Improving Energy Efficiency at UPR

Improving Energy Efficiency at UPR

Alejandro E. Hernández, Gerardo A. Torres, Mayra I. Méndez and Torsten Stelzer

The economic situation that Puerto Rico is facing has resulted in social problems and the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) has been affected.  Due to this economic situation, it has been a struggle to deal with the increasing energy cost in Puerto Rico. The UPR system is one of the fundamental parts of the island that is faced with this problem across all their campuses and facilities. Proper energy management within the UPR requires the efficient use of energy to reduce energy costs. By investigating where bad practices of energy consumption are present, recommendations can be generated to improve upon them. Students from the UPR in Mayaguez have begun taking action researching four different facilities within the UPR system to gather data on energy consumption of lighting and air conditioning equipment. Recently, one of the most modern research centers of the UPR system, the Molecular Sciences Research Center (MSRC) in San Juan, became the newest addition to this project. An assessment of the building and his current conditions was performed in order to provide recommendations on how to improve energy consumption of the building, mainly in terms of illumination and without significant capital investments. Using the preliminary results, the goal is to provide enough data for the implementation of the recommendations in the eventual planning of the unused floors of this building. Also, to make a work and learning environment within the UPR system where energy is used more efficiently, therefore costing less is a key objective of this effort.