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AbstractThe future European energy supply system will have a high share of renewable energy sources (RES) to meet the greenhouse gas emission policy of the European Commission. Such a system is characterized by the need for a strongly interconnected energy transport grid as well as a high demand of energy storage capacities to compensate the time fluctuating characteristic of most RE generation technologies. With the RE generators at the location of high harvest potential, the appropriate dimension of storage and transmission system between different regions, a cost efficient system can be achieved. To find the preferred target system, the optimization tool GENESYS (Genetic Optimization of a European Energy System) was developed. The example calculations under the assumption of 100% self-supply, show a need of about 2,500 GW RES in total, a storage capacity of about 240,000 GWh, corresponding to 6% of the annual energy demand, and a HVDC transmission grid of 375,000 GWkm. The combined cost for generation, storage and transmission excluding distribution, was estimated to be 6.87 ct/kWh.

The European Geosciences Union (EGU) brings together geoscientists from all over the world covering all disciplines of the Earth, planetary and space sciences. This geoscientific interdisciplinarity is needed to tackle the challenges of the future. One major challenge for humankind is to provide adequate and reliable supplies of affordable energy and other resources in efficient and environmentally sustainable ways. This Energy Procedia issue provides an overview of the contributions of the Division on Energy, Resources & the Environment (ERE) at the EGU General Assembly 2017.

AbstractThe European Union aspires to reducing the import dependency of raw materials that are critical to its industries. In this respect, mineral resource information and data sharing by European Geological Surveys is crucial. In 2010, the European Commission identified 14 critical non-energy non-agricultural raw materials. This list was updated in 2014. This article presents the Critical Raw Material (CRM) Map of Europe produced by EuroGeoSurvey's Mineral Resources Expert Group. This map shows European mineral deposits from the EU FP7 ProMine project database, as containing critical commodities, according to the list of CRM published by the European Commission.

Abstract Ventilation systems are of vital importance for buildings, not only to provide acceptable thermal conditions and air quality for occupants, but also with regards to energy usage. Impinging jets can be encountered in many ventilation strategies which have major impacts on the acoustic environment and energy performance. The self-sustaining tones can be generated in such applications where a feedback loop is installed in the system. This phenomenon is explained by the corollary of Howe who shows that the origin of noise in such configurations can be attributed to fluid rotations. Howe highlights the role of phase conditions between the vorticity, the velocity of the flow and the acoustic velocity for the optimization of energy transfers between the turbulent kinetic energy and the sound field. In this work, we use 2D-PIV technique and a microphone respectively to measure the kinematic fields simultaneously with the acoustic generation for a rectangular jet impinging on a slotted plate. This study aims to investigate the transfers between the turbulent kinetic energy and the sound field for two Reynolds numbers presenting a high and a low noise levels. It is shown that phase conditions are necessary for the optimization of energy transfer which allows the installation of the self-sustained loop in the flow. It was found also that the change of the aerodynamic mode which is directly related to the self-sustained frequency amplifies the sound intensity and promotes the transfer of energy to the acoustic field.

AbstractWorld-wide coal reserves can supply the global demand for primary energy for several centuries. However, low thickness and structural complexity may constrain the economic exploitation of many coal deposits. Taking into account these circumstances, underground coal gasification (UCG) can offer an economical and sustainable approach for coal exploitation and subsequent feedstock generation from the syngas. The UCG process produces a high-calorific synthesis gas mainly consisting of methane, hydrogen and carbon dioxide, which can be used for electricity generation or feedstock production at the surface. Considering the latter, the Urea process can be applied to establish the nitrogen based fertilizer carbamide (CH4N2O). The required feedstock for carbamide production in the Urea process can be supplied by UCG syngas. The aim of the present study was the development of an integrated carbon utilisation concept based on the coupled UCG-Urea process. A significant amount of carbon dioxide from the UCG synthesis gas is required for carbamide production in the Urea process, while the excessive carbon dioxide can be re-injected into the cavities resulting in the coal seams and surrounding strata after the gasification process. Thus, a new approach for utilisation of carbon dioxide resulting from coal combustion was developed to provide a coupled technology also comprising geological storage of excessive carbon dioxide. A theoretical feasibility study considering UCG-Urea process economics and potentials of UCG and carbon dioxide storage in the gasified strata was conducted for a selected study area in northern Bangladesh revealing the high competitiveness of the combined technology on the international feedstock markets.

AbstractThe CO2-neutral self-supply of heat and electric energy is an important objective for new and existing buildings in the future [1,2]. Therefor the energy autonomous house (EAH) as a new concept for single-family buildings in central Europe is presented. It represents a further development of the solar and efficiency house concepts based on full self-sufficiency in thermal (partly provided by a fireplace) and electrical energy (100%). Two occupied houses have been built in Germany and they are under an extensive scientific monitoring with real user behavior since 2014. This contribution is focused on thermal energy balances and the differences due to different user behavior and the influence of weather conditions. The evaluated solar fraction was fsol, th ≥ 71.4% and fsol, el ≥ 91.8% for both houses in 2014. So far the 100% autonomy in electricity could not be reached due to the unusual low irradiation in Jan. and Dec. 2014 (-24% / -37% compared to long term values). Nevertheless the planned low electricity consumption of ∼ 2000 kWh/year could nearly be achieved, whereby a self-consumption rate of electric energy gains of ≥ 31.8% were assumed. Further findings of 1 ½ years of monitoring of the two EAH are presented within the paper.

AbstractEven though the integration of renewable energies in new buildings is technically easy, the rise of solar thermal systems in the French market of energy renovation is limited by recurring constraints of implementation related to the installation of the storage tank. This is the reason why the Integrated Solar Collector (ISC) constitutes a very promising concept to develop. For both new buildings and renovation of the existing buildings, the ISC gives the opportunity to reduce the cost of installation and operation comparatively to a conventional Solar Domestic Hot Water System, because of their simplicity and passive operating process (without pump, nor controller). This second advantage is extremely important for the development prospects of the solar thermal market which is currently slowed down by the level of investment. The third advantage of our new ISC is the possibility of successful architectural integration, contrary to the currently available solutions with the storage installed on the roof.We developed a new concept of ISC adapted to the energy renovation with a multidisciplinary approach. Its design took into account various aspects: architectural integration (storage bellow the collector), energy performance (solar heat transfer at the bottom of the storage, fully insulated storage) and technological constraints (freezing risk). The project made it possible to study on the one hand its global performance (stratification, solar fraction) and on the other hand the free convective heat transfers inside the storage cavity. The approach used both numerical (architectural draft and design of the prototype, global modelling, and velocity / temperature fields) and experimental tools (test of heat, PIV on a cavity heated at the bottom, test of the prototype). The first prototype of ISC puts forward very satisfactory energy performances. Improvements are possible by enhancing thermal stratification in the storage system. Concerning the heat pipes operation against gravity, the project highlighted the current lack of technological solution adapted to our needs. The study of the building integration showed the architectural opportunities given during the renovation (new volumes) and the technical constraints which were solved (weight, storage insulation, freezing).