Campus energy projects

Task Force Advances Host of Campus Energy Projects

UROP estimates CO2 emissions from MIT air travel

Airliner

A recent UROP study estimated carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated from air travel by MIT students, staff, and faculty. Working with data provided by the MIT Travel Office for travel paid for by the Institute (excluding Lincoln Lab travel), the analysis reveals that emissions from air travel can be a significant source of a university's greenhouse gas emissions. It was estimated that the CO2 emissions due to air travel at MIT are approximately 58,111 metric tons, or 17% of MIT's total CO2 emissions in 2003. This analysis offers an important supplement to MIT's current greenhouse gas emissions inventory, which is based on Mechanical Engineering graduate thesis work by Tiffany Groode and does not include air travel. As the data on air travel improves and methods for analysis develop, MIT will better be able to quantify its overall carbon footprint. Building Technology and Mechanical Engineering Professor Leon Glicksman served as the UROP faculty advisor. Read Tiffany Groode's thesis (PDF file), which produced MIT's first greenhouse gas inventory.

Outcomes

  • Over 28,000 travel records analyzed.
  • 58,111 tons of CO2 produced annually by analyzed segment of MIT air travel.
  • Air travel contributes 12%-22% more to MIT's total 2003 campus CO2 emissions.

Task Force advancing a set of energy saving behavior change campaigns

Campaign Promotion Signs

The Task Force believes that by changing personal behaviors, there are "low-tech" solutions to energy conservation and greenhouse gas emissions reduction that could have significant impact. With the collaboration of students, administrators, and faculty, the Task Force has selected five projects on which to focus initial efforts. These projects were chosen to demonstrate that behavior can be changed among members of the MIT community, to experiment with the best ways of changing behavior, and to suggest research projects that support either our projects or other behavioral aspects of energy conservation and greenhouse gas emission reduction. Pilot programs in five key areas are under development.

Outcomes

  • Programs to encourage turning out lights, using revolving doors, reducing paper use, using fume hoods efficiently, and using computing power management features are underway.
  • 15% energy use reductions can be achieved with light switch sticker campaigns.
  • Using a revolving door wastes eight times less energy than using a swing door.
  • Only 26% of Athena cluster users regularly print double-sided.

Sloan School hosts sustainable business conference and launches new website

MIT Carbon Mitigation Index

In December, the Sloan School of Management hosted the 2007 MIT Innovations in Management Conference: Strategies for Sustainable Business. The two-day event explored issues of business and its relation to climate change, social inequality, and environmental quality and discussed ways for the business community to enhance its performance in these areas. Drawing from ongoing research at the MIT Sloan School of Management and technology innovations unique to MIT, attendees learned about strategies and opportunities in alternative energy, sustainability in the supply chain, and sustainable infrastructure and the built environment. Learn more about the 2007 MIT Innovations in Management Conference.

Outcomes

  • The Sloan School has recently launched a new website Sustainability at MIT Sloan that showcases its integrated sustainability programs in research and practice.

MIT faculty exploring campus-focused academic research opportunities

Abstract Light

Task Force faculty from diverse departments are developing a multidisciplinary, long-range research agenda that examines campus energy opportunities that use our campus as a learning laboratory. Two new research efforts being developed are a long-range integrated study of future campus energy efficiency and Intelligent Infrastructure for Energy Efficiency (I2E), a program being piloting in N42 in cooperation with IS&T to research next-generation intelligent devices to monitor and control selected building zones resulting in superior building energy efficiency.

Outcomes

  • Real-world application and testing of networked building monitor and control technologies for increased energy efficiency.
  • A multidisciplinary academic study that explores high-leverage opportunities, technologies, and approaches for ultra efficient and sustainable campus energy systems.