Sager, Jeremy
Residential heating, ventilation, air conditioning and renewable energy systems research
Current research and/or projects
My work focuses on assessing the performance of innovative heating, ventilation, air conditioning and renewable energy technologies that reduce the energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions of homes in Canada. An article in the Fall 2018 issue of Better Builder Magazine describes well the type of work I do (see page 9-10): https://www.slideshare.net/BetterBuilderMagazin/better-builder-magazine-issue-27-fall-2018
Research and/or project statements
The projects I am currently (November 2018) working on are summarized below.
- Program for Energy Research and Development, End-Use Portfolio: Addressing the Barriers to the Design of High Performance Housing and Buildings. My focus in this project is to work with the Cold Climate Housing Research Centre on the development of an integrated system that provides space heating, ventilation and water heating. We are adding a CO2 refrigerant heat pump to a system developed by CCHRC and assessing the performance. The first application for this approach is intended for northern and remote communities.
- Energy Innovation Program: Cold Climate Heat Pumps for Space and Water Heating. This is a collaborative research project with CanmetENERGY-Varennes. I am working on developing scientific knowledge of cold climate heat pumps including:
- Multi-zone cold climate ductless air source heat pumps,
- Solar assisted air source heat pumps in cold climates, and
- Air to water heat pumps in cold climates
- Paving the Road to 2030 and Beyond: Market transformation road maps for energy efficient equipment in the building sector. Supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy. In this project, I am working on testing the performance of cold climate air source heat pumps as well as developing a Guide and excel Tool for the Sizing and Selection of Air Source Heat Pumps. These activities will help drive market uptake of air source heat pumps, which will be a key component of Canada’s efforts to meet it’s 2030 and 2050 emissions reductions targets.
- Monitoring the Performance of a Hybrid (Gas Furnace + Electric Air Source Heat Pump) System with Smart Controls in Existing Housing. This is a collaborative research project with the Office of Energy Efficiency’s Equipment Division. The project is also supported by Union Gas / Enbridge, Mattamy Homes, BKR Energy, Dettson, and Lennox.
Professional activities / interests
My main focus is on planning and implementing monitoring projects to assess the performance of innovative heating, ventilation, air conditioning and renewable energy technologies for new and existing Canadian homes. The objective is to:
- Identify technologies with energy saving and GHG reduction potential
- Develop partnerships with utilities, associations, manufacturers, builders, renovators and other market actors
- Setup monitoring systems and collect data, synthesize and analyse data to quantify the energy savings
- Assess the cost:benefit of these technologies in the Canadian market context of different house types and locations
- Support the development of performance ratings, codes, standards and design guidelines to help move innovative technologies into the marketplace
Key publications
Research
Sager, J., Mackintosh, T., St-Onge, G., McDonald, E., and Kegel, M. Detailed performance assessment of variable capacity in-verter-driven cold climate air source heat pumps. Published in: Cold Climate HVAC 2018. Sustainable Buildings in Cold Climates. Springer Proceedings in Energy. March 2019. https://www.springer.com/us/book/9783030006617
MaRS Cleantech, Advanced Energy Centre, Enbridge, Natural Resources Canada, CanmetENERGY-Ottawa. The Future of Home Heating. April 2018. https://www.marsdd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/FoHH-VF.pdf
Kegel, M., Sager, J., Thomas, M., Giguere, D., and Sunye, R. Performance Testing of Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pumps. 12th IEA Heat Pump Conference. 2017. http://hpc2017.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/O.1.6.4-Performance-Testing-of-Cold-Climate-Air-Source-Heat-Pumps.pdf
Sager, J., Glazer, R., Szadkowski, F. and Strack, T. An assessment of peak demand reductions and energy savings of a high velocity centrally zoned combination system at the Canadian Centre for Housing Technology. September 2014. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/offices-labs/canmet/publications/18809
Sager, J., Armstrong, M. and Szadkowski, F. Performance Assessment of a high velocity zoned combination system at the Canadian Centre for Housing Technology. May 2013. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/offices-labs/canmet/publications/18811
Gusdorf, J., Armstrong, M., Szadkowski, F and Sager, J. Summer shading performance at the Canadian Centre for Housing Technology. March 2011. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/offices-labs/canmet/publications/18817
Mountain, D., Strack, T., and Sager, J. Advanced Residential Load Reduction Pilot Project – A field trial of centrally zoned forced air systems. March 2011. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/offices-labs/canmet/publications/18807
Mountain, D., Strack, T., Zhou, W., Lomanowski, B. The zone saver field trial: Utility controlled demand response with residential zoned cooling. December 2011. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/offices-labs/canmet/publications/18815
Guidelines
Natural Resources Canada, CanmetENERGY. PV Ready Guidelines. 2018. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/efficiency/housing/research/20898
Natural Resources Canada, CanmetENERGY. Zoning Duct Design Guide. 2017. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/publications/sciences-technology/housing/20344
Natural Resources Canada, CanmetENERGY. Solar Ready Guidelines. 2012. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/publications/sciences-technology/housing/6295
Natural Resources Canada, CanmetENERGY and Edwards, P. A Manufacturer’s guide to High Performance CSA P.9 Tested Combos. March 2012. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/offices-labs/canmet/publications/18819