scholarly journals Making Fuel While the Sun Shines

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (10) ◽  
pp. 38-43
Author(s):  
Nesrin Ozalp ◽  
Christian Sattler ◽  
James F. Klausner ◽  
James E. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Industrial Processes ◽  
Thermal Systems ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Thermochemical Processes ◽  
Solar Thermochemical ◽  
Potential Use

This article discusses the potential use of solar energy in various industrial processes. Solar energy is usually considered in terms of making electricity, but it also has the potential to replace fossil fuels in the production of liquid fuels, and in driving endothermic industrial processes. Solar thermochemical processes are feasible, and a solar power concentration process that harnesses sunlight's infrared energy is the best-suited technology for making solar fuels a reality. However, in spite of their appeal, solar thermochemical processes also have the same drawback that direct solar power has: the transient and diurnal nature of sunshine. Fluctuations of available solar radiation – over the course of a day, across different types of weather, and from season to season – present considerable challenges for potential solar-thermal systems. While there are economically affordable and commercially available solutions to some of those problems, substantial research and development is still required.

Solar Thermochemical Production of Fuels

2010 ◽  
Vol 74 ◽  
pp. 303-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anton Meier ◽  
Aldo Steinfeld
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Transition Period ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Thermochemical Cycles ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Decomposition Processes ◽  
Thermochemical Processes ◽  
Technological Developments ◽  
Solar Thermochemical

High-temperature thermochemical processes efficiently convert concentrated solar energy into storable and transportable fuels. In the long run, H2O/CO2-splitting thermochemical cycles based on metal oxide redox reactions are developed to produce H2 and CO, which can be further processed to synthetic liquid fuels. In a transition period, carbonaceous feedstocks (fossil fuels, biomass, C-containing wastes) are solar-upgraded and transformed into valuable fuels via reforming, gasification and decomposition processes. The most promising solar thermochemical processes are discussed and the latest technological developments are summarized.

scholarly journals Making Fuel While the Sun Shines

2015 ◽  
Vol 137 (01) ◽  
pp. 46-51
Author(s):  
Nesrin Ozalp ◽  
Christian Sattler ◽  
James F. Klausner ◽  
James E. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Pure Metal ◽  
Ore Deposits ◽  
Solar Fuels ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Production Of Hydrogen ◽  
Thermochemical Processes ◽  
Energy Independence

This article explores uses of solar energy as a substitute to fossil fuels. Solar energy is usually considered in terms of making electricity; however, it also has the potential to supplant fossil fuels in the production of liquid fuels, and in driving endothermic industrial processes. Solar thermochemical processes are feasible, and a solar power concentration process that harnesses sunlight’s infrared energy is the best suited technology for making solar fuels a reality. Another area in which solar commodity production may have advantages over traditional industrial practice is in the separation of pure metal and oxygen from metal oxides found naturally in many ore deposits. Solar fuels can provide a stable and strategically important energy resource; some may consider them to be the ideal solution for sustainable energy independence. Solar thermochemistry could potentially have the biggest impact in the production of hydrogen-derived fuels which would be capable of replacing those derived from fossil fuels.

scholarly journals Conversion of biomass to biofuels and life cycle assessment: a review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed I. Osman ◽  
Neha Mehta ◽  
Ahmed M. Elgarahy ◽  
Amer Al-Hinai ◽  
Ala’a H. Al-Muhtaseb ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Biomass Conversion ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Process Efficiency ◽  
Liquid Fuels ◽  
Thermochemical Processes ◽  
Lower Temperature

AbstractThe global energy demand is projected to rise by almost 28% by 2040 compared to current levels. Biomass is a promising energy source for producing either solid or liquid fuels. Biofuels are alternatives to fossil fuels to reduce anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. Nonetheless, policy decisions for biofuels should be based on evidence that biofuels are produced in a sustainable manner. To this end, life cycle assessment (LCA) provides information on environmental impacts associated with biofuel production chains. Here, we review advances in biomass conversion to biofuels and their environmental impact by life cycle assessment. Processes are gasification, combustion, pyrolysis, enzymatic hydrolysis routes and fermentation. Thermochemical processes are classified into low temperature, below 300 °C, and high temperature, higher than 300 °C, i.e. gasification, combustion and pyrolysis. Pyrolysis is promising because it operates at a relatively lower temperature of up to 500 °C, compared to gasification, which operates at 800–1300 °C. We focus on 1) the drawbacks and advantages of the thermochemical and biochemical conversion routes of biomass into various fuels and the possibility of integrating these routes for better process efficiency; 2) methodological approaches and key findings from 40 LCA studies on biomass to biofuel conversion pathways published from 2019 to 2021; and 3) bibliometric trends and knowledge gaps in biomass conversion into biofuels using thermochemical and biochemical routes. The integration of hydrothermal and biochemical routes is promising for the circular economy.

scholarly journals Photovoltaic power generation system

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huang Huanhai
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Environmentally Friendly ◽  
Energy Status ◽  
The World ◽  
New Energy

The potential crisis of energy and the deterioration of ecological environment make the world's cumbersomedevelopment of renewable energy including new energy, including solar energy. Traditional energy in the coal, oil andnatural gas are evolved from ancient fossils, it is collectively referred to as fossil fuels. As the world's energy needscontinue to increase, fossil fuels will also be depleted, it is necessary to fi nd a new energy to replace the traditionalenergy. Solar energy is a clean renewable energy with mineral energy incomparable superiority. Modern society shouldbe a conservation-oriented society, and social life should also be a life-saving energy. At the same time, Premier WenJiabao also proposed on June 30, 2005 and stressed the need to speed up the construction of a conservation-orientedsociety. And solar energy as an inexhaustible new environmentally friendly energy has become the world's energyresearch work in the world an important issue. Is the world in the economic situation to take a simpler, economical,environmentally friendly and reliable building heating and heating energy-saving measures. This paper summarizes thecurrent global energy status, indicating the importance of solar power and prospects. Details of the various solar powergeneration methods and their advantages, and made a comparison of this power generation parameters. At the sametime pointed out that the diffi culties faced by solar power and solutions, as well as China's solar power of the favorableconditions and diffi culties. The future of China's solar energy made a prospect.

scholarly journals The Systematic Study of the Feasible Photovoltaics in Eastern Kentucky

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanghyun Lee
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Average Power ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Renewable Energy Resources ◽  
Eastern Kentucky ◽  
Run Off

Photovoltaics (PV-also called solar photovoltaic devices) are used to harness the power of the sun via the electronic process that occurs within semiconductor cells. The solar energy is absorbed by the cells, which causes the electrons to break away from their atoms, allowing them to flow within the material to produce electricity. This electricity will become the renewable energy for Kentucky, as the generation of coal will but come to a stop within the near future. Like Denmark who is running on 100% renewable generation we must stride to become fully operational on solar. In the present work, we systematically studied about renewable energy resources, in particular, solar energy for the application of photovoltaic panels in Eastern Kentucky. By analyzing data from our PV cells at Morehead State University designed to follow the direction of the sun for optimized output and by incorporating MPPT charge controllers, we have constructed a maximum power algorithm that performs best for the location. Utilizing these, measurements of daily electricity production in comparison to the average power needed for household use has validated our research. With the advancements in solar cell technology what was once impossible is now reality, as solar power can easily power this region based on our data. Knowing this, being a prime location we can now push to enable the advancement of renewable energy production and become less dependent on fossil fuels, thus creating an infrastructure that will run off solar power.

Liquid H2 Storage for Small Size Solar Power Plants

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovanni Cerri ◽  
Claudio Corgnale ◽  
Coriolano Salvini
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Power Plant ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Hydrogen Storage ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Liquid Hydrogen ◽  
Energy Carrier ◽  
Hydrogen Storage System

Many significant features lead to consider hydrogen as an interesting energy carrier. Hydrogen can be burned with pure oxygen thus the production of CO2 and NOx is avoided. Since molecular hydrogen does not exist on the earth it has to be produced from fossil fuels or from renewable energy sources. Energy from fossil fuels can be transferred into hydrogen and released elsewhere. So relevant reduction of emission of pollutant can be achieved in critical zones at the centres of large cities. Nevertheless the losses occurring during production, distribution and storage of hydrogen lead to an increased consumption of the primary energy source (fossil fuels) and to increased emission levels (CO2 and others). Hydrogen can be obtained from renewable sources such as the solar energy and used in situ for power generation. In this case hydrogen can act as an energy carrier which allows a local energy storage. In such a way the time dependent availability of the solar energy and the production level of the power plant can be decoupled. In a distributed generation context a small size solar power plant equipped with a hydrogen storage system has been studied. Different storage options have been investigated and compared. Finally a liquid hydrogen storage system is proposed. The peculiarities of the selected system allow a reduction of losses, size of machinery and energy requirements. The paper presents an analysis of the more relevant issues related to the different hydrogen storage options suitable for the present application. After the characterization of the solar field in terms of energy availability and the specifications of both the hydrogen production system and the power generation unit, the design of a liquid hydrogen storage system is presented and widely discussed. This method is particularly useful in the plants management (for example nuclear or coal plants), where it’s impossible or very difficult to modify power level, as well. So, such a static system would be useful in order to allow power modulation by H2 plant. In order to do this, a research for individuating high volumic (and mass) specific capacity systems should be driven.

scholarly journals Renewable Energy Sources in Iran: Policy and Regulation

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsen Safari ◽  
Fariborz Safari
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Regulation ◽  
Power Sources ◽  
Sustained Development ◽  
Energy Policy Act ◽  
Development Plans

According to the Fifth Five Year Development Plan, in Iran, renewable resources, under the green horizon scenarios, must provide 5,000 MW of electricity. Among different types of renewable source of energy, there is no shortage of information in Iran, which is located near to zero line (earth’s equator), with about 300 clear sunny days in a year, about setting policies promoting solar energy. Taking into account the availability and benefits of solar energy for Iran, this paper has focused on solar energy.Recent statistics show that, if the current development plans proceed, the capacity of the installed renewable energy systems would reach 2.8GW by 2030. This requires more than 2800 million US dollar investment in 20 years, i.e., 2010 to 2030. Despite the advantages of using solar energy, such as reducing greenhouse gases, it is important to note that solar power is 2.5 to 5 times as expensive as electricity from existing conventional power sources, such as coal and other sources. In order to encourage people to use solar power, there is a need to change our laws and establish an integrated energy regulation, involving tax policy mechanisms to support the deployment of solar energy in Iran. As Iran is dependent upon its fossil fuels, the transition from fossil fuels to renewable, which is a worldwide goal to reduce GHG or CO2 emissions, requires the adoption of a comprehensive policy and integrated regulation nationwide, taking a multidisciplinary approach. This paper exemplifies and considers the 2005 Energy Policy Act and Investment Tax Credit (ICT) for residential energy property, illustrating how solar-energy-regulation could contribute to the sustained development of solar energy. The main purpose is to help the development of sustainable solar energy regulation in Iran.

A novel integrated approach for ranking solar energy location planning: a case study

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Mostafaeipour ◽  
Mojtaba Qolipour ◽  
Mostafa Rezaei ◽  
Mehdi Jahangiri ◽  
Alireza Goli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Balanced Scorecard ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Low Efficiency

Purpose Every day, the sun provides by far more energy than the amount necessary to meet the whole world’s energy demand. Solar energy, unlike fossil fuels, does not suffer from depleting resource and also releases no greenhouse gas emissions when being used. Hence, using solar irradiance to produce electricity via photovoltaic (PV) systems has significant benefits which can lead to a sustainable and clean future. In this regard, the purpose of this study is first to assess the technical and economic viability of solar power generation sites in the capitals of the states of Canada. Then, a novel integrated technique is developed to prioritize all the alternatives. Design/methodology/approach In this study, ten provinces in Canada are evaluated for the construction of solar power plants. The new hybrid approach composed of data envelopment analysis (DEA), balanced scorecard (BSC) and game theory (GT) is implemented to rank the nominated locations from techno-economic-environmental efficiency aspects. The input data are obtained using HOMER software. Findings Applying the proposed hybrid approach, the order of high to low efficiency locations was found as Winnipeg, Victoria, Edmonton, Quebec, Halifax, St John’s, Ottawa, Regina, Charlottetown and Toronto. Construction of ten solar plants in the ten studied locations was assessed and it was ascertained that usage of solar energy in Winnipeg, Victoria and Edmonton would be economically and environmentally justified. Originality/value As to novelty, it should be clarified that the authors propose an effective hybrid method combining DEA, BSC and GT for prioritizing all available scenarios concerned with the construction of a solar power plant.

A concentrating solar power system integrated photovoltaic and mid-temperature solar thermochemical processes

2020 ◽  
Vol 262 ◽  
pp. 114421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wanjun Qu ◽  
Xueli Xing ◽  
Yali Cao ◽  
Taixiu Liu ◽  
Hui Hong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Power System ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Thermochemical Processes ◽  
Solar Thermochemical

scholarly journals Role of Solar energy and issues in its implementation in the Indian context

2018 ◽  
Vol 172 ◽  
pp. 06001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saurav Dixit ◽  
Subhav Singh ◽  
Sonali Singh ◽  
Richu George Varghese ◽  
Amit Kumar Pandey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Unused Land ◽  
The Usa

The main objectives of using renewable energy enable us to attain sustainable growth without compromising the future. India is on the 7th nation in generating renewable energy while the USA, China and Germany are on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively. Secondly, in case of Solar energy, the statistics are: India is on the 7th nation in generating solar energy while China, Japan, and Germany are on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively, Generating 9, 78, 42.8 and 41.2 (GW) gigawatts from solar power. India having great opportunities in generating solar power because of its location and the availability of largely unused land banks throughout the nation. The purpose of the paper is to examine the challenges to the adoption of solar energy as a means of generation of energy and power for the nation’s requirement. The hurdles/factors identified for the study is 16 and a targeted data collection of 105 for the study using convenient sampling technique throughout India. The research finding shall contribute to the existing body of knowledge and provide suggestions to the policymakers, the manufactures and the local bodies working on the ground to implement the solar energy as an alternate energy resource to fossil fuels in India.

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