Local Energy Sources Research Articles

A Review on Solar Thermal Utilization for Industrial Heating and Cooling Processes: Global and Ethiopian Perspective

A substantial share of the total energy in various countries is consumed by industries and manufacturing sectors. Most of the energy is used for low and medium temperature process heating (up to 3000C) as well as low and medium cooling capacity (up to 350kW). To meet the demand, the industrial sector consumes most of its energy in either thermal (heat) or electrical energy forms. The use of fossil fuels accounts for about half of the overall share. This resulted in a necessity to commercialize local and clean renewable energy sources efficiently considering the reduction of economic dependence on fossil fuels and greenhouse gases emission. As such, solar energy has proven potential and resulted in considerable development and deployment of solar heating industrial processes (SHIP) and solar cooling systems in recent times. Thus, an attempt to present a review of the available literature on overall energy intensiveness, process temperature levels, solar technology match, and solar thermal system performance and cost have been made in this paper. The review also includes identifying the potential and relevance of involving solar thermal for industrial heating and cooling demand. As a result, at least 624 SHIP including promising large-scale plants and 1350 solar cooling systems most of them in small and medium capacities in operation are identified. Though limited data is available for solar cooling potential and installation, investigations projected the global SHIP potential to 5.6 EJ for 2050. Consequently, given the presence of many low and medium temperature heating processes and cooling capacities in industries with immense solar energy potential, developing counties such as Ethiopia can take experience and pay attention to the development of sustainable industrial systems.

Feasibility Study of Future Seaports

Port is a focal point especially in the trade sector, where it is represented as hub for the import and export from one destination to another. Despite the fact that it gives positive impact to country specifically in economic sector but from the health sector, this activity leaves a negative impact on the environment and human health, especially those living near the port. Now, most of developed countries have made improvements by converting conventional engines (diesel engines) to electrical engines for major vehicles in ports. The same goes for shore-side ports, most of them using cold ironing (CI). However, all the modification is still raw and faced several challenges, especially in technical aspects such as voltage difference, frequency, supply / demand. It occurs due to the difference in standard voltage and frequency between shore-side and ship. Most of the ocean ship used 60 Hz. In addition, the main constraint faced is that the power supplied on the shore-side is not enough to meet the demand from customers. Thus, to make additions to the existing substation, it will require high initial costs. After evaluating the pros and cons, the new approach is taken to integrate this system into microgrid technology. Microgrid technology is a local cluster energy source with a control capability comprising Energy Distribution Resources (DER), which cover management request, storage, and loads. One of the advantages of a microgrid is that they can be connected or disconnected from the grid to operate autonomously.

Nuclear energy development self-management concept to support national energy security and national defense (case study: commercial NPP plans in the West Kalimantan region)

Indonesia’s energy consumption is still increasing, including in the West Kalimantan Region, by 8.2% growth in electricity customers. During this time, West Kalimantan still fulfilling its energy needs in imports around 30% of energy supply (200 MW) from Sarawak, Malaysia. This condition can weaken national energy security and national sovereignty because it has not independently met its energy needs from domestic sources. At the same time, the potential for local energy sources in West Kalimantan is to get uranium deposits of 45,730 tons, which are nuclear fuel. Qualitative Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) research method to find the concept of self-management based on 4A (Availability, Affordability, Acceptability, Accessibility) + 1S (Sustainability). The results of the self-management concept obtained by integrating aspects: (1) Accessibility and Acceptability in the form of priorities for improving top-down and bottom-up cross-sectoral coordination management systems, namely the central and regional governments in the development of nuclear power plants with the involvement of local communities from the beginning of planning; (2) Affordability of making technical designs by BATAN with SMR (Small Modular Reactor) technology in the construction of commercial-scale nuclear power plants in terms of the availability of local resources as nuclear raw materials.

Pseudo inspired gravitational search algorithm for optimal sizing of grid with integrated renewable energy and energy storage

This study presents proposed Pseudo-Inspired Gravitational Search Algorithm (PI-GSA) for solving complex Economic Dispatch (ED) problem in the power system and Optimal sizing of the components for a self-contained and grid connected hybrid energy system that meets the load demand of a particular village. This method can be scaled according to the need of the system under investigation. From the results obtained, it can be inferred that with the use of local available energy sources, the grid connected mode serves as more economical and reliable choice for the electrification of numerous villages when compared with the stand-alone hybrid energy system. To check the effectiveness and performance of proposed algorithm simulation results for Complex Economic Dispatch (Cases 1) are compared with other methods reported in literature and Optimal sizing of the components for self-contained and grid integrated renewable energy resources (Case 2) are compared with the results obtained from Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewable (HOMER). A qualitative comparison of the obtained result with other standard population based meta-heuristic techniques manifests proposed technique's superiority.

Optimal design of stand-alone solutions based on RES + hydrogen storage feeding off-grid communities

Concerning off-grid areas, diesel engines still dominate the scene of local electricity generation, despite the related pollution concerns and high operating costs. There is thus a huge global potential, in remote areas, for exploiting local renewable energy sources (RES) in place of fossil generation. Energy storage systems become hence essential for off-grid communities to cope with the issue of RES intermittency, allowing them to rely on locally harvested RES.In this work, we analysed different typologies of off-grid renewable power systems, involving batteries and hydrogen as means to store energy, to find out which is the most cost-effective configuration in remote areas. Both Li-ion and lead-acid batteries were included in the analysis, and both alkaline and PEM electrolysis technologies were considered for the production of hydrogen. Starting from single cell electrochemical models, the performance curves of the electrolyser and fuel cell devices were derived for a more detailed techno-economic assessment. Lifetimes of batteries and H2-based components were also computed based on how the power-to-power (P2P) system operates along the reference year. The particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm was employed to find the component sizes that allow minimizing the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) while keeping the off-grid area energy autonomous. As a case study, the Ginostra village, on the island of Stromboli (North of Sicily, Southern Italy), was analysed since it is well representative of small insular locations in the Mediterranean area. The renewable P2P solution (0.51 €/kWh for the cheapest configuration) was found to be economically preferable than the current existing power system relying on diesel generators (0.86 €/kWh). Hydrogen, in particular, can prevent the oversizing of both battery and PV systems, thus reducing the final cost of electricity delivered by the P2P system. Moreover, unlike diesel generators, the RES-based configuration allows avoiding the production of local air pollutants and GHG emissions during its operation.

Promising solutions for the reconstruction of small power supply systems

Solutions for the reconstruction of low-capacity power supply systems are considered and analyzed. The most promising ones are highlighted. Possibilities of their application at industrial, agro-industrial and municipal facilities have been assessed, possible ranges of payback periods for power generating mini-CHP have been determined. The specificity of operating modes of local energy sources, combination and regulation of heat and power supply loads, their advantages and disadvantages are considered.

Conceptual aspects of improving the energy efficiency of agricultural complex in conditions of sustainable development

The article identifies and analyzes the relevance of the formation of new energy opportunities for the agro-industrial complex (AIC), which will stabilize energy consumption. Theoretical and methodological bases of organizational and economic aspects of realization of bioenergy potential of agrarian sector of economy are analyzed and investigated. Possibilities of biofuel and energy production, possibility of using different types of local energy sources for energy supply are estimated. The problem in the field of regulation and development of the fuel and energy complex and the inconsistency of transformation measures in the energy sector with the methods of reforming the energy industry, agriculture, services and utilities of Ukraine are analyzed. The state, tendencies and strategy of energy complex development are analyzed; the forecast estimation of energy possibility of introduction of new stages of application of renewable energy sources in agriculture is executed. The analysis of the current state of the energy balance of the agricultural sector is carried out, and the topical issues of imperfection of the bioenergy and RES production process are identified. Ways to increase the economic efficiency of energy saving by increasing the capacity of biogeneration of energy, based on local energy sources, taking into account the savings in their use, as well as obtaining additional funds from the sale of electricity at a green tariff. It is recommended to improve and harmonize the production of raw materials for biofuel energy and to introduce control over the reporting of economic entities.

Techno-economic and environmental assessment of energy vectors in decarbonization of energy islands

Decarbonization and transformation of the power system go beyond integrating large shares of variable distributed energy sources; it implies understanding the increasing flexibility needs of the power system and breaking barriers in the process of transforming passive users to active participants in future low carbon energy systems. Unlocking the potential of final users and transforming them into distributed flexibility providers requires harmonization of operation through new models such as the association in energy communities. Multi-vector energy communities (MEC) can provide further flexibility options, enable integration of local energy generation and empower energy islands to increase self-sufficiency and resilience to external impacts. In line with this, the paper develops a unified mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model of a MEC and rigorously assesses techno-economic performances of different combinations of energy sources, vectors and consumers. That way, the potential of different MECs for providing flexibility and increasing the utilization of electricity production from local renewable energy sources is assessed. Based on the results of the MILP models, the paper further proposes novel indicators for estimation of the techno-economic and environmental potential of different multi-energy vectors in decarbonization of energy islands. Case study analysis comprises of eight scenarios with different MEC’s setups with realistic data from island Ærø in Denmark and island Vis in Croatia, capturing also geographical specificities. The results show significant differences across different MEC set-ups as well as between the geographical locations, and some of the results that can be highlighted are: demand responsive electric heat pumps and use of battery energy storage systems provide stand-out energy potency and can ensure self-sufficiency with smallest capacity of electricity production from local renewable energy sources, but comes with a growing costs for the increase of storage capacity; use of imported natural gas as a transition fuel could be affordable solution but does not lead to fulfilment of self-sufficiency or environmental goals; hydrogen energy vector has significant potential, especially in cases where seasonal energy storage is needed but the costs are still a main barrier; correlation of production and consumption patterns in island Ærø in Denmark favor wind energy, while the increased capacity and production from solar plants is more favorable in island Vis in Croatia.

The Renewable Energy Production Capability of Settlements to Meet Local Electricity and Transport Energy Demands

In addition to the examination of electric power from local renewables, this study has sought the answer to the question of what proportion of vehicles are fueled by environmentally friendly energy saving technologies in the vehicle fleets of Hungarian settlements. Further, the study attempts to shed light on the self-sufficiency of Hungarian settlements with respect to the electricity and transport segments. In our assessments, the performance of small-scale household power plants (SSHPPs) utilizing local renewable energy sources, and small-scale power plants with installed capacities under 0.5 MW, was taken into account, as were the proportions of vehicles operating with partly or completely clean energy sources in the vehicle fleets of the individual settlements. Finally, the composition of the vehicle fleet has been examined in the light of the quantities of renewable electricity generated in the individual settlements, in order to consider whether these settlements are capable of covering the energy needs of their vehicle stocks from local sources. In the light of the results, the changes generated by the incentives and investments introduced over the past ten years can be established and subsequently, the energy policy needs in the future can be assessed. Our study has incorporated energy geography and settlement geography aspects.

A Micro-trigeneration Geothermal Plant for a Smart Energy Community: The Case Study of a Residential District in Ischia

Improvements for islands sustainability subjected to strong anthropogenic pressures could be obtained by innovative solutions for energy supply by using local energy renewable sources. This paper analyses the possible benefits of a geothermal energy community, consisting of residential users, located in Ischia, an island of Naples in South of Italy. The proposed system is mainly based on an Organic Rankine Cycle plant interacting with a medium temperature geothermal source. This system satisfies both community’s pure electric load and electricity requests of the electric-driven heat pumps for space conditioning and domestic hot water demands. The entire system and residential users were modelled and dynamically simulated by considering hourly electric, thermal/cooling and domestic hot water loads variation during three reference days for winter, summer and intermediate season. The proposed plant was compared to a traditional system in which the electricity to meet the total community’s electric loads, is taken from the national power grid. The results highlight that the use of proposed system instead of traditional one allows to avoid 29.9 tons per year of CO2 emissions. Furthermore, this proposed system ensures the island-operation of community exploiting local renewable energy source and improving the energy independency.

New Look at the Molecular Superbubble Candidate in the Galactic Center

Abstract The l = +13 region in the Galactic center is characterized by multiple shell-like structures and their extremely broad velocity widths. We revisit the molecular superbubble hypothesis for this region, based on high-resolution maps of CO J = 1–0, 13CO J = 1−0, H13CN J = 1−0, H13CO+ J = 1−0, SiO J = 2−1, and CS J = 2−1 lines obtained from the Nobeyama Radio Observatory 45 m telescope, as well as CO J = 3−2 maps obtained from the James Clerk Maxwell telescope. We identified 11 expanding shells with total kinetic energy and typical expansion time E kin ∼ 1051.9 erg and t exp ∼ 104.9 yr, respectively. In addition, the l = +13 region exhibited high SiO J = 2−1/H13CN J = 1−0 and SiO J = 2−1/H13CO+ J = 1−0 intensity ratios, indicating that the region has experienced dissociative shocks in the past. These new findings confirm the molecular superbubble hypothesis for the l = +13 region. The nature of the embedded star cluster, which may have supplied 20–70 supernova explosions within 105 yr, is discussed. This work also shows the importance of compact broad-velocity-width features in searching for localized energy sources hidden behind severe interstellar extinction and stellar contamination.

E&P Notes (February 2021)

E&P Notes (February 2021)

Analysis of renewable energy implementation in remote areas of Indonesia: study review

Indonesia is the largest archipelago with 17,503 islands where 6000 populated islands and most of the islands are remote areas. This condition causes limited access to energy supplies such as electricity and fuel. Meanwhile, Indonesia has a variety of natural resources including renewable energy sources that have not been applied optimally. It is expected that the utilization of local renewable energy sources can guarantee the availability of electricity in remote areas so that it can support national development and security. To optimize renewable energy in remote areas, the government made Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Regulation 38/2016 concerning the acceleration of electrification in undeveloped, remote, bordered, and small-populated rural areas through the implementation of small scale electricity supply businesses. To analyses the regulation and other supports, the SWOT method is used to know the impact of the regulation in the remote area. Coordination is needed between the Central Government and the Regional Governments. Also, control and evaluation of existing policies are required so that people in remote areas can get access to electricity optimally.

Challenges and Solutions for Biogas Production from Agriculture Waste in the Aral Sea Basin

Energy plays an essential role in the modern society and can serve as one of the vital parameters of socio-economic development. Despite developments in technology, over three billion persons living in rural parts of the low- and middle-income countries continue to cover their energy needs for cooking through traditional ways by burning biomass resources. This paper as a case study focuses on the Aral Sea region of Uzbekistan, possessing a well-developed agricultural production with high livestock numbers and intensive crop production. The manure of the livestock farms is not used efficiently and the energy supply of the farms depends primarily on centrally produced gas and electricity. Some areas are not yet connected to the gas grid. Agriculture causes huge environmental damages in its current form. The benefit of biogas production would therefore be fivefold: (1) local energy source, (2) mitigation of environmental impacts, (3) reducing CH4-emissions, (4) producing organic fertilizer as a side product and (5) additional earnings for farmers.

Power Sharing in Island Microgrids

The growth of local renewable energy sources and heavy loads in power distribution networks, such as the increasing electric vehicles charging stations, causes several issues with a direct impact on the stability of the electrical grid. An attempt to overcome such issues is the microgrid concept, which has the grid structured into local sub-grids that manage their power and energy balancing. A microgrid may operate connected or disconnected from the main grid, being dynamically necessary to guarantee a power balancing between local loads and sources. Furthermore, as several power units are connected to the same microgrid, equity is also required in terms of power sharing. Current work explores a scenario of an island operation of a microgrid with multiple sources, including battery storage systems and sharing power with multiple loads, including electric vehicle chargers, a scenario appropriated to a city grid. A local control solution for a stable operation of the microgrid in terms of both power balancing and power sharing is presented and validated through numerical and experimental results.

ВІДНОВЛЮВАНІ ДЖЕРЕЛА В СИСТЕМАХ ЕНЕРГОПОСТАЧАННЯ МІСТ УКРАЇНИ

70% of the population of Ukraine lives in cities. Electric energy supply of cities with dense buildings is provided mainly from centralized generation sources: TPPs, CHPs, NPPs, RES, and heat energy - from CHPs and gas boilers. Possibilities of energy self-sufficiency of Ukrainian cities based on use of alternative and local energy sources are analyzed. There is a global trend of increasing share of RES in cities energy supply, especially in cities and districts with cottage development. Providing cities with their own energy resources can be achieved through integrated use of renewable and local sources. Production of electricity from renewable sources in terms of return on investment EROI and normalized energy cost over life cycle of LCOE generation source is close to traditional sources indicators. Examples of RES usage to meet energy needs of houses and settlements in Europe are given. High cost of renewable energy stimulates development of this area in Ukraine. Efficiency of renewable and local sources usage in buildings is achieved only with simultaneous introduction of energy saving measures - insulation of buildings, introduction of energy control systems. References 14.

Multi-criterial choice of capacity of power plants based on renewable energy sources and local fuels within local energy system

The purpose of the paper is to develop a methodology for multi-criteria selection of the capacity of a group of power plants included in the local power system which use local energy resources and renewable energy sources. To form alternative options for the structure of generating capacities, an approach is proposed. It suggests setting of a number of power levels of the base-load generating plant and power plants using renewable energy sources with subsequent determination of the capacity of the flexing generating plant to cover the remaining part of the load schedule. For multi - criteria comparison of the alternative options of the generating capacity structure, the TOPSIS method is used, which is modified to take into account the uncertainty of the decision-maker's preferences (the modification of the method consists in using fuzzy value functions at the stage of normalizing estimates by criteria). The application of this method is considered on the example of the Okhotsk district of the Khabarovsk territory. The estimated capacity of prospective consumers is 69 MW. Alternative options of the power generation structures include four types of power plants: local coal -fired thermal, solar, wind, and diesel. The multi-criteria comparison of generating capacity structure options is performed using the following criteria: normalized cost of electrical energy, estimation of environmental efficiency, and assessment of public opinion on the consequences of power plant construction. Some of the most promising options for the structure of generating capacities are presented, depending on the values of the weight coefficients of the criteria. If the criterion has the large weight reflecting economic efficiency, the structure with the predominance of thermal power plant energy generation is the best. If the criteria of environmental efficiency and public opinion feature large weight, the best structure is the one with significant generation from a renewable energy source (solar power plant). The coefficients of using the installed capacity of different types of power stations with different structures of generating capacities are determined. It is shown that the proposed methodology provides the obtaining of the options of the generating capacity structure that correspond to expressed preferences, taking into account the uncertainty of the initial information and development scenarios. Promising options for the structure of generating capacities are selected for more detailed further research.

Forecasting the impact on the environment of generating sources in agricultural production

The development of rural electrification is aimed at distributed energy, i.e. availability of autonomous sources of electricity and heat generation. Generation sources can use coal, fuel oil, gas, local and alternative energy sources as fuel and energy resources. This causes additional emissions of pollutants. Prediction of negative impact on the environment depends on the quantity and quality of emissions during the operation of various types of installations that generate electric and thermal energy. The purpose of the study is to select and substantiate the most attractive method for predicting the impact on the environment of generating sources in agricultural production. The widespread introduction of distributed energy using local and renewable energy sources will significantly reduce emissions of pollutants due to a decrease in energy intensity, matching the required load with the capacity of generation sources, using the most energy efficient sources, and widespread introduction of renewable energy sources. In this regard, it is advisable to forecast the impacts by the scenario method considering the implementation of the proposed distributed power supply system. The implementation of measures developed considering the analysis of the forecast of the negative impact on the environment of generating plants in agricultural enterprises will reduce the negative impact on the environment by introducing energy-efficient technologies into the energy balance of the enterprise, as well as increase production by up to 20% and increase sustainability. rural areas.

Automated Control of a Wind Generator for Agricultural Production

The use of inexhaustible or renewable energy sources (water, wind, solar, Earth heat) is an urgent task both in Russia and in the world. According to expert estimates, the Russian Federation has a large global wind potential. Efficient use of energy resources, including renewable energy sources, is the way to increase the energy efficiency of agricultural production. The share of energy consumption in the total cost of production reaches 32 percent in some industries. In recent years, many new consumers have arised, for whom the choice of a rational energy supply system is important at the design stage. For producers of agricultural products, the problem of the quality of electricity supply is also acute. Taking into account the specifics of agricultural areas, it can be concluded that it is local and renewable energy sources that will help to successfully solve the problems of uninterrupted energy supply and energy conservation. (Research purpose) The research purpose is in assessing the impact of the quality of electricity supply on agricultural production facilities and identifying modern domestic equipment that reduces the risks of using renewable energy sources in agricultural production. (Materials and methods) Author used the calculation and analytical method to evaluate the average indicators of electricity costs at livestock enterprises. The article presents a review of the automated control systems of the wind generator based on the equipment of the Russian manufacturer OWEN. (Results and discussion) Author studied the control system of a wind generator on the example of an installation used in the territory of the agricultural enterprise "Melnikovo" of the Gvardeysky district of the Kaliningrad region. The control system reduces the risks associated with the operation of the wind generator. (Conclusions) This system, which was put into operation in 2019, makes it possible to avoid failures in the operation of the wind generator. Work is underway to develop modern technical solutions for remote recovery of wind turbines, which is important when services are remote.

ANN based Day-Ahead Load Demand Forecasting for Energy Transactions at Urban Community Level with Interoperable Green Microgrids

Microgrids are formed with the rapid penetration of renewable energy sources (RES) into the distribution grid (DG) network, which increases the complexity of DG system and at the same time the conventional grid is getting overloaded due to the urbanization. So, to reduce the stress on the utility grid and for safe and reliable operation of microgrid (MG), it is necessary to develop proper Energy Management System (EMS) with adequate real time control. With this motivation in this paper Artificial Neural Network (ANN) is used along with EMS in the proposed minigrid for making energy transactions based on the availability of localized green energy sources. Energy management system uses day-ahead load demand forecasted by ANN for scheduling the energy sources and managing the energy transactions between the minigrid and utility grid during surplus/shortage power conditions. The minigrid system is formed by interconnecting two interoperable areas and each area associated with two microgrids. The proposed minigrid system with ANN in this paper is modelled and implemented in MATLAB software with Simulink and NN tool box. The simulated test results showed the accuracy of ANN for forecasting day-ahead load demand of the proposed minigrid system.