Low-cost methods for reducing heating consumption in FSILGs at MIT

Rising energy prices and increasing price volatility present a problem for many fraternities, sororities, and independent living groups (FSILGs) at MIT. The buildings they occupy are typically quite old, with little insulation and leaky building envelopes, resulting in unnecessary heating energy consumption and expenditures, as well as CO2 emissions. Through simple retrofitting procedures, these levels of consumption, expenditures, and emissions could be greatly reduced. If such measures are implemented, FSILGs would be in a strong position to lead the way in helping MIT to achieve its recently announced emissions reduction goals. To determine the extent of reduction that could be realized, several easy retrofitting measures have been applied in one FSILG, and the resulting consumption has been compared with previous levels. To properly make that comparison, a background of FSILG buildings, their characteristics, and their uses are outlined. Then, the specific retrofits installed are described in detail. After that, the resulting changes in consumption efficiency are examined and compared to historical records.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Mechanical Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2006

Author dc:creator

• Stoddard, Steven J

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Leon Glicksman.

• Mechanical Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/36696

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/36696