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Solar PV and battery storage technologies are known to provide savings to customers in the form of reduced electricity charges. Currently, these savings are only determined for the volume component (kWh) and not the demand component (kW or kVA). As interest grows in commercial solar PV and battery storage installations, the need to predict demand charge reductions is great. The aim of this research is to determine, with accuracy and reliability, the ability of solar PV and battery storage technologies in reducing demand charges. Results have shown that when simulated against a commercial-scale electricity consumption profile solar PV was able to reduce the maximum demand across five electricity networks in Australia by 0.05–1.51%. When coupled with a 12 kWh battery storage an additional 1.31–2.02% reduction was experienced. Battery utilisation strategy was shown to be critical in yielding greater demand reduction from the battery storage. Notably, it was shown that in the Ergon Energy electricity network, battery storage was able to supply demand at 34% lower cost ($/kW) than the network was able to. The results detail the first instance of demand reduction evaluation of solar PV coupled with battery storage, focusing on physical and financial outcomes in an Australian context.

Abstract The subject of energy saving in distillation column sequencing is of critical importance. Heat integration in a multicomponent separation can be industrialized by saving considerable energy and cost. In this work, external heat-integrated distillation column with external heat exchanger has been studied and the annual cost function has been optimized using Genetic Algorithm. Introducing the layout and binary matrices enabled the investigation of all possible locations for the heat exchanger arrangement successfully. Moreover, exchangers heat loads and compressors pressure, have also been considered as optimization variables. Benzene, toluene, xylene and n-alkanes, separations have been studied as case studies. It has been demonstrated that the proposed optimization method in the alkane separation case decreased the total annual cost by 22.6% in comparison with the proposed thermally coupled distillation sequence columns. The heat integration of external heat exchangers in an external heat-integrated distillation column configuration and the proposed dived-wall column resulted in decreasing the total annual cost by 17% and 39% respectively, in comparison with conventional distillation columns.

Abstract Nucleonic considerations of fusion reactor blankets design are reviewed, and blanket design approaches are illustrated. Non-nuclear blanket design considerations are only briefly reviewed. The review concentrates on blankets for D-T fusion power reactors but considers also blankets for fusion power reactors based on D-D fusion, as well as blankets for high temperature heat source and for non-electrical applications of fusion.

The consequence of exposure to the effluents of power plants that elicits the most concern is probably the induction of cancers. Due mainly to the high uncertainty of epidemiological surveys on exposure to low doses of mutagens, observations performed up to now on man have provided contradictory and inconclusive results. Since a high correlation exists between the mutagenicity of environmental agents and their carcinogenic properties, an attempt has been made to evaluate the carcinogenic potential of the different forms of energy production on the basis of the results of short term tests performed on the effluents of several power plants. Any energy source is associated with such risks and, in spite of the fact that real comparative studies were not available, coal as a source of energy presents obviously higher mutagenic potential than nuclear power. Renewable forms of energy are cleaner but are, however, not entirely devoid of health impacts.

Abstract Hydrothermal conversion coupled with high pressure water and steam of three de-oiled non-edible seed cakes of Jatropha curcasa, Pongammia pinnata and Tung to biocrude is explored in this work. The cakes were characterized for proximate, ultimate and ligno-cellulosic compositions using ASTM and TAPPI standard methods. All studies were conducted at high temperature and pressure in a semi-batch autoclave. Highest conversion with maximum biocrude yield (∼35.3%) was obtained with P. pinnata cake. Silica adsorption chromatography result showed higher oxygenated aromatics subfraction in both Tung biocrude and Jatropha biocrude. GC/MS qualitative analysis confirmed the presence of heavy, oxygenated/ nitrogenous and poly aromatic hydrocarbons with carbon number ranging from C 5 -C 47 in the biocrude. The viscosity, pH, density, total acidic number (TAN) and water content of biocrudes were evaluated using various standard methods. 34.2 to 45.8% increases in the calorific value is observed for biomass to biocrude. Biochar obtained were characterized using proximate and ultimate analysis and SEM, TGA techniques. Higher calorific values (24.7–26.3 MJ/kg) of all the biochar make them suitable for their potential application as briquettes in the furnace for power generation.

Abstract It has lately been suggested that nuclear power technologies could be used to mitigate potential global warming. Doing this would give nuclear power technology a new role, and would lead to its widespread deployment worldwide. When examined carefully several barriers to accomplishing this goal are evident, even should the uncertainties of global warming become reduced enough that it could be treated as an established fact. These barriers involve the need for alternative forms of nuclear energy, uranium resource limitations, technology development requirements and difficulties in widespread deployment of nuclear power plants. Overcoming the barriers may prove to be much more difficult than has been appreciated todate, and could strongly influence the future research and development agenda for nuclear and associated technologies.

Abstract In this paper a Dynamic Simulation Model has been used to present the likely responses of the electricity industries’ latest perturbations such as: changes in environmental regulations, international fuel market evolution, restriction on fuel supply and increase on fuel prices, liberalisation of the European Electricity Market, and the results of applying energy policies and official tools such as taxes and emission allowances. The case under study refers to the Teruel Power Plant, built after the 1970s oil crisis to ensure national electricity supply; burning domestically produced coal in order to ensure local mining activity. The Teruel Power Plant has made relevant investments in order to meet emission limits, such as a Flue Gas Desulphurisation Plant. The economic viability of the power stations has to be analysed after environmental costs have been internalised. A system is defined that studies the coal-firing Electric Power Plant selling energy to the free electricity market, whenever the generation cost is competitive. A Dynamic Simulation Model would appear to be an accurate tool to optimise power station management within different frameworks.

This paper presents an original short-term forecasting model of the hourly electric power production for aggregated regional hydropower generation. The inputs of the model are previously recorded values of the aggregated hourly production of hydropower plants and hourly water precipitation forecasts using Numerical Weather Prediction tools, as well as other hourly data (load demand and wind generation). This model is composed of three modules: the first one gives the prediction of the “monthly” hourly power production of the hydropower plants; the second module gives the prediction of hourly power deviation values, which are added to that obtained by the first module to achieve the final forecast of the hourly hydropower generation; the third module allows a periodic adjustment of the prediction of the first module to improve its BIAS error. The model has been applied successfully to the real-life case study of the short-term forecasting of the aggregated hydropower generation in Spain and Portugal (Iberian Peninsula Power System), achieving satisfactory results for the next-day forecasts. The model can be valuable for agents involved in electricity markets and useful for power system operations.

Abstract The development and application of a standard methodology for evaluating the energy and carbon budgets of biofuel production systems is described, with emphasis on wood fuel production from short rotation coppice. Five major tasks were involved: definition of the system boundary; estimation of energy benefits; estimation of carbon sequestration; estimation of energy costs; estimation of carbon emissions. Calculation of overall energy and carbon budgets required a set of ‘standard’ assumptions about practices and resultant energy inputs to be made. These standard assumptions accounted for all activities involved in production and delivery of biofuel within the immediate vicinity of the farm ( 3.2 km ). The energy ratio, that is the ratio of energy produced to energy consumed by the biofuel producing system, was estimated to be much greater than 1, typically around 30. This energy ratio proved to be very sensitive to assumptions about crop management and wood processing, as well as associated energy inputs, varying from 20 to 64 when model input assumptions were varied between extremes. The carbon emissions coefficient exhibited similar sensitivity to input assumptions. The gross non-renewable energy requirement, that is the total consumption of non-renewable energy associated with the direct consumption of 1 MJ of energy in the form of wood fuel, was estimated to be 0.035 MJ MJ −1 . The carbon emissions coefficient, that is the carbon emitted in producing 1 MJ of energy in the form of wood from short rotation coppice, was estimated to be 0.0013 kgC MJ −1 . Further research is needed to validate input assumptions and to estimate budgets for complete, practical, energy generation systems.