Renewable Energy and Energy Saving: Worldwide Research Trends

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 13261
Author(s):  
Alberto-Jesus Perea-Moreno

Energy is a very important resource for the development of the residential and industrial sectors, and it should be used with high efficiency, low environmental impact, and at the lowest possible cost [...]

2014 ◽  
Vol 953-954 ◽  
pp. 900-906
Author(s):  
Yun Cai Lu ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Peng Wu ◽  
Chao Wei

Firstly, this paper introduces the development of amorphous alloy transformer. According to the technical characteristics of amorphous alloy transformer and the application of Jiangsu power, the comprehensive evaluation about amorphous alloy transformer from the safety performance, the economic performance and the environmental impact are studied comparing with S11 type, S13 type and S15 type transformer. In the safety performance, overload capacity and over-excitation ability of amorphous alloy transformer is insufficient; in the economic performance, low no-load loss, high efficiency, energy saving effect of amorphous alloy transformer is obvious; in terms of environmental impact, the audible noise level of amorphous alloy transformer is higher than that of conventional transformer, and manufacturers need to study to reduce the noise level. Finally, the application recommends of amorphous alloy transformer is presented based on comprehensive evaluation.


Metals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 574
Author(s):  
Ana Vafadar ◽  
Ferdinando Guzzomi ◽  
Kevin Hayward

Air heat exchangers (HXs) are applicable in many industrial sectors because they offer a simple, reliable, and cost-effective cooling system. Additive manufacturing (AM) systems have significant potential in the construction of high-efficiency, lightweight HXs; however, HXs still mainly rely on conventional manufacturing (CM) systems such as milling, and brazing. This is due to the fact that little is known regarding the effects of AM on the performance of AM fabricated HXs. In this research, three air HXs comprising of a single fin fabricated from stainless steel 316 L using AM and CM methods—i.e., the HXs were fabricated by both direct metal printing and milling. To evaluate the fabricated HXs, microstructure images of the HXs were investigated, and the surface roughness of the samples was measured. Furthermore, an experimental test rig was designed and manufactured to conduct the experimental studies, and the thermal performance was investigated using four characteristics: heat transfer coefficient, Nusselt number, thermal fluid dynamic performance, and friction factor. The results showed that the manufacturing method has a considerable effect on the HX thermal performance. Furthermore, the surface roughness and distribution, and quantity of internal voids, which might be created during and after the printing process, affect the performance of HXs.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 604
Author(s):  
Yalan Shi ◽  
Miaojing Yu

Tourism, as one economic activity, results in a full range of environmental impacts globally as well as in China. However, the evaluation of environmental impacts is insufficient because of the strong correlation effect between tourism and other industries. This study attempted to assess the environmental impact and cost of the tourism-induced pollutant emissions (in a broad sense) at the national scale through constructing the environmental-economic input-output model. Our results suggested that the China’s total emission of CO2, NOx, SOx related to tourism industry increased from 42 × 106 t, 162 kt, 345 kt in 1995 to 157 × 106 t, 527 kt, 854 kt in 2009. The indirect CO2, NOx, and SOx emissions of tourism and related industries were nearly 6.8–11 times of their direct emission in travel agency. Most of these indirect emissions (73% of CO2 in 2009, 54% of NOx in 1995, 62% of SOx in 2009) are derived from the energy plants and industrial sectors. The sustainable tourism should largely depend on the realization of sustainable mobility and transportation, through the low-emission behavior and energy-saving technology. The emission reduction cost of tourism industry in China was 30,170 and 172,812 million CNY in 1995 and 2009, accounting for nearly 14% of the total tourism revenue.


Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (21) ◽  
pp. 4054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youssef Benchaabane ◽  
Rosa Elvira Silva ◽  
Hussein Ibrahim ◽  
Adrian Ilinca ◽  
Ambrish Chandra ◽  
...  

Remote and isolated communities in Canada experience gaps in access to stable energy sources and must rely on diesel generators for heat and electricity. However, the cost and environmental impact resulting from the use of fossil fuels, especially in local energy production, heating, industrial processes and transportation are compelling reasons to support the development and deployment of renewable energy hybrid systems. This paper presents a computer model for economic analysis and risk assessment of a wind–diesel hybrid system with compressed air energy storage. The proposed model is developed from the point of view of the project investor and it includes technical, financial, risk and environmental analysis. Robustness is evaluated through sensitivity analysis. The model has been validated by comparing the results of a wind–diesel case study against those obtained using HOMER (National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, United States) and RETScreen (Natural Resources Canada, Government of Canada, Canada) software. The impact on economic performance of adding energy storage system in a wind–diesel hybrid system has been discussed. The obtained results demonstrate the feasibility of such hybrid system as a suitable power generator in terms of high net present value and internal rate of return, low cost of energy, as well as low risk assessment. In addition, the environmental impact is positive since less fuel is used.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (15) ◽  
pp. 7115
Author(s):  
Chul-Ho Kim ◽  
Min-Kyeong Park ◽  
Won-Hee Kang

The purpose of this study was to provide a guideline for the selection of technologies suitable for ASHRAE international climate zones when designing high-performance buildings. In this study, high-performance technologies were grouped as passive, active, and renewable energy systems. Energy saving technologies comprising 15 cases were categorized into passive, active, and renewable energy systems. EnergyPlus v9.5.0 was used to analyze the contribution of each technology in reducing the primary energy consumption. The energy consumption of each system was analyzed in different climates (Incheon, New Delhi, Minneapolis, Berlin), and the detailed contributions to saving energy were evaluated. Even when the same technology is applied, the energy saving rate differs according to the climatic characteristics. Shading systems are passive systems that are more effective in hot regions. In addition, the variable air volume (VAV) system, combined VAV–energy recovery ventilation (ERV), and combined VAV–underfloor air distribution (UFAD) are active systems that can convert hot and humid outdoor temperatures to create comfortable indoor environments. In cold and cool regions, passive systems that prevent heat loss, such as high-R insulation walls and windows, are effective. Active systems that utilize outdoor air or ventilation include the combined VAV-economizer, the active chilled beam with dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS), and the combined VAV-ERV. For renewable energy systems, the ground source heat pump (GSHP) is more effective. Selecting energy saving technologies that are suitable for the surrounding environment, and selecting design strategies that are appropriate for a given climate, are very important for the design of high-performance buildings globally.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 2075 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ozgur Kaya ◽  
Wojciech Florkowski ◽  
Anna Us ◽  
Anna Klepacka

Renewable energy (RE) sources are often locally available and have the potential to lessen the rural dependence on the national power grid, reducing disruptions in power supplies and the heavy dependence on coal combustion. Poland faces an EU mandate of a 15% share of renewables in energy generation by 2020. However, the installations intended to supply several types of RE encountered local opposition, forcing a cancellation of the planned investments and stressing a need for understanding rural residents’ attitudes towards RE in general. Using survey data, this paper examines the perception of RE importance among rural residents in eastern Poland. The specified empirical relationship includes the sociodemographic and economic characteristics of residents. Perceptions of the links between health and specific sources of environmental pollution and actions demonstrating energy-saving behavior serve as explanatory variables. The performance of the estimated logit equation was rigorously tested. The probability of attaching importance to RE by rural residents increases most if a respondent displayed an energy-saving behavior, has certain demographic characteristics, and links health to environmental pollution caused by coal combustion. The graphic depiction of the effects of selected variables succinctly communicates possible future programs aimed at strengthening the rural population support of RE.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 396
Author(s):  
Norasikin Ahmad Ludin ◽  
Nurfarhana Alyssa Ahmad Affandi ◽  
Kathleen Purvis-Roberts ◽  
Azah Ahmad ◽  
Mohd Adib Ibrahim ◽  
...  

Sustainability has been greatly impacted by the reality of budgets and available resources as a targeted range of carbon emission reduction greatly increases due to climate change. This study analyses the technical and economic feasibility for three types of solar photovoltaic (PV) renewable energy (RE) systems; (i) solar stand-alone, a non-grid-connected building rooftop-mounted structure, (ii) solar rooftop, a grid-connected building rooftop-mounted structure, (iii) solar farm, a grid-connected land-mounted structure in three tropical climate regions. Technical scientific and economic tools, including life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle cost assessment (LCCA) with an integrated framework from a Malaysian case study were applied to similar climatic regions, Thailand, and Indonesia. The short-term, future scaled-up scenario was defined using a proxy technology and estimated data. Environmental locations for this scenario were identified, the environmental impacts were compared, and the techno-economic output were analysed. The scope of this study is cradle-to-grave. Levelised cost of energy (LCOE) was greatly affected due to PV performance degradation rate, especially the critical shading issues for large-scale installations. Despite the land use impact, increased CO2 emissions accumulate over time with regard to energy mix of the country, which requires the need for long-term procurement of both carbon and investment return. With regards to profitably, grid-connected roof-mounted systems achieve the lowest LCOE as compared to other types of installation, ranging from 0.0491 USD/kWh to 0.0605 USD/kWh under a 6% discounted rate. A simple payback (SPB) time between 7–10 years on average depends on annual power generated by the system with estimated energy payback of 0.40–0.55 years for common polycrystalline photovoltaic technology. Thus, maintaining the whole system by ensuring a low degradation rate of 0.2% over a long period of time is essential to generate benefits for both investors and the environment. Emerging technologies are progressing at an exponential rate in order to fill the gap of establishing renewable energy as an attractive business plan. Life cycle assessment is considered an excellent tool to assess the environmental impact of renewable energy.


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