Laboratories

Links: Laboratories for the 21st Century • Design Guide • The Berkeley Hood • Benchmarking

Laboratory facilities represent an ever-expanding growth opportunity for advanced, environmentally preferred, building technologies. The typical laboratory uses far more energy and water per square foot than the typical office building due to intensive ventilation requirements and other health and safety concerns. Because the requirements of laboratory facilities differ so dramatically from those of other buildings, a clear need exists for an initiative exclusively targeting these facilities.

Key Areas of Research:

1. Characterize baseline energy use and savings potentials

• Develop scenarios of energy savings potential in California high-tech industries

2. Benchmark laboratories and develop best practices

• Perform detailed benchmarking of actual laboratories
• Compile quantitative results in Labs21 laboratory benchmarking tool
• Record best practices in the Laboratory Design Guide
• Promulgate best practices through the EPA-DOE Labs21 program

3. Develop high-performance fume hoods

• Develop high-performance laboratory fume hood website and summary article
• Develop technical and testing plan to overcome institutional barriers and obtain a variance from CAL/OSHA
• Conduct side-by-side tests with conventional hoods
• Perform industrial field demonstrations

4. Showcase best practices at LBNL's own facilities

• LBNL's in-house energy managers have worked with LBNL researchers for several decades on improving energy efficiency in our own high-tech facilities
• Implement best practices in LBNL's Molecular Foundry, a $65-million, 6-story building housing labs, a cleanroom, and a data center - received LEED Gold Rating