A Hybrid RES Distributed Generation System for Autonomous Islands: A DER-CAM and Storage based Economic and Optimal Dispatch Analysis

The possibility of replacing the existing autonomous thermal power plants by Distributed Energy Resources (DER) based on renewable energy sources (RES), along with the appropriate energy storage technologies in order to deal with the major problems that autonomous islands usually face was investigated. A case study of a small Greek island, which is confronted by various energy and water shortages, was studied for assessing the feasibility of DER deployment. The main objectives investigated were cost minimization, CO2 emissions minimization and DER reliability maximization. The DER-CAM (Distributed Energy Resources Customer Adoption Model) decision support tool was used for the multi-objective analysis conducted, which proposes a set of optimal solutions defining the appropriate Distributed Generation (DG) technologies, the capacities of storage and other technologies and the optimal dispatch of the DG system. A mutual beneficial solution, for all stakeholders, was proposed indicating the scope for developing such systems for all islands facing the same problems.A Hybrid RES Distributed Generation System for Autonomous Islands: A DER-CAM and Storage based Economic and Optimal Dispatch AnalysispublishedVersio

Sustainability Indicators for the Use of Resources—The Exergy Approach

Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions reached an all-time high in 2010, rising 45% in the past 20 years. The rise of peoples’ concerns regarding environmental problems such as global warming and waste management problem has led to a movement to convert the current mass-production, mass-consumption, and mass-disposal type economic society into a sustainable society. The Rio Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, and other similar environmental milestone activities and happenings, documented the need for better and more detailed knowledge and information about environmental conditions, trends, and impacts. New thinking and research with regard to indicator frameworks, methodologies, and actual indicators are also needed. The value of the overall indicators depends on the production procedure of each material, and indicates their environmental impact. The use of “exergy indicators” based on the exergy content of materials and the use of the second law of thermodynamics in this work presents the relationship between exergy content and environmental impact

How much wind power potential does Europe have? Examining European wind power potential with an enhanced socio-technical atlas

The continuous development of onshore wind farms is an important feature of the European transition towards an energy system powered by distributed renewables and low-carbon resources. This study assesses and simulates potential for future onshore wind turbine installations throughout Europe. The study depicts, via maps, all the national and regional socio-technical restrictions and regulations for wind project development using spatial analysis conducted through GIS. The inputs for the analyses were based on an original dataset compiled from satellites and public databases relating to electricity, planning, and other dimensions. Taking into consideration socio-technical constraints, the study reveals 52.5 TW of untapped onshore wind power potential in Europe - equivalent to 1 MW per 16 European citizens – a supply that would be sufficient to cover the global energy demand from now through to 2050. The study offers a more rigorous, multi-dimensional, and granular atlas of onshore wind energy development that can assist with future energy policy, research, and planning

Wind Energy Integration through District Heating. A Wind Resource Based Approach

The aim of this paper is to examine if the surplus of wind energy could be added to electricity-to-heat conversion systems when there is increased congestion in the grid or when there is wind power curtailment. In this way, the produced power can be utilized for contributing to the local district heating (DH) system needs. After examining scenarios, optimized energy distribution is recommended. A case study near Kozani, Greece with an onshore wind farm (WF) to be installed was thoroughly investigated exploring the options for increased wind energy integration analyzing thermal utilization possibilities based on the local DH needs. A wind resource assessment for the area was done, which optimizes the WF planning and links the DH system with the operation of the WF. The utilization rate between the electric and the DH grid was examined in order to describe the optimal way of the energy to be distributed reassuring profitability for the power producer and robust energy management for the system. It was found that the curtailed wind energy can be locally utilized in a DH system, by covering part of the demand that the diesel-based peak load boiler system does currently

Wind Energy Based Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Sitting. A GIS/Wind Resource Assessment Approach

The transportation sector is severely correlated with major problems in environment, citizens’ health, climate and economy. Issues such as traffic, fuel cost and parking space have make life more difficult, especially in the dense urban environment. Thus, there is a great need for the development of the electric vehicle (EV) sector. The number of cars in cities has increased so much that the current transportation system (roads, parking places, traffic lights, etc.) cannot accommodate them properly. The increasing number of vehicles does not affect only humans but also the environment, through air and noise pollution. According to EPA, the 39.2% of total gas emissions in 2007 was caused by transportation activities. Studies have shown that the pollutants are not only gathered in the major roads and/or highways but can travel depending on the meteorological conditions leading to generic pollution. The promotion of EVs and the charging stations are both equally required to be further developed in order EVs to move out of the cities and finally confront the range problem. In this work, a wind resource and a GIS analysis optimizes in a wider area the sitting of wind based charging stations and proposes an optimizing methodology