ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - 15
ISTOCK.COM/ROCCOMONTOYA
FEATURE
ASKED AND ANSWERED:
DECARBONIZING
THE BUILT
ENVIRONMENT
INTERVIEW WITH PAUL TORCELLINI, PH.D., P.E., FELLOW ASHRAE
F
or years, decarbonization has taken the lead in conversation
on the future of the built environment. Solutions to achieving
a low-carbon or decarbonized economy have been proposed
and implemented globally, with a boon of new technologies and
resources becoming increasingly available to consulting engineers,
designers and building owners who wish to decarbonize. This article
covers practical advice and knowledge on decarbonizing buildings.
What Are Some of the Technology-Based Solutions That
Contribute To Decarbonization?
Let's start at the top of the energy pie-with the
premise that somewhere around 80% of the world's
energy supply is somehow carbon-based today. So,
how do we use less of that? And how do we make
buildings more efficient? That's where technologies
and strategies for avoiding emissions come in,
which is where ASHRAE has one of the biggest
opportunities-how do we get buildings to use less
energy in general?
Fuel going into buildings is scope 1. Fossil fuels
burned directly on-site. So there's a very clear pathway
of what you need to make go away if you're trying
to decarbonize. But then the other part of it-and often
more than half of it-is electricity. We call these scope 2
and say, " Where's that electricity being produced and
where it's coming from? " A large fraction of electricity
Paul Torcellini, Ph.D., P.E., is a principal engineer at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, and a member of the Product and Services
Subcommittee of the ASHRAE Task Force for Building Decarbonization and is chair of Standard 228. The views presented are those of the author.
J U LY 2023 ashrae.org ASHRAE JOURNAL
15
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ASHRAE Journal - July 2023
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ASHRAE Journal - July 2023
Contents
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - Intro
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - BB1
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - BB2
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - Cover1
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - Cover2
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - 1
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - Contents
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - 3
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - 4
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ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - Cover3
ASHRAE Journal - July 2023 - Cover4
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