ABSTRACT
Developing a sustainable and reliable photovoltaic (PV) energy system requires a comprehensive analysis of solar profiles and an accurate prediction of solar energy performance at the study site. Installing the PV modules with optimal tilt and azimuth angles has a significant impact on the total irradiance delivered to the PV modules. This paper proposes a comprehensive optimization model to integrate total irradiance models with the PV temperature model to find the optimal year-round installation parameters of PV modules. A novel integration between installation parameters and the annual average solar energy is presented, to produce the maximum energy output. The results suggest an increase in energy yields of 4% compared to the conventional scheme, where tilt angle is equal to the latitude and the PV modules are facing south. This paper uses a real-time dataset for the NEOM region in Saudi Arabia to validate the superiority of the proposed model compared to the conventional scheme, but it can be implemented as a scheme wherever real-time data are available.
ABSTRACT
Alternative energy alternatives to traditional energy sources like coal and fossil fuels include solar PV and wind energy conversion systems. The solar and wind energy conversion system's maximum power may be obtained by activating the converters. There are several MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) regulating methods for solar and wind energy conversion systems. For solar PV energy conversion systems, this study suggests two MPPT controlling techniques: Covid-19 MPPT and FLC-based MPPT. The two MPPT methods that are suggested are put into practise using MATLAB. The first Covid-19 approach that has been developed combines aspects of hill climbing and progressive conductance methods. Calculate the direction of the perturbation for the PV modules' operation using the incremental conductance approach. The method of ascending hills is straightforward and involves fewer variables. When dI/dV equals the incremental conductance, the Maximum Power Point (MPP) is attained using the incremental conductance approach. In the hill climbing approach, the MPP is determined by comparing the power in the present and the past. Both incremental conductance and change of power are taken into account in the proposed Covid-19 MPPT regulating approach to obtain the MPP. With this hybrid approach, solar PV generates the most electricity possible under all conditions of temperature and irradiance. As a result, the planned Covid-19 technique moves forward as intended and swiftly reaches the MPP.Copyright © 2022, Anka Publishers. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Climate change is taking place on a global scale and it is substantially affected by human activity, including increasing greenhouse gas emissions. One of the thematic objectives of EU’s new financial objective is a more environmentally friendly low-emission Europe that promotes clean and fair energy transformation, green investments, and a circular economy, among others. The Polish economy is mainly based on energy production from conventional sources (fossil fuels). Considering that the demand for electricity in Poland is predicted to increase by as much as 50% until 2040, it is necessary to take action aimed at increasing the share of renewable energy sources. The subject of analysis is the Opolskie Voivodeship (a NUTS 2 type region), the capital of which features the biggest Polish coal power plant. In 2014–2019, it was expanded by two units with 1800 MW in total capacity, thereby indicating that investments in energy obtained from conventional sources are still implemented and to a large extent at that (the expansion has been the biggest infrastructural investment in Poland since 1989). The Opolskie region is characterised by substantial excess in acceptable environmental burden (dust pollution, among others). The aim of the paper is to evaluate the key environmental conditions for the Opolskie region’s development in terms of the assumptions of the domestic and EU energy policies. The Opolskie region’s developmental challenges in the environmental area were determined on the basis of selected indicator estimations up to 2030. The research hypothesis assumes that the environmental conditions for the Opolskie region’s development are unfavourable. The methodological part features an analysis of the cause and effect dependencies in the “environment” area, which enabled an assessment of the Opolskie Voivodeship’s current situation as well as an analysis of the dependencies relevant to the region’s development. This was followed by an estimation of selected indicators in the “environment” area until 2030, which allowed for an assessment of their probable levels and thereby a specification of the region’s development conditions. The estimation was conducted using the data available in public statistics, i.e., Statistics Poland’s data. The indicators estimated for 2030 were presented using three forecasting methods: (a) the monotonic trend, (b) the yearly average change rate, and (c) the logarithmic trend.
ABSTRACT
Undoubtedly, the development of the renewable energy sector is linked to the goals of sustainable development [16,17,18,19], where the greatest emphasis is placed on caring for the environment and transitioning from classical energy sources to renewable and non-carbon sources. The authors emphasize the importance of a harmonized energy transition process, noting that the suspension of energy transformation processes may move from one region to the entire member state, or that it is possible for the economy of one of the countries, or a group of countries, to undergo a serious economic crisis. [...]eventualities would bring some countries back to the starting point and jeopardize the future of the entire EU energy project [24]. In [28], the authors focus on energy consumption in health care facilities, trying to set the determinants of electricity and thermal energy costs in relation to the size and intensity of work in Polish clinics. The authors of [29] deal with factors determining the demand for energy consumption from renewable sources in European countries.
ABSTRACT
Energy transformation in the European Union countries is progressing. Its scope is defined by formal and legal regulations and its effectiveness by the position of decision-makers, legitimised by public support for a particular type of challenge. Both issues are the focus of this article. The promotion of environmental protection measures is currently strongly promoted globally. Hence the widespread acceptance in principle of the changes associated with the implementing of the Green New Deal in the energy sector is not surprising. However, to what extent is knowledge of the solutions constituting the mainstream transition (renewable energy sources) ingrained among communities? Does the level of public awareness influence individual consumer choices, modelling the market? The threads outlined above inspired deliberations focused on analysing the assumptions behind energy transition in the EU, with particular reference to the countries directly bordering the line of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine (Poland, Lithuania), in the light of the resulting and escalating restrictions exacerbating the energy crisis. The immediate neighbourhood of the adopted countries, and their similar socio-economic conditions, provided the basis for comparisons and conclusions. The motivation for the choice of the issue and research area was to fill the clear information gap in this study area, strictly in relation to the adopted configuration of these countries. The research proceedings in the outlined area were primarily based on the methodology appropriate for capture and analysis of economic phenomena, enriched with the results of our own findings (questionnaire survey regarding general knowledge of the ZE market and consumer preferences), in order to assess the economic and environmental dimensions of energy transition in Poland and Lithuania and to assess the level of public awareness in this respect in the countries under study. The presented research is an important complementary element of the authors’ series of studies devoted to the analysis of the development of the renewable energy market in Poland and the Baltic States, related to the individual dimensions of RES. Their results give rise to the conclusion that increased social awareness in these countries determines the popularisation of RES solutions in individual use, regardless of their type, stimulating the progress of the energy transformation process.
ABSTRACT
The outbreak of COVID-19 has attracted people’s attention to our healthcare system, stimulating the advancement of next-generation health monitoring technologies. IoT attracts extensive attention in this advancement for its advantage in ubiquitous communication and sensing. RFID plays a key role in IoT to tackle the challenges in passive communication and identification and is now emerging as a sensing technology which has the ability to reduce the cost and complexity of data collection. It is advantageous to introduce RFID sensor technologies in health-related sensing and monitoring, as there are many sensors used in health monitoring systems with the potential to be integrated with RFID for smart sensing and monitoring. But due to the unique characteristics of the human body, there are challenges in developing effective RFID sensors for human health monitoring in terms of communication and sensing. For example, in a typical IoT health monitoring application, the main challenges are as follows: (1) energy issues, the efficiency of RF front-end energy harvesting and power conversion is measured;(2) communication issues, the basic technology of RFID sensors shows great heterogeneity in terms of antennas, integrated circuit functions, sensing elements, and data protocols;and (3) performance stability and sensitivity issues, the RFID sensors are mainly attached to the object to be measured to carry out identification and parameter sensing. However, in practical applications, these can also be affected by certain environmental factors. This paper presents the recent advancement in RFID sensor technologies and the challenges for the IoT healthcare system. The current sensors used in health monitoring are also reviewed with regard to integrating possibility with RFID and IoT. The future research direction is pointed out for the emergence of the next-generation healthcare and monitoring system.
ABSTRACT
In Poland, in 2021, an increase in demand for electricity was recorded, and hard coal and lignite power plants still had a dominant share in its production. Another source of electricity was renewable energy sources (RES), mainly wind farms. Young people in Poland are aware that electricity is not only its production, but also consumption in households. Therefore, it is also essential to properly educate young people, aiming at a cost-effective, sustainable lifestyle, in relation to electricity consumption. The article presents the current state of the electricity generation sector in Poland along with the proposed changes in this respect, in particular in terms of the development prospects for the use of renewable energy sources and the influence of government administration on the production and consumption of electricity. The aim of this research was to broaden the knowledge of young people’s opinions on energy production and consumption. The research results can be used to create long-term directions of energy policy and to build a social attitude of sustainable energy consumption in Poland. The research was non-probabilistic, based on questionnaires, using the CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interview) technique. The questionnaire was conducted in 2021, and the analysis was made on the basis of 741 correctly completed research questionnaires. The results of the research confirmed the research hypotheses—that the surveyed youth see the need to reduce consumption as a way to counteract climate change and excessive energy consumption. They also expect government support in the energy transformation in Poland, based on a diversified scenario, using both renewable energy sources (RES) and nuclear energy.
ABSTRACT
The management of the global energy resources has stimulated the emergence of various agreements in favor of the environment. Among the most famous are the Conference of Parties (COP) and Route 2030, which aim to limit global warming to 1.5 °C by reducing the energy consumption and global emission levels. In order to comply with the international standards for energy consumption and pollutant emissions, the Brazilian government has been promoting the expansion of biofuels in the national energy matrix. Considering this scenario, the development of a novel internal combustion engine for the exclusive use of ethanol as a fuel, equipped with state-of-the-art technologies and employing modern design concepts, consists of an innovative and promising pathway for future Brazilian mobility, from both environmental and technological outlooks. In this sense, this work presents a method to determine the main engine dimensions as part of the initial process for a new ethanol prototype engine development. The Brazilian biofuel was selected due to its physicochemical properties, which allow the engine to achieve higher loads, and also due to its large availability as a renewable energy source in the country. Furthermore, a port water injection system was fitted to the engine in order to assist the combustion process by mitigating the knock tendency. The predicted overall engine performance was obtained by carrying out a GT-PowerTM 1D-CFD simulation, whose results pointed to a maximum torque of 279 Nm from 2000 to 4000 rpm and an indicated peak power of 135 kW at 5500 rpm. With a maximum water-to-fuel ratio of 19.2%, the engine was able to perform its entire full load curve at the MBT condition, a fact that makes the WI approach along with the ethanol fuel a very attractive solution. As a result of the specific design and optimization of each geometric parameter for this unique ethanol engine, a maximum indicated fuel conversion efficiency of 45.3% was achieved. Moreover, the engine was capable of achieving over 40% of the indicated fuel conversion efficiency in almost its entire full load curve.
ABSTRACT
Other factors important for the constant expansion of the floriculture industry include implementing new strategies for plant reproduction, regulating their growth and development, adapting production technologies to fit the idea of sustainable development, and optimizing supply chain management [4,5]. The environmental management technique called ‘life cycle assessment’ (LCA) is a tool defined in ISO standards and recommended in many EU documents. The authors point out that growing C. persicum in accordance with the principles of integrated pest management and using compost to significantly limit the consumption of mineral fertilizers brings about measurable benefits for the environment and human health. The long-term development of this industry, faced with the current energy crisis, post-pandemic challenges, and threats to global geopolitical stability, is highly uncertain. [...]to continue its constant development, it is necessary to adapt cultivation methods to actual conditions and take into account the energy transformation and biological, technical, and organizational advances.
ABSTRACT
Direct solar vapor generation (SVG) provides a sustainable and eco‐friendly solution to the current global water scarcity challenges. However, existing SVG systems operating under natural sunlight suffer from low water yield and high energy requirement of vaporization. New materials with reduced latent heat of water vaporization are in urgent demand to boost SVG process. Herein, we propose a novel strategy to additively fabricate anisotropic hybrid 3D structure from photocurable thermoresponsive p(NIPAm‐co‐PEGDA) hydrogel on the top of PEGDA foam for SVG. The in‐situ post‐printing synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles within the p(NIPAm‐co‐PEGDA) hydrogel on the top surface, thus introducing anisotropy, is achieved by adding metallic salt precursor into the printing solution. The as‐fabricated hydrogel composite structure exhibits superior light absorption properties and rapid capillary‐driven water transport through a 3D‐printed microchannel network within the hydrogel. As a result, our SVG device achieves an extraordinary water evaporation rate of 5.12 kg m−2 h−1 under one sun (1 kW/m2). The intrinsic water activation states, in addition to wettability modulation with temperature increase within p(NIPAm‐co‐PEGDA) hydrogel, plays a critical role in reducing the equivalent vaporization enthalpy and shifting the vaporization to relatively lower temperatures. The proposed hybrid SVG device is feasible, portable, and highly efficient, promising great potential for grand water‐energy nexus challenges.
ABSTRACT
COVID-19 has led to the enormous rise of medical wastes throughout the world, and these have mainly been generated from hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare establishments. This creates an additional challenge in medical waste management, particularly in developing countries. Improper managing of medical waste may have serious public health issues and a significant impact on the environment. There are currently three disinfection technologies, namely incineration, chemical and physical processes, that are available to treat COVID-19 medical waste (CMW). This study focuses on thermochemical process, particularly pyrolysis process to treat the medical waste. Pyrolysis is a process that utilizes the thermal instability of organic components in medical waste to convert them into valuable products. Besides, the technique is environmentally friendly, more efficient and cost-effective, requires less landfill capacity, and causes lower pollution. The current pandemic situation generates a large amount of plastic medical wastes, which mainly consists of polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate, and nylon. These plastic wastes can be converted into valuable energy products like oil, gas and char through pyrolysis process. This review provides detailed information about CMW handling, treatment, valuable product generation, and proper discharge into the open environment.