Luke Witmer

Luke Witmer

Arlington, Virginia, United States
2K followers 500+ connections

Join to follow

About

As a kid growing up in the heart of Africa, energy access and reliability could not be…

Activity

Join now to see all activity

Experience

  • Wärtsilä Energy Graphic

    Wärtsilä Energy

    Herndon, Virginia, United States

  • -

    Herndon, Virginia, United States

  • -

    Herndon, VA

  • -

    World Campus (Online)

  • -

    Arlington, VA

  • -

  • -

    University Park, PA

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

Education

  • Penn State University Graphic

    Penn State University

    -

    Dissertation: The Impact of Solar Radiation on the Heating and Cooling of Buildings

  • -

    Activities and Societies: Solar Decathlon, American Solar Energy Society

    Solar Decathlon Energy Modeling Project Manager

  • -

    Activities and Societies: The Collaboratory, Dokimoi Ergatai, Energy Group

  • -

    Activities and Societies: Conrad Grebel College, WOMBAT Mini Baja

    Attended Waterloo for my first year of University

  • -

    American accredited high school in central Kenya

Licenses & Certifications

Publications

  • The Actual Value of Solar Electricity (Photovoltaics) in Urban Settings: Real-Time Pricing, SRECs, and Tax Credits

    Proceedings of the 41st ASES National Solar Conference

    Grid connected photovoltaic (PV) systems range from large-scale utility systems to small distributed PV systems. Capital costs and operating revenues vary significantly from system to system. The payback period for any PV system is highly dependent on the location and the financial model. Electricity pricing structures used today do not typically use a real-time pricing structure. At best, a pricing structure sometimes includes seasonal variation that remains constant during the day. The real…

    Grid connected photovoltaic (PV) systems range from large-scale utility systems to small distributed PV systems. Capital costs and operating revenues vary significantly from system to system. The payback period for any PV system is highly dependent on the location and the financial model. Electricity pricing structures used today do not typically use a real-time pricing structure. At best, a pricing structure sometimes includes seasonal variation that remains constant during the day. The real value of PV is demonstrated by using an hourly pricing tariff where the correlation between peak electricity prices and PV output is considered. Neglecting the variability in location by focusing on systems located in the Philadelphia region, this paper analyzes the economic payback model for PV systems based on different electricity pricing structures, solar renewable energy certificate (SREC) markets, and tax incentives offered by local, state, and federal governments. Scenarios have been developed that demonstrate the impact of a wholesale, real-time, market driven electricity price versus the average price of electricity. The real time locational pricing values solar electricity as much as 24% higher than the same photovoltaics with retail pricing because solar electricity is generated during the day when peak demand and peak prices occur. Additionally, some SREC markets have experienced volatility as a result of supply-demand disequilibrium. A sensitivity analysis of these variables portrays critical targets for aspects of widespread PV deployment that help to inform potential policy makers.

    Other authors
    See publication

Courses

  • Advanced Photovoltaics

    EGEE 597D

  • Applied Microeconomic Theory

    AEREC 597E

  • Design of Solar Energy Conversion Systems

    EGEE 597B

  • Distributed Energy Engineering and Management

    EGEE 597D

  • Electricity Market Modeling

    ENNEC 597A

  • Energy Conversion Processes

    EGEE 451

  • HVAC Fundamentals

    A E 310

  • Materials for Energy Applications

    EGEE 455

  • Numerical Solutions Applied to Heat Transfer and Fluid Mechanics Problems

    M E 523

  • The Transformation of Electricity Markets

    EGEE 597C

  • Theory and Practice of Policy Analysis for Engineers

    EGEE 597A

Projects

  • Union County Housing Authority Energy Efficient Duplex

    The impact of shade on the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) energy consumption in buildings is not typically included in whole building energy simulations. Using transient system simulation (TRNSYS) software, models of the Union County Housing Authority’s energy efficient duplex enable the calculation of a monetary value for shading from trees, adjacent buildings, or solar panels. The value for shade was determined by calculating the difference in shaded versus unshaded energy…

    The impact of shade on the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) energy consumption in buildings is not typically included in whole building energy simulations. Using transient system simulation (TRNSYS) software, models of the Union County Housing Authority’s energy efficient duplex enable the calculation of a monetary value for shading from trees, adjacent buildings, or solar panels. The value for shade was determined by calculating the difference in shaded versus unshaded energy consumption of the building for each of the four seasons. During the month of July, it was found that a large tree located to the south of the building could save approximately 4.7% in cooling demand and 3.3% on the electricity bill for the duplex. This value for tree shade is conservative because the detailed radiation mode in TRNSYS does not account for shade projected on external walls. Solar panels shade the building’s roof, reducing the cooling demand by 0.57% and the electricity bill by 0.4% from the shade alone.

    Other creators

  • EME 811: Solar Thermal Energy for Utilities and Industry

    -

    Developed and taught Solar Thermal Energy for Utilities and Industry twice over two years.

    Solar thermal energy conversion can be applied to a wide array of industrial and district applications, which provide benefits in avoided fuel costs for water and steam production in industry, including district heating/cooling (buildings), industrial process heating, fuel synthesis, desalination, and materials processing. EME 811 covers the physical materials used for solar energy conversion to…

    Developed and taught Solar Thermal Energy for Utilities and Industry twice over two years.

    Solar thermal energy conversion can be applied to a wide array of industrial and district applications, which provide benefits in avoided fuel costs for water and steam production in industry, including district heating/cooling (buildings), industrial process heating, fuel synthesis, desalination, and materials processing. EME 811 covers the physical materials used for solar energy conversion to useful thermal energy; the markets and thermal requirements for common industrial projects; the function and performance of non-concentrating (flat plate) and concentrating solar thermal energy systems; and describes applications of solar thermal energy conversion to applications in buildings, chemical processing, drying and desalination.

    Other creators
    See project

Honors & Awards

  • John and Barbara Yellott Award

    The American Solar Energy Society

    The John and Barbara Yellott Award, named for those who helped found the American Solar Energy Society, is given to a deserving graduate student concentrating on solar energy at a recognized institution of higher learning. The 2013 John and Barbara Yellott Award is presented to Lucas Witmer for his work to consider the “Valuation of Solar Irradiation for HVAC Systems in Mid-Atlantic Commercial Buildings.” Lucas brings a rich background and history of work in the clean energy industry, which…

    The John and Barbara Yellott Award, named for those who helped found the American Solar Energy Society, is given to a deserving graduate student concentrating on solar energy at a recognized institution of higher learning. The 2013 John and Barbara Yellott Award is presented to Lucas Witmer for his work to consider the “Valuation of Solar Irradiation for HVAC Systems in Mid-Atlantic Commercial Buildings.” Lucas brings a rich background and history of work in the clean energy industry, which includes design and installation of solar systems, serving as the Energy Modeling Project Manager of the Penn State University Solar Decathlon team of 2009, and serving as a graduate research assistant in the area of renewable systems at Penn State University. In addition to being the President and co-Founder of the Penn State University chapter of ASES, Lucas has presented at past ASES Annual Conferences and contributed to nine published papers, adding to the body of knowledge critical to the advancement of building system design.

Languages

  • English

    Native or bilingual proficiency

  • French

    Professional working proficiency

  • Swahili

    Professional working proficiency

Organizations

  • International Solar Energy Society (ISES)

    -

    - Present

  • Society of Building Science Educators (SBSE)

    -

    - Present

  • American Solar Energy Society (ASES)

    -

    - Present

  • American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

    -

    - Present

  • Penn State Student Chapter of the American Solar Energy Society

    President and Co-Founder

    -

    President Aug 2010 to Dec 2011

  • ThirdPlace State College

    Leadership Team Member

    -

  • Penn State Solar Decathlon

    Energy Modeling Project Manager

    -

    • Earned third place in the Engineering Contest • Managed a team of over ten students • Collaborated and integrated the design with 12 other project managers • Developed predictive computer models to calculated home energy use

  • The Collaboratory for Strategic Partnerships and Applied Research

    Energy Group Leader

    -

    • Participated in the Leadership Development Program • Worked in biodiesel, photovoltaics, and solar thermal • Designed sustainable alternative energy and micro-enterprise solutions • Wrote proposals for various project options • Tested and installed approved systems

Recommendations received

5 people have recommended Luke

Join now to view

More activity by Luke

View Luke’s full profile

  • See who you know in common
  • Get introduced
  • Contact Luke directly
Join to view full profile

Other similar profiles

Explore collaborative articles

We’re unlocking community knowledge in a new way. Experts add insights directly into each article, started with the help of AI.

Explore More

Others named Luke Witmer in United States

5 others named Luke Witmer in United States are on LinkedIn

See others named Luke Witmer

Add new skills with these courses

See all courses