The purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts on avoided gas cost calculations from increasing hydrogen and biogas content in pipeline quality natural gas. California EE programs must meet Total System Benefit (TSB) and Total Resource Cost (TRC) metrics. Underlying the calculation of...

Infrared drying of walnuts has demonstrated to significantly reduce drying Not Reviewed times (by 25-35%) and energy usage. This involves moisture-based sorting and IR pre-drying of walnuts, followed by conventional hot air drying. The scope of this agile project comprises of literature review of...

Research question: How do inefficiencies in the HW distribution system create barriers to central heat pump water heater (CHPWH) installations? What can mitigate these inefficiencies in future installations and prepare commercial buildings for CHPWH retrofits?Hypothesis: if a lack of aggregated...

An innovative contractor model of partnering with homeowners and volunteers interested in saving energy has started impacting projects throughout California. Contractors partner with homeowners and community volunteers on home electrification projects, such as installing solar PV and heat pump...

This project will demonstrate variable-speed heat pumps (VSHPs) integrated with smart electric panels that will actively manage household electrical loads, including compressor and air handler speed for the VSHP. By modulating the speed in real-time according to panel capacity and grid conditions,...

This is the final project report for a study on industrial heat pump (IHP) applications conducted from 2024 to 2025 for the Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) Code Readiness Program. This research project supports the development and implementation of California’s Building Energy...

The field assessment conducted under this project will evaluate the real-world energy performance and market adoption barriers of R-454C refrigeration systems in supermarkets. R454C is a next-generation, low-global warming potential (“GWP”) hydrofluoroolefin (“HFO”‑) blend that could serve as a...

This project builds upon the findings from previous CalNEXT projects (ET23SWE0036: Industrial Heat Pump Market Study and ET23SWE0062: Craft Brewery Industrial Heat Pump Screening Tool) to facilitate the installation and characterization of an air-to-water heat pump system (“AWHP” or the...

This project is a field study of a Gas Absorption Heat Pump (GAHP) water heater. The GAHP is a gas-fired technology with a technology readiness level (TRL) of 9. This project falls into phase 2F (field study phase) of a multi-phase field study pilot project for GAHP water heaters & combination...

Laundry remains a significant obstacle to decarbonization efforts of multifamily buildings in California, with limited adoption of high efficiency equipment, especially heat pump clothes dryers. In addition, most LMI households living in multifamily buildings lack in-unit laundry, increasing...