Analysis of interactions among variables of renewable energy projects:a case study on renewable energy project in India

This study highlights the variables associated with the implementation of renewable energy (RE) projects for sustainable development in India, by using an interpretive structural modeling (ISM) - based approach to model variables' interactions, which impact RE adoption. These variables have been categorized under enablers that help to enhance implementation of RE projects for sustainable development. A major finding is that public awareness regarding RE for sustainable development is a very significant enabler. For successful implementation of RE projects, it has been observed that top management should focus on improving highdriving power enablers (leadership, strategic planning, public awareness, management commitment, availability of finance, government support, and support from interest groups).

Production of renewable phenolic resins by thermochemical conversion of biomass: a review

This review covers the production and utilisation of liquids from the thermal processing of biomass and related materials to substitute for synthetic phenol and formaldehyde in phenol formaldehyde resins. These resins are primarily employed in the manufacture of wood panels such as plywood, MDF, particle-board and OSB. The most important thermal conversion methods for this purpose are fast pyrolysis and vacuum pyrolysis, pressure liquefaction and phenolysis. Many feedstocks have been tested for their suitability as sources of phenolics including hard and softwoods, bark and residual lignins. Resins have been prepared utilising either the whole liquid product, or a phenolics enriched fraction obtained after fractional condensation or further processing, such as solvent extraction. None of the phenolics production and fractionation techniques covered in this review are believed to allow substitution of 100% of the phenol content of the resin without impacting its effectiveness compared to commercial formulations based on petroleum derived phenol. This survey shows that considerable progress has been made towards reaching the goal of a price competitive renewable resin, but that further research is required to meet the twin challenges of low renewable resin cost and satisfactory quality requirements. Particular areas of concern are wood panel press times, variability of renewable resin properties, odour, lack of reactive sites compared to phenol and potential for increased emissions of volatile organic compounds.

A fuzzy levelised energy cost method for renewable energy technology assessment

Renewable energy project development is highly complex and success is by no means guaranteed. Decisions are often made with approximate or uncertain information yet the current methods employed by decision-makers do not necessarily accommodate this. Levelised energy costs (LEC) are one such commonly applied measure utilised within the energy industry to assess the viability of potential projects and inform policy. The research proposes a method for achieving this by enhancing the traditional discounting LEC measure with fuzzy set theory. Furthermore, the research develops the fuzzy LEC (F-LEC) methodology to incorporate the cost of financing a project from debt and equity sources. Applied to an example bioenergy project, the research demonstrates the benefit of incorporating fuzziness for project viability, optimal capital structure and key variable sensitivity analysis decision-making. The proposed method contributes by incorporating uncertain and approximate information to the widely utilised LEC measure and by being applicable to a wide range of energy project viability decisions. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Enhanced renewable energy adoption for sustainable development in India:interpretive structural modeling approach

Poverty alleviation and social upliftment of rural India is closely linked with the availability and use of energy for development. At the same time, sustainable supply of clean and affordable renewable energy sources is required if development is to be sustainable, so that it does not cause any environmental problems. The purpose of this paper is to determine the key variables of renewable energy implementation for sustainable development, on which the top management should focus. In this paper, an interpretive structural modeling (ISM) - based approach has been employed to model the implementation variables of renewable energy for sustainable development. These variables have been categorized under ‘enablers’ that help to increase the implementation of renewable energy for sustainable development. A major finding of this research is that public awareness regarding renewable energy for sustainable development is a very significant enabler. In this paper, an interpretation of variables of renewable energy for sustainable development in terms of their driving and dependence powers has been examined. For better results, top management should focus on improving the high-driving power enablers such as leadership, strategic planning, public awareness, top management support, availability of finance, government support, and support from interest groups.

Heterogeneous catalysts for converting renewable feedstocks to fuels and chemicals

The combination of dwindling oil reserves and growing concerns over carbon dioxide emissions and associated climate change is driving the urgent development of routes to utilise renewable feedstocks as sustainable sources of fuel and chemicals. Catalysis has a rich history of facilitating energy-efficient selective molecular transformations and contributes to 90% of chemical manufacturing processes and to more than 20% of all industrial products. In a post-petroleum era, catalysis will be central to overcoming the engineering and scientific barriers to economically feasible routes to biofuels and chemicals. This chapter will highlight some of the recent developments in heterogeneous catalytic technology for the synthesis of fuels and chemicals from renewable resources, derived from plant and aquatic oil sources as well as lignocellulosic feedstocks. Particular attention will be paid to the challenges faced when developing new catalysts and importance of considering the design of pore architectures and effect of tuning surface polarity to improve catalyst compatibility with highly polar bio-based substrates.

Perpetually renewable leases:a reappraisal

Analyses cases involving the construction of perpetually renewable leases (PRLs) under the Law of Property Act 1922 s.145 and Sch.15, and the findings of a study into whether the relevant provisions should be repealed. Reviews the problems arising where courts have allowed a perpetually renewable term to be created, the need for an express covenant for renewal and the scope for a human rights challenge to PRLs. Outlines the arguments supporting legislative prohibition of perpetual renewals

Optimal design of the renewable energy map of Greece using weighted goal-programming and data envelopment analysis

Renewable energy forms have been widely used in the past decades highlighting a "green" shift in energy production. An actual reason behind this turn to renewable energy production is EU directives which set the Union's targets for energy production from renewable sources, greenhouse gas emissions and increase in energy efficiency. All member countries are obligated to apply harmonized legislation and practices and restructure their energy production networks in order to meet EU targets. Towards the fulfillment of 20-20-20 EU targets, in Greece a specific strategy which promotes the construction of large scale Renewable Energy Source plants is promoted. In this paper, we present an optimal design of the Greek renewable energy production network applying a 0-1 Weighted Goal Programming model, considering social, environmental and economic criteria. In the absence of a panel of experts Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach is used in order to filter the best out of the possible network structures, seeking for the maximum technical efficiency. Super-Efficiency DEA model is also used in order to reduce the solutions and find the best out of all the possible. The results showed that in order to achieve maximum efficiency, the social and environmental criteria must be weighted more than the economic ones.

Message passing for distributed optimisation of power allocation with renewable resources

The increase in renewable energy generators introduced into the electricity grid is putting pressure on its stability and management as predictions of renewable energy sources cannot be accurate or fully controlled. This, with the additional pressure of fluctuations in demand, presents a problem more complex than the current methods of controlling electricity distribution were designed for. A global approximate and distributed optimisation method for power allocation that accommodates uncertainties and volatility is suggested and analysed. It is based on a probabilistic method known as message passing [1], which has deep links to statistical physics methodology. This principled method of optimisation is based on local calculations and inherently accommodates uncertainties; it is of modest computational complexity and provides good approximate solutions.We consider uncertainty and fluctuations drawn from a Gaussian distribution and incorporate them into the message-passing algorithm. We see the effect that increasing uncertainty has on the transmission cost and how the placement of volatile nodes within a grid, such as renewable generators or consumers, effects it.

New genre of antioxidants from renewable natural resources:synthesis and characterisation of rosemary plant-derived antioxidants and their performance in polyolefins

Several ester derivatives of rosmarinic acid (rosmarinates) were synthesised, characterised (1D and 2D NMR, UV and FTIR spectroscopy) and tested for their potential use as antioxidants derived from a renewable natural resource. The intrinsic free radical scavenging activity of the rosmarinates was assessed, initially using a modified DPPH (2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical) method, and found to be higher than that of commercial synthetic hindered phenol antioxidants Irganox 1076 and Irganox 1010. The thermal stabilising performance of the rosmarinates in polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) was subsequently examined and compared to that of samples prepared similarly but in the presence of Irganox 1076 (in PE) and Irganox 1010 (in PP) which are typically used for polyolefin stabilisation in industrial practice. The melt stability and the long-term thermo-oxidative stability (LTTS) of processed polymers containing the antioxidants were assessed by measuring the melt flow index (MFI), melt viscosity, oxidation induction time (OIT) and long-term (accelerated) thermal ageing performance. The results show that both the melt and the thermo-oxidative stabilisation afforded by the rosmarinates, and in particular the stearyl derivative, in both PE and PP, are superior to those of Irganox 1076 and Irganox 1010, hence their potential as effective sustainable bio-based antioxidants for polymers. The rosmarinic acid used for the synthesis of the rosmarinates esters in this study was obtained from commercial rosemary extracts (AquaROX80). Furthermore, a large number of different strains of UK-grown rosemary plants (Rosmarinum officinalis) were also extracted and analysed in order to examine their antioxidant content. It was found that the carnosic and the rosmarinic acids, and to a much lesser extent the carnosol, constituted the main antioxidant components of the UK-plants, with the two acids being present at a ratio of 3:1, respectively.

New modular structure DC-DC converter without electrolytic capacitors for renewable energy applications

Electrolytic capacitors are extensively used in power converters but they are bulky, unreliable, and have short lifetimes. This paper proposes a new capacitor-free high step-up dc-dc converter design for renewable energy applications such as photovoltaics (PVs) and fuel cells. The primary side of the converter includes three interleaved inductors, three main switches, and an active clamp circuit. As a result, the input current ripple is greatly reduced, eliminating the necessity for an input capacitor. In addition, zero voltage switching (ZVS) is achieved during switching transitions for all active switches, so that switching losses can be greatly reduced. Furthermore, a three-phase modular structure and six pulse rectifiers are employed to reduce the output voltage ripple. Since magnetic energy stored in the leakage inductance is recovered, the reverse-recovery issue of the diodes is effectively solved. The proposed converter is justified by simulation and experimental tests on a 1-kW prototype.