80_FR_20186 80 FR 20115 - Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products and Certain Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Test Procedures for Consumer and Commercial Water Heaters

80 FR 20115 - Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products and Certain Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Test Procedures for Consumer and Commercial Water Heaters

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 71 (April 14, 2015)

Page Range20115-20147
FR Document2015-07932

As required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA), as amended, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to establish a mathematical conversion factor for the purpose of translating efficiency ratings for water heaters under the test method currently in effect to the ratings under the amended test method promulgated by DOE in a final rule published on July 11, 2014 (hereinafter referred to as the ``the July 2014 final rule''). Compliance with the amended test procedure is required beginning on the later of: one year after the publication of a final rule that establishes a mathematical conversion factor, or December 31, 2015. This rulemaking document proposes a mathematical conversion factor which may be used to convert the existing efficiency ratings under the current Federal test procedure to efficiency ratings under the test procedure adopted in the July 2014 final rule for water heater basic models manufactured, tested and certified prior to the compliance date of the amended test procedure. The amended test procedure applies to all covered consumer water heaters and the covered commercial water heating equipment with residential applications defined in the July 2014 final rule as a ``residential-duty commercial water heater.'' In addition, this document proposes amendments to the minimum energy conservation standards for consumer water heaters and residential-duty commercial water heaters to account for the impact of the new metric, but does not alter the stringency of the existing energy conservation standards. While DOE has not planned a public meeting to discuss this proposal, DOE is willing to consider a request to hold a meeting.

Federal Register, Volume 80 Issue 71 (Tuesday, April 14, 2015)
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 71 (Tuesday, April 14, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 20115-20147]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-07932]



[[Page 20115]]

Vol. 80

Tuesday,

No. 71

April 14, 2015

Part III





Department of Energy





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10 CFR Parts 429, 430, and 431





Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products and Certain 
Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Test Procedures for Consumer and 
Commercial Water Heaters; Proposed Rule

Federal Register / Vol. 80 , No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / 
Proposed Rules

[[Page 20116]]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

10 CFR Parts 429, 430, and 431

[EERE-2015-BT-TP-0007]
RIN 1904-AC91


Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products and Certain 
Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Test Procedures for Consumer and 
Commercial Water Heaters

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: As required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 
(EPCA), as amended, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to 
establish a mathematical conversion factor for the purpose of 
translating efficiency ratings for water heaters under the test method 
currently in effect to the ratings under the amended test method 
promulgated by DOE in a final rule published on July 11, 2014 
(hereinafter referred to as the ``the July 2014 final rule''). 
Compliance with the amended test procedure is required beginning on the 
later of: one year after the publication of a final rule that 
establishes a mathematical conversion factor, or December 31, 2015. 
This rulemaking document proposes a mathematical conversion factor 
which may be used to convert the existing efficiency ratings under the 
current Federal test procedure to efficiency ratings under the test 
procedure adopted in the July 2014 final rule for water heater basic 
models manufactured, tested and certified prior to the compliance date 
of the amended test procedure. The amended test procedure applies to 
all covered consumer water heaters and the covered commercial water 
heating equipment with residential applications defined in the July 
2014 final rule as a ``residential-duty commercial water heater.'' In 
addition, this document proposes amendments to the minimum energy 
conservation standards for consumer water heaters and residential-duty 
commercial water heaters to account for the impact of the new metric, 
but does not alter the stringency of the existing energy conservation 
standards. While DOE has not planned a public meeting to discuss this 
proposal, DOE is willing to consider a request to hold a meeting.

DATES: Comments: DOE will accept comments, data, and information 
regarding this notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) no later than May 
14, 2015. See section V, ``Public Participation,'' for details.

ADDRESSES: All comments submitted must identify the NOPR for the 
Conversion Factor for Test Procedures for Consumer and Certain 
Commercial Water Heaters, and provide docket number EERE-2015-BT-TP-
0007 and/or RIN 1904-AC91. Interested persons are encouraged to submit 
comments using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Alternatively, 
interested persons may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected]. Include 
the docket number and/or RIN in the subject line of the message. Submit 
electronic comments in WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, PDF, or ASCII file 
format, and avoid the use of special characters or any form of 
encryption.
     Postal Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Building Technologies Office, Mailstop EE-5B, 1000 Independence 
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. If possible, please submit all 
items on a compact disc (CD), in which case it is not necessary to 
include printed copies.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department 
of Energy, Building Technologies Office, 950 L'Enfant Plaza SW., 6th 
Floor, Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 586-2945. If possible, 
please submit all items on a CD, in which case it is not necessary to 
include printed copies.
    No telefacsimilies (faxes) will be accepted. For detailed 
instructions on submitting comments and additional information on the 
rulemaking process, see section V of this document (Public 
Participation).
    Docket: The docket is available for review at www.regulations.gov, 
including Federal Register notices, comments, and other supporting 
documents/materials. All documents in the docket are listed in the 
www.regulations.gov index. However, not all documents listed in the 
index may be publicly available, such as information that is exempt 
from public disclosure.
    A link to the docket Web page can be found at: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=EERE-2015-BT-TP-0007. This Web 
page contains a link to the docket for this notice of proposed 
rulemaking on the www.regulations.gov site. The www.regulations.gov Web 
page contains simple instructions on how to access all documents, 
including public comments, in the docket. See section V, ``Public 
Participation,'' for information on how to submit comments through 
www.regulations.gov.
    For information on how to submit a comment or review other public 
comments and the docket, contact Ms. Brenda Edwards at (202) 586-2945 
or by email: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Ashley Armstrong, U.S. Department 
of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building 
Technologies Office, EE-5B, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, 
DC 20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 586-6590. Email: 
[email protected].
    Mr. Eric Stas, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General 
Counsel, GC-33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-
0121. Telephone: (202) 586-9507. Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents

I. Authority and Background
II. Summary of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
III. Discussion
    A. Stakeholder Comments on Other Rulemakings
    B. Scope
    1. Test Procedure and Energy Conservation Standards Coverage
    2. Units on the Market
    C. Potential Approaches for Developing Conversions
    1. Background Regarding Changes to Existing Test Procedures
    2. Analytical Methods
    3. Empirical Regression
    D. Testing Conducted for the Mathematical Conversion
    1. Consumer Water Heater Testing
    2. Residential-Duty Commercial Water Heater Testing
    E. Testing Results and Analysis of Test Data
    1. Impact of Certain Water Heater Attributes on Efficiency 
Ratings
    2. Conversion Factor Derivation
    3. Energy Conservation Standard Derivation
    F. Certification and Labeling Issues
IV. Procedural Issues and Regulatory Review
    A. Review Under Executive Order 12866
    B. Review Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act
    C. Review Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
    D. Review Under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
    E. Review Under Executive Order 13132
    F. Review Under Executive Order 12988
    G. Review Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
    H. Review Under the Treasury and General Government 
Appropriations Act, 1999
    I. Review Under Executive Order 12630
    J. Review Under Treasury and General Government Appropriations 
Act, 2001
    K. Review Under Executive Order 13211

[[Page 20117]]

    L. Review Under Section 32 of the Federal Energy Administration 
Act of 1974
V. Public Participation
    A. Submission of Comments
    B. Issues on Which DOE Seeks Comment
VI. Approval of the Office of the Secretary

I. Authority and Background

    Title III Part B \1\ of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 
1975 (``EPCA'' or, ``the Act''), Public Law 94-163 (42 U.S.C. 6291-
6309, as codified) sets forth a variety of provisions designed to 
improve energy efficiency and established the Energy Conservation 
Program for Consumer Products Other Than Automobiles.\2\ These include 
consumer water heaters, one subject of this document. (42 U.S.C. 
6292(a)(4)) Title III, Part C \3\ of EPCA, Public Law 94-163 (42 U.S.C. 
6311-6317, as codified), added by Public Law 95-619, Title IV, Sec. 
441(a), established the Energy Conservation Program for Certain 
Industrial Equipment, which includes the commercial water heating 
equipment that is another subject of this rulemaking. (42 U.S.C. 
6311(1)(K))
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    \1\ For editorial reasons, upon codification in the U.S. Code, 
Part B was redesignated Part A.
    \2\ All references to EPCA in this document refer to the statute 
as amended through the American Energy Manufacturing Technical 
Corrections Act (AEMTCA), Public Law 112-210 (Dec. 18, 2012).
    \3\ For editorial reasons, upon codification in the U.S. Code, 
Part C was redesignated Part A-1.
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    Under EPCA, energy conservation programs generally consist of four 
parts: (1) Testing; (2) labeling; (3) establishing Federal energy 
conservation standards; and (4) certification and enforcement 
procedures. The testing requirements consist of test procedures that 
manufacturers of covered products and equipment must use as the basis 
for certifying to DOE that their products and equipment comply with the 
applicable energy conservation standards adopted under EPCA, and for 
making other representations about the efficiency of those products. 
(42 U.S.C. 6293(c); 42 U.S.C. 6295(s); 42 U.S.C. 6314) Similarly, DOE 
must use these test procedures to determine whether such products and 
equipment comply with any relevant standards promulgated under EPCA. 
(42 U.S.C. 6295(s))
    EPCA, as codified, contains what is known as an ``anti-
backsliding'' provision, which prevents the Secretary from prescribing 
any amended standard that either increases the maximum allowable energy 
use or decreases the minimum required energy efficiency of a covered 
product. (42 U.S.C. 6295(o)(1)) Also, the Secretary may not prescribe 
an amended or new standard if interested persons have established by a 
preponderance of the evidence that the standard is likely to result in 
the unavailability in the United States of any covered product type (or 
class) of performance characteristics (including reliability), 
features, sizes, capacities, and volumes that are substantially the 
same as those generally available in the United States. (42 U.S.C. 
6295(o)(4))
    EPCA prescribed energy conservation standards for consumer water 
heaters (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(1)), and directed DOE to conduct further 
rulemakings to determine whether to amend these standards (42 U.S.C. 
6295(e)(4)(A)-(B)). DOE notes that under 42 U.S.C. 6295(m), the agency 
must periodically review its already established energy conservation 
standards for a covered product. Under this requirement, the next 
review that DOE would need to conduct must occur no later than six 
years from the issuance of a final rule establishing or amending a 
standard for a covered product.
    On April 16, 2010, DOE published a final rule (hereinafter referred 
to as the ``April 2010 final rule'') that amended the energy 
conservation standards for all classes of consumer water heaters, 
except for tabletop and electric instantaneous water heaters, for which 
the existing energy conservation standards were left in place. 75 FR 
20112. The standards adopted by the April 2010 final rule are shown 
below in Table I.1. These standards will apply to all water heater 
products listed in Table I.1 and manufactured in, or imported into, the 
United States on or after April 16, 2015, for all classes, except for 
tabletop and electric instantaneous. For these latter two classes, 
compliance with these standards has been required since April 15, 1991. 
55 FR 42162 (Oct. 17, 1990). Current energy conservation standards for 
consumer water heaters can be found in DOE's regulations at 10 CFR 
430.32(d).

                       Table I.1--Energy Conservation Standards for Consumer Water Heaters
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             Product class                 Rated storage volume ***                 Energy factor **
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Gas-fired Storage.....................  >=20 gal and <=55 gal........  0.675-(0.0015 x Vs)
                                        >55 gal and <=100 gal........  0.8012-(0.00078 x Vs)
Oil-fired Storage.....................  <=50 gal.....................  0.68-(0.0019 x Vs)
Electric Storage......................  >=20 gal and <=55 gal........  0.96-(0.0003 x Vs)
                                        >55 gal and <=120 gal........  2.057-(0.00113 x Vs)
Tabletop *............................  >=20 gal and <=120 gal.......  0.93-(0.00113 x Vs)
Gas-fired Instantaneous...............  <2 gal.......................  0.82-(0.0019 x Vs)
Electric Instantaneous *..............  <2 gal.......................  0.93-(0.00132 x Vs)
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*Tabletop and electric instantaneous standards were not updated by the April 2010 final rule.
** Vs is the ``Rated Storage Volume'' which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as
  specified by the manufacturer.
*** Rated Storage Volume limitations result from either a lack of test procedure coverage or from divisions
  created by DOE when adopting standards. The division at 55 gallons for gas-fired and electric storage water
  heaters was established in the April 16, 2010 final rule amending energy conservation standards. 75 FR 20112.
  The other storage volume limitations shown in this table are a result of test procedure applicability, and are
  discussed in the July 2014 final rule. 79 FR 40542 (July 11, 2014).

    The initial Federal energy conservation standards and test 
procedures for commercial water heating equipment were added to EPCA as 
an amendment made by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT). (42 U.S.C. 
6313(a)(5)) These initial energy conservation standards corresponded to 
the efficiency levels contained in the American Society of Heating, 
Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standard 90.1 
(ASHRAE Standard 90.1) in effect on October 24, 1992. The statute 
provided that if the efficiency levels in ASHRAE Standard 90.1 were 
amended after October 24, 1992, the Secretary must establish an amended 
uniform national standard at new minimum levels for each equipment type 
specified in ASHRAE Standard 90.1, unless DOE determines, through a 
rulemaking supported by clear and convincing evidence, that national 
standards more

[[Page 20118]]

stringent than the new minimum levels would result in significant 
additional energy savings and be technologically feasible and 
economically justified. (42 U.S.C. 6313(a)(6)(A)(ii)(I)-(II)) DOE 
issued the most recent final rule for commercial water heating 
equipment on January 12, 2001 (hereinafter, the ``January 2001 final 
rule''), which adopted the amended energy conservation standards at 
levels equivalent to efficiency levels in ASHRAE Standard 90.1, as it 
was revised in October 1999. 66 FR 3336. The current standards for 
commercial water heating equipment are presented in Table I.2 and may 
be found in DOE's regulations at 10 CFR 431.110.

                 Table I.2--Energy Conservation Standards for Commercial Water Heating Equipment
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                                                                    Energy conservation standard *
                                                    ------------------------------------------------------------
                                                         Minimum
           Equipment                    Size             thermal
                                                       efficiency              Maximum standby loss \c\
                                                           (%)
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Electric storage water heaters.  All...............             N/A  0.30 + 27/Vm (%/hr)
Gas-fired storage water heaters  <=155,000 Btu/hr..              80  Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
                                 >155,000 Btu/hr...              80  Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
Oil-fired storage water heaters  <=155,000 Btu/hr..              78  Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
                                 >155,000 Btu/hr...              78  Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
Gas-fired instantaneous water    <10 gal...........              80  N/A
 heaters and hot water supply
 boilers **.
                                 >=10 gal..........              80  Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
Oil-fired instantaneous water    <10 gal...........              80  N/A
 heaters and hot water supply
 boilers **.
                                 >=10 gal..........              78  Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
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           Equipment                    Size                          Minimum thermal insulation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unfired hot water storage tank.  All...............                             R-12.5
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* Vm is the measured storage volume, and Vr is the rated volume, both in gallons. Q is the nameplate input rate
  in Btu/hr.
** For hot water supply boilers with a capacity of less than 10 gallons: (1) The standards are mandatory for
  products manufactured on and after October 21, 2005, and (2) products manufactured prior to that date, and on
  or after October 23, 2003, must meet either the standards listed in this table or the applicable standards in
  subpart E of this part for a ``commercial packaged boiler.''
*** Water heaters and hot water supply boilers having more than 140 gallons of storage capacity need not meet
  the standby loss requirement if: (1) The tank surface area is thermally insulated to R-12.5 or more; (2) a
  standing pilot light is not used; and (3) for gas or oil-fired storage water heaters, they have a fire damper
  or fan-assisted combustion.

    On December 18, 2012, the American Energy Manufacturing Technical 
Corrections Act (AEMTCA), Public Law 112-210, was signed into law. In 
relevant part, it amended EPCA to require that DOE publish a final rule 
establishing a uniform efficiency descriptor and accompanying test 
methods for covered consumer water heaters and commercial water heating 
equipment within one year of the enactment of AEMTCA. (42 U.S.C. 
6295(e)(5)(B)) The final rule must replace the current energy factor, 
thermal efficiency, and standby loss metrics with a uniform efficiency 
descriptor. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(C)) The July 2014 final rule 
fulfilled these requirements. AEMTCA requires that, beginning one year 
after the date of publication of DOE's final rule establishing the 
uniform descriptor (i.e., July 13, 2015), the efficiency standards for 
the consumer water heaters and residential-duty commercial water 
heaters identified in the July 2014 final rule must be denominated 
according to the uniform efficiency descriptor established in that 
final rule (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(D)), and that DOE must develop a 
mathematical conversion factor for converting the measurement of 
efficiency for those water heaters from the test procedures and metrics 
currently in effect to the new uniform energy descriptor. (42 U.S.C. 
6295(e)(5)(E)(i)-(ii)) Consumer water heaters and residential-duty 
commercial water heaters manufactured prior to the effective date of 
the final rule (i.e., July 13, 2015) that comply with the efficiency 
standards and labeling requirements in effect prior to the final rule 
shall be considered to comply with the final rule and with any revised 
labeling requirements established by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) 
to carry out the final rule. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(K))
    AEMTCA also requires that the uniform efficiency descriptor and 
accompanying test method apply, to the maximum extent practicable, to 
all water-heating technologies currently in use and to future water-
heating technologies. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(H)) AEMTCA allows DOE to 
provide an exclusion from the uniform efficiency descriptor for 
specific categories of otherwise covered water heaters that do not have 
residential uses, that can be clearly described, and that are 
effectively rated using the current thermal efficiency and standby loss 
descriptors. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(F))
    AEMTCA outlines DOE's various options for establishing a new 
uniform efficiency descriptor for water heaters. The options that 
AEMTCA provides to DOE include: (1) A revised version of the energy 
factor descriptor currently in use; (2) the thermal efficiency and 
standby loss descriptors currently in use; (3) a revised version of the 
thermal efficiency and standby loss descriptors; (4) a hybrid of 
descriptors; or (5) a new approach. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(G)) Lastly, 
AEMTCA requires that DOE invite stakeholders to participate in the 
rulemaking process, and that DOE contract with the National Institute 
of Standards and Technology (NIST), as necessary, to conduct testing 
and simulation of alternative descriptors identified for consideration. 
(42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(I)-(J))
    As noted previously, in the July 2014 final rule, DOE amended its 
test procedure for consumer and certain commercial water heaters. 79 FR 
40542 (July 11, 2014). The July 2014 final rule for consumer and 
certain commercial water heaters satisfied the AEMTCA requirements to 
develop a uniform efficiency descriptor to replace the existing energy 
factor, thermal efficiency and standby loss metrics. The amended test 
procedure includes

[[Page 20119]]

provisions for determining the uniform energy factor (UEF), as well as 
the annual energy consumption of these products. Furthermore, the 
uniform descriptor test procedure can be applied to: (1) Most consumer 
water heaters (including certain consumer water heaters that are 
covered products under EPCA's definition of ``water heater'' at 42 
U.S.C. 6291(27), but that are not addressed by the existing test 
method); and (2) to commercial water heaters that have residential 
applications. The major modifications to the existing DOE test 
procedure to establish the uniform descriptor test method included the 
use of multiple draw patterns and different draw patterns, and changes 
to the set-point temperature. In addition, DOE expanded the scope of 
the test method to include test procedure provisions that are 
applicable to water heaters with storage volumes between 2 gallons (7.6 
L) and 20 gallons (76 L), and to clarify applicability to electric 
instantaneous water heaters. DOE also established a new equipment class 
and corresponding definition for ``residential-duty commercial water 
heater.''
    This rulemaking will satisfy the requirements of AEMTCA to develop 
a mathematical conversion factor for converting the measurement of 
efficiency for covered water heaters from the test procedures and 
metrics currently in effect to the new uniform energy descriptor. (42 
U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(E))

II. Summary of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    This notice of proposed rulemaking proposes to establish a 
mathematical conversion factor between the current rated values under 
the existing water heaters test procedures (i.e., energy factor, first-
hour rating, maximum gallons per minute (GPM) rating, thermal 
efficiency, standby loss), and the amended test procedure for the 
uniform efficiency descriptor (i.e., UEF and first-hour rating or 
maximum GPM rating), which was established in the July 2014 final rule. 
As discussed previously, the water heater test procedure was updated to 
be more representative of conditions encountered in the field 
(including modifications to both the test conditions and the draw 
patterns) and to expand the scope of the test procedure to apply to 
certain commercial and consumer water heaters that are currently not 
addressed by the test procedure.
    The mathematical conversion factor required by AEMTCA is a bridge 
between the efficiency ratings obtained through testing under the 
existing test procedures and those obtained under the uniform 
efficiency descriptor test procedure published in the July 2014 final 
rule. Therefore, the mathematical conversion factor will only apply to 
products and equipment covered by the existing test procedure, as 
products and equipment that are not covered by the existing test method 
would not have ratings to be converted. Certain water heater types are 
not covered by the mathematical conversion factor, either because they 
are not covered by the uniform efficiency descriptor established by the 
July 2014 final rule (e.g., commercial heat pump water heaters), or 
because they are not covered by DOE's existing test procedure (e.g., 
water heaters with storage volumes between 2 and 20 gallons). The water 
heater types that are and are not covered by the mathematical 
conversion factor are discussed in detail in section III.B of this 
notice of proposed rulemaking.
    To help develop the mathematical conversion factor, DOE conducted a 
series of tests on the types of water heaters included within the scope 
of this rulemaking (i.e., those described in section III.B and that 
pass the minimum standards for consumer \4\ and commercial water 
heaters). An investigation of DOE's Compliance Certification Management 
System (CCMS) and the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration 
Institute's (AHRI) water-heating databases found that certain types of 
water heaters are not available for purchase on the market; these units 
are discussed in section III.B. As there are no existing water heaters 
in these product classes, and the purpose of the conversion factor is 
to convert the efficiency ratings of existing water heaters, DOE did 
not include these water heaters in its analysis for the mathematical 
conversion factor.
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    \4\ DOE published a final rule on April 16, 2010, that will 
require compliance with amended energy conservation standards 
beginning on April 16, 2015. 75 FR 20112. DOE focused the testing of 
consumer water heaters on units that would comply with the amended 
standards.
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    DOE selected 72 water heaters for testing, including: 43 consumer 
storage units, 22 consumer instantaneous units, and 7 commercial 
residential-duty storage units. Units were selected to represent the 
range of rated values available on the market (i.e., storage volume, 
input rate, first-hour rating, maximum GPM, recovery efficiency, energy 
factor, thermal efficiency, and standby loss). DOE used data obtained 
from testing, along with analytical methods described in section III.C, 
to calculate the conversion factors described in this document. DOE 
investigated several approaches to derive these conversion factors, 
which are discussed in detail in section III.C of this notice of 
proposed rulemaking. DOE developed different conversion factors for 
determining first-hour rating, maximum GPM, and UEF based on the 
existing ratings for consumer and residential-duty commercial water 
heaters, which can be found in section III.E.
    DOE then used the conversion factors to derive minimum energy 
conservation standards based on the UEF, as shown in Table II.1 and 
Table II.2. The proposed standards based on UEF are neither more nor 
less stringent than the existing standards for consumer water heaters 
based on energy factor (as amended by the April 2010 final rule) and 
for commercial water-heating equipment based on the thermal efficiency 
and standby loss metrics. The methodology for deriving the proposed UEF 
standards is discussed in detail in section III.E.3 of this notice of 
proposed rulemaking.

                    Table II.1--Proposed Consumer Water Heater Energy Conservation Standards
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  Rated storage
         Product class                volume              Draw pattern              Uniform energy factor *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage.............  >=20 gal and <=55  Very Small...............  0.3263-(0.0019 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.5891-(0.0019 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.6326-(0.0013 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.7128-(0.0025 x Vr)
                                >55 gal and <=100  Very Small...............  0.5352-(0.0007 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.7375-(0.0009 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.7704-(0.0010 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.7980-(0.0010 x Vr)
Oil-fired Storage.............  <=50 gal.........  Very Small...............  0.2267-(0.0014 x Vr)

[[Page 20120]]

 
                                                   Low......................  0.4867-(0.0006 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.6016-(0.0012 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.6529-(0.0005 x Vr)
Electric Storage..............  >=20 gal and <=55  Very Small...............  0.8268-(0.0002 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.9393-(0.0004 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.9683-(0.0007 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.9656-(0.0004 x Vr)
                                >55 gal and <=120  Very Small...............  1.2701-(0.0011 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  1.9137-(0.0011 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  2.0626-(0.0011 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  2.1858-(0.0011 x Vr)
Tabletop Storage..............  >=20 gal and       Very Small...............  0.6808-(0.0022 x Vr)
                                 <=100 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.8770-(0.0012 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.9063-(0.0009 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.9302-(0.0006 x Vr)
Gas-fired Instantaneous.......  <2 gal...........  All......................  0.8036-(0.0019 x Vr)
Electric Instantaneous........  <2 gal...........  All......................  0.9192-(0.0013 x Vr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as
  specified by the manufacturer.


           Table II.2--Proposed Residential-Duty Commercial Water Heater Energy Conservation Standards
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Product class                        Draw pattern                     Uniform energy factor
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage....................  Very Small.....................  0.3261 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                       Low............................  0.5219 - (0.0008 x Vr)
                                       Medium.........................  0.5585 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                       High...........................  0.6044 - (0.0005 x Vr)
Oil-fired Storage....................  Very Small.....................  0.3206 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                       Low............................  0.5577 - (0.0019 x Vr)
                                       Medium.........................  0.6027 - (0.0019 x Vr)
                                       High...........................  0.6446 - (0.0018 x Vr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as
  specified by the manufacturer.

    EPCA requires that a covered water heater be considered to comply 
with the July 2014 final rule on and after July 13, 2015 (the effective 
date of the July 2014 final rule) and with any revised labeling 
requirements established by the Federal Trade Commission to carry out 
the July 2014 final rule if the covered water heater was manufactured 
prior to July 13, 2015, and complied with the efficiency standards and 
labeling requirements in effect prior to July 13, 2015. (42 U.S.C. 
6295(e)(5)(K)) Upon the effective date of the final rule establishing 
the mathematical conversion factor (this rulemaking), compliance with 
energy conservation standards will be exclusively determined based on 
the standards as defined in terms of UEF, which will be established by 
this rulemaking. DOE has tentatively concluded that there will be three 
possible compliance paths available to manufacturers for basic models 
of consumer water heaters that were certified before July 13, 2015:
    (1) Convert the certified rating for energy factor obtained using 
the test procedure contained in Appendix E to subpart B of 10 CFR part 
430 of the January 1, 2015 edition of the CFR along with the applicable 
sampling provisions in 10 CFR part 429 from energy factor to uniform 
energy factor using the applicable mathematical conversion factor; or
    (2) Conduct testing using the test procedure contained at Appendix 
E to subpart B of 10 CFR part 430, effective July 13, 2015, along with 
the applicable sampling provisions in 10 CFR part 429; or
    (3) Where permitted, apply an alternative efficiency determination 
method (AEDM) pursuant to 10 CFR 429.70 to determine the represented 
efficiency of basic models for those categories of consumer water 
heaters where the ``tested basic model'' was tested using the test 
procedure contained at Appendix E to subpart B of 10 CFR part 430, 
effective July 13, 2015.
    Similarly, DOE has tentatively concluded that there will be three 
possible compliance paths available to manufacturers for basic models 
of commercial residential-duty water heaters that were certified before 
July 13, 2015:
    (1) Convert the certified rating for thermal efficiency and standby 
loss obtained using the test procedure contained in 10 CFR 431.106 of 
the January 1, 2015 edition of the CFR along with the applicable 
sampling provisions in part 429 from thermal efficiency and standby 
loss to uniform energy factor using the applicable mathematical 
conversion factor; or
    (2) Conduct testing using the test procedure at 10 CFR 431.106, 
effective July 13, 2015, along with the applicable sampling provisions 
in part 429; or
    (3) Where permitted, apply an alternative efficiency determination 
method (AEDM) pursuant to 10 CFR 429.70 to determine the represented 
efficiency of basic models for those categories of commercial water 
heaters where the ``tested basic model'' was tested using the test 
procedure at 10 CFR 431.106, effective July 13, 2015.
    After July 13, 2015, all new basic models (previously uncertified) 
must be rated using the new test procedure either by testing or by an 
AEDM, where allowed. All water heaters subject to the new test 
procedure adopted by the July 2014 final rule must be rated and 
certified in terms of UEF. DOE will assess compliance based upon the 
energy conservation standards expressed in terms of UEF as developed in 
this rulemaking. One year after the final rule in this rulemaking is 
published, all water heaters subject to the new UEF test procedure must 
be

[[Page 20121]]

rated and certified based on testing using the UEF test procedure or an 
AEDM, which is based on the UEF test procedure, where allowed. A 
summary of the options and requirements at various key dates is shown 
in the table below.

            Table II.3--Summary of Key Dates and Requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Description of date              Date              Requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Test Procedure Effective      July 13, 2015.......  For new basic models
 Date.                                               introduced into
                                                     commerce on or
                                                     after July 13,
                                                     2015, manufacturers
                                                     must begin to test
                                                     and represent
                                                     efficiency using
                                                     the UEF metric
                                                     pursuant to the UEF
                                                     test procedure and
                                                     sampling plan (or
                                                     an AEDM that is
                                                     based on the UEF
                                                     test procedure,
                                                     where allowed).
Conversion Factor Effective   Date of publication   For basic models
 Date.                         of the conversion     certified using the
                               factor final rule     EF metric or
                               in the Federal        thermal efficiency
                               Register.             and/or standby loss
                                                     metrics prior to
                                                     July 13, 2015,
                                                     manufacturers must
                                                     transition all of
                                                     their
                                                     representations to
                                                     UEF either by
                                                     applying the
                                                     conversion
                                                     equations or by
                                                     using the UEF test
                                                     procedure and
                                                     sampling plan (or
                                                     an AEDM that is
                                                     based on the UEF
                                                     test procedure,
                                                     where allowed).
Conversion Factor Ending      One year after        All basic models
 Date.                         publication of        must be rated in
                               conversion factor     terms of UEF using
                               final rule.           the UEF test
                                                     procedure and
                                                     sampling plan or an
                                                     AEDM that is based
                                                     on the UEF test
                                                     procedure, where
                                                     allowed.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

III. Discussion

A. Stakeholder Comments on Other Rulemakings

    During the rulemaking process to develop the uniform efficiency 
descriptor test procedure, comments were received from stakeholders in 
reference to the derivation and applicability of the conversion factor. 
DOE deferred discussion of and response to those comments until such 
time as they could be addressed in this rulemaking.
    In response to the test procedure request for information (RFI \5\) 
published on January 11, 2013, DOE received seven written comments 
related to the conversion factor from the following interested parties: 
AHRI, A.O. Smith Corporation (A.O. Smith), Edison Electric Institute 
(EEI), Heat Transfer Products Inc. (HTP), the National Renewable Energy 
Laboratory (NREL), the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), and 
a joint comment on behalf of a number of environmental groups and 
efficiency advocates submitted by the American Council for an Energy-
Efficient Economy (ACEEE).\6\ These comments are discussed immediately 
below.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ 78 FR 2340.
    \6\ ACEEE submitted a joint comment on behalf of ACEEE, the 
Appliance Standards Awareness Project (ASAP), the Alliance to Save 
Energy (ASE), the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), the National 
Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Northwest Power and 
Conservation Council (NPCC), and the Northeast Energy Efficiency 
Partnerships (NEEP).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    NREL stated that there is not a simple conversion factor that will 
work across all systems, but suggested an application of the Water 
Heater Analysis Model (WHAM) \7\ to assist DOE in developing the 
conversion factor for storage water heaters. (NREL, EERE-2011-BT-TP-
0042-0029 at p. 4) The joint commenters supported the use of a ``good-
enough'' mathematical conversion method to express existing ratings in 
terms of the new uniform descriptor and urged DOE to test a sample of 
existing products to validate the algorithmic conversion method. (Joint 
comment, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0035 at p. 4) HTP commented that the most 
exact approach would be to conduct an empirical analysis using curve 
fitting to actual test data, although the commenter acknowledged that 
there is not sufficient time for manufacturers to obtain this 
information and for the Department to then correlate and analyze the 
data. (HTP, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0041 at p. 3)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ Lutz, Jim, Camilla D. Whitehead, Alex Lekov, David 
Winiarski, and Greg Rosenquist, WHAM: A Simplified Energy 
Consumption Equation for Water Heaters, Proc. of 1998 ACEEE Summer 
Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings. Vol. 1. 171-83. Print.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Regarding the derivation of updated energy conservation standards 
using the new uniform descriptor, AHRI and A.O. Smith commented that 
DOE should not simply test multiple units to determine an average 
difference between the current and new ratings and use that value to 
convert the ratings. (AHRI, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0033 at p. 4; A.O. 
Smith, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0034 at p. 3) NEEA commented that 
considering the limited laboratory capacity to test all water heaters 
under the revised method of test, DOE should assume that all water 
heaters that comply with current standards will also comply after the 
implementation of the new metrics. (NEEA, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0037 at 
p. 6) EEI commented that the conversion factor should not make 
currently existing standards more stringent and should only be based on 
point-of-use metrics to be consistent with Federal law. (EEI, EERE-
2011-BT-TP-0042-0040 at p. 2)
    In response to the test procedure NOPR \8\ published on November 4, 
2013, DOE received three additional written comments related to the 
conversion factor from: AHRI, Bradford White Corporation (BWC) and a 
joint comment submitted on behalf of a number of environmental groups 
and efficiency advocates by ACEEE.\9\ AHRI and BWC suggested model 
types to test and urged DOE to release a schedule and process for the 
development of the conversion factor as soon as possible. (AHRI, EERE-
2011-BT-TP-0042-0075 at p. 6-7; BWC, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0061 at p. 7) 
AHRI suggested two categories to be considered in the conversion factor 
rulemaking: water heater type and storage volume. BWC expanded on the 
list of categories supplied by AHRI by

[[Page 20122]]

including considerations for input capacity, venting options, tank 
configuration, NOX emissions, and mobile home certification. 
The joint comment suggested that the sensitivity of the energy factor 
to draw pattern be investigated and that systematic differences between 
``old'' and ``new'' values should be expected for several technologies. 
(Joint Comment, EERE-2011-BT-TP-0042-0077 at p. 2)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \8\ 78 FR 66202.
    \9\ ACEEE submitted a joint comment on behalf of ACEEE, ASAP, 
ASE, Consumers Union (CU), NCLC, NRDC and NEEP.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    DOE has considered these comments fully in the development of this 
proposed rule. Although discussed in overview here, these comments are 
discussed in more detail later in this document as applicable to DOE's 
specific decisions regarding the mathematical conversion factor. In 
regards to the method of developing the conversion factor, DOE agrees 
in principle with the HTP comment that the most exact approach would be 
an empirical analysis using a curve-fitting method and actual test 
data, because such approach would account for all the changes made in 
the new test procedure, without having to make assumptions. However, 
DOE notes that the confidence in this empirical approach is dependent 
upon sample size and has considered whether the approach can feasibly 
be tested and implemented within the time constraints set forth by 
AEMTCA. (The curve-fitting method investigated is discussed in section 
III.C.3.)
    In addition, as suggested by NREL, DOE investigated the use of the 
WHAM model to predict water heater efficiency under the new test 
procedure parameters, and used the results in the conversion factor 
analysis. The methodology for applying WHAM and the results are found 
in section III.C.2.c. As suggested in the NOPR joint comment, the 
sensitivity of the UEF to draw pattern was investigated by including 
the drawn volume in the conversion factor calculations; this approach 
is discussed further in section III.C.
    In an effort to develop a mathematical conversion factor, DOE 
commissioned testing of 72 individual water heaters from various easily 
distinguishable water-heating categories under the updated test 
procedure. All of the water heaters chosen were found using either the 
Compliance Certification Management System (CCMS) or AHRI water heater 
databases, where the water heaters included in the databases were 
further distinguished based on the suggestions made by AHRI and BWC in 
response to the November 2013 water heaters NOPR (78 FR 66202 (Nov. 4, 
2013)). The models selected for testing and the parameters examined are 
described in more detail in section III.D. These test data were used to 
investigate all of the potential conversion factor methods described in 
section III.C.
    DOE has also carefully considered the comments regarding the 
establishment of energy conservation standards using the uniform 
efficiency descriptor metric (i.e., UEF). Those comments are discussed 
further in section III.E.3.

B. Scope

    The purpose of this section is to describe DOE's process for 
categorizing water heaters and establishing the range of units to be 
considered in this mathematical conversion factor rulemaking. DOE seeks 
comment on the scope of the conversion factor. This is identified as 
issue 1 in section V.E, ``Issues on Which DOE Seeks Comment.''
1. Test Procedure and Energy Conservation Standards Coverage
    To determine the appropriate scope of coverage for the mathematical 
conversion factor, DOE first considered the scope of its existing test 
procedures and energy conservation standards for consumer and 
commercial water heaters. Water heaters that are not currently subject 
to the DOE test procedures or standards were not included in the scope 
of the conversion factor, as they are not required to be tested and 
rated for efficiency under the DOE test method.
a. Consumer Water Heaters
    Under the existing regulatory definitions, DOE's current consumer 
water heater test procedures and energy conservation standards are not 
applicable to gas or electric water heaters with storage tanks that are 
at or above 2 gallons (7.6 L) and less than 20 gallons (76 L). In terms 
of the high end of the capacity range, the current DOE test procedure 
for consumer water heaters only applies to gas-fired water heaters with 
storage volumes less than or equal to 100 gallons (380 L), electric 
resistance and heat pump storage water heaters with storage volumes 
less than or equal to 120 gallons (450 L), and oil-fired water heaters 
with storage volumes less than or equal to 50 gallons (190 L). 10 CFR 
part 430, subpart B, appendix E, sections 1.12.1, 1.12.2, and 1.12.4.
    In the July 2014 final rule, DOE expanded the scope of the water 
heater test procedure for the uniform efficiency descriptor to include 
water heaters with storage volumes between 2 and 20 gallons and up to 
120 gallons. 79 FR 40542, 40547-48 (July 11, 2014).
    DOE's current consumer water heater test procedure and energy 
conservation standards are not applicable to gas-fired instantaneous 
water heaters with input capacities at or below 50,000 Btu/h or at or 
above 200,000 Btu/h. 10 CFR part 430, subpart B, appendix E, section 
1.7.2. In addition, the existing test procedure and energy conservation 
standards are not applicable to gas-fired storage water heaters with 
input capacities above 75,000 Btu/h, electric storage water heaters 
with input ratings above 12 kW, and oil-fired storage water heaters 
with input ratings above 105,000 Btu/h, as models exceeding those 
limits would not be classified as consumer water heaters under EPCA. 
(42 U.S.C. 6291(27)); 10 CFR part 430, subpart B, appendix E, sections 
1.12.1, 1.12.2, and 1.12.4.
    In the July 2014 final rule, DOE designed the test procedure so it 
is applicable to water heaters with any input capacity. Therefore, the 
lower limit for instantaneous water heaters no longer applies. 79 FR 
40542, 40548 (July 11, 2014).
    As discussed in the July 2014 final rule, definitions were added 
for ``electric instantaneous water heater,'' ``gas-fired heat pump 
water heater,'' and ``oil-fired instantaneous water heater,'' and the 
July 2014 test procedure is applicable to these types of appliances. 79 
FR 40542, 40549 (July 11, 2014).
    Although there is no definition for ``electric instantaneous water 
heater'' in the current test procedure in 10 CFR part 430, subpart B, 
Appendix E, an energy conservation standard exists for this type of 
water heater. In addition, the current test procedure can be applied to 
electric instantaneous water heaters, and manufacturers report energy 
factor ratings for these products. For these reasons, DOE has decided 
to include electric instantaneous water heaters with rated storage 
volumes <2 gallons and rated inputs <=12 kW in the conversion factor 
analysis.
    DOE has tentatively excluded the consumer water heater products 
listed in Table III.1 from consideration for the mathematical 
conversion factor due to the lack of an existing Federal test procedure 
and rating to be converted.

[[Page 20123]]



   Table III.1--Consumer Water Heaters Not Covered by the Mathematical
                            Conversion Factor
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                           Description of criteria for
             Product class                  exclusion from conversion
                                                    rulemaking
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage......................  Rated Storage Volume >=2 gal
                                          and <20 gal or >100 gal and
                                          <=120 gal.
Oil-fired Storage......................  Rated Storage Volume >50 gal.
Electric Storage.......................  Rated Storage Volume >=2 gal
                                          and <20 gal.
Tabletop...............................  Rated Storage Volume >=2 gal
                                          and <20 gal.
Gas-fired Instantaneous................  Rated Input <= 50,000 Btu/h;
                                          Rated Storage Volume >2 gal.
Electric Instantaneous.................  Rated Storage Volume >2 gal.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

b. Commercial Water Heaters
    As stated in the July 2014 final rule, DOE excluded from the 
uniform efficiency descriptor any specific category of water heater 
that does not have a residential use, can be clearly described, and can 
be effectively rated using the current thermal efficiency and standby 
loss descriptors. 79 FR 40542, 40545 (July 11, 2014). DOE determined 
that certain commercial water heaters met these criteria to be excluded 
from the uniform efficiency descriptor, and distinguished them from 
water heaters that do not meet the criteria by establishing equipment 
classes for residential-duty commercial water heaters. Commercial water 
heaters meeting the definition of ``residential-duty commercial water 
heater'' do not meet the criteria for exclusion, and thus, are included 
in the uniform efficiency descriptor while all other commercial water 
heaters are not. DOE determined that three criteria would be used to 
distinguish residential-duty commercial water heaters from other 
commercial water heaters (79 FR 40542, 40547 (July 11, 2014)):
    (1) For models requiring electricity, uses single-phase external 
power supply;
    (2) Is not designed to provide outlet hot water at temperatures 
greater than 180[emsp14][deg]F; and
    (3) Is not excluded by the limitations regarding rated input and 
storage volume presented in Table III.2.

 Table III.2--Capacity Limitations for Defining Commercial Water Heaters
      Without Residential Applications (i.e., Non-Residential-Duty)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                           Indicator of non-residential
           Water heater type                       application
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage......................  Rated input >105 kBtu/h; Rated
                                          storage volume >120 gallons.
Oil-fired Storage......................  Rated input >140 kBtu/h; Rated
                                          storage volume >120 gallons.
Electric Storage.......................  Rated input >12 kW; Rated
                                          storage volume >120 gallons.
Heat Pump with Storage.................  Rated input >15 kW; Rated
                                          current >24 A at a rated
                                          voltage of not greater than
                                          250 V; Rated storage volume
                                          >120 gallons.
Gas-fired Instantaneous................  Rated input >200 kBtu/h; Rated
                                          storage volume >2 gallons.
Electric Instantaneous.................  Rated input >58.6 kW; Rated
                                          storage volume >2 gallons.
Oil-fired Instantaneous................  Rated input >210 kBtu/h; Rated
                                          storage volume >2 gallons.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    DOE did not include commercial water-heating equipment that does 
not meet the definition of a ``residential-duty commercial water 
heater'' in its consideration of the mathematical conversion factor, as 
the equipment is not subject to the uniform efficiency descriptor test 
procedure. Additionally, DOE notes that there are no electric storage 
water heaters that would be considered to be residential-duty 
commercial since the qualifications shown in Table II.2 would place an 
electric storage water heater in the consumer category. Since there are 
no such units, and could not be such units under the applicable 
definition, a conversion is unnecessary. DOE is, therefore, not 
proposing a conversion factor for residential-duty electric storage 
water heaters. DOE also notes that a water heater that meets the 
definition of a consumer electric storage water heater must be tested 
and rated as a consumer electric storage water heater even if it is 
marketed as part of a commercial product line.
    As stated in the July 2014 final rule, DOE has determined that 
certain commercial equipment including unfired storage tanks, add-on 
heat pump water heaters, and hot water supply boilers are not 
appropriately rated using the uniform descriptor applicable to other 
water heaters, and, thus, will continue to be rated using the existing 
metrics. 79 FR 40542, 40547.
    Electric instantaneous water heaters are currently subject to the 
commercial water heating equipment test procedures but do not have an 
associated energy conservation standard. 10 CFR 431.106; 10 CFR 
431.110. Because there is no commercial energy conservation standard 
for electric instantaneous water heaters, a conversion to the UEF 
cannot be made.
2. Units on the Market
    As stated in section II, DOE undertook an investigation into the 
water-heating units on the market at the time of the publication of the 
final rule establishing the UEF test procedure. The AHRI commercial 
water heater database along with the CCMS consumer water heater 
database were examined to select representative units for testing and 
analysis.
    DOE's analysis focused on the models that meet the energy 
conservation standards contained in the April 2010 final rule, which 
will require compliance on April 16, 2015. The storage volume divisions 
at 55 gallons in the gas-fired and electric storage product classes, as 
established in the April 16, 2010 final rule, represent a divide in 
technology. For gas-fired storage units above 55 gallons manufactured 
on and after April 16, 2015, the energy conservation standard will be 
high enough that current designs can only achieve the required 
efficiency through the use of condensing technology.\10\ For electric 
storage units with storage volumes above 55 gallons, only heat pump 
water heaters currently

[[Page 20124]]

have the ability to reach the April 16, 2015 energy conservation 
standard levels. While the UEF test procedure will apply to both 
electric and gas units in this range, DOE found that for gas-fired 
storage water heaters, there are currently no consumer water heaters 
above 55 gallons that would be compliant with the updated standard, so 
no units were tested for development of a conversion factor. For 
electric storage water heaters, heat pump water heaters meet or exceed 
the amended energy conservation standards and, thus, were candidates 
for inclusion in the test plan for the conversion factor. There are no 
oil-fired instantaneous or oil-fired storage water heaters above 50 
gallons available on the market.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \10\ In a condensing water heater, the combustion gases are 
cooled such that the temperature is reduced below the dew point and 
condensation occurs, allowing the latent heat of vaporization to be 
captured and improving the efficiency of the heat exchange between 
the combustion gases and the water.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In reviewing the commercial water heating market, DOE found that 
commercial oil-fired instantaneous water heaters are available on the 
market but do not meet the definition of ``residential-duty commercial 
water heater,'' as they have storage volumes greater than 2 gallons. 
DOE found that all commercial gas-fired instantaneous units exceeded 
the maximum delivery temperature of 180 [deg]F for residential-duty 
commercial water heaters, and, thus, would be regulated using the 
existing thermal efficiency and standby loss metrics. DOE also found 
that commercial electric instantaneous units which meet the definition 
of ``residential-duty commercial water heater'' exist, however, as 
stated in section III.B.1.b, no energy conservation standard exists for 
these units; therefore a conversion factor was not developed.
    Consequently, none of the commercial water heaters identified above 
could be tested or examined for use in this rulemaking. In addition, a 
conversion factor for these water heaters is not needed because there 
are no units in existence with efficiency ratings that can be 
converted. However, because a manufacturer may want to design and 
produce products in these equipment classes in the future, DOE must 
establish energy conservation standards in terms of the UEF metric. 
Accordingly, DOE used information gained from other product classes to 
establish these energy conservation standards, as discussed in section 
III.E.

C. Potential Approaches for Developing Conversions

1. Background Regarding Changes to Existing Test Procedures
a. Consumer Water Heater Test Procedures
    Both the current test procedure and the uniform efficiency 
descriptor test procedure consist of a delivery capacity test and a 24-
hour simulated-use test. The delivery capacity tests for storage and 
instantaneous water heaters are the first-hour rating and maximum GPM 
tests, respectively. These tests are largely unchanged from the current 
to the new test procedure, except for modifications to account for the 
decrease in delivered water temperature from a nominal value of 135 
[deg]F to 125 [deg]F. The results of those tests, however, have 
implications on the 24-hour simulated-use test under the new test 
procedure that are absent under the current test procedure.
    In the current test procedure, the delivery capacity has no effect 
on the 24-hour simulated-use test, which consists of six hot water 
draws, of equivalent volumes, at the start of the test and each of the 
first five subsequent hours. The water heater is then in standby mode 
for the remainder of the test. In the July 2014 final rule, however, 
the delivery capacity determines the draw pattern for the 24-hour 
simulated-use test. According to the new test procedure, a water 
heater's delivery capacity can be categorized as either very small, 
low, medium, or high; these usages are shown below in Table III.3. 79 
FR 40542, 40572 (July 11, 2014). These usage categories have an 
associated draw pattern prescribed to them during the 24-hour 
simulated-use. Depending on the delivery capacity associated with a 
water heater, between 9 and 14 hot water draws of various volumes and 
flow rates are required.

                             Table III.3--Delivery Capacity Categorization Criteria
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                    First-Hour Rating, gal               Maximum GPM, gpm
         Draw Pattern         ------------------------------------------------------------------- Drawn  Volume,
                                     >=                <               >=               <               gal
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small...................               0  18..............            0    1.7.............              10
Low..........................              18  51..............            1.7  2.8.............              38
Medium.......................              51  75..............            2.8  4...............              55
High.........................              75  No upper limit..            4    No upper limit..              84
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In the existing DOE consumer water heater test procedure, a 
temperature of 135 [deg]F  5 [deg]F is used for the set-
point temperature for storage water heaters (measured as the mean tank 
temperature) and the delivery temperature for instantaneous water 
heaters. In the uniform efficiency descriptor test procedure set forth 
in the July 2014 final rule, a temperature of 125 [deg]F  5 
[deg]F is used for the set-point temperature for storage water heaters 
(measured as the delivery temperature) and the delivery temperature of 
instantaneous water heaters. 79 FR 40542, 40554 (July 11, 2014).
b. Commercial Water Heater Test Procedure
    The current test procedure for rating commercial water heaters 
consists of a steady-state test to determine thermal efficiency and a 
test lasting between 24 and 48 hours to measure the standby loss. 77 FR 
28996 (May 16, 2012); 10 CFR 431.106. For electric resistance water 
heaters, the thermal efficiency is assigned a value of 98 percent in 
lieu of testing. The set-point temperature of the water heater is 140 
[deg]F  5 [deg]F, and the unit sits in an environment with 
an ambient temperature of 75 [deg]F  10 [deg]F. Water is 
supplied to the water heater at a temperature of 70 [deg]F  
2 [deg]F. Instantaneous water heaters are not required to undergo a 
standby loss test.
    Under the uniform efficiency descriptor test procedure, commercial 
water heaters falling under the ``residential-duty'' category will now 
be subject to the first-hour rating or maximum GPM test and simulated-
use tests specified in the previous section (III.C.1.a), with the same 
set-point temperature, ambient temperature, and inlet water temperature 
as is applied to consumer water heaters.
2. Analytical Methods
    For converting existing ratings to ratings under the uniform 
efficiency descriptor test method, DOE considered equations based on a 
water heater's physical characteristics; these approaches will be 
termed analytical methods. The sections below describe

[[Page 20125]]

potential analytical methods for the three key metrics that result from 
the uniform efficiency descriptor test method: (1) The maximum GPM; (2) 
the first-hour rating; and (3) the UEF. In the discussion immediately 
below, DOE introduces key factors that it expects will change ratings 
from the existing consumer and commercial water heater test procedures 
to the new uniform efficiency descriptor test procedure.
a. Maximum GPM
    For flow-activated water heaters, the delivery capacity is 
determined by the 10-minute maximum GPM rating test. During this test, 
the water heater runs at maximum firing rate to raise the temperature 
from its nominal value of 58 [deg]F to the prescribed delivery 
temperature. This flow rate is determined by the following equation:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.006

where VV is the volumetric flow rate of water, Q is the firing rate, 
[eta]r is the recovery efficiency, [rho] is the density of 
the delivered water, cp is the specific heat of the 
delivered water, Tdel is the delivered water temperature, 
and Tin is the inlet water temperature. If it is assumed 
that the firing rate and recovery efficiency are the same with water 
delivered at 125 [deg]F and 135 [deg]F, then the ratio of the maximum 
GPM at 125 [deg]F versus that at 135 [deg]F is determined by the 
following equation:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.007

    Therefore, an analytical conversion from the existing maximum GPM 
rating (VVex) for consumer water heaters to the rating under the test 
conditions in the uniform efficiency descriptor test method (VVUED) is:

VVUED = 1.147VVex

    As discussed in detail in section III.E.2, tests on flow-activated 
water heaters showed a change in maximum GPM rating under the uniform 
efficiency descriptor test method that correlated well with the above 
equation.
b. First-Hour Rating
    For water heaters that have a heat source controlled by means other 
than sensing flow (e.g., thermostatically-controlled), the delivery 
capacity is determined through a first-hour rating test. During this 
test, the water heater begins in its fully heated state, and water is 
drawn from it at a specified flow rate until the temperature of the 
delivered water drops a specified amount. The water heater is then 
allowed to recover, and subsequent draws are initiated when the 
controller acts to reduce the heat input to particular burners or 
heating elements specified in the test procedure. These subsequent 
draws are terminated based on the same criterion that is used for the 
first draw, namely that the outlet water temperature drops a set amount 
of degrees from its maximum value during that draw. When the test 
reaches a duration of one hour from the start of the first draw, the 
test concludes after the draw termination criterion is reached for the 
draw taking place at one hour from the start of the test. If no draw is 
occurring at the one hour duration, a draw is initiated and terminated 
when the outlet water temperature reaches the termination temperature 
of the previous draw, and the test is concluded upon termination of 
that draw.
    In the uniform efficiency descriptor test procedure, the primary 
change that will affect the first-hour rating is the shift from a 
nominal delivery temperature of 135 [deg]F to 125 [deg]F and the 
accompanying adjustment to the draw termination criterion to a decrease 
in delivered water temperature from 25 [deg]F in the current consumer 
water heater test method to 15 [deg]F in the uniform efficiency 
descriptor test method. Because the initial set-point temperature is 
reduced in the uniform efficiency descriptor as compared to the 
existing consumer water heater test procedure, less stored thermal 
energy will be available at the start of the test. However, this effect 
is countered because the lower set-point temperature allows the water 
heater to recover quicker (as the water only needs to be heated to a 15 
[deg]F temperature rise rather than a 25 [deg]F temperature rise), 
thereby allowing subsequent draws to start sooner than they would under 
the current test procedure. Thus, due to these offsetting effects, DOE 
has observed through testing that sometimes the first-hour rating is 
increased when tested under the uniform efficiency descriptor, and 
sometimes the rating is decreased. DOE is not aware of any analytical 
models that would mathematically represent this behavior, so it has 
chosen not to pursue such an approach for converting existing first-
hour ratings to first-hour ratings under the uniform efficiency 
descriptor. Rather, as discussed in section III.C.3, DOE chose an 
approach based on an empirical regression for converting the first-hour 
ratings.
    Likewise, DOE is not aware of any analytical method that will 
convert rated values of thermal efficiency and standby loss for 
residential-duty commercial storage water heaters to a first-hour 
rating. Therefore, DOE chose an approach based on empirical regression 
for converting existing ratings of residential-duty commercial water 
heaters to first-hour ratings.
c. Uniform Energy Factor
    A number of changes to the 24-hour simulated-use test will alter 
the water heater energy efficiency ratings from the existing water 
heater test procedures as compared to the ratings obtained under the 
uniform efficiency descriptor test method. Among the key changes that 
are expected to alter the efficiency metric for consumer water heaters 
are: (1) A different volume of water withdrawn per test; (2) a change 
in the draw pattern (i.e., number of draws, flow rates during draws, 
timing of draws) applied during the test; (3) reduction of the test 
temperature from an average stored temperature of 135 [deg]F to a 
delivered water temperature of 125 [deg]F; and (4) removal of the 
stipulation to normalize the energy consumption to maintain a 
prescribed average water temperature within the storage tank. 
Residential-duty commercial water heaters will see a change from the 
thermal efficiency and standby loss metrics currently in place to the 
UEF, which consists of an entirely new approach for rating efficiency.
i. Consumer Storage Water Heaters
    A simple theoretical model for determining the energy consumption 
of a storage-type water heater based on key test parameters, termed the 
Water Heater Analysis Model (WHAM), was

[[Page 20126]]

presented by Lutz et al.\11\ The equation for the energy input (Q) over 
a 24-hour period is determined using the following equation:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\ Lutz, Jim, Camilla Dunham Whitehead, Alex Lekov, David 
Winiarski, and Greg Rosenquist. ``WHAM: A Simplified Energy 
Consumption Equation for Water Heaters'' In Proceedings of the 1998 
ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (1998) 
(Available at: http://cgec.ucdavis.edu/ACEEE/1998/pdffiles/papers/0114.pdf) (Last accessed October 1, 2014).
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.008

where [rho] is the density of water, cp is the specific heat 
of water, [eta]r is the recovery efficiency, V is the volume 
of water delivered per day, UA is the heat loss factor, 
Ttank is the average temperature of the water stored within 
the tank of a storage water heater, P is the input power to the water 
heater in Btu/h, Tamb is the average ambient temperature 
during the test, and 24 is the number of hours in the test. This 
equation considers the energy required to heat the water that is 
delivered by the water heater from the inlet water temperature up to 
the delivery temperature and the energy required to make up the heat 
lost from the water heater to the surrounding environment. The time 
over which this standby energy loss is determined is corrected by the 
term with the power in the denominator to account for the fact that 
[eta]r, as calculated in the test, accounts for standby 
energy loss during periods when heat input to the water is activated.
    This calculated energy can then be used to estimate the daily 
efficiency, Eff, under a given daily water demand (e.g., that required 
during the current EF test or that required during the UEF test):
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.009

    Currently, directories of water heater ratings provide the Eff 
(i.e., Energy Factor), P, and [eta]r. Since the EF testing 
entails a prescribed Tdel (135 [deg]F), Tin (58 
[deg]F), Ttank (135 [deg]F), Tamb (67.5 [deg]F), 
and V (64.3 gallons), the two equations can be solved for the two 
remaining unknowns, Q and UA. The exception to this approach is heat 
pump water heaters. For these units, the reported recovery efficiency 
([eta]r) is that of the resistance element inside the water 
heater. Since it is expected that the heat pump unit would provide the 
majority of the heating during the simulated-use test as opposed to the 
resistance element, the required data to use the WHAM model for heat 
pump water heaters is not readily available in publicly accessible 
directories. For these units, DOE proposes to base the conversion 
equation purely on experimental data.
    After the equations are solved to determine UA, if one assumes that 
the UA and [eta]r do not change under the new test approach, 
then the two equations can be solved again (this time inserting the UA 
value obtained from solving the previous set of equations) to determine 
the values for Q and Eff (i.e., UEF) under the uniform efficiency 
descriptor test method using the prescribed values for the uniform 
efficiency descriptor test procedure of Tdel (125 [deg]F), 
Tin (58 [deg]F), Ttank (125 [deg]F), 
Tamb (67.5 [deg]F), and V (varies depending upon draw 
pattern).
    This formulation entails a number of assumptions. A major 
assumption is that the average tank temperature is approximately equal 
to the delivered water temperature. As previously noted, the new 
procedure does not normalize the average stored water temperature to a 
prescribed value, so this estimate may not be completely accurate. Some 
water heaters have demonstrated that average tank temperature is below 
the typical delivered temperature because of stratification. This 
effect is believed to be most pronounced with condensing water heaters. 
Other water heaters show some stratification, but the average water 
temperature within the tank is typically closer to the delivered water 
temperature. Another assumption in this formulation is that the 
recovery efficiency and UA values do not change when the water heater 
stores water for delivery at 135 [deg]F compared to storing it at 125 
[deg]F. While electric resistance water heaters have a prescribed 
recovery efficiency of 98 percent, other technologies may see changes 
in the recovery efficiency as the temperature drops. For example, the 
study by Sparn et al. shows plots of the Coefficient of Performance 
(COP), which is one aspect of the recovery efficiency, for heat pump 
water heaters.\12\ Their data suggest an increase in COP of 
approximately 15 percent with the average tank temperature at 125 
[deg]F compared to 135 [deg]F. Data obtained by DOE indicate an 
increase in recovery efficiency obtained during the same draw profile 
of between 3 and 13 percent, with an average of 8 percent. Data 
collected on fossil-fuel-fired water heaters show negligible dependency 
of the recovery efficiency on the prescribed tank temperature. The UA 
value may change slightly based on higher heat transfer coefficients at 
higher temperatures or changes in the thermal conductivity of 
insulating materials at higher temperatures. Data collected by DOE 
suggest that the UA value decreases 7 percent from 135 [deg]F to 125 
[deg]F.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \12\ Sparn, B., K. Hudon, and D. Christensen, Laboratory 
Performance Evaluation of Residential Integrated Heat Pump Water 
Heaters. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (September 2011) 
(Available at: http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy11osti/52635.pdf) (Last 
accessed October 1, 2014).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    For an initial estimate, DOE considered the situation where the UA 
and recovery efficiency do not change with temperature. The equations 
above can estimate the effects of two key factors that have changed in 
the test procedure, namely the volume drawn per day and the delivery 
temperature. As more water is delivered, the fraction of energy 
required to make up the standby losses compared to the overall energy 
required by the water heater is diminished, thereby increasing the 
fraction of energy going towards hot delivered water and increasing the 
efficiency. The change in set-point temperature appears to have less of 
an effect on water heater efficiency, since two competing factors are 
at play. With a lower stored water temperature, the standby losses are 
decreased, thereby increasing the overall efficiency of the water 
heater. The lower delivery temperature, however, means that less energy 
is delivered per gallon, so the energy delivered for a given volume 
delivered per day is less than that when the water is delivered at 135 
[deg]F, thereby decreasing the efficiency of the water heater.
    As noted, direct use of this model may not properly account for 
changes to the recovery efficiency, UA value, or normalization 
procedure for standby heat loss. Therefore, DOE has chosen a two-step 
process to convert the existing Energy Factor ratings for consumer 
storage water heaters to the UEF. First, using the equations and 
assumptions described above, a prediction of the

[[Page 20127]]

efficiency given by WHAM is determined, termed UEFWHAM. This value is 
then considered as part of a regression analysis (see section III.C.3) 
to obtain a relationship that will convert from EF to UEF. DOE believes 
that the use of WHAM will capture the primary effects of changes in the 
volume of water delivered per day along with changes in the set-point 
temperature. Regression with experimental data will then capture the 
effects that may not be fully accounted for by WHAM, such as 
differences in the UA value, recovery efficiency, and the change to the 
normalization calculation procedure for standby heat loss.
    To establish a clear method of applying the analytical model, the 
WHAM-based UEF equation and Table III.4, comprising the coefficients 
based on draw bin, are presented below. This equation incorporates the 
equations and assumptions presented above, where [eta]r and 
EF are the recovery efficiency and energy factor, respectively, based 
on the current DOE test procedure, and P is the nameplate input rate in 
Btu/h. As shown in Table III.4, constants ``a,'' ``b,'' ``c,'' and 
``d'' are dependent on the volume of water being drawn.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.010


                         Table III.4--Coefficients for WHAM-based UEF Conversion Factor
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Draw bin                             a               b               c               d
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small......................................        56095146     12884892499         8930623     15125743368
Low.............................................        56095146     48962591496        33936368     57477824799
Medium..........................................        56095146     70866908744        49118427     83191588525
High............................................        56095146    108233096990        75017235    127056244293
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ii. Consumer Instantaneous Water Heaters
    WHAM is not directly applicable to instantaneous water heaters 
because it assumes that the water heater loses heat at a constant rate 
throughout the day when the heating element is not energized. For 
instantaneous water heaters, this modeling approach is inappropriate 
since the unit does not store water at an elevated temperature 
throughout the day, rather heating water as it flows through the unit.
    Instantaneous water heaters instead experience a separate type of 
heat loss to the surroundings that sometimes result in Energy Factors 
that are below the steady-state thermal efficiency. This loss occurs 
when heat that is present in the water heater at the end of a draw 
dissipates to the ambient. If a draw is not initiated shortly after the 
end of a draw, then most of this heat is lost. If, however, a 
subsequent draw starts shortly after a previous draw, some of that heat 
is captured in the hot water that is delivered.
    DOE attempted to capture these effects in a modified equation that 
separately accounts for energy consumption that goes towards supplying 
heat to the delivered water and energy consumption that goes towards 
heating up the materials making up the water heater:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.011

where LF is a loss factor related to the amount of energy stored in the 
materials of the water heater and N* is the number of draws from which 
heat loss occurs to the environment. LF is approximately equal to the 
mass of the material within the water heater times its heat capacity. 
N* is not simply the number of draws during the day, since some draws 
may occur close together and do not result in total energy loss. To 
determine the fraction of energy from a draw that is lost, DOE examined 
data from testing that suggested that most heat is lost from tankless 
water heaters after about one hour. Using this value, DOE scaled the 
energy loss for a draw by the length of the standby time following the 
draw. For example, a draw followed by over one hour of standby time 
would contribute a value of 1 to N* for that test. A draw followed by 
30 minutes of standby time prior to the next draw would contribute a 
value of (30 min)/(60 min) = 0.5 to N*. Contributions from each draw in 
a test pattern are added to obtain a value for N* for each draw 
pattern. For the existing DOE consumer water heater test, N* is 5.64, 
as the standby time following each draw is slightly under 60 minutes. 
The values for N* for all draw patterns are provided in Table III.5.

   Table III.5--Estimate of Number of Draws From Which All Energy From
                  Water Heater Is Lost to Surroundings
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Draw pattern                              N*
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Existing Consumer Water Heater Draw Pattern....................     5.64
Very-Small-Use.................................................     4.36
Low-Use........................................................     6.72
Medium-Use.....................................................     7.45
High-Use.......................................................     7.53
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    DOE attempted this approach by obtaining an estimate of LF from 
data obtained during testing of 17 gas instantaneous water heaters 
according to the current simulated-use test. (LF could theoretically be 
determined for each unit, but some test results showed a recovery 
efficiency equal to EF, which would mathematically lead to an infinite 
value of LF). A regression of the energy consumption data during these 
tests with the quantity multiplying LF in the previous model equation 
resulted in a value of LF of 0.679 Btu/[deg]F. Using

[[Page 20128]]

this value to then estimate the energy consumption during the new 
simulated-use test resulted in predictions of the UEF. This approach 
resulted in a root mean squared error between predicted values and 
measured values of 0.027.
    Alternatively, a set of regressions, based solely on test data, 
were examined to determine the impact of other factors as discussed in 
section III.C.3. The best regressions resulted in a mean squared error 
of 0.032.
    As discussed for consumer storage water heaters in section 
III.C.2.c.i, DOE also considered a two-step process to convert the 
existing EF ratings to the UEF--first using the equations and 
assumptions described above to obtain an analytical prediction of UEF, 
then using a regression analysis to obtain a relationship that will 
convert from EF to UEF. Based on these results, DOE has chosen to use 
the analytical model plus a regression approach for converting EFs for 
consumer instantaneous water heaters to UEF. DOE has tentatively 
concluded that the assumptions made in the analytical model capture 
some key operating characteristics of the instantaneous units, and the 
further step to use measured data captures unforeseen issues. Details 
on this approach are provided in section III.C.3.
iii. Residential-Duty Commercial Water Heaters
    DOE investigated a modified version of WHAM for converting the 
thermal efficiency and standby loss metrics for residential-duty 
commercial storage water heaters to UEF. The AHRI certification 
directory includes the thermal efficiency (Et) and standby 
loss (SL). The equation below estimates the energy consumption of a 
water heater based on these efficiency metrics:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.012

where 70 represents the nominal temperature difference in degrees 
Fahrenheit between the tank and ambient during the standby loss test. 
By assuming that Ttank equals Tdel, all variables 
in the equation above are known, since Et and SL can be 
obtained from current ratings and all other variables are specified in 
the UEF test procedure for a given projected first-hour rating. The 
equation above can be used in combination with the one below to 
estimate the UEF for residential-duty storage water heaters 
(UEFrd):
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.013

    These equations can be combined to yield the following equation for 
converting Et and SL to UEF using the coefficient C1, which 
is dependent upon the draw pattern applied during the UEF test, as 
provided in Table III.6.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.014


   Table III.6--Coefficient for Conversion of Commercial Water Heater
                             Ratings to UEF
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      Draw pattern                              C1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small..............................................    3.575 x 10-3
Low.....................................................    9.408 x 10-4
Medium..................................................    6.500 x 10-4
High....................................................    4.256 x 10-4
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As was done with consumer water heaters, DOE decided to account for 
unforeseen effects observed during testing by combining this analytical 
prediction with a regression of the predicted values of UEF to the 
measured UEF.
    DOE seeks comments on the use of analytical methods to convert 
existing metrics to the ones described in the July 2014 test procedure 
final rule. This is identified as issue 2 in section V.E, ``Issues on 
Which DOE Seeks Comment.''
3. Empirical Regression
    An alternative to the analytical approaches described in section 
III.C.2 is to develop empirical equations from measured metrics under 
the uniform efficiency descriptor test procedure to those obtained 
using the existing consumer and commercial water heater test 
procedures. This approach has the benefit of capturing the effects of 
factors that are not addressed in analytical models. The drawbacks of 
this approach are that it is susceptible to measurement errors and that 
it may not be easily extended to water heaters that were not part of 
the test program.
    To derive the conversion factors from an empirical regression, DOE 
first used a step regression method. The step regression method 
produces a linear equation which uses a set of observed independent 
variables, such as storage volume, input rate, delivery capacity, 
recovery efficiency, energy factor, thermal efficiency, or standby 
loss, and seeks to mathematically derive an equation using these 
variables to relate to a set of observed dependent variables, such as 
new delivery capacity (under the updated test method) and UEF. The step 
regression method systematically recombines the set of independent 
variables to produce an equation for each possible set. Each set's 
equation is compared to the others and the equation with the best fit 
is chosen. This approach eliminates factors that are not significant in 
converting existing metrics to the new metrics. DOE also considered 
simpler regression forms to reduce confusion in converting from old 
metrics to new metrics and to ensure that the regressions were 
applicable over the broad range of water heaters available on the 
market. In these circumstances, DOE examined the deviations between 
measured values and predicted values from the correction equations. 
When those deviations were comparable, DOE opted for simplified models 
that would be expected to capture the major phenomena that would affect 
the new metrics. The regression tool found in the Analysis ToolPak of 
Microsoft Excel (2010) was used to calculate the equation for each set 
of independent variables.
    As noted previously, because DOE has tentatively concluded that an 
empirical regression methodology would be more accurate than the 
analytical method described in section III.C.2 for determining first-
hour rating for storage water heaters, DOE has proposed conversion 
factors for those metrics and product types based on the use of the 
empirical regression methodology. DOE seeks comment on the use of the 
regression method for the conversion factor analysis. This is 
identified as issue 3 in section V.E, ``Issues on Which DOE Seeks 
Comment.''

D. Testing Conducted for the Mathematical Conversion

1. Consumer Water Heater Testing
    For its analysis of a mathematical conversion factor between the 
existing efficiency metrics and the uniform efficiency descriptor, DOE 
tested 43 consumer storage water heaters to both the existing and 
updated test procedures. Table III.7 and Table III.8

[[Page 20129]]

below summarize the units that have been tested. Table III.7 summarizes 
the units that have been tested according to heating type. Table III.8 
provides an estimate of the distribution of those units across draw 
pattern categories by using their first-hour ratings under the current 
test (although it is acknowledged that the applied draw pattern for a 
particular water heater could change under the new first-hour rating 
test).

 Table III.7--Consumer Storage Water Heater Test Distribution by Product
                                  Type
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                      Product type                         units tested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired...............................................              22
Oil-fired...............................................               2
Electric................................................              11
Heat Pump...............................................               6
Tabletop................................................               2
------------------------------------------------------------------------


  Table III.8--Consumer Storage Water Heater Test Distribution by Draw
                                 Pattern
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                     Draw pattern *                        units tested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small **...........................................               0
Low.....................................................               3
Medium..................................................              27
High....................................................              13
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* The draw pattern shown is based on the current rated values; actual
  draw patterns are dependent upon amended test procedure first-hour
  rating discussed in section III.C.1.
** No very small consumer storage water heaters covered under the
  existing test procedure were found on the market.

    DOE also tested 22 consumer instantaneous water heaters to develop 
the mathematical conversion for these products. Table III.9 below 
summarizes the units that have been tested. Table III.10 provides an 
estimate of the distribution of those units across draw patterns by 
using their maximum GPM ratings under the current test (although it is 
acknowledged that the applied draw pattern for a particular water 
heater could change under the new maximum GPM test).

  Table III.9--Consumer Instantaneous Water Heater Test Distribution by
                              Product Type
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                      Product type                         units tested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired *.............................................              17
Oil-fired **............................................               0
Electric................................................               5
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Gas-fired water heaters include both natural gas and propane water
  heaters, as well as water heaters capable of using either natural gas
  or propane. DOE tested 10 natural gas water heaters, 1 propane water
  heaters, and 6 water heaters capable of using either natural gas or
  propane. Water heaters capable of using either fuel were tested with
  natural gas.
** No oil-fired consumer instantaneous water heaters were found to be on
  the market.


 Table III.10--Consumer Instantaneous Water Heater Test Distribution by
                              Draw Pattern
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                     Draw pattern *                        units tested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small..............................................               5
Low.....................................................               1
Medium..................................................               7
High....................................................               9
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Draw pattern profiles are based on the rated values; actual draw
  patterns are dependent upon tested value discussed in section III.C.1.

2. Residential-Duty Commercial Water Heater Testing
    DOE tested 7 residential-duty commercial storage water heaters to 
develop the mathematical conversion for this equipment. Table III.11 
summarizes the units that have been tested. A table showing the 
distribution of draw pattern within the residential-duty commercial 
water heater test list is not available, because commercial water 
heaters currently do not have first-hour ratings.

   Table III.11--Residential-Duty Commercial Storage Water Heater Test
                      Distribution by Product Type
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                     Product type *                        units tested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired...............................................               7
Oil-fired **............................................               0
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Heat pump and tabletop water heaters were not found on the market and,
  therefore, were not tested.
** One oil-fired unit failed during testing.

    As discussed in section III.B.2, DOE did not analyze a mathematical 
conversion for residential-duty commercial electric storage water 
heaters or residential-duty commercial instantaneous water heaters.

E. Testing Results and Analysis of Test Data

1. Impact of Certain Water Heater Attributes on Efficiency Ratings
    After conducting testing on all of the selected water heaters 
according to both the existing test procedures and the uniform 
efficiency descriptor test procedure, DOE examined how particular 
attributes of water heaters might affect the conversion factors and 
investigated the approaches discussed in section III.C for obtaining 
conversion factors. The goal of this analysis was to determine whether 
or not particular attributes necessitated separate conversion 
equations. Separate conversions were created for subsets of the tested 
units based on water heater attributes such as NOX emission 
level, short or tall configuration, vent type, standing pilot or 
electric ignition, if condensing or heat pump technology is used, and 
if the unit is tabletop. Additionally, conversion equations were also 
generated based on the full set of water heaters. To determine whether 
it was necessary to develop separate conversion factors for a 
particular attribute, the root-mean-square (RMS) of the difference 
between the measured values and the values obtained through various 
conversion methods was compared. The conversion approach with the 
lowest cumulative RMS value for a particular fuel type was considered 
to be the best candidate for the conversion equation.
    The three levels of NOX emissions currently available in 
water heaters on the market include standard (greater than or equal to 
40 nanograms per joule (ng/J)), low (less than 40 ng/J and greater than 
or equal to 10 ng/J for storage water heaters and greater than or equal 
to 14 ng/J for instantaneous water heaters) and ultra-low (less than 10 
ng/J for storage water heaters and less than 14 ng/J for instantaneous 
water heaters).
    Most units that are short or tall have been labeled as such by the 
manufacturer; however, some units do not have this designation. DOE has 
found that some units labeled as small are actually taller than units 
labeled as tall. DOE is interested in how manufacturers determine 
whether a unit is short or tall. This is identified as issue 4 in 
section V.E, ``Issues on Which DOE Seeks Comment.''
    The four venting configurations currently available in water 
heaters on the market include atmospheric, direct, power, and power-
direct. Atmospheric and power vent units intake air from the area 
surrounding the water heater, while direct and power-direct vents 
intake air from outdoors. Atmospheric and direct

[[Page 20130]]

vent units use natural convection to circulate combustion air, while 
power and power-direct vents use some additional method to force 
circulation of combustion air. Concentric inlet and outlet piping is a 
unique configuration that can be used in directly venting water heaters 
to preheat incoming air using exhaust gas. For these tests, concentric 
inlet and outlet piping was not used; inlet air for the direct and 
power-direct vent units was delivered to the water heater in separate 
pipes from that used for exhaust. As these tests were conducted under 
identical controlled conditions, DOE determined that there is very 
little difference between atmospheric and direct vent water heaters and 
also between power and power-direct vent. For these reasons DOE has 
grouped atmospheric and direct into the atmospheric configuration and 
power and power-direct into the power configuration.
    As an example of the process that was taken to examine the effect 
of these factors, Table III.12 shows the cumulative RMS values for the 
first-hour rating conversions for consumer storage water heaters. The 
rows in the table indicate how the conversion equations were separated 
out, and the columns provide the RMS for each class of consumer storage 
water heaters. For gas water heaters, these values show that the 
conversion approach that differentiates between condensing or non-
condensing technology and between NOX levels appears to 
provide the best approach considering its low RMS values. No other 
factors (e.g., short vs. tall, vent type, pilot type) were shown to 
have any significance on the effectiveness of the conversion factor. 
For oil-fired water heaters and electric water heaters, the lowest RMS 
deviations occurred when all units of that fuel type were considered, 
indicating that separating the conversion equations by tank shape was 
not necessary. The findings presented here for first-hour rating 
conversions are consistent with those for UEF. From these results, DOE 
proposes to develop conversion equations for consumer storage water 
heaters based on fuel type, with the gas units being further 
differentiated by whether or not they are condensing units and by their 
NOx emissions level ratings.
    For consumer instantaneous water heaters and residential-duty 
commercial water heaters, DOE found no dependence on factors such as 
condensing operation or vent type. Conversion factors for these classes 
of water heaters are, thus, based simply on fuel type.

         Table III.12--First-Hour Rating RMS Values by Water Heater Attribute for Consumer Water Heaters
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                            Gas-fired             Oil-fired                    Electric
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All Units (All fuel types).............            6.99  6.89.......................  4.47.
All Units Short or Tall................            6.87  5.79.......................  3.67.
Fuel Type (Gas, Oil or Electric).......            7.16  Not enough units...........  3.88.
Fuel Type Short or Tall................            6.91  No short units.............  Not enough short units.
Fossil Fuel (Gas and Oil)..............            6.59  5.73.......................  N/A.
Fossil Fuel Short or Tall..............            6.52  5.82.......................  N/A.
Condensing or Non-Condensing...........            6.66  N/A........................  N/A.
NOX Type (Standard, Low or Ultra Low)..            4.61  N/A........................  N/A.
Vent Type (Atmospheric or Power).......            5.53  N/A........................  N/A.
Standing Pilot or Electric Ignition....            5.53  N/A........................  N/A.
Non-Condensing NOX Type and Separate               3.98  N/A........................  N/A.
 Condensing.
All Electric Types Separate............             N/A  N/A........................  3.43.
Heat Pump Separate.....................             N/A  N/A........................  3.59.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Conversion Factor Derivation
    DOE used the methods described in section III.C to derive the 
mathematical conversion factor for the different types of water heaters 
covered within the scope of this rulemaking (as discussed in section 
III.B). This section describes the methodology that was applied to 
develop a conversion factor for each type of water heater.
a. Consumer Storage Water Heaters
i. Test Results
    As stated in section III.D.1, DOE has conducted testing of 43 
consumer storage water heaters using both the current and new test 
procedures. Table III.13 below presents the test data used to derive 
the consumer storage water heater conversion factors. Table III.14 
shows the water heater attributes by unit described in section III.D.1.

                                                  Table III.13--Consumer Storage Water Heater Test Data
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                     Current
                                                                 Storage     Input rate  Current FHR  Updated FHR    recovery
               Unit No.                         Type              volume      (Btu/h)       (gal)        (gal)      efficiency       EF          UEF
                                                                  (gal)                                                (%)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CS-1.................................  Heat Pump.............         45.2       13,600         59.1         48.2        264.7        2.260        2.069
CS-2.................................  Heat Pump.............         45.5        8,500         57.3         57.0        269.0        2.272        2.575
CS-3.................................  Heat Pump.............         58.9        6,800         71.5         68.6        290.1        2.406        2.493
CS-4.................................  Heat Pump.............         77.6        6,800         90.5         87.1        285.0        2.315        2.641
CS-5.................................  Heat Pump.............         80.8        1,800         57.0         58.0        288.0        2.330        2.540
CS-6.................................  Electric..............         36.2       15,400         54.0         49.7         98.0        0.941        0.905
CS-7.................................  Electric..............         44.9       14,300         64.1         64.3         98.0        0.855        0.840
CS-8.................................  Electric..............         46.1       14,000         64.8         61.7         98.0        0.901        0.919
CS-9.................................  Electric..............         27.4       13,000         38.7         43.1         98.0        0.912        0.906
CS-10................................  Electric..............         34.1       14,000         50.7         52.0         98.0        0.902        0.907
CS-11................................  Electric..............         35.9       15,400         52.4         51.8         98.0        0.931        0.920

[[Page 20131]]

 
CS-12................................  Electric..............         36.1       15,400         53.2         54.8         98.0        0.912        0.927
CS-13................................  Electric..............         44.9       15,400         64.9         59.4         98.0        0.960        0.926
CS-14................................  Electric..............         45.8       15,400         62.7         64.2         98.0        0.922        0.936
CS-15................................  Electric..............         49.7       18,800         68.5         73.2         98.0        0.924        0.940
CS-16................................  Electric..............         72.2       14,700         88.7         80.9         98.0        0.848        0.883
CS-17................................  Tabletop..............         25.7       15,400         37.5         45.3         98.0        0.905        0.857
CS-18................................  Tabletop..............         35.1       15,400         52.9         47.8         98.0        0.878        0.804
CS-19................................  Gas...................         38.4       39,800         67.0         81.1         80.5        0.601        0.630
CS-20................................  Gas...................         49.5       44,100         97.4         86.6         80.5        0.610        0.634
CS-21................................  Gas...................         37.8       39,700         70.1         86.9         83.8        0.608        0.641
CS-22................................  Gas...................         47.6       49,900         90.2         81.0         81.1        0.674        0.675
CS-23................................  Gas...................         37.9       39,400         74.4         81.6         80.3        0.691        0.705
CS-24................................  Gas...................         38.0       32,600         66.9         58.5         69.0        0.574        0.566
CS-25................................  Gas...................         38.0       39,800         80.2         63.8         83.6        0.711        0.669
CS-26................................  Gas...................         38.1       40,800         73.5         75.2         83.6        0.702        0.716
CS-27................................  Gas...................         38.2       39,300         71.9         77.6         77.4        0.607        0.635
CS-28................................  Gas...................         27.9       31,600         58.8         64.4         80.7        0.620        0.606
CS-29................................  Gas...................         38.1       40,200         74.7         70.6         80.5        0.622        0.569
CS-30................................  Gas...................         38.3       37,900         71.9         64.6         78.5        0.616        0.434
CS-31................................  Gas...................         47.3       50,600         95.1         87.0         78.8        0.606        0.640
CS-32................................  Gas...................         38.6       40,100         70.2         67.2         80.4        0.673        0.647
CS-33................................  Gas...................         38.9       32,400         68.6         65.2         78.1        0.666        0.624
CS-34................................  Gas...................         27.9       59,000         96.9         94.5         78.2        0.702        0.709
CS-35................................  Gas...................         38.5       36,000         66.0         68.0         85.0        0.699        0.670
CS-36................................  Gas...................         47.8       64,600        107.9        108.8         79.5        0.649        0.672
CS-37................................  Gas...................         45.7       39,800         91.0         84.8         96.3        0.830        0.828
CS-38................................  Gas...................         38.2       40,300         68.2         64.8         79.7        0.606        0.595
CS-39................................  Gas...................         38.2       38,300         71.3         64.6         75.2        0.625        0.596
CS-40................................  Gas...................         47.8       40,500         94.2         83.8         74.0        0.550        0.641
CS-41................................  Gas...................         48.1       36,000         92.4         88.2         81.4        0.631        0.662
CS-42................................  Oil...................         29.8      105,300        104.8        111.7         71.4        0.518        0.478
CS-43................................  Oil...................         30.1      105,300        112.5        127.4         89.4        0.605        0.641
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                                 Table III.14--Consumer Storage Water Heater Attributes
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                                     Standing pilot or
            Unit No.                NOX emission level          Condensing               Vent type             Short or tall         electric ignition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CS-1...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-2...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-3...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-4...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-5...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-6...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Short.................  N/A.
CS-7...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Short.................  N/A.
CS-8...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Short.................  N/A.
CS-9...........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-10..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-11..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-12..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-13..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-14..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-15..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-16..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-17..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-18..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CS-19..........................  Standard...............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  Yes.
CS-20..........................  Standard...............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  Yes.
CS-21..........................  Standard...............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
CS-22..........................  Standard...............  No....................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
CS-23..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  No.
CS-24..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  Yes.
CS-25..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  No.
CS-26..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  No.
CS-27..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  No.
CS-28..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
CS-29..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
CS-30..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.

[[Page 20132]]

 
CS-31..........................  Low....................  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
CS-32..........................  Low....................  No....................  Power.................  Short.................  No.
CS-33..........................  Low....................  No....................  Power.................  Short.................  No.
CS-34..........................  Low....................  No....................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
CS-35..........................  Low....................  No....................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
CS-36..........................  Low....................  No....................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
CS-37..........................  Low....................  Yes...................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
CS-38..........................  Ultra-Low..............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  Yes.
CS-39..........................  Ultra-Low..............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  Yes.
CS-40..........................  Ultra-Low..............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
CS-41..........................  Ultra-Low..............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
CS-42..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
CS-43..........................  N/A....................  N/A...................  N/A...................  Tall..................  N/A.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ii. Conversion Factor Results
    For consumer storage water heaters, DOE proposes to use the 
regression method described in section III.C.3 to develop new first 
hour ratings. Of the factors considered, DOE found that the existing 
first hour rating was the best overall predictor of the new first hour 
rating. These findings were based on the root mean squared errors 
between predictions and measured values. In some cases, addition of 
other factors in the regressions (e.g., input rate, storage volume) led 
to predictions with slightly better RMS values, but DOE chose to be 
consistent in its formulations by using the same factor, existing first 
hour ratings. In these cases, DOE found that addition of extra terms 
improved the RMS value by less than 1 gallon, so it tentatively 
concluded that the added potential for confusion is not warranted. The 
resulting equations for determining the FHRnew of consumer 
storage water heaters are:

New FHRGas,Non-Condensing,Standard NOx = 1.0085 * FHREx

New FHRGas,Non-Condensing,Low NOx = 4.6894 + 0.9112 * FHREx

New FHRGas,Non-Condensing,Ultra	Low NOx = 2.9267 + 0.8882 * FHREx

New FHRGas,Condensing = -0.7072 + 0.9724 * FHREx

New FHROil = 1.1018 * FHREx

New FHRElectric,Conventional&Tabletop = 11.9239 + 0.7879 * FHREx

New FHRElectric,Heat Pump = -2.3440 + 0.9856 * FHREx

where FHRnew is the new first hour rating, FHRex 
is the existing first hour rating, and the slope and intercept are 
constants obtained from a linear regression. While most of the data 
allowed for such a regression fit, in two cases (oil, non-condensing 
gas with standard level NOX burners) the available data were 
too limited to produce reliable regressions. In these cases, the 
intercepts of the regressions were assigned a value of zero, meaning 
that a water heater with an FHRex of zero would also have an 
FHRnew of zero.
    The next step in the conversion is to determine which draw pattern 
is to be applied to convert from EF to UEF. After the first-hour rating 
under the uniform efficiency descriptor is determined through the 
conversion factor above, the value can be applied to determine the 
appropriate draw pattern bin (i.e., very small, low, medium, or high) 
using Table III.3 of this NOPR or Table 1 of the uniform efficiency 
descriptor test procedure. 79 FR 40542, 40572 (July 11, 2014). With the 
draw bin known, the UEF value based on the WHAM analytical model can be 
calculated using the process described in section III.C.2.c.i for all 
types except for heat pump water heaters. Alternatively, DOE 
investigated the step regression approach described in section III.C.3 
to convert EF to UEF. DOE found that a third technique, a combination 
of these approaches in which the results of the WHAM analytical model 
are used as the independent variable in a standard linear regression 
analysis, produced the best results. Separate conversion equations were 
developed for the same categories as used for first-hour rating. The 
results of the first-hour regression, the WHAM analytical model, the 
step regression model, and the combined WHAM-regression model are 
presented below in Table III.16. The RMS errors for the classes range 
from 0.0014 to 0.0495 when using a combined WHAM-regression model. For 
heat pump water heaters, a linear regression in which the UEF is 
estimated solely from the existing EF results in an RMS error of 0.187. 
Considering the larger magnitude of UEFs for heat pump water heaters, 
DOE has tentatively concluded that this relatively high RMS error is 
acceptable for heat pump water heaters. DOE has, therefore, tentatively 
decided to use the combined WHAM-regression approach to calculate the 
consumer storage water heater conversion factor for non-heat pump water 
heaters and to apply a regression that relates UEF to EF for heat pump 
water heaters. The WHAM-regression approach accounts for the test 
procedure changes in terms of daily volume delivered and storage tank 
temperature, and it corrects for the unaccounted changes using a 
regression with actual test data. Because the data are not believed to 
be publicly available to compute the WHAM estimate for heat pump water 
heaters, DOE proposes to base this conversion on an empirical 
regression. The resulting equations for determining the UEF of consumer 
storage water heaters are:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.015

UEFGas,Non-Condensing,Standard NOx = 0.2726 * UEFWHAM + 0.4736

UEFGas,Non-Condensing,Low NOx = 0.9966 * UEFWHAM - 0.0126

UEFGas,Non-Condensing,Ultra-Low NOx = 0.5811 *UEFWHAM + 0.2673


[[Page 20133]]


UEFGas,Condensing = 0.9164 * UEFWHAM + 0.0409

UEFOil = 1.1185 * UEFWHAM - 0.0945

UEFElectric,Conventional&Tabletop = 0.8673 * UEFWHAM + 0.1227

UEFElectric,Heat Pump = 1.5485 * EF - 1.1235

where UEFWHAM is the conversion factor calculated using the 
WHAM analytical model and the coefficient values shown in Table III.15, 
P is the nameplate input rate in Btu/h, and [eta]r is the 
recovery efficiency expressed in decimal form (e.g., 0.98 instead of 98 
[%]).

                         Table III.15--Coefficients for WHAM-Based UEF Conversion Factor
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Draw bin                             a               b               c               d
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small......................................        56095146     12884892499         8930623     15125743368
Low.............................................        56095146     48962591496        33936368     57477824799
Medium..........................................        56095146     70866908744        49118427     83191588525
High............................................        56095146    108233096990        75017235    127056244293
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                      Table III.16--Consumer Storage Water Heater Conversion Factor Results
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                        WHAM-
          Unit No.             Tested FHR    Regression    Tested  UEF    WHAM  UEF    Regression    Regression
                                  (gal)       FHR (gal)                                    UEF           UEF
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CS-1........................          48.2          55.9         2.069         2.209         2.375         2.384
CS-2........................          57.0          54.1         2.575         2.215         2.395         2.391
CS-3........................          68.6          68.1         2.493         2.339         2.603         2.525
CS-4........................          87.1          86.9         2.641         2.435         2.461         2.630
CS-5........................          58.0          53.8         2.540         2.213         2.484         2.388
CS-6........................          49.7          54.4         0.905         0.935         0.930         0.933
CS-7........................          64.3          62.4         0.840         0.836         0.875         0.847
CS-8........................          61.7          62.9         0.919         0.888         0.904         0.893
CS-9........................          43.1          42.4         0.906         0.866         0.911         0.874
CS-10.......................          52.0          51.8         0.907         0.888         0.905         0.893
CS-11.......................          51.8          53.2         0.920         0.923         0.923         0.923
CS-12.......................          54.8          53.9         0.927         0.901         0.911         0.904
CS-13.......................          59.4          63.0         0.926         0.956         0.941         0.952
CS-14.......................          64.2          61.4         0.936         0.912         0.917         0.914
CS-15.......................          73.2          65.9         0.940         0.915         0.919         0.916
CS-16.......................          80.9          81.8         0.883         0.880         0.871         0.885
CS-17.......................          45.3          41.5         0.857         0.855         0.896         0.864
CS-18.......................          47.8          53.6         0.804         0.862         0.873         0.870
CS-19.......................          81.1          67.5         0.630         0.578         0.632         0.631
CS-20.......................          86.6          98.3         0.634         0.651         0.637         0.651
CS-21.......................          86.9          70.7         0.641         0.583         0.636         0.632
CS-22.......................          81.0          91.0         0.675         0.705         0.675         0.666
CS-23.......................          81.6          72.5         0.705         0.676         0.683         0.661
CS-24.......................          58.5          65.6         0.566         0.558         0.571         0.544
CS-25.......................          63.8          77.8         0.669         0.739         0.702         0.724
CS-26.......................          75.2          71.6         0.716         0.685         0.694         0.670
CS-27.......................          77.6          70.2         0.635         0.587         0.603         0.572
CS-28.......................          64.4          58.3         0.606         0.598         0.616         0.583
CS-29.......................          70.6          72.8         0.569         0.600         0.617         0.585
CS-30.......................          64.6          70.2         0.434         0.595         0.611         0.580
CS-31.......................          87.0          91.4         0.640         0.645         0.602         0.630
CS-32.......................          67.2          68.6         0.647         0.656         0.666         0.641
CS-33.......................          65.2          67.2         0.624         0.651         0.660         0.636
CS-34.......................          94.5          93.0         0.709         0.721         0.694         0.706
CS-35.......................          68.0          64.8         0.670         0.679         0.690         0.664
CS-36.......................         108.8         103.0         0.672         0.681         0.643         0.666
CS-37.......................          84.8          87.8         0.828         0.861         0.824         0.830
CS-38.......................          64.8          63.5         0.595         0.583         0.592         0.606
CS-39.......................          64.6          66.3         0.596         0.609         0.599         0.621
CS-40.......................          83.8          86.6         0.641         0.589         0.653         0.610
CS-41.......................          88.2          85.0         0.662         0.670         0.649         0.656
CS-42.......................         111.7         115.5         0.478         0.557         0.537         0.529
CS-43.......................         127.4         123.9         0.641         0.659         0.613         0.643
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

b. Consumer Instantaneous
i. Test Results
    As stated in section III.D.1, DOE has tested 22 consumer 
instantaneous water heaters to both the current and new test 
procedures. Table III.17 presents the test data used to derive the 
consumer instantaneous water heater conversion factors. It is noted 
that test results show measured recovery efficiencies above 100 percent 
and EFs and UEFs above 1 for electric instantaneous units; DOE 
acknowledges that these results appear to violate theoretical limits 
and believes that these results are an artifact of measurement 
uncertainty. Table III.18 shows the water heater attributes by unit 
described in section III.D.1.

[[Page 20134]]



                                               Table III.17--Consumer Instantaneous Water Heater Test Data
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                              Current
             Unit No.                       Type            Input rate      Current max     Updated max      recovery           EF              UEF
                                                              (Btu/h)           GPM             GPM       efficiency (%)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CI-1..............................  Electric............           8,200            0.20            0.23           101.2           1.012           0.982
CI-2..............................  Electric............          32,400            0.82            0.93           101.5           1.017           0.981
CI-3..............................  Electric............          34,100            0.87            0.99           101.8           1.018           1.001
CI-4..............................  Electric............          27,300            0.68            0.80           102.0           1.019           1.004
CI-5..............................  Electric............          20,500            0.52            0.59           102.3           1.021           1.005
CI-6..............................  Gas.................         179,900            4.01            4.58            82.4           0.821           0.832
CI-7..............................  Gas.................         178,500            4.08            4.71            83.8           0.837           0.828
CI-8..............................  Gas.................         120,900            2.69            3.07            84.1           0.839           0.814
CI-9..............................  Gas.................         199,000            4.61            4.86            87.0           0.876           0.841
CI-10.............................  Gas.................         151,900            3.47            3.96            88.3           0.891           0.815
CI-11.............................  Gas.................         141,100            3.11            3.61            81.4           0.810           0.824
CI-12.............................  Gas.................         190,400            4.23            4.81            83.4           0.829           0.818
CI-13.............................  Gas.................         142,500            2.96            3.43            80.9           0.801           0.795
CI-14.............................  Gas.................         197,200            5.19            5.80            96.7           0.966           0.958
CI-15.............................  Gas.................         199,800            4.80            4.10            93.8           0.932           0.931
CI-16.............................  Gas.................         151,500            3.24            3.88            84.3           0.837           0.805
CI-17.............................  Gas.................         180,400            3.92            4.60            85.0           0.853           0.827
CI-18.............................  Gas.................         175,800            3.67            4.30            84.5           0.838           0.830
CI-19.............................  Gas.................         199,200            4.30            5.07            75.0           0.743           0.799
CI-20.............................  Gas.................         154,100            3.98            4.47            91.6           0.913           0.922
CI-21.............................  Gas.................         201,300            4.90            5.70            88.0           0.851           0.884
CI-22.............................  Gas.................         199,900            5.12            4.91            89.9           0.888           0.943
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                          Table III.18--Consumer Instantaneous Water Heater Attributes
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Unit No.                 NOX emission level          Condensing                 Vent type
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CI-1...............................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CI-2...............................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CI-3...............................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CI-4...............................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CI-5...............................  N/A...................  N/A...................  N/A.
CI-6...............................  Low...................  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-7...............................  Low...................  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-8...............................  Low...................  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-9...............................  Low...................  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-10..............................  Low...................  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-11..............................  Low...................  No....................  Power.
CI-12..............................  Low...................  No....................  Power.
CI-13..............................  Low...................  No....................  Power.
CI-14..............................  Low...................  Yes...................  Atmospheric.
CI-15..............................  Low...................  Yes...................  Atmospheric.
CI-16..............................  Ultra-Low.............  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-17..............................  Ultra-Low.............  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-18..............................  Ultra-Low.............  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-19..............................  Ultra-Low.............  No....................  Atmospheric.
CI-20..............................  Ultra-Low.............  Yes...................  Atmospheric.
CI-21..............................  Ultra-Low.............  Yes...................  Atmospheric.
CI-22..............................  Ultra-Low.............  Yes...................  Power.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ii. Conversion Factor Results
    As stated in section III.C.2, DOE developed an analytical model to 
convert the existing maximum GPM rating for consumer instantaneous 
water heaters to ratings under the uniform efficiency descriptor test 
procedure. DOE also attempted to develop an analytical method based on 
the WHAM equation to estimate the change in existing energy factor 
ratings under the existing consumer water heater test procedure to 
values under the uniform efficiency descriptor test procedure. Along 
with this analytical model, step regression and combined analytical 
model-regression approaches were conducted. The results of the 
analytical model, step regression, and combined analytical model-
regression approaches for the maximum GPM and UEF conversions are 
presented in Table III.20. For the maximum GPM conversions, the RMS 
errors for the three approaches are 0.38, 0.35, and 0.38, respectively. 
For the UEF conversions, the three approaches have RMS errors of 0.024, 
0.028, and 0.023, respectively. DOE has tentatively decided to use the 
analytical model approach to calculate the consumer instantaneous 
maximum GPM conversion factor owing to the fact that the model predicts 
the resultant data very closely and that it will broadly apply to those 
units not tested. DOE has also tentatively decided to use the combined 
analytical model-regression approach to convert from EF to UEF since 
the RMS errors are low, and it has tentatively concluded that the use 
of the model and regression will capture key

[[Page 20135]]

effects that may not be captured with either approach by itself. For 
the electric instantaneous water heaters, DOE imposed a zero intercept 
on the regression since the regression with an intercept resulted in 
UEFs above the theoretical limit of 1. DOE has tentatively concluded 
that this step is technically acceptable, as it effectively states that 
a water heater with an EF of zero should also have a UEF of zero. The 
resulting conversion factors for both first hour rating and UEF are:

MaxGPMnew = 1.147 * MaxGPMEx

UEFgas = 0.9059 * UEFmodel + 0.0783

UEFelectric = 1.0079 * UEFmodel

where MaxGPMEx is the maximum GPM rating based on the 
current DOE test procedure and UEFmodel is the predicted UEF 
determined using the following analytical model:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.016

Values for the coefficients A and B are dependent upon the draw pattern 
applied during the simulated-use test and are provided in Table III.19.

      Table III.19--Coefficients To Determine UEFmodel for Consumer
                       Instantaneous Water Heaters
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                     Draw bin                           A          B
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small........................................     5514.2      170.2
Low...............................................      20954      262.4
Medium............................................      30328      290.9
High..............................................      46319      294.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                       Table III.20--Consumer Instantaneous Water Heater Conversion Factor Results
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                      Combined
                                           Tested max    Analytical    Regression    analytical-                 Analytical    Regression    Analytical-
                Unit No.                       GPM         max GPM       max GPM     regression    Tested UEF        UEF           UEF       regression
                                                                                       max GPM                                                   UEF
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CI-1....................................          0.23          0.23          0.24          0.23         0.982         0.982         0.980         0.989
CI-2....................................          0.93          0.94          0.94          0.94         0.981         0.984         0.987         0.992
CI-3....................................          0.99          1.00          1.00          1.00         1.001         0.987         0.995         0.995
CI-4....................................          0.80          0.78          0.78          0.78         1.004         0.989         1.001         0.997
CI-5....................................          0.59          0.59          0.60          0.59         1.005         0.991         1.008         0.999
CI-6....................................          4.58          4.60          4.58          4.60         0.832         0.820         0.816         0.820
CI-7....................................          4.71          4.68          4.66          4.68         0.828         0.834         0.829         0.833
CI-8....................................          3.07          3.08          3.17          3.08         0.814         0.834         0.830         0.834
CI-9....................................          4.86          5.28          5.22          5.28         0.841         0.865         0.859         0.861
CI-10...................................          3.96          3.98          4.01          3.98         0.815         0.878         0.871         0.873
CI-11...................................          3.61          3.56          3.62          3.56         0.824         0.808         0.807         0.810
CI-12...................................          4.81          4.85          4.82          4.85         0.818         0.829         0.822         0.829
CI-13...................................          3.43          3.39          3.46          3.39         0.795         0.803         0.800         0.805
CI-14...................................          5.80          5.95          5.84          5.95         0.958         0.961         0.931         0.948
CI-15...................................          4.10          5.50          5.43          5.50         0.931         0.933         0.904         0.923
CI-16...................................          3.88          3.71          3.76          3.71         0.805         0.836         0.829         0.835
CI-17...................................          4.60          4.49          4.49          4.49         0.827         0.845         0.841         0.844
CI-18...................................          4.30          4.21          4.22          4.21         0.830         0.840         0.829         0.839
CI-19...................................          5.07          4.93          4.90          4.93         0.799         0.746         0.754         0.754
CI-20...................................          4.47          4.56          4.55          4.56         0.922         0.911         0.889         0.903
CI-21...................................          5.70          5.62          5.54          5.62         0.884         0.875         0.840         0.870
CI-22...................................          4.91          5.87          5.77          5.87         0.943         0.894         0.869         0.887
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

c. Residential-Duty Commercial Storage Testing
i. Test Data
    As stated in section III.D.2, DOE has tested 7 residential-duty 
commercial storage water heaters to both the current and new test 
procedures. Table III.21 below presents the test data used to derive 
the residential-duty commercial storage water heater conversion 
factors. Table III.22 shows the water heater attributes by unit 
described in section III.D.2.

                                        Table III.21--Residential-Duty Commercial Storage Water Heater Test Data
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              Storage       Input rate    Tested thermal  Tested standby    Updated FHR
             Unit No.                       Type           volume (gal)       (Btu/h)     efficiency (%)   loss (Btu/h)        (gal)            UEF
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RD-1.............................  Gas..................            95.4          79,100            80.4         1,178.2           109.8           0.514
RD-2.............................  Gas..................            72.7          67,400            67.9           721.0            90.3           0.585
RD-3.............................  Gas..................            71.3          69,700            75.5           839.4           119.3           0.619
RD-4.............................  Gas..................            48.3          76,500            93.6           328.0           137.0           0.816
RD-5.............................  Gas..................            48.4          75,300            88.9           338.1           126.5           0.725
RD-6.............................  Gas..................            47.8          75,700            90.0           358.4           103.3           0.621
RD-7.............................  Gas..................            71.0          63,800            67.1         1,546.8           111.5           0.470
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 20136]]


                                        Table III.22--Residential-Duty Commercial Storage Water Heater Attributes
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                                     Standing pilot or
            Unit No.                NOX emission level          Condensing               Vent type             Short or tall         electric ignition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RD-1...........................  Standard...............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
RD-2...........................  Standard...............  No....................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
RD-3...........................  Standard...............  No....................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
RD-4...........................  Low....................  Yes...................  Atmospheric...........  Short.................  No.
RD-5...........................  Low....................  Yes...................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
RD-6...........................  Low....................  Yes...................  Power.................  Tall..................  No.
RD-7...........................  Ultra-Low..............  No....................  Atmospheric...........  Tall..................  Yes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ii. Conversion Factor Results
    As stated in section III.C.2.b, DOE is not aware of an analytical 
model to convert the thermal efficiency and standby loss ratings under 
the current test procedure to first-hour rating values under the new 
test procedure. Therefore, the step regression method described in 
section III.C.3 along with the best combination of water heater 
attributes were used to determine the following first-hour rating 
conversion factors:

New FHRFossil Fuel = 1.0226 * Q + 39.81

Where Q is the input rate of the burner in kBtu/h. For this regression, 
DOE decided to group both oil and gas water heaters because of the lack 
of oil water heaters identified. DOE has tentatively concluded that 
this grouping is the best approach to convert ratings for any 
residential-duty oil water heater on the market.
    The next step in the conversion is to determine which draw pattern 
is to be applied to convert to UEF. After the first-hour rating under 
the uniform efficiency descriptor is determined through the conversion 
factor above, the value can be applied to determine the appropriate 
draw pattern bin (i.e., very small, low, medium, or high) using Table 
III.3 of this NOPR or Table 1 of the uniform efficiency descriptor test 
procedure. 79 FR 40542, 40572 (July 11, 2014). With the draw bin known, 
the UEF value based on the analytical model can be calculated using the 
process described in section III.C.2.c.iii. The analytical results, 
along with the results of the step regression and analytical-regression 
are shown in Table III.23 and have RMS values of 0.074, 0.055, and 
0.053, respectively. Based on these results, DOE has tentatively 
decided to use the combined analytical-regression approach to calculate 
the residential-duty commercial storage water heater conversion factor. 
While the regression approach yields a slightly better RMS error, DOE 
has tentatively concluded that the use of the analytical model will 
make the conversion more robust over the entire family of residential-
duty commercial storage water heaters since it captures the effects of 
water temperature, draw volume per day, thermal efficiency, and standby 
loss that are expected to be valid for any water heater. Thus, the use 
of an analytical model is expected to be less prone to error should a 
model have some unexpected characteristic that was not captured in the 
water heaters tested as part of this NOPR. The resulting equations for 
determining the UEF of consumer storage water heaters are:

UEFfossil fuel = 0.7300 * UEFrd + 0.1413

Where UEFrd is the estimate of the UEF for residential-duty 
water heaters computed with the following equation:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.017

where C1 is a constant dependent upon the draw pattern given 
in Table III.6, Et is the thermal efficiency in fractional 
form (i.e., 0.85 instead of 85 (%)), and SL is the standby loss in BTU/
h.

                                           Table III.23--Residential-Duty Commercial Conversion Factor Results
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       Tested FHR     Regression FHR                                                       Analytical-
                     Unit No.                            (gal)            (gal)          Tested UEF     Analytical UEF   Regression UEF   regression UEF
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RD-1..............................................            109.8            120.7            0.514            0.573            0.530            0.560
RD-2..............................................             90.3            108.8            0.585            0.562            0.629            0.551
RD-3..............................................            119.3            111.1            0.619            0.595            0.604            0.575
RD-4..............................................            137.0            118.0            0.816            0.828            0.715            0.746
RD-5..............................................            126.5            116.9            0.725            0.788            0.713            0.717
RD-6..............................................            103.3            117.3            0.621            0.791            0.709            0.719
RD-7..............................................            111.5            105.0            0.470            0.466            0.449            0.481
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

d. Residential-Duty Instantaneous Testing
    As discussed in section III.B.2, no instantaneous residential-duty 
commercial water heaters exist on the market. Therefore, a conversion 
factor is not needed.
3. Energy Conservation Standard Derivation
    After developing the mathematical conversion factors to convert 
from the existing efficiency ratings to the efficiency ratings under 
the UEF metric, DOE sought to update its energy conservation standards 
for covered water heater products so as to be in terms of UEF. DOE 
investigated several possible methods to determine the appropriate 
energy conservation standards in terms of UEF.
    First, DOE considered the ``percent difference'' method, which is 
the method DOE ultimately has proposed for updating the energy 
conservation standards so as to be based on the UEF metric. The percent 
difference method was conducted as follows:
    1. Apply conversion factor to convert the current efficiency 
metrics provided in the relevant consumer or commercial database to the 
calculated UEF value for each water heater on the market.
    2. Calculate the current efficiency standard for each water heater 
in the database, as follows:

[[Page 20137]]

    a. For consumer water heaters, find the minimum EF.
    b. For residential-duty commercial water heaters, find the minimum 
thermal efficiency.
    3. Find the percent difference between the rated efficiency value 
and the standard for each water heater in the database, as follows:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.018

    4. Find the new energy conservation standard for each water heater 
in the database, as follows:

a. UEFmin = UEF (1 - PD)

    5. Find a line through their minimum UEF values.
    The advantage of using a ``percent difference'' is that the updated 
energy conservation standard is a function of the UEF conversion for 
all water heaters rather than a subset. It also allows for conversions 
of standards for classes or groupings of water heaters where no 
minimally compliant models are currently available on the market. The 
proposed standards in terms of uniform energy factor are shown below by 
product class and draw pattern.

                    Table III.24--Updated Consumer Water Heater Energy Conservation Standards
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  Rated storage
         Product class                volume              Draw pattern               Uniform energy factor
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage.............  >=20 gal and <=55  Very Small...............  0.3263 - (0.0019 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.5891 - (0.0019 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.6326 - (0.0013 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.7128 - (0.0025 x Vr)
                                >55 gal and <=100  Very Small...............  0.5352 - (0.0007 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.7375 - (0.0009 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.7704 - (0.0010 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.7980 - (0.0010 x Vr)
Oil-fired Storage.............  <=50 gal.........  Very Small...............  0.2267 - (0.0014 x Vr)
                                                   Low......................  0.4867 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.6016 - (0.0012 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.6529 - (0.0005 x Vr)
Electric Storage..............  >=20 gal and <=55  Very Small...............  0.8268 - (0.0002 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.9393 - (0.0004 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.9683 - (0.0007 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.9656 - (0.0004 x Vr)
                                >55 gal and <=120  Very Small...............  1.2701 - (0.0011 x Vr)
                                 gal.
                                                   Low......................  1.9137 - (0.0011 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  2.0326 - (0.0011 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  2.1858 - (0.0011 x Vr)
Tabletop Storage..............  >=20 gal and       Very Small...............  0.6808 - (0.0022 x Vr)
                                 <=100 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.8770 - (0.0012 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.9063 - (0.0009 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.9302 - (0.0006 x Vr)
Gas-fired Instantaneous.......  <2 gal...........  All......................  0.8036 - (0.0019 x Vr)
Electric Instantaneous........  <2 gal...........  All......................  0.9192 - (0.0013 x Vr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as
  specified by the manufacturer.


          Table III.25--Updated Residential-Duty Commercial Water Heater Energy Conservation Standards
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Product class                        Draw pattern                     Uniform energy factor
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage....................  Very Small.....................  0.3261 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                       Low............................  0.5219 - (0.0008 x Vr)
                                       Medium.........................  0.5585 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                       High...........................  0.6044 - (0.0005 x Vr)
Oil-fired Storage....................  Very Small.....................  0.3206 - (0.0006 x Vr)
                                       Low............................  0.5577 - (0.0019 x Vr)
                                       Medium.........................  0.6027 - (0.0019 x Vr)
                                       High...........................  0.6446 - (0.0018 x Vr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as
  specified by the manufacturer.

    As stated in section III.A, EEI commented in response to the 
November 2013 NOPR, that the updated energy conservation standards 
should be not more stringent than they are currently. The percent 
difference from the current rated energy factors and energy 
conservation standards are used to derive the new energy conservation

[[Page 20138]]

standards; therefore, the updated standards are no more stringent than 
those currently in existence. A.O. Smith and AHRI suggested that the 
average difference between the current and new ratings should not be 
used to convert the energy conservation standards. At no point in the 
conversion factor derivation or energy conservation standard analysis 
is a simple average taken, but rather, the trends of all the 
traditional factors affecting water heaters are considered.
    DOE also investigated a second method of determining the energy 
conservation standards where only test data from minimally-compliant 
water heaters would be used to develop a conversion factor using the 
analytical and regression methods described in section III.C. Then, 
this set of conversion factors could be applied to the minimum energy 
conservation standards to determine the appropriate energy conservation 
standards in terms of the UEF metric. This method would remove from 
consideration any factors that are present in more-efficient water 
heaters, so the resulting change in the standard would not be skewed at 
all by the inclusion of higher-efficiency products in the mathematical 
conversion. However, the conversion factors developed through such a 
methodology would potentially not be applicable for converting the 
efficiency ratings of products above the baseline. Therefore, DOE chose 
to pursue a methodology that was applicable to all water heaters and 
perform the conversion of standards based on the ``percent difference'' 
method described above.
    DOE seeks comment on the most appropriate method for determining 
the energy conservation standards based on the updated test procedure. 
This is identified as issue 5 in section V.E, ``Issues on Which DOE 
Seeks Comment.''

F. Certification and Labeling Issues

    Consumer water heaters and residential-duty commercial water 
heaters manufactured prior to the effective date of the uniform energy 
factor test procedure final rule (i.e., July 13, 2015) that comply with 
the efficiency standards and labeling requirements in effect prior to 
that final rule will be considered to comply with the converted UEF 
standards and with any revised labeling requirements established by the 
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to carry out the final rule. (42 U.S.C. 
6295(e)(5)(K)) The statute requires that the standard be in terms of 
UEF as of July 13, 2015. Accordingly, DOE proposes to require 
manufacturers to provide EF and UEF for consumer water heaters (or 
thermal efficiency and standby loss and UEF for commercial residential-
duty water heaters) in certification reports filed between July 13, 
2015, and the compliance date determined by the final rule in this 
rulemaking. Manufacturers would not be required to submit revised 
certification reports for previously certified basic models until the 
next annual certification date (May 1).
    Allowing manufacturers to submit both EF and UEF data would allow 
manufacturers to fulfill the statutory requirement to begin using UEF 
for purposes of compliance with standards but would also allow 
manufacturers to provide the necessary information to determine costs 
under the current FTC labeling requirements. This would also allow a 
transition period for FTC to pursue a rulemaking to determine whether 
changes are needed to the water heater EnergyGuide label due to changes 
in the water heater test procedure. DOE expects that the conversion 
factors proposed in this notice could be used to convert EF to UEF for 
previously certified basic models or to convert UEF values 
``backwards'' to EF to determine the appropriate costs for labeling of 
new basic models until FTC has determined whether to make changes to 
the label. DOE has proposed a methodology for calculating costs based 
on UEF testing that could be used in future FTC labeling requirements. 
DOE requests comment on whether DOE should adopt such a provision in 
the final rule in this rulemaking or postpone adoption until FTC has 
had an opportunity to evaluate the ENERGY GUIDE label.

IV. Procedural Issues and Regulatory Review

A. Review Under Executive Order 12866

    The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has determined that test 
procedure rulemakings do not constitute ``significant regulatory 
actions'' under section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866, Regulatory 
Planning and Review, 58 FR 51735 (Oct. 4, 1993). Accordingly, this 
action was not subject to review under the Executive Order by the 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the Office of 
Management and Budget.

B. Review Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires 
preparation of an initial regulatory flexibility analysis (IFRA) for 
any rule that by law must be proposed for public comment, unless the 
agency certifies that the rule, if promulgated, will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
As required by Executive Order 13272, ``Proper Consideration of Small 
Entities in Agency Rulemaking,'' 67 FR 53461 (August 16, 2002), DOE 
published procedures and policies on February 19, 2003, to ensure that 
the potential impacts of its rules on small entities are properly 
considered during the DOE rulemaking process. 68 FR 7990. DOE has made 
its procedures and policies available on the Office of the General 
Counsel's Web site: http://energy.gov/gc/office-general-counsel.
    This proposed rule would prescribe a mathematical conversion that 
would be used to determine compliance with energy conservation 
standards for consumer water heaters and certain commercial water 
heaters. For consumer water heaters and certain commercial water 
heaters, the mathematical conversion would establish a bridge between 
the rated values based on the results under the current test procedures 
and the uniform efficiency descriptor of the new test procedure. 
Furthermore, the conversion factor will ensure that no products which 
currently pass energy conservation standards fail to meet the energy 
conservation standards after the conversion factor has been applied. 
DOE reviewed this proposed rule under the provisions of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act and the policies and procedures published on February 
19, 2003. 68 FR 7990.
    For the manufacturers of the covered water heater products, the 
Small Business Administration (SBA) has set a size threshold, which 
defines those entities classified as ``small businesses'' for the 
purposes of the statute. DOE used the SBA's small business size 
standards to determine whether any small entities would be subject to 
the requirements of the rule. 65 FR 30836, 30849 (May 15, 2000), as 
amended at 65 FR 53533, 53545 (Sept. 5, 2000) and at 77 FR 49991, 
50008-11 (August 20, 2012) and codified at 13 CFR part 121. The size 
standards are listed by North American Industry Classification System 
(NAICS) code and industry description and are available at http://www.sba.gov/content/table-small-business-size-standards. Consumer water 
heater manufacturing is classified under NAICS code 335228--``Other 
Major Household Appliance Manufacturing.'' The SBA sets a threshold of 
500 employees or less for an entity to be considered as a small 
business. Commercial water heater manufacturing is classified under 
NAICS code 333318--``Other

[[Page 20139]]

Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing,'' for which 
SBA sets a size threshold of 1,000 employees or fewer as being 
considered a small business.
    DOE has identified 19 manufacturers of consumer water heaters 
(including manufacturers of products that fall under the expanded 
scope) that can be considered small businesses. DOE identified seven 
manufacturers of ``residential-duty'' commercial water heaters that can 
be considered small businesses. Six of the ``residential-duty'' 
commercial water heater manufacturers also manufacture consumer water 
heaters, so the total number of water heater manufacturers impacted by 
this rule would be 20. DOE's research involved reviewing several 
industry trade association membership directories (e.g., AHRI), product 
databases (e.g., AHRI, CEC, and ENERGY STAR databases), individual 
company Web sites, and marketing research tools (e.g., Hoovers reports) 
to create a list of all domestic small business manufacturers of 
products covered by this rulemaking.
    For the reasons explained below, DOE has concluded that the test 
procedure amendments contained in this proposed rule would not have a 
significant economic impact on any manufacturer, including small 
manufacturers.
    For consumer water heaters that were covered under the old test 
procedure and energy conservation standards, the conversion factor in 
this proposed rule would convert the rated values based on the current 
test procedure to equivalent values based on the new uniform descriptor 
test procedure. Although the energy conservation standards for consumer 
water heaters will be denominated using the uniform descriptor, the 
statute provides that all units that are on the market as of July 13, 
2015, that meet the April 16, 2015 energy factor standard will be 
deemed to meet the converted standards.
    For certain commercial water heaters, defined under the term 
``residential-duty commercial water heater,'' the conversion factor in 
this proposed rule would convert the rated values based on the current 
test procedure to the uniform descriptor which is based on the new test 
procedure. The energy conservation standards for commercial water 
heating equipment will be denominated using the uniform descriptor. The 
statute provides that all units that are on the market as of July 13, 
2015, that meet the thermal efficiency and standby losses standards 
will be deemed to meet the converted standards.
    At the date that compliance is required with the new test 
procedure, all water heating units with residential applications (i.e., 
consumer units and residential-duty commercial units) must meet the 
applicable energy conservation standards. These units will be re-rated 
to the uniform descriptor based on the new test procedure. This 
conversion will not result in any increase in stringency of the energy 
conservation standards. Therefore, no units that are on the market at 
the time of this rulemaking will be made illegal (noncompliant) by this 
action.
    Accordingly, DOE concludes and certifies that this final rule would 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities, so DOE has not prepared a regulatory flexibility analysis for 
this rulemaking. DOE will provide its certification and supporting 
statement of factual basis to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the SBA 
for review under 5 U.S.C. 605(b).

C. Review Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    Manufacturers of water heaters must certify to DOE that their 
products comply with any applicable energy conservation standards. In 
certifying compliance, manufacturers must test their products according 
to the DOE test procedures for water heaters, including any amendments 
adopted for those test procedures. DOE has established regulations for 
the certification and recordkeeping requirements for all covered 
consumer products and commercial equipment, including consumer and 
commercial water heaters. 76 FR 12422 (March 7, 2011); 79 FR 25486 (May 
5, 2014). The collection-of-information requirement for the 
certification and recordkeeping is subject to review and approval by 
OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). This requirement has been 
approved by OMB under OMB control number 1910-1400. Public reporting 
burden for the certification is estimated to average 30 hours per 
response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching 
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and 
completing and reviewing the collection of information.
    Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the PRA, unless that collection of information displays 
a currently valid OMB Control Number.

D. Review Under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969

    In this proposed rule, DOE proposes conversion factors to convert 
results from existing efficiency and delivery capacity metrics (and 
related energy conservation standard requirements) for consumer and 
certain commercial water heaters to the uniform energy descriptor. DOE 
has determined that this rule falls into a class of actions that are 
categorically excluded from review under the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and DOE's implementing 
regulations at 10 CFR part 1021. Specifically, this proposed rule would 
amend the existing rule without affecting the amount, quality or 
distribution of energy usage, and, therefore, would not result in any 
environmental impacts. Thus, this rulemaking is covered by Categorical 
Exclusion A5 under 10 CFR part 1021, subpart D, which applies to any 
rulemaking that interprets or amends an existing rule without changing 
the environmental effect of that rule. Accordingly, neither an 
environmental assessment nor an environmental impact statement is 
required.

E. Review Under Executive Order 13132

    Executive Order 13132, ``Federalism,'' 64 FR 43255 (August 10, 
1999) imposes certain requirements on agencies formulating and 
implementing policies or regulations that preempt State law or that 
have Federalism implications. The Executive Order requires agencies to 
examine the constitutional and statutory authority supporting any 
action that would limit the policymaking discretion of the States and 
to carefully assess the necessity for such actions. The Executive Order 
also requires agencies to have an accountable process to ensure 
meaningful and timely input by State and local officials in the 
development of regulatory policies that have Federalism implications. 
On March 14, 2000, DOE published a statement of policy describing the 
intergovernmental consultation process it will follow in the 
development of such regulations. 65 FR 13735. DOE has examined this 
proposed rule and has determined that it would not have a substantial 
direct effect on the States, on the relationship between the national 
government and the States, or on the distribution of power and 
responsibilities among the various levels of government. EPCA governs 
and prescribes Federal preemption of State regulations as to energy 
conservation for the products that are the subject of this proposed 
rule. States can petition DOE

[[Page 20140]]

for exemption from such preemption to the extent, and based on 
criteria, set forth in EPCA. (42 U.S.C. 6297(d)) No further action is 
required by Executive Order 13132.

F. Review Under Executive Order 12988

    Regarding the review of existing regulations and the promulgation 
of new regulations, section 3(a) of Executive Order 12988, ``Civil 
Justice Reform,'' 61 FR 4729 (Feb. 7, 1996), imposes on Federal 
agencies the general duty to adhere to the following requirements: (1) 
Eliminate drafting errors and ambiguity; (2) write regulations to 
minimize litigation; (3) provide a clear legal standard for affected 
conduct rather than a general standard; and (4) promote simplification 
and burden reduction. Regarding the review required by section 3(a), 
section 3(b) of Executive Order 12988 specifically requires that 
Executive agencies make every reasonable effort to ensure that the 
regulation: (1) Clearly specifies the preemptive effect, if any; (2) 
clearly specifies any effect on existing Federal law or regulation; (3) 
provides a clear legal standard for affected conduct while promoting 
simplification and burden reduction; (4) specifies the retroactive 
effect, if any; (5) adequately defines key terms; and (6) addresses 
other important issues affecting clarity and general draftsmanship 
under any guidelines issued by the Attorney General. Section 3(c) of 
Executive Order 12988 requires Executive agencies to review regulations 
in light of applicable standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b) to determine 
whether they are met or it is unreasonable to meet one or more of them. 
DOE has completed the required review and determined that, to the 
extent permitted by law, the proposed rule meets the relevant standards 
of Executive Order 12988.

G. Review Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995

    Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) 
requires each Federal agency to assess the effects of Federal 
regulatory actions on State, local, and Tribal governments and the 
private sector. Public Law 104-4, sec. 201 (codified at 2 U.S.C. 1531). 
For a proposed regulatory action likely to result in a rule that may 
cause the expenditure by State, local, and Tribal governments, in the 
aggregate, or by the private sector of $100 million or more in any one 
year (adjusted annually for inflation), section 202 of UMRA requires a 
Federal agency to publish a written statement that estimates the 
resulting costs, benefits, and other effects on the national economy. 
(2 U.S.C. 1532(a), (b)) The UMRA also requires a Federal agency to 
develop an effective process to permit timely input by elected officers 
of State, local, and Tribal governments on a proposed ``significant 
intergovernmental mandate,'' and requires an agency plan for giving 
notice and opportunity for timely input to potentially affected small 
governments before establishing any requirements that might 
significantly or uniquely affect them. On March 18, 1997, DOE published 
a statement of policy on its process for intergovernmental consultation 
under UMRA. 62 FR 12820. (This policy is also available at http://energy.gov/gc/office-general-counsel.) DOE examined this proposed rule 
according to UMRA and its statement of policy and determined that the 
rule contains neither an intergovernmental mandate, nor a mandate that 
may result in the expenditure by State, local, and Tribal governments, 
in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million or more in 
any year. Accordingly, no further assessment or analysis is required 
under UMRA.

H. Review Under the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 
1999

    Section 654 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations 
Act, 1999 (Pub. L. 105-277) requires Federal agencies to issue a Family 
Policymaking Assessment for any rule that may affect family well-being. 
This rule would not have any impact on the autonomy or integrity of the 
family as an institution. Accordingly, DOE has concluded that it is not 
necessary to prepare a Family Policymaking Assessment.

I. Review Under Executive Order 12630

    Pursuant to Executive Order 12630, ``Governmental Actions and 
Interference with Constitutionally Protected Property Rights,'' 53 FR 
8859 (March 18, 1988), DOE has determined that this regulation would 
not result in any takings that might require compensation under the 
Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

J. Review Under Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 
2001

    Section 515 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations 
Act, 2001 (44 U.S.C. 3516 note) provides for agencies to review most 
disseminations of information to the public under information quality 
guidelines established by each agency pursuant to general guidelines 
issued by OMB. OMB's guidelines were published at 67 FR 8452 (Feb. 22, 
2002), and DOE's guidelines were published at 67 FR 62446 (Oct. 7, 
2002). DOE has reviewed this proposed rule under the OMB and DOE 
guidelines and has concluded that it is consistent with applicable 
policies in those guidelines.

K. Review Under Executive Order 13211

    Executive Order 13211, ``Actions Concerning Regulations That 
Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use,'' 66 FR 28355 
(May 22, 2001), requires Federal agencies to prepare and submit to OIRA 
at OMB, a Statement of Energy Effects for any proposed significant 
energy action. A ``significant energy action'' is defined as any action 
by an agency that promulgates or is expected to lead to promulgation of 
a final rule, and that: (1) Is a significant regulatory action under 
Executive Order 12866, or any successor order; and (2) is likely to 
have a significant adverse effect on the supply, distribution, or use 
of energy; or (3) is designated by the Administrator of OIRA as a 
significant energy action. For any proposed significant energy action, 
the agency must give a detailed statement of any adverse effects on 
energy supply, distribution, or use should the proposal be implemented, 
and of reasonable alternatives to the action and their expected 
benefits on energy supply, distribution, and use.
    This regulatory action, which would develop a conversion factor to 
amend the energy conservation standards for consumer and certain 
commercial water heaters in light of new test procedures is not a 
significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866 or any 
successor order. Moreover, it would not have a significant adverse 
effect on the supply, distribution, or use of energy, nor has it been 
designated as a significant energy action by the Administrator of OIRA. 
Therefore, it is not a significant energy action, and, accordingly, DOE 
has not prepared a Statement of Energy Effects for this rulemaking.

L. Review Under Section 32 of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 
1974

    Under section 301 of the Department of Energy Organization Act 
(Pub. L. 95-91; 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.), DOE must comply with all laws 
applicable to the former Federal Energy Administration, including 
section 32 of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 
93-275), as amended by the Federal Energy Administration Authorization 
Act of 1977 (Pub. L. 95-70). (15 U.S.C. 788; FEAA) Section 32 
essentially provides in relevant part

[[Page 20141]]

that, where a proposed rule authorizes or requires use of commercial 
standards, the notice of proposed rulemaking must inform the public of 
the use and background of such standards. In addition, section 32(c) 
requires DOE to consult with the Attorney General and the Chairman of 
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concerning the impact of the 
commercial or industry standards on competition.
    This proposed rule to implement conversion factors between the 
existing water heaters test procedure and the amended test procedure 
does not incorporate testing methods contained in commercial standards.

V. Public Participation

A. Submission of Comments

    DOE will accept comments, data, and information regarding this 
proposed rule no later than the date provided in the DATES section at 
the beginning of this proposed rule. Interested parties may submit 
comments, data, and other information using any of the methods 
described in the ADDRESSES section at the beginning of this document.
    Submitting comments via www.regulations.gov. The 
www.regulations.gov Web page will require you to provide your name and 
contact information. Your contact information will be viewable to DOE 
Building Technologies staff only. Your contact information will not be 
publicly viewable except for your first and last names, organization 
name (if any), and submitter representative name (if any). If your 
comment is not processed properly because of technical difficulties, 
DOE will use this information to contact you. If DOE cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, DOE may not be able to consider your comment.
    However, your contact information will be publicly viewable if you 
include it in the comment itself or in any documents attached to your 
comment. Any information that you do not want to be publicly viewable 
should not be included in your comment, nor in any document attached to 
your comment. Otherwise, persons viewing comments will see only first 
and last names, organization names, correspondence containing comments, 
and any documents submitted with the comments.
    Do not submit to www.regulations.gov information for which 
disclosure is restricted by statute, such as trade secrets and 
commercial or financial information (hereinafter referred to as 
Confidential Business Information (CBI)). Comments submitted through 
www.regulations.gov cannot be claimed as CBI. Comments received through 
the Web site will waive any CBI claims for the information submitted. 
For information on submitting CBI, see the Confidential Business 
Information section.
    DOE processes submissions made through www.regulations.gov before 
posting. Normally, comments will be posted within a few days of being 
submitted. However, if large volumes of comments are being processed 
simultaneously, your comment may not be viewable for up to several 
weeks. Please keep the comment tracking number that www.regulations.gov 
provides after you have successfully uploaded your comment.
    Submitting comments via email, hand delivery/courier, or mail. 
Comments and documents submitted via email, hand delivery/courier, or 
mail also will be posted to www.regulations.gov. If you do not want 
your personal contact information to be publicly viewable, do not 
include it in your comment or any accompanying documents. Instead, 
provide your contact information in a cover letter. Include your first 
and last names, email address, telephone number, and optional mailing 
address. The cover letter will not be publicly viewable as long as it 
does not include any comments.
    Include contact information each time you submit comments, data, 
documents, and other information to DOE. If you submit via mail or hand 
delivery/courier, please provide all items on a CD, if feasible, in 
which case it is not necessary to submit printed copies. No 
telefacsimiles (faxes) will be accepted.
    Comments, data, and other information submitted to DOE 
electronically should be provided in PDF (preferred), Microsoft Word or 
Excel, WordPerfect, or text (ASCII) file format. Provide documents that 
are not secured, that are written in English, and that are free of any 
defects or viruses. Documents should not contain special characters or 
any form of encryption and, if possible, they should carry the 
electronic signature of the author.
    Campaign form letters. Please submit campaign form letters by the 
originating organization in batches of between 50 to 500 form letters 
per PDF or as one form letter with a list of supporters' names compiled 
into one or more PDFs. This reduces comment processing and posting 
time.
    Confidential Business Information. Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any 
person submitting information that he or she believes to be 
confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via 
email, postal mail, or hand delivery/courier two well-marked copies: 
one copy of the document marked ``confidential'' including all the 
information believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document 
marked ``non-confidential'' with the information believed to be 
confidential deleted. Submit these documents via email or on a CD, if 
feasible. DOE will make its own determination about the confidential 
status of the information and treat it according to its determination.
    Factors of interest to DOE when evaluating requests to treat 
submitted information as confidential include: (1) A description of the 
items; (2) whether and why such items are customarily treated as 
confidential within the industry; (3) whether the information is 
generally known by or available from other sources; (4) whether the 
information has previously been made available to others without 
obligation concerning its confidentiality; (5) an explanation of the 
competitive injury to the submitting person which would result from 
public disclosure; (6) when such information might lose its 
confidential character due to the passage of time; and (7) why 
disclosure of the information would be contrary to the public interest.
    It is DOE's policy that all comments may be included in the public 
docket, without change and as received, including any personal 
information provided in the comments (except information deemed to be 
exempt from public disclosure).

B. Issues on Which DOE Seeks Comment

    Although DOE welcomes comments on any aspect of this proposal, DOE 
is particularly interested in receiving comments and views of 
interested parties concerning the following issues:
    1. Has DOE identified all of the water heaters requiring a 
conversion from the old test procedures for consumer and commercial 
water heaters to the new test procedure for the uniform test method for 
measuring the energy consumption of water heaters?
    2. Are the proposed analytical methods appropriate for the 
conversion factor analysis?
    3. Is the proposed regression method appropriate for the conversion 
factor analysis?
    4. How do manufacturers specify whether a water heater is short or 
tall? Is there any criteria that could be applied to compare short and 
tall designs across all manufacturers?
    5. Is the proposed percentage difference method appropriate for the 
derivation of energy conservation

[[Page 20142]]

standards based on the updated test procedure?

VI. Approval of the Office of the Secretary

    The Secretary of Energy has approved publication of this notice of 
proposed rulemaking.

List of Subjects

10 CFR Part 429

    Confidential business information, Energy conservation, Household 
appliances, Imports, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

10 CFR Part 430

    Administrative practice and procedure, Confidential business 
information, Energy conservation, Household appliances, Imports, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Small 
businesses.

10 CFR Part 431

    Administrative practice and procedure, Confidential business 
information, Test procedures, Incorporation by reference, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on March 27, 2015.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Energy Efficiency and 
Renewable Energy.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, DOE is proposing to amend 
parts 429, 430, and 431 of Chapter II, Subchapter D of Title 10, Code 
of Federal Regulations, as set forth below:

PART 429--CERTIFICATION, COMPLIANCE, AND ENFORCEMENT FOR CONSUMER 
PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT

0
1. The authority citation for part 429 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 6291-6317.

0
2. Section 429.17 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  429.17  Water heaters.

    (a) Determination of represented value.
    (1) As of July 13, 2015, manufacturers must determine the 
represented value for each new basic model of water heater by applying 
an AEDM in accordance with 10 CFR 429.70 or by testing for the uniform 
energy factor, in conjunction with the applicable sampling provisions 
as follows:
    (i) If the represented value is determined through testing, the 
general requirements of 10 CFR 429.11 are applicable; and
    (ii) For each basic model selected for testing, a sample of 
sufficient size shall be randomly selected and tested to ensure that--
    (A) Any represented value of the estimated annual operating cost or 
other measure of energy consumption of a basic model for which 
consumers would favor lower values shall be greater than or equal to 
the higher of:
    (1) The mean of the sample, where:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.019
    

and, x is the sample mean; n is the number of samples; and 
xi is the ith sample;
    Or,
    (2) The upper 95-percent confidence limit (UCL) of the true mean 
divided by 1.10, where:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.020

    And xis the sample mean; s is the sample standard deviation; n is 
the number of samples; and t0.95 is the t statistic for a 
95-percent one-tailed confidence interval with n-1 degrees of freedom 
(from Appendix A).

and
    (B) Any represented value of the uniform energy factor, energy 
factor, or other measure of energy consumption of a basic model for 
which consumers would favor higher values shall be less than or equal 
to the lower of:
    (1) The mean of the sample, where:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.021
    

and, x is the sample mean; n is the number of samples; and 
xi is the ith sample;

Or,
    (2) The lower 95-percent confidence limit (LCL) of the true mean 
divided by 0.90, where:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.022


And xis the sample mean; s is the sample standard deviation; n is the 
number of samples; and t0.95 is the t statistic for a 95-
percent one-tailed confidence interval with n-1 degrees of freedom 
(from Appendix A).
    (2) For basic models initially certified before July 13, 2015 
(using either the energy factor test procedure contained in Appendix E 
to Subpart B of 10 CFR part 430 of the January 1, 2015 edition of the 
Code of Federal Regulations or the thermal efficiency and standby loss 
test procedures contained in 10 CFR 431.106 of the January 1, 2015 
edition of the Code of Federal Regulations, in conjunction with 
applicable sampling provisions), manufacturers must:
    (i) Conduct testing for the uniform energy factor, in conjunction 
with the applicable sampling provisions of this paragraph;
    (ii) Apply an AEDM in accordance with 10 CFR 429.70; or
    (iii) Calculate the uniform energy factor by applying the following 
mathematical conversion factors to the previously certified value of 
energy factor as follows. Representations of uniform energy factor 
based on a calculation using this mathematical conversion factor must 
be equal to the uniform energy factor value resulting from the 
application of the appropriate equation below.
    (A) The applicable mathematical conversion factors are as follows:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Product class            Distinguishing criteria                   Conversion factor *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Consumer Gas-fired Water Heater.  Non-Condensing, Standard  New FHR = 1.0085 * FHREx
                                   NOX.                     UEF = 0.4736 + 0.2726 * UEFWHAM
                                  Non-Condensing, Low NOX.  New FHR = 4.6894 = 0.9112 * FHREx
                                                            UEF = -0.0126 + 0.9966 * UEFWHAM
                                  Non-Condensing, Ultra-    New FHR = 2.9267 + 0.8882 * FHREx
                                   Low NOX.                 UEF = 0.2673 + 0.5811 * UEFWHAM
                                  Condensing..............  New FHR = -0.7072 + 0.9724 * FHREx
                                                            UEF = 0.0409 + 0.9164 * UEFWHAM
Consumer Oil-fired Water Heater.  N/A.....................  New FHR = 1.1018 * FHREx
                                                            UEF = -0.0945 + 1.1185 * UEFWHAM
Consumer Electric Water Heater..  Electric Resistance.....  New FHR = 11.9239 + 0.789 * FHREx
                                                            UEF = 0.1227 + 0.8673 * UEFWHAM

[[Page 20143]]

 
                                  Heat Pump...............  New FHR = -2.3440 + 0.9856 * FHREx
                                                            UEF = -1.1235 + 1.5485 * EF
Tabletop Water Heater...........  N/A.....................  New FHR = 11.9239 + 0.7879 * FHREx
                                                            UEF = 0.1227 + 0.8673 * UEFWHAM
Instantaneous Gas-fired Water     N/A.....................  New Max GPM = 1.1467 * Max GPMEx
 Heater.                                                    UEF = 0.0783 + 0.9052 * UEFmodel
Instantaneous Electric Water      N/A.....................  New Max GPM = 1.1467 * Max GPMEx
 Heater.                                                    UEF = 1.0079 * UEFmodel
Residential-Duty Commercial Gas-  N/A.....................  New FHR = 39.8144 + 1.0226 * Q
 fired Water Heater.                                        UEF = 0.1413 + 0.7300 * UEFWHAM
Residential-Duty Commercial Oil-  N/A.....................  New FHR = 39.8144 + 1.0226 * Q
 fired Water Heater.                                        UEF = 0.1413 + 0.7300 * UEFWHAM
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 *FHREX = current first-hour rating.
Max GPMEX = current max GPM rating.
Q = nameplate input rate, in kBtu/hr.
UEFWHAM = the UEF predicted based on either the WHAM equation (for consumer storage water heaters) or the
  modified WHAM (for residential-duty commercial water heaters, as defined in the sub-paragraphs below).
UEFmodel = the UEF predicted based on the analytical model developed by DOE (for consumer instantaneous water
  heaters).

    (B) Calculate UEFWHAM (for consumer storage water 
heaters and residential-duty commercial storage water heaters) and 
UEFmodel (for consumer instantaneous water heaters) as 
follows:
    (1) For consumer storage water heaters:

    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.023
    


Where a, b, c, and d are coefficients based on the applicable draw 
pattern as specified in the table below; EF is the current energy 
factor rating; [eta]r is the current recovery efficiency 
rating in decimal form; and P is the input rating in Btu/h.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Draw pattern                      a                  b                  c                  d
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small..........................           56095146        12884892499            8930623        15125743368
Low.................................           56095146        48962591496           33936368        57477824799
Medium..............................           56095146        70866908744           49118427        83191588525
High................................           56095146       108233096990           75017235       127056244293
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (2) For consumer instantaneous water heaters:

    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.024
    


Where [eta]r is the current recovery efficiency rating expressed in 
decimal form and A and B are coefficients dependent upon the applicable 
draw pattern as specified in the table below.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Draw pattern                      A                B
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small.............................           5514.2           170.2
Low....................................          20954             262.4
Medium.................................          30328             290.9
High...................................          46319             294.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (3) For residential-duty commercial water heaters:

    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.025
    


Where, Et is the existing thermal efficiency rating; SL is 
the existing standby loss rating in Btu/h; and C1 is a 
coefficient as specified in the table below based on the applicable 
draw pattern.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      Draw pattern                              C1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Very Small..............................................    3.575 x 10-3
Low.....................................................    9.408 x 10-4
Medium..................................................    6.500 x 10-4
High....................................................    4.256 x 10-4
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (3) Any represented value of the rated storage volume must be equal 
to the mean of the measured storage volumes of all the units within the 
sample.
    (4) Any represented value of first-hour rating or maximum gallons 
per minute (GPM) must be equal to the mean of the measured first-hour 
ratings or measured maximum GPM ratings, respectively, of all the units 
within the sample.
    (b) Certification reports. (1) The requirements of 10 CFR 429.12 
are applicable to water heaters; and
    (2) Pursuant to 10 CFR 429.12(b)(13), a certification report shall 
include the following public product-specific information:
    (i) For storage-type water heater basic models tested for energy 
factor and rated pursuant to 10 CFR 429.17(a)(2)(iii): Energy factor, 
uniform energy factor, rated storage volume (gal), first-hour rating 
(gal), and recovery efficiency (percent);
    (ii) For storage-type water heater basic models tested for uniform 
energy factor and rated pursuant to 10 CFR 429.17(a)(1) or 10 CFR 
429.17(a)(2)(i) through (ii): Uniform energy factor, rated storage 
volume in gallons (gal), first-hour rating (gal), and recovery 
efficiency (percent);
    (iii) For instantaneous-type water heater basic models tested for 
energy factor and rated pursuant to 10 CFR 429.17(a)(2)(iii): Energy 
factor, uniform energy factor, rated storage volume (gal), maximum 
gallons per minute, and recovery efficiency (percent); and

[[Page 20144]]

    (iv) For instantaneous-type water heater basic models tested for 
uniform energy factor and rated pursuant to 10 CFR 429.17(a)(1) or 10 
CFR 429.17(a)(2)(i) through (ii): Uniform energy factor, rated storage 
volume (gal), maximum gallons per minute, and recovery efficiency 
(percent).
0
3. Section 429.17 is further revised, effective [date one year after 
publication of final rule], to read as follows:


Sec.  429.17  Water heaters.

    (a) Determination of represented value. (1) Manufacturers must 
determine the represented value for each water heater by applying an 
AEDM in accordance with 10 CFR 429.70 or by testing for the uniform 
energy factor, in conjunction with the applicable sampling provisions 
as follows:
    (i) If the represented value is determined through testing, the 
general requirements of 10 CFR 429.11 are applicable; and
    (ii) For each basic model selected for testing, a sample of 
sufficient size shall be randomly selected and tested to ensure that--
    (A) Any represented value of the estimated annual operating cost or 
other measure of energy consumption of a basic model for which 
consumers would favor lower values shall be greater than or equal to 
the higher of:
    (1) The mean of the sample, where:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.026
    

and, x is the sample mean; n is the number of samples; and 
xi is the ith sample;
    Or,
    (2) The upper 95-percent confidence limit (UCL) of the true mean 
divided by 1.10, where:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.027


And, x is the sample mean; s is the sample standard deviation; n is the 
number of samples; and t0.95 is the t statistic for a 95-
percent one-tailed confidence interval with n-1 degrees of freedom 
(from Appendix A).
    and
    (B) Any represented value of the uniform energy factor, energy 
factor, or other measure of energy consumption of a basic model for 
which consumers would favor higher values shall be less than or equal 
to the lower of:
    (1) The mean of the sample, where:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.028
    

and, x is the sample mean; n is the number of samples; and 
xi is the ith sample;
    Or,
    (2) The lower 95-percent confidence limit (LCL) of the true mean 
divided by 0.90, where:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP14AP15.029


And x is the sample mean; s is the sample standard deviation; n is the 
number of samples; and t0.95 is the t statistic for a 95-
percent one-tailed confidence interval with n-1 degrees of freedom 
(from Appendix A).
    (2) Any represented value of the rated storage volume must be equal 
to the mean of the measured storage volumes of all the units within the 
sample.
    (3) Any represented value of first-hour rating or maximum gallons 
per minute (GPM) must be equal to the mean of the measured first-hour 
ratings or measured maximum GPM ratings, respectively, of all the units 
within the sample.
    (b) Certification reports. (1) The requirements of 10 CFR 429.12 
are applicable to water heaters; and
    (2) Pursuant to 10 CFR 429.12(b)(13), a certification report shall 
include the following public product-specific information:
    (i) For storage-type water heater basic models: Uniform energy 
factor, rated storage volume in gallons (gal), first-hour rating (gal), 
and recovery efficiency (percent);
    (ii) For instantaneous-type water heater basic models: Uniform 
energy factor, rated storage volume (gal), maximum gallons per minute, 
and recovery efficiency (percent); and
    (iii) For instantaneous-type water heater basic models: Uniform 
energy factor, rated storage volume (gal), maximum gallons per minute, 
and recovery efficiency (percent).
0
4. Section 429.44 is amended by:
0
a. Revising paragraph (a) introductory text;
0
b. Adding new paragraphs (c)(2)(vii) and (viii);
    The revisions and additions read as follows:


Sec.  429.44  Commercial water heating equipment.

    (a) For residential-duty commercial water heaters, determine 
representations as provided in 10 CFR 429.17(a).
* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (vii) Residential-duty commercial gas-fired and oil-fired storage 
water heaters tested for thermal efficiency and standby loss and rated 
pursuant to 10 CFR 429.17(a)(2)(iii): Thermal efficiency in percent 
(%), maximum standby loss in British thermal units per hour (Btu/h), 
uniform energy factor, rated storage volume (gal), and the nameplate 
input rate in British thermal units per hour (Btu/h).
    (viii) Residential-duty commercial gas-fired and oil-fired storage 
water heaters tested for uniform energy factor and rated pursuant to 10 
CFR 429.17(a)(1) or 10 CFR 429.17(a)(2)(i) through (ii): Uniform energy 
factor, rated storage volume (gal), first-hour rating (gal), and 
recovery efficiency (percent).
* * * * *
0
5. Section 429.44 is further revised, effective [date one year after 
publication of final rule], to read as follows:
0
a. Removing paragraph (c)(2)(vii);
0
b. Redesignating paragraph (c)(2)(viii) as (c)(2)(vii); and
0
c. Revising newly redesignated paragraph (c)(2)(vii) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  429.44  Commercial water heating equipment.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (vii) Residential-duty commercial gas-fired and oil-fired storage 
water heaters: Uniform energy factor, rated storage volume (gal), 
first-hour rating (gal), and recovery efficiency (percent).
* * * * *

PART 430--ENERGY CONSERVATION PROGRAM FOR CONSUMER PRODUCTS

0
6. The authority citation for part 430 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 6291-6309; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note.

0
7. Section 430.23 is amended by revising paragraph (e) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  430.23  Test procedures for the measurement of energy and water 
consumption.

* * * * *
    (e) Water Heaters. (1) For water heaters tested using energy 
factor:
    (i) The estimated annual operating cost for water heaters tested in 
terms of energy factor shall be--
    (A) For a gas or oil water heater, the product of the annual energy 
consumption, determined according to section 6.1.8 or 6.2.5 of appendix 
E to subpart B of 10 CFR part 430 of the January 1, 2015 edition of the 
Code of Federal Regulations, times the representative average unit cost 
of gas or oil, as appropriate, in dollars per Btu as provided by the 
Secretary. The resulting product shall be rounded off to the nearest 
dollar per year.

[[Page 20145]]

    (B) For an electric water heater, the product of the annual energy 
consumption, determined according to section 6.1.8 or 6.2.5 of appendix 
E to subpart B to 10 CFR part 430 of the January 1, 2015 edition of the 
Code of Federal Regulations, times the representative average unit cost 
of electricity in dollars per kilowatt-hour as provided by the 
Secretary, divided by 3412 Btu per kilowatt-hour. The resulting 
quotient shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar per year.
    (ii) For an individual test, the tested energy factor for a water 
heater shall be determined by section 6.1.7 or 6.2.4 of appendix E to 
subpart B of 10 CFR part 430 of the January 1, 2015 edition of the Code 
of Federal Regulations, rounded off to the nearest 0.01.
    (2) For water heaters tested using uniform energy factor:
    (i) The estimated annual operating cost shall be:
    (A) For a gas or oil water heater, the sum of: The product of the 
annual gas or oil energy consumption, determined according to section 
6.1.10 or 6.2.7 of appendix E of this subpart, times the representative 
average unit cost of gas or oil, as appropriate, in dollars per Btu as 
provided by the Secretary; plus the product of the annual electric 
energy consumption, determined according to section 6.1.9 or 6.2.6 of 
appendix E of this subpart, times the representative average unit cost 
of electricity in dollars per kilowatt-hour as provided by the 
Secretary. The resulting sum shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar 
per year.
    (B) For an electric water heater, the product of the annual energy 
consumption, determined according to section 6.1.9 or 6.2.6 of appendix 
E of this subpart, times the representative average unit cost of 
electricity in dollars per kilowatt-hour as provided by the Secretary. 
The resulting product shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar per 
year.
    (ii) For an individual test, the tested uniform energy factor for a 
water heater shall be determined by section 6.1.7 or 6.2.4 of appendix 
E of this subpart, rounded to the nearest 0.01.
* * * * *
0
8. Section 430.32 is amended by revising paragraph (d) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  430.32  Energy and water conservation standards and their 
compliance dates.

* * * * *
    (d) Water heaters. The energy factor of each basic model of water 
heater shall not be less than the following:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  Rated storage                                Uniform energy factor as of July
         Product class                volume              Draw pattern                     13, 2015*
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage.............  >= 20 gal and <=   Very Small...............  0.3263-(0.0019 x Vr)
                                 55 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.5891-(0.0019 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.6326-(0.0013 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.7128-(0.0025 x Vr)
                                < 55 gal and <=    Very Small...............  0.5352-(0.0007 x Vr)
                                 100 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.7375-(0.0009 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.7704-(0.0010 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.7980-(0.0010 x Vr)
Oil-fired Storage.............  <= 50 gal........  Very Small...............  0.2267-(0.0014 x Vr)
                                                   Low......................  0.4867-(0.0006 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.6016-(0.0012 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.6529-(0.0005 x Vr)
Electric Storage..............  >= 20 gal and <=   Very Small...............  0.8268-(0.0002 x Vr)
                                 55 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.9393-(0.0004 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.9683-(0.0007 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.9656-(0.0004 x Vr)
                                < 55 gal and <=    Very Small...............  1.2701-(0.0011 x Vr)
                                 120 gal.
                                                   Low......................  1.9137-(0.0011 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  2.0626-(0.0011 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  2.1858-(0.0011 x Vr)
Tabletop Storage..............  >= 20 gal and <=   Very Small...............  0.6808-(0.0022 x Vr)
                                 100 gal.
                                                   Low......................  0.8770-(0.0012 x Vr)
                                                   Medium...................  0.9063-(0.0009 x Vr)
                                                   High.....................  0.9302-(0.0006 x Vr)
Gas-fired Instantaneous.......  < 2 gal..........  All......................  0.8036-(0.0019 x Vr)
Electric Instantaneous........  < 2 gal..........  All......................  0.9192-(0.0013 x Vr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Vr is rated storage volume.

* * * * *

PART 431--ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM FOR CERTAIN COMMERCIAL AND 
INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT

0
9. The authority citation for part 431 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 6291-6317.

0
10. In Sec.  431.106 revise paragraph (b) to read as follows:


Sec.  431.106  Uniform test method for the measurement of energy 
efficiency of commercial water heaters and hot water supply boilers 
(other than commercial heat pump water heaters).

* * * * *
    (b) Testing and Calculations. Determine the energy efficiency of 
each class of equipment by conducting the applicable test procedure(s), 
set forth in the three rightmost columns of the following table:

[[Page 20146]]



Table 1 to Sec.   431.106--Test Procedures for Commercial Water Heaters and Hot Water Supply Boilers (Other Than
                                       Commercial Heat Pump Water Heaters)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                         Test procedure
                                 Energy efficiency                        required for     With these additional
         Equipment type              descriptor       Test procedure   compliance on and       stipulations
                                                                             after
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Residential-Duty Commercial      Uniform Energy     10 CFR Part 430,   July 13, 2015....
 Water Heater.                    Factor.            Subpart B,
                                                     Appendix E.
Gas-fired Storage and            Thermal            Use test set-up,   May 13, 2013.....  A. For all products,
 Instantaneous Water Heaters      Efficiency.        equipment, and                        the duration of the
 and Hot Water Supply Boilers.                       procedures in                         standby loss test
                                                     subsection                            shall be until
                                                     labeled ``Method                      whichever of the
                                                     of Test'' of                          following occurs
                                                     ANSI Z21.10.3-                        first after you begin
                                                     2011**, Exhibit                       to measure the fuel
                                                     G1.                                   and/or electric
                                                                                           consumption: (1) The
                                                                                           first cut-out after
                                                                                           24 hours or (2) 48
                                                                                           hours, if the water
                                                                                           heater is not in the
                                                                                           heating mode at that
                                                                                           time.
                                 Standby Loss.....  Use test set-up,   May 13, 2013.....  B. For oil and gas
                                                     equipment, and                        products, the standby
                                                     procedures in                         loss in Btu per hour
                                                     subsection                            must be calculated as
                                                     labeled ``Method                      follows: SL (Btu per
                                                     of Test'' of                          hour) = S (% per
                                                     ANSI Z21.10.3-                        hour) x 8.25 (Btu/gal-
                                                     2011**, Exhibit                       F) x Measured Volume
                                                     G2.                                   (gal) x 70 (degrees
                                                                                           F).
Oil-fired Storage and            Thermal            ANSI Z21.10.3-     May 13, 2013.....  C. For oil-fired
 Instantaneous Water Heaters      Efficiency.        2011**, Exhibit                       products, apply the
 and Hot Water Supply Boilers.                       G1.                                   following in
                                                                                           conducting the
                                                                                           thermal efficiency
                                                                                           and standby loss
                                                                                           tests: (1) Venting
                                                                                           Requirements--Connect
                                                                                           a vertical length of
                                                                                           flue pipe to the flue
                                                                                           gas outlet of
                                                                                           sufficient height so
                                                                                           as to meet the
                                                                                           minimum draft
                                                                                           specified by the
                                                                                           manufacturer. (2) Oil
                                                                                           Supply--Adjust the
                                                                                           burner rate so that:
                                                                                           (a) The hourly Btu
                                                                                           input rate lies
                                                                                           within 2
                                                                                           percent of the
                                                                                           manufacturer's
                                                                                           specified input rate,
                                                                                           (b) the CO2 reading
                                                                                           shows the value
                                                                                           specified by the
                                                                                           manufacturer, (c)
                                                                                           smoke in the flue
                                                                                           does not exceed No. 1
                                                                                           smoke as measured by
                                                                                           the procedure in ASTM-
                                                                                           D2156-80 (reference
                                                                                           for guidance only,
                                                                                           see Sec.   431.104),
                                                                                           and (d) fuel pump
                                                                                           pressure lies within
                                                                                           10
                                                                                           percent of
                                                                                           manufacturer's
                                                                                           specifications.
                                 Standby Loss.....  Use test set-up,   May 13, 2013.....
                                                     equipment, and
                                                     procedures in
                                                     subsection
                                                     labeled ``Method
                                                     of Test'' of
                                                     ANSI Z21.10.3-
                                                     2011**, Exhibit
                                                     G2.
Electric Storage and             Standby Loss.....  Use test set-up,   May 13, 2013.....  D. For electric
 Instantaneous Water Heaters.                        equipment, and                        products, apply the
                                                     procedures in                         following in
                                                     subsection                            conducting the
                                                     labeled ``Method                      standby loss test:
                                                     of Test'' of                          (1) Assume that the
                                                     ANSI Z21.10.3-                        thermal efficiency
                                                     2011**, Exhibit                       (Et) of electric
                                                     G2.                                   water heaters with
                                                                                           immersed heating
                                                                                           elements is 98
                                                                                           percent. (2) Maintain
                                                                                           the electrical supply
                                                                                           voltage to within
                                                                                           5 percent
                                                                                           of the center of the
                                                                                           voltage range
                                                                                           specified on the
                                                                                           water heater
                                                                                           nameplate. (3) If the
                                                                                           set up includes
                                                                                           multiple adjustable
                                                                                           thermostats, set the
                                                                                           highest one first to
                                                                                           yield a maximum water
                                                                                           temperature in the
                                                                                           specified range as
                                                                                           measured by the
                                                                                           topmost tank
                                                                                           thermocouple. Then
                                                                                           set the lower
                                                                                           thermostat(s) to
                                                                                           yield a maximum mean
                                                                                           tank temperature
                                                                                           within the specified
                                                                                           range.
                                                                                          E. Install water-tube
                                                                                           water heaters as
                                                                                           shown in Figure 2,
                                                                                           ``Arrangement for
                                                                                           Testing Water-tube
                                                                                           Type Instantaneous
                                                                                           and Circulating Water
                                                                                           Heaters.''
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
** Incorporated by reference, see Sec.   431.105.


[[Page 20147]]

0
11. Section 431.110 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  431.110  Energy conservation standards and their effective dates.

    Each commercial storage water heater, instantaneous water heater, 
unfired hot water storage tank and hot water supply boiler \1\ (except 
for residential-duty commercial water heaters) must meet the applicable 
energy conservation standard level(s) as follows:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\Any packaged boiler that provides service water, that meets 
the definition of ``commercial packaged boiler'' in subpart E of 
this part, but does not meet the definition of ``hot water supply 
boiler'' in subpart G, must meet the requirements that apply to it 
under subpart E.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                   Energy conservation standard \a\ (products
                                                                 manufactured on and after October 29, 2003) \b\
               Product                           Size          -------------------------------------------------
                                                                    Minimum thermal        Maximum standby loss
                                                                       efficiency                  \c\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Electric storage water heaters.......  All....................  N/A....................  0.30 + 27/Vm (%/hr)
Gas-fired storage water heaters......  <=155,000 Btu/hr.......  80%....................  Q/800 + 110(Vr)\1/2\
                                                                                          (Btu/hr)
                                        >155,000 Btu/hr.......  80%....................  Q/800 + 110(Vr)\1/2\
                                                                                          (Btu/hr)
Oil-fired storage water heaters......  <=155,000 Btu/hr.......  78%....................  Q/800 + 110(Vr)\1/2\
                                                                                          (Btu/hr)
                                        >155,000 Btu/hr.......  78%....................  Q/800 + 110(Vr)\1/2\
                                                                                          (Btu/hr)
Gas-fired instantaneous water heaters  <10 gal................  80%....................  N/A
 and hot water supply boilers.
                                        >=10 gal..............  80%....................  Q/800 + 110(Vr)\1/2\
                                                                                          (Btu/hr)
Oil-fired instantaneous water heaters  <10 gal................  80%....................  N/A
 and hot water supply boilers.
                                        >=10 gal..............  78%....................  Q/800 + 110(Vr)\1/2\
                                                                                          (Btu/hr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Product                           Size                      Minimum thermal insulation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unfired hot water storage tank.......  All....................  R-12.5.................
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\a\Vm is the measured storage volume and Vr is the rated volume, both in gallons. Q is the nameplate input rate
  in Btu/hr.
\b\ For hot water supply boilers with a capacity of less than 10 gallons: (1) the standards are mandatory for
  products manufactured on and after October 21, 2005, and (2) products manufactured prior to that date, and on
  or after October 23, 2003, must meet either the standards listed in this table or the applicable standards in
  subpart E of this part for a ``commercial packaged boiler.''
\c\ Water heaters and hot water supply boilers having more than 140 gallons of storage capacity need not meet
  the standby loss requirement if (1) the tank surface area is thermally insulated to R-12.5 or more, (2) a
  standing pilot light is not used and (3) for gas or oil-fired storage water heaters, they have a fire damper
  or fan assisted combustion.

    Each residential-duty commercial water heater, as defined in 10 CFR 
431.102, must meet the applicable energy conservation standard level as 
follows:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Product class                        Draw pattern                    Uniform energy factor*
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gas-fired Storage....................  Very Small.....................  0.3261-(0.0006 x Vr)
                                       Low............................  0.5219-(0.0008 x Vr)
                                       Medium.........................  0.5585-(0.0006 x Vr)
                                       High...........................  0.6044-(0.0005 x Vr)
Oil-fired Storage....................  Very Small.....................  0.3206-(0.0006 x Vr)
                                       Low............................  0.5577-(0.0019 x Vr)
                                       Medium.........................  0.6027-(0.0019 x Vr)
                                       High...........................  0.5446-(0.0018 x Vr)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Vr is the rated storage volume.

[FR Doc. 2015-07932 Filed 4-13-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P



                                                                                                          Vol. 80                           Tuesday,
                                                                                                          No. 71                            April 14, 2015




                                                                                                          Part III


                                                                                                          Department of Energy
                                                                                                          10 CFR Parts 429, 430, and 431
                                                                                                          Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products and Certain
                                                                                                          Commercial and Industrial Equipment: Test Procedures for Consumer and
                                                                                                          Commercial Water Heaters; Proposed Rule
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                                                    20116                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY                                    14, 2015. See section V, ‘‘Public                      ‘‘Public Participation,’’ for information
                                                                                                            Participation,’’ for details.                          on how to submit comments through
                                                    10 CFR Parts 429, 430, and 431                          ADDRESSES: All comments submitted                      www.regulations.gov.
                                                                                                            must identify the NOPR for the                            For information on how to submit a
                                                    [EERE–2015–BT–TP–0007]                                                                                         comment or review other public
                                                                                                            Conversion Factor for Test Procedures
                                                                                                            for Consumer and Certain Commercial                    comments and the docket, contact Ms.
                                                    RIN 1904–AC91                                                                                                  Brenda Edwards at (202) 586–2945 or by
                                                                                                            Water Heaters, and provide docket
                                                                                                            number EERE–2015–BT–TP–0007 and/                       email: Brenda.Edwards@ee.doe.gov.
                                                    Energy Conservation Program for
                                                                                                            or RIN 1904–AC91. Interested persons                   FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
                                                    Consumer Products and Certain
                                                    Commercial and Industrial Equipment:                    are encouraged to submit comments                      Ashley Armstrong, U.S. Department of
                                                    Test Procedures for Consumer and                        using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at                Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and
                                                    Commercial Water Heaters                                www.regulations.gov. Follow the                        Renewable Energy, Building
                                                                                                            instructions for submitting comments.                  Technologies Office, EE–5B, 1000
                                                    AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and                 Alternatively, interested persons may                  Independence Avenue SW.,
                                                    Renewable Energy, Department of                         submit comments by any of the                          Washington, DC 20585–0121.
                                                    Energy.                                                 following methods:                                     Telephone: (202) 586–6590. Email:
                                                    ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.                     • Email: ConsumerCommWaterHtrs                      Ashley.Armstrong@ee.doe.gov.
                                                                                                            2015TP0007@ee.doe.gov. Include the                        Mr. Eric Stas, U.S. Department of
                                                    SUMMARY:    As required by the Energy                   docket number and/or RIN in the                        Energy, Office of the General Counsel,
                                                    Policy and Conservation Act of 1975                     subject line of the message. Submit                    GC–33, 1000 Independence Avenue
                                                    (EPCA), as amended, the U.S.                            electronic comments in WordPerfect,                    SW., Washington, DC 20585–0121.
                                                    Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to                  Microsoft Word, PDF, or ASCII file                     Telephone: (202) 586–9507. Email:
                                                    establish a mathematical conversion                     format, and avoid the use of special                   Eric.Stas@hq.doe.gov.
                                                    factor for the purpose of translating                   characters or any form of encryption.                  SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
                                                    efficiency ratings for water heaters                       • Postal Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards,                  Table of Contents
                                                    under the test method currently in effect               U.S. Department of Energy, Building
                                                    to the ratings under the amended test                   Technologies Office, Mailstop EE–5B,                   I. Authority and Background
                                                    method promulgated by DOE in a final                    1000 Independence Avenue SW.,                          II. Summary of the Notice of Proposed
                                                    rule published on July 11, 2014                                                                                      Rulemaking
                                                                                                            Washington, DC 20585–0121. If                          III. Discussion
                                                    (hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘the July              possible, please submit all items on a                    A. Stakeholder Comments on Other
                                                    2014 final rule’’). Compliance with the                 compact disc (CD), in which case it is                       Rulemakings
                                                    amended test procedure is required                      not necessary to include printed copies.                  B. Scope
                                                    beginning on the later of: one year after                  • Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda                    1. Test Procedure and Energy Conservation
                                                    the publication of a final rule that                    Edwards, U.S. Department of Energy,                          Standards Coverage
                                                    establishes a mathematical conversion                   Building Technologies Office, 950                         2. Units on the Market
                                                    factor, or December 31, 2015. This                      L’Enfant Plaza SW., 6th Floor,                            C. Potential Approaches for Developing
                                                    rulemaking document proposes a                                                                                       Conversions
                                                                                                            Washington, DC 20024. Telephone:                          1. Background Regarding Changes to
                                                    mathematical conversion factor which                    (202) 586–2945. If possible, please                          Existing Test Procedures
                                                    may be used to convert the existing                     submit all items on a CD, in which case                   2. Analytical Methods
                                                    efficiency ratings under the current                    it is not necessary to include printed                    3. Empirical Regression
                                                    Federal test procedure to efficiency                    copies.                                                   D. Testing Conducted for the Mathematical
                                                    ratings under the test procedure adopted                   No telefacsimilies (faxes) will be                        Conversion
                                                    in the July 2014 final rule for water                   accepted. For detailed instructions on                    1. Consumer Water Heater Testing
                                                    heater basic models manufactured,                       submitting comments and additional                        2. Residential-Duty Commercial Water
                                                    tested and certified prior to the                                                                                    Heater Testing
                                                                                                            information on the rulemaking process,
                                                    compliance date of the amended test                                                                               E. Testing Results and Analysis of Test
                                                                                                            see section V of this document (Public                       Data
                                                    procedure. The amended test procedure                   Participation).                                           1. Impact of Certain Water Heater
                                                    applies to all covered consumer water                      Docket: The docket is available for                       Attributes on Efficiency Ratings
                                                    heaters and the covered commercial                      review at www.regulations.gov,                            2. Conversion Factor Derivation
                                                    water heating equipment with                            including Federal Register notices,                       3. Energy Conservation Standard
                                                    residential applications defined in the                 comments, and other supporting                               Derivation
                                                    July 2014 final rule as a ‘‘residential-                documents/materials. All documents in                     F. Certification and Labeling Issues
                                                    duty commercial water heater.’’ In                      the docket are listed in the                           IV. Procedural Issues and Regulatory Review
                                                    addition, this document proposes                                                                                  A. Review Under Executive Order 12866
                                                                                                            www.regulations.gov index. However,
                                                    amendments to the minimum energy                                                                                  B. Review Under the Regulatory Flexibility
                                                                                                            not all documents listed in the index                        Act
                                                    conservation standards for consumer                     may be publicly available, such as                        C. Review Under the Paperwork Reduction
                                                    water heaters and residential-duty                      information that is exempt from public                       Act of 1995
                                                    commercial water heaters to account for                 disclosure.                                               D. Review Under the National
                                                    the impact of the new metric, but does                     A link to the docket Web page can be                      Environmental Policy Act of 1969
                                                    not alter the stringency of the existing                found at: http://www.regulations.gov/                     E. Review Under Executive Order 13132
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                                                    energy conservation standards. While                    #!docketDetail;D=EERE-2015-BT-TP-                         F. Review Under Executive Order 12988
                                                    DOE has not planned a public meeting                    0007. This Web page contains a link to                    G. Review Under the Unfunded Mandates
                                                    to discuss this proposal, DOE is willing                                                                             Reform Act of 1995
                                                                                                            the docket for this notice of proposed
                                                    to consider a request to hold a meeting.                                                                          H. Review Under the Treasury and General
                                                                                                            rulemaking on the www.regulations.gov                        Government Appropriations Act, 1999
                                                    DATES: Comments: DOE will accept                        site. The www.regulations.gov Web page                    I. Review Under Executive Order 12630
                                                    comments, data, and information                         contains simple instructions on how to                    J. Review Under Treasury and General
                                                    regarding this notice of proposed                       access all documents, including public                       Government Appropriations Act, 2001
                                                    rulemaking (NOPR) no later than May                     comments, in the docket. See section V,                   K. Review Under Executive Order 13211



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                                                                                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                                       20117

                                                      L. Review Under Section 32 of the Federal                            and equipment comply with the                                               standards (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(4)(A)–(B)).
                                                         Energy Administration Act of 1974                                 applicable energy conservation                                              DOE notes that under 42 U.S.C.
                                                    V. Public Participation                                                standards adopted under EPCA, and for                                       6295(m), the agency must periodically
                                                      A. Submission of Comments
                                                                                                                           making other representations about the                                      review its already established energy
                                                      B. Issues on Which DOE Seeks Comment
                                                    VI. Approval of the Office of the Secretary                            efficiency of those products. (42 U.S.C.                                    conservation standards for a covered
                                                                                                                           6293(c); 42 U.S.C. 6295(s); 42 U.S.C.                                       product. Under this requirement, the
                                                    I. Authority and Background                                            6314) Similarly, DOE must use these                                         next review that DOE would need to
                                                       Title III Part B 1 of the Energy Policy                             test procedures to determine whether                                        conduct must occur no later than six
                                                    and Conservation Act of 1975 (‘‘EPCA’’                                 such products and equipment comply                                          years from the issuance of a final rule
                                                    or, ‘‘the Act’’), Public Law 94–163 (42                                with any relevant standards                                                 establishing or amending a standard for
                                                    U.S.C. 6291–6309, as codified) sets forth                              promulgated under EPCA. (42 U.S.C.                                          a covered product.
                                                    a variety of provisions designed to                                    6295(s))
                                                                                                                              EPCA, as codified, contains what is                                         On April 16, 2010, DOE published a
                                                    improve energy efficiency and
                                                                                                                           known as an ‘‘anti-backsliding’’                                            final rule (hereinafter referred to as the
                                                    established the Energy Conservation
                                                                                                                           provision, which prevents the Secretary                                     ‘‘April 2010 final rule’’) that amended
                                                    Program for Consumer Products Other
                                                    Than Automobiles.2 These include                                       from prescribing any amended standard                                       the energy conservation standards for all
                                                    consumer water heaters, one subject of                                 that either increases the maximum                                           classes of consumer water heaters,
                                                    this document. (42 U.S.C. 6292(a)(4))                                  allowable energy use or decreases the                                       except for tabletop and electric
                                                    Title III, Part C 3 of EPCA, Public Law                                minimum required energy efficiency of                                       instantaneous water heaters, for which
                                                    94–163 (42 U.S.C. 6311–6317, as                                        a covered product. (42 U.S.C.                                               the existing energy conservation
                                                    codified), added by Public Law 95–619,                                 6295(o)(1)) Also, the Secretary may not                                     standards were left in place. 75 FR
                                                    Title IV, Sec. 441(a), established the                                 prescribe an amended or new standard                                        20112. The standards adopted by the
                                                    Energy Conservation Program for                                        if interested persons have established by                                   April 2010 final rule are shown below
                                                    Certain Industrial Equipment, which                                    a preponderance of the evidence that                                        in Table I.1. These standards will apply
                                                    includes the commercial water heating                                  the standard is likely to result in the                                     to all water heater products listed in
                                                    equipment that is another subject of this                              unavailability in the United States of                                      Table I.1 and manufactured in, or
                                                    rulemaking. (42 U.S.C. 6311(1)(K))                                     any covered product type (or class) of                                      imported into, the United States on or
                                                       Under EPCA, energy conservation                                     performance characteristics (including                                      after April 16, 2015, for all classes,
                                                    programs generally consist of four parts:                              reliability), features, sizes, capacities,                                  except for tabletop and electric
                                                    (1) Testing; (2) labeling; (3) establishing                            and volumes that are substantially the                                      instantaneous. For these latter two
                                                    Federal energy conservation standards;                                 same as those generally available in the                                    classes, compliance with these
                                                    and (4) certification and enforcement                                  United States. (42 U.S.C. 6295(o)(4))                                       standards has been required since April
                                                    procedures. The testing requirements                                      EPCA prescribed energy conservation                                      15, 1991. 55 FR 42162 (Oct. 17, 1990).
                                                    consist of test procedures that                                        standards for consumer water heaters                                        Current energy conservation standards
                                                    manufacturers of covered products and                                  (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(1)), and directed DOE                                    for consumer water heaters can be found
                                                    equipment must use as the basis for                                    to conduct further rulemakings to                                           in DOE’s regulations at 10 CFR
                                                    certifying to DOE that their products                                  determine whether to amend these                                            430.32(d).

                                                                                    TABLE I.1—ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS FOR CONSUMER WATER HEATERS
                                                                     Product class                                                                   Rated storage volume ***                                                              Energy factor **

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ................................        ≥20 gal and ≤55 gal ........................................................................................            0.675¥(0.0015 × Vs)
                                                                                                              >55 gal and ≤100 gal .....................................................................................              0.8012¥(0.00078 × Vs)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ..................................      ≤50 gal ............................................................................................................    0.68¥(0.0019 × Vs)
                                                    Electric Storage ...................................      ≥20 gal and ≤55 gal ........................................................................................            0.96¥(0.0003 × Vs)
                                                                                                              >55 gal and ≤120 gal .....................................................................................              2.057¥(0.00113 × Vs)
                                                    Tabletop * ............................................   ≥20 gal and ≤120 gal ......................................................................................             0.93¥(0.00113 × Vs)
                                                    Gas-fired Instantaneous ......................            <2 gal ..............................................................................................................   0.82¥(0.0019 × Vs)
                                                    Electric Instantaneous * .......................          <2 gal ..............................................................................................................   0.93¥(0.00132 × Vs)
                                                      *Tabletop and electric instantaneous standards were not updated by the April 2010 final rule.
                                                      ** Vs is the ‘‘Rated Storage Volume’’ which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as specified by the manufacturer.
                                                      *** Rated Storage Volume limitations result from either a lack of test procedure coverage or from divisions created by DOE when adopting
                                                    standards. The division at 55 gallons for gas-fired and electric storage water heaters was established in the April 16, 2010 final rule amending
                                                    energy conservation standards. 75 FR 20112. The other storage volume limitations shown in this table are a result of test procedure applicability,
                                                    and are discussed in the July 2014 final rule. 79 FR 40542 (July 11, 2014).


                                                      The initial Federal energy                                           the efficiency levels contained in the                                      October 24, 1992, the Secretary must
                                                    conservation standards and test                                        American Society of Heating,                                                establish an amended uniform national
                                                    procedures for commercial water                                        Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning                                          standard at new minimum levels for
                                                    heating equipment were added to EPCA                                   Engineers (ASHRAE) Standard 90.1                                            each equipment type specified in
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                                                    as an amendment made by the Energy                                     (ASHRAE Standard 90.1) in effect on                                         ASHRAE Standard 90.1, unless DOE
                                                    Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT). (42 U.S.C.                                 October 24, 1992. The statute provided                                      determines, through a rulemaking
                                                    6313(a)(5)) These initial energy                                       that if the efficiency levels in ASHRAE                                     supported by clear and convincing
                                                    conservation standards corresponded to                                 Standard 90.1 were amended after                                            evidence, that national standards more
                                                      1 For editorial reasons, upon codification in the                      2 All references to EPCA in this document refer                             3 For editorial reasons, upon codification in the

                                                    U.S. Code, Part B was redesignated Part A.                             to the statute as amended through the American                              U.S. Code, Part C was redesignated Part A–1.
                                                                                                                           Energy Manufacturing Technical Corrections Act
                                                                                                                           (AEMTCA), Public Law 112–210 (Dec. 18, 2012).



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                                                    20118                        Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    stringent than the new minimum levels                           commercial water heating equipment on                                 ASHRAE Standard 90.1, as it was
                                                    would result in significant additional                          January 12, 2001 (hereinafter, the                                    revised in October 1999. 66 FR 3336.
                                                    energy savings and be technologically                           ‘‘January 2001 final rule’’), which                                   The current standards for commercial
                                                    feasible and economically justified. (42                        adopted the amended energy                                            water heating equipment are presented
                                                    U.S.C. 6313(a)(6)(A)(ii)(I)–(II)) DOE                           conservation standards at levels                                      in Table I.2 and may be found in DOE’s
                                                    issued the most recent final rule for                           equivalent to efficiency levels in                                    regulations at 10 CFR 431.110.

                                                                       TABLE I.2—ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS FOR COMMERCIAL WATER HEATING EQUIPMENT
                                                                                                                                                                                               Energy conservation standard *

                                                                                    Equipment                                                            Size                          Minimum ther-
                                                                                                                                                                                       mal efficiency       Maximum standby loss c
                                                                                                                                                                                            (%)

                                                    Electric storage water heaters ...............................................   All ...........................................             N/A    0.30 + 27/Vm (%/hr)
                                                    Gas-fired storage water heaters ............................................     ≤155,000 Btu/hr .....................                        80    Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
                                                                                                                                     >155,000 Btu/hr .....................                        80    Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
                                                    Oil-fired storage water heaters ..............................................   ≤155,000 Btu/hr .....................                        78    Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
                                                                                                                                     >155,000 Btu/hr .....................                        78    Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1, 2 (Btu/hr)
                                                    Gas-fired instantaneous water heaters and hot water supply                       <10 gal ...................................                  80    N/A
                                                     boilers **.
                                                                                                                                     ≥10 gal ...................................                  80    Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1,   2   (Btu/hr)
                                                    Oil-fired instantaneous water heaters and hot water supply                       <10 gal ...................................                  80    N/A
                                                      boilers **.
                                                                                                                                     ≥10 gal ...................................                  78    Q/800 + 110(Vr) 1,   2   (Btu/hr)

                                                                                    Equipment                                                            Size                                     Minimum thermal insulation

                                                    Unfired hot water storage tank ..............................................    All ...........................................                        R–12.5
                                                        * Vm is the measured storage volume, and Vr is the rated volume, both in gallons. Q is the nameplate input rate in Btu/hr.
                                                        ** For hot water supply boilers with a capacity of less than 10 gallons: (1) The standards are mandatory for products manufactured on and
                                                    after October 21, 2005, and (2) products manufactured prior to that date, and on or after October 23, 2003, must meet either the standards listed
                                                    in this table or the applicable standards in subpart E of this part for a ‘‘commercial packaged boiler.’’
                                                        *** Water heaters and hot water supply boilers having more than 140 gallons of storage capacity need not meet the standby loss requirement
                                                    if: (1) The tank surface area is thermally insulated to R–12.5 or more; (2) a standing pilot light is not used; and (3) for gas or oil-fired storage
                                                    water heaters, they have a fire damper or fan-assisted combustion.


                                                       On December 18, 2012, the American                           the test procedures and metrics                                          AEMTCA outlines DOE’s various
                                                    Energy Manufacturing Technical                                  currently in effect to the new uniform                                options for establishing a new uniform
                                                    Corrections Act (AEMTCA), Public Law                            energy descriptor. (42 U.S.C.                                         efficiency descriptor for water heaters.
                                                    112–210, was signed into law. In                                6295(e)(5)(E)(i)–(ii)) Consumer water                                 The options that AEMTCA provides to
                                                    relevant part, it amended EPCA to                               heaters and residential-duty commercial                               DOE include: (1) A revised version of
                                                    require that DOE publish a final rule                           water heaters manufactured prior to the                               the energy factor descriptor currently in
                                                    establishing a uniform efficiency                               effective date of the final rule (i.e., July                          use; (2) the thermal efficiency and
                                                    descriptor and accompanying test                                13, 2015) that comply with the                                        standby loss descriptors currently in
                                                    methods for covered consumer water                              efficiency standards and labeling                                     use; (3) a revised version of the thermal
                                                    heaters and commercial water heating                            requirements in effect prior to the final                             efficiency and standby loss descriptors;
                                                    equipment within one year of the                                rule shall be considered to comply with                               (4) a hybrid of descriptors; or (5) a new
                                                    enactment of AEMTCA. (42 U.S.C.                                 the final rule and with any revised                                   approach. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(G))
                                                    6295(e)(5)(B)) The final rule must                              labeling requirements established by the                              Lastly, AEMTCA requires that DOE
                                                    replace the current energy factor,                              Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to                                     invite stakeholders to participate in the
                                                    thermal efficiency, and standby loss                            carry out the final rule. (42 U.S.C.                                  rulemaking process, and that DOE
                                                    metrics with a uniform efficiency                                                                                                     contract with the National Institute of
                                                                                                                    6295(e)(5)(K))
                                                    descriptor. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(C)) The                                                                                             Standards and Technology (NIST), as
                                                    July 2014 final rule fulfilled these                               AEMTCA also requires that the                                      necessary, to conduct testing and
                                                    requirements. AEMTCA requires that,                             uniform efficiency descriptor and                                     simulation of alternative descriptors
                                                    beginning one year after the date of                            accompanying test method apply, to the                                identified for consideration. (42 U.S.C.
                                                    publication of DOE’s final rule                                 maximum extent practicable, to all                                    6295(e)(5)(I)–(J))
                                                    establishing the uniform descriptor (i.e.,                      water-heating technologies currently in                                  As noted previously, in the July 2014
                                                    July 13, 2015), the efficiency standards                        use and to future water-heating                                       final rule, DOE amended its test
                                                    for the consumer water heaters and                              technologies. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(H))                               procedure for consumer and certain
                                                    residential-duty commercial water                               AEMTCA allows DOE to provide an                                       commercial water heaters. 79 FR 40542
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                                                    heaters identified in the July 2014 final                       exclusion from the uniform efficiency                                 (July 11, 2014). The July 2014 final rule
                                                    rule must be denominated according to                           descriptor for specific categories of                                 for consumer and certain commercial
                                                    the uniform efficiency descriptor                               otherwise covered water heaters that do                               water heaters satisfied the AEMTCA
                                                    established in that final rule (42 U.S.C.                       not have residential uses, that can be                                requirements to develop a uniform
                                                    6295(e)(5)(D)), and that DOE must                               clearly described, and that are                                       efficiency descriptor to replace the
                                                    develop a mathematical conversion                               effectively rated using the current                                   existing energy factor, thermal
                                                    factor for converting the measurement of                        thermal efficiency and standby loss                                   efficiency and standby loss metrics. The
                                                    efficiency for those water heaters from                         descriptors. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(F))                                amended test procedure includes


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                                                                                   Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                              20119

                                                    provisions for determining the uniform                              July 2014 final rule. As discussed                                      not available for purchase on the
                                                    energy factor (UEF), as well as the                                 previously, the water heater test                                       market; these units are discussed in
                                                    annual energy consumption of these                                  procedure was updated to be more                                        section III.B. As there are no existing
                                                    products. Furthermore, the uniform                                  representative of conditions                                            water heaters in these product classes,
                                                    descriptor test procedure can be applied                            encountered in the field (including                                     and the purpose of the conversion factor
                                                    to: (1) Most consumer water heaters                                 modifications to both the test conditions                               is to convert the efficiency ratings of
                                                    (including certain consumer water                                   and the draw patterns) and to expand                                    existing water heaters, DOE did not
                                                    heaters that are covered products under                             the scope of the test procedure to apply                                include these water heaters in its
                                                    EPCA’s definition of ‘‘water heater’’ at                            to certain commercial and consumer                                      analysis for the mathematical
                                                    42 U.S.C. 6291(27), but that are not                                water heaters that are currently not                                    conversion factor.
                                                    addressed by the existing test method);                             addressed by the test procedure.                                           DOE selected 72 water heaters for
                                                    and (2) to commercial water heaters that                               The mathematical conversion factor
                                                                                                                                                                                                testing, including: 43 consumer storage
                                                    have residential applications. The major                            required by AEMTCA is a bridge
                                                                                                                                                                                                units, 22 consumer instantaneous units,
                                                    modifications to the existing DOE test                              between the efficiency ratings obtained
                                                                                                                                                                                                and 7 commercial residential-duty
                                                    procedure to establish the uniform                                  through testing under the existing test
                                                                                                                                                                                                storage units. Units were selected to
                                                    descriptor test method included the use                             procedures and those obtained under
                                                                                                                        the uniform efficiency descriptor test                                  represent the range of rated values
                                                    of multiple draw patterns and different                                                                                                     available on the market (i.e., storage
                                                    draw patterns, and changes to the set-                              procedure published in the July 2014
                                                                                                                        final rule. Therefore, the mathematical                                 volume, input rate, first-hour rating,
                                                    point temperature. In addition, DOE                                                                                                         maximum GPM, recovery efficiency,
                                                    expanded the scope of the test method                               conversion factor will only apply to
                                                                                                                        products and equipment covered by the                                   energy factor, thermal efficiency, and
                                                    to include test procedure provisions that                                                                                                   standby loss). DOE used data obtained
                                                    are applicable to water heaters with                                existing test procedure, as products and
                                                                                                                        equipment that are not covered by the                                   from testing, along with analytical
                                                    storage volumes between 2 gallons (7.6                                                                                                      methods described in section III.C, to
                                                    L) and 20 gallons (76 L), and to clarify                            existing test method would not have
                                                                                                                        ratings to be converted. Certain water                                  calculate the conversion factors
                                                    applicability to electric instantaneous                                                                                                     described in this document. DOE
                                                    water heaters. DOE also established a                               heater types are not covered by the
                                                                                                                        mathematical conversion factor, either                                  investigated several approaches to
                                                    new equipment class and corresponding                                                                                                       derive these conversion factors, which
                                                    definition for ‘‘residential-duty                                   because they are not covered by the
                                                                                                                        uniform efficiency descriptor                                           are discussed in detail in section III.C of
                                                    commercial water heater.’’                                                                                                                  this notice of proposed rulemaking.
                                                       This rulemaking will satisfy the                                 established by the July 2014 final rule
                                                                                                                        (e.g., commercial heat pump water                                       DOE developed different conversion
                                                    requirements of AEMTCA to develop a
                                                                                                                        heaters), or because they are not covered                               factors for determining first-hour rating,
                                                    mathematical conversion factor for
                                                                                                                        by DOE’s existing test procedure (e.g.,                                 maximum GPM, and UEF based on the
                                                    converting the measurement of
                                                                                                                        water heaters with storage volumes                                      existing ratings for consumer and
                                                    efficiency for covered water heaters
                                                                                                                        between 2 and 20 gallons). The water                                    residential-duty commercial water
                                                    from the test procedures and metrics
                                                                                                                        heater types that are and are not covered                               heaters, which can be found in section
                                                    currently in effect to the new uniform
                                                                                                                        by the mathematical conversion factor                                   III.E.
                                                    energy descriptor. (42 U.S.C.
                                                    6295(e)(5)(E))                                                      are discussed in detail in section III.B of                                DOE then used the conversion factors
                                                                                                                        this notice of proposed rulemaking.                                     to derive minimum energy conservation
                                                    II. Summary of the Notice of Proposed                                  To help develop the mathematical                                     standards based on the UEF, as shown
                                                    Rulemaking                                                          conversion factor, DOE conducted a                                      in Table II.1 and Table II.2. The
                                                       This notice of proposed rulemaking                               series of tests on the types of water                                   proposed standards based on UEF are
                                                    proposes to establish a mathematical                                heaters included within the scope of                                    neither more nor less stringent than the
                                                    conversion factor between the current                               this rulemaking (i.e., those described in                               existing standards for consumer water
                                                    rated values under the existing water                               section III.B and that pass the minimum                                 heaters based on energy factor (as
                                                    heaters test procedures (i.e., energy                               standards for consumer 4 and                                            amended by the April 2010 final rule)
                                                    factor, first-hour rating, maximum                                  commercial water heaters). An                                           and for commercial water-heating
                                                    gallons per minute (GPM) rating,                                    investigation of DOE’s Compliance                                       equipment based on the thermal
                                                    thermal efficiency, standby loss), and                              Certification Management System                                         efficiency and standby loss metrics. The
                                                    the amended test procedure for the                                  (CCMS) and the Air-Conditioning,                                        methodology for deriving the proposed
                                                    uniform efficiency descriptor (i.e., UEF                            Heating, and Refrigeration Institute’s                                  UEF standards is discussed in detail in
                                                    and first-hour rating or maximum GPM                                (AHRI) water-heating databases found                                    section III.E.3 of this notice of proposed
                                                    rating), which was established in the                               that certain types of water heaters are                                 rulemaking.

                                                                              TABLE II.1—PROPOSED CONSUMER WATER HEATER ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS
                                                                          Product class                                                 Rated storage volume                                      Draw pattern                Uniform energy factor *

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ............................................     ≥20 gal and ≤55 gal ........................................           Very Small ............        0.3263¥(0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                              Low .......................    0.5891¥(0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                              Medium .................       0.6326¥(0.0013   ×   Vr)
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                                                                                                                                                                                              High .......................   0.7128¥(0.0025   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                       >55 gal and ≤100 gal ......................................            Very Small ............        0.5352¥(0.0007   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                              Low .......................    0.7375¥(0.0009   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                              Medium .................       0.7704¥(0.0010   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                              High .......................   0.7980¥(0.0010   ×   Vr)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ..............................................   ≤50 gal ............................................................   Very Small ............        0.2267¥(0.0014   ×   Vr)

                                                      4 DOE published a final rule on April 16, 2010,                   conservation standards beginning on April 16,                           consumer water heaters on units that would comply
                                                    that will require compliance with amended energy                    2015. 75 FR 20112. DOE focused the testing of                           with the amended standards.



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                                                    20120                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                                     TABLE II.1—PROPOSED CONSUMER WATER HEATER ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS—Continued
                                                                            Product class                                                     Rated storage volume                                        Draw pattern                 Uniform energy factor *

                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.4867¥(0.0006     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.6016¥(0.0012     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.6529¥(0.0005     ×   Vr)
                                                    Electric Storage ...............................................        ≥20 gal and ≤55 gal ........................................             Very Small ............          0.8268¥(0.0002     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.9393¥(0.0004     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.9683¥(0.0007     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.9656¥(0.0004     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                            >55 gal and ≤120 gal ......................................              Very Small ............          1.2701¥(0.0011     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      1.9137¥(0.0011     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         2.0626¥(0.0011     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     2.1858¥(0.0011     ×   Vr)
                                                    Tabletop Storage .............................................          ≥20 gal and ≤100 gal ......................................              Very Small ............          0.6808¥(0.0022     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.8770¥(0.0012     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.9063¥(0.0009     ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.9302¥(0.0006     ×   Vr)
                                                    Gas-fired Instantaneous ..................................              <2 gal ..............................................................    All ..........................   0.8036¥(0.0019     ×   Vr)
                                                    Electric Instantaneous .....................................            <2 gal ..............................................................    All ..........................   0.9192¥(0.0013     ×   Vr)
                                                       * Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as specified by the manufacturer.

                                                             TABLE II.2—PROPOSED RESIDENTIAL-DUTY COMMERCIAL WATER HEATER ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS
                                                                                                                Product class                                                                             Draw pattern                  Uniform energy factor

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ..........................................................................................................................     Very Small ............          0.3261   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.5219   ¥   (0.0008   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.5585   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.6044   ¥   (0.0005   ×   Vr)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ............................................................................................................................   Very Small ............          0.3206   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.5577   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.6027   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.6446   ¥   (0.0018   ×   Vr)
                                                       *Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as specified by the manufacturer.


                                                       EPCA requires that a covered water                                     in 10 CFR part 429 from energy factor                                     in part 429 from thermal efficiency and
                                                    heater be considered to comply with the                                   to uniform energy factor using the                                        standby loss to uniform energy factor
                                                    July 2014 final rule on and after July 13,                                applicable mathematical conversion                                        using the applicable mathematical
                                                    2015 (the effective date of the July 2014                                 factor; or                                                                conversion factor; or
                                                    final rule) and with any revised labeling                                    (2) Conduct testing using the test                                        (2) Conduct testing using the test
                                                    requirements established by the Federal                                   procedure contained at Appendix E to                                      procedure at 10 CFR 431.106, effective
                                                    Trade Commission to carry out the July                                    subpart B of 10 CFR part 430, effective                                   July 13, 2015, along with the applicable
                                                    2014 final rule if the covered water                                      July 13, 2015, along with the applicable                                  sampling provisions in part 429; or
                                                    heater was manufactured prior to July                                     sampling provisions in 10 CFR part 429;                                      (3) Where permitted, apply an
                                                    13, 2015, and complied with the                                           or                                                                        alternative efficiency determination
                                                    efficiency standards and labeling                                            (3) Where permitted, apply an
                                                                                                                                                                                                        method (AEDM) pursuant to 10 CFR
                                                    requirements in effect prior to July 13,                                  alternative efficiency determination
                                                                                                                                                                                                        429.70 to determine the represented
                                                    2015. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(K)) Upon the                                  method (AEDM) pursuant to 10 CFR
                                                                                                                                                                                                        efficiency of basic models for those
                                                    effective date of the final rule                                          429.70 to determine the represented
                                                                                                                              efficiency of basic models for those                                      categories of commercial water heaters
                                                    establishing the mathematical                                                                                                                       where the ‘‘tested basic model’’ was
                                                    conversion factor (this rulemaking),                                      categories of consumer water heaters
                                                                                                                              where the ‘‘tested basic model’’ was                                      tested using the test procedure at 10
                                                    compliance with energy conservation                                                                                                                 CFR 431.106, effective July 13, 2015.
                                                    standards will be exclusively                                             tested using the test procedure
                                                                                                                              contained at Appendix E to subpart B of                                      After July 13, 2015, all new basic
                                                    determined based on the standards as                                                                                                                models (previously uncertified) must be
                                                    defined in terms of UEF, which will be                                    10 CFR part 430, effective July 13, 2015.
                                                                                                                                 Similarly, DOE has tentatively                                         rated using the new test procedure
                                                    established by this rulemaking. DOE has                                                                                                             either by testing or by an AEDM, where
                                                                                                                              concluded that there will be three
                                                    tentatively concluded that there will be                                                                                                            allowed. All water heaters subject to the
                                                                                                                              possible compliance paths available to
                                                    three possible compliance paths                                                                                                                     new test procedure adopted by the July
                                                                                                                              manufacturers for basic models of
                                                    available to manufacturers for basic                                                                                                                2014 final rule must be rated and
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                                                                                                                              commercial residential-duty water
                                                    models of consumer water heaters that                                     heaters that were certified before July                                   certified in terms of UEF. DOE will
                                                    were certified before July 13, 2015:                                      13, 2015:                                                                 assess compliance based upon the
                                                       (1) Convert the certified rating for                                      (1) Convert the certified rating for                                   energy conservation standards
                                                    energy factor obtained using the test                                     thermal efficiency and standby loss                                       expressed in terms of UEF as developed
                                                    procedure contained in Appendix E to                                      obtained using the test procedure                                         in this rulemaking. One year after the
                                                    subpart B of 10 CFR part 430 of the                                       contained in 10 CFR 431.106 of the                                        final rule in this rulemaking is
                                                    January 1, 2015 edition of the CFR along                                  January 1, 2015 edition of the CFR along                                  published, all water heaters subject to
                                                    with the applicable sampling provisions                                   with the applicable sampling provisions                                   the new UEF test procedure must be


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                                                                              Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                20121

                                                    rated and certified based on testing                        procedure, where allowed. A summary                                  various key dates is shown in the table
                                                    using the UEF test procedure or an                          of the options and requirements at                                   below.
                                                    AEDM, which is based on the UEF test

                                                                                                TABLE II.3—SUMMARY OF KEY DATES AND REQUIREMENTS
                                                                     Description of date                                                      Date                                                    Requirements

                                                    Test Procedure Effective Date ...........................    July 13, 2015 ...................................................   For new basic models introduced into com-
                                                                                                                                                                                       merce on or after July 13, 2015, manufac-
                                                                                                                                                                                       turers must begin to test and represent effi-
                                                                                                                                                                                       ciency using the UEF metric pursuant to the
                                                                                                                                                                                       UEF test procedure and sampling plan (or
                                                                                                                                                                                       an AEDM that is based on the UEF test
                                                                                                                                                                                       procedure, where allowed).
                                                    Conversion Factor Effective Date ......................      Date of publication of the conversion factor                        For basic models certified using the EF metric
                                                                                                                   final rule in the Federal Register.                                 or thermal efficiency and/or standby loss
                                                                                                                                                                                       metrics prior to July 13, 2015, manufactur-
                                                                                                                                                                                       ers must transition all of their representa-
                                                                                                                                                                                       tions to UEF either by applying the conver-
                                                                                                                                                                                       sion equations or by using the UEF test
                                                                                                                                                                                       procedure and sampling plan (or an AEDM
                                                                                                                                                                                       that is based on the UEF test procedure,
                                                                                                                                                                                       where allowed).
                                                    Conversion Factor Ending Date .........................      One year after publication of conversion factor                     All basic models must be rated in terms of
                                                                                                                  final rule.                                                          UEF using the UEF test procedure and
                                                                                                                                                                                       sampling plan or an AEDM that is based on
                                                                                                                                                                                       the UEF test procedure, where allowed.



                                                    III. Discussion                                                NREL stated that there is not a simple                            A.O. Smith, EERE–2011–BT–TP–0042–
                                                                                                                conversion factor that will work across                              0034 at p. 3) NEEA commented that
                                                    A. Stakeholder Comments on Other
                                                                                                                all systems, but suggested an                                        considering the limited laboratory
                                                    Rulemakings
                                                                                                                application of the Water Heater Analysis                             capacity to test all water heaters under
                                                      During the rulemaking process to                          Model (WHAM) 7 to assist DOE in                                      the revised method of test, DOE should
                                                    develop the uniform efficiency                              developing the conversion factor for                                 assume that all water heaters that
                                                    descriptor test procedure, comments                         storage water heaters. (NREL, EERE–                                  comply with current standards will also
                                                    were received from stakeholders in                          2011–BT–TP–0042–0029 at p. 4) The                                    comply after the implementation of the
                                                    reference to the derivation and                             joint commenters supported the use of                                new metrics. (NEEA, EERE–2011–BT–
                                                    applicability of the conversion factor.                     a ‘‘good-enough’’ mathematical                                       TP–0042–0037 at p. 6) EEI commented
                                                    DOE deferred discussion of and                              conversion method to express existing                                that the conversion factor should not
                                                    response to those comments until such                       ratings in terms of the new uniform                                  make currently existing standards more
                                                    time as they could be addressed in this                     descriptor and urged DOE to test a                                   stringent and should only be based on
                                                    rulemaking.                                                 sample of existing products to validate                              point-of-use metrics to be consistent
                                                      In response to the test procedure                         the algorithmic conversion method.                                   with Federal law. (EEI, EERE–2011–BT–
                                                    request for information (RFI 5) published                   (Joint comment, EERE–2011–BT–TP–                                     TP–0042–0040 at p. 2)
                                                    on January 11, 2013, DOE received                           0042–0035 at p. 4) HTP commented that                                   In response to the test procedure
                                                    seven written comments related to the                       the most exact approach would be to                                  NOPR 8 published on November 4, 2013,
                                                    conversion factor from the following                        conduct an empirical analysis using                                  DOE received three additional written
                                                    interested parties: AHRI, A.O. Smith                        curve fitting to actual test data, although                          comments related to the conversion
                                                    Corporation (A.O. Smith), Edison                            the commenter acknowledged that there                                factor from: AHRI, Bradford White
                                                    Electric Institute (EEI), Heat Transfer                     is not sufficient time for manufacturers                             Corporation (BWC) and a joint comment
                                                    Products Inc. (HTP), the National                           to obtain this information and for the                               submitted on behalf of a number of
                                                    Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL),                         Department to then correlate and                                     environmental groups and efficiency
                                                    the Northwest Energy Efficiency                             analyze the data. (HTP, EERE–2011–BT–                                advocates by ACEEE.9 AHRI and BWC
                                                    Alliance (NEEA), and a joint comment                        TP–0042–0041 at p. 3)                                                suggested model types to test and urged
                                                    on behalf of a number of environmental                         Regarding the derivation of updated                               DOE to release a schedule and process
                                                    groups and efficiency advocates                             energy conservation standards using the                              for the development of the conversion
                                                    submitted by the American Council for                       new uniform descriptor, AHRI and A.O.                                factor as soon as possible. (AHRI, EERE–
                                                    an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).6                       Smith commented that DOE should not                                  2011–BT–TP–0042–0075 at p. 6–7;
                                                    These comments are discussed                                simply test multiple units to determine                              BWC, EERE–2011–BT–TP–0042–0061 at
                                                    immediately below.                                          an average difference between the                                    p. 7) AHRI suggested two categories to
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                                                                                                                current and new ratings and use that                                 be considered in the conversion factor
                                                      5 78FR 2340.                                              value to convert the ratings. (AHRI,                                 rulemaking: water heater type and
                                                      6 ACEEE  submitted a joint comment on behalf of           EERE–2011–BT–TP–0042–0033 at p. 4;                                   storage volume. BWC expanded on the
                                                    ACEEE, the Appliance Standards Awareness Project
                                                    (ASAP), the Alliance to Save Energy (ASE), the                7 Lutz, Jim, Camilla D. Whitehead, Alex Lekov,
                                                                                                                                                                                     list of categories supplied by AHRI by
                                                    National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), the                    David Winiarski, and Greg Rosenquist, WHAM: A
                                                                                                                                                                                      8 78FR 66202.
                                                    National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the              Simplified Energy Consumption Equation for Water
                                                    Northwest Power and Conservation Council                    Heaters, Proc. of 1998 ACEEE Summer Study on                          9 ACEEE submitted a joint comment on behalf of
                                                    (NPCC), and the Northeast Energy Efficiency                 Energy Efficiency in Buildings. Vol. 1. 171–83.                      ACEEE, ASAP, ASE, Consumers Union (CU), NCLC,
                                                    Partnerships (NEEP).                                        Print.                                                               NRDC and NEEP.



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                                                    20122                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    including considerations for input                      response to the November 2013 water                       In the July 2014 final rule, DOE
                                                    capacity, venting options, tank                         heaters NOPR (78 FR 66202 (Nov. 4,                     expanded the scope of the water heater
                                                    configuration, NOX emissions, and                       2013)). The models selected for testing                test procedure for the uniform efficiency
                                                    mobile home certification. The joint                    and the parameters examined are                        descriptor to include water heaters with
                                                    comment suggested that the sensitivity                  described in more detail in section III.D.             storage volumes between 2 and 20
                                                    of the energy factor to draw pattern be                 These test data were used to investigate               gallons and up to 120 gallons. 79 FR
                                                    investigated and that systematic                        all of the potential conversion factor                 40542, 40547–48 (July 11, 2014).
                                                    differences between ‘‘old’’ and ‘‘new’’                 methods described in section III.C.                       DOE’s current consumer water heater
                                                    values should be expected for several                      DOE has also carefully considered the               test procedure and energy conservation
                                                    technologies. (Joint Comment, EERE–                     comments regarding the establishment                   standards are not applicable to gas-fired
                                                    2011–BT–TP–0042–0077 at p. 2)                           of energy conservation standards using                 instantaneous water heaters with input
                                                       DOE has considered these comments                    the uniform efficiency descriptor metric               capacities at or below 50,000 Btu/h or
                                                    fully in the development of this                        (i.e., UEF). Those comments are                        at or above 200,000 Btu/h. 10 CFR part
                                                    proposed rule. Although discussed in                    discussed further in section III.E.3.                  430, subpart B, appendix E, section
                                                    overview here, these comments are                                                                              1.7.2. In addition, the existing test
                                                    discussed in more detail later in this                  B. Scope                                               procedure and energy conservation
                                                    document as applicable to DOE’s                            The purpose of this section is to                   standards are not applicable to gas-fired
                                                    specific decisions regarding the                        describe DOE’s process for categorizing                storage water heaters with input
                                                    mathematical conversion factor. In                      water heaters and establishing the range               capacities above 75,000 Btu/h, electric
                                                    regards to the method of developing the                 of units to be considered in this                      storage water heaters with input ratings
                                                    conversion factor, DOE agrees in                        mathematical conversion factor                         above 12 kW, and oil-fired storage water
                                                    principle with the HTP comment that                     rulemaking. DOE seeks comment on the                   heaters with input ratings above 105,000
                                                    the most exact approach would be an                                                                            Btu/h, as models exceeding those limits
                                                                                                            scope of the conversion factor. This is
                                                    empirical analysis using a curve-fitting                                                                       would not be classified as consumer
                                                                                                            identified as issue 1 in section V.E,
                                                    method and actual test data, because                                                                           water heaters under EPCA. (42 U.S.C.
                                                                                                            ‘‘Issues on Which DOE Seeks
                                                    such approach would account for all the                                                                        6291(27)); 10 CFR part 430, subpart B,
                                                                                                            Comment.’’
                                                    changes made in the new test                                                                                   appendix E, sections 1.12.1, 1.12.2, and
                                                    procedure, without having to make                       1. Test Procedure and Energy                           1.12.4.
                                                    assumptions. However, DOE notes that                    Conservation Standards Coverage                           In the July 2014 final rule, DOE
                                                    the confidence in this empirical
                                                                                                              To determine the appropriate scope of                designed the test procedure so it is
                                                    approach is dependent upon sample
                                                                                                            coverage for the mathematical                          applicable to water heaters with any
                                                    size and has considered whether the
                                                                                                            conversion factor, DOE first considered                input capacity. Therefore, the lower
                                                    approach can feasibly be tested and
                                                                                                            the scope of its existing test procedures              limit for instantaneous water heaters no
                                                    implemented within the time
                                                                                                            and energy conservation standards for                  longer applies. 79 FR 40542, 40548 (July
                                                    constraints set forth by AEMTCA. (The
                                                                                                            consumer and commercial water                          11, 2014).
                                                    curve-fitting method investigated is
                                                    discussed in section III.C.3.)                          heaters. Water heaters that are not                       As discussed in the July 2014 final
                                                       In addition, as suggested by NREL,                   currently subject to the DOE test                      rule, definitions were added for
                                                    DOE investigated the use of the WHAM                    procedures or standards were not                       ‘‘electric instantaneous water heater,’’
                                                    model to predict water heater efficiency                included in the scope of the conversion                ‘‘gas-fired heat pump water heater,’’ and
                                                    under the new test procedure                            factor, as they are not required to be                 ‘‘oil-fired instantaneous water heater,’’
                                                    parameters, and used the results in the                 tested and rated for efficiency under the              and the July 2014 test procedure is
                                                    conversion factor analysis. The                         DOE test method.                                       applicable to these types of appliances.
                                                    methodology for applying WHAM and                                                                              79 FR 40542, 40549 (July 11, 2014).
                                                                                                            a. Consumer Water Heaters
                                                    the results are found in section III.C.2.c.                                                                       Although there is no definition for
                                                    As suggested in the NOPR joint                             Under the existing regulatory                       ‘‘electric instantaneous water heater’’ in
                                                    comment, the sensitivity of the UEF to                  definitions, DOE’s current consumer                    the current test procedure in 10 CFR
                                                    draw pattern was investigated by                        water heater test procedures and energy                part 430, subpart B, Appendix E, an
                                                    including the drawn volume in the                       conservation standards are not                         energy conservation standard exists for
                                                    conversion factor calculations; this                    applicable to gas or electric water                    this type of water heater. In addition,
                                                    approach is discussed further in section                heaters with storage tanks that are at or              the current test procedure can be
                                                    III.C.                                                  above 2 gallons (7.6 L) and less than 20               applied to electric instantaneous water
                                                       In an effort to develop a mathematical               gallons (76 L). In terms of the high end               heaters, and manufacturers report
                                                    conversion factor, DOE commissioned                     of the capacity range, the current DOE                 energy factor ratings for these products.
                                                    testing of 72 individual water heaters                  test procedure for consumer water                      For these reasons, DOE has decided to
                                                    from various easily distinguishable                     heaters only applies to gas-fired water                include electric instantaneous water
                                                    water-heating categories under the                      heaters with storage volumes less than                 heaters with rated storage volumes <2
                                                    updated test procedure. All of the water                or equal to 100 gallons (380 L), electric              gallons and rated inputs ≤12 kW in the
                                                    heaters chosen were found using either                  resistance and heat pump storage water                 conversion factor analysis.
                                                    the Compliance Certification                            heaters with storage volumes less than                    DOE has tentatively excluded the
                                                    Management System (CCMS) or AHRI                        or equal to 120 gallons (450 L), and oil-              consumer water heater products listed
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                                                    water heater databases, where the water                 fired water heaters with storage volumes               in Table III.1 from consideration for the
                                                    heaters included in the databases were                  less than or equal to 50 gallons (190 L).              mathematical conversion factor due to
                                                    further distinguished based on the                      10 CFR part 430, subpart B, appendix E,                the lack of an existing Federal test
                                                    suggestions made by AHRI and BWC in                     sections 1.12.1, 1.12.2, and 1.12.4.                   procedure and rating to be converted.




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                                                                                      Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                      20123

                                                                    TABLE III.1—CONSUMER WATER HEATERS NOT COVERED BY THE MATHEMATICAL CONVERSION FACTOR
                                                                                                Product class                                                           Description of criteria for exclusion from conversion rulemaking

                                                    Gas-fired Storage .....................................................................................         Rated   Storage Volume ≥2 gal and <20 gal or >100 gal and ≤120 gal.
                                                    Oil-fired Storage .......................................................................................       Rated   Storage Volume >50 gal.
                                                    Electric Storage ........................................................................................       Rated   Storage Volume ≥2 gal and <20 gal.
                                                    Tabletop ....................................................................................................   Rated   Storage Volume ≥2 gal and <20 gal.
                                                    Gas-fired Instantaneous ...........................................................................             Rated   Input ≤ 50,000 Btu/h; Rated Storage Volume >2 gal.
                                                    Electric Instantaneous ..............................................................................           Rated   Storage Volume >2 gal.



                                                    b. Commercial Water Heaters                                               the uniform efficiency descriptor, and                          distinguish residential-duty commercial
                                                                                                                              distinguished them from water heaters                           water heaters from other commercial
                                                       As stated in the July 2014 final rule,                                 that do not meet the criteria by                                water heaters (79 FR 40542, 40547 (July
                                                    DOE excluded from the uniform                                             establishing equipment classes for                              11, 2014)):
                                                    efficiency descriptor any specific                                        residential-duty commercial water                                 (1) For models requiring electricity,
                                                    category of water heater that does not                                    heaters. Commercial water heaters                               uses single-phase external power
                                                    have a residential use, can be clearly                                    meeting the definition of ‘‘residential-                        supply;
                                                    described, and can be effectively rated                                   duty commercial water heater’’ do not                             (2) Is not designed to provide outlet
                                                    using the current thermal efficiency and                                  meet the criteria for exclusion, and thus,                      hot water at temperatures greater than
                                                    standby loss descriptors. 79 FR 40542,                                    are included in the uniform efficiency                          180 °F; and
                                                    40545 (July 11, 2014). DOE determined                                     descriptor while all other commercial                             (3) Is not excluded by the limitations
                                                    that certain commercial water heaters                                     water heaters are not. DOE determined                           regarding rated input and storage
                                                    met these criteria to be excluded from                                    that three criteria would be used to                            volume presented in Table III.2.

                                                     TABLE III.2—CAPACITY LIMITATIONS FOR DEFINING COMMERCIAL WATER HEATERS WITHOUT RESIDENTIAL APPLICATIONS
                                                                                             (i.e., NON-RESIDENTIAL-DUTY)
                                                                                            Water heater type                                                                         Indicator of non-residential application

                                                    Gas-fired Storage .....................................................................................         Rated input >105 kBtu/h; Rated storage volume >120 gallons.
                                                    Oil-fired Storage .......................................................................................       Rated input >140 kBtu/h; Rated storage volume >120 gallons.
                                                    Electric Storage ........................................................................................       Rated input >12 kW; Rated storage volume >120 gallons.
                                                    Heat Pump with Storage ..........................................................................               Rated input >15 kW; Rated current >24 A at a rated voltage of not
                                                                                                                                                                      greater than 250 V; Rated storage volume >120 gallons.
                                                    Gas-fired Instantaneous ...........................................................................             Rated input >200 kBtu/h; Rated storage volume >2 gallons.
                                                    Electric Instantaneous ..............................................................................           Rated input >58.6 kW; Rated storage volume >2 gallons.
                                                    Oil-fired Instantaneous .............................................................................           Rated input >210 kBtu/h; Rated storage volume >2 gallons.



                                                      DOE did not include commercial                                            As stated in the July 2014 final rule,                        database were examined to select
                                                    water-heating equipment that does not                                     DOE has determined that certain                                 representative units for testing and
                                                    meet the definition of a ‘‘residential-                                   commercial equipment including                                  analysis.
                                                    duty commercial water heater’’ in its                                     unfired storage tanks, add-on heat pump                            DOE’s analysis focused on the models
                                                    consideration of the mathematical                                         water heaters, and hot water supply                             that meet the energy conservation
                                                    conversion factor, as the equipment is                                    boilers are not appropriately rated using                       standards contained in the April 2010
                                                    not subject to the uniform efficiency                                     the uniform descriptor applicable to                            final rule, which will require
                                                    descriptor test procedure. Additionally,                                  other water heaters, and, thus, will                            compliance on April 16, 2015. The
                                                                                                                              continue to be rated using the existing                         storage volume divisions at 55 gallons
                                                    DOE notes that there are no electric
                                                                                                                              metrics. 79 FR 40542, 40547.                                    in the gas-fired and electric storage
                                                    storage water heaters that would be
                                                                                                                                Electric instantaneous water heaters                          product classes, as established in the
                                                    considered to be residential-duty                                         are currently subject to the commercial                         April 16, 2010 final rule, represent a
                                                    commercial since the qualifications                                       water heating equipment test                                    divide in technology. For gas-fired
                                                    shown in Table II.2 would place an                                        procedures but do not have an                                   storage units above 55 gallons
                                                    electric storage water heater in the                                      associated energy conservation                                  manufactured on and after April 16,
                                                    consumer category. Since there are no                                     standard. 10 CFR 431.106; 10 CFR                                2015, the energy conservation standard
                                                    such units, and could not be such units                                   431.110. Because there is no commercial                         will be high enough that current designs
                                                    under the applicable definition, a                                        energy conservation standard for                                can only achieve the required efficiency
                                                    conversion is unnecessary. DOE is,                                        electric instantaneous water heaters, a                         through the use of condensing
                                                    therefore, not proposing a conversion                                     conversion to the UEF cannot be made.                           technology.10 For electric storage units
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                                                    factor for residential-duty electric                                                                                                      with storage volumes above 55 gallons,
                                                                                                                              2. Units on the Market
                                                    storage water heaters. DOE also notes                                                                                                     only heat pump water heaters currently
                                                    that a water heater that meets the                                           As stated in section II, DOE undertook
                                                    definition of a consumer electric storage                                 an investigation into the water-heating                           10 In a condensing water heater, the combustion

                                                    water heater must be tested and rated as                                  units on the market at the time of the                          gases are cooled such that the temperature is
                                                                                                                              publication of the final rule establishing                      reduced below the dew point and condensation
                                                    a consumer electric storage water heater                                                                                                  occurs, allowing the latent heat of vaporization to
                                                    even if it is marketed as part of a                                       the UEF test procedure. The AHRI                                be captured and improving the efficiency of the
                                                                                                                              commercial water heater database along                          heat exchange between the combustion gases and
                                                    commercial product line.
                                                                                                                              with the CCMS consumer water heater                             the water.



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                                                    20124                            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    have the ability to reach the April 16,                           ‘‘residential-duty commercial water                            first-hour rating and maximum GPM
                                                    2015 energy conservation standard                                 heater’’ exist, however, as stated in                          tests, respectively. These tests are
                                                    levels. While the UEF test procedure                              section III.B.1.b, no energy conservation                      largely unchanged from the current to
                                                    will apply to both electric and gas units                         standard exists for these units; therefore                     the new test procedure, except for
                                                    in this range, DOE found that for gas-                            a conversion factor was not developed.                         modifications to account for the
                                                    fired storage water heaters, there are                               Consequently, none of the commercial                        decrease in delivered water temperature
                                                    currently no consumer water heaters                               water heaters identified above could be                        from a nominal value of 135 °F to 125
                                                    above 55 gallons that would be                                    tested or examined for use in this                             °F. The results of those tests, however,
                                                    compliant with the updated standard, so                           rulemaking. In addition, a conversion                          have implications on the 24-hour
                                                    no units were tested for development of                           factor for these water heaters is not                          simulated-use test under the new test
                                                    a conversion factor. For electric storage                         needed because there are no units in                           procedure that are absent under the
                                                    water heaters, heat pump water heaters                            existence with efficiency ratings that                         current test procedure.
                                                    meet or exceed the amended energy                                 can be converted. However, because a                              In the current test procedure, the
                                                    conservation standards and, thus, were                            manufacturer may want to design and                            delivery capacity has no effect on the
                                                    candidates for inclusion in the test plan                         produce products in these equipment                            24-hour simulated-use test, which
                                                    for the conversion factor. There are no                           classes in the future, DOE must                                consists of six hot water draws, of
                                                    oil-fired instantaneous or oil-fired                              establish energy conservation standards                        equivalent volumes, at the start of the
                                                    storage water heaters above 50 gallons                            in terms of the UEF metric. Accordingly,                       test and each of the first five subsequent
                                                    available on the market.                                          DOE used information gained from                               hours. The water heater is then in
                                                       In reviewing the commercial water                              other product classes to establish these                       standby mode for the remainder of the
                                                    heating market, DOE found that                                    energy conservation standards, as                              test. In the July 2014 final rule,
                                                    commercial oil-fired instantaneous                                discussed in section III.E.                                    however, the delivery capacity
                                                    water heaters are available on the                                                                                               determines the draw pattern for the 24-
                                                    market but do not meet the definition of                          C. Potential Approaches for Developing                         hour simulated-use test. According to
                                                    ‘‘residential-duty commercial water                               Conversions                                                    the new test procedure, a water heater’s
                                                    heater,’’ as they have storage volumes                            1. Background Regarding Changes to                             delivery capacity can be categorized as
                                                    greater than 2 gallons. DOE found that                            Existing Test Procedures                                       either very small, low, medium, or high;
                                                    all commercial gas-fired instantaneous                                                                                           these usages are shown below in Table
                                                                                                                      a. Consumer Water Heater Test
                                                    units exceeded the maximum delivery                                                                                              III.3. 79 FR 40542, 40572 (July 11, 2014).
                                                                                                                      Procedures
                                                    temperature of 180 °F for residential-                                                                                           These usage categories have an
                                                    duty commercial water heaters, and,                                 Both the current test procedure and                          associated draw pattern prescribed to
                                                    thus, would be regulated using the                                the uniform efficiency descriptor test                         them during the 24-hour simulated-use.
                                                    existing thermal efficiency and standby                           procedure consist of a delivery capacity                       Depending on the delivery capacity
                                                    loss metrics. DOE also found that                                 test and a 24-hour simulated-use test.                         associated with a water heater, between
                                                    commercial electric instantaneous units                           The delivery capacity tests for storage                        9 and 14 hot water draws of various
                                                    which meet the definition of                                      and instantaneous water heaters are the                        volumes and flow rates are required.

                                                                                                       TABLE III.3—DELIVERY CAPACITY CATEGORIZATION CRITERIA
                                                                                                                 First-Hour Rating, gal                                         Maximum GPM, gpm                                        Drawn
                                                                Draw Pattern                                                                                                                                                          Volume, gal
                                                                                                          ≥                                <                               ≥                              <

                                                    Very Small .............................                      0   18 ..........................................            0     1.7 .........................................              10
                                                    Low ........................................                 18   51 ..........................................            1.7   2.8 .........................................              38
                                                    Medium ..................................                    51   75 ..........................................            2.8   4 ............................................             55
                                                    High .......................................                 75   No upper limit .......................                   4     No upper limit .......................                     84



                                                      In the existing DOE consumer water                              b. Commercial Water Heater Test                                   Under the uniform efficiency
                                                    heater test procedure, a temperature of                           Procedure                                                      descriptor test procedure, commercial
                                                    135 °F ± 5 °F is used for the set-point                                                                                          water heaters falling under the
                                                    temperature for storage water heaters                                The current test procedure for rating                       ‘‘residential-duty’’ category will now be
                                                    (measured as the mean tank                                        commercial water heaters consists of a                         subject to the first-hour rating or
                                                    temperature) and the delivery                                     steady-state test to determine thermal                         maximum GPM test and simulated-use
                                                    temperature for instantaneous water                               efficiency and a test lasting between 24                       tests specified in the previous section
                                                    heaters. In the uniform efficiency                                and 48 hours to measure the standby                            (III.C.1.a), with the same set-point
                                                    descriptor test procedure set forth in the                        loss. 77 FR 28996 (May 16, 2012); 10                           temperature, ambient temperature, and
                                                    July 2014 final rule, a temperature of                            CFR 431.106. For electric resistance                           inlet water temperature as is applied to
                                                    125 °F ± 5 °F is used for the set-point                           water heaters, the thermal efficiency is                       consumer water heaters.
                                                                                                                      assigned a value of 98 percent in lieu of
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                                                    temperature for storage water heaters                                                                                            2. Analytical Methods
                                                                                                                      testing. The set-point temperature of the
                                                    (measured as the delivery temperature)
                                                                                                                      water heater is 140 °F ± 5 °F, and the                           For converting existing ratings to
                                                    and the delivery temperature of
                                                                                                                      unit sits in an environment with an                            ratings under the uniform efficiency
                                                    instantaneous water heaters. 79 FR
                                                                                                                      ambient temperature of 75 °F ± 10 °F.                          descriptor test method, DOE considered
                                                    40542, 40554 (July 11, 2014).
                                                                                                                      Water is supplied to the water heater at                       equations based on a water heater’s
                                                                                                                      a temperature of 70 °F ± 2 °F.                                 physical characteristics; these
                                                                                                                      Instantaneous water heaters are not                            approaches will be termed analytical
                                                                                                                      required to undergo a standby loss test.                       methods. The sections below describe


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                                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                           20125

                                                    potential analytical methods for the                    a. Maximum GPM                                         where V̇ is the volumetric flow rate of
                                                    three key metrics that result from the                     For flow-activated water heaters, the               water, Q is the firing rate, hr is the
                                                    uniform efficiency descriptor test                      delivery capacity is determined by the                 recovery efficiency, r is the density of
                                                    method: (1) The maximum GPM; (2) the                    10-minute maximum GPM rating test.                     the delivered water, cp is the specific
                                                    first-hour rating; and (3) the UEF. In the              During this test, the water heater runs at             heat of the delivered water, Tdel is the
                                                    discussion immediately below, DOE                       maximum firing rate to raise the                       delivered water temperature, and Tin is
                                                    introduces key factors that it expects                  temperature from its nominal value of                  the inlet water temperature. If it is
                                                    will change ratings from the existing                   58 °F to the prescribed delivery                       assumed that the firing rate and
                                                    consumer and commercial water heater                    temperature. This flow rate is                         recovery efficiency are the same with
                                                    test procedures to the new uniform                      determined by the following equation:                  water delivered at 125 °F and 135 °F,
                                                    efficiency descriptor test procedure.                                                                          then the ratio of the maximum GPM at
                                                                                                                                                                   125 °F versus that at 135 °F is
                                                                                                                                                                   determined by the following equation:




                                                       Therefore, an analytical conversion                  draw, and the test is concluded upon                   standby loss for residential-duty
                                                    from the existing maximum GPM rating                    termination of that draw.                              commercial storage water heaters to a
                                                    (V̇ex) for consumer water heaters to the                   In the uniform efficiency descriptor                first-hour rating. Therefore, DOE chose
                                                    rating under the test conditions in the                 test procedure, the primary change that                an approach based on empirical
                                                    uniform efficiency descriptor test                      will affect the first-hour rating is the               regression for converting existing ratings
                                                    method (V̇UED) is:                                      shift from a nominal delivery                          of residential-duty commercial water
                                                    V̇UED = 1.147V̇ex                                       temperature of 135 °F to 125 °F and the                heaters to first-hour ratings.
                                                                                                            accompanying adjustment to the draw
                                                       As discussed in detail in section                    termination criterion to a decrease in                 c. Uniform Energy Factor
                                                    III.E.2, tests on flow-activated water                  delivered water temperature from 25 °F
                                                    heaters showed a change in maximum                      in the current consumer water heater                      A number of changes to the 24-hour
                                                    GPM rating under the uniform                            test method to 15 °F in the uniform                    simulated-use test will alter the water
                                                    efficiency descriptor test method that                  efficiency descriptor test method.                     heater energy efficiency ratings from the
                                                    correlated well with the above equation.                Because the initial set-point temperature              existing water heater test procedures as
                                                    b. First-Hour Rating                                    is reduced in the uniform efficiency                   compared to the ratings obtained under
                                                                                                            descriptor as compared to the existing                 the uniform efficiency descriptor test
                                                       For water heaters that have a heat                   consumer water heater test procedure,                  method. Among the key changes that are
                                                    source controlled by means other than                   less stored thermal energy will be                     expected to alter the efficiency metric
                                                    sensing flow (e.g., thermostatically-                   available at the start of the test.                    for consumer water heaters are: (1) A
                                                    controlled), the delivery capacity is                   However, this effect is countered                      different volume of water withdrawn
                                                    determined through a first-hour rating                  because the lower set-point temperature                per test; (2) a change in the draw pattern
                                                    test. During this test, the water heater                allows the water heater to recover                     (i.e., number of draws, flow rates during
                                                    begins in its fully heated state, and                   quicker (as the water only needs to be                 draws, timing of draws) applied during
                                                    water is drawn from it at a specified                   heated to a 15 °F temperature rise rather              the test; (3) reduction of the test
                                                    flow rate until the temperature of the                  than a 25 °F temperature rise), thereby                temperature from an average stored
                                                    delivered water drops a specified                       allowing subsequent draws to start
                                                    amount. The water heater is then                                                                               temperature of 135 °F to a delivered
                                                                                                            sooner than they would under the
                                                    allowed to recover, and subsequent                                                                             water temperature of 125 °F; and (4)
                                                                                                            current test procedure. Thus, due to
                                                    draws are initiated when the controller                 these offsetting effects, DOE has                      removal of the stipulation to normalize
                                                    acts to reduce the heat input to                        observed through testing that sometimes                the energy consumption to maintain a
                                                    particular burners or heating elements                  the first-hour rating is increased when                prescribed average water temperature
                                                    specified in the test procedure. These                  tested under the uniform efficiency                    within the storage tank. Residential-
                                                    subsequent draws are terminated based                   descriptor, and sometimes the rating is                duty commercial water heaters will see
                                                    on the same criterion that is used for the              decreased. DOE is not aware of any                     a change from the thermal efficiency
                                                    first draw, namely that the outlet water                analytical models that would                           and standby loss metrics currently in
                                                    temperature drops a set amount of                       mathematically represent this behavior,                place to the UEF, which consists of an
                                                    degrees from its maximum value during                   so it has chosen not to pursue such an                 entirely new approach for rating
                                                    that draw. When the test reaches a                      approach for converting existing first-                efficiency.
                                                    duration of one hour from the start of                  hour ratings to first-hour ratings under
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                                                    the first draw, the test concludes after                                                                       i. Consumer Storage Water Heaters
                                                                                                            the uniform efficiency descriptor.
                                                    the draw termination criterion is                       Rather, as discussed in section III.C.3,                  A simple theoretical model for
                                                    reached for the draw taking place at one                DOE chose an approach based on an                      determining the energy consumption of
                                                                                                                                                                                                                EP14AP15.007</GPH>




                                                    hour from the start of the test. If no draw             empirical regression for converting the                a storage-type water heater based on key
                                                    is occurring at the one hour duration, a                first-hour ratings.                                    test parameters, termed the Water
                                                    draw is initiated and terminated when                      Likewise, DOE is not aware of any
                                                                                                                                                                   Heater Analysis Model (WHAM), was
                                                    the outlet water temperature reaches the                analytical method that will convert
                                                                                                                                                                                                                EP14AP15.006</GPH>




                                                    termination temperature of the previous                 rated values of thermal efficiency and


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                                                    20126                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    presented by Lutz et al.11 The equation                 period is determined using the
                                                    for the energy input (Q) over a 24-hour                 following equation:




                                                    where r is the density of water, cp is the              proposes to base the conversion                        during the same draw profile of between
                                                    specific heat of water, hr is the recovery              equation purely on experimental data.                  3 and 13 percent, with an average of 8
                                                    efficiency, V is the volume of water                       After the equations are solved to                   percent. Data collected on fossil-fuel-
                                                    delivered per day, UA is the heat loss                  determine UA, if one assumes that the                  fired water heaters show negligible
                                                    factor, Ttank is the average temperature of             UA and hr do not change under the new                  dependency of the recovery efficiency
                                                    the water stored within the tank of a                   test approach, then the two equations                  on the prescribed tank temperature. The
                                                    storage water heater, P is the input                    can be solved again (this time inserting               UA value may change slightly based on
                                                    power to the water heater in Btu/h, Tamb                the UA value obtained from solving the                 higher heat transfer coefficients at
                                                    is the average ambient temperature                      previous set of equations) to determine                higher temperatures or changes in the
                                                    during the test, and 24 is the number of                the values for Q and Eff (i.e., UEF) under             thermal conductivity of insulating
                                                    hours in the test. This equation                        the uniform efficiency descriptor test                 materials at higher temperatures. Data
                                                    considers the energy required to heat                   method using the prescribed values for                 collected by DOE suggest that the UA
                                                    the water that is delivered by the water                the uniform efficiency descriptor test                 value decreases 7 percent from 135 °F
                                                    heater from the inlet water temperature                 procedure of Tdel (125 °F), Tin (58 °F),               to 125 °F.
                                                    up to the delivery temperature and the                  Ttank (125 °F), Tamb (67.5 °F), and V                     For an initial estimate, DOE
                                                    energy required to make up the heat lost                (varies depending upon draw pattern).                  considered the situation where the UA
                                                    from the water heater to the surrounding                   This formulation entails a number of                and recovery efficiency do not change
                                                    environment. The time over which this                   assumptions. A major assumption is                     with temperature. The equations above
                                                    standby energy loss is determined is                    that the average tank temperature is                   can estimate the effects of two key
                                                    corrected by the term with the power in                 approximately equal to the delivered                   factors that have changed in the test
                                                    the denominator to account for the fact                 water temperature. As previously noted,                procedure, namely the volume drawn
                                                    that hr, as calculated in the test,                     the new procedure does not normalize                   per day and the delivery temperature.
                                                    accounts for standby energy loss during                 the average stored water temperature to                As more water is delivered, the fraction
                                                    periods when heat input to the water is                 a prescribed value, so this estimate may               of energy required to make up the
                                                    activated.                                              not be completely accurate. Some water                 standby losses compared to the overall
                                                       This calculated energy can then be                   heaters have demonstrated that average                 energy required by the water heater is
                                                    used to estimate the daily efficiency, Eff,             tank temperature is below the typical                  diminished, thereby increasing the
                                                    under a given daily water demand (e.g.,                 delivered temperature because of                       fraction of energy going towards hot
                                                    that required during the current EF test                stratification. This effect is believed to             delivered water and increasing the
                                                    or that required during the UEF test):                  be most pronounced with condensing                     efficiency. The change in set-point
                                                                                                            water heaters. Other water heaters show                temperature appears to have less of an
                                                                                                            some stratification, but the average                   effect on water heater efficiency, since
                                                                                                            water temperature within the tank is                   two competing factors are at play. With
                                                                                                            typically closer to the delivered water                a lower stored water temperature, the
                                                       Currently, directories of water heater               temperature. Another assumption in                     standby losses are decreased, thereby
                                                    ratings provide the Eff (i.e., Energy                   this formulation is that the recovery                  increasing the overall efficiency of the
                                                    Factor), P, and hr. Since the EF testing                efficiency and UA values do not change                 water heater. The lower delivery
                                                    entails a prescribed Tdel (135 °F), Tin (58             when the water heater stores water for                 temperature, however, means that less
                                                    °F), Ttank (135 °F), Tamb (67.5 °F), and V              delivery at 135 °F compared to storing                 energy is delivered per gallon, so the
                                                    (64.3 gallons), the two equations can be                it at 125 °F. While electric resistance                energy delivered for a given volume
                                                    solved for the two remaining unknowns,                  water heaters have a prescribed recovery               delivered per day is less than that when
                                                    Q and UA. The exception to this                         efficiency of 98 percent, other                        the water is delivered at 135 °F, thereby
                                                    approach is heat pump water heaters.                    technologies may see changes in the                    decreasing the efficiency of the water
                                                    For these units, the reported recovery                  recovery efficiency as the temperature                 heater.
                                                    efficiency (hr) is that of the resistance               drops. For example, the study by Sparn                    As noted, direct use of this model
                                                    element inside the water heater. Since it               et al. shows plots of the Coefficient of               may not properly account for changes to
                                                    is expected that the heat pump unit                     Performance (COP), which is one aspect                 the recovery efficiency, UA value, or
                                                    would provide the majority of the                       of the recovery efficiency, for heat pump              normalization procedure for standby
                                                    heating during the simulated-use test as                water heaters.12 Their data suggest an                 heat loss. Therefore, DOE has chosen a
                                                    opposed to the resistance element, the                  increase in COP of approximately 15                    two-step process to convert the existing
                                                    required data to use the WHAM model                     percent with the average tank                          Energy Factor ratings for consumer
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                                                    for heat pump water heaters is not                      temperature at 125 °F compared to 135                  storage water heaters to the UEF. First,
                                                    readily available in publicly accessible                °F. Data obtained by DOE indicate an                   using the equations and assumptions
                                                    directories. For these units, DOE                       increase in recovery efficiency obtained               described above, a prediction of the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                       EP14AP15.009</GPH>




                                                      11 Lutz, Jim, Camilla Dunham Whitehead, Alex          Buildings (1998) (Available at: http://                Integrated Heat Pump Water Heaters. National
                                                    Lekov, David Winiarski, and Greg Rosenquist.            cgec.ucdavis.edu/ACEEE/1998/pdffiles/papers/           Renewable Energy Laboratory (September 2011)
                                                    ‘‘WHAM: A Simplified Energy Consumption                 0114.pdf) (Last accessed October 1, 2014).             (Available at: http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy11osti/
                                                    Equation for Water Heaters’’ In Proceedings of the        12 Sparn, B., K. Hudon, and D. Christensen,
                                                                                                                                                                   52635.pdf) (Last accessed October 1, 2014).
                                                                                                                                                                                                                       EP14AP15.008</GPH>




                                                    1998 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in         Laboratory Performance Evaluation of Residential



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                                                                                       Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                                    20127

                                                    efficiency given by WHAM is                                                  then capture the effects that may not be                        equation incorporates the equations and
                                                    determined, termed UEFWHAM. This                                             fully accounted for by WHAM, such as                            assumptions presented above, where hr
                                                    value is then considered as part of a                                        differences in the UA value, recovery                           and EF are the recovery efficiency and
                                                    regression analysis (see section III.C.3)                                    efficiency, and the change to the                               energy factor, respectively, based on the
                                                    to obtain a relationship that will convert                                   normalization calculation procedure for                         current DOE test procedure, and P is the
                                                    from EF to UEF. DOE believes that the                                        standby heat loss.                                              nameplate input rate in Btu/h. As
                                                    use of WHAM will capture the primary                                            To establish a clear method of                               shown in Table III.4, constants ‘‘a,’’ ‘‘b,’’
                                                    effects of changes in the volume of                                          applying the analytical model, the                              ‘‘c,’’ and ‘‘d’’ are dependent on the
                                                    water delivered per day along with                                           WHAM-based UEF equation and Table                               volume of water being drawn.
                                                    changes in the set-point temperature.                                        III.4, comprising the coefficients based
                                                    Regression with experimental data will                                       on draw bin, are presented below. This




                                                                                               TABLE III.4—COEFFICIENTS FOR WHAM-BASED UEF CONVERSION FACTOR
                                                                                                        Draw bin                                                                    a                 b                        c                        d

                                                    Very Small .......................................................................................................             56095146    12884892499                   8930623          15125743368
                                                    Low ..................................................................................................................         56095146    48962591496                  33936368          57477824799
                                                    Medium ............................................................................................................            56095146    70866908744                  49118427          83191588525
                                                    High ..................................................................................................................        56095146   108233096990                  75017235         127056244293



                                                    ii. Consumer Instantaneous Water                                             throughout the day, rather heating water                        however, a subsequent draw starts
                                                    Heaters                                                                      as it flows through the unit.                                   shortly after a previous draw, some of
                                                                                                                                   Instantaneous water heaters instead                           that heat is captured in the hot water
                                                       WHAM is not directly applicable to                                        experience a separate type of heat loss                         that is delivered.
                                                    instantaneous water heaters because it                                       to the surroundings that sometimes                                 DOE attempted to capture these
                                                    assumes that the water heater loses heat                                     result in Energy Factors that are below                         effects in a modified equation that
                                                    at a constant rate throughout the day                                        the steady-state thermal efficiency. This                       separately accounts for energy
                                                    when the heating element is not                                              loss occurs when heat that is present in                        consumption that goes towards
                                                    energized. For instantaneous water                                           the water heater at the end of a draw                           supplying heat to the delivered water
                                                    heaters, this modeling approach is                                           dissipates to the ambient. If a draw is                         and energy consumption that goes
                                                    inappropriate since the unit does not                                        not initiated shortly after the end of a                        towards heating up the materials
                                                    store water at an elevated temperature                                       draw, then most of this heat is lost. If,                       making up the water heater:




                                                    where LF is a loss factor related to the                                     next draw would contribute a value of                            TABLE III.5—ESTIMATE OF NUMBER OF
                                                    amount of energy stored in the materials                                     (30 min)/(60 min) = 0.5 to N*.                                    DRAWS FROM WHICH ALL ENERGY
                                                    of the water heater and N* is the                                            Contributions from each draw in a test                            FROM WATER HEATER IS LOST TO
                                                    number of draws from which heat loss                                         pattern are added to obtain a value for                           SURROUNDINGS—Continued
                                                    occurs to the environment. LF is                                             N* for each draw pattern. For the
                                                    approximately equal to the mass of the                                       existing DOE consumer water heater                                              Draw pattern                               N*
                                                    material within the water heater times                                       test, N* is 5.64, as the standby time
                                                    its heat capacity. N* is not simply the                                      following each draw is slightly under 60                        High-Use ...........................................       7.53
                                                    number of draws during the day, since                                        minutes. The values for N* for all draw
                                                    some draws may occur close together                                          patterns are provided in Table III.5.                              DOE attempted this approach by
                                                    and do not result in total energy loss. To                                                                                                   obtaining an estimate of LF from data
                                                    determine the fraction of energy from a                                       TABLE III.5—ESTIMATE OF NUMBER OF                              obtained during testing of 17 gas
                                                    draw that is lost, DOE examined data                                           DRAWS FROM WHICH ALL ENERGY                                   instantaneous water heaters according
                                                    from testing that suggested that most                                          FROM WATER HEATER IS LOST TO                                  to the current simulated-use test. (LF
                                                    heat is lost from tankless water heaters                                                                                                     could theoretically be determined for
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                                                                                                                                   SURROUNDINGS
                                                    after about one hour. Using this value,                                                                                                      each unit, but some test results showed
                                                    DOE scaled the energy loss for a draw                                                          Draw pattern                          N*      a recovery efficiency equal to EF, which
                                                    by the length of the standby time                                                                                                            would mathematically lead to an
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   EP14AP15.011</GPH>




                                                    following the draw. For example, a draw                                      Existing Consumer Water Heater                                  infinite value of LF). A regression of the
                                                    followed by over one hour of standby                                           Draw Pattern .................................         5.64   energy consumption data during these
                                                    time would contribute a value of 1 to N*                                     Very-Small-Use .................................         4.36   tests with the quantity multiplying LF
                                                    for that test. A draw followed by 30                                         Low-Use ............................................     6.72   in the previous model equation resulted
                                                                                                                                                                                                 in a value of LF of 0.679 Btu/°F. Using
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   EP14AP15.010</GPH>




                                                    minutes of standby time prior to the                                         Medium-Use .....................................         7.45



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                                                    20128                            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    this value to then estimate the energy                            UEF—first using the equations and                     unforeseen issues. Details on this
                                                    consumption during the new simulated-                             assumptions described above to obtain                 approach are provided in section III.C.3.
                                                    use test resulted in predictions of the                           an analytical prediction of UEF, then
                                                    UEF. This approach resulted in a root                                                                                   iii. Residential-Duty Commercial Water
                                                                                                                      using a regression analysis to obtain a
                                                    mean squared error between predicted                                                                                    Heaters
                                                                                                                      relationship that will convert from EF to
                                                    values and measured values of 0.027.                              UEF. Based on these results, DOE has                     DOE investigated a modified version
                                                       Alternatively, a set of regressions,                           chosen to use the analytical model plus
                                                    based solely on test data, were                                                                                         of WHAM for converting the thermal
                                                                                                                      a regression approach for converting EFs              efficiency and standby loss metrics for
                                                    examined to determine the impact of
                                                                                                                      for consumer instantaneous water                      residential-duty commercial storage
                                                    other factors as discussed in section
                                                                                                                      heaters to UEF. DOE has tentatively                   water heaters to UEF. The AHRI
                                                    III.C.3. The best regressions resulted in
                                                    a mean squared error of 0.032.                                    concluded that the assumptions made in                certification directory includes the
                                                       As discussed for consumer storage                              the analytical model capture some key                 thermal efficiency (Et) and standby loss
                                                    water heaters in section III.C.2.c.i, DOE                         operating characteristics of the                      (SL). The equation below estimates the
                                                    also considered a two-step process to                             instantaneous units, and the further step             energy consumption of a water heater
                                                    convert the existing EF ratings to the                            to use measured data captures                         based on these efficiency metrics:




                                                    where 70 represents the nominal                                      DOE seeks comments on the use of                   metrics to the new metrics. DOE also
                                                    temperature difference in degrees                                 analytical methods to convert existing                considered simpler regression forms to
                                                    Fahrenheit between the tank and                                   metrics to the ones described in the July             reduce confusion in converting from old
                                                    ambient during the standby loss test. By                          2014 test procedure final rule. This is               metrics to new metrics and to ensure
                                                    assuming that Ttank equals Tdel, all                              identified as issue 2 in section V.E,                 that the regressions were applicable
                                                    variables in the equation above are                               ‘‘Issues on Which DOE Seeks                           over the broad range of water heaters
                                                    known, since Et and SL can be obtained                            Comment.’’                                            available on the market. In these
                                                    from current ratings and all other                                                                                      circumstances, DOE examined the
                                                                                                                      3. Empirical Regression                               deviations between measured values
                                                    variables are specified in the UEF test
                                                    procedure for a given projected first-                               An alternative to the analytical                   and predicted values from the
                                                    hour rating. The equation above can be                            approaches described in section III.C.2               correction equations. When those
                                                    used in combination with the one below                            is to develop empirical equations from                deviations were comparable, DOE opted
                                                    to estimate the UEF for residential-duty                          measured metrics under the uniform                    for simplified models that would be
                                                    storage water heaters (UEFrd):                                    efficiency descriptor test procedure to               expected to capture the major
                                                                                                                      those obtained using the existing                     phenomena that would affect the new
                                                                                                                      consumer and commercial water heater                  metrics. The regression tool found in the
                                                                                                                      test procedures. This approach has the                Analysis ToolPak of Microsoft Excel
                                                                                                                      benefit of capturing the effects of factors           (2010) was used to calculate the
                                                      These equations can be combined to                              that are not addressed in analytical                  equation for each set of independent
                                                    yield the following equation for                                  models. The drawbacks of this approach                variables.
                                                    converting Et and SL to UEF using the                             are that it is susceptible to measurement                As noted previously, because DOE has
                                                    coefficient C1, which is dependent upon                           errors and that it may not be easily                  tentatively concluded that an empirical
                                                    the draw pattern applied during the                               extended to water heaters that were not               regression methodology would be more
                                                    UEF test, as provided in Table III.6.                             part of the test program.                             accurate than the analytical method
                                                                                                                         To derive the conversion factors from              described in section III.C.2 for
                                                                                                                      an empirical regression, DOE first used               determining first-hour rating for storage
                                                                                                                      a step regression method. The step                    water heaters, DOE has proposed
                                                                                                                      regression method produces a linear                   conversion factors for those metrics and
                                                      TABLE III.6—COEFFICIENT FOR CON-                                equation which uses a set of observed                 product types based on the use of the
                                                       VERSION OF COMMERCIAL WATER                                    independent variables, such as storage                empirical regression methodology. DOE
                                                                                                                      volume, input rate, delivery capacity,                seeks comment on the use of the
                                                       HEATER RATINGS TO UEF
                                                                                                                      recovery efficiency, energy factor,                   regression method for the conversion
                                                                Draw pattern                           C1             thermal efficiency, or standby loss, and              factor analysis. This is identified as
                                                                                                                      seeks to mathematically derive an                     issue 3 in section V.E, ‘‘Issues on Which
                                                    Very Small ............................       3.575   ×    10¥3   equation using these variables to relate              DOE Seeks Comment.’’
                                                    Low .......................................   9.408   ×    10¥4   to a set of observed dependent variables,             D. Testing Conducted for the
                                                                                                          ×    10¥4
                                                                                                                                                                                                                        EP14AP15.014</GPH>




                                                    Medium .................................      6.500               such as new delivery capacity (under                  Mathematical Conversion
                                                    High ......................................   4.256   ×    10¥4   the updated test method) and UEF. The
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                                                                                                                      step regression method systematically                 1. Consumer Water Heater Testing
                                                      As was done with consumer water                                 recombines the set of independent                        For its analysis of a mathematical
                                                    heaters, DOE decided to account for                               variables to produce an equation for                  conversion factor between the existing
                                                                                                                                                                                                                        EP14AP15.013</GPH>




                                                    unforeseen effects observed during                                each possible set. Each set’s equation is             efficiency metrics and the uniform
                                                    testing by combining this analytical                              compared to the others and the equation               efficiency descriptor, DOE tested 43
                                                    prediction with a regression of the                               with the best fit is chosen. This                     consumer storage water heaters to both
                                                    predicted values of UEF to the measured                           approach eliminates factors that are not              the existing and updated test
                                                    UEF.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                        EP14AP15.012</GPH>




                                                                                                                      significant in converting existing                    procedures. Table III.7 and Table III.8


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                                                                                     Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                        20129

                                                    below summarize the units that have                                   TABLE III.9—CONSUMER INSTANTA-                              E. Testing Results and Analysis of Test
                                                    been tested. Table III.7 summarizes the                               NEOUS WATER HEATER TEST DIS-                                Data
                                                    units that have been tested according to                              TRIBUTION BY PRODUCT TYPE—                                  1. Impact of Certain Water Heater
                                                    heating type. Table III.8 provides an                                 Continued                                                   Attributes on Efficiency Ratings
                                                    estimate of the distribution of those
                                                    units across draw pattern categories by                                                                                              After conducting testing on all of the
                                                                                                                                                                   Number of
                                                                                                                                Product type                                          selected water heaters according to both
                                                    using their first-hour ratings under the                                                                       units tested
                                                                                                                                                                                      the existing test procedures and the
                                                    current test (although it is
                                                                                                                    Electric ..................................                   5   uniform efficiency descriptor test
                                                    acknowledged that the applied draw                                                                                                procedure, DOE examined how
                                                    pattern for a particular water heater                             * Gas-fired water heaters include both nat-
                                                                                                                                                                                      particular attributes of water heaters
                                                    could change under the new first-hour                           ural gas and propane water heaters, as well
                                                                                                                    as water heaters capable of using either nat-                     might affect the conversion factors and
                                                    rating test).                                                   ural gas or propane. DOE tested 10 natural                        investigated the approaches discussed
                                                                                                                    gas water heaters, 1 propane water heaters,                       in section III.C for obtaining conversion
                                                        TABLE III.7—CONSUMER STORAGE                                and 6 water heaters capable of using either
                                                                                                                    natural gas or propane. Water heaters capable                     factors. The goal of this analysis was to
                                                       WATER HEATER TEST DISTRIBUTION                               of using either fuel were tested with natural                     determine whether or not particular
                                                       BY PRODUCT TYPE                                              gas.                                                              attributes necessitated separate
                                                                                                                      ** No oil-fired consumer instantaneous water                    conversion equations. Separate
                                                                                                                    heaters were found to be on the market.                           conversions were created for subsets of
                                                                                                  Number of
                                                                Product type                      units tested                                                                        the tested units based on water heater
                                                                                                                          TABLE III.10—CONSUMER INSTANTA-                             attributes such as NOX emission level,
                                                    Gas-fired ...............................                  22         NEOUS WATER HEATER TEST DIS-                                short or tall configuration, vent type,
                                                    Oil-fired .................................                 2         TRIBUTION BY DRAW PATTERN                                   standing pilot or electric ignition, if
                                                    Electric ..................................                11                                                                     condensing or heat pump technology is
                                                    Heat Pump ............................                      6                                                  Number of          used, and if the unit is tabletop.
                                                                                                                               Draw pattern *
                                                    Tabletop ................................                   2                                                  units tested
                                                                                                                                                                                      Additionally, conversion equations
                                                                                                                    Very Small ............................                       5   were also generated based on the full set
                                                        TABLE III.8—CONSUMER STORAGE                                Low .......................................                   1   of water heaters. To determine whether
                                                       WATER HEATER TEST DISTRIBUTION                               Medium .................................                      7   it was necessary to develop separate
                                                                                                                    High ......................................                   9   conversion factors for a particular
                                                       BY DRAW PATTERN
                                                                                                                                                                                      attribute, the root-mean-square (RMS) of
                                                                                                                        * Draw pattern profiles are based on the
                                                                                                                    rated values; actual draw patterns are depend-                    the difference between the measured
                                                                                                  Number of
                                                               Draw pattern *                     units tested      ent upon tested value discussed in section                        values and the values obtained through
                                                                                                                    III.C.1.                                                          various conversion methods was
                                                    Very Small ** .........................                     0   2. Residential-Duty Commercial Water                              compared. The conversion approach
                                                    Low .......................................                 3                                                                     with the lowest cumulative RMS value
                                                                                                                    Heater Testing
                                                    Medium .................................                   27                                                                     for a particular fuel type was considered
                                                    High ......................................                13      DOE tested 7 residential-duty                                  to be the best candidate for the
                                                                                                                    commercial storage water heaters to                               conversion equation.
                                                      * The draw pattern shown is based on the                      develop the mathematical conversion                                  The three levels of NOX emissions
                                                    current rated values; actual draw patterns are                  for this equipment. Table III.11
                                                    dependent upon amended test procedure first-                                                                                      currently available in water heaters on
                                                    hour rating discussed in section III.C.1.                       summarizes the units that have been                               the market include standard (greater
                                                      ** No very small consumer storage water                       tested. A table showing the distribution                          than or equal to 40 nanograms per joule
                                                    heaters covered under the existing test proce-                  of draw pattern within the residential-                           (ng/J)), low (less than 40 ng/J and greater
                                                    dure were found on the market.                                  duty commercial water heater test list is                         than or equal to 10 ng/J for storage water
                                                                                                                    not available, because commercial water                           heaters and greater than or equal to 14
                                                       DOE also tested 22 consumer
                                                                                                                    heaters currently do not have first-hour                          ng/J for instantaneous water heaters)
                                                    instantaneous water heaters to develop
                                                                                                                    ratings.                                                          and ultra-low (less than 10 ng/J for
                                                    the mathematical conversion for these
                                                                                                                                                                                      storage water heaters and less than 14
                                                    products. Table III.9 below summarizes                                   TABLE III.11—RESIDENTIAL-DUTY                            ng/J for instantaneous water heaters).
                                                    the units that have been tested. Table                                                                                               Most units that are short or tall have
                                                                                                                          COMMERCIAL     STORAGE   WATER
                                                    III.10 provides an estimate of the                                                                                                been labeled as such by the
                                                                                                                          HEATER TEST DISTRIBUTION BY
                                                    distribution of those units across draw                                                                                           manufacturer; however, some units do
                                                    patterns by using their maximum GPM
                                                                                                                          PRODUCT TYPE
                                                                                                                                                                                      not have this designation. DOE has
                                                    ratings under the current test (although                                                                       Number of          found that some units labeled as small
                                                    it is acknowledged that the applied                                        Product type *                      units tested       are actually taller than units labeled as
                                                    draw pattern for a particular water                                                                                               tall. DOE is interested in how
                                                    heater could change under the new                               Gas-fired ...............................                     7   manufacturers determine whether a unit
                                                    maximum GPM test).                                              Oil-fired ** ..............................                   0   is short or tall. This is identified as issue
                                                                                                                      * Heat pump and tabletop water heaters                          4 in section V.E, ‘‘Issues on Which DOE
                                                       TABLE III.9—CONSUMER INSTANTA-                               were not found on the market and, therefore,                      Seeks Comment.’’
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                                    were not tested.                                                     The four venting configurations
                                                       NEOUS WATER HEATER TEST DIS-                                   ** One oil-fired unit failed during testing.
                                                       TRIBUTION BY PRODUCT TYPE                                                                                                      currently available in water heaters on
                                                                                                                   As discussed in section III.B.2, DOE                               the market include atmospheric, direct,
                                                                                                  Number of      did not analyze a mathematical                                       power, and power-direct. Atmospheric
                                                                Product type                                     conversion for residential-duty                                      and power vent units intake air from the
                                                                                                  units tested
                                                                                                                 commercial electric storage water                                    area surrounding the water heater, while
                                                    Gas-fired * .............................                17 heaters or residential-duty commercial                                direct and power-direct vents intake air
                                                    Oil-fired ** ..............................                0 instantaneous water heaters.                                         from outdoors. Atmospheric and direct


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                                                    20130                            Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    vent units use natural convection to                                     configuration and power and power-                                        water heaters, the lowest RMS
                                                    circulate combustion air, while power                                    direct into the power configuration.                                      deviations occurred when all units of
                                                    and power-direct vents use some                                             As an example of the process that was                                  that fuel type were considered,
                                                    additional method to force circulation of                                taken to examine the effect of these                                      indicating that separating the
                                                    combustion air. Concentric inlet and                                     factors, Table III.12 shows the                                           conversion equations by tank shape was
                                                    outlet piping is a unique configuration                                  cumulative RMS values for the first-                                      not necessary. The findings presented
                                                    that can be used in directly venting                                     hour rating conversions for consumer                                      here for first-hour rating conversions are
                                                    water heaters to preheat incoming air                                    storage water heaters. The rows in the                                    consistent with those for UEF. From
                                                    using exhaust gas. For these tests,                                      table indicate how the conversion                                         these results, DOE proposes to develop
                                                    concentric inlet and outlet piping was                                   equations were separated out, and the                                     conversion equations for consumer
                                                    not used; inlet air for the direct and                                   columns provide the RMS for each class                                    storage water heaters based on fuel type,
                                                    power-direct vent units was delivered to                                 of consumer storage water heaters. For                                    with the gas units being further
                                                                                                                             gas water heaters, these values show                                      differentiated by whether or not they are
                                                    the water heater in separate pipes from
                                                                                                                             that the conversion approach that                                         condensing units and by their NOx
                                                    that used for exhaust. As these tests
                                                                                                                             differentiates between condensing or                                      emissions level ratings.
                                                    were conducted under identical                                           non-condensing technology and                                               For consumer instantaneous water
                                                    controlled conditions, DOE determined                                    between NOX levels appears to provide                                     heaters and residential-duty commercial
                                                    that there is very little difference                                     the best approach considering its low                                     water heaters, DOE found no
                                                    between atmospheric and direct vent                                      RMS values. No other factors (e.g., short                                 dependence on factors such as
                                                    water heaters and also between power                                     vs. tall, vent type, pilot type) were                                     condensing operation or vent type.
                                                    and power-direct vent. For these reasons                                 shown to have any significance on the                                     Conversion factors for these classes of
                                                    DOE has grouped atmospheric and                                          effectiveness of the conversion factor.                                   water heaters are, thus, based simply on
                                                    direct into the atmospheric                                              For oil-fired water heaters and electric                                  fuel type.

                                                         TABLE III.12—FIRST-HOUR RATING RMS VALUES BY WATER HEATER ATTRIBUTE FOR CONSUMER WATER HEATERS
                                                                                                                                                                                                             Gas-fired          Oil-fired            Electric

                                                    All Units (All fuel types) ....................................................................................................................                 6.99     6.89 .............   4.47.
                                                    All Units Short or Tall .......................................................................................................................                 6.87     5.79 .............   3.67.
                                                    Fuel Type (Gas, Oil or Electric) .......................................................................................................                        7.16     Not enough           3.88.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                               units.
                                                    Fuel Type Short or Tall ....................................................................................................................                    6.91     No short             Not enough
                                                                                                                                                                                                                               units.               short units.
                                                    Fossil Fuel (Gas and Oil) .................................................................................................................                     6.59     5.73 .............   N/A.
                                                    Fossil Fuel Short or Tall ...................................................................................................................                   6.52     5.82 .............   N/A.
                                                    Condensing or Non-Condensing ......................................................................................................                             6.66     N/A ..............   N/A.
                                                    NOX Type (Standard, Low or Ultra Low) .........................................................................................                                 4.61     N/A ..............   N/A.
                                                    Vent Type (Atmospheric or Power) ..................................................................................................                             5.53     N/A ..............   N/A.
                                                    Standing Pilot or Electric Ignition .....................................................................................................                       5.53     N/A ..............   N/A.
                                                    Non-Condensing NOX Type and Separate Condensing ..................................................................                                              3.98     N/A ..............   N/A.
                                                    All Electric Types Separate ..............................................................................................................                       N/A     N/A ..............   3.43.
                                                    Heat Pump Separate ........................................................................................................................                      N/A     N/A ..............   3.59.



                                                    2. Conversion Factor Derivation                                          the methodology that was applied to                                       storage water heaters using both the
                                                                                                                             develop a conversion factor for each                                      current and new test procedures. Table
                                                      DOE used the methods described in                                      type of water heater.                                                     III.13 below presents the test data used
                                                    section III.C to derive the mathematical                                                                                                           to derive the consumer storage water
                                                    conversion factor for the different types                                a. Consumer Storage Water Heaters
                                                                                                                                                                                                       heater conversion factors. Table III.14
                                                    of water heaters covered within the                                      i. Test Results                                                           shows the water heater attributes by
                                                    scope of this rulemaking (as discussed                                      As stated in section III.D.1, DOE has                                  unit described in section III.D.1.
                                                    in section III.B). This section describes                                conducted testing of 43 consumer
                                                                                                      TABLE III.13—CONSUMER STORAGE WATER HEATER TEST DATA
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Current
                                                                                                                        Storage                 Input               Current               Updated               recovery
                                                                 Unit No.                           Type                volume                   rate                FHR                   FHR                                        EF                  UEF
                                                                                                                                                                                                                efficiency
                                                                                                                         (gal)                 (Btu/h)               (gal)                 (gal)                    (%)

                                                    CS–1 ................................      Heat Pump                         45.2              13,600                    59.1                     48.2           264.7              2.260              2.069
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    CS–2 ................................      Heat Pump                         45.5               8,500                    57.3                     57.0           269.0              2.272              2.575
                                                    CS–3 ................................      Heat Pump                         58.9               6,800                    71.5                     68.6           290.1              2.406              2.493
                                                    CS–4 ................................      Heat Pump                         77.6               6,800                    90.5                     87.1           285.0              2.315              2.641
                                                    CS–5 ................................      Heat Pump                         80.8               1,800                    57.0                     58.0           288.0              2.330              2.540
                                                    CS–6 ................................      Electric .......                  36.2              15,400                    54.0                     49.7            98.0              0.941              0.905
                                                    CS–7 ................................      Electric .......                  44.9              14,300                    64.1                     64.3            98.0              0.855              0.840
                                                    CS–8 ................................      Electric .......                  46.1              14,000                    64.8                     61.7            98.0              0.901              0.919
                                                    CS–9 ................................      Electric .......                  27.4              13,000                    38.7                     43.1            98.0              0.912              0.906
                                                    CS–10 ..............................       Electric ......                   34.1              14,000                    50.7                     52.0            98.0              0.902              0.907
                                                    CS–11 ..............................       Electric ......                   35.9              15,400                    52.4                     51.8            98.0              0.931              0.920



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                                                                                       Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                               20131

                                                                                             TABLE III.13—CONSUMER STORAGE WATER HEATER TEST DATA—Continued
                                                                                                                                                                                                          Current
                                                                                                                        Storage                Input              Current             Updated            recovery
                                                                 Unit No.                             Type              volume                  rate               FHR                 FHR                                          EF             UEF
                                                                                                                                                                                                         efficiency
                                                                                                                         (gal)                (Btu/h)              (gal)               (gal)                 (%)

                                                    CS–12       ..............................   Electric ......                 36.1            15,400                  53.2                54.8                 98.0                 0.912          0.927
                                                    CS–13       ..............................   Electric ......                 44.9            15,400                  64.9                59.4                 98.0                 0.960          0.926
                                                    CS–14       ..............................   Electric ......                 45.8            15,400                  62.7                64.2                 98.0                 0.922          0.936
                                                    CS–15       ..............................   Electric ......                 49.7            18,800                  68.5                73.2                 98.0                 0.924          0.940
                                                    CS–16       ..............................   Electric ......                 72.2            14,700                  88.7                80.9                 98.0                 0.848          0.883
                                                    CS–17       ..............................   Tabletop ....                   25.7            15,400                  37.5                45.3                 98.0                 0.905          0.857
                                                    CS–18       ..............................   Tabletop ....                   35.1            15,400                  52.9                47.8                 98.0                 0.878          0.804
                                                    CS–19       ..............................   Gas ............                38.4            39,800                  67.0                81.1                 80.5                 0.601          0.630
                                                    CS–20       ..............................   Gas ............                49.5            44,100                  97.4                86.6                 80.5                 0.610          0.634
                                                    CS–21       ..............................   Gas ............                37.8            39,700                  70.1                86.9                 83.8                 0.608          0.641
                                                    CS–22       ..............................   Gas ............                47.6            49,900                  90.2                81.0                 81.1                 0.674          0.675
                                                    CS–23       ..............................   Gas ............                37.9            39,400                  74.4                81.6                 80.3                 0.691          0.705
                                                    CS–24       ..............................   Gas ............                38.0            32,600                  66.9                58.5                 69.0                 0.574          0.566
                                                    CS–25       ..............................   Gas ............                38.0            39,800                  80.2                63.8                 83.6                 0.711          0.669
                                                    CS–26       ..............................   Gas ............                38.1            40,800                  73.5                75.2                 83.6                 0.702          0.716
                                                    CS–27       ..............................   Gas ............                38.2            39,300                  71.9                77.6                 77.4                 0.607          0.635
                                                    CS–28       ..............................   Gas ............                27.9            31,600                  58.8                64.4                 80.7                 0.620          0.606
                                                    CS–29       ..............................   Gas ............                38.1            40,200                  74.7                70.6                 80.5                 0.622          0.569
                                                    CS–30       ..............................   Gas ............                38.3            37,900                  71.9                64.6                 78.5                 0.616          0.434
                                                    CS–31       ..............................   Gas ............                47.3            50,600                  95.1                87.0                 78.8                 0.606          0.640
                                                    CS–32       ..............................   Gas ............                38.6            40,100                  70.2                67.2                 80.4                 0.673          0.647
                                                    CS–33       ..............................   Gas ............                38.9            32,400                  68.6                65.2                 78.1                 0.666          0.624
                                                    CS–34       ..............................   Gas ............                27.9            59,000                  96.9                94.5                 78.2                 0.702          0.709
                                                    CS–35       ..............................   Gas ............                38.5            36,000                  66.0                68.0                 85.0                 0.699          0.670
                                                    CS–36       ..............................   Gas ............                47.8            64,600                 107.9               108.8                 79.5                 0.649          0.672
                                                    CS–37       ..............................   Gas ............                45.7            39,800                  91.0                84.8                 96.3                 0.830          0.828
                                                    CS–38       ..............................   Gas ............                38.2            40,300                  68.2                64.8                 79.7                 0.606          0.595
                                                    CS–39       ..............................   Gas ............                38.2            38,300                  71.3                64.6                 75.2                 0.625          0.596
                                                    CS–40       ..............................   Gas ............                47.8            40,500                  94.2                83.8                 74.0                 0.550          0.641
                                                    CS–41       ..............................   Gas ............                48.1            36,000                  92.4                88.2                 81.4                 0.631          0.662
                                                    CS–42       ..............................   Oil ..............              29.8           105,300                 104.8               111.7                 71.4                 0.518          0.478
                                                    CS–43       ..............................   Oil ..............              30.1           105,300                 112.5               127.4                 89.4                 0.605          0.641


                                                                                                       TABLE III.14—CONSUMER STORAGE WATER HEATER ATTRIBUTES
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Standing pilot
                                                                                                                                  NOX emission
                                                                                    Unit No.                                                                  Condensing                  Vent type                Short or tall               or electric
                                                                                                                                     level                                                                                                      ignition

                                                    CS–1 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–2 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–3 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–4 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–5 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–6 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Short .................     N/A.
                                                    CS–7 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Short .................     N/A.
                                                    CS–8 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Short .................     N/A.
                                                    CS–9 .....................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–10 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–11 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–12 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–13 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–14 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–15 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–16 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–17 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–18 ...................................................................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   N/A ...................     N/A.
                                                    CS–19 ...................................................................    Standard ...........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Short .................     Yes.
                                                    CS–20 ...................................................................    Standard ...........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Short .................     Yes.
                                                    CS–21 ...................................................................    Standard ...........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    CS–22 ...................................................................    Standard ...........      No .....................   Power ...............     Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–23 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Short .................     No.
                                                    CS–24 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Short .................     Yes.
                                                    CS–25 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–26 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–27 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–28 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.
                                                    CS–29 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.
                                                    CS–30 ...................................................................    Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.



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                                                    20132                           Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                                                         TABLE III.14—CONSUMER STORAGE WATER HEATER ATTRIBUTES—Continued
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Standing pilot
                                                                                                                                    NOX emission
                                                                                 Unit No.                                              level                    Condensing                  Vent type                Short or tall               or electric
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  ignition

                                                    CS–31    ...................................................................   Low ...................   No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.
                                                    CS–32    ...................................................................   Low ...................   No .....................   Power ...............     Short .................     No.
                                                    CS–33    ...................................................................   Low ...................   No .....................   Power ...............     Short .................     No.
                                                    CS–34    ...................................................................   Low ...................   No .....................   Power ...............     Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–35    ...................................................................   Low ...................   No .....................   Power ...............     Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–36    ...................................................................   Low ...................   No .....................   Power ...............     Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–37    ...................................................................   Low ...................   Yes ...................    Power ...............     Tall ....................   No.
                                                    CS–38    ...................................................................   Ultra-Low ..........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Short .................     Yes.
                                                    CS–39    ...................................................................   Ultra-Low ..........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Short .................     Yes.
                                                    CS–40    ...................................................................   Ultra-Low ..........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.
                                                    CS–41    ...................................................................   Ultra-Low ..........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......        Tall ....................   Yes.
                                                    CS–42    ...................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.
                                                    CS–43    ...................................................................   N/A ...................   N/A ...................    N/A ...................   Tall ....................   N/A.



                                                    ii. Conversion Factor Results                                              where FHRnew is the new first hour                                  best results. Separate conversion
                                                      For consumer storage water heaters,                                      rating, FHRex is the existing first hour                            equations were developed for the same
                                                    DOE proposes to use the regression                                         rating, and the slope and intercept are                             categories as used for first-hour rating.
                                                    method described in section III.C.3 to                                     constants obtained from a linear                                    The results of the first-hour regression,
                                                    develop new first hour ratings. Of the                                     regression. While most of the data                                  the WHAM analytical model, the step
                                                    factors considered, DOE found that the                                     allowed for such a regression fit, in two                           regression model, and the combined
                                                    existing first hour rating was the best                                    cases (oil, non-condensing gas with                                 WHAM-regression model are presented
                                                    overall predictor of the new first hour                                    standard level NOX burners) the                                     below in Table III.16. The RMS errors
                                                                                                                               available data were too limited to                                  for the classes range from 0.0014 to
                                                    rating. These findings were based on the
                                                                                                                               produce reliable regressions. In these                              0.0495 when using a combined WHAM-
                                                    root mean squared errors between
                                                                                                                               cases, the intercepts of the regressions                            regression model. For heat pump water
                                                    predictions and measured values. In
                                                                                                                               were assigned a value of zero, meaning                              heaters, a linear regression in which the
                                                    some cases, addition of other factors in
                                                                                                                               that a water heater with an FHRex of                                UEF is estimated solely from the
                                                    the regressions (e.g., input rate, storage
                                                                                                                               zero would also have an FHRnew of zero.                             existing EF results in an RMS error of
                                                    volume) led to predictions with slightly                                      The next step in the conversion is to
                                                    better RMS values, but DOE chose to be                                                                                                         0.187. Considering the larger magnitude
                                                                                                                               determine which draw pattern is to be
                                                    consistent in its formulations by using                                                                                                        of UEFs for heat pump water heaters,
                                                                                                                               applied to convert from EF to UEF. After
                                                    the same factor, existing first hour                                       the first-hour rating under the uniform                             DOE has tentatively concluded that this
                                                    ratings. In these cases, DOE found that                                    efficiency descriptor is determined                                 relatively high RMS error is acceptable
                                                    addition of extra terms improved the                                       through the conversion factor above, the                            for heat pump water heaters. DOE has,
                                                    RMS value by less than 1 gallon, so it                                     value can be applied to determine the                               therefore, tentatively decided to use the
                                                    tentatively concluded that the added                                       appropriate draw pattern bin (i.e., very                            combined WHAM-regression approach
                                                    potential for confusion is not warranted.                                  small, low, medium, or high) using                                  to calculate the consumer storage water
                                                    The resulting equations for determining                                    Table III.3 of this NOPR or Table 1 of                              heater conversion factor for non-heat
                                                    the FHRnew of consumer storage water                                       the uniform efficiency descriptor test                              pump water heaters and to apply a
                                                    heaters are:                                                               procedure. 79 FR 40542, 40572 (July 11,                             regression that relates UEF to EF for
                                                    New FHRGas,Non-Condensing,Standard NOx =                                   2014). With the draw bin known, the                                 heat pump water heaters. The WHAM-
                                                         1.0085 * FHREx                                                        UEF value based on the WHAM                                         regression approach accounts for the
                                                    New FHRGas,Non-Condensing,Low NOx = 4.6894                                 analytical model can be calculated using                            test procedure changes in terms of daily
                                                         + 0.9112 * FHREx                                                      the process described in section                                    volume delivered and storage tank
                                                    New FHRGas,Non-Condensing,Ultra–Low NOx =                                  III.C.2.c.i for all types except for heat                           temperature, and it corrects for the
                                                         2.9267 + 0.8882 * FHREx                                               pump water heaters. Alternatively, DOE                              unaccounted changes using a regression
                                                                                                                               investigated the step regression                                    with actual test data. Because the data
                                                    New FHRGas,Condensing = ¥0.7072 +
                                                                                                                               approach described in section III.C.3 to                            are not believed to be publicly available
                                                         0.9724 * FHREx
                                                                                                                               convert EF to UEF. DOE found that a                                 to compute the WHAM estimate for heat
                                                    New FHROil = 1.1018 * FHREx                                                third technique, a combination of these                             pump water heaters, DOE proposes to
                                                    New FHRElectric,Conventional&Tabletop =                                    approaches in which the results of the                              base this conversion on an empirical
                                                         11.9239 + 0.7879 * FHREx                                              WHAM analytical model are used as the                               regression. The resulting equations for
                                                    New FHRElectric,Heat Pump = ¥2.3440 +                                      independent variable in a standard                                  determining the UEF of consumer
                                                         0.9856 * FHREx                                                        linear regression analysis, produced the                            storage water heaters are:
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    UEFGas,Non-Condensing,Standard NOx = 0.2726 *                              UEFGas,Non-Condensing,Low NOx = 0.9966 *                            UEFGas,Non-Condensing,Ultra-Low NOx = 0.5811
                                                       UEFWHAM + 0.4736                                                           UEFWHAM ¥ 0.0126                                                    *UEFWHAM + 0.2673
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                EP14AP15.015</GPH>




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                                                                                       Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                    20133

                                                    UEFGas,Condensing = 0.9164 * UEFWHAM +                                       UEFElectric,Heat Pump = 1.5485 * EF ¥                              in Table III.15, P is the nameplate input
                                                       0.0409                                                                        1.1235                                                         rate in Btu/h, and hr is the recovery
                                                    UEFOil = 1.1185 * UEFWHAM ¥ 0.0945                                           where UEFWHAM is the conversion factor                             efficiency expressed in decimal form
                                                    UEFElectric,Conventional&Tabletop = 0.8673 *                                 calculated using the WHAM analytical                               (e.g., 0.98 instead of 98 [%]).
                                                       UEFWHAM + 0.1227                                                          model and the coefficient values shown

                                                                                              TABLE III.15—COEFFICIENTS FOR WHAM-BASED UEF CONVERSION FACTOR
                                                                                                        Draw bin                                                                    a                  b               c                d

                                                    Very Small .......................................................................................................             56095146       12884892499         8930623       15125743368
                                                    Low ..................................................................................................................         56095146       48962591496        33936368       57477824799
                                                    Medium ............................................................................................................            56095146       70866908744        49118427       83191588525
                                                    High ..................................................................................................................        56095146      108233096990        75017235      127056244293


                                                                                      TABLE III.16—CONSUMER STORAGE WATER HEATER CONVERSION FACTOR RESULTS
                                                                                                                                                               Regression                                                            WHAM-
                                                                                                                                     Tested FHR                                         Tested         WHAM         Regression
                                                                                   Unit No.                                                                      FHR                                                                Regression
                                                                                                                                        (gal)                                            UEF            UEF           UEF
                                                                                                                                                                 (gal)                                                                UEF

                                                    CS–1 ....................................................................                    48.2                      55.9             2.069           2.209          2.375            2.384
                                                    CS–2 ....................................................................                    57.0                      54.1             2.575           2.215          2.395            2.391
                                                    CS–3 ....................................................................                    68.6                      68.1             2.493           2.339          2.603            2.525
                                                    CS–4 ....................................................................                    87.1                      86.9             2.641           2.435          2.461            2.630
                                                    CS–5 ....................................................................                    58.0                      53.8             2.540           2.213          2.484            2.388
                                                    CS–6 ....................................................................                    49.7                      54.4             0.905           0.935          0.930            0.933
                                                    CS–7 ....................................................................                    64.3                      62.4             0.840           0.836          0.875            0.847
                                                    CS–8 ....................................................................                    61.7                      62.9             0.919           0.888          0.904            0.893
                                                    CS–9 ....................................................................                    43.1                      42.4             0.906           0.866          0.911            0.874
                                                    CS–10 ..................................................................                     52.0                      51.8             0.907           0.888          0.905            0.893
                                                    CS–11 ..................................................................                     51.8                      53.2             0.920           0.923          0.923            0.923
                                                    CS–12 ..................................................................                     54.8                      53.9             0.927           0.901          0.911            0.904
                                                    CS–13 ..................................................................                     59.4                      63.0             0.926           0.956          0.941            0.952
                                                    CS–14 ..................................................................                     64.2                      61.4             0.936           0.912          0.917            0.914
                                                    CS–15 ..................................................................                     73.2                      65.9             0.940           0.915          0.919            0.916
                                                    CS–16 ..................................................................                     80.9                      81.8             0.883           0.880          0.871            0.885
                                                    CS–17 ..................................................................                     45.3                      41.5             0.857           0.855          0.896            0.864
                                                    CS–18 ..................................................................                     47.8                      53.6             0.804           0.862          0.873            0.870
                                                    CS–19 ..................................................................                     81.1                      67.5             0.630           0.578          0.632            0.631
                                                    CS–20 ..................................................................                     86.6                      98.3             0.634           0.651          0.637            0.651
                                                    CS–21 ..................................................................                     86.9                      70.7             0.641           0.583          0.636            0.632
                                                    CS–22 ..................................................................                     81.0                      91.0             0.675           0.705          0.675            0.666
                                                    CS–23 ..................................................................                     81.6                      72.5             0.705           0.676          0.683            0.661
                                                    CS–24 ..................................................................                     58.5                      65.6             0.566           0.558          0.571            0.544
                                                    CS–25 ..................................................................                     63.8                      77.8             0.669           0.739          0.702            0.724
                                                    CS–26 ..................................................................                     75.2                      71.6             0.716           0.685          0.694            0.670
                                                    CS–27 ..................................................................                     77.6                      70.2             0.635           0.587          0.603            0.572
                                                    CS–28 ..................................................................                     64.4                      58.3             0.606           0.598          0.616            0.583
                                                    CS–29 ..................................................................                     70.6                      72.8             0.569           0.600          0.617            0.585
                                                    CS–30 ..................................................................                     64.6                      70.2             0.434           0.595          0.611            0.580
                                                    CS–31 ..................................................................                     87.0                      91.4             0.640           0.645          0.602            0.630
                                                    CS–32 ..................................................................                     67.2                      68.6             0.647           0.656          0.666            0.641
                                                    CS–33 ..................................................................                     65.2                      67.2             0.624           0.651          0.660            0.636
                                                    CS–34 ..................................................................                     94.5                      93.0             0.709           0.721          0.694            0.706
                                                    CS–35 ..................................................................                     68.0                      64.8             0.670           0.679          0.690            0.664
                                                    CS–36 ..................................................................                    108.8                     103.0             0.672           0.681          0.643            0.666
                                                    CS–37 ..................................................................                     84.8                      87.8             0.828           0.861          0.824            0.830
                                                    CS–38 ..................................................................                     64.8                      63.5             0.595           0.583          0.592            0.606
                                                    CS–39 ..................................................................                     64.6                      66.3             0.596           0.609          0.599            0.621
                                                    CS–40 ..................................................................                     83.8                      86.6             0.641           0.589          0.653            0.610
                                                    CS–41 ..................................................................                     88.2                      85.0             0.662           0.670          0.649            0.656
                                                    CS–42 ..................................................................                    111.7                     115.5             0.478           0.557          0.537            0.529
                                                    CS–43 ..................................................................                    127.4                     123.9             0.641           0.659          0.613            0.643
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    b. Consumer Instantaneous                                                    data used to derive the consumer                                   acknowledges that these results appear
                                                    i. Test Results                                                              instantaneous water heater conversion                              to violate theoretical limits and believes
                                                                                                                                 factors. It is noted that test results show                        that these results are an artifact of
                                                      As stated in section III.D.1, DOE has                                      measured recovery efficiencies above                               measurement uncertainty. Table III.18
                                                    tested 22 consumer instantaneous water                                       100 percent and EFs and UEFs above 1                               shows the water heater attributes by
                                                    heaters to both the current and new test                                     for electric instantaneous units; DOE                              unit described in section III.D.1.
                                                    procedures. Table III.17 presents the test


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                                                    20134                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                                                                 TABLE III.17—CONSUMER INSTANTANEOUS WATER HEATER TEST DATA
                                                                                                                                                                                                          Current
                                                                                                                         Input rate                 Current                  Updated                     recovery
                                                                 Unit No.                            Type                                                                                                                                EF                  UEF
                                                                                                                           (Btu/h)                 max GPM                   max GPM                     efficiency
                                                                                                                                                                                                             (%)

                                                    CI–1 ..................................    Electric ......                    8,200                         0.20                      0.23                     101.2                      1.012              0.982
                                                    CI–2 ..................................    Electric ......                   32,400                         0.82                      0.93                     101.5                      1.017              0.981
                                                    CI–3 ..................................    Electric ......                   34,100                         0.87                      0.99                     101.8                      1.018              1.001
                                                    CI–4 ..................................    Electric ......                   27,300                         0.68                      0.80                     102.0                      1.019              1.004
                                                    CI–5 ..................................    Electric ......                   20,500                         0.52                      0.59                     102.3                      1.021              1.005
                                                    CI–6 ..................................    Gas ............                 179,900                         4.01                      4.58                      82.4                      0.821              0.832
                                                    CI–7 ..................................    Gas ............                 178,500                         4.08                      4.71                      83.8                      0.837              0.828
                                                    CI–8 ..................................    Gas ............                 120,900                         2.69                      3.07                      84.1                      0.839              0.814
                                                    CI–9 ..................................    Gas ............                 199,000                         4.61                      4.86                      87.0                      0.876              0.841
                                                    CI–10 ................................     Gas ............                 151,900                         3.47                      3.96                      88.3                      0.891              0.815
                                                    CI–11 ................................     Gas ............                 141,100                         3.11                      3.61                      81.4                      0.810              0.824
                                                    CI–12 ................................     Gas ............                 190,400                         4.23                      4.81                      83.4                      0.829              0.818
                                                    CI–13 ................................     Gas ............                 142,500                         2.96                      3.43                      80.9                      0.801              0.795
                                                    CI–14 ................................     Gas ............                 197,200                         5.19                      5.80                      96.7                      0.966              0.958
                                                    CI–15 ................................     Gas ............                 199,800                         4.80                      4.10                      93.8                      0.932              0.931
                                                    CI–16 ................................     Gas ............                 151,500                         3.24                      3.88                      84.3                      0.837              0.805
                                                    CI–17 ................................     Gas ............                 180,400                         3.92                      4.60                      85.0                      0.853              0.827
                                                    CI–18 ................................     Gas ............                 175,800                         3.67                      4.30                      84.5                      0.838              0.830
                                                    CI–19 ................................     Gas ............                 199,200                         4.30                      5.07                      75.0                      0.743              0.799
                                                    CI–20 ................................     Gas ............                 154,100                         3.98                      4.47                      91.6                      0.913              0.922
                                                    CI–21 ................................     Gas ............                 201,300                         4.90                      5.70                      88.0                      0.851              0.884
                                                    CI–22 ................................     Gas ............                 199,900                         5.12                      4.91                      89.9                      0.888              0.943


                                                                                                TABLE III.18—CONSUMER INSTANTANEOUS WATER HEATER ATTRIBUTES
                                                                            Unit No.                                                NOX emission level                                                     Condensing                                     Vent type

                                                    CI–1 .........................................................   N/A .........................................................    N/A .........................................................    N/A.
                                                    CI–2 .........................................................   N/A .........................................................    N/A .........................................................    N/A.
                                                    CI–3 .........................................................   N/A .........................................................    N/A .........................................................    N/A.
                                                    CI–4 .........................................................   N/A .........................................................    N/A .........................................................    N/A.
                                                    CI–5 .........................................................   N/A .........................................................    N/A .........................................................    N/A.
                                                    CI–6 .........................................................   Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–7 .........................................................   Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–8 .........................................................   Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–9 .........................................................   Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–10 .......................................................    Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–11 .......................................................    Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Power.
                                                    CI–12 .......................................................    Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Power.
                                                    CI–13 .......................................................    Low .........................................................    No ...........................................................   Power.
                                                    CI–14 .......................................................    Low .........................................................    Yes .........................................................    Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–15 .......................................................    Low .........................................................    Yes .........................................................    Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–16 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–17 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–18 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–19 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       No ...........................................................   Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–20 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       Yes .........................................................    Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–21 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       Yes .........................................................    Atmospheric.
                                                    CI–22 .......................................................    Ultra-Low ................................................       Yes .........................................................    Power.



                                                    ii. Conversion Factor Results                                            Along with this analytical model, step                                      respectively. DOE has tentatively
                                                                                                                             regression and combined analytical                                          decided to use the analytical model
                                                       As stated in section III.C.2, DOE                                     model-regression approaches were                                            approach to calculate the consumer
                                                    developed an analytical model to                                         conducted. The results of the analytical                                    instantaneous maximum GPM
                                                    convert the existing maximum GPM                                         model, step regression, and combined                                        conversion factor owing to the fact that
                                                    rating for consumer instantaneous water
                                                                                                                             analytical model-regression approaches                                      the model predicts the resultant data
                                                    heaters to ratings under the uniform
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                                             for the maximum GPM and UEF                                                 very closely and that it will broadly
                                                    efficiency descriptor test procedure.
                                                                                                                             conversions are presented in Table                                          apply to those units not tested. DOE has
                                                    DOE also attempted to develop an
                                                    analytical method based on the WHAM                                      III.20. For the maximum GPM                                                 also tentatively decided to use the
                                                    equation to estimate the change in                                       conversions, the RMS errors for the                                         combined analytical model-regression
                                                    existing energy factor ratings under the                                 three approaches are 0.38, 0.35, and                                        approach to convert from EF to UEF
                                                    existing consumer water heater test                                      0.38, respectively. For the UEF                                             since the RMS errors are low, and it has
                                                    procedure to values under the uniform                                    conversions, the three approaches have                                      tentatively concluded that the use of the
                                                    efficiency descriptor test procedure.                                    RMS errors of 0.024, 0.028, and 0.023,                                      model and regression will capture key


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                                                                                      Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                   20135

                                                    effects that may not be captured with                                    UEFgas = 0.9059 * UEFmodel + 0.0783                     applied during the simulated-use test
                                                    either approach by itself. For the electric                                                                                      and are provided in Table III.19.
                                                                                                                             UEFelectric = 1.0079 * UEFmodel
                                                    instantaneous water heaters, DOE
                                                    imposed a zero intercept on the                                          where MaxGPMEx is the maximum GPM                         TABLE III.19—COEFFICIENTS TO DE-
                                                    regression since the regression with an                                  rating based on the current DOE test                       TERMINE UEFmodel FOR CONSUMER
                                                    intercept resulted in UEFs above the                                     procedure and UEFmodel is the predicted                    INSTANTANEOUS WATER HEATERS
                                                    theoretical limit of 1. DOE has                                          UEF determined using the following
                                                    tentatively concluded that this step is                                  analytical model:                                                Draw bin                     A             B
                                                    technically acceptable, as it effectively
                                                    states that a water heater with an EF of                                                                                         Very Small ................          5514.2         170.2
                                                    zero should also have a UEF of zero.                                                                                             Low ...........................      20954          262.4
                                                    The resulting conversion factors for both                                                                                        Medium .....................         30328          290.9
                                                    first hour rating and UEF are:                                           Values for the coefficients A and B are                 High ..........................      46319          294.0
                                                    MaxGPMnew = 1.147 * MaxGPMEx                                             dependent upon the draw pattern

                                                                              TABLE III.20—CONSUMER INSTANTANEOUS WATER HEATER CONVERSION FACTOR RESULTS
                                                                                                                                                  Combined
                                                                                                           Analytical                                                                                                              Analytical-
                                                                                 Tested max                                     Regression        analytical-           Tested           Analytical           Regression
                                                         Unit No.                                            max                                                                                                                   regression
                                                                                    GPM                                         max GPM           regression             UEF               UEF                  UEF
                                                                                                             GPM                                                                                                                      UEF
                                                                                                                                                  max GPM

                                                    CI–1 ..................                   0.23                    0.23              0.24                 0.23            0.982               0.982                  0.980            0.989
                                                    CI–2 ..................                   0.93                    0.94              0.94                 0.94            0.981               0.984                  0.987            0.992
                                                    CI–3 ..................                   0.99                    1.00              1.00                 1.00            1.001               0.987                  0.995            0.995
                                                    CI–4 ..................                   0.80                    0.78              0.78                 0.78            1.004               0.989                  1.001            0.997
                                                    CI–5 ..................                   0.59                    0.59              0.60                 0.59            1.005               0.991                  1.008            0.999
                                                    CI–6 ..................                   4.58                    4.60              4.58                 4.60            0.832               0.820                  0.816            0.820
                                                    CI–7 ..................                   4.71                    4.68              4.66                 4.68            0.828               0.834                  0.829            0.833
                                                    CI–8 ..................                   3.07                    3.08              3.17                 3.08            0.814               0.834                  0.830            0.834
                                                    CI–9 ..................                   4.86                    5.28              5.22                 5.28            0.841               0.865                  0.859            0.861
                                                    CI–10 ................                    3.96                    3.98              4.01                 3.98            0.815               0.878                  0.871            0.873
                                                    CI–11 ................                    3.61                    3.56              3.62                 3.56            0.824               0.808                  0.807            0.810
                                                    CI–12 ................                    4.81                    4.85              4.82                 4.85            0.818               0.829                  0.822            0.829
                                                    CI–13 ................                    3.43                    3.39              3.46                 3.39            0.795               0.803                  0.800            0.805
                                                    CI–14 ................                    5.80                    5.95              5.84                 5.95            0.958               0.961                  0.931            0.948
                                                    CI–15 ................                    4.10                    5.50              5.43                 5.50            0.931               0.933                  0.904            0.923
                                                    CI–16 ................                    3.88                    3.71              3.76                 3.71            0.805               0.836                  0.829            0.835
                                                    CI–17 ................                    4.60                    4.49              4.49                 4.49            0.827               0.845                  0.841            0.844
                                                    CI–18 ................                    4.30                    4.21              4.22                 4.21            0.830               0.840                  0.829            0.839
                                                    CI–19 ................                    5.07                    4.93              4.90                 4.93            0.799               0.746                  0.754            0.754
                                                    CI–20 ................                    4.47                    4.56              4.55                 4.56            0.922               0.911                  0.889            0.903
                                                    CI–21 ................                    5.70                    5.62              5.54                 5.62            0.884               0.875                  0.840            0.870
                                                    CI–22 ................                    4.91                    5.87              5.77                 5.87            0.943               0.894                  0.869            0.887



                                                    c. Residential-Duty Commercial Storage                                   storage water heaters to both the current               Table III.22 shows the water heater
                                                    Testing                                                                  and new test procedures. Table III.21                   attributes by unit described in section
                                                    i. Test Data                                                             below presents the test data used to                    III.D.2.
                                                                                                                             derive the residential-duty commercial
                                                      As stated in section III.D.2, DOE has                                  storage water heater conversion factors.
                                                    tested 7 residential-duty commercial
                                                                                    TABLE III.21—RESIDENTIAL-DUTY COMMERCIAL STORAGE WATER HEATER TEST DATA
                                                                                                                        Storage                               Tested thermal         Tested
                                                                                                                                             Input rate                                                   Updated FHR
                                                               Unit No.                             Type                volume                                  efficiency        standby loss                                       UEF
                                                                                                                                               (Btu/h)                                                       (gal)
                                                                                                                         (gal)                                      (%)              (Btu/h)

                                                    RD–1     ..............................   Gas    .............               95.4             79,100                  80.4             1,178.2                     109.8             0.514
                                                    RD–2     ..............................   Gas    .............               72.7             67,400                  67.9               721.0                      90.3             0.585
                                                    RD–3     ..............................   Gas    .............               71.3             69,700                  75.5               839.4                     119.3             0.619
                                                    RD–4     ..............................   Gas    .............               48.3             76,500                  93.6               328.0                     137.0             0.816
                                                    RD–5     ..............................   Gas    .............               48.4             75,300                  88.9               338.1                     126.5             0.725
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    RD–6     ..............................   Gas    .............               47.8             75,700                  90.0               358.4                     103.3             0.621
                                                    RD–7     ..............................   Gas    .............               71.0             63,800                  67.1             1,546.8                     111.5             0.470
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 EP14AP15.016</GPH>




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                                                    20136                           Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                                                 TABLE III.22—RESIDENTIAL-DUTY COMMERCIAL STORAGE WATER HEATER ATTRIBUTES
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Standing pilot
                                                                                                                                        NOX
                                                                                 Unit No.                                           emission level              Condensing                  Vent type              Short or tall               or electric
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                ignition

                                                    RD–1   .....................................................................   Standard ...........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......      Tall ....................   Yes.
                                                    RD–2   .....................................................................   Standard ...........      No .....................   Power ...............   Tall ....................   No.
                                                    RD–3   .....................................................................   Standard ...........      No .....................   Power ...............   Tall ....................   No.
                                                    RD–4   .....................................................................   Low ...................   Yes ...................    Atmospheric ......      Short .................     No.
                                                    RD–5   .....................................................................   Low ...................   Yes ...................    Power ...............   Tall ....................   No.
                                                    RD–6   .....................................................................   Low ...................   Yes ...................    Power ...............   Tall ....................   No.
                                                    RD–7   .....................................................................   Ultra-Low ..........      No .....................   Atmospheric ......      Tall ....................   Yes.



                                                    ii. Conversion Factor Results                                              first-hour rating under the uniform                                robust over the entire family of
                                                       As stated in section III.C.2.b, DOE is                                  efficiency descriptor is determined                                residential-duty commercial storage
                                                                                                                               through the conversion factor above, the                           water heaters since it captures the
                                                    not aware of an analytical model to
                                                                                                                               value can be applied to determine the                              effects of water temperature, draw
                                                    convert the thermal efficiency and
                                                                                                                               appropriate draw pattern bin (i.e., very                           volume per day, thermal efficiency, and
                                                    standby loss ratings under the current
                                                                                                                               small, low, medium, or high) using                                 standby loss that are expected to be
                                                    test procedure to first-hour rating values
                                                                                                                               Table III.3 of this NOPR or Table 1 of                             valid for any water heater. Thus, the use
                                                    under the new test procedure.
                                                                                                                               the uniform efficiency descriptor test                             of an analytical model is expected to be
                                                    Therefore, the step regression method
                                                                                                                               procedure. 79 FR 40542, 40572 (July 11,                            less prone to error should a model have
                                                    described in section III.C.3 along with
                                                                                                                               2014). With the draw bin known, the                                some unexpected characteristic that was
                                                    the best combination of water heater
                                                                                                                               UEF value based on the analytical                                  not captured in the water heaters tested
                                                    attributes were used to determine the
                                                                                                                               model can be calculated using the                                  as part of this NOPR. The resulting
                                                    following first-hour rating conversion
                                                                                                                               process described in section III.C.2.c.iii.                        equations for determining the UEF of
                                                    factors:
                                                                                                                               The analytical results, along with the                             consumer storage water heaters are:
                                                    New FHRFossil Fuel = 1.0226 * Q + 39.81                                    results of the step regression and                                 UEFfossil fuel = 0.7300 * UEFrd + 0.1413
                                                    Where Q is the input rate of the burner                                    analytical-regression are shown in Table
                                                    in kBtu/h. For this regression, DOE                                        III.23 and have RMS values of 0.074,                               Where UEFrd is the estimate of the UEF
                                                    decided to group both oil and gas water                                    0.055, and 0.053, respectively. Based on                           for residential-duty water heaters
                                                    heaters because of the lack of oil water                                   these results, DOE has tentatively                                 computed with the following equation:
                                                    heaters identified. DOE has tentatively                                    decided to use the combined analytical-
                                                    concluded that this grouping is the best                                   regression approach to calculate the
                                                    approach to convert ratings for any                                        residential-duty commercial storage
                                                    residential-duty oil water heater on the                                   water heater conversion factor. While                              where C1 is a constant dependent upon
                                                    market.                                                                    the regression approach yields a slightly                          the draw pattern given in Table III.6, Et
                                                       The next step in the conversion is to                                   better RMS error, DOE has tentatively                              is the thermal efficiency in fractional
                                                    determine which draw pattern is to be                                      concluded that the use of the analytical                           form (i.e., 0.85 instead of 85 (%)), and
                                                    applied to convert to UEF. After the                                       model will make the conversion more                                SL is the standby loss in BTU/h.

                                                                                         TABLE III.23—RESIDENTIAL-DUTY COMMERCIAL CONVERSION FACTOR RESULTS
                                                                                                                                          Regression                                                                                           Analytical-
                                                                                                             Tested FHR                                                                                              Regression
                                                                    Unit No.                                                                FHR                    Tested UEF              Analytical UEF                                      regression
                                                                                                                (gal)                                                                                                  UEF
                                                                                                                                            (gal)                                                                                                 UEF

                                                    RD–1   ............................................                    109.8                     120.7                     0.514                   0.573                     0.530                 0.560
                                                    RD–2   ............................................                     90.3                     108.8                     0.585                   0.562                     0.629                 0.551
                                                    RD–3   ............................................                    119.3                     111.1                     0.619                   0.595                     0.604                 0.575
                                                    RD–4   ............................................                    137.0                     118.0                     0.816                   0.828                     0.715                 0.746
                                                    RD–5   ............................................                    126.5                     116.9                     0.725                   0.788                     0.713                 0.717
                                                    RD–6   ............................................                    103.3                     117.3                     0.621                   0.791                     0.709                 0.719
                                                    RD–7   ............................................                    111.5                     105.0                     0.470                   0.466                     0.449                 0.481



                                                    d. Residential-Duty Instantaneous                                          existing efficiency ratings to the                                 for updating the energy conservation
                                                    Testing                                                                    efficiency ratings under the UEF metric,                           standards so as to be based on the UEF
                                                                                                                               DOE sought to update its energy                                    metric. The percent difference method
                                                      As discussed in section III.B.2, no
                                                                                                                               conservation standards for covered                                 was conducted as follows:
                                                    instantaneous residential-duty
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    commercial water heaters exist on the                                      water heater products so as to be in                                 1. Apply conversion factor to convert
                                                    market. Therefore, a conversion factor is                                  terms of UEF. DOE investigated several                             the current efficiency metrics provided
                                                    not needed.                                                                possible methods to determine the                                  in the relevant consumer or commercial
                                                                                                                               appropriate energy conservation                                    database to the calculated UEF value for
                                                    3. Energy Conservation Standard                                            standards in terms of UEF.                                         each water heater on the market.
                                                    Derivation
                                                                                                                                  First, DOE considered the ‘‘percent                               2. Calculate the current efficiency
                                                      After developing the mathematical                                        difference’’ method, which is the                                  standard for each water heater in the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               EP14AP15.017</GPH>




                                                    conversion factors to convert from the                                     method DOE ultimately has proposed                                 database, as follows:


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                                                                                      Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                                          20137

                                                      a. For consumer water heaters, find                                       b. For residential-duty commercial                                        3. Find the percent difference
                                                    the minimum EF.                                                           water heaters, find the minimum                                           between the rated efficiency value and
                                                                                                                              thermal efficiency.                                                       the standard for each water heater in the
                                                                                                                                                                                                        database, as follows:




                                                       4. Find the new energy conservation                                      The advantage of using a ‘‘percent                                      groupings of water heaters where no
                                                    standard for each water heater in the                                     difference’’ is that the updated energy                                   minimally compliant models are
                                                    database, as follows:                                                     conservation standard is a function of                                    currently available on the market. The
                                                    a. UEFmin = UEF (1 ¥ PD)                                                  the UEF conversion for all water heaters                                  proposed standards in terms of uniform
                                                       5. Find a line through their minimum                                   rather than a subset. It also allows for                                  energy factor are shown below by
                                                    UEF values.                                                               conversions of standards for classes or                                   product class and draw pattern.

                                                                                TABLE III.24—UPDATED CONSUMER WATER HEATER ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS
                                                                            Product class                                                     Rated storage volume                                        Draw pattern                  Uniform energy factor

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ............................................          ≥20 gal and ≤55 gal ........................................             Very Small ............          0.3263   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.5891   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.6326   ¥   (0.0013   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.7128   ¥   (0.0025   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                            >55 gal and ≤100 gal ......................................              Very Small ............          0.5352   ¥   (0.0007   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.7375   ¥   (0.0009   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.7704   ¥   (0.0010   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.7980   ¥   (0.0010   ×   Vr)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ..............................................        ≤50 gal ............................................................     Very Small ............          0.2267   ¥   (0.0014   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.4867   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.6016   ¥   (0.0012   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.6529   ¥   (0.0005   ×   Vr)
                                                    Electric Storage ...............................................        ≥20 gal and ≤55 gal ........................................             Very Small ............          0.8268   ¥   (0.0002   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.9393   ¥   (0.0004   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.9683   ¥   (0.0007   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.9656   ¥   (0.0004   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                            >55 gal and ≤120 gal ......................................              Very Small ............          1.2701   ¥   (0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      1.9137   ¥   (0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         2.0326   ¥   (0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     2.1858   ¥   (0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                    Tabletop Storage .............................................          ≥20 gal and ≤100 gal ......................................              Very Small ............          0.6808   ¥   (0.0022   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.8770   ¥   (0.0012   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.9063   ¥   (0.0009   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.9302   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                    Gas-fired Instantaneous ..................................              <2 gal ..............................................................    All ..........................   0.8036   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                    Electric Instantaneous .....................................            <2 gal ..............................................................    All ..........................   0.9192   ¥   (0.0013   ×   Vr)
                                                       * Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as specified by the manufacturer.

                                                             TABLE III.25—UPDATED RESIDENTIAL-DUTY COMMERCIAL WATER HEATER ENERGY CONSERVATION STANDARDS
                                                                                                                Product class                                                                             Draw pattern                  Uniform energy factor

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ..........................................................................................................................     Very Small ............          0.3261   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.5219   ¥   (0.0008   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.5585   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.6044   ¥   (0.0005   ×   Vr)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ............................................................................................................................   Very Small ............          0.3206   ¥   (0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Low .......................      0.5577   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                     Medium .................         0.6027   ¥   (0.0019   ×   Vr)
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                                                                                                                                                                                                     High .......................     0.6446   ¥   (0.0018   ×   Vr)
                                                       * Vr is the rated storage volume which equals the water storage capacity of a water heater (in gallons), as specified by the manufacturer.


                                                      As stated in section III.A, EEI                                         energy conservation standards should                                      the current rated energy factors and
                                                    commented in response to the                                              be not more stringent than they are                                       energy conservation standards are used
                                                    November 2013 NOPR, that the updated                                      currently. The percent difference from                                    to derive the new energy conservation
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       EP14AP15.018</GPH>




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                                                    20138                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    standards; therefore, the updated                       manufacturers to provide EF and UEF                    unless the agency certifies that the rule,
                                                    standards are no more stringent than                    for consumer water heaters (or thermal                 if promulgated, will not have a
                                                    those currently in existence. A.O. Smith                efficiency and standby loss and UEF for                significant economic impact on a
                                                    and AHRI suggested that the average                     commercial residential-duty water                      substantial number of small entities. As
                                                    difference between the current and new                  heaters) in certification reports filed                required by Executive Order 13272,
                                                    ratings should not be used to convert                   between July 13, 2015, and the                         ‘‘Proper Consideration of Small Entities
                                                    the energy conservation standards. At                   compliance date determined by the final                in Agency Rulemaking,’’ 67 FR 53461
                                                    no point in the conversion factor                       rule in this rulemaking. Manufacturers                 (August 16, 2002), DOE published
                                                    derivation or energy conservation                       would not be required to submit revised                procedures and policies on February 19,
                                                    standard analysis is a simple average                   certification reports for previously                   2003, to ensure that the potential
                                                    taken, but rather, the trends of all the                certified basic models until the next                  impacts of its rules on small entities are
                                                    traditional factors affecting water                     annual certification date (May 1).                     properly considered during the DOE
                                                    heaters are considered.                                    Allowing manufacturers to submit                    rulemaking process. 68 FR 7990. DOE
                                                       DOE also investigated a second                       both EF and UEF data would allow                       has made its procedures and policies
                                                    method of determining the energy                        manufacturers to fulfill the statutory                 available on the Office of the General
                                                    conservation standards where only test                  requirement to begin using UEF for                     Counsel’s Web site: http://energy.gov/
                                                    data from minimally-compliant water                     purposes of compliance with standards                  gc/office-general-counsel.
                                                    heaters would be used to develop a                      but would also allow manufacturers to                     This proposed rule would prescribe a
                                                    conversion factor using the analytical                  provide the necessary information to                   mathematical conversion that would be
                                                    and regression methods described in                     determine costs under the current FTC                  used to determine compliance with
                                                    section III.C. Then, this set of                        labeling requirements. This would also                 energy conservation standards for
                                                    conversion factors could be applied to                  allow a transition period for FTC to                   consumer water heaters and certain
                                                    the minimum energy conservation                         pursue a rulemaking to determine                       commercial water heaters. For consumer
                                                    standards to determine the appropriate                  whether changes are needed to the                      water heaters and certain commercial
                                                    energy conservation standards in terms                  water heater EnergyGuide label due to                  water heaters, the mathematical
                                                    of the UEF metric. This method would                    changes in the water heater test                       conversion would establish a bridge
                                                    remove from consideration any factors                   procedure. DOE expects that the                        between the rated values based on the
                                                    that are present in more-efficient water                conversion factors proposed in this                    results under the current test procedures
                                                    heaters, so the resulting change in the                 notice could be used to convert EF to                  and the uniform efficiency descriptor of
                                                    standard would not be skewed at all by                  UEF for previously certified basic                     the new test procedure. Furthermore,
                                                    the inclusion of higher-efficiency                      models or to convert UEF values                        the conversion factor will ensure that no
                                                    products in the mathematical                            ‘‘backwards’’ to EF to determine the                   products which currently pass energy
                                                    conversion. However, the conversion                     appropriate costs for labeling of new                  conservation standards fail to meet the
                                                    factors developed through such a                        basic models until FTC has determined                  energy conservation standards after the
                                                    methodology would potentially not be                    whether to make changes to the label.                  conversion factor has been applied. DOE
                                                    applicable for converting the efficiency                DOE has proposed a methodology for                     reviewed this proposed rule under the
                                                    ratings of products above the baseline.                 calculating costs based on UEF testing                 provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility
                                                    Therefore, DOE chose to pursue a                        that could be used in future FTC                       Act and the policies and procedures
                                                    methodology that was applicable to all                  labeling requirements. DOE requests                    published on February 19, 2003. 68 FR
                                                    water heaters and perform the                           comment on whether DOE should adopt                    7990.
                                                    conversion of standards based on the                                                                              For the manufacturers of the covered
                                                                                                            such a provision in the final rule in this
                                                    ‘‘percent difference’’ method described                                                                        water heater products, the Small
                                                                                                            rulemaking or postpone adoption until
                                                    above.                                                                                                         Business Administration (SBA) has set a
                                                                                                            FTC has had an opportunity to evaluate
                                                       DOE seeks comment on the most                                                                               size threshold, which defines those
                                                                                                            the ENERGY GUIDE label.
                                                    appropriate method for determining the                                                                         entities classified as ‘‘small businesses’’
                                                    energy conservation standards based on                  IV. Procedural Issues and Regulatory                   for the purposes of the statute. DOE
                                                    the updated test procedure. This is                     Review                                                 used the SBA’s small business size
                                                    identified as issue 5 in section V.E,                                                                          standards to determine whether any
                                                    ‘‘Issues on Which DOE Seeks                             A. Review Under Executive Order 12866                  small entities would be subject to the
                                                    Comment.’’                                                 The Office of Management and Budget                 requirements of the rule. 65 FR 30836,
                                                                                                            (OMB) has determined that test                         30849 (May 15, 2000), as amended at 65
                                                    F. Certification and Labeling Issues                    procedure rulemakings do not constitute                FR 53533, 53545 (Sept. 5, 2000) and at
                                                       Consumer water heaters and                           ‘‘significant regulatory actions’’ under               77 FR 49991, 50008–11 (August 20,
                                                    residential-duty commercial water                       section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866,                 2012) and codified at 13 CFR part 121.
                                                    heaters manufactured prior to the                       Regulatory Planning and Review, 58 FR                  The size standards are listed by North
                                                    effective date of the uniform energy                    51735 (Oct. 4, 1993). Accordingly, this                American Industry Classification
                                                    factor test procedure final rule (i.e., July            action was not subject to review under                 System (NAICS) code and industry
                                                    13, 2015) that comply with the                          the Executive Order by the Office of                   description and are available at http://
                                                    efficiency standards and labeling                       Information and Regulatory Affairs                     www.sba.gov/content/table-small-
                                                    requirements in effect prior to that final              (OIRA) in the Office of Management and                 business-size-standards. Consumer
                                                    rule will be considered to comply with                                                                         water heater manufacturing is classified
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                            Budget.
                                                    the converted UEF standards and with                                                                           under NAICS code 335228—‘‘Other
                                                    any revised labeling requirements                       B. Review Under the Regulatory                         Major Household Appliance
                                                    established by the Federal Trade                        Flexibility Act                                        Manufacturing.’’ The SBA sets a
                                                    Commission (FTC) to carry out the final                   The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5                    threshold of 500 employees or less for
                                                    rule. (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)(5)(K)) The                     U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires preparation               an entity to be considered as a small
                                                    statute requires that the standard be in                of an initial regulatory flexibility                   business. Commercial water heater
                                                    terms of UEF as of July 13, 2015.                       analysis (IFRA) for any rule that by law               manufacturing is classified under
                                                    Accordingly, DOE proposes to require                    must be proposed for public comment,                   NAICS code 333318—‘‘Other


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                                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                             20139

                                                    Commercial and Service Industry                            At the date that compliance is                      D. Review Under the National
                                                    Machinery Manufacturing,’’ for which                    required with the new test procedure,                  Environmental Policy Act of 1969
                                                    SBA sets a size threshold of 1,000                      all water heating units with residential                  In this proposed rule, DOE proposes
                                                    employees or fewer as being considered                  applications (i.e., consumer units and                 conversion factors to convert results
                                                    a small business.                                       residential-duty commercial units) must                from existing efficiency and delivery
                                                       DOE has identified 19 manufacturers                  meet the applicable energy conservation                capacity metrics (and related energy
                                                    of consumer water heaters (including                    standards. These units will be re-rated                conservation standard requirements) for
                                                    manufacturers of products that fall                     to the uniform descriptor based on the                 consumer and certain commercial water
                                                    under the expanded scope) that can be                   new test procedure. This conversion                    heaters to the uniform energy
                                                    considered small businesses. DOE                        will not result in any increase in                     descriptor. DOE has determined that
                                                    identified seven manufacturers of                       stringency of the energy conservation                  this rule falls into a class of actions that
                                                    ‘‘residential-duty’’ commercial water                   standards. Therefore, no units that are                are categorically excluded from review
                                                    heaters that can be considered small                    on the market at the time of this                      under the National Environmental
                                                    businesses. Six of the ‘‘residential-duty’’             rulemaking will be made illegal                        Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
                                                    commercial water heater manufacturers                   (noncompliant) by this action.                         seq.) and DOE’s implementing
                                                    also manufacture consumer water                                                                                regulations at 10 CFR part 1021.
                                                    heaters, so the total number of water                      Accordingly, DOE concludes and
                                                                                                            certifies that this final rule would not               Specifically, this proposed rule would
                                                    heater manufacturers impacted by this                                                                          amend the existing rule without
                                                    rule would be 20. DOE’s research                        have a significant economic impact on
                                                                                                            a substantial number of small entities,                affecting the amount, quality or
                                                    involved reviewing several industry                                                                            distribution of energy usage, and,
                                                    trade association membership                            so DOE has not prepared a regulatory
                                                                                                            flexibility analysis for this rulemaking.              therefore, would not result in any
                                                    directories (e.g., AHRI), product                                                                              environmental impacts. Thus, this
                                                    databases (e.g., AHRI, CEC, and                         DOE will provide its certification and
                                                                                                                                                                   rulemaking is covered by Categorical
                                                    ENERGY STAR databases), individual                      supporting statement of factual basis to
                                                                                                                                                                   Exclusion A5 under 10 CFR part 1021,
                                                    company Web sites, and marketing                        the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the
                                                                                                                                                                   subpart D, which applies to any
                                                    research tools (e.g., Hoovers reports) to               SBA for review under 5 U.S.C. 605(b).
                                                                                                                                                                   rulemaking that interprets or amends an
                                                    create a list of all domestic small                     C. Review Under the Paperwork                          existing rule without changing the
                                                    business manufacturers of products                      Reduction Act of 1995                                  environmental effect of that rule.
                                                    covered by this rulemaking.                                                                                    Accordingly, neither an environmental
                                                       For the reasons explained below, DOE                    Manufacturers of water heaters must                 assessment nor an environmental
                                                    has concluded that the test procedure                   certify to DOE that their products                     impact statement is required.
                                                    amendments contained in this proposed                   comply with any applicable energy
                                                    rule would not have a significant                       conservation standards. In certifying                  E. Review Under Executive Order 13132
                                                    economic impact on any manufacturer,                    compliance, manufacturers must test                       Executive Order 13132, ‘‘Federalism,’’
                                                    including small manufacturers.                          their products according to the DOE test               64 FR 43255 (August 10, 1999) imposes
                                                       For consumer water heaters that were                 procedures for water heaters, including                certain requirements on agencies
                                                    covered under the old test procedure                    any amendments adopted for those test                  formulating and implementing policies
                                                    and energy conservation standards, the                  procedures. DOE has established                        or regulations that preempt State law or
                                                    conversion factor in this proposed rule                 regulations for the certification and                  that have Federalism implications. The
                                                    would convert the rated values based on                 recordkeeping requirements for all                     Executive Order requires agencies to
                                                    the current test procedure to equivalent                covered consumer products and                          examine the constitutional and statutory
                                                    values based on the new uniform                         commercial equipment, including                        authority supporting any action that
                                                    descriptor test procedure. Although the                 consumer and commercial water                          would limit the policymaking discretion
                                                    energy conservation standards for                       heaters. 76 FR 12422 (March 7, 2011);                  of the States and to carefully assess the
                                                    consumer water heaters will be                          79 FR 25486 (May 5, 2014). The                         necessity for such actions. The
                                                    denominated using the uniform                           collection-of-information requirement                  Executive Order also requires agencies
                                                    descriptor, the statute provides that all               for the certification and recordkeeping                to have an accountable process to
                                                    units that are on the market as of July                 is subject to review and approval by                   ensure meaningful and timely input by
                                                    13, 2015, that meet the April 16, 2015                  OMB under the Paperwork Reduction                      State and local officials in the
                                                    energy factor standard will be deemed                   Act (PRA). This requirement has been                   development of regulatory policies that
                                                    to meet the converted standards.                        approved by OMB under OMB control                      have Federalism implications. On
                                                       For certain commercial water heaters,                number 1910–1400. Public reporting                     March 14, 2000, DOE published a
                                                    defined under the term ‘‘residential-                   burden for the certification is estimated              statement of policy describing the
                                                    duty commercial water heater,’’ the                     to average 30 hours per response,                      intergovernmental consultation process
                                                    conversion factor in this proposed rule                                                                        it will follow in the development of
                                                                                                            including the time for reviewing
                                                    would convert the rated values based on                                                                        such regulations. 65 FR 13735. DOE has
                                                                                                            instructions, searching existing data
                                                    the current test procedure to the                                                                              examined this proposed rule and has
                                                                                                            sources, gathering and maintaining the
                                                    uniform descriptor which is based on                                                                           determined that it would not have a
                                                                                                            data needed, and completing and
                                                    the new test procedure. The energy                                                                             substantial direct effect on the States, on
                                                                                                            reviewing the collection of information.
                                                    conservation standards for commercial                                                                          the relationship between the national
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                                                    water heating equipment will be                            Notwithstanding any other provision                 government and the States, or on the
                                                    denominated using the uniform                           of the law, no person is required to                   distribution of power and
                                                    descriptor. The statute provides that all               respond to, nor shall any person be                    responsibilities among the various
                                                    units that are on the market as of July                 subject to a penalty for failure to comply             levels of government. EPCA governs and
                                                    13, 2015, that meet the thermal                         with, a collection of information subject              prescribes Federal preemption of State
                                                    efficiency and standby losses standards                 to the requirements of the PRA, unless                 regulations as to energy conservation for
                                                    will be deemed to meet the converted                    that collection of information displays a              the products that are the subject of this
                                                    standards.                                              currently valid OMB Control Number.                    proposed rule. States can petition DOE


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                                                    20140                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    for exemption from such preemption to                   national economy. (2 U.S.C. 1532(a), (b))              at 67 FR 8452 (Feb. 22, 2002), and
                                                    the extent, and based on criteria, set                  The UMRA also requires a Federal                       DOE’s guidelines were published at 67
                                                    forth in EPCA. (42 U.S.C. 6297(d)) No                   agency to develop an effective process                 FR 62446 (Oct. 7, 2002). DOE has
                                                    further action is required by Executive                 to permit timely input by elected                      reviewed this proposed rule under the
                                                    Order 13132.                                            officers of State, local, and Tribal                   OMB and DOE guidelines and has
                                                                                                            governments on a proposed ‘‘significant                concluded that it is consistent with
                                                    F. Review Under Executive Order 12988
                                                                                                            intergovernmental mandate,’’ and                       applicable policies in those guidelines.
                                                       Regarding the review of existing                     requires an agency plan for giving notice
                                                    regulations and the promulgation of                                                                            K. Review Under Executive Order 13211
                                                                                                            and opportunity for timely input to
                                                    new regulations, section 3(a) of                        potentially affected small governments                    Executive Order 13211, ‘‘Actions
                                                    Executive Order 12988, ‘‘Civil Justice                  before establishing any requirements                   Concerning Regulations That
                                                    Reform,’’ 61 FR 4729 (Feb. 7, 1996),                    that might significantly or uniquely                   Significantly Affect Energy Supply,
                                                    imposes on Federal agencies the general                 affect them. On March 18, 1997, DOE                    Distribution, or Use,’’ 66 FR 28355 (May
                                                    duty to adhere to the following                         published a statement of policy on its                 22, 2001), requires Federal agencies to
                                                    requirements: (1) Eliminate drafting                    process for intergovernmental                          prepare and submit to OIRA at OMB, a
                                                    errors and ambiguity; (2) write                         consultation under UMRA. 62 FR                         Statement of Energy Effects for any
                                                    regulations to minimize litigation; (3)                 12820. (This policy is also available at               proposed significant energy action. A
                                                    provide a clear legal standard for                      http://energy.gov/gc/office-general-                   ‘‘significant energy action’’ is defined as
                                                    affected conduct rather than a general                  counsel.) DOE examined this proposed                   any action by an agency that
                                                    standard; and (4) promote simplification                rule according to UMRA and its                         promulgates or is expected to lead to
                                                    and burden reduction. Regarding the                     statement of policy and determined that                promulgation of a final rule, and that:
                                                    review required by section 3(a), section                the rule contains neither an                           (1) Is a significant regulatory action
                                                    3(b) of Executive Order 12988                           intergovernmental mandate, nor a                       under Executive Order 12866, or any
                                                    specifically requires that Executive                    mandate that may result in the                         successor order; and (2) is likely to have
                                                    agencies make every reasonable effort to                expenditure by State, local, and Tribal                a significant adverse effect on the
                                                    ensure that the regulation: (1) Clearly                 governments, in the aggregate, or by the               supply, distribution, or use of energy; or
                                                    specifies the preemptive effect, if any;                private sector, of $100 million or more                (3) is designated by the Administrator of
                                                    (2) clearly specifies any effect on                     in any year. Accordingly, no further                   OIRA as a significant energy action. For
                                                    existing Federal law or regulation; (3)                 assessment or analysis is required under               any proposed significant energy action,
                                                    provides a clear legal standard for                     UMRA.                                                  the agency must give a detailed
                                                    affected conduct while promoting                                                                               statement of any adverse effects on
                                                    simplification and burden reduction; (4)                H. Review Under the Treasury and                       energy supply, distribution, or use
                                                    specifies the retroactive effect, if any; (5)           General Government Appropriations                      should the proposal be implemented,
                                                    adequately defines key terms; and (6)                   Act, 1999                                              and of reasonable alternatives to the
                                                    addresses other important issues                          Section 654 of the Treasury and                      action and their expected benefits on
                                                    affecting clarity and general                           General Government Appropriations                      energy supply, distribution, and use.
                                                    draftsmanship under any guidelines                      Act, 1999 (Pub. L. 105–277) requires                      This regulatory action, which would
                                                    issued by the Attorney General. Section                 Federal agencies to issue a Family                     develop a conversion factor to amend
                                                    3(c) of Executive Order 12988 requires                  Policymaking Assessment for any rule                   the energy conservation standards for
                                                    Executive agencies to review regulations                that may affect family well-being. This                consumer and certain commercial water
                                                    in light of applicable standards in                     rule would not have any impact on the                  heaters in light of new test procedures
                                                    sections 3(a) and 3(b) to determine                     autonomy or integrity of the family as                 is not a significant regulatory action
                                                    whether they are met or it is                           an institution. Accordingly, DOE has                   under Executive Order 12866 or any
                                                    unreasonable to meet one or more of                     concluded that it is not necessary to                  successor order. Moreover, it would not
                                                    them. DOE has completed the required                    prepare a Family Policymaking                          have a significant adverse effect on the
                                                    review and determined that, to the                      Assessment.                                            supply, distribution, or use of energy,
                                                    extent permitted by law, the proposed                                                                          nor has it been designated as a
                                                    rule meets the relevant standards of                    I. Review Under Executive Order 12630                  significant energy action by the
                                                    Executive Order 12988.                                     Pursuant to Executive Order 12630,                  Administrator of OIRA. Therefore, it is
                                                                                                            ‘‘Governmental Actions and Interference                not a significant energy action, and,
                                                    G. Review Under the Unfunded
                                                                                                            with Constitutionally Protected Property               accordingly, DOE has not prepared a
                                                    Mandates Reform Act of 1995
                                                                                                            Rights,’’ 53 FR 8859 (March 18, 1988),                 Statement of Energy Effects for this
                                                      Title II of the Unfunded Mandates                     DOE has determined that this regulation                rulemaking.
                                                    Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) requires                      would not result in any takings that
                                                    each Federal agency to assess the effects                                                                      L. Review Under Section 32 of the
                                                                                                            might require compensation under the
                                                    of Federal regulatory actions on State,                                                                        Federal Energy Administration Act of
                                                                                                            Fifth Amendment to the U.S.
                                                    local, and Tribal governments and the                                                                          1974
                                                                                                            Constitution.
                                                    private sector. Public Law 104–4, sec.                                                                            Under section 301 of the Department
                                                    201 (codified at 2 U.S.C. 1531). For a                  J. Review Under Treasury and General                   of Energy Organization Act (Pub. L. 95–
                                                    proposed regulatory action likely to                    Government Appropriations Act, 2001                    91; 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.), DOE must
                                                    result in a rule that may cause the                        Section 515 of the Treasury and                     comply with all laws applicable to the
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    expenditure by State, local, and Tribal                 General Government Appropriations                      former Federal Energy Administration,
                                                    governments, in the aggregate, or by the                Act, 2001 (44 U.S.C. 3516 note) provides               including section 32 of the Federal
                                                    private sector of $100 million or more                  for agencies to review most                            Energy Administration Act of 1974
                                                    in any one year (adjusted annually for                  disseminations of information to the                   (Pub. L. 93–275), as amended by the
                                                    inflation), section 202 of UMRA requires                public under information quality                       Federal Energy Administration
                                                    a Federal agency to publish a written                   guidelines established by each agency                  Authorization Act of 1977 (Pub. L. 95–
                                                    statement that estimates the resulting                  pursuant to general guidelines issued by               70). (15 U.S.C. 788; FEAA) Section 32
                                                    costs, benefits, and other effects on the               OMB. OMB’s guidelines were published                   essentially provides in relevant part


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                                                                             Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                           20141

                                                    that, where a proposed rule authorizes                  (CBI)). Comments submitted through                     submit via email, postal mail, or hand
                                                    or requires use of commercial standards,                www.regulations.gov cannot be claimed                  delivery/courier two well-marked
                                                    the notice of proposed rulemaking must                  as CBI. Comments received through the                  copies: one copy of the document
                                                    inform the public of the use and                        Web site will waive any CBI claims for                 marked ‘‘confidential’’ including all the
                                                    background of such standards. In                        the information submitted. For                         information believed to be confidential,
                                                    addition, section 32(c) requires DOE to                 information on submitting CBI, see the                 and one copy of the document marked
                                                    consult with the Attorney General and                   Confidential Business Information                      ‘‘non-confidential’’ with the information
                                                    the Chairman of the Federal Trade                       section.                                               believed to be confidential deleted.
                                                    Commission (FTC) concerning the                           DOE processes submissions made                       Submit these documents via email or on
                                                    impact of the commercial or industry                    through www.regulations.gov before                     a CD, if feasible. DOE will make its own
                                                    standards on competition.                               posting. Normally, comments will be                    determination about the confidential
                                                      This proposed rule to implement                       posted within a few days of being                      status of the information and treat it
                                                    conversion factors between the existing                 submitted. However, if large volumes of                according to its determination.
                                                    water heaters test procedure and the                    comments are being processed                              Factors of interest to DOE when
                                                    amended test procedure does not                         simultaneously, your comment may not                   evaluating requests to treat submitted
                                                    incorporate testing methods contained                   be viewable for up to several weeks.                   information as confidential include: (1)
                                                    in commercial standards.                                Please keep the comment tracking                       A description of the items; (2) whether
                                                                                                            number that www.regulations.gov                        and why such items are customarily
                                                    V. Public Participation                                 provides after you have successfully                   treated as confidential within the
                                                    A. Submission of Comments                               uploaded your comment.                                 industry; (3) whether the information is
                                                                                                               Submitting comments via email, hand                 generally known by or available from
                                                       DOE will accept comments, data, and                  delivery/courier, or mail. Comments and
                                                    information regarding this proposed                                                                            other sources; (4) whether the
                                                                                                            documents submitted via email, hand                    information has previously been made
                                                    rule no later than the date provided in                 delivery/courier, or mail also will be
                                                    the DATES section at the beginning of                                                                          available to others without obligation
                                                                                                            posted to www.regulations.gov. If you                  concerning its confidentiality; (5) an
                                                    this proposed rule. Interested parties                  do not want your personal contact
                                                    may submit comments, data, and other                                                                           explanation of the competitive injury to
                                                                                                            information to be publicly viewable, do                the submitting person which would
                                                    information using any of the methods                    not include it in your comment or any
                                                    described in the ADDRESSES section at                                                                          result from public disclosure; (6) when
                                                                                                            accompanying documents. Instead,
                                                    the beginning of this document.                                                                                such information might lose its
                                                                                                            provide your contact information in a
                                                       Submitting comments via                                                                                     confidential character due to the
                                                                                                            cover letter. Include your first and last
                                                    www.regulations.gov. The                                                                                       passage of time; and (7) why disclosure
                                                                                                            names, email address, telephone
                                                    www.regulations.gov Web page will                                                                              of the information would be contrary to
                                                                                                            number, and optional mailing address.
                                                    require you to provide your name and                                                                           the public interest.
                                                                                                            The cover letter will not be publicly
                                                    contact information. Your contact                       viewable as long as it does not include                   It is DOE’s policy that all comments
                                                    information will be viewable to DOE                     any comments.                                          may be included in the public docket,
                                                    Building Technologies staff only. Your                     Include contact information each time               without change and as received,
                                                    contact information will not be publicly                you submit comments, data, documents,                  including any personal information
                                                    viewable except for your first and last                 and other information to DOE. If you                   provided in the comments (except
                                                    names, organization name (if any), and                  submit via mail or hand delivery/                      information deemed to be exempt from
                                                    submitter representative name (if any).                 courier, please provide all items on a                 public disclosure).
                                                    If your comment is not processed                        CD, if feasible, in which case it is not               B. Issues on Which DOE Seeks Comment
                                                    properly because of technical                           necessary to submit printed copies. No
                                                    difficulties, DOE will use this                         telefacsimiles (faxes) will be accepted.                  Although DOE welcomes comments
                                                    information to contact you. If DOE                         Comments, data, and other                           on any aspect of this proposal, DOE is
                                                    cannot read your comment due to                         information submitted to DOE                           particularly interested in receiving
                                                    technical difficulties and cannot contact               electronically should be provided in                   comments and views of interested
                                                    you for clarification, DOE may not be                   PDF (preferred), Microsoft Word or                     parties concerning the following issues:
                                                    able to consider your comment.                          Excel, WordPerfect, or text (ASCII) file                  1. Has DOE identified all of the water
                                                       However, your contact information                    format. Provide documents that are not                 heaters requiring a conversion from the
                                                    will be publicly viewable if you include                secured, that are written in English, and              old test procedures for consumer and
                                                    it in the comment itself or in any                      that are free of any defects or viruses.               commercial water heaters to the new
                                                    documents attached to your comment.                     Documents should not contain special                   test procedure for the uniform test
                                                    Any information that you do not want                    characters or any form of encryption                   method for measuring the energy
                                                    to be publicly viewable should not be                   and, if possible, they should carry the                consumption of water heaters?
                                                    included in your comment, nor in any                    electronic signature of the author.                       2. Are the proposed analytical
                                                    document attached to your comment.                         Campaign form letters. Please submit                methods appropriate for the conversion
                                                    Otherwise, persons viewing comments                     campaign form letters by the originating               factor analysis?
                                                    will see only first and last names,                     organization in batches of between 50 to                  3. Is the proposed regression method
                                                    organization names, correspondence                      500 form letters per PDF or as one form                appropriate for the conversion factor
                                                    containing comments, and any                            letter with a list of supporters’ names                analysis?
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    documents submitted with the                            compiled into one or more PDFs. This                      4. How do manufacturers specify
                                                    comments.                                               reduces comment processing and                         whether a water heater is short or tall?
                                                       Do not submit to www.regulations.gov                 posting time.                                          Is there any criteria that could be
                                                    information for which disclosure is                        Confidential Business Information.                  applied to compare short and tall
                                                    restricted by statute, such as trade                    Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person                 designs across all manufacturers?
                                                    secrets and commercial or financial                     submitting information that he or she                     5. Is the proposed percentage
                                                    information (hereinafter referred to as                 believes to be confidential and exempt                 difference method appropriate for the
                                                    Confidential Business Information                       by law from public disclosure should                   derivation of energy conservation


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                                                    20142                     Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                    standards based on the updated test                      § 429.17       Water heaters.
                                                    procedure?                                                 (a) Determination of represented
                                                                                                             value.
                                                    VI. Approval of the Office of the                          (1) As of July 13, 2015, manufacturers
                                                    Secretary                                                must determine the represented value                                       and, x is the sample mean; n is the
                                                      The Secretary of Energy has approved                   for each new basic model of water                                          number of samples; and xi is the ith
                                                    publication of this notice of proposed                   heater by applying an AEDM in                                              sample;
                                                    rulemaking.                                              accordance with 10 CFR 429.70 or by
                                                                                                             testing for the uniform energy factor, in                                  Or,
                                                    List of Subjects
                                                                                                             conjunction with the applicable                                              (2) The lower 95-percent confidence
                                                    10 CFR Part 429                                          sampling provisions as follows:                                            limit (LCL) of the true mean divided by
                                                      Confidential business information,                       (i) If the represented value is                                          0.90, where:
                                                    Energy conservation, Household                           determined through testing, the general
                                                    appliances, Imports, Reporting and                       requirements of 10 CFR 429.11 are
                                                    recordkeeping requirements.                              applicable; and
                                                                                                               (ii) For each basic model selected for
                                                    10 CFR Part 430                                          testing, a sample of sufficient size shall                                 And xis the sample mean; s is the
                                                      Administrative practice and                            be randomly selected and tested to                                         sample standard deviation; n is the
                                                    procedure, Confidential business                         ensure that—                                                               number of samples; and t0.95 is the t
                                                    information, Energy conservation,                          (A) Any represented value of the                                         statistic for a 95-percent one-tailed
                                                    Household appliances, Imports,                           estimated annual operating cost or other                                   confidence interval with n-1 degrees of
                                                    Incorporation by reference,                              measure of energy consumption of a                                         freedom (from Appendix A).
                                                    Intergovernmental relations, Small                       basic model for which consumers would
                                                                                                                                                                                           (2) For basic models initially certified
                                                    businesses.                                              favor lower values shall be greater than
                                                                                                                                                                                        before July 13, 2015 (using either the
                                                                                                             or equal to the higher of:
                                                    10 CFR Part 431                                            (1) The mean of the sample, where:                                       energy factor test procedure contained
                                                                                                                                                                                        in Appendix E to Subpart B of 10 CFR
                                                      Administrative practice and                                                                                                       part 430 of the January 1, 2015 edition
                                                    procedure, Confidential business                                                                                                    of the Code of Federal Regulations or
                                                    information, Test procedures,                                                                                                       the thermal efficiency and standby loss
                                                    Incorporation by reference, Reporting                                                                                               test procedures contained in 10 CFR
                                                    and recordkeeping requirements.                          and, x is the sample mean; n is the                                        431.106 of the January 1, 2015 edition
                                                      Issued in Washington, DC, on March 27,                 number of samples; and xi is the ith                                       of the Code of Federal Regulations, in
                                                    2015.                                                    sample;                                                                    conjunction with applicable sampling
                                                    Kathleen B. Hogan,                                         Or,                                                                      provisions), manufacturers must:
                                                    Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy                      (2) The upper 95-percent confidence                                         (i) Conduct testing for the uniform
                                                    Efficiency, Energy Efficiency and Renewable              limit (UCL) of the true mean divided by                                    energy factor, in conjunction with the
                                                    Energy.                                                  1.10, where:                                                               applicable sampling provisions of this
                                                      For the reasons stated in the                                                                                                     paragraph;
                                                    preamble, DOE is proposing to amend                                                                                                    (ii) Apply an AEDM in accordance
                                                    parts 429, 430, and 431 of Chapter II,                                                                                              with 10 CFR 429.70; or
                                                    Subchapter D of Title 10, Code of                           And xis the sample mean; s is the
                                                    Federal Regulations, as set forth below:                 sample standard deviation; n is the                                           (iii) Calculate the uniform energy
                                                                                                             number of samples; and t0.95 is the t                                      factor by applying the following
                                                    PART 429—CERTIFICATION,                                  statistic for a 95-percent one-tailed                                      mathematical conversion factors to the
                                                    COMPLIANCE, AND ENFORCEMENT                              confidence interval with n-1 degrees of                                    previously certified value of energy
                                                    FOR CONSUMER PRODUCTS AND                                freedom (from Appendix A).                                                 factor as follows. Representations of
                                                    COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL                                and                                                                        uniform energy factor based on a
                                                    EQUIPMENT                                                   (B) Any represented value of the                                        calculation using this mathematical
                                                                                                             uniform energy factor, energy factor, or                                   conversion factor must be equal to the
                                                    ■ 1. The authority citation for part 429                                                                                            uniform energy factor value resulting
                                                                                                             other measure of energy consumption of
                                                    continues to read as follows:                                                                                                       from the application of the appropriate
                                                                                                             a basic model for which consumers
                                                        Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291–6317.                      would favor higher values shall be less                                    equation below.
                                                    ■ 2. Section 429.17 is revised to read as                than or equal to the lower of:                                                (A) The applicable mathematical
                                                    follows:                                                    (1) The mean of the sample, where:                                      conversion factors are as follows:
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         EP14AP15.022</GPH>




                                                                         Product class                                                  Distinguishing criteria                                             Conversion factor *

                                                    Consumer Gas-fired Water Heater .........................     Non-Condensing, Standard NOX ..........................                         New   FHR = 1.0085 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         EP14AP15.021</GPH>




                                                                                                                                                                                                  UEF   = 0.4736 + 0.2726 * UEFWHAM
                                                                                                                  Non-Condensing, Low NOX ..................................                      New   FHR = 4.6894 = 0.9112 * FHREx
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                                                                                                                  UEF   = ¥0.0126 + 0.9966 * UEFWHAM
                                                                                                                  Non-Condensing, Ultra-Low NOX .........................                         New   FHR = 2.9267 + 0.8882 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                  UEF   = 0.2673 + 0.5811 * UEFWHAM
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         EP14AP15.020</GPH>




                                                                                                                  Condensing ...........................................................          New   FHR = ¥0.7072 + 0.9724 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                  UEF   = 0.0409 + 0.9164 * UEFWHAM
                                                    Consumer Oil-fired Water Heater ...........................   N/A .........................................................................   New   FHR = 1.1018 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                  UEF   = ¥0.0945 + 1.1185 * UEFWHAM
                                                    Consumer Electric Water Heater ............................   Electric Resistance ................................................            New   FHR = 11.9239 + 0.789 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         EP14AP15.019</GPH>




                                                                                                                                                                                                  UEF   = 0.1227 + 0.8673 * UEFWHAM



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                                                                                       Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                                         20143

                                                                                Product class                                                               Distinguishing criteria                                                Conversion factor *

                                                                                                                                      Heat Pump ............................................................          New   FHR = ¥2.3440 + 0.9856 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                                      UEF   = ¥1.1235 + 1.5485 * EF
                                                    Tabletop Water Heater ...........................................                 N/A .........................................................................   New   FHR = 11.9239 + 0.7879 * FHREx
                                                                                                                                                                                                                      UEF   = 0.1227 + 0.8673 * UEFWHAM
                                                    Instantaneous Gas-fired Water Heater ...................                          N/A .........................................................................   New   Max GPM = 1.1467 * Max GPMEx
                                                                                                                                                                                                                      UEF   = 0.0783 + 0.9052 * UEFmodel
                                                    Instantaneous Electric Water Heater ......................                        N/A .........................................................................   New   Max GPM = 1.1467 * Max GPMEx
                                                                                                                                                                                                                      UEF   = 1.0079 * UEFmodel
                                                    Residential-Duty Commercial Gas-fired Water                                       N/A .........................................................................   New   FHR = 39.8144 + 1.0226 * Q
                                                      Heater.                                                                                                                                                         UEF   = 0.1413 + 0.7300 * UEFWHAM
                                                    Residential-Duty Commercial Oil-fired Water Heat-                                 N/A .........................................................................   New   FHR = 39.8144 + 1.0226 * Q
                                                      er.                                                                                                                                                             UEF   = 0.1413 + 0.7300 * UEFWHAM
                                                       *FHREX = current first-hour rating.
                                                       Max GPMEX = current max GPM rating.
                                                       Q = nameplate input rate, in kBtu/hr.
                                                       UEFWHAM = the UEF predicted based on either the WHAM equation (for consumer storage water heaters) or the modified WHAM (for residen-
                                                    tial-duty commercial water heaters, as defined in the sub-paragraphs below).
                                                       UEFmodel = the UEF predicted based on the analytical model developed by DOE (for consumer instantaneous water heaters).


                                                      (B) Calculate UEFWHAM (for consumer                                       and UEFmodel (for consumer                                                    (1) For consumer storage water
                                                    storage water heaters and residential-                                      instantaneous water heaters) as follows:                                    heaters:
                                                    duty commercial storage water heaters)




                                                    Where a, b, c, and d are coefficients                                       current energy factor rating; hr is the                                     decimal form; and P is the input rating
                                                    based on the applicable draw pattern as                                     current recovery efficiency rating in                                       in Btu/h.
                                                    specified in the table below; EF is the

                                                                                         Draw pattern                                                              a                                b                          c                         d

                                                    Very Small ...............................................................................                     56095146                  12884892499                        8930623           15125743368
                                                    Low ..........................................................................................                 56095146                  48962591496                       33936368           57477824799
                                                    Medium ....................................................................................                    56095146                  70866908744                       49118427           83191588525
                                                    High ..........................................................................................                56095146                 108233096990                       75017235          127056244293



                                                      (2) For consumer instantaneous water                                      Where, Et is the existing thermal                                              (2) Pursuant to 10 CFR 429.12(b)(13),
                                                    heaters:                                                                    efficiency rating; SL is the existing                                       a certification report shall include the
                                                                                                                                standby loss rating in Btu/h; and C1 is                                     following public product-specific
                                                                                                                                a coefficient as specified in the table                                     information:
                                                                                                                                below based on the applicable draw                                             (i) For storage-type water heater basic
                                                                                                                                pattern.                                                                    models tested for energy factor and
                                                    Where hr is the current recovery                                                                                                                        rated pursuant to 10 CFR
                                                                                                                                             Draw pattern                                  C1               429.17(a)(2)(iii): Energy factor, uniform
                                                    efficiency rating expressed in decimal
                                                    form and A and B are coefficients                                           Very Small ............................             3.575    x   10¥3       energy factor, rated storage volume (gal),
                                                    dependent upon the applicable draw                                          Low .......................................         9.408    x   10¥4       first-hour rating (gal), and recovery
                                                    pattern as specified in the table below.                                    Medium .................................            6.500    x   10¥4       efficiency (percent);
                                                                                                                                High ......................................         4.256    x   10¥4          (ii) For storage-type water heater basic
                                                     Draw pat-                                                                                                                                              models tested for uniform energy factor
                                                                                   A                           B
                                                       tern                                                                        (3) Any represented value of the rated                                   and rated pursuant to 10 CFR
                                                                                                                                storage volume must be equal to the                                         429.17(a)(1) or 10 CFR 429.17(a)(2)(i)
                                                    Very                                                                        mean of the measured storage volumes                                        through (ii): Uniform energy factor,
                                                      Small ...                       5514.2                       170.2        of all the units within the sample.                                         rated storage volume in gallons (gal),
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     EP14AP15.025</GPH>




                                                    Low .........                    20954                         262.4
                                                                                                                                   (4) Any represented value of first-hour                                  first-hour rating (gal), and recovery
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                    Medium ...                       30328                         290.9
                                                    High ........                    46319                         294.0        rating or maximum gallons per minute                                        efficiency (percent);
                                                                                                                                (GPM) must be equal to the mean of the                                         (iii) For instantaneous-type water
                                                                                                                                measured first-hour ratings or measured                                     heater basic models tested for energy
                                                     (3) For residential-duty commercial
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     EP14AP15.024</GPH>




                                                                                                                                maximum GPM ratings, respectively, of                                       factor and rated pursuant to 10 CFR
                                                    water heaters:                                                              all the units within the sample.                                            429.17(a)(2)(iii): Energy factor, uniform
                                                                                                                                   (b) Certification reports. (1) The                                       energy factor, rated storage volume (gal),
                                                                                                                                requirements of 10 CFR 429.12 are                                           maximum gallons per minute, and
                                                                                                                                applicable to water heaters; and
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     EP14AP15.023</GPH>




                                                                                                                                                                                                            recovery efficiency (percent); and


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                                                    20144                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                       (iv) For instantaneous-type water                    and, x is the sample mean; n is the                    CFR 429.17(a)(2)(iii): Thermal efficiency
                                                    heater basic models tested for uniform                  number of samples; and xi is the ith                   in percent (%), maximum standby loss
                                                    energy factor and rated pursuant to 10                  sample;                                                in British thermal units per hour (Btu/
                                                    CFR 429.17(a)(1) or 10 CFR                                Or,                                                  h), uniform energy factor, rated storage
                                                    429.17(a)(2)(i) through (ii): Uniform                     (2) The lower 95-percent confidence                  volume (gal), and the nameplate input
                                                    energy factor, rated storage volume (gal),              limit (LCL) of the true mean divided by                rate in British thermal units per hour
                                                    maximum gallons per minute, and                         0.90, where:                                           (Btu/h).
                                                    recovery efficiency (percent).                                                                                    (viii) Residential-duty commercial
                                                    ■ 3. Section 429.17 is further revised,                                                                        gas-fired and oil-fired storage water
                                                    effective [date one year after publication                                                                     heaters tested for uniform energy factor
                                                    of final rule], to read as follows:                                                                            and rated pursuant to 10 CFR
                                                                                                            And x is the sample mean; s is the                     429.17(a)(1) or 10 CFR 429.17(a)(2)(i)
                                                    § 429.17   Water heaters.                               sample standard deviation; n is the                    through (ii): Uniform energy factor,
                                                      (a) Determination of represented                      number of samples; and t0.95 is the t                  rated storage volume (gal), first-hour
                                                    value. (1) Manufacturers must                           statistic for a 95-percent one-tailed                  rating (gal), and recovery efficiency
                                                    determine the represented value for                     confidence interval with n-1 degrees of                (percent).
                                                    each water heater by applying an AEDM                   freedom (from Appendix A).                             *      *     *     *     *
                                                    in accordance with 10 CFR 429.70 or by                     (2) Any represented value of the rated              ■ 5. Section 429.44 is further revised,
                                                    testing for the uniform energy factor, in               storage volume must be equal to the                    effective [date one year after publication
                                                    conjunction with the applicable                         mean of the measured storage volumes                   of final rule], to read as follows:
                                                    sampling provisions as follows:                         of all the units within the sample.                    ■ a. Removing paragraph (c)(2)(vii);
                                                      (i) If the represented value is                          (3) Any represented value of first-hour             ■ b. Redesignating paragraph (c)(2)(viii)
                                                    determined through testing, the general                 rating or maximum gallons per minute                   as (c)(2)(vii); and
                                                    requirements of 10 CFR 429.11 are                       (GPM) must be equal to the mean of the                 ■ c. Revising newly redesignated
                                                    applicable; and                                         measured first-hour ratings or measured                paragraph (c)(2)(vii) to read as follows:
                                                      (ii) For each basic model selected for                maximum GPM ratings, respectively, of
                                                    testing, a sample of sufficient size shall              all the units within the sample.                       § 429.44 Commercial water heating
                                                    be randomly selected and tested to                                                                             equipment.
                                                                                                               (b) Certification reports. (1) The
                                                    ensure that—                                            requirements of 10 CFR 429.12 are                      *      *     *    *     *
                                                      (A) Any represented value of the                      applicable to water heaters; and                          (c) * * *
                                                    estimated annual operating cost or other                   (2) Pursuant to 10 CFR 429.12(b)(13),                  (2) * * *
                                                    measure of energy consumption of a                      a certification report shall include the                  (vii) Residential-duty commercial gas-
                                                    basic model for which consumers would                                                                          fired and oil-fired storage water heaters:
                                                                                                            following public product-specific
                                                    favor lower values shall be greater than                                                                       Uniform energy factor, rated storage
                                                                                                            information:
                                                    or equal to the higher of:                                                                                     volume (gal), first-hour rating (gal), and
                                                                                                               (i) For storage-type water heater basic
                                                      (1) The mean of the sample, where:                                                                           recovery efficiency (percent).
                                                                                                            models: Uniform energy factor, rated
                                                                                                            storage volume in gallons (gal), first-                *      *     *    *     *
                                                                                                            hour rating (gal), and recovery efficiency
                                                                                                                                                                   PART 430—ENERGY CONSERVATION
                                                                                                            (percent);
                                                                                                                                                                   PROGRAM FOR CONSUMER
                                                                                                               (ii) For instantaneous-type water
                                                                                                                                                                   PRODUCTS
                                                    and, x is the sample mean; n is the                     heater basic models: Uniform energy
                                                    number of samples; and xi is the ith                    factor, rated storage volume (gal),                    ■ 6. The authority citation for part 430
                                                    sample;                                                 maximum gallons per minute, and                        continues to read as follows:
                                                      Or,                                                   recovery efficiency (percent); and                       Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291–6309; 28 U.S.C.
                                                      (2) The upper 95-percent confidence                      (iii) For instantaneous-type water                  2461 note.
                                                    limit (UCL) of the true mean divided by                 heater basic models: Uniform energy
                                                                                                                                                                   ■ 7. Section 430.23 is amended by
                                                    1.10, where:                                            factor, rated storage volume (gal),
                                                                                                                                                                   revising paragraph (e) to read as follows:
                                                                                                            maximum gallons per minute, and
                                                                                                            recovery efficiency (percent).                         § 430.23 Test procedures for the
                                                                                                            ■ 4. Section 429.44 is amended by:                     measurement of energy and water
                                                                                                            ■ a. Revising paragraph (a) introductory               consumption.
                                                    And, x is the sample mean; s is the                     text;                                                  *      *    *     *     *
                                                    sample standard deviation; n is the                     ■ b. Adding new paragraphs (c)(2)(vii)                   (e) Water Heaters. (1) For water
                                                    number of samples; and t0.95 is the t                   and (viii);                                            heaters tested using energy factor:
                                                    statistic for a 95-percent one-tailed                      The revisions and additions read as                   (i) The estimated annual operating
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 EP14AP15.029</GPH>


                                                    confidence interval with n-1 degrees of                 follows:                                               cost for water heaters tested in terms of
                                                    freedom (from Appendix A).                                                                                     energy factor shall be—
                                                       and                                                  § 429.44 Commercial water heating                        (A) For a gas or oil water heater, the
                                                       (B) Any represented value of the                     equipment.                                             product of the annual energy
                                                    uniform energy factor, energy factor, or                   (a) For residential-duty commercial
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 EP14AP15.028</GPH>




                                                                                                                                                                   consumption, determined according to
                                                    other measure of energy consumption of                  water heaters, determine representations               section 6.1.8 or 6.2.5 of appendix E to
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                                                    a basic model for which consumers                       as provided in 10 CFR 429.17(a).                       subpart B of 10 CFR part 430 of the
                                                    would favor higher values shall be less                                                                        January 1, 2015 edition of the Code of
                                                                                                            *      *     *    *     *
                                                    than or equal to the lower of:                             (c) * * *                                           Federal Regulations, times the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 EP14AP15.027</GPH>




                                                       (1) The mean of the sample, where:
                                                                                                               (2) * * *                                           representative average unit cost of gas or
                                                                                                               (vii) Residential-duty commercial gas-              oil, as appropriate, in dollars per Btu as
                                                                                                            fired and oil-fired storage water heaters              provided by the Secretary. The resulting
                                                                                                            tested for thermal efficiency and                      product shall be rounded off to the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 EP14AP15.026</GPH>




                                                                                                            standby loss and rated pursuant to 10                  nearest dollar per year.


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                                                                                   Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                                     20145

                                                      (B) For an electric water heater, the                               (i) The estimated annual operating                                      this subpart, times the representative
                                                    product of the annual energy                                        cost shall be:                                                            average unit cost of electricity in dollars
                                                    consumption, determined according to                                  (A) For a gas or oil water heater, the                                  per kilowatt-hour as provided by the
                                                    section 6.1.8 or 6.2.5 of appendix E to                             sum of: The product of the annual gas                                     Secretary. The resulting product shall be
                                                    subpart B to 10 CFR part 430 of the                                 or oil energy consumption, determined                                     rounded off to the nearest dollar per
                                                    January 1, 2015 edition of the Code of                              according to section 6.1.10 or 6.2.7 of                                   year.
                                                    Federal Regulations, times the                                      appendix E of this subpart, times the                                       (ii) For an individual test, the tested
                                                    representative average unit cost of                                 representative average unit cost of gas or                                uniform energy factor for a water heater
                                                    electricity in dollars per kilowatt-hour                            oil, as appropriate, in dollars per Btu as                                shall be determined by section 6.1.7 or
                                                    as provided by the Secretary, divided by                            provided by the Secretary; plus the                                       6.2.4 of appendix E of this subpart,
                                                    3412 Btu per kilowatt-hour. The                                     product of the annual electric energy                                     rounded to the nearest 0.01.
                                                    resulting quotient shall be rounded off                             consumption, determined according to
                                                                                                                        section 6.1.9 or 6.2.6 of appendix E of                                   *      *    *     *     *
                                                    to the nearest dollar per year.
                                                                                                                        this subpart, times the representative                                    ■ 8. Section 430.32 is amended by
                                                      (ii) For an individual test, the tested                           average unit cost of electricity in dollars                               revising paragraph (d) to read as
                                                    energy factor for a water heater shall be                           per kilowatt-hour as provided by the                                      follows:
                                                    determined by section 6.1.7 or 6.2.4 of                             Secretary. The resulting sum shall be
                                                    appendix E to subpart B of 10 CFR part                              rounded off to the nearest dollar per                                     § 430.32 Energy and water conservation
                                                    430 of the January 1, 2015 edition of the                                                                                                     standards and their compliance dates.
                                                                                                                        year.
                                                    Code of Federal Regulations, rounded                                  (B) For an electric water heater, the                                   *     *     *     *    *
                                                    off to the nearest 0.01.                                            product of the annual energy                                                (d) Water heaters. The energy factor of
                                                      (2) For water heaters tested using                                consumption, determined according to                                      each basic model of water heater shall
                                                    uniform energy factor:                                              section 6.1.9 or 6.2.6 of appendix E of                                   not be less than the following:

                                                                                                                                               Rated storage                                                                    Uniform energy factor as
                                                                          Product class                                                                                                             Draw pattern
                                                                                                                                                  volume                                                                            of July 13, 2015*

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ............................................     ≥ 20 gal and ≤ 55 gal ......................................            Very Small ............          0.3263–(0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Low .......................      0.5891–(0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Medium .................         0.6326–(0.0013   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               High .......................     0.7128–(0.0025   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                       < 55 gal and ≤ 100 gal ...................................              Very Small ............          0.5352–(0.0007   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Low .......................      0.7375–(0.0009   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Medium .................         0.7704–(0.0010   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               High .......................     0.7980–(0.0010   ×   Vr)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ..............................................   ≤ 50 gal ...........................................................    Very Small ............          0.2267–(0.0014   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Low .......................      0.4867–(0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Medium .................         0.6016–(0.0012   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               High .......................     0.6529–(0.0005   ×   Vr)
                                                    Electric Storage ...............................................   ≥ 20 gal and ≤ 55 gal ......................................            Very Small ............          0.8268–(0.0002   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Low .......................      0.9393–(0.0004   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Medium .................         0.9683–(0.0007   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               High .......................     0.9656–(0.0004   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                       < 55 gal and ≤ 120 gal ...................................              Very Small ............          1.2701–(0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Low .......................      1.9137–(0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Medium .................         2.0626–(0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               High .......................     2.1858–(0.0011   ×   Vr)
                                                    Tabletop Storage .............................................     ≥ 20 gal and ≤ 100 gal ....................................             Very Small ............          0.6808–(0.0022   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Low .......................      0.8770–(0.0012   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               Medium .................         0.9063–(0.0009   ×   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                               High .......................     0.9302–(0.0006   ×   Vr)
                                                    Gas-fired Instantaneous ..................................         < 2 gal .............................................................   All ..........................   0.8036–(0.0019   ×   Vr)
                                                    Electric Instantaneous .....................................       < 2 gal .............................................................   All ..........................   0.9192–(0.0013   ×   Vr)
                                                        *Vr is rated storage volume.


                                                    *       *        *        *        *                                ■ 10. In § 431.106 revise paragraph (b)                                     (b) Testing and Calculations.
                                                                                                                        to read as follows:                                                       Determine the energy efficiency of each
                                                    PART 431—ENERGY EFFICIENCY                                                                                                                    class of equipment by conducting the
                                                    PROGRAM FOR CERTAIN                                                 § 431.106 Uniform test method for the
                                                                                                                                                                                                  applicable test procedure(s), set forth in
                                                    COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL                                           measurement of energy efficiency of
                                                                                                                        commercial water heaters and hot water
                                                                                                                                                                                                  the three rightmost columns of the
                                                    EQUIPMENT                                                                                                                                     following table:
                                                                                                                        supply boilers (other than commercial heat
                                                    ■ 9. The authority citation for part 431
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                                                                                                                        pump water heaters).
                                                    continues to read as follows:
                                                                                                                        *        *         *         *        *
                                                        Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291–6317.




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                                                    20146                    Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                        TABLE 1 TO § 431.106—TEST PROCEDURES FOR COMMERCIAL WATER HEATERS AND HOT WATER SUPPLY BOILERS
                                                                                (OTHER THAN COMMERCIAL HEAT PUMP WATER HEATERS)
                                                                                                                                              Test procedure
                                                                                   Energy efficiency
                                                        Equipment type                                            Test procedure            required for compli-             With these additional stipulations
                                                                                      descriptor                                             ance on and after

                                                    Residential-Duty Com-       Uniform Energy Factor        10 CFR Part 430,             July 13, 2015.
                                                      mercial Water Heat-                                      Subpart B, Appen-
                                                      er.                                                      dix E.
                                                    Gas-fired Storage and       Thermal Efficiency .....     Use test set-up,             May 13, 2013 .............   A. For all products, the duration of the stand-
                                                      Instantaneous                                            equipment, and pro-                                       by loss test shall be until whichever of the
                                                      Water Heaters and                                        cedures in sub-                                           following occurs first after you begin to
                                                      Hot Water Supply                                         section labeled                                           measure the fuel and/or electric consump-
                                                      Boilers.                                                 ‘‘Method of Test’’ of                                     tion: (1) The first cut-out after 24 hours or
                                                                                                               ANSI Z21.10.3–                                            (2) 48 hours, if the water heater is not in
                                                                                                               2011**, Exhibit G1.                                       the heating mode at that time.
                                                                                Standby Loss .............   Use test set-up,             May 13, 2013 .............   B. For oil and gas products, the standby loss
                                                                                                               equipment, and pro-                                       in Btu per hour must be calculated as fol-
                                                                                                               cedures in sub-                                           lows: SL (Btu per hour) = S (% per hour) ×
                                                                                                               section labeled                                           8.25 (Btu/gal-F) × Measured Volume (gal)
                                                                                                               ‘‘Method of Test’’ of                                     × 70 (degrees F).
                                                                                                               ANSI Z21.10.3–
                                                                                                               2011**, Exhibit G2.
                                                    Oil-fired Storage and       Thermal Efficiency .....     ANSI Z21.10.3–               May 13, 2013 .............   C. For oil-fired products, apply the following
                                                      Instantaneous                                            2011**, Exhibit G1.                                       in conducting the thermal efficiency and
                                                      Water Heaters and                                                                                                  standby loss tests: (1) Venting Require-
                                                      Hot Water Supply                                                                                                   ments—Connect a vertical length of flue
                                                      Boilers.                                                                                                           pipe to the flue gas outlet of sufficient
                                                                                                                                                                         height so as to meet the minimum draft
                                                                                                                                                                         specified by the manufacturer. (2) Oil Sup-
                                                                                                                                                                         ply—Adjust the burner rate so that: (a)
                                                                                                                                                                         The hourly Btu input rate lies within ±2
                                                                                                                                                                         percent of the manufacturer’s specified
                                                                                                                                                                         input rate, (b) the CO2 reading shows the
                                                                                                                                                                         value specified by the manufacturer, (c)
                                                                                                                                                                         smoke in the flue does not exceed No. 1
                                                                                                                                                                         smoke as measured by the procedure in
                                                                                                                                                                         ASTM–D2156–80 (reference for guidance
                                                                                                                                                                         only, see § 431.104), and (d) fuel pump
                                                                                                                                                                         pressure lies within ±10 percent of manu-
                                                                                                                                                                         facturer’s specifications.
                                                                                Standby Loss .............   Use test set-up,             May 13, 2013.
                                                                                                               equipment, and pro-
                                                                                                               cedures in sub-
                                                                                                               section labeled
                                                                                                               ‘‘Method of Test’’ of
                                                                                                               ANSI Z21.10.3–
                                                                                                               2011**, Exhibit G2.
                                                    Electric Storage and        Standby Loss .............   Use test set-up,             May 13, 2013 .............   D. For electric products, apply the following
                                                      Instantaneous                                            equipment, and pro-                                       in conducting the standby loss test: (1) As-
                                                      Water Heaters.                                           cedures in sub-                                           sume that the thermal efficiency (Et) of
                                                                                                               section labeled                                           electric water heaters with immersed heat-
                                                                                                               ‘‘Method of Test’’ of                                     ing elements is 98 percent. (2) Maintain
                                                                                                               ANSI Z21.10.3–                                            the electrical supply voltage to within ±5
                                                                                                               2011**, Exhibit G2.                                       percent of the center of the voltage range
                                                                                                                                                                         specified on the water heater nameplate.
                                                                                                                                                                         (3) If the set up includes multiple adjust-
                                                                                                                                                                         able thermostats, set the highest one first
                                                                                                                                                                         to yield a maximum water temperature in
                                                                                                                                                                         the specified range as measured by the
                                                                                                                                                                         topmost tank thermocouple. Then set the
                                                                                                                                                                         lower thermostat(s) to yield a maximum
                                                                                                                                                                         mean tank temperature within the speci-
                                                                                                                                                                         fied range.
                                                                                                                                                                       E. Install water-tube water heaters as shown
asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                                                                                         in Figure 2, ‘‘Arrangement for Testing
                                                                                                                                                                         Water-tube Type Instantaneous and Circu-
                                                                                                                                                                         lating Water Heaters.’’
                                                       ** Incorporated by reference, see § 431.105.




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                                                                                      Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 71 / Tuesday, April 14, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                                                        20147

                                                    ■ 11. Section 431.110 is revised to read                                  § 431.110 Energy conservation standards                                    boiler 1 (except for residential-duty
                                                    as follows:                                                               and their effective dates.                                                 commercial water heaters) must meet
                                                                                                                                Each commercial storage water heater,                                    the applicable energy conservation
                                                                                                                              instantaneous water heater, unfired hot                                    standard level(s) as follows:
                                                                                                                              water storage tank and hot water supply

                                                                                                                                                                                          Energy conservation standard a (products manufactured
                                                                                                                                                                                                    on and after October 29, 2003) b
                                                                                        Product                                                               Size
                                                                                                                                                                                          Minimum thermal efficiency                   Maximum standby loss c

                                                    Electric storage water heaters .........................................                All .......................................   N/A .....................................   0.30 + 27/Vm (%/hr)
                                                    Gas-fired storage water heaters ......................................                  ≤155,000 Btu/hr .................             80% ...................................     Q/800 + 110(Vr)1⁄2 (Btu/hr)
                                                                                                                                            >155,000 Btu/hr .................             80% ...................................     Q/800 + 110(Vr)1⁄2 (Btu/hr)
                                                    Oil-fired storage water heaters ........................................                ≤155,000 Btu/hr .................             78% ...................................     Q/800 + 110(Vr)1⁄2 (Btu/hr)
                                                                                                                                            >155,000 Btu/hr .................             78% ...................................     Q/800 + 110(Vr)1⁄2 (Btu/hr)
                                                    Gas-fired instantaneous water heaters and hot water                                     <10 gal ..............................        80% ...................................     N/A
                                                     supply boilers.
                                                                                                                                            ≥10 gal ...............................       80% ...................................     Q/800 + 110(Vr)1⁄2 (Btu/hr)
                                                    Oil-fired instantaneous water heaters and hot water                                     <10 gal ..............................        80% ...................................     N/A
                                                      supply boilers.
                                                                                                                                            ≥10 gal ...............................       78% ...................................     Q/800 + 110(Vr)1⁄2 (Btu/hr)

                                                                                        Product                                                               Size                                              Minimum thermal insulation

                                                    Unfired hot water storage tank ........................................                 All .......................................   R–12.5.
                                                       aV is the measured storage volume and V is the rated volume, both        in gallons. Q is the nameplate input rate in Btu/hr.
                                                          m                                        r
                                                       b For hot water supply boilers with a capacity of less than 10 gallons:  (1) the standards are mandatory for products manufactured on and after
                                                    October 21, 2005, and (2) products manufactured prior to that date, and on or after October 23, 2003, must meet either the standards listed in
                                                    this table or the applicable standards in subpart E of this part for a ‘‘commercial packaged boiler.’’
                                                       c Water heaters and hot water supply boilers having more than 140 gallons of storage capacity need not meet the standby loss requirement if
                                                    (1) the tank surface area is thermally insulated to R–12.5 or more, (2) a standing pilot light is not used and (3) for gas or oil-fired storage water
                                                    heaters, they have a fire damper or fan assisted combustion.


                                                      Each residential-duty commercial                                        energy conservation standard level as
                                                    water heater, as defined in 10 CFR                                        follows:
                                                    431.102, must meet the applicable

                                                                                                                Product class                                                                              Draw pattern                 Uniform energy factor*

                                                    Gas-fired Storage ..........................................................................................................................      Very Small ............         0.3261–(0.0006   x   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                      Low .......................     0.5219–(0.0008   x   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                      Medium .................        0.5585–(0.0006   x   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                      High .......................    0.6044–(0.0005   x   Vr)
                                                    Oil-fired Storage ............................................................................................................................    Very Small ............         0.3206–(0.0006   x   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                      Low .......................     0.5577–(0.0019   x   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                      Medium .................        0.6027–(0.0019   x   Vr)
                                                                                                                                                                                                      High .......................    0.5446–(0.0018   x   Vr)
                                                       * Vr is the rated storage volume.


                                                    [FR Doc. 2015–07932 Filed 4–13–15; 8:45 am]
                                                    BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
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                                                      1Any packaged boiler that provides service water,                       boiler’’ in subpart E of this part, but does not meet                      subpart G, must meet the requirements that apply
                                                    that meets the definition of ‘‘commercial packaged                        the definition of ‘‘hot water supply boiler’’ in                           to it under subpart E.



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Document Created: 2015-12-18 11:09:35
Document Modified: 2015-12-18 11:09:35
CategoryRegulatory Information
CollectionFederal Register
sudoc ClassAE 2.7:
GS 4.107:
AE 2.106:
PublisherOffice of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
SectionProposed Rules
ActionNotice of proposed rulemaking.
DatesComments: DOE will accept comments, data, and information regarding this notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) no later than May 14, 2015. See section V, ``Public Participation,'' for details.
ContactMs. Ashley Armstrong, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies Office, EE-5B, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 586-6590. Email: [email protected]
FR Citation80 FR 20115 
RIN Number1904-AC91
CFR Citation10 CFR 429
10 CFR 430
10 CFR 431
CFR AssociatedConfidential Business Information; Energy Conservation; Household Appliances; Imports; Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements; Administrative Practice and Procedure; Incorporation by Reference; Intergovernmental Relations; Small Businesses and Test Procedures

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