Alternative Energy Strategies Research Articles

Outage-induced power backup choice in Pakistan

Like in many other developing countries, power outages are prevalent in Pakistan. Consumers are compelled to explore alternative energy strategies when the overhead of the outage surpasses that of implementing a backup plan. Inverters, small generators, and solar energy systems (SESs) are among the common backup options. This study utilizes primary data collected from the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi to delve into the factors influencing consumers' perception-based choices regarding backup solutions. To account for various backup choices, we employ multinomial logistic regression techniques on a sample of 952 households. Our analysis reveals that perception-based variables, such as electricity theft and decreasing satisfaction, negatively impact the likelihood of selecting off-grid renewable options like solar technology. Moreover, we observe that consumers residing in rented houses prefer inverters and generators, while homeownership significantly influences the adoption of all three backup choices. Interestingly, the rural-urban location of the household does not influence the decision to opt for a SES. These findings carry important policy implications for energy-deficient regions. The transition towards solar energy is driven by the household's strategy to ensure uninterrupted energy backup while simultaneously reducing the cost of electricity consumption.

Sustainable Energy Strategies for Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)

During the last years, renewable energy strategies for sustainable development perform as best practices and strategic insights necessary to support large scale organizations’ approach to sustainability. Power purchase agreements (PPAs) enhance the value of such initiatives. A renewable PPA contract delivers green energy efficiently to organizations that seek sustainability benefits. Consequently, various approaches that define PPAs are utilized to motivate both interested parties to participate in such deals. Highlighting sustainability tactics during negotiations and identifying relative impacts during the projects’ implementation are both necessary. Following the methodological approach of this study, open-ended criteria are used to identify vital negotiation pricing patterns that permit practitioners to deliver win–win outcomes. The aim of this research is to introduce a multicriteria decision analysis-based method, namely PROMETHEE, to evaluate the implementation of sustainability-related strategies using PPAs. This paper proposes a method for ranking alternative sustainable energy strategies in order for decision-makers to be able to select the most appropriate PPA structure for an organization.

A Comprehensive Analysis of Strategies, Challenges and Policies on Turkish Sustainable Energy Development

Turkey's rapid population and economic growth have caused a significant increase in energy demand over the last two decades. As a result, a process of evaluating alternative energy strategies and policies was required to be formulated carefully along with the country's longer-term decarbonisation aims. Although Turkey's considerable renewable energy potential exists, its dependency on foreign energy and its dramatically depreciating currency have been the main drivers of revisions to these renewable energy-related policies. This paper aims to demonstrate and evaluate all the strategies and challenges of Turkey's green steps toward a sustainable future. Sustainable developments of many developed countries have been examined and compared to assess Turkish strategies and significant policies that have been taken. As findings, it has been revealed that policy revisions regarding the use of domestic technology in green power plants decelerate investments for a short time. However, it has been found that renewable energy patent applications have declined, although domestic technology in green energy plants has been promoted through these policy revisions. As a result of this dilemma, the quality and effectiveness of green research and development (R&D) in Turkey have been investigated and then benchmarked with most leading countries. It has been observed that there is no correlation and relation between the patent application and the articles on renewable energy. Therefore, the paper has provided insight into new policies and strategies to enhance the productivity of R&D for both Turkey and developing similar countries. Consequently, potential measures to increase Turkey's green energy use and production are discussed and proposed systematically, considering those findings.

Catalytic Cracking of Crude Palm Oil Using Ni-Carbon with Ion Exchange Method

According to data from the National Energy Council (DEN) (2016), the energy consumption in Indonesia is increasing every year and will increase 1.8 times in 2025, this requires an alternative energy to back up the energy needs. One such alternative energy strategy is to use biodiesel. Biodiesel can be obtained from Crude Palm Oil using a catalytic cracking process. This study investigated the cracking of Crude Palm Oil using Ni-carbon with ion exchange method. The concentration of the metal solution used was 1, 2 and 3%, with temperature 450, 500 and 550 ° C. The catalyst was analyzed by XRD and showed that the highest pattern at 25.6º on 2% solution. The catalyst characterized by SEM-EDX showed that the nickel metal bonded to the 1, 2, and 3% Ni-Charcoal catalysts was 02.01, 1.13 and 2.09%, respectively and the average of catalytic cracking product conversion at concentrations of 1, 2and 3% was 62.55, 66.52 and 56.50%, respectively.

Evaluation of strategic energy alternatives determined for Northern Cyprus with SWOT based MCDM integrated approach

Today, energy management is of strategic importance, and evaluating options is an important step for decision-makers in energy management. The lack of strategy for the future of Northern Cyprus in the energy sector constitutes the main motivation of this article. The application of the proposed methodology to Northern Cyprus is novel and has not been applied in any of its scientific areas before. This study proposes an integrated approach to identifying strategic energy alternatives with Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods based on Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT). The proposed model has a three-stage structure; in the first stage, SWOT analysis was used for the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of internal and external factors affecting the energy sector, along with TOWS analysis to determine alternative strategies. In the second stage, analytical network processing (ANP) was used to weight the SWOT factors, and in the third stage, fuzzy ideal solution similarity order performance (FTOPSIS) methods were used to rank alternative energy strategies. In the final results, alternative energy strategies proposed for the Northern Cyprus energy sector were ranked according to their priority values. While the most preferred energy strategy by the decision-makers was establishing an interconnected connection to the mainland, the least preferred strategy was determined as laying a natural gas pipeline to the mainland. Both options point to the strategic and geopolitical critical importance of Northern Cyprus’ location in the Eastern Mediterranean in energy transmission. On the other hand, it is gratifying that the strategy based on primary energy takes the bottom rank.

Examine Fuzzy System to Present an Equilibrium Model for the Internal Pressure Losses of Alpha Type Stirling Engine: Comparison with ANN Model

Global warming associated with the greenhouse effect urge finding alternative energy strategies concerned with sustainable energy resources that are environmentally friendly and provide energy saving. Waste heat recovery engines are attracting devices that convert usually wasted energy to valuable mechanical or electrical energy. The current research aims to develop a mathematical model to investigate the effects of regenerator physical dimensions on the alpha Stirling engine performance indicators. A mathematical model integrating an internal pressure drop has been proposed to act as a thermodynamic optimization tool for the Stirling engine. The main conclusion was that both geometrical factors and working fluid initial charge (gas mass) craft the performance parameters of alpha type Stirling engine that operates with air as working material. After that, Artificial neural networks of Levenberg Marquardt and Orthogonal Distance Regression models, and Fuzzy systems trained for Mass Charge from M = 0.002 to 0.004 Kg are compared to find the least uncertainty. Results revealed that the Fuzzy system and Orthogonal Distance Regression model could predict more effectively than the Levenberg Marquardt model.

Interventions to mitigate indoor air pollution: A cost-benefit analysis.

Globally, around three billion people depend upon solid fuels such as firewood, dry animal dung, crop residues, or coal, and use traditional stoves for cooking and heating purposes. This solid fuel combustion causes indoor air pollution (IAP) and severely impairs health and the environment, especially in developing countries like Pakistan. A number of alternative household energy strategies can be adopted to mitigate IAP, such as using liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), natural gas, biogas, electric stoves, or improved cook stoves (ICS). In this study, we estimate the benefit-cost ratios and net present value of these interventions over a ten-year period in Pakistan. Annual costs include both fixed and operating costs, whereas benefits cover health, productivity gains, time savings, and fuel savings. We find that LPG has the highest benefit-cost ratio, followed by natural gas, while ICS has the lowest benefit-cost ratio. Electric stoves and biogas have moderate benefit-cost ratios that nevertheless exceed one. To maximize the return on cleaner burning technology, the government of Pakistan should consider encouraging the adoption of LPG, piped natural gas, and electric stoves as means to reduce IAP and adopt clean technologies.

Environmental impact on reproductive health and risk mitigating strategies.

The purpose of this review is to increase awareness among reproductive health professionals and trainees about the impact of environmental toxicants and climate change on women's health and mitigation strategies at the individual, professional and governmental levels. Global health indicators reveal a meteoric rise of noncommunicable diseases over the past 50 years, which threaten reproductive health directly and indirectly. Evolutionary genetic mutations as contributors are unlikely in this timeframe, and environmental causes have been invoked. Notably, the past 75 years have witnessed marked increases in industrial chemical production, and global warming has rendered a 'climate crisis' with extreme temperatures and compromised food, water, and air quality. There is now strong experimental and epidemiologic evidence for endocrine disrupting chemicals and particulate matter and chemical components of air pollution in the pathophysiology of human reproductive disorders during development and across the lifespan, especially among vulnerable populations. Environmental impacts on fertility, pregnancy outcomes, childhood neurodevelopment, and reproductive tract development are significant, not widely appreciated, and may be preventable. In light of the evidence, education and advocating economical mitigations of toxic environmental chemicals and alternative energy strategies are imperatives to assure quality reproductive health for this and future generations.

Bioenergy opportunities, barriers and challenges in the Arabian Peninsula – Resource modelling, surveys & interviews

The link between energy and climate change is fundamental - energy accounting for two-thirds of global greenhouse gas emissions. Of all countries, those of the Arabian Peninsula are synonymous with energy and the supply and use of fossil fuels. However driven by commitments to international climate change agreements the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have been developing alternative energy strategies with targets for renewables. This paper presents the outputs of biomass resource modelling analyses that identify bioenergy opportunities across the region. Municipal wastes are found to represent a leading opportunity for bioenergy with a combined 19.35 Mtpa of resource across the GCC currently being sent to landfill that could otherwise be used for energy. The research finds that up to 22.5% of GCC country electricity could be generated from bioenergy technologies fuelled by indigenous biomass resources. Interviews were undertaken with Director-level GCC individuals from industry and government and a survey was facilitated to gain an understanding of perceptions of bioenergy and the potential barriers to its greater deployment. There was majority support for renewable technologies and for bioenergy, however a majority of respondents were found to be ‘not willing’ or ‘unsure’ when asked if they would be willing to take any individual actions such as recycling to support bioenergy schemes. High availability of cheap fossil fuels, stimulated by fossil fuel subsidies is identified as the greatest barrier to renewables. The GCC's commitment to international climate and sustainability targets represents an opportunity to develop a strategy to phase out fossil fuels.

Which renewable energy consumption is more efficient by fuzzy EDAS method based on PESTLE dimensions?

The facilities that energy delivers to social life and economic activities render it indispensable. Hence, it is equally critical that the energy cycle must have a sustainable structure. Therefore, it is an indisputable fact that developing and performing correct and consistent energy policies is vitally necessary. Energy consumption planning includes a continuous process to reassess existing and potential alternative energy approaches and strategies. The public and private decision-makers in charge of planning and managing energy consumption policies must adapt their strategies to novel and superior alternative resources according to sustainability and efficiency criteria. In this paper, the fuzzy EDAS method is used to address the best renewable energy consumption by taking political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental (PESTLE) dimensions into account. The analysis of the paper indicates the most efficient renewable energy consumption is sourced by geothermal, solar, wind, hydroelectricity, and biomass, respectively. By further investigation, it is concluded that the most optimum renewable energy consumption alternatives based on PESTLE dimensions are geothermal and solar energies.

Commuter PM exposure and estimated life-expectancy loss across multiple transportation modes in Xi’an, China

Commuters are reportedly exposed to severe traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) during their commuting trips. This study was designed and implemented to (1) compare particulate matter (PM) exposure across four common transportation modes; (2) examine and analyze various determining factors; and (3) estimate public health effects caused by commuting exposure to PM. All analyses and calculations were based on the experimental data collected from 13 volunteers, including heart-rate data on 336 commuting trips in four travel modes in Xi’an China. The results indicate highest PM exposure associated with cycling (average PM10, PM2.5 and PM1.0 of 114.35, 72.37 and 56.51 μg/m3, respectively), followed by riding transit buses (116.29, 67.60 and 51.12 μg/m3 for the same pollutants, respectively), then taking a taxi (97.61, 58.87 and 45.11 μg/m3), and the lowest exposure onboard subways (55.86, 46.20 and 40.20 μg/m3). A multivariable linear regression model was used to examine major influences on PM concentration variations, with results corroborating significant PM variance across commuting modes, which is also affected by background pollution concentration and relative humidity. Further, years of life expectancy (YLE) loss were estimated using an inhalation dose model together with the life table method: cycling commuters experienced the greatest YLE loss (5.51–6.43 months per capita for the studied age group). During severe pollution periods, substituting other modes (like subway) for cycling could effectively avoid acute exposure. PM2.5 levels in taxi cabins powered by CNG or methanol were comparatively lower, indicating that implementing alternative energy strategies could effectively lower traffic emissions and population exposure.

Institutions and Geography: A “Two Sides of the Same Coin” Story of Primary Energy Use in Sub-Saharan Africa

Do institutional and geographical characteristics matter for energy consumption similar to the case of economic development? Why do coastal Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries appear to be more energy-consuming than inland ones? To answer these questions, surprisingly rarely addressed in the existing literature, we empirically assess the determinants of primary energy use across SSA, exploiting spatial analysis methods. Our results highlight the existence of positive geographical spillovers in primary energy use. We also derive factors (income, exports, population dynamics and urbanization) explaining the reasons coastal countries are more energy-intensive. Furthermore, good political institutions and geographical location enhance primary energy use, connoting a “two sides of the same coin” role played by both factors. Our results impel SSA countries to develop alternative energy strategies and deploy energy resources management policies since adverse environmental consequences associated with increasing fossil energies use are to expect in the near future.

DEVELOPMENT OF CHINA'S ALTERNATIVE ENERGY STRATEGY: PRECONDITIONS AND FORECASTS

The article is devoted to the study of the development of China's alternative energy strategy. The article states that with the growth of the world's population and the continuous development of industry, the human need for energy is growing. It is a well-known fact that the growth of industrial production and CO2 emissions during production has caused climate change. Climate change threatens the survival of vulnerable species on earth, threatens ecosystems and biodiversity, and can threaten human survival. If the extreme weather that threatens human survival does not occur, the limitation of fossil resources will severely limit the future development of mankind. In particular, human activities since the Industrial Revolution have been a major cause of the current global warming, including emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases caused by human production and life, land use and urbanization. The article proves that the emergence of alternative energy sources gives positive results in leveling the impact of industrial development on the environment. It is a source of energy for sustainable development and plays a key and important role in global efforts to combat climate change. Its emergence has put more and more companies and industries in the spotlight worldwide. As the global energy market is politically biased, policymakers face increasingly difficult challenges to their countries' energy security. The question of how to integrate renewable energy sources and policies to improve their efficiency was explored, so that each of them can take full advantage of their own benefits to maximize benefits and make people's lives easier. With the growth of renewable energy, the influence of individuals, governments and international organizations, as well as the role played by local, national and intergovernmental policies, are becoming increasingly important. The key principles of China's alternative energy strategy were identified, how to facilitate the development of renewable energy in the right direction and integrate energy into industrial production were identified. It is proposed to further develop this strategy in accordance with the best world experience, taking into account the national interests of China.

Ectoparasite Load Is Reduced in Side-Blotched Lizards (Uta stansburiana) at Wind Farms: Implications for Oxidative Stress.

AbstractWind-generated power is one of the fastest growing alternative energy strategies worldwide and will likely account for 20% of US energy production by 2030. The installation and maintenance of wind farms are associated with increased human activity and can generate noise pollution, disturb and fragment habitat, and even alter community composition and structure. These environmental and ecological changes can increase physiological stress for vertebrates and affect important life-history attributes, such as immune function. However, little is known about how wind farms influence physiology and disease or parasite resistance in nonvolant wildlife. Here, we test the notion that renewable wind farms increase physiological stress and correlated aspects of disease resistance (parasite load) in a common desert vertebrate, the side-blotched lizard (Uta stansburiana). We captured lizards from three wind farms and three undisturbed reference sites in the San Gorgonio Pass wind resource area in the Mojave Desert, California. We quantified individual external parasite loads and measured plasma antioxidant capacity and concentrations of reactive oxygen metabolites as a combined metric of oxidative stress. Contrary to our expectations, individuals at wind farm sites had significantly fewer external parasites than at undeveloped sites. Additionally, we found a slight positive correlation between parasite load and oxidative stress for individuals at wind farm sites but not at reference sites. Our results demonstrate a complex, potentially context-dependent relationship between stress physiology and disease resistance for lizards in anthropogenically disturbed environments. Understanding how wind farms affect the physiology and ecoimmunology of terrestrial fauna is necessary to mitigate the ecological costs of alternative energy development.

Nanomechanics and Raman Spectroscopy of in Situ Native Carbohydrate Storage Granules for Enhancing Starch Quality and Lignocellulosic Biomass Production.

Alternative energy strategies based on plant biomass-derived bioenergy and biofuels rely on understanding and optimization of plant structure, chemistry, and performance. Starch, a constitutive element of all green plants, is important to food, biofuels, and industrial applications. Models of carbohydrate storage granules are highly heterogeneous in representing morphology and structure, though a deeper understanding of the role of structure in functional behavior is emerging. A better understanding of the in situ nanoscale properties of native granules is needed to help improve the starch quality in food crops as well as optimize lignocellulosic biomass production in perennial nonfood crops. Here, we present a new technique called soft mechanical nano-ablation (sMNA) for accessing the interior of the granules without compromising the inner nanostructure. We then explore the nanomechanics of granules within the ray parenchyma cells of Populus xylem, a desirable woody biofuel feedstock. The employed soft outer layer nanoablation and atomic force microscopy reveal that the inner structure comprises 156 nm blocklets arranged in a semicrystalline organization. The nanomechanical properties of the inner and outer structures of a single starch granule are measured and found to exhibit large variations, changing by a factor of 3 in Young’s modulus and a factor of 2 in viscoplastic index. These findings demonstrate how the introduced approach facilitates studies of structure–function relationships among starch granules and more complex secondary cell wall features as they relate to plant performance.

Techno-Economic Feasibility Study of Small Wind Turbines in the Valley of Mexico Metropolitan Area

The use of small wind turbines (SWTs) is an alternative energy strategy with increasing potential for satisfying in situ electrical demands and should be studied to promote social penetration. The Valley of Mexico Metropolitan Area (VMMA) has air pollution issues that need to be addressed. This has resulted in programs for monitoring atmospheric variables, such as wind speed. By selecting and using 3 years’ worth of available data, we developed a methodology to study the technical and economic feasibility of using SWTs in the VMMA. To this end, 28 SWT models were assessed at 18 locations to estimate annual energy production. In light of certain data characteristics, an adjustment to the power production was proposed for the specific case of using SWTs. Cash flow analysis and annualized net present value (ANPV) were used to determine economic feasibility for each location; furthermore, electric home feeds in the VMMA were considered to model local economic conditions. Similar wind conditions were observed within the VMMA; however, only two wind turbine and location models provided positive ANPV values. The extra annual benefit for each project was calculated by associating the cost per mitigation of CO2 emissions, which may provide an economic strategy for promoting the penetration of this technology.

Synthesis of a quantitative strategy to minimize energy used in conditioning of dry air in buildings in summer with fluctuating ambient and room occupancy rate

The conditioning of room air in summer is widely practiced. However many operators do not have an overall quantitative strategy for minimizing energy. Widespread practice is to simply use on-off, that is, have air conditioning-on when a room is occupied, and conditioning-off, when un-occupied. Here we apply the probabilistic Fr 13 risk framework (Chem. Eng. Sci. 152 (2016) 213–226) for the first time to take account of naturally occurring fluctuations in daily ambient peak temperature (To), occupancy rates (LT) and room traffic inflow and outflows (n) in a typical (hotel) room fitted with heat-attenuating curtains in the hot and dry clime of South Eastern Australia (latitude −37.819708, longitude 144.959936). We use this to synthesise an extended steady-state unit-operations model and assess the two energy strategies for conditioning of the room air to a widely used auto-set bulk temperature of 22 °C. It was assumed the impact on overall energy demand from room lighting and refrigerator and occupant metabolism was negligible. We show incident radiative energy will be significant, and using historical ambient temperature fluctuations and occupancy rates, that adoption of the alternative on-only continuous conditioning would use less energy in 93.6% of summer days, based on an overall commercially viable LT = 75% with the minimum possible room traffic flow of n = 1. Practically, this equates to six (6) only failures of this alternative energy strategy in the 90 days of summer. Importantly, the probabilistic Fr 13 framework permits a practical design for larger-scale quantitative testing of the proposed strategy. A preliminary 10-day ‘proof-of-concept’ trial showed energy savings of 18.9% (AUD $2.23 per suite (paired-room) per day) with a concomitant 20.7% reduction in GHG. Findings will be of immediate interest and benefit to operators and managers of large buildings that rely on conditioning of dry air in summer.

Fracking in New York State: Weighing Risks and Benefits

ABSTRACTThe controversial decision to ban fracking in New York State, most notably in the Marcellus Shale formation, was informed by global, national, state, and local issues that have general relevance. Without prejudging whether fracking can be undertaken safely, we discuss the science of fracking, focusing primarily on widely reported public health and environmental risks, especially those associated with greenhouse gas emissions. Based upon such concerns, any reconsideration of the fracking ban in New York should include, at a minimum, consideration of imposing public and environmental health risk management requirements as proven feasible and successful via industry experience. Fracking should be viewed as one choice among alternative energy strategies, all of which pose risks, rather than simplistically classified as either safe or unsafe. Assuming that our energy needs will continue to grow, our goal should be to guide the evolution of our energy portfolio toward sustainable sources as they emerge as feasible energy alternatives.

The Scenario of the Potential Analysis Alternative Energy in Order to Strengthening District's Energy Resilience (The Case Study in South Sumatera Province)

The current development of fossil energy, which is the driving force of the economy in Indonesia, is a non-renewable energy and is in need to know when it will be exhausted so it may be replaced with renewable energy. Many powerplant systems in Indonesia are still using conventional system that utilizes fossil energy as the primary energy in the process of electricity generation. The occurrence of electrical energy crisis is marked by several electricity blackout phenomenon in some areas in South Sumatera province rotately, which is the proof that the installed power capacity has exceeded the capacity of generation power. Interconnection among several islands, namely Java Island, Sumatera Island, and Bali Island which has been interconnected with closed loop system through transmission network has not been able to overcome the electrical energy crisis. This paper aims to create alternative energy potential scenarios in the province of South Sumatera in sequence/ranking by using quantitative methods with sequential explanatory model formulated in the determination of alternative energy strategies then analyzed by using Analitycal Hierarchy Process(AHP) method. The simulation results from this research indicate that geothermal energy potentials get the highest value so that it becomes the priority of alternative energy strategy in South Sumatera Province.

A renewable energy harvesting system using a mechanical vibration rectifier (MVR) for railroads

As the demand for clean and sustainable energy increases, it is useful to explore alternative energy strategies, including harvesting the kinetic energy of vibration. In this paper, we design and characterize a renewable energy-harvesting system that collects energy from rail track vibrations by using a mechanical vibration rectifier (MVR). The MVR consists of meshing gears and one-way bearings, and it transforms bidirectional vibrations into unidirectional rotation to improve the efficiency of transmission. A DC motor is used as a generator, and a supercapacitor is used to store the electricity. The operation of the MVR was modelled and simulated including vehicle-track contact, track vibration, the dynamic response of the MVR and an electromechanical analysis of the generator. A prototype was manufactured to demonstrate the feasibility of the design. A peak voltage of 58V comes close to meeting the requirements for practical usage in rail applications. These devices would be able to supply power for safety equipment and allow for emergency repairs in areas without power.