Engineering Commons^™

Alternate Novel Thermal Structure Interaction Designs Of Molten Salt Shell Structures At High Temperatures Ranging From 565˚C To 700˚C, Nathan David Tyrrell Loyd

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Excess energy from solar power stations and other baseline power production methods canbe stored in molten salts (MS) in the 565°C range, therefore allowing the use of large containers to store energy for up to a week and generate eight hours of electricity or more to be used during peak demand hours, at night, or adverse weather conditions, depending on the container size. Supported by Office of Naval Research (ONR), this research presents a survey of molten salt properties used in solar power storage, as well as the history of molten salt usage for energy storage and production for nuclear …

A Low-Cost Secure Iot Mechanism For Monitoring And Controlling Polygeneration Microgrids, Josué Martínez-Martínez, Diego Aponte-Roa, Idalides Vergara-Laurens, Wayne Weaver

Michigan Tech Publications

The use of Internet-connected devices at homes has increased to monitor energy consumption. Furthermore, renewable energy sources have also increased, reducing electricity bills. However, the high cost of the equipment limits the use of these technologies. This paper presents a low-cost secured-distributed Internet of Things (IoT) system to monitor and control devices connected in a polygeneration microgrid, as a combined power system for local loads with renewable sources. The proposed mechanism includes a Wireless Sensor Actuator Networked Control System that links network nodes using the IEEE 802.15.4 standard. The Internet communication enables the monitor and control of devices using a …

Modeling The Process Of Heat Exchange Between Heaters And The Material Taking Into Account Heat Exchange With The Environment, J.E. Safarov, Sh.A. Sultanova, G.T. Dadayev, B.T. Jumayev, A.B. Saydullayev

Chemical Technology, Control and Management

The paper considers the modeling of the process of heat transfer between heaters and material, taking into account heat exchange with the environment. To solve this problem, an experimental drying unit was assembled. Paraffin, sand, salt and brick were selected as test materials. The research carried out with the use of paraffin shows the most optimal and economical result in relation to other materials. The efficiency of paraffin application reaches 51 ºС, and the cooling time takes much longer. In addition, the selected material and the selected temperature have a beneficial effect on the drying process of plant material. The …

Decentralized Renewable Hybrid Mini-Grids For Rural Communities: Culmination Of The Irep Framework And Scale Up To Urban Communities, Blessing Ugwoke, Adedoyin Adeleke, Stefano P. Corgnati, Joshua M. Pearce, Pierluigi Leone

Michigan Tech Publications

The Integrated Rural Energy Planning (IREP) framework offers a unified road map for locating, planning and operating decentralized renewable hybrid off-grid energy systems for localized (rural) applications in low-income countries. This paper presents the culmination of the IREP framework and aims to illustrate the final step of the IREP framework for two communities in Nigeria. It is focused on two aspects. Firstly, the techno-economic modeling (investment and operation optimization) of a hybrid mini-grid system using HOMER Pro, a techno-economic evaluation tool; and evaluating the benefits of demand side management (DSM) based on energy efficiency on the overall system economics using …

Market-Conscious Strategies To Improve The Performance And Stability Of Planar, P-I-N Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Metal Halide Perovskite Solar Cells, Brandon Dunham

Doctoral Dissertations

Planar, p-i-n (inverted) hybrid organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells that use low-temperature, solution-processable charge-transport layers have garnered much attention due to their direct compatibility with flexible substrates and cost-effective roll-to-roll manufacturing. Nevertheless, this architecture has failed to repeatedly achieve the superior power conversion efficiencies frequently attained by its n-i-p counterpart. Additionally, the perovskite active layer has poor stability in the presence of prolonged light exposure, high temperatures, and moisture. In this study, we propose commercially viable strategies to improve the performance and stability of inverted methylammonium lead iodide perovskite solar cells. First, we show that a simple two-step method comprising evaporation-induced …

Photovoltaic Systems On Dairy Farms: Financial And Renewable Multi-Objective Optimization (Farmoo) Analysis, Michael Breen, J. Upton, Michael D. Murphy

Publications

No abstract provided.

Potential Energy Generation From Agricultural Residue In Indonesia, Adrian Rizqi Irhamna

English Language Institute

Indonesia has great potential of biomass sources from their agricultural residue, which can potentially be used for alternative energy generation. This preliminary research explores the most suitable technology for energy generation from agricultural residue and its challenge for application in Indonesia. The study showed that biomass utilization via the direct combustion process is recommended for energy generation. It is also reported that the pretreatment process of drying and washing, are required to increase the fuel quality and plant efficiency.

What Are The Advantages Of Replacing Fossil Fuels With Biofuels?, Amr Shaalan

English Language Institute

Fossil fuels’ negative impact on the environment is leading many people to worry In addition to that, fossil fuels are running out as every day goes by. Thus, finding a renewable and environmentally friendly source of energy has now become a necessity. Biofuels offer clean energy that comes with numerous economic and environmental benefits. Furthermore, biofuels can absorb more carbon from the air than they would produce when burnt. Giving a chance to clear the air from fossil fuel’s carbon.

Applying Renewable Energies Against Climate Change: Solar Photovoltaic (Pv) Energy, Juan Jose Estribi

English Language Institute

In recent years, more efforts towards fighting climate change have been done. As a direct response, research and technology have offered several insights regarding the specific causes, effects, and even possible solutions for resolving this global issue. Among these solutions, renewable energies and their potential contributions as clean energy sources can be assessed as feasible options for the energy transformation through the decarbonization process of the energy industry. This poster is mainly focused on solar photovoltaic (PV) energy and its great potential as a renewable energy by making a brief assessment of some important aspects such as resource availability, its …

Zero Energy University Buildingsenergy Performance Evaluation Of Faculty Of Architectural Engineering In Tripoli's Branch, Osama Omar, Yathreb Sabsaby, Rehab Amro

Architecture and Planning Journal (APJ)

One of the fastest growing trends in educational building design is Net Zero Energy buildings(ZEB). There are several buildings, either completed or under construction, that are committed to achieve this incredible level of energy efficiency [4]. The Fcaulty of Architecture building in BAU University is chosen as a case study to evaluate the energy performance in similar buildings in comparison with zero energy design strategies. The study used the findings from the analysis to identify and correct problem within the building. The aim of the research is to change the faculty building from an energy consumer to an energy producer, …

Nonlinear Control And Observation Of Full-Variable Speed Wind Turbine Systems., Nicholas Hawkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

With increasing concern for the environmental effects of power generation from fossil fuels, wind energy is a competitive source for electrical power with higher efficiency than other clean sources. However, the nature of this power source makes controlling wind turbines difficult. The variability of wind as a source either requires highly accurate measurement equipment or sophisticated mathematical alternatives. In addition to the unknown quantities of the weather itself, the efficiency of power capture at the turbine blades is highly nonlinear in nature and difficult to ascertain. The ability of either determine these troublesome quantities, or control the system despite ignorance …

Numerical Simulation Of Thermoelectric Transport In Bulk And Nanostructured Sisn Alloys, Venkatakrishna Dusetty

Masters Theses

The current high demand for sustainable and renewable energy sources to solve world energy crisis has enormously increased interest in looking at alternative sources of energy. All the machines used in manufacturing process, electricity generation, residential applications, transportation etc., rejects energy in the form of heat into environment. Thermoelectric materials can convert thermal-to-electrical and electrical-to-thermal energy and can be utilized in waste-heat harvesting, more efficient cooling to reduce energy usage and CO₂ emissions. Significant research efforts have been devoted over the past decade to thermoelectric materials, with particular emphasis being placed on combining materials selection with nanostructuring. The overarching …

Data Management Of Data Processing Framework In Green Data Center, Zhang Xiao, Gao Yuan, Xiaoliang Wang, Yiyong Ge, Haixiang Yang, Shupeng Wan

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Using renewable energy in data center is an environment-friendly way to solve the problem of high energy consumption of data center. Since renewable energy is variable, delaying the jobs which has no strict deadline i a widely used strategy to maximize the usage of renewable energy. Meanwhile, turning the idle servers off can further reduce energy consumption. If the data required by the jobs to be processed are unavailable, some servers in sleep state need to be reactivated to guarantee that the data required by the jobs are available. Such operation may lead to energy waste due to the …

Energy And Economic Losses Due To Soiling On Utility Scale Pv Systems To Guide Timing Of Cost Effective Cleaning, Sophia Mcmillin Stockburger, Vicente Jesus Rios

Electrical Engineering

The purpose of this senior project is to develop and recommend a cleaning schedule for Goldtree Solar Farm that is both economically beneficial and an efficient use of cleaning for the client. Solar farms can have various factors that influence the cleaning schedule such as weather behavior, time of the year, soiling, and other factors. Through this senior project, the goal is to assess these factors effect on the solar farm to produce a cleaning schedule that will maximize energy production, maximize profits, and prevent insignificant cleaning

This analysis is motivated by defining and promoting the benefits of regular maintenance …

Optimization Of Union College’S Microgrid To Meet All Load With A Least-Cost, Low-Carbon Energy Mix, Caitlin Mcmahon

Honors Theses

A microgrid is a localized electric grid that generates some or all of the power used to meet its load. Union College currently has a microgrid that meets 70 percent of the campus’ load and is connected to the main grid. It is made up of a cogeneration plant as well as solar photovoltaic panels and wind turbines, which are renewable energy sources. The goal of this project is to determine the least cost, low-carbon energy mix that meets 100 percent of the campus’ load. The issue with solar and wind power is that they are variable based on time …

Providing Sustainable Power Through Renewable Energy For Developing Communities In Central America, Elizabeth Topping

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Rural electrification through an expansion of the power grid into remote villages in Central America is a development that is still years away. Using renewable energy technology, access to electricity is available even in the most remote areas of the world. These individual power grids are also called “microgrids.” Creating microgrids in rural areas provides the people living there with access to power they did not have before. With this newfound access to power, these communities can expand their access to education, using computers or mobile devices. They can power lights, refrigerators, and other devices to continue development.

The design …

Cybersecurity Methods For Grid-Connected Power Electronics, Stephen Joe Moquin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The present work shows a secure-by-design process, defense-in-depth method, and security techniques for a secure distributed energy resource. The distributed energy resource is a cybersecure, solar inverter and battery energy storage system prototype, collectively called the Cybersecure Power Router. Consideration is given to the use of the Smart Green Power Node for a foundation of the present work. Metrics for controller security are investigated to evaluate firmware security techniques. The prototype's ability to mitigate, respond to, and recover from firmware integrity degradation is examined. The prototype shows many working security techniques within the context of a grid-connected, distributed energy resource. …

An Assessment Of Renewable Energy Technology Implementation In Storrs, Connecticut: Emissions Reduction And Feasibility Of A Microgrid System At Uconn, Sophie Macdonald

Honors Scholar Theses

The purpose of this project is to design a clean energy-sourced microgrid for UConn’s main campus that would reduce the university’s energy emissions while remaining within the geographic boundaries of viable UConn-owned land. Economic cost was not considered in this analysis; instead, emissions and space constraints were the optimized measures of value and feasibility. Sources of energy that were considered include photovoltaics (PV), wind turbines, hydrokinetic systems, and fuel cells. Energy storage capacity was included in the analysis as well. The overall system was optimized first by ignoring space constraints and for a minimum of 10% reduction from the current …

Nanomechanical Characterization Of Fuel Cell Ionomers, Jackson Goddard

UCARE Research Products

Energy sustainability can be achieved by improving and adopting clean energy technologies, and a better nanoscale understanding of ionomer-catalyst layers could lead to increased efficiency of proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Samples of Nafion ( Perfluorosulfonic acid ionomer) and PFIA (Perfluoroimide acid ionomer) of varying film thickness were prepared and then studied using contact resonance force microscopy. It was determined that storage and loss modulus increase as relative humidity increases and ionomer film thickness goes below 100 nm. Furthermore, in this specific study, the similar storage and loss modulus of Nafion and PFIA could be attributed to similar backbone structure …

Net Energy Index: A New Way To Measure Energy Efficient Buildings, Dylan Suplee

Senior Honors Theses

Energy efficiency indexes are useful for providing tangible measurements of energy efficiency in buildings. Buildings use approximately 70% of all electricity in the USA. Using that energy efficiently has two primary benefits: limiting greenhouse gas emissions and reducing grid strain. Utilizing local renewable energy sources contributes to the same benefits. Currently, there is no index that considers renewable energy sources when measuring energy efficiency. Therefore, this paper proposes the Net Energy Index, which compares the net power usage of a building to the floor area of the building in order to determine energy efficiency. If renewable energy supplies power to …

Analyzing Cost Effectiveness Of Photovoltaic Pavements, Ian N. Parks

Theses and Dissertations

The United States Air Force (USAF) is the largest consumer of energy within the Department of Defense (DoD). As such, the USAF is continually looking for ways to reduce consumption, as well improving network resiliency and assuring supply. One potential method for addressing these items is focusing on applications of renewable energy. A specific application of renewable energy that could greatly benefit the USAF if viable would be photovoltaic (PV) pavements. PV pavements would be able to capitalize upon the large swathes of pavements on Air Force (AF) installations, while not being hampered by other concerns such as clear zones …

Forecasting The Short-Term Value Of Wind Power For Risk-Aware Bidding Strategies In Single-Imbalance Price Electricity Markets, Gianni Goretti

Doctoral

The participation of wind energy in electricity markets and strategic bidding in the day-ahead market has been investigated with growing interest in recent years. However, markets adopting a single-price imbalance settlement where participants can increase their profits if they help to put the system back into balance have received very limited attention in the academic literature. In this thesis, new probabilistic models forecasting the short-term value of wind power are developed and their use in bidding in these types of markets is investigated. The proposed strategies are designed for participants who want to bid strategically in the day-ahead market to …

Experimental Investigation Of Low-Voltage Silicon Carbide (Sic) Semiconductor Devices For Power Conversion Applications, Saleh Salem H. Alharbi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Enhancing the performance and efficiency of power converter systems requires fast-switching power devices with considerably low switching and conduction losses. Silicon (Si) semiconductor devices are the essential components in electronic converter designs, and their behaviors and switching characteristics determine the system’s overall performance and efficiency. These conventional Si devices are nearing to hit their physical and operational limits in meeting power converter requirements with respect to high temperature and large voltage conditions. However, silicon carbide (SiC) power devices enable greater converter efficiency and better power density, particularly under hard switching frequencies and high output voltages due to their outstanding material …

Experimental Evaluation Of Medium-Voltage Cascode Gallium Nitride (Gan) Devices For Bidirectional Dc–Dc Converters, Salah Salem H. Alharbi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As renewable energy sources, such as photovoltaic (PV) cells and wind turbines, are rapidly implemented in DC microgrids, energy storage systems play an increasingly significant role in ensuring uninterrupted power supply and in supporting the reliability and stability of microgrid operations. Power electronics, especially bidirectional DC–DC converters, are essential parts in distributed energy storage and alternative energy systems because of their grid synchronization, DC power management, and bidirectional power flow capabilities. While there is increasing demand for more efficient, compact, and reliable power converters in numerous applications, most existing power converters are hindered by traditional silicon (Si) based semiconductors, which …

The Integration Of Pumped Hydro Storage Systems Into Pv Microgrids In Rural Areas, Navid Mousavi

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Photovoltaic (PV) systems are popular in rural areas because they provide low cost and clean electricity for homes and irrigation systems. The primary challenge of PV systems is their intermittent nature. The typical solution is storing energy in batteries; however, they are expensive and possess a short lifespan. This research proposes a new type of pumped hydro storage (PHS) which can be implemented as an alternative to batteries. The components of the system are modelled to consider losses of the system accurately. The mathematic model developed in this project assists the management system to make more efficient decisions. The proposed …

Proactive Content Caching In Future Generation Communication Networks: Energy And Security Considerations, Muhammad Ishtiaque Aziz Zahed

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The proliferation of hand-held devices and Internet of Things (IoT) applications has heightened demand for popular content download. A high volume of content streaming/downloading services during peak hours can cause network congestion. Proactive content caching has emerged as a prospective solution to tackle this congestion problem. In proactive content caching, data storage units are used to store popular content in helper nodes at the network edge. This contributes to a reduction of peak traffic load and network congestion.

However, data storage units require additional energy, which offers a challenge to researchers that intend to reduce energy consumption up to 90% …

Internet Of Things In Sustainable Energy Systems, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

Our planet has abundant renewable and conventional energy resources but technological capability and capacity gaps coupled with water-energy needs limit the benefits of these resources to citizens. Through IoT technology solutions and state-of-the-art IoT sensing and communications approaches, the sustainable energy-related research and innovation can bring a revolution in this area. Moreover, by the leveraging current infrastructure, including renewable energy technologies, microgrids, and power-to-gas (P2G) hydrogen systems, the Internet of Things in sustainable energy systems can address challenges in energy security to the community, with a minimal trade-off to environment and culture. In this chapter, the IoT in sustainable energy …

A Four-Port Bidirectional Dc-Dc Converter For Renewable Energy System And Microgrid, Xia Du

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Renewable energy has nowadays become important in electrical power applications. Power converters play an important role in integrating these distributed energy sources. However, due to their intermittence characteristics, e.g., the output power provided by the PV and wind turbine is not stable, either an energy storage system will be used or microgrid is formed between the main grid and the sources. To integrate these renewable energy sources and manage the power flow, a multiport converter is preferred because it is highly beneficial and cost-efficiently than the traditional solution that using multiple individual power converter for each source. This thesis proposed …

Electric Grid Decarbonization Pathways: Landscape Impacts, Policy Interactions, And The Need For Cooperation, Austin Wesley Thomas

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Climate change has motivated governments around the world to ratify aggressive greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. Meeting these targets will require improved energy efficiency, behavior changes, and energy system decarbonization. Many climate change and energy policy targets imply the deployment of large amounts of low carbon, renewable energy resources like wind turbines and solar photovoltaic (PV) panels but do not specify how these resources will be sited on the landscape. The relationships between weather conditions, terrain, land cover, existing electric grid infrastructure, and electricity consumers will govern how these wind and solar PV infrastructure configurations develop and how quickly they …

Electrification Of Domestic Hot Water To Aid The Integration Of Renewable Energy In The California Grid, Alejandro Cervantes

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Water heating in residential buildings, also known as domestic hot water (DHW), is the third largest use of energy after appliances and space conditioning. About 90% of the residential buildings in the state use natural gas fueled water heaters, 6% use electricity, and a small percent use liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) or solar water heaters. The current energy use associated with residential water heating is small relative to the total amount of energy consumption in the residential building sector, but it is still a contributor of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Improving hot water systems can be beneficial for bill customer …