Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Adewale George Adeniyi; Kingsley O. Iwuozor; Ebuka Chizitere Emenike; Comfort Adeyanju; Samuel Ogunniyi
Abstract
Polystyrene waste is a significant environmental problem, and recycling and repurposing it can reduce its impact on the environment. Chicken feather biochar, on the other hand, is a by-product of the poultry industry and can be repurposed to produce bio-composites. The goal of this work was to turn waste ...
Read More
Polystyrene waste is a significant environmental problem, and recycling and repurposing it can reduce its impact on the environment. Chicken feather biochar, on the other hand, is a by-product of the poultry industry and can be repurposed to produce bio-composites. The goal of this work was to turn waste chicken feathers into biochar and then, create composites with the biochar acting as the filler and a polystyrene-based resin acting as the matrix. The biochar was prepared with the aid of a top-lit updraft reactor. Composites were fabricated using different mixing ratios of biochar (10-40%) and polystyrene resin. The composites were then analyzed using FTIR, SEM-EDX, and hardness tests. SEM examination demonstrated that the biochar was distributed unevenly throughout the matrix. The alterations and shifts in peak positions shown by FTIR measurement indicated that there was a chemical interaction between the matrix and the biochar. It also revealed the hydrophilic nature of the composite. Hardness test showed that 20% biochar concentration gave the optimum hardness property (139 HRB). The EDX result demonstrated that the matrix as well as the composites consisted majorly of carbon atoms. The results of this study indicate the potential of using chicken feather biochar as a filler material to improve the mechanical and microstructural properties of recycled polystyrene-based bio-composites. This approach can provide a sustainable and environmentally-friendly solution to repurpose waste materials from poultry and plastic industries.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Mosees Emetere; Wisdom O Joel
Abstract
Several researchers have reported the prospects of biofuel commercialization in several countries across the globe. With over 400 million tons of biomass and 150 million tons of agro-waste produced annually in most developing countries, the prospect of biofuel commercialization looks promising. However, ...
Read More
Several researchers have reported the prospects of biofuel commercialization in several countries across the globe. With over 400 million tons of biomass and 150 million tons of agro-waste produced annually in most developing countries, the prospect of biofuel commercialization looks promising. However, it is crucial to adopt a forward-thinking approach and anticipate potential challenges that may arise, building upon the lessons learned from current obstacles. This paper review addresses the current issues that have discouraged some developing countries against embracing biofuels as an economical tool to mitigate poverty. Also, future challenges that may scuttle biofuel commercialization in developing countries was discussed to provide a workable blueprint towards wealth creation. This review identified policies and political unwillingness as fundamental challenges that must be overcome in developing countries to attract investors. Other identified salient challenges include mono-economy, poor technical know-how, poor technology, government hypocrisy, lack of funds, sustainable biomass resources, inadequate farmland, poor policies, and weak infrastructure. It is recommended that conscious short- and long-term planning be implemented to actualize biofuel commercialization in developing
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Zeinab Ghasemi Sangi; Abbas Tarkashvand; Hanieh Sanaeian
Abstract
The height of buildings is one of the main features of urban configuration that affects energy consumption. However, to our knowledge, the complexity of relationships between the height parameters and energy use in urban blocks is poorly understood. In this context, the present study investigates the ...
Read More
The height of buildings is one of the main features of urban configuration that affects energy consumption. However, to our knowledge, the complexity of relationships between the height parameters and energy use in urban blocks is poorly understood. In this context, the present study investigates the effect of the height distribution of buildings located in a residential complex on the energy consumption required for cooling and heating. This research simulates different possible layouts through computational software. For this purpose, first, the density of a residential complex was determined based on the rules and regulations of Tehran city and according to the site dimensions and certain site coverage. Then, the required building density was distributed in different layouts based on their diversity at different heights. The product of this stage involved 7 different layouts in which the height varied from 1 floor to the maximum number calculated in each part of the simulation. In the next step, the annual energy consumption for cooling and heating the complex was calculated for each of these layouts and compared with each other. The parametric generative model was created in the Grasshopper plugin from Rhino software, and the energy consumption was evaluated with the Honeybee plugin over one year. Also, the research findings were validated through DesignBuilder software using the EnergyPlus engine. The results of the energy simulation indicate that the height distribution of the blocks can have a significant effect on energy consumption. In the optimal case, proper layout reduces the annual cooling and heating energy consumption by 28 % and 13 %, respectively. Therefore, achieving an optimal value for each of the cooling and heating loads depends on the specific priorities and conditions of the design project. If the design project's priority is to reduce heating energy consumption, increasing the height and distributing the floors evenly between the blocks is a better answer. However, if the priority is to mitigate cooling energy consumption, the optimal layout can include low-rise blocks and a single very high-rise block.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Nur Aini; Widi Hastomo; Ratna Yulika Go
Abstract
The percentage of production and utilization of hydrocarbon resources from the livestock sector has raised concerns regarding the worldwide issue of global warming. A total of CH4 emissions from enteric fermentation and waste management has been estimated at 78.3 %. Meanwhile, N2O emissions are 75-80 ...
Read More
The percentage of production and utilization of hydrocarbon resources from the livestock sector has raised concerns regarding the worldwide issue of global warming. A total of CH4 emissions from enteric fermentation and waste management has been estimated at 78.3 %. Meanwhile, N2O emissions are 75-80 % of total agricultural emissions. This raises questions about the extent of global warming due to increased CO2 resulting in changes in weather and global warming. This research aims to predict Green House Gas (GHG) emissions from manure management and present policy alternatives for Indonesian livestock development. Secondary data was taken from a related website (fao.org) with coverage throughout Indonesia from 1961 to 2021, containing 12,480 rows and 5 column features including item, Element, Year, Unit, and Value emission. LSTM and GRU are used to predict the trend of emission from manure management to provide alternative policies on greenhouse gas mitigation in Indonesia. The results showed that based on 15 types of livestock that emit GHG emissions, 3 types of livestock produce the highest emissions from 1961 to 2021: (a) cattle, (b) cattle and non-dairy, and (c) poultry. Significant reduction in the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2eq) in 2020 is indicated by reduced public consumption and hampered supply chains with large-scale social restrictions (covid-19 pandemic policy). Based on these results, fertilizer storage duration can be used as a policy to reduce CO2eq emissions, hence it is desired that fertilizer management techniques can be properly regulated. Mitigation can also be accomplished by utilizing livestock waste as biogas and upgrading animal feed additives with chitosan or potassium nitrate.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Vasundhara Sen
Abstract
Despite the falling costs of Renewable Energy (RE), RE adoption in Indian residential households is still attepid growth rates. With the onset of retail electricity market deregulation in India, the introduction of “greentariffs” for residential households can be effective in resolving the ...
Read More
Despite the falling costs of Renewable Energy (RE), RE adoption in Indian residential households is still attepid growth rates. With the onset of retail electricity market deregulation in India, the introduction of “greentariffs” for residential households can be effective in resolving the issue of low RE adoption. This studyinvestigates the willingness to pay for green tariffs/renewable energy-based electricity contracts using thecontingent valuation method. Data collected from 476 Indian residential households are analyzed by theDouble-Bounded Dichotomous Choice technique. The results of the conducted maximum LikelihoodEstimation (MLE) method reveal the mean willingness to pay 308.52 Rs per household/month for consumption of green power in a premium-paying setting. Results indicate that although households hold positive perception of renewable energy, the willingness to pay is not commensurately high, indicating an attitude-action gap. The study recommends green energy defaults in residential energy contracts, direct marketing of non-use value of RE use (altruistic and bequest) by power supplying utilities, and promoting RE use through RE opinion champions/influencers as measures to enhance RE adoption amongst Indian residential energy consumers.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Ritu Jain; Vasundhara Mahajan
Abstract
In this study, energy management of grid-connected Multi-Microgrid (MMG) is performed through joint optimization of the energy and ancillary service market. The test system comprises the IEEE 30 bus system as the main grid and the 16-bus system as an MMG. The MMG is comprised of dispatchable and non-dispatchable ...
Read More
In this study, energy management of grid-connected Multi-Microgrid (MMG) is performed through joint optimization of the energy and ancillary service market. The test system comprises the IEEE 30 bus system as the main grid and the 16-bus system as an MMG. The MMG is comprised of dispatchable and non-dispatchable generation and loads. The non-dispatchable generators are based on renewable energy sources (RES) such as solar and wind. The uncertainty modeling for wind and solar is performed by Weibull and beta probability distribution function. The strategic integration of RES helps MMG deliver both energy and ancillary services to the utility grid. This research aims to reduce the total energy cost while reducing reserve cost by maximizing the use of RES under normal operation and during contingency conditions. It is observed that if MMG is incorporated into the system, then the total generation cost, reserve cost, and power losses are reduced to 0.11 %, 0.325 %, and 1.201 %, respectively, in normal operating conditions. Under contingency, when Generator 5 is out of service and the main grid is operating alone, the total generation cost increased significantly from 22118.92 $ day-1 to 22435.68 $ day-1 and the real power loss increased from 233.35 MW day-1 to 245.11 MW day-1. However, by interconnecting MMG with the main grid, generation cost and power loss get reduced to 22375.60 $ day-1 and 243.35 MW day-1, respectively. It is analyzed that participation of MMG provides techno-economic benefits during normal operation and contingency conditions.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Mohammad Hossein Jahangir; Arash Kargarzadeh; Mohammad Montazeri
Abstract
As one of the main consumers of electricity, industries account for in releasing a large amount of emission. Using renewable energies to feed factories is not an easy task and they should be economically viable to compete with fossil fuels. The goal of this study is to analyze the possibilities of using ...
Read More
As one of the main consumers of electricity, industries account for in releasing a large amount of emission. Using renewable energies to feed factories is not an easy task and they should be economically viable to compete with fossil fuels. The goal of this study is to analyze the possibilities of using energy local area networks in off-grid and on-grid modes in an industrial project by considering and calculating all primary and deferrable loads in detail for the first time. The industrial project is sensitive and all possibilities should be considered closely to avoid economic losses. In this case, changes in electrical loads during the project, degradation of components, environmental risks, and economic risks of the investment (for each scenario) are considered and determined too. The results indicate that component degradation can cause 24,000 kWh drop in total electricity production at the end of the project and the total biogas consumption increases from 742 kg/yr to 9330 kg/yr. The results also show that the on-gird scenario (solar/battery) with the Net Present Cost of 200,000$ will be an easy and low-risk choice for investment, but has high environmental risks. On the other hand, the stand-alone scenario (solar/wind/bio/battery) with Net Present Cost of 598,000$ minimizes the environmental risks at the expense of high investment risk. A proper comparison between the multi-year and single-year modes at the end of the project ensures the high accuracy of techno-economic analysis in terms of optimum system types, emissions, and economics.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Somayeh Dehhaghi; Shahla Choobchian; Barat Ghobadian; Homayon Farhadian
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to present a renewable energy policy model in the agricultural sector of Iran. To achieve this goal, a questionnaire consisting of 57 items was designed. The reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha (0.916). Also, to analyze the validity and reliability ...
Read More
The purpose of this study is to present a renewable energy policy model in the agricultural sector of Iran. To achieve this goal, a questionnaire consisting of 57 items was designed. The reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed by Cronbach's alpha (0.916). Also, to analyze the validity and reliability of the research tool, the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and Composite Reliability (CR) were calculated. The validity of the questionnaire was determined using face validity, Content Validity Ratio (CVR), and Content Validity Index (CVI). The statistical population of the study consists of energy policymaking experts who were estimated at about 80 people. The sampling method was random and 70 samples answered the questionnaire using the Krejcie and Morgan table. Using structural equation modeling and the maximum likelihood method and using LISREL software, the model fit was estimated at a favorable level. Based on the findings, it was found that the priorities of the agricultural sector and the needs of this sector had not been considered in renewable energy policymaking. Policymaking is done top-down and stakeholders are not considered. Renewable equipment market policies are not adequate and the market is not properly managed. Interaction between policymaking institutions is not in good shape. The results of this study can help address the various shortcomings of the renewable energy policy as well as reduce the common inconsistencies in this area. Finally, suggestions were made for the development and promotion of policies in the field of renewable energy in the agricultural sector of Iran.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Maryam Nosratinia; Ali Asghar Tofigh; Mehrdad Adl
Abstract
Given the world’s growing population and energy demand, modern methods are developed to contribute to generating alternative energies. They aim to maintain the renewability of the supplied energy and decrease environmental contaminations. Biogas is a renewable energy carrier that has recently been ...
Read More
Given the world’s growing population and energy demand, modern methods are developed to contribute to generating alternative energies. They aim to maintain the renewability of the supplied energy and decrease environmental contaminations. Biogas is a renewable energy carrier that has recently been under consideration in Iran. One objective of such plans is to find proper locations for installing and running the existing potentials and infrastructures. In this paper, Tehran, Iran is selected as the study area which is ranked the 1st in population density and proper infrastructures available here are accessible. According to the widespread poultry and cow-breading farms in this province, bovine and aviculture excreta are considered as raw materials in producing biogas. An inference network was established in this research for evaluating the process taking into account the infrastructural parameters, geomorphological constraints, resource availability factors, and limiting parameters such as protected/prohibited areas.In this paper, the fuzzy method was used to standardize the data and the fuzzy-analytical hierarchy process method was employed to weight the locating criteria in the geographical information system. The evaluation outcomes suggested certain zones in southern parts of the province in which the industrial livestock farms become frequently widespread and the suburb areas of smaller cities on the eastern part of the province are the most proper areas for this purpose.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Maryam Hafezparast; Seiran Marabi
Abstract
Understanding of climate change and its impacts on river discharge has affected the quality and quantity of water and also supplying water requirements for drinking, agriculture and industry. Therefore, prediction of precipitation and temperature by climate models as well as simulation and optimization ...
Read More
Understanding of climate change and its impacts on river discharge has affected the quality and quantity of water and also supplying water requirements for drinking, agriculture and industry. Therefore, prediction of precipitation and temperature by climate models as well as simulation and optimization of their runoff with suitable models are very important. In this study, four climate models of the Fifth Coupled Model Inter comparison Project (CMIP5) and RCP8.5 scenario were used to forecast future precipitation and temperature for the next two periods including 2020-2052 and 2053-2085. Mean Observed Temperature-Precipitation (MOTP) method was used to reduce the uncertainty of climate models and the change factor method was used to downscale the climate data. Then, the Lumped-conceptual Identification of unit Hydrographs and Component flows from Rainfall, Evaporation and Stream flow data (IHACRES) model and multi-layer Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model were employed to estimate the effects of these parameters on the Khorramrood River runoff. The neural network model is written and implemented using Scikit-Learn library and the Python programming language. The comparison of performance of ANN models with different input variables like monthly precipitation, monthly precipitation of previous months, monthly discharge, monthly discharge of previous months, monthly temperature was made to find the best and most efficient network structure. The results showed that the precipitation in Khorramrood River basin based on the weighted combination model decreased by 8.18 % and 9.75 % in the first and the second periods, respectively, while the temperature increased by 1.85 and 4.22 °C, respectively. The discharge parameter in the calibration and validation period in the IHACRES model based on criteria to evaluate the parameters of Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), The Coefficient of Determination (R), and the Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE) performed better than the artificial neural network model. However, due to the small differences of these changes, the predictions were performed for both periods and using both models and the results indicated that future discharge in the IHACRES model decreased by 12.72 % during the first period and by 20.3 % in the second period, while the model of artificial neural network showed decrease rates of 2.12 % and 6.97 %, respectively.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Nima Amani; Abdul Amir Reza Soroush
Abstract
Traditionally, building energy model is created in isolation from the architectural building information model and energy analyses have relied on a single analysis tool. The building energy model can be generated more quickly by leveraging existing data from the BIM. The impacts of energy consumption ...
Read More
Traditionally, building energy model is created in isolation from the architectural building information model and energy analyses have relied on a single analysis tool. The building energy model can be generated more quickly by leveraging existing data from the BIM. The impacts of energy consumption are significant in the building usage phase, which can last several decades. Due to the large share of the final energy consumption in the building sector, accurate analysis of thermal and cooling loads of a building and the efforts to reduce energy losses represent an effective way to reduce energy consumption. Therefore, it is essential to analyze the building energy performance in the design phase, which is when critical decisions are made. This study aims to investigate the impact of the building components and construction materials on building energy efficiency using Building Information Modeling (BIM) technology in a mild climate zone. After reviewing the proposed designs, the main building form was chosen for energy modeling and analysis. Then, building energy consumption analysis was performed based on the basic parameters of the building energy model. Eventually, the most optimal mode was selected by examining different energy consumption forms. This study showed that the building HVAC system always had the largest share of energy consumption. Finally, the results of parametric studies on alternative schemes of energy use intensity optimization showed that 22.59 % savings could be achieved as compared to the base building model in a 30-year time horizon
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Ali Khatibi; Mohammad Hossein Jahangir; Fatemeh Razi Astaraiea
Abstract
Land-use change is one of the most important spatial phenomena that can affect the usage of energy technologies. In this study, land-use change in barren and residential areas in Alborz province in Iran was modeled using the cellular automata combined with the Markov Chain from 2001 to 2031. Due to adaptability ...
Read More
Land-use change is one of the most important spatial phenomena that can affect the usage of energy technologies. In this study, land-use change in barren and residential areas in Alborz province in Iran was modeled using the cellular automata combined with the Markov Chain from 2001 to 2031. Due to adaptability to the environmental considerations, all protected areas were removed from the study area. Then, an economical and performance-based optimization model was developed; then, by using the status of the two land-use classes in 2031, an optimum scenario was identified for generating solar electricity. Based on the results, the optimum scenario involves installing distributed photovoltaic modules in 18.37 % of residential areas and setting up concentrated solar systems in 0.74 % of barren areas, simultaneously. Economic investigation of the optimum scenario showed that although there were some environmental and political benefits for using the solar electricity such as reduction of air pollutants and more energy safety, the optimum scenario will be costly and non-economical without the government’s financial supports.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Aychar Khajavi Pour; Mohammad Reza Shahraki; Faranak Hosseinzadeh Saljooghi
Abstract
Photovoltaic energy is a good alternative to fossil fuels due to the abundance of solar energy. In this research, the criteria for locating photovoltaic solar power plants were identified using previous studies and experts’ views and by using the Delphi method based on five socioeconomic, topographic, ...
Read More
Photovoltaic energy is a good alternative to fossil fuels due to the abundance of solar energy. In this research, the criteria for locating photovoltaic solar power plants were identified using previous studies and experts’ views and by using the Delphi method based on five socioeconomic, topographic, power generation and distribution issues, climatological, and environmental criteria. Then, by using the GIS software, the layers of sub-criteria were classified for locating photovoltaic solar power plants. Upon identifying the proposed decision-maker units for location finding, their efficiency was calculated using the full fuzzy data envelopment analysis method in three steps. The information extracted from the layers of the sub-criteria of GIS was coded using the MATLAB software in the first step of the full fuzzy data envelopment analysis model and the decision-making units were classified into three classes of efficient, weak, and inefficient. In the second step, the values of output shortages and input surplus were determined. Finally, in the third step, efficient decision-making units were ranked using Anderson-Pearson Super Efficiency Method in full fuzzy data envelopment analysis. In order to validate the proposed method, a case study was carried out. The results of calculations showed that the north, central, and southeast areas of Sistan and Baluchestan province were among the favorable areas for photovoltaic solar power plant construction. Therefore, approximately 66 % of the province’s area has appropriate efficiency matching the sub-criteria considered to construct a photovoltaic solar power plant.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Paulina Krystosiak
Abstract
The issue of renewable energy is an important one in Poland. The Polish economy heavily relies on coal. Polish cities are among the most polluted in Europe. Therefore, there is a considerable societal support for renewable energy projects. Some people, however, keep having objections, e.g. to windfarms. ...
Read More
The issue of renewable energy is an important one in Poland. The Polish economy heavily relies on coal. Polish cities are among the most polluted in Europe. Therefore, there is a considerable societal support for renewable energy projects. Some people, however, keep having objections, e.g. to windfarms. This paper analyzes social costs and benefits identified by representatives of municipalities in whose territories renewable energy investments have been carried out and by representatives of companies investing in renewable energy projects. The data come from a series of surveys conducted in the period of 2013-18. It has been found out that municipalities and companies significantly differ in their identification of the key social costs and benefits related to renewable energy projects. They are alike in one aspect: such problems like climate change, global warming, energy security, air pollution, energy diversification, etc. are replaced in their thinking by more parochial concerns of land price shifts, social tensions, and others. The article finishes with discussion of reasons explaining why the Poles declare to be staunchly pro-environmental in general and at the same time turn out to be benefit-seeking when asked about particular solutions.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Mahdieh Rezagholizadeh; Majid Aghaei; Omid Dehghan
Abstract
Concerning environmental pollution issues derived from fossil energy consumption, the application of renewable energies plays an important role in countries, especially in their energy sector policymaking. Since determining the relationship between different variables and renewable energy not only has ...
Read More
Concerning environmental pollution issues derived from fossil energy consumption, the application of renewable energies plays an important role in countries, especially in their energy sector policymaking. Since determining the relationship between different variables and renewable energy not only has significant policy applications in energy sector but also is necessary in achieving sustainable development goals, this study assesses the impact of effective factors on the development of renewable energy consumption in Iran with emphasis on the role of foreign direct investment (FDI) and financial sector development (especially stock market development). This study applies Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounding test method over the period of 1978-2016. The research findings show that there is a causal relationship between foreign direct investment and the stock market and renewable energy consumption in Iran such that the increase of foreign direct investment and stock market development will increase the consumption of renewable energies in Iran. On the other hand, a growth in renewable energies consumption will significantly reduce CO2 emission in the long run. Besides, increasing FDI and stock market development will raise the economic growth of a country and, in return, increase CO2 emission.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Ali Mostafaeipour; Afsaneh Nasiri
Abstract
In hot and dry regions, air conditioning is used for many different applications like residential, industry, and agriculture and dairy products. This research studies the applicability of wind and solar energies for cooling fruit storage warehouse in the hot and dry region of Yazd in Iran. The studied ...
Read More
In hot and dry regions, air conditioning is used for many different applications like residential, industry, and agriculture and dairy products. This research studies the applicability of wind and solar energies for cooling fruit storage warehouse in the hot and dry region of Yazd in Iran. The studied case is a fruit warehouse with an area of 4240 m2 resulting in a storage capacity of about 1000 tons. For this purpose, the heat gain of the warehouse is determined, and the obtained cooling load is then used to examine the solar and wind energy to power a conventional warehouse system. Different scenarios are examined for this research such as solar air conditioner, solar absorption chiller, wind catcher, and a combination of solar air conditioners and solar absorption chiller for cooling the fruit warehouse. Comparison and economic evaluation of different scenarios show that the solar air conditioning ranks first for this purpose. Results are then validated using value engineering methodology. Solar air conditioning with the highest net present value (NPV) of 4,865,040,418 Rials and the best internal rate of return (IRR) value of 182.98 % was determined to be the best approach among the studied methods. The results of this research can be applied to other regions with similar climatic conditions too.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Seyed Mohammad Emami Razavi; Mohammad Hossein Jahangir; Soroush Mousavi
Abstract
The renewable energy can be utilized to satisfy the energy demand. Moreover, the solar energy as the most abundant energy resource among renewable energies plays a crucial role to provide the energy demand. The BIPV (building integrated photovoltaics) systems can be considered to supply the required ...
Read More
The renewable energy can be utilized to satisfy the energy demand. Moreover, the solar energy as the most abundant energy resource among renewable energies plays a crucial role to provide the energy demand. The BIPV (building integrated photovoltaics) systems can be considered to supply the required energy demand from renewable sources. The essential advantage of BIPV systems is that they can be utilized as building component such as roof, window, shading systems and building façade and they can generate electricity simultaneously. Even though the photovoltaic technologies have been improved within past few years, however the utilization of the BIPV systems will be considered expensive. For this reason, the payback period calculation is considered a vital parameter in evaluating the BIPV systems. In this study, the overall energy consumption for producing one m2 of a mono-crystalline photovoltaic module is calculated 1334 kWh. Additionally, the photovoltaic module data for three companies were investigated and the annual energy productions for one m2 of each company’s product were obtained. The results showed that the average energy payback time for 270 and 280 watt modules are 5.565 and 5.254 respectively. Moreover, the energy payback time for 290, 325 and 340 watt modules were calculated 4.903, 5.437 and 4.965 respectively.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Younes Noorollahi; Fatemeh Pourghasem; Hossein Yousefi
Abstract
Baseline data represent one of the important stages of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedure that describes the existing environment of the study area and surrounding areas in enough detail to allow the environmental impacts of the proposed area to be accurately and adequately assessed, and ...
Read More
Baseline data represent one of the important stages of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedure that describes the existing environment of the study area and surrounding areas in enough detail to allow the environmental impacts of the proposed area to be accurately and adequately assessed, and future changes and effects can be measured. Baseline data may be inaccurate, difficult to obtain or non-existent in Iran as a developing country, and it involves huge and diverse environmental data of a spatial nature in the EIA process. Therefore, a useful and effective geographic information system (GIS) approach is developed to integrate geodatabase by acquiring and handling environmental data from different sources related to the proposed project area for the EIA procedure. Based on this approach, a comprehensive geodatabase for baseline data of EIA procedure, called Baseline Geodatabase (BGDB), is designed. The BGDB includes feature datasets (projects, climatology and air quality, hydrology, pedology, general location map of the study area, geology, noise, biology, and socio-economic-cultural data) and tables (fauna). For example, the BGDB for Sabalan geothermal project area, Iran as a case study is developed. This paper provides a practical tool to facilitate the EIA process, environmentally sustainable management, and to support decision-making for environmental specialists and managers in the present and future of the proposed project area.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Mohammad Ameri; Arian Gerami
Abstract
According to the previous pieces of research, the building sector consumes about 40 % of total yield energy and produce one-third of GHG pollution emission. This point shows the significant potential in two aspects of energy optimization and pollution reduction in this field. The purpose of this research ...
Read More
According to the previous pieces of research, the building sector consumes about 40 % of total yield energy and produce one-third of GHG pollution emission. This point shows the significant potential in two aspects of energy optimization and pollution reduction in this field. The purpose of this research as a case study is to construct a residential building and develop the paths for reaching a zero-energy building, considering GHG emissions in the climate of Tehran, Iran. In thirty scenarios of this study, solar panels, solar water heaters, ground source heat pumps, and combined heat and power generators were selected to provide the required power and energy in the building. All three passive, single active, and hybrid active scenarios were defined and analyzed with respect to technical and economic factors. In all of the defined scenarios, the conditions are two-folded: (a) considering the effect of national profits, fuel saving, and pollution reduction and (b) without considering them so that the results would become more realistic. In the end, three different types of conclusions were made with respect to macro-engineering, energy, and economic perspectives. Statistical conclusions based on a questionnaire filled by 50 people and the perspective of achieving NZEB definition are presented.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Masoud Rezaei; Alireza Boushehri; Naser Bagheri Moghaddam
Abstract
Using a variety of solar power plants is one of the solutions governments use to respond to energy and sustainable development needs. While Iran has a strong potential for using solar energy, the application of solar energy, especially through PV technology, has been limited due to the country’s ...
Read More
Using a variety of solar power plants is one of the solutions governments use to respond to energy and sustainable development needs. While Iran has a strong potential for using solar energy, the application of solar energy, especially through PV technology, has been limited due to the country’s richness of fossil fuels and their low prices. Therefore, it is important to adopt effective strategies and policies to promote the development and application of this technology. The purpose of this study is to identify factors affecting the use of photovoltaic technology in Iran. To this end, 142 factors were first identified through a comprehensive review of the literature. Then, all of these factors were prioritized and categorized by “semi-structured interview” with 15 energy policy experts. The “content analysis” of the experts’ opinions showed that only 59 of these factors were considered important at the sectorial level for Iran. Based on the same content analysis, a conceptual framework for the application of decentralized photovoltaic power plants in Iran was developed. The framework shows that 10 generic categories of factors should be considered by policy-makers at the solar energy sector to promote PV technology application in Iran. They include policy factors, institutional factors, finance and budgeting factors, system economy factors, macroeconomic factors, socio-cultural factors, human resource factors, factors influencing capabilities of industries, technological and related infrastructural factors, geographical, climatic and environmental factors, and foreign political factors. It is also emphasized that all these categories should be considered at three levels: industry (electricity industry) level, national level, and international level. Thus, renewable energy policy-makers in Iran should take into account all means that influence these factors in order to improve the conditions for decentralized photovoltaic technology application.
Renewable Energy Economics, Policies and Planning
Mohammad Amin Mirzaei; Morteza Nazari-Heris; Behnam Mohammadi-Ivatloo; Mousa Marzband; Amjad Anvari-Moghaddam
Abstract
The significant penetration rate of wind turbines in power systems made some challenges in the operation of the systems such as large-scale power fluctuations induced by wind farms. Gas-fired plants with fast starting ability and high ramping can better handle natural uncertainties of wind power compared ...
Read More
The significant penetration rate of wind turbines in power systems made some challenges in the operation of the systems such as large-scale power fluctuations induced by wind farms. Gas-fired plants with fast starting ability and high ramping can better handle natural uncertainties of wind power compared to other traditional plants. Therefore, the integration of electrical and natural gas systems has great potential of enhancing the flexibility of power systems to incorporate more renewable power sources such as wind turbines. In this area, the uncertainty associated with wind speed has a meaningful impact on the optimal management of the generation units in power grids. This study proposes a stochastic market-based model for clearing of energy in interconnected power and gas systems with integration of wind power. Stochastic programming is developed for studying the uncertainty of wind power production using a normal distribution function in a two-stage model. It should be remarked that the proposed two-stage model covers the uncertainty of wind power generation and load demand in real-time dispatch determining the hourly scheduling of units in the first stage. It is expected that the operation cost of the integrated networks, local marginal pricing of the gas and power, and the load shedding will be increased by an increase in the residential gas load. The investigations showed a 4.2% increase of total operation cost of the integrated power and gas system by a 5% increase in the residential gas load.
