Today, in the modern world, saving energy is an integral part of the life of a civilized society. It's about health care, saving money and making life easier.
But one of the most important (global) characteristics of energy conservation is the protection of the environment from negative influences.
Energy saving concept
The very concept of "energy saving" has been around for a long time. Today, energy saving is characterized by a conceptual device.
Energy saving is based on the energy resource as an energy carrier that can be used in any activity. Energy saving is any activity aimed at reducing the use of energy resources without prejudice to the main function of their use. Despite the extreme accuracy of the definitions, there is often confusion in the concepts of “energy saving” and “energy efficiency”. In this regard, the definition of the latter is given. Energy efficiency is a certain set of characteristics that reflect the relationship between the effect of the use of energy resources and the costs of the energy resources themselves. Energy saving efficiency is characterized, among other things, by the energy efficiency class, which reflects the degree of usefulness of a product in terms of energy saving. To determine energy efficiency, special energy surveys are carried out.
Basics of energy saving
Now, having defined the basic concepts in this area, it is worth reflecting the basic principles of energy saving:
- Use of alternative energy sources.
- Use of secondary energy resources.
- Application of energy-efficient technologies and equipment.
- Take measures for the rational use of available energy resources. Assessment of the economic feasibility of using any energy saving technology and solution.
This list can be attributed to both the principles of regulating energy saving, and the main approaches to insulating a private house. The main thing to remember: energy saving involves not only additional means of obtaining energy, but also activities to save the available energy and its rational use.
Alternative energy sources
Today there is a lot of talk about alternative energy sources. Generally, we are talking about renewable energy resources. What is constantly being renewed on planet Earth? Of course, it is the water, the sun, the wind, the earth's crust. Of course, if you go into detail, solar activity changes over time and the surface of the earth's crust is thinning, but this is all on a scale of the Universe. We are talking about renewal as part of our civilization - in the centuries to come, we believe, the Sun will not darken and the Earth will not leave its orbit.
Thus, the following energy sources are today considered as alternatives to oil, gas, coal and wood:
- Energy from the sun.Batteries and solar collectors are used to use such a source. The former are solar cells that directly convert the sun's energy into electric current. Solar collectors do not convert energy into electric current, but heat the coolant for its later use (for example, to heat water in a private house).
- Wind power.Wind turbines that generate electricity using blades driven by the force of the wind are very popular in Europe. For example, Germany already obtains a third of its electricity using this renewable energy source.
- Energy of water.It's not just about hydroelectric power plants. Today, there are heat pumps that transform the heat of water in a lake or swimming pool into stable heating of water to heat a house and supply it with hot water.
- Energy of the Earth.The heat pumps described above can also use heat from groundwater or upper crust for utilities. Such installations are very popular, because they do not require a nearby water source and wind: the coolant can be placed in special tubes under the lawn, for example, or in wells in the garden.
Secondary energy resources
Recycling energy is one of the basic principles of energy efficiency. Improving the efficiency of the ventilation and air conditioning system used in the building is only possible by recycling the heat from the exhaust air. This process of restoring part of the heat coming out of the building (the air is heated in the room from the work equipment, from the people in the room) is called recovery. In this aspect, energy saving is the activity of conserving the energy available in the room.
The principle of operation of the recuperator is very simple - through some plates, which conduct heat well, the air extracted from the room heats up the cold currents coming from the street without mixing with it. As a result, no ice, but air heated to 2-3 degrees enters the house, which contributes to a more comfortable microclimate in the room, and also allows you to save on heating, due to theincrease in temperature in the room due to hot flows. Recuperators are of the plate type, as described above, rotary (with a rotating element inside) and with an intermediate coolant. A large selection of waste picker manufacturers allows you to choose a device for different premises and customers.
How to rationally use municipal energy resources?
The rational use of available resources includes not only the installation and operation of energy-efficient equipment, but also compliance with a certain regime. Energy saving mode is a lifestyle in which energy savings are provided at the household level. If you set yourself a goal - to save on utility bills, then you must first install equipment that, with the help of automation of energy supply and metering, will allow you not to wastekilowatts. It should be selected according to the marking confirming that this appliance or appliance saves energy. Increasing the energy optimization of the use of resources is only possible with the rational operation of all equipment. Timely turning off the light in rooms where there is no one, paying special attention to the waste of hot water and the correct setting of automatic meters and the consumption of heat and electricity in the house will allowachieve significant results in terms of saving energy and personal money.
What is a passive house?
Energy efficiency and energy savings are inextricably linked with the concept of passive housing construction. It combines a set of energy saving measures which together ensure low energy consumption. The history of passive house technology begins in the city of Darmstadt, where it was first developed by physicist Feist. Calculating the energy balance of the house gave him the idea to create a building that would not need to be connected to heating even in winter - a passive house. At that time in Germany, houses consumed around 200 kWh / m² per year. The passive house, on the other hand, only needs 10 kWh / m² per year to remain suitable and even comfortable for year round living. The basic criterion for a passive house is the creation of a closed building envelope with increased thermal insulation and low thermal conductivity. This is achieved through the use of energy-efficient thermal insulation materials, excluding so-called cold bridges (places in the building envelope through which the cold enters the building: facade fasteners, window frames).
Evaluation of the effectiveness of the application of energy saving technologies
In order to bring the level of energy consumption of a building closer to the standard of a passive house, it is necessary to use materials with high thermal resistance, modern engineering equipment, energy sourcesrenewable and secondary, in short, measures that guarantee energy savings. In this case, energy efficiency is calculated based on the costs spent on this or that innovation in the house and the effect that such a decision will bring to the owner. First, it is necessary to calculate the impact of the new technology on the production and consumption of a particular type of resource. In this case, you should evaluate:
- The degree of resource saving (the difference between the resources used by energy efficient and traditional equipment during the billing period when producing the same amount of energy).
- The effect of power generation (the difference or ratio of the volumes of power generated over a period of time by the equipment options being compared using the same amount of resources).
These indicators will give us an idea of the need to move on to the calculation of the economic effect. It is calculated by comparing the costs of purchasing new equipment (and possibly old dismantling) and the income from energy savings when replacing a used machine with a more modern machine (over a given period). This difference will be the effect the homeowner will receive after a specific period of time after applying the energy efficient solution. Usually, the installation of recuperators or solar panels pays off in 3 to 5 years.
In conclusion, it should be noted that saving energy is not just about saving money. First of all, it is about being concerned about tomorrow, in which our children will live.