The role of hydrogen and fuel cells in the global energy system

Hydrogen technologies have experienced cycles of excessive expectations followed by disillusion. Nonetheless, a growing body of evidence suggests these technologies form an attractive option for the deep decarb onisation of global energy systems, and that recent improvements in their cost and performance point towards economic viability as well. This paper is a comprehensive review of the potential role that hydrogen could play in the provision of electricity, h eat, industry, transport and energy storage in a low - carbon energy system, and an assessment of the status of hydrogen in being able to fulfil that potential. The picture that emerges is one of qualified promise: hydrogen is well established in certain nic hes such as forklift trucks, while mainstream applications are now forthcoming. Hydrogen vehicles are available commercially in several countries, and 225,000 fuel cell home heating systems have been sold. This represents a step change from the situation of only five years ago. This review shows that challenges around cost and performance remain, and considerable improvements are still required for hydrogen to become truly competitive. But such competitiveness in the medium - term future no longer seems an unrealistic prospect, which fully justifies the growing interest and policy support for these technologies around the world

Ending fuel poverty and financial exclusion A Factor Four approach : summary report

Also available via the InternetAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:m03/17088 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreSIGLEGBUnited Kingdo

Towards an agenda for post-carbon cities: Lessons from LILAC, the UK's first ecological, affordable, cohousing community

This paper explores an agenda towards post-carbon cities, extending and deepening established debates around low-carbon, sustainable cities in the process. The label post-carbon builds upon issues beyond those of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, energy conservation and climate change, adding a broader set of concerns including economic justice, behaviour change, wellbeing, land ownership, the role of capital and the state, and community self management. The paper draws upon a case-study of an embryonic post-carbon initiative due for completion in 2013 called Lilac. Based in Leeds, Lilac stands for Low Impact Living Affordable Community and is the first attempt to build an affordable, ecological cohousing project in the UK. Its three aspects each respond to significant challenges: low impact living and the challenge of post-carbon carbon value change; affordability and the challenge of mutualism and equality, and community and the challenge of self-governance. I conclude the article by exploring six lessons from Lilac that tentatively outline a roadmap towards post-carbon cities: the need for holistic approaches that deal with complex challenges, prioritizing self-determination rather than just participation, engaging with productive political tensions, adopting a process rather than outcomes based approach, developing strategy for replicability, and finally embracing a non-parochial approach to localities

Planning for peak oil: learning from Cuba's special period

It is against recent experiences of proliferative consumption of the earth’s resources that planners and politicians must confront the challenge of peak oil over the coming years. With so few examples of peak oil available worldwide, this paper explores the realities of this in Cuba after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989 – the so-called special period, which decimated the country’s imports of energy, food and other vital supplies. Drawing on primary research collected in Cuba during 2008 and in an attempt to stimulate debate about how western countries and cities might respond to future losses of global resources, this paper examines the policy responses implemented in Cuba in the fields of transport, spatial planning, agriculture and energy. Despite the Cuban situation being politically different from other countries and the fact that the loss of resources during the special period were abrupt and unplanned, it is argued that there is still considerable scope for a wider application of the concepts to other towns and cities, if not countries and cultures

Fuel cell systems for small and micro combined heat and power (CHP) applications

Fuel cells are electrochemical energy conversion devices that turn chemical fuel directly into electrical power as well as generating heat. They operate at high efficiency and can be applied across a wide range of applications. Micro-combined heat and power (CHP) is one area in which fuel cells are expected to have a particularly significant impact with the potential for lowering energy cost and CO2 emissions in the residential housing sector. This chapter looks at the technological aspects of fuel cells applied to micro- and small-scale CHP applications as well as examining the state of commercial development and future trends. © 2011 Woodhead Publishing Limited All rights reserved