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BGU to Develop System to Lower Community Energy Use

BGU to Develop System to Lower Community Energy Use

August 6, 2015

Alternative Energy, Desert & Water Research, Press Releases

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers received a European Union Horizon 2020 grant to develop a comprehensive, cost-effective system for Net Zero Energy (NZE) communities.

The “Zero Plus” system will be composed of innovative solutions used in buildings that preserve energy generation and management in the building envelope, the interface between the building interior and the outdoor environment including the walls, roof and foundation.

Drs. Shabtai Isaac and Erez Gal from BGU’s Department of Structural Engineering and Profs. Isaac A. Meir and David Pearlmutter from BGU’s Bona Terra Department of Man in the Desert bring decades of experience to bear on one of the most pressing needs of modern civilization – reducing energy consumption that hastens climate change.

Prof. Issac Meir in the administration building he and colleagues designed in Sde Boker

Prof. Issac Meir in the administration building he and colleagues designed in Sde Boker

“The project’s work program will ensure a rapid market uptake of the innovative solutions that will be developed within its four-year scope,” says Prof. Meir. “These solutions will be implemented in four different demonstration projects throughout Europe, with varying climates and building types. The project will be carried out by a consortium that includes experts from universities, project owners, technology providers, and organizations, who will closely collaborate in all the project’s phases.”

A reduction of operational energy usage to an average of 0-20 kWh/m2 per year (compared with the current average of 70-230 kWh/m2) will be achieved through a transition from single NZE buildings to NZE communities, in which the energy loads and resources are optimally managed.

A primary objective of the project will be to develop, integrate, optimize, and verify the system design, with investment costs to be minimally 16 percent lower than current costs. In order to reduce “balance of system” costs, mass-customized technologies will be used so that the system is optimally designed according to the local climate and site of each project.

ABOUT AMERICANS FOR BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY

By supporting a world-class academic institution that not only nurtures the Negev, but also shares its expertise locally and globally, Americans for Ben-Gurion University engages a community of Americans who are committed to improving the world. David Ben-Gurion envisioned that Israel’s future would be forged in the Negev. The cutting-edge research carried out at Ben-Gurion University drives that vision by sustaining a desert Silicon Valley, with the “Stanford of the Negev” at its center. The Americans for Ben-Gurion University movement supports a 21st century unifying vision for Israel by rallying around BGU’s remarkable work and role as an apolitical beacon of light in the Negev desert.

About Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev embraces the endless potential we have as individuals and as a commonality to adapt and to thrive in changing environments. Inspired by our location in the desert, we aim to discover, to create, and to develop solutions to dynamic challenges, to pose questions that have yet to be asked, and to push beyond the boundaries of the commonly accepted and possible.

We are proud to be a central force for inclusion, diversity and innovation in Israel, and we strive to extend the Negev’s potential and our entrepreneurial spirit throughout the world. For example, the multi-disciplinary School for Sustainability and Climate Change at BGU leverages over 50 years of expertise on living and thriving in the desert into scalable solutions for people everywhere.

BGU at a glance:  

20,000 students | 800 senior faculty | 3 campuses | 6 faculties: humanities & social sciences, health sciences, engineering sciences, natural sciences, business & management, and desert research.

 

For all press inquiries, please contact:

James Fattal, J Cubed Communications

516.289.1496

[email protected]