scholarly journals Risk Economic Viability Focusing on Energy Efficiency in Three Genotypes of Elephant Grass in the Municipality of Alegre, Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 138
Author(s):  
Wanessa Francesconi Stida ◽  
Rogério Figueiredo Daher ◽  
José Augusto de Almeida Sant’Ana ◽  
Niraldo José Ponciano ◽  
Eduardo Peres Furlani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Production ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Elephant Grass ◽  
Internal Rate Of Return ◽  
Sale Price ◽  
The One

The use, on a large scale, of fossil fuels and their derivatives has devastating long-term consequences for mankind. Therefore is an urgent need to seek new alternatives for sustainable energy production. This fact is one of the great challenges to be faced by researchers worldwide. Within this context, the elephant grass has been standing out successfully in the production of biomass for energy purposes. The purpose in this study was to analyze the economic viability of biomass production of three genotypes of elephant grass for energy purposes and to identify the risk by means of the Monte Carlo simulation. The economic indicators were obtained by calculating the Net Present Value (NPV), the Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and the Profitability Index (PI). To determine the degree of uncertainty, analysis of sensitivity was applied. Results indicated viability for all genotypes, especially the Guaçú/I.Z.2, with IRR of 17.79%. Variation in sale price of grass generates a greater impact on profitability, followed by the labor and fertilization costs. The risk of failure was relatively low, with the exception of Capim Cana D’África, 38.16%. Among the three genotypes studied, the G1 genotype (Guaçú/I.Z.2) stood out as the one with the best economic viability.

scholarly journals A Novel Iron Chloride Red-Ox Concentration Flow Cell Battery (ICFB) Concept; Power and Electrode Optimization

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 1109
Author(s):  
Robert Bock ◽  
Björn Kleinsteinberg ◽  
Bjørn Selnes-Volseth ◽  
Odne Stokke Burheim
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Flow Cell ◽  
Iron Chloride ◽  
Carbon Electrodes ◽  
Concentration Difference ◽  
Term Energy ◽  
Short And Long Term

For renewable energies to succeed in replacing fossil fuels, large-scale and affordable solutions are needed for short and long-term energy storage. A potentially inexpensive approach of storing large amounts of energy is through the use of a concentration flow cell that is based on cheap and abundant materials. Here, we propose to use aqueous iron chloride as a reacting solvent on carbon electrodes. We suggest to use it in a red-ox concentration flow cell with two compartments separated by a hydrocarbon-based membrane. In both compartments the red-ox couple of iron II and III reacts, oxidation at the anode and reduction at the cathode. When charging, a concentration difference between the two species grows. When discharging, this concentration difference between iron II and iron III is used to drive the reaction. In this respect it is a concentration driven flow cell redox battery using iron chloride in both solutions. Here, we investigate material combinations, power, and concentration relations.

scholarly journals Edible Energy Production and Energy Return on Investment—Long-Term Analysis of Global Changes

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 1011
Author(s):  
Bartłomiej Bajan ◽  
Joanna Łukasiewicz ◽  
Agnieszka Poczta-Wajda ◽  
Walenty Poczta
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Return On Investment ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Animal Production ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Energy Return On Investment

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.

scholarly journals Análise de Viabilidade Econômica na Implantação de Termoelétrica a Base de Casca de Arroz em Cachoeira Do Sul - RS

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
LUCAS ALVAREZ NOGUEIRA ◽  
MAICON JADERSON SILVEIRA RAMOS ◽  
LAURA LISIANE CALLAI DOS SANTOS
Keyword(s):  
Rice Husk ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Industrial Process ◽  
Rice Production ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Internal Rate Of Return ◽  
Viability Analysis ◽  
Thermoelectric Plant ◽  
The City ◽  
Proper Disposal

The industrial process and production of rice requires a correct management of the residues generated by them, for the best use of them, proper disposal, and reduction of environmental impacts. In this context, when perceiving the potential of rice production in the city of Cachoeira do Sul - RS, the present project proposes the economic viability analysis in the implantation of a thermoelectric power plant with the generation of energy from the rice husk biomass in the municipality of Cachoeira do Sul. For the present work, a survey of rice production in the main mills of the city was prepared and the amount of rice husk that could be used as fuel in the biomass-based thermoelectric plant was defined. The costs necessary for the implementation of the thermoelectric plant and the revenues from the sale of the produced energy were evaluated, making it possible to obtain economic viability analysis of the project. The values found in the minimum attractiveness rate, net present value, internal rate of return and payback calculations show that the use of rice husk for power generation in a thermoelectric plant is viable for Cachoeira do Sul-RS.

Financial impact of high land prices on the viability of winery startup projects

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Santos ◽  
Vincent Richman ◽  
Aidong Hu
Keyword(s):  
Net Present Value ◽  
Weighted Average ◽  
Capital Budgeting ◽  
Investment Horizon ◽  
Internal Rate Of Return ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Land Prices ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Does it make economic sense to invest in winery startups with high land prices? This paper aims to apply a capital budgeting analysis for a startup project to investigate the role of land prices in the decision-making of a wine entrepreneur. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses a capital budgeting analysis to evaluate the value of a winery project using the six investment criteria: net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), modified IRR, profitability index, payback period (PB) and discounted PB. Findings This study finds that high land prices are economically justifiable (NPV is greater or equal to zero) when the weighted average capital cost is sufficiently low for investors who are able to diversify risks and with access to a cheap source of funds. Additionally, this study demonstrates that wine entrepreneurs need a long-term investment horizon because the recovery of the initial investment in winery startup projects takes many years. Research limitations/implications The startup winery projects are heavily influenced by wine pricing, production and cost assumptions. As a result, different assumptions made at other wine regions may result in slightly different outcomes for the acceptability of the wine startup projects. Practical implications High land prices are economically justified for investors and entrepreneurs with the ability to diversify risk and access to cheap financial resources. As such, land prices can be a critical obstacle for individual entrepreneurs who experience a lack of capital. Social implications In the famous wine regions of the world, high land prices may result in more wineries being owned by the capital rich wine conglomerates. Originality/value This paper provides estimations of land prices based on financial methods to discuss the justification of observed prices and the implications regarding the ability of investors and entrepreneurs to access capital.

scholarly journals It’s All in the SKU: Getting Food from Somewhere from the Field to the Dinner Plate while Using a Large Scale Retailer

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 892 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn Haythorn ◽  
Daniel Knudsen ◽  
James Farmer ◽  
Carmen Antreasian ◽  
Megan Betz
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Food System ◽  
Local Food ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Local Food Movement ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Good System ◽  
Food Retailers ◽  
Food Movement

The local food movement provides sustainable food, but often suffers from a lack of economic viability. We examine the need for concerned consumers, qualified growers, and responsible retailers. Concerned consumers are individuals who desire food from somewhere, but must shop at food retailers. Qualified growers sell sustainable food from somewhere, and must be able to set their own prices. Responsible retailers provide consumers with food from somewhere. Taken together, currently there is no good system in place to allow for large scale purchases and long term sales of food from somewhere for a retailer. To solve this, we propose a benevolent wholesaler model, in which stock keeping unit (SKU) numbers are given to each type of product from each farm. This enables tracking of the origin of the produce by retail customers and individual consumers, while retaining the attributes of a food system that allow for large scale purchases and long term sales. Such systems are no less sustainable, but potentially provide enhanced economic viability for producers.

scholarly journals Impact of Economic Indicators on the Integrated Design of Wind Turbine Systems

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 1668 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianghai Wu ◽  
Tongguang Wang ◽  
Long Wang ◽  
Ning Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Integrated Design ◽  
Aerodynamic Performance ◽  
System Level ◽  
Blade Length

This article presents a framework to integrate and optimize the design of large-scale wind turbines. Annual energy production, load analysis, the structural design of components and the wind farm operation model are coupled to perform a system-level nonlinear optimization. As well as the commonly used design objective levelized cost of energy (LCoE), key metrics of engineering economics such as net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR) and the discounted payback time (DPT) are calculated and used as design objectives, respectively. The results show that IRR and DPT have the same effect as LCoE since they all lead to minimization of the ratio of the capital expenditure to the energy production. Meanwhile, the optimization for NPV tends to maximize the margin between incomes and costs. These two types of economic metrics provide the minimal blade length and maximal blade length of an optimal blade for a target wind turbine at a given wind farm. The turbine properties with respect to the blade length and tower height are also examined. The blade obtained with economic optimization objectives has a much larger relative thickness and smaller chord distributions than that obtained for high aerodynamic performance design. Furthermore, the use of cost control objectives in optimization is crucial in improving the economic efficiency of wind turbines and sacrificing some aerodynamic performance can bring significant reductions in design loads and turbine costs.

scholarly journals Economic Viability and Socio-Environmental Impacts of Solar Home Systems for Off-Grid Rural Electrification in Bangladesh

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Swati Anindita Sarker ◽  
Shouyang Wang ◽  
K M Mehedi Adnan ◽  
Muhammad Khalid Anser ◽  
Zeraibi Ayoub ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Internal Rate Of Return ◽  
Present Value ◽  
Viable Option ◽  
Home Systems

This study conducted a questionnaire-led survey to explore the financial feasibility and socio-environmental impacts of stand-alone solar home systems (SHS) through stratified random sampling. Based on the above consideration, fifteen cases of studies of various watt peak (Wp) capacities have been investigated to evaluate the economic viability of solar home systems. The results revealed that most of the cases have positive net present value (NPV) and low payback periods, with an internal rate of return (IRR) value ranging from 16% to 131%, which signifies a high rate of investment exchange. Solar home systems are economically profitable for micro-enterprises and households with low-income generation activities as opposed to the households using it only for lighting. The study found that solar home systems with a capacity above 30 Wp are the most economically viable option, which can also avoid 6.15 to 7.34 tonnes of CO2 emissions during the 20 years of life-cycle, while providing different applications including lighting, recreation, information, health, and economic benefits.

Economic analysis of a hypothetical bamboo-biochar plant in Zhejiang province, China

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (12) ◽  
pp. 1220-1225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Zhang ◽  
Fang Liang ◽  
Wanhe Hu ◽  
Xiaomeng Yang ◽  
Hongzhong Xiang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Small Businesses ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Zhejiang Province ◽  
Internal Rate Of Return ◽  
Present Value ◽  
Good Market ◽  
Forestry Industry

Significant quantities of bamboo waste are generated in Zhejiang province, China. Many small businesses in this area convert this waste to biochar for use as a cooking fuel (in residential barbecues). This case study was conducted to evaluate the potential economic benefits of building and operating an industrial-sized plant in this province, yielding 500 tonnes per year. The researchers developed a conceptual design for a hypothetical biochar plant and then calculated net present value (NPV), investment payback period (PBP), internal rate of return (IRR), and sensitivity analysis. Results show that the static investment PBP would be 2.58 years, the IRR would be 38.8%, and the NPV would be US$ 486,700. The IRR would be higher than the forestry industry benchmark (11%), indicating that a production line of bamboo-biochar with the stated yield not only could generate higher profits, but also could achieve a better return on investment. Thus, this study indicates that there are good market prospects for the bamboo-biochar industry in this region. The influence of sales prices on the IRR was more than that of operational costs, indicating that a large-scale plant should be designed to produce a high-quality bamboo-biochar. Supply chain issues such as transportation distances between locations where bamboo wastes are generated and the biochar plant should be considered in advance when siting new bamboo-biochar plants. The results from this research provide guidance to those considering development of bamboo-biochar plants in other parts of China.

scholarly journals An evaluation of the economic viability of environmental offsets in the saltworks industry

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rogério Taygra Vasconcelos Fernandes ◽  
Aruza Rayana Morais Pinto ◽  
Raimunda Thyciana Vasconcelos Fernandes ◽  
Jônnata Fernandes de Oliveira ◽  
José Luís Costa Novaes
Keyword(s):  
Economic Impact ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Attractive Alternative ◽  
Present Value ◽  
Conservation Units ◽  
Productive Area ◽  
Solar Saltworks ◽  
Do So

ABSTRACT: The extraction of sea salt depends on the occupation of large areas at the estuary banks, many of them inserted in Permanent Preservation Areas (PPAs). Thus, the objective was to evaluate the economic viability of Environmental Offsets (EO) as an alternative to the unoccupied PPAs in the saltworks. In order to do so, 27 solar saltworks installed in the region of the Brazilian White Coast were evaluated for the occupation of PPAs - measured using images from satellite, georeferenced, vectored with corresponding PPA bands generated - and estimated to EO (Impact Degree x Sum of the investments necessary to implement the project) and Economic Impact (Net Present Value, with long-term interest rate of 7%) of vacating PPAs. It was considered that EO was feasible whenever the costs resulting from it were lower than the economic impact caused by the vacancy of the PPAs. The PPAs were tthe productive area of the saltworksthat occupied 13.70% of PPAs. For all the evaluated enterprises the value corresponding to EO was lower than the Economic Impact resulting from the vacancy of the PPAs. Thus, EO is an economically viable and more attractive alternative to the eviction of PPAs by the saltworks industry and may also provide environmental gains due to the financing of conservation units in the areas of influence of the enterprises. However, there is a need to improve the methodology used to estimate the EO, since a maximum limit is set, the environmental impacts caused by the projects are underestimated.

scholarly journals Wave Energy Converter Performance Modeling and Cost of Electricity Assessment

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dmitri Jarocki ◽  
James H. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Energy Flux ◽  
Wave Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Net Present Value ◽  
Rate Of Return ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Internal Rate Of Return ◽  
Present Value ◽  
Cost Of Electricity ◽  
Wave Energy Flux

California is experiencing a rapid increase in interest for the potential of converting ocean waves in into carbon-free electricity. Numerous applications have been submitted for the permitting of such renewable energy projects; however the profitability, practicability, and survivability have yet to be proven. Wave energy conversion technology has steadily matured since its naissance in the 1970’s, several wave energy power installations currently exist, and numerous plans for commercial power plants are in the works on the shores of multiple continents. This study aims to assess the economic viability of two proposed commercial wave energy power plant projects on the Central California Coast. A hypothetical 25 MW capacity wave energy plant located at a site located 5 nautical miles off of Point Arguello, in Santa Barbara County is compared to a similar site 5 nautical miles off of Morro Bay, in the County of San Luis Obispo. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company and Green Wave Energy Solutions, LLC have proposed full-scale commercial wave power plants at these sites, and are currently undergoing the federal permitting processes. Historical wave resource statistics from 1980 to 2001 are analyzed with performance specifications for the AquaBuOY, Pelamis P1, and WaveDragon wave energy converters (WECs) to calculate the annual electrical output of each device at each site. Sophisticated computer modeling of the bathymetric influence on the wave resource at each site is presented using the program Simulating Waves Nearshore (SWAN) developed by the Delft University of Technology. The wave energy flux, significant wave height, and peak period are computed at each site for typical summer and winter swell cases, using seafloor depth measurements at a 90 meter grid resolution. The economic viability of commercial electricity generation is evaluated for each WEC at each site by the calculation of the net present value of an estimated 25-year project life-cycle, the internal rate of return, and the required cost of electricity for a 10-year project payback period. The lowest required price of electricity is $0.13/kWh and occurs at the Point Arguello site using the AquaBuOY WEC. The highest annual capacity factor is 18% using the Pelamis WEC. The net present value and internal rate of return calculations suggest that the AquaBuOY WEC is profitable at both sites for electricity prices above $0.14/kWh. Shallow water wave propagation SWAN modeling demonstrated favorable wave energy flux states for WEC operation and power generation.

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