Consumption of Air Conditioning in Various Sectors of Life OR Breakdown of Energy Uses in Different Building Types

Buildings require the service of lighting, warmth in winter; cooling in summer, water heating, electronics use, computing, cooking and refrigeration which needs significant energy use. Buildings consume more energy than either industrial or transportation, surpassing industrial. Both residential and commercial building energy use are growing, and represent an everincreasing share of worlds energy consumption. While residential energy consumption exceeds commercial, the latter has been increasing rapidly.

Figure 1: Growth in Building's Energy Use Relative to Other Sectors

Analysis of consumption pattern of different commodities shed light on the consumption of energy used for air conditioning in homes, commercial buildings, offices, vehicles etc. According to a survey of US primary energy consumption from 1949 to 2001, there is a gradual increase in electricity use.

Figure 2: Primary energy consumption, Total (Quads) and Per Capita consumption (MBtu per cap)

Commercial Energy Use The commercial sector is considerably more heterogeneous than residential buildings, encompassing hospitals, schools, offices, lodging, and the retail sector with its big box stores, enclosed malls, strip malls, grocery stores and fast food and sit-down restaurants. Each of these commercial sub-sectors is unique in its market structure, energy use, and energy intensity, and in the set of decision makers involved in design and construction projects. Amount of commercial floor space has grown with the overall increased economic activity.

Figure 3: Growth in Commercial Floor space

Residential energy use Residential buildings include single-family detached and attached homes, apartments, and mobile homes. In recent decades, growth in household wealth and other factors have spurred demand for larger homes and more energy services, increasing energy consumption per household. Also, increased saturation of appliances and equipment, including computer and entertainment systems, has resulted in more demand for energy, particularly electricity.

Figure 4: Residential Primary Energy End-Use Splits

The number of buildings has increased since1980 driven by growth in population and economy. Economy and environment are linked to the buildings we construct and the energy they use. As the population and economy grow, so does our use of energy, which comes predominantly from fossil fuels. Increases in energy consumption are mitigated by building codes and energy equipment standards, designing green buildings and making policies regarding this issue.

Figure 5: Growth in Housing Units

Population growth drove an increase in the creation of new homes from 1993 to 2005. New housing starts have averaged around 1.5 million per year from 1960 to the present, but housing is highly cyclical. Year-to-year variation is driven by mortgage interest rates and other factors including overall economic activity as measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Figure 6: Cyclicality in Housing Starts

The residential total per capita energy use shows that residential gas use has declined since 1970 and electricity use has continued to increase. The decrease in gas use reflects the drop in energy for space heating and the shift to electricity in US.

Figure 7: US Residential Energy Use Per Capita, Total, Electricity, Gas and other

The key determinants of energy demand in the household sector include: Prices of fuels and appliances; Disposable income of households; Availability of fuels and appliances; Particular requirements related to each; and Cultural preferences.