrucks,turnofflights—whenshefoundoutaboutanewCampusEnergyTaskForceprogramaimedatpromotingsustain-ablepracticesoncampus.Now,whenshejokinglymakesherco-workersearntherighttodisplay“Iwalkthetalk”postcardsontheirofficedoors,GarrettisperformingherdutyasaGreenAmbassador.
TheGreenAmbassadorsprogramcreatesandempowersanetworkofstudent,staff,andfacultyvolunteerstopromotesustainablepractices.Energyconservation,greenpurchasing,alterna-tivetransportation—thesky’sthelimit,solongasitmakesMITalittlegreener.
“TheGreenAmbassadorsprogramseekstohelpestablishMITasamodelofcommunity-engagedsustainabilitythroughstrengtheningoursustainabil-itycommunity,providingandsharingcriticalinformationandknowledge,driving‘place-based’action,supportingcollaboration,andsharingbestprac-tices,”saysStevenM.Lanou,deputydirectorforenvironmentalsustainabilityandamemberoftheCampusEnergyTaskForceoftheMITEnergyInitiative.
Therearecurrently172GreenAmbas-sadorsacrosscampus.OneofthemisPeterH.Fisher,professorofphysics.“Itrytokeeppeopleoffairplanes.Imoveprinterstowheretheyareinconvenientsopeopleprintless.Iputtherecyclingbinnearthedeskandtheregularwastebasketontheothersideoftheroom,”hesays.“Centralismybeliefthatlivingwellandlivingsustainablyaredeeplyrelated.”
TheGreenAmbassadorsprogramhelpsindividualsshareinformationand
enablesbestpracticesthatcanmakeadifference.“Atabasiclevel,GreenAmbassadorsshowbyexamplethechoicesandpracticesthatcanbeadoptedtohaveanimpact,”Lanousays.Hisofficecoordinatesthedevelop-mentofoutreachandeducationalmaterialaswellasnetworkingtools.Lanou’sstaff,alongwithanactiveandengagedsteeringcommitteeofstudentandstaffvolunteers,hostseventstostrengthenthenetworkandhelpsGreenAmbassadorsidentify“greening”opportunities.
Expanding on past success
TheGreenAmbassadorsprogramisanoutgrowthofcampusworkinggroupsinrecyclingandotherinitiativesthathavebeeninexistenceforaslongas10years,accordingtoNiamhKelly,assistantofficerfortheEnvironment,Health,andSafetyOffice(EHS),whohasbeenworkingwithLanoutodeveloptheprogram.
StudentswhohelpedsetthestagefortheprogramincludePamelaLundin,graduatestudentinchemistry,andJialanWang,graduatestudentinfinancialeconomics.Foundersofthestudentgroup“ClosingtheLoop,”LundinandWangspearheadedarecentpilotprojectthatslashedafter-hourselectricityuseinBuildings16and56.
“Therehavebeen‘greening’initiativesoncampusforalongtime,butwithoutaname,”Kellysays.“Theambassadorsprogramisalittlebroaderthanprevi-ouseffortsbecauseitincludeselementssuchaspurchasingandgreenevents—andissponsoredbyanInstitute-wideinitiative.”
Inresponsetorequestssuchas“Whatcanwedoinouroffice?”KellyandLanoutooktheirshowontheroadwith
presentationsthathavesinceturnedintohandoutsabouttopicssuchashowtoincreaseenergyefficiencyandrecyclingandhowtosetcomputers,monitors,andprintersonenergy-savingmodes.UsingtheirownN52office-matesasguineapigs,KellyandLanoupostsustainability-relatednewsonbulletinboards,printdouble-sided,andvanquishscreensavers,Kellysays.LanouplanstopostdataonhowmuchenergyisconsumeddailybytheEHScopymachines,computers,andwatercoolers.
“Asindividuals,weoftenfeelpowerlesstomakeanimpactonglobalclimatechange.Whenanindividualswitchestoabetterpractice,theimpactismulti-pliedasotherslearnofandadoptthenewpractice.Whenindividualactionbecomescollectiveaction,theaggre-gatecanhaveaverylargecumulativeimpact,”Lanousays.
Breaking down barriers
AccordingtoKatA.Donnelly,anEngineeringSystemsDivisiongraduatestudentresearchingbehaviorchangeandenergyefficiencywhopresentedherfindingsataGreenAmbassadorseventduringIndependentActivitiesPeriod2010,oneofthereasonspeopledon’tconserveenergymaybethefactthatenergyisinvisible—there’snofeedbackfromthesystemonhowmuchwe’reusing.
Donnellyadvocatesanapproachcalledcommunity-basedsocialmarketing,whichfocusesonbehaviorchange.Equallyeffectiveinoffices,dormitories,andlaboratories,socialmarketinginvolvesputtingyourselfinotherpeople’sshoestounderstandtheirbiasesanddeterminetheprobabilityandpotentialimpactofkeybehaviorchanges.Inthisway,shesays,Green
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Ambassadorscanhelpuncoverbarrierstosavingenergyanddesignapproachestobreakdownthosebarriers.
Socialmarketingreliesonincentivesandeducation—tacticsnowbeingusedbyMITambassadors.TheCampusEnergyTaskForcehaslaunchededuca-tionalstrategiessuchasposterande-mailcampaignsthatquantifythesavingsassociatedwithusingrevolvingdoors,closinglabfumehoodswhennotinuse,andturningofflights.“WeprovidedsomeharddatathatwouldanswerthequestionsatypicalMITcampusmemberwouldask,”Kellysays.
Garrett,theEdgertonCenterinstructorandGreenAmbassador,knowsthevalueofincentives.Shepubliclyacknowledgesandcongratulatesher“green”colleaguesatstaffmeetings—atacticDonnellywouldapplaud.“It’scheesy,butitdoesgetpeopletellingme
Fromleft,JessicaGarrettandAmyFitzgerald,instructorsintheEdgertonCenter,andPaulaCogliano,administrativeassistantintheOfficeofExperientialLearning,bringreusableplasticcontainerstoalunchtruck.GarretthadbeenadvocatingsuchsustainablepracticesevenbeforeshejoinedtheteamofGreenAmbassadors.
whattheyaredoingandthinkingofwaystheycouldmakemorechanges.Amazingwhatpeoplewilldoforafreepostcard.”And,shemightadd,achancetohelpsavetheplanet.
• • •
By Deborah Halber, MITEI correspondent
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Students tackle the climate crisis from Cambridge to Copenhagen WhileworldleadersattherecentUnitedNationsclimatesummitwrestledwiththethornypoliticssurroundingglobalagreement,MITstudentsandtheirpeersfromaroundtheworldwereinperfectaccord:Theypledgedtomaketheirowncampusesgreenerandtospreadthewordofstudent-ledinitiativesthatseektotackleclimatechange.
MITstudentstraveledtoCopenhagenduringthe2009UNClimateChangeConference(COP15)toattendaworkshopconvenedbyYalestudentspartneringwiththeUniversityofCopenhagenandtoorganizeandattendeventsthroughtheWorldStudentCommunityforSustainableDevelopment(WSC-SD).
Theworkshop,attendedbymorethan60universitystudentsfromtheUnitedStates,Canada,Sweden,Denmark,Switzerland,Australia,Japan,andChina,exploredwaysstudentsandtheirinstitutionscanminimizeenviron-mentaldamageandpromotesustain-ablesolutions.TheeventtookplaceDecember13–14attheUniversityofCopenhagen.Inthecomingyear,universityteams,includingMIT’s,willimplementprojectsontheircampusesandreportbacktothegroup.Thehopeisthatbysharingbestpractices,universitiescanhelpinspireinstitu-tionalchangebeyondtheircampuses.
KatherineDykes,EngineeringSystemsDivisiongraduatestudent,vicepresidentoftheMITEnergyClub,andastudentrepresentativeontheMITEnergyInitiative’sCampusEnergyTaskForce,presentedanoverviewofMIT’smanycampusinitiativesattheworkshop.“Itwasreallygreattoseethekindofbottom-upeffortsthatarehappeningallovertheglobe,as
evidencedbytheglobalparticipationattheevent,”shesays.
Dykes’presentationaddressedtheInstitute’scurrentstatusandfuturedirectionsfor“greeningMIT.”Shediscussedpossiblesourcesoffundingforcampus-focusedinitiativesandhowtotrackimplementationofthoseinitiatives.Dykesreportedtoworkshopparticipantsonmorethan20MITactivitiesthatrangefromconservingwater,compostingfoodwaste,andmeteringenergyuseindormstoretrofittinglightingandheatingsys-tems,poweringdowncomputerswhennotinuse,andbuildingsilverandgoldLEED-certifiedbuildings.Sheplanstospearheadastudentefforttoassesscurrentandpastprogramsdirectedatcampusenergy,environmental,and
sustainabilityissuestoidentifywhat,amongMIT’smanyandvariedprojects,isandisn’tworking.“Ihopethatthestudywearedoingwillproviderealinsightastohowandwhyourenergyandsustainabilityprogramsaredoingwellandprovideguidanceforfutureefforts,”Dykessays.
ShesaysthebestthingabouttheCopenhagenworkshop“wasthecon-nectionsformedbetweenthedifferentuniversitygroups.It’sagreatwaytosharebestpracticesandkeepeachotheraccountableforwhatweproposetodo.”
Inanefforttogaugehowwellcampussustainabilityprogramsareworking,theMITstudentteamwillcollaboratewithcounterpartsatYaleandCarnegie
KatherineDykes,anMITgraduatestudentintheEngineeringSystemsDivision,wasamongtheparticipantsatastudent-runworkshopongreeninguniversitycampuses,heldduringtheUNClimateChangeConferenceinCopenhageninDecember2009.Dykestoldworkshopattendees—morethan60studentsfromuniversitiesworldwide—aboutMIT’smanyinitiativestocutcampusenergyuse,reduceenvironmentalimpacts,andincreasesustainability.
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MellonUniversityonhowcampusesbenchmarkandmeasuretheimpactoftheirprograms.Inthisearlystageofthestudy,theactualmethodsofmeasuringandmonitoringarestillbeingdiscussed,Dykessays.MITEI’sCampusEnergyTaskForcesupportedanundergraduatestudenttoassistwiththeprojectduringspringsemester.
Inspiring thought-leaders
TwootherstudentstraveledtoCopenhagen.AsmembersofSustain-ability@MIT,astudentumbrellagroup,AaronThom,aseniorincivilandenvironmentalengineering,andKatherineE.Potter,agraduatestudentinearth,atmospheric,andplanetarysciences,areautomaticallyaffiliatedwiththeWSC-SD.Thisgroupbringstogetherstudentcommunitiesworkingonenvironmentalsustainabilityallovertheglobe,soCopenhagenwasaprimefocalpoint.Fromtheconference,PotterandThom“contributedtoablog(http://cop15.wscsd.org/),releasedane-bookofstudents’connectionstoclimatechange(http://wscsd.org/2009/12/11/resolutions-21-young-leaders-on-climate-change/),andheldaget-togetherunitingstudentspresentatCOP15,”Pottersays.
TheWSC-SDe-book,RE:SOLUTIONS—21 Young Leaders on Climate Change,showcased20innovativestudent-ledprojectsrangingfromasolar-poweredopenaircinematoreforestationpro-jects,alldemonstratingthatstudentsworldwidearetakingtheleadontacklingclimatechange.Thepublicationaimsto“inspirethought-leadersinbusiness,academia,andcivilsocietytoacknowledgeandsupportstudentinitiatives,”accordingtotheWSC-SD.
JohnSterman,theJayW.ForresterProfessorofManagementanddirector
oftheMITSloanSchoolofManage-ment’sSystemDynamicsGroup,alsoattendedtheCopenhagenconferencealongwithateamfromClimateInteractive—aconsortiummadeupoftheMITSloangroup,theVermont-basedSustainabilityInstitute,theHarvard,Mass.-basedsoftwarecom-panyVentanaSystems,andmanyMITalumni.ClimateInteractivedevelopedtheC-ROADSclimatepolicysimulationmodelusedbytheUSnegotiatingteam.
“StudentssuchasKatherineDykesandtheotherswhoattendedtheCopenhagenclimateconferencenotonlyhadachancetoseetheinterna-tionalnegotiationprocessupclose,butbyorganizingandspeakingatavarietyofworkshopsandsideeventstheywereleadersthemselves,”Stermansays.“Gettingoutofthelabandengagingwithpolicymakersisavitalpartofthat‘mensetmanus’MITspirit.”
Bytheendoftheconference,aftereightdrafttextsandall-daytalksamong115worldleaders,PresidentBarackObamahelpedbrokerapoliticalagreementamongChina,SouthAfrica,India,Brazil,andtheUnitedStates.Theso-calledCopenhagenAccordacknowledgesthatclimatechangeisoneoftoday’sgreatestchallengesbutdoesnotcommitcountriestospecificemissionsreductions.Callingthedeala“meaningfulagreement,”Obamasays,“Thisprogressisnotenough.Wehavecomealongway,butwehavemuchfurthertogo.”
“Howinspiringitwastoseethemassesofprofessionals,politicians,scientists,andtheworldcommunity,youngandold,descenduponCopenhagenfortheclimatetalks,”Pottersays.“Therewasnodoubtthattheworldseestheneedforaction—nopiddlydebateovertherealityofitall.”MITstudentsand
theircounterpartsfromaroundtheworldshowedthatwhenitcomestomediatingtheworld’sclimatewoes,universities’actionsareliketheirwords:loudandclear.
• • •
By Deborah Halber, MITEI correspondent
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A silver lining to the Copenhagen cloud?
AlthoughDecember’sUNClimateChangeConferenceinCopenhagenwaswidelyportrayedasafailure,somespeakersatanMITpaneldiscussiononFriday,February5,suggestedthatitsresultsactuallyrepresentrealprogressintheworld’seffortstoheadoffthedangersofclimatechange—andthatinfacttheresultsmayhavebeenbetter,inthelongrun,thananoutcomethatmostpeoplewouldhaveconsidereda“success”atthetime.
TheCopenhagenconference“haselicitedsomestrongreactions,bothpositiveandnegative,”saidMITEnergyInitiativeDirectorErnestJ.Monizasheintroducedthepanelistsfortheevent,called“TheRoadfromCopenha-gen.”OfficiallyknownastheCOP15conference(15thConferenceoftheParties),somehavetakentocallingit“Copout15,”hesaid.“Ataminimum,itwasaninterestingprocess.”
RobertStavins,professorofbusinessandgovernmentatHarvard’sKennedySchoolofGovernment,openedwitharelativelyupbeatassessment.“Whatwouldhavebeenpossible,butIthinkunfortunate,wouldhavebeenasignedinternationalagreement”attheconclusionoftheconference,hesaid.“Unfortunate,becausetheonlyagree-mentfeasiblewouldhavebeen‘Kyotoonsteroids,’”hesaid—thatis,anagreementthatperpetuatedthestruc-tureoftheKyotoAccordsignedin1997(whichcalledforreductionsinemis-sionsby39industrializednations).Thatagreementhadnosetrequirementforactionbyemergingeconomies,andStavinssaidthatanysimilaragreementfromCopenhagenmighthavebeensignedbyUSrepresentativesattheconference,butwouldneverhavebeenratifiedbytheUSSenate.
WhatemergedbytheendoftheCopenhagenprocessinstead,Stavinssaid,wasreal,substantivenegotiationbeingcarriedoutdirectlybyheadsofstate,includingPresidentBarackObama.Stavinscalledthissortofnegotiation“virtuallyunprecedented.”Inthiscase,thehigh-leveltalksledto“whatIwouldcharacterizeasasignificantpoliticalaccord,”which,hesaid,addressedthetwokeydeficienciesofKyoto:Ithasexpandedtheagree-menttoinclude,sofar,nationsrespon-sibleformorethan80%ofallgreenhousegasemissions,anditextendedthetimeframecoveredbytheagreementfrom2012to2050.
MichaelGreenstone,the3MProfessorofEnvironmentalEconomicsatMIT,listedallthereasonstheUnitedStatesoughttochangeitspolicyonclimatechange.Greenstone,whojustreturnedtoMITafterayearaschiefeconomistontheCouncilofEconomicAdvisersattheWhiteHouse,saidthatprojec-tionsoftheimpactofthemeasuresnowbeingdiscussedsuggestthattheseproposalswillbarelymakeadentintheproblem.Healsosaidthatatargetofstabilizingcarbondioxidelevelsintheatmosphereat450partspermillion,assomehaveproposed,isnotpoliti-callyfeasible.Andhecomplainedthatcurrentproposalstoachieveemissionsreductionsrelyonmeasuresthatcannotbeverified.
“Currenttechnologiestomonitorreductionsareverypoor,”hesaid.Hesuggestedseveralpolicymeasurestoaddresstheseissues.Herecommendedashiftofresearchanddevelopmentfundingawayfromnewenergysourcesandtowardloweringtheemissionsofexistingfossil-fuelpowerplants,anddevelopingcarbonsequestrationtechnologiesandgeoengineeringsystemstomitigatetheeffectsof
increasedgreenhousegases;devoting“incredibleresources”towarddevelop-ingtechnologiesforaccuratelymeasur-ingemissions;andemphasizingthedevelopmentofatrueglobalmarketforcarbontrading.
StevenAnsolabehere,professorofpoliticalscienceatMITandHarvard,saidtheSupremeCourtdecisionlastyearthatgavetheEnvironmentalProtectionAgency(EPA)thepowertoregulategreenhousegaseshas“changedthegame”politically.“Myeconomistfriendstellmeit’stheworstway”foremissionstoberegulated,ratherthanhavingitdonethroughlegislation,hesaid,“butpolitically,itchangesthestatusquo.”Before,ifCongressfailedtotakeaction,therewouldbenoregulationofgreenhousegases;now,ifCongressdoesn’tact,theEPAcouldrequiremuchmoresuddenanddrasticchangessuchasimmedi-atelyshuttingdowncoalplantsthatareheavyemittersofcarbondioxide.Asaresult,hesaid,thatputspressureonCongressandmakesitmorelikelythatabillwillbepassedthisyear.
EdwardSteinfeld,directoroftheMIT-Chinaprogramandassociateprofessorofpoliticalscience,saidthatacrucialcomponentofanyglobalagreementsemergingfromtheCopenhagenconferencewillbetheroleofChina,theburgeoningeconomicgiantthatislikelytosoondisplacetheUnitedStatesasthebiggestemitterofgreenhousegases.InanalyzingChina’senergyandclimatepolicies,hesaid,thereisadisconnectbetweenpoliticalrhetoricopposingemissionslimitsandwhat’sactuallyhappeningthere.Thison-the-groundreality“givesusgroundsformoreoptimismthanthepoliticalsidedoes,”hesaid.
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“IntheChineseenergysectortoday,rightacrosstheboard,”hesaid,“weareseeingjaw-droppinginvestmentsbeingmadeinnewtechnologyandthereplacementofoldinfrastructurewithnew”usingcutting-edgetechnology.“Thereisarecognitiontherethat
climatechangeishappening,andthatChinaisvulnerable”toitseffects.
HenryJacoby,co-directorofMIT’sJointProgramontheScienceandPolicyofGlobalChangeandprofessorofmanagementatMIT’sSloanSchool
ofManagement,saidthatdespitethedownbeatreportsabouttheoutcomeoftheCopenhagenmeeting,“it’simportantnottoloseheart.”Whilemanypeoplehadhopedforstrongeractionormoreambitioustargetsforcurbingemissions,hesaid,anyactionatallisworthwhile“becausealmostanythingwedoplaysapartinreducingtherisk”ofsevereconsequencesfromclimatechange.
IfallthepledgesmadebyvariousnationsbeforeandaftertheCopenha-genmeetingweremet,“wewouldstabilizeemissionsby2020,”hesaid.Whileatmosphericconcentrationswouldcontinuetorise,“wewouldbegintoturnthecorner”towardlevelingitoff.However,headded,inordertoavertthemostdamagingimpacts,theamountofmoneypledgedbytheindustrializednationstohelpfinanceenergyimprovementsinthedevelopingworldwouldneedtobeincreasedbyfourtofivetimes.
Onthepositiveside,hesaid,theearlieranyactionistaken,thegreateritseffects.TheproposalsforemissionsreductionsresultingfromtheCopen-hagenmeeting,hesaid,changethemedianoddsfortemperatureriseinthiscenturyfromapotentiallydevastating5to6degreesFifnoactionistakentoamoremanageable2to2.5degrees.
“That’smymaximumoptimism,”hesaid.
• • •
By David L. Chandler, MIT News Office
For a video of the entire two-hour panel discussion, go to http://web.mit.edu/mitei/news/video.html.
Fromtoptobottom,ErnestJ.Moniz,RobertStavins,MichaelGreenstone,StevenAnsolabehere,EdwardSteinfeld,andHenryJacobyatthepaneldiscussion,“TheRoadfromCopenhagen.”
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InarecentMITsurvey,Americansexpressedlessurgencyaboutdealingwithclimatechangethantheydidthreeyearsago—butstillfarmorethantheydidsixyearsago.Abouthalfofthe2009respondentsbelievedthattheUnitedStatesshouldjoinaninternationaltreatyaimedatreducinggreenhousegasemissions.
Americans on climate change: Still concerned, less support for major action, finds MIT surveyInarecentMITsurvey,Americansexpressedlessurgencyaboutdealingwithclimatechangethantheydidthreeyearsago—butstillfarmorethantheydidsixyearsago.
“Despitetheback-offsincethe2006survey,we’vecomealongwayinpublicsupportfordoingsomethingaboutclimatechangesincethefirstsurveyin2003,”saysHowardHerzog,seniorresearchengineerintheMITEnergyInitiative.Indeed,abouthalfthe2009respondentsbelievedthattheUnitedStatesshouldjoinaninterna-tionaltreatyaimedatreducinggreen-housegas(GHG)emissions.
Thenewsurveyshowstwootherstrikingchanges.Forthefirsttimethereisacorrelationbetweenpoliticalpartyandviews,withDemocratsconsistentlyrankingtheclimatechangeproblemasmoreseriousthanRepublicansandIndependentsdo.Andthereisasignificantincreaseinpeople’saware-nessofcarboncaptureandstorage(CCS)—aclimate-change-mitigationtechnologythatcallsforcapturingcarbondioxideemissionsfrompowerplantsandotherlargesourcesandinjectingthemintogeologicformationsforlong-termstorage.
ThatlastfindingisofparticularinteresttoHerzogandhiscolleagues,whohavebeenworkingonCCSsincethelate1980s.Theyundertookthefirstpublicsurveyin2003primarilytofindoutwhatpeoplethoughtaboutCCS.Atthattime,theirresearchhaddemon-stratedthetechnologicandeconomicpromiseofCCS,butpublicrecognitionandacceptanceofthetechnologywereaconcern.
Thegrouphasnowconductedthreesurveys—inSeptemberof2003,2006,and2009—tofindoutwhatthepublic
thinksaboutCCSinparticularandclimatechangeandenvironmentalissuesingeneral.Eachsurveyincludedabout20questionsfocusingontheenvironment,globalwarming,andavarietyofclimate-change-mitigationtechnologies.
Indesigningandadministeringthesurveys,theresearchteamcollaboratedwithKnowledgeNetworks,acompanythatspecializesinInternet-basedpublicopinionsurveys.Morethan1,200peopleansweredeachsurvey(withnooverlapamongthethreegroupsofrespondents).SamanthaF.O’Keefe,anMITgraduatestudentincivilandenvironmentalengineering,hasbeenworkingwithHerzogtoanalyzethe2009surveyresponses.
Resultsfromthethreesurveysprovideinsightsintohowpublicawareness,concern,andunderstandinghavechanged—ornotchanged—duringthepastsixyears.
Globalwarmingcontinuestoberankedfirstinalistof10environmentalconcerns,buttheenvironmentingeneralstillranksnearthemiddleofalistof22“mostimportantissuesfacingtheUStoday.”Theeconomy,healthcare,andunemploymentarethetopthreeconcerns—nodoubtareflectionoftherecenteconomicdownturnandhealthcaredebate.
Severalsetsofresponsesshowtherecentdeclineinurgencyabouttacklingclimatechange.Forexample,the
0 10 20 30 40
From what you know about global warming, which of the following statements comes closest to your opinion?
Global warming has been established as a serious problem and
immediate action is necessary.
There is enough evidence that global warming is taking place and
some action should be taken.
We don’t know enough about global warming and more research is
necessary before we take any actions.
Concern about global warming is unwarranted.
No opinion.
2009 2006 2003
From what you know about global warming…
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fractionofpeoplewhofeelthatimmedi-ateactiontosolveglobalwarmingisnecessaryisnow23%—lowerthanin2006(28%)butstillhigherthanin2003(17%).Intermsofwillingnesstopayextraontheirelectricitybillto“solve”globalwarming,in2006peopleagreedtopayonaverage$21morepermonth,butin2009thatnumberdroppeddownto$14—roughlythevalueobservedinthe2003survey.
Nevertheless,60%ofthe2009respon-dentssaidthatthefederalgovernmentshouldbedoingmoretodealwithglobalwarming—avaluedown10percentagepointsfrom2006butstillasignificantfractionofthepopulation.Moreover,almosthalfthepeoplesurveyedin2009saidthattheUnitedStatesshouldjoinotherindustrializednationsinaninternationaltreatythatcallsforcuttingbackGHGemissionsfrompowerplantsandcars—evenafterbeingtoldthat“somepeoplesaythiswillhurttheeconomy.”
“Thatwassomewhatsurprising,”saysHerzog.“Eventhoughthepopula-tionhasbackedoffalittleintermsofcallingforurgentaction…Ithinkthere’sstillpopularsupportfordoingsome-thingaboutclimatechangebutprob-ablynotfortakingthedrasticactionsthatsomepeoplearecallingfor.Thequestionisnotsomuchaboutwhetherpeopleareinfavorornotinfavoroftakingactionbutmoreaboutthemagnitudeandthepace.”
Intermsofdemographictrends,the2009surveywasthefirsttoshowacorrelationbetweenviewsontheseverityoftheglobalwarmingproblemandthepoliticalpartyoftherespon-dent.Intherecentsurvey,Democratsoverwhelminglyrankedclimatechangeaseither“serious”or“some-whatserious.”Incontrast,Republican
responsesweredistributedamong“somewhatserious,”“uncertain,”and“concernisunwarranted,”whileIndependentresponseswereevenlyspreadacrossallchoices.“Itappearsthattheissuehasbecomemorepoliticizedthanitwasinthepast,”saysHerzog.
Technology awareness
Inthesectionofthesurveymeasuringawarenessoftechnologiesrelatedtoclimatechange,hybridcarsandsolarandwindenergycontinuedtotopthelistof“whatpeoplehaveheardaboutinthepastyear.”ButawarenessofCCSincreasedsignificantlysincetheprevioussurveys.Thefractionofpeoplerecognizingtheterm“carboncaptureandsequestration”was4%in2003,5%in2006,and17%in2009.
Whythebigincreaseinnamerecogni-tion?“There’sbeenasignificantincreaseinpresscoverageofCCSinthepastthreeyears,”saysHerzog.“It’sbeentalkedaboutincongressionalbills,andeventheUSpresidenthasmentionedthetechnology.”Interest-ingly,better-educatedandwealthierpeopleweremorelikelythanotherstohaveheardofCCS.Indeed,respondentsearning$100,000peryearwerefourtimesmorelikelytohaveheardofCCSthanthosemakinglessthan$25,000.
ButrespondentsstillwerenotreadytoacceptCCSasaviableoptionforaddressingclimatechange.AskediftheywouldincludeCCSinaclimatechangeplan,about25%ofthepeoplerespondedfavorablyandabout25%wereopposed,butfully50%werenotsure.ThatresponseisconsistentwithanotherquestioninwhichmanyrespondentswerenotsurewhichenvironmentalconcernsCCSwouldaddress.Despitetheincreasedname
recognition,manypeoplearestillunclearaboutthedetailsofCCS.
HerzogispleasedwiththeincreasedrecognitionofCCS.Hestressesthattheclimatechangeproblem“isnotgoingtogoaway,”soresearchshouldcontinueontechnologiessuchasCCS.“Ithinkmoreandmorepeopleseeitasatechnologythat’sgoingtobeimportantinthelongerterm,”hesays.“Andwe’regettingincreasingnumbersofe-mailsandotherinquiriesfromabroadspectrumofsources,fromeducationalinstitutionstoindustrytogovernmentalofficials,allwantingtoknowmoreaboutit.”
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
This research was supported by the MIT Carbon Sequestration Initiative (http://sequestration.mit.edu/CSI/index.html). More details about the 2009 survey along with links to the previous surveys are available at http://sequestration.mit.edu/research/survey2009.html.
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MIT team recommends strategy for reducing automotive fuel use, emissionsCuttingpetroleumuseandgreenhousegas(GHG)emissionsinallofAmerica’scarsandlighttrucksisacriticalbutdauntingtask.Now,anMITreportoutlinesasetofpoliciesthatcouldaccomplishthatgoalinthenextfewdecades.Workingtogether,thepolicieswouldgiveallstakeholdersincentivestodotheirpart.
Manufacturerswouldberequiredtomakemorefuel-efficientcars,andconsumerswouldbeencouragedtobuythemandthendrivetheminafuel-efficientmanner.Meanwhile,thenationwoulddevelopacomprehensivestrategyonfuelssettinglong-termtargets,withcaretakentoaccountforthelife-cycleemissionsaswellasproduction,distribution,andvehiclerequirementsforeachpossiblefuel.
“Ifwe’reseriousaboutreducingpetro-leumconsumptionandGHGemissions,weneedtolookatthewholesystem—ateveryonewhomakes,buys,andusesvehiclesandtheirassociatedfuels,”saysJohnHeywood,professorinMIT’sDepartmentofMechanicalEngineering.“Allthepiecesareinterrelated,andweneedthemtoworktogether.Forexample,tighterregulationscanpushindustrytowardhigherfueleconomy,butthenweneedtocreateincentivesforconsumerstobuythosecars,whichmaybesmaller,lighter,andmoreexpensivethanthey’reusedto.”
ForpolicymakersinWashington,takingasystemsviewisdifficultbecauseofthepoliticsinvolved.Interestgroupsareconstantlyconvergingordivergingintoseparatecampsandlobbyingforseparatepolicies.Theresult,saysHeywood,isconfusioninthepolicydebateandadoptionofisolatedinitia-tivesthatfocusonspecificfuels,cartechnologies,andsoon.
Tohelpdemonstratehowasystemsapproachcouldwork,Heywoodturnedto10ofhisgraduatestudentsintheSloanAutomotiveLaboratory,eachofwhomisimmersedinstudyingsomeaspectofthetransportationproblem—fromselectedtechnologyandfuelsoptionstoconsumerbehaviortotheimpactsofspecificpoliciesandmore.Ayearago,Heywoodissuedthisgroupachallenge:Drawingontheirindividualknowledgeandexpertise,theyshouldtogethercomeupwithasensible,effective,andrealisticpolicyportfolio—AnAction Plan for Cars.
Thestudentsheldaseriesofmeetings,andultimatelyeachparticipantcontrib-utedtoonesectionofthereport,drawingonhisorherownexperiencesupplementedbyinformationfromothertransportationandenergysources.GuidedbyHeywoodandfeedbackfromseveraloutsideexperts,graduatestudentsValerieKarplusandDonaldMacKenzieofMIT’sEngineeringSystemsDivisionintegratedthesec-tionsintoa24-pagedocumentthatoutlinesasetofinteractingpoliciesthattheMITteambelievescansignificantlyreducepetroleumuseandemissionsinAmerica’scarsandlighttrucks.
Getting fuel-efficient vehicles on the road
Thefirstgroupofpoliciesaimstoreducethefuelconsumptionofnewvehicles.ThereportrecommendsthattheCorporateAverageFuelEconomy(CAFE)standardsforthefueleconomyofnewcarscontinuetotighten—wellbeyondthe2016targetof34.1mpg—andthatmanufacturersbegivenampleleadtimetoplanforthoseincreases.Twootherpolicieswouldcreatecon-sumerincentives.Onewouldestablisha“feebate”systemunderwhichbuyersofnewcarswouldgetarebateifthey
chosefuel-efficientmodels—orpayafeeiftheywentforgas-guzzlers.Theexactpaymentwoulddependonhowmanymilespergallonthepurchasedmodelisaboveorbelowasetfueleconomy.Theotherpolicyinthisgroupwouldincreasetaxesonmotorfuelsby10centspergalloneachyearforatleastthenext10years.
Thosethreepolicieswouldproduceasynergisticeffect,withmanufacturersproducingmoreefficientcarsandconsumersdemandingthem,motivatedbyimmediateandlong-termsavings.Tomakerisingfueltaxesmorepalat-able,driverswouldseereductionsontheirincometaxesorpayrolltaxes.ButsomeoftherevenuewouldbeusedtoimprovetheUStransportationinfrastructure.“Ourroadsandbridgesareinrealneedofmaintenanceandimprovement,”saysHeywood.“Thiswouldprovidemuch-neededmoneytogetthembackinshape.”
Educating vehicle buyers and drivers
Thenextpairofpoliciesisdesignedtohelpconsumersbuyanddrivemorewiselybygivingthemmoreinformation.Althoughlabelingprovisionsexist,itisnotalwaysclearwhatthecitedratingsmean.Ingeneral,thefueleconomylistedonstickersorinadvertisementsisforhighwaydriving,whenmostvehiclesareattheirmostfuelefficient.Newrulesshouldcallforaclearpresentationoffueleconomiesforbothhighwayandcitydrivingsothatcarbuyerscanmakemoreinformedchoices.
Thesecondpolicyaimstoteachpeoplehowtoavoiddrivingbehaviorsthatwastefuel.Drivingatasteady,comfort-ablespeedandavoidingrapidbrakingandacceleratingcanreducefueluseby10%ormorecomparedwithmore
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aggressivedrivingbehaviors.“Perhapsitisn’taglamorouswaytoreduceconsumption,butit’srelativelylowcost—andit’sscalable,”saysKarplus.“Everydriverontheroadcandoit.They’lluselessfuel,savemoney,andreduceemissions,allatthesametime.”Informationcanbedistributedinadvertisementsandincorporatedintodrivers’educationprogramssothatnewgenerationsofdriverswilldevelopfuel-conservinghabits.
Fuels for the future
Thefinalsetofrecommendationsfocusesonfuels.Heywoodnotesthatcurrentinitiatives,laws,andrequire-mentsare“piecemeal,”withnocoherenceorclearsenseofpurpose.However,healsobelievesthatitis“inappropriateandprematuretosaysomethingabouthowspecificfuelsarebeingtreatedorshouldbetreated—withsubsidies,importduties,andsoon.We’remissingalotofbasicinfor-mation.”Theteam’srecommendationsthereforetakeabroaderviewofhowtomoveforwardonthefuelsside.
Afterintensediscussionanddebate,theMITteamreachedconsensusonthreecriticalpoints.First,alltransportationfuels—petroleum-basedaswellasalternativefuels—shouldbeevaluatedonthebasisoftheirfulllife-cycleGHG
emissions.“Whilethatmayseemobvious,thedevilisinthedetailsonthisone,”saysKarplus.Shecitesseveralexamples.GrowingbiofuelsinplaceoffoodcropsinIowamaypushupfoodimportsfromBrazil,wheretheneedforaddedagriculturallandcouldleadtodestructionofrainforest,animportantcarbonsink.Electricvehiclesemitnotailpipeemissions,butrecharg-ingtheirbatteriesmayincreaseelectric-itygenerationfromGHG-emittingpowerplants.“Andthelistgoeson,”saysKarplus.“Ifwe’rereallylookingforwaystoreduceGHGemissions,wehavetobecarefulabouthowwedotheaccounting.”
Thesecondrecommendationcallsfordevelopingacoordinatednationalstrategyforalternativefuels.Thishigh-level,overarchingstrategyshoulddefinecleartargetsandthen—basedoncarefulconsiderationofalltheoptions—identifyfuelsandtechnologiesthatcanbestcontributetomeetingthegoalsofdisplacingpetroleumandreducingGHGemissions.Developingasuccessfulstrategywillrequirefullparticipationofthenow-splinteredinterestgroupsthatsupportbiofuels,electriccars,hydrogen,naturalgas,andsoon.
Finally,anynationalfuelsstrategyshouldincludepoliciesthataddressthe
needfordevelopingfuelproductioncapacity,distributioninfrastructure,andcompatiblevehiclesatthesametime.Focusingononlyoneoreventwoofthosechallengeswillnotyieldtheintendedreductionsinpetroleumuseandemissions.Inaddition,currentsubsi-dies,mandates,andimporttariffs(forexample,onethanol)shouldbeexam-inedtomakesurethattheyareconsis-tentwiththenationalfuelsstrategy.
Moving ahead
Heywoodstressesthatthereportdoesnotattempttowritespecificlegislationorregulationortodefineendobjectivestootightlybecauseweneedtobetterunderstandthefullimpactsofourchoices.Thereportisinsteadmeanttodemonstrateasetofintegratedpoliciesthatcanhelpus“definewherewewanttogetto,decidewhetheragivenpathshowspotentialforgettingusthere,andthenplansothatwecanbothgetmovingandgetwiser.”
“We’rehopingourreportservesasafirststep,astartingpointtospurthinkingabouthowyoucanachievepoliciesthataregoingtoworktogetherinasynergisticway,”addsKarplus.“Wearen’tnecessarilysayingtoadoptthissetofpoliciesexactlyaswritten,butwe’redemonstratinghowWashing-toncanthinkaboutpoliciesinawaythatconsidershowtheymightbestworktogether.”
• • •
By Nancy W. Stauffer, MITEI
This study was supported in part by the MIT Energy Initiative. Go to http://web.mit.edu/mitei/research/studies.html to download a copy of An Action Plan for Cars: The Policies Needed to Reduce US Petroleum Consumption and Greenhouse Gas Emissions.
Primary Target Recommendation
Vehicle fuel economy • Continue to tighten CAFE standards beyond 2016 target of 34.1 mpg, providing ample lead time
• Implement a feebate system that adjusts new vehicle prices in proportion to fuel consumption
• Raise the tax on motor fuels by 10 cents per gallon each year, for at least 10 years
Driver behavior • Improve and standardize fuel economy labels on new vehicles and car-buying websites
• Establish driver education programs to inform consumers how to reduce fuel consumption through behavior
Fuel supply • Evaluate all fuels on the basis of full life-cycle GHG emissions
• Develop national strategy for alternative fuels with involvement of all stakeholders
• Address need for production capacity, distribution infrastructure, and compatible vehicles simultaneously
Main features of the policy portfolio presented in MIT’s An Action Plan for Cars.
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42 | Energy Futures | MIT Energy Initiative | Spring 2010
L F E E • LaboratoryforEnergyandtheEnvironment
Lisbon’s buildings get more energy efficient, thanks to MIT students ThreegraduatestudentsatMIT—onefromPortugalandtwofromtheUnitedStates—areseekingtoboosttheenergyefficiencyofLisbon’sbuildings.They’veestimatedthatasmanyas800,000structures,rangingfrommodernhigh-risestotwo-century-oldbuildings,wouldbenefitfromsomeformofintervention.
Thestudentsarelinkedbytheiraffilia-tionwithLeonGlicksman,MITprofes-sorofarchitectureandmechanicalengineering.GlicksmanbroughtthestudentstogetheralmosttwoyearsagotowalkthroughLisbon’sneighbor-hoodsandbrainstormaboutwaystodovetailtheirseparateresearchintereststohelpthecitybenefitfromenergy-savinginterventions.
InPortugal,buildingsareresponsibleformorethan30%oftotalenergyuse.InLisbon,thefigureisalmosttwicethatandisexpectedtogrowsignificantlyinthecomingyears.“Thismakesacompellingcasefortheneedtoretrofitexistingbuildingstock,”saysNunoClímacoPereira,aLisbonnativewhoisaPhDcandidateintheMIT-PortugalProgramandisbasedatInstitutoSuperiorTécnico(IST)inPortugal.HeiscurrentlyinresidenceatMIT.
WhilePereirausedmodelstopredictthecostsavingsofdifferentretrofittingoptionsovertime,MITmechanicalengineeringgraduatestudentStephenRaycreatedanewtoolforpeoplearoundtheworldtoinvestigatetheenergy-savingpotentialofdifferenttypesofroofs.MITbuildingtechnologygraduatestudentCarrieBrownisusingdatafromLisboninmodelsshedesignedforassessingenergy-efficientretrofitsandoptionssuchastheadditionofsolarpanelstobuildings.
AllthreeareaffiliatedwithMIT-Portugal,anearlyfour-year-oldcollabo-rationbetweenMITanduniversities,laboratories,andindustryinPortugalthatwaslaunchedbythePortugueseMinistryofScience,Technology,andHigherEducationtostrengthenthecountry’sknowledgebaseandinterna-tionalcompetitiveness.
Thetimeisripeforthestudents’initiative:Risingenergypricesandgovernmentefficiencyincentivesarecreatingapromisingclimateforenergyretrofitting.“Alotofinformationisstartingtobeavailableonhowenergy-efficientbuildingsperform.Thiswilldrivetheimplementationofretrofits,”Pereirasays.
History meets efficiency
Pereiraisdoingacasestudyofpoorlyconstructedresidentialbuildingsthatringthecity.Heestimatesthataquarterofthemneedmediumtohighlevelsofattention.He’slookingatthepro-jectedbenefitsofinsulatingtheirwalls
androofs,addingnaturalventilationsystemstotakeadvantageofoceanbreezes,andshadingandupgradingtheirwindowstoblocksomeofLisbon’srelentlesssunshine.
Amazingly,duetotheirthickwalls,buildingsdesignedimmediatelyafterLisbon’sdevastating1755earthquakearenotaswastefulassomenewerstructures.Still,Pereiracalculatedthataddinginsulation,doubleglazingwindows,andtakingadvantageofnaturalventilationcouldhalvetheenergyconsumptionofthevaulted-ceiling,tiledbuildingsknownasPombalinos.
Pereirahopestodefinethebestavail-ableretrofitoptionsforbothmodernandhistoricbuildings,assessthepotentialforenergyreductionscitywide,anddevelopamethodologyforlarge-scalerehabilitationthroughoutPortugal.Hewilldevelopimplementationstrate-gieswithLisboncityofficialsandtheLisbonMunicipalEnergyAgency.
Ray,whosedoctoralresearchfocusesonnaturalventilationincommercialbuildings,investigatedtheenergy-savingpotentialofvariousrooftypes.Healsocreatedanewsoftwaremoduletosupplementanexistingonlinedesigntool,theMITDesignAdvisor,thusprovidingengineersandarchitectsworldwidewiththeabilitytomimichisanalysisofLisbonroofs.
“WefoundmostbuildingsinLisboncouldactuallysavemoreenergybyaddinginsulationtothetraditionalredceramictileroofsinsteadofinstall-inganewroof,”Raysays.However,modernbuildingswithflatblackroofswouldfarebetterwithcoolorgreenroofs,hesays,whichreducerooftemperaturesandsolarheatgains.
Lefttoright:StephenRayandCarrieBrownofMITandNunoClímacoPereiraoftheInstitutoSuperiorTécnicoinPortugalreceiveda“bestposter”awardattheJanuary2009annualmeetingoftheAllianceforGlobalSustainabilityinZürich.Theirwinningposter,titled“RetrofitOptionsforIncreasingEnergyEfficiencyintheExistingBuildingStock—LisbonCaseStudy,”explainedthetrio’sresearchonwaysinwhichLisbonmightreduceenergyconsumptioninitsbuildingstock.
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Spring 2010 | MIT Energy Initiative | Energy Futures | 43
L F E E • LaboratoryforEnergyandtheEnvironment
Brown,whoseworkfocusesonassess-ingtechnologychoicesinthebuiltenvironment,saysoptionsforsustain-ablebuildingsincludeavarietyofdemand-sideefficiencymeasuressuchasaddedinsulationandbetterwindows.Supply-siderenewableoptionsincludeaddingphotovoltaicsasanenergysource.
“Whiletherearemanyoptionstoreduceenergyusedinbuildings,itisoftendifficulttodeterminewhicharethemostappropriatetechnologiestoimplement,”shesays.“I’mreallyinterestedinhelpingpeoplefigureoutwhatchangestheycanmakewiththeleastamountofmoneythatcangivethemthebiggestenergysavings.”
Global connections
AlthoughRayandBrownarenotdirectlyenrolledinMIT-Portugal,theprogrampartiallyfundstheirresearch.In2009,RayorganizedaworkshopforstudentsintheMIT-PortugalSustain-ableEnergySystems(SES)groupinterestedinpursuingbuildings-relatedresearch.“Afterthatworkshop,itwasclearthatNuno,Carrie,andIhadworkthatwasinterrelated,”Raysays.The
threedesignedaposterpresentingthescopeoftheirworkinLisbon.TheposterwasselectedasoneofthesixbestpostersattheAllianceforGlobalSustainability’sannualmeetingin2009.
AcentralgoaloftheMIT-PortugalProgramistodemonstratethataninvestmentinscience,technology,andhighereducationcanhaveapositive,lastingimpactontheeconomy.Tothatend,MIT-Portugalhascreatedcutting-edgePhDandmaster’s-styleprogramsinvolvingeightPortugueseuniversitiesandresearchinstitutions.Eachsemes-ter,severalMIT-PortugalstudentsandfacultyvisitMITtodoresearchinleadinglaboratoriesattheInstitute.“TheseconnectionshelpMITinitseffortstobeaglobaluniversity,”Glicksmansays.Throughworkshopsandteleconferences,Pereira,Brown,andRayhavegivenandheardfeedbackontheirrespectiveprojectsaswellasthoseunderwayinMIT-Portugal’sentireSESgroup.
Rayisenthusiasticabouttheinterna-tionalconnectionshehasmadethroughtheprogram.“IappreciatethechancetocollaboratewiththefutureleadersofsustainableenergyinPortugal,”he
says,andhepredictsthattherelation-shipshehasdevelopedwillcontinuethroughouthiscareer.
“Thereisalotofinterestingreentechnologiesforbuildings,buttoooftenitseemssuchtechnologiesandtheirbenefitsarepoorlyunderstood,”Raysays.Byincreasingawareness,understanding,andinformationaboutthechoicesavailable,theMITstudents’workhasthepotentialtoreachwellbeyondLisboncitylimits.
• • •
By Deborah Halber, MITEI correspondent
• Predict roof surface temperature and associated energy savings from roof.
3 day trial shows potential impact
• Use results as input to Multi-Objective Optimization.
Retrofit options for increasing energy efficiency in the existing building stock –Lisbon Case-Study
Carrie Brown, MIT [email protected]
Steve Ray, MIT [email protected]
Nuno Clímaco Pereira, IST [email protected]
• 35% of primary energy consumption;• 800.000 buildings needing medium to urgent interventions(15% of the Building Stock);• Recently approved National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency;• Lisbon Municipality Efficiency Target: 9.4% less energy by 2013;• ESCOs interested on the energy retrofitting.
Lisbon - 4 typical and representative buildings structuresaccording to historic period/ construction techniques.
PORTUGUESE BUILDINGS FACTS
JOINT WORK OBJECTIVES• Improve the energy efficiency of buildings, focusing on improving the existing building stock in Lisbon, and afterwards, in Portugal;• Integrate all building sector players and variables for a comprehensive energy analysis;• Lead to new business opportunities (MPP partnership with Energy Company - GALP).
Energy rehabilitationMethodology
Initial Case-study: Pombalino Building(1755-1870)
CASE-STUDY
Copyright © DesignBuilder Software
Ackowledgements: The authors would like to thank the support by Prof. Leon Glicksman, MIT, Prof. João Parente and Prof. Luísa Caldas, IST, as well as the financial support by MIT Portugal Program and Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia
Main Sources: Tirone, L., et all, 2005. Lisbon Energy Framework. Lisboa E-Nova – Lisbon Municipal Energy and Environment Agency.AECOPS, 2008. Portuguese Civil Construction Market – Challenges and Opportunities, Lisbon. AECOPS – Portuguese Association of Public Works and Construction Corporations.
Efficient Roof Technologies (SR)
I. Characterization of existing building stock.
II. Thermal Modeling of a representative sample of City buildings - EnergyPlus as software (Design Builder interface).
III. Model Calibration by Monitoring Data.
IV. Identification of integrated energy Retrofitting Best Options.
a. Analysis of the direct energy impact of the Best Available Technologies (BAT)
b. Identifying energy retrofitting strategy facing energy inefficiencies and general rehabilitation needs
V. Replication potential analysis and Strategies Development - incorporate replication potential considering other contexts (from initial Lisbon city scale).
Final Results: Integrate the methodology in a broader scale multi-objective approach for a global energy intervention in the building (Sustainable Urban Energy Systems Research).
Energy Retrofit Methodology (NCP) Multi-Objective Optimization (CB)
295
300
305
310
315
320
325
330
335
0 20 40 60 80
Time [hrs]
Roo
f Sur
face
Tem
pera
ture
[K] black roof
cool roofred tile roof
Energy into Building [W/m2]insulation [m2C/W] R=0 R=17black roof 40 3.3cool roof 8.8 0.74red tile roof 31 2.6
I. Problem FormulationObjective:J1 = Heating + Cooling + Lighting Energy J2 = Capital CostInitial Variables:
II. Initial Results
III. Next Steps
I. Develop distributed generation (DG) module.
II. Incorporate roof, retrofit, and DG modules into the multi-objective optimization.
Variable Description Lower Bound
Upper Bound
Units
x1 Window to wall ratio 10 90 %x2 Wall R-value 1 7 m-C/Wx3 N-S façade length 10 400 mx4 Window type 0 2 clear, double, triplex5 Window coating 0 1 clear, low-ex6 Thermal mass 0 2 zero, high, low
95 100 105 110 115 120 125 130 135 140 145 150
100
100.2
100.4
100.6
100.8
101
101.2
101.4
101.6
101.8
J1 Annual Energy Consumption [kWh/m2]
J2 C
apita
l Cos
ts [$
/m2]
Estimated Pareto Front -- Energy Consumption and Capital Costs
Sampled PointsEstimated Pareto FrontUtopia Point
J1 Annual Energy Consumption [kWh/m2]J1 Watts / m2
*estimated capital cost, model still under development
J 2 $
/ m
2*
J2 C
apita
l Cos
ts [$
/m2]
• Predict roof surface temperature and associated energy savings from roof.
3 day trial shows potential impact
• Use results as input to Multi-Objective Optimization.
Retrofit options for increasing energy efficiency in the existing building stock –Lisbon Case-Study
Carrie Brown, MIT [email protected]
Steve Ray, MIT [email protected]
Nuno Clímaco Pereira, IST [email protected]
• 35% of primary energy consumption;• 800.000 buildings needing medium to urgent interventions(15% of the Building Stock);• Recently approved National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency;• Lisbon Municipality Efficiency Target: 9.4% less energy by 2013;• ESCOs interested on the energy retrofitting.
Lisbon - 4 typical and representative buildings structuresaccording to historic period/ construction techniques.
PORTUGUESE BUILDINGS FACTS
JOINT WORK OBJECTIVES• Improve the energy efficiency of buildings, focusing on improving the existing building stock in Lisbon, and afterwards, in Portugal;• Integrate all building sector players and variables for a comprehensive energy analysis;• Lead to new business opportunities (MPP partnership with Energy Company - GALP).
Energy rehabilitationMethodology
Initial Case-study: Pombalino Building(1755-1870)
CASE-STUDY
Copyright © DesignBuilder Software
Ackowledgements: The authors would like to thank the support by Prof. Leon Glicksman, MIT, Prof. João Parente and Prof. Luísa Caldas, IST, as well as the financial support by MIT Portugal Program and Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia
Main Sources: Tirone, L., et all, 2005. Lisbon Energy Framework. Lisboa E-Nova – Lisbon Municipal Energy and Environment Agency.AECOPS, 2008. Portuguese Civil Construction Market – Challenges and Opportunities, Lisbon. AECOPS – Portuguese Association of Public Works and Construction Corporations.
Efficient Roof Technologies (SR)
I. Characterization of existing building stock.
II. Thermal Modeling of a representative sample of City buildings - EnergyPlus as software (Design Builder interface).
III. Model Calibration by Monitoring Data.
IV. Identification of integrated energy Retrofitting Best Options.
a. Analysis of the direct energy impact of the Best Available Technologies (BAT)
b. Identifying energy retrofitting strategy facing energy inefficiencies and general rehabilitation needs
V. Replication potential analysis and Strategies Development - incorporate replication potential considering other contexts (from initial Lisbon city scale).
Final Results: Integrate the methodology in a broader scale multi-objective approach for a global energy intervention in the building (Sustainable Urban Energy Systems Research).
Energy Retrofit Methodology (NCP) Multi-Objective Optimization (CB)
295
300
305
310
315
320
325
330
335
0 20 40 60 80
Time [hrs]
Roo
f Sur
face
Tem
pera
ture
[K] black roof
cool roofred tile roof
Energy into Building [W/m2]insulation [m2C/W] R=0 R=17black roof 40 3.3cool roof 8.8 0.74red tile roof 31 2.6
I. Problem FormulationObjective:J1 = Heating + Cooling + Lighting Energy J2 = Capital CostInitial Variables:
II. Initial Results
III. Next Steps
I. Develop distributed generation (DG) module.
II. Incorporate roof, retrofit, and DG modules into the multi-objective optimization.
Variable Description Lower Bound
Upper Bound
Units
x1 Window to wall ratio 10 90 %x2 Wall R-value 1 7 m-C/Wx3 N-S façade length 10 400 mx4 Window type 0 2 clear, double, triplex5 Window coating 0 1 clear, low-ex6 Thermal mass 0 2 zero, high, low
95 100 105 110 115 120 125 130 135 140 145 150
100
100.2
100.4
100.6
100.8
101
101.2
101.4
101.6
101.8
J1 Annual Energy Consumption [kWh/m2]
J2 C
apita
l Cos
ts [$
/m2]
Estimated Pareto Front -- Energy Consumption and Capital Costs
Sampled PointsEstimated Pareto FrontUtopia Point
J1 Annual Energy Consumption [kWh/m2]J1 Watts / m2
*estimated capital cost, model still under development
J 2 $
/ m
2*
J2 C
apita
l Cos
ts [$
/m2]
Energy rehabilitation methodology—an extract from the students’ award-winning posterLisbon’s buildings get more energy efficient, thanks to MIT students
Page 46
44 | Energy Futures | MIT Energy Initiative | Spring 2010
L F E E • LaboratoryforEnergyandtheEnvironment
Martin Fellows, 2010–2011
TheMartinFamilySocietyofFellowsforSustainability,establishedatMITin1996throughthegeneroussupportoftheMartinFamilyFoundation,fostersgraduate-levelresearch,education,andcollaborationinsustainability.ThesocietysupportsandconnectsMIT’stopgraduatestudentsinenvironmentalstudiesandfostersopportunitiesformultidisciplinarycooperationinboththeshortandlongterm.
Regina ClewlowEngineeringSystemsDivisionExamining intercity demand for high-speed rail and air transportation and potential long-range scenarios under climate policies
Madhu Dutta-KoehlerUrbanStudiesandPlanningDeveloping planning strategies for climate change adaptation for rapidly growing cities of the global south
Katherine DykesEngineeringSystemsDivisionDeveloping a model for wind energy diffusion into the utility system withparticular attention to issues associated with integration
Anita GanesanEarth,Atmospheric,andPlanetarySciencesExamining regional monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions in India
David GriffithCivilandEnvironmentalEngineering(withWoodsHoleOceanographicInstitution)Quantifying the inputs and fate of steroidal estrogens in Massachusetts Bay
Roberto Guerrero CompeánUrbanStudiesandPlanningExploring effects of anti-poverty programs on household behavior toward climatic risks in rural areas
Rhonda JordanEngineeringSystemsDivisionDeveloping an electrification planning methodology that incorporates demand characteristics unique to the developing world
Woei Ling LeowEngineeringSystemsDivisionDeveloping algorithms for managing home electricity use in a smart grid
Samar MalekCivilandEnvironmentalEngineeringDeveloping new understanding of and design tools for grid shells for sustainable buildings
Bryan PalmintierEngineeringSystemsDivisionDesigning sustainable electric systems with significant renewable and demand-side resources by modeling intra-daily dynamics, uncertainty, and constraints during long-range planning
Jeff RomingerCivilandEnvironmentalEngineeringInvestigating the physical controls of nutrient uptake in aquatic vegetation
Nicholas RyanEconomicsMeasuring the scope for profitably saving energy in small, energy-intensive Indian factories and testing the efficacy of the Clean Development Mechanism in reducing carbon emissions
Sourabh SahaMechanicalEngineeringDeveloping probe-based nano- manufacturing tools and processes for nano-applications
Todd SenecalChemistryExamining the catalytic introduction of trifluoromethyl groups into organic molecules
Xing ShengMaterialsScienceandEngineeringExploring optical and electronic design to improve the performance of thin film photovoltaic and light-emitting devices
Yasuhiro ShirasakiElectricalEngineeringandComputerScienceDeveloping energy-efficient colloidal quantum dot light-emitting diodes for display and lighting applications
Gaj SivandranCivilandEnvironmentalEngineeringExamining plant-water interactions in dryland systems, where water is the limiting resource to ecosystem function
Lily SongUrbanStudiesandPlanningExamining community-utility partnerships for taking building energy efficiency retrofits to scale
Mattijs van MaasakkersUrbanStudiesandPlanningStudying the emergence of ecosystem services in river basin management: sources of scientific legitimacy in environmental decision making
Yi ZhuUrbanStudiesandPlanningDeveloping an urban information system for transportation and land use modeling, travel behavior, and urban sustainable transportation strategy
Page 47
Spring 2010 | MIT Energy Initiative | Energy Futures | 45
M I T E I M E M B E R S
MITEI Founding and Sustaining members
F O U N D I N G M E M B E R S
BPEni S.p.A.
F O U N D I N G P U B L I C M E M B E R
Masdar Institute of Science and Technology
S U S T A I N I N G M E M B E R S
ABB Research Ltd.Robert Bosch GmbHChevron U.S.A. Inc.Enel Produzione SpALockheed MartinSaudi Aramco SchlumbergerSiemensTotalWeatherford
S U S T A I N I N G P U B L I C M E M B E R
Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation
MembersasofJune15,2010
MITEI’sFoundingandSustainingmemberssupport“flagship”energyresearchprogramsorindividualresearchprojectsthathelpthemmeettheirstrategicenergyobjectives.Theyalsoprovideseedfundingforearly-stageinnovativeresearchprojectsandsupportnamedEnergyFellowsatMIT.Todate,membershavemadepossible67seedgrantprojectsacrossthecampusaswellasfellowshipsformorethan100graduatestudentsin20MITdepartmentsanddivisions.
MITEI Associate and Affiliate members
MITEI’sAssociateandAffiliatememberssupportarangeofMITenergyresearch,education,andcampusactivitiesthatareofinteresttothem.Currentmembersarenowsupportingvariousenergy-relatedMITcenters,laboratories,andinitia-tives;fellowshipsforgraduatestudents;researchopportunitiesforundergraduates;campusenergymanagementprojects;outreachactivitiesincludingseminarsandcolloquia;andmore.
Associate membersAgenciaNacionalDeHidrocarburos(ANH)—ColombiaCumminsEDFEntergyFundacióBarcelonaTecnológica(b_TEC)Hess
INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Affiliate membersAlbachiaraRinnovabiliS.r.l.Alcatel-LucentAMSOCorporationAngelenoGroupAspenTechnology,Inc.BerkeleyInvestments,Inc.MarilynG.BreslowBrownsteinHyattFarber
Schreck,LLPCIDS–DCSEnergySavingsConstellationEnergyEnerNOC,Inc.ForgePartners,LLCGabelliCapitalPartnersNatalieM.GivansGlobespanCapitalPartnersGravitas&CieInt.SAGreengEnergyHarrisInteractiveICFInternationalIHS-Cambridge
EnergyResearchAssociates(CERA)
InGRIDEnergy,LLC
MillennialNet,Inc.MohaveSunPower,LLC
(MitchellDong)MooreandVanAllenNewEnergyFinanceNexant,Inc.NGPEnergyTechnology
Partners,LPNthPower,LLCOrmatTechnologies,Inc.OsakaGasCo.,Ltd.PalmerLabs,LLCPatriotRenewablesRedpointVenturesPhilipRettgerRockportCapitalPartnersS.KinnieSmith,Jr.Steptoe&Johnson,LLPGeorgeR.Thompson,Jr.TheTremontGroup,LLCWestportInnovationsInc.
Page 48
AttheCopenhagenclimatechangeconferenceinDecember2009,MITresearchersdemonstratedarevolutionarybicyclewheelthattransformsexistingbikesintohybridelectricbikesandpromotescyclingbyimprovingtheridingexperience.Thewheelstoresenergywhenevertheriderbrakesandthenusesthatpowertoprovideaboostforclimbinghillsormaneuveringintraffic.Assistedbyasmartphone,thewheelcantrackspeed,direction,anddistancetraveled;pollutionlevels;roadconditions;andeventheproximityoftherider’sfriends.DubbedtheCopenhagenWheel,itwasdevelopedbyCarloRatti,associateprofessorofthepracticeinMIT’sDepartmentofUrbanStudiesandPlanninganddirectoroftheSENSEableCityLaboratory,andhisteam.Thewheelcaneasilybemountedonanystandardbike.Moreathttp://senseable.mit.edu/copenhagenwheel/.
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