Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Clean Energy At The Crossroads Of America: An Integrated Resource Plan For Northern Indiana Public Service Company, Llc (Nipsco), Saad Z. Khan, Shend Boshnjaku

Master's Projects and Capstones

This paper outlines an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) for the Indiana electric utility company, NIPSCO, looking forward to the year 2050 and evaluating different pathways to net zero emissions from the power generation sector. It is a plan for the future, identifying the most cost-effective and reliable mix of resources to meet the energy needs of NIPSCO's customers and reaching decarbonization goals by mid-century.

Merit Study Of Battery Or Hydrogen Energy Storage For Large Scale, Combined Wind And Solar Electricity Generation, Ashley K. Moore

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

In the past several years, the energy sector has experienced a rapid increase in renewable energy installations due to declining capital costs for wind turbines, solar panels, and batteries. Wind and solar electricity generation are intermittent in nature which must be considered in an economic analysis if a fair comparison is to be made between electricity supplied from renewables and electricity purchased from the grid. Energy storage reduces curtailment of wind and solar and minimizes electricity purchases from the grid by storing excess electricity and deploying the energy at times when demand exceeds the renewable energy supply. The objective of …

To Destroy Or Transform? Two Fossil Fuel Transitions Offer Glimpse Into Industry’S Future, Chloe Bennett, Sarah Kerson

Capstones

In 2019, the Philadelphia Energy Solutions oil refinery closed after a dangerous explosion. But for years before the accident, members of the local environmental justice organization Philly Thrive had been advocating for its closure. Neighborhood residents who live near the refinery site had been complaining for years of health problems, ranging from asthma to cancer. “Enough is enough,” says Sylvia Bennett, 79, who lives in the Grays Ferry neighborhood near where the refinery is located. Her two daughters have both been diagnosed with cancer.

What will become of the refinery site remains to be seen as conversations between Hilco and …

Evaluation Of Energy Release From Wildfires Across The Elevation Gradient, Isabelle Rose Butler

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Wildfires are an integral process in vegetative terrestrial land which shape ecosystem functions. A warming climate, however, has increased the size and severity of fires with significant ecosystem and societal implications. Furthermore, warming has changed characteristics of wildfires enabling a median upslope advance of 252 m in high-elevation forest fires from 1984 to 2017, allowing wildfires to burn in areas that were previously too wet to burn frequently. This exposed an additional 81,500 square kilometers (11%) of western US montane forests to fires.

In this thesis, I test the hypothesis that wildfires burn more intensely in high-elevation mesic forests than …

The Demotechnic Index Of Nations, 1980-2018, Camden Rainwater

Geosciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Demotechnic Index (DI) is a non-dimensional metric that is the scalar multiple of energy consumption over and above that required for mere subsistence of a national population. Thus, the DI is a measure of energy efficiency that scales a country’s industrial energy consumption (called the total technological energy) and the energy required to meet the metabolic demand of the population (called the total metabolic energy). The DI was created by scientist John Vallentyne in 1982, refined in 1994, but never gained popularity or wide use as a sustainability metric. The objective of this thesis was to re-evaluate the DI …

The Implementation Of Advanced Digitalization In The Oil And Gas Industry, Ensieh Rezafar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe immature advanced digitalization in the oil and gas industry can limit access to the potential value of mature progressive digitalization. Oil and gas leaders must expedite the implementation of advanced digitalization to increase organizational proficiencies and reduce costs and losses. Grounded in Pettigrew and Whipp’s dimensions of strategic change theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies some leaders in the oil and gas industry used to implement advanced digitalization. The participants were seven leaders in two oil service companies in North America involved in the successful implementation of progressive digitalization. Data were collected …

A 60- Year Record Of The Demotechnic Index Of States, 1960-2019, Gavin James Kellough

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A country’s dependency on energy resources can be interpreted through the calculation of energy indices. The Demotechnic Index (DI) was used to determine the trajectory of energy efficiency of each state in the United States over the period 1960-2019. The DI serves as a measure of the energy intensity of states and a proxy for energy sustainability of each state.The DI is the ratio of total energy use to total metabolic energy demand of a population. Mathematically, DI = (E_T-E_M)/E_M E_T represents the total energy used (metabolic energy + technological energy in kilojoules annually, kJ/y), while EM represents the basic …

Efficient Management Of Nitrogen And Phosphorus At Centralized Water Reclamation Facilities, Helene Kassouf

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A variety of process configurations are employed at municipal water reclamation facilities (WRFs), such as 5-stage Bardenpho, oxidation ditch, modified Ludzack-Ettinger (MLE) process, and sidestream recycle. However, all of these configurations face certain challenges in achieving optimum treatment of nitrogen and phosphorus. In this dissertation, the driving objectives were to: (1) quantitatively assess the fate of nitrogen and phosphorus (mass fluxes) at a treatment facility that employs biological nutrient removal, aerobic digestion, and sidestream recycle, (2) evaluate the performance of a microbial fuel cell (MFC) as a technology to remove nitrogen from sidestreams at a treatment plant that employs that …

Small Commercial And Industrial Electricity Consumption In Las Cruces, New Mexico, Andrew Taylor Yurachek

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Research examining small commercial and industrial electricity usage patterns have historically received less attention than residential electricity consumption patterns. This study examines electricity as an input to commercial and industrial production in Las Cruces, New Mexico using annual frequency data from 1978 to 2018. Those data examined include labor, per capita personal income, price measures for electricity and natural gas, and weather variables. The long-run and short-run elasticities of the data are then estimated using an autoregressive distributed lag model (ARDL). In the long run, CIS customers in Las Cruces respond to natural gas a complimentary good, and the derived-demand …

An Analysis Of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Adoption For Household Cooking In Nigeria, Saheed Olanrewaju Lasisi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Nigerian government established a domestic liquefied petroleum gas penetration program (DLPGPP) to support Nigerian households that still use traditional fuels, which are inefficient and hazardous for users while polluting and degrading the environment. Little is known about the relationships that exist among liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) accessibility, LPG affordability, and LPG adoption to guide DLPGPP implementation. Narrowing this gap was the purpose of this study using the general framework of consumer theory. The study's research questions addressed the effects of LPG affordability and LPG accessibility on LPG adoption for cooking in Nigeria’s households. A cross-sectional, correlational survey was employed …

Residential Demand Side Management: Strategies For Increasing Electric Utility Profitability, Alexandra Rose Bennett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some electric utility leaders lack effective strategies to reduce demand billing charges. Utility leaders are concerned with lowering demand billing charges, as failure to do so can negatively affect profitability. Guided by the operations management theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies that distribution electric utility managers use to reduce demand billing chargers from their power providers. The participants were three electric utility leaders working in the Midwest United States who used successful residential demand-side management (DSM) strategies. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and utility documents to address the research question. The collected …

Effect Of Cloud Cover On Optimum Orientations Of Fixed Solar Panels For Maximum Yearly Energy Collection, Prethew Prasad

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The amount of cloud cover present in the sky is a significant factor when determining the solar radiation impinging on a solar panel. The optimum tilt required to achieve maximum energy impingement on a surface is also influenced by the amount of cloud cover. This work presents a method for determining the optimum tilt angle for a fixed solar panel when a set amount of cloud cover is present in the sky. Fixed tilt angles that have the most incident solar energy over the course of a year as a function of cloud cover, latitude, and azimuthal angle orientation are …

Techno-Economic Analysis Of Floating Offshore Airborne Wind Energy Systems In The Gulf Of Mexico, Alexandria Savannah Leake

LSU Master's Theses

Techno-economic analyses play an important role in determining locations for conventional wind turbine installations. This method is utilized to assess energy production potential for a new type of wind technology, known as airborne wind energy (AWE). The first objective of the present thesis was to determine overall investment potential of a utility-scale floating offshore airborne wind farm, testing five floating platform design concepts. The second objective was to determine whether the wind resources (100-1500 m) are ideal to support AWE systems in the Gulf of Mexico. Specifically, a hypothetical benchmark wind farm was developed 15 km offshore from Venice, Louisiana. …

Dual-Axis Solar Tracker, Bryan Kennedy

All Undergraduate Projects

Renewable energies, and fuels that are not fossil fuel-based, are one of the prolific topics of debate in modern society. With climate change now becoming a primary focus for scientists and innovators of today, one of the areas for the largest amount of potential and growth is that of the capturing and utilization of Solar Energy. This method involves using a mechanical system to track the progression of the sun as it traverses the sky throughout the day. A dual-axis solar tracker such as the one designed and built for this project, can follow the sun both azimuthally and in …

Effectively Managing Energy Costs In The Resort Industry, Justin Whitesides

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hawaii's commercial consumers pay the highest electricity rate in the United States;these costs are expected to rise 3-3.5% in 2021. Management in the Hawaiian resort industry that lacks adequate knowledge of controlling these rising costs is at a competitive disadvantage. Utilizing the diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore strategies used in the resort industry to control energy costs. The participants comprised of 10 energy management professionals with successful experience managing energy consumption in the resort industry. Data were collected through telephone interviews, archival documentation, and field notes. Using Yin's 5-step process of …

Enabling Electric Storage Participation In Wholesale Markets: An Analysis Of Ferc Order No. 841, Glenn A. Smith

Master of Science in Energy Systems Management

This study has been performed to understand the potential impact that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Order No. 841 will have on the adoption of energy storage resources (ESR). This analysis looked at: (1) the Order’s requirements, (2) FERC’s exercise of its authorized jurisdiction within the Order, and (3) actions taken by the Regional Transmission Organizations (RTO), Independent System Operators (ISO) and FERC to demonstrate compliance with the Order’s requirements:

Order No. 841 utilizes a participation model to ensure ESR’s are able to participate in wholesale electricity markets to an extent that is reflective of a resource’s physical and …

Enabling Electric Storage Participation In Wholesale Markets: An Analysis Of Ferc Order No. 841, Glenn A. Smith

Master's Projects and Capstones

This study has been performed to understand the potential impact that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Order No. 841 will have on the adoption of energy storage resources (ESR). This analysis looked at: (1) the Order’s requirements, (2) FERC’s exercise of its authorized jurisdiction within the Order, and (3) actions taken by the Regional Transmission Organizations (RTO), Independent System Operators (ISO) and FERC to demonstrate compliance with the Order’s requirements:

Order No. 841 utilizes a participation model to ensure ESR’s are able to participate in wholesale electricity markets to an extent that is reflective of a resource’s physical and …

Beyond The Paradise Tax: Assessing The Potential For Rental Vehicle Electrification In Kaua'i County, Hawai'i, Derek K. Ichien

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Rental car fleets have high potential to contribute to electric vehicle (EV) adoption within the Hawaiian Islands as part of the state’s efforts to fully decarbonize its ground transportation by 2045. Of the four main islands, Kauaʻi County’s small and simple road network, high penetration of renewable energy, and low speed limits make it an ideal candidate for a pilot EV rental program. This research seeks to accomplish three primary goals: a) quantify the relative economic and environmental benefits of rental electric vehicles over internal combustion rentals, b) identify crucial locations for additional charging infrastructure, and c) provide policy recommendations …

Lithium And The Foreseeable Future, Paolo Vargas

Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper aims to clarify the uncertainties regarding worldwide lithium resource availability in the years to come. Previous studies made on the subject are presented with some ambiguity and this work intends to fill the gaps. The information and data presented throughout this script with respect to global lithium resources and reserves are mostly based on data released by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Lithium resource availability in the future is a point of paramount significance primarily for the automotive, portable electronics, and the power generation industry. Since, a change of supply would ultimately affect the price of lithium, …

Strategies For Improving Energy Conservation On A Military Installation, Samuel Francis Richardson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Energy is an essential component required to execute missions throughout military organizations. Failing to sustain energy efficiency in military units could cause mission failures throughout the Department of Defense. As a result, efficient energy management has become a major priority for Air National Guard units as well as other military organizations around the globe. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to gain an understanding of strategies used by front-line military supervisors to reduce energy consumption through behavioral change on a military installation located in Maryland. The central question explored strategies that front-line military supervisors use to change …

Software Development For Home Energy Audits: Reducing Energy Consumption In Harrisonburg Through Technology, Brantley E. Gilbert

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Fossil fuels play a vital role in our daily lives. Oil, natural gas, and coal powers our cars, heats our homes and water, and are used by power companies to generate the massive amounts of electricity used every day by the United States. However, this reliance on a finite source of energy is not sustainable. Fossil fuels such as these are non-renewable resources whose production will eventually be unable to keep up with the rate of consumption. Furthermore, the extraction of the stored energy in these fuels through combustion releases harmful substances into the environment, including toxins and greenhouse gases …

Water-Energy Sector Collaboration In The United States: Benefits, Barriers, And Climate-Change Implications, Cassandra J. Osterhoudt

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

The purpose of this report is to examine the impact of the water-energy nexus in the United States, and identify opportunities for increased collaboration between water and energy utilities. Through reviewing the regulatory history of both sectors, I explore how regulations on utilities align with the Porter Hypothesis, and the impacts the water-energy nexus will have moving forward, including under climate-change scenarios. The extent of collaboration between sectors has been relatively limited to states with progressive energy and water efficiency policies. This report identifies existing barriers and benefits to collaboration, and utilizes two case studies; California and Massachusetts. Results are …

Renewable Energy Systems Optimization Using Monte Carlo Simulation And Evolutionary Algorithms, Nicolas Lopez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This Dissertation explores the Renewable Energy Integration Problem, and proposes a Genetic Algorithm embedded with a Monte Carlo simulation to solve large instances of the problem that are impractical to solve via full enumeration. The Renewable Energy Integration Problem is defined as finding the optimum set of components to supply the electric demand to a hybrid

microgrid. The components considered are solar panels, wind turbines, diesel generators, electric batteries, connections to the power grid and converters, which can be inverters and/or rectifiers. The methodology developed is explained as well as the combinatorial formulation. In addition, 2 case studies of a …

The Water-Electricity Nexus In California: Drought-Induced Risk To Thermal Electricity Generation, Timothy S. Hyles

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Investigating the possibility that drought might limit the water supply needed for thermal electricity generation in California, power plant water consumption data was compared to urban and agricultural consumptive demands to identify areas where power plants might contribute to regional water stress. To identify areas where power plants might be impacted by water stress, regional power plant, urban, and agricultural water demands were also compared to the available water supply. A list of power plants that would contribute most to regional water scarcity (individually and in aggregate) was highlighted, based on the plant’s water consumption volume, water-intensity, and water source. …

Electricity Generation, Electricity Consumption, And Energy Efficiency In The United States: A Dual Climatic-Behavioral Approach, Christopher A. Craig

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Much of the United States (US) has seen an increase in warm days, decrease in cool days, and increase in extreme weather events. These trends are projected to continue across much of the US and in turn increase the demand for electricity and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions. Ambitious energy efficiency (EE) programs are used across the US by energy utility organizations to reduce electricity demand and emissions. This study examined the impact of climatic variability on electricity consumption, as well as how pro-conservation interventions such as EE programs and experiential learning can be utilized to mitigate residential electricity consumption and …

Architectural Form, Orientation, And Energy For Residential Design In The Southern Nevada Region., Ludwing Vaca

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

With the population increase, the high demand of energy from the residential sector, as well as the harsh weather conditions of the Las Vegas region, there needs to be careful consideration in the design of new homes. Energy efficiency in a single family residential building can be augmented early in the design process by careful consideration of the building form and orientation. A systematic investigation and analysis was taken to study the effects of five building forms and different orientations along the cardinal points using the software BEopt version 2.4.0.1. To connect the study to real world circumstances, a residential …

Integrated Li-Ion Ultracapacitor With Lead Acid Battery For Vehicular Start-Stop, Emad Manla

Theses and Dissertations

Advancements in automobile manufacturing aim at improving the driving experience at every level possible. One improvement aspect is increasing gas efficiency via hybridization, which can be achieved by introducing a feature called start-stop. This feature automatically switches the internal combustion engine off when it idles and switches it back on when it is time to resume driving. This application has been proven to reduce the amount of gas consumption and emission of greenhouse effect gases in the atmosphere. However, the repeated cranking of the engine puts a large amount of stress on the lead acid battery required to perform the …

Advanced Computational Modeling Of The Internal Structure Of Smart Wind-Turbine Blades, Sanket Seetaram Bhogle

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Implementation of stable aeroelastic models with the ability to capture the complex features of Multi concept smartblades is a prime step in reducing the uncertainties that come along with blade dynamics. The numerical simulations of fluid structure interaction can thus be used to test a realistic scenarios comprising of full-scale blades at a reasonably low computational cost.

A code which was a combination of two advanced numerical models was designed and was run with the help of paralell HPC supercomputer platform. The first model was based on a variation of dimensional reduction technique proposed by Hodges and Yu. This model …

Heat Absorption Analysis By Falling Particles At High Temperatures For Concentrating Solar Power Systems, Arturo Sepulveda Fernandez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

High temperature Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) with Thermal Energy Storage (TES) for the Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) technology can provide a large and relatively cheaper storage option, as opposed to limited and expensive electrical battery storage with PV technology, and hence, it has potential to maintain a constant production when no sunlight is available. Research of material like aluminum, silicon, graphite could be potential candidates to work as thermal energy storage. Currently, nitrate and chloride molten salts are widely used as the TES medium for a CSP plant. However, molten salt, especially chlorides, must be handled carefully at high temperature …

Life Cycle Assessment Projection Of Photovoltaic Cells: A Case Study On Energy Demand Of Quantum Wire Based Photovoltaic Technology Research, Shilpi Mukherjee

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With increasing clean-energy demand, photovoltaic (PV) technologies have gained attention as potential long-term alternative to fossil fuel energy. However, PV research and manufacture still utilize fossil fuel-powered grid electricity. With continuous enhancement of solar conversion efficiency, it is imperative to assess whether overall life cycle efficiency is also being enhanced. Many new-material PV technologies are still in their research phase, and life cycle analyses of these technologies have not yet been performed. For best results, grid dependency must be minimized for PV research, and this can be accomplished by an analytical instrument called Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

LCA is the …