scholarly journals Analysis of the evolution in current biomass to energy strategies, policy and regulations in Spain

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 374-383 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Power Plants ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Renewable Energies ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
General View ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Low Carbon Energy

Global warming is one of the most serious challenges facing humankind as it has the potential to dramatically modify the living conditions of future generations. In order to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, most countries are implementing regulations aimed at reducing their dependence on fossil fuels, promoting energy efficiency practices and favoring the deployment of low carbon energy technologies, including renewable energy sources. In line with the international commitments assumed as a member of the European Union (EU) and also as a signatory of the Kyoto Protocol, Spain developed a National Plan for Renewable Energies (PER 2005-2010) that forms the basis of the national strategy in this field. Spain has often been cited as an example for the rapid growth in the use of low carbon energy technologies. However, despite significant progress in the last decade, Spain is far from meeting the national objectives set in PER primarily due to slow growth in the demand for biofuels and the limited success of biomass fired power plants. The evolution in other energy technologies has been faster, situating Spain as world a leader in solar and wind energy. However, the contribution of these technologies to the national consumption is very marginal. In the midst of intense regulatory, commercial and R&D activity, this paper analyses the current situation with respect to the production of renewable energies in Spain, focusing primarily on the use of biomass resources. The paper offers a general view of policy and regulatory background, illustrates current progress towards meeting national objectives and provides a brief description of representative projects and market activity in biofuel production and biomass valorization.

Research Design, Scoping Tools, and Preview

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Araújo
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
International Energy Agency ◽  
Field Work ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Oil Shocks ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Energy Agency ◽  
Technology Learning ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Low Carbon Energy

This chapter outlines the design of the current study. It discusses my underlying logic for scoping energy system change with theory-building in the form of (1) a framework on intervention that operationalizes insights from the previous chapter and (2) conceptual models of structural readiness. A brief review then follows of related, global developments to provide broader context for the cases. The chapter concludes with a preview of the transitions that will be discussed in depth in subsequent chapters. This book draws on my research of four national energy system transitions covering the period since 1970. I selected a timeframe that reflected a common context of international events which preceded as well as followed the oil shocks of 1973 and 1979. Such framing allowed me to trace policy and technology learning over multiple decades for different cases. I completed field work for this project primarily between 2010 and 2012, with updates continuing through to the time this book went to press. I selected cases from more than 100 countries in the International Energy Agency (IEA) databases. The ones that I chose represented countries which demonstrated an increase of 100% or more in domestic production of a specific, low carbon energy and the displacement of at least 15 percentage points in the energy mix by this same, low carbon energy relative to traditional fuels for the country and sector of relevance. I utilized adoption and displacement metrics to consider both absolute and relative changes. Final cases reflect a diversity of energy types and, to some extent, differences in the socio-economic and geographic attributes of the countries. The technologies represent some of the more economically-competitive substitutes for fossil fuels. It’s important to emphasize that the number of cases was neither exhaustive nor fully representative. Instead, the cases reflect an illustrative group of newer, low carbon energy technologies for in depth evaluation. Each of the cases shares certain, basic similarities. These include a national energy system comprised of actors, inputs, and outputs with systemic architecture connecting the constituent parts in a complex network of energy-centered flows over time—including extraction, production, sale, delivery, regulation, and consumption.

scholarly journals Potential of Using Wood Biomass Ash in Low-Strength Composites

Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 1250
Author(s):  
Ana Baričević ◽  
Ivana Carević ◽  
Jelena Šantek Bajto ◽  
Nina Štirmer ◽  
Marija Bezinović ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Setting Time ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Wood Biomass ◽  
Biomass Ash ◽  
Hydraulic Lime ◽  
Volume Stability

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on fossil fuels is the cornerstone of all European climate and energy strategies. Consequently, renewable energy sources are becoming more competitive with fossil fuels. The largest source of bioenergy in the European Union is biomass-fired power plants. Therefore, the European coal phase-out strategy led to an increased use of wood biomass as a sustainable fuel, generating large amounts of wood biomass ash (WBA). In the research studies reported so far, WBA has been mainly used in cementitious composites. However, given the similarities between the chemical composition of WBA and hydraulic lime (HL), this research focused on its potential classification as a building lime. Overall, three different sources of fly WBA were considered for the preparation of binders as mixtures of WBA and coal fly ash (CFA) in different ratios. The contribution of each binder mixture on the paste and mortar properties was analyzed based on the chemical composition, setting time, volume stability, and contribution to the mortar strength (compressive and flexural). In general, it can be concluded that the studied binders can meet the criteria of EN 459-1. However, special attention should be paid to the volume deformations and the setting time.

Solving the Climate Problem

2016 ◽  
pp. 65-84
Author(s):  
Geoffrey Heal
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Complete Solution ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel ◽  
Regulatory Policies ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Low Carbon Energy ◽  
Climate Problem

Ozone depletion and acid rain are problems that have some similarity to climate change – both are caused by the emission of gases that circulate widely, though neither has the scope and scale of the climate problem. But it is encouraging that both problems are well en route to solution. Our main institutions for addressing climate change are the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) and the UFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), with the latter producing the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 and the 2015 Paris Agreement. Cap and Trade and regulatory policies have been used more widely than any others for tackling the climate problem so far. Replacement of fossil fuels by low-carbon energy technologies offers the greatest hope for a complete solution, and is within sight: policies need to be focused on making this a reality.

scholarly journals Perspectives of development of biodiesel in Russia

2021 ◽  
Vol 187 (3) ◽  
pp. 71-77
Author(s):  
S.V. Goncharov ◽  
◽  
V.V. Karpachyov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
The United States ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Oil Crops ◽  
The Eu

The 21st century is entering the era of a leading to the development of environmentally clean and renewable energy sources, decarbonization and a decrease in global consumption of primary energy in the form of hydrocarbons in the European Union, the United States and other countries. A number of countries have a mandatory level of biofuel use, supported by tax incentives and subsidies. The EU Red Standard and the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard are policy initiatives that keep the demand for biofuels growing. In the next decade, the consumption of vegetable oils for biofuel production is projected to grow by 15%. The sowing area of oil crops in the Russian Federation in 2020 amounted to 14.3 million hectares, while 23% of the processing capacities of 25 million tons were not loaded. Turkey, Egypt and Iran will be among the top 5 major importers of Russian oil, along with China and India. Soybean and rapeseed are the main crops for processing into biodiesel. According to forecasts, the export of rapeseed oil may reach 1.1– 1.4 million tons by 2024. Renewable sources of primary energy consumption in Russia should reach 6% in its structure by 2040, which implies the development of alternative energy including the production of raw materials for biodiesel in.

scholarly journals Renewable energy technologies on the path towards decentralized low-carbon energy systems

2021 ◽  
Vol 250 ◽  
pp. 03001
Author(s):  
Natalya Danilina ◽  
Irina Reznikova
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Smart Grids ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Green Technology ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Renewable Energy Technologies ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Low Carbon Energy

Renewable energy technologies (RET) that emerged as a result of the shift towards the renewable energy sources (RES) which aims at setting the path towards decentralized low-carbon energy systems intended for tackling global warming are becoming key elements of the smart grids of the future. Our paper applies the economic, social and technological model of the renewable energy platforms to the energy markets of the 21st century. The paper analyses the growing importance of the individual players (prosumers) on the energy market, especially when it comes to the renewable energy generation and trading. It shows that modern advanced information and communication technologies enabled the energy prosumers to trade their energy and information in two-way flows. All of these might be important for the transition towards sustainable economy and green technology.

Influence of the EU Circular Economy Action Plan on Turkey's Energy Policy and Investments in Renewables

2021 ◽  
pp. 1634-1656
Author(s):  
Esin Okay
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Future ◽  
Low Carbon Energy

The European Union Circular Economy Action Plan is a new enactment but rapidly growing to transform EU economies into more sustainable sources and surroundings adopting measures that include renewable energy investments and low carbon strategy. As the world still faces huge environmental changes and climate problems, energy remains the major issue for both economic and ecological sustainability. Low carbon energy strategy is the main target for EU circular economy enforcing renewable energy sources which are healthy, clean, and cheap. In this chapter, circular energy act and its development in Turkey are explored and questioned. The study emphasizes the great potential of renewables in Turkey and shows that there is still much to be done to transform the energy market in order to adopt circular economy in the future. Barriers of economic risks and lack of cultural awareness strongly challenge the progress of Turkey in energy solutions. And more than that, those problems trigger the financial concerns limiting the future energy projects.

scholarly journals Overview of the Use of Sustainable Energies in Agricultural Greenhouses

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 36 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Vourdoubas
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Waste Heat ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Heat Pumps ◽  
Renewable Energies ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Renewable Energy Resources ◽  
Energy Technologies

<p>Global concern on environmental problems like climate changes has altered our energy patterns promoting non-polluting renewable energies instead of fossil fuels. Technological advances in sustainable energy technologies allow their increasing use in all sectors of everyday life. Agricultural greenhouses utilize energy for heating, cooling and operation of various electric devices. The highest amount of energy used in greenhouses is consumed in heating them. Controlling crops growth conditions including temperature results in higher productivity and in better economic results. Various sustainable energies including renewable energies and high efficiency and low carbon energy technologies have been used in commercial scale and the technical and economic viability of others has been investigated in experimental scale. Among renewable energies solar energy, biomass and geothermal energy can be used in order to cover part or all of the energy requirements for heating, cooling and power generation of greenhouses. Energy efficient and low carbon technologies like co-generation of heat and power, heat pumps, fuel cells but also waste heat can be used also for energy generation in them. Governmental energy incentives for the promotion of sustainable energies like feed-in tariffs or net-metering allow the use of the abovementioned energy technologies for electricity generation in greenhouses offering additional economic benefits to the farmers. Use of the sustainable energies which are mature, reliable and cost effective in greenhouses results in mitigation of climate changes, use of local renewable energy resources instead of fossil fuels and better profitability of the cultivated crop.</p>

scholarly journals Reduced Use of Fossil Fuels can Reduce Supply of Critical Resources

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
André Månberger
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Fossil Fuel ◽  
Photovoltaic Cell ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Supply Potential ◽  
Recoverable Resources ◽  
Low Carbon Energy ◽  
Critical Resources

AbstractPrevious research has identified that climate change mitigation policies could increase demand for resources perceived as critical, because these are used in many renewable energy technologies. This study assesses how reducing the extraction and use of fossil fuels could affect the supply of (i) elements jointly produced with fossil fuels and (ii) elements jointly produced with a host that is currently mainly used in fossil fuel supply chains. Several critical resources are identified for which supply potential from current sources is likely to decline. Some of these, e.g. germanium and vanadium, have uses in low-carbon energy systems. Renewable energy transitions can thus simultaneously increase demand and reduce supply of critical elements. The problem is greatest for technology groups in which by-products are more difficult to recycle than the host. Photovoltaic cell technology stands out as one such group. Phasing out fossil fuels has the potential to reduce both the supply potential (i.e. primary flow) and recoverable resources (i.e. stock) of materials involved in such technology groups. Further studies could examine possibilities to increase recovery rates, extract jointly produced resources independently of hosts and how the geographical distribution of by-product supply sources might change if fossil fuel extraction is scaled back.

scholarly journals Introduction

2021 ◽  
pp. 3-7
Author(s):  
Dominik Möst ◽  
Steffi Schreiber ◽  
Martin Jakob
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Technological Learning ◽  
Technology Plan ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
Flexibility Options ◽  
Low Carbon Energy ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThe future energy system in Europe needs to be decarbonized and thus be based almost exclusively on renewable energy sources. Therefore it is challenged by the intermittent nature of renewables and requires several flexibility options. The interaction between different options and the impact on environment and society are in the focus of this contribution. It is the core objective of this book to analyze and evaluate the development toward a low-carbon energy system with focus on flexibility options in the EU to support the implementation of the Strategy Energy Technology Plan. The analyses are based on a bottom-up modeling environment that considers current and future energy technologies, policy measures and their impact on environment and society while considering technological learning of low-carbon and flexibility technologies.

Influence of the EU Circular Economy Action Plan on Turkey's Energy Policy and Investments in Renewables

2019 ◽  
pp. 119-141
Author(s):  
Esin Okay
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Future ◽  
Low Carbon Energy

The European Union Circular Economy Action Plan is a new enactment but rapidly growing to transform EU economies into more sustainable sources and surroundings adopting measures that include renewable energy investments and low carbon strategy. As the world still faces huge environmental changes and climate problems, energy remains the major issue for both economic and ecological sustainability. Low carbon energy strategy is the main target for EU circular economy enforcing renewable energy sources which are healthy, clean, and cheap. In this chapter, circular energy act and its development in Turkey are explored and questioned. The study emphasizes the great potential of renewables in Turkey and shows that there is still much to be done to transform the energy market in order to adopt circular economy in the future. Barriers of economic risks and lack of cultural awareness strongly challenge the progress of Turkey in energy solutions. And more than that, those problems trigger the financial concerns limiting the future energy projects.

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