scholarly journals Meteorology and climatology of historical weekly wind and solar power resource droughts over western North America in ERA5

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick T. Brown ◽  
David J. Farnham ◽  
Ken Caldeira
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Wind Power ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Western North America ◽  
Winter Solstice ◽  
Surface Solar Radiation ◽  
Study Region

AbstractWind and solar electricity generation is projected to expand substantially over the next several decades due both to rapid cost declines as well as regulation designed to achieve climate targets. With increasing reliance on wind and solar generation, future energy systems may be vulnerable to previously underappreciated synoptic-scale variations characterized by low wind and/or surface solar radiation. Here we use western North America as a case study region to investigate the historical meteorology of weekly-scale “droughts” in potential wind power, potential solar power and their compound occurrence. We also investigate the covariability between wind and solar droughts with potential stresses on energy demand due to temperature deviations away human comfort levels. We find that wind power drought weeks tend to occur in late summer and are characterized by a mid-level atmospheric ridge centered over British Columbia and high sea level pressure on the lee side of the Rockies. Solar power drought weeks tend to occur near winter solstice when the seasonal minimum in incoming solar radiation co-occurs with the tendency for mid-level troughs and low pressure systems over the U.S. southwest. Compound wind and solar power drought weeks consist of the aforementioned synoptic pattern associated with wind droughts occurring near winter solstice when the solar resource is at its seasonal minimum. We find that wind drought weeks are associated with high solar power (and vice versa) both seasonally and in terms of synoptic meteorology, which supports the notion that wind and solar power generation can play complementary roles in a diversified energy portfolio at synoptic spatiotemporal scales over western North America.

scholarly journals Meteorology and Climatology of Historical Weekly Wind and Solar Power Resource Droughts over western North America in ERA5

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick T Brown ◽  
David J. Farnham ◽  
Ken Caldeira
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Wind Power ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Western North America ◽  
Winter Solstice ◽  
Surface Solar Radiation ◽  
Study Region

Abstract Wind and solar electricity generation is projected to expand substantially over the next several decades due both to rapid cost declines as well as regulation designed to achieve climate targets. With increasing reliance on wind and solar generation, future energy systems may be vulnerable to previously underappreciated synoptic-scale variations characterized by low wind and/or surface solar radiation. Here we use western North America as a case study region to investigate the historical meteorology of weekly-scale “droughts” in potential wind power, potential solar power and their compound occurrence. We also investigate the covariability between wind and solar droughts with potential stresses on energy demand due to temperature deviations away human comfort levels. We find that wind power drought weeks tend to occur in late summer and are characterized by a mid-level atmospheric ridge centered over British Columbia and high sea level pressure on the lee side of the Rockies. Solar power drought weeks tend to occur near winter solstice when the seasonal minimum in incoming solar radiation co-occurs with the tendency for mid-level troughs and low pressure systems over the U.S. southwest. Compound wind and solar power drought weeks consist of the aforementioned synoptic pattern associated with wind droughts occurring near winter solstice when the solar resource is at its seasonal minimum. We find that wind drought weeks are associated with high solar power (and vice versa) both seasonally and in terms of synoptic meteorology, which supports the notion that wind and solar power generation can play complementary roles in a diversified energy portfolio at synoptic spatiotemporal scales over Western North America.

Innovative Volumetric Solar Receiver Micro-Design Based on Numerical Predictions

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raffaele Capuano ◽  
Thomas Fend ◽  
Bernhard Hoffschmidt ◽  
Robert Pitz-Paal
Keyword(s):  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Numerical Predictions ◽  
Proper Design ◽  
Global Increase ◽  
Solar Power Tower ◽  
Solar Receiver

Due to the continuous global increase in energy demand, Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) represents an excellent alternative, or add-on to existing systems for the production of energy on a large scale. In some of these systems, the Solar Power Tower plants (SPT), the conversion of solar radiation into heat occurs in certain components defined as solar receivers, placed in correspondence of the focus of the reflected sunlight. In a particular type of solar receivers, defined as volumetric, the use of porous materials is foreseen. These receivers are characterized by a porous structure called absorber. The latter, hit by the reflected solar radiation, transfers the heat to the evolving fluid, generally air subject to natural convection. The proper design of these elements is essential in order to achieve high efficiencies, making such structures extremely beneficial for the overall performances of the energy production process. In the following study, a parametric analysis and an optimized characterization of the structure have been performed with the use of self-developed numerical models. The knowledge and results gained through this study have been used to define an optimization path in order to improve the absorber microstructure, starting from the current in-house state-of-the-art technology until obtaining a new advanced geometry.

scholarly journals Molt-Migration in Western Tanagers (Piranga Ludoviciana): Age Effects, Aerodynamics, and Conservation Implications

The Auk ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 119 (4) ◽  
pp. 1010-1023 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luke K. Butler ◽  
Michael G. Donahue ◽  
Sievert Rohwer
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
American Southwest ◽  
Age Effects ◽  
Western North America ◽  
Monsoon Region ◽  
Mountain Regions ◽  
Class Differences ◽  
Conservation Implications ◽  
Increase In Productivity

AbstractWe describe timing and location of the prebasic molt in Western Tanagers (Piranga ludoviciana), focusing on age class differences in premolt movements. Most adults migrate south to the American Southwest where they stop to molt before moving on to their wintering grounds. Molting adults are found in southern mountain regions (Sierra Madres and southern Rockies) and in the Mexican monsoon region, where late summer rains cause a substantial increase in productivity. In contrast, juvenile Western Tanagers move to nearby montane habitats to molt before migrating, a previously undocumented strategy in western passerines that show molt-related movements. By molting in nearby montane habitats, juveniles avoid the aerodynamic cost of migrating in their “fluffy”, aerodynamically inefficient juvenal plumage. Western Tanagers are the fifth species known to use the Mexican monsoon region during the prebasic molt, further affirming the importance of that area to the conservation of Neotropical migrants that breed in western North America.

Influence of trees on the energy consumption of a social housing in mid-western Brazil

2019 ◽  
pp. 53-65
Author(s):  
Renata Domingos ◽  
Emeli Guarda ◽  
Elaise Gabriel ◽  
João Sanches
Keyword(s):  
Energy Consumption ◽  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Thermal Comfort ◽  
Air Conditioning ◽  
Computational Simulation ◽  
Building Energy ◽  
General Idea ◽  
Heat Island ◽  
Study Region ◽  
Ample Evidence

In the last decades, many studies have shown ample evidence that the existence of trees and vegetation around buildings can contribute to reduce the demand for energy by cooling and heating. The use of green areas in the urban environment as an effective strategy in reducing the cooling load of buildings has attracted much attention, though there is a lack of quantitative actions to apply the general idea to a specific building or location. Due to the large-scale construction of high buildings, large amounts of solar radiation are reflected and stored in the canyons of the streets. This causes higher air temperature and surface temperature in city areas compared to the rural environment and, consequently, deteriorates the urban heat island effect. The constant high temperatures lead to more air conditioning demand time, which results in a significant increase in building energy consumption. In general, the shade of the trees reduces the building energy demand for air conditioning, reducing solar radiation on the walls and roofs. The increase of urban green spaces has been extensively accepted as effective in mitigating the effects of heat island and reducing energy use in buildings. However, by influencing temperatures, especially extreme, it is likely that trees also affect human health, an important economic variable of interest. Since human behavior has a major influence on maintaining environmental quality, today's urban problems such as air and water pollution, floods, excessive noise, cause serious damage to the physical and mental health of the population. By minimizing these problems, vegetation (especially trees) is generally known to provide a range of ecosystem services such as rainwater reduction, air pollution mitigation, noise reduction, etc. This study focuses on the functions of temperature regulation, improvement of external thermal comfort and cooling energy reduction, so it aims to evaluate the influence of trees on the energy consumption of a house in the mid-western Brazil, located at latitude 15 ° S, in the center of South America. The methodology adopted was computer simulation, analyzing two scenarios that deal with issues such as the influence of vegetation and tree shade on the energy consumption of a building. In this way, the methodological procedures were divided into three stages: climatic contextualization of the study region; definition of a basic dwelling, of the thermophysical properties; computational simulation for quantification of energy consumption for the four facade orientations. The results show that the façades orientated to north, east and south, without the insertion of arboreal shading, obtained higher values of annual energy consumption. With the adoption of shading, the facades obtained a consumption reduction of around 7,4%. It is concluded that shading vegetation can bring significant climatic contribution to the interior of built environments and, consequently, reduction in energy consumption, promoting improvements in the thermal comfort conditions of users.

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