Energy efficient supermarkets - Building Services Engineering

Energy measurements and energy survey were performed in a Max Hamburger restaurant and nine energy saving measures were proposed. The greatest energy savings are heat recovery of the ventilation air, which is estimated to reduce the total district heating demand by about two thirds. An energy saving of just over 10 % can be obtained by minimizing the operating times of the grills. If all nine measures are implemented, the savings will be about 20 % of the electricity and just under 90 % of the district heating, or 42 % of the total purchased energy.

Measurements have been made in two grocery stores to investigate how the choice of ventilation filter affects the use of electrical energy, the air quality in exhaust air and the indoor environment in the store. The results show the large cost savings can be made both in terms of operation and maintenance (costs for electricity to the fans and costs for filters). The electricity use for fan operation depends on what the system design etc. looks like. For the stores studied, this means a total saving of approximately 6 000 SEK/year respectively 12 000 SEK/year.  

A theoretical model was used to investigate some alternative refrigerants for R404A in a freezer application in a grocery store, and the results indicate that energy consumption will be better with all the options.

A document which compiles the rules applicable to safe handling of flammable refrigerants and which can be approved as a guideline by the Swedish authorities, and to encourage the development of efficient energy use in food premises and thus contribute to national energy and environmental objectives has been produced. The document has been used in the development of Swedish Refrigeration norm for units with flammable refrigerants.

The report describes a demonstration regarding how the energy use in an existing supermarket can be reduced by recycling the heat released from one of the supermarket's refrigeration system. During the measurement period, the amount of purchased district heating was lowered by about 50% compared to the same period last year. The COP of the heat pump was around 4.

This project has through measurements produced key figures for various measurement areas in the stores, which were followed up though further measurements. The possibility of engaging store staff in work with energy monitoring has been evaluated by installing energy monitoring systems and in this case, it was concluded that the installed monitoring systems must be user friendly.

Measurements has been performed in order to verify the energy saving potential for comfort heating and comfort cooling when using recirculated air, compared to ventilation with outdoor air, while a good indoor environment is achieved regarding, among other things, air quality. The results from the measurements showed a large saving potential by using recirculated air, while good air quality was achieved both with and without recirculated air.

To take advantage of the energy reduction potential that retrofitting doors on refrigerated counters entails, other energy efficiency measures were implemented in the refrigeration system in a grocery store. After the measures, the cooling demand of the milk room decreased by as much as 60 % and the demand of the entire cooling system decreased by 50 %.

Dirt and dust are drawn into cooling batteries during operation and sometimes food packages break so that the content drips down into the counter. Contamination can cause decreased efficiency in the counter’s cooling coil, reduced air flow and clogging of drains, which can lead to an increased energy demand for cooling the air in the counter and to ruined food due to inadequate cooling. A checklist for washing cooling batteries has been produced.

The possibility of establishing a small-scale biogas plant at larger grocery stores to handle the food waste that arises in stores has been investigated. If technical, economic, and environmental aspects are considered, the assessment is that it is better to transport the grocery store’s food waste to a digestion plant nearby.

In this pre-study we aim to shed the light and different perspectives for actors on how to achieve increased energy efficiency between tenant and landlord by energy contracts or energy agreement. This may lead to increased energy efficiency, better use of energy and reduced environmental impact.

The purpose of this pilot study is to investigate three different system solutions for food refrigeration and how they should best be designed to achieve the highest possible energy efficiency with a focus on the technical potential. The results show that dimensioning components, and the possibilities for regulation in a large work area, have a greater effect on energy performance than the choice between the three optimized cooling systems examined. It is important to dimension the components optimally for the operating conditions that are most common, in terms of hours/year.  

This report presents possible alternatives for phasing out R404A, as R404A will have a sales ban in 2019 and a service ban 2020 - the most common refrigerant in stores, commercial kitchens and small food industries today. 

This pre-study has investigated the conditions for a voluntary, unaccredited certification of energy consultants for grocery stores. The general conclusion is that the certification of energy consultants for grocery stores is feasible, but the customers (store owners) need to request certification in their procurement contracts in order for it to enter the market.

The aim of the feasibility study has been to produce a prioritized compilation of the most important measures for energy efficiency in food premises. The results show that energy efficiency does not have to be expensive - much can be done quickly and at a low cost. Usually no major investment is required in components or equipment.

To bring down the overall cost of energy is an important issue for all food stores. The most important thing is to work to reduce energy consumption through different types of efficiencies. In this study we have looked at various options for self-produced energy and calculated their profitability. The results show that it is profitable for large supermarkets to produce their own electricity. If electricity prices rise and / or installation costs drop improvement potential rapidly, even at moderate changes.

Large amounts of energy are lost in contaminated extract air from commercial kitchens. The potential energy savings in commercial kitchens, where many energy demanding devices share a limited space, can annually be in the order of 500 kWh per m2. To be able to recover this energy it might be needed to clean the air. In this study we have looked at various types of equipment for heat recovery and techniques for air cleaning.

The purpose of this study is to compare and define new plug-in solutions for in-store cold with central cooling. The decommissioning of refrigerant such as R404A are a driving force to look at plug-in solutions. There is a risk that the phasing out of R404A will result in investment in coolers with inferior energy performance. Here, the work with eco-design requirements and energy labeling has an important role to play.

The purpose of the project has been to compile knowledge on how an existing grocery store can be renovated to reduce its energy use so that it approaches zero. Proposals for energy efficiency measures were developed in the categories of refidgeration, ventilation, heating and lighting. If all proposals were implemented, the theoretical savings potential was 60-65 percent.

Read more about: The concept supermarket approaching zero (only in Swedish)

When cooking and preparing food in commercial kitchens a lot of heat is produced. Energy consumption and operating costs in commercial kitchens can be reduced by installing systems that allow heat exchange between the various energy flows in the kitchens. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of covering the cooling and / or heating requirement internally at commercial kitchens.

Most often, it is ownership conditions that prevent solutions with heat recovery in food premises. Ventilation systems including heat production and distribution are owned by the property owner, while systems for cooling and heating food are owned by the tenant. If both parties believe that they can benefit from energy efficiency measures, more energy agreements will be able to be concluded.

There is a great potential for energy savings in using ventilation systems with recirculated air in stores. The pre-study shows an energy saving of 66 % for heating, 36 % for comfort cooling and 2 % for a vertical cooling counter when using recirculated air compared to outdoor air alone. 

Fat reduction systems in commercial kitchen ventilation have become more common in new projects and also in existing proporties. Benefits for property owners with these are several. Mainly, the treatment of the grease in the smoke duct reduces the risk of fire and odor removal. But from an energy efficiency point of view, fat reduction can also be crucial to enable heat recovery in the ventilation system. 

This report describes how a test methodology was developed based on visits to different commercial kitchens with different combinations of fat reduction systems, meetings with different manufacturers and stakeholders, measurment in the field, preparation of proposals for buildning a test setup, testing and evaluation of a number of different systems. 

Fat reduction systems in commercial kitchen ventilation have become more common in new projects and also in existing proporties. Benefits for property owners with these are several. Mainly, the treatment of the grease in the smoke duct reduces the risk of fire and odor removal. But from an energy efficiency point of view, fat reduction can also be crucial to enable heat recovery in the ventilation system. 

The purpose of the project was to develop a test methodology for measuring and evaluating how fat separation systems in commercial kitchen ventilation can increase the possibility of heat recovery. The purpose was to be able to facilitate comparisons of fat separation systems with regard to efficiency, but also to take into account maintenance needs and safety aspects by developing guidelines for these.

With heat utilized from the grocery stores' refrigeration systems, it is possible to reduce energy use, increase sustainability and reduce costs for the retailer and the property where grocery stores are located as tenants. In society, between the actors, more efficient ways of designing, building and managing the property portfolio are required.

The project shows great savings potential both in terms of energy and finances. The interesting thing is that the savings are intended to be achieved by energy managing the existing energy use that each user currently has.

There are many energy efficiency measures that can be implemented in grocery stores for a lower energy use to a greater or lesser extent. Which measures are attractive to implement depends on various factors, e.g. laws, rules, energy prices, forms of ownership, the age of the store, available technology and finances, etc.

The purpose of the project was to carry out a demonstration plant to make energy efficient an existing grocery store in two parts. The first part was to carry out a number of different energy-efficient measures in one of the store's cooling systems, to reduce the need for cooling and the need for purchased electricity to power the system. The second part was to make the store more energy efficient by recovering the heat that is released from the rebuilt cooling system for heating the premises and domestic hot water.

Doors on refrigerated counters and smart use of waste heat have reduced energy consumption in Ica City Knalleland by almost 80 percent. Soon, district heating can be completely turned off in the system, which is transferable to most stores.

The task within this BeLivs project is to demonstrate how the energy use in an existing grocery store can be reduced by putting doors on existing refrigerated counters. The store included in the demonstration has been carefully measured both before and after the measures taken to get real facts about how much energy has actually been saved. The initial estimate of a reduction in energy demand by about 30% would prove to be superior in reality.

RISE Research Institutes of Sweden has investigated how three different system solutions for food cooling should be designed to achieve the highest possible energy efficiency with a focus on technical potential. These have been defined as "Best Available Technology" (BAT). The goal is for increased knowledge of the system to lead to increased energy performance in the cooling system of the future.

This thesis is multidisciplinary, and the research has been broadened from studying measured and perceived comfort parameters in supermarkets to incorporating qualitative studies with a clearer and deeper interest in consumers’ perceptions and behaviors. In this thesis, findings from the cold environment of chilled food display cabinets, either with doors or
without, are discussed and tangible commodities are used to illustrate how ‘details’ such as doors on cabinets matter to consumers. The consumers are of the main interest since they make up the businesses. The aim of this thesis is to gain knowledge of how to improve energy efficiency and the store layout for chilled groceries by adding consumer insights. Four specific papers contribute to this thesis’ aim of overcoming specific challenges faced by retail grocery stores as regards energy efficiency.

Energy measurements and energy mapping were performed in restaurants and kitchens at IKEA and six energy-saving measures were proposed. The greatest energy savings are given to a rebuild of the cooling system that can reduce electricity consumption by 40 MWh / year or 6% of the kitchen's total electricity consumption. If all analyzed measures are implemented, the restaurant is estimated to be able to save 14% of the electricity for the kitchen and restaurant.