Engineering models of the physical processes of energy use in individual houses are quite complex. We investigate simple statistical models of summer electricity use and compare them to engineering models. Our data include interviews, energy audits, and utility billings for a random sample of...

Total electricity use and cooling loads for a three month cooling season (July–September, 1980) in single-family detached houses in Davis, California, are estimated and compared with measured data. Total electricity use is estimated by predicting cooling loads and appliance electricity use...

This paper focuses on the problem of optimal time-phasing of investments in energy conservation. We determine the optimal time-phased investment strategy under the assumption that incremental investment can be made at any time without cost penalty. The results of the analysis are compared with...

During the summer of 1980, Davis (CA) undertook a program to encourage residents to reduce peak electricity use. The program was initiated by the local utility company and carried a collective financial incentive: for every 1% reduction in peak electricity use, the utility would reward the city...

Bond graphs are succinct, pictorial statements of mathematical models. These statements are so precise that computers can be programmed to derive sets of differential equations from them: the so-called state variable equations. Previously, bond graphs have been used to describe physical systems...

The greenhouse effect is intrinsically global. Accordingly, effective responses require global coordination. While limited policies have been adopted, notably for phasing out chlorofluorocarbons, there is no clear consensus as to what to do about other greenhouse gases. In this paper, we survey...

Most energy conservation analyses assume various future paths for energy prices and other parameters and then proceed to calculate the optimal value of conservation investment under the specified assumptions. Sensitivity analysis is used to examine the amount which the calculations change as...

U.S. oil imports have dropped from a peak of 8.9 mbd (million barrels per day) in 1977 (6.2 mbd from OPEC countries) to 5 mbd in 1982. Simultaneously, U. S. demand for oil has dropped from 18.4 mbd to 16 mbd, and our dependency on imports has dropped from 43 percent to 37 percent. Unfortunately,...