Energy-saving strategies on university campus buildings: Covenant University as case study

Abstract All over the world, the amount of consumed energy on the university campuses is continually rising due to the increase in students’ enrollment and expansion of energy facilities. Thus increase in the energy consumption is accompanied with an increase in the energy wastage and humongous energy cost burdens on university management. Hence, it is important to understand the pattern of energy consumption in university campus such as Covenant University to ensure the sustainability of energy usage, reduction in its costs, and environmental impacts. This study takes a look at the energy consumption in Covenant University with the aim of providing recommendations that would help to decrease the energy consumption in the university. An energy audit of 18 selected buildings was conducted to determine the electrical appliances responsible for energy consumption in the selected buildings. Building energy models were built for each of the buildings using quick energy simulation tool (eQuest) to run parametric simulations on the generated models. The utility bills of the university for the past 5 years (2014–18) were examined for seasonal variation of the energy consumption. The study revealed that there are several ways in which energy is being wasted in the university. In addition, possible solutions of energy conservation to reduce energy consumption in the facilities were suggested. Areas of focus of the recommendations include the use of photovoltaic panels on the roofs of the buildings, creation of Hebron Energy Club to increase the energy awareness on campus, replacement of inefficient fluorescent tubes with light-emitting diode bulbs, and the use of automated control systems on the corridor lights to reduce energy wastage. A qualitative analysis of two recommendations showed that over ₦30 million ($81,000) can be saved annually with a payback time of less than 6 years. In addition, about 500 tons of CO2 emissions can be eliminated annually if these recommendations are implemented.