Category: Energy (page 1 of 19)

Job Postings 1/30/2023

Policy & Transit Planning Internship Boston, MA Application Deadline: Open until filled

Geospatial Justice Fellow Remote Application Deadline: January 31

Equitable Transitions Intern Somerville, MA Application Deadline: January 31

Industry Research Assistant Remote, Washington, D.C. Application Deadline: February 24

Policy Internship Chicago, IL or Des Moines, IA Application Deadline: March 15

Population and Sustainability Associate Remote Application Deadline: Open until filled

Job Postings 11/18/22

Youth Engagement Consultant Boston, MA Application Deadline: Open until filled

Solar Renewable Program Internship Westwood, MA Application Deadline: March 1, 2023

Environmental Planning Intern Boston, MA Application Deadline: Open until filled

Research Associate Intern Framingham, MA Application Deadline: Open until filled

PEP Internship Program Woods Hole, MA Application Deadline: February 10, 2023

Clean Energy and Climate Intern Boston, MA Application Deadline: Open until filled

New Solar Carport Installation at the Medford Campus

Design Rendering Provided by iSun Energy

Tufts University’s Auxiliary and Transportation Services department has announced the construction of a new solar carport for charging electric vehicles. The carport will be located in the Cohen Parking Lot on Lower Campus Road in Medford. It will provide charging for up to six electric vehicles. Construction of the carport will begin April 15, 2021 and is expected to be completed on April 30, 2021.

In the near term, parking spots in the carport will be on a first-come-first-served basis for Tufts University permit holders. Possible future enhancements may include the ability for electric vehicle drivers to reserve spaces using a parking management system app.

“We’re really pleased to be able to offer additional electric vehicle charging stations on the Medford campus. Not only is this a positive step toward promoting more green methods of transportation, but the carport fits squarely within Tufts’ overall commitment to environmental sustainability,” said Jason McClellan, senior director of Tufts University Auxiliary Services.

This pilot program, offered in partnership with iSun Energy, will generate energy measured by a separate meter, and excess power produced will be distributed to the grid. “By partnering with iSun and our electricity utility, the solar carport joins Tufts other solar projects in helping the Commonwealth reach its goal of net zero emissions by 2050, as required under the new comprehensive climate change legislation signed into law by Governor Baker in March, 2021,” said Tina Woolston, director of the Office of Sustainability. “This in turn, helps Tufts reach its own goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.”

Learn about Tufts’ other solar installations

Learn about Tufts’ other sustainable transportation and commuting options.

A More Sustainable Barnum Hall

The Jumbo statue in front of Barnum Hall. (Jake Belcher/Tufts University)

Barnum Hall has recently undergone major renovations, making the building one of the most up-to-date on the Tufts’ Campus. Not to mention, the holy trinity of environmentally-focused departments are located within Barnum’s newly upgraded corridors: The Tufts Institute of the Environment (TIE), the Office of Sustainability (OOS) and the Environmental Studies department. The improved Barnum also houses Tisch College, which focuses on civic and political engagements, and has many programs related to the social aspects and impacts of sustainability. 

Before the renovation, Barnum was a less than environmentally preferable academic building. In April 1975, the tragic Barnum fire took place, burning the former natural history museum to a crisp. Tufts hurriedly rebuilt it in 1976 with little funds. These quick fixes led to problems in the future. The 2018-19 Barnum revamping resolved many of the faulty features. 

According to Trina Jerich, the project manager of the Barnum renovations, her team “Took everything that was amazing about [Barnum’s] history and melded it with modern feels.”  

Here are some of the sustainability features and overall improvements now found in Barnum:  

  • An Energy Recovery Unit (ERU) 
    • This new state-of-the art heating and cooling system is perched atop the building. This unit takes the heat from the air that is leaving the building and transfers it to the air that is entering the building. This maintains Barnum’s heating or cooling, while bringing in fresh air to be circulated throughout the building. This ventilation system is a sustainable way to reduce energy consumption and improve indoor air quality. 
  • Double-paned Windows 
    • The 1976 windows were single-paned and drafty, which made temperature control a nightmare. The new windows are double-paned, trapping a layer of air in between the two panes of glass. This provides insulation, prevents drafts, and keeps the building at the desired temperature.  
  • Occupancy Sensors: Lighting + Heating and Cooling 
    • Barnum’s new lighting and heating and cooling systems are controlled by occupancy sensors. These sensors detect the presence of people in a room. For example, if a room is occupied, heating or cooling is activated and the lights switch on. If that same room is vacant, both systems shut off. This saves energy since neither lights nor heating or cooling are left on. Light occupancy sensors extend the lifecycle of the bulbs, subsequently reducing waste.  
  • Low-flow Faucet Aerators and Metered Faucets 
    • Low-flow faucet aerators dilute water flow with air, which reduces the amount of water coming from the faucet. Metered faucets automatically stop water flow. This saves a significant amount of water, by simply using less!  

Other sustainable features include: low-impact recycled rubber flooring, water bottle-filling stations at every water fountain, and the reuse of the exterior of the existing building, which is made entirely from locally-sourced stone from the Everett-Revere area quarries.  

The Barnum renovators programmed sustainability right into the building, making it easier for every Barnum occupant to reduce their ecological footprints. The project manager, Trina, not only wanted to leave us with a more energy efficient Barnum, but with this: “We have to learn to live in a sustainable world.” In the end, it’s not only the responsibility of project managers to reduce our footprint in the built environment, but also up to the building users to learn to responsibly use resources.  

Eco-Ambassadors Tour the SEC

Recently, the Science and Engineering Complex (SEC), located on the Medford/Somerville campus at 200 College Avenue, received LEED Gold certification. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a voluntary green building rating system that recognizes high-performance, energy efficient and sustainable buildings.

On Wednesday afternoon, 11 Eco-Ambassadors went on a tour of the SEC to better understand what makes the building so energy efficient.

Elliott Miller and Michael Skeldon from Facilities Services along with Bruce Panilaitis, the Director of the Science and Engineering Complex, led the group through the architecturally stunning building to explain the inner workings of this state-of-the-art, one-of-a-kind building.

Repurposing Tufts’ History

The exterior of an older building accents the new modern building’s interior

In the initial planning stages, the SEC was set to be built next to the location of the older Robinson and Anderson Halls, with potential plans to demolish Robinson Hall. However, they later decided to preserve both of the older buildings and convert them into wings of the new SEC. Not only is this more sustainable, it also helps preserve the history of the University. What is left is a stunning juxtaposition of old and new with the exposed brick visible within the modern interior of the atrium of the building.

The SEC houses several departments including Biology, Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering, as well as the offices and labs of several other departments. The structure of the spaces provides ample opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration.

Energy Efficiency

The SEC is designed for maximum energy efficiency. The building has tight doors and a white reflective roof to reduce the summer cooling load. While having an all-glass exterior may seem inefficient, the triple glazing on all SEC windows reduces heat loss in cooler months and helps keep the building cool in warmer months.

The volume of air that goes in and out of the building is tightly controlled. Conditioned air is recirculated from office and classroom areas and blended in with outside air for laboratory use. The building also uses low and medium temperature chilled water to provide year-round cooling. The chilled water has two systems and different supply temperatures (38°F and ~60°F) to optimize the efficiency of the CEP (Central Energy Plant) chillers and to provide efficient condensation free cooling without risking dripping from the chilled beam cooling.

Scheduling and occupancy sensors are built into each lab and office in the SEC and daylight dimming sensors automatically control the light levels in rooms to adjust for varying amounts of sunlight. There are also carbon dioxide air quality sensors in meeting rooms. When there are more people, more air is let into the room to maintain a consistent minimum air quality level and a comfortable temperature. If no one is detected in the room after a preset amount of time, the lighting is turned off and the heating or cooling set-points are significantly relaxed to minimize energy use until someone reoccupies the space.

Exposed piping on the ceiling of a lab in the SEC

Exposed piping on the ceiling of a lab in the SEC

A striking aspect of the building is the exposed ductwork and piping which actually has a very practical purpose — having all of the valves and airflow controls exposed allows technicians to easily see the control position indicators of the equipment and troubleshoot a malfunction, often without even having to get a ladder. This allows for quicker repairs which reduce the amount of time when energy can be wasted as the problem is being solved.

Sustainable Lab Design

A typical lab bench in the SEC, with components plugged into the ceiling which can be easily removed and replaced to suit the researchers' needs

A typical lab bench in the SEC

The SEC’s new LEED Gold certification is particularly notable because of how difficult it can be to achieve a sustainable design in a laboratory building. These types of buildings tend to be highly energy dependent and unsustainable due to necessary safety precautions and the complex needs of lab occupants. Air changes in lab spaces are particularly important as they make sure that the air stays clean of contaminants and at a moderated temperature.

One of the tour guides, elliott miller, points to the exposed piping in the ceiling to explain the air ventilation systems in a lab

Elliott explaining the air ventilation systems

 

The building’s lab spaces use a minimum amount of air changes to reduce the amount of heating or cooling necessary to maintain the laboratory environment. To help optimize the air change rates, an air quality system monitor made by Aircuity, a company headquartered in Newton MA, measures certain parameters like VOCs, dust, humidity, and CO2, and compares them to the outside air. The system samples the air every 15 minutes and if abnormalities are detected, the frequency of air changes (air from the laboratory gets sucked out and replaced by new air coming in from the outside) is increased until the contaminants in the air are back down to an acceptable level.

Normally,  a minimum of five air changes occur each hour during the day, and less at night when no one is in the building. Mike explained that this is much less than some other laboratories that are designed to constantly exhaust 10 to 12 air changes in an hour.

The labs also have high-efficiency low flow fume hoods that are able to sense how much air should be flowing based on whether the fume is open or shut and if there is a person present. When no one is present, less air is drawn through which helps to further conserve energy.

The labs also accommodate a wide range of research needs while respecting sustainability. “A key aspect of efficiency is adaptability,” Michael explained. In the SEC, each level has the same basic layout even though the building is used by many different departments.

In addition, the individual labs are designed to be easily modified. The furniture is not fixed so that it can be easily moved at any time and infrastructure aspects such as vacuums, chords, chemicals, and gas can be easily installed or removed from fixtures on the ceiling. This allows the needs of the researchers occupying the lab at any given time to be easily met without needing to significantly change the physical space.

Utilizing the SEC

The SEC is as functional and practical as it is energy-efficient and beautiful!

One of the biggest challenges of introducing a new, state-of-the-art building such as the SEC comes after the construction is completed. A building with many sustainable functions cannot live up to its full potential without the understanding and support of its occupants. For example, even though air is tightly controlled to ensure the highest possible energy efficiency, this is rendered useless if the occupants decide to leave the windows open in their office all day.

While there will be a slight learning curve to using the building, the SEC is sure to provide a comfortable and exciting learning and innovating space for students, faculty, and other researchers for years to come.

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