COMMUNITY ENERGY LABS INC — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase II: 8.6
COMMUNITY ENERGY LABS INC — SBIR Phase II award from Department of Agriculture.
- Amount
- $650,000
- Agency
- Department of Agriculture
- Program / Phase
- SBIR · Phase II
- Topic
- 8.6
- Solicitation
- USDA-NIFA-SBIR-009642
- NAICS
- —
- Place of performance
- OR
- Period
- 2023-08-18 → 2025-08-31
Description
PROJECTSUMMARY Title: AdvancedGrid-InteractiveLoadEfficiency(AGILE) PD: BarhamTanyaA Institution:CommunityEnergyLabsINC Policiesnationwidearetargetingrapidadoptionofgrid-integratedbuildingstrategiestime-varying electricitypricesbuildingelectrificationandresiliency.Butadvocatesworrythattop-down innovationleavessmallerandmorevulnerablecommunitiesbehind. Thisprojectbringsaffordable gridconnectivitytocornerstonesofruralcommunities:smallandmid-sizedcommercialbuildings (SMSCB)thathavebeenunder-representedingridintegrationprojectstodate.Manyrural communitieshaveolderbuildingstockandareattheendofpowerdistributionnetworks-meaning energyburdenpowerqualityandoutagedurationtendtobeworseforruralcustomers.Outages impactcommercialbuildingsystemssuchasrefrigerationthatarekeytoreducingfoodspoilage andcontaminationinagriculturalproduction. Byshapingenergyusetobettermatchlocal renewableoutputreduceenergycostsanddemandchargestheinnovationproposedinthisSBIR lowerscommercialelectricalbillsforendusersandextendsthetimethatcriticalpowerbackupcan reliablyprovidepowerduringoutagesanddisturbances. InPhaseICELdefinedamodel architecturethatcanbereplicated—withoutsignificantcustomization—inotherbuildingsand verifiedandoptimizedthatmodelarchitectureusingreal-worlddataandusecasesinSMSCBand ruralcommunities.InPhaseIICELwilltesttheprototypeinfullfielddeploymentinadiverse subsetofruralK12schoolsandmunicipalbuildingsverifythemodelperformanceanddevelopa deploymentplan.ThisprojectaddressesUSDA'sobjectivetotoimprovethequalityoflifeinrural Americabypromotingenergyefficiencyresiliencyandadoptionofrenewableenergyresources. CELadvancesdeliberatestrategiestomaketechnologiesforenergyanddemandchargereduction moreaffordableinordertomeettheneedsofthissignificantsegmentoftheUSbuildingstock.