Technology without borders: case studies of successful technology transfer

Technology Without Borders presents case studies of successful transfer of climate-friendly technology and practices. It explores the causes for success and draws the lessons learned. Key messages are presented for the fight against climate destabilisation. The terms “climate-friendly technology” and “climate technology” used here refer to technologies, practices or techniques, which reduce greenhouse-gas emissions or assist countries in adapting to climate change

Energy security: insights from a ten country comparison

The article explores the extent to which energy security concerns differ between countries from the perspectives of energy users. It relies on a survey distributed to more than 2,100 energy consumers across Brazil, China, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and United States, facilitated through its translation into seven languages (English, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Arabic, German, and Japanese). The article first discusses the survey methodology and then presents a discussion of the results according to four key components of energy security, namely availability, affordability, energy efficiency and stewardship. In addition to analyzing the survey results by different demographic and country levels, the authors compare the results to country-level data indicators. They find that energy security is a multi-dimensional concept with different priorities for different countries that can often be explained by the country’s inherent circumstances

Evaluating airborne and ground based gamma spectrometry methods for detecting particulate radioactivity in the environment: a case study of Irish Sea beaches

In several places, programmes are in place to locate and recover radioactive particles that have the potential to cause detrimental health effects in any member of the publicwho may encounter them. A model has been developed to evaluate the use of mobile gamma spectrometry systems within such programmes, with particular emphasis on large volume (16 l) NaI(Tl) detectors mounted in low flying helicopters. This model uses a validated Monte Carlo code with assessment of local geochemistry and natural and anthropogenic background radiation concentrations and distributions. The results of the model, applied to the example of particles recovered from beaches in the vicinity of Sellafield, clearly show the ability of rapid airborne surveys conducted at 75 m ground clearance and 120 kph speeds to demonstrate the absence of sources greater than 5 MBq 137Cs within large areas (10–20 km2 h−1), and identify areas requiring further ground based investigation. Lowering ground clearance for airborne surveys to 15 m whilst maintaining speeds covering 1–2 km2 h−1 can detect buried 137Cs sources of 0.5 MBq or greater activity. A survey design to detect 100 kBq 137Cs sources at 10 cm depth has also been defined, requiring surveys at b15 m ground clearance and b2 m s−1 ground speed. The response of airborne systems to the Sellafield particles recovered to date has also been simulated, and the proportion of the existing radiocaesium background in the vicinity of the nuclear site has been established. Finally the rates of area coverage and sensitivities of both airborne and ground based approaches are compared, demonstrating the ability of airborne systems to increase the rate of particle recovery in a cost effective manner. The potential for equipment and methodological developments to improve performance are discussed

Summary of the ITER final design report

The Agency is part of its support for the joint venture known as the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)

ITER Technical Basis

The Agency is part of its support for the joint venture known as the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)

A robust modeling framework for energy analysis of data centers

Global digitalization has given birth to the explosion of digital services in approximately every sector of contemporary life. Applications of artificial intelligence, blockchain technologies, and internet of things are promising to accelerate digitalization further. As a consequence, the number of data centers, which provide the services of data processing, storage, and communication services, is also increasing rapidly. Because data centers are energy-intensive with significant and growing electricity demand, an energy model of data centers with temporal, spatial, and predictive analysis capability is critical for guiding industry and governmental authorities for making technology investment decisions. However, current models fail to provide consistent and high dimensional energy analysis for data centers due to severe data gaps. This can be further attributed to the lack of the modeling capabilities for energy analysis of data center components including IT equipment and data center cooling and power provisioning infrastructure in current energy models. In this research, a technology-based modeling framework, in hybrid with a data-driven approach, is proposed to address the knowledge gaps in current data center energy models. The research aims to provide policy makers and data center energy analysts with comprehensive understanding of data center energy use and efficiency opportunities and a better understanding of macro-level data center energy demand and energy saving potentials, in addition to the technological barriers for adopting energy efficiency measures

CCS from industrial sources

The literature concerning the application of CCS to industry is reviewed. Costs are presented for different sectors including ``high purity'' (processes which inherently produce a high concentration of CO2), cement, iron and steel, refinery and biomass. The application of CCS to industry is a field which has had much less attention than its application to the electricity production sector. Costs range from less than $2011 10/tCO 2 up to above$ 2011 100/tCO 2 . In the words of a synthesis report from the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) ``This area has so far not been the focus of discussions and therefore much attention needs to be paid to the application of CCS to industrial sources if the full potential of CCS is to be unlocked''

Electricity portfolio innovation for energy security: the case of carbon constrained China

China’s energy sector is under pressure to achieve secure and affordable supply and a clear decarbonisation path. We examine the longitudinal trajectory of the Chinese electricity supply security and model the near future supply security based on the 12th 5 year plan. Our deterministic approach combines Shannon-Wiener, Herfindahl-Hirschman and electricity import dependence indices for supply security appraisal. We find that electricity portfolio innovation allows China to provide secure energy supply despite increasing import dependence. It is argued that long-term aggressive deployment of renewable energy will unblock China’s coal-biased technological lock-in and increase supply security in all fronts. However, reduced supply diversity in China during the 1990s will not recover until after 2020s due to the long-term coal lock-in that can threaten to hold China’s back from realising its full potential