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Topic Review
Bio-Based Catalysts for Biodiesel Production
The continuous increase of the world’s population results in an increased demand for energy drastically from the industrial and domestic sectors as well. Moreover, the current public awareness regarding issues such as pollution and overuse of petroleum fuel has resulted in the development of research approaches concerning alternative renewable energy sources. Amongst the various options for renewable energies used in transportation systems, biodiesel is considered the most suitable replacement for fossil-based diesel. In what concerns the industrial application for biodiesel production, homogeneous catalysts such as sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, sulfuric acid, and hydrochloric acid are usually selected, but their removal after reaction could prove to be rather complex and sometimes polluting, resulting in increases on the production costs. Therefore, there is an open field for research on new catalysts regarding biodiesel production, which can comprise heterogeneous catalysts. Apart from that, there are other alternatives to these chemical catalysts. Enzymatic catalysts have also been used in biodiesel production by employing lipases as biocatalysts. For economic reasons, and reusability and recycling, the lipases urged to be immobilized on suitable supports, thus the concept of heterogeneous biocatalysis comes in existence. Just like other heterogeneous catalytic materials, this one also presents similar issues with inefficiency and mass-transfer limitations. A solution to overcome the said limitations can be to consider the use of nanostructures to support enzyme immobilization, thus obtaining new heterogeneous biocatalysts.
  • 1.2K
  • 14 Sep 2021
Topic Review
PV Energy Communities
Renewable energy sources, in particular those based on solar radiation, are growing rapidly and are planned to play an instrumental role in building power systems to reach the 2030 and 2050 energy and climate mitigation objectives. However, new actors have been introduced into the energy field, highlighting the importance of the role of citizens and communities in building such energy systems.
  • 1.2K
  • 02 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Advances on Smart Cities and Smart Buildings
Modern cities are facing the challenge of combining competitiveness on a global city scale and sustainable urban development to become smart cities. A smart city is a high-tech intensive and advanced city that connects people, information, and city elements using new technologies in order to create a sustainable, greener city; competitive and innovative commerce; and an increased quality of life. This Special Issue collects the recent advancements on smart cities and covers different topics and aspects.
  • 1.2K
  • 25 Jan 2022
Topic Review
SE in Wave Energy Technology
The design of effective and economically viable wave energy devices involves complex decision-making about the product based on conceptual design information, including stakeholder requirements, functions, components and technical parameters. The great diversity of concepts makes it extremely difficult to create fair comparisons of the relative merits of the many different designs. Conventional design approaches have proved insufficient to guarantee wave energy technologies meet their technical and economic goals. Systems engineering can provide a suitable framework to overcome the obstacles towards a successful wave energy technology. The main objective of this work is to review the well-established systems engineering approaches that have been successfully implemented in complex engineering problems and to what extent they have been applied to wave energy technology development.
  • 1.2K
  • 11 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Advanced Nuclear
Advanced nuclear is an emerging area of the energy industry focused on designing and commercializing next generation reactors for nuclear energy production. Encompassing more comprehensive and radical technological innovations and design advancements, these innovations aim to dramatically improve performance and eliminate known problems associated with the existing generation nuclear reactors (Gen I and Gen II) currently in use around the world. The earliest Gen I and Gen II nuclear reactors built utilized the light-water reactor design in one of three variants: the pressurized water reactor (PWR), the boiling water reactor (BWR), and the supercritical water reactor (SCWR). The use of the light-water design (i.e. using regular water, H2O and not heavy water, 2H2O) as both its coolant and neutron moderator but needing a plentiful supply) in all commercial reactors was a trade-off that enabled the industry to leverage the purchasing clout of Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, who was keen on procuring nuclear-powered submarines for the Navy, to grow quickly. The choice, however, imposed a riskier design that many argued was not optimized for terrestrial energy, bringing both competitive advantages as well as fateful disadvantages to the initial development and subsequent growth of the commercial nuclear power fleet. Despite operating to the military's exacting specifications and winning praise and massive contracts from government buyers, the industry quickly earned the distrust of the public. (See the Anti-nuclear movement.) Generation III reactors contain yet further incremental refinements to aspects of Generation II nuclear reactor designs but were not very popular. Improvements were developed for fuel technology, thermal efficiency, to safety systems to reduce maintenance and capital costs. The first Generation III reactor was Kashiwazaki 6 (an ABWR) in 1996 but the declining support for the underlying Generation II light-water design, caused relatively few third generation reactors to be built. Generation IV designs are the first generation where innovator in Advanced Nuclear technologies are exploring paradigm shifts in methodologies. Gen IV projects encompass not just innovative nuclear fission concepts, like the Molten salt reactor, Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactors, and High temperature gas cooled reactors, but also Fusion power and even Low Energy Nuclear Reactors (LENR), which generate heat through a series of controlled chemical reactions that then cause a nuclear bond to shift, which results in heat output. Gen IV is still in development as of 2017, and are not expected to start entering commercial operation until after 2020. Some of the different reactor design ideas being explored and developed for Advanced nuclear reactors, now thought of as Generation IV reactors (Gen IV) today were actually first conceived within the National Labs back in the 1960s. Several of these concepts, including Alvin M. Weinberg's Molten salt reactor (MSR) developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), even had the benefit of being prototyped and tested over a period of time. Weinberg's MSR became the first reactor to run on Uranium 233 in 1968 and logged more than 13,000 hours at "full power" before being shut down in 1969. Today, the concept of using a molten salt brew that acts both as the fuel and the "containment" of the reaction by using the ionic bonds of the salt to capture and contain the heat generated from the nuclear reaction, thereby dispensing with the need for expensive containment structures and eliminating much of risk and cost, remains of keen interest to those exploring Advanced nuclear technologies.
  • 1.2K
  • 11 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Transition Process of Low-Head Pumping Station
The transition process of the low-lift pump mainly refers to the start–stop process. Due to the opening and closing of the gate, the sudden change in the flow velocity in the pipeline causes the water hammer phenomenon. This hydraulic process is called the transition process. Experience shows that hydraulic machinery accidents mainly occur in the transition process. Therefore, the study of the start–stop transition process of the pump has an important guiding significance for the safe operation of the pumping station.
  • 1.2K
  • 25 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Thermal Adaptation in Net-Zero-Energy Buildings
       Thermal adaptation is a design strategy and lifestyle matter that makes building users central and effective towards an environmentally friendly energy transition.
  • 1.2K
  • 12 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Trends in Hydrogen Storage
Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements in the universe and ranks as the initial element on the periodic table. Hydrogen storage is one of the most difficult tasks. Hydrogen is kept in special materials and high-pressure tanks, such as those seen in such vehicles as cars and trains. These tanks are not only huge and expensive to construct, but they are also unsuitable for recycling and long-term storage. Because of this, researchers from all around the world are working to find ways to address these limitations and fully use hydrogen. Hydrogen has the advantage of being able to be kept in a variety of forms, including gaseous, liquid, and sometimes solid, despite the fact that storage poses major difficulties.
  • 1.1K
  • 01 Aug 2023
Topic Review
100% Renewable Electricity in Indonesia
Researchers investigate an Indonesian energy decarbonization pathway using mostly solar photovoltaics. An hourly energy balance analysis using ten years of meteorological data was performed for a hypothetical solar-dominated Indonesian electricity system for the consumption of 3, 6 and 10 megawatt-hours (MWh) per capita per year (compared with current consumption of 1 MWh per capita per year). This research showed that Indonesia’s vast solar potential combined with its vast capacity for off-river pumped hydro energy storage could readily achieve 100% renewable electricity at low cost. The levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for a balanced solar-dominated system in Indonesia was found to be in the range of 77–102 USD/MWh.
  • 1.1K
  • 29 Jan 2024
Topic Review
CAES Systems Coupled with Wind Energy
With the strong advancement of the global carbon reduction strategy and the rapid development of renewable energy, compressed air energy storage (CAES) technology has received more and more attention for its key role in large-scale renewable energy access. It is shown that the coupling of wind energy and CAES is mainly combined in series and in parallel, and sometimes part of the wind power can be converted into thermal energy when coupled to CAES.
  • 1.1K
  • 29 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Mobile Energy Storage for Enhancing Power Grid Resilience
Natural disasters can lead to large-scale power outages, affecting critical infrastructure and causing social and economic damages. These events are exacerbated by climate change, which increases their frequency and magnitude. Improving power grid resilience can help mitigate the damages caused by these events. Mobile energy storage systems, classified as truck-mounted or towable battery storage systems, have been considered to enhance distribution grid resilience by providing localized support to critical loads during an outage. 
  • 1.1K
  • 02 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Stationary Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems
The energy storage system is one of the key elements in a hybrid renewable energy system. Systems with kinetic storage, electrochemical storage batteries, supercapacitors, hydrogen energy storage are considered. 
  • 1.1K
  • 14 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Building Retrofitting Measures in Korean
Green buildings and architecture are necessary for sustainable building development. Buildings are responsible for global high-energy consumption and carbon emissions. Retrofitting measures mitigate the effect of climate change on buildings by improving their energy performance at beneficial cost-effectiveness. The most critical aspect of retrofitting is structural refurbishment, which aids in added strength, stability, and safety.
  • 1.1K
  • 08 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Renewable Energy and Decarbonization in Canadian Mining Industry
Mining in Canada stands as one of the most energy-intensive sectors, playing a pivotal role as a significant provider of copper, nickel, and cobalt to the international market. Anticipated growth in the global population, coupled with the transition of several low-income economies to middle-income status, is poised to escalate the demand for essential raw materials. This surge in demand is expected to drive an increase in energy consumption across various stages of the Canadian mining industry, encompassing exploration, extraction, processing, and refining. Due to their geographical constraints, most Canadian mining operations rely heavily on fossil fuels such as diesel and heavy fuel. Considering the global shift towards decarbonization and the pursuit of net-zero emission targets, exploring avenues for adopting electrification solutions and integrating renewable energy technologies, particularly in sizable surface mines, is imperative.
  • 1.1K
  • 13 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Capture of Industrial CO2 by Algae
The importance of the cultivation of algae in various fields, including in the field of energy, is very high. Algae as a reserve type of renewable fuel are considered thanks to the rapid growth of algae and the ability of algae to store lipids. 
  • 1.1K
  • 06 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Developing Indoor Temperature Profiles of Albanian Homes
Oversimplifying occupant behaviour using static and standard schedules has been identified as a limitation of building energy simulation tools. Three statistically different profiles were developed for each summer and winter, indicating that homes are used in different ways, as well as revealing possible comfort requirements. A statistically significant association was found between the presence of children and the clusters in winter, suggesting that families with dependents use more energy. Building-related factors including building type, building age, and wall insulation were found to be statistically significantly associated with clusters in summer. 
  • 1.1K
  • 08 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Solar Thermal for Process Heating
To mitigate the consequences of climate change, there is an increasing need to minimize the usage of fossil fuels, especially in the industrial sector because the majority of the industrial sector primarily rely on fossil fuels to meet their needs for heat energy, and a practical strategy to reduce reliance on fossil fuels is to use energy from the sun.
  • 1.1K
  • 30 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Energy Storage in Urban Areas
Positive Energy Districts can be defined as connected urban areas, or energy-efficient and flexible buildings, which emit zero greenhouse gases and manage surpluses of renewable energy production. Energy storage is crucial for providing flexibility and supporting renewable energy integration into the energy system. It can balance centralized and distributed energy generation, while contributing to energy security. Energy storage can respond to supplement demand, provide flexible generation, and complement grid development. Photovoltaics and wind turbines together with solar thermal systems and biomass are widely used to generate electricity and heating, respectively, coupled with energy system storage facilities for electricity (i.e., batteries) or heat storage using latent or sensible heat. Energy storage technologies are crucial in modern grids and able to avoid peak charges by ensuring the reliability and efficiency of energy supply, while supporting a growing transition to nondepletable power sources.
  • 1.1K
  • 06 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Energetic Valorization of Lignocellulosic Biomass
Lignocellulosic biomass, derived from plant cell walls, has gained significant attention as a promising renewable energy source due to its abundance, low cost, and potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. The increasing demand for sustainable and carbon-neutral energy solutions has driven extensive research on the efficient conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into valuable energy products. This biomass type is composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, with each component presenting unique challenges and opportunities for effective valorization. The valorization of lignocellulosic biomass involves a series of physical, chemical, and biological processes to convert its complex structure into high-energy-density fuels and chemicals.
  • 1.1K
  • 26 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Systems Designs of Phase Change Materials
The development of Phase Change Materials (PCMs) applications and products is closely related to the market penetration of the renewable energy technologies. With the initial aim of matching the phase shift between resource availability and demand in solar energy systems, the range of PCM applications expanded rapidly, entering economic sectors where some form of passive thermal regulation was required. 
  • 1.1K
  • 09 Dec 2022
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