Development Of Energy Technologies Research Articles

In Situ Construction of Biphasic Boride Electrocatalysts on Dealloyed Bulk Ni-Mo Alloy as Self-Supporting Electrode for Water Splitting at High Current Density.

Nickel-molybdenum-boron (Ni-Mo-B)-based catalysts with biphasic interfaces are highly advantageous in bifunctional electrocatalytic activity in alkaline water-splitting. However, it remains an ongoing challenge to obtain porous Ni-Mo alloy substrates that provide stable adhesion to catalysts, ensuring the long-term performance of bifunctional self-supporting electrodes at a high current density. Herein, a porous Ni-Mo alloy substrate was effectively obtained by a cost-effective dealloying process on a commercial Ni-Mo alloy with high-energy crystal planes. Subsequently, the Mo2NiB2/Ni3B bifunctional catalyst was in situ synthesized on this substrate via boriding heat treatment, resulting in outstanding catalytic activity and stability. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the abundant biphasic interfaces and surface-reconstructed sites of the Mo2NiB2/Ni3B catalyst can decrease the energy barriers for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), respectively. Thus, the designed self-supporting electrodes show bifunctional catalytic activity with overpotentials of 151 mV for HER and 260 mV for OER at a current density of 10 mA cm-2. Markedly, the assembled water electrolyzer can be driven up to 10 mA cm-2 at 1.64 V and maintain catalytic activity at a high current density of 1000 mA cm-2 for 100 h. The new strategy is expected to provide a low-cost scheme for designing self-supporting bifunctional electrodes with high activity and excellent stability and contribute to the development of hydrogen energy technology.

Research on Evaluation Indicators of AgriVoltaics

In recent years, with the popularization of environmental protection concepts and the continuous development of new energy technologies, agrivoltaics has attracted increasing attention and become an important direction of new agricultural development as a new type of agricultural planting method and new energy utilization method. This article classifies ground-based agrivoltaic schemes into three categories according to different management and distributions of solar radiation: intensity management, spectrum management, and time management. The article also details the performance of high-quality schemes proposed by our research team for these three categories. In addition, the article proposes four evaluation indicators for agrivoltaic schemes: land equivalent ratio (LER), return on investment (ROI), water-saving performance, and crop-friendliness, and calculates the performance of different schemes proposed by our research team based on these indicators. Finally, we recommend using these four dimensions to evaluate the performance of agrivoltaic schemes.

EDITORIAL

Greetings to the Readers of Jurnal Teknosains!We are proud to present the latest edition of Jurnal Teknosains in Volume 13, Number 2, June 2024. In a world that is constantly evolving, innovation and sustainable development are crucial foundations for progress in the fields of technology and science. This edition takes us through a series of research articles that highlight various important aspects in this regard, ranging from the development of renewable energy technologies to efforts in addressing global pandemics. In broad strokes, we endeavor to provide an overview of the eight research articles in the field of technology and science published in this June 2024 edition.

The Impact of Fossil Fuel Energy, Technological Innovation and Globalization on Tourism Inflows of Top Ten Most Visited Countries

Increased uses of fossil fuel consumption, globalization, and tourism activities have significant adverse effects on the sustainability of our ecosystem. The present study takes into account the top 10 most visited nations by tourists to examine the impact of fossil fuel energy consumption, technological innovation, foreign direct investment (FDI), economic growth, and globalization on tourism inflows from 2008 to 2022.. Choice of appropriate technique for empirical testing is based on the PP-Fisher, ADF Fisher, IPS, and LLC unit root tests. Due to mixed order of integration of variables, the Panel ARDL is more reliable for econometric investigation. The findings of Panel ARDL reveal that the most significant contributing factors towards growth in tourism are technological innovation, the globalization index, growth in gross domestic product, and use of fossil fuels as an energy source. These results imply that advancements in technology, increased globalization trends, and economic growth are facilitating the growth in tourism activities. Likewise, non-renewable energy consumption is significantly linked to tourism growth in these countries which exhibits that these governments are relying upon fossil fuel consumption to meet the energy demand for tourism activities and to fuel economic growth. Though, FDI is having a detrimental effect on tourism inflows in the top 10 most frequently visited nations. This outcome entails that expanded industrialization and economic footprint negatively influence the ecological environment which adversely affects tourism inflows. The policy implications of this research assert that the development of clean and renewable energy technologies is essential for the promotion of sustainable economic growth, promote eco-tourism in these countries. Similarly, smart manufacturing and environment friendly production can alleviate the negative effects of ecological footprint on tourism inflows.

Quaternary conducting Cs/GO/PANi hydrogel composites: A smart material for room temperature hydrogen sensing

Hydrogen sensors are essential for hydrogen energy technology development and safety monitoring. However, hydrogen sensing is difficult because it requires effective and fast detection of tiny quantities of hydrogen. In situ oxidative radical polymerization is used in this study to combine polyaniline (PANi) with a chitosan/graphene oxide (Cs/GO) hydrogel, which is very good at conducting electricity, to make it sensor. FTIR, XRD, SEM, and UV were used to evaluate the material's functional groups, crystal structure, morphology, and bandgap. This work shows that Cs/GO/PANi can synthesise a hydrogel-based sensor. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), cyclic voltammetry (CV), and chronoamperometry (CA) were used to evaluate electron transfer mobility, redox behaviour, and hydrogen sensing. Using a hydrogen source with a concentration of 0.5–2.5 M KOH, the hydrogen sensor's response time, recovery sensitivity, and limit of detection were found to be 0.4 s, 0.8 s, 54.3748 μAM, and 3.5520 μM, respectively. Under conventional conditions, the experiment demonstrated significant sensing capabilities at ambient temperature. According to the research, the sensor works so well because of the π-π stacking interaction, the irregular structure, and the way the GO-based hydrogel and PANi work together.

Design and optimization of a siphon turbine using the response surface methodology

A comprehensive examination of siphon turbine design and optimization using the response surface methodology (RSM) is presented in this study. The goal was to improve the turbine efficiency by analyzing the impact of two key factors: the number of blades (n) and the ratio between the hub diameter (d) and the outer diameter of the rotor (D), (d/D). The application of RSM facilitated the creation of a response surface, unveiling the optimal combination of factors for maximizing efficiency. The novelty of this article lies in utilizing the response surface methodology to refine the design of existing turbines, resulting in a more streamlined and effective design process tailored to the specific requirements of the installation. The findings indicated that rounding the number of blades to 5 and maintaining a constant d/D ratio of 0.35 yielded the highest efficiency (41.4%). Experimental validation was carried out and the accuracy of the optimized design was demonstrated, paving the way for practical applications in renewable energy solutions. Therefore, the effectiveness of RSM in optimizing siphon turbine designs is supported since valuable insights are provided for enhancing the energy efficiency in small-scale hydropower systems. The investigation contributes to the development of sustainable and clean energy technologies, showcasing the potential of siphon turbines in harnessing low-head water sources for power generation.

Technical transformation of heavy/ultra-heavy oil production in China driven by low carbon goals: A review

With the growing global energy demand and limited production of conventional crude oil, the extraction of unconventional heavy and extra-heavy oil is receiving unprecedented attention. China is the fourth largest producer of heavy oil. High viscosity and complex formation environments increase the difficulty of exploiting heavy oil. To alleviate the economic cost and environmental pollution pressure brought by heavy oil production, China has achieved significant advancement in the innovation of heavy oil recovery, including accelerating the transformation of thermal technology to non-thermal technology and the use of new energy technology to achieve the goal of low-carbon economy and green environmental protection. Based on the background of heavy oil in China, this paper recharacterizes the high-viscosity mechanism of heavy oil. From different aspects, including basic principles, main characteristics, applicability, limitations, and challenges, this paper comprehensively reviews existing heavy oil recovery technologies, including thermal recovery, in-situ upgrading, cold recovery, and new energy technologies.Currently, in China, the main target of heavy oil recovery is achieving the “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality” goals, which can be described as low energy consumption, low emission, and low pollution. To facilitate the low-carbon transition in the extraction of heavy/extra-heavy oil and attain environmental sustainability goals, it is essential to increase the proportion of non-thermal factors in thermal recovery technologies, develop efficient in-situ catalysts, adopt clean cold extraction techniques, and advance the development of new energy technologies.

A multi-criteria decision-making model to determine the optimal share of variable renewable energy sources in a wholesale electricity market

In recent years, the development of renewable energy technologies has gotten increasing attention due to the realization of cleaner production and high energy efficiency. Therefore, the proportion of these resources in electricity production has experienced a dramatic increase. However, with the features of intermittent nature and merit order effects, it is challenging to effectively optimize the integration of renewable energy sources (RES) into the electricity markets. To deal with the complex problem of selecting the proportionate share of non-dispatchable RES for participation in the market, this paper establishes a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework, which combines the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Simple Additive Weighting (SAW). Five criteria are defined and the corresponding mathematical model is solved by the proposed AHP-SAW method. In this way, the optimal share of renewable resources for participation in the wholesale market can be determined based on the desired criteria. Also, to compare the results obtained by the AHP-SAW method, the criteria weights are determined by Shannon entropy, and the problem is solved by the TOPSIS method. To assert the effectiveness of the proposed framework, two case studies are done. According to the results, by increasing the RES penetration level, the average price of the market decreases mildly while price volatility increases significantly . Also, the amount of forward contracts is decreased when the RES share increases. Moreover, the results show that a high amount of RES is not necessarily desirable and depends on the type of renewable resources and policymakers' priorities. The results for systems 1 and 2 indicate that the maximum allowable amount of RES are 85.359 and 38.24 MW, respectively.

Early-Stage ISC Fault Detection for Ship Lithium Batteries Based on Voltage Variance Analysis

With the progressive development of new energy technologies, high-power lithium batteries have been widely used in ship power systems due to their high-power density and low environmental pollution, and they have gradually become one of their main propulsion energy sources. However, the large-scale deployment of lithium batteries has also brought a series of safety problems to ship operations, especially the battery internal short circuit (ISC). Battery ISC faults are very hidden and unpredictable at the initial stage and often fail to be detected in time, ultimately leading to overheating, fire or even an explosion of the ship’s power system. Based on this, this paper proposes a fast and accurate method for early-stage ISC fault location and detection of lithium batteries. Initially, voltage variations across the lithium battery packs are quantified using curvilinear Manhattan distances to pinpoint faulty battery units. Subsequently, the localized characteristics of voltage variance among adjacent batteries are leveraged to detect an early-stage ISC fault. Simulation results indicate that the proposed method can quickly and accurately locate the position of 5 Ω, 10 Ω and 15 Ω ISC faulty batteries within the battery pack, as well as detect the abnormal batteries in a timely manner with considerable sensitivity and reliability.

Self-operation and low-carbon scheduling optimization of solar thermal power plants with thermal storage systems

Photo thermal power generation, as a renewable energy technology, has broad development prospects. However, the operation and scheduling of photo thermal power plants rarely consider their internal structure and energy flow characteristics. Therefore, this study explains the structure of a solar thermal power plant with a thermal storage system and analyzes its main energy flow modes to establish a self-operation and low-carbon scheduling optimization model for the solar thermal power plant. The simulation results of the example showed that for the self-operating model oriented towards power generation planning and peak valley electricity prices, the existence of a thermal storage system could improve the power generation capacity and revenue of the photovoltaic power plant. For example, when the capacity of the thermal storage system was greater than 6 h, the penalty for insufficient power generation in the simulation result was 0 $, and the maximum increase in revenue reached 84.9% as the capacity of the thermal storage system increased. In addition, when the capacity of the thermal storage system increased from 0 to 8 h, the comprehensive operating cost decreased from 1635.2 k $ to 1224.6 k $, and the carbon emissions decreased from 26.4 × 103 ton to 22.1 × 103 ton. Compared with the existing literature, this study provides a more comprehensive and systematic solution through detailed energy flow analysis and optimization model. The research has practical and far-reaching significance for promoting the development of clean energy technology, improving the sustainable utilization of renewable energy, and optimizing the overall performance of the energy system.

Gaining More Insights from Synchrotron-Based X-ray Spectroscopy for Alkali Ion Rechargeable Batteries.

Alkali ion rechargeable batteries play a significant part in portable electronic devices and electronic vehicles. The rapid development of renewable energy technology nowadays demands batteries with even higher energy density for grid storage. To fulfill such demand, extensive research efforts have been devoted to optimizing electrochemical properties as well as developing novel energy storage schemes and designing new systems. In the investigation process, synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy plays a vital role in investigating the detailed degradation mechanism and developing novel energy storage schemes. Herein, we critically review the applications of synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy in battery research in recent years. This review begins with a discussion of the different scientific issues in alkali ion rechargeable batteries within various time and space scales. Subsequently, the principle of synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy is introduced, and the characteristics of various characterization techniques are summarized and compared. Typical application cases of synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy are then introduced into battery investigations. The final part presents perspectives in the development direction of both alkali ion rechargeable battery systems and synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy in the future.

Study on the Effect of Bifurcation Position on Spontaneous Ignition and Shock Wave Propagation Characteristics in High-pressure Hydrogen Leakage Tubes

Hydrogen safety issues constrain the development and diffusion of hydrogen energy technologies. The current research on tube types in high-pressure hydrogen storage and transportation links is insufficient. In this paper, the spontaneous combustion law and the propagation characteristics of the shock wave in the tube after accidental leakage of high-pressure hydrogen in a bifurcated tube with a blocking structure are investigated by experimental means. By changing the relative position of the bifurcation structure, it is found that moving the bifurcation position upstream can effectively reduce the intensity of the shock wave at the nozzle of the tube, the propagation velocity of the shock wave inside the tube and the critical ignition pressure. There are three ignition possibilities in the bifurcated tube with blocking structure, and quenching can be realized in the tube under lower pressure.

Innovation policy for sustainability transitions in small economies: Energy technology innovation in Hong Kong

In this paper, we analyzed Hong Kong's sustainable energy transitions innovation policy, and compared it to the policies in 11 small, high-income jurisdictions. To do this, we identified 696 innovation interventions implemented between 2008 and 2020. We classified them into 42 types of policy instruments. Then we visualized the policy mixes of the jurisdictions with the assistance of correspondence analysis methods. The results suggest that Hong Kong's overall policy mix heavily relies on overarching policy strategies to guide research and demand side policies to support energy technology adoption. However, Hong Kong's support for research and development of domestic clean energy technologies to overcome the so-called “valley of death”, a critical gap between public and private support, remains limited. This contrasts with the policy mixes of more innovative peer jurisdictions, which provide R&D funding and business support targeted at encouraging clean energy technologies and facilitating connections across the innovation system.

Research Review on Multi-Port Energy Routers Adapted to Renewable Energy Access

With the continuous development of renewable energy technologies, both domestically and internationally, the focus of energy research has gradually shifted towards renewable energy directions such as distributed photovoltaics and wind power. The penetration rate of renewable energy generation is constantly increasing, at the same time, the elements in the grid are becoming increasingly complex, and large-scale energy storage, as well as a variety of electricity loads such as electric vehicle charging piles and data centers are gradually appearing. Therefore, traditional distribution methods of the power grid are difficult to ensure the stable operation of the power system and cannot achieve efficient integration of renewable energy. Consequently, some scholars have proposed the concept of an energy internet. Compared to traditional power grids, the energy internet employs more comprehensive power electronics and communication technologies, enabling the interconnection of various new and traditional energy sources, and effectively integrating renewable energy. As the core device in the energy internet, the energy router plays a role in energy transformation and distribution, facilitating multi-information interconnection and multi-energy exchange within the energy internet. At the level of distribution network, the energy router can realize the efficient access of various forms of energy and the flexible control and management, which is of great significance for the optimal operation of distribution network. Against this backdrop, this paper reviews the development and current research status of energy routers, systematically analyzes the typical topologies and related control technologies of multi-port energy routers and summarizes and forecasts key issues and future development trends, aiming to provide thoughts and reference for subsequent related research.

Optimization of a parametric product design using techno-economic assessment and environmental characteristics with application to an electric traction motor

Accelerating the development of clean energy technologies is required to move towards a sustainable future. New design approaches are being proposed to help accelerate these developments. This study proposes and improves a novel design framework that incorporates life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic assessment (TEA) with an optimization-based design model of a discrete product at early stage. Objective functions for mass, energy consumption, and two metrics relating to manufacturer and consumer economic interests are considered; these objectives are minimized using a Pareto-like approach. An electric traction motor for an electric vehicle is used as a discrete product case study. The approach demonstrates the utility of considering four-objectives in the design problem, uncertainty analysis via Monte Carlo simulation, and the power of employing LCA and TEA methods. Future work may explore a broader range of objective functions to cover different challenges that inhibit the development of clean energy technologies.

Integrated management of abatement technology investment and resource extraction

As the need for increased renewable energy generation to meet climate goals grows, so does the demand for critical minerals in the industrial sector. This raises concerns about the availability of supply and the reliability of investment in critical minerals. Based on this, the study proposes an analytical framework for the integrated management of mineral extraction and renewable energy investments. Different from the previous strategy of separate management, this study has established an integrated model that utilizes new energy technology as the downstream application of emission reduction technology. It also utilizes copper, zinc, aluminum, rare earth elements, and other materials as the upstream raw material supply. In terms of minimizing costs, the entire supply chain process is optimized to achieve an empirical case. In addition, considering the significant uncertainty in the process of reducing emissions from new energy technologies, this study also incorporated a forward control stochastic programming method to model and solve it. We obtained confidence intervals for optimal technological investment paths and metal mining paths under various scenarios. Our findings indicate that: (1) Biomass, as a renewable energy technology with the lowest resource demand, should be prioritized for development. However, there is significant uncertainty surrounding the installed capacity of photovoltaics. (2) Copper ore reserves have little impact on the development of renewable energy technologies, while zinc ore and aluminum ore have a greater impact on wind energy and photovoltaics, respectively. (3) By optimizing the cut-off ratio of raw ore under a specific amount of ore storage, we can ensure the availability of materials needed for downstream energy technology.

Shewanella oneidensis-based artificial conductive micro-niche for hydrogen augmentation

The synergetic integration of living microorganisms and nonliving matrices into a new artificial micro-ecological system is a crucial challenge in bio-manufacturing especially towards the development of sustainable energy technology. Here we develop a way of creating a Shewanella oneidensis based conductive micro-niche to boost hydrogen production by integrating graphene, polydopamine and alginate. We reveal that both the respiratory metabolism induces localized hypoxic conditions inside the micro-niche and the wired-up extracellular electron reverses transfer pathway from the outer environment to the periplasmic hydrogenases, contributing to the enhanced hydrogen production rate which is about 12.7 folds enhancement compared with that of the free Shewanella oneidensis in solution. Significantly, the whole assembly process shows good biocompatibility, ensuring that the Shewanella oneidensis inside the micro-niche could maintain hydrogen production for 30 days. Overall, it is anticipated the hybrid integration of microorganisms and abiotic material will provide an effective strategy to modulate green biomanufacturer as well as enhance biological hydrogen production.

Unlocking the Technology Potential for Universal Access to Clean Energy in Developing Countries

Access to clean energy remains a major issue in developing countries, particularly Sub-Saharan Africa, despite successive policies and the assistance of international institutions or organizations. The United Nations (UN) launched some of the most ambitious initiatives with the Millennium Development Goals and, more recently, the Sustainable Development Goals and Power Africa, a United States (US) government initiative. Sub-Saharan Africa has an important potential in renewable energy for both biogas and solar photovoltaic energy, but they remain underexploited. This paper presents the challenges of access to clean energy in developing countries and the failure of remedial policies mostly based on public–private partnerships (PPPs) in the context of endemic poverty of rural populations. In addition, the development of modern energy technologies remains very limited. Appropriate reforms should be carried out to change the paradigm and allow universal access to clean energy. This paper also addresses the different structural barriers that hinder access to technology in Sub-Saharan Africa and the consequences of access to clean energy in the context of poverty.

Research and Application of New energy Digital System Based on BIM

With the continuous development of new energy technology, the installed scale of new energy is getting bigger and bigger, the market competition is becoming increasingly fierce, and the cost control of investment units, reference units and manufacturers in all aspects of new energy construction is becoming more and more strict. Promoting the application of BIM in new energy engineering projects can effectively reduce the cost in the design and construction stages, and more importantly, improve the efficiency of long-term operation of new energy power stations, and reduce capital investment. This paper focuses on the definition and development of BIM, key technologies and BIM-based new energy digital system, which manages the information model of new energy power generation projects, provides more effective and accurate management, and improves project operation efficiency.

Working cycle condition construction for electric wheel loader based on principal component analysis and cluster analysis

With the rapid development of new energy technology, cycle condition is significant for the design of powertrain system, whole machine economy, endurance, and other performance parameters of pure electric drive machines. Many cycle conditions of the passenger car industry have been defined. While that for the loader which has complex operation modes and working conditions, has less research on this aspect. Cycle conditions suitable for loader have not been constructed. To support the research and development of electric loader power system, the cycle conditions that can reflect the driving characteristics of electric loader are studied in this paper. According to the typical “V” cycle condition of loader, the actual driving condition data are collected and the kinematic segments are divided. The kinematic segments are grouped into five categories by using principal component analysis and K-means clustering algorithm to obtain the clustering center of each category. The working cycle condition is formed by extracting the combination of segments closest to the clustering center. Finally, based on AMESim simulation and whole machine test analysis, the error between the simulation and vehicle test results of the energy consumption is 3.4%. The accuracy and effectiveness of the proposed constructed cycle conditions are verified.