Green on the Hill: DOE eyes first-time efficiency standards for industrial and commercial pumps

Looks to remove solar installation roadblocks

By Stephen Barlas

October 13, 2011

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will be considering new energy efficiency standards for commercial and industrial pumps, a decision that has divided business groups into opposing camps. Some energy companies support the preliminary analysis, which was announced by a published request for information by the DOE in June. The comment period was subsequently extended to mid-September at the request of the Hydraulics Institute, the trade group representing pump manufacturers.

Environmental groups are encouraging the DOE to move forward.

But Karim Amrane, vice president, regulatory and research, the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), said his group believes that the preliminary analysis conducted by the DOE is based on outdated information and cannot be used as a basis to initiate a rulemaking on commercial pumps that are used in building and facility AC systems. "We see no compelling reasons why the DOE should venture into regulating these products," Amrane stated.

Since 2001 ASHRAE 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, requires HVAC pumping systems to be designed for variable fluid flow and capable of reducing pump flow rates to 50 percent or less of the design flow rate. These requirements have been refined over the years as reflected by the 2010 version of ASHRAE 90.1. The requirements also state that chilled water pumps exceeding 5 HP must have controls and devices (such as variable-speed control) that will reduce pump motor demand to no more than 30 percent of design wattage at 50 percent of design water flow. These measures, which save a significant amount of energy, have not been accounted for in the DOE analysis, Amrane added.

There currently are no federal conservation standards for commercial and industrial pumps. In fact, the term commercial, industrial, and agricultural pumps is not even defined in the Code of Federal Regulations. So the DOE has its work cut out for itself if it decides to move forward, which is not necessarily a foregone conclusion. If the department does move forward, it seems likely that it will develop standards for different classes of pumps, for example, distinguishing pumps used by utilities from those used by manufacturers. Environmental groups are pressing the DOE to focus only on pumps used to move water and wastewater.

DOE Turns up the Heat on Solar Installation Roadblocks

The DOE announced a new, $12 million grant program-—called Rooftop Solar Challenge—aimed at stimulating  local governments to come up with ways to bring down administrative barriers to residential and small commercial solar photovoltaic (PV) installations. The idea is to get cities, counties, and other jurisdictions to compete against one another to come up with innovative ways for solar power providers to more quickly navigate confusing and conflicting permit, hookup, installation, and other requirements that may vary from town to town in a region, running up the costs for the provider and making the provision of rooftop solar installations much less likely in that area.

The challenge is part of a larger DOE solar energy promotion program called the SunShot Initiative. Its goal is to reduce the total cost of solar energy systems by about 75 percent so that they are cost-competitive with other forms of energy without subsidies before the end of the decade. In the program, participating teams compete in four critical areas: standardizing permit processes, updating planning and zoning codes, improving standards for connecting to the grid, and increasing access to financing.

Ramamoorthy Ramesh, director of the SunShot Initiative and Solar Energy Technologies Program at the DOE, said, "By challenging local governments to cut their upfront fees and paperwork and standardize their permitting processes, the challenge will not only reduce the cost to homeowners and businesses of installing solar energy systems, but it will also save money and time for local governments already struggling with tight budgets."

Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-Vt.) has introduced the Ten Million Solar Roofs Act of 2011 (S.1108), which would essentially parallel the challenge, except at a level of $50 million a year.

However, its chance of passage is remote given pressure to reduce federal spending.