Environmental impacts of smart local energy systems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Robinson ◽  
Alona Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Simulation Modelling ◽  
Local Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Degraded Ecosystems

<p>Energy systems around the world are rapidly transitioning towards decentralised and digitalised systems as countries aim to decarbonise their economies. However, broader environmental effects of the upscaling of these smart local energy systems (SLES) beyond reducing carbon emissions remain unclear. Land-use change associated with increased deployment of renewables, new infrastructures required for energy distribution and storage, and resource extraction for emerging energy technologies may have significant environmental impacts, including consequences for ecosystems within and beyond energy system project localities. This has major implications for biodiversity, natural capital stocks and provision of ecosystem services, the importance of which are increasingly recognised in development policy at local to international scales. This study assessed current understanding of the broader environmental impacts and potential co-benefits of SLES through a global Rapid Evidence Assessment of peer-reviewed academic literature, with a critical evaluation and synthesis of existing knowledge of effects of SLES on biodiversity, natural capital and ecosystem services. There was a striking overall lack of evidence of the environmental impacts of SLES. The vast majority of studies identified considered only energy technology CO<sub>2</sub> emissions through simulation modelling; almost no studies made explicit reference to effects on ecosystems. This highlights an urgent need to improve whole system understanding of environmental impacts of SLES, crucial to avoid unintended ecosystem degradation as a result of climate change mitigation. This will also help to identify potential techno-ecological synergies and opportunities for improvement of degraded ecosystems alongside reaching decarbonisation goals.</p>

The Bioceanic Amazon Corridors: An Opportunity for Development of Sustainable Energy System

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Mendoza G. ◽  
Maximiliano Arroyo Ulloa ◽  
Vincenzo Naso
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Renewable Sources ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Local Resources ◽  
Decentralized Energy ◽  
Sustainable Energy System ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Principal Energy

The bioceanic Amazon corridor represents a development opportunity for the Peruvian and Brazilian economy but this economic evolution is linked to the production and use of energy. Energy is a conditioning factor of economic growth and development and the application of conventional (or alternative) energy systems is strongly influenced by both quantitative and qualitative trends in energy consumption. Decentralized production of energy is necessary, and new decentralized energy technologies based on renewable sources could provide additional income opportunities, decreasing environmental risk along Amazon corridor, and providing clean fuel and electricity. It’s necessary that the bioceanic Amazon corridors call for the application of energy systems related to the renewable local resources in coast, mountain and forest. In Peru, firewood is the principal energy source for cooking and heating and this fuel is used in inefficient combustion system that increases the impact on ecosystems. Typical Peruvian biomass source are wood, agricultural residues, agro industrial waste and municipal solid waste. The most obvious it’s the availability of agricultural and agro industrial residues that could be used as a biomass fuel source in modern plant to produce electricity. Today, there is a growing interest for ethanol production from sugar cane, but it couldn’t be applied along bioceanic corridors; therefore it is necessary to integrate other renewable sources.

scholarly journals The oil-based technology and economy: Prospects for the future

2002 ◽  
Vol 69 (415-417) ◽  
pp. 221-226
Author(s):  
Klaus Illum
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Economic Analysis ◽  
Systems Analysis ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Computer Models ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Energy Planning ◽  
Local Energy ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Energy Systems Analysis

Dr Ilium, with degrees in Civil Engineering from the Technical University of Denmark and in Energy Systems and Energy Planning from Aalborg University, has had his own consulting company, ECOConsult, since 2000. He was from 1962 for over a decade mainly occupied with the development of educational programs in computerscience alongside with studies in systems theory and cybernetics at the Danish Academy of Engineering in Copenhagen and Aalborg.Thereafter, as senior Associate Professor (Docent) at the Department of Development and Planning, Aalborg University, he was mainly engaged in the development of methods and computer models for the technological, environmental and economic analysis of alternative scenarios for the development of energy systems and agricultural production systems. He has also been engaged in studies of environmental policies and problems in Central and Eastern European countries, in particular in energy planning in Czechoslovakia/the Czech Republic, and was Programme Manager for the Nordic Training Programme for Energy Experts in the Baltic States, the PROCEED programme. In addition, Dr Ilium has developed comprehensive computer models for: numerical analysis of thermodynamic systems (power plants, cogeneration plants, integrated industrial processes,etc.); energy planning on the national, regional and local energy system level; technological/socio-economic energy systems analysis; economic assessment of alternative energy system projects; flow analysis (nutrients and energy) and economic analysis of agricultural systems. He has developed the Sustainable Energy Systems Analysis Model (SESAM), an advanced, general computer model for the analysis of scenarios for the future development of national, regional or local energy systems which has been used and is presently being used for the integrated technological, environmental, and economic analysis of present and future energy systems infrastructures in Denmark, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany. 

scholarly journals Integrated Renewable Energy Systems in Fruit and Vegetable Processing Industries: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Sofia Lewis Lopes ◽  
Elizabeth Duarte ◽  
Rita Fragoso
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Fruit And Vegetable ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Waste Production ◽  
New Business ◽  
Exponential Population Growth

The exponential population growth will put great pressure on natural resources, agriculture, energy systems and waste production. New business models and innovative technological approaches are necessary to tackle these challenges and achieve the energy transition targets set by the European Commission. Renewable energy technologies and processes such as solar photovoltaic, solar thermal and anaerobic co-digestion have become a subject of interest and research as a solution that could be fully implemented in industries and solve several environmental and economic problems. This paper discusses the possibility of integrating and complement these technologies to maximize renewable energy production and circularity. The review was performed with a funnel approach aiming to analyze broad to specific subjects. Beginning with a literature review on the various definitions of circular economy, bioeconomy, and circular bioeconomy, ultimately proposing a single definition according to an industrial and academic scope combination, followed by a systematization and assessment of data and literature regarding energy systems present state and projections. The next phase was to assess data and literature of the fruit and vegetable processing industry from an energy consumption and biowaste production perspective to consequently discussing technologies that could help manage problems identified throughout this review. This paper culminates in propounding an Integrated Renewable Energy System conceptual model that promotes energy and waste circularity, envisioning how industries could be designed or redesigned in the future, coupled with a circular bioeconomy business model.

How clean is your ‘clean’ energy? The ENVIRO module for energy system models

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Martin ◽  
Cristina Madrid-López ◽  
Laura Talens-Peiró ◽  
Bryn Pickering
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Energy System Model ◽  
Multi Scale ◽  
Renewable Energy System ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Eu

<p>A decarbonized, renewable energy system is generally assumed to represent a cleaner and more sustainable one. However, while they do promise day-to-day reductions in carbon emissions, many other environmental impacts could occur, and these are often overlooked. Indeed, in the two documents that form the EU Energy Union Strategy (COM/2015/080) the words ‘water’, ‘biodiversity’ or ‘raw materials’ do not appear. This ‘tunnel vision’ is often also adopted in current energy systems models, which do not generally provide a detailed analysis of all of the environmental impacts that accompany different energy scenarios. Ignoring the trade-offs between energy systems and other resources can result in misleading information and misguided policy making.</p><p>The environmental assessment module ENVIRO combines the bottom up, high resolution capabilities of life cycle assessment (LCA) with the hierarchical multi-scale upscaling capabilities of the Multi-Scale Integrated Assessment of Socioecosystem Metabolism (MuSIASEM) approach in an effort to address this gap. ENVIRO also takes the systemic trade-offs associated with the water-energy-food-(land-climate-etc.) nexus from MuSIASEM while considering the supply chain perspective of LCA. The module contains a built-in set of indicators that serve to assess the constraints that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, pollution, water use and raw material demands pose to renewable energy system scenarios. It can be used to assess the coherence between energy decarbonization targets and water or raw material targets; this can be extended to potentially any economic or political target that has a biophysical component.</p><p>In this work, we introduce the semantics and formalization aspects of ENVIRO, its integration with the energy system model Calliope, and the results of a first testing of the module in the assessment of decarbonization scenarios for the EU. The work is part of the research developed in the H2020 Project SENTINEL: Sustainable Energy Transition Laboratory (contract 837089).</p>

scholarly journals Improving Energy Sustainability of Suburban Areas by Using Distributed Energy Systems: A Case Study

Proceedings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Beaud Muriel ◽  
Amarasinghage Tharindu Dasun Perera ◽  
Cai Hanmin ◽  
Andrew Bollinger ◽  
Kristina Orehounig
Keyword(s):  
Energy Demand ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Distributed Energy ◽  
Building Sector ◽  
Urban Density ◽  
Suburban Areas ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Distributed Energy System ◽  
The Impact

The building sector plays a vital role in Switzerland’s climate policy. In order to support the energy transition in the building sector, Rolle, a suburban area located along the shore of Lake Geneva is considered in this study to understand the promising future scenarios for integration of renewable energy technologies. The area is clustered into 12 clusters and a distributed energy system is designed for each cluster. Subsequently, three energy systems with contrasting densities are taken for further comparison to understand the impact of urban density on the design of the distributed energy system. The study reveals that urban density will influence the peak as well as the annual energy demand of the energy hubs. The study reveals that the energy technologies used in the energy hubs are strongly influenced by the capacity of the system (peak and annual energy demand). Energy systems with higher capacities are less sensitive to the market changes when compared to the systems with lower capacities (leading to sparse suburban areas).

Incorporating the value of nature into assessments of future energy pathways

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Lovett ◽  
Brett Day ◽  
Greg Smith ◽  
Gemma Delafield ◽  
Nathan Owen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Spatial Modelling ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
Societal Welfare ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Energy Pathways

<p>The UK government has made formal commitments to reduce GHG emissions (e.g. under the Climate Change Act 2008 and subsequent amendments) and to protect/improve natural capital and the environment (e.g. as part of the 25 Year Environment Plan published in 2018). Meeting these objectives requires an integrated approach to two parallel challenges i) decarbonising the energy system and ii) better understanding and valuation of natural capital and ecosystem services. From an academic perspective this involves bringing together two substantial, but rather weakly connected bodies of research, while also acknowledging that this integration in a UK setting needs to recognise the international context (i.e. a whole systems perspective).</p><p>The ADVENT project (ADdressing Valuation of Energy and Nature Together) has been funded by the UK National Environment Research Council to develop conceptual frameworks and modelling tools which ‘integrate the analysis of prospective UK energy pathways with considerations relating to the value of natural capital’. A methodology has been implemented to downscale the outputs of pathways from national energy system models and incorporate environmental impacts into the assessment of different options. This has required defining spatially-optimised distributions of investments in new energy infrastructure using a range of financial and welfare criteria. These distributions are then compared in terms of their construction, transport and land opportunity costs, as well as the implications for biodiversity, greenhouse gas emissions, recreation, visual amenity and water resources.</p><p>This paper will present results from comparing different UK energy pathways through to 2050 in terms of the implications of electricity generation from three types of renewables (bioenergy, solar and onshore wind). The results illustrate that i) individual pathways can vary appreciably in their environmental impacts, ii) overall societal welfare can be enhanced by using spatial modelling to incorporate valuations of such impacts into implementation of pathways and iii) assessment outcomes can be sensitive to modelling assumptions (e.g. regarding the proportion of biomass feedstock from domestic or international sources). More broadly, the results demonstrate how important improvements can be achieved in the integration of environmental considerations into the assessment of future energy pathways at regional and national scales. The approach is now being further refined through the UK Energy Research Centre Phase 4 programme and ADVANCES Landscape Decisions project in the UK, as well as the five-country IRENES project funded by Interreg Europe. </p>

scholarly journals Smarthoods: Aquaponics Integrated Microgrids

2019 ◽  
pp. 379-392
Author(s):  
Florijn de Graaf ◽  
Simon Goddek
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Thermal Mass ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Energy Flows ◽  
Self Sufficiency ◽  
Smart Energy Management ◽  
Lighting Systems ◽  
High Flexibility

AbstractWith the pressure to transition towards a fully renewable energy system increasing, a new type of power system architecture is emerging: the microgrid. A microgrid integrates a multitude of decentralised renewable energy technologies using smart energy management systems, in order to efficiently balance the local production and consumption of renewable energy, resulting in a high degree of flexibility and resilience. Generally, the performance of a microgrid increases with the number of technologies present, although it remains difficult to create a fully autonomous microgrid within economic reason (de Graaf F, New strategies for smart integrated decentralised energy systems, 2018). In order to improve the self-sufficiency and flexibility of these microgrids, this research proposes integrating a neighbourhood microgrid with an urban agriculture facility that houses a decoupled multi-loop aquaponics facility. This new concept is called Smarthood, where all Food–Water–Energy flows are circularly connected. In doing so, the performance of the microgrid greatly improves, due to the high flexibility present within the thermal mass, pumps and lighting systems. As a result, it is possible to achieve 95.38% power and 100% heat self-sufficiency. This result is promising, as it could pave the way towards realising these fully circular, decentralised Food–Water–Energy systems.

Integrated Regional Energy Policy and Planning Framework

2011 ◽  
pp. 236-260
Author(s):  
Young-Doo Wang ◽  
Wei-Ming Chen ◽  
Yong-Kyu Park
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Policy ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Energy Planning ◽  
Local Energy ◽  
Regional Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Planning Framework ◽  
Decentralized Energy ◽  
Policy And Planning

Regional energy planning, which considers the unique pattern of local energy needs and local energy resources can be a tool to mitigate fossil fuel-triggered problems and enhance sustainability. Many researches underline the importance of regional energy planning but there exists some room for improvement in the planning approaches. This chapter introduces an Integrated Regional Energy Policy and Planning Framework (IREPP), which is conceptually comprehensive and also enhances feasibility of implementation. This framework contains important concepts of sustainable energy planning, including integrated resource planning, soft energy path, distributed generation using decentralized energy technologies, and energy-environment-economy-equity balance (E4). The IREPP also includes implementation feasibility analysis and highlights the importance of monitoring and evaluation. In the second part of this chapter, the IREPP is applied to the case of Jeju, the southernmost island of Korea. Jeju’s “Mid- and Long-Term Roadmap of Renewable Energy Planning” intends to promote renewable energy applications (a 50 percent target in 2050) in order to build a carbon free energy system. This study evaluates Jeju’s overall Roadmap via the lens of IREPP and also assesses the rational and feasibility of achieving its individual renewable target.

scholarly journals Method for scientific substantiation of agrarian complex energy system using local resources

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-109
Author(s):  
L. S. Gerasimovich ◽  
O. L. Sapun ◽  
A. L. Sinenki
Keyword(s):  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Energy Resources ◽  
Local Energy ◽  
National Academy Of Sciences ◽  
Local Resources ◽  
Integrated Energy System ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Academy Of Sciences

Problem of creating agricultural energy systems is of a significant multifactor system-and-situational na­ture, depending on the external economic and energy situation in the country, which predetermines accelerated development of autonomous energy centers of agro-towns based on joint use of centralized fuel and energy and local energy resources. The modern method for integrated energy supply of agro-towns as integrated territorial-and-economic entities of agro-industrial complex of the country with significant technical potential of local resources, including renewable energy sources, was devel­oped based on appropriate conceptual tools and principles of multi-level conceptual design and simulation modeling of inte­grated energy systems using method of conceptual expertize as advanced scientific research, pre-project technical-and-eco- nomic and technical -and-technological substantiation of rational structure of the concept project. As a priority, a system­atic approach to development of regional systems of pilot projects of demonstration areas of high energy efficiency based on highly organized agro-towns and, first of all, experimental farms of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus is substantiated. With this purpose, the Institute of Energy of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus has developed software-based computing complex of an intelligent multi-level decision making support system providing simulation mod­eling and substantiation of rational scenarios for the concept project of an integrated energy system. The software package includes system of inherited and original software packages for staged procedure for performing computational experiments with a reasonable range of research risks. The conceptual content of the project depends on the Customer’s requirements, aims and objectives of the research, sectoral focus of agro-industrial enterprise, availability of sufficient technical poten­tial of local energy resources, and the consistency of interests of the owners, regional and national governing structures of various sectors of an agro-town. The studies performed with examples of a number of agro-industrial enterprises and social and cultural sectors of agro-towns show a significant (up to 60%) improvement in quality of choosing a rational struc­ture of a concept project for an integrated energy system and reduction (203 times) in sophistication of engineering design compared to ordinary 2-3-variant technical-and-economic substantiation of the project. Acknowledgements. The research was carried out within the framework of the State Program “Energy Systems, Processes and Technologies”, Sub-program 1.1 “Energy Security and Reliability of Energy Systems”, 2016-2018, with the support of the Belarusian Republican Foundation for Fundamental Research.

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