Category: ICRT

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Take a Good Look at the Bad Old Days, and How Science Saved the Future

bttf-30thThe 30th Anniversary Celebration of the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) gathered together many of the original leaders of the effort to get a handle on hazardous pollution in the environment.

 

It was a valuable window into the spirit of the times before 1985 that convinced Illinois lawmakers to create a center for research, industry assistance and public information. Thousands had been killed in Bhopal, Love Canal had blighted whole neighborhoods, the Cuyahoga River had burned, and in Illinois, contamination at Waukegan Harbor and Lake Calumet had brought home to citizens the need for scientific evidence about the threats.

 

ISTC took the opportunity to tell this story at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on Nov. 9. It was a proud moment for the original players who participated in the event, and for ISTC’s parent Prairie Research Institute, and all of their current researchers who continue to drive sustainable economic development in Illinois. Videos on the presentations will be made available soon at http://www.istc.illinois.edu/news/30anniversaryhome.cfm.

 

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ISTC’s Indoor Climate Research and Training group recruiting homeowner for research study

The Indoor Climate Research and Training (ICRT) group at the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center is recruiting for the final house in a five house study of how contaminants migrate from attached garages into living spaces.  The house must be a stand-alone single family dwelling (no townhomes/duplexes) with a tuck under garage (have conditioned living space located above the garage) and will preferably have HVAC equipment (furnaces, water heaters, etc.) located inside the garage. Applicants are especially encouraged to apply if they ever notice garage odors inside the house.

The project will take place during the early part of the 2015/2016 winter and will last approximately two months. During this time ICRT researchers will make multiple visits to the house and implement various temporary and permanent interventions including: passive ventilation, air sealing between the house and garage, and mechanical ventilation of the garage. All of the permanent interventions will be completed by a licensed local contractor, and all work will be done at no-cost to the homeowner.

During the project a cart with research equipment will be stored in the garage and sampling tubing will be discreetly routed to various locations in the house and garage.  The equipment will monitor the areas of the house for Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Carbon Monoxide (CO), and Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6) levels.  SF6 is a colorless odorless, non-toxic tracer gas that will be periodically released into the garage from the equipment cart to monitor air movement.

Please respond to Zach (zmerrin@illinois.edu) with answers to the following questions if you think your house qualifies and are interested in participating in this study.

  1. Are you the homeowner (If rented, homeowner consent will be required)?
  2. Do you use your garage for parking frequently-driven vehicles?
  3. Do you have any HVAC equipment in your garage (furnace, water heater, etc.)?
  4. Is the house built on a crawlspace, slab, or basement?
  5. Do you have crawlspace and/or attic access from inside the garage?
  6. Is somebody typically home during business hours (M-F 9-5)?
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Protect Your Pipes During Polar Vortex

 

As the polar vortex prepared to plunge temperatures south of zero degrees Saturday, the Champaign News Gazette busted a myth about frozen water pipes.

 

Pipes don’t burst when ice expands inside the pipe, according to ISTC Senior Research Architect Bill Rose. Research at the Indoor Climate Research and Training program has demonstrated that ice forms along the length of a pipe, making water pressure soar. As the blockage grows, so does the water pressure, according to Rose. It is the water pressure that leads to a pipe’s failure.

 

The research suggests practical tips on preventing, and coping with frozen pipes.

 

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2014-01-04/take-steps-avoid-pipes-bursting.html

 

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Homes Needed for Indoor Air Quality Research

Air quality inside our homes is one of the leading areas of concern by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Garages, where we store our cars, often also house all types of solvents, paints and other chemicals, are of particular interest to researchers.

 

The Indoor Climate Research and Training program is conducting an ASHRAE-funded study on how to reduce the negative impact of attached garages on the air quality in our living spaces.

 

Homes in Champaign Country with attached garages are needed for this study.  The testing will last 3-4 weeks and will involve multiple home visits by researchers.

 

For more information regarding the study, please follow the link to the ICRT web site: http://www.indoorclimate.istc.illinois.edu/news.cfm

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First Training Accreditation to Improve Home Weatherization in Illinois

Training programs for Energy Auditors and Quality Control Inspectors at the University of Illinois’ Indoor Climate Research & Training (ICRT) program have been awarded accreditation by the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc.(IREC).

 

The ICRT energy conservation training programs are the first to earn accreditation in Illinois. Successful completion of such training programs prepares workers to obtain Home Energy Professional (HEP) certification under the U.S. Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). There are 35 local agencies delivering weatherization services in the state of Illinois, including CEDA in Chicago, which is the nation’s largest weatherization agency.

 

“It means we are recognized as having a high-quality curriculum that meets all the requirements of DOE’s Home Energy Professional certification for Energy Auditor and Quality Control Inspector,” said Paul Francisco, the Director of the ICRT training center. “Someone who successfully completes our training program can feel confident that he or she has everything they need to pass the HEP examination.”

 

ICRT is part of the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC), a division of the Prairie Research Institute (PRI) at the University of Illinois. It operates a training center for weatherization contractors, assessors and develops training curricula for the national home performance industry.  ICRT also performs research into issues related to residential energy and indoor air quality.

 

Accreditation affects the certifications for Energy Auditor and Quality Control Inspector now offered under the Illinois Home Weatherization Assistance Program. The Quality Control program was granted provisional accreditation since it has been available for less than a year.

 

There are a limited number of accredited weatherization training programs in the U.S., according to Francisco. The next goal for ICRT is to seek accreditation for its Retrofit Installers Training Program, he added.

 

Also a research engineer at ISTC, Francisco’s research focuses on energy efficiency, indoor air quality, and their interactions in residential buildings. His work emphasizes building science principles and understanding the ‘House as a System’ approach that includes both energy and the indoor environment. He is a member of the ad hoc Health and Safety Committee for DOE’s low-income Weatherization Assistance Program and a member of the Board of Directors of the Building Performance Institute.  He is also vice-chair of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Environmental Health Committee and the chair of the ASHRAE standard on residential ventilation.

 

Congress created WAP in 1976 to decrease residential energy expenditures, particularly of low-income Americans. WAP has distributed $200-250 million to weatherize about 100,000 homes per year nationwide. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) allocated $5 billion through March, 2013 to weatherize some 300,000 homes per year and to stimulate the economy by providing new jobs in the weatherization field.

 

Accreditation of training programs help drive effectiveness of WAP’s energy savings and health and safety goals, in addition to overall cost-effectiveness of the program, Francisco noted. He estimated that the ICRT program trained 300 workers and 300 contractors in Illinois during the ARRA period.

 

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Grand Opening of the Indoor Climate Research & Training Facility

The ICRT Grand Opening Welcome Banner

 

The new Indoor Climate Research & Training (ICRT) program training facility was completed earlier this month and ISTC hosted an invitation only Grand Opening Ceremony.  Dr. Manohar Kulkarni (ISTC Director) and Paul Francisco (Research Engineer and Program Leader for ICRT) kicked of the ceremony with welcoming remarks and short history of the ICRT program.  Special guest Lt. Governor Sheila Simon was given the honor of cutting the ribbon for the official opening of the training facility.  Continue reading “Grand Opening of the Indoor Climate Research & Training Facility”

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Science & Technology at the Market

This fall the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) at the University of Illinois will be presenting information about several of its research and outreach projects at Urbana’s Market at the Square. Topics include:
• September 22 – Waste Biomass Projects: Turning waste into energy. Come learn how ISTC researchers, Dr. Junhua Jiang (Senior Research Engineer), uses biochar – a black carbon-rich solid made from biomass – in supercapacitors. Dr. B.K. Sharma (Senior Research Engineer) and Joe Pickowitz (Environmental Engineer) will also present how they turn everyday household and restaurant waste into bio-oils/bio-lubricants and biodiesel.

• September 29 – PPCPs in the Environment: More and more we hear of various chemicals being found in our streams and rivers. ISTC researcher, Dr. Wei Zheng (Senior Research Chemist), will discuss his research on fate and transport Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) in the environment.

• October 6 – Sustainable Electronics Initiative (SEI) and the Indoor Climate Research & Training: Have you ever wondered where your discarded electronics go or just how much electronic waste the US produces each year? Visit with Joy Scrogum (Emerging Technologies Resource Specialist) who can answer these questions and others about SEI, e-waste, and responsible recycling.
Your home is your sanctuary; a place where all the worries of the world go away. Learn with Bill Rose (Senior Research Architect) and the ICRT program about way to improve your sanctuary’s performance in the areas of indoor air quality, roofing materials and attic ventilation, freezing pipe conditions, thermal performance at wall-ceiling junctions, and more.

• October 20 – Mud to Parks: Have you ever seen abandoned industrial areas that are eye sores in communities? Come learn how ISTC’s John Marlin (Research Affiliate) helped to discover how river sediments can be used to turn old industrial sites into parks.

• October 27 – Water Use and Reuse: Ever wondered how your drinking water gets cleaned? Learn how a couple of ISTC researchers, Dr. Kishore Rajagopalan (Associate Director for Applied Research) and Eric Duitsman (Chemist), clean a variety of liquid wastes with reverse osmosis membrane technology.

• November 3 – Waste to Oil: Dr. B.K. Sharma is back to demonstrate how he turns those pesky plastic grocery bags and other discarded plastic items into oil.
For more information on ISTC and/or these topics, please visit www.istc.illinois.edu or contact Elizabeth Luber at 217-333-7403 or eluber2@illinois.edu or Nancy Holm at 217-244-3330 or naholm@illinois.edu.

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Indoor Climate program launches new website

A new website for the Indoor Climate Research & Training (ICRT) program is now live. It is available at http://www.indoorclimate.istc.illinois.edu.

The ICRT program is part of the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC), a division of the Prairie Research Institute (PRI) at the University of Illinois. The program began when the University of Illinois received a grant to establish a training center for those involved in the Illinois Home Weatherization Assistance Program (IHWAP). The program now has expanded to additional areas such as:

• Training and certifying assessors and others from community action agencies throughout the state who perform weatherization work on qualifying residences.
• Performing indoor air quality research on lead in paints and radon migration.
• Evaluating impacts of different ventilation standards on human health in homes receiving energy-focused retrofits.
• Evaluating the energy savings and indoor air quality impacts of retrofits performed under the Weatherization Assistance Program.
• Developing training curricula for the national home performance industry.

ICRT is headquartered in the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center building at One Hazelwood Drive on the campus of the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. The program also has a classroom building at 2111 S. Oak Street, Suite 106 in Champaign.