This Business Case Analysis (BCA) studied the energy use at computer laboratories and data centers and proposed solutions that reduce the energy usage and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions without large capital investment. The energy demand in computer laboratories can be reduced with a power control system at a very low cost. In addition, waste heat generated by racks of servers in the data centers can be recovered to offset heating requirements in academic buildings. The energy savings and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emission reduction resulting from the implementation of each proposed solution was calculated and weighed against factors such as cost to determine the most feasible solutions.

With growing awareness of people of their own carbon footprint, many are looking for ways to reduce their negative impact on the environment. A significant portion of this carbon footprint comes from within people's homes. There are not many models readily available to provide a quick snapshot of total energy and carbon dioxide consumption.

The goal of the project is to create a Microsoft Excel based interactive model where the user can enter what type of light bulb, its wattage, quantity, and number of hours of use per day. The program will then output how much energy they are consuming and how much carbon dioxide is being produced based on how many hours they leave the bulb on a day. This easily and quickly provides the user with information so that they can pinpoint which rooms are more efficient than others, and also provide information on how to remedy the problem.

Annually, the buildings in the United States consume 39% of America's energy and 68% of its electricity. Furthermore, buildings emit 38% of the carbon dioxide (the primary greenhouse gas associated with climate change), 49% of the sulfur dioxide, and 25% of the nitrogen oxides found in the air. Currently, the vast majority of this energy is produced from non-renewable, fossil fuel resources.

This paper studied various forms of renewable energy sources available and the technologies required to enable them to make office buildings net-zero carbon foot print.

U.S Corporations' have an unprecedented opportunity to consider natural gas to power their heavy duty truck fleets. The price of diesel fuel is over $4 per gallon contrary to natural gas fuel prices which is half that. Low cost, federal subsidy, and ample domestic supply makes natural gas as an enticing fuel for heavy duty truck fleets. Natural gas as a transportation fuel however is a budding system that does not have the same fueling and transportation infrastructure as gasoline or diesel in the U.S., and vehicles that use natural gas come with a higher upfront cost compared to their diesel counterparts.

A life cycle inventory assessment and life cycle cost analysis were performed to determine the environmental impact and financial feasibility of purchasing a new natural gas class eight vehicle over a diesel class eight vehicle.

The peak load demand is growing 25% faster than the overall electricity needs. But the peak capacity is needed only 10% of the time. To meet this increase in peak demand, the existing power plants are developing technologies and methods to store energy produced during non-peak hours and use them during peak hours.

A Business Case Analysis of a peak-shaving model is performed for a 500 MW supercritical pulverized coal power plant this power plant. The energy storage options considered in this analysis include geologic compressed air energy storage (CAES), zinc-bromine reversible fuel cells (ZnBr), and sodium-sulfur batteries (NaS).

Similar to Energy Star rating and LEED certification, the Association of Home Appliances (AHAM) has developed a sustainability rating standards for major portable, and floor care home appliances. Stanley Black & Decker, part AHAM requested UMD students to develop sustainability rating for Flex FHV1200 Flex Cordless mini Canister Vacuum Cleaner using AHAM standards.

The University of Maryland dining services uses three different food containers: (1) reusable container – Ozzi container (2) Compostable container- wheat based plant matter, (3) recyclable plastic container - polypropylene.

Life Cycle Costing (LCC) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for the above three choices were conducted and the recommendation was given to University of Maryland Sustainability office.

The University of Maryland (UMD) Sustainability goal is to reduce GHG emission by 50% by 2020 and 100% by 2050. In 2011, average electricity usage per square foot is approximately 19.5 kWh and equals to 10 to 20 kg of GHG. In 2011, the electricity usage at UMD contributed to approximately 175 MT.

This BCA studied the energy efficient lighting choice for University of Maryland buildings. The study considered three choices: T5, T8, and LED light fixtures. The initial cost, sustainment cost and the use phase GHG emission were calculated for these three choices.

The results of this report would serve as a suggestion to the University Of Maryland Office Of Sustainability to adopt recommended fixtures to improve the overall sustainability campus wide. The LCIA investigated the materials and energy used for manufacturing, the emissions from transportation, and the energy in the use phase and finally the disposal phase.

Large institutions and corporations have many conference rooms to conduct their business. The energy consumption for heating, cooling, lighting etc. is studied for one such conference rooms and proposed changes to reduce energy consumption and hence reduce GHG emission.

In addition to state of the art technologies such as motion sensor, automatic thermostat etc., the conference scheduling was linked to the temperature control and a computer program was developed to learn how the temperature fluctuates daily to develop intelligent temperature control. In addition, by linking all the conference room schedules, the usage of the conference room schedule is also optimized.

Currently Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) of heavy construction crane use virgin hydraulic oil. The hydraulic pressure developed using these fluids used to extend and retract large “tele-cylinder”. This Business Case Analysis (BCA) looks at using re-refined hydraulic oil in place of virgin hydraulic oil.

The BCA proposed a two step process to achieve both lower cost and reduced GHG emission. In the first step, levering the existing customers and already established value chain to enter the hydraulic oil replacement market. Then, with established customer satisfaction data, enter the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) market.

A Life Cycle Inventory Analysis (LCIA) and Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCA) was conducted for: (a) the textbook and (b) eReader.

The analysis led to the conclusions that it the costs and carbon dioxide emissions are greater for the option of buying traditional textbooks all four years of college. These results were very similar to the prior studies conducted.