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An Assessment of Selected Programs at the National Institute of Standards and Technology Engineering Laboratory Fiscal Year 2020 (2021) / Chapter Skim
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7 Net-Zero Energy, High-Performance Buildings Program
Pages 58-64

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From page 58...
... Of special note is the flexibility and speed exhibited in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in several ways, including by incorporating the CONTAMX engine into the FaTIMA tool developed to assist in evaluating the impacts of aerosol exposure controls in response to COVID-19. The unique Net Zero Energy Residential Test Facility (NZERTF)
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From page 59...
... to provide improved characterization and analysis of net-zero energy buildings. The NIST program on evaluation of insulation materials remains the world's leading program for the measurement science of current, widely used insulation materials.
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From page 60...
... The water use in high-performance buildings project builds on NIST's existing building water heating energy efficiency study on testing methods for water heaters. Challenges and Opportunities NIST is no longer making organic PVs, and so there is no internal collaboration for the PV group in EL to explore newer technologies.
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From page 61...
... Some examples include the following: collaboration with the Boston University School of Public Health to study of interventions to reduce multifamily housing energy use and contaminant exposures using coupled simulations; collaboration with the New Jersey Institute of Technology on the analysis of comfort data from prior heat pump (HP) system tests; and participation in 61
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From page 62...
... Additionally, they actively contribute to several ASTM standards on chemical emissions from building materials, including formaldehyde; they provide continuing leadership insulation standard reference materials that are widely used by industry (1450e Fibrous Glass Board, 1452 Fibrous Glass Blanket, 1453 Expanded Polystyrene and 1459 Fumed Silica Board) ; and contribute to thick calibration transfer specimens for manufacturers of residential insulation (linked to ASTM Committee C16 on Thermal Insulation)
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From page 63...
... and the coupling of CONTAM with energy simulation software has provided improved analysis capabilities of net-zero energy building performance. These capabilities can be extended with an improved CONTAM user interface and continued projects that analyze the interaction between indoor environment and energy efficiency.
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From page 64...
... RECOMMENDATION: The NIST Photovoltaics research group should establish standards for solar cells based on materials beyond traditional inorganic semiconductor solar cells and for testing conditions beyond terrestrial one-sun illumination. If expertise does not exist within NIST, outside collaborations should be pursued.
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Key Terms

  • energy efficiency
  • buildings program
  • measurement science
  • solar cells
  • insulation materials

  • energy simulation
  • zero energy
  • performance project
  • reference cells
  • birds nest

  • engineering laboratory
  • heat pump
  • service life
  • building energy
  • building metrics

  • energy residential
  • building materials
  • building load
  • insulation thermal
  • thermal performance

  • residential test
  • standard reference
  • environmental performance
  • buildings project
  • reference materials

  • traceable reference
  • contam user
  • light harvesting
  • succession planning
  • test facility


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