Decarbonization of Residential Building Energy Supply: Impact of Cogeneration System Performance on Energy, Environment, and Economics

Abstract

Electrical and thermal loads of residential buildings present a unique opportunity for onsite power generation, and concomitant thermal energy generation, storage, and utilization, to decrease primary energy consumption and carbon dioxide intensity. This approach also improves resiliency and ability to address peak load burden effectively. Demand response programs and grid-interactive buildings are also essential to meet the energy needs of the 21st century while addressing climate impact. Given the significance of the scale of building energy consumption, this study investigates how cogeneration systems influence the primary energy consumption and carbon footprint in residential buildings. The impact of onsite power generation capacity, its electrical and thermal efficiency, and its cost, on total primary energy consumption, equivalent carbon dioxide emissions, operating expenditure, and, most importantly, thermal and electrical energy balance, is presented. The conditions at which a cogeneration approach loses its advantage as an energy efficient residential resource are identified as a function of electrical grid’s carbon footprint and primary energy efficiency. Compared to a heat pump heating system with a coefficient of performance (COP) of three, a 0.5 kW cogeneration system with 40% electrical efficiency is shown to lose its environmental benefit if the electrical grid’s carbon dioxide intensity falls below 0.4 kg CO2 per kWh electricity.

Role of On-Site Generation in Carbon Emissions and Utility Bill Savings under Different Electric Grid Scenarios

“…Motivation: The use of chemical energy to sustain building energy requirements to simultaneously lower electrical demand and primary energy consumption while improving energy efficiency, grid resiliency, and carbon footprint of buildings has been investigated by several researchers [14][15][16][17][18]. For instance, a recent work [19] presented a case study with two different micro-CHP configurations in a residential building serviced by the electrical grid at a carbon intensity of 0.299 kg/kWh.…”

Exploring the Relationship between Residential CO2 Emissions, Urbanization, Economic Growth, and Residential Energy Consumption: Evidence from the North Africa Region

“…These studies should target all sectors that contribute to GHG greenhouse gas emissions, especially the building sector, which contributes 28% of the world's total carbon emissions [6]. Thus, the housing stock provides tremendous potential for CO 2 emissions reduction [7,8]. Residential energy consumption (REC) in the North Africa region has continued to grow since 2000 and…”