Author(s)

A. Mammoli , P. Vorobieff , H. Barsun & M. Ortiz

Abstract

The Mechanical Engineering building at the University of New Mexico was an example of the state of the art in environmentally conscious architecture in the early 1980s. Along with many passive energy-conserving features, it had an active solar thermal heating and energy storage system. In the first decade of the twenty- first century, we were presented with an opportunity to radically modernize this solar thermal system, preserving many of the original features, but also implementing solar cooling and making this project a part of a bigger plan involving a smart energy grid. Here we describe our work, the results in terms of energy savings, and discuss future improvements.

Keywords