Download or read book Spain s Photovoltaic Revolution written by Pedro A. Prieto and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-01-04 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROI or EROEI) is the amount of energy acquired from a particular energy source divided by the energy expended, or invested, in obtaining that energy. EROI is an essential and seemingly simple measure of the usable energy or “energy profit” from the exploitation of an energy source, but it is not so easy to determine all of the energy expenditures that should be included in the calculation. Because EROI values are generally low for renewable energy sources, differences in these estimates can lead to sharply divergent conclusions about the viability of these energy technologies. This book presents the first complete energy analysis of a large-scale, real-world deployment of photovoltaic (PV) collection systems representing 3.5 GW of installed, grid-connected solar plants in Spain. The analysis includes all of the factors that limit and adjust the real electricity output through one full-year cycle, and all of the fossil fuel inputs required to achieve these results. The authors’ comprehensive analysis of energy inputs, which assigns energy cost estimates to all financial expenditures, yields EROI values that are less than half of those claimed by other investigators and by the solar industry. Sensitivity analysis is used to test various assumptions in deriving these EROI estimates. The results imply that the EROI of current, large-scale PV systems may be too low to seamlessly support an energy and economic transition away from fossil fuels. Given the pervasiveness of fossil fuel subsidies in the modern economy, a key conclusion is that all components of the system that brings solar power to the consumer, from manufacturing to product maintenance and life cycle, must be improved in terms of energy efficiency. The materials science of solar conversion efficiency is only one such component. Sunny Spain represented an ideal case study as the country had the highest penetration of solar PV energy at 2.3 percent of total national demand as well as state-of-the-art expertise in solar power including grid management of intermittent, modern renewable systems. This book, written by a uniquely qualified author team consisting of the chief engineer for several major photovoltaic projects in Spain and the world’s leading expert on the concept and application of EROI, provides a comprehensive understanding of the net energy available to society from energy sources in general and from functioning PV installations under real-world conditions in particular. The authors provide critical insight into the capacity of renewable energy sources to fill the foreseeable gap between world energy demand and depletion rates for fossil fuels. · Presents the first comprehensive study of the EROI of large-scale solar PV systems in a developed country · Uses real-world operational data rather than laboratory approximations and extrapolations · Describes the dependence of one alternative energy source on the goods and services of a fossil-fueled economy · Has global implications for the potential of renewable energy sources to replace dwindling reserves of fossil fuels · Written with the first-hand knowledge of the chief, on-site engineer for many solar installations in Spain together with the leader in the development and application of the concept of EROI

Download or read book Spain s Photovoltaic Revolution written by Springer and published by . This book was released on 2013-01-04 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book When Trucks Stop Running written by A.J. Friedemann and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-12-09 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In lively and engaging language, this book describes our dependence on freight transport and its vulnerability to diminishing supplies and high prices of oil. Ships, trucks, and trains are the backbone of civilization, hauling the goods that fulfill our every need and desire. Their powerful, highly-efficient diesel combustion engines are exquisitely fine-tuned to burn petroleum-based diesel fuel. These engines and the fuels that fire them have been among the most transformative yet disruptive technologies on the planet. Although this transportation revolution has allowed many of us to fill our homes with global goods even a past emperor would envy, our era of abundance, and the freight transport system in particular, is predicated on the affordability and high energy density of a single fuel, oil. This book explores alternatives to this finite resource including other liquid fuels, truck and locomotive batteries and utility-scale energy storage technology, and various forms of renewable electricity to support electrified transport. Transportation also must adapt to other challenges: Threats from climate change, financial busts, supply-chain failure, and transportation infrastructure decay. Robert Hirsch, who wrote the “Peaking of World Oil Production” report for the U.S. Department of Energy in 2005, said that planning for peak world production must start at least 10, if not 20 years ahead of time. What little planning exists focuses mainly on how to accommodate 30 percent more economic growth while averting climate change, ignoring the possibility that we are at, or near, the end of growth. Taken for granted, the modern transportation system will not endure forever. The time is now to take a realistic and critical look at the choices ahead, and how the future of transportation may unfold.

Download or read book The Green Industrial Revolution written by Woodrow W. Clark II and published by Butterworth-Heinemann. This book was released on 2014-11-26 with total page 589 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The new green industrial revolution is driven by a variety of global environmental concerns. In some regions, it is spurred by the scarcity of cheap affordable renewable energy that will also lead to a reduced reliance on fossil fuel in the production of power. In others, it is driven by a need to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from power generation. This book provides a comprehensive review of the most popular green “disruptive technologies in energy production as well as their economic impact. In addition, the book includes a multitude of international case studies where these technologies are currently deployed and their economic impact on the region. Clearly explains the scientific, engineering, technological, and economics driving the Green Revolution in power generation A guide to technologies such as renewable energy, smart green grids, and emission control technologies Packed with international case studies that provides real-world examples of how these technologies are currently being deployed around the world Explains the economic impact which these new technologies will play in building global sustainability

Download or read book Earth Is Not For Sale The A Path Out Of Fossil Capitalism To The Other World That Is Still Possible written by Schwartzman David and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2018-08-29 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a thought provoking outline of the solutions already in hand to the challenges now facing humanity with respect to prevalent gross social and economic inequalities, ecological thresholds and tipping points, and the ever-looming threat of climate catastrophe. The authors find these solutions in the arenas of renewable energy systems, agroecological methods, and reimagined social organization. Clarity is brought to the political economic obstacles standing in the way as well as the false solutions and alleged barriers that pervade the discourse thereby delaying and obstructing progress to the solutions advanced.The authors provoke readers to face up to these challenges by demonstrating how people, all over the world, have already begun this effort through collective action ranging from the local to the global community. Drawing on their own and many other scholar's research, they reject a reliance on the 'business as usual' approach trusting the capitalist market and existing global institutions, and provide an accessible popular account with thoroughly footnoted endnotes that contain technical details and references to the scientific literature.The Earth is Not for Sale informs its readers and provides well-documented solutions in a bid to inspire readers to think critically, and potentially become more active in society.

Download or read book The Wizard and the Prophet written by Charles Mann and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2019-04-16 with total page 642 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the best-selling, award-winning author of 1491 and 1493--an incisive portrait of the two little-known twentieth-century scientists, Norman Borlaug and William Vogt, whose diametrically opposed views shaped our ideas about the environment, laying the groundwork for how people in the twenty-first century will choose to live in tomorrow's world. In forty years, Earth's population will reach ten billion. Can our world support that? What kind of world will it be? Those answering these questions generally fall into two deeply divided groups--Wizards and Prophets, as Charles Mann calls them in this balanced, authoritative, nonpolemical new book. The Prophets, he explains, follow William Vogt, a founding environmentalist who believed that in using more than our planet has to give, our prosperity will lead us to ruin. Cut back! was his mantra. Otherwise everyone will lose! The Wizards are the heirs of Norman Borlaug, whose research, in effect, wrangled the world in service to our species to produce modern high-yield crops that then saved millions from starvation. Innovate! was Borlaug's cry. Only in that way can everyone win! Mann delves into these diverging viewpoints to assess the four great challenges humanity faces--food, water, energy, climate change--grounding each in historical context and weighing the options for the future. With our civilization on the line, the author's insightful analysis is an essential addition to the urgent conversation about how our children will fare on an increasingly crowded Earth.

Download or read book Afterburn written by Richard Heinberg and published by New Society Publishers. This book was released on 2015-04-01 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essential, visionary essays about our post-carbon future Climate change, along with the depletion of oil, coal, and gas dictate that we will inevitably move away from our profound societal reliance on fossil fuels; but just how big a transformation will this be? While many policy-makers assume that renewable energy sources will provide an easy "plug-and-play" solution, author Richard Heinberg suggests instead that we are in for a wild ride; a "civilization reboot" on a scale similar to the agricultural and industrial revolutions. Afterburn consists of 15 essays exploring various aspects of the 21st century migration away from fossil fuels including: Short-term political and economic factors that impede broad-scale, organized efforts to adapt The origin of longer-term trends (such as consumerism), that have created a way of life that seems "normal" to most Americans, but is actually unprecedented, highly fragile, and unsustainable Potential opportunities and sources of conflict that are likely to emerge. From the inevitability and desirability of more locally organized economies, to the urgent need to preserve our recent cultural achievements and the futility of pursuing economic growth above all, Afterburn offers cutting-edge perspectives and insights that challenge conventional thinking about our present, our future, and the choices in our hands. AWARDS FINALIST | 2015 Foreword INDIES: Essays

Download or read book The Renewable Energy Transition written by John Erik Meyer and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-10-18 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Canada is a well-endowed country that serves as an ideal model to lead the reader through the development of energy, resources, and society historically and into a post-carbon future. The book provides an historical perspective and describes the physical resource limitations, energy budgets, and climate realities that will determine the potential for any transition to renewable energy. Political and social realities, including jurisdiction and energy equality issues, are addressed. However, we cannot simply mandate or legislate policies according to social and political aspirations. Policies must comply with the realities of physical laws, such as the energy return on investment (EROI) for fossil-fuel based and renewable energy systems. EROI is discussed in both historical terms and in reference to the greater efficiencies inherent in a distributed generation, mainly electric, post-carbon society. Meyer explores the often misleading concepts and terms that have become embedded in society and tend to dictate our policy making, as well as the language, social and personal goals, and metrics that need to change before the physical transition can begin at the required scale. This book also reviews what nations have been doing thus far in terms of renewables, including the successes and failures in Canada and across the globe. Ontario’s green energy fiasco, and a comparison of the different circumstances of Norway and Alberta, for example, are covered as part of the author’s comparison of a wide range of countries. What are the achievements, plans, and problems that determine how well different countries are positioned to make “the transition”? The transition path is complex, and the tools we need to develop and the physical infrastructure investments we need to make, are daunting. At some point in time, Canada and Canadians, like all nations, will be living on 100% renewable energy. Whether the social and technological level that endures sees us travelling to the stars, or subsisting at a standard of living more similar to the pre-fossil fuel era, is far from certain.

Download or read book Transitioning to a Post Carbon Society written by Ernest Garcia and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-12-27 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book deals with one of the most pressing social and environmental issues that we face today. The transition to a post-carbon society, in which the consumption of fossil fuels decreases over time, has become an inevitability due to the need to prevent catastrophic climate change, the increasing cost and scarcity of energy, and complex combinations of both of these factors. As the authors point out, this will not only entail political adjustments and the replacement of some technologies by others, but will be accompanied by social and cultural changes that bring about substantial modifications in our societies and ways of life. This book examines whether the current conditions, which date back to the crisis that began in 2007, favour a benign and smooth transition or will make it more difficult and prone to conflict. It argues that, even if this transformation is unavoidable, the directions it will take and the resulting social forms are much less certain. There will be many post-carbon societies, the authors conclude, and any number of routes to social change. Transitioning to a Post-Carbon Society therefore represents a significant contribution to global debates on the environment, and is vital reading for academics, policymakers, business leaders, NGOs and the general public alike.

Download or read book The Triumph of the Sun in 2000 2020 written by Wolfgang Palz and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2019-09-02 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dramatic forest fires in California, flooding in Mozambique, unusual heat waves in Europe, hurricanes of strength never seen before—the world’s climate is getting out of control. The list of human casualties and damage in billions of euros and dollars is getting longer day by day. Weather experts and climatologists make it clear that global carbon dioxide emissions are accelerating, and as a consequence, the world’s climate is becoming unpredictable. This book, an updated edition of The Triumph of the Sun: The Energy of the New Century, is not another disaster report. It brings good news. It presents the details of a solar revolution that started with the dawn of the new century. The new solar energy conquered the markets and sidelined the conventional sources. Supplemented with the latest facts and figures, the book features new and updated sections on topics such as climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, carbon allowances and CO2 taxes, auto-consumption, and renewable energy for heat and transport. Energy being at the heart of economic development and everybody’s well-being, the new dominance of the renewables, which are the key to combating global change, revolutionized our society as a whole for the better. The author of the book witnessed the progress of this solar revolution and was one of the pioneers in the development of modern solar technologies.

Download or read book The Global Technology Revolution China In depth Analyses written by Richard S. Silberglitt and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2009 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 2007, the Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA) and one of its administrative zones, the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA), in northeast China commissioned the RAND Corporation to perform a technology-foresight study to help them develop and implement a strategic vision and plan for economic growth through technological innovation. The principal objectives were to identify the most-promising emerging technology applications for TBNA and TEDA to pursue as part of their plan for growth, to analyze the drivers and barriers they would face in each case, and to recommend action plans for each technology application (TA). Seven TAs should form a pivotal part of TBNA's comprehensive strategic plan: cheap solar energy; advanced mobile communications and radio-frequency identification; rapid bioassays; membranes, filters, and catalysts for water purification; molecular-scale drug design, development, and delivery; electric and hybrid vehicles; and green manufacturing. The specific action plans can be integrated into an overarching strategic plan that rests on three legs: building a state-of-the-art R & D program; updating and expanding TBNA and TEDA's manufacturing base; and positioning TBNA and TEDA for the global marketplace. The plan offers TBNA a wealth of opportunities that will position it for the future development it envisions, and each TA emerges from one or more of TEDA's current pillar industries, making for a fluid transition that builds on existing strengths.

Download or read book Advanced Technology for Smart Environment and Energy written by Jamal Mabrouki and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2023-03-25 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents smart energy management in the context of energy transition. It presents the motivation, impacts and challenges related to this hot topic. Then, it focuses on the use of techniques and tools based on artificial intelligence (AI) to solve the challenges related to this problem. A global diagram presenting the general principle of these techniques is presented. Then, these techniques are compared according to a set of criteria in order to show their advantages and disadvantages with respect to the conditions and constraints of intelligent energy management applications in the context of energy transition. Several examples are used throughout the white paper to illustrate the concepts and methods presented. An intelligent electrical network (smart grid—SG) includes heterogeneous and distributed electricity production, transmission, distribution and consumption components. It is the next generation of electricity network able to manage electricity demand (consumption/production/distribution) in a sustainable, reliable and economical way taking into account the penetration of renewable energies (solar, wind, etc.). Therefore, a (SG) smart grid also includes an intelligent layer that analyzes the data provided by consumers as well as that collected from the production side in order to optimize consumption and production according to weather conditions, the profile and habits of the consumer. In addition, this system can improve the use of green energy through renewable energy penetration and demand response.

Download or read book America s Most Sustainable Cities and Regions written by John W. Day and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-01-23 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book takes you on a unique journey through American history, taking time to consider the forces that shaped the development of various cities and regions, and arrives at an unexpected conclusion regarding sustainability. From the American Dream to globalization to the digital and information revolutions, we assume that humans have taken control of our collective destinies in spite of potholes in the road such as the Great Recession of 2007-2009. However, these attitudes were formed during a unique 100-year period of human history in which a large but finite supply of fossil fuels was tapped to feed our economic and innovation engine. Today, at the peak of the Oil Age, the horizon looks different. Cities such as Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas are situated where water and other vital ecological services are scarce, and the enormous flows of resources and energy that were needed to create the megalopolises of the 20th century will prove unsustainable. Climate change is a reality, and regional impacts will become increasingly severe. Economies such as Las Vegas, which are dependent on discretionary income and buffeted by climate change, are already suffering the fate of the proverbial canary in the coal mine. Finite resources will mean profound changes for society in general and the energy-intensive lifestyles of the US and Canada in particular. But not all regions are equally vulnerable to these 21st-century megatrends. Are you ready to look beyond “America’s Most Livable Cities” to the critical factors that will determine the sustainability of your municipality and region? Find out where your city or region ranks according to the forces that will impact our lives in the next years and decades. Find out how: ·resource availability and ecological services shaped the modern landscape ·emerging megatrends will make cities and regions more or less livable in the new century ·your city or region ranks on a “sustainability” map of the United States ·urban metabolism puts large cities at particular risk ·sustainability factors will favor economic solutions at a local, rather than global, level ·these principles apply to industrial economies and countries globally. This book should be cited as follows: J. Day, C. Hall, E. Roy, M. Moersbaecher, C. D'Elia, D. Pimentel, and A. Yanez. 2016. America's most sustainable cities and regions: Surviving the 21st century megatrends. Springer, New York. 348 p.

Download or read book A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Energy Systems written by Trevor M. Letcher and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2018-05-17 with total page 540 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Energy Systems: With Special Focus on Photovoltaic Systems, the most advanced and research focused text on all aspects of solar energy engineering, is a must have edition on the present state of solar technology, integration and worldwide distribution. In addition, the book provides a high-level assessment of the growth trends in photovoltaics and how investment, planning and economic infrastructure can support those innovations. Each chapter includes a research overview with a detailed analysis and new case studies that look at how recent research developments can be applied. Written by some of the most forward-thinking professionals, this book is an invaluable reference for engineers. Contains analysis of the latest high-level research and explores real world application potential in relation to developments Uses system international (SI) units and imperial units throughout to appeal to global engineers Offers measurable data written by a world expert in the field on the latest developments in this fast moving and vital subject

Download or read book The Hydrogen Revolution written by Marco Alverà and published by Basic Books. This book was released on 2021-11-16 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Named a Financial Times Best Book of 2021 An energy expert shows why hydrogen can fight climate change and become the fuel of the future We’re constantly told that our planet is in crisis; that to save it, we must stop traveling, stop eating meat, even stop having children. But in The Hydrogen Revolution, Marco Alverà argues that we don’t need to upend our lives. We just need a new kind of fuel: hydrogen. From transportation and infrastructure to heating and electricity, hydrogen could eliminate fossil fuels, boost economic growth, and encourage global action on climate change. It could also solve the most bedeviling aspects of today’s renewable energy—from transporting and storing wind and solar energy and their vulnerability to weather changes to the inefficiency and limited utility of heavy, short-lasting batteries. The Hydrogen Revolution isn’t just a manifesto for a powerful new technology. It’s a hopeful reminder that despite the gloomy headlines about the fate of our planet, there’s still an opportunity to turn things around.

Download or read book The Triumph of the Sun written by Wolfgang Palz and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2018-08-06 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the new century came, the world began to turn its back on the reckless developments of the past that resulted in global pollution and the deep misery it entails, a climate getting out of kilter, the threat of a nuclear war, and all perils brought about by the unchecked use of fossil and atomic resources. We have now resolutely begun to move to a life that believes in harmony with nature, with the Sun. Not only the climate but everyone is a winner going with the Sun, the celestial body that distinguishes itself with its constancy and bounties. Thanks to innovation and mass production, the power derived from the Sun now beats the conventional energy sector with its own strength: socio-economy. Solar energy has become cheaper than the energy harvested from conventional resources. The result is a booming economy that is not just sustainable, but is also capable of producing millions of new jobs. In this book, Wolfgang Palz, an independent expert on energy matters and the economy, presents his views on a solar revolution to which he made significant contributions. It is not a compendium of ecological dreams and wishful thinking for a better world, but a thorough report, buttressed with facts and figures, on what happened. Beginning with fundamentals, the book discusses the key role of the Sun in nature and life. It details what happened when the search for a cleaner world began and elaborates the efforts of the people who brought about the change.

Download or read book Energy and the Financial System written by Roger Boyd and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2014-01-29 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The modern financial system was developed to support the rapid economic growth that took off about 200 years ago with the phenomenal amounts of cheap energy made available through the exploitation of fossil fuels. As a result, its viability is completely dependent upon the continuation of that growth. Unfortunately, the more recent fossil fuel discoveries, especially for oil, have tended to have lower production levels than earlier ones. In addition, greater amounts of energy are required to extract the fossil fuels leading to less net energy available for society. The Energy Return On Investment (EROI) for oil has fallen from 30:1 in the 1970's to 10:1 today. Thus, newer energy finds produce lower extraction rates and more of the energy provided is offset by the energy used in the extraction processes. The result has been economic stagnation or even contraction, with growth in China and India etc. only possible due to the extensive use of local coal reserves, and recession-induced drops in OECD country energy use. Renewable sources of energy will not be able to expand fast enough to replace the 87% of energy supplies provided by fossil fuels, and apart from hydro and wind, tend to have very low EROI rates. They are also critically dependent upon the cheap energy infrastructure provided by fossil fuels. The phenomenal amounts of path-dependent energy infrastructure will also greatly inhibit any move away from fossil fuels. Without continued economic growth there will not be the extra output to fund loan interest payments, nor the revenue and profit growth to support share price/earnings multiples. The financial system acts as a time machine, creating asset prices based upon perceptions of the future. As an increasing percentage of investors come to accept the future reality of at best, financial asset prices will fall to reflect a realistic future. The resulting crash will remove the underpinnings of the banking, brokerage, mutual fund, pension fund, and insurance industries. The comfortable futures of many will be shown to have been based upon a mirage of future growth that will not take place. With the financial system acting as the critical coordination system of the global economy, its crash will also intensify economic problems. Written by a retired financial industry executive with over 25 years of experience, this book describes how the crisis will affect different regions and industries to help identify the career and investment choices which may provide a relative safe harbour.