District heating and cooling: connecting people, connecting communities, connecting buildings, connecting technologies.
In 1985, wind turbines were under 1 MW with rotor diameters of around 15 meters. Today, 7.5 MW onshore turbines are the largest with a rotor diameter of 127 meters. And offshore, the industry installs 8 MW turbines with a rotor diameter of over 160 meters and a tip height of nearly 190 meters.
Bioenergy is the only renewable energy capable of providing heat, electricity, and transport fuels.
The term ‘energy storage’ refers to a diverse group of technologies that work according to different principles: mechanical (e.g. pumped hydro storage, flywheels, compressed air energy storage), chemical (e.g. power-to-gas), electrochemical (e.g. batteries), thermal (e.g. hot water storage), and electrical (e.g. supercapacitors). Some provide very fast responding, short-duration balancing power (such as flywheels or supercapacitors) while other technologies provide longer duration storage for balancing at a timescale of hours, days or even for seasons (for instance, pumped hydro or hydrogen storage).
The basic principle common to all solar thermal systems is simple: solar radiation is collected and the resulting heat conveyed to a heat transfer medium – usually a fluid but also air in the case of air collectors. The heated medium is used either directly (to heat tap water for example) or indirectly by means of a heat exchanger which transfers the heat to its final destination (for instance in space heating or industrial process heat).
Already today, energy communities have transformed the energy market in many European countries while contributing to revitalizing the local economy and creating jobs. Energy communities deliver a significant share of renewables investment and promote their local development and public support. With the right European legal framework, energy communities could flourish and deliver an important share of Europe’s renewable energy and therefore contribute in a significant way to the decarbonization of Europe.
Did you know? Solar power and renewable energies helped Europe cut its greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel consumption by 10% in 2015. This demonstrates that clean energy technologies, like solar, are vital to reducing CO2 emissions. Scaling up and accelerating the deployment is imperative to be able to limit global warming to 2°C.
Examples of energy reduction measures that can be realized with improved building automation and controls: Smart HVAC (1) controls use sensors to limit energy consumption in unoccupied zones; Automatic hydronic balancing (2) continuously adjusts the flow and pressure in the piping system and radiators to optimize generation, distribution and emission of heat throughout the building; Sensors and drives (3) enable variable demand control of ventilation optimizing the level of indoor air quality at minimal energy cost; In sanitary hot water, advanced controls (4) can reduce the temperature without causing health risks because of legionella; Advanced lighting controls (5) avoid overuse by dimming functions that adapt to daylight and occupancy; Solar shading (6) manages the amount of solar heat and daylight that enters the building
The electric motor does not function in isolation: the motor driven unit (MDU) consists of the electric motor, sometimes controlling equipment such as a soft starter or variable speed drive (VSD), supporting mechanical equipment (gear, belt, clutch, brake…) and the application it is driving (pump, fan, compressor). The motor system also includes all other components that suffer from energy losses while executing its function (water or air ducts, throttles, valves). Optimizing this entire motor system is the best way to minimize energy use and CO2 emissions.
The hydrogen economy is already a $100 billion market worldwide.
In general energy management has five distinctive steps, implemented iteratively and repeatedly in a process of continuous improvement: ENERGY POLICY (1) – Established by senior management, defines the overall guidelines for the efforts to achieve greater energy efficiency and other energy policy objectives; PLANNING (2) – Identify the significant sources of energy consumption and savings potentials. Determine the order of priority of the energy saving efforts, set targets and elaborate action plans in line with policy; IMPLEMENTATION AND OPERATION (3) – Involve employees and the whole organization commitment in the implementation of the objectives and ensure better use of energy becomes a part of daily routines including within purchasing, operation and maintenance, energy efficient design activities, etc.; CHECKING AND CORRECTIVE ACTIONS (4) – Monitoring all significant energy use and consumption flows and activities. Take preventive and corrective actions; MANAGEMENT REVIEW (5) – Management periodically evaluates the implementation of the plan, objectives and operational control to ensure its continuing suitability in the light of the commitment to continual improvement.
Cogeneration plants can operate with increasing flexibility. Running at times of low wind and sun, thus displacing higher carbon coal and gas generation, but it can then slow and stop generation at times of abundant low carbon power. Flexible cogeneration is a key method for increasing the level of renewable generation on the power networks by managing renewable generation intermittency.
Electromagnetic processing technologies use wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum that correspond to microwave, radio waves, infrared, and ultra violet to heat materials.
Since 2014, global electric vehicle (EV) sales have more than doubled, while worldwide EV sales jumped by 42% in 2016 compared to 2015. Today, more than 2 million electric vehicles are driving on the world’s roads.
Fuel savings can come from better aerodynamics, tires, and incremental powertrain improvements. A 2015 study by the International Council on Clean Transportation found that for US trucks fuel savings of up to 54% would pay back within 2.5 years. In coming years, electric trucks, either running on batteries alone or electrified through catenary lines, will bring more substantial benefits in terms of cost and pollutant emissions reductions.
30% of Europeans live in cities exposed to air pollutant levels that exceed EU air quality standards.
The potential for Demand Response will be 160 GW by 2030, according to the European Commission.
A heat pump system consists of a heat source, the heat pump unit and a system to distribute heating and cooling. Among several possible concepts, the electric compression cycle is most common. The heat pump works as follows: (1) a transfer fluid (refrigerant) is exposed to the energy source, where it evaporates and thus cools the source. Using a compressor (2), the refrigerant vapour is compressed and its temperature increased. In the next step (3), the high temperature – high pressure vapour – is fed into a heat exchanger where the energy is transferred to a distribution system. The vapour cools down and condenses. After the pressure is released in an expansion valve (4), the liquid is exposed to the heat source again and the cycle is closed.
Capital expenditure on existing and new projects between 2018-2025 amounts to $3.3 trillion in the Below 2 Degrees Scenario.
