Reducing energy demands
Aside from data centers, laboratories use more energy than any other sector. While sourcing our power from renewables is a first step, even cleanly sourced energy requires large-scale development projects, energy intensive materials and destruction of natural landscapes especially when energy demand is so high. Reducing energy usage will both lessen our carbon footprint and make full conversion to renewable energy more attainable.
40 %
of CU Boulder's campus energy consumption goes to research buildings
[1]
Changing the settings on already-purchased equipment, performing/scheduling routine maintenance, and being more energy conscious cost little to nothing but reduce energy consumption significantly.
Read more about energy efficient strategies below!
Not sure where to start?
It can be as simple as a plug-in wattmeter! These devices can cost as little as $10, and give accurate measurements of power usage for smaller machines. We are also happy to lend ours out, just reach out by email.
WattIQ is a software that continuously tracks power consumption, peak staff usage, and general need of multiple pieces of laboratory equipment spread out across multiple bays or rooms. It may be a better fit for larger laboratories with a large amount of equipment and schedule variability compared to small labs with regular schedules.
Be smart about equipment usage
Some equipment, such as cold-storage equipment, needs to run continuously for a laboratory to function. This isn't the case for most equipment, though.
For the UI Cystic Fibrosis and Lung Biology Core, several large laminar-flow tissue culture hoods were constantly on. However, the majority of their use was from 7am-5pm. Because hoods could go from off to sterile in as few as 5-10 minutes, we now power down the majority of hoods after-hours. This has allowed ~10,400 kWh of power to be saved annually, roughly the same amount of energy it takes to power the average US household for one year![2]
Even small pieces of equipment can have large impacts on your lab's power consumption. Turn off equipment when not in use, such as shakers, and keep lids and doors of water baths, autoclaves, incubators, tissue culture hoods, and freezers closed whenever possible. Less air/temperature exchange with environmental air means that equipment won't have to work nearly as hard, saving energy and your valuable equipment.
Stickers stating simple prompts, such as "Turn off when not in use," "Turn off at the end of the day," and "Do not turn off," can encourage adherence.
Invest in energy-efficient equipment and perform routine maintenance
Energy efficiency not only is better for the environment, but can save a lot of money over time, even if you pay more out of pocket. For example, Mayo Clinic is projected to save $6 million over 10 years by purchasing the most efficient, rather than the cheapest ULT models.
You can also save a significant amounts of energy and prolong the lifetime of your equipment through routine maintenance. Cleaning a residential refrigerator's condenser coils can improve energy efficiency by 10% (this is also a service that you can request by work order on a rolling basis with maintenance).[3]
Periodic defrosting helps increase the space available within a freezer and gives staff the perfect opportunity to sort through old samples and remove those that no longer need to be stored.
Set ultra-low temperature freezers to -70
Map of International Freezer Challenge Participation (ULT freezers set to -70)
References
- University of Colorado Boulder. (n.d.). University of Colorado Boulder - Green Labs Program. Environmental Center. https://www.colorado.edu/ecenter/programs/cu-green-labs-program
- U.S. Energy Information Administration. (n.d.). Frequently asked questions (faqs) - U.S. energy information administration (EIA). Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=97&t=3
- Factsheet the importance of cleaning coils. Energy.gov. (n.d.). https://www.energy.gov.au/sites/default/files/hvac-factsheet-cleaning-coils.pdf