GEOG 309-500 Electricity Consumption paper Assignment Help
GEOG 309-500 Electricity Consumption paper (Kill-a-watt)
You will collect data on electrical appliances and devices (video games, computers, coffee makers, etc.) using the Kill-a-watt submeter. A data sheet attached here will help you organize data collection. You should design your data collection as a test or evaluations of claims made in the literature regarding household energy consumption (recall my lecture on Energy Efficiency). Your final draft, a 5-8-page paper, is due 26 April 2019 for 35% of your final grade. Scholarly sources are required. A good starting point is the “behavioral wedge” is the idea that modest actions of individuals could result in large reductions of energy consumption and carbon emission—without dramatic lifestyle alterations; see Dietz et al., 2009, “Household actions can provide a behavioral wedge to rapidly reduce US carbon missions,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Science 106:18452-56). Take this a step further: Which scholars cite Dietz? Which scholars cite the “Cost of Play” study?
Your task is to convert your household into a “laboratory” for collecting electricity consumption data. Before moving appliances and unplugging devices, maintain normal safety that you would use around electricity! Do NOT put yourself at risk of electrical shock during this assignment. Use the scholarly and grey literature to develop an experiment or test within the constraints of your household. If you have access to your household’s electricity bill, you can compare billed kWh to your measurements. Do NOT experiment with cell phone chargers because the electricity use does not yield an interesting paper.
The attached rubric provides guidance regarding required elements of the paper. An in-class update is required on 5 April 2019.
Data Collection for Kill-a-watt submeter
- For “episodic” use: obtain KWH per use, then estimate number of uses per year
Item/mode KWH Uses per year KWH per year
Episodic use normally involves devices with fluctuating Watt measurements, such as coffee makers and dishwashers. For these, measure KWH at the end of the cycle (coffee, laundry, dishes, rice, etc.)
- For “continuous” use: obtain watts, then estimate hours and convert to KWH, so that watts * hours / 1,000 = KWH
Item/mode Watts Extrapolation assumption (hours/day,
times/week)
Convert to KWH (watts * hours / 1,000) KWH per year
Continuous use normally involves TVs, oscillating fans, standby power, and other items and modes for which Watts do not change over time. For these items, you may record Watts and then extrapolate considering hours per day or week.
Definitions
Watt: power (how fast electrons move through wires)
kWh: energy (volume of electrons moving through wires)
100 watts = 100 J/sec 100 watts used for 1 hour = 100 watt/hour = 0.1 kWh (divide by 1,000)
W to kWh divide W by 1000, then multiply by # hours
Grading Rubric: Kill-a-Watt Project
Criterion 0 = absent 10 = excellent **Use full range of marks** I. Introduction and Background -Is the title succinct and informative?
– How well does the author frame the question as a “test” of a claim in the scholarly or “grey” literature?
-How well does the author state the argument?
0 1 2 3 4 5 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
II. Methods -How well does the author describe the Kill-a-watt data collection procedure(s)?
-Does the summary data collection table show thoughtful use of the submeter and careful use of assumptions for extrapolation?
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 III. Findings – Are the findings supported by data collected with submeter? -Are the findings robust?
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 IV. Discussion – How well does the author relate findings to the scholarly or “grey” literature?
– How well does the author discuss limitations of the research?
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 V. Conclusion – How well does the conclusion synthesize the argument and future research?
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 VI. References -Does the author use the CMOS correctly and consistently? (alpha list; full details; author year: page)
0 1 2 3 4 5 TOTAL (100 possible)