Decarbonization of Existing Commercial Buildings: Technical Issues & Opportunities

In the race to decarbonize, the U.S. commercial building sector offers significant potential to pay early dividends on climate action. At stake is seven percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions to replace fossil fuels used primarily for heating and hot water, a sizable impact that could be more quickly attained than efforts to decarbonize other parts of our built environment.
This two-part webinar hosted by the Boston University Institute for Sustainable Energy addresses the technical, financial, and policy challenges in achieving substantial decarbonization of existing commercial buildings in particular-the harder-to-transition bulk of this sector that requires large-scale retrofits.
In part one, technical topics span analysis of conversion opportunities for both individual lab/office buildings and entire portfolios of buildings, district heat, and assessment of heat pump technology for this sector.
Keynote Speaker:
David Nemtzow, Building Technologies Office Director of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of Energy
Keynote speaker David Nemtzow brings more than three decades of experience in the industry, including running a large state government energy and water department, a prominent bipartisan nonprofit energy efficiency association, and an energy consulting practice.
Panelists:
Kurt Roth, ISE Senior Fellow and Head, Energy Systems, Fraunhofer USA Center for Manufacturing Innovation
Dr. Roth has led several studies to assess the energy savings and commercialization potentials of building technologies, including HVAC, building controls and diagnostics, and information technologies, and has served as Principal Investigator on several DOE-funded applied R&D projects. He discusses challenges to and opportunities for the decarbonization of smaller commercial buildings, particularly those conditioned by packaged rooftop units (RTUs), which account for the majority of commercial building HVAC energy consumption.
Gayatri Sundar Rajan, Student Researcher, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Boston University
Sundar Rajan is a Boston University Campus Climate Lab Researcher and an Anthony Janetos Climate Action Prize recipient who’s majoring in mechanical engineering and specializes in energy and building heating electrification. She discusses the technical considerations and strategies to electrify existing large buildings at Boston University.
Mike Walters, Principal, Salas O’Brien
Walters is an industry leader in the comprehensive techno-economic analysis of energy systems and alternatives, with a background in high-performance buildings, energy planning, and the design and construction of geothermal systems and central energy plants. Walters focuses on decarbonization via electrification of district energy systems.
Michael Gevelber, ISE-affiliated faculty, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Boston University (moderator)
ISE-affiliated faculty Michael Gevelber’s engineering research focuses on developing enhanced materials processing capabilities through modeling, sensor development, experimentation, and integrated system and control design. His research includes developing a new system identification approach that helps optimize air flow in existing commercial buildings and conducting energy assessments for urban housing and universities.
Series sponsored by the U.S. Green Building Council. Presented in partnership with the student-run BU Energy & Sustainability Club.