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  1. archived info - previous project description and background, pre iCAP 2020

    Associated Project(s): 

    Description:

    The 2015 iCAP, chapter 3, objective 3, is "Expand the purchase of clean energy. By FY20, obtain at least 120,000 MWh, and by FY25 at least 140,000 MWh from low-carbon energy sources. These targets represent 48% and 56% of our expected 2050 electricity demand, respectively." There are several methods for increasing campus clean energy use: on-campus renewable energy generation (such as the Solar Farm), off-campus power purchase agreements (such as the Wind PPA), the purchase of Renewable Energy Certifications (such as the FY15 RECs purchase), and clean energy provided through the grid purchased electricity (see MISO).

    Background: 

    Generate Renewable Energy On-Campus

    Renewable energy on campus is one of the most important clean energy sources. Solar farm is the main project, geothermal is a promising method, combined with biomass, etc., the proportion of renewable energy is increasing.

    Enter into Power Purchase Agreements

    A power purchase agreement (PPA) is a contract with an energy generation facility. A long-term PPA with a renewable energy generation facility could enable the construction of new renewable energy generation. At the time of this writing, the most economical renewable PPAs are for wind energy from large farms of wind turbines, but we expect that other types of renewable PPAs may become affordable in the future.

    Although nuclear power is not considered renewable, an existing nuclear power plant produces no carbon dioxide emissions and can help us meet our emissions goals. A PPA with a nuclear power plant would enable us to purchase energy from a zero-carbon source.

    Buy Renewable Energy Certificates

    Electrical output from both renewable and nonrenewable power sources are combined in a regionaltransmission grid. In order for a consumer to claim the use of renewable energy, it must own the associated Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), each of which represents the environmental attributes of 1 MWh of renewable electricity generation.

    Only the owners of RECs can claim that they are using renewable energy. For example, if a wind farm operator sells its electricity to one party but sells the associated RECs to a second party, only the second party can claim to be using green energy. To qualify as renewable, any energy the campus purchases must be bundled with RECs, and the campus must retain the RECs for any renewable energy it produces. Therefore, the forthcoming Solar Farm will count toward our renewable energy goals only so long as campus does not sell the associated RECs.

    Another method to increase our use of renewable energy is to separately purchase “unbundled” RECs, without purchasing power from the same generation source. For example, we could purchase power from a coal plant, but purchase a corresponding number of RECs from a wind farm (in this case, the wind farm would sell its electricity without the environmental attributes to a customer who is not willing to pay for the environmental attributes). The purchase of unbundled RECs reduces our carbon footprint according to generally accepted carbon accounting procedures, but it is not clear if it adds renewable energy to the grid.

    In 2015, there was exceptionally low demand for RECs in our local grid region because there are no effective government standards requiring the purchase of renewable electricity. At the same time, a significant number of wind farms have been built and are profitable even without selling RECs (due in large part to a federal tax credit for wind production), leading to a very large supply of RECs. Given the low demand and the oversupply, prices for RECs are very low, and therefore it is not clear that the purchase of RECs really provides an incentive for generators to produce more renewable electricity, or that it leads to an actual reduction in overall global CO2 emissions.

    When unbundled RECs are purchased as part of a long-term contract, this can facilitate the construction of new renewable energy generation facilities. Long-term RECs contracts would also have the economic advantage of “locking in” the current low prices. Conversely, the voluntary purchase of short-term unbundled RECs from existing facilities does not add new renewable energy to the grid. For these reasons, the campus would have a greater environmental impact by purchasing long-term RECs contracts, either bundled with renewable energy in a PPA, or unbundled.

    Low-Carbon Grid Purchased Electricity

    Approximately half of the campus electrical demand is purchased through the MISO grid.  In FY15, the grid purchased electricity included over 10% from low-carbon sources.  Because the RECs are not included when campus buys the energy, it is unclear who can claim the use of that clean energy.  With the new energy bill passed in 2017, there are changes to the requirements for campus’ participation in the Renewable Portfolio Standard.  As these requirements and associated benefits of low-carbon energy in the grid become clarified, it may be determined that the grid’s clean energy can be included in the total campus clean energy usage.

  2. archived info - previous project description, pre iCAP 2020

    Associated Project(s): 

    Assuming that our conservation efforts will cut our energy needs in half, we will have to find ways to produce and/or purchase roughly 250,000 MWh/yr of electricity and 250,000 MWh/yr of heat in a carbon-neutral manner.  Campus has made good progress in reducing GHG emissions since FY08, largely due to improvements in the energy efficiency of buildings.  Looking ahead, we expect to see continued reductions due to improvements in energy efficiency and additional energy conservation efforts.  However, in order to achieve zero GHG emissions, it is also necessary to change the way we generate, distribute, and purchase power.

  3. 12/18 Zero Waste SWATeam Meeting

    Attached are the meeting minutes from the Zero Waste SWATeam on 12/18/2020. The following agenda items were discussed:

    • Grind2Energy Additional Scope.
    • NERC membership.
    • Mask Terracycle Program.
    • Organics Master Plan.
    • Vending Machine Single-Use Plastics Replacement.
    • Mitigating single-serve options in third-party vendors in Union.
    • Reusable dining operations during COVID.
    • Reuse of Surplus Goods.
    • Battery Recycling Options.
    • Purchasing Order Fufillment: Sustainable Options.
    • Purchasing Sustainability Digital Booklet.
    • Food Waste Reduction Webinar Engagement Opportunity.
    • Sustainability Integrations within punch-out catalogues/iBUY.
  4. Funding Award: Living Lab Platform for CIF geothermal

  5. Re-Home Wall Rehab and Siding

  6. Sol Systems Blog about SEE Fellows student project

    Sol Systems published a blog today sharing information about the collaborations with the UIUC Sustainability, Energy, and Environment Fellows program, the campus-wide minor in sustainability.  

    "This past week, two groups of students from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign presented to Sol Systems regarding their findings through the university’s sustainability minor capstone course. The students conducted an emissions audit for supply chain and land-usage for the university’s second utility-scale solar project, Solar Farm 2.0, a 54-acre, 12.3 MW dc system on the Urbana campus that is being developed by Sol Systems. The presentation and partnership served as part of Sol’s sustainability initiatives and acts as the foundation for building Sol’s framework for future and current solar project developments...."

    Read the full post online at https://www.solsystems.com/groundwork-for-solar-sustainability/. 

  7. Daily Illini article about impacts of covid-19 on iCAP

    The Daily Illini published an article about the impacts of covid-19 on the campus sustainability efforts. One key message is that, even with some delays associated with the pandemic, we are still determined to move forward.  The conclusion of the article says: 

    Mohamed Attalla, executive director of Facilities and Services, said there are lots of initiatives to reach carbon neutrality in terms of energy and hopes to reach 400,000 metric tons of CO2 this year.

    Attalla said the addition of a third solar farm, advances in geothermal energy and research in carbon capture contribute to achieving carbon neutrality and that long-term, COVID-19 should not be a problem.

    “Maybe we’re behind a little in implementing some projects, but we’ll be able to catch up,” he said. “I don’t think there will be a long-term impact on the iCAP implementation.”

    White also said she doesn’t anticipate any long-term problems with achieving the iCAP goals and believes it’s important for the University to lead by example when it comes to sustainability.

    “I really believe that accomplishing the iCAP goals is something we can do, we need to do and we will do,” she said. 

    “Climate change isn’t waiting for us,” Edwards said. “(The University is) the laboratory for science, for humanities, for arts …  all those kinds of things show what is possible of humanity.”

    “If we’re going to call ourselves leaders, then we need to lead,” he said.

    https://dailyillini.com/covid-10/2020/12/08/covid-19-pandemic-impacts-un...

     

  8. Measuring geothermal energy

    Associated Project(s): 

             Geothermal heat exchanger systems consist of two main components: (1) heat pumps, and (2) ground loop. The heat pump capacity is associated with the capability of a GHP system to extract heat from the ground. The size of geothermal heat pumps is measured in tons where 1 ton = 12,000 btu/h, and determined according to the profile of the heating and/or cooling demand of the facility. Meanwhile, the loop field and its size in terms of length and depth are based on the size of equipment, soil type, and average temperature, and climate conditions.  

    Furthermore, other metrics measure the system performance and its efficiency. Coefficient of Performance (COP) is the ratio of useable thermal energy to the thermal equivalent of the electricity used to operate the system. Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) represents the ratio between the cooling output (in Btu/h) and the energy (electricity) input (in Watt). Also, The SEER is a measure of central air conditioning efficiency over an entire season. Higher COP, EER, or SEER means higher heat pump efficiency.

             The ground source heat exchanger system can be implemented in conjunction with an existing heating system that depends on another type of energy such as liquid propane. To accurately calculate the reduction in energy usage after the installation of a ground source heat exchanger, the system has to be modeled as a hybrid system. Detailed information (system type, fuel, capacity, power consumption, time of usage) of this hybrid system is needed to assess the adequacy of a GHP system's performance in addressing the building’s heating and cooling needs. Assuming that the ground heat exchanger design data and the existing system are known, then the actual performance metrics of the system may be simulated using commercially available software such as eQuest or GLHEPro.

              Once the system is installed, a data collection system can measure, track, and report the actual performance of the ground heat exchanger system. First, determining the electricity consumption of a GHP system requires sub-metering of the GHP system. Second, is heat exchange performance data. This includes the measured entering/exiting water temperatures and circulation rates for the heat pump over time.  Modern GSHP units already incorporate sensors to monitor energy usage and the entering and exiting fluid temperatures.

  9. Solar Farm construction update for November 2020

    Associated Project(s): 

    F&S Management Engineer, Sushanth Girini, provided an update on the Solar Farm 2.0 construction progress.  One key point is that 65% of the panel installation is complete as of 11/23.

     

    Points regarding the progress: 

    • Currently the project is working on installing all the panels on the posts. As of Nov. 23, 2020, Sol Systems completed 258 out of 399 rows of panels, so approximately 65% of panel installation is complete.
    • The pads have been poured and all major equipment placed (inverters and transformers), currently working on wiring the whole network. The mechanical in service (construction complete without inspection & commissioning) date is Dec 16th 2020 as per current schedule.
    • Received all panels on site, racking equipment and all major equipment such as inverters and transformers, awaiting the switchgear delivery, which is due on 11/30.
    • Working with U of I's F&S Waste Management team to achieve a zero waste goal for this project by recycling all the boxes and other materials.
    • Every employee who works on site is checked for temperatures before entering the site as a safety precaution against covid-19.

    Thank you,

    Sushanth Girini

  10. Andrew Li will be getting an update for the small scale solar projects

    Associated Project(s): 

    Andrew Li, Halie Collins, and Morgan White met today to launch a student-led project to get an update for all the small scale solar projects on campus.  Andrew will be reaching out to the project contacts over the next few months to get a status update and associated photos, links, etc. for each project.  He will then update the iCAP Portal accordingly.

  11. Energy SWATeam Meeting Minutes from 11-17-20

    On November 17th, the Energy iCAP Team met to discuss student, staff, and chair priorities for forming new recommendations. The team decided on starting to develop three different recommendations in the future:

    (1) Requiring campus buildings to comply with state Energy Code Compliance;

    (2) Encouraging labs on campus to save energy;

    (3) Educating students in residence halls about reducing energy consumption.

    Agenda, meeting minutes, and chat log are attached.

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