Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Room Air Conditioners; Correction, 24483-24484 [2021-09705]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
Vol. 86, No. 87
Friday, May 7, 2021
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains regulatory documents having general
applicability and legal effect, most of which
are keyed to and codified in the Code of
Federal Regulations, which is published under
50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by
the Superintendent of Documents.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Part 430
[EERE–2017–BT–TP–0012]
RIN 1904–AD47
Energy Conservation Program: Test
Procedure for Room Air Conditioners;
Correction
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Final rule; correction.
AGENCY:
On March 29, 2021, the U.S.
Department of Energy (‘‘DOE’’)
published a final rule adopting test
procedures for room air conditioners
(hereafter the ‘‘March 2021 final rule’’).
This document corrects errors and
omissions in the Federal test procedure
for room air conditioners as amended by
the March 2021 final rule, including an
incorrect mathematical notation and
missing detail regarding the full
compressor speed setpoint in the testing
instructions. Neither the errors and
omissions, nor the corrections in this
document, affect the substance of the
rulemaking or any conclusions reached
in support of the final rule.
DATES: Effective May 7, 2021. The
incorporation by reference of certain
publications listed in the rule was
approved by the Director of the Federal
Register on April 28, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mr. Bryan Berringer, 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–
0371. Email:
ApplianceStandardsQuestions@
ee.doe.gov.
Ms. Sarah Butler, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of the General Counsel,
GC–33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20585–0121.
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:08 May 06, 2021
Jkt 253001
Telephone: (202) 586–1777. Email:
Sarah.Butler@hq.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
DOE published a final rule in the
Federal Register on March 29, 2021,
establishing test procedures for room air
conditioners in appendix F to subpart B
of Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) part 430 (‘‘appendix
F’’). 86 FR 16446. Following publication
of the March 2021 final rule, DOE
received a request on April 12, 2021
from the Association of Home
Appliance Manufacturers to correct an
error to a mathematical notation in the
calculation for annual energy
consumption in inactive and off mode.1
DOE reviewed the test procedure as
amended and agrees that the
mathematical notation as finalized in
the March 2021 final rule is incorrect.
Upon review, DOE also identified an
omission in the regulatory text as
amended by the March 2021 final rule
regarding a detail for the full
compressor speed setpoint in the testing
instructions. As discussed in the
following paragraphs, the errors and
omission in the regulatory text were
correctly presented in the preamble to
the March 2021 final rule. This
correction rule revises appendix F to
correct these typographical errors.
The appendix F test procedure
specifies a formula to calculate annual
energy consumption in inactive and off
mode. Section 5.1 of appendix F.
However, the formula as established by
the March 2021 final rule does not
properly size one of the subscripts and
inadvertently uses an incorrect
mathematical notation. DOE is therefore
fixing these issues in this notice, and
notes that the ‘‘ia’’ in the ‘‘Pia’’ variable
should be in subscript, and the addition
symbol in the second parenthetical term
should instead be a multiplication
symbol. The parenthetical term refers to
the annual energy consumption of the
room air conditioner in off mode, in
kilowatt-hours (‘‘kWh’’) per year, which
is the product of the measured average
power in off mode, Pom, in watts (‘‘W’’),
and the annual operating hours in off
mode multiplied by a conversion factor
1 The Association of Home Appliance
Manufacturers’ request is filed in the docket of this
test procedure rulemaking (Docket No. EERE–2017–
BT–TP–0012–0022) and available for review at
https://www.regulations.gov.
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
from watt-hours to kWh, tom, in kWh/W.
It would therefore be mathematically
incorrect to sum Pom and tom to obtain
an annual energy consumption term,
rather than multiply the two variables.
The corrected equation is as follows:
AECia/om = (Pia × tia) + (Pom × tom).
The March 2021 final rule amended
appendix F to include a definition of
‘‘full compressor speed (full),’’ which is
referenced in the procedure for testing
variable-speed room air conditioners. 86
FR 16446, 16477; see also section 2.12
of appendix F. Although the preamble
to the March 2021 final rule stated that
the full compressor speed is achieved
when testing using a 75 °F setpoint, that
testing instruction was inadvertently
omitted in the regulatory text. 86 FR
16446, 16456. Thus, DOE revises the
definition for full compressor speed as
discussed in the preamble of the March
2021 final rule as follows:
2.12 ‘‘Full compressor speed (full)’’
means the compressor speed at which
the unit operates at full load test
conditions, when using user settings
with a unit thermostat setpoint of 75 °F
to achieve maximum cooling capacity,
according to the instructions in ANSI/
ASHRAE Standard 16–2016 Section
6.1.1.4.’’
II. Need for Correction
As published, the regulatory text in
March 2021 final rule may result in
confusion due to the typographical
errors and omission explained above.
Because this final rule would simply
correct errors in the text without making
substantive changes in the March 2021
final rule, the changes addressed in this
document are technical in nature.
III. Procedural Issues and Regulatory
Review
DOE has concluded that the
determinations made pursuant to the
various procedural requirements
applicable to the March 2021 final rule
remain unchanged for this final rule
technical correction. These
determinations are set forth in the
March 2021 final rule. 86 FR 16446,
16472.
Pursuant to the Administrative
Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 553(b), DOE has
determined there is good cause to find
that prior notice and opportunity for
public comment on the changes
contained in this document are
impracticable, unnecessary, and
E:\FR\FM\07MYR1.SGM
07MYR1
24484
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 87 / Friday, May 7, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
contrary to the public interest. Neither
the errors nor the corrections in this
document affect the substance of the
March 2021 final rule or any of the
conclusions reached in support of the
final rule. Providing prior notice and an
opportunity for public comment on
correcting objective, typographical
errors and omissions that do not change
the substance of the test procedure
serves no useful purpose. As such, this
rule is not subject to the 30-day delay
in effective date requirement of 5 U.S.C.
553(d) otherwise applicable to rules that
make substantive changes.
List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 430
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of
Energy was signed on May 2, 2021, by
Kelly Speakes-Backman, Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary and Acting
Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy, pursuant to
delegated authority from the Secretary
of Energy. That document with the
original signature and date is
maintained by DOE. For administrative
purposes only, and in compliance with
requirements of the Office of the Federal
Register, the undersigned DOE Federal
Register Liaison Officer has been
authorized to sign and submit the
document in electronic format for
publication, as an official document of
the Department of Energy. This
administrative process in no way alters
the legal effect of this document upon
publication in the Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on May 4, 2021.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S.
Department of Energy.
For the reasons stated in the
preamble, DOE corrects part 430 of
chapter II, subchapter D, of title 10 of
the Code of Federal Regulations by
making the following correcting
amendments:
*
*
*
*
2. * * *
2.12 ‘‘Full compressor speed (full)’’
means the compressor speed at which the
unit operates at full load test conditions,
when using user settings with a unit
thermostat setpoint of 75 °F to achieve
maximum cooling capacity, according to the
instructions in ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 16–
2016.
*
*
*
*
5. * * *
5.1 Annual energy consumption in
inactive mode and off mode. Calculate the
annual energy consumption in inactive mode
and off mode, AECia/om, expressed in
kilowatt-hours per year (kWh/year).
AECia/om = (Pia × tia + Pom × tom)
Where:
AECia/om = annual energy consumption in
inactive mode and off mode, in kWh/
year.
Pia = average power in inactive mode, in
watts, determined in section 4.2 of this
appendix.
Pom = average power in off mode, in watts,
determined in section 4.2 of this
appendix.
tia = annual operating hours in inactive mode
and multiplied by a 0.001 kWh/Wh
conversion factor from watt-hours to
kilowatt-hours. This value is 5.115 kWh/
W if the unit has inactive mode and no
off mode, 2.5575 kWh/W if the unit has
both inactive and off mode, and 0 kWh/
W if the unit does not have inactive
mode.
tom = annual operating hours in off mode and
multiplied by a 0.001 kWh/Wh
conversion factor from watt-hours to
kilowatt-hours. This value is 5.115 kWh/
W if the unit has off mode and no
inactive mode, 2.5575 kWh/W if the unit
has both inactive and off mode, and 0
kWh/W if the unit does not have off
mode.
*
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2021–09705 Filed 5–6–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
10 CFR Part 430
[EERE–2020–BT–STD–0001]
1. The authority citation for part 430
continues to read as follows:
■
RIN 1904–AE86
Energy Conservation Program:
Establishment of New Product Classes
for Residential Clothes Washers and
Consumer Clothes Dryers; Correction
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
AGENCY:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291–6309; 28 U.S.C.
2461 note.
Jkt 253001
*
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
PART 430—ENERGY CONSERVATION
PROGRAM FOR CONSUMER
PRODUCTS
16:08 May 06, 2021
Appendix F to Subpart B of Part 430—
Uniform Test Method for Measuring the
Energy Consumption of Room Air
conditioners
*
Administrative practice and
procedure, Confidential business
information, Energy conservation,
Household appliances, Imports,
Incorporation by reference,
Intergovernmental relations, Small
businesses.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
2. Appendix F to subpart B of part 430
is amended by revising sections 2.12
and 5.1 to read as follows:
■
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
ACTION:
Final rule; correction.
On December 16, 2020, the
U.S. Department of Energy (‘‘DOE’’)
published a final rule adopting separate
product classes for top-loading
consumer (residential) clothes washers
and consumer clothes dryers that offer
cycle times for a normal cycle of less
than 30 minutes, and for front-loading
residential clothes washers that offer
cycle times for a normal cycle of less
than 45 minutes (‘‘December 2020 final
rule’’). This document corrects an
omission in the amended regulatory text
as it appeared in the December 2020
final rule. Neither the error nor the
correction in this document affect the
substance of the rulemaking or any
conclusions reached in support of the
final rule.
DATES: Effective May 7, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mr. Bryan Berringer, 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. Email: Appliance
StandardsQuestions@ee.doe.gov.
Ms. Kathryn McIntosh, U.S.
Department of Energy, Office of the
General Counsel, GC–33, 1000
Independence Avenue SW, Washington,
DC 20585–0121. Telephone: (202) 586–
2002. Email: Kathryn.McIntosh@
hq.doe.gov.
SUMMARY:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
DOE published a final rule in the
Federal Register on December 16, 2020,
establishing separate product classes for
top-loading consumer (residential)
clothes washers and consumer clothes
dryers that offer cycle times for a normal
cycle of less than 30 minutes, and for
front-loading residential clothes
washers that offer cycle times for a
normal cycle of less than 45 minutes. 85
FR 81359. In a review of the December
2020 final rule, DOE identified an
omission in the amended regulatory text
for consumer clothes dryers.
Specifically, the regulatory text that
establishes separate product classes for
vented electric standard clothes dryers
and vented gas clothes dryers with a
cycle time of less than 30 minutes
omitted the distinction that the 30minute cycle time is determined when
conducting the test procedure at title 10
of the Code of Federal Regulations
(‘‘CFR’’), part 430, subpart B, appendix
D2 (‘‘appendix D2’’). This distinction
was provided in the regulatory text of
the notice of proposed rulemaking
published on August 13, 2020 (85 FR
E:\FR\FM\07MYR1.SGM
07MYR1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 87 (Friday, May 7, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24483-24484]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09705]
========================================================================
Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 87 / Friday, May 7, 2021 / Rules and
Regulations
[[Page 24483]]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Part 430
[EERE-2017-BT-TP-0012]
RIN 1904-AD47
Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Room Air
Conditioners; Correction
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Final rule; correction.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: On March 29, 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'')
published a final rule adopting test procedures for room air
conditioners (hereafter the ``March 2021 final rule''). This document
corrects errors and omissions in the Federal test procedure for room
air conditioners as amended by the March 2021 final rule, including an
incorrect mathematical notation and missing detail regarding the full
compressor speed setpoint in the testing instructions. Neither the
errors and omissions, nor the corrections in this document, affect the
substance of the rulemaking or any conclusions reached in support of
the final rule.
DATES: Effective May 7, 2021. The incorporation by reference of certain
publications listed in the rule was approved by the Director of the
Federal Register on April 28, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mr. Bryan Berringer, 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) 586-0371. Email: [email protected].
Ms. Sarah Butler, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General
Counsel, GC-33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121.
Telephone: (202) 586-1777. Email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
DOE published a final rule in the Federal Register on March 29,
2021, establishing test procedures for room air conditioners in
appendix F to subpart B of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR) part 430 (``appendix F''). 86 FR 16446. Following publication of
the March 2021 final rule, DOE received a request on April 12, 2021
from the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers to correct an
error to a mathematical notation in the calculation for annual energy
consumption in inactive and off mode.\1\ DOE reviewed the test
procedure as amended and agrees that the mathematical notation as
finalized in the March 2021 final rule is incorrect. Upon review, DOE
also identified an omission in the regulatory text as amended by the
March 2021 final rule regarding a detail for the full compressor speed
setpoint in the testing instructions. As discussed in the following
paragraphs, the errors and omission in the regulatory text were
correctly presented in the preamble to the March 2021 final rule. This
correction rule revises appendix F to correct these typographical
errors.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers' request is
filed in the docket of this test procedure rulemaking (Docket No.
EERE-2017-BT-TP-0012-0022) and available for review at https://www.regulations.gov.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The appendix F test procedure specifies a formula to calculate
annual energy consumption in inactive and off mode. Section 5.1 of
appendix F. However, the formula as established by the March 2021 final
rule does not properly size one of the subscripts and inadvertently
uses an incorrect mathematical notation. DOE is therefore fixing these
issues in this notice, and notes that the ``ia'' in the ``Pia''
variable should be in subscript, and the addition symbol in the second
parenthetical term should instead be a multiplication symbol. The
parenthetical term refers to the annual energy consumption of the room
air conditioner in off mode, in kilowatt-hours (``kWh'') per year,
which is the product of the measured average power in off mode,
Pom, in watts (``W''), and the annual operating hours in off
mode multiplied by a conversion factor from watt-hours to kWh,
tom, in kWh/W. It would therefore be mathematically
incorrect to sum Pom and tom to obtain an annual
energy consumption term, rather than multiply the two variables. The
corrected equation is as follows:
AECia/om = (Pia x tia) + (Pom x tom).
The March 2021 final rule amended appendix F to include a
definition of ``full compressor speed (full),'' which is referenced in
the procedure for testing variable-speed room air conditioners. 86 FR
16446, 16477; see also section 2.12 of appendix F. Although the
preamble to the March 2021 final rule stated that the full compressor
speed is achieved when testing using a 75 [deg]F setpoint, that testing
instruction was inadvertently omitted in the regulatory text. 86 FR
16446, 16456. Thus, DOE revises the definition for full compressor
speed as discussed in the preamble of the March 2021 final rule as
follows:
2.12 ``Full compressor speed (full)'' means the compressor speed at
which the unit operates at full load test conditions, when using user
settings with a unit thermostat setpoint of 75 [deg]F to achieve
maximum cooling capacity, according to the instructions in ANSI/ASHRAE
Standard 16-2016 Section 6.1.1.4.''
II. Need for Correction
As published, the regulatory text in March 2021 final rule may
result in confusion due to the typographical errors and omission
explained above. Because this final rule would simply correct errors in
the text without making substantive changes in the March 2021 final
rule, the changes addressed in this document are technical in nature.
III. Procedural Issues and Regulatory Review
DOE has concluded that the determinations made pursuant to the
various procedural requirements applicable to the March 2021 final rule
remain unchanged for this final rule technical correction. These
determinations are set forth in the March 2021 final rule. 86 FR 16446,
16472.
Pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 553(b), DOE
has determined there is good cause to find that prior notice and
opportunity for public comment on the changes contained in this
document are impracticable, unnecessary, and
[[Page 24484]]
contrary to the public interest. Neither the errors nor the corrections
in this document affect the substance of the March 2021 final rule or
any of the conclusions reached in support of the final rule. Providing
prior notice and an opportunity for public comment on correcting
objective, typographical errors and omissions that do not change the
substance of the test procedure serves no useful purpose. As such, this
rule is not subject to the 30-day delay in effective date requirement
of 5 U.S.C. 553(d) otherwise applicable to rules that make substantive
changes.
List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 430
Administrative practice and procedure, Confidential business
information, Energy conservation, Household appliances, Imports,
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Small
businesses.
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on May 2,
2021, by Kelly Speakes-Backman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
and Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy, pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy.
That document with the original signature and date is maintained by
DOE. For administrative purposes only, and in compliance with
requirements of the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE
Federal Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit
the document in electronic format for publication, as an official
document of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no
way alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the
Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on May 4, 2021.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, DOE corrects part 430 of
chapter II, subchapter D, of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations by making the following correcting amendments:
PART 430--ENERGY CONSERVATION PROGRAM FOR CONSUMER PRODUCTS
0
1. 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
2. Appendix F to subpart B of part 430 is amended by revising sections
2.12 and 5.1 to read as follows:
Appendix F to Subpart B of Part 430--Uniform Test Method for Measuring
the Energy Consumption of Room Air conditioners
* * * * *
2. * * *
2.12 ``Full compressor speed (full)'' means the compressor speed
at which the unit operates at full load test conditions, when using
user settings with a unit thermostat setpoint of 75 [deg]F to
achieve maximum cooling capacity, according to the instructions in
ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 16-2016.
* * * * *
5. * * *
5.1 Annual energy consumption in inactive mode and off mode.
Calculate the annual energy consumption in inactive mode and off
mode, AECia/om, expressed in kilowatt-hours per year
(kWh/year).
AECia/om = (Pia x tia + Pom x tom)
Where:
AECia/om = annual energy consumption in inactive mode and
off mode, in kWh/year.
Pia = average power in inactive mode, in watts,
determined in section 4.2 of this appendix.
Pom = average power in off mode, in watts, determined in
section 4.2 of this appendix.
tia = annual operating hours in inactive mode and
multiplied by a 0.001 kWh/Wh conversion factor from watt-hours to
kilowatt-hours. This value is 5.115 kWh/W if the unit has inactive
mode and no off mode, 2.5575 kWh/W if the unit has both inactive and
off mode, and 0 kWh/W if the unit does not have inactive mode.
tom = annual operating hours in off mode and multiplied
by a 0.001 kWh/Wh conversion factor from watt-hours to kilowatt-
hours. This value is 5.115 kWh/W if the unit has off mode and no
inactive mode, 2.5575 kWh/W if the unit has both inactive and off
mode, and 0 kWh/W if the unit does not have off mode.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2021-09705 Filed 5-6-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
