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This case study describes the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) data center as a showcase of energy efficiency. Most of what NREL has done can be replicated by clients; however, two design approaches are climate-dependent: near-full reliance on outside air for cooling, and photovoltaic arrays for power.

This case study details the design and operations of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Research Support Facility data center and its contributions to energy efficiency.

An energy-efficient data center includes targets for its power usage effectiveness (<1.2) and energy resource efficiency (< 0.9). It should be designed with hot isle–cold isle separation, use free cooling (economizer) and evaporative cooling when available, minimize fan energy, and use the most energy-efficient equipment possible.

This case study describes a successful zero energy school project in Utah.

The Sacred Heart Academy Library is part of the Sacred Heart School's Lower and Middle School campus. The library is intended as an educational demonstration of the school's goal "to teach students to be stewards of the earth's resources." The library has achieved zero energy while meeting a very modest construction budget - in fact, all Zero Energy features, including photovoltaic panels, were included within the already established budget.

Richardsville Elementary School is the first full-scale zero energy K-12 school in the United States. The school building, located in Kentucky's Warren County Public School District, uses many innovative strategies to conserve energy including dedicated outdoor air systems (DOAS) with dynamic reset, insulated concrete form (ICF) wall construction, daylighting, and ground source heat pumps, among others. The school has both thin film and crystalline silicon photovoltaic panels.

This case study highlights the design, implementation strategies, and continuous performance monitoring of NREL's Research Support Facility data center.