Optimizing Building-Grid Integration in the Northern Great Plains
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D ES I G N G U I DA N C E FAC T S H E E T Optimizing Building-Grid Integration in the Northern Great Plains This factsheet recommends selected high-impact transportation accelerates, the importance of smart, building design and operational strategies for homes flexible buildings as grid citizens will grow. Buildings and buildings specifically tailored for the Northern Great across the region are uniquely positioned to play an Plains. Factsheets are available for other regions and important role in improving building-grid integration for specific building types. The Great Plains region has through time-of-use energy efficiency, smart devices, been called the “Saudi Arabia of wind” and wind power connected controls, and distributed energy resources currently generates a substantial part of the region’s such as onsite/community solar and energy storage. energy supply. Much more wind power will come online The recommendations in this factsheet are based on in the next few decades. As this variable resource a wide variety of research, including building-scale delivers more of the region’s electricity supply and grid-scale simulation modeling and on-the-ground and as the electrification of buildings and GridOptimal pilot project experience.
Top 5 GridOptimal
Building Design and
Operation Strategies: Thermal energy storage. Solar + storage. Onsite renewables
Northern Great Plains Thermal energy storage systems help reduce building net demand
(e.g., ice, hot water) can enable load during peak grid demand hours. In
Efficiency and demand flexibility shifting away from high-cost, high- the wind-heavy grids found in the
strategies have widely varying carbon hours. Key benefits include Great Plains, the flexibility offered by
impacts across multiple energy cost savings, emissions batteries and the ability to charge
building types, climates, and reductions, and resilient operations. batteries during the day and discharge
grid paradigms. These high- Prioritize systems that enhance in the evenings are especially valuable.
impact approaches can help the overall energy efficiency of Solar + storage systems can enable
improve building-grid integration the cooling and heating systems buildings to island from the grid,
outcomes on both sides of the to better co-optimize schedules allowing key systems and circuits to
meter in this region. and achieve both energy cost and remain online during a power outage.
carbon emissions savings, as well Solar + storage can offer an attractive
as resiliency. combination of cost savings, carbon
reductions, and resiliency benefits.
Smart HVAC controls. Energy efficiency. Passive efficient Managed EV charging.
Temperature setpoint and schedule envelope measures like insulation, Electric vehicles (EVs) are a key
adjustments such as setbacks, air-sealing, windows, and cool roofs, decarbonization solution but
precooling, and preheating can along with active building efficiency charging adds substantial demand.
deliver peak demand savings and improvements through mechanical Charging during off-peak hours,
shift load toward low-cost, low- system upgrades (HVAC and water and reducing or staging charging
carbon hours. Communications heating) offer both year-round savings during peak hours mitigates the
standards such as OpenADR and peak demand reduction during impact. Special rates and generous
2.0b enable current and future times of high grid demand and incentives are often available for
participation in demand response carbon emissions. Energy efficiency smart EV chargers.
and similar programs. is an enabler and often an impact
multiplier for demand flexibility.
Key Enablers: Energy Efficiency and Distributed Energy Resources
Energy efficiency is critical: more-efficient buildings HVAC, water heating, lighting, and appliances facilitate
have lower operating costs, carbon impacts, and power reliable, consistent load shifting during occupied and
demand. Efficient buildings with high-performance unoccupied hours.
envelopes remain comfortable for longer without
Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) including
mechanical conditioning, widening the demand
solar PV, batteries, managed EV charging, and thermal
response potential and load shifting window.
energy storage can deliver energy flexibility. Target
Passive strategies can deliver targeted time-of-use energy storage systems that can charge during the
energy savings. Insulation and air-sealing save energy all day and reduce evening demand. Co-optimize storage
the time, but especially during peak conditions. West-facing systems for both cost and carbon through real-time
shading and electrochromic windows reduce cooling rate and carbon signals or by adding in a time-varying
demand during costly, high-carbon summer evenings. synthetic carbon cost. At a minimum, be solar-ready
and storage-ready: reserve space and capacity in
Active strategies offer demand response by shifting
conduits and electrical panels for future DERs and
load away from peak hours toward low-cost, low-
related electric infrastructure.
carbon hours. Automated grid-integrated controls on
O P T I M I Z I N G B U I L D I N G - G R I D I N T E G R AT I O N I N T H E N O R T H E R N G R E AT P L A I N S | 2
Designing and Operating Buildings Northern Great
GridPlains
Mix Grid Mix
in a Wind and Hydro-Heavy Grid
Across the Northern Great Plains, large-
scale wind power shapes the major
pattern of daily and seasonal carbon Fossil/Nuclear Hydro
intensity and net system load profile.
Mid-day hours offer the cleanest grid-
delivered electricity. Wind
Other Renewable
Around the year 2040, current forecasts predict that the
most carbon-intensive hours will occur during summer Solar
nights when solar and wind generation is lowest. In © New Buildings Institute 2021
the winter, this region is expected to see a ramp-up in © 2021 Mapbox © OpenStreetMap
net system load during summer and winter evenings.
Buildings with the flexibility to shift demand prior to
4pm and/or reduce demand after 5pm with temperature Northern
NorthGreat Plains
Plains System
System Load Load
ProfileProfile
setbacks, plug load controls, and other strategies can
Average grid load
reduce emissions and energy generation costs.
Total
To minimize carbon emissions from electricity
consumption, identify hours in each season when
Net
high building demand coincides with high grid carbon
factors. Search for energy-saving or demand flexibility Typical Summer Day
opportunities in the end-uses and equipment that are
Average grid load
driving significant building demand during those hours.
Strategies that are well-suited to this grid paradigm Total
include passive load shaping (e.g., west-facing shading
or electrochromic glass), diurnal demand flexibility
Net
strategies (e.g., precooling, temperature setbacks) as
Typical Winter Day
well as short- to medium-duration energy storage (e.g.,
batteries, cold/hot water tanks). 0 6 12 18 24
© New Buildings Institute 2021
Hours with high net system load (shaded lines) tend to be
Electricity grids more expensive and higher-carbon. Net system load equals
total load minus renewable generation. Net load is estimated
across the region based on hourly regional renewable generation forecasts.
are transforming Marginal Carbon Emissions
Marginal Emissions on
on the
the Grid
Grid Long Run Marginal Carbon (kg CO2 per MWh)
toward zero carbon All Data from NREL Cambium Standard Scenarios 181 485
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
emissions. Buildings
can enable this
transition by 6AM
focusing on time
Noon
of use energy
efficiency and
6PM
demand flexibility.
All graphs and charts on this page show an average of 2036-2044 hourly data from the 2020
release of NREL's Cambium Standard Scenarios, available at https://cambium.nrel.gov/.
O P T I M I Z I N G B U I L D I N G - G R I D I N T E G R AT I O N I N T H E N O R T H E R N G R E AT P L A I N S | 3Futureproofing: Building and Program Information
Vehicle Electrification The GridOptimal Buildings
Initiative aims to improve
Burning fossil fuels in buildings is responsible for about
building-grid interactions
9% of US carbon emissions, while transportation
across the built environment by
emissions make up 29%. Building and vehicle
empowering building owners,
electrification can greatly reduce these emissions.
designers, utilities, and other
This represents both a great challenge and a great
key players with dedicated
opportunity.
metrics, tools, and guidance.
Buildings: Generally, grids in the Great Plains are
Up to three LEED points are
summer-peaking, but as electrification advances, winter
available for buildings that
demand will grow—and electricity rates may be impacted.
improve their building-grid
Designers should consider heating-season demand
integration outcomes through
flexibility and peak load reduction strategies. Improved
the GridOptimal Buildings Pilot
building envelopes and high-efficiency mechanical
Alternative Compliance Path. See:
systems help minimize winter heating demand, while
usgbc.org/credits/gridoptimal-
battery and thermal energy storage paired with smart
152-v4.1
controls can help shift peak demand.
Vehicles: Electric vehicle (EV) charging can add
substantial whole-building loads and if not managed For more information, contact
carefully can contribute to higher energy costs and alexi@newbuildings.org
carbon emissions. Specify smart EV chargers that can
Read more: newbuildings.org/
communicate with the utility or a third party. Bidirectional
gridoptimal
EV chargers are an emerging technology that can enable
EV batteries to support electricity grids and buildings.
Futureproofing: Climate Change
Adaptation and Resiliency
Resiliency is a critical consideration for building owners New Buildings Institute (NBI) is a
and occupants. Natural and climate-change-amplified nonprofit organization driving better
disasters such as heat waves, drought, wildfire, floods, energy performance in buildings. We
and severe winter storms have direct impacts, like local work collaboratively with industry
grid outages, and indirect impacts, like grid system market players—governments,
overload, across the region. Energy efficiency can utilities, energy efficiency advocates
help extend the building’s passive survivability time and building professionals—to
window. Use hours of passive survivability as a metric promote advanced design practices,
for evaluating and comparing energy efficiency and innovative technologies, public
demand flexibility strategies. Evaluate the resiliency and policies and programs that improve
other non-energy benefits of both efficiency and flexibility energy efficiency and reduce carbon
strategies and prioritize strategies that improve building- emissions. We also develop and offer
grid integration benefits while saving energy and reducing guidance and tools to support the
carbon impacts. In many cases, resiliency benefits may design and construction of energy
be the deciding factor in deploying strategies such as efficient buildings. Learn more at
energy storage; if so, ensure that day-to-day operations newbuildings.org
deliver cost, grid support, and emissions benefits.
NBI developed this GridOptimal design guidance factsheet.
The GridOptimal Buildings Initiative is supported by these organizations:
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