• Energy Research
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U modernoj današnjici, energetska učinkovitost i, povrh toga, toplinska zaštita zgrada važna je tema. Kada govorimo o energetskoj učinkovitosti u zgradarstvu, to obuhvaća sljedeće pozitivne mjere: korištenje manje količine energije za grijanje i za hlađenje prostora, za rasvjetu i ventilaciju, upotrebu obnovljivih izvora energije, uz zadržavanje udobnosti životnog prostora, ali i štiteći okoliš kojega smo nedjeljivi dio. Tijekom pisanja diplomskog rada „Projekt energetske obnove višestambene zgrade“ napravljen je pregled aktualnih Zakona i Pravilnika u skladu s kojima je izrađen i cjelokupni projekt koji uključuje brojne mjere kojima se postiže energetska učinkovitost dotad energetski neučinkovite višestambene zgrade. Riječ je o višestambenoj zgradi koja je sagrađena 1973. godine i koja se nalazi u Šibeniku. Temeljem toga predložene su atraktivne mjere za postizanje energetske učinkovitosti uz troškovnik. In modern present, energy efficiency and, above all, thermal insulation of buildings is an important topic. When we talk about energy efficiency in buildings, this includes the following positive measures: the use of less energy for space heating and cooling, lighting and ventilation, the use of renewable energy, while maintaining the comfort of living space, and protecting the environmnet. While writing this thesis, a review of current Laws and Ordinances was drafted in accordance with this whole project which inculdes a number of measures to achieve the energy efficiency of until then energy – inefficient multi – storey building. Attractive measures are proposed to achieve energy efficiency along with the cost estimate. It is a residential building built in 1973 and located in Šibenik.

Urban environments provide opportunities for greater resource efficiency and the fostering of urban ecosystems. Brownfield areas are a typical example of underused land resources. Brownfield redevelopment projects that include green infrastructure allow for further ecosystems to be accommodated in urban environments. Green infrastructure also deliver important urban ecosystem services (UES) to local residents, which can greatly contribute to improving quality of life in cities. In this case study, we quantify and assess the economic value of five UES for a brownfield redevelopment project in Antwerp, Belgium. The assessment is carried out using the “Nature Value Explorer” modelling tool. The case includes three types of green infrastructure (green corridor,infiltration gullies and green roofs) primarily intended to connect nature reserves on the urban periphery and to avoid surface runoff. The green infrastructure also provides air filtration, climate regulation, carbon sequestration and recreation ecosystem services. The value of recreation far exceeds other values, including the value of avoided runoff. The case study raises crucial questions as to whether existing UES valuation approaches adequately account for the range of UES provided and whether such approaches can be improved to achieve more accurate and reliable value estimates in future analyses.

This chapter investigates how the institutional context influences the business models for community energy projects, which often intend to enable community members to gain some level of influence, control and ownership over the energy system. We analyse the viability of these projects, by investigating the concrete opportunities for community-based Virtual Power Plant projects in two countries (the Netherlands and Ireland) and how these are shaped by incumbent institutional arrangements at EU, national and local levels. The analysis is structured using the constitutive elements of a business model can-vas as a heuristic. The results show that in order to survive in the energy services market (which is necessary for economic viability on the longer term) community energy initia-tives are forced to partially abandon their community logic-based business model. We discuss how current institutional arrangements are not conducive to a more inclusive en-ergy system and how this could be improved.

The Republic of Serbia has a significant potential for the electricity production from solar energy, namely the floating photovoltaic (PV) systems, which are not exploited enough. Although there is a large interest in floating photovoltaic systems (FPVS) worldwide, studies related to the assessment of FPVS potential in this part of Europe have not been performed yet. This paper investigates, for the first time, the possibility of implementation of the FPVS on the six largest Serbian lakes and demonstrates the impact of geographical location on the energy output of the FPVS for the selected locations. The possibility of implementation is studied by simulating the energy output of FPVS using "PVGIS" tool. Energy production from the proposed FPVS, for selected locations, is discussed on a monthly and yearly basis. Installment of the FPVS on these water bodies can produce up to 8959 kWh of energy, while saves 164⋅10^6 m3/year of water from evaporation at the same time. In addition, the annual reduction of carbon dioxide emissions was analyzed and found to be up to 6.34 tons per year, which further implies with carbon credit potential of up to 9741 € in 20 years period. Drawn conclusions provides better understanding of FPVS and their applicability in the Republic of Serbia to ensure a sustainable, ecological friendly, secure and reliable supply of green energy, and further the used approach can be easily applied in other countries with similar geographical characteristics.

Up to nowadays, satellite data have become increasingly available, thus offering a low cost or even free of charge unique tool, with a great potential for quantitative assessment of urban expansion and urban sprawl, as well as for monitoring of land use changes and soil consumption. This growing observational capacity has also highlighted the need for research efforts aimed at exploring the potential offered by data processing methods and algorithms, in order to exploit as much as possible this invaluable space-based data source. The work herein presented concerns an application study on the process of urban sprawl conducted with the use of satellite ASTER data. The selected test site is highly significant, being it a coastal zone (with the presence of sand and rocks) characterized by a fragmented ecosystem and small towns, with an increasing rate of urbanization and soil consumption. In order to produce synthetic maps of urban areas, ASTER images were classified using two automatic classifiers, Maximum Likelihood (MLC) and Support Vector Machines (SVMs) applied by changing setting parameters, with the aim to compare their respective performances in terms of robustness, speed and accuracy. All process steps have been developed integrating Geographical Information System and Remote Sensing, and adopting free and open source software. Results pointed out that the SVM classifier with RBF kernel was generally the best choice (with accuracy higher than 90%) among all the configurations compared, and the use of multiple bands globally improves classification. One of the critical elements found in this case study is given by the presence of sand and sand mixed with rocks. The use of different configurations for the SVMs, i.e. different kernels and values of the setting parameters, allowed us to calibrate the classifier also to cope with a specific need, as in our case, to achieve a reliable discrimination of sand from urban area. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Abstract Fodder for feeding pork and poultry requires a large amount of cultivated and processed agricultural crops, which are often related to greenhouse gas emissions from land-use change (LUC). Given the rapid growth in meat production in Brazil for domestic consumption and international export, the link between LUC emissions and consumption of pork and poultry meat is central to evaluating the role of Brazilian meat production and the implications for international climate policies. In this paper, we first estimate LUC emissions from soybean production destined to feed pork and poultry in Brazil during the period 2008–2012. Second, we allocate such emissions to domestic and international consumption of pork and poultry meat. Concerning international consumption, Brazilian export of meat to 189 countries is evaluated. Although the majority of the LUC emissions from soybean production are tied to the domestic consumption, 17% and 39% of the emissions embodied in Brazilian pork and poultry, respectively, are exported to other countries. The most prominent destinations of Brazilian pork and poultry in terms of embodied LUC emissions are Eastern Europe, Asia and South America. In the case of pork, the fluxes of emissions from Brazil to Ukraine (1.28 Mt CO2-eq) and Russia (1.18 Mt CO2-eq) are particularly large. In the case of poultry, the largest transfers of embodied emissions are from Brazil to developing countries and especially the Middle East. These results are relevant to environmental policies and international agreements aimed at achieving the sustainability of Brazil's meat sector.

Abstract Public attitudes anywhere in Europe show moderate to strong support for the implementation of renewable energy. Nevertheless, planning wind power developments appears to be a complicated matter in most countries. The problems that have to be dealt with during decision making processes on the siting of wind turbines are usually referred to as mere ‘communication problems’. However, public attitudes towards wind power are fundamentally different from attitudes towards wind farms. This ‘gap’ causes misunderstandings about the nature of public support for renewables. In particular where planners easily assume support for renewables can be generated by information campaigns emphasising the environmental benefits, whereas opposition to renewable energy schemes can be explained by a selfish ‘not in my backyard’ attitude. Both explanations used by planners, authorities and, unfortunately, by many scholars, are falsified. Furthermore, policies that still take this ‘common knowledge’ for granted can have negative consequences for the implementation rates of renewables. Visual evaluation of the impact of wind power on landscape values is by far the dominant factor in explaining why some are opposed to wind power and others are supporting it. Moreover, feelings about equity and fairness appear the determinants of ‘backyard’ motives, instead of selfishness.

Glacier and permafrost hazards in cold mountain regions encompass various flood and mass movement processes that are strongly affected by rapid and cumulative climate-induced changes in the alpine cryosphere. These processes are characterized by a range of spatial and temporal dimensions, from small volume icefalls and rockfalls that present a frequent but localized danger to less frequent but large magnitude process chains that can threaten people and infrastructure located far downstream. Glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) have proven particularly devastating, accounting for the most far-reaching disasters in high mountain regions globally. Comprehensive assessments of glacier and permafrost hazards define two core components (or outcomes): 1. Susceptibility and stability assessment: Identifies likelihood and origin of an event based on analyses of wide-ranging triggering and conditioning factors driven by interlinking atmospheric, cryospheric, geological, geomorphological, and hydrological processes. 2. Hazard mapping: Identifies the potential impact on downslope and downstream areas through a combination of process modeling and field mapping that provides the scientific basis for decision making and planning. Glacier and permafrost hazards gained prominence around the mid-20th century, especially following a series of major disasters in the Peruvian Andes, Alaska, and the Swiss Alps. At that time, related hazard assessments were reactionary and event-focused, aiming to understand the causes of the disasters and to reduce ongoing threats to communities. These disasters and others that followed, such as Kolka Karmadon in 2002, established the fundamental need to consider complex geosystems and cascading processes with their cumulative downstream impacts as one of the distinguishing principles of integrative glacier and permafrost hazard assessment. The widespread availability of satellite imagery enables a preemptive approach to hazard assessment, beginning with regional scale first-order susceptibility and hazard assessment and modeling that provide a first indication of possible unstable slopes or dangerous lakes and related cascading processes. Detailed field investigations and scenario-based hazard mapping can then be targeted to high-priority areas. In view of the rapidly changing mountain environment, leading beyond historical precedence, there is a clear need for future-oriented scenarios to be integrated into the hazard assessment that consider, for example, the threat from new lakes that are projected to emerge in a deglaciating landscape. In particular, low-probability events with extreme magnitudes are a challenge for authorities to plan for, but such events can be appropriately considered as a worst-case scenario in a comprehensive, forward-looking, multiscenario hazard assessment.