In light of the latest trends in global installed capacities, the importance of variable renewable energy sources (VRES) to future energy supply systems is evident. Despite this, the inherent intermittency of VRES remains an obstacle to their widespread adoption. Green hydrogen is often suggested as an energy carrier that can account for this in a sustainable manner. In the analysis, a robust European energy system in the context of 2050 and with 100% VRES energy supply is designed through an iterative minimal cost-optimization approach that ensures robust security of supply over 38 weather-year scenarios (1980-2017). The impact of spatial VRES variability is factored in by defining exclusive VRES groups within each optimization region and, from this, it can be seen that higher numbers of groups in each region offer cheap electricity generation locations to the optimizer and thus decrease the total annual cost of the system. Beyond this, the robust system design and impact of inter-annual variability is identified by iteratively combining the installed capacities of different system designs obtained by applying 38 historical weather years. The robust system design outlined here has significantly lower capacities in comparison to the maximum regional capacities obtained in the first round of optimization.

The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive 2010 calls for the Nearly Zero Energy Standard for new buildings from 2021 onwards: Buildings using “almost no energy” are powered by renewable sources or energy produced by the building itself. For residential buildings, this ambitious new standard has already been reached. But for other building types this goal is still far away. The potential of these buildings to meet a Nearly Zero Energy Standard was investigated by analyzing ten case studies representing non-residential buildings with different uses. The analysis shows that the primary characteristics common to critical building types are a dense building context with a very high degree of technical installation (such as hospital, research and laboratory buildings). The large primary energy demand of these types of buildings cannot be compensated by building and property-related energy generation including off-site renewables. If the future Nearly Zero Energy Standard were to be defined with lower requirements because of this, the state related properties of Bavaria suggest that the real potential energy savings available in at least 85% of all new buildings would be insufficiently exploited. Therefore, it would be useful to instead individualize the legal energy verification process for new buildings to distinguish critical building types such as laboratories and hospitals.

Transportation electrification has been identified as a crucial shift to be made for achieving energy security and emission reduction targets. Electric Vehicles (EVs) play a significant role in achieving these targets; therefore, there is a growing trend to develop new EV technologies and associated infrastructure. Along with these developments, EVs' Quality of Service (QoS) aspects should be enhanced to increase the number of EVs on the road. Various QoS factors are defined to assess the QoS of EVs, and one of the two aims of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of these factors. The other aim is to review recent developments of associated communication technologies which are essential for exchanging information between EVs and charging stations. This paper serves as a comprehensive review and useful reference for researchers working on QoS aspects of EVs and associated communication systems aiming to enhance the QoS.

The transition towards a renewable energy system is essential in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The increase in the share of variable renewable energy sources (VRES), which mainly comprise wind and solar energy, necessitates storage technologies by which the intermittency of VRES can be compensated for. Although hydrogen has been envisioned to play a significant role as a promising alternative energy carrier in a future European VRES-based energy concept, the optimal design of this system remains uncertain. In this analysis, a hydrogen infrastructure is posited that would meet the electricity and hydrogen demand for a 100% renewable energy-based European energy system in the context of 2050. The overall system design is optimized by minimizing the total annual cost. Onshore and offshore wind energy, open-field photovoltaics (PV), rooftop PV and hydro energy, as well as biomass, are the technologies employed for electricity generation. The electricity generated is then either transmitted through the electrical grid or converted into hydrogen by means of electrolyzers and then distributed through hydrogen pipelines. Battery, hydrogen vessels and salt caverns are considered as potential storage technologies. In the case of a lull, stored hydrogen can be re-electrified to generate electricity to meet demand during that time period. For each location, eligible technologies are introduced, as well as their maximum capacity and hourly demand profiles, in order to build the optimization model. In addition, a generation time series for VRES has been exogenously derived for the model. The generation profiles of wind energy have been investigated in detail by considering future turbine designs with high spatial resolution. In terms of salt cavern storage, the technical potential for hydrogen storage is defined in the system as the maximum allowable capacity per region. Whether or not a technology is installed in a region, the hourly operation of these technologies, as well as the cost of each technology, are obtained within the optimization results. It is revealed that a 100 percent renewable energy system is feasible and would meet both electricity demand and hydrogen demand in Europe.

Due to urban warming, energy demand for cooling buildings is rising. The current study used CitySim to estimate the cooling energy requirements for 40 buildings in Downtown, Dubai using high-resolution climate data from weather research and forecasting (WRF) coupled with single layer urban canopy model (SLUCM). Simulating the four mitigation scenarios allowed for the examination of the reduction in cooling load caused by the addition of greenery at a rate ranging from 25% to 100%. The insulated building's cooling demand reduced by a maximum of 13.89% under 100% GI (M4). Scenario M4 resulted in a reduction of 4.6 kWh/m2 and 3.1 kWh/m2 for the non-insulated and insulated low-rise residential buildings, respectively, while the high-rise buildings saw a reduction of 3.09-4.91 kWh/m2 for the non-insulated and 2.07-3.09 kWh/m2 for insulated buildings. This study offered a potential remedy to deal with the problem of urban heating in subtropical environments.

Since the requirements in terms of power of the electronic applications range wide, the developed Energy Harvesting (EH) systems limit their availability to the less power demanding applications. However, this paper focuses on increasing the energy levels collected in the EH system so that it can be included in more demanding applications in terms of power. Therefore, an electronic system capable of grouping many single harvesting channels into one single system is analyzed in this paper. This multi-harvester electronic system is able to manage efficiently the energy collected by multiple vibratory transducers. The paper includes a comparison of its performance against some of the State-of-the-Art EH energy management circuits that interface the transducers. The method employed to demonstrate the intrinsic efficiency of each of the electronic circuits tested was based on experimental tests, where the average power transferred from several identical and simultaneous electric sources to a single storage element was measured. It was found out that only one energy management circuit was able to increase the transferred energy in a linear way while new input electric sources were added.

AbstractTo overcome the negative impacts on the environment and other problems associated with fossil fuels have forced many countries to inquire into and change to environmentally friendly alternatives that are renewable to sustain the increasing energy demand. Solar energy is one of the best renewable energy sources with the least negative impacts on the environment. Different countries have formulated solar energy policies to reduce dependence on fossil fuel and increasing domestic energy production by solar energy. According to the 2010 BP Statistical Energy Survey, the world cumulative installed solar energy capacity was 22928.9 MW in 2009, a change of 46.9% compared to 2008. In this study, a PV generation system has been modeled and installed considering uncertain whether based on the hourly wind speed data of New York City (NYC) of year 2014. Regression models has been used to forecast the hourly, weekly, and monthly wind speed of NYC year 2014. Design of experiment (DOE) has been used to determine the optimal panel size (area), the battery capacity size, and other levels of factors.

Implementing High-Performance Computing to solve In-Memory Data Grid (IMDG)-based energy infrastructure resilience research problems in a heterogeneous environment presents a challenge to workflow management systems. Large-scale energy infrastructure needs multi-variant planning and tools to allocate and dispatch resources in IMDG taking into account the subject domain specificity, resource characteristics, and constraints and quotas for resource use. To that end, we propose a workflow management system using our Orlando Tools framework. To scale computing resources, we provide their integration and use corresponding software to determine key application parameters that can significantly impact the processed data size and the required number of allocated resources. We automated the IMDG cluster launch for the workflow executions. To demonstrate the advantage of our solution, we apply it to evaluate the resilience of the existing energy infrastructure model. Compared to similar approaches, our approach explores large infrastructures by modeling many simultaneously failed elements of different types up to the number of network elements. In terms of problem-solving efficiency and resource use, we achieve near-linear speedup with increasing the number of nodes of each resource.

The current study aimed to evaluate the influence of different sintering temperatures on the properties of copper aluminum oxide (CuAlO₂) pellets synthesized from copper oxide (CuO) and aluminum hydroxide (Al(OH)₃) for application in smart infrastructure systems. The pellets were sintered at 400 K, 1000 K, and 1300 K, in the presence of nitrogen gas flow to reduce the amount of oxygen availability. The CuAlO₂ sintered nanoparticles were chemically analyzed by X-ray diffractometry, and the nanostructure of the materials was studied by scanning electron microscopy. The transmittance of the sintered materials was examined by ultraviolet/visible (UV/Vis) spectrophotometry, and 88% transparency was observed for the pellets sintered at 1300 K. Electrical conductivity was measured at 0.905 mS/cm, indicating a semiconducting behavior.

This study aimed to focus on how to design a low-cost greenhouse for the cultivation of crops, to propose the cost-effectiveness analysis of small agribusiness, and to promote sustainable agricultural production during and after the COVID-19 crisis for helping grassroots and anyone who lost their job. This article is qualitative engineering research, studying of literature reviews of greenhouse farming concept and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, then, designing low-cost greenhouse model which was preliminarily adapted for hot climate countries. Three plants that were selected as representative plants of this model include sunflower, water spinach, and wheat. The greenhouse model, measuring 5 x 7 x 4 m (W x L x H), was designed for this mission. The total cost of one building is approximately 97,994 THB. For the worthiness of the investment, farmers should build at least three greenhouse buildings, which will return total income to farmers approximately 34,666.09 THB per month. The suggestion includes further knowledge and financial supports from the government sectors among farmers, then, boost them up using high-level technology and also planting high-price agribusiness production to promote the local economy to be strong and sustainable.

This research paper presents a comprehensive study on the optimal planning and design of hybrid renewable energy systems for microgrid (MG) applications at Oakland University. The HOMER Pro platform analyzes the technical economic and environmental aspects of integrating renewable energy technologies. The research also focuses on the importance of addressing unmet load in the MG system design to ensure the university's electricity demand is always met. By optimizing the integration of various renewable energy technologies, such as solar photovoltaic (PV), energy storage system (ESS), combined heat and power (CHP), and wind turbine energy (WT), the study aims to fulfill the energy requirements while reducing reliance on traditional grid sources and achieving significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed MG configurations are designed to be scalable and flexible, accommodating future expansions, load demands changes, and technological advancements without costly modifications or disruptions. By conducting a comprehensive analysis of technical, economic, environmental factors, and addressing unmet load, this research contributes to the advancement of renewable energy integration within MG systems. It offers a complete guide for Oakland University and other institutions to effectively plan, design and implement hybrid renewable energy solutions, fostering a greener and more resilient campus environment. The findings demonstrate the potential for cost-effective and sustainable energy solutions, providing valuable guidance for Oakland University in its search of energy resilience and environmental surveillance which has a total peak load of 9.958MW. The HOMER simulation results indicate that utilizing all renewable resources, the estimated net present cost (NPC) is a minimum of 30M$, with a levelized energy cost (LCOE) of 0.00274$/kWh. In addition, the minimum desired load will be unmeted on some days of September.

The use of friction-based Beam-to-Column Connections (BCC)s for earthquake-resistant Moment Resistant Frames (MRFs), aiming at eliminating damage to beam end sections due to the development of plastic hinges, has taken hold since the early eighties. Different technical solutions were proposed for steel structures, some were also designed for timber structures, while few more recent studies concern friction joints employed in reinforced concrete structures. Research aimed at characterizing the behavior of joints has focused on the evaluation of the tribological properties of the friction materials, coefficient of friction, shape and stability of the hysteresis cycles, influence of the temperature, speed of load application, effects of the application method, stability of preload, the influence of seismic excitation characteristics on the structural response, statistical characterization of amplitude and frequency of the slip excursion during seismic excitation. Studies aimed at identifying the design parameters capable of optimizing performance have focused attention mainly on the slip threshold, device stiffness, and deformation capacity. This review compiles the main and most recent solutions developed for MRFs. Furthermore, the pros and cons for each solution are highlighted, focusing on the dissipative capacity, shape and stability of hysteresis loops. In addition, the common issues affecting all friction connections, namely characteristics of friction shims and the role of bolt preload, are discussed. Based on the above considerations, a guideline can be outlined, which can help to choose the appropriate solutions for beam-to-column connections for MRFs.

Distribution System Operators (DSOs) are adapting to changing energy demands and the shift toward renewable and decentralized energy. Circularity is increasingly relevant for DSOs as their distribution systems age and need replacing. Taking circular action, however, is generally regarded as challenging as the current circular economy (CE) landscape is highly fragmented and rarely touches the implementation level. A longitudinal case study at Dutch DSO Liander on the circu-larity of distribution transformers was used to understand empirical success factors for taking circular action and to generate prescriptive knowledge on the operationalization of circularity. Six design propositions for circular action were formulated that suggest to 1) initiate small-scale cir-cularity experiments, 2) involve technical and strategic experts, 3) synergize circularity with more urgent, primary goals 4) translate circular initiatives bottom-up and top-down, 5) collaborate with other DSOs, and 6) create multidisciplinary teams. At DSO Liander, selecting the right interventions depending on the changing context contributed to operationalizing circularity for distribution transformers and achieving circularity targets. The generalizable design propositions could assist other DSOs in optimizing their strategy toward circular action.

Bio-inspired gyroid triply periodic minimum surface (TPMS) lattice structures have been the focus of research in automotive engineering because they can absorb a lot of energy and have wider plateau ranges. The main challenge is determining the optimal energy absorption capacity and accurately capturing plastic plateau areas using finite element analysis (FEA). Using nTop's Boolean subtraction method, this study combined walled TPMS gyroid structures with normal TPMS gyroid lattice. This made a composite TPMS-gyroid lattice with relative densities ranging from 14% to 54%. Using the ideaMaker software and the fused deposition modeling (FDM) Raise3D Pro 2 3D printer to print polylactic acid (PLA) bioplastics in 1.75 mm filament made it possible to slice computer aided design (CAD) models and fabricate 36 lattices samples precisely layer by layer technique. Shimadzu 100kN testing equipment was utilized for the mechanical compression experiments. And the validation using finite element analysis (FEA). Further, CTG was examined using a field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) before and after compression testing. The composite TPMS gyroid lattice showed potential as shock absorbers for vehicles with relative densities of 33%, 38%, and 54%. The Gibson-Ashby model showed that the composite TPMS gyroid lattice deformed mainly by bending, and the size effect was seen when the relative densities were less than 15%. The lattice's relative density had a significant impact on its ability to absorb energy. The research also explored the use of these innovative foam-like composite TPMS-gyroid lattices in high-speed crash box scenarios, potentially enhancing vehicle safety and performance.

Nowadays, some coffee production centers are still classification manually, so it requires a very long time, a lot of labor, and expensive operational costs. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to design and performance of the coffee bean classifier that can accelerate the process of classification beans. The classifier used consists of three main parts, namely the frame, driving force, and sieves. Research parameters include classifier work capacity, power, specific energy, classification distribution and effectiveness, and efficiency. The results showed that the best operating conditions of the coffee bean classifier was found at a rotational speed of 91.07 rpm and a 16° sieves angle with a classifier working capacity of 38.27 kg/h, the distribution of the seeds retained in the first sieve was 56.77 %, the second sieves was 28.12%, and the third sieves was 15.11%. The efficiency of using a classifier was found at a rotating speed of 91.07 rpm and a sieves angle of 16°. This classifier was simple in design, easy to operate, and can sort coffee beans into three classification, namely small, medium, and large.

Installations of decentralised Renewable Energy Systems (RES) are becoming increasing popular as governments introduce ambitious energy policies to curb emissions and slow surging energy costs. This work presents a novel model for optimal sizing for decentralised renewable generation and hybrid storage system to create a Renewable Energy Community (REC), developed in Python. The model implements PV Solar and Wind Turbines combined with a hybrid battery and Regenerative Hydrogen Fuel Cell (RHFC). The electrical service demand is derived using real usage data from a rural island case study location. Cost remuneration is managed with an REC virtual trading layer, ensuring fair distribution among actors in accordance with the European RED(III) policy. A multi-objective Genetic Algorithm (GA) stochastically determines the system capacities such that the inherent trade-off relationship between project cost and decarbonisation can be observed. The optimal design results in an LCOE of 0.15€/kWh, reducing costs by over 50% compared with typical EU grid power, with a project IRR of 10.8%, simple return of 9.6%/year, and ROI of 9 years. Emissions output from grid only use is reduced by 72% to 69 gCO2e/kWh. Further research of lifetime economics and additional revenue streams in combination with this work could provide a useful tool for users to quickly design and prototype future decentralised REC systems.

Wind turbines are a solution for sustainable energy, significantly reducing carbon emissions and fostering a circular economy for more cost-effective and cleaner power generation, in line with worldwide environmental aspirations. In this context, this research aims to explore a novel Two-Stage Twisted Blade micro-Vertical Axis Wind Turbine ($\mu$-VAWT) alternative inspired by the Savonius Rotor (SR). This investigation utilizes the $\kappa-\omega$ SST turbulence model to explore the power coefficient ($C_P$) and torque coefficient ($C_T$), finding $C_P$ values ranging from 0.02 to 0.04 across the turbine by altering the free stream velocity ($V$). $C_T$ analysis further delves into four specific sections, highlighting areas of particular interest. These results are validated by examining velocity contours, pressure contours, and streamlines in four horizontal sections, demonstrating that the proposed turbine model exhibits minimal torque fluctuation. Moreover, the analysis of vertical wind streamlines illustrates very low interference with various wind turbine proposals, underscoring the turbine's efficiency and potential for integration into diverse wind energy projects.

Renewable energy sources (RES) will play a crucial role in future sustainable energy systems. In scenarios analyzing future energy system designs, a detailed spatial and temporal representation of renewable-based electricity generation is essential. For this, sufficiently representative weather data are required. Most analyses performed in this context use the historical data of either one specific reference year or an aggregation of multiple years. In contrast, this study analyzes the impact of different weather years based on historical weather data from 1980 through 2015 in accordance with the design of an exemplary future energy system. This exemplary energy system consists of on- and offshore wind energy for power-to-hydrogen via electrolysis, including hydrogen pipeline transport for most southwestern European countries. The assumed hydrogen demand for transportation needs represents a hypothetical future market penetration for fuel cell-electric vehicles of 75%. An optimization framework is used in order to evaluate the resulting system design with the objective function of minimizing the total annual cost (TAC) of the system. For each historical weather year, the applied optimization model determines the required capacities and operation of wind power plants, electrolyzers, storage technologies and hydrogen pipelines to meet the assumed future hydrogen demand in a highly spatially- and temporally-detailed manner, as well as the TAC of the system. Following that, the results of every individual year are compared in terms of installed capacities, overall electricity generation and connection to the transmission network, as well as the cost of these components within each region. The results reveal how sensitive the final design of the exemplary system is to the choice of the weather year. For example, the TAC of the system changes by up to 20% across two consecutive weather years. Furthermore, significant variation in the optimization results regarding installed capacities per region with respect to the choice of weather years can be observed.

In this study, a multiobjective, multiperiod, global optimization for design, sizing and dispatch of an islanded, hybrid microgrid was performed using a model built in MATLAB. The system was simulated over one year for sizing and over one day for dispatch, both using hourly time steps. The model minimized lifecycle levelized costs, emissions, lost load and dumped power while maximizing penetration of clean, renewable sources in the microgrid. This found optimal capacities of the renewable, energy storage and backup generation components which provide the best combination of affordability, sustainability, reliability and efficiency. After experimenting with several global solvers, it was determined that particle swarm optimization is most well-suited to solving the sizing optimization problem. The PV-wind microgrid using Li-ion batteries along with diesel engines was found to perform best among all the combinations considered. It was found that in spite of including additional objectives, monetary costs are the primary driver while allocating generation capacity between different renewable sources like wind versus solar PV. Furthermore, the sizing of PV, wind and battery storage depends strongly on the rating of the standby distributed generator, mainly due to reliability consideration. Generating Pareto-optimal sets revealed interesting relationships between different input variables (i.e. PV, wind and battery capacities) as well as trade-offs that arise while pursuing different objectives. Pursuing cost-minimization alone may lead to sub-optimal outcomes in terms of environmental impact, reliability and excess energy production. A sensitivity analysis was also conducted to understand the effects of various parameters like fuel price and energy storage costs on the optimal system's design and operation. Such accurate sizing programs help reduce the extent of oversizing of sub-systems during the design and planning stage, which is usually needed to achieve high reliability with distributed and decentralized energy systems like off-grid microgrids. This reduces the upfront capital investment needed to build the system, making clean electricity access affordable in the short term. The economic-environmental dispatch produced day-ahead scheduling strategies to meet the above mentioned objectives. The system was found to be relatively robust to short-term uncertainties and disturbances in renewable generation and load, although this does cause sub-optimal performance due to increased reliance on fossil fuels. It was found that dispatching of the batteries and backup generators is most critical in minimizing impacts of such events. However, the response to longer-term disturbances still remains to be assessed. The study also includes a comprehensive literature review of tools available for microgrid design as well as different optimization algorithms that have been used to solve microgrid sizing, dispatch and scheduling problems. Additionally, an overview is provided of various control strategies that can be used to improve robustness and resiliency of microgrids.

The introduction of electrical vehicle charging infrastructure including EV charger, renewable energy resource at secondary feeder in distribution system has been increased as one of countermeasure for global environmental issues. However, the Electric Vehicle Charging (EVC) infrastructure may act as the peak load in distribution system, which can adversely impact on the voltage stability when the electric vehicle is quickly charged. Therefore, to keep within the limit capacity of secondary feeder and allowable limit for feeder voltage, this paper proposes a stabilization method by the Energy Storage System (ESS) control strategy at secondary feeder in order to be not violated over than lower and upper limit. Also, this paper presents the estimation method to keep the proper standard value of State of Charge (SOC). From the simulation results, the voltage stabilization operation by ESS should make the feeder voltages of the distribution system(secondary feeder) introduced EVC Infra keep better voltage conditions, also estimation method to keep the proper standard value is confirmed that the SOC of ESS when is the standby condition could be exactly kept within the proper reference range.

The application of thermoelectric generators (TEG) on the nozzle of an aviation jet engine was studied by finite element TEG-simulations. Against the background of system-level requirements of the reference aircraft this work reports the resulting requirements on the TEG design with respect to applied thermoelectric (TE) element lengths and fill factors (F) within the TE modules in order to maintain a positive effect on the specific fuel consumption. Assuming a virtual optimized TE material and varying the convective heat transfer coefficients at the nozzle surfaces this work reports the achievable power output. System-level requirement on the gravimetric power density (> 100 Wkg-1) can only be met for F ≤ 21%. Extrapolating TEG coverage to the full nozzle surface, the power output reaches 1.65 kW per engine. Assessment of further potential is demonstrated by a parametric study on the fill factor, convective heat transfer coefficients, and materials performance. This study confirms a feasible design range for TEG installation on the aircraft nozzle with a positive impact on the fuel consumption. This application translates into a reduction of operational costs, allowing for an economically efficient installation of TEG in consideration of the cost-specific power output of modern thermoelectric materials.

This paper investigates an Energy Neutral System using Micro Energy Harvesters for a Health Monitoring Wireless Sensor Node (HM-WSN). We have implemented HM-WSN consisting of a solar cell energy harvester, a Power Management Unit (PMU) and the ucontroller, sensor and transmitter acting as load. A battery extender and a switching logic circuit for sensor node is designed to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed system. The HM-WSN senses body temperature with improvement in lifetime of coincell. The HM-WSN is built using commercially available off the shelf (COTS components and consumes 47.2uW for data being updated every 134s. It can be operated for approximately 1.32 years only on a coincell. Furthermore, the HM-WSN can be operated with solar energy at 200lux, achieving 96.36 years with a combination of a coincell with an additional capacitor of 2.2mF. It attains 4.07 years to 16.87 years lifetime with the load capacitor varying from 1mF to 1.5mF at 350lux lighting condition. With the same ambient condition and a 2mF load capacitor, HM-WSN attains complete energy autonomy.

This paper presents a comprehensive study on the application and optimization of automotive thermoelectric generators (ATEGs), focusing on the crucial role of heat exchangers in enhancing energy conversion efficiency. Recognizing the substantial waste of thermal energy in internal combustion engines, our research delves into the potential of TEGs to convert engine waste heat into electrical energy, thereby improving fuel efficiency and reducing environmental impact. We meticulously analyze various heat exchanger designs, assessing their influence on the TEG's output power under different exhaust gas flow rates and temperatures. Furthermore, we explore the impact of TEG material properties on the overall energy conversion effectiveness. Our findings reveal that specific heat exchanger designs significantly enhance the efficiency of waste gas heat exchange, leading to an improved performance of the TEG system. We also highlight the importance of thermal insulation in maximizing TEG output. This study not only contributes to the ongoing efforts to develop more sustainable and efficient vehicles but also provides valuable insights into the practical application of thermoelectric technology in automotive engineering. Through this research, we aim to pave the way for more environmentally friendly transportation solutions, aligning with global efforts to reduce fossil fuel dependence and mitigate environmental pollution.

Most European cities are characterized by very large areas, often formed by buildings with low quality, from a series of point of view. The possibility of renovating them is strategic to improve both the quality of life and to the possibility of economic recovery for building companies. In the last decades, the attention of the scientific community has been addressed to the energy renovation, thanks to the strong activities of the European Community in this field. However, since a relevant part of the EC territory is at risk of earthquake, the possibility to combine both energy and seismic renovation actions may be strategic for many countries. In particular, Italy and Romania are linked by a common social tradition that springs from the Roman Empire. Nowadays, this link is stronger, thanks to common interests in social, cultural and business fields. Therefore, the investigation of possible synergies for seismic and energy renovation strategies may be really interesting for both countries. This paper represents the first step in this direction. After an overview of regulations and common practices for buildings with reinforced concrete structures, in both states, some key combined renovation interventions will be described and discussed, as well as advantages and perspectives of integrated renovation approaches.

The flywheel is a widespread mechanical component used for the storage of kinetic energy and angular momentum. It typically consists of a cylindrical inertia rotating about its axis on rolling bearings, which involves undesired friction, lubrication, and wear. This paper presents an alternative mechanism that is functionally equivalent to a classical flywheel while relying exclusively on limited-stroke flexure-joints. This novel 1-degrees-of-freedom zero-stiffness mechanism has no wear and requires no lubrication: it is thus compatible with extreme environments, such as vacuum, cryogenics, or ionizing radiation. The mechanism is composed of two coupled pivoting rigid bodies whose individual angular momenta vary during motion but whose sum is constant at all times when the pivoting rate is constant. The quantitative comparison of the flexure-based flywheel to classical ones based on a hollow cylinder as inertia shows that the former stores typically 6 times less angular momentum and kinetic energy for the same mass while occupying typically 10 times more volume. The freedom of design of the shape of the rigid bodies offers the possibility of modifying the ratio of the kinetic energy stored versus angular momentum, which is not possible with classical flywheels. For example, a flexure-based flywheel with rigid pivoting bodies in the shape of thin discs stores 100 times more kinetic energy than a classical flywheel with the same angular momentum. A proof-of-concept prototype was successfully built and characterized in terms of reaction moment generation, which validates the presented analytical model.

Energy savings have been a major driver for improving building airtightness in the last period. Air infiltration has an important influence on energy efficiency and significantly influences the indoor air quality and pollutant distribution in residential buildings. Pressure difference lead to air permeability through the building envelope via cracks and un-controlled air leaks, which increase not only energy consumption, also cause noise from the outside and entering particles harmful to human health. Therefore, the issue of airtightness of the building envelope has been included in the standards and regulations. Building airtightness is influenced by various design parameters such as window/wall ratio, type of joinery, size of usage area, wall material and the insulation application also the quality of workmanship. In this study, the airtightness performance of 43 different residentials in Balıkesir was deter-mined by the BlowerDoor test measurement and in the context of airtightness the architectural design parameters impact was investigated. The air exchange rate (n50) values of 43 residences were obtained between 1.94 - 49.02 h-1 and compared with the existing standards. In addition, “usage area” was determined as the most effective parameter, followed by the size of the usage area, the transparency rate of the facades, the wall material type and the insulation status.

Fusion device and its structure may be designed by various means. Two of most popular are; weight basis (described in previous study by author) and energy basis. In present research, later method is explored and described. Energy basis is based on amount of energy released from device upon detonation followed by explosion. Its beneficial in a sense that device size can be kept as independent variable as compared to dependent in former case. Further, it shortens the design procedure. For example, heat transfer pattern in such approach directly helps in quantifying wall thickness which dictates material, fabrication, and manufacturing route. It may also eliminate anisotropy as wall thickness is direct function of amount of heat at which it will rupture and can be much thinner. Device geometry can also be flexibility controlled as it is no longer dependent on pay load bay capacity. This allows more freedom in designing subsystems (compartments, their locations, focusing, switches, and mixers). Such devices can be more compact and simpler. Few such design configurations are proposed.

Hybrid renewable energy systems (HRES), complemented by pumped hydropower storage (PHS), have become increasingly popular amidst the increase of renewable energy penetration. This con-figuration is even more prosperous in remote regions that are typically not connected to the mainland power grid, where the energy independence challenge intensifies. This research focuses on the design of such systems, from the perspective of establishing an optimal mix of renewable sources that takes advantage of their complementarities and synergies, combined with the versatility of PHS. However, this design is subject to substantial complexities, due to the multiple objectives and constraints to fulfill, on the one hand, and the inherent uncertainties as well, that span over all underlying processes, i.e., external, and internal. In this vein, we utilize a proposed HRES layout for the Aegean Island of Sifnos, Greece, to develop and evaluate a comprehensive simulation-optimization scheme in deterministic and, eventually, stochastic setting, revealing the design problem under the umbrella of uncertainty. In particular, we account for three major uncertain elements, namely the wind velocity (natural process), the energy demand (anthropogenic process), and the wind-to-power conversion (internal process, expressed in terms of a probabilistic power curve). Emphasis is also given to the decision-making procedure, which requires a thorough interpretation of the uncertainty-aware optimization outcomes. Finally, since the proposed PHS uses the sea as the lower reservoir, additional technical challenges are addressed.

The utilization of wind energy has become increasingly popular in the United States and many European countries due to its abundant natural source and optimized design. While existing wind turbines are predominantly large-scale and not suitable for standalone or distributed power production, Lubbock County in West Texas offers a diverse range of renewable energy options to meet its energy needs. The region relies heavily on utility-scale wind energy sources to supply power to the Texas Grid, replacing conventional fossil fuel-based systems. Currently, standalone solar PV systems are the preferred choice for renewable energy generation. However, West Texas possesses an ample supply of wind energy that can be harnessed to establish a microgrid and provide standalone power to rural communities. By employing the latest technology and optimizing efficiency, even in low-scale generation, a 6 kW permanent magnet alternator-based distributed wind turbine has been designed. This paper focuses on analyzing the techno-economic aspects of implementing this wind turbine in a real-world scenario, taking into account wind attributes such as velocity and available power at the specific location.

Empirically based modeling is an essential aspect of design for a wave energy converter. These models are used in structural, mechanical and control design processes, as well as for performance prediction. The design of experiments and methods used to produce models from collected data have a strong impact on the quality of the model. This study considers the system identification and model validation process based on data collected from a wave tank test of a model-scale wave energy converter. Experimental design and data processing techniques based on general system identification procedures are discussed and compared with the practices often followed for wave tank testing. The general system identification processes are shown to have a number of advantages. The experimental data is then used to produce multiple models for the dynamics of the device. These models are validated and their performance is compared against one and other. While most models of wave energy converters use a formulation with wave elevation as an input, this study shows that a model using a hull pressure sensor to incorporate the wave excitation phenomenon has better accuracy.

Despite achieving over 90% household service coverage, the Latin American and Caribbean region faces energy poverty (EP) challenges, particularly in rural areas. With growing GDP and foreign investments, Panama grapples with significant energy inequality, ranking poorly in clean energy access. Almost 177,000 Panamanians experience energy poverty, impacting their quality of life. This study proposes a Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index for Panama (MEPIP), considering dimensions like lighting, cooking, food refrigeration, thermal comfort, and knowledge/communication. MEPIP, inspired by indicators from Chile, Mexico, and the UK, aims to provide a nuanced understanding of EP. Results from surveyed rural communities, Guásimo, Llano Grande Abajo, Los Aguilares, and La Tranquilla, reveal pervasive energy poverty, emphasizing the urgency of targeted interventions. MEPIP's application identifies critical areas, such as Llano Grande Abajo, highlighting stark inequalities and the need for comprehensive energy policies to address EP in Panama.

This study aimed to increase the energy independence of buildings by utilizing solar energy to produce renewable energy. The subject of this study was a shading structure installed in an outdoor space to provide solar energy. Solar panels were applied to the shaded structures to generate energy actively. The solar panels were designed to be moved according to the optimal tilt angle each month to produce the optimal renewable energy. The architectural design of the shading structure and the energy simulation of the solar panels were conducted using a parametric design. The results of the energy simulation showed the generation of 31,570 kWh· year−1 of renewable energy. This amount of energy is 10% higher than that produced by fixed solar panels. Thus, the moving solar panel system developed in this study not only increases the energy independence of buildings, but also has the advantage of higher renewable energy production compared with fixed solar panels. Additionally, various types of shading structures can be designed depending on the combination of solar panel modules; in particular, moving solar panels have the potential to facilitate ecofriendly designs when applied to the exterior of buildings.

The paper describes and analyzes the performance of a new thermoelectric generation system based on the use of Peltier cells inserted in the ducts of the air conditioning equipment. The hot and cold air streams that flow in the two separated sections of an air conditioning system are used to create a thermal gradient between the two faces of the Peltier cells. Hot and cold air flow inside the A/C unit are driven to a built in thermal chamber where the Peltier cells are placed. Peltier cells are incrusted into an insulation wall that separates the two sections of the chamber through which hot and cold air streams are flowing. The so designed configuration allows the Peltier cells to generate electric current. The study has been run for constant cold air temperature and variable hot air temperature, resulting in a variable performance of the thermoelectric generator. Theoretical study has been completed with experimental tests to determine real performance of the thermoelectric unit. Efficiency of the thermoelectric generator has been found to be linearly dependent on the temperature difference between hot and cold air subsections of the chamber. Maximum efficiency, however, is limited by the hot air stream temperature, since in real conditions ambient temperature cannot overpasses a specific value. For standard operational conditions, 5º C and 45º C for the cold and hot air streams, the thermoelectric generator operates at 44% of the maximum efficiency attainable.

The use of different sources to energize a load is convenient in many applications, particularly those where two or more renewable energy sources are employed as: energy harvesting, hybrid vehicles, and off-grid systems. In these cases, a multi-input converter able to admit sources with different characteristics and, if necessary, select the output power of each source. Several topologies of multi-input converters have been proposed to this aim, however, most of them are based on multi-stage designs, which decreases efficiency and increases control complexity, particularly when more than two sources are used. In this work, a three-input step-up converter easy to control in open loop condition is analyzed. A designed procedure is described, and experimental results are presented for a 1 kW power converter. The implemented converter results in a higher voltage gain, less storage element keeping high efficiency compared to similar topologies. Using the procedure here proposed, this converter that was initially proposed for photovoltaic applications is enabled to be used in medium and high-power applications, for example when renewable energy sources are used.

Direct sizing criteria represent useful tools in the design of dissipative bracing systems for the advanced seismic protection of existing frame structures, especially when incorporated dampers feature a markedly non-linear behaviour. An energy-based procedure is proposed herein to this aim, focusing attention on systems including fluid viscous devices. The procedure starts by assuming prefixed reduction factors of the most critical response parameters in current conditions, which are evaluated by means of a conventional elastic finite element analysis. Simple formulas relating the reduction factors to the equivalent viscous damping ratio of the dissipaters, ξ_eq, are proposed. These formulas allow calculating the ξ_eq values that guarantee the achievement of target factors. Finally, the energy dissipation capacity of the devices is deduced from ξ_eq, finalizing their sizing process. A detailed description of the procedure is presented in the article, by distinguishing the cases where the prevailing structural deficiencies are represented by poor strength of the constituting members, from the cases having excessive horizontal displacements. A demonstrative application to the retrofit design of a reinforced concrete gym building is then offered to explicate the steps of the sizing criterion in practice, as well as to evaluate the enhancement of seismic response capacities generated by the installation of the dissipative system.

This paper is regarding design and program an Micro-controller Arduino Uno board by using Arduino software to work as a photo-sensor(Active) single axial solar tracker system(SASTS). A solar panel, two photo-resistors (LDR) in two sides (north/south) of the photo-voltaic(PV) and a servo motor are connected to the Uno board, which is running a code that prepared by Arduino software IDE in advanced then it works as a tracking system. Here, the LDRs send the signal of presence or absence of the light to the board and based on that sent signal the Uno reflects a new signal to the servo motor to rotate and finds the light source. Lastly, the photo-sensor single axis tracker is made while Continuously, the system tries to face the panel to the sun and whilst changing the irradiance intensity it starts searching to find the angle of highest irradiance. Based on results that are extracted from the data, the tracker system significantly boosts the output efficiency of the solar panel. By using the Micro-controller Uno board, LDRs, servo motor and special designed mechanical base, the tracking system is constructed, based on acquired data the influence of the STS on the increasing the solar panel efficiency is more obvious. Significantly, the tracker system rises the efficiency of the PV .

The study of energy sources has been an awareness of the modern world due to constraints on the current energy worldwide supply chain. The complexity of the theme as well as the consciousness of finite sources also the need of saving energy has become a priority. Although many papers have moved in this direction there is no record of papers studying the variables in a house heating system, which represents the highest energy consumption in many cold countries. This paper explores the energy-saving theme by studying the main variables present in houses’ heating systems in the winter season in cold countries like Canada, Russia, Norway, Iceland, Finland, etc. By using a novel combination of numerical thermal simulation by COMSOLTM and statistical analysis by MiniTabTM , it was possible to design an efficient thermal distribution in a house with the variables of the system by determining their significance and interaction qualitatively.

At present European buildings typically consume two to five times more energy than predicted at the design stage. An important cause of this performance gap is the discrepancies between the design specification and the As-Built condition. Such discrepancies are mainly due to the gaps in knowhow between design, production and construction professionals. Design is more and more contained into a virtual environment and loses touch with the physical production and construction sites. As the construction sector enters the Industry 4.0 era, Building Information Modelling (BIM) based Mixed Reality can intertwine virtual and real worlds to bridge the knowhow gaps.

Cloud computing transformed IT organizations with its on-demand model, notably Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Cloud providers manage extensive physical devices, consuming substantial energy and bandwidth for data traffic during virtual machine deployment. Balancing energy and bandwidth are critical. This thesis presents BOHGOA integrated with ACO to optimize virtual machine placement in clouds, simultaneously considering bandwidth and energy. It yields Pareto-optimal solutions for this trade-off. Using CloudSim, BOHGOA outperformed GA, ACO, and FFD algorithms, reducing bandwidth consumption by 54.14%, 32.11%, 57.47% (240 VMs) and 38.12%, 22.76%, 47.05% (500 VMs) respectively. Additionally, it decreased physical machine energy usage by 37.70%, 34.01%, 40.14% (240 VMs) and 27.50%, 22.28%, 30.52% (500 VMs) respectively. These results underscore BOHGOA's effectiveness in optimizing cloud VM placement.

The world is moving to the next phase of the energy transition with high penetrations of renewable energy. Flexible and scalable redox flow battery (RFB) technology is expected to play an important role in ensuring electricity network security and reliability. Continuous performance improvements will further enhance their value by reducing parasitic losses and maximizing available energy conversion over broader operating conditions. Concentration overpotentials from poor internal reactant distribution at high and low states of charge (SOC) limit power densities and are thus an important area of investigation. However, efforts to address these coupled electrochemical phenomena can compromise mechanical performance. Modelling and simulation of cell design innovations have shown it is possible to reduce losses from pump energy while increasing the availability of active species where required. The combination of wedge-shaped cells with static mixers investigated in this paper can reduce pressure drop and improve energy efficiency. Toroidal vanadium redox flow battery (VRB/VRFB) designs incorporating this innovation are presented for further development to improve community engagement with the technology.

Nowadays, all the stakeholders, policy makers, regulators, aircraft designers, producers, operators, etc.) are intensively working on development of the aircraft with full electric and hybrid propulsion systems. However, the technical, technological constrains (like limit on accumulator energy density) require introducing a new approach to conceptual design of such aircraft. The new methods is based on energy and mass balance evaluation. This paper analyses the identified constrains; integrates the energy and mass balance equations into the preliminary definition and calculations of the aircraft performance. By this way, the technological constrains might be transferred into the limitation on the aircraft energy and mass breakdown, that initiates a new approach to aircraft conceptual design uses the knowledge based multidisciplinary optimization. The paper describes the developed methodology for conceptual design of aircraft. It show results of implementing this new development philosophy to conceptual design of a four-seat small electric/hybrid aircraft and a special hybrid cargo UAV. The discussion of the results including got by using the emerging and enabling new technologies and new methods and solutions (including for example distributed propulsion system, unconventional forms, morphing, biomimics, etc.), demonstrates the possible implementation of the new development philosophy, new approach to aircraft conceptual design.

The prefabricated ECC/RC combined shear wall structure is an innovative prefabricated composite structure with better seismic performance by using ECC materials with better ductility in the main force and energy consumption regions of the prefabricated reinforced concrete (RC) shear wall structure. The key factors controlling the seismic energy dissipation capacity of this kind of structure are the use regions of ECC in composite coupling beams, use regions of ECC in shear walls, strength of ECC, stirrup ratio of coupling beams, strength of longitudinal reinforcement and so on. The parameters affecting seismic energy consumption are quantified by the finite element analysis method. By comparing and analyzing the load-displacement curves, hysteresis curves, energy dissipation capacity and stiffness degradation of the prefabricated ECC/RC combined shear wall structure specimen under these parameters, it is proposed that the best use regions of ECC is the cast-in-situ zone of the coupling beams with the scope of no more than400 mm at the shear walls’ bottom. The strength grade, the strength grade of longitudinal reinforcement, and the stirrup ratio of coupling beams are suggested design as E40, HRB400 and 0.5%, respectively.

This work presents the design, construction and performance evaluation of a photovoltaic greenhouse as an energy hub (EH) in modern agriculture that integrates battery energy storage (BES) and an electric vehicle charging station (EV). The greenhouse is composed of 48 semi-transparent PV panels with nominal transparency of 20% and 110 W capacity. The control of the PV greenhouse as EH was approached as an optimization problem with the aim of minimizing the cost of the energy used from the grid. Simulation results indicate that the integrated BES is capable of balancing power transactions within the microgrid. In addition, it was found that the case of slow charging of the EV at night was less demanding on the BES than fast charging during the day in terms of abrupt power transitions and average depletion of BES SOC (61% vs 53%). Empirical results also demonstrated the negative impact of dust generated by agricultural activity on the performance of solar panels. For a period analyzed of three years, an average yearly production loss of 6.8% was calculated.

Hydrogen powered vehicles use high-pressure reservoirs from which the gas is transferred to the low-pressure fuel-cell via a classical pressure reduction valve. In these systems no expansion work is recovered and the question is addressed of the potential to increase the global efficiency by using an expansion machine between the reservoir and the electrochemical reactor. This paper investigates the feasibility of such an expansion machine, evaluates the mechanical constraints in terms of forces, torques and produced power by numeric simulation. It further evaluates the energetic contribution to the whole conversion chain from the hydrogen reservoir to the common electrical network on board. A low energy contribution of the expansion system addresses the question of the real benefit of such an investment.

Floating Offshore Wind Turbine (FOWT) is an innovative technology with little industry guidance for its hull design. Various FOWT floaters with different hull shapes claim to support the same turbines. Structural integrity and material expense analyses of different pontoon shapes were conducted, and it was found that some configurations, such as those with every two columns connected by both pontoon and bracing, have advantages over others. However, it is important to note that the choice of pontoon shape should be based on the wave loading conditions the floater will be exposed to. While a T-shaped pontoon provides a cost-effective solution under certain wave loading scenarios, it may not be the best option for all conditions. Specifically, ring pontoon designs with full bracing were found to be necessary for withstanding certain wave loads. Therefore, it is important to consider different Dominant Load Parameters (DLP) and ensure that a FOWT floater can withstand all applicable DLPs. An uneven hexahedral column shape, which combines the best attributes of square and round shapes, is proposed as a better alternative to cylindrical columns. It offers ease of manufacture and reasonably low drag. Bracing is found to be necessary for withstanding the wind turbine’s incurred moment and forces. The conclusion is that platform design should prioritize manufacturing costs and strength over maximizing hydrodynamic performance.

Since the energy sector is the main source of greenhouse gases, it has the highest potential for improvement. Improvements can be achieved by generating energy from renewable sources. Combined with thermal energy storage, concentrating solar power plants represent a promising technology for dispatchable renewable energy, ensuring a stable energy supply even in remote areas without contributing to greenhouse gas emissions during operation. However, it is important to note that greenhouse gases and other polluting emissions may occur during the manufacturing process of concentrating solar power plant components. This work analyses the design of the receiver to produce thermal energy for the existing solar dish CSP plant at the Energy Center of the Politecnico di Torino. The objective of this plant is to produce hot water for a small case study. Considering the average solar irradiance for Turin equal to 800 W/m2, the surface heat flux was obtained from the first part of the analysis, which was used to obtain the maximum internal temperature in the receiver equal to 873.7 °C. The maximum temperature obtained was a constraint for the selection of the material for the solar receiver. Of the various possibilities, copper was chosen. In the second part of the work, a Life Cycle Assessment was carried out to compare the emissions generated during the production of the main components of the CSP plant with the emissions generated by the methane-fuelled water heater that produces the same amount of water as the CSP plant. It can be concluded that the manufacture of the main components of the CSP plant results in lower greenhouse gas emissions than the operational phase of a conventional natural gas-fired water heater (1.6 kg CO2/day).

This paper evaluates an architectural design using an Energy Consumption consideration of Natural Ventilation in a hot dry climate (Khartoum State), at dwellings design applied. Method was used analysis of Autodesk IEVS software natural ventilation and energy consumption simulation. It resulted that to cooling, by natural ventilation in dwelling design used to get indoor temperature at the comfortable level during the summer. The Best-Case Situation of natural ventilation with consider of energy saving Based on the CFD simulation analysis, the performance of internal air velocity is approximately 0.7m/s. The wind velocity starts to slow down towards the rear of the apartment spaces. Approximately 95% of the internal areas have average air velocity between 0.43 m/s to 0.9 m/s. Internal Air flow pattern single floor house plan at Khartoum (Alazhari City); showing the internal air velocity of 0.7m/s near the window opening positions with the wind directions in the details and pressure of the air as worst-case situation, with velocity and temperature of the air with average 22o as a best-case situation. during a year. Architectural design process in the urban area of Alazhari City for dwelling towards to saving energy was applied and determined into an urban planning neighbourhood at Khartoum.

Quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA) are a promising nanoscale computing technology that exploits the quantum mechanical tunneling of electrons between quantum dots in a cell and electrostatic interaction between dots, in neighboring cells. QCA can achieve higher speed, lower power, and smaller areas than conventional complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) technology. Developing QCA circuits in a logically and physically reversible manner can provide exceptional reductions in energy dissipation. The main challenge of reversible QCA design is to maintain reversibility down to the physical level. The arithmetic logic unit (ALU) is an essential component of the central processing unit (CPU) of a computer. It performs various arithmetic and logical operations on the data that the CPU processes. Current QCA ALU designs are either irreversible or logically reversible; however, they lack physical reversibility, a crucial requirement to increase energy efficiency. In this paper, we present a novel multilayer design for a logically and physically reversible QCA ALU based on majority gates as the key components, which can perform 16 different operations. We use QCADesigner-E software to simulate and evaluate energy dissipation. The proposed logically and physically reversible QCA ALU offers an improvement of 88.8% in energy efficiency. Compared to the next most efficient 16-operation QCA ALU, this ALU uses 51% fewer QCA cells and 47% less area.

In recent years, unquestionable warnings like the negative impacts of CO2 emissions, the necessity of utilizing sustainable energy sources, and the rising demand for municipal electrification have been issued. In this study, by incorporating two significant assumptions, such as electricity production in close proximity to the business location and only renewable energy resource usage, a modest off-grid hybrid energy system is designed. To construct the system, a number of elements such as wind generators (WG), photovoltaic arrays (PV), battery banks, and bi-directional converters are taken into account. Moreover, a real case in Malmö, Sweden, is considered. To optimize the system, a bi-objective problem is developed, and it is solved by proposing a particle swarm optimization (PSO) approach to provide the load requirements (with a maximum allowance of 0.1% unmet) for a nearby supermarket (approximately 1000 m2). Moreover, to verify the obtained results, the developed system is simulated using HOMER Pro software, and the results are compared and discussed. The contribution of this study is to provide off-grid or local clients around the world with a dependable and affordable option by minimizing both the baseline cost of energy and the net current expenditure in the desired system. The best-obtained results by the proposed PSO offered 160 PVs, 5 WGs, and 350 batteries, respectively, while the best solution found by the simulation method was using 384 PVs, 5 WGs, and 189 batteries for the considered off-grid system.

Building more energy efficient and sustainable urban areas that will both mitigate the effect of climate change and adapt for the future climate, requires the development new tools and methods that can help urban planners, architect and communities achieve this goal. In the current study, we designed a workflow that links different methodologies developed separately, to derive the energy consumption of a university school campus for the future. Three different scenarios for typical future years (2039, 2069, 2099) were run as well as a renovation scenario (Minergie-P). We analyse the impact of climate change on the heating and cooling demand of the buildings and determined the relevance of the accounting of the local climate in this particular context. The results from the simulations showed that in the future there will a constant decrease in the heating demand while for the cooling demand there will be a significant increase. It was further demonstrated that when the local climate was taken into account there was an even higher rise in the cooling demand but also that the proposed renovations were not sufficient to design resilient buildings. We then discuss the implication of this work on the simulation of building energy consumption at the neighbourhood scale and the impact of future local climate on energy system design. We finally give a few perspective regarding improved urban design and possible pathways for the future urban areas.

The current revolution in communication and information technology is facilitating the Internet of Things (IoT) infrastructure. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) are a broad category of IoT applications. However, power management in WSN poses a significant challenge when the WSN is required to operate for a long duration without the presence of a consistent power source. In this paper, we develop a batteryless, ultra-low-power Wireless Sensor Transmission Unit (WSTx) depending on the solar-energy harvester and LoRa technology. We investigate the feasibility of harvesting ambient indoor light using polycrystalline photovoltaic (PV) cells with a maximum power of 1.4mW. The study provides comprehensive power management design details and a description of the anticipated challenges. The power consumption of the developed WSTx was 21.09µW during the sleep mode and 11.1mW during the operation mode. The harvesting system can harvest energy up to 1.2mW per second, where the harvested energy can power the WSTx for six hours with a maximum power efficiency of 85.714%.

Student attendance serves many other important purposes aside from monitoring. In certain universities, the attendance of students in a course is also used as one of the requirements for students to be allowed to sit for the final examination. Traditionally, among most Malaysian Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL), attendance recording is usually done using pen and paper, or uses simple web-based system that is time consuming and difficult for faculty periodic monitoring. To address the identified drawbacks, this research aims to develop a Smart Attendance for Faculty Monitoring System using the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology to assist faculty in recording, managing and monitoring students’ attendance and class schedules effectively. The system is developed for Android-based devices using an agile methodology consists of iteration and incremental approaches. Thus, to evaluate the effectiveness of the system, a survey was conducted on 140 respondents involving lecturers and students of Kolej Universiti Poly-Tech MARA (KUPTM). Respondents were selected using purposive sampling. The descriptive analysis showed that 87.9% of the respondents strongly agreed that the system is effective in assisting lecturers to record attendance, manage class schedules and student attendance as well as to assist faculty in monitoring students’ absenteeism.

In response to the growing demand for high-strength and high-toughness materials in industries like aerospace and automobiles, there is a need for metal matrix composites (MMCs) that can simultaneously enhance strength and toughness. This paper focuses on the design configurations of MMCs, which include both the configurations resulting from reinforcements and the inherent heterogeneity of the matrix itself. The mechanical properties of MMCs are influenced by factors such as reinforcement content, shape, size, and spatial distribution within the composite architecture. Among them, Aluminum matrix composites (AMCs) are particularly significant in aerospace, electronics, and electric vehicles due to their potential for weight reduction and enhanced performance. However, the challenge lies in the inverse relationship between strength and toughness, hindering the widespread utilization and large-scale development of MMCs. The design configuration of composites plays a critical role in achieving concurrent improvements in strength and toughness. This review explores the advantages of toughness, toughening mechanisms, reinforcement distribution characteristics, and structural parameters in the design of composite architectures. Drawing inspiration from biological composites like bone, the development of synthetic composites with homogeneous structural designs provides insights into attaining exceptional strength and toughness in lightweight engineering structures. Additionally, understanding fracture behavior and toughening mechanisms in heterogeneous nanostructures is vital for advancing the field of metal matrix composites. Summarily, the design of composite architectures holds tremendous potential for tailoring AMCs with outstanding strength and toughness, addressing the requirements of lightweight engineering structures in various industries.

The principle of the constancy of the velocity of light, which stated that the light velocity is invariant to the motion of the emitter, was well established and directly proven by experiments. Interestingly, the further assumption that the light velocity is independent of the motion of the observer was, arguably, never directly proven by any experiment for a century. This paper proposed the design of two experiments to directly test this assumption, which tried to address some perceived technical difficulty in such experiments. One is to directly measure the light speed as to moving sensors. The experiment setup is designed in such a way that the concerns of time synchronization and dilation can be avoided. Another experiment is to test the isotropy of the light speed to a moving particle in the electromagnetic accelerator by measuring the momentum to acceleration ratio. The experiment result, if positive, will provide direct and solid proof of the assumption. Otherwise, it may imply a need for further investigation. Since the light speed invariance to moving observers is a key assumption of some fundamental physical theory, either way, the experiments will have significant meanings.

(1) Background: The imaging energy range of a typical Compton camera is limited due to the fact that scattered gamma photons are seldom fully absorbed when the incident energies are above 3 MeV. Further improving the upper energy limit of gamma-ray imaging has important application significance in active interrogation of special nuclear materials and chemical warfare agents, as well as range verification of proton therapy; (2) Methods: To realize gamma-ray imag-ing in a wide energy range of 0.3~7 MeV, a principle prototype, named a portable three-layer Compton camera, was developed using the scintillation detector that consist of an silicon photo-multiplier array coupled with a Gd3Al2Ga3O12:Ce pixelated scintillator array. Implemented in a list-mode maximum likelihood expectation maximization algorithm, a far-field energy-domain imaging method based on two-interaction and three-interaction events was applied to estimate the initial energy and spatial distribution of gamma-ray sources. The simulation model of detec-tors was established based on Monte Carlo simulation toolkit Geant4. The reconstructed images of a 133Ba, a 137Cs and a 60Co point-like sources were successfully obtained with our prototype in laboratory tests and compared with simulation studies; (3) Results: The proportion of effective imaging events accounted for about 2%, which made our prototype realize reconstructing the distribution of a 0.05 μSv/h 137Cs source in 10 seconds. The angular resolution for resolving two 137Cs point-like sources was 15°. Additional simulated imaging of the 6.13 MeV gamma-rays from 14.1 MeV neutron scattering with water preliminarily demonstrated the imaging capability for high incident energy; (4) Conclusions: We concluded that the prototype had good imaging per-formance in a wide energy range (0.3~7 MeV), which showed potential in several MeV gam-ma-ray imaging applications.

This paper presents the design and implementation of a versatile IoT testbed utilizing the openHab platform along with various wireless interfaces, including Z-Wave, ZigBee, WiFi, 4G-LTE, and IR, and an array of sensors for motion, temperature, luminance, humidity, vibration, UV, and energy consumption. First, the testbed architecture, setup, basic testing, and collected data results are described. Then, by showcasing a typical day in the laboratory, we illustrate the testbed's potential through the collection and analysis of data from multiple sensors. The study also explores the capabilities of the openHab platform, including its robust persistence layer, event management, real-time monitoring, and customization. The significance of the testbed in enhancing data-collection methodologies for energy assets and unlocking new possibilities in the realm of IoT technologies is particularly highlighted.

Cantilever beams are the most widely used form of strain-driven energy harvesting, which uses piezoelectric materials. Although researchers are constantly seeking improved power output from cantilever-beam-driven piezoelectric energy harvesters, a systematic and fundamental analysis of the effect of beam geometry on the power capacity of energy harvesters warrants further investigation. Most of the previous research accounts for beams that are fully coated with piezoelectric material. While a larger coating area increases energy output, it also escalates costs as piezoelectric materials are very expensive. Considering the high cost of piezoelectric materials when dealing with limited piezoelectric material, enhancing power output can be achieved by employing a larger base beam and coating a portion of it at the fixed end. As such, the aim of this work is to investigate a wide variety of cantilever beam shapes (e.g., trapezoidal, triangular, V-cut, concave, and convex) with partial piezoelectric material coating on the base beam to maximize the power output capacity of the harvester. To ascertain a comparable argument, the surface area, volume, and mass of all the considered beam shapes are kept consistent, as these parameters influence the power output of the harvester. The geometry of each shape is systematically varied to understand the effect of geometric configuration on the output power density. Finally, the power capacities of all types of beams are compared, and a design is proposed to obtain the maximum power output. It was found that when the surface area of both the beam and piezoelectric material is kept constant and piezoelectric material is located at the fixed end, a trapezoidal beam with a smaller base width and larger free end width is the most efficient in generating power as long as the structural integrity is maintained. The finding is completely opposite as was suggested by previous studies, which proposed that a trapezoidal beam with a smaller free end yields higher output. Instead, this study demonstrates that an inverted trapezoidal beam produced higher output, considering partial coating compared to the full beam coating used in previous studies. Additionally, a correlation is presented on how the beam resonance frequency shifts with variation in beam parameters.

Histone deacetylases (HDAC) represent promising epigenetic targets for several diseases including different cancer types. The HDAC inhibitors approved to date are pan-HDAC inhibitors and most show a poor selectivity profile, side effects and especially hydroxamic acid based inhibitors lack good pharmacokinetic profiles. Therefore, the development of isoform-selective non-hydroxamic acid HDAC inhibitors is a highly regarded field in medicinal chemistry. In this study, we analyzed different ligand-based and structure-based drug design techniques to predict the binding mode and inhibitory activity of recently developed alkylhydrazide HDAC inhibitors. Alkylhydrazides have recently attracted more attention as they have shown promising effects in various cancer cell lines. In this work, pharmacophore models and atom-based quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models were generated and evaluated. The binding mode of the studied compounds was determined using molecular docking as well as molecular dynamics simulations and compared with known crystal structures. Calculated free energies of binding were also considered to generate QSAR models. The models created show a good explanation of in vitro data and were used to develop novel HDAC3 inhibitors.

Wireless Powered Communication Networks (WPCN), which has attracted much attention of researchers, also been recently recommended in 5^th generation (5G) wireless networks. With the help of the WPCN, the reliability and battery life of wireless low-power devices can be improved. In this paper, we investigate throughput and ergodic capacity in WPCN-assisted amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying system, considering two transmission modes including delay-tolerant and delay-limited. As important achievement, we propose symmetric energy harvesting protocol, namely time power switching relaying (TPSR) in order to find maximal throughput. In particular, both time switching and power switching coefficients in this schemes are considered. Unlike most of the previous works, we further focus on impact of outdated channel state information (CSI) in this WPCN. In order to evaluate information processing efficiency, the performance can be substantially improved by optimally harvesting time and power coefficients of the received signal at relay node for energy and information extraction, and by deploying several scenarios. By deploying Monte Carlo simulation, it is confirmed that the system performance is more sensitive to CSI estimation error, noise variance, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and resulting in other reasonable computations of TPSR need be deployed to obtain QoS requirement.

Global temperature rise due to hydrocarbon gases emission that are produced by generating the electrical power has a great attention by the researchers to reduce it till zero emission is successfully achieved. Sustainable energy source such as solar energy, wind, hydro-energy and sea wave energy are focal areas to replace the fossil fuel by clean energy. In this article, daylight is used to minimize the power consumption that required for indoor lighting using electric roller blind. Smart controller is designed to adjust the position of the roller blind stepper motor, and hence, adjust the roller blind opening, based on the preset light intensity, to achieve precise utilization of daylight inside the room. If the desired Lux is not achieved for any reason, the smart controller adjusts the LED circuit current to boost the light intensity to achieve precisely the desired Lux. Comprehensive test cases using MATLAB-Simulink is carried out to verify the performance of the proposed smart controller. Techno-economic analysis is introduced to evaluate the benefits of installing the controller. Summary and recommendation are given at the end.

When considering implementation of shallow geothermal energy as a renewable source for heating and cooling of the building, special care should be taken in hydraulic design of borehole heat exchanger system. Laminar flow can occur in pipes due to usage of glycol mixture at low temperature or inadequate flow rate. This can lead to lower heat extraction and rejection rates of the exchanger because of higher thermal resistances. Furthermore, by increasing flow rate to achieve turbulent flow and satisfactory heat transfer rate can lead to increase the pressure drop of the system and oversizing of circulation pump which leads to impairment of seasonal coefficient of performance at the heat pump. Most frequently used borehole heat exchanger system in Europe is double-loop pipe system with smooth inner wall. Lately, development is focused on implementation of different configuration as well as with ribbed inner wall which ensures turbulent flow in the system, even at lower flow rates. At a location in Zagreb, classical and extended thermal response test was conducted on three different heat exchanger configurations in the same geological environment. With classic TRT test, thermogeological properties of the ground and thermal resistance of the borehole were determined for each smooth or turbulator pipe configuration. Extended Steady-State Thermal Response Step Test (TRST) was implemented, which incorporate series of power steps to determine borehole extraction rate at the define steady-state heat transfer conditions of 0/-3°C. Results show that heat exchangers with ribbed inner pipe wall have advantages over classic double-loop smooth pipe design, in terms of greater steady state heat extraction rate and more favorable hydraulic conditions.

This paper presents a microgrid distributed energy resources (DERs) for a rural standalone system. It is made up of solar photovoltaic (solar PV) system, battery energy storage system (BESS), and wind turbine coupled to permanent magnet synchronous generator (WT-PMSG). The DERs are controlled by maximum power point tracking (MPPT) based proportional intergral (PI) controllers for both maximum power tracking and error feedback compensation. The MPPT uses the perturb and observe (P&O) algorithm for tracking the maximum power point of the DERs. The PI gains are tuned using the Ziegler-Nichol’s method. The developed system was built and simulated in MATLAB/Simulink under two conditions - constant load, and step load changes. The controllers enabled the BESS to charge even during conditions of varying load and other environmental factors such as change of irradiance and wind speed. The reference was tracked very well by the output voltage of the DC grid. This is a useful research for electrifying the rural islanded areas, too far from the grid.

Issues related to safe and abundant energy production have been prominent in recent years. This is particularly tr ue when society considers how to increase the quality of life by providing low-cost energy to citizens. A significant concern of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) relates to the environmental effects of energy production and energy use associated with climate change. Efforts to reduce fossil fuel use and increase the use of renewable energy, together with the price volatility of fossil fuels, have seriously impacted the economics of many of the oil-producing countries, particularly the Gulf States, which has led to efforts to make their economies more diverse and less dependent on oil production.

The world is facing an energy crisis. Governments are seeking to provide universal energy access and guarantee energy security while trying to mitigate climate change. One possible solution is energy transitions towards low carbon energy systems. Among other things (physical infrastructure, public policy and regulatory enablers and knowledge and capacities) changes in the energy systems require a well informed and participative citizenship. Within this context the concept of energy literacy appears. Energy literacy is the understanding of how energy is generated, transported, stored, distributed and used, awareness about its environmental and social impacts and the knowledge to use it efficiently in the different sectors of the economy. This paper provides a systematic literature review in the Web of Science’s Core Collection. Most of the work done around energy literacy addresses its evaluation among different groups, particularly students at different levels, and the construction, application and evaluation of tools for improving energy literacy. Other frequently studied issues are the influence of energy literacy in decision making, its drivers and conceptual research about the topic. Energy enables citizens to effectively contribute to energy efficiency and sustainable development, nevertheless energy literacy is not strongly correlated to energy consumption habits.

The term sustainable energy is very familiar to all of us yet its exact definition or meaning has so far been vague. To date the widely adopted definition of sustainable energy has been inspired by the definition of sustainable development formulated more than 30 years ago in the Our Common Future - the UN’s Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development. The current definition conceals the true spirit of the Report and this has some ramifications. It raises the question as to whether we have put too much emphasis on attaining the future dimension of sustainability in the middle of the situation where the energy survivability is in fact the real issue in many parts of the world. In this paper the role of energy in sustaining livelihoods of low income communities is discussed. Existing definition of sustainable energy that the whole world seems to have embraced is looked at critically and its downsides exposed. The identified pillars of sustainable energy and the associated issues is discussed and the need for an additional pillar, i.e. affordability is discussed and called for. This paper will argue that global definition of sustainable energy seems inappropriate and should be jettisoned and a more realistic definition should be formulated, adopted and embraced at local (i.e. national or regional) level taking into account local attributes and factors. The current push for a transition from the reliance on conventional energy sources to ‘cleaner’ energy sources (generally associated with renewable energy) has further exacerbated the issue of energy affordability that has made the conditions even more dire for so many groups of the world population. In the midst of this situation, those who push for a rushed energy transition seem to be those who also produce unsustainably high carbon footprint but who can easily offset their carbon foot-print through the ‘net-zero’ concept.

With the unceasing advancement in wide-bandgap (WBG) semiconductor technology, the minimal reverse-recovery charge Qrr and other more powerful natures of WBG transistors enable totem-pole bridgeless PFC to become a dominant solution for energy storage systems (ESS). This paper focuses on design and implementation of a control structure for a totem-pole boost PFC with newfangled enhancement-mode Gallium Nitride (eGaN) FETs, not only to simplify the control implementation, but also to achieve high power quality and efficiency. The converter is designed to convert a 90-264-VAC input to a 385-VDC output for a 2.6-kW output power. Lastly, to validate the methodology, an experimental prototype is characterized and fabricated. The uttermost efficiency at 230 VAC attains 99.14%. The lowest total harmonic distortion in the current (ITHD) at high line condition (230 V) reaches 1.52% while the power factor gains 0.9985.

Earth’s climate cannot be ignored any longer. Policies are vital in order to mitigate the negative effects of climate change. The energy crisis created by the Russo-Ukrainian war and pandemic affected the EU and its member states. The focus is more than ever on its energy policies and independence. The EU revised the energy strategy in response to Russia’s blackmail, and it sped up all the processes for energetic independence from Russia. This benefited the climate change policies the most, as all the measures involved reducing energy consumption and increasing renewables, thus contributing to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As a member state of the EU, Romania is committed to complying with EU regulations. With a high degree of energy independence compared with the other EU members, Romania plans to become a regional energy provider and modernize the energy infrastructure internally as a response to Russia’s unprovoked aggression. The measures that the EU and Romania implemented after the war started in 2022 have come to fruition, and the effects are becoming visible a year later. This study aims to study the energy strategy of Romania in correlation with the EU strategy in the turbulent period of pandemics and war between 2019 and 2023, with the latest available data.

The Universe at last scattering is locally treated as an unbound gas. The internal kinetic energy of the gas effectively constitutes a scalar energy field. The gas’s adiabatic expansion is entropic, giving repulsive entropic pressure. Gas kinetic energy is converted into entropic energy gain (63%) and isoentropic work against gravity (37%) at a constant 63:37 ratio. A three-term expression of the gas’s Hubble parameter is derived and found to be exclusively dependent on its mass density. At last scattering, this model gives a Hubble constant that is 125% of the value found from the ΛCDM model. After partition of Universal mass into the cosmic web of galaxies and the intergalactic medium (IGM), expansion came mostly from the IGM, presently comprising about 84% of total Universal mass and 90% of its volume. The onset of star formation within the cosmic web increased the IGM’s kinetic energy through the action of starlight, giving free electrons as an additional repository. Many of these free electrons are suprathermal. Suprathermal energy from both electrons and protons comprises about half of the IGM’s total kinetic energy and is expressed in the ΛCDM model as “dark energy” Λ. Entropic pressure derives from thermodynamic laws not found within general relativity.

This article aims to assess the benefits of floor-slab insulation measures using extruded polystyrene (XPS) and polyisocyanurate (polyiso) insulation materials at various levels of insulation thicknesses for a detached residential building. The EnergyPlus simulation analysis was carried out within the seven energy zones (represented by eight locations) of South Africa in accordance with the South African national code for building energy efficiency (SANS10400-XA). The energy savings and payback periods due to use of the insulation over a lifecycle period of 50 years were assessed. Cape Town (zone 4) behaved differently from other locations and hardly benefitted from the application of floor-slab insulation measures. Generally, polyiso insulation performed better than XPS, for vertical gap insulation. For vertical gap insulation, lower insulation thicknesses required higher insulation depths to maximize energy savings. Similarly, lower insulation thicknesses required higher perimeter insulation widths to maximize energy savings, for the horizontal perimeter insulation method. The locations that benefitted most from vertical gap floor-slab insulation were Pretoria (zone2), Kimberley (zone6), Nelspruit (zone3), Fraserburg (zone7), Welkom (zone1), Mthatha (zone5), Ixopo (zone5H) and Cape Town (zone4) in that order. This order was almost similar with those for the horizontal perimeter floor-slab insulation and horizontal full floor-slab insulation methods.

Following an updated outlook of global energy production and utilization, we show through selected examples from both developing and developed countries how distributed generation from renewable energy sources, and from solar energy in particular, is the key solution to ending energy poverty across the world. Guidelines aimed at policy makers suggest a systems view of energy that will be instrumental in guiding the transition from fossil fuels to combustion-free renewable energy for all energy end uses.

This analysis focuses on identifying the most efficient and cost-effective method of supplying power to a remote site, exploring photovoltaics (PV) and small wind turbines as primary power sources, and evaluating battery banks and hydrogen storage fuel cell systems as potential storage options. The hydrogen storage system converts surplus renewable power into hydrogen through an elec-trolyzer, storing it for later use in a fuel cell when renewable sources produce less power, enabling efficient energy storage during peak production periods. A sensitivity analysis of wind speed and hydrogen subsystem cost was conducted to evaluate the hydrogen storage system's performance. The optimal system graph suggests that the hydrogen subsystem must significantly decrease in cost to rival the battery bank, and in most cases, both the hydrogen system and battery bank were recommended together, offering reliable and efficient power for the remote site. While the battery bank is presently the more feasible option for powering the remote site, continuous monitoring and evaluation of both systems, considering site location, energy needs, and available resources, are essential to determine the most suitable power supply approach as technology advances and costs evolve over time.

The water and wastewater sectors are energy-intensive, and so a growing number of utility companies are seeking to identify opportunities to reduce energy use. Though England’s water sector is of international interest, in particular due to the early experience with privatisation, for the time being very little published data on energy usage exists. We analyse telemetry data from Thames Water Utilities Ltd. (TWUL), which is the largest water and wastewater company in the UK and serves one of the largest mega-cities in the world, London. In our analysis, we (1) break down sectoral energy use into their components, (2) present a statistical method to analyse the long-term trends in use, as well as the seasonality and irregular effects in the data, (3) derive energy-intensity (kWh m³) figures for the system, and (4) compare the energy-intensity of the network against other regions in the world. Our results show that electricity use grew during the period 2009 to 2014 due to capacity expansions to deal with growing water demand and storm water flooding. The energy-intensity of the system is within the range of reported figures for systems in other OECD countries. Plans to improve the efficiency of the system could yield benefits in lower the energy-intensity, but the overall energy saving would be temporary as external pressures from population and climate change are driving up water and energy use.

Energy citizenship is increasingly receiving attention and highlights the transformation from passive to active energy consumers who are aware of and responsible for the energy transition. The topic is often associated with energy communities, which are regarded as organizations that allow citizens to directly engage in energy and broader sustainability initiatives. The objective of the article is to examine the extent of public and private engagement in the energy transition among cooperative members as well as the propensity of energy communities to promote empowerment and inclusivity. To this end, we employ a mixed-methods approach, involving a sample of 5402 participants and 20 qualitative interviews in two prominent energy cooperatives in Europe, Ecopower in Flanders and è nostra in Italy. Our results show that although a small group of members demonstrate strong and active engagement, the majority of members prefer to engage informally, while still benefitting from the empowerment provided by their cooperative. Interestingly, one subset of members is more closely aligned with the role of financial investors. Eventually, flexibility in defining and framing expectations of member engagement can play a crucial role in promoting inclusivity within energy communities, especially by bringing closer those relatively less familiar with the issue.

The evolution of transportation has been inextricably tied to the progress of civilization. Through innovation, the automobile business has been working to improve safety, quality, and compliance with environmental regulations. Electric vehicles have made significant strides in this area, but optimizing their efficiency requires a special focus because they expend energy that can be recovered in a variety of ways. Energy harvesting, a cutting-edge technology that captures wasted energy from vehicles, has recently received a lot of attention as it constitutes a means to improve the efficiency of electric vehicles. Dissipated energy can be converted into electricity using regenerative energy recovery systems and put to various uses. This study tenders a thorough examination into energy recovery technologies which could be applied to the various types of energy dissipated in electric vehicles. Firstly, the paper investigates the possible sources of energy recoverable from an electric vehicle, as well as the various types of energy dissipated. Secondly, the article examines the energy recovery technologies most frequently used in vehicles, categorizing them according to the type of energy and application. Finally, it determines that with further research and development, energy harvesting holds considerable potential for improving the energy efficiency of electric vehicles. New and innovative methods for capturing and utilizing wasted energy in electric vehicles can be established. The potential benefits of applying energy recovery systems in electric vehicles is a vital issue for the automobile industry to focus on due to the potential benefits involved. The ongoing progress currently being made in this field is expected to play a significant role in shaping the future of transportation.

Large-scale integration of solar energy technologies in Rome’s built environment epitomizes the needed general adoption of distributed generation via functionalization of buildings of all size and end use across the world, to become active energy generators and no longer energy users only. This paper identifies selected technology solutions and critical policy and educational initiatives to effectively achieve within the next decade (2018-2027) the widespread uptake of decentralized solar energy systems in the built environment on a global scale.

Small modular reactors (SMR) (<300 MW) offer a potentially attractive nuclear energy option for the middle-east region (MER). Currently, the MER uses a significant amount of fossil fuel to process heat applications such as water desalination and in petroleum refineries and chemical plants, besides generating electricity. SMR technologies represent an opportunity to meet future energy demand in the MER. This paper discusses issues related to the future development and use of SMR technology in nuclear-renewable hybrid energy systems for application in the middle east. SMRs have also been examined as part of a resilient hybrid energy system that combines nuclear energy with renewable energy and traditional fossil energy to produce chemicals, fuels, and electricity. This paper presents the results of a techno-economic analysis of a Nuclear-Renewable-Conventional Hybrid Energy System. The paper concludes that SMR technology will be an essential feature of future hybrid energy systems for the MER.

Energy system modelling is an essential practice to assist a set of heterogeneous stakeholders in the process of defining an effective and efficient energy transition. From the analysis of a set of open source energy system models, it has emerged that most models employ an approach directed at finding the optimal solution for a given set of constraints. On the contrary, a simulation model is a representation of a system that is used to reproduce and understand its behaviour under given conditions, without seeking an optimal solution. Given the lack of simulation models that are also fully open source, in this paper a new open source energy system model is presented. The developed tool, called Multi Energy Systems Simulator (MESS), is a modular, multi-node model that allows to investigate non optimal solutions by simulating the energy system. The model has been built having in mind urban level analyses. However, each node can represent larger regions allowing wider spatial scales to be be represented as well. MESS is capable of performing analysis on systems composed by multiple energy carriers (e.g. electricity, heat, fuels). In this work, the tool’s features will be presented by a comparison between MESS itself and an optimization model, in order to analyze and highlight the differences between the two approaches, the potentialities of a simulation tool and possible areas for further development.

As the cost of conventional energy continues to rise, and concerns over the environment grow, there is a growing interest in sustainable energy. It is believed that conventional energy will only last for around 50 years, making it essential to find a renewable energy source that is safe and feasible to replace fossil fuels. Solar energy is a superior alternative to conventional energy, as it is renewable and produces green energy that can be used directly. The maritime industry has found itself at the forefront of an evolving environmental consciousness, driven by the imperative to mitigate the carbon footprint left in the wake of ships. In this journey towards sustainability, solar energy has emerged as a beacon of hope, harnessing the boundless energy of the sun to wean vessels off their dependence on fossil fuels. Technological advancements have made solar power more accessible, and we can now see the use of solar panels on large ships and small crafts to reduce fuel usage and emissions. Solar panels are also increasingly used to power homes and businesses, and many countries are implementing policies to encourage their use. Solar energy is a key solution in reducing our dependence on non-renewable energy sources and combating climate change. However, the adoption of solar energy is but a stepping stone towards maritime sustainability, as the integration of CO2 capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies promises to amplify the industry's environmental impact to unprecedented heights.

Energy imbalance gap (EIG) is defined as the average daily difference between energy intake (EI) and energy expenditure (EE). This study aimed to examine the associations between EIG and sociodemographic and anthropometric variables in the adolescent population of eight Latin American countries. A total of 680 adolescents aged 15 to 18 were included in this study. EI was estimated using two non-consecutive 24-hour dietary recalls. EE was predicted from Schofield equations using physical activity levels obtained through the long version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Sociodemographic data and anthropometric measurements were also obtained. A descriptive analysis and multilevel linear regression models were used to examine associations between variables. The mean EI, EE, and EIG were 2091.3 kcal, 2067.8 kcal, and 23.5 kcal, respectively. Argentina and Colombia had the highest EI and EIG, whereas Chile and Costa Rica had the lowest EI and EIG. Males had a higher EI (2262.4 kcal) and EE (2172.2 kcal) than females (1930.1 kcal and 2084.5 kcal), respectively (p<0,05). Overweight subjects had a lower EIG than did underweight and normal-weight subjects (p<0,05). Subjects with high SES had a lower EE (2047.0 kcal) than those with low SES (1963.7 kcal) (p<0,05). Sex and BMI were associated with EIG in adolescents from Latin America.

A comprehensive Energy Audit of a Maintenance facility was performed to assess its energy performance and identify scope for improvement. The facility’s Energy Use Intensity (EUI) for 2022 was 404 kWh/m2 — more than double the Benchmark EUI for Maintenance facilities (151 kWh/m2) recommended by EnergyStar. Furthermore, the Load Factor for 2022 was 0.22, which is lower than the recommended minimum of 0.75 for an efficient building. The audit encompassed an in-depth evaluation of the building's structural and operational characteristics, comprising HVAC systems, lighting, building envelope, and energy-intensive machinery. An energy model of the building was developed to emulate the baseline building energy performance for 2022. Following the energy model's development and validation, an analysis was conducted to identify energy-intensive areas and opportunities for optimization. Energy Efficiency Measures were then formulated, focusing on improving energy efficiency while focusing on energy consumption reduction and GHG emission reduction. Results demonstrated the potential of Energy Audits and Modeling to enable significant reductions in energy consumption and promote sustainable building practices. Among the Energy Efficiency Measures considered, re-sizing and decarbonizing HVAC equipment contributed the most to energy savings, with a 100% decrease in natural gas and 37% decrease in electricity use annually.

The analysis presented is based on actual GHU energy demand. The special feature of this load is the existence of strong daily fluctuations in energy consumption, especially during the summer months. This study presents a methodology for managing such loads with the main objective of maximizing the operating efficiency of MG.

In the last 20 years, the share of renewable energy sources in the production of electricity in the European Union has doubled, from about 15% to almost 35%. The main driver of this development has been the increase in the share of wind energy and solar photovoltaic energy. The authors aim to analyze the influencing factors that affect the energy transition process applied to nautical tourism, from polluting energy to renewable solar energy. The authors' research approach consists in using the framework offered by the energy transition process from the perspective of the socio-technical and economic approach, by applying the qualitative research method with a deductive approach. The tool used to achieve the objective was the semi-structured interview. The research unitarily, holistically, and specifically approaches the problem of energy transition from polluting sources to renewable ones offered by solar energy, in the case of nautical tourism with direct implications on the specific industry in the Netherlands. The research results are structured in the fields of technology, governance, economics, and user preferences. This research has the potential to provide support to find optimal solutions that encourage users to accelerate the energy transition process by adopting sustainable solutions for nautical tourism.

Sustainability of current energy policies and known mid-term policies are analised in their multiple facets. First an overview is given about the trend of global energy demand and energy production, analysing the share of energy sources and the geographic distribution of demand, on the basis of statistics and projections published by major agencies. The issue of sustainability of the energy cycle is finally addressed, with specific reference to systems with high share of renewable energy and storage capability, highlighting some promising energy sources and storage approaches.

The global energy transition is motivated largely by the need to combat climate change. Other reasons include limits to available fossil fuels, energy-related environmental impacts of many kinds, and societal goals such as equity and providing sustainable energy for the poor. This transition will significantly change the world both technically, economically and socially. It is taking shape with characteristics which prioritise certain types of policy, interventions and solutions, as well as certain actors and institutional forces. More fundamentally, it embodies underlying assumptions about what constitutes a desirable type of economy and society. Briefly stated, the energy transition is being geared to a conventional economic growth-focused type of development; including the not unchallenged concept of green growth. Not everyone, however, would agree on those priorities or the underlying assumptions. We point out various constraints and limitations which this approach places on the energy transition. Whilst much of the change being initiated is positive, we argue that different views, which lie closer to discourses such as strong sustainability (1), deep ecology (2) and ecological economics (3, 4) might prioritise differently and offer both necessary and desirable outcomes. Given the predominant focus on energy and climate, equally essential goals such as equity and eradication of poverty appear to be at particular risk of being missed. Building on examples and recent experience we argue that achieving global sustainable energy, not least the societal goals, remains unlikely within socio-political frameworks permeated by the imperatives of market-driven growth, the commodification of resources, and intense competitive dynamics. Technology and economics, the themes of this issue, have far-reaching societal implications and outcomes. We argue that it is essential that they be considered within the broad context discussed here.

Paper presents the energy policy of the Republic of Serbia with special attention to the energy situation on the government controlled territory. South Serbian autonomous province of Kosovo and Metohija is under UN jurisdiction since the 1999 according to UNSC Resolution 1244. Renewable energy sources are rarely used in Serbia with exception of energy from hydropower plants, but in this sector priorities in geothermal and energy coming from biomass recently increased. In natural gas sector, Serbia has the deal with Russia for construction of South Stream gas-line through Serbia and for construction of the first underground storage in depleted gas reservoir in Banatski Dvor. In 2008, Serbia also sold 51% of the government founded petroleum industry – NIS which has exclusive monopoly for exploitation of crude oil. Serbian government has complete monopoly in electric power sector. Electric power infrastructure became technologically obsolete, and operative efficiency is at very low level. Serbia has not yet decided whether Serbian Electric Power Industry – EPS will be privatized. District heating sector mostly natural gas fuelled is highly inefficient and it is in jurisdiction of local municipalities but also has social component dictated by central government.

The integration of the increasing share of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) requires the availability of suitable energy storage systems to improve the grid flexibility, and Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) systems could be a promising option. In this study, a CO2-free Diabatic CAES system is proposed and analysed. The plant configuration is derived from a down-scaled version of the McIntosh diabatic CAES plant, where the natural gas is replaced with green hydrogen, produced on site by a Proton Exchange Membrane electrolyser powered by a Photovoltaic power plant. In this study, the components of the hydrogen production system are sized to maximize the Self-Consumption share of PV energy generation and the effect of the design parameters on the H2-CAES plant performance are analysed on a yearly basis. Moreover, a comparison between the use of natural gas and hydrogen in terms of energy consumption and CO2 emissions is discussed. The results show that the proposed hydrogen fuelled CAES can effectively match the generation profile and the yearly production of the natural gas fuelled plant by using all the PV energy production, while producing zero CO2 emissions.

“Energy” is probably the most important term in science and technology. The reason is energy can be converted while it is overall conserved, and thereby correlates changes of a wide variety. Despite its successful use in many areas over more than a century, an analysis of current literature shows that definitions of what energy is and explanations why it is conserved are inconsistent. With regard to energy forms not even a definition was found, and examples given are often wrong. Looking at two interacting objects in the most simple situations, with energy conservation but without conversion, a consistent understanding of energy and its conservation can be derived. Based on it, the systematic set of energy forms with a clear definition of each is then presented.

In this paper, solar irradiance and wind speed forecasts were performed considering time horizons ranging from 10 min to 60 min, under a 10 min time-step. Global horizontal irradiance (GHI) and wind speed were computed using four forecasting models (Random Forest, k-Nearest Neighbours, Support Vector Regression, and Elastic Net) to compare their performance against two alternative dynamic ensemble methods (windowing and arbitrating). Forecasting models and dynamic forecasting ensembles were implemented in Python for performance evaluation. The performance comparison between the prediction models and the dynamic ensemble methods was carried out by evaluating the RMSE, MAE, R² and MAPE, to evaluate whether the dynamic ensemble forecasting method obtained greater. According to the results obtained windowing dynamic ensemble method was the most efficient among the tested. For the wind speed data, by varying its parameter λ (from 1 to 100), a variable performance profile was obtained, where from λ =1 to λ = 74, windowing proved to be the most efficient, reaching maximum efficiency for λ = 19. Windowing was the best method for the GHI analysis, reaching its best performance for λ = 1. The efficiency gain using windowing was 0.56% when using the wind speed model and 1.96% for GHI.

A Life Cycle Analysis was performed considering three existing power plants of comparable size operating with different sources of renewable energy: geothermal, solar and wind. Primary data were used for building the life cycle inventories. The geothermal power plant includes emissions treatment for removal of hydrogen sulfide and mercury. The scenario about the substitution of natural emissions from geothermal energy, with specific reference to the greenhouse effect, is also investigated performing a sensitivity analysis. The results are characterized employing a wide portfolio of environmental indicators employing the Recipe 2016 and the ILCD 2011 Midpoint+ methods; normalization and weighting are also applied using the Recipe 2016 method at endpoint level. The results demonstrate a good eco-profile of geothermal power plant with respect to other renewable energy systems and allow for a critical analysis to support potential improvements of the environmental performances.

In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), residential buildings’ energy consumption accounts for almost 50% of the building stock electricity consumption. The electricity generation consumes over one-third of the daily oil production. KSA was ranked as one of the highest countries in fossil fuel consumption per capita in 2014. Moreover, the KSA’s economy heavily relies on fossil fuel sources, namely oil reservoirs, whereby depletion will negatively affect the future development of the country. The total electricity consumption is annually growing by approximately 5-8%, which would lead to identical oil consumption to oil production in 2035. Currently, the KSA government is concerned to generate more renewable energy using large renewable energy plants. The government is investing in energy generation through renewable sources, by financing large scale photovoltaic farms to stop an economic crisis that may occur in 2035. The existing building stock consumes around 80% of the total current Saudi electricity that is generated. According to the Saudi energy efficiency report, the primary energy consumption per capita is over three times higher than the world average. Therefore, the residential buildings need further assessment as to their current energy consumption. This research used a survey to explore current user behaviour in residential buildings energy performance in the city of Jeddah, KSA. The findings of the survey showed: • The buildings thermal properties were found to be poorly designed • The majority of users within the buildings prefer a room temperature of below 24 °C, which requires a massive amount of cooling • Due to the climate conditions and the cultural aspects of KSA, housing units are occupied for more than 18 hours per day • An increase in user awareness has helped to slightly improve residential buildings energy efficiency Knowing the current high energy consumption sources and causes and being able to define available opportunities for further developments on building thermal properties enhancements and how to increase user awareness to reach self-sustaining buildings is essential.

An energy diagnosis is a tool used to seek the improvement of energy saving measures, environmental conservation and energy efficiency, making relevant its implementation in any kind of buildings. For this article, an energy diagnosis of third level was carried out in buildings of the Instituto de Energías Renovables (IER) from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) through survey and census of the 36 buildings in the IER, in order to characterize current patterns of energy consumption and demand, and generating specific strategies towards savings and energy efficiency, such as indicators and corrective proposals within and non-financial investment.

In the face of escalating climate concerns and the push for sustainable development, the global shift towards renewable and decentralized energy systems presents new challenges and opportunities. This study investigates integrating decentralized energy production, particularly photovoltaic (PV) systems, into national energy planning, aiming to optimize energy strategies that balance local production and consumption with national objectives. By analyzing the Swiss energy model, the research employs the EnergyScope and REHO models to assess the strategic implications of decentralized versus centralized energy systems. Results show that a decentralized approach can significantly reduce PV installation needs to 35 GW, about 23% of potential capacity, and decrease annual system costs by 10% to CHF 1230 per capita. This strategy emphasizes local consumption, minimizes grid reinforcement demands, and leverages economic advantages while addressing overproduction challenges through effective energy storage and grid management. Conclusions underline the strategic value of combining centralized and decentralized methods for resilient and sustainable energy planning. The study contributes to the discourse on energy policy and infrastructure planning, advocating for a hybrid model that accommodates both local conditions and broader energy objectives, urging further research into climate impacts and technology integration for a comprehensive energy future.

Energy efficiency is, in principle, a simple idea: an output of human value, for example, vehicle-km traveled, divided by the needed input energy. Efficiency improvements are regarded by many as an important means of mitigating not only climate change, but also other environmental problems. Accordingly, many countries have efficiency ratings for appliances and efficiency standards for road vehicles. Despite the vast number of articles published on energy efficiency, few question whether it is a useful or accurate measure in its present form. This review addresses this lack, by a critical review of the literature, not only in energy efficiency, but in other areas of research, such as ‘energy services’, that can help broaden the scope of this idea, both geographically and conceptually. These shortcomings are illustrated in case studies of road passenger transport and buildings. The main findings are that energy efficiency inevitably has an ethical dimension, that feedbacks are more widespread than generally considered, and that conventional efficiency measures omit important energy input items, particularly those concerned with mining of the materials needed for renewable energy plants. Finally, the key results of this review are summarized, and its limitations are discussed, as is the future research needed to overcome these shortcomings.

In this study, we propose a module-type triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) capable of harvesting power from a variety of mechanical energy sources. The potential energy and kinetic energy of water are used for the rotational motion of the generator module, and electricity is generated by the contact/separation generation mode between the two triboelectric surfaces inside the rotating TENG. Through the parametric design of the internal friction surface structure and mass ball, we optimized the output of the proposed structure. To magnify the power, experiments were conducted to optimize the electrical output of the series of TENG units. The electrical signal generated by the module-type TENG can be used as a sensor to recognize the strength and direction of various physical quantities, such as wind or earthquake vibrations.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is a cornerstone of the global effort to transition towards cleaner and more sustainable energy systems. This paper explores the pivotal role of PV technology in re-ducing greenhouse gas emissions and combatting the pressing issue of climate change. At the heart of its efficacy lies the efficiency of PV materials, which dictates the extent to which sunlight is transformed into electricity. Over the last decade, substantial advancements in PV efficiency have propelled the widespread adoption of solar PV technology on a global scale. The efficiency of PV materials is a critical factor, determining how effectively sunlight is transformed into electricity. Enhanced efficiency, achieved through a decade of progress, has driven the global expansion of solar PV. Multi-junction photovoltaic materials have now exceeded 40% efficiency in lab tests. China leads the world in solar PV installations, boasting over 253 GW of installed capacity by the end of 2021. Other prominent countries in this sector are the United States, Japan, Germany, and India. Supportive policies like feed-in tariffs, net metering, tax incentives, and cost reductions in PV modules have made solar PV increasingly competitive against fossil fuel-based power generation. Solar PV technology holds immense potential for creating a cleaner, reliable, scalable, and cost-effective electricity system. To expedite its deployment and foster a more sustainable energy future, continued investment in research and development, along with supportive policies and market mechanisms, is essential. This paper underscores the pivotal role of solar PV technology in the global energy transition and advocates for a concerted effort to unlock its full potential in achieving a more sustainable and resilient energy future.

The quickest and easiest way to avoid greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is to purchase renewable electricity and offset the remaining emissions. However, the industrial sector’s electricity needs already exceed renewable electricity generation. Moreover, electricity accounts for only one third of the industry’s energy needs. Simultaneously, the advance of sectoral coupling and the decarbonisation of industrial processes, as well as the desire to rapidly decrease dependence on fossil fuels, are creating significant additional demand for renewable energy. Neither existing nor planned generation and transmission infrastructure will suffice to meet the expected short-term demand. Based on survey data from the German Industry Energy Efficiency Index, this article therefore examines the share of GHG savings that companies intend to achieve on- and off-site. Understanding how much additional generation and transmission capacity is needed by the industry to decarbonise and by when is crucial to identify and address the extent of excess demand. On average, companies plan to avoid 22 % of their 2019 emissions by 2025 and 27 % by 2030, primarily through on-site measures. In combination with the extrapolation of the entire industry’s needs for off-site capacity, the data calls for a rapid expansion of planning authority and green generation capacities.

This article has been developed to assess the economic feasibility of a roof-top photovoltaic installation of industrial self-consumption. Numerical models that enable an interested person to obtain the main expected parameters will be generated. To do this, a calculation methodology will be generated through which the reader, knowing the location of the facility and dimensions of the roof, will be able to calculate the maximum installable power, the main parameters related to production, the cost of the installation, and the LCOE of the plant. The use of actual costs will be facilitated in case they are known, but it will remain possible to apply the costs of the major equipment (modules, inverter, and structure) considered throughout the article. This developed calculation methodology will also allow a quick comparison of the forecasts of production, CAPEX, and LCOE of plants designed with different inclinations and different types of modules. Consequently, it will be especially useful for decision-making before developing the plant's basic engineering. Moreover, the calculations used for modeling the LCOE will be analyzed in depth. This analysis will allow evaluating how the different technical variables affect the profitability of a photovoltaic installation, such as the selected tilt, the location, the module's technology, or the available area.

The building sector accounts for nearly 40% of total primary energy consumption in the U.S. and E.U. and 20% of worldwide delivered energy consumption. Climate projections predict an increase of average annual temperatures between 1.1-5.4°C by 2100. As urbanization is expected to continue increasing at a rapid pace, the energy consumption of buildings is likely to play a pivotal role in the overall energy budget. In this study we used EnergyPlus building energy models to estimate the future energy demands of commercial buildings in Salt Lake County, Utah, USA, using locally-derived climate projections. We found significant variability in the energy demand profiles when simulating the study buildings under different climate scenarios, based on the energy standard the building was designed to meet, with reductions ranging from 10% to 60% in natural gas consumption for heating and increases ranging from 10% to 30% in electricity consumption for cooling. A case study, using projected 2040 building stock, showed a weighted average decrease in heating energy of 25% and an increase of 15% in cooling energy. We also found that building standards between ASHRAE 90.1-2004 and 90.1-2016 play a comparatively smaller role than variation in climate scenarios on the energy demand variability within building types. Our findings underscore the large range of potential future building energy consumption which depend on climatic conditions, as well as building types and standards.

The conceptual reconstruction of Neiwan powerhouse is one of the key activities under the current ongoing mapping project of Taiwanese hydropower plants that mainly took place between 2013 and 2015 and is now focused on micro, pico, and historical power plants. Judging from the fact that the oldest hydropower plant in Taiwan named Guishan starts its operation in 1905, Neiwan powerhouse was among the very first powerhouses that were built across the island to support the electrification of Taiwan. However, the main function of the single turbine equipped Neiwan micro powerhouse was to support mainly the military needs and protect the territories occupied by Japanese troops. Since the powerhouse was built in 1909 and operates only something about 10 year there are very little physical materials or evidence along with contemporaries. Therefore the further reconstruction is based mainly on physical observation of the remains located at the site, old photographs, related articles, treatises and typology of mechanical and civil constructions of other hydropower plant cases in Taiwan hence this paper´s main intention is to pitch a concept reconstruction rather than definite conclusion.

This research paper is part of the wider project concerning the very first detailed mapping of the overall Taiwanese hydro-power plants that took place from 2013 up to 2015 and it is currently in evaluation and finalization stage. The case of Shanping hydro-power plant has been carefully studied, photographed, documented and mapped in situ. It was one of the isolated hydro-power plant projects originally built to supply the remote area with the specific designation. Shanping hydro-power plant, as well as the other units from the early hydro-power generation era in Taiwan, are considered to be the technological heritage of civil and mechanical engineering that reflects later in all the further projects up to nowadays modern Taiwanese hydro-power plants. Unfortunately, most of the hydro-power houses from the older periods were severely damaged or destroyed by natural causes which were also the case of Shanping unit. The research is trying to reconstruct the original location of the powerhouse and its supporting structures based on available historical documents, previous studies, comparative methodology, and the current on-site observation.