• Energy Research

The European Union set ambitious goals regarding renewable energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study uses two models to analyze the implications of these goals on the European energy system and on the rest of the world, based on several scenarios for the mid and long term. First, using a linear programming optimization model for capacity expansion and unit commitment, we obtain the optimal design of the European power system in 2030 and 2050. Results for Germany are then used as input in a Multi-Regional Input-Output Analysis with the objective of analyzing the environmental and socioeconomic effects derived from the new energy system. The linking of both models in each scenario is at the core of this study. Results show the capabilities of this method in terms of GHG emissions, cumulative energy demand, value added, and job creation. Keywords: Capacity expansion optimization, Input-output analysis, Socioeconomic impacts, Environmental impacts

Decision makers interested in promoting sustainable development must simultaneously consider the environmental, economic and social implications of any action. This article proposes the Framework for Integrated Sustainability Assessment (FISA), a methodological framework for conducting a sustainability impact assessment of any investment project. Based on a Multiregional Input–Output (MRIO) framework, FISA links the extended MRIO results with social risk data from the Social Hotspots Database (SHDB) in order to integrate the social with the environmental and economic pillars. Resulting impacts are simultaneously considered and reported by means of FISA charts, making it possible to assess the different impacts within the three sustainability pillars across countries involved in the whole supply chain of investment projects. This methodological framework can be applied not only to compare the sustainability impacts of two alternative projects, but also to derive specific recommendations aimed at minimizing the harmful social, environmental and economic effects along the whole project supply chain.

Using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) the fossil energy benefits and avoided global warming emissions have been evaluated for the EU Biofuels goals in Spain. The Biofuels considered are cereal ethanol, biodiesel from residual oils, and from palm, sunflower, soybeans and rapeseed vegetable oils. Our findings are that the source of the cereal and vegetable oil influences the efficacy of the Biofuels and that results greatly depend on whether or not electricity has been produced as co-product in bioethanol plants and that without CHP the energy balance of ethanol is negative with few greenhouse gas offsets.

Abstract The indirect Land Use Change (iLUC) impacts of biofuels refer to the effects of additional emissions due to land-use changes triggered by the expansion of energy crops in response to increased biofuel demand. These emissions are mostly greenhouse gases (GHG), thus relevant to the climate change impact category. In order to address these effects, the European Commission (EC) has proposed the inclusion of feedstock type specific iLUC factors for different biofuel sources in the Renewable Energy Sources Directive 2009/28/EC (RED). The goal of this study is to quantify the indirect environmental impacts both in terms of global energy crop land area and the subsequent iLUC, if an additional demand of biofuel in Spain occurs, from a consequential approach. Results show a wide range of GHG emissions, in terms of CO 2 , of biodiesel and bioethanol from iLUC effects, strongly influenced by the place where the potential biofuel is produced. Based on our study, two main aspects -determine the iLUC effects: the dedicated energy crops that are used to produce biofuels and the different coproducts obtained along the biofuels production process. Therefore, contrary to the EC proposal for including a single factor by type of crop, the development of origin-dependent iLUC factors seems to be a more appropriate alternative based on the current assessment. Other aspects that might affect the results, such as crop rotation or field management, have been excluded from the analysis in this work.

The objectives of the analysis reported in this paper are to evaluate the environmental impacts of the electricity produced in a 17MW solar thermal plant with central tower technology and a 50MW solar thermal plant with parabolic trough technology, to identify the opportunities to improve the systems in order to reduce their environmental impacts, and to evaluate the environmental impact resulting from compliance with the solar thermal power objectives in Spain. The methodology chosen is the life cycle assessment (LCA), described in the international standard series ISO 14040-43. The functional unit has been defined as the production of 1kWh of electricity. Energy use needed to construct, operate, and dismantle the power plants is estimated. These results are used to calculate the “energy payback time” of these technologies. Results were around 1yr for both power plants. Environmental impacts analyzed include the global warming impacts along the whole life cycle of the power plants, which were around 200g∕kWh generated. Finally, the environmental impacts associated with the compliance of the solar thermal power objectives in Spain were computed. Those figures were then used to estimate the avoided environmental impacts including the potential CO2 emission savings that could be accomplished by these promotion policies. These savings amounted for 634kt of CO2 equiv./yr.

Abstract This study discusses the potential of H2 production by proton exchange membrane water electrolysis as an effective option to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the hydrogen sector. To address this topic, a life cycle assessment is conducted to compare proton exchange membrane water electrolysis versus the reference process - steam methane reforming. As a relevant result we show that hydrogen production via proton exchange membrane water electrolysis is a promising technology to reduce CO2 emissions of the hydrogen sector by up to 75%, if the electrolysis system runs exclusively on electricity generated from renewable energy sources. In a future (2050) base-load operation mode emissions are comparable to the reference system. The results for the global warming potential show a strong reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The thoroughly and in-depth modeled components of the electrolyser have negligible influence on impact categories; thus, emissions are mainly determined by the electricity mix. With 2017 electricity mix of Germany, the global warming potential corresponds to 29.5 kg CO2 eq. for each kg of produced hydrogen. Referring to the electricity mix we received from an energy model emissions can be reduced to 11.5 kg CO2 eq. in base-load operation by the year 2050. Using only the 3000 h of excess power from renewables in a year will allow for the reduction of the global warming potential to 3.3 kg CO2 eq. From this result we see that an environmentally friendly electricity mix is crucial for reducing the global warming impact of electrolytic hydrogen.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to shed light to the concept of solar electricity transfer from North Africa to Europe in the frame of Article 9 of the European Renewable Energy Sources (EU-RES) Directive 28/2009/EC, to explain why efforts have not been successful up to now and to provide recommendations on how to proceed. Design/methodology/approach The authors have compared the “Supergrid” concept that was pursued by some institutions in the past years with the original “TRANS-CSP” concept developed by the German Aerospace Centre in 2006. From this analysis, the authors could identify not only major barriers but also possible ways towards successful implementation. Findings The authors found that in contrast to the Supergrid approach, the original concept of exporting dispatchable solar power from concentrating solar thermal power stations with thermal energy storage (CSP-TES) via point-to-point high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission directly to European centres of demand could be a resilient business case for Europe–North Africa cooperation, as it provides added value in both regions. Research limitations/implications The analysis has been made in the frame of the BETTER project commissioned by the Executive Agency for Competitiveness & Innovation in the frame of the program Intelligent Energy Europe. Practical implications One of the major implications found is that due to the time lost in the past years by following a distracted concept, the option of flexible solar power imports from North Africa to Europe is not any more feasible to become part of the 2020 supply scheme. Social implications To make them a viable option for post-2020 renewable energy systems for electricity development in Europe, a key recommendation of the project is to elaborate a detailed feasibility study about concrete CSP-HVDC links urgently. Originality/value The analysis presented here is the first to give concrete recommendations for the implementation of such infrastructure.

In this paper, the environmental and economic impacts of the life cycle of an advanced lithium based energy storage system (ESS) for a battery electric vehicle are assessed. The methodology followed to perform the study is a Multiregional Input–Output (MRIO) analysis, with a world IO table that combines detailed information on national production activities and international trade data for 40 countries and a region called Rest of the World. The life cycle stages considered in the study are manufacturing, use and recycling. The functional unit is one ESS with a 150,000 km lifetime. The results of the MRIO analysis show the stimulation that the life cycle of the EES has in the economy, in terms of production of goods and services. The manufacturing is the life cycle stage with the highest environmental load for all the impact categories assessed. The geographical resolution of the results show the relevance that some countries may have in the environmental performance of the assessed product even if they are not directly involved in any of the stages of the life cycle, proving the significance of the indirect effects.