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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 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.

Abstract This study aims at determining the technology combination that provides the lowest emissions and energy cost for the food-industrial sector. Using a linear optimization objective function in determining the least-cost pathway, data from various sources were compiled to perform simulations on two scenarios; a business as usual (BAU) case and an 80% greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction. Even in the base case, the emission level reaches 21% of 1990 levels; a reduction of 39% over the simulation period. This indicates that even without the imposition of GHG constraints on the food sector, it is economically more beneficial for the industry to migrate from fossil fuels. This migration takes place by replacing energy from LPG, LFO, Kerosene, HFO, Coal and Natural gas with biomass, biogas and CHP electricity. Economic benefits arise from the fact that biogas and biomass are produced from wastes which are generated onsite within food factories, hence the avoidance of purchasing energy feedstock from the market. The change in energy consumption between the two scenarios is similar due to the prevalence of least-cost solutions and similar energy and food demand requirements. However, the reduction in emissions are greater in the 80%-GHG case than the BAU case; 52% compared to 39% for the BAU case, for 2050 relative to 2010. This is largely owing to decarbonization of grid electricity. This study finds that the food-industrial sector has the potential to exceed this 80% reduction target to a value of 92%, due to the availability of onsite feedstocks to generate biogas. In this simulation, of all waste produced, 92% of waste feedstock is consumed in AD and CHPs, whilst the remaining 8% is dried and processed to be burned in biomass boilers.

AbstractMaking new coal-fired power plants carbon capture ready (Carbon Capture Ready) in China has been recognised as a crucial by a number of stakeholders academics, energy companies and regional government, based on a study in EU-UK-China NZEC project. A number of publications have investigated the definition, engineering requirements, economic and finance of CCR for China. However there remain a number of questions regarding the extent to which a plant’s physical location might constrain the feasibility of CCS retrofit. To address this issue, a Geographical Information System (GIS) has been used as a tool for mapping current and planned large carbon dioxide sources in Guangdong, also illustrating potential storage sites and calculating possible carbon dioxide transportation route.This paper investigates the location factors that should be considered when locating new build CCR power plants and demonstrates the methodology of using GIS software with spatial analysis in planning new build power plant in Guangdong. A preliminary study has identified over 30 large power plants within the region, with plant locations and historical emission data collected and presented in ArcGIS. Factors such as distance to potential storage site, route of CO2 pipeline, extra space on site and potential development plan etc. were investigated in the modelling and calculated the potential source and sink solution. The study then moves on to suggest possible new build plant locations which can be easily fitted in to the current network, based on economic optimisation. The scope for future coal plant development combined with a possible nuclear plant siting plan is discussed towards the end of the paper.Guangdong province, which owns the third largest coal-fired power installed capacity out of 31 provinces, generated over 8% of China’s total electricity every year for the past 15 years. CO2 storage opportunities could be found in the surrounding South China Sea, where Guangdong has a total of 4,300 km of coastline and some small scale oil fields on shore within the region. It is also among the first places to start the national open and reform policy in China. The province is one of the richest in China, with the highest GDP among all other provinces since 1989, and the foreign trade accounts for more than a quarter of China’s total amount. It also contributes around 12 of the total national economic output. Currently, the provincial government is proposing a low carbon roadmap, which is the first of its kind in China.The work has created a totally new thinking on capture ready power plant planning. This differs from existing studies (e.g., which aim to investigate the existing carbon dioxide emission sources at specified location and provide source and sink matching analysis. Instead the study focuses on policy implementation for new build capture ready power plants. Three clusters within Guangdong province are identified as potential temporary CO2 storage hubs before transporting the gas to a long term storage site. When officials are planning new power plant locations from a capture ready perspective, the plants should not necessarily be close to storage sites in straight line, but rather should be within a reasonable distance of a cluster. Transport of the captured CO2 will not be limited to pipelines, but could be extended to road and rail tankers.Power plant parameters and storage site data were collected for this research. Public transportation, utilities, landscapes, river, land used and population data were referenced from various sources; therefore, some of the data could be out of date. Nevertheless, it should still provide enough information when deciding the location of the transport cluster. Any future work could build on the existing model with updated data. Moreover, it could fit in with the national natural gas transportation network and utility planning network to provide long term integrated energy system analysis.The paper could provide policy makers, investors and urban planning officials with a view on how conventional thermal power plant investment and planning could be optimised, using Carbon Capture Ready designs, to keep the CCS retrofitting option open.

Abstract Improving building thermal performance is important if the UK is to meet the 80% emission reduction target by 2050. Aiming to provide insights into UK building thermal performances, relevant national policies were highlighted and a one-day workshop was run. Real-time responses of industrial stakeholders were collected using Poll Everywhere. The stakeholder perspectives on challenges, barriers, thermal performances and other concerns were reported. It showed that (i) a whole-house retrofit plan was necessary; (ii) improving thermal performances would be challenging but achievable; and (iii) industrial stakeholders were concerned about building performance, legislation, drivers, cost, professional development, technology alternatives and future vision. It was concluded that industrial consultation should be continued to assist thermal performances of buildings in the UK.

AbstractDuring the last decade, housing construction in Mexico has increased dramatically, despite the economic and financial crises, it is one of the main drivers of the Mexican economy; the government has supported programs to develop social housing in order to assist low-income families. This type of initiatives has allowed low-income people to own a place to live, but it has also promoted the spread of housing developments with house models of similar characteristics in the very diverse geographical and climatic zones of Mexico. Even though some of the dwellings have few differences depending on the region they belong to, they do not reflect climatic adaptations. The correct selection of the envelope materials is one of the first and most effective passive strategy that must be considered in the design of a housing. However, just selecting the materials by knowing their thermal properties is not enough to make an appropriate decision about the construction system. For this reason, we need a tool like Ener-Habitat, which allows a quick assessment of thermal and energy performance of a building system consisting of several layers, through the time-dependent calculation of heat transfer, suitable for high thermal mass materials, such as those generally used in Mexico and the climates of Mexico with high solar radiation and large temperature swing during the day. The study propose a method to analyze the cost and energy benefit of building systems, and as example analyzes some walls building systems, in a hot-dry climate city of Mexico, during the air conditioning season. This tool allows, at early stages of architectural design, quick assessments for decision taking on the building systems choice, in relation with better energy performance. Ener-Habitat was created by researchers from six academic institutions in Mexico and was funded by the National Council for Science and Technology and the Ministry of Energy of Mexico.

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).

AbstractFly ash entering a CO2 capture plant in the incoming coal-fired flue gas is a potential source of metals which support as catalysts the formation of degradation products in the MEA solvent. This study presents an assessment of the accumulation of absorbed particulate matter and an evaluation of the impact on the CC process. The particulate matter which is absorbed inside the CC plant and the ratio of flue gas flow to the installed liquid inventory determine the rate of accumulation. Filtration or settlement of particulate matter inside the process does not avoid leaching. The results of one ash sample from an European power station are presented leached with fresh 30 wt% lean MEA at different ratios (1:10 to 1:2000g/g, ash/solvent) The results show that mobility of the trace elements Cu, V, Mn increases significantly to lower ash concentrations compared to the Fe mobility values. Dissolved Fe concentrations of 0.5-1.0mg/L derive from leached fly ash after approximately 500hours of operation provided that 1mg/m3 is absorbed and a high ratio of flue gas flow to liquid inventory is installed. Small dissolved Fe concentrations might still trigger the formation of degradation products.