Electric heating and appliances can reduce energy use and costs for American homeowners, according to a new Penn State-led study. Embracing these systems could significantly lower household energy consumption and emissions.
A revolutionary study by researchers at Penn State suggests that American homeowners who switch to electric space heating systems and appliances could significantly cut down on their energy consumption, and perhaps even reduce their utility bills.
The team’s findings, published in the journal Energy Policy, highlight the potential nationwide impact of transitioning to electricity for residential energy needs.
The research aims to decode the complexities of residential energy consumption, which accounts for roughly 21% of the nation’s primary energy use.
The study discovered that electric heating systems, such as heat pumps, outperform traditional natural gas and oil-based systems in reducing on-site energy usage at both national and state levels.
“The most surprising finding was that homes relying on natural gas for space heating were using more on-site energy compared to electric homes,” co-author Rahman Azari, an associate professor of architecture at Penn State, said in a news release. “But it makes sense because it’s an issue of heating system efficiency as well as the efficiency of appliances, and electric appliances tend to be more efficient than natural gas appliances.”
Accomplished through a thorough examination using the 2020 Residential Energy Consumption Survey, the study analyzed responses from nearly 18,500 households, reflecting the energy profiles of about 123.5 million homes.
By employing a machine learning model, the researchers pinpointed 41 key factors influencing residential energy consumption.
“Modern heat pumps often deliver two to three times more heat per unit of energy than typical gas furnaces,” added lead author Sepideh Korsavi, an assistant professor of architecture at Mississippi State University who conducted the study as a postdoctoral scholar at Penn State.
This indicates that, when combining delivery and efficiency metrics, electrified systems can effectively lower household energy use and emissions in many regions, according to Korsavi.
The benefits of switching to electric don’t stop at heating systems.
Electric water heaters, along with other energy-efficient electric appliances, were also found to contribute significantly to decreased energy consumption.
Co-author Lisa Iulo, a professor of architecture and director of the Hamer Center for Community Design at Penn State, emphasized the potential of seemingly minor changes.
“People often jump to expensive solutions like replacing windows or adding solar power to address home energy demands,” she said. “That is not the place to start. Many interventions, like air sealing, changing out incandescent lightbulbs with LEDs or replacing an outdated water heater with an electric water heater — especially a hybrid one with a heat-pump boost, are lower-hanging fruit. Those incremental differences can add up to big overall energy savings and lower utility bills. Long-term affordability is important to homeowners and in the work we’re doing.”
The research has broad implications for policy and personal decision-making.
Source: Pennsylvania State University