Measurement Science Roadmap for Net-Zero Energy Buildings

Structural issues within the building industry also serve as impediments to onsiteenergy production. A key barrier is that the existing housing stock was not builtwith the application of future onsite power generation in mind, which means thatsignificant cost could be incurred in retrofitting the building to accommodatethese systems. From a cultural standpoint, the residential building industry ingeneral is not receptive to an energy service company business model.Overcoming compartmentalized thinking in the building industry is a keychallenge.D. Measurement BarriersA number of measurement barriers and challenges were identified that arecritical to the development and implementation of onsite building energygeneration. These are summarized in Table III-2 by topical area, with the relativepriorities indicated.Some of the top measurement challenges include:• Clarification of the goals associated with renewable energy resources,• Performance and technology assessment,• Lack of predictive tools to optimize strategies and to evaluate energyproduction performance,• Lack of real-world testing protocols to capture actual energy productionperformance,• Closing the gap between design and actual performance, and• Dynamic performance measurements of energy generation systems.Table III‐2. Onsite Energy Generation – Measurement Barriers and Challenges(● = one vote)Performance MetricsHighPriorityMediumPriorityLowerPriorityTechnology AssessmentHighPriorityMediumPriorityLowerPriority• Uncertainty about goals and what to measure to determine performance⎯e.g., fueluse, carbon, source energy ●●●●●●●●• Lack of a standardized or validated tariff model and database ●●• Difficulty capturing total financial savings, including externalities (CO 2 ) that trulyreflect PV costs• Inability to effectively determine the impact of excess PV generation on source‐to‐sitemultiplier• Developing standard rating methods that are realistic• Closing the gap between design and actual performance due to lack of commissioning●●●●• Lack of dynamic performance measurements ●●●●• Lack of understanding of optimal controls schemes for integrated power systems ●●• Lack of customer training on how to assess technology and interpret results• Limited ability to evaluate long‐term performance of integrated systems10 Measurement Science for Net-Zero Energy Buildings