SDG 9 - Industry Innovation and Infrastructure

Full Cost of Driving

Kiera Reid — Thu, 22 Sep 2022 13:23:39 +0000

Full Cost of Driving Kiera Reid Thu, 09/22/2022 - 09:23

Project Background

At the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ, commuting contributes an estimated 19% of emissions associated with the University. Commuting emissions are part of the campus goal of net zero emissions by 2050. Action item 41 of the Shift:Neutral climate action plan is the development of an institutional Transportation Demand Management Plan. Part of that plan will involve finding creative ways to convince commuters to forgo the personal vehicle and choose sustainable means of getting to and from campus: by walking, biking, rolling or taking public transit.

There are many considerations that go into the decision of how to commute to and from campus: distance, travel times, climate and weather, cost, availability of sustainable transportation options, fitness levels, need to combine a commute with other trips, etc. Often if a commuter owns a personal vehicle, however, the simplest and easiest choice is to use that vehicle. Some, however, may be persuaded to leave that vehicle at home or even to give up that vehicle if they are made aware of the true cost of driving to campus.

The University of ��ݮ��Ƶ is looking for an analysis of the full economic and societal costs of using a personal vehicle to commute to and from campus and recommendations on how to use these values to promote sustainable commuting options. This work relates to the UN Sustainable Development Goals 11 and 13.

Project Examples

Reviewing data for commuting mode choices and sustainable transportation options for the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ.
Performing a literature review to identify best practices for quantifying the full cost of owning and using a personal vehicle. The full cost may include:
- The full economic cost of owning a car so that you can commute to campus. This could be measured as an overall cost over the vehicle’s lifetime or an average per km travelled and could include:
  - Upfront cost
  - Fuel costs
  - Maintenance costs
  - Insurance costs
  - Parking costs
  - Distance travelled
- Incremental economic costs (avg yearly and per km commuting) of using a personal vehicle you already own to commute to UW including:
  - Maintenance costs from wear and tear
  - Fuel costs
  - Incremental insurance costs (from occasional to commuting vehicle)
  - Campus parking costs
- Social costs - try to estimate average per vehicle financial and non-financial costs in Canada for factors such as:
  - Health impacts of emissions
  - Health impacts from sedentary lifestyles and driving stress ▪ Road accident costs
  - Climate impacts from emissions
  - Climate impacts from embodied emissions from the vehicle ▪ Urban heat island effect
  - Road infrastructure (new roads, bridges, parking lots)
  - Road maintenance (includes paving, plowing)
  - Road policing
  - Other (effects on plants, wildlife, farmland?)
  - Make recommendations on how to communicate these costs to commuters as a means of promoting sustainable alternative commutes.

QNC Air Handling Unit Redesign

Kiera Reid — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 13:55:03 +0000

QNC Air Handling Unit Redesign Kiera Reid Mon, 09/19/2022 - 09:55

Project Background

There are 4 air handling units in the Quantum Nano Centre (QNC) that have a poor design which results in excessive stratification of inlet air. The units cannot operate as needed in the winter because the inlet air is stratified sufficiently that cold outdoor air will trip the freezestat. The mechanical contractor and design consultants have tried to improve the situation using internal baffles, but it has not worked. A need exists to mix incoming and outlet air more effectively. The project could deal with one or more of the units. The approach to solution could be computational or experimental (within financial limits).

Work on this project supports:

Objective 02 of the Sustainability Strategy Implement cost-effective and practical strategies to reduce or minimize growth in energy use on campus,
The Shift:Neutral climate action plan to reduce energy consumption of existing buildings,
Sustainable Development Goals 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and 13 (Climate Action)

Project Examples

Reviewing of similar case studies for other buildings and the work that has been done to date in QNC.
Using an iterative modeling or experimental approach to explore possible solutions to stratification of inlet air in the QNC air handling units.
Exploring the feasibility of the recommended solutions that consider economic, safety, regulatory and institutional factors.
Developing a project implementation plan for the proposed solution.
Developing a plan for how to measure the impact of the proposed solutions.

Engineering Problem Statements

Sneha Praveen — Fri, 19 Aug 2022 14:08:13 +0000

Engineering Problem Statements Sneha Praveen Fri, 08/19/2022 - 10:08

Capstone Problem Statements

The following list documents examples of capstone problem statements that can be used to generate information and solutions involving sustainability at the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ.

The district heating system uses a great deal of energy and natural gas when it operates in summertime to provide heating for a small number of applications. Natural gas used primarily for space conditioning is the single largest source of campus emissions, accounting for 92% of Scope 1 and 2 emissions. The gas-fired steam-based district heating system on campus operates year-round, supplying steam for dehumidification, hot water, autoclaves, institutional dishwashing, cooking and other uses in the summertime.

The power used on campus during five peak demand days has an overly large impact on the cost of electricity throughout the year. The University of ��ݮ��Ƶ is looking for a technical and economic assessment of programs or technologies that would allow it to reduce its contribution to the top peak electricity use times and/or participate in IESO conservation or congestion management programs.

The University of ��ݮ��Ƶ has a large untapped potential for renewable energy production that can reduce peak electricity demand and greenhouse gas emissions. Renewable energy systems are an important solution to the climate crisis and can also reduce the power draw during the five peak demand days that impact electricity costs throughout the year.

Campus buildings that are not part of the district heating systems must shift to decarbonized forms of heating if we are to reduce campus energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. The University of ��ݮ��Ƶ is looking for a technical and economic feasibility analysis of options for decarbonizing existing buildings that are not part of the district heating system.

Existing buildings on campus are poorly insulated and leaky. Many of our campus buildings were built at a time when insulation, air sealing, and thermal bridging were not major concerns. As a consequence, these buildings waste a lot of energy through the building envelope, and buildings are the single largest source of campus greenhouse gas emissions.

Some of the QNC air handling units have a poor design which results in excessive stratification of inlet air. The units cannot operate as needed in the winter because the inlet air is stratified sufficiently that cold outdoor air will trip the freezestat. The mechanical contractor and design consultants have tried to improve the situation using internal baffles, but it has not worked. A need exists to mix incoming and outlet air more effectively. The project could deal with one or more of the units. The approach to solution could be computational or experimental (within financial limits).

Many rooms on campus waste energy because they are not performing as well as they were designed to. Recommissioning some of the worst performing rooms can be a cost-effective way to achieve quick and easy wins for energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions reductions. In fact, 62.3% of the University’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2018 came from the natural gas and electricity used to operate our buildings.

The University of ��ݮ��Ƶ is not capitalizing on the potential for waste-water heat recovery. For the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ, wastewater heat recovery has the potential to significantly reduce the energy and fuel needed to operate the district heating system and the system can be reversed to provide cooling in the summer months. Natural gas used primarily for space conditioning is the single largest source of campus emissions, accounting for 92% of total emissions (scope 1 and 2).