ORNL researcher receives Innovator of Year award for energy efficiency work

Researcher Roderick Jackson of Oak Ridge National Laboratory was awarded an Innovator of the Year award in 2017 at the Young, Gifted, and Empowered Awards, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Jackson was recognized for his groundbreaking work in building energy efficiency innovation, DOE said in a story published Tuesday by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Jackson is the lead at ORNL’s Building Envelope Systems Research Group, and he leads the partnership between the Building Technologies Office, or BTO, and ORNL on building envelope projects, DOE said. Jackson works with both BTO’s Emerging Technologies and Residential Buildings Integration programs.

Jackson also serves as the technical lead for the Additive Manufacturing Integrated Energy (AMIE) demonstration project. As part of that project, ORNL and others unveiled a vehicle and house in September 2015 that had been built using large-scale 3D printers at the lab’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility in Hardin Valley. The 210-square-foot solar-powered house and printed utility vehicle, or PUV, can provide power to each other. The house is one of the world’s first 3D printed homes.

The home and vehicle are part of a project designed to answer “what if” questions that could lead to innovations in building and car construction and energy use, storage, and consumption.

DOE said the Young, Gifted, and Empowered awards are in their third year, and they recognize exceptional young African-American professionals from Mississippi who are champions in the arts, business, philanthropy, education, innovation, and leadership. The honorees are between the ages of 25-45 and have demonstrated a noteworthy commitment to excellence and community service and a high level of character, leadership, and innovation, DOE said.

Jackson earned his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, returning to Mississippi to start his own construction company with his father in 2003. He completed his master’s degree in mechanical engineering while running the business, but decided to leave the company in 2005 to pursue his doctorate degree in mechanical engineering. He joined the team at ORNL in 2009, where he began doing research and development in the Buildings Technology Research and Integration Center.

Through his work at ORNL with BTO, Jackson is pioneering research, development, and demonstration in the building envelope and with the AMIE demonstration project, DOE said. BTO’s subprogram on building envelope research and development, or R&D, seeks to develop next-generation residential and commercial building envelope technologies that reduce the energy required to heat and cool a building and have a market-acceptable installed cost, DOE said. BTO is working with both industry and lab partners to advance such energy-efficient solutions to the commercial market.

“ORNL, under Dr. Jackson’s leadership, has been a key component of BTO’s envelope portfolio and success,” the Department of Energy said.

Jackson’s envelope work with BTO includes performance evaluations and field tests, energy modeling, and technology development. In one project specifically, Jackson and his team are developing modified atmosphere insulation panels, a new-generation vacuum insulation panel that has the same thermal performance as traditional vacuum insulation panels, but can be produced at approximately 50 percent of the cost and is six to seven times more insulating than current, commercially available insulation materials, DOE said.

AMIE, the Additive Manufacturing Integrated Energy project, is one of the world’s first 3D printed homes. Not only is it a 3D printed house, AMIE is also a vehicle, solar panels, energy storage, and intelligent controls, all wrapped up in an integrated system. The Energy Department’s Building Technologies Office, Advanced Manufacturing Office, and Vehicle Technologies Office worked together with ORNL and a multitude of industry leaders to design and construct this innovative structure in less than one year, DOE said. Both the vehicle and home were printed with ORNL’s Big Area Additive Manufacturing Machine, or BAAM, one of the world’s largest and most productive 3D printers. That greatly reduced costs and time of production.

AMIE demonstrates the possibility of integrating the home, vehicle, and the grid in a cohesive system, using smart controls to match its internal loads with solar generation and wireless two-way vehicle power/charging.

“AMIE shows us that we can dramatically improve the efficiency and resiliency of the nation’s housing stock, vehicle fleet, and grid—all at the same time,” DOE said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

See the DOE story with additional links here.

 

 

 

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