CRACOW CLEAN FOSSIL FUELS AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM - FINAL REPORT

The projected increase in the world’s population requires an increase in the production of edible energy that would meet the associated increased demand for food. However, food production is strongly dependent on the use of energy, mainly from fossil fuels, the extraction of which requires increasing input due to the depletion of the most easily accessible deposits. According to numerous estimations, the world’s energy production will be dependent on fossil fuels at least to 2050. Therefore, it is vital to increase the energy efficiency of production, including food production. One method to measure energy efficiency is the energy return on investment (EROI), which is the ratio of the amount of energy produced to the amount of energy consumed in the production process. The literature lacks comparable EROI calculations concerning global food production and the existing studies only include crop production. The aim of this study was to calculate the EROI of edible crop and animal production in the long term worldwide and to indicate the relationships resulting from its changes. The research takes into account edible crop and animal production in agriculture and the direct consumption of fossil fuels and electricity. The analysis showed that although the most underdeveloped regions have the highest EROI, the production of edible energy there is usually insufficient to meet the food needs of the population. On the other hand, the lowest EROI was observed in highly developed regions, where production ensures food self-sufficiency. However, the changes that have taken place in Europe since the 1990s indicate an opportunity to simultaneously reduce the direct use of energy in agriculture and increase the production of edible energy, thus improving the EROI.

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Riqualificazione energetica e bioedilizia in Italia: lo stato dell'arte

PRISMA Economia - Società – Lavoro ◽

10.3280/pri2011-002007 ◽

2012 ◽

pp. 74-88

Author(s):

Livio de Santoli

Keyword(s):

Energy Efficiency ◽

Renewable Energy ◽

Energy Consumption ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Building Materials ◽

Heat Pumps ◽

Building Envelope ◽

International Standards ◽

Solar Panels ◽

Water Heaters

Building sustainability, in term of energy efficiency, low-impact building materials, renewable energy, has experienced significant growth during the past years. In response to the growing dependence on fossil fuels and importations, due in part to the increase of energy consumption in the residential sector (in 2009 46,9 Mtep, 3% more than 2008) and the recent European directives (i.e. EU 2009/28/CE) requiring CO2 emissions cut of up to 13% in 2020, there is interest in promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies, which are suitable for residential applications. In this paper we present an overview on actions related to minimization of buildings energy consumption in Italy. Prevalent line of action is to improve the energy performances of building envelope (Dlgs 192/05) using insulated frames, walls and roofs and replacing heat generators with condensing boilers. In addition to national directives, ONRE Report 2011 (National Observatory on building regulations) shows that 831 Municipalities (10% more than 2010) establish mandatory targets for insulation, photovoltaic solar panels, solar water heaters, heat pumps use, correct buildings orientation, saving of water resource and local materials use. In addiction an efficient energy rating of the buildings could promote the spread of energy efficiency measurement and consequently facilitate their implementation. The new energy rating system should meet international standards, regarding environment and energy aspects, and respect territorial needs.

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Final report. Renewable energy and energy efficiency in Mexico: Barriers and opportunities

10.2172/809055 ◽

2000 ◽

Author(s):

Mike Ashford

Keyword(s):

Energy Efficiency ◽

Renewable Energy ◽

Final Report ◽

Barriers And Opportunities

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Impact of Simulated Biogas Compositions (CH4 and CO2) on Vibration, Sound Pressure and Performance of a Spark Ignition Engine

Energies ◽

10.3390/en14217037 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (21) ◽

pp. 7037

Author(s):

Donatas Kriaučiūnas ◽

Tadas Žvirblis ◽

Kristina Kilikevičienė ◽

Artūras Kilikevičius ◽

Jonas Matijošius ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Energy Efficiency ◽

Negative Correlation ◽

Internal Combustion Engines ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Sound Pressure ◽

Raw Materials ◽

Combustion Process ◽

Spark Ignition ◽

Spark Ignition Engine ◽

Positive Correlation

Biogas has increasingly been used as an alternative to fossil fuels in the world due to a number of factors, including the availability of raw materials, extensive resources, relatively cheap production and sufficient energy efficiency in internal combustion engines. Tightening environmental and renewable energy requirements create excellent prospects for biogas (BG) as a fuel. A study was conducted on a 1.6-L spark ignition (SI) engine (HR16DE), testing simulated biogas with different methane and carbon dioxide contents (100CH4, 80CH4_20CO2, 60CH4_40CO2, and 50CH4_50CO2) as fuel. The rate of heat release (ROHR) was calculated for each fuel. Vibration acceleration time, sound pressure and spectrum characteristics were also analyzed. The results of the study revealed which vibration of the engine correlates with combustion intensity, which is directly related to the main measure of engine energy efficiency—break thermal efficiency (BTE). Increasing vibrations have a negative correlation with carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbon (HC) emissions, but a positive correlation with nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. Sound pressure also relates to the combustion process, but, in contrast to vibration, had a negative correlation with BTE and NOx, and a positive correlation with emissions of incomplete combustion products (CO, HC).

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Energy and Energy Efficiency

Technologies for Electrical Power Conversion, Efficiency, and Distribution ◽

10.4018/978-1-61520-647-6.ch001 ◽

2010 ◽

pp. 1-9

Keyword(s):

Energy Efficiency ◽

Renewable Energy ◽

Nuclear Waste ◽

Nuclear Power ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

18Th Century ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

Nuclear Power Engineering ◽

Energy Sources ◽

The World

Originally, coal was the main source of energy. It remains so throughout the 18th century during the period of the rapid industry development. Later on, oil and naphtha began to be used as energy sources and their usage expanded especially in 19th century. A special feature of the above mentioned fossil fuels is their long creation period – requiring millennia. They are a result of rotting of different plant and animal kinds. In comparison to the period of their formation, the period of their utilization is far shorter. In accordance with a number of existing statistics about 2050 year it may be talked about a depletion of the liquid fossil fuels, also, the world coal supplies are considered to last within the next 200 years. Therefore, the development of nuclear power engineering is considered to be one of the alternatives to generate energy. Recently, the nuclear power energy generation has been denied in many countries because of the risks associated with its generation and because these risks have been confirmed by serious accidents throughout the World. The storage of worked nuclear waste is also a problem and risky. The renewable energy sources are another possibility to generate energy.

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Environmental Payback of Renovation Strategies in a Northern Climate—the Impact of Nuclear Power and Fossil Fuels in the Electricity Supply

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13010080 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

pp. 80 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Ricardo Ramírez-Villegas ◽

Ola Eriksson ◽

Thomas Olofsson

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Energy Efficiency ◽

Global Warming ◽

Life Cycle ◽

Radioactive Waste ◽

Global Warming Potential ◽

Nuclear Power ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

The European Union ◽

The Impact

The aim of this study is to assess how the use of fossil and nuclear power in different renovation scenarios affects the environmental impacts of a multi-family dwelling in Sweden, and how changes in the electricity production with different energy carriers affect the environmental impact. In line with the Paris Agreement, the European Union has set an agenda to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by means of energy efficiency in buildings. It is estimated that by the year 2050, 80% of Europe’s population will be living in buildings that already exist. This means it is important for the European Union to renovate buildings to improve energy efficiency. In this study, eight renovation scenarios, using six different Northern European electricity mixes, were analyzed using the standard of the European Committee for Standardization for life cycle assessment of buildings. This study covers all life cycle steps from cradle to grave. The renovation scenarios include combinations of photovoltaics, geothermal heat pumps, heat recovery ventilation, and improvement of the building envelope. The results show that while in some electricity mixes a reduction in the global warming potential can be achieved, it can be at the expense of an increase in radioactive waste production, and, in mixes with a high share of fossil fuels, the global warming potential of the scenarios increases with time, compared with that of the original building. It also shows that in most electricity mixes, scenarios that reduce the active heat demand of the building end up in reducing both the global warming potential and radioactive waste, making them less sensitive to changes in the energy system.

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Towards Nearly Zero Energy and Environmentally Sustainable Agritourisms: The Effectiveness of the Application of the European Ecolabel Brand

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10175741 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (17) ◽

pp. 5741 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Laura Cirrincione ◽

Maria La Gennusa ◽

Giorgia Peri ◽

Gianfranco Rizzo ◽

Gianluca Scaccianoce

Keyword(s):

Energy Efficiency ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Energy Condition ◽

Residential Building ◽

Low Carbon ◽

Zero Energy ◽

Building Stock ◽

Energy Behavior ◽

The Eu ◽

Eu Ecolabel

Tourism represents an important economic driver in Italy, being responsible for approximately 13.2% of the total GDP (a value higher than the reference European average) and for nearly 10% of the regional GDP. Among the touristic sectors, the agritourist ones show a persistent growth, experiencing in 2019 a 6.7 point percentage improvement compared to the 2017 figures. Given this situation, the transition towards a low-carbon path, affecting the building sector for some time, should also involve agritourist buildings, through the release of EU directives, member state laws, and technical rules. On the other hand, agritourism sites could be awarded the Community EU Ecolabel. Unfortunately, awarding the EU environmental excellence brand implies the availability of several data on building energy behavior that should then be managed by complex evaluation tools. To overcome this issue, the use of the simplified ARERA (Italian Regulatory Authority for Energy Networks and Environment) technical datasheets, issued to assess environmental improvements consequent to energy efficiency interventions in the urban residential building stock, is proposed. The application of this tool totally avoids using building computer-based simulation models, thus facilitating the preparation of the EU Ecolabel request documentation by agritourism owners. Being awarded the Community EU Ecolabel also implies approaching a net zero energy condition because of a lower energy consumption and a minor recourse to fossil fuels. For this purpose, an application of an easy graphical method, previously developed for residential and commercial buildings, which visually represents improvements achievable by a given agritourism when implementing energy efficiency measures, is presented.

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