Geothermal energy in Turkey: the sustainable future

Turkey is an energy importing nation with more than half of our energy requirements met by imported fuels. Air pollution is becoming a significant environmental concern in the country. In this regard, geothermal energy and other renewable energy sources are becoming attractive solution for clean and sustainable energy future for Turkey. Turkey is the seventh richest country in the world in geothermal energy potential. The main uses of geothermal energy are space heating and domestic hot water supply, greenhouse heating, industrial processes, heat pumps and electricity generation. The district heating system applications started with large-scale, city-based geothermal district heating systems in Turkey, whereas the geothermal district heating centre and distribution networks have been designed according to the geothermal district heating system (GDHS) parameters. This constitutes an important advantage of GDHS investments in the country in terms of the technical and economical aspects. In Turkey, approximately 61,000 residences are currently heated by geothermal fluids. A total of 665 MWt is utilized for space heating of residential, public and private property, and 565,000 m2 of greenhouses. The proven geothermal heat capacity, according to data from existing geothermal wells and natural discharges, is 3132 MWt. Present applications have shown that geothermal energy is clean and much cheaper compared to the other fossil and renewable energy sources for Turkey.

Wind energy status in renewable electrical energy production in Turkey

Main electrical energy sources of Turkey are thermal and hydraulic. Most of the thermal sources are derived from natural gas. Turkey imports natural gas; therefore, decreasing usage of natural gas is very important for both economical and environmental aspects. Because of disadvantages of fossil fuels, renewable energy sources are getting importance for sustainable energy development and environmental protection. Among the renewable sources, Turkey has very high wind energy potential. The estimated wind power capacity of Turkey is about 83,000 MW while only 10,000 MW of it seems to be economically feasible to use. Start 2009, the total installed wind power capacity of Turkey was only 4.3% of its total economical wind power potential (433 MW). However, the strong development of wind energy in Turkey is expected to continue in the coming years. In this study, Turkey's installed electric power capacity, electric energy production is investigated and also Turkey current wind energy status is examined.Wind energy Renewable energy sources Renewable electricity Turkey

Performance of solar-assisted heat-pump systems

Simulations have been made with SOLSIM (Howell, J. R. et al., Solar-Thermal Energy Systems. McGraw-Hill, New York, 1982) for solar and air-source heat-pump systems with energy storage in encapsulated phase-change material (PCM) packings. An experimental study was performed for a laboratory building in Trabzon, Turkey for space heating. The results indicate that the dual-source system is technically the most convenient solar heat-pump configuration, but before installing a solar-assisted heat-pum systems, a detailed economic analysis is needed.

Prospect of concentrating solar power in Turkey: The sustainable future

Limited fossil resources and severe environmental problems require new sustainable electricity generation options, which utilize renewable energies and are economical in the meantime. Concentrating solar power (CSP) generation is a proven renewable energy technology and has the potential to become cost-effective in the future, for it produces electricity from the solar radiation. In Turkey, the electricity demand is rapidly increasing, while the solar resources and large wasteland areas are widely available in the western and southeastern part of Turkey. To change the energy-intensive and environment-burdensome economical development way, Turkish government supports the development of this technology strongly. These factors altogether make Turkey a suitable country for utilizing CSP technology. In this paper, the potential of CSP in Turkey was studied and strategies to promote development of this technology were given.Renewable energy Potential Concentrating solar power Turkey

Energy and environmental issues relating to greenhouse gas emissions for sustainable development in Turkey

Turkey's demand for energy and electricity is increasing rapidly. Since 1990, energy consumption has increased at an annual average rate of 4.3%. As would be expected, the rapid expansion of energy production and consumption has brought with it a wide range of environmental issues at the local, regional and global levels. With respect to global environmental issues, Turkey's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have grown along with its energy consumption. Emissions in 2004 reached 193 million tons. States have played a leading role in protecting the environment by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). State emissions are significant on a global scale. CO2 and carbon monoxide (CO) are the main GHGs associated with global warming. At the present time, coal is responsible for 30-40% of the world CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and NOx contribute to acid rain. Carbon assessments can play an important role in a strategy to control CO2 emissions while raising revenue.Greenhouse gas emissions Global warming Environmental policy Turkey

Renewable and sustainable energy use in Turkey: a review

Turkey is an energy importing nation with more than half of our energy requirements met by imported fuels. Air pollution is becoming a significant environmental concern in the country. In this regard, renewable energy resources are becoming attractive for sustainable energy development and environmental pollution mitigation in Turkey. Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of most of these renewable energy sources. Because of this and our limited fossil fuel resources, a gradual shift from fossil fuels to renewables seems to be a serious alternative for Turkey's energy future. This article presents a review of the present energy situation and assesses sustainability, technical, and economical potential of renewable energy sources, and future policies for the energy sector in Turkey. Throughout the paper, problems relating to renewable energy sources, environment, and sustainable development are discussed for both current and future energy investments. The renewable energy potential of the country and its present status are evaluated.

Performance of an air-to-air heat pump under frosting and defrosting conditions

In order to investigate the performance of air-to-air heat pumps for residential heating in the Black Sea region of Turkey, an experimental set-up was constructed. An electrically driven air-to-air heat pump was used for heating a laboratory building with a floor of 75 m2. In this study, a high-efficiency air-to-air residential heat pump was instrumented and tested in the heating mode under laboratory conditions. The coefficient of performance and heating capacity of the system were measured during steady-state, dehumidifying, and frosting/defrosting conditions. The study encompassed an evaluation of system and component performance for ambient temperature levels between 10 and -4·0°C and for discrete relative-humidity levels ranging from 65 to 80%.

Studies on poly(vinyl chloride)/fatty acid blends as shape-stabilized phase change material for latent heat thermal energy storage

253-258The present study aims to prepare novel shape-stabilized phase change materials (PCMs) by using fatty acids [(lauric acid (LA), myristic acid (MA), palmitic acid (PA) and stearic acid (SA)] as PCM and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) as supporting material, and to determine their thermal properties such as melting temperature and the latent heat storage capacity. The maximum composition ratio of all fatty acids in the shape-stabilized PCMs has been found as 50 wt% in which no leakage of fatty acid is observed over their melting temperatures for several heating cycles. The miscibility of fatty acids with the PVC and the interaction between the blend components which is responsible for the miscibility has been proved by microscopic investigation and Infrared (IR) spectroscopy. The melting temperature and the latent heat of fusion of the shape-stabilized PCMs are measured by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis method. The melting temperatures and latent heats of the shape-stabilized PVC/LA, PVC/MA, PVC/PA and PVC/SA (50/50 wt%) PCMs are determined as 38.8, 49.2, 54.4 and 64.7oC and 97.8, 103.2, 120.3 and 129.3 J/g, respectively. The results indicate that the PVC/fatty acids blends as shape-stabilized PCMs have great potential for passive solar thermal energy applications in terms of their satisfactory thermal properties and advantages of easy preparation with desirable dimensions and direct utility in LHTES applications