scholarly journals The latest generation of EU Smart city projects: turning "clean energy for all" into "clean benefits for all

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriano Bisello ◽  
◽  
Daniele Vettorato ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Smart City ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Ongoing Research

The European Union is in the process of updating its energy policy and legislative framework under the motto “Clean Energy for All Europeans”. This will facilitate the low carbon energy transition, make it fit for the 21st century, and delivering the EU’s Paris Agreement commitments. Besides expected climate-energy benefits, the EU narrative is introducing new elements to persuade citizens and stakeholders to change their perspective, shifting the general perception from mitigation costs to development opportunities. For example, impact assessment of the new directives estimated that they would generate 900,000 jobs and an increase of up to 1% in EU GDP over the next decade. However, this is just one among several multiple benefits that could be gained thanks to the smart energy transition of cities and neighborhoods (e.g. increased value of refurbished properties, improved health and well-being, enhanced social cohesion, etc.) Starting from this premise, the ongoing research will analyses 12 ongoing EU smart cities and communities projects started between 2014 and 2017, in order to investigate their capability in using the multiple benefits as an effective communication tool, or even including them among the key performance indicators to be used in the assessment phase. In that respect, the Positive energy district concept that permeates the smart city approach of latest calls for funding provides, even more, an interesting nexus and testbed opportunity for EU ambitions. However, ongoing and future projects need to be understood not only as marketing devices for new energy efficient technologies but powerful tools requiring a radical change in management and planning of cities and urban life. In this way, positive energy districts including good habits and behaviors of urban citizens will provide equitable solutions and clear benefits for all.

scholarly journals Challenges and Barriers for Net‐Zero/Positive Energy Buildings and Districts—Empirical Evidence from the Smart City Project SPARCS

Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 78
Author(s):  
Daria Uspenskaia ◽  
Karl Specht ◽  
Hendrik Kondziella ◽  
Thomas Bruckner
Keyword(s):  
Smart City ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Multidimensional Representation

Without decarbonizing cities energy and climate objectives cannot be achieved as cities account for approximately two thirds of energy consumption and emissions. This goal of decarbonizing cities has to be facilitated by promoting net-zero/positive energy buildings and districts and replicating them, driving cities towards sustainability goals. Many projects in smart cities demonstrate novel and groundbreaking low-carbon solutions in demonstration and lighthouse projects. However, as the historical, geographic, political, social and economic context of urban areas vary greatly, it is not always easy to repeat the solution in another city or even district. It is therefore important to look for the opportunities to scale up or repeat successful pilots. The purpose of this paper is to explore common trends in technologies and replication strategies for positive energy buildings or districts in smart city projects, based on the practical experience from a case study in Leipzig—one of the lighthouse cities in the project SPARCS. One of the key findings the paper has proven is the necessity of a profound replication modelling to deepen the understanding of upscaling processes. Three models analyzed in this article are able to provide a multidimensional representation of the solution to be replicated.

scholarly journals Smart Cities and Positive Energy Districts: Urban Perspectives in 2020

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 2351
Author(s):  
Paola Clerici Maestosi
Keyword(s):  
Urban Development ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Sustainable Urban Development ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Contemporary Research ◽  
Low Carbon Energy

This Special Issue of Energies “Smart Cities and Positive Energy Districts: Urban Perspectives in 2020” introduce contemporary research on Smart Cities and on Positive Energy Districts. The topic highlights the variety of research within this field: from the analysis of 61 Positive Energy Districts cases to papers illustrating the Positive Energy Districts dimension or Smart Energy Communities supporting low carbon energy transition as well as selected Smart Cities Experiences. The focus is thus given on how RD&I stakeholders and Municipalities are facing sustainable urban development challenges. An overview of Horizon Europe RD&I program on sustainable urban areas is provided.

scholarly journals From a Comprehensive Pool to a Project-Specific List of Key Performance Indicators for Monitoring the Positive Energy Transition of Smart Cities—An Experience-Based Approach

Smart Cities ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 705-735
Author(s):  
Komninos Angelakoglou ◽  
Konstantinos Kourtzanidis ◽  
Paraskevi Giourka ◽  
Vasilis Apostolopoulos ◽  
Nikos Nikolopoulos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Performance Indicators ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Selection Procedure ◽  
Evaluation Process ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Key Performance Indicators ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Performance Framework

As cities grow rapidly and energy needs increase, shaping an effective energy transition is a top priority towards urban sustainability and smart development. This study attempts to answer three key research questions that can help city authorities, planners and interested agents simplify and increase the transparency of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) selection for smart city and communities (SCC) projects focusing on energy transition and creation of Positive Energy Districts (PEDs): Question 1: “What resources are available for extracting such KPIs?”; Question 2: “Which of those KPIs are the most suitable for assessing the energy transition of smart city projects and PED-related developments?” and Question 3: “How can a project-specific shortlist of KPIs be developed?”. Answering these questions can also serve as a major first step towards a “universal” KPI selection procedure. In line with this purpose, an experiential approach is presented, capitalizing on knowledge and lessons learned from an ongoing smart city project in Europe (POCITYF) that focuses on PED deployment. Under this framework, a) a review of smart city KPI frameworks has been conducted, resulting in a pool of 258 indicators that can potentially be adopted by smart city projects; b) eight key dimensions of evaluations were extracted, setting a holistic performance framework relevant to SCCs; c) a detailed evaluation process including pre-determined criteria and city-needs feedback was applied to shortlist the KPI pool, leading to a ready-to-be-used, project-specific list of 63 KPIs and d) KPIs were sorted and analyzed in different granularity levels to further facilitate the monitoring procedure. The experiential procedure presented in this study can be easily adapted to the needs of every smart city project, serving as a recommendation guide.

scholarly journals Assessing Multiple Benefits of Housing Regeneration and Smart City Development: The European Project SINFONIA

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (19) ◽  
pp. 8038
Author(s):  
Adriano Bisello
Keyword(s):  
Smart City ◽  
Multicriteria Analysis ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Revealed Preferences ◽  
The European Union ◽  
City Development ◽  
Present Contribution ◽  
Urban Energy

The urban energy transition towards more sustainable energy production and consumption systems is at the top of the European Union political agenda. Several demonstration projects are dealing with the deep-energy retrofit of real-estate assets to show how technological and societal innovation can provide new investment opportunities while enhancing citizens’ quality of life by delivering multiple benefits. In this framework, the EU smart city project SINFONIA has developed and tested a new comprehensive framework to define, identify, and evaluate the main multiple benefits expected from similar initiatives. The present contribution reviews the three assessment exercises carried out in the lighthouse city of Bolzano during the project execution, consisting of an investigation of the users’ stated preferences, an evaluation of consumers‘ revealed preferences and a multicriteria analysis of homeowners’ priorities. It offers an overview of the main achievements and sheds light on further investigatory paths applicable to Positive Energy Districts assessment.

scholarly journals The Nexus between Market Needs and Value Attributes of Smart City Solutions towards Energy Transition. An Empirical Evidence of Two European Union (EU) Smart Cities, Evora and Alkmaar

Smart Cities ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 604-641
Author(s):  
Paraskevi Giourka ◽  
Vasilis Apostolopoulos ◽  
Komninos Angelakoglou ◽  
Konstantinos Kourtzanidis ◽  
Nikos Nikolopoulos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Novel Technologies ◽  
Sustainable Value ◽  
Urban Energy ◽  
Value Propositions

This study presents an experiential process and a market-oriented approach for realizing cities’ energy transition through smart solutions. The aim of this study is twofold: (a) present a process for defining a repository of innovative solutions that can be applied at building, district, or city level, for two European Union cities, Evora and Alkmaar, and support the deployment of positive energy districts enabling a sustainable energy transition, and (b) understand in a systematic way the attributes of value offered by energy-related smart city solutions, in order to facilitate the development of sustainable value propositions that can successfully address city needs. The repository is assessed against four elements of value, which include social impact, life-changing, emotional, and functional attributes, according to the value pyramid of Maslow. Results show that the value attributes of quality, motivation, integration, cost reduction, information, and organization are highly relevant to the proposed smart solutions. The results presented in this study are useful for city planners, decision-makers, public bodies, citizens, and businesses interested in designing their energy transition strategy and defining novel technologies that promote urban energy sustainability.

scholarly journals Smart Energy Transition: An Evaluation of Cities in South Korea

Informatics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yirang Lim ◽  
Jurian Edelenbos ◽  
Alberto Gianoli
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
City Development ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Second Wave

One positive impact of smart cities is reducing energy consumption and CO2 emission through the use of information and communication technologies (ICT). Energy transition pursues systematic changes to the low-carbon society, and it can benefit from technological and institutional advancement in smart cities. The integration of the energy transition to smart city development has not been thoroughly studied yet. The purpose of this study is to find empirical evidence of smart cities’ contributions to energy transition. The hypothesis is that there is a significant difference between smart and non-smart cities in the performance of energy transition. The Smart Energy Transition Index is introduced. Index is useful to summarize the smart city component’s contribution to energy transition and to enable comparison among cities. The cities in South Korea are divided into three groups: (1) first-wave smart cities that focus on smart transportation and security services; (2) second-wave smart cities that provide comprehensive urban services; and (3) non-smart cities. The results showed that second-wave smart cities scored higher than first-wave and non-smart cities, and there is a statistically significant difference among city groups. This confirms the hypothesis of this paper that smart city development can contribute to the energy transition.

Energy Production in Smart Cities by Utilization of Kinetic Energy of Vehicles Over Speed Breaker

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mesfin Fanuel Kebede ◽  
Baseem Khan ◽  
N Singh ◽  
Pawan Singh
Keyword(s):  
Kinetic Energy ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Electronic Device ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Modelling And Simulation ◽  
Electromechanical System ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Induction Generators

Smart city deals with the problems of rapid urbanization and population growth by optimal utilization of all available resources. There are other driving factors such as clean energy programmes, a low carbon economy and distributed energy resources that are included in a smart city concept. Therefore, in this article, the authors proposed a clean energy generating model by utilizing the kinetic energy of vehicles over a speed breaker. The article focused on the design, modelling, and simulation of an electromechanical system for generating electrical power from the kinetic energy of vehicles passing over speed breakers. To facilitate simulation, a model of the electromechanical system is developed in MATLAB/Simulink. Further, MULTISIM 14 software is utilized for power electronic device modelling and simulation. Simulation results for power generation are obtained considering four units of rotational induction generators and two units of translational induction generators.

Determinants and barriers of PV self-consumption in Spain from the perception of the installers for the promotion of distributed energy systems

2020 ◽  
pp. 153-169
Author(s):  
José Ángel Gimeno ◽  
Eva Llera Sastresa ◽  
Sabina Scarpellini
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Distributed Energy ◽  
Sustainable Solutions ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Transition Scenario

Currently, self-consumption and distributed energy facilities are considered as viable and sustainable solutions in the energy transition scenario within the European Union. In a low carbon society, the exploitation of renewables for self-consumption is closely tied to the energy market at the territorial level, in search of a compromise between competitiveness and the sustainable exploitation of resources. Investments in these facilities are highly sensitive to the existence of favourable conditions at the territorial level, and the energy policies adopted in the European Union have contributed positively to the distributed renewables development and the reduction of their costs in the last decade. However, the number of the installed facilities is uneven in the European Countries and those factors that are more determinant for the investments in self-consumption are still under investigation. In this scenario, this paper presents the main results obtained through the analysis of the determinants in self-consumption investments from a case study in Spain, where the penetration of this type of facilities is being less relevant than in other countries. As a novelty of this study, the main influential drivers and barriers in self-consumption are classified and analysed from the installers' perspective. On the basis of the information obtained from the installers involved in the installation of these facilities, incentives and barriers are analysed within the existing legal framework and the potential specific lines of the promotion for the effective deployment of self-consumption in an energy transition scenario.

SenCity – Evaluating Users’ Experiences of Intelligent Lighting for Well-Being in Smart Cities

2018 ◽  
pp. 60-67
Author(s):  
Henrika Pihlajaniemi ◽  
Anna Luusua ◽  
Eveliina Juntunen
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Evaluation Methods ◽  
Data Analyses ◽  
Sense Of Security ◽  
System Data

This paper presents the evaluation of usersХ experiences in three intelligent lighting pilots in Finland. Two of the case studies are related to the use of intelligent lighting in different kinds of traffic areas, having emphasis on aspects of visibility, traffic and movement safety, and sense of security. The last case study presents a more complex view to the experience of intelligent lighting in smart city contexts. The evaluation methods, tailored to each pilot context, include questionnaires, an urban dashboard, in-situ interviews and observations, evaluation probes, and system data analyses. The applicability of the selected and tested methods is discussed reflecting the process and achieved results.

scholarly journals The European Union Green Deal: Clean Energy Wellbeing Opportunities and the Risk of the Jevons Paradox

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (14) ◽  
pp. 4148
Author(s):  
Estrella Trincado ◽  
Antonio Sánchez-Bayón ◽  
José María Vindel
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
European Union ◽  
Great Recession ◽  
International Institutions ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Great Recession ◽  
Financial Framework ◽  
The Common

After the Great Recession of 2008, there was a strong commitment from several international institutions and forums to improve wellbeing economics, with a switch towards satisfaction and sustainability in people–planet–profit relations. The initiative of the European Union is the Green Deal, which is similar to the UN SGD agenda for Horizon 2030. It is the common political economy plan for the Multiannual Financial Framework, 2021–2027. This project intends, at the same time, to stop climate change and to promote the people’s wellness within healthy organizations and smart cities with access to cheap and clean energy. However, there is a risk for the success of this aim: the Jevons paradox. In this paper, we make a thorough revision of the literature on the Jevons Paradox, which implies that energy efficiency leads to higher levels of consumption of energy and to a bigger hazard of climate change and environmental degradation.

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