Anna Tedstrom
October 11, 2013
Sustainable Systems Q: Nicole De Feo
I chose energy because I’m interested in finding new ways to recycle energy and
reduce consumption of energy in our everyday lives whether it be by walking up the
stairs instead of using the elevator or finding a way to get buildings to use more revolving
doors to keep heat energy inside. For now, my inquiry is to gain personal knowledge so
that later I can use that knowledge to change the things I produce and to engender others
to use the same energy friendly techniques.
Research Notes:
 Heat Transfers:
o Heat is never contained in matter
o Always from the hotter to the colder object
 Conduction- between objects that are in direct contact
o AKA Diffusion
o Microscopic exchange of kinetic energy bound in two separate systems.
When an object is a different temperature from the other, heat flows so
that the ojects and their surroundings reach the same temperature—
thermal equilibrium.
o occurs as hot, rapidly moving or vibrating atoms and molecules interact
with neighboring atoms and molecules, transferring some of their energy
(heat) to these neighboring particles
 as atoms vibrate against each other or electrons move from one
atom to another
o Ex Good Conductors: metals (copper, iron, steel, silver). Ex Bad: wood,
air, Styrofoam, paper
 Convection- the movement of heat through density of molecules (hot air rises,
cold air falls). It creates a convection current
o Ex: Hot air balloon, basement floor colder than attic
o Forced convection: fan
 Radiation- electromagnetic rays come in contact with an object and transfer the
heat to the object
o Thermal radiation propagates without the presence of matter through the
vacuum of space.
o energy emitted by matter as electromagnetic waves due to the pool of
thermal energy in all matter with a temperature above absolute zero
o direct result of the random movements of atoms and molecules in matter
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o atoms and molecules are composed of charged particles (protons and
electrons), their movement results in the emission of electromagnetic
radiation, which carries energy away from the surface
o Radiation from the sun, or solar radiation, can be harvested for heat and
power. Unlike conductive and convective forms of heat transfer, thermal
radiation can be concentrated in a small spot by using reflecting mirrors,
which is exploited in concentrating solar power generation. For example,
the sunlight reflected from mirrors heats the PS10 solar power tower and
during the day it can heat water to 285 °C (545 °F).
o Ex: the sun’s rays, a light bulb, a camp fire
Advection- side effect of physically moving an object containing that energy
Used in
o Automotive engineering, thermal management of electronics, climate
control, insulation, materials processing, power station engineering, etc.
Measured by Heat flux—“quantitative, vectorial representation”
Insulation and Radiant Barriers—to preserve, increase, or decrease temperature
o Insulators- limit the conduction and/or convection
o Barriers- reflect radiation to reduce flow of heat from radiation sources
o The tog is a measure of thermal resistance, commonly used in the textile
industry, and often seen quoted on, for example, duvets and carpet
underlay
Projects in NYC
o New York City Microclimate Policy: Applying Green Infrastructure to
Mitigate Environmental Health Impacts caused by the Urban Heat Island
Effect and Heat Waves
 “Green infrastructure, when strategically implemented at scale, has
the ability to regulate localized temperature as well as mitigate
surface and air temperature fluctuations by removing excess heat.”
 “This is accomplished through the partitioning of incoming
radiation into sensible and latent heat.”
 “Process incorporating both shading and heat loss through
evapotranspiration lowers the thermal input and removes heat from
urban surfaces and atmosphere.”
o Philip Orton—Coastal Urban Microclimates
 “Our research can help improve prediction capabilities for weather
and atmospheric transport, as well as the scientific understanding
of urban weather features such as the urban heat island, which
often keeps temperatures 10-15 degrees (F) warmer than rural
areas at night, as shown above.”
 “We are working with the Navy’s Coupled Ocean-Atmosphere
Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS) computer model, and
using grids as high as 333 meters resolution. For checking the
model results with actual weather observations, we are using the
usual airport and city weather stations, maintained by NOAA, but
also hundreds of civilian-run weather stations — all these are
conveniently merged in City College’s NYC Met Net.”
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Proposal for Field Action
o Question: what form of infrastructure is the most energy efficient in terms
of heating and cooling bills.
o Question: How can we lower surface heat in the city by using different
types of infrastructure?
 Think about subways and the use of concrete. What if instead it
was built using a material that would allow for the flow of thermal
energy to reduce the heat. Or if that energy could be captured and
used to run the subway.
o Collect data from different buildings that use various forms of
infrastructure
 Study the heating patterns with the heating bills.
 Does the window coverage and door type affect the heat
inside? Do the elevators and structure of the building affect
the flow of thermal energy through the building?
 Buildings to use
 Javits Center
 2 W 13th
 Stuyvesant Park Dorm
Citations:
"Heat Transfer: Conduction, Convection, Radiation." Wisc-online: Learning objects help
people succeed. Wisc-Online. Web. 12 Oct 2013. <http://www.wisconline.com/Objects/ViewObject.aspx?ID=SCE304>.
"Heat Transfer." Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 11 Oct 2013. Web. 12 Oct 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_transfer>.
"New York City Microclimate Policy." Applying Green Infrastructure to Mitigate
Environmental Health Impacts caused by the Urban Heat Island Effect and Heat Waves
(2012): n.pag. Pratt.edu. Web. 12 Oct 2013.
<http://www.pratt.edu/tiny_mce/plugins/imagemanager/files/MCatalano.pdf>.