Explanation of terms used in the Energy Efficiency Industry
- Clyde Anderson
- Apr, 16, 2013
- Energy Assessment Tools
- Comments Off on Explanation of terms used in the Energy Efficiency Industry
There’s so many terms specific to the Energy Efficiency industry that it can be hard to keep track of them all. Here’s a glossary list of some of the ones we use, plus what they mean.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| α (greek alpha) | The Solar Absorptance of a surface – based on the colour of the surface (lighter is lower). |
| AAO | Assessor Accrediting Organisation. Currently ABSA and BDAV. |
| ABCB | The Australian Building Codes Board |
| ABSA | The Australian Building Sustainability Association, an Assessor Accrediting Organisation. Previously known as the Association of Building Sustainability Assessors. |
| Accredited Software | For us with Residential buildings, this means BERS Pro V4.3. For us with Commercial buildings, this means DesignBuilder. |
| AFRC | The Australian Fenestration Rating Council. Also used to reference the thermal performance values of glass. |
| ANSI | American National Standards Institute. Sometimes referenced in international settings |
| ANZSES | The ANZES – Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society |
| Approved Procedures | NatHERS-approved National Procedures |
| ASHRAE | The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers. Sometimes referenced in international settings |
| Assessor | Residential Thermal Performance Assessor, or Licensed operator of Commercial Building Assessment software. |
| BCA | The Building Code of Australia (National Construction Code) |
| BDAV | The Building Designers Association of Victoria, an Assessor Accrediting Organisation. |
| Brick Veneer | A wall constructed of brick or block, with timber or metal frame, airspace & plasterboard or Fibre-Cement lining. |
| Building Envelope | The extent of the conditioned space – may include spaces that are “accidentally” conditioned. |
| Building Fabric | Roof, Ceiling (including Roof lights), Walls & Floor |
| Cavity Panel | A wall constructed of metal or Fibre-Cement cladding, with a timber or steel frame, airspace & plasterboard or Fibre-Cement lining. |
| Certified Assessors | Someone who has passed the ABSA Assessor Exam, and signed a Code of Conduct & has Professional Indemnity Insurance. |
| Cladding | External facing material with or without an airspace. |
| Commercial Building Software | Software that complies with the ABCB Protocol for Building Energy Analysis Software 2006.1 |
| Concrete Block | Concrete Block – all cores filled |
| Concrete Block (Lightweight) | Hollow Concrete Block |
| Concrete Panel | Solid reinforced concrete tilt panel. |
| DesignBuilder | Approved Software for Commercial buildings. Uses the EnergyPlus calculation engine, developed by the US Department of Energy. |
| DTS | Deemed-To-Satisfy – a method of assessment (formerly called “Deemed to Comply”). |
| EER | Energy Efficiency Ratio – output energy divided by total input energy (including controls & circulation fans) |
| Elements | Items in Section J – Building Fabric, Glazing, Air-conditioning, Artificial Lighting |
| FC | Fibre-Cement |
| Foil | Reflective foil insulation. Its effective R-value is determined by its emittance, angle, air space thickness & the direction of heatflow |
| GBCA | The Green Building Council of Australia |
| Green Star | JV2 Assessments, a method of building assessment that can be more holistic than just thermal performance by including things like light pollution, potable water use, construction waste recycling, etc |
| HVAC | Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning. The equipment used to heat & cool a building, including any ducting for fresh air. |
| Insulation | A material designed to resist the transfer of heat. The main types are fibre (loose, bulk, batts), foam (fill, boards) or foil (anti-glare, laminated) |
| J0 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J0 – Energy Efficiency DTS Provisions, the main section that ties everything together for commercial DTS assessments |
| J1 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J1 – Building Fabric DTS provisions. Roofs, walls, glazing, floors, etc |
| J2 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J2 – Glazing DTS provisions. This section was removed in NCC2016 and glazing is now covered in Part J1 |
| J3 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J3 – Building Sealing DTS Provisions. Weather stripping on doors & windows, dampers on chimneys/flues/exhaust fans, construction gaps & cracks |
| J4 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J4 – Air Movement. This section was removed in BCA2010 and is now covered in other sections |
| J5 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J5 – Air-Conditioning & Ventilation Systems. Covers requirements for various system sizes/uses such as control requirements, reheating limits, timer switches, etc |
| J6 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J6 – Artificial Lighting & Power DTS provisions. Maximum power allowances of lights plus adjustments for motion detectors, daylight sensors, timers, etc while also covering lifts & escalators |
| J7 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J7 – Heated Water Supply & Swimming Pool/spa plant equipment DTS Provisions |
| J8 | NCC Volume One Section J, Part J8 – Energy Monitoring DTS Provisions |
| JP1 | NCC Volume One Section J, Performance Requirement 1 – design & services that facilitate efficient use of energy in a building. |
| JP2 | NCC Volume One Section J, Performance Requirement 2 – services that facilitate maintenance & service of systems incorporated in the building. |
| JP3 | NCC Volume One Section J, Performance Requirement 3 – services that facilitate heating for a conditioned space. Must source energy from low greenhouse gas intensity source, or have an on-site renewable energy source. |
| JV2 | NCC Volume One Section J, Green Star assessments that consider aspects such as light pollution, potable water use, public transportation access, etc |
| JV3 | NCC Volume One Section J, Verification Method (thermal calculation) that compares the Total Building Energy of the proposed building with a Reference Building |
| kWh | Kilowatt-hours – a unit of electrical energy. 1 kilowatt-hour = 3.6 MegaJoules |
| Lining | Internal wall sheeting, usually fixed to the frame of the studs |
| LowE | Glass with a low emittance (a lower U-value) |
| MEPS | Minimum Energy Performance Standards, a requirement that all air-conditioning & heating equipment must meet certain energy efficiency levels. See energyrating.gov.au for more info. |
| NatHERS | The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme |
| NCC | The National Construction Code – BCA Volumes 1 & 2 and the National Plumbing Code. |
| Partially conditioned | A space that draws its fresh air (e.g. for exhaust make-up) from a conditioned space. |
| Plasterboard | Gypsum core board lined on both sides with paper |
| Reference Building | A building with the same dimensions as the proposed building but with all Elements complying with the DTS requirements. |
| Residential Software | Software that complies with the NatHERS Protocol for House Energy Rating Software (e.g. BERS Pro V4.2). |
| RPEQ | A Registered Professional Engineer Queensland |
| R-value | The thermal resistance of a component (this could be just the material only, or the total system’s thermal resistance). A Higher value means less heat transfer. |
| Section J | NCC Volume 1 Energy Efficiency Provisions, generally for commercial buildings |
| SHGC | Solar Heat Gain Coefficient – the amount of solar energy that passes through a piece of glazing into the room. |
| Star Rating | An Energy Efficiency assessment of a residential building. An in-depth thermal calculation using Accredited Software, Approved Procedures & Certified Assessors. |
| Thermal Break | Separating insulation between external cladding & supporting frames or studs that share the internal lining (ceiling or wall). Must be at least R0.2 for metal frames – can be avoided by cross battens (e.g. horizontal battens on vertical studs). |
| Total R-value | Aggregate R-value of the individual composite layers of materials in a system, including air spaces & air films. |
| UC | Universal Certificate, also known as a NatHERS Certificate |
| U-value | Thermal Conductance of a composite element. For Glazing, this can be glass-only (g) or glass+frames (w=window). A lower value means less heat transfer. Mathematically speaking the U-value is the inverse of the R-value, R = 1/U . |
Post Tagged with energy assessment tools