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RENEWABLE
ENERGY SOURCES
EE1451

Created by

A. SUGANTHA PRIYAN M.E,

Asst Prof / EEE

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UNIT I

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ENERGY SCENARIO

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Energy:

It is the ability or capacity to do work. Also it can be explained as the amount of

work of performed by a force.

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Classification of Energy Resources:

1. Commercial Fuels :e.g. coal, lignite, petroleum products, natural gas and electricity.

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2. Non-commercial Fuels :e.g. fuelwood, cowdung, agricultural waste.
3. Conventional Resources :e.g. fossil fuels (coal, petroleum and natural gas), waterand
nuclear [Link]-conventional Resources (or Alternate energy) solar, bio, wind,
ocean, hydrogen,geothermal. no
4. Renewable Resources of Energy :Renewable sources of energy are those
naturalresources which are inexhaustible and can be used to produce energy again and
[Link] are solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, tidal energy, water
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energyand bio energy. Atomic minerals are inexhaustible sources of energy when
used in fastbreeder reactor technology.
5. Non-Renewable Resources of Energy :Those natural resources which are
exhaustibleand cannot be replaced once they are used. Examples are fossil fuels such
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as coal, oiland gas which together supply 98% of the total world energy demand
today.
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Non-Renewable Resources of Energy:

Coal
Coal is the prime source of energy and accounts for about 67 per cent of the
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country‘scommercial energy requirement. It is indispensable in metallurgical and chemical

industries. Thermal power produced from low-grade coal accounts for 52 per cent of total
installed generating capacity of electricity in the country. Coal consists of volatile matter,
moisture and carbon besides ash content.
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Classification of Coals.
Depending on the relative proportions of fixed carbon, moistureand volatile matter the
coal is classified, from high to low rank, as follows,
(i) Anthracite, (ii) Bituminous, (iii) Senic Bituminous, and (iv) lignite or brown coal.
Coals are also classified according to percentage of volatile matter into two types :
(i) Low Volatile Coal. It has a low percentage of volatile matter, between 20 to 30 with
relatively lower moisture content and is generally known as coking coal. These have good
coking properties with ash content of up to 24 per cent and with or without benefication are
used for manufacture of hard coke required for metallurgical purposes.

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(ii) High Volatile Coal. It contains more volatile matter, over 30 per cent with moisture as
high as 10 per cent and is free burning coal mainly suitable for steam raising. It is commonly
known as non-coking coal and is used in industries for general heating and steam raising in

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thermal power generation, in steam locomotives, brick burning in chemical industries and as
domestic fuel.

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Lignite also called brown coal, is a low-grade inferior coal containing much moisture. On
exposure, it disintegrates easily and therefore, before use, it is transformed into briquettes. It
is mainly used for thermal power generation, as industrial and domestic fuel, for

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carbonisation and fertilizer production.

Petroleum
Petroleum is an inflammable liquid composed primarily of hydrocarbons (90 to 98 per

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cent) and the rest organic compounds containing oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur and traces of
organometallic compounds. Petroleum and petroleum products are used mainly as motive
power, lubricating agents and a source of raw material for manufacturing various chemicals
required in industries. no
The potential oil bearing areas in India is estimated to be over 1.5 million sq. km,
about two-fifth of the totalarea. It covers the Northern Plains in Ganga-Brahmaputra valley,
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the coastal strips together with their off-shore continental shelf, the plains of Gujarat, the
Thardesert and the area around Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Natural Gas
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Natural gas is found both alone or in association with crude oil ; but most of the
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outputcomes from associated sources. Exclusive natural gas reserves have been located in
Tripura, Rajasthan and almost in all the offshore oilfields of Cambay in Gujarat, Bombay
High, Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.
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Thermal Power
Coal, petroleum and natural gas are the chief sources of thermal power. These sources
are of mineral origin and are also called as fossil fuels. Their greatest demerit is that they are
exhaustible resources and cannot be replenished by man.
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Thermal power stations are located mainly in the big industrial regions and coal
fields. Of the total installed thermal power generation capacity. Maharashtra accounts for
14.1%. West Bengal 13.2%, Uttar Pradesh 12.8%, Gujarat 12.2%, Bihar 12%, Tamilnadu
9.4%, Madhya Pradesh 7.8%, Andhra Pradesh 5.9% and Delhi 5.2%.

Hydro Power

Surface water because of its potential energy in certain areas, provides the cheapest,
neat and clean resource of energy. Electricity produced from water represents hydro power.

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With the limited resources of coal, lignite and oil, growing reliance is being placed on hydel
and nuclear power.

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Nuclear Power

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Deficiency of quality coal and natural gas and oil has forced the urgency of
developing nuclear power in India. At present nuclear power accounts for 24% of the total
electricity generated in the country. The nuclear power generation began in India in 1969
with the commissioning of first atomic power station at Tarapore with foreign technology.

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India achieved a landmark in nuclear power programme by building and commissioning
indigeneously the Kalpakkam atomic power plant in Madras in 1983.

Energy needs of India:

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India‘s rapid economic growth has made it the second fastest – growing energy
market in the world. Its domestic strategy for dealing with this raises painful questions about
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efficiency and fiscal soundness. Its international strategy involves a relentless push to
diversify suppliers, increase India‘s equity stake overseas, and try to avoid destructive
commercial competition with China. In some cases, this has produced foreign policy
differences with the United States that will require careful management on both sides.
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India‘s energy sector based on the three major energy sources – coal, oil and gas –
coal is India‘s major source of energy. With 7 percent of the world‘s coal India has the fourth
largest coal reserves. The Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) estimates that at
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the current level of consumption and production, India‘s coal reserves will last for more than
200 years. Unfortunately, in addition to environmental concerns (coal is one of the dirtiest
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hydrocarbon fuels), coal cannot meet all of India‘s energy needs. The transportation industry
requires oil, and much of India‘s coal is not of the type needed in steel and other industries. In
spite of India‘s coal reserves, the Indian government‘s flagship steel company, the Steel
Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL) imports 60 percent of its coal needs.
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India‘s oil and gas reserves are not sufficient to meet its rapidly growing energy
needs. Oil is the life-blood of the rapidly expanding transportation sector. Barring a major
new oil discovery, India will have to increasingly rely on imports to meet future demand for

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oil. Most of India‘s gas is now used for the electricity sector, although the expanding use of
compressed natural gas (CNG) for urban transport makes this a growing market segment.

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Most of India‘s current gas needs are met from domestic sources. Liquefied Natural Gas
(LNG) has not figured prominently in the energy mix, but is slowly increasing. Experts
estimate that by 2012 India's LNG imports will be on par with Japan‘s current LNG imports
of 60 million tonnes per annum. Although the Gas Authority of India Ltd. (GAIL) has

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already begun work on a National Gas Grid, there is considerable technological progress that
has to be made in terms of extraction, transportation and delivery of LNG. It is estimated that
once the grid is fully functional, LNG could offset a significant portion of India‘s energy
demand. The petroleum industry and gas industry are currently dominated by the Oil and

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National Gas Corporation (ONGC), the Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL), and the Indian
Oil Corporation (IOC). Private sector involvement has been restricted to the refining section
of the energy industry. ONGC, the government‘s oil exploration and production enterprise, is
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one of the most profitable companies in India and is responsible for 77 percent of crude oil
production and 81 percent of natural gas production. A majority of India‘s refineries are
owned by IOC, which is one of the 20 largest petroleum companies in the world and features
on the Fortune 200 list. GAIL is the leading gas transmission and marketing firm in India and
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is one of the 10 most profitable companies in the country.

Worldwide Potentials of these sources

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Bio mass:
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Biomass – the fourth largest energy source after coal, oil and natural gas - is the
largest and most important renewable energy option at present and can be used to produce
different forms of energy. As a result, it is capable of providing all the energy services
required in a modern society, both locally and in most parts of the world. Renewability and
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versatility are, among many other aspects, important advantages of biomass as an energy
source. Moreover, compared to other renewables, biomass resources are common and
widespread across the globe. The sustainability potential of global biomass for energy is
widely recognized. For example, the annual global primary production of biomass is
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equivalent to the 4,500 EJ1 of solar energy captured each year. About 5% of this energy, or
225 EJ, should cover about 50% of the world‘s total energy use at present. These 225 EJ are
in line with other estimates which assume a sustainable annual bioenergy market of 270 EJ.
However, the 50 EJ biomass contributed to global energy use of 470 EJ in 2007, mainly in
the form of traditional non-commercial biomass, is only 10% of the global energy use. The
potential for energy from biomass depends in part on land availability. Currently, the amount
of land devoted to growing energy crops for biofuels is only 0.19% of the world‘s total land
area and only 0.5% of global agricultural land. Although the large potential of algae as a
resource of biomass for energy is not taken into consideration in this report, there are results
that demonstrate that algae can in principle, be used as a renewable energy source.

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Biomass potential for energy production is promising. In most cases, shifting the
energy mix from fossil fuels to renewables can now be done using existing technology.
Investors in many cases have a reasonably short pay-back because of good availability of

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lowcost biomass fuels. The latter is of course dependant on local incentives, however.
Overall, the future of bioenergy is also to a large extent determined by policy. Thus, an

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annual bioenergy supply covering global energy demand in 2050, superseding 1,000 EJ,
should be possible with sufficient political support.

Solar energy:

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An analysis of the technical potential of concentrating solar power (CSP) on a global
scale elaborated within the European project REACCESS. The analysis is based on the
annual direct normal irradiation data (DNI) provided by NASA Surface Meteorology and

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Solar Energy program (SSE) Version 6.0. The solar resource data has been uploaded to a
geographic information system and processed together with spatial data on land use,
topography, hydrology, geomorphology, infrastructure, protected areas etc. excluding sites
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that are not technically feasible for the construction of concentrating solar power plants. The
result yields a global map of DNI on land area that is potentially suited for the placement of
CSP plants. This map has been analyzed statistically using a simple CSP performance model
that takes contemporary parabolic trough technology as reference to determine the potential
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of solar electricity generation for different classes of annual DNI intensity ranging from 2000
to 2800 kWh/m²/y.
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A world wide data set of direct normal irradiation is available from the NASA Surface
Meteorology and Solar Energy Program (SSE) Version 6.0. It is based on 22 years of data
and has a spatial resolution of about 100 km, which is considered sufficient to assess the
potential of CSP plants on a global scale (Figure 1). The accuracy of the data is described on
the SSE website [6]. Site exclusion criteria for CSP plants were applied world wide yielding a
global exclusion map shown in Figure 2. The methodology of site exclusion was described in
[4]. Exclusion criteria comprise: slope > 2.1 %, land cover like permanent or non-permanent
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water, forests, swamps, agricultural areas, shifting sands including a security margin of 10
km, salt pans, glaciers, settlements, airports, oil or gas fields, mines, quarries, desalination
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plants, protected areas and restricted areas. Spatial resolution of the data was 1 km². Both
maps were combined to yield a global map of annual direct normal irradiance for potential
CSP sites This map was subdivided according to the world regions defined within the
REACESS project, and a statistical analysis of the distribution of DNI intensity classes with
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values higher than 2000 kWh/m²/y was made for each region, yielding the land area available
for CSP classified by DNI intensities.
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Wind energy

Wind power accounted for 42% of all new electrical capacity added to the United
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States electrical system in 2008 although wind continues to account for a relatively small
fraction of the total electricity-generating capacity.

Wind Power Potential Worldwide

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Approximately 1% of the total solar energy absorbed by the Earth is converted to

kinetic energy in the atmosphere, dissipated ultimately by friction at the Earth‘s surface (16,
17). If we assume that this energy is dissipated uniformly over the entire surface area of the
Earth (it is not), this would imply an average power source for the land area of the Earth
of_3.4_1014Wequivalent to an annual supply of energy equal to 10,200 quad [10,800
exajoules (EJ)], _22 times total current global annual consumption of commercial energy.
Doing the same calculation for the lower 48 states of the U.S. would indicate a potential
power source of 1.76 _ 1013 W corresponding to an annual yield of 527 quad (555 EJ), some
5.3 times greater than the total current annual consumption of commercial energy in all forms
in the U.S. Wind energy is not, however, uniformly distributed over the Earth and regional
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patterns of dissipation depend not only on the wind source available in the free troposphere
but also on the frictional properties of the underlying surface.

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[Link] distribution of annual average onshore wind power potential (W/m2) for 2006
accounting for spatial limitations on placement without limitations on potential realizable
capacity factors.
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We focus here on the potential energy that could be intercepted and converted to
electricity by a globally distributed array of wind turbines, the distribution and properties of
which were described above. Accounting for land areas we judge to be inappropriate for their
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placement (forested and urban regions and areas covered either by water or by permanent
ice), the potential power source is estimated at 2,350 quad (2,470 EJ). The distribution of
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potential power for this more realistic case is illustrated in Fig. 1. We restricted attention in
this analysis to turbines that could function with capacity factors at or _20%. Results for the
potential electricity that could be generated using wind on a country-by-country basis are
summarized in Fig. 2 for onshore (A) and offshore (B) environments. Placement of the
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turbines onshore and offshore was restricted as discussed earlier. Table 1 presents a summary
of results for the 10 countries identified as the largest national emitters of CO2. The data
included here refer to national reporting of CO2 emissions and electricity consumption for
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these countries in 2005. An updated version of the table would indicate that China is now the
world‘s largest emitter of CO2, having surpassed the U.S. in the early months of 2006.

The bulk of this wind power, 89%, could be derived from onshore installations. The
potential for wind power in the U.S. is even greater, 23 times larger than current electricity
consumption, the bulk of which, 84%, could be supplied onshore.

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Energy Efficiency and measures:

In India the commercial energy demand is growing at a high annual rate of over 6 %
per year; Indian electricity use has more than doubled in the last decade and has grown faster
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than the gross domestic product (GDP) for the last 20 years. As a consequence, peak demand
shortage is approx. 11% - 13%. Peak demand shortage can be overcome through energy
efficiency measures in the short and medium term: the estimated energy saving potential is
about 23%; implementing end use efficiency and demand sidemanagement can save nearly
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25,000 MW new generation capacity implying economic savings of 100 billion Indian
Rupees. For this reason India has enacted the Energy Conservation (EC) Act in October 2001
(effective from 1st March 2002). The EC Act provides the legal framework and institutional
arrangement for energy audits. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) was established on
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1stMarch 2002 under the EC Act.

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Objective

The objective of the EC Act is to promote energy efficiency in India and to realise the
above mentioned targets (23% energy savings, 25000 MW power savings) to be achieved by
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2012. It should bridge the gap between energy demand & supply, reduce environmental
emissions through energy saving and reduction in the energy import bill. The mandatory
audits are to support this objective.
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In practice, the BEE tries to set up the norms in a cooperative approach with the
industrial sector. Sector-specific task forces are constituted for aluminium, cement, chlor
alkali, fertiliser, pulp & paper, petrochemicals & refineries, textiles. Draft specific energy
efficiency norms for cement and paper & pulp sectors have been developed, which are now
under discussion with the concerned sub sectors. The energy efficiency norms are based on
current relative efficiency of units within a sector. Highly energy-efficient units have lower
improvement targets, units with lower energy efficiency have more stringent improvement
targets. As an example for the cooperative approach within the mandatory frame, the paper
industry example is instructive (Kulkarni, 2006): the BEE sponsored a study to the Central
Pulp & Paper Research Institute CPPRI for setting up norms for the pulp & paper sector as

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one of the designated consumer. A high-level technical committee composed of senior

officials/executives from the responsible ministry, institutions, pulp & paper mills and
industry associations, has been constituted for the evaluation of the proposed energy

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consumption norms. One can therefore characterise the Indian approach as a market oriented
approach to setting norms of energy consumption in agreement with the concerned industry

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which comprises the following steps: (i) classify the companies in the sector in four colour
groups based on their specific energy consumption as well as efforts to reduce consumption
(see figure below); (ii) verify self declaration of consumption through mandatory energy
audit; (iii) depending on ―colour‖ of firm set mandatory annual improvement norms and

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require business plan as prove of efforts and later impact.

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Energy Security: National Conference of State Legislatures A Definition of Energy Security

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Background

1. A Definition Of Energy Security

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Energy security refers to a resilient energy system. This resilient system would be
capable of withstanding threats through a combination of active, direct security measure, such
as surveillance and guards—and passive or more indirect measures-such as redundancy,
duplication of critical equipment, diversity in fuel, other sources of energy, and reliance on
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less vulnerable infrastructure. Energy security focuses on critical infrastructure; a term that is
receiving increasing attention. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 and the USA Patriot Act
define critical infrastructure as ―systems and assets ... so vital to the United States that the
incapacity or destruction of such systems and assets would have a debilitating impact on
security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination of
those matters‖

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The importance of energy security

Energy security matters to state policymakers because of the effect that a security

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breach could have on the economy, public health and safety, and the environment. The data
illustrate the linkage between the country‘s energy system and these other areas are stark and

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worthy of attention. They show how central the energy system has become to American
citizens‘ way of life. The energy system has evolved into one piece of a complex web of the
nation‘s infrastructure. Electricity relies on compressed gas as a fuel, which in turn often
relies on electricity to run the compressors. Telecommunications systems serve as a vital

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support system for the power grid and they too require electricity.
The state role in energy security is fourfold.

• Lead where necessary and coordinate with other levels of government and the private

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sector.
• Beware of vulnerabilities and develop policies appropriate to reducing those vulnerabilities.
• Develop well-coordinated emergency response plans to recover from disasters as quickly as
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• Support coordination of industry and government efforts. States will not wish to develop
new rules and regulations that have the unintended effect of actually hindering private or
other sectors‘ energy security efforts.
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States have many options at their disposal to address energy security, and these fall into two
broad categories:
1. Prevention and planning, and
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2. Emergency response. Energy security policy touches upon many existing energy-related
policies to some degree. In general, state policymakers will want to focus on the following
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policy areas.
• Jurisdiction of federal, state and local governments;
• Freedom of information issues;
• Paying for energy security;
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• Emergency management and response;

• Regional energy policies;
• Cyber-security issues in energy;
• Energy system diversity and redundancy;
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• Distributed energy;
• Energy efficiency and responsive demand for electricity;
• Energy facility siting;
• Energy/environmental policies; and
• Energy/transportation policies.

GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS:

As early as 1896, the Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius had predicted that human
activities would interfere with the way the sun interacts with the earth, resulting in global
warming and climate change. His prediction has become true and climate change is now
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disrupting global environmental stability. The last few decades have seen many treaties,
conventions, and protocols for the cause of global environmental protection.

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Few examples of environmental issues of global significance are:
• Ozone layer depletion

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• Global warming
• Loss of biodiversity

One of the most important characteristics of this environmental degradation is that it

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affects all mankind on a global scale without regard to any particular country, region, or race.
The whole world is a stakeholder and this raises issues on who should do what to combat
environmental degradation.

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Ozone Layer Depletion

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Earth‘s atmosphere is divided into three regions, namely troposphere, stratosphere and
mesosphere (see Figure 9.1). The stratosphere extends from 10 to 50 kms from the Earth‘s
surface. This region is concentrated with slightly pungent smelling, light bluish ozone gas.
The ozone gas is made up of molecules each containing three atoms of oxygen; its chemical
formula is O . The ozone layer, in the stratosphere acts as an efficient filter for harmful solar
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Ultraviolet B (UV-B) rays

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Ozone is produced and destroyed naturally in the atmosphere and until recently, this

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resulted in a well-balanced equilibrium (see Figure 9.2). Ozone is formed when oxygen
molecules absorb ultraviolet radiation with wavelengths less than 240 nanometres and is
destroyed when it absorbs ultraviolet radiation with wavelengths greater than 290

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nanometres. In recent years, scientists have measured a seasonal thinning of the ozone layer
primarily at the South Pole. This phenomenon is being called the ozone hole.

Ozone Depletion Process

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Ozone is highly reactive and easily broken down by man-made chlorine and bromine
compounds. These compounds are found to be most responsible for most of ozone layer
depletion.
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The ozone depletion process begins when CFCs (used in refrigerator and air
conditioners) and other ozone-depleting substances (ODS) are emitted into the atmosphere.
Winds efficiently mix and evenly distribute the ODS in the troposphere. These ODS
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compounds do not dissolve in rain, are extremely stable, and have a long life span. After
several years, they reach the stratosphere by diffusion.
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Strong UV light breaks apart the ODS molecules. CFCs, HCFCs, carbon
tetrachloride, methyl chloroform release chlorine atoms, and halons and methyl bromide
release bromine atoms. It is the chlorine and bromine atom that actually destroys ozone, not
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the intact ODS molecule. It is estimated that one chlorine atom can destroy from 10,000 to
100,000 ozone molecules before it is finally removed from the stratosphere.

Chemistry of Ozone Depletion

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When ultraviolet light waves (UV) strike CFC (CFCl ) molecules in the upper
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atmosphere, a carbon-chlorine bond breaks, producing a chlorine (Cl) atom. The chlorine
atom then reacts with an ozone (O ) molecule breaking it apart and so destroying the ozone.
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This forms an ordinary oxygen molecule (O ) and a chlorine monoxide (ClO) molecule. Then
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a free oxygen atom breaks up the chlorine monoxide. The chlorine is free to repeat the
process of destroying more ozone molecules. A single CFC molecule can destroy 100,000
ozone molecules. The chemistry of ozone depletion process is shown in Figure 9.3.

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CFC - chlorofluorocarbon: it contains chlorine, fluorine and carbon atoms. ** UV radiation

breaks oxygen molecules (O ) into single oxygen atoms.
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Chemical equation is

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CFCl + UV Light ==> CFCl + Cl Cl + O ==> ClO + O ClO + O ==> Cl + O
3 2 3 2 2

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The free chlorine atom is then free to attack another ozone molecule
Cl + O ==> ClO + O ClO + O ==> Cl + O
3 2 2
and again ...
Cl + O ==> ClO + O ClO + O ==> Cl + O

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3 2 2
and again... for thousands of times.

Effects of Ozone Layer Depletion

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Effects on Human and Animal Health: Increased penetration of solar UV-B radiation is
likely to have high impact on human health with potential risks of eye diseases, skin cancer
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Effects on Terrestrial Plants: In forests and grasslands, increased radiation is likely to
change species composition thus altering the bio-diversity in different ecosystems. It could
also affect the plant community indirectly resulting in changes in plant form, secondary
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metabolism, etc.

Effects on Aquatic Ecosystems: High levels of radiation exposure in tropics and subtropics
may affect the distribution of phytoplanktons, which form the foundation of aquatic food
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webs. It can also cause damage to early development stages of fish, shrimp, crab, amphibians
and other animals, the most severe effects being decreased reproductive capacity and
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impaired larval development.

Effects on Bio-geo-chemical Cycles: Increased solar UV radiation could affect terrestrial

and aquatic bio-geo-chemical cycles thus altering both sources and sinks of greenhouse and
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important trace gases, e.g. carbon dioxide (CO ), carbon monoxide (CO), carbonyl sulphide
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(COS), etc. These changes would contribute to biosphere-atmosphere feedbacks responsible
for the atmosphere build-up of these greenhouse gases.
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Effects on Air Quality: Reduction of stratospheric ozone and increased penetration of UV-B
radiation result in higher photo dissociation rates of key trace gases that control the chemical
reactivity of the troposphere. This can increase both production and destruction of ozone and
related oxidants such as hydrogen peroxide, which are known to have adverse effects on
human health, terrestrial plants and outdoor materials.

The ozone layer, therefore, is highly beneficial to plant and animal life on earth
filtering out the dangerous part of sun‘s radiation and allowing only the beneficial part to
reach earth. Any disturbance or depletion of this layer would result in an increase of harmful
radiation reaching the earth‘s surface leading to dangerous consequences.

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Ozone Depletion Counter Measures

− International cooperation, agreement (Montreal Protocol) to phase out ozone depleting

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chemicals since 1974
− Tax imposed for ozone depleting substances

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− Ozone friendly substitutes- HCFC (less ozone depleting potential and shorter life)
− Recycle of CFCs and Halons

Global Warming

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Before the Industrial Revolution, human activities released very few gases into the
atmosphere and all climate changes happened naturally. After the Industrial Revolution,

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through fossil fuel combustion, changing agricultural practices and deforestation, the natural
composition of gases in the atmosphere is getting affected and climate and environment
began to alter significantly.

Over the last 100 years, it was found out that the earth is getting warmer and warmer,
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unlike previous 8000 years when temperatures have been relatively constant. The present
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temperature is 0.3 - 0.6 C warmer than it was 100 years ago. The key greenhouse gases
(GHG) causing global warming is carbon dioxide. CFC's, even though they exist in very
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small quantities, are significant contributors to global warming. Carbon dioxide, one of the
most prevalent greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, has two major anthropogenic (human-
caused) sources: the combustion of fossil fuels and changes in land use. Net releases of
carbon dioxide from these two sources are believed to be contributing to the rapid rise in
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atmospheric concentrations since Industrial Revolution. Because estimates indicate that

approximately 80 percent of all anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions currently come from
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fossil fuel combustion, world energy use has emerged at the center of the climate change
debate.

Sources of Green House Gases:

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Some greenhouse gases occur naturally in the atmosphere, while others result from
human activities. Naturally occurring greenhouse gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide,
methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone (refer Figure 9.4). Certain human activities, however,
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Carbon dioxide is released to the atmosphere when solid waste, fossil fuels (oil, natural gas,
and coal), and wood and wood products are burned. Methane is emitted during the

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production and transport of coal, natural gas, and oil. Methane emissions also result from the
decomposition of organic wastes in municipal solid waste landfills, and the raising of
livestock. Nitrous oxide is emitted during agricultural and industrial activities, as well as

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during combustion of solid waste and fossil fuels. Very powerful greenhouse gases that are
not naturally occurring include hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and

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sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), which are generated in a variety of industrial processes.

Global Warming Potentials

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Although there are a number of ways of measuring the strength of different
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the Global Warming Potential (GWP) is perhaps the
most useful. GWPs measure the influence greenhouse gases have on the natural greenhouse
effect, including the ability of greenhouse gas molecules to absorb or trap heat and the length

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of time, greenhouse gas molecules remain in the atmosphere before being removed or broken
down. In this way, the contribution that each greenhouse gas has towards global warming can
be assessed.
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Each greenhouse gas differs in its ability to absorb heat in the atmosphere. HFCs and
PFCs are the most heat-absorbent. Methane traps over 21 times more heat per molecule than
carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide absorbs 270 times more heat per molecule than carbon
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dioxide. Conventionally, the GWP of carbon dioxide, measured across all time horizons, is 1.
The GWPs of other greenhouse gases are then measured relative to the GWP of carbon
dioxide. Thus GWP of methane is 21 while GWP of nitrous oxide is 270. Other greenhouse
gases have much higher GWPs than carbon dioxide, but because their concentration in the
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atmosphere is much lower, carbon dioxide is still the most important greenhouse gas,
contributing about 60% to the enhancement of the greenhouse effect.
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Global Warming (Climate Change) Implications

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Rise in global temperature

Observations show that global temperatures have risen by about 0.6 °C over the 20th
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century. There is strong evidence now that most of the observed warming over the last 50
years is caused by human activities. Climate models predict that the global temperature will
rise by about 6 °C by the year 2100.

Rise in sea level

In general, the faster the climate change, the greater will be the risk of damage. The
mean sea level is expected to rise 9 - 88 cm by the year 2100, causing flooding of low lying
areas and other damages.

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Food shortages and hunger

Water resources will be affected as precipitation and evaporation patterns change
around the world. This will affect agricultural output. Food security is likely to be threatened

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and some regions are likely to experience food shortages and hunger.

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India could be more at risks than many other countries
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Models predict an average increase in temperature in India of 2.3 to 4.8 C for the
benchmark doubling of Carbon-dioxide scenario. Temperature would rise more in Northern

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India than in Southern India. It is estimated that 7 million people would be displaced, 5700
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km of land and 4200 km of road would be lost, and wheat yields could decrease
significantly.

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Loss of Biodiversity

Biodiversity refers to the variety of life on earth, and its biological diversity. The
number of species of plants, animals, micro organisms, the enormous diversity of genes in
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these species, the different ecosystems on the planet, such as deserts, rainforests and coral
reefs are all a part of a biologically diverse earth. Biodiversity actually boosts ecosystem
productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play and
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that it is in this combination that enables the ecosystem to possess the ability to prevent and
recover from a variety of disasters.

It is now believed that human activity is changing biodiversity and causing massive
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extinctions. The World Resource Institute reports that there is a link between biodiversity and
climate change. Rapid global warming can affect ecosystems chances to adapt naturally.
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Over the past 150 years, deforestation has contributed an estimated 30 percent of the
atmospheric build-up of CO . It is also a significant driving force behind the loss of genes,
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species, and critical ecosystem services.
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Link between Biodiversity and Climate change:

• Climate change is affecting species already threatened by multiple threats across the globe.
Habitat fragmentation due to colonization, logging, agriculture and mining etc. are all
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contributing to further destruction of terrestrial habitats.

• Individual species may not be able to adapt. Species most threatened by climate change
have small ranges, low population densities, restricted habitat requirements and patchy
distribution.
• Ecosystems will generally shift northward or upward in altitude, but in some cases they will
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run out of space – as 1 C change in temperature correspond to a 100 Km change in
latitude, hence, average shift in habitat conditions by the year 2100 will be on the order of
140 to 580 Km.
• Coral reef mortality may increase and erosion may be accelerated. Increase level of carbon
dioxide adversely impact the coral building process (calcification).

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• Sea level may rise, engulfing low-lying areas causing disappearance of many islands, and
extinctions of endemic island species.
• Invasive species may be aided by climate change. Exotic species can out-compete native

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wildlife for space, food, water and other resources, and may also prey on native wildlife.
• Droughts and wildfires may increase. An increased risk of wildfires due to warming and

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drying out of vegetation is likely.
• Sustained climate change may change the competitive balance among species and might
lead to forests destruction

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Climatic Change Problem and Response

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC

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In June 1992, the ―United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change‖
(UNFCCC) was signed in Rio de Janeiro by over 150 nations. The climate convention is the
base for international co-operation within the climate change area. In the convention the
climate problem‘s seriousness is stressed. There is a concern that human activities are
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enhancing the natural greenhouse effect, which can have serious consequences on human
settlements and ecosystems.
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The convention‘s overall objective is the stabilisation of greenhouse gas
concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system.‖
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The principle commitment applying to parties of the convention is the adoption of

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policies and measures on the mitigation of climate change, by limiting anthropogenic

emissions of greenhouse gases and protecting and enhancing greenhouse gas sinks and
reservoirs. The commitment includes the preparation and communication of national
inventories of greenhouse gases. The Climate convention does not have any quantitative
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targets or timetables for individual nations. However, the overall objective can be interpreted
as stabilization of emissions of greenhouse gases by year 2000 at 1990 levels.

The deciding body of the climate convention is the Conference of Parties (COP). At
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the COP meetings, obligations made by the parties are examined and the objectives and
implementation of the climate convention are further defined and developed. The first COP
was held in Berlin, Germany in 1995 and the latest (COP 10) was held in December 2004,
Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The Kyoto Protocol:

There is a scientific consensus that human activities are causing global warming that
could result in significant impacts such as sea level rise, changes in weather patterns and
adverse health effects. As it became apparent that major nations such as the United States and
Japan would not meet the voluntary stabilization target by 2000, Parties to the Convention
decided in 1995 to enter into negotiations on a protocol to establish legally binding
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limitations or reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. It was decided by the Parties that this
round of negotiations would establish limitations only for the developed countries, including
the former Communist countries (called annex A countries)

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.
Negotiations on the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on

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Climate Change (UNFCCC) were completed December 11, 1997, committing the
industrialized nations to specify, legally binding reductions in emissions of six greenhouse
gases. The 6 major greenhouse gases covered by the protocol are carbon dioxide (CO ),
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methane (CH ), nitrous oxide (N O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs),
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and sulfur xafluoride (SF ).
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Emissions Reductions

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The United States would be obligated under the Protocol to a cumulative reduction in
its greenhouse gas emissions of 7% below 1990 levels for three greenhouse gases (including
carbon dioxide), and below 1995 levels for the three man-made gases, averaged over the
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commitment period 2008 to 2012.

The Protocol states that developed countries are committed, individually or jointly, to
ensuring that their aggregate anthropogenic carbon dioxide equivalent emissions of
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greenhouse gases do not exceed amounts assigned to each country with a view to reducing
their overall emissions of such gases by at least 5% below 1990 levels in the commitment
period 2008 to 2012.
The amounts for each country are listed as percentages of the base year, 1990 and
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range from 92% (a reduction of 8%) for most European countries--to 110% (an increase of
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10%) for Iceland.

Annex I and Annex II Parties

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Annex I parties are countries which have commitments according to the Kyoto
protocol. The entire Annex I parties are listed in the Table 9.1 below. Further Annex I parties
shown in bold are also called Annex II parties. These Annex II parties have a special
obligation to provide ―new and additional financial sources‖ to developing countries (non
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Annex I) to help them tackle climate change, as well as to facilitate the transfer of climate
friendly technologies to both developing countries and to economies in transition.
Commitments are presented as percentage of base year emission levels to be achieved during
between 2008 – 2012.

Annex I and Annex II Parties

European Union % Economies in %
transition to a
market economy
Austria 92 Bulgaria 92
Belgium 92 Croatia 95

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Denmark 92 Czech Republic 92

Finland 92 Estonia 92
France 92 Hungary 94

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Germany 92 Latvia 92
Greece 92 Lithuania 92

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Ireland 92 Poland 94
Italy 92 Romania 92
Luxembourg 92 Russian 100

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Federation
Netherlands 92 Slovakia 92
Portugal 92 Slovenia 92
Spain 92 Ukraine 100

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Sweden 92
United Kingdom 92
Other Europe Other Annex I
Iceland 110 no Australia 108
Liechtenstein 92 Canada 94
Monaco 92 Japan 94
Norway 101 New Zealand 100
Switzerland 92 United States of 93
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America
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Actions required from developed and developing Nations

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The Kyoto Protocol does call on all Parties (developed and developing) to take a
number of steps to formulate national and regional programs to improve "local emission
factors," activity data, models, and national inventories of greenhouse gas emissions and
sinks that remove these gases from the atmosphere. All Parties are also committed to
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formulate, publish, and update climate change mitigation and adaptation measures, and to
cooperate in promotion and transfer of environmentally sound technologies and in scientific
and technical research on the climate system.
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Who is bound by the Kyoto Protocol?

The Kyoto Protocol has to be signed and ratified by 55 countries (including those
responsible for at least 55% of the developed world's 1990 carbon dioxide emissions) before
it can enter into force. Now that Russia has ratified, this been achieved and the Protocol will
enter into force on 16 February 2005.

India’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions

India has experienced a dramatic growth in fossil fuel CO2 emissions, and the data
compiled by various agencies shows an increase of nearly 5.9 % since 1950. At present India

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is rated as the 6th largest contributor of CO2 emissions behind China, the 2nd largest
contributor. However, our per capita CO2 of 0.93 tons per annum is well below the world
average of 3.87 tons per annum. Fossil fuel emissions in India continue to result largely from

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coal burning. India is highly vulnerable to climate change as its economy is heavily reliant on
climate sensitive sectors like agriculture and forestry. The vast low-lying and densely

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populated coastline is susceptible to rise in sea level.

The energy sector is the largest contributor of carbon dioxide emissions in India. The
national inventory of greenhouse gases indicates that 55% of the total national emissions

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come from energy sector. These include emissions from road transport, burning of traditional
bio-mass fuels, coal mining, and fugitive emissions from oil and natural gas.

Agriculture sector constitutes the next major contributor, accounting for nearly 34%.

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The emissions under this sector include those from enteric fermentation in domestic animals,
manure management, rice cultivation, and burning of agriculture residues. Emissions from
Industrial sector mainly came from cement production.

Indian Response to Climatic Change

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Under the UNFCCC, developing countries such as India do not have binding GHG
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mitigation commitments in recognition of their small contribution to the greenhouse problem
as well as low financial and technical capacities. The Ministry of Environment and Forests is
the nodal agency for climate change issues in India. It has constituted Working Groups on the
UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol. Work is currently in progress on India's initial National
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Communication (NATCOM) to the UNFCCC. India ratified the Kyoto Protocol in 2002
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The Conference of the Parties (COP)

The Conference of the Parties is the supreme body of the Climate Change
Convention. The vast majority of the world‘s countries are members (185 as of July 2001).
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The Convention enters into force for a country 90 days after that country ratifies it. The COP
held its first session in 1995 and will continue to meet annually unless decided otherwise.
However, various subsidiary bodies that advise and support the COP meet more frequently.
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The Convention states that the COP must periodically examine the obligations of the
Parties and the institutional arrangements under the Convention. It should do this in light of
the Convention‘s objective, the experience gained in its implementation, and the current state
of scientific knowledge.

Exchange of Information

The COP assesses information about policies and emissions that the Parties share with
each other through their national communications. It also promotes and guides the
development and periodic refinement of comparable methodologies, which are needed for

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quantifying net greenhouse gas emissions and evaluating the effectiveness of measures to
limit them. Based on the information available, the COP assesses the Parties efforts to meet
their treaty commitments and adopts and publishes regular reports on the Convention‘s

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implementation.

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Support for Developing countries

Developing countries need support so that they can submit their national

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communications, adapt to the adverse effects of climate change, and obtain environmentally
sound technologies. The COP therefore oversees the provision of new and additional
resources by developed countries.

The third session of the Conference of the Parties adopted the Kyoto Protocol.

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The Flexible Mechanisms

The Kyoto protocol gives the Annex I countries the option to fulfill a part of their
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commitments through three ―flexible mechanisms‖. Through these mechanisms, a country
can fulfill a part of their emissions reductions in another country or buy emission allowances
from another country. There are three flexible mechanisms:

i. Emissions trading
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ii. Joint implementation

iii. Clean development mechanism

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i) Emissions trading
Article 17of the Kyoto protocol opens up for emissions trading between countries that
have made commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The countries have the option
to delegate this right of emissions trading to companies or other organisations.
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In a system for emissions trading, the total amount of emissions permitted is pre-
defined. The corresponding emissions allowances are then issued to the emitting installations
through auction or issued freely. Through trading, installations with low costs for reductions
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are stimulated to make reductions and sell their surplus of emissions allowances to
organisations where reductions are more expensive. Both the selling and buying company
wins on this flexibility that trade offers with positive effects on economy, resource efficiency
and climate. The environmental advantage is that one knows, in advance, the amount of
greenhouse gases that will be emitted. The economical advantage is that the reductions are
done where the reduction costs are the lowest. The system allows for a cost effective way to
reach a pre-defined target and stimulates environmental technology development.

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ii) Joint Implementation, JI

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Under article 6 of the Kyoto protocol an Annex I country that has made a
commitment for reducing greenhouse gases, can offer to, or obtain from another Annex I

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country greenhouse gas emissions reductions. These emissions reductions shall come from
projects with the objectives to reduce anthropogenic emissions from sources or increase the
anthropogenic uptake in sinks. In order to be accepted as JI-projects, the projects have to be
accepted by both parties in advance. It also has to be proven that the projects will lead to

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emissions reductions that are higher than what otherwise would have been obtained. JI-
projects are an instrument for one industrial country to invest in another industrial country
and in return obtain emissions reductions. These reductions can be used to help fulfill their
own reduction commitments at a lower cost than if they had to do the reductions in their own

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country.

iii) Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)

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Article 12 of the Kyoto protocol defines the Clean Development Mechanism, CDM. The
purpose of CDM is to:
a) contribute to sustainable development in developing countries;
b) help Annex I-countries under the Kyoto Protocol to meet their target.
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With the help of CDM, countries which have set themselves an emission reduction target
under the Kyoto Protocol (Annex I countries) can contribute to the financing of projects in
developing countries (non-Annex I countries) which do not have a reduction target. These
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projects should reduce the emission of greenhouse gases while contributing to the sustainable
development of the host country involved. The achieved emission reductions can be
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purchased by the Annex I country in order to meet its reduction target.

In order to be accepted as CDM-projects, the projects have to be accepted by both parties

in advance. It also has to be proven that the projects will lead to emissions reductions that are
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higher than what otherwise would have been obtained. The difference between JI-projects
and CDM-projects is that JI-projects are done between countries that both have
commitments, while the CDM-projects is between one country that has commitments and
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another country that does not have commitments. Emissions reductions that have been done
through CDM-projects during the period 2000 to 2007, can be used for fulfilling
commitments in Annex I countries for the period 2008-2012.

How CDM works?

An investor from a developed country, can invest in, or provide finance for a project
in a developing country that reduces greenhouse gas emissions so that they are lower than
they would have been without the extra investment – i.e. compared to what would have
happened without the CDM under a business as usual outcome. The investor then gets credits
– carbon credits - for the reductions and can use those credits to meet their Kyoto target. If

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the CDM works perfectly it will not result in more or less emission reductions being achieved
than were agreed under the Kyoto Protocol, it will simply change the location in which some
of the reductions will happen.

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For example, a French company needs to reduce its emissions as part of its

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contribution to meeting France‘s emission reduction target under the Kyoto Protocol. Instead
of reducing emissions from its own activities in France, the company provides funding for the
construction of a new biomass plant in India that would not have been able to go ahead
without this investment. This, they argue, prevents the construction of new fossil-fueled

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plants in India, or displaces consumption of electricity from existing ones, leading to
areduction in greenhouse gas emissions in India. The French investor gets credit for those
reductions and can use them to help meet their reduction target in France.

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Requirements for Participating in CDM

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Project cycle for CDM

The project cycle for CDM is shown in Figure. There are seven basic stages; the first
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four stages are performed prior to the implementation of the project, while the last three
stages are performed during the lifetime of the project.

While investors profit from CDM projects by obtaining reductions at costs lower than
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in their own countries, the gains to the developing country host parties are in the form of
finance, technology, and sustainable development benefits. Projects starting in the year 2000
are eligible to earn Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) if they lead to "real, measurable,
and long-term" GHG reductions, which are additional to any that would occur in the absence
of the CDM project. This includes afforestation and reforestation projects, which lead to the
sequestration of carbon dioxide

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At COP-7, it was decided that the following types of projects would qualify for fast-track
approval procedures:
− Renewable energy projects with output capacity up to 15 MW
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− Energy efficiency improvement projects which reduce energy consumption on the

supply and/or demand side by up to 15 GWh annually
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− Other project activities that both reduce emissions by sources and directly emit less
than 15 kilotons CO equivalent annually.
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The CDM will be supervised by an executive board, and a share of the proceeds from
project activities will be used to assist developing countries in meeting the costs of adaptation
to climate change.
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Indian Initiatives on CDM

Government of India has been willing to fulfill its responsibility under the CDM. It
has developed an interim criterion for approval of CDM project activities, which is now
available to stakeholders. It has undertaken various capacity building activities like holding
of workshops, initiation of various studies, and briefing meeting with the stakeholders. India
has been actively participating in the CDM regime and has already approved projects for
further development.

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Under CDM, projects such as energy efficient hydrocarbon refrigerators,

modernization of small scale foundry units and renovation, modernization of thermal power
stations etc. are being taken up.

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Prototype Carbon Fund (PCF)

Recognizing that global warming will have the most impact on its borrowing client
countries, the World Bank approved the establishment of the Prototype Carbon Fund (PCF).

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The PCF is intended to invest in projects that will produce high quality greenhouse gas
emission reductions that could be registered with the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC) for the purposes of the Kyoto Protocol. To increase the
likelihood that the reductions will be recognized by the Parties to the UNFCCC, independent

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experts will follow validation, verification and certification procedures that respond to
UNFCCC rules as they develop.
The PCF will pilot production of emission reductions within the framework of Joint
Implementation (JI) and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). The PCF will invest
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contributions made by companies and governments in projects designed to produce emission
reductions fully consistent with the Kyoto Protocol and the emerging framework for JI and
the CDM. Contributors, or "Participants" in the PCF, will receive a pro rata share of the
emission reductions, verified and certified in accordance with agreements reached with the
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respective countries "hosting" the projects.

Size of Market for Emissions Reductions

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• All estimates of market volume are speculative at this early stage in the market‘s
development.
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• One way of looking at the potential size of the market is to assume that about one billion
tonnes of carbon emissions must be reduced per year during the commitment period of
2008-2012 in order for the industrialized countries to meet their obligations of a 5%
reduction in their 1990 levels of emissions.
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Under Prototype carbon fund programme of the World Bank. Government of India has
approved a municipal solid waste energy project for implementation in Chennai, which
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proposes to use the state of art technology for extracting energy from any solid waste
irrespective of the energy content. Sustainable Development

What is Sustainable Development?

Sustainable development is often defined as 'development that meets the needs of the
present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs'.
Sustainable development encompasses three basic and inter-related objectives:
• Economic security and prosperity
• Social development and advancement
• Environmental sustainability

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Sustainable development demands that we seek ways of living, working and being that
enable all people of the world to lead healthy, fulfilling, and economically secure lives
without destroying the environment and without endangering the future welfare of people and

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the planet.
Sustainable development as applied to energy and environment should consider the

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following:
• inputs - such as fuels and energy sources, land and raw materials - are non-renewable
they should be used up only as far as they can be substituted in future

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• where they are renewable they should be used up at a rate within which they can be
renewed,
• outputs - in production and consumption - should not overstrain ecosystems or the

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assimilation capacity of the ecosphere.

INTEGRATED RESOURCE PLAN:

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The integrated resource planning (IRP) approach is one that considers both supply and
demand-side options to meet the need for a resource, while minimising the costs accruing to
the firm and to society. This paper focuses on IRP as a tool for the power sector in the light of
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the existing problems and the ongoing reforms in developing countries. It looks at the
advantages that IRP would afford, juxtaposing these with the barriers to such a planning
process—those encountered in the past as well as the possibilities in view of structural
changes. It then discusses the policies that would enable the IRP approach to be usefully
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employed to mitigate the problems of the power sector. Although IRP has receded in
importance in some areas of the world, there are perceptible benefits for developing
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countries; these could adopt such planning methods through the agents and the instruments
suggested.

When power sector reforms were initiated in developing countries during the last
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decade, they were driven chiefly by the shortage of generating capacity, coupled with
inadequate funds for new investment. Attention to social and environmental welfare, or what
may be termed public benefits, had been far less important. With such benefits inadequately
provided for even when the power sector was controlled by the state (via the main utilities), it
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could be suspected that commercialised and privatised utilities would be even more likely to
ignore them. An approach that integrates equitable access to and judicious use of resources
would therefore be called for. Furthermore, problems that have been experienced even in
some developed market economies2 have suggested that regulation is needed for the effective
functioning of the electricity system. Hence, integrated planning and appropriate intervention
are required not only to achieve the developmental goals of the region but also to ensure
supply security and reliability.

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The power sectors of developing countries have been beset with several problems.
However, with some form of power sector reform currently taking place, there appears to be
scope for new institutions and remedies, including planning processes, thereby affecting
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improvement in performance.

What is integrated resource planning (IRP)?

Energy services can be enhanced in the power sector either through increases in the
use of electricity, which necessitate supply increases, or through improvements in efficiency.
Improvement in the efficiency with which electricity is delivered and employed can result in
the same or more energy services being provided with a lower use of electricity. Supply
increases include both enhanced generating capacity and improved utilisation of the existing
capacity, can be obtained from a variety of sources, and either through transmission from

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centralised generation stations or at local sites. The maturity time also varies with the
particular option and furthermore, the costs of each option include those incurred by the firm
as well as those accruing to society.

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As applied to the power sector, IRP can be described as an approach through which

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the estimated requirement3 for electricity services during the planning period is met with a
least-cost combination of supply and end-use efficiency measures, while incorporating
concerns such as equity, environmental protection, reliability and other country-specific
goals. The IRP approach differs from strategic supply planning because it includes not only

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the costs incurred by the individual/organisation, but also societal costs, such as
environmental impact mitigation necessitated by some resource choices. Secondly, IRP is
technologically neutral, treating demand-side options—end-use efficiency improvements and
demand-side management (DSM)4—with the same weight as supply side resources, so that

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deferred or avoided end-use demand is equivalent to ‗‗delivered supply‘‘of electricity.

Barriers to IRP:

 Supply bias
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 Institutional arrangements
 Financial difficulties
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 Preoccupation with other problems
 Possibilities during restructuring
 Commercialisation and corporatisation
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Benefits fromIRP:
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IRP assists planners by indicating appropriate investment decisions. More

importantly, IRP could be used to address the main crises of the power sectors in developing
countries. poor access (i.e., numerous un-electrified homes even in grid-connected areas, with
families too poor to afford market prices), insufficient financial resources for investment in
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such non-lucrative sectors, inefficient transmission and distribution systems, and inadequate
environmental protection. It can be shown that these problems can be mitigated through the
implementation of integrated resource plans.
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Meeting the energy services efficiently

Planners have to make decisions regarding the best ways to bridge the gap between
supply and demand. Developing countries are confronted with power scarcity, even with the
present level of home electrification, Adding to their problems is the projected capital
requirement, far greater than that their utilities and/or governments can meet.

In fact, the financial scarcity was identified as one of the chief problems of the power
sector in the cases of Brazil, Ghana, India, and Indonesia, from a study of six countries.
However, a fixed capital requirement is derived from fixed coefficients—for the

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technological requirement of energy per unit of output or per energy service, and for the cost
per unit of energy. With IRP, both these coefficients can be lowered: the same services can be
obtained with devices that require less energy per unit of output, and the cost per unit of

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energy can be lowered with alternative technologies.

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This implies that, if IRP were implemented, the supply–demand gap itself could be
reduced and the cost of bridging that reduced gap could also be lower. Further, in cases where
a new restructured power pool system is being established, where generators are dispatched
in order of increasing bids—the pool price paid to all the generators will be set by the bid of

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the last most expensive generator dispatched. Hence, lowering the load to be served through
efficiency measures will displace the need for the next higher bidder(s) and thereby lower the
price payable to all.

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Providing for future requirements effectively

Even if there is surplus generating capacity with respect to the present requirements,
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the long lead time before commissioning makes early decisions essential to prevent future
shortages. The need for planning for future requirements has been reiterated even in the USA,
where California‘s ‗‗retreat from integrated resource planning‘‘7 and the consequent absence
of ‗‗warning signals‘‘ have been cited among the reasons for the recent inadequacy of the
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supply system. Conversely, if supply requirements are appropriately matched with estimates
of demand, those options beyond acceptable limits can be avoided and ‗‗stranded‘‘ (or
‗‗strandable‘‘) costs can be eliminated.
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Contributing to social and environmental welfare

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The provision of sustainable energy services requires that energy be produced and
used in ways that ‗‗support human development in all its social, economic and environmental
dimensions‘‘By indicating the lowest costs of energy services, IRP facilitates the extension of
these services to those without them, particularly the economically disadvantaged, and
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thereby makes this provision more equitable. And, in so far as energy is essential for basic
needs such as water supply, lighting, education, and health-care, IRP assists in social
development. In this context, there is a rationale not just for utility- or national-level IRP, but
also for an area comprising several independent countries, such as the South African
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Development Community (SADC) region; here, it has been argued that the regional optimum
solution would be superior to the sum of country optima IRP‘s association with
environmental development is well known. One of its original purposes was to include the
costs of environmental protection, as ‗‗most rate-setting and economic practices fail to
account for the long-term costs of environmental degradation and/or environmental clean-up,
as well as the health risks associated with energy production and consumption‘‘. Inclusion of
either actual costs (such as the cost of pollution controls) or proxy values (such as charges
imputed for negative impacts) in the comparison of costs results in cleaner options being
relatively less expensive and therefore appearing earlier along the least-cost-supply schedule.
Secondly, a reduction in generation requirement— brought about through efficiency/DSM
options featuring earlier on the cost-supply staircase—leads to less fuel
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Policy agents and their roles

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The government * Policy formulation:

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Effective national resource planning needs commitment at the highest level,
preferably that of the central government. Although it has been felt that the power sector
requires freedom from government intrusiveness, reform could be viewed as a step in
designing and implementing a more intelligent regulatory setting; in fact there is need for

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‗‗re-regulation‘‘.It has also been concluded that the existence of market barriers provides
ample justification for government intervention in energy service markets .

Legislation/directives:

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It has been argued that there should be conditions—such as the obligation to provide
sufficient and economic energy services in an environmentally sensitive way—for planning
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processes like IRP to take place. Hence, if the Government chose to exert stricter control to
translate policies into practice, suitable legislation/ directives would be required.

The independent public authority:

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Reform has usually brought a new authority to the power sector in the form of a
regulatory commission that is supposed to be independent of government
departments/utilities and accessible to the public. If not already in existence, such a
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responsible and impartial authority would need to be established. The authority should be
responsible for the planning framework, for imposing the need for least-cost energy services,
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for monitoring the implementation and renewal of plans, for facilitating data accumulation,
and to serve as an acceptable conduit for timely two-way communication between
stakeholders.
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Responsibility: The independent regulatory commission/ authority should undertake the

responsibility of arranging for an integrated assessment of demand and supply and the
indication of least-cost options. As seen in California, three major consumer advocacy
groups, in their plan to ‗‗fix‘‘ the electricity crisis in 2001, suggested the creation of a
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‗‗public power authority‘‘ that would ‗‗institute ‗Integrated Resource Planning‘ to project
demand and identify the appropriate actions needed to meet that demand‘‘

Monitoring/evaluation: Periodic re-evaluation of IRP plans is required to ensure that

unforeseen changes are suitably incorporated. Similarly, monitoring of implementation is also
essential to ensure that the increases in electricity requirements (not with standing efficiency
improvement), whether due to economic activity or population needs, are The earlier section
has derived the conditions necessitating IRP, at different stages of power sector restructuring
and in the face of barriers to its acceptance. However, even with appropriate conditions, one
must suggest who could carry out IRP and how: the policy agents and the roles they could
play, and the policy instruments that would be required to accomplish those tasks.
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Data repository: The regulatory commission should be the repository for information from
electricity generators (suppliers) and distributors (service providers) so that an adequate

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database for the purpose of analysis is available at an impartial location.

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UNIT II

SOLAR ENERGY

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Introduction

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The sun is a sphere of intensely hot gaseous matter with a diameter of 1.39 £ 109 m.
The solar energy strikes our planet a mere 8 min and 20 s after leaving the giant furnace, the
sun which is 1.5 £ 1011 m away. The sun has an effective blackbody temperature of 5762 K

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The temperature in the central region is much higher and it is estimated at 8 £ 106 to 40 £ 106
K. In effect the sun is a continuous fusion reactor in which hydrogen is turned into helium.
The sun‘s total energy output is 3.8 £ 1020 MW which is equal to 63 MW/m2 of the sun‘s
surface. This energy radiates outwards in all directions. Only a tiny fraction, 1.7 £ 1014 kW,

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of the total radiation emitted is intercepted by the earth .However, even with this small
fraction it is estimated that 30 min of solar radiation falling on earth is equal to the world
energy demand for one year. Almost all the energy on Earth comes from the Sun. If it weren‘t
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for the Sun, the Earth would be a cold, lifeless world. Plants grow because of energy from the
Sun, the wind blows, and even fossil fuel are just energy stored from the Sun over millions of
years. But how much energy is actually coming from the Sun, and how much of it makes it
all the way to the Earth?
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As you probably know, in the core of the Sun, the temperatures and pressures are so
high that hydrogen atoms are being fused into helium atoms at a rate of 600 million tons per
second. In fact, the Sun consumes an equivalent amount of mass to the entire Earth every
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70,000 years.
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Because of this fusion reaction, the Sun puts out 386 billion billion megawatts of
energy. Most of this energy just heads off into space. That‘s why we can see stars which are
light-years away. But enough of that energy reaches the Earth to warm us up. 89000 terawatts
actually pass through the atmosphere and reach the Earth‘s surface. Just for comparison, the
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total energy use of all human beings is 15 terawatts. So there is 5900 times more energy
hitting the Earth from the Sun than humans are currently using. We just need to harness it.

The most effective way to use energy from the Sun is with photovoltaic cells. These
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convert photons streaming from the Sun into electricity. But energy from the Sun also creates
the wind to power wind generators. It grows the crops which are used for biofuel. And as we
said at the top of this article, the energy from fossil fuels like oil and coal is just the
concentrated solar energy gathered by plants over millions of years.

Renewable energy technologies produce marketable energy by converting natural

phenomena into useful forms of energy These technologies use the sun‘s energy and its direct
and indirect effects on the earth (solar radiation, wind, falling water and various plants, i.e.
biomass), gravitational forces (tides), and the heat of the earth‘s core (geothermal) as the
resources from which energy is produced. These resources have massive energy potential,
however, they are generally diffused and not fully accessible, most of them are intermittent,

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and have distinct regional variabilities. These characteristics give rise to difficult, but
solvable, technical and economical challenges. Nowadays, significant progress is made by
improving the collection and conversion efficiencies, lowering the initial and maintenance

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costs, and increasing the reliability and applicability. A worldwide research and development
in the field of renewable energy resources and systems is carried out during the last two

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decades. Energy conversion systems that are based on renewable energy technologies
appeared to be cost effective compared to the projected high cost of oil. Furthermore,
renewable energy systems can have a beneficial impact on the environmental, economic, and
political issues of the world. At the end of 2001 the total installed capacity of renewable

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energy systems was equivalent to 9% of the total electricity generation. By applying a
renewable energy intensive scenario the global consumption of renewable sources by 2050
would reach 318 exajoules.

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The benefits arising from the installation and operation of renewable energy systems
can be distinguished into three categories; energy saving, generation of new working posts
and the decrease of environmental pollution. The energy saving benefit derives from the
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reduction in consumption of the electricity and/or diesel which are used conventionally to
provide energy. This benefit can be directly translated into monetary units according to the
corresponding production or avoiding capital expenditure for the purchase of imported fossil
fuels. Another factor which is of considerable importance in many countries is the ability of
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renewable energy technologies to generate jobs. The penetration of a new technology leads to
the development of new production activities contributing to the production, market
distribution and operation of the pertinent equipment. Specifically in the case of solar energy
collectors job creation mainly relates to the construction and installation of the collectors. The
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latter is a decentralised process since it requires the installation of equipment in every

building or every individual consumer. The most important benefit of renewable energy
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systems is the decrease of environmental pollution. This is achieved by the reduction of air
emissions due to the substitution of electricity and conventional fuels. The most important
effects of air pollutants on the human and natural environment are their impact on the public
health, agriculture and on ecosystems. It is relatively simple to measure the financial impact
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of these effects when they relate to tradable goods such as the agricultural crops; however
when it comes to non-tradable goods, like human health and ecosystems, things becomes
more complicated. It should be noted that the level of the environmental impact and therefore
the social pollution cost largely depends on the geographical location of the emission sources.
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Contrary to the conventional air pollutants, the social cost of CO2 does not vary with the
geographical characteristics of the source as each unit of CO2 contributes equally to the
climate change thread and the resulting cost. Solar thermal systems are non-polluting and
offer significant protection of the environment. The reduction of greenhouse gasses pollution
is the main advantage of utilising solar energy. Therefore, solar thermal systems should be
employed whenever possible in order to achieve a sustainable future.

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Radiation at Ground Level

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As a result of the atmospheric phenomena involving reflection, scattering, and
absorption of radiation, the quantity of solar energy that ultimately reaches the earth's surface

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is much reduced in intensity as it traverses the atmosphere. The amount of reduction varies
with the radiation wavelength, and depends on the length of the atmospheric path through
which the solar radiation traverses. The intensity of the direct beams of sunlight thus depends
on the altitude of the sun, and also varies with such factors as latitude, season, cloud

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coverage, and atmospheric pollutants.

The total solar radiation received at ground level includes both direct radiation and
indirect (or diffuse) radiation. Diffuse radiation is the component of total radiation caused by

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atmospheric scattering and reflection of the incident radiation on the ground. Reflection from
the ground is primarily visible light with a maximum radiation peak at a wavelength of 555
nm (green light). The relatively small amount of energy radiated from the earth at an average
ambient temperature of 17°C at its surface consists of infrared radiation with a peak
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concentration at 970 nm. This invisible radiation is dominant at night.

During daylight hours, the amount of diffuse radiation may be as much as 10% of the
total solar radiation at noon time even when the sky is clear. This value may rise to about
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20% in the early morning and late afternoon.

Solar thermal Systems

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Solar thermal energy (STE) is a technology for harnessing solar energy for thermal
energy (heat). Solar thermal collectors are classified by the United States Energy Information
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Administration as low, medium, or high-temperature collectors. Low-temperature collectors

are flat plates generally used to heat swimming pools. Medium-temperature collectors are
also usually flat plates but are used for heating water or air for residential and commercial
use. High-temperature collectors concentrate sunlight using mirrors or lenses and are
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generally used for electric power production. STE is different from and much more efficient
than photovoltaics, which converts solar energy directly into electricity. While existing
generation facilities provide only 600 megawatts of solar thermal power worldwide in
October 2009, [note 1] plants for an additional 400 megawatts are under construction and
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development is underway for concentrated solar power projects totalling 14,000 megawatts.

solar thermal collector

Solar energy collectors are special kind of heat exchangers that transform solar
radiation energy to internal energy of the transport medium. The major component of any
solar system is the solar collector. A collector is a device for converting the energy in solar
radiation into a more usable or storable form. The energy in sunlight is in the form of
electromagnetic radiation from the infrared (long) to the ultraviolet (short) wavelengths. The
solar energy striking the Earth's surface depends on weather conditions, as well as location

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and orientation of the surface, but overall, it averages about 1,000 watts per square meter
under clear skies with the surface directly perpendicular to the sun's rays.

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This is a device which absorbs the incoming solar radiation, converts it into heat, and
transfers this heat to a fluid (usually air, water, or oil) flowing through the collector. The solar

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energy thus collected is carried from the circulating fluid either directly to the hot water or
space conditioning equipment, or to a thermal energy storage tank from which can be drawn
for use at night and/or cloudy days.

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Solar collectors fall into two general categories: non-concentrating and concentrating.
In the non-concentrating type, the collector area (i.e. the area that intercepts the solar
radiation) is the same as the absorber area (i.e., the area absorbing the radiation). In these
types the whole solar panel absorbs the light.

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A nonconcentrating collector has the same area for intercepting and for absorbing
solar radiation, whereas a sun-tracking concentrating solar collector usually has concave
reflecting surfaces to intercept and focus the sun‘s beam radiation to a smaller receiving area,
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thereby increasing the radiation flux. A large number of solar collectors are available in the
market. In this section a review of the various types of collectors currently available will be
presented. This includes FPC,
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Flat plate collectors

Flat plate and evacuated tube solar collectors are used to collect heat for space
heating, domestic hot water or cooling with an absorption chiller.
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[Link] plate thermal system for water heating deployed on a flat roof.

Flat plate collectors, developed by Hottel and Whillier in the 1950s, are the most
common type. They consist of a dark flat-plate absorber of solar energy a transparent cover
that allows solar energy to pass through but reduces heat losses, a heat-transport fluid (air,
antifreeze or water) to remove heat from the absorber, and a heat insulating backing. The
absorber consists of a thin absorber sheet (of thermally stable polymers, aluminum, steel or
copper, to which a matte black or selective coating is applied) often backed by a grid or coil
of fluid tubing placed in an insulated casing with a glass or polycarbonate cover. When solar
radiation passes through a transparent cover and impinges on the blackened absorber surface

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of high absorptivity, a large portion of this energy is absorbed by the plate and then
transferred to the transport medium in the fluid tubes to be carried away for storage or use.

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The underside of the absorber plate and the side of casing are well insulated to reduce
conduction losses. The liquid tubes can be welded to the absorbing plate, or they can be an

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integral part of the plate. The liquid tubes are connected at both ends by large diameter
header tubes. The transparent cover is used to reduce convection losses from the absorber
plate through the restraint of the stagnant air layer between the absorber plate and the glass.

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It also reduces radiation losses from the collector as the glass is transparent to the
short wave radiation received by the sun but it is nearly opaque to long-wave thermal
radiation emitted by the absorber plate (greenhouse effect). FPC are usually permanently
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fixed in position and require no tracking of the sun. The collectors should be oriented directly
towards the equator, facing south in the northern hemisphere and north in the southern. The
optimum tilt angle of the collector is equal to the latitude of the location with angle variations
of 10–158 more or less. depending on the application There are a number of absorber piping
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configurations:

 harp — traditional design with bottom pipe risers and top collection pipe, used in low
pressure thermosyphon and pumped systems
 serpentine — one continuous S that maximizes temperature but not total energy yield
in variable flow systems, used in compact solar domestic hot water only systems (no
space heating role)
 completely flooded absorber consisting of two sheets of metal stamped to produce a
circulation zone.
 boundary layer absorber collectors consisting of several layers of transparent and
opaque sheets that enable absorption in a boundary layer. Because the solar energy is
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absorbed in the boundary layer, the heat conversion may be more efficient than for
collectors where absorbed heat is conducted through a material before the heat is
accumulated in a circulating liquid

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As an alternative to metal collectors, new polymer flat plate collectors are now being

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produced in Europe. These may be wholly polymer, or they may include metal plates in front
of freeze-tolerant water channels made of silicone rubber. Polymers, being flexible and
therefore freeze-tolerant, are able to contain plain water instead of antifreeze, so that they
may be plumbed directly into existing water tanks instead of needing to use heat exchangers

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which lower efficiency. By dispensing with a heat exchanger in these flat plate panels,
temperatures need not be quite so high for the circulation system to be switched on, so such
direct circulation panels, whether polymer or otherwise, can be more efficient, particularly at
low light levels.

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Some early selectively coated polymer collectors suffered from overheating when
insulated, as stagnation temperatures can exceed the melting point of the polymer. For
example, the melting point of polypropylene is 160 °C (320 °F), while the stagnation
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temperature of insulated thermal collectors can exceed 180 °C (356 °F) if control strategies
are not used. For this reason polypropylene is not often used in glazed selectively coated solar
collectors. Increasingly polymers such as high temperate silicones (which melt at over 250 °C
(482 °F)) are being used. Some non polypropylene polymer based glazed solar collectors are
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matte black coated rather than selectively coated to reduce the stagnation temperature to 150
°C (302 °F) or less.
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Glazing. One or more sheets of glass or other diathermanous (radiation-transmitting)

material. Tubes, fins, or passages. To conduct or direct the heat transfer fluid from the inlet to
the outlet. Absorber plates. Flat, corrugated, or grooved plates, to which the tubes, fins, or
passages are attached. The plate may be integral with the tubes. Headers or manifolds. To
admit and discharge the fluid. Insulation. To minimise the heat loss from the back and sides
of the collector. Container or casing. To surround the aforementioned components and keep
them free from dust, moisture, etc.

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FPC have been built in a wide variety of designs and from many different materials.
They have been used to heat fluids such as water, water plus antifreeze additive, or air. Their
major purpose is to collect as much solar energy as possible at the lower possible total cost.

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The collector should also have a long effective life, despite the adverse effects of the sun‘s
ultraviolet radiation, corrosion and clogging because of acidity, alkalinity or hardness of the

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heat transfer fluid, freezing of water, or deposition of dust or moisture on the glazing, and
breakage of the glazing because of thermal expansion, hail, vandalism or other causes. These
causes can be minimised by the use of tempered glass.

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Glazing materials:

Glass has been widely used to glaze solar collectors because it can transmit as much
as 90% of the incoming shortwave solar irradiation while transmitting virtually none of the

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longwave radiation emitted outward by the absorber plate. Glass with low iron content has a
relatively high transmittance for solar radiation (approximately 0.85–0.90 at normal
incidence), but its transmittance is essentially zero for the longwave thermal radiation (5.0–50
mm) emitted by sun-heated surfaces. no
Plastic films and sheets also possess high shortwave transmittance, but because most
usable varieties also have transmission bands in the middle of the thermal radiation spectrum,
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they may have longwave transmittances as high as 0.40. Plastics are also generally limited in
the temperatures they can sustain without deteriorating or undergoing dimensional changes.
Only a few types of plastics can withstand the sun‘s ultraviolet radiation for long periods.
However, they are not broken by hail or stones, and, in the form of thin films, they are
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completely flexible and have low mass.

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The commercially available grades of window and green-house glass have normal
incidence transmittances of about 0.87 and 0.85, respectively. For direct radiation, the
transmittance varies considerably with the angle of incidence. Antireflective coatings and
surface texture can also improve transmission significantly. The effect of dirt and dust on
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collector glazing may be quite small, and the cleansing effect of an occasional rainfall is
usually adequate to maintain the transmittance within 2–4% of its maximum value.

The glazing should admit as much solar irradiation as possible and reduce the upward
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loss of heat as much as possible. Although glass is virtually opaque to the longwave radiation
emitted by collector plates, absorption of that radiation causes an increase in the glass
temperature and a loss of heat to the surrounding atmosphere by radiation and convection.
Low cost and high temperature resistant transparent insulating (TI) materials have been
developed so that the commercialisation of these collectors becomes feasible.
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Collector absorbing plates:

The collector plate absorbs as much of the irradiation as possible through the glazing,
while loosing as little heat as possible upward to the atmosphere and downward through the
back of the casing. The collector plates transfer the retained heat to the transport fluid. The
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absorptance of the collector surface for shortwave solar radiation depends on the nature and
colour of the coating and on the incident angle. Usually black colour is used, however various
colour coatings have been proposed mainly for aesthetic reasons.

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By suitable electrolytic or chemical treatments, surfaces can be produced with high

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values of solar radiation absorptance (a) and low values of longwave emittance . ssentially,
typical selective surfaces consist of a thin upper layer, which is highly absorbent to shortwave
solar radiation but relatively transparent to longwave thermal radiation, deposited on a
surface that has a high reflectance and a low emittance for longwave radiation. Selective

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surfaces are particularly important when the collector surface temperature is much higher
than the ambient air temperature.

An energy efficient solar collector should absorb incident solar radiation, convert it to

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thermal energy and deliver the thermal energy to a heat transfer medium with minimum
losses at each step. It is possible to use several different design principles and physical
mechanisms in order to create a selective solar absorbing surface. Solar absorbers are based
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on two layers with different optical properties, which are referred as tandem absorbers. A
semiconducting or dielectric coating with high solar absorptance and high infrared
transmittance on top of a non-selective highly reflecting material such as metal constitutes
one type of tandem absorber. Another alternative is to coat a nonselective highly absorbing
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material with a heat mirror having a high solar transmittance and high infrared reflectance.

Much of the progress during recent years has been based on the implementation of
vacuum techniques for the production of fin type absorbers used in low temperature
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applications. The chemical and electrochemical processes used for their commercialization
were readily taken over from the metal finishing industry. The requirements of solar
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absorbers used in high temperature applications, however, namely extremely low thermal
emittance and high temperature stability, were difficult to fulfil with conventional wet
processes. The vacuum techniques are nowadays mature, characterized by low cost and have
the advantage of being less environmentally polluting than the wet processes. For fluid-
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heating collectors, passages must be integral with or firmly bonded to the absorber plate. A
major problem is obtaining a good thermal bond between tubes and absorber plates without
incurring excessive costs for labour or materials. Material most frequently used for collector
plates are copper, aluminium, and stainless steel.
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UV-resistant plastic extrusions are used for low temperature applications. If the entire
collector area is in contact with the heat transfer fluid, the thermal conductance of the
material is not important. avoided.

Compound parabolic collectors:

CPC are non-imaging concentrators. These have the capability of reflecting to the
absorber all of the incident radiation within wide limits. The necessity of moving the
concentrator to accommodate the changing solar orientation can be reduced by using a trough
with two sections of a parabola facing each other. Compound parabolic concentrators can
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accept incoming radiation over a relatively wide range of angles. By using multiple internal
reflections, any radiation that is entering the aperture, within the collector acceptance angle,
finds its way to the absorber surface located at the bottom ofthe collector. The absorber can

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take a variety of configurations.

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CPCs are usually covered with glass to avoid dust and other materials from entering
the collector and thus reducing the reflectivity of its walls. These collectors are more useful
as linear or trough-type concentrators. The acceptance angle is defined as the angle through
which a source of light can be moved and still converge at the absorber. The orientation of a

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CPC collector is related to its acceptance angle. Also depending on the collector acceptance
angle, the collector can be stationary or tracking.

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A CPC concentrator can be orientated with its long axis along either the north–south
or the east–west direction and its aperture is tilted directly towards the equator at an angle
equal to the local latitude. When orientated along the north–south direction the collector must

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track the sun by turning its axis so as to face the sun continuously. As the acceptance angle of
the concentrator along its long axis is wide, seasonal tilt adjustment is not necessary. It can

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also be stationary but radiation will only be received the hours when the sun is within the
collector acceptance angle. When the concentrator is orientated with its long axis along the
east–west direction, with a little seasonal adjustment in tilt angle the collector is able to catch
the sun‘s rays effectively through its wide acceptance angle along its long axis. The minimum

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acceptance angle in this case should be equal to the maximum incidence angle projected in a
north–south vertical plane during the times when output is needed from the collector. For
stationary CPC collectors mounted in this mode the minimum acceptance angle is equal to
478.

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Evacuated tube collectors

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Conventional simple flat-plate solar collectors were developed for use in sunny and
warm climates. Their benefits however are greatly reduced when conditions become
unfavourable during cold, cloudy and windy days. Furthermore, weathering influences such
as condensation and moisture will cause early deterioration of internal materials resulting in
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reduced performance and system failure. Evacuated heat pipe solar collectors (tubes) operate
differently than the other collectors available on the market. These solar collectors consist of
a heat pipe inside a vacuum-sealed tube, as shown in Fig.
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ETC have demonstrated that the combination of a selective surface and an effective
convection suppressor can result in good performance at high temperatures. The vacuum
envelope reduces convection and conduction losses, so the collectors can operate at higher
temperatures than FPC. Like FPC, they collect both direct and diffuse radiation. However,

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their efficiency is higher at low incidence angles. This effect tends to give ETC an advantage
over FPC in day-long performance. ETC use liquid–vapour phase change materials to
transfer heat at high efficiency. These collectors feature a heat pipe (a highly efficient thermal

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conductor) placed inside a vacuum-sealed tube. The pipe, which is a sealed copper pipe, is
then attached to a black copper fin that fills the tube (absorber plate). Protruding from the top

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of each tube is a metal tip attached to the sealed pipe (condenser).

The heat pipe contains a small amount of fluid (e.g. methanol) that undergoes an
evaporating-condensing cycle. In this cycle, solar heat evaporates the liquid, and the vapour

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travels to the heat sink region where it condenses and releases its latent heat. The condensed
fluid return back to the solar collector and the process is repeated. When these tubes are
mounted, the metal tips up, into a heat exchanger (manifold) as shown in Fig. 5. Water, or
glycol, flows through the manifold and picks up the heat from the tubes. The heated liquid

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circulates through another heat exchanger and gives off its heat to a process or to water that is
stored in a solar storage tank. Because no evaporation or condensation above the phase-
change temperature is possible, the heat pipe offers inherent protection from freezing and
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overheating. This selflimiting temperature control is a unique feature of the evacuated heat
pipe collector.

Sun tracking concentrating collectors

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Energy delivery temperatures can be increased by decreasing the area from which the
heat losses occur. Temperatures far above those attainable by FPC can be reached if a large
amount of solar radiation is concentrated on a relatively small collection area. This is done by
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interposing an optical device between the source of radiation and the energy absorbing
surface.
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Concentrating collectors exhibit certain advantages as compared with the conventional flat-
plate type . The main ones are:

 The working fluid can achieve higher temperatures in a concentrator system when
compared to a flat-plate system of the same solar energy collecting surface. This
means that a higher thermodynamic efficiency can be achieved.

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 It is possible with a concentrator system, to achieve a thermodynamic match between

temperature level and task. The task may be to operate thermionic, thermodynamic, or
other higher temperature devices.

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 The thermal efficiency is greater because of the small heat loss area relative to the
receiver area.

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 Reflecting surfaces require less material and are structurally simpler than FPC. For a
concentrating collector the cost per unit area of the solar collecting surface is
therefore less than that of a FPC.
 Owing to the relatively small area of receiver per unit of collected solar energy,

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selective surface treatment and vacuum insulation to reduce heat losses and improve
the collector efficiency are economically viable.

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Their disadvantages are:
 Concentrator systems collect little diffuse radiation depending on the concentration
ratio.
 Some form of tracking system is required so as to enable the collector to follow the
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sun.
 Solar reflecting surfaces may loose their reflectance with time and may require
periodic cleaning and refurbishing.
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photovoltaic cell :

A solar cell (also called photovoltaic cell or photoelectric cell) is a solid state
electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic
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effect. Light is composed of tiny bundles of energy called photons. When photons reach the
earth they interact with the atoms of solids, liquids, and gases. An atom consists of a nucleus
5s

surrounded by electrons. When incoming photons strike an atom, energy is converted. In

some atoms the added energy knocks the atom‘s outer electrons off. Electrons freed in this
manner are known as conduction electrons because they form an electric current.
w.

Photovoltaic solar cells are designed to take advantage of this phenomenon. Silicon is
used to form very thin wafers to make photovoltaic solar cells because its electrons are easily
displaced by absorbed photons. In some wafers a small amount of phosphorous is added
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giving the wafers of silicon an excess of free electrons so it will have a negative character.
This wafer is called the n-layer. In some wafersa small amount of boron is added giving the
wafers of silicon a positive character because it attracts electrons. This layer is called the p-
layer. Keep in mind that the nlayer has a negative character, not a negative charge; and the p-
layer has a positive character, not a positive charge. When the two wafers are placed together
the free electrons from the n-layer flow into the p-layer for a split second, then form a barrier
to prevent more electrons from moving from one layer to the other. This contact point and
barrier is called the p-n junction. After the layers are joined the p-layer section of the
junction has a negative charge and the n-layer section of the junction has a positive charge.
An electric field is produced between the p-layer and the n-layer at the p-n junction because
of the imbalance in the charge of the two layers. Place the PV cell in the sun and photons of

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light energy strike the electrons in the p-n junction, energizing them and knocking them free
of their atoms. These electrons are attracted to the positive charge in the n-layer and repelled
by the negative charge in the p-layer. If you attach a wire between the p-layer and the n-layer,

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the free electrons are pushed into the n-layer and repel each other. The wire provides a path
for the repelled electrons to get away. This flow of electrons is an electric current. For many

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years, PV cells have been used for specialty applications such as powering space craft,
remote weather stations, and consumer products such as watches and calculators. But today,
PV cells have become a common power source for a wide variety of telecommunications
equipment, including cellular phone towers, radio-controlled valves used on oil and gas

s.
pipelines, and in weather stations. Solar-power watches have batteries that are continually
recharged by small PV cells. This same technology is used in calculators and toys. In remote
areas, excess electricity can be stored in batteries for use when the sun isn‘t shining.

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Assemblies of solar cells are used to make solar modules which are used to capture
energy from sunlight. When multiple modules are assembled together (such as prior to
installation on a pole-mounted tracker system), the resulting integrated group of modules all
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oriented in one plane is referred to in the solar industry as a solar panel. The electrical energy
generated from solar modules, referred to as solar power, is an example of solar energy.

Photovoltaics is the field of technology and research related to the practical

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application of photovoltaic cells in producing electricity from light, though it is often used
specifically to refer to the generation of electricity from sunlight.

Cells are described as photovoltaic cells when the light source is not necessarily
t

sunlight. These are used for detecting light or other electromagnetic radiation near the visible
range, for example infrared detectors, or measurement of light intensity.
5s

The solar cell works in three steps:

1. Photons in sunlight hit the solar panel and are absorbed by semiconducting materials,
w.

such as silicon.
2. Electrons (negatively charged) are knocked loose from their atoms, causing an electric
potential difference. Current starts flowing through the material to cancel the potential
and this electricity is captured. Due to the special composition of solar cells, the
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electrons are only allowed to move in a single direction.

3. An array of solar cells converts solar energy into a usable amount of direct current
(DC) electricity.

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Efficiency

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s.
Solar panels on the International Space Station absorb light from both sides. These
Bifacial cells are more efficient and operate at lower temperature than single sided
equivalents.

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The efficiency of a solar cell may be broken down into reflectance efficiency,
thermodynamic efficiency, charge carrier separation efficiency and conductive efficiency.
The overall efficiency is the product of each of these individual efficiencies. Due to the
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difficulty in measuring these parameters directly, other parameters are measured instead:
thermodynamic efficiency, quantum efficiency, integrated quantum efficiency, VOC ratio, and
fill factor. Reflectance losses are a portion of the quantum efficiency under "external
quantum efficiency". Recombination losses make up a portion of the quantum efficiency, VOC
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ratio, and fill factor. Resistive losses are predominantly categorized under fill factor, but also
make up minor portions of the quantum efficiency, VOC ratio.

The fill factor is defined as the ratio of the actual maximum obtainable power, to the
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product of the open circuit voltage and short circuit current. This is a key parameter in
evaluating the performance of solar cells. Typical commercial solar cells have a fill factor >
5s

0.70. Grade B cells have a fill factor usually between 0.4 to 0.7. The fill factor is, besides
efficiency, one of the most significant parameters for the energy yield of a photovoltaic cell.
Cells with a high fill factor have a low equivalent series resistance and a high equivalent
shunt resistance, so less of the current produced by light is dissipated in internal losses.
w.

Materials
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Semiconductors with band gap between 1 and 1.5eV, or near-infrared light, have the
greatest potential to form an efficient cell. (The efficiency "limit" shown here can be
exceeded by multijunction solar cells.)

Different materials display different efficiencies and have different costs. Materials
for efficient solar cells must have characteristics matched to the spectrum of available light.
Some cells are designed to efficiently convert wavelengths of solar light that reach the Earth
surface. However, some solar cells are optimized for light absorption beyond Earth's
atmosphere as well. Light absorbing materials can often be used in multiple physical
configurations to take advantage of different light absorption and charge separation
mechanisms.
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Materials presently used for photovoltaic solar cells include monocrystalline silicon,
polycrystalline silicon, amorphous silicon, cadmium telluride, and copper indium

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selenide/sulfide. Many currently available solar cells are made from bulk materials that are
cut into wafers between 180 to 240 micrometers thick that are then processed like other

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semiconductors.

Other materials are made as thin-films layers, organic dyes, and organic polymers that
are deposited on supporting substrates. A third group are made from nanocrystals and used as

s.
quantum dots (electron-confined nanoparticles). Silicon remains the only material that is
well-researched in both bulk and thin-film forms.

Crystalline silicon

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Main articles: Monocrystalline silicon, Polycrystalline silicon, Silicon, and list of
silicon producers no
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5s
w.

Basic structure of a silicon based solar cell and its working mechanism.
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By far, the most prevalent bulk material for solar cells is crystalline silicon (abbreviated as a
group as c-Si), also known as "solar grade silicon". Bulk silicon is separated into multiple
categories according to crystallinity and crystal size in the resulting ingot, ribbon, or wafer.

1. monocrystalline silicon (c-Si): often made using the Czochralski process. Single-
crystal wafer cells tend to be expensive, and because they are cut from cylindrical
ingots, do not completely cover a square solar cell module without a substantial waste
of refined silicon. Hence most c-Si panels have uncovered gaps at the four corners of
the cells.
2. polycrystalline silicon, or multicrystalline silicon, (poly-Si or mc-Si): made from cast
square ingots — large blocks of molten silicon carefully cooled and solidified. Poly-

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Si cells are less expensive to produce than single crystal silicon cells, but are less
efficient. United States Department of Energy data show that there were a higher
number of polycrystalline sales than monocrystalline silicon sales.

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3. ribbon silicon is a type of polycrystalline silicon: it is formed by drawing flat thin
films from molten silicon and results in a polycrystalline structure. These cells have

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lower efficiencies than poly-Si, but save on production costs due to a great reduction
in silicon waste, as this approach does not require sawing from ingots.

Analysts have predicted that prices of polycrystalline silicon will drop as companies build

s.
additional polysilicon capacity quicker than the industry's projected demand. On the other
hand, the cost of producing upgraded metallurgical-grade silicon, also known as UMG Si, can
potentially be one-sixth that of making polysilicon.

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Thin films

no
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Market share of the different PV technologies In 2010 the market share of thin film
t

declined by 30% as thin film technology was displaced by more efficient crystalline silicon
solar panels (the light and dark blue bars).
5s

Thin-film technologies reduce the amount of material required in creating the active
material of solar cell. Most thin film solar cells are sandwiched between two panes of glass to
make a module. Since silicon solar panels only use one pane of glass, thin film panels are
w.

approximately twice as heavy as crystalline silicon panels. The majority of film panels have
significantly lower conversion efficiencies, lagging silicon by two to three percentage points.
Thin-film solar technologies have enjoyed large investment due to the success of First Solar
and the largely unfulfilled promise of lower cost and flexibility compared to wafer silicon
ww

cells, but they have not become mainstream solar products due to their lower efficiency and
corresponding larger area consumption per watt production. Cadmium telluride (CdTe),
copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) and amorphous silicon (A-Si) are three thin-film
technologies often used as outdoor photovoltaic solar power production. CdTe technology is
most cost competitive among them. CdTe technology costs about 30% less than CIGS
technology and 40% less than A-Si technology in 2011.

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Cadmium telluride solar cell

A cadmium telluride solar cell uses a cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film, a

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semiconductor layer to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity.

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The cadmium present in the cells would be toxic if released. However, release is
impossible during normal operation of the cells and is unlikely during fires in residential
roofs.[28] A square meter of CdTe contains approximately the same amount of Cd as a single
C cell Nickel-cadmium battery, in a more stable and less soluble form.

s.
Copper indium gallium selenide

Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) is a direct band gap material. It has the

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highest efficiency (~20%) among thin film materials (see CIGS solar cell). Traditional
methods of fabrication involve vacuum processes including co-evaporation and sputtering.
Recent developments at IBM and Nanosolar attempt to lower the cost by using non-vacuum
solution processes. no
Gallium arsenide multijunction

High-efficiency multijunction cells were originally developed for special applications

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such as satellites and space exploration, but at present, their use in terrestrial concentrators
might be the lowest cost alternative in terms of $/kWh and $/W. These multijunction cells
consist of multiple thin films produced using metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy. A triple-
junction cell, for example, may consist of the semiconductors: GaAs, Ge, and GaInP2.[30]
t

Each type of semiconductor will have a characteristic band gap energy which, loosely
speaking, causes it to absorb light most efficiently at a certain color, or more precisely, to
5s

absorb electromagnetic radiation over a portion of the spectrum. The semiconductors are
carefully chosen to absorb nearly all of the solar spectrum, thus generating electricity from as
much of the solar energy as possible.
w.

Light-absorbing dyes (DSSC)

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Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are made of low-cost materials and do not need
elaborate equipment to manufacture, so they can be made in a DIY fashion, possibly allowing
players to produce more of this type of solar cell than others. In bulk it should be significantly
less expensive than older solid-state cell designs. DSSC's can be engineered into flexible
sheets, and although its conversion efficiency is less than the best thin film cells, its
price/performance ratio should be high enough to allow them to compete with fossil fuel
electrical generation. The DSSC has been developed by Prof. Michael Grätzel in 1991 at the
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) in Lausanne (CH).

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Organic/polymer solar cells

Organic solar cells are a relatively novel technology, yet hold the promise of a

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substantial price reduction (over thin-film silicon) and a faster return on investment. These
cells can be processed from solution, hence the possibility of a simple roll-to-roll printing

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process, leading to inexpensive, large scale production.

Organic solar cells and polymer solar cells are built from thin films (typically 100 nm)
of organic semiconductors including polymers, such as polyphenylene vinylene and small-

s.
molecule compounds like copper phthalocyanine (a blue or green organic pigment) and
carbon fullerenes and fullerene derivatives such as PCBM. Energy conversion efficiencies
achieved to date using conductive polymers are low compared to inorganic materials.
However, it has improved quickly in the last few years and the highest NREL (National

te
Renewable Energy Laboratory) certified efficiency has reached 8.3% for the Konarka Power
Plastic. In addition, these cells could be beneficial for some applications where mechanical
flexibility and disposability are important.

Silicon thin films

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Silicon thin-film cells are mainly deposited by chemical vapor deposition (typically
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plasma-enhanced, PE-CVD) from silane gas and hydrogen gas. Depending on the deposition
parameters, this can yield

1. Amorphous silicon (a-Si or a-Si:H)

t

2. Protocrystalline silicon or
3. Nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si or nc-Si:H), also called microcrystalline silicon.
5s

It has been found that protocrystalline silicon with a low volume fraction of
nanocrystalline silicon is optimal for high open circuit voltage. These types of silicon present
dangling and twisted bonds, which results in deep defects (energy levels in the bandgap) as
w.

well as deformation of the valence and conduction bands (band tails). The solar cells made
from these materials tend to have lower energy conversion efficiency than bulk silicon, but
are also less expensive to produce. The quantum efficiency of thin film solar cells is also
lower due to reduced number of collected charge carriers per incident photon.
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An amorphous silicon (a-Si) solar cell is made of amorphous or microcrystalline

silicon and its basic electronic structure is the p-i-n junction. a-Si is attractive as a solar cell
material because it is abundant and non-toxic (unlike its CdTe counterpart) and requires a low
processing temperature, enabling production of devices to occur on flexible and low-cost
substrates. As the amorphous structure has a higher absorption rate of light than crystalline
cells, the complete light spectrum can be absorbed with a very thin layer of photo-electrically
active material. A film only 1 micron thick can absorb 90% of the usable solar energy. This
reduced material requirement along with current technologies being capable of large-area
deposition of a-Si, the scalability of this type of cell is high. However, because it is
amorphous, it has high inherent disorder and dangling bonds, making it a bad conductor for
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charge carriers. These dangling bonds act as recombination centers that severely reduce the
carrier lifetime and pin the Fermi energy level so that doping the material to n- or p- type is
not possible. Amorphous Silicon also suffers from the Staebler-Wronski effect, which results

m
in the efficiency of devices utilizing amorphous silicon dropping as the cell is exposed to
light. The production of a-Si thin film solar cells uses glass as a substrate and deposits a very

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thin layer of silicon by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). A-Si
manufacturers are working towards lower costs per watt and higher conversion efficiency
with continuous research and development on Multijunction solar cells for solar panels.

s.
Amorphous silicon has a higher bandgap (1.7 eV) than crystalline silicon (c-Si) (1.1
eV), which means it absorbs the visible part of the solar spectrum more strongly than the
infrared portion of the spectrum. As nc-Si has about the same bandgap as c-Si, the nc-Si and
a-Si can advantageously be combined in thin layers, creating a layered cell called a tandem

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cell. The top cell in a-Si absorbs the visible light and leaves the infrared part of the spectrum
for the bottom cell in nc-Si.

Manufacture no
Because solar cells are semiconductor devices, they share some of the same
processing and manufacturing techniques as other semiconductor devices such as computer
and memory chips. However, the stringent requirements for cleanliness and quality control of
ar
semiconductor fabrication are more relaxed for solar cells. Most large-scale commercial solar
cell factories today make screen printed poly-crystalline or single crystalline silicon solar
cells.
Poly-crystalline silicon wafers are made by wire-sawing block-cast silicon ingots into
t

very thin (180 to 350 micrometer) slices or wafers. The wafers are usually lightly p-type
5s

doped. To make a solar cell from the wafer, a surface diffusion of n-type dopants is
performed on the front side of the wafer. This forms a p-n junction a few hundred nanometers
below the surface.
w.

Anti-reflection coatings, to increase the amount of light coupled into the solar cell, are
typically next applied. Silicon nitride has gradually replaced titanium dioxide as the anti-
reflection coating, because of its excellent surface passivation qualities. It prevents carrier
recombination at the surface of the solar cell. It is typically applied in a layer several hundred
ww

nanometers thick using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). Some solar
cells have textured front surfaces that, like anti-reflection coatings, serve to increase the
amount of light coupled into the cell. Such surfaces can usually only be formed on single-
crystal silicon, though in recent years methods of forming them on multicrystalline silicon
have been developed.

The wafer then has a full area metal contact made on the back surface, and a grid-like
metal contact made up of fine "fingers" and larger "bus bars" are screen-printed onto the front
surface using a silver paste. The rear contact is also formed by screen-printing a metal paste,
typically aluminium. Usually this contact covers the entire rear side of the cell, though in
some cell designs it is printed in a grid pattern. The paste is then fired at several hundred

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degrees Celsius to form metal electrodes in ohmic contact with the silicon. Some companies
use an additional electro-plating step to increase the cell efficiency. After the metal contacts
are made, the solar cells are interconnected in series (and/or parallel) by flat wires or metal

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ribbons, and assembled into modules or "solar panels". Solar panels have a sheet of tempered
glass on the front, and a polymer encapsulation on the back.

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Lifespan

s.
Most commercially available solar panels are capable of producing electricity for at
least twenty years. The typical warranty given by panel manufacturers is over 90% of rated
output for the first 10 years, and over 80% for the second 10 years. Panels are expected to

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function for a period of 30 to 35 years.

Applications

no
t ar
5s
w.

Fig. Polycrystalline photovoltaic cells laminated to backing material in a module

Solar cells are often electrically connected and encapsulated as a module.

Photovoltaic modules often have a sheet of glass on the front (sun up) side, allowing light to
pass while protecting the semiconductor wafers from abrasion and impact due to wind-driven
ww

debris, rain, hail, etc. Solar cells are also usually connected in series in modules, creating an
additive voltage. Connecting cells in parallel will yield a higher current; however, very
significant problems exist with parallel connections. For example, shadow effects can shut
down the weaker (less illuminated) parallel string (a number of series connected cells)
causing substantial power loss and even damaging excessive reverse bias applied to the
shadowed cells by their illuminated partners. As far as possible, strings of series cells should
be handled independently and not connected in parallel, save using special paralleling
circuits. Although modules can be interconnected in series and/or parallel to create an array
with the desired peak DC voltage and loading current capacity, using independent MPPTs
(maximum power point trackers) provides a better solution. In the absence of paralleling

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circuits, shunt diodes can be used to reduce the power loss due to shadowing in arrays with
series/parallel connected cells.

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To make practical use of the solar-generated energy, the electricity is most often fed
into the electricity grid using inverters (grid-connected photovoltaic systems); in stand-alone

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systems, batteries are used to store the energy that is not needed immediately. Solar panels
can be used to power or recharge portable devices.

s.
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no
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5s
w.
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UNIT – III

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WIND ENERGY

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Introduction

Wind is a form of kinetic energy created in part by the sun. About two percent of the
sun's energy that reaches the earth is converted to wind energy. The atmosphere is heated

s.
during the day by the sun and at night it cools by losing its heat to space. Wind is the reaction
of the atmosphere to the heating and cooling cycles, as well as the rotation of the earth. Heat
causes low pressure areas, and the cool of the night results in high pressure areas. This
process creates wind when air flows from high pressure areas into low pressure areas. Wind

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energy has been used for hundreds of years. The windmills of Europe and Asia converted the
kinetic energy of the wind into mechanical energy, turning wheels to grind grain. Today
wind-driven generators are used to convert the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy.
no
Wind-driven systems consist of a tower to support the wind generator, devices
regulating generator voltage, propeller and hub system, tail vane, a storage system to store
electricity for use during windless days, and a converter which converts the stored direct
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current (DC) into alternating current (AC). Wind energy accounts for 6 percent of
renewable electricity generation. The U.S. wind energy industry achieved unprecedented
success in the first year of the new century, installing nearly 1700 megawatts or $1.7 billion
worth of new generating capacity. Due to continuing research and better placement of
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turbines, wind power has become much more reliable. Virtually all regions of Canada have
areas with good wind resources. Oceans and large lakes, open prairie, and cercertain hill or
5s

mountain areas often have good winds, and these areas are where Canada‘s current wind
generation facilities are located. There are commercial wind turbines in five provinces and
the Yukon, with plans for further installations in almost all the rest of the provinces. Natural
Resources Canada estimates that Canada has almost 30,000 megawatts of developable wind
w.

resource.

This compares to the current installed base of 200 megawatts, and would be enough to
supply 15 percent of Canada's electricity supply. The wind energy future looks bright and
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there is a growing interest in wind power within the North American electric industry. Wind
power is a clean and renewable energy source, it produces no pollution and it doesn‘t harm
our earth. Also important is the fact that the price of wind power is not affected by fuel price
increases or supply disruptions—it is a domestic, renewable energy source. The land used for
wind turbines can still be used for other purposes such as grazing and farmland.

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m
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s.
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no
ar
.

Wind Speed and Power Relation

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we can make a relation using equation of energy kinetic, The kinetic energy in air of
mass (M) ・moving with speed V is given by the following equation in SI units :
5s
w.

The power in moving air is the flow rate of kinetic energy per second Therefore:
ww

Where,

P=mechanical power in the moving air

rho = air density, kg/m3
A = area swept by the rotor blades, m2
V = velocity of the air, m/s
then, the volumetric flow rate is A.V, the mass flow rate of the air in kilogramsper second is
rho.A.V, and the power is given by the following:

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m
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Two potential wind sites are compared in terms of the specific wind power expressed in watts
per square meter of area swept by the rotating blades. It is also referred to as the power
density of the site, and is given by the following expression:

s.
This is the power in the upstream wind. It varies linearly with the density of the air sweeping
the blades, and with the cube of the wind speed.

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Extract energy from the wind

When the wind blows over the blades of a wind turbine, their aerofoil shape makes
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them turn.
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5s

When air passes over an aerofoil section, it travels faster over the top of the blade than it does
below. This makes the air pressure above the blade lower than it is below. Due to the unequal
w.

pressures the blade experiences a lifting force. You can see this for yourself if you hold a thin
sheet of paper to your lips and blow over the top of it. This will make the paper rise more
than if you blow underneath it. The opposite force is drag, due to surface friction and
turbulence. Wind turbine designers use these forces generated by the wind to make the rotor
ww

blades rotate.

This rotational energy is transmitted either to an electrical generator or to a machine

for mechanical work, such as a water pump. With electricity generating turbines, a gearbox is
used to speed up the rotation, typically about 30 times. In mechanical turbines a shaft
connects the turbine to the working machine (with or without a gear
Energy is extracted from the wind as it moves through the 'swept area' of the turbine's blades.
On the down wind side of the turbine the wind moves more slowly, as some of its kinetic
energy has been lost.

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The amount of energy which is actually transformed by a wind turbine is:

Power delivered = Cp x swept area of wind turbine x 1/2 du3

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swept area of a turbine = pi r 2
where

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Cp = the power efficiency of the rotor, explained below
(pi = 3.14) r = radius of swept area, i.e. blade length)
d = density of air
u = wind speed

s.
CP, Power efficiency

The power efficiency of the rotor is the fraction of the total power available which the

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blades are able to convert. The theoretical maximum is 0.59. This is known as the Betz limit.
To get some understanding of why there is a limit to the amount of kinetic energy which can
be extracted, it helps to consider the two extremes. At one extreme, a wind turbine could not
extract 100% of the kinetic energy. To do this the blades would have to stop the wind
no
completely, requiring all the swept area to be solid, like a disk. The wind would simply blow
around the turbine, and the blades would not turn at all. At the other extreme, if there were no
blades at all, then no kinetic energy would be extracted.
ar
Ideally we want a wind turbine that operates at a Cp as close to the Betz limit of 0.59
as possible, over a wide range of wind speeds. The power output is then approximately
proportional to u3, i.e. the cube of the wind speed. The power has to be limited at high wind
speeds in order to protect the mechanical and electrical components of the machine from
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overloading. This is done by somehow reducing the Cp as the wind speed increases. An ideal
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wind turbine operates at maximum Cp until the wind speed corresponds to the rated power,
then, with increasing wind speed operates at a reducing Cp, so that the power output remains
constant at its rated value.
w.

The power in the wind

The wind systems that exist over the earth‘s surface are a result of variations in air
pressure. These are in turn due to the variations in solar heating. Warm air rises and cooler air
ww

rushes in to take its place. Wind is merely the movement of air from one place to another.
There are global wind patterns related to large scale solar heating of different regions of the
earth‘s surface and seasonal variations in solar incidence. There are also localised wind
patterns due the effects of temperature differences between land and seas, or mountains and
valleys. Wind speed generally increases with height above ground. This is because the
roughness of ground features such as vegetation and houses cause the wind to be slowed.
Windspeed data can be obtained from wind maps or from the meteorology office.

Unfortunately the general availability and reliability of wind speed data is extremely
poor in many regions of the world. However, significant areas of the world have mean annual
windspeeds of above 4-5 m/s (metres per second) which makes small-scale wind powered

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electricity generation an attractive option. It is important to obtain accurate wind speed data
for the site in mind before any decision can be made as to its suitability. Methods for
assessing the mean wind speed are found in the relevant texts (see the ‗References and

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resources‘ section at the end of this fact sheet).

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The power in the wind is proportional to:
• the area of windmill being swept by the wind
• the cube of the wind speed
• the air density - which varies with altitude

s.
The formula used for calculating the power in the wind is shown below:

Power =( density of air x swept area x velocity cubed)/2

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P = ½.ρ.A.V3
where,
P is power in watts (W)
ρ is the air density in kilograms per cubic metre (kg/m3)
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A is the swept rotor area in square metres (m^2)
V is the windspeed in metres per second (m/s)
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The fact that the power is proportional to the cube of the windspeed is very
significant. This can be demonstrated by pointing out that if the wind speed doubles then the
power in the wind increases by a factor of eight. It is therefore worthwhile finding a site
which has a relatively high mean windspeed.
t

Wind into watts

5s

Although the power equation above gives us the power in the wind, the actual power
that we can extract from the wind is significantly less than this figure suggests. The actual
power will depend on several factors, such as the type of machine and rotor used, the
w.

sophistication of blade design, friction losses, and the losses in the pump or other equipment
connected to the wind machine. There are also physical limits to the amount of power that
can be extracted realistically from the wind. It can been shown theoretically that any
windmill can only possibly extract a maximum of 59.3% of the power from the wind (this is
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known as the Betz limit). In reality, this figure is usually around 45% (maximum) for a large
electricity producing turbine and around 30% to 40% for a windpump, (see the section on
coefficient of performance below). So, modifying the formula for ‗Power in the wind‘ we can
say that the power which is produced by the wind machine can be given by:

PM = ½.Cp.ρ.A.V3
where,
PM is power (in watts) available from the machine
Cp is the coefficient of performance of the wind machine

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It is also worth bearing in mind that a wind machine will only operate at its maximum
efficiency for a fraction of the time it is running, due to variations in wind speed. A rough
estimate of the output from a wind machine can be obtained using the following equation;

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PA = 0.2 A V3
where,

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PA is the average power output in watts over the year
V is the mean annual wind speed in m/s

Principles of wind energy conversion

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There are two primary physical principles by which energy can be extracted from the
wind; these are through the creation of either lift or drag force (or through a combination of
the two). The difference between drag and lift is illustrated by the difference between using a

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spinnaker sail, which fills like a parachute and pulls a sailing boat with the wind, and a
Bermuda rig, the familiar triangular sail which deflects with wind and allows a sailing boat to
travel across the wind or slightly into the wind.
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Drag forces provide the most obvious means of propulsion, these being the forces felt
by a person (or object) exposed to the wind. Lift forces are the most efficient means of
propulsion but being more subtle than drag forces are not so well understood. The basic
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features that characterise lift and drag are:

• drag is in the direction of air flow

• lift is perpendicular to the direction of air flow
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• generation of lift always causes a certain amount of drag to be developed

• with a good aerofoil, the lift produced can be more than thirty times greater than the drag
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• lift devices are generally more efficient than drag devices

The Annual Variability of Wind Speed

w.

A ‗wind rose‘ is the term given to the way in which the joint wind speed and direction
distribution is defined. An example is given in Figure I.2.6. The wind rose can be thought of
as a wheel with spokes, spaced, in this example, at 30 degrees. For each sector, the wind is
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considered separately. The duration for which the wind comes from this sector is shown by
the length of the spoke and the speed is shown by the thickness of the spoke.

The design of a wind farm is sensitive to the shape of the wind rose for the site. In
some areas, particularly in areas where the wind is driven by thermal effects, the wind can be
very unidirectional. For example, in Palm Springs in the US, the wind comes from a sector
10 degrees wide, for 95 per cent of the year. In this type of site, the wind farms tend to be
arranged in tightly packed rows, perpendicular to the wind, with large spaces downwind. In
Northern Europe, the wind, although predominantly from the southwest, also comes from
other directions for a significant amount of time, and hence wind turbines tend to be more
uniformly spaced in all directions.

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s.
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5s
w.

The description above focused on the wind speed and wind rose. The other important
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parameter determining the output of a wind farm is the wind speed distribution. This
distribution describes the amount of time on a particular site that the wind speed is between
different levels. This characteristic can be very important, but is often inadequately treated.
This distribution is important since it is the combination of the wind speed distribution and
the power curve of the proposed turbine which together determine the energy production.

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Figure. Wind Rose

Consider, as an example, two sites, A and B. At one extreme, at Site A, the wind
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blows at 9 m/s permanently and the wind farm would be very energetic. At the other
extreme, at Site B, let us assume that the wind blows at 4 m/s (below cut-in wind speed for a
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typical wind turbine) for one third of the time, at 26m/s (above cut-out wind speed for most
turbines) for one third of the time and at 9m/s for one third of the time. The mean wind speed
would then be (1/3) x (4 + 9 + 26) = 13m/s, much higher than Site A, but the energy yield at
Site B would be only a third of that at Site A.
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These two examples are both unrealistic, but serve to illustrate a point – that wind
speed alone is not enough to describe the potential energy from the site. Some more realistic
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site wind speed distributions are shown in Figure I.2.7. In this figure, the actual wind speed
distribution is shown, as well as a ‗Weibull fit‘ to the distribution. The Weibull distribution
is a mathematical expression, which provides a good approximation to many measured wind
speed distributions. The Weibull distribution is therefore frequently used to characterise a
site. Such a distribution is described by two parameters: the Weibull ‗scale,‘ parameter
which is closely related to the mean wind speed, and the ‗shape‘ parameter, which is a
measurement of the width of the distribution. This approach is useful since it allows both the
wind speed and its distribution to be described in a concise fashion. However, as can be seen
from the figure, care must be taken in using a Weibull fit. For many sites it may provide a
good likeness to the actual wind speed distribution, but there are some sites where differences
may be significant.

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The annual variability in wind rose and wind speed frequency distribution is also
important in assessing the uncertainty in the annual energy production of a wind farm, and is

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described in detail in the sections below. For the purpose of the example, only the variation
in annual mean wind speed is considered, as the other factors usually have a secondary effect.

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5s
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Figure . Examples of Wind Speed Distributions

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Variability of One-Year Periods

As discussed above, the annual variability of wind speed has a strong influence on the
analysis methodologies developed for the assessment of the long-term wind resource at a site
and the uncertainty in such predictions. Before describing typical methodologies used for the
prediction of the long-term mean wind speed at a site, an example is used to illustrate typical
levels of annual variability of wind speed. The example presented below seeks to answer the
following questions:

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 If there is one year of wind data available from a potential wind farm site, what error
is likely to be associated with assuming that such data is representative of the long
term?

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 If, instead, there are three years of data available from the site how does the picture
change?

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Figure presents the annual mean wind speed recorded at Malin Head Meteorological
Station in Ireland, over a 20 year period. It can be seen that there is significant variation in
the annual mean wind speed, with maximum and minimum values ranging from less than 7.8

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m/s to nearly 9.2 m/s. The standard deviation of annual mean wind speed over the 20 year
period is approximately 5 per cent of the mean.

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Figure (a)The Annual Mean Wind Speed Recorded at Malin Head Ireland; (b) Annual
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Mean Wind Speed at Malin Head over a 20 Year Period - Three Year Rolling Averages
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Table presents the average and annual maximum and minimum wind speeds. As an
illustration, the equivalent annual energy productions for the example 10 MW wind farm case
described earlier, are also presented in the table.
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Percentage of
Percentage of
average year
Annual mean average year
Energy production
wind speed (percent)
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(MWh/annum) (percent)
(m/s)

Lowest wind
speed year 7.77 93.3 29,491 89.8
(1987)

Average year 8.33 100.0 32,847 100.0

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Highest wind
speed year 9.16 110.0 37,413 113.9
(1986)

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Table: Wind Speeds and Energy Production for the Average, Lowest and Highest Wind

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Speed Year in the Period 1979 to 1998, Based on a Nominal 10 MW Wind Farm at Malin
Head

Table shows that, had wind speed measurements been carried out on the site for just

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one year, on the assumption that this year would be representative of the long term, then the
predicted long-term wind speed at the site could have had a 10 per cent margin of error. It is
often the case that little on-site data is available and hence this situation can arise. In terms of
energy production, it is evident that the predicted energy production could be in error by

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some 14 per cent, if the above assumption had been made.

For a lower wind speed site, a 10 per cent error in wind speed could easily have a 20
per cent effect on energy production, owing to the higher sensitivity of energy production to
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changes in wind speed at lower wind speeds.

APPLICATIONS OF WIND ENERGY

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Pumping
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The livelihood and well-being of people, animals, and crops depends on a reliable,
cost-effective supply of clean water. Mechanical wind water pumping machines have been
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used to pump water from wells for centuries. The technology of modern mechanical water
pumpers is relatively simple, the maintenance requirements are modest, and the replacement
parts are not difficult to obtain.
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The mechanical water pumper is the best option in some circumstances. However,
because it must be placed close to the water source, it is often unable to capture the best wind
resources. A wind electric pumping system overcomes some of the problems with the simple
wind water pumper. This system generates electricity, which, in turn, runs an electric pump.
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Wind electric pumping systems allow greater siting flexibility, higher efficiency of wind
energy conversion, increased water output, increased versatility in use of output power, and
decreased maintenance and life-cycle costs.

Electrical energy generation

The cost of utility-scale wind power has been steadily declining throughout the last
decade. Today, in good wind regimes, wind power can be the least-cost resource. Thanks to
these positive economic trends and the fact that wind power does not produce any emissions,
wind power has been the fastest- growing energy source in the world for the past few years.

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Wind power can help diversify a country's energy resources and can bring construction and
maintenance jobs to the local community.

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In large-scale wind power applications, there are two keys to developing the most
cost-effective projects: wind speed and project size. Since the power output is so highly

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dependent on the wind speed, differences in one meter per second can mean differences of a
cent or more per kWh in the cost of electricity production. Wind projects are also subject to
scale economies. In general, given the same wind speed, a large project will be more cost-
effective than a small one.

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Small Wind Power < 10 kW wind turbines
 Installed at individual homes, boats, water pumping, etc.
 On the ―customer side‖ of the meter, or off the utility grid entirely

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 Produce reasonable energy as low as 9 mph (4 m/s) average wind speed

Medium Wind Power: 10 kW – 1,000 kW wind turbines

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 At the small end applications are similar to small wind turbines
 Installed at individual homes, farms, businesses, schools, with bigger loads
 Usually on the ―customer side‖ of the meter
 Wind-Diesel mini-grids (Alaska villages, Guantanamo Bay)
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 At the larger end, similar to utility scale wind turbines
 Not many new turbines within this size range, active market in refurbished turbines

Large Wind Power : Utility-Scale Wind Power 1,000 - 3,000 kW wind turbines
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 Installed on wind farms, 10 – 300 MW, occasional single turbine projects

 Professional maintenance crews 13 mph (6 m/s) average wind speed
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Wind Energy Conversion Systems

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An apparatus for converting the kinetic energy available in the wind to mechanical
energy that can be used to power machinery (grain mills, water pumps, etc) and/or to operate
an electrical generator. See also wind energy. Thanks to extensive R&D efforts during the
past 30 years, wind energy conversion has become a reliable and competitive means for
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electric power generation. The life span of modern wind turbines is now 20-25 years, which
is comparable to many other conventional power generation technologies. The average
availability of commercial wind power plants is now around 98%. The cost of wind power
has continued to decline through technological development, increased production level, and
the use of larger turbines.

The major components of a typical wind energy conversion system include a wind
turbine, a generator, interconnection apparatus, and control systems. At the present time and
for the near future, generators for wind turbines will be synchronous generators, permanent
magnet synchronous generators, and induction generators, including the squirrel-cage type
and wound rotor type. For small to medium power wind turbines, permanent magnet

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generators and squirrel-cage induction generators are often used because of their reliability
and cost advantages. Induction generators, permanent magnet synchronous generators, and
wound field synchronous generators are currently used in various high power wind turbines.

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Interconnection apparatuses are devices to achieve power control, soft start, and

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interconnection functions. Very often, power electronic converters are used as such devices.
Most modern turbine inverters are forced commutated PWM inverters to provide a fixed
voltage and fixed frequency output with a high power quality. Both voltage source voltage
controlled inverters and voltage source current controlled inverters have been applied in wind

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turbines. For certain high power wind turbines, effective power control can be achieved with
double PWM (pulse-width modulation) converters which provide a bidirectional power flow
between the turbine generator and the utility grid.

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TYPES OF TURBINE

Wind turbines can be separated into two basic types determined by which way the
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turbine spins. Wind turbines that rotate around a horizontal axis are more common (like a
wind mill), while vertical axis wind turbines are less frequently used (Savonius and
Darrieus), however, my personal favorite.
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Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWT)

Horizontal axis wind turbines, also shortened to HAWT, are the common style that most of
us think of when we think of a wind turbine. A HAWT has a similar design to a wind mill, it
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has blades that look like a propeller that spin on the horizontal axis.
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Horizontal axis wind turbines have the main rotor shaft and electrical generator at the
top of a tower, and they must be pointed into the wind. Small turbines are pointed by a simple
wind vane placed square with the rotor (blades), while large turbines generally use a wind
sensor coupled with a servo motor. Most large wind turbines have a gearbox, which turns the

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slow rotation of the rotor into a faster rotation that is more suitable to drive an electrical
generator.

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Since a tower produces turbulence behind it, the turbine is usually pointed upwind of
the tower. Wind turbine blades are made stiff to prevent the blades from being pushed into

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the tower by high winds. Additionally, the blades are placed a considerable distance in front
of the tower and are sometimes tilted up a small amount.

Downwind machines have been built, despite the problem of turbulence, because they

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don't need an additional mechanism for keeping them in line with the wind, and because in
high winds, the blades can be allowed to bend which reduces their swept area and thus their
wind resistance. Since turbulence leads to fatigue failures, and reliability is so important,
most HAWTs are upwind machines.

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HAWT advantages

 The tall tower base allows access to stronger wind in sites with wind shear. In some
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wind shear sites, every ten meters up the wind speed can increase by 20% and the
power output by 34%.
 High efficiency, since the blades always move perpendicularly to the wind, receiving
power through the whole rotation. In contrast, all vertical axis wind turbines, and most
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proposed airborne wind turbine designs, involve various types of reciprocating
actions, requiring airfoil surfaces to backtrack against the wind for part of the cycle.
Backtracking against the wind leads to inherently lower efficiency.
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HAWT disadvantages
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 Massive tower construction is required to support the heavy blades, gearbox, and
generator.
 Components of a horizontal axis wind turbine (gearbox, rotor shaft and brake
assembly) being lifted into position.
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 Their height makes them obtrusively visible across large areas, disrupting the
appearance of the landscape and sometimes creating local opposition.
 Downwind variants suffer from fatigue and structural failure caused by turbulence
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when a blade passes through the tower's wind shadow (for this reason, the majority of
HAWTs use an upwind design, with the rotor facing the wind in front of the tower).
 HAWTs require an additional yaw control mechanism to turn the blades toward the
wind.
 HAWTs generally require a braking or yawing device in high winds to stop the
turbine from spinning and destroying or damaging itself.

Cyclic stresses and vibration

When the turbine turns to face the wind, the rotating blades act like a gyroscope. As it
pivots, gyroscopic precession tries to twist the turbine into a forward or backward somersault.

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For each blade on a wind generator's turbine, force is at a minimum when the blade is
horizontal and at a maximum when the blade is vertical. This cyclic twisting can quickly
fatigue and crack the blade roots, hub and axle of the turbines.

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Vertical axis

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Verticalaxis wind turbines, as shortened to VAWTs, have the main rotor shaft
arranged vertically. The main advantage of this arrangement is that the wind turbine does not
need to be pointed into the wind. This is an advantage on sites where the wind direction is

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highly variable or has turbulent winds.

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With a vertical axis, the generator and other primary components can be placed near
the ground, so the tower does not need to support it, also makes maintenance easier. The
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main drawback of a VAWT generally create drag when rotating into the wind.
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It is difficult to mount vertical-axis turbines on towers, meaning they are often

installed nearer to the base on which they rest, such as the ground or a building rooftop. The
wind speed is slower at a lower altitude, so less wind energy is available for a given size
turbine. Air flow near the ground and other objects can create turbulent flow, which can
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introduce issues of vibration, including noise and bearing wear which may increase the
maintenance or shorten its service life. However, when a turbine is mounted on a rooftop, the
building generally redirects wind over the roof and this can double the wind speed at the
turbine. If the height of the rooftop mounted turbine tower is approximately 50% of the
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building height, this is near the optimum for maximum wind energy and minimum wind
turbulence.

VAWT subtypes

Darrieus wind turbine

Darrieus wind turbines are commonly called "Eggbeater" turbines, because they look
like a giant eggbeater. They have good efficiency, but produce large torque ripple and cyclic
stress on the tower, which contributes to poor reliability. Also, they generally require some
external power source, or an additional Savonius rotor, to start turning, because the starting

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torque is very low. The torque ripple is reduced by using three or more blades which results
in a higher solidity for the rotor. Solidity is measured by blade area over the rotor area.
Newer Darrieus type turbines are not held up by guy-wires but have an external

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superstructure connected to the top bearing.

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Savonius wind turbine

A Savonius is a drag type turbine, they are commonly used in cases of high reliability
in many things such as ventilation and anemometers. Because they are a drag type turbine

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they are less efficient than the common HAWT. Savonius are excellent in areas of turbulent
wind and self starting.

VAWT advantages

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 No yaw mechanisms is needed.
 A VAWT can be located nearer the ground, making it easier to maintain the moving
parts. no
 VAWTs have lower wind startup speeds than the typical the HAWTs.
 VAWTs may be built at locations where taller structures are prohibited.
 VAWTs situated close to the ground can take advantage of locations where rooftops,
mesas, hilltops, ridgelines, and passes funnel the wind and increase wind velocity.
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VAWT disadvantages

 Most VAWTs have a average decreased efficiency from a common HAWT, mainly
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because of the additional drag that they have as their blades rotate into the wind.
Versions that reduce drag produce more energy, especially those that funnel wind into
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the collector area.

 Having rotors located close to the ground where wind speeds are lower due and do not
take advantage of higher wind speeds above.
 Because VAWTs are not commonly deployed due mainly to the serious disadvantages
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mentioned above, they appear novel to those not familiar with the wind industry. This
has often made them the subject of wild claims and investment scams over the last 50
years.
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Comparision between Vertical or Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines

Till recently it was erroneously considered that for WAWTs it is impossible to get the
ratio of maximum linear speed of operating parts (blades) to the wind speed more than 1:1
(for HAWTs this ratio is 5:1). This data is only true for slow speed rotors of Savonius type
which use different resistance of blades when moving along the wind and against it.

It leaded to wrong theoretical conclusion that the maximum coefficient of wind use of
VAWT is less than of HAWT, and as the result this type was not developed for more that 40
years. In 1960 Canadian and later American scientists experimentally proved that this
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concept is not true for Darrieus rotor which uses lift power of blade. Maximum ratio of speed
of operating parts (blades) to the wind speed for these machines is more than 6:1. The
coefficient of wind use is not less than of HAWT.

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Also there is still some ―traditional‖ vision of wind turbines in the form of propellers.
Finally the Vertical Axis Wind Turbines didn‘t get enough volume of theoretical and
experimental knowledge in aerodynamics. Vertical Axis Turbines intensive development has
started from 1980. Their power range extends constantly. Today almost all countries have

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Darrieus type Vertical Axis Wind Turbines.

Classic design with curvilinear blades prevails in USA and Canada. Great Britain and
Romania prefer rotors with rectilinear blades parallel to axis of rotation. VAWT company

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(Great Britain) has achieved the most success. In 1986 it tested 40 kW wind rotor (outside
diameter, OD is 14 meters) in Sardinia island. VAWT-130 (450kW, 25m OD) was produced
serially in the same year. Currently this company works on prototyping VAWT-850 (500kW)
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and VAWT -2400 (1.7MW, 67m). In Russia the developers of Vertical Axis Turbines are
―SRC-Vertical‖, CAGI, ―Hydroproject‖ Holding, Institute of Electric Energy. Several
turbines such as VL-2M, VDD-16 and others show very good results.
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Why designers and scientists choose Vertical Axis Wind Turbines for the
development more and more often? In literature they mention the independence of wind
direction as the main feature or advantage. It means that the design can be seriously
simplified. For developing countries it is even more attractive due to the limitation of high
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technologies use. As the argument they say that the design of VAWT does not require some
turning systems and aggregates. However the experience of design, development and
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operation of VAWTs has shown that it‘s not just one advantage of Vertical Axis Turbines.
These types of Turbines have different technical solutions, lots of parameters cannot be
applied from one to another. Some of distinctive features of VAWT and HAWT are resented
below from different points of view. The discussion is basically about traditional propeller
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HAWT and Darrieus VAWT with straight blades.

Dependence of efficiency on wind direction

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The maximum efficiency of HAWT can be reached when the axis of wind wheel
(rotor) and wind direction are collinear. Necessity of orientation on the wind requires some
extra mechanisms and system of orientation control of constant tracing of wind status,
searching the direction with maximum wind potential, turn of wind wheel to this direction
and keeping it in the best position. Orientation system makes the aggregate more complex
and reduces its reliability (up to 13% of failures pertain to orientation control system).

In addition it is almost impossible to orient the wind wheel efficiently when the wind
is changing its direction, due to the delay of mechanism of orientation action. For medium
and big Wind Turbines of 30-40 m diameter the efficiency of orientation on the wind reduces
because of non-complanarity of the difference of wind flow speed along the length of blades,
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which makes impossible the setting of the wheel (rotor) to the optimal orientation direction.
As the result the production of energy and efficiency of the whole Wind Turbine is less due
to the reduction of wind flow energy use. Orientation system tears the rigid connection

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between gondola (wind aggregate housing) and the mast (tower). It‘s obvious design
disadvantage which brings self-oscillations and the difference of frequency parameters of

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moving and motionless parts of propeller Wind Turbine. It all reduces the reliability of
turbine and increases depreciation expenses. Efficiency of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine does
not depend on wind direction. I.e. there is no need in mechanism and system of orientation.
Inequality of the wind flow along the height leads to some unimportant leveling of turning

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torque on the blade.

Coefficient of wind power use

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Theoretically proved that the coefficient of wind power use of ideal wind rotor
(wheel) of any wind turbine (both HAWT and VAWT) is 0.593. It can be explained by the
fact that rotors of both turbine types use the same effect of lifting force appearing when the
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wind is flowing around the profiled blade. The maximum coefficient of wind energy use on
HAWT has reached 0.4 recently. Wind Turbines designed by SRC-Vertical, have 0.38.
Experiments of Russian Wind Turbines have shown that the number 0.4 – 0.45 can be
reached. It‘s a solvable task. It means that the coefficients of wind power use of these types
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of Wind Turbines are almost the same.

Start of operating (self start)

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It is considered that starting torque of propeller doesn‘t equal to 0 (zero), i.e. no

outside power source is needed. However practice shows that the HAWT rotor self-starts
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when it is enough directed on the wind. Side wind cannot start the propeller and outside
power source is required for turning the gondola on the wind. For a long time it was
considered that starting torque of VAWT is equal to 0. I.e. it was considered that they are not
self-starting. However the scientists of SRC-Vertical developed Darrieus rotor which self-
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starts on 3.5-4 m/sec wind speed. The self-starting torque of these turbines is much higher
than 0. Moreover these turbines start from even small wind gust. Nevertheless sometimes big
wind turbines are equipped with Savonius rotors for guaranteed self-start.
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The more complex the turbine, the less the reliability. Extra aerodynamic devices can
reduce the power of Wind Turbine. It is even worth than the need of extra power for self-
start. Recently the designers take this fact into account. For instance the developers of MOD
turbines (4.4 kW) rejected one of the main advantage of HAWT (self start) and mounted
blades on rotor with settled step. This solution was intended on more efficient operation of
turbine in nominal range of the wind speed. For starting they used the approach used before
for VAWTs (short time switching of alternator to motor mode for rotor acceleration).

Rationality of power structure of wind turbine

Inertial loading on blade of the HAWT is applied along the blade, i.e. by the most
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disadvantageous way. Hub and support-bearing module are compact and small.
Inertial loading on the blade of VAWT is directed across the blade, along traverse. Hub and
bearing module have relatively big size.

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It means that VAWT is not as rational as HAWT. It is heavier than HAWT.
However for megawatt class Wind Turbines it‘s necessary to take into account the alternating
loading.

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First, aerodynamic loads on the blade of HAWT in top and bottom position are
different because of the difference of wind speed along the length of the blades. The blade
operates in different forces and transfers the pulsing rotating torque to the hub.
Second, the gravitation influence increases a lot. The pulsing aerodynamic and gravitational

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loads reduce the vibro-stability of blade, hub and support-transmission system.
Coriolis forces increase when the turbine is orienting on the wind.

Design of blade
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All cross-sections of HAWT propeller are operating in different energy status because
they have different rotating speeds and angles of attack. This difference is much less if the
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cross-sections are rolled relatively each other. Inertial loading leads to the necessity of
narrowing the profile from butt to the end.

So the propeller blade is more complex than straight (orthogonal, symmetrical

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relatively the chord plane of VAWT).

On another hand the assembling of parts of the fiber plastic blade of VAWT is very complex
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task due to the flange joints arrangement..

Turning of blades
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The turning of blades of HAWT propeller is polished and used not only for braking of
the wind wheel (together with general frictional brake) but mainly for the mean of searching
of optimal angle of blade setting, to keep the wind rotor on the level of maximum possible
number of revolutions without damaging. The system of blade turn makes the design of the
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Wind Turbine much more complex as it requires the system of continuous tracing of the
rotation speed, turning devices with drives for each blade and automatic control of blade turn
angle. Such systems for propeller HAWTs are required to avoid the hazardous operation duty
of wind rotor.
The turn of the blade of HAWT was very efficient not for only braking but supporting
the optimal angle of attack in all positions of the blade on the circle of rotation. The Wind
Turbines with such approach are not widely distributed because the heavy blade while going
round along the circle, should make several swinging, being oriented on the wind... In
addition the devices and mechanisms are so complex that the production is slow and
expensive.

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Finally the Wind Turbine becomes very complex and expensive.

Instead the efficiency of VAWT is similar to the efficiency of HAWT in the most efficient
duty, without any blade turn. It‘s a main advantage of VAWT

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Swept area on the unit of blade length

The swept area of HAWT is the area of circle made by rotating blade ends. For
VAWT this area equals the area of rectangle with the sides equal to length of blade and

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diameter of Wind Turbine (wind rotor or wheel). I.e. the swept area of VAWT is more
flexible than of HAWT as it can be adjusted (or changed) by the dimensions not only of blade
length, but also by diameter of Turbine, which makes the tactic possibilities of Turbine
design wider.

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Energy taken from the unit of blade length of HAWT, is different along the length
from butt to the end, mainly because of different angle velocities (from 0 in the butt region to
maximum value on the end). no
The value of energy taken from the VAWT blade is almost not changing along the
length of blade. The small difference appears due to the difference of wind flow, inconstancy
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of wind speed along the height. There are several more reasons of losses of energy taken
from blade – not optimal angle of attack in different positions of blade on the rotation circle,
reduction of wind wheel rotating torques in positions when the blade is moving along the
flow, and reduction of torques coming from blade which is going in the aerodynamic shadow
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of the mast (tower).

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So it can be concluded that the efficiency of taking energy of the wind by the blades
of both types of Wind Turbines, will be about the same.
It‘s necessary to note that for small (up to 5 kW) Wind Turbines the angle of attack is setting
optimal depending on the wind conditions of the local region. In big Wind Turbines it can be
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controlled depending on the duty of operation. When starting it should be bigger, when the
angle velocity increases, the angle of attack is decreasing. Such system makes the efficiency
as well as the cost higher.
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High-speed degree

The most widely distributed turbines among the propeller HAWTs, are the high-speed
turbines (up to 5-7 modules), with less than 4 blades. They provide the highest coefficient of
energy use, i.e. they are the most efficient. The high degree of high-speed requires extra
special devices and aggregates which limit the angle velocity of wind rotor in accurate limits
and avoid the damage of rotor and transmission, what makes the Turbine more complex.

The constancy of high speed of rotation makes the transmission connections between
wind wheel and alternator more simple, and the quality of electric energy is higher without
extra transforming or converting circuits.
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At the same time the constancy of operating speed of rotation limited by the inertial
strength of blades, means the limitation of operating wind speed (usually within 12-15

m
m/sec), and operation of turbine in optimal duty on the fixed wind speed, which reduces the
efficiency.

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For HAWT with big diameter the influence of non- complanarity of wind speed along
the height and gravitation forces causing pulsing loading in blade material and transmission
support mechanisms, become higher. The bigger the high-speed degree, this influence is
bigger. The high speed determines the higher requirements for dynamic stability of all

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rotating elements, durability of construction, accuracy of fabricating, quality of assembling
and lubrication, and balancing of rotating parts and modules.

Vertical Axis Wind Turbines do not have such problems as their design provides low

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speed operation. In all known experiments including the search of maximum efficiency of
wind use, the high-speed didn‘t increase 2.5 – 2.8 modules. The significance of this fact will
be understandable if the designers will take into account that all characteristics (including the
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coefficient of energy use) of VAWT are almost the same as of HAWT. The 2-3 times
reduction of high-speed improves operating conditions of mechanisms due to reduction of
dynamics, simplification of requirements for transmission supporting elements, excluding
mechanisms and systems providing the constancy of rotating speed. The high-speed reduction
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allows operating with coefficient of use of wind speed in all wind speed range, i.e. increase
the efficiency with rather simple design of blade. Operating range of wind speed for low
speed Wind Turbines extends up to 20-25 m/sec. However it‘s necessary to have in mind that
rotating torques become higher when the speed is low, which leads to increase of material
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mass for Wind Turbine blades due to longer traverses, bigger hub and transmission. It‘s
necessary to understand that the alternating frequency of Turbine rotation causes the
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necessity of including converters into the electric circuit for improvement of quality of
energy and for coordination of it with grid parameters.

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine with straight blades can be high-speed. The only
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limitation is the strength of blades on transversal inertial loading and vibro-loading. The
tendency of development of more light and high durable materials makes the development of
high-speed VAWTs of Darrieus type more and more attractive.
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Alternator and gearbox (multiplier) location

The big advantage of VAWT is the possibility of placing the alternator and multiplier
on the base of turbine, excluding the angle transmission of the rotating torque. Powerful, may
be even multi-module transmission of rotating torque, can make the requirements for repairs
more simple (no limitation on mass and dimensions), and requirements of operation more
light (no vibration, no jerk). When the equipment is located on the ground, the montage and
transmission of energy conditions improve greatly. The energy production becomes simple.

It is considered that the angle transmission will reduce the reliability of HAWT
turbine. Thus the equipment is placed in rotating gondola. The complexity with repairs,
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operation and montage increase a lot. Alternator rotates together with gondola and makes the
system of energy transmission very complex. To avoid the twist of power bus, it‘s required to
limit the turn of gondola, to bring in the collector transmission or untwist the bus. In all these

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cases there are several extra devices and mechanisms which make the Wind Turbine more
complex.

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It‘s necessary to note that the transmission of rotating torque on the foundation (base)
level can be transmitted by long transmission shaft. However the advantage of the bottom
based equipment location compensates the complex design of shaft, even if the shaft will be

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post-gearbox, i.e. high-speed. When the shaft is off-gearbox (low speed), it does not make the
design more complex.

In Wind Turbines produced by SRC-Vertical there is no multiplier (gearbox). It

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increases the efficiency (because each gearbox reduces it). Alternator and part of power
electronics are located in the hub housing. It makes the servicing more complex, but increases
the efficiency.

Reliability
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HAWT propellers use the achievements of aviation techniques, in particular the
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design of blades, system controlling the angle of blade setting, transmissions. So it can be
considered that these Wind Turbines are studied and their reliability is known as high.
However it is obvious that VAWTs (especially big) promise even higher reliability. The
reason of such opinion is the significant simplification of design, reduction of level of
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requirements for transmission fabrication, simplification of montage and operation, as well as

the features of VAWTs (no mechanisms and system of orienting of gondola on the wind, no
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system controlling the angle of blade setting, no problem with energy transmission from
alternator, and the alternator and multiplier are placed in some cases on foundation).

The high level of reliability of complex structure is based on the high level of
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technology development. This fact is very important for evaluation of optimality of variants
of co-operation of different companies for fabrication of modules and aggregates. It‘s hard to
predict that the simple and reliable design of Wind Turbine will be more expensive than the
more complex one, in spite of material capacity.
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Power

Recently the power of Wind Power Units in the World Wind Power industry is
increasing. It can be explained by the following reasons: Since the size increases, the cost of
energy taken from 1 square meter of swept area, is getting down, expenses on operation and
technical servicing are getting less, the property area is getting less. The efficiency of the
whole construction is growing.

However the growth of HAWT is limited. It has the upper limit of 3-4 MWatts as the
blades are exposed to centrifugal and bending forces alternating in value and direction. This
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fact limits the dimensions of blades, reduces the reliability of HAWTs and makes the
operating (life) time less.

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So the growth of power means the change of design of Wind Turbines. The most
preferable solution is the Vertical Axis structure which limits are much more than of

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HAWTs, in accordance with theoretical development.

Calculated wind speed

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The calculated wind speed for HAWTs is in the limits of 12-15 m/sec because of
strength requirements for inertial loading. ―Hydroproject‖ Institute calculated the wind
speeds on the base of data of 200 meteorological stations in Russia. There are several regions
(East coast of Arctic ocean, Ohot sea, Kamchatka, Kuril Islands, Kazakhstan, Crimea, etc.)

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where the calculated nominal speed is 18-20 m/sec. The operating range is up to 30 m/sec.
The research of Kazakhstan scientists in Jungar Gates region (annual speed is 8 m/sec,
prevalent is 15 m/sec), have shown that the starting speed almost does not influence on the
level of energy produced. no
If the starting speed will be changed from 4.5 to 7.5, then the energy production will
be reduced on 2%. The influence of calculated nominal speed on the energy production is
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big. For instance the increase of calculated wind speed from 10.4 to 20 m/sec makes the
energy production higher by 4 times. It means that for regions with high wind potential the
calculated wind speed, taken for normal conditions, is smaller than it should be. Big wind
power resources will not be used.
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The operating range of wind speed for low speed VAWTs is increased up to 20-25
5s

m/sec, comparing with HAWTs (12-15 m/sec). It means that VAWTs are preferable for
regions with high wind potential. Wind Turbines of SRC-Vertical operate in the wide range
of wind speed (4-60 m/sec), at nominal speed 10.4 m/sec. When the turbine reaches the
nominal speed, the angle velocity is being stabilized by aerodynamic brakes.
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Ecological issues

Low speed VAWTs have big ecological advantages. All levels of aerodynamic and
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infra-noise are less, tele- and radio static is insufficient while their operation.
In case of damaging the radius of dispersion of blades is less.
The probability of birds killing is low. In particular, the level of noise of SRC-Vertical Wnd
Power Units is in the limit of 40-50 dB on 10 meters distance from Turbine. To compare the
noise from computer fan is 50 dB. The Turbine is almost free of electromagntic oscillations
which allows the installation oif such Turbines near the communication centers (including
airports where the requirements to the air arte very high due to the navigation devices
operation.

The controller

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In one way or another the controller is involved in almost all decision-making

processes in the safety systems in a wind turbine. At the same time it must oversee the normal
operation of the wind turbine and carry out measurements for statistical use etc. The

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controller is based on the use of a micro computer, specially designed for industrial use and
therefore not directly comparable with a normal PC. It has a capacity roughly equivalent to

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that of a 80286 PC system processor. The control program itself is not stored in a hard disk,
but is stored in a microchip called an EPROM. The processor that does the actual calculations
is likewise a microchip Most wind turbine owners are familiar with the normal keyboard and
display unit used in wind turbine control. The computer is placed in the control cabinet

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together with a lot of other types of electro-technical equipment, contactors, switches, fuses,
etc. The many and varied demands of the controller result in a complicated construction with
a large number of different components. Naturally, the more complicated a construction and
the larger the number of individual components that are used in making a unit, the greater the

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possibilities for errors This problem must be solved, when developing a control system that
should be as fail-safe as possible. To increase security measures against the occurrence of
internal errors, one can attempt to construct a system with as few components as possible.
no
It is also possible to build-in an internal automatic Òself-supervisionÒ, allowing the
controller to check and control its own systems. Finally, an alternative parallel back-up
system can be installed, having more or less the same functions, but assembled with different
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types of components. On the 600 kW Mk. IV wind turbine, all three principles are used in the
control and safety systems. These will be further discussed one at a time in the following.

A series of sensors measure the conditions in the wind turbine. These sensors are
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limited to those that are strictly necessary. This is the first example of the targeted approach
towards fail-safe systems. One would otherwise perhaps think, as we now have access to
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computers and other electronic devices with almost unlimited memory capacity, that it would
merely be a matter of measuring and registering as much as possible. However this is not the
case, as every single recorded measurement introduces a possibility for error, no matter how
high a quality of the installed sensors, cables and computer. The choice of the necessary
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sensors is therefore to a high degree a study in the art of limitation. parameters as analogue
signals (where measurements give readings of varying values ) :

 Voltage on all three phases

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 Current on all three phases

 Frequency on one phase
 Temperature inside the nacelle
 Generator temperature
 Gear oil temperature
 Gear bearing temperature
 Wind speed
 The direction of yawing
 Low-speed shaft rotational speed
 High-speed shaft rotational speed

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Other parameters that are obviously interesting are not measured, electrical power for
example. The reason being that these parameters can be calculated from those that are in fact

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measured. Power can thus be calculated from the measured voltage and current The controller
also measures the following parameters as digital signals (where the measurements do not

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give readings of varying values, but a mere an on/off signal) :
 Wind direction
 Over-heating of the generator
 Hydraulic pressure level

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 Correct valve function
 Vibration level
 Twisting of the power cable

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 Emergency brake circuit
 Overheating of small electric motors for the yawing, hydraulic pumps, etc.
 Brake-caliper adjustment
 Centrifugal-release activation no
Even though it is necessary to limit the number of measurements, certain of these are
duplicated, for example at the gearbox, the generator and the rotational speed. In these cases
we consider that the increased safety provided, is more important than the risk of possible
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sensory failure. Internal supervision is applied on several levels. First of all the computer is
equipped with certain control functions, known as ÒwatchdogsÒ. These supervise that the
computer does not make obvious calculation errors. In addition the wind turbine software
itself has extra control functions. For example in the case of wind speed parameters. A wind
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turbine is designed to operate at wind speeds up to 25 m/s, and the signal from the
anemometer (wind speed indicator) is used in taking the decision to stop the wind turbine, as
5s

soon as the wind speed exceeds 25 m/s.

As a control function of the anemometer the controller supervises wind speed in

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relation to power. The controller will stop the wind turbine and indicate a possible wind
measurement
error, if too much power is produced during a period of low wind, or too little power during a
period of high wind. A wind measurement error could be caused by a fault in the electrical
ww

wiring, or a defect bearing in the anemometer. A constant functional check of the relationship
between wind speed and power production ensures that it is almost impossible for the wind
turbine to continue operation with a wind measurement error, and the possibility of a wind
turbine being subject to stronger winds than its designed wind speed rating, is therefore more
or less eliminated. The third safety principle for the controller lies in duplication of systems.
A good example is the mechanical centrifugal release units. These supervise the blade
rotational speed and activate the braking systems, even if the speed measurement system of
the controller should fail.

A 600 kW Mk IV wind turbine has two centrifugal release units. One of these is
hydraulic and placed on the wind turbine hub. It is normally called a CU (Centrifugal release

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Unit). Should the wind turbine operate at too high a rotational speed, a weight will be thrown
out and thereby open a hydraulic valve. Once the valve is open, hydraulic oil will spill out
from the hydraulic cylinders that hold the blade tips in place, thereby activating the blade tip

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air brakes. No matter what actions the controller or the hydraulic system thereafter attempts
to carry out, pressure cannot be maintained in the cylinders and the air brakes will continue to

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remain activated, until a serviceman resets the centrifugal release manually.

The advantages of the hydraulic centrifugal release units is that it is completely

independent the controller and the hydraulic system. This ensures that a possible fatal

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software design error, not discovered during design review, will not result in a possible run-
away of the wind turbine. The second centrifugal release unit is an electro-mechanical unit,
fixed to the high speed shaft of the gearbox. This is normally called an HCU, where H is
short for Òhigh-speedÓ. Should the wind turbine over-speed, two small arms are thrown out

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mechanically cutting off the electrical current to the magnetic valves of the air brakes and the
mechanical braking system.

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5s
w.
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UNIT – IV

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OTHER ENERGY SOURCES

BIOMASS ENERGY

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Introduction

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In recent years, environmentalists and policymakers have struggled to evaluate the
merits of various biomass resources. This has posed an enormous challenge, in part, because
biomass brings together a host of environmental disciplines, including air, water, land-use,
climate, and energy. Since few people have expertise in all of these areas, the full range of
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environmental impacts – both positive and negative – are not as readily apparent for biomass
as they are for solar, wind, or traditional fossil resources. As a result, environmental groups,
large and small, approach the topic of biomass with exceeding caution despite the fact that
biomass has the potential to be one of the few carbon-neutral and renewable energy resources
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that is available on demand and has large-scale, commercially viable applications.

Biomass electricity generation, or biopower, is a multi-stage process that converts

non-fossil fuel-derived organic material into electricity. Biomass can also be used to produce
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fuels – biofuels – that can be used in vehicles. Because the vegetation that is the base for all
biomass can be regrown, biopower and biofuels can be renewable. This means that biopower
5s

and biofuels can help reduce our dependency on fossil fuels and nuclear power. If the
biomass is regrown, then it will sequester all of the carbon dioxide released when the biomass
is burned. This means that biopower and biofuels can help reduce the risks of climate change.
Furthermore, since biomass can be stored and burned when needed, biopower can be
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available on demand, unlike wind and solar which are only available when the wind blows
and the sun shines. A 1997 Energy Innovations report from a group of environmental
organizations forecasts that by 2030 with proper incentives, biomass could provide more than
half of all renewable energy in our economy and over 15% of all our energy needs.
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Biogas

Biogas is a renewable fuel as animal waste and crop waste and constantly being
created. Also, the generation of biogas is very simple and the fuels created are easy to use and
store, and they burn cleanly. However, burning biomass releases CO2 into the atmosphere,
and the removal of plant and animal wastes prevent them from acting as soil fertilizer
leading to lower crop yields as soil nutrient levels drop.
The various methods of converting biomass to energy include:

 burning,
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 pyrolysis - chemical decomposition through high temperature heating in the absence

of air,
 gasification - conversion of solids into gaseous fuel

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 anaerobic digestion - also in the absence of air - this is involves using bacteria for
decomposition

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 fermentation.

Sources of Biomass

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Here are various biomass sources, which are a great source of energy that can be used
for various applications:

1) Wood and waste wood: Wood is the most commonly used type of biomass. Since the

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earliest days the fuel being used for cooking and heating is the wood. Even at present wood
as the biomass material is major source of energy in a number of developing countries. Wood
as a biomass can be used in various forms like large wooden blocks obtained from the trees,
wooden chips, and saw dust. The wasted wood and wooden scrap are also the source of
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biomass.

2) Leaves of the plants: In the densely planted places lots of leaves fall from the trees. These
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can be dried, powdered and converted into small pieces, which can be used as the biomass
fuel to generate heat used usually for cooking food.

3) Broken branches and twigs of the trees: No part of the plant goes wasted when it leaves the
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main body of the tree. Large and small branches and even all the small twigs are the source of
biomass energy.
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4) Agricultural waste: Lots of waste materials obtained from the farms are a great source of
biomass materials. Livestock waste can also be used to generate methane gas.
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5) Waste paper: Tons of waste paper is produced every day. These can be burnt to produce
lots of heat. The paper is manufactured from the plants, so it is considered to be biomass
material.
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6) Garbage: The garbage, also called as municipal solid waste is another source of biomass.
The garbage can be in the form of food scrap, lawn clippings, waste paper, fallen leaves etc
all mixed together or collected individually.

7) Human waste: The human wastes are also considered to the source of biomass. These can
used to generate methane gas which is the major component of natural gas.

Conversion of Biomass to Useful Energy

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The conversion of Biomass into useful energy can produce heat and electricity
moreover it can also be converted to bio fuels. There are three ways of converting waste and
wood into useful biomass energy and bio fuels. These methods include thermal conversion,

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chemical conversion and biochemical conversion. Thermal conversion is the process in which
various bio organisms are converted to chemical formations using heat. There are many ways

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to perform this conversion like combustion, Torre faction, gasification, pyrolysis, hydro
processing and hydrothermal upgrading. A typical thermal biomass plant is 20% to 30%
efficient. Chemical conversion is the process of converting various waste materials and liquid
slurring into fuels by using chemical reactions.

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The natural materials like biomass are made up of molecules. In order to break these
molecules, living enzymes like bacteria and other microorganisms are used. These
microorganisms are helpful in performing processes like fermentation, compositing and

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digestion. However the process of producing ethanol from used or fresh oil is known as
transesterfication. Biomass fuels are also generated by converting starch and sugar from
sugar cane into alcohol. This is the same alcohol which is used for drinking. These processes
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are still underdevelopment and scientist worldwide is searching for the ways to improve
them.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Biomass Energy

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There are many advantages and disadvantages of Biomass Energy. The biomass is
used and produced throughout the world. It is the most inexpensive way of producing
electricity. So far it looks like an inexhaustible natural resource. Biomass energy as a
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renewable energy source is capable of replacing fossil fuels. Agriculture biomass energy
products add more worth to agricultural activities. The growth of biomass plants and crops
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produces oxygen and utilize more carbon dioxide present in the air. The use of solid waste
from industry and municipality helps in lowering the amount of waste. The use of biomass
energy can help lower the pressure of buying foreign oil.
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There are four types of conversion technologies currently available, each appropriate
for specific biomass? types and resulting in specific energy products:

1. Thermal conversion is the use of heat, with or without the presence of oxygen, to convert
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biomass materials or feedstocks into other forms of energy. Thermal conversion technolgies
include direct combustion, pyrolysis?, and torrefaction.

2. Thermochemical conversion is the application of heat and chemical processes in the

production of energy products from biomass. A key thermochemical conversion process if
gasification

3. Biochemical conversion involves use of enzymes, bacteria or other microorganisms to

break down biomass into liquid fuels, and includes anaerobic digestion, and fermentation.

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4. Chemical conversion involves use of chemical agents to convert biomass into liquid fuels.

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Thermal conversion

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As the term implies, thermal conversion involves the use of heat as the primary
mechanism for converting biomass into another form. Combustion, pyrolysis, torrefaction,
and gasification are the basic thermal conversion technologies either in use today or being

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developed for the future.

Combustion

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Direct combustion is the burning of biomass in the presence of oxygen. Furnaces and
boilers are used typically to produce steam for use in district heating/cooling systems or to
drive turbines to produce electricity. In a furnace, biomass burns in a combustion chamber
converting the biomass into heat. The heat is distributed in the form of hot air or water. In a
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boiler, the heat of combustion is converted into steam. Steam can be used to produce
electricity, mechanical energy, or heating and cooling. A boiler‘s steam contains 60-85% of
the energy in biomass fuel.
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Co-firing is a practice which has permitted biomass feedstocks to be used early on in
the renewable energy? transformation. Co-firing is the combustion of a fossil-fuel (such as
coal or natural gas) with a biomass feedstock. Co-firing has a number of advantages,
particularly when electricity is an output. If the conversion facility is situated near an agro-
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industrial or forestry product processing plant, large quantities of low cost biomass residues
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are available to be burnt with a fossil-fuel feedstock. It is now widely accepted that fossil-fuel
power plants are usually highly polluting in terms of sulfur, CO2 and other GHGs?. Use of
existing equipment, with modifications, to co-fire biomass may be a cost-effective means for
meeting more stringent emissions targets. Biomass fuel‘s comparatively low sulfur content
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allows biomass to potentially offset the higher sulfur content of fossil fuel.

Biomass can also be used in co-generation, also called combined heat and power
(CHP) which is the simultaneous production of heat and electricity. All power plants produce
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heat as a by-product of electricity production, and this heat is typically released to the
environment through cooling towers (which release heat to the atmosphere) or discharge into
near-by bodies of water. However, in CHP processes, some of the ―waste heat‖ is recovered
for use in district heating. Co-generation coverts about 85% of biomass‘ potential energy into
useful energy.

Pyrolysis and torrefaction

These processes do not necessarily produce useful energy directly, but under
controlled temperature and oxygen conditions are used to convert biomass feedstocks into
gas, oil or forms of charcoal. These energy products are more energy dense than the original

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biomass, and therefore reduce transport costs, or have more predictable and convenient
combustion characteristics allowing them to be used in internal combustion engines and gas
turbines.

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Pyrolysis is a processes of subjecting a biomass feedstock to high temperatures

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(greater than 430 °C) under pressurized environments and at low oxygen levels. In the
process, biomass undergoes partial combustion. Processes of pyrolysis result in liquid fuels
and a solid residue called char, or biochar. Biochar is like charcoal and rich in carbon. Liquid
phase products result from temperatures which are too low to destroy all of the carbon

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molecules in the biomass so the result is production of tars, oils, methanol, acetone, etc.

Torrefaction, like pyrolysis, is the conversion of biomass with the application of heat

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in the absence of oxygen, but at lower temperatures than those typically used in pyrolysis. In
torrefaction temperatures typically range between 200-320 °C. In the torrefaction process
water is removed and cellulose?, hemicellulose and lignins are partially decomposed. The
final product is an energy dense solid fuel frequently referred to as ―bio-coal‖.
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Thermochemical conversion

Thermochemical technologies are used for converting biomass into fuel gases and
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chemicals. The thermochemical process involves multiple stages. The first stage involves
converting solid biomass into gases. In the second stage the gases are condensed into oils. In
the third and final stage the oils are conditioned and synthesized to produce syngas. Syngas
contains carbon and hydrogen and can be used to produce ammonia, lubricants, and through
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the Fischer-Tropsch process can be used to produce biodiesel.

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Gasification

Gasification is the use of high temperatures and a controlled environment that leads to
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nearly all of the biomass being converted into gas. This takes place in two stages: partial
combustion to form producer gas and charcoal, followed by chemical reduction. These stages
are spatially separated in the gasifier, with gasifier design very much dependant on the
feedstock characteristics. Gasification requires temperatures of about 800°C. Gasification
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technology has existed since the turn of the century when coal was extensively gasified in the
UK and elsewhere for use in power generation and in houses for cooking and lighting. A
major future role is envisaged for electricity production from biomass plantations and
agricultural residues using large scale? gasifiers with direct coupling to gas turbines.

Biochemical conversion

The use of micro-organisms for the production of ethanol is an ancient art. However,
in more recent times such organisms have become regarded as biochemical "factories" for the
treatment and conversion of biological materials. Fermentation technologies, with the
assistance of biological engineering, are leading to breakthrough processes for creating fuels

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and fertilizer, and other products useful in agriculture. Anaerobic digestion and fermentation
are key biochemical conversion technologies.

Anaerobic digestion

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Anaerobic digestion is the use of microorganisms in oxygen-free environments to
break down organic material. Anaerobic digestion is widely used for the production of
methane- and carbon-rich biogas from crop residues, food scraps, and manure (human and
animal). Anaerobic digestion is frequently used in the treatment of wastewater and to reduce

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emissions from landfills.

Anaerobic digestion involves a multi-stage process. First, bacteria are used in

hydrolysis to break down carbohydrates, for example, into forms digestible by other bacteria.

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The second set of bacteria convert the resulting sugars and amino acids into carbon dioxide,
hydrogen, ammonia and organic acids. Finally, still other bacterias convert these products
into methane and carbon dioxide. Mixed bacterial cultures are characterized by optimal
temperature ranges for growth. These mixed cultures allow digesters to be operated over a
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wide temperature range, for example, above 0° C and up to 60° C. When functioning well,
the bacteria convert about 90% of the biomass feedstock into biogas (containing about 55%
methane), which is a readily useable energy source.
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Solid remnants of the original biomass input are left over after the digestion process.
This by-product, or digestate, has many potential uses. Potential uses include fertilizer
(although it should be chemically assessed for toxicity and growth-inhibiting factors first),
animal bedding and low-grade building products like fiberboard.
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Fermentation
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At its most basic, fermentation is the use of yeasts to convert carbohydrates into
alcohol – most notably ethanol, also called bioethanol. The total process involves several
stages. In the first stage crop materials are pulverized or ground and combined with water to
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form a slurry. Heat and enzymes are then applied to break down the ground materials into a
finer slurry. Other enzymes are added to convert starches into glucose sugar. The sugary
slurry is then pumped into a fermentation chamber to which yeasts are added. After about 48-
50 hours, the fermented liquid is distilled to divide the alcohol from the solid materials left
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over.

In the U.S., corn grain is the primary feedstock in ethanol production. About 2.8
gallons of ethanol is produced from one bushel of corn. A by-product of the corn-to-ethanol
process is spent grains. These spent grains are dried and can be used as feed for livestock
termed Distillers Dried Grains, or DDGs.

Cellulosic ethanol? production by fermentation is more complex than conversion of

starch or sugar components of plants. Cellulosic ethanol production involves use of wood,
grasses? and the stems, leaves and stalks of non-grass plants. Lignocellulose, the structural

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material of plants, must first be broken down into sugars before being fermented into ethanol.
Molecules of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin – the components of lignocellulose, have
strong chemical bonds and are difficult to separate. Mechanical pre-treatment and enzymatic

m
are necessary to breakdown lignocellulose. As a result, at present, conversion of
lignocellulosic materials into ethanol is less cost-effective than conversion of starch and sugar

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crops to ethanol.

Reducing the cost and improving the efficiency of separating and converting
cellulosic materials into fermentable sugars is one of the keys to a viable industry. Research

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and development efforts are focusing on the development of cost-effective biochemical
hydrolysis and pretreatment processes to overcome this barrier. Hydrolysis is a chemical
process in which molecules are split into parts with the addition of water and a salt or weak
acid. Another form of hydrolysis involves use of enzymes. Such technological advances

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promise substantially lower processing costs.

Chemical conversion
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Chemical conversion of biomass involves use of chemical interactions to transform
biomass into other forms of useable energy. Transesterification is the most common form of
chemical-based conversion. Transesterification is a chemical reaction through which fatty
acids from oils, fats and greases are bonded to alcohol. This process reduces the viscosity of
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the fatty acids and makes them combustible. Biodiesel is a common end-product of
transesterification, as are glycerin and soaps. Almost any bio-oil (such as soybean oil), animal
fat or tallow, or tree oil can be converted to biodiesel.
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Combustion
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Combustion is the process with which everyone is familiar by which flammable materials
are allowed to burn in the presence of air or oxygen with the release of heat.
The basic process is oxidation.
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Combustion is the simplest method by which biomass can be used for energy, and has been
used for millennia to provide heat. This heat can itself be used in a number of ways:


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Space heating
 Water (or other fluid) heating for central or district heating or process heat
 Steam raising for electricity generation or motive force.

Combustion of biomass material

When the flammable fuel material is a form of biomass the oxidation is of

predominantly the carbon (C) and hydrogen (H) in the cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, and
other molecules present to form carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O).

Oxidation of other elements into gasses, ash or slag

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The above, and other, molecules within the biomass also contain other atoms in
different quantities and some of these too can be oxidized, with the oxide released as gas in

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the flue gasses, or as solid as ash or slag. All carbohydrates, such as cellulose, also contain
oxygen in the molecular structure.

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Other atoms potentially found in biomass include:

 Nitrogen (N)

s.
 Phosphorus (P)
 Potassium (K)
 Silicon (Si)
 Sulphur (S).

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Other trace elements, such as some heavy and alkali metals may also be present in
both virgin biomass and in wastes and co-products either from uptake from the soil or air
during growth, or as a result of treatments, finishes or contamination.
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While levels may be negligible, if they are not it may be necessary to consider their
presence in:
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 Gaseous or particulate flue emissions
 Disposal of bottom ash
 Slagging within the combustor.
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Gasification
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Gasification is a partial oxidation process whereby a carbon source such as coal,

natural gas or biomass, is broken down into carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2), plus
carbon dioxide (CO2) and possibly hydrocarbon molecules such as methane (CH4).
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What is gasification?

This mix of gases is known as 'producer gas' or product gas (or wood gas or coal
gas, depending on the feedstock), and the precise characteristics of the gas will depend on
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the gasification parameters, such as temperature, and also the oxidizer used. The oxidizer
may be air, in which case the producer gas will also contain nitrogen (N2), or steam or
oxygen.

Applications

Gasification technology can be used for:

 Heating water in central heating, district heating or process heating applications

 Steam for electricity generation or motive force
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 As part of systems producing electricity or motive force

 Transport using an internal combustion engine.

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Low temperature gasification

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If the gasification takes place at a relatively low temperature, such as 700ºC to 1000ºC,
the product gas will have a relatively high level of hydrocarbons compared to high
temperature gasification (see below). As a result it may be used directly, to be burned for

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heat or electricity generation via a steam turbine or, with suitable gas clean up, to run an
internal combustion engine for electricity generation.

The combustion chamber for a simple boiler may be close coupled with the gasifier, or

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the producer gas may be cleaned of longer chain hydrocarbons (tars), transported, stored and
burned remotely.

A gasification system may be closely integrated with a combined cycle gas turbine for
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electricity generation (IGCC – integrated gasification combined cycle).

High temperature gasification:

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Higher temperature gasification (1200ºC to 1600ºC) leads to few hydrocarbons in the
product gas, and a higher proportion of CO and H2. This is known as synthesis gas (syngas
or biosyngas) as it can be used to synthesize longer chain hydrocarbons using techniques
such as Fischer-Tropsch (FT) synthesis.
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If the ratio of H2 to CO is correct (2:1) FT synthesis can be used to convert syngas into
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high quality synthetic diesel biofuel which is completely compatible with conventional
fossil diesel and diesel engines.

Pyrolysis
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Pyrolysis is the precursor to gasification, and takes place as part of both gasification
and combustion. It consists of thermal decomposition in the absence of oxygen. It is
essentially based on a long established process, being the basis of charcoal burning.
ww

Products of pyrolysis:

The products of pyrolysis include gas, liquid and a sold char, with the proportions of
each depending upon the parameters of the process.

Applications

 Biomass energy densification for transport or storage

 Co-firing for heat or power

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 Feedstock for gasification.

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Lower vs. higher temperature pyrolysis

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Lower temperatures (around 400ºC) tend to produce more solid char (slow pyrolysis),
whereas somewhat higher temperatures (around 500ºC) produce a much higher proportion
of liquid (bio-oil), provided the vapour residence time is kept down to around 1s or less.
After this, secondary reactions take place and increase the gas yield.

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The bio-oil produced by fast (higher temperature) pyrolysis is described as a dark
brown, mobile liquid with a heating value about half that of conventional fuel oil. It can be:

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 Burned directly
 Co-fired
 Upgraded to other fuels
 Gasified. no
It can therefore be used as an energy vector, effectively increasing the energy density of
biomass for transportation and storage.
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HYDRO ENERGY

Introduction
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It is a form of energy … a renewable resource. Hydropower provides about 96 percent of

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the renewable energy in the United States. Other renewable resources include geothermal, wave
power, tidal power, wind power, and solar power. Hydroelectric powerplants do not use up
resources to create electricity nor do they pollute the air, land, or water, as other powerplants
may. Hydroelectric power has played an important part in the development of this Nation's
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electric power industry. Both small and large hydroelectric power developments were
instrumental in the early expansion of the electric power industry.

Hydroelectric power comes from flowing water … winter and spring runoff from
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mountain streams and clear lakes. Water, when it is falling by the force of gravity, can be used to
turn turbines and generators that produce electricity.

Hydroelectric power is important to our Nation. Growing populations and modern

technologies require vast amounts of electricity for creating, building, and expanding. In the
1920's, hydroelectric plants supplied as much as 40 percent of the electric energy produced.
Although the amount of energy produced by this means has steadily increased, the amount
produced by other types of powerplants has increased at a faster rate and hydroelectric power
presently supplies about 10 percent of the electrical generating capacity of the United States.
Hydropower is an essential contributor in the national power grid because of its ability to respond

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quickly to rapidly varying loads or system disturbances, which base load plants with steam
systems powered by combustion or nuclear processes cannot accommodate.

m
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From Water to Watts

To know the power potential of water in a river it is necessary to know the flow in the
river and the available head.

s.
The flow of the river is the amount of water (in m3 or litres) which passes in a certain
amount of time a cross section of the river. Flows are normally given in cubic meters per
second (m3/s) or in litres per second (l/s). Head is the vertical difference in level (in meters)

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the water falls down.

The theoretical power (P) available from a given head of water is in exact proportion
to the head H and the flow Q. no
P=Q × H × c c = constant

The constant c is the product of the density of water and the acceleration due to gravity (g).
ar

If P is measured in Watts, Q in m3/s and H in meters, the gross power of the flow of water is:

P=1000 × 9.8 × Q × H
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This available power will be converted by the hydro turbine in mechanical power. As a
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turbine has an efficiency lower than 1, the generated power will be a fraction of the available
gross power.

Different sizes hydropower installations

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Hydropower installations can be classified as follows:

name description
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Large all installations with an installed capacity of more than 1000 kW

(according to some definitions more than 10,000 kW)

Small general term for installations smaller than 1000 kW (or < 10,000 kW).
Also used for installations in the range between 500 and 1000 kW.

Mini capacity between 100 and 500 kW

Micro hydropower installations with a power output less than 100 kW (or less

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then 1000 kW)

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Large scale hydropower stations are equipped with large dams and huge water storage
reservoirs. In these reservoirs large amounts of water can be stored when supply of water is

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higher than the demand. Water from wet periods can be used in this way to supplement water
supply in dry periods (or even dry years).

In the sixties and seventies large hydropower stations looked as the solution to the

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energy crisis in developing countries. In that period many large scale hydro schemes were
built. Examples are Aswan in Egypt, Tarbela in Pakistan, Cabora Bassa in Mozambique and
Kariba in Zimbabwe.

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The enthusiasm for projects like those has disappeared nowadays. The extreme high
sums of money involved, the long money-recovery time and the huge environmental costs are
debit to this. Specially the high environmental costs are a point of great concern: losses of
fertile arable land, forced migration of large groups of people and the dangers of malaria and
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bilharzia inherent to non-moving water.

Small hydropower
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Small scale hydropower stations combine the advantages of hydropower with those of
decentralised power generation, without the disadvantages of large scale installations. Small
scale hydropower has hardly disadvantages: no costly distribution of energy, no huge
environmental costs as with large hydro, independent from imported fuels and no need for
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expensive maintenance. Small scale hydropower can be used decentralised and be locally
implemented and managed.
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Power generated with small hydro station can be used for agro-processing, local
lighting, waterpumps and small businesses.
w.

The context of small hydropower can be described as follows:

 decentralised, small demand for power (small industries, farms, households and rural
communities),
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 distribution network with low voltages (eventually sub-regional grid),

 owned by a individual, co-operative or community with semi-skilled workers,
 short planning horizons and construction periods with the use of local available
materials and skills,
 depending on generated power it can have a substantial impact on local standards of
living (bigger than only the supplied power),
 as only some information is available about the potential power often not more then
10 % of the potential is used.

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Hydroelectric power comes from water at work, water in motion. It can be seen as a
form of solar energy, as the sun powers the hydrologic cycle which gives the earth its water.
In the hydrologic cycle, atmospheric water reaches the earth=s surface as precipitation. Some

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of this water evaporates, but much of it either percolates into the soil or becomes surface
runoff. Water from rain and melting snow eventually reaches ponds, lakes, reservoirs, or

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oceans where evaporation is constantly occurring.

Moisture percolating into the soil may become ground water (subsurface water), some
of which also enters water bodies through springs or underground streams. Ground water may

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move upward through soil during dry periods and may return to the atmosphere by
evaporation.

Water vapor passes into the atmosphere by evaporation then circulates, condenses into

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clouds, and some returns to earth as precipitation. Thus, the water cycle is complete. Nature
ensures that water is a renewable resource.

World hydroelectric capacity no

World renewable energy share (2008), with hydroelectricity more than 50% of all
renewable energy sources
t ar
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w.
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The ranking of hydro-electric capacity is either by actual annual energy production or

by installed capacity power rating. A hydro-electric plant rarely operates at its full power
rating over a full year; the ratio between annual average power and installed capacity rating is
the capacity factor.

Brazil, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Austria, Switzerland, and

Venezuela are the only countries in the world where the majority of the internal electric
energy production is from hydroelectric power. Paraguay produces 100% of its electricity
from hydroelectric dams, and exports 90% of its production to Brazil and to Argentina.
Norway produces 98–99% of its electricity from hydroelectric sources.

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Ten of the largest hydroelectric producers as at 2009.

Annual hydroelectric Installed Capacity % of total
Country

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production (TWh) capacity (GW) factor capacity
China 652.05 196.79 0.37 22.25

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Canada 369.5 88.974 0.59 61.12
Brazil 363.8 69.080 0.56 85.56
United States 250.6 79.511 0.42 5.74

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Russia 167.0 45.000 0.42 17.64
Norway 140.5 27.528 0.49 98.25
India 115.6 33.600 0.43 15.80

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Venezuela 85.96 14.622 0.67 69.20
Japan 69.2 27.229 0.37 7.21
Sweden 65.5 16.209 0.46 44.34

Calculating the available power

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A simple formula for approximating electric power production at a hydroelectric plant is:
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P = ρhrgk,
where
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 P is Power in watts,
 ρ is the density of water (~1000 kg/m3),
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 h is height in meters,
 r is flow rate in cubic meters per second,
 g is acceleration due to gravity of 9.8 m/s2,
 k is a coefficient of efficiency ranging from 0 to 1. Efficiency is often higher (that is,
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closer to 1) with larger and more modern turbines.

Annual electric energy production depends on the available water supply. In some
installations the water flow rate can vary by a factor of 10:1 over the course of a year.
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Generating Power

In nature, energy cannot be created or destroyed, but its form can change. In
generating electricity, no new energy is created. Actually one form of energy is converted to
another form.

To generate electricity, water must be in motion. This is kinetic (moving) energy.

When flowing water turns blades in a turbine, the form is changed to mechanical (machine)
energy. The turbine turns the generator rotor which then converts this mechanical energy into

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another energy form -- electricity. Since water is the initial source of energy, we call this
hydroelectric power or hydropower for short.

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At facilities called hydroelectric powerplants, hydropower is generated. Some
powerplants are located on rivers, streams, and canals, but for a reliable water supply, dams

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are needed. Dams store water for later release for such purposes as irrigation, domestic and
industrial use, and power generation. The reservoir acts much like a battery, storing water to
be released as needed to generate power.

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The dam creates a Ahead or height from which water flows. A pipe (penstock) carries
the water from the reservoir to the turbine. The fast-moving water pushes the turbine blades,
something like a pinwheel in the wind. The waters force on the turbine blades turns the rotor,
the moving part of the electric generator. When coils of wire on the rotor sweep past the

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generator=s stationary coil (stator), electricity is produced.

Advantages of hydroelectricity
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Economics
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The major advantage of hydroelectricity is elimination of the cost of fuel. The cost of
operating a hydroelectric plant is nearly immune to increases in the cost of fossil fuels such as
oil, natural gas or coal, and no imports are needed.
t

Hydroelectric plants have long economic lives, with some plants still in service after
50–100 years. Operating labor cost is also usually low, as plants are automated and have few
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personnel on site during normal operation.

Where a dam serves multiple purposes, a hydroelectric plant may be added with
relatively low construction cost, providing a useful revenue stream to offset the costs of dam
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operation. It has been calculated that the sale of electricity from the Three Gorges Dam will
cover the construction costs after 5 to 8 years of full generation.[14]

CO2 emissions
ww

Since hydroelectric dams do not burn fossil fuels, they do not directly produce carbon
dioxide. While some carbon dioxide is produced during manufacture and construction of the
project, this is a tiny fraction of the operating emissions of equivalent fossil-fuel electricity
generation. According to that study, hydroelectricity produces the least amount of greenhouse
gases and externality of any energy source. Coming in second place was wind, third was
nuclear energy, and fourth was solar photovoltaic. The extremely positive greenhouse gas
impact of hydroelectricity is found especially in temperate climates. The above study was for
local energy in Europe; presumably similar conditions prevail in North America and Northern
Asia, which all see a regular, natural freeze/thaw cycle (with associated seasonal plant decay
and regrowth).

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Other uses of the reservoir

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Reservoirs created by hydroelectric schemes often provide facilities for water sports,

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and become tourist attractions themselves. In some countries, aquaculture in reservoirs is
common. Multi-use dams installed for irrigation support agriculture with a relatively constant
water supply. Large hydro dams can control floods, which would otherwise affect people
living downstream of the project.

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Disadvantages of hydroelectricity

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Ecosystem damage and loss of land

Hydroelectric power stations that use dams would submerge large areas of land due to
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the requirement of a reservoir. Large reservoirs required for the operation of hydroelectric
power stations result in submersion of extensive areas upstream of the dams, destroying
biologically rich and productive lowland and riverine valley forests, marshland and
grasslands. The loss of land is often exacerbated by the fact that reservoirs cause habitat
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fragmentation of surrounding areas.

Hydroelectric projects can be disruptive to surrounding aquatic ecosystems both

upstream and downstream of the plant site. For instance, studies have shown that dams along
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the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North America have reduced salmon populations by
preventing access to spawning grounds upstream, even though most dams in salmon habitat
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have fish ladders installed. Salmon spawn are also harmed on their migration to sea when
they must pass through turbines. This has led to some areas transporting smolt downstream
by barge during parts of the year. In some cases dams, such as the Marmot Dam, have been
demolished due to the high impact on fish. Turbine and power-plant designs that are easier on
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aquatic life are an active area of research. Mitigation measures such as fish ladders may be
required at new projects or as a condition of re-licensing of existing projects.

Generation of hydroelectric power changes the downstream river environment. Water

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exiting a turbine usually contains very little suspended sediment, which can lead to scouring
of river beds and loss of riverbanks. Since turbine gates are often opened intermittently, rapid
or even daily fluctuations in river flow are observed. For example, in the Grand Canyon, the
daily cyclic flow variation caused by Glen Canyon Dam was found to be contributing to
erosion of sand bars. Dissolved oxygen content of the water may change from pre-
construction conditions. Depending on the location, water exiting from turbines is typically
much warmer than the pre-dam water, which can change aquatic faunal populations,
including endangered species, and prevent natural freezing processes from occurring. Some
hydroelectric projects also use canals to divert a river at a shallower gradient to increase the
head of the scheme. In some cases, the entire river may be diverted leaving a dry riverbed.
Examples include the Tekapo and Pukaki Rivers in New Zealand.
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Siltation

When water flows it has the ability to transport particles heavier than itself

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downstream. This has a negative effect on dams and subsequently their power stations,
particularly those on rivers or within catchment areas with high siltation. Siltation can fill a

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reservoir and reduce its capacity to control floods along with causing additional horizontal
pressure on the upstream portion of the dam. Eventually, some reservoirs can become
completely full of sediment and useless or over-top during a flood and fail.

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Flow shortage

Changes in the amount of river flow will correlate with the amount of energy
produced by a dam. Lower river flows because of drought, climate change or upstream dams

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and diversions will reduce the amount of live storage in a reservoir therefore reducing the
amount of water that can be used for hydroelectricity. The result of diminished river flow can
be power shortages in areas that depend heavily on hydroelectric power. The risk of flow
shortage may increase as a result of climate change. Studies from the Colorado River in the
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United States suggest that modest climate changes, such as an increase in temperature in 2
degree Celsius resulting in a 10% decline in precipitation, might reduce river run-off by up to
40%. Brazil in particular is vulnerable due to its heaving reliance on hydroelectricity, as
increasing temperatures, lower water flow and alterations in the rainfall regime, could reduce
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total energy production by 7% annually by the end of the century.

Relocation
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Another disadvantage of hydroelectric dams is the need to relocate the people living
where the reservoirs are planned. In February 2008 it was estimated that 40-80 million people
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worldwide had been physically displaced as a direct result of dam construction. In many
cases, no amount of compensation can replace ancestral and cultural attachments to places
that have spiritual value to the displaced population. Additionally, historically and culturally
important sites can be flooded and lost.
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Comparison with other methods of power generation

Hydroelectricity eliminates the flue gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion,
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including pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitric oxide, carbon monoxide, dust, and mercury
in the coal. Hydroelectricity also avoids the hazards of coal mining and the indirect health
effects of coal emissions. Compared to nuclear power, hydroelectricity generates no nuclear
waste, has none of the dangers associated with uranium mining, nor nuclear leaks. Unlike
uranium, hydroelectricity is also a renewable energy source.

Compared to wind farms, hydroelectricity power plants have a more predictable load
factor. If the project has a storage reservoir, it can generate power when needed.
Hydroelectric plants can be easily regulated to follow variations in power demand.

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Unlike fossil-fuelled combustion turbines, construction of a hydroelectric plant

requires a long lead-time for site studies, hydrological studies, and environmental impact
assessment. Hydrological data up to 50 years or more is usually required to determine the

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best sites and operating regimes for a large hydroelectric plant. Unlike plants operated by
fuel, such as fossil or nuclear energy, the number of sites that can be economically developed

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for hydroelectric production is limited; in many areas the most cost-effective sites have
already been exploited. New hydro sites tend to be far from population centers and require
extensive transmission lines. Hydroelectric generation depends on rainfall in the watershed,
and may be significantly reduced in years of low rainfall or snowmelt. Long-term energy

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yield may be affected by climate change. Utilities that primarily use hydroelectric power may
spend additional capital to build extra capacity to ensure sufficient power is available in low
water years.

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TIDAL ENERGY

Introduction
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Tidal power, also called tidal energy, is a form of hydropower that converts the
energy of tides into useful forms of power - mainly electricity.
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Although not yet widely used, tidal power has potential for future electricity
generation. Tides are more predictable than wind energy and solar power. Among sources of
renewable energy, tidal power has traditionally suffered from relatively high cost and limited
availability of sites with sufficiently high tidal ranges or flow velocities, thus constricting its
t

total availability. However, many recent technological developments and improvements, both
in design (e.g. dynamic tidal power, tidal lagoons) and turbine technology (e.g. new axial
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turbines, cross flow turbines), indicate that the total availability of tidal power may be much
higher than previously assumed, and that economic and environmental costs may be brought
down to competitive levels.
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Generation of tidal energy

Tidal power is extracted from the Earth's oceanic tides; tidal forces are periodic
ww

variations in gravitational attraction exerted by celestial bodies. These forces create

corresponding motions or currents in the world's oceans. The magnitude and character of this
motion reflects the changing positions of the Moon and Sun relative to the Earth, the effects
of Earth's rotation, and local geography of the sea floor and coastlines.

Tidal power is the only technology that draws on energy inherent in the orbital
characteristics of the Earth–Moon system, and to a lesser extent in the Earth–Sun system.
Other natural energies exploited by human technology originate directly or indirectly with the
Sun, including fossil fuel, conventional hydroelectric, wind, biofuel, wave and solar energy.
Nuclear energy makes use of Earth's mineral deposits of fissionable elements, while
geothermal power taps the Earth's internal heat, which comes from a combination of residual

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heat from planetary accretion (about 20%) and heat produced through radioactive decay
(80%).

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s.
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no
Fig. Variation of tides over a day
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A tidal generator converts the energy of tidal flows into electricity. Greater tidal
variation and higher tidal current velocities can dramatically increase the potential of a site
for tidal electricity generation.
t

Because the Earth's tides are ultimately due to gravitational interaction with the Moon
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and Sun and the Earth's rotation, tidal power is practically inexhaustible and classified as a
renewable energy resource. Movement of tides causes a loss of mechanical energy in the
Earth–Moon system: this is a result of pumping of water through natural restrictions around
coastlines and consequent viscous dissipation at the seabed and in turbulence. This loss of
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energy has caused the rotation of the Earth to slow in the 4.5 billion years since its formation.
During the last 620 million years the period of rotation of the earth (length of a day) has
increased from 21.9 hours to 24 hours; in this period the Earth has lost 17% of its rotational
energy. While tidal power may take additional energy from the system, the effect is
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negligible and would only be noticed over millions of years.

Power output

Tidal current turbines only uses kinetic energy, they hve zero head. Because the water
have to leave the turbine not the complete energy can be extruded. According to Betz theory
the maximum power output (with 100% turbine efficiency) is given to

P = cp ideal *( ρ /2) *A*V3

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m
Where,
ρ = density

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A = Propeller area
V = free stream velocity

TIDAL POWER TECHNOLOGIES

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Barrage or dam

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A barrage or dam is typically used to convert tidal energy into electricity by forcing
the water through turbines, activating a generator. The basic components of a barrage are
turbines, sluice gates and, usually, slip locks, all linked to the shore with embankments.
When the tides produce an adequate difference in the level of the water on opposite sides of
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the dam, the sluice gates are opened. The water then flows through the turbines. The turbines
turn an electric generator to produce electricity.

Tidal fences look like giant turnstiles. They can reach across channels between small
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islands or across straits between the mainland and an island. The turnstiles spin via tidal
currents typical of coastal waters. Some of these currents run at 5–8 knots (5.6–9 miles per
hour) and generate as much energy as winds of much higher velocity. Because seawater has a
much higher density than air, ocean currents carry significantly more energy than air currents
t

(wind). Tidal fences are composed of individual, vertical axis turbines which are mounted
within the fence structure, known as a caisson, and they can be thought of as giant turn styles
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which completely block a channel, forcing all of the water through them
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Unlike barrage tidal power stations, tidal fences can also be used in unconfined
basins, such as in the channel between the mainland and a nearby off shore island, or between
two islands. As a result, tidal fences have much less impact on the environment, as they do
not require flooding of the basin and are significantly cheaper to install. Tidal fences also

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have the advantage of being able to generate electricity once the initial modules are installed,
rather than after complete installation as in the case of barrage technologies.

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Tidal fences are not free of environmental as a caisson structure is still required,
which can disrupt the movement of large marine animals and shipping. A 2.2GWp tidal fence

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using the Davis turbine, is being planned for the San Bernadino Strait in the Philippines. The
project, estimated to cost $US 2.8 Billion and take 6 years to complete.

Tidal turbine

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Tidal turbines look like wind turbines. They are arrayed underwater in rows, as in
some wind farms. The turbines function best where coastal currents run at between 3.6 and
4.9 knots (4 and 5.5 mph). In currents of that speed, a 15-meter (49.2-feet) diameter tidal

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turbine can generate as much energy as a 60-meter (197-feet) diameter wind turbine. Ideal
locations for tidal turbine farms are close to shore in water depths of 20–30 meters (65.5–98.5
feet). There are different types of turbines that are available for use in a tidal barrage. A bulb
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turbine is one in which water flows around the turbine. If maintenance is required then the
water must be stopped which causes a problem and is time consuming with possible loss of
generation. The La Rance tidal plant near St Malo on the Brittany coast in France uses a bulb
turbine.
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Fig. Bulb turbine

When rim turbines are used, the generator is mounted at right angles to the to the
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turbine blades, making access easier.

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Fig. Rim Turbine

But this type of turbine is not suitable for pumping and it is difficult to regulate its
performance. One example is the Straflo turbine used at Annapolis Royal in Nova Scotia.

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Tubular turbines have been proposed for the UK‘s most promising site, The Severn
Estuary, the blades of this turbine are connected to a long shaft and are orientated at an angle
so that the generator is sitting on top of the barrage. The environmental and ecological effects

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of tidal barrages have halted any progress with this technology and there are only a few
commercially operating plants in the world, one of these is the La Rance barrage in France.

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Fig. Tubular Turbine
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Types of generation

Ebb generation
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The basin is filled through the sluices and freewheeling turbines until high tide. Then
the sluice gates and turbine gates are closed. They are kept closed until the sea level falls to
create sufficient head across the barrage and the turbines generate until the head is again low.
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Then the sluices are opened, turbines disconnected and the basin is filled again. The cycle
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repeats itself. Ebb generation (also known as outflow generation) takes its name because
generation occurs as the tide ebbs.
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Flood generation

The basin is emptied through the sluices and turbines generate at tide flood. This is
generally much less efficient than Ebb generation, because the volume contained in the upper
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half of the basin (which is where Ebb generation operates) is greater than the volume of the
lower half (the domain of Flood generation).

Two-way generation

Generation occurs both as the tide ebbs and floods. This mode is only comparable to
Ebb generation at spring tides, and in general is less efficient. Turbines designed to operate in
both directions are less efficient.

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Pumping

Turbines can be powered in reverse by excess energy in the grid to increase the water

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level in the basin at high tide (for Ebb generation and two-way generation). This energy is
returned during generation.

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Two-basin schemes

With two basins, one is filled at high tide and the other is emptied at low tide.

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Turbines are placed between the basins. Two-basin schemes offer advantages over normal
schemes in that generation time can be adjusted with high flexibility and it is also possible to
generate almost continuously. In normal estuarine situations, however, two-basin schemes are
very expensive to construct due to the cost of the extra length.

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Advantages & Uses of Tidal Energy

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Tidal energy is a renewable energy source and it does not release any acids, harmful
fluids and gases while generating electricity. Tidal energy is also a reasonable substitute for
nuclear energy. Hence it can also protect us from harmful radiations of nuclear. Change in
tidal flow by deploying barrages is however tend to affect the shoreline and related eco
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system. However scientist says that the impact of these tidal waves is different in different
regions. The change in the local tides near LA Rance is negligible but near Fundy Bay it is
more which can reduce the tidal wave to about 15cm. tidal power generators can be also
helpful in increasing the efficiency of traditional power grids. This tidal power can be used to
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replace conventional power projects which release greenhouse gases and dangerous acids.
The emission of the dangerous gases tends to quickly affect the environment as compared to
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the tidal waves. The climate changes caused by the tidal waves require centuries to slow the
process of local tides.
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WAVE ENERGY

Introduction
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Wave power is the transport of energy by ocean surface waves, and the capture of
that energy to do useful work - for example, electricity generation, water desalination, or the
pumping of water (into reservoirs). Machinery able to exploit wave power is generally known
as a wave energy converter (WEC).

Wave power is distinct from the diurnal flux of tidal power and the steady gyre of
ocean currents. Wave power generation is not currently a widely employed commercial
technology although there have been attempts at using it since at least 1890. In 2008, the first
experimental wave farm was opened in Portugal, at the Aguçadoura Wave Park.

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Waves are generated by wind passing over the surface of the sea. As long as the
waves propagate slower than the wind speed just above the waves, there is an energy transfer
from the wind to the waves. Both air pressure differences between the upwind and the lee

m
side of a wave crest, as well as friction on the water surface by the wind, making the water to
go into the shear stress causes the growth of the waves.

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Wave height is determined by wind speed, the duration of time the wind has been
blowing, fetch (the distance over which the wind excites the waves) and by the depth and
topography of the seafloor (which can focus or disperse the energy of the waves). A given

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wind speed has a matching practical limit over which time or distance will not produce larger
waves. When this limit has been reached the sea is said to be "fully developed".

In general, larger waves are more powerful but wave power is also determined by

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wave speed, wavelength, and water density. Oscillatory motion is highest at the surface and
diminishes exponentially with depth. However, for standing waves (clapotis) near a reflecting
coast, wave energy is also present as pressure oscillations at great depth, producing
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microseisms. These pressure fluctuations at greater depth are too small to be interesting from
the point of view of wave power.

The waves propagate on the ocean surface, and the wave energy is also transported
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horizontally with the group velocity. The mean transport rate of the wave energy through a
vertical plane of unit width, parallel to a wave crest, is called the wave energy flux (or wave
power, which must not be confused with the actual power generated by a wave power
device).
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Wave power formula

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In deep water where the water depth is larger than half the wavelength, the wave
energy flux is
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with P the wave energy flux per unit of wave-crest length, Hm0 the significant wave height, T
the wave period, ρ the water density and g the acceleration by gravity. The above formula
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states that wave power is proportional to the wave period and to the square of the wave
height. When the significant wave height is given in meters, and the wave period in seconds,
the result is the wave power in kilowatts (kW) per meter of wavefront length.

Example: Consider moderate ocean swells, in deep water, a few kilometers off a coastline,
with a wave height of 3 meters and a wave period of 8 seconds. Using the formula to solve
for power, we get

meaning there are 36 kilowatts of power potential per meter of coastline.

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In major storms, the largest waves offshore are about 15 meters high and have a
period of about 15 seconds. According to the above formula, such waves carry about 1.7 MW

m
of power across each meter of wavefront. An effective wave power device captures as much
as possible of the wave energy flux. As a result the waves will be of lower height in the

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region behind the wave power device.

Wave energy and wave energy flux

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In a sea state, the average energy density per unit area of gravity waves on the water
surface is proportional to the wave height squared, according to linear wave theory

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where E is the mean wave energy density per unit horizontal area (J/m2), the sum of
kinetic and potential energy density per unit horizontal area. The potential energy density is
equal to the kinetic energy, both contributing half to the wave energy density E, as can be
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expected from the equipartition theorem. In ocean waves, surface tension effects are
negligible for wavelengths above a few decimetres.

As the waves propagate, their energy is transported. The energy transport velocity is
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the group velocity. As a result, the wave energy flux, through a vertical plane of unit width
perpendicular to the wave propagation direction, is equal to
t

with cg the group velocity (m/s). Due to the dispersion relation for water waves under
the action of gravity, the group velocity depends on the wavelength λ, or equivalently, on the
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wave period T. Further, the dispersion relation is a function of the water depth h. As a result,
the group velocity behaves differently in the limits of deep and shallow water, and at
intermediate depths.
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Wave Energy Conversion Systems

Turbine-type WEC -oscillating water column (OWC)

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The turbine-type WEC employs a turbine as the energy conversion device. It comes in
different forms, the most prominent being the oscillating water column (OWC). The OWC
design is the most mature WEC in terms of the number and duration of ―in-sea‖ prototypes
tested to date. Energy conversion in an OWC: The OWC operates much like a wind turbine
via the principle of waveinduced air pressurization. Some sort of closed containment housing
(air chamber) is placed above the water, and the passage of waves changes the water level
within the housing. If the housing is completely sealed, the rising and falling water level will
increase and decrease the air pressure respectively within the housing. If a turbine is placed
on top of the chamber, air will pass in and out of it with the changing air pressure levels.

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Because of this bidirectional air flow, the turbine must be designed to rotate in only one
direction independent of the direction of air flow.

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[Link] oscillating water column device
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Important OWC design aspects: The air chamber within the OWC housing must be
designed with the wave period, significant wave height, and wave length characteristics of
the local ocean climate in mind. If the housing is not sized correctly, waves could resonate
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within the air chamber. This resonating effect causes a net zero passage of air through the
turbine. In addition, the air chamber must also be conducive to air flow through the turbine.
This is best achieved with a funnel shaped design (parabolic reflector) such that the chamber
narrows from the water surface level to the turbine and concentrates the air flow through the
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turbine . it can be seen that the size of the duct and the air flow through the duct play a
significant role in an OWC. OWC placement – shoreline versus near shore: OWC devices
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can be placed on the shoreline where the waves break or near the shore. The near shore
devices are fixedly moored to the ocean bottom in the same manner as offshore wind turbines
or slack moored so as to respond to changes in mean water level (i.e. tides). In general, the
wave energy offshore is greater than that at the shoreline, but the installation and
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maintenance costs increase.

In some areas, wave energy concentration near shore through natural phenomenan
such as refraction or reflection occurs. Both the near shore and shoreline OWCs are eye sores
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since they are visible over the ocean surface, so public resistance to their installation can
occur with both. The shoreline device will interfere with beachgoers more directly and will
therefore be met with the most public resistance. OWC mooring: Obviously, problems may
arise due to the changing mean ocean surface level accompanying the tides with a fixedly
moored OWC. Nonetheless, a fixedly moored device maintains its position better than a slack
moored device so as to provide more resistance to incoming waves and therefore produce
more energy. Many tradeoffs exist between the fixedly and slack moored OWCs. For
example, while the fixedly moored OWC collects more energy, the slack moored OWC
provides some flexibility in rough seas which might damage a fixedly moored device.

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Secondly, the installation costs of a slack moored device are less than a fixedly moored
device because a rigid foundation does not need to be constructed.

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Turbine-type WEC – overtopping WEC

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Energy conversion in an overtopping WEC: The other type of turbine-type WEC
device is described as an ―overtopping WEC.‖ It works much like a hydroelectric dam.
Waves roll into a collector which funnels the water into a hydro turbine. The turbines are
coupled to generators which produce the electricity. The overtopping WEC can be placed on

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the shoreline or near shore but are more commonly placed at a near shore location. As with
the OWC, the overtopping WEC may be slack moored or fixedly moored to the ocean bottom
with same issues associated with these mooring options. It should be noted that overtopping
WECs are not as common as OWCs.

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Fig. Overtopping wave energy converter

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Buoy-type WEC

The buoy-type WEC is also known as a ―point absorber‖ (PA) because it harvests
energy from all directions at one point in the ocean. These devices are placed at or near the
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ocean surface away from the shoreline. They may occupy a variety of ocean depths ranging
from shallow to very deep depending on the WEC design and the type of mooring used.
There are several types of point absorbers with the most common being the hollow tube type
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and the float type.

Buoy-type tube-type WEC

This type of WEC consists of a vertically submerged, neutrally buoyant (relative to its
position just below the mean ocean surface level) hollow tube. The tube allows water to pass
through it, driving either a piston or a hydro turbine. The piston power take-off method is
better suited for this application because the rate of water flowing through the tube is not
rapid. There are two tube arrangements such that one end may be closed and the other open
or both open. With both ends closed, no water flows and the device becomes the float type .
The hollow tube type WEC works on the concept that waves cause pressure variations at the

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surface of the ocean. The long, cylindrical tube experiences a pressure difference between its
top and bottom, causing water to flow into and out of the open end(s) of the tube. When a
wave crest passes above the tube, water flows down the tube, and when a wave trough passes

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above the tube, water flows up the tube. This flow pushes a piston which may either power a
drive belt, a hydraulic system, or a linear generator. In the case of the drive belt, the piston is

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connected to a belt which turns at least one gear. The gear may be connected to a gear box to
increase the speed of rotation of the shaft turning the rotor of an electric generator. With a
hydraulic system, the piston pumps hydraulic fluid through a hydraulic motor which is
coupled to an electric generator. The hydraulic system is preferred over the drive belt due to

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maintenance issues . Also, multiple WECs may be connected to one electric generator
through a hydraulic system. When the piston is connected to a linear generator, it bypasses
the hydraulics process and the gear box of a drive belt. This power take-off method works by
means of a piston directly connected to the generator translator (in the case of linear

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generators, the rotor is referred to as a translator). As a direct-drive system, the up and down
movement of the piston directly moves the translator.

Buoy-type float-type WEC

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As mentioned above, the float-type WEC is some sort of sealed tube or other type of
cavity. It will most likely be filled with air, water, or a mix of the two. In order to make the
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sealed cavity positively buoyant so that it floats on top of the ocean surface, it should contain
some air. If the cavity is to be just below the surface, it should contain water at the pressure
of the depth it is placed thus making it neutrally buoyant with respect to its depth. The
behavior of the float may be altered by varying pressure within the cavity. The float-type
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WEC operates with several different power take-off methods. The floater will move in
different directions relative to wave motion depending on its location above or below the
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water. If the floater is on the surface, it will move up and down with the wave. This poses
control problems because the wave height may exceed the WEC‘s stroke length (how far up
and down the floater is permitted to move by design). The worst possible outcome could be
damage to the WEC during a storm when wave heights are extreme. The solution to this
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problem of limited stroke length is to place the tube under water as described above. Fig
illustrates the motion of a below surface point absorber relative to wave motion. When a
wave crest passes overhead, the extra water mass pushes the float down, and when a wave
trough passes, the absence of water mass pulls the float up since it becomes lighter than the
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water overhead. A control system can pump water and/or air into the float to vary buoyancy
and thus restrain the float if large wave heights are experienced. Moreover, if a rough storm
occurs, the entire system will be underwater and out of harm‘s way.

As with the tube type point absorber, the up and down motion of the floater relative to
some stationary foundation will act on a piston. This piston can be connected to a generator
using any of the methods described earlier. With a float instead of a tube, other conversion
mechanisms may be utilized. Rather than a piston, the float may act on what is called a ―hose
pump‖ It is similar to a hydraulic system in that the hose pressurizes seawater which drives a
generator.

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Fig. Below surface point absorber
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The difference with the hose pump system is the method of pressurization. A long
flexible hose is attached to a float and a stationary reaction plate. The float moves relative to
the reaction plate, stretching and constricting the hose. When the hose is stretched, it pulls in
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seawater, and when the hose is constricted, pressurized water is pushed out to a generator.

Advantages Of Wave Energy

t

One of the advantages of wave energy is that there are several methods to harness it.
5s

One such method uses a large chamber with a small hole in the top. Waves come into the
chamber and hit the wall. As the chamber gets more full of water, air is pushed up through
the hole in the top of the chamber. This air spins a turbine, generating electricity.
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Another method is using a very long, hinged tube-shaped piece of equipment to

harness the power of the waves. This is called Pelamis, and the idea is that as the waves cause
the hinged parts of the Pelamis, hydraulic fluid gets pumped which then drives electricity
[Link], another method gaining traction places underwater equipment on the
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ocean floor. As the waves pass through the unit, a piston is spun which then creates
electricity.

Another advantage to wave energy is that it is renewable. As long as the ocean has
waves, we will be able to harness wave power. Because there is no evidence of the tides and
waves stopping anytime soon, we can rest assured this will be a constant source of electricity
in the years to come.

Wave energy is very clean. No pollutants are released into the atmosphere, no fuel is
required to fun it, and very little maintenance is required once installed. In other words, it

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basically becomes a stand-alone unit that will generate electricity day in and day out with
little human or outside intervention.

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Finally, there is a lot of power to be harnessed in the ocean's waves. Consider how
much of the world is covered by the ocean, and it's easy to see that this may be the most

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reliable source of electricity in the years to come.

Disadvantages Of Wave Energy

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All of that said, there are several disadvantages of wave energy that should be
considered. For example, waves are not one of the most constant things in nature. Although
there are always some form of waves, there is a lot of variety in how powerful those waves
are throughout the year, month, and even each day. This makes it hard to estimate exactly

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how much electricity each wave power plant can produce each day.

Another thing to consider is that many sites are not suitable for wave energy plants.
Locations that have strong waves on a regular basis are the best candidates for a plant, but
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those types of areas are limited in number.

Some of the current designs of wave power plants are relatively noisy. Experts usually
don't consider this a major problem though, because the ocean's waves are fairly noisy in
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general so they somewhat drown out the noise created by the generator.

One disadvantage of wave energy is that the upfront cost is significant. Just like most
other green energy sources, the vast majority of the investment is upfront, not in the
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maintenance or day to day operations. Because so much money is required upfront, many
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organizations are hesitant to invest in wave power plants.

Finally, wave energy plants can be harmful to the environment. Although they aren't
as intrusive as dams or tidal energy barrages, they still make a footprint on the ecosystem
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where they are built. This can negatively affect marine plant life and animal life for years to
come.
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GEOTHERMAL ENERGY

Introduction

Geothermal energy is thermal energy generated and stored in the Earth. Thermal
energy is the energy that determines the temperature of matter. Earth's geothermal energy
originates from the original formation of the planet (20%) and from radioactive decay of
minerals (80%). The geothermal gradient, which is the difference in temperature between the
core of the planet and its surface, drives a continuous conduction of thermal energy in the
form of heat from the core to the surface. The adjective geothermal originates from the Greek
roots geo, meaning earth, and thermos, meaning heat.

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The heat that is used for geothermal energy can be stored deep within the Earth, all
the way down to Earth‘s core – 4,000 miles down. At the core, temperatures may reach over

m
9,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat conducts from the core to surrounding rock. Extremely high
temperature and pressure cause some rock to melt, which is commonly known as magma.

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Magma convects upward since it is lighter than the solid rock. This magma then heats rock
and water in the crust, sometimes up to 700 degrees Fahrenheit

From hot springs, geothermal energy has been used for bathing since Paleolithic times

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and for space heating since ancient Roman times, but it is now better known for electricity
generation. Worldwide, about 10,715 megawatts (MW) of geothermal power is online in 24
countries. An additional 28 gigawatts of direct geothermal heating capacity is installed for
district heating, space heating, spas, industrial processes, desalination and agricultural

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applications.

Geothermal power is cost effective, reliable, sustainable, and environmentally

friendly,[4] but has historically been limited to areas near tectonic plate boundaries. Recent
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technological advances have dramatically expanded the range and size of viable resources,
especially for applications such as home heating, opening a potential for widespread
exploitation. Geothermal wells release greenhouse gases trapped deep within the earth, but
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these emissions are much lower per energy unit than those of fossil fuels. As a result,
geothermal power has the potential to help mitigate global warming if widely deployed in
place of fossil fuels.
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The Earth's geothermal resources are theoretically more than adequate to supply
humanity's energy needs, but only a very small fraction may be profitably exploited. Drilling
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and exploration for deep resources is very expensive.[citation needed] Forecasts for the future of
geothermal power depend on assumptions about technology, energy prices, subsidies, and
interest rates.
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Electricity

The International Geothermal Association (IGA) has reported that 10,715 megawatts
(MW) of geothermal power in 24 countries is online, which is expected to generate 67,246
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GWh of electricity in 2010. This represents a 20% increase in online capacity since 2005.
IGA projects growth to 18,500 MW by 2015, due to the projects presently under
consideration, often in areas previously assumed to have little exploitable resource.

In 2010, the United States led the world in geothermal electricity production with
3,086 MW of installed capacity from 77 power plants. The largest group of geothermal power
plants in the world is located at The Geysers, a geothermal field in California. The
Philippines is the second highest producer, with 1,904 MW of capacity online. Geothermal
power makes up approximately 18% of the country's electricity generation.

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Installed geothermal electric capacity

Percentage

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Capacity (MW) Capacity (MW)
Country of national
2007[8] 2010[20]
production

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USA 2687 3086 0.3%

Philippines 1969.7 1904 27%

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Indonesia 992 1197 3.7%

Mexico 953 958 3%

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Italy 810.5 843 1.5%

New Zealand 471.6 no 628 10%

Iceland 421.2 575 30%

Japan 535.2 536 0.1%

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Iran 250 250

El Salvador 204.2 204 25%

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Kenya 128.8 167 11.2%

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Costa Rica 162.5 166 14%

Nicaragua 87.4 88 10%

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Russia 79 82

Turkey 38 82
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Papua-New Guinea 56 56

Guatemala 53 52

Portugal 23 29

China 27.8 24

France 14.7 16

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Installed geothermal electric capacity

Percentage

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Capacity (MW) Capacity (MW)
Country of national
2007[8] 2010[20]
production

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Ethiopia 7.3 7.3

Germany 8.4 6.6

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Austria 1.1 1.4

Australia 0.2 1.1

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Thailand 0.3 0.3

TOTAL 9,981.9 no 10,959.7

Geothermal electric plants were traditionally built exclusively on the edges of tectonic
plates where high temperature geothermal resources are available near the surface. The
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development of binary cycle power plants and improvements in drilling and extraction
technology enable enhanced geothermal systems over a much greater geographical range.

The thermal efficiency of geothermal electric plants is low, around 10-23%, because
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geothermal fluids do not reach the high temperatures of steam from boilers. The laws of
thermo dynamics limits the efficiency of heat engines in extracting useful energy. Exhaust
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heat is wasted, unless it can be used directly and locally, for example in greenhouses, timber
mills, and district heating. System efficiency does not materially affect operational costs as it
would for plants that use fuel, but it does affect return on the capital used to build the plant.
In order to produce more energy than the pumps consume, electricity generation requires
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relatively hot fields and specialized heat cycle. Because geothermal power does not rely on
variable sources of energy, unlike, for example, wind or solar, its capacity factor can be quite
large – up to 96% has been demonstrated. The global average was 73% in 2005.
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Direct application

In the geothermal industry, low temperature means temperatures of 300 °F (149 °C)
or less. Low-temperature geothermal resources are typically used in direct-use applications,
such as district heating, greenhouses, fisheries, mineral recovery, and industrial process
heating. However, some low-temperature resources can generate electricity using binary
cycle electricity generating technology.

Approximately 70 countries made direct use of 270 petajoules (PJ) of geothermal

heating in 2004. More than half went for space heating, and another third for heated pools.
The remainder supported industrial and agricultural applications. Global installed capacity
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was 28 GW, but capacity factors tend to be low (30% on average) since heat is mostly needed
in winter. The above figures are dominated by 88 PJ of space heating extracted by an
estimated 1.3 million geothermal heat pumps with a total capacity of 15 GW. Heat pumps for

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home heating are the fastest-growing means of exploiting geothermal energy, with a global
annual growth rate of 30% in energy production.

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Direct heating is far more efficient than electricity generation and places less
demanding temperature requirements on the heat resource. Heat may come from co-
generation via a geothermal electrical plant or from smaller wells or heat exchangers buried

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in shallow ground. As a result, geothermal heating is economic at many more sites than
geothermal electricity generation. Where natural hot springs are available, the heated water
can be piped directly into radiators. If the ground is hot but dry, earth tubes or downhole heat
exchangers can collect the heat. But even in areas where the ground is colder than room

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temperature, heat can still be extracted with a geothermal heat pump more cost-effectively
and cleanly than by conventional furnaces. These devices draw on much shallower and colder
resources than traditional geothermal techniques, and they frequently combine a variety of
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functions, including air conditioning, seasonal energy storage, solar energy collection, and
electric heating. Geothermal heat pumps can be used for space heating essentially anywhere.
Geothermal heat supports many applications.

Power station types

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Dry steam plant Flash steam plant

Geothermal power stations are not dissimilar to other steam turbine thermal power
stations - heat from a fuel source (in geothermal's case, the earth's core) is used to heat water
or another working fluid. The working fluid is then used to turn a turbine of a generator,
thereby producing electricity. The fluid is then cooled and returned to the heat source.

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Dry steam power plants

Dry steam plants are the simplest and oldest design. They directly use geothermal

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steam of 150°C or greater to turn turbines.

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Flash steam power plants

Flash steam plants pull deep, high-pressure hot water into lower-pressure tanks and
use the resulting flashed steam to drive turbines. They require fluid temperatures of at least

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180°C, usually more. This is the most common type of plant in operation today.

Binary cycle power plants

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Binary cycle power plants are the most recent development, and can accept fluid
temperatures as low as 57°C. The moderately hot geothermal water is passed by a secondary
fluid with a much lower boiling point than water. This causes the secondary fluid to flash
vaporize, which then drives the turbines. This is the most common type of geothermal
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electricity plant being constructed today. Both Organic Rankine and Kalina cycles are used.
The thermal efficiency of this type plant is typically about 10-13%
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UNIT V

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ENERGY STORAGE AND HYBRID SYSTEM

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Introduction

One of the distinctive characteristics of the electric power sector is that the amount of

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electricity that can be generated is relatively fixed over short periods of time, although
demand for electricity fluctuates throughout the day. Developing technology to store
electrical energy so it can be available to meet demand whenever needed would represent a
major breakthrough in electricity distribution. Helping to try and meet this goal, electricity

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storage devices can manage the amount of power required to supply customers at times when
need is greatest, which is during peak load. These devices can also help make renewable
energy, whose power output cannot be controlled by grid operators, smooth and dispatchable.
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They can also balance microgrids to achieve a good match between generation and
load. Storage devices can provide frequency regulation to maintain the balance between the
network's load and power generated, and they can achieve a more reliable power supply for
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high tech industrial facilities. Thus, energy storage and power electronics hold substantial
promise for transforming the electric power industry.

 Electric energy storage (EES) uses forms of energy such as chemical, kinetic, or
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potential energy to store energy that will later be converted to electricity. Such storage
can provide three basic services: supplying peak electricity demand by using
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electricity stored during periods of lower demand, balancing electricity supply and
demand fluctuations over a period of seconds and minutes, and deferring expansions
of electric grid capacity.
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 Global EES capacity is 90 gigawatts (GW), which is only 3 percent of electric power
production capacity due to the high capital cost of EES compared to natural gas power
plants which can provide similar services, and regulatory barriers to entry in the
electricity market.
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 EES can potentially smooth the variability in power flow from renewable generation
and store renewable energy so that renewable generation can be scheduled to provide
specific amounts of power, which can decrease the cost of integrating renewable
power with the electricity grid, increase market penetration of renewable energy, and
lead to greenhouse gas emission (GHG) reductions.

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Examples of storage technologies categorised by technology type:

Electrical Capacitors and ultracapacitors, Superconducting Magnetic Energy

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Storage (SMES)
Mechanical Pumped hydro Compressed air energy storage (CAES) Flywheels

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Electrochemical Batteries, flow batteries, advanced batteries

Chemical Electrolyser / H2 / FC or ICE Other chemical

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Thermal Hot water, Steam, Ice, Ceramics, Molten salt

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BATTERY

Introduction
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An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored
chemical energy into electrical energy. There are two types of batteries: primary batteries
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(disposable batteries), which are designed to be used once and discarded, and secondary
batteries (rechargeable batteries), which are designed to be recharged and used multiple
times. Batteries come in many sizes, from miniature cells used to power hearing aids and
wristwatches to battery banks the size of rooms that provide standby power for telephone
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exchanges and computer data centers.

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Principles of Operation

A battery is a device that converts chemical energy directly to electrical energy. It

consists of a number of voltaic cells; each voltaic cell consists of two half-cells connected in
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series by a conductive electrolyte containing anions and cations. One half-cell includes
electrolyte and the electrode to which anions (negatively charged ions) migrate, i.e., the
anode or negative electrode; the other half-cell includes electrolyte and the electrode to which
cations (positively charged ions) migrate, i.e., the cathode or positive electrode. In the redox
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reaction that powers the battery, cations are reduced (electrons are added) at the cathode,
while anions are oxidized (electrons are removed) at the anode. The electrodes do not touch
each other but are electrically connected by the electrolyte. Some cells use two half-cells with
different electrolytes. A separator between half-cells allows ions to flow, but prevents mixing
of the electrolytes.

Each half-cell has an electromotive force (or emf), determined by its ability to drive
electric current from the interior to the exterior of the cell. The net emf of the cell is the
difference between the emfs of its half-cells, as first recognized by Volta. Therefore, if the

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electrodes have emfs and , then the net emf is ; in other words, the net emf is
the difference between the reduction potentials of the half-reactions.

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The electrical driving force or across the terminals of a cell is known as the
terminal voltage (difference) and is measured in volts. The terminal voltage of a cell that is

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neither charging nor discharging is called the open-circuit voltage and equals the emf of the
cell. Because of internal resistance,[26] the terminal voltage of a cell that is discharging is
smaller in magnitude than the open-circuit voltage and the terminal voltage of a cell that is

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charging exceeds the open-circuit voltage. An ideal cell has negligible internal resistance, so
it would maintain a constant terminal voltage of until exhausted, then dropping to zero. If
such a cell maintained 1.5 volts and stored a charge of one coulomb then on complete
discharge it would perform 1.5 joule of work. In actual cells, the internal resistance increases

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under discharge, and the open circuit voltage also decreases under discharge. If the voltage
and resistance are plotted against time, the resulting graphs typically are a curve; the shape of
the curve varies according to the chemistry and internal arrangement employed.
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As stated above, the voltage developed across a cell's terminals depends on the energy
release of the chemical reactions of its electrodes and electrolyte. Alkaline and zinc–carbon
cells have different chemistries but approximately the same emf of 1.5 volts; likewise NiCd
and NiMH cells have different chemistries, but approximately the same emf of 1.2 volts. On
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the other hand the high electrochemical potential changes in the reactions of lithium
compounds give lithium cells emfs of 3 volts or more.
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BATTERY TYPES

Primary batteries
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Primary batteries can produce current immediately on assembly. Disposable batteries

are intended to be used once and discarded. These are most commonly used in portable
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devices that have low current drain, are used only intermittently, or are used well away from
an alternative power source, such as in alarm and communication circuits where other electric
power is only intermittently available. Disposable primary cells cannot be reliably recharged,
since the chemical reactions are not easily reversible and active materials may not return to
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their original forms. Battery manufacturers recommend against attempting to recharge

primary cells.

Common types of disposable batteries include zinc–carbon batteries and alkaline

batteries. In general, these have higher energy densities than rechargeable batteries,[36] but
disposable batteries do not fare well under high-drain applications with loads under 75 ohms
(75 Ω)

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Secondary batteries

Secondary batteries must be charged before use; they are usually assembled with

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active materials in the discharged state. Rechargeable batteries or secondary cells can be
recharged by applying electric current, which reverses the chemical reactions that occur

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during its use. Devices to supply the appropriate current are called chargers or rechargers.

The oldest form of rechargeable battery is the lead–acid battery. This battery is
notable in that it contains a liquid in an unsealed container, requiring that the battery be kept

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upright and the area be well ventilated to ensure safe dispersal of the hydrogen gas produced
by these batteries during overcharging. The lead–acid battery is also very heavy for the
amount of electrical energy it can supply. Despite this, its low manufacturing cost and its
high surge current levels make its use common where a large capacity (over approximately

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10 Ah) is required or where the weight and ease of handling are not concerns.

A common form of the lead–acid battery is the modern car battery, which can, in general,
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deliver a peak current of 450 amperes. An improved type of liquid electrolyte battery is the
sealed valve regulated lead–acid battery (VRLA battery), popular in the automotive industry
as a replacement for the lead–acid wet cell. The VRLA battery uses an immobilized sulfuric
acid electrolyte, reducing the chance of leakage and extending shelf life. VRLA batteries
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have the electrolyte immobilized, usually by one of two means:

 Gel batteries (or "gel cell") contain a semi-solid electrolyte to prevent spillage.
 Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) batteries absorb the electrolyte in a special fiberglass
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matting.
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Other portable rechargeable batteries include several "dry cell" types, which are sealed
units and are, therefore, useful in appliances such as mobile phones and laptop computers.
Cells of this type (in order of increasing power density and cost) include nickel–cadmium
(NiCd), nickel–zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), and lithium-ion (Li-ion) cells. By
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far, Li-ion has the highest share of the dry cell rechargeable market. Meanwhile, NiMH has
replaced NiCd in most applications due to its higher capacity, but NiCd remains in use in
power tools, two-way radios, and medical equipment. NiZn is a new technology that is not
yet well established commercially.
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Recent developments include batteries with embedded electronics such as USBCELL,

which allows charging an AA cell through a USB connector, and smart battery packs with
state-of-charge monitors and battery protection circuits to prevent damage on over-discharge.
low self-discharge (LSD) allows secondary cells to be precharged prior to shipping.

Battery cell types

There are many general types of electrochemical cells, according to chemical

processes applied and design chosen. The variation includes galvanic cells, electrolytic cells,
fuel cells, flow cells and voltaic piles.
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Wet cell

A wet cell battery has a liquid electrolyte. Other names are flooded cell, since the

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liquid covers all internal parts, or vented cell, since gases produced during operation can
escape to the air. Wet cells were a precursor to dry cells and are commonly used as a learning

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tool for electrochemistry. It is often built with common laboratory supplies, such as beakers,
for demonstrations of how electrochemical cells work. A particular type of wet cell known as
a concentration cell is important in understanding corrosion. Wet cells may be primary cells
(non-rechargeable) or secondary cells (rechargeable). Originally, all practical primary

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batteries such as the Daniell cell were built as open-topped glass jar wet cells. Other primary
wet cells are the Leclanche cell, Grove cell, Bunsen cell, Chromic acid cell, Clark cell, and
Weston cell. The Leclanche cell chemistry was adapted to the first dry cells. Wet cells are
still used in automobile batteries and in industry for standby power for switchgear,

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telecommunication or large uninterruptible power supplies, but in many places batteries with
gel cells have been used instead. These applications commonly use lead–acid or nickel–
cadmium cells.

Dry cell
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A dry cell has the electrolyte immobilized as a paste, with only enough moisture in it
to allow current to flow. Unlike a wet cell, a dry cell can operate in any orientation without
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spilling as it contains no free liquid, making it suitable for portable equipment. By
comparison, the first wet cells were typically fragile glass containers with lead rods hanging
from the open top, and needed careful handling to avoid spillage. Lead–acid batteries did not
achieve the safety and portability of the dry cell until the development of the gel battery.
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A common dry cell battery is the zinc–carbon battery, using a cell sometimes called
the dry Leclanché cell, with a nominal voltage of 1.5 volts, the same as the alkaline battery
(since both use the same zinc–manganese dioxide combination).
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A standard dry cell comprises a zinc anode (negative pole), usually in the form of a
cylindrical pot, with a carbon cathode (positive pole) in the form of a central rod. The
electrolyte is ammonium chloride in the form of a paste next to the zinc anode. The
remaining space between the electrolyte and carbon cathode is taken up by a second paste
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consisting of ammonium chloride and manganese dioxide, the latter acting as a depolariser.
In some more modern types of so-called 'high-power' batteries (with much lower capacity
than standard alkaline batteries), the ammonium chloride is replaced by zinc chloride.

BATTERY DESIGN PARAMETERS

Voltage Requirements

The first requirement for successful battery design is definition of the key electrical
parameters. These parameters are very important in choosing the correct chemistry and safety

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devices within the battery design. Operating voltage is a key component of this step. What
are the upper and system design that will begin to fail to operate at certain voltage thresholds?
Portable electronics for the most part operate utilizing a constant power type discharge, this

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means that the current required will increase as the battery discharges to maintain the
constant power (P=V*I). This effect in most battery systems will mean a quicker and faster

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rate of voltage decay as the battery discharges. This can affect the system runtime and ability
to react in adequate time to inform the user of power loss. Since the electrochemical system is
a chemical system first, the environmental effects will influence this performance.

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The battery will be less able to respond to higher currents in lower temperatures, since
the rates of reaction are slowed. This is usually seen as depressed voltage due to higher
internal resistance at lower temperatures.

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Current Requirements

The second key parameter needed for adequate battery design is the maximum current
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requirement. This is an important factor and will influence the battery designer's choice of
protection circuitry, chemistry, wire and trace sizes and battery capacity. It is important to
remember that the current used to design a system on a bench top using a power supply may
be different than the current required from a battery. As discussed earlier, important
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parameters such as temperature, internal resistance of the battery, and the constant power
discharge of a battery will often dictate higher currents at end of battery life. It is important to
characterize the current requirement of the system over the entire usable voltage range.
Current should always be measured using an oscilloscope and the voltage drop across a low
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resistance shunt (0.1W or 0.01W works well) of appropriate power rating, as a digital
voltmeter will not allow the engineer to evaluate transient pulses correctly.
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Important parameters not to be overlooked are startup currents and surges, or

intermittent transient pulses. Current drain from a device can be variable and influenced by a
number of factors. Often when the battery is first connected or the system is powered on,
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there are extremely high current requirements for a short duration of time, such as the high
current required to initially charge capacitors. The factors that affect the current requirement
mentioned above will influence the startup current as well. The battery designer needs to
know these requirements. Protection circuitry used in many sophisticated battery packs limit
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currents by very fast acting circuitry. This circuitry will often engage during these startup
pulses if not properly defined ahead of time, causing a system shutdown. It is very important
to define the startup pulses throughout the usable system voltage range as current
requirements may differ throughout, and will probably vary with temperature fluctuations.
Characterization of the transients within the device discharge voltage range is important as
well, as currents may increase toward end of life causing protection circuits to engage and
stop the discharge. The next parameter to cover is the quiescent (background) current drain of
the device. Devices, even when powered down, require small amounts of current to power
memory, switches and component leakage. This number is very important when designing a
system that will use a primary battery that cannot be recharged, as one does not want the
battery to fully discharge while the system is off. This value becomes critical when defining
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the shelf life storage characteristics of a battery when installed in a device and specifying
battery recharge requirements.

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Capacity and Runtime Requirements

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The next step is to calculate the desired battery capacity based on the above
requirements and the device runtime requirements. This will allow the proper size battery to
be designed for the application. Remember that rechargeable systems will lose capacity as
cycles of use accumulate.

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The desired runtime near the end of the useful life of a device should be considered and the
battery appropriately sized to deliver the proper capacity at the later stages of device life.

Physical Requirements

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Notice there has been no mention of physical size of the battery as a requirement. This
is purposeful. Without the battery parameters properly defined as mentioned above, it is
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impossible to define the size of the battery required. Often it is done in the reverse order,
since engineers and designers have a defined space to work with, and the battery gets what is
left. This is not the best practice but unfortunately it is the one often used. It is possible to
design a battery to fit in a space, even create custom cell sizes to accommodate space
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requirements, but it will often add cost and lead-time to a battery design, which usually is not
a desired option. Materials such as cases, contacts, circuitry, wiring and even labels can
quickly consume available space beyond what the actual cells occupy.
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If the proper space is not available for the battery, runtimes can be dramatically
reduced to unacceptable levels and require redesign of the system. The important thing to
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remember is that battery technologies evolve slowly, and with the elements that are
electrochemically active on the periodic table well known, the battery technologies will
continue to be evolutionary more than revolutionary. In thinking about your design, consider
the end goals and power needs. Lithium is the choice battery material in terms of energy
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density per unit volume and weight. Rechargeable lithium ion systems have cell energy
densities approaching 200 Wh/Kg and 450 Wh/L. When turned into a battery pack, especially
a removable pack or a small pack size, energy density overall drops to 60 percent or less of
these values (typically 100 Wh/Kg, 225 Wh/L). Primary lithium systems have roughly double
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the energy density of rechargeable lithium ion systems. Using these values will help to define
the required space and weight of a battery based on a lithium system during initial design.

Temperature Requirements

Further important parameters required for proper battery pack design are the
temperature requirements for the pack. This includes the storage ambient temperatures
expected during the life of the battery pack, the operational ambient temperatures, and the
internal device operational temperatures. Storage temperatures of the pack will affect its
long-term life, usually with lower temperatures (<30°C for most battery systems) resulting in
optimum life expectancy, and high temperatures (>60°C) are usually most detrimental. This
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is related to the enhanced chemical reactions that typically occur as temperature is increased.
Operational temperatures behave similarly to storage temperatures, with rate of charge and
discharge coupled with temperature causing more variation in expected performance. Many

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of the materials that consume valuable space within a battery pack, but which are of utmost
necessity for a successful design. Do not overlook the fact that a battery will be a source of

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heat during use, especially during charge, and it is important to design the device to allow for
dissipation of the extra heat generation.
Safety

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Safety features are sometimes an afterthought, and special precautions are used to
protect battery packs, especially in lithium ion systems. Protection circuitry is usually
designed into any lithium ion battery pack to prevent the cells in the battery from over charge
and over discharge conditions and high currents or short circuits. Some circuitry goes further

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than the standard parameters and guards against high temperature charge and discharge, as
well as high charge rates at low temperatures. The circuit usually consists of a protection IC,
several FET devices, and sense resistors. These circuits add cost and space to the battery pack
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requirements and careful placement is required in physical layouts. The active circuits in
lithium ion batteries continually draw power causing the battery to constantly discharge
slowly, although usually in the micro amp current range. Other rechargeable battery
chemistries may not need the elaborate protection of an active circuit as lithium ion does, but
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some protection devices are still used.

These devices can be resettable such as PPTC (polymeric positive temperature

coefficient) devices, which grow in resistance as temperature rises until the current is cut off
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or bimetallic switches that disconnect at high temperatures. Other devices are one time non-
resettable and permanently cause the pack to be disabled, such as current fuses or thermal
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fuses. Primary batteries usually incorporate a diode to prevent charging a non-rechargeable

battery pack; this adds a voltage drop to the final battery and can reduce the usable capacity
from the battery. Remember that to make the battery safe and robust a variety of components,
potting and encapsulating materials and other devices may be required, and will consume
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valuable space within the pack. Safety certifications such as Underwriters Laboratories
recognition should be specified prior to battery pack design.

EMI / ESD Protection

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Often overlooked in some designs are the effects of Electromagnetic Interference

(EMI) or protection from Electrostatic Discharge. EMI comes in a few forms, radiated and
conducted. Either form can occur throughout the electromagnetic spectrum. The primary
problem with the occurrence of EMI is disruption or reduction of performance of electronics.
This can be severely damaging when working with wireless communication designs, where
EMI can cause attenuation losses in signal strength and noise during transmission. Typically
battery packs act as radiated sources of EMI. Often the system is designed with EMI
protection but the connection to the battery pack is overlooked, therefore EMI signals are sent
back through the battery connection and out of the battery causing interference. Some system
designs are so critical that the battery pack needs to be shielded. The most cost-effective way
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to combat these circumstances is to place the battery pack in a shielded compartment of the
system. To place shielding inside the battery pack is usually not cost effective, especially in
applications where primary batteries are to be used. Adding shielding to the battery pack can

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increase the pack's weight and physical size.

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Charging and Charge Regulators

A charge controller, charge regulator or battery regulator limits the rate at which
electric current is added to or drawn from electric batteries. It prevents overcharging and may

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prevent against overvoltage, which can reduce battery performance or lifespan, and may pose
a safety risk. It may also prevent completely draining ("deep discharging") a battery, or
perform controlled discharges, depending on the battery technology, to protect battery life.
The terms "charge controller" or "charge regulator" may refer to either a stand-alone device,

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or to control circuitry integrated within a battery pack, battery-powered device, or battery
recharge
BATTERY CHARGING METHODS

Constant Current Constant Voltage

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A simple charging profile which gives good results features a current limit, then a
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voltage limit. This "constant currentconstant voltage" (CCCV) profile is further enhanced
with a shut off function. This method is effectively used for fast charging of VRLA batteries.
The maximum voltage level, Uset, is required to avoid excessive grid (electrode) corrosion.
Prolonged operation under high terminal voltage reduces
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electrode lifetime
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Trickle Charging

Normally the above Shut Off feature will not allow the charger to achieve 100% SOC
in the battery. The application of a trickle current is an effective means of slowly approaching
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100% SOC. The level of the trickle current, Itrkl, is set to a known value of gassing current
which occurs at a safe temperature and voltage. Once the battery has fully charged and Rchrg
is very large, the trickle current is fully supplying the known gassing current. This method of
charging is often used with Valve Regulated Lead Acid (VRLA) cells. VRLA cells have low
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gassing currents, and the evolved oxygen and hydrogen are internally recombined into H2O
to prevent water loss, hence sustained gassing can be maintained. The termination of trickle
charging for VRLA batteries is not always necessary, but can be done at one of the below
conditions

Pulse Trickle Charging

For batteries which are less thermally stable, or for batteries which are being "fast
charged," a pulse type trickle charging is often preferred. After the end of the normal constant
voltage charging regime, a set of current pulses are applied to the battery. The pulses are at
some current level. This method of charging is often used with VRLA, high power Ni-Cad
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and Ni-MH cells. The application of the current pulses is accomplished either by a simple
timer (~2% duty cycle, ~1Hz) or by the level of the terminal voltage (Uplo < Ut < Uphi). The
advantage to the spaced pulses is that the cells in the battery have time to thermally equalize

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and the accumulated acid at the electrode-electrolyte interface has a chance to diffuse into the
electrolyte. The termination of Pulse Trickle Charging may not be necessary, but it can be

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done at one of the below conditions; (t3-t2 > Tmax23) or (t3 > Tmax3).

Temperature Terminated Charging

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The effects of heat build up are significant for Ni-Cad and Ni-MH cells. The
accumulation of heat is primarily during the gassing stage when Rchrg is high and the cell is
close to 100% SOC. These cells often require temperature sensing to avoid damage.
Terminating the recharge of the battery based solely on the temperature response is an

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effective means of protecting the cell while achieving short recharge times.

BATTERY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

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A battery management system (BMS) is any electronic system that manages a
rechargeable battery (cell or battery pack), such as by monitoring its state, calculating
secondary data, reporting that data, protecting the battery, controlling its environment,or
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balancing it.

Monitor

A BMS may monitor the state of the battery as represented by various items, such as:
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 Voltage: total voltage, voltage of periodic taps, or voltages of individual cells

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 Temperature: average temperature, coolant intake temperature, coolant output

temperature, or temperatures of individual cells
 State of charge (SOC) or depth of discharge (DOD): to indicate the charge level of the
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battery
 State of health (SOH), a variously-defined measurement of the overall condition of
the battery
 Coolant flow: for air or fluid cooled batteries
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 Current: current in or out of the battery

Computation

Additionally, a BMS may calculate values based on the above items, such as:

 Maximum charge current as a charge current limit (CCL)

 Maximum discharge current as a discharge current limit (DCL)
 Energy delivered since last charge or charge cycle
 Total energy delivered since first use
 Total operating time since first use

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Communication
A BMS may report all the above data to an external device, using communication links
such as:

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 Serial communications. A CAN bus is one particular implementation of a serial link

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most commonly used in automotive environments
 Direct wiring
 DC-BUS - Serial communication over power-line
 Wireless communications

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Protection

A BMS may protect its battery by preventing it from operating outside its safe operating

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area, such as:

 Over-current
 Over-voltage (during charging) no
 Under-voltage (during discharging), especially important for lead–acid and Li-ion
cells
 Over-temperature
 Under-temperature
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 Over-pressure (NiMH batteries)

The BMS may prevent operation outside the battery's safe operating area by:
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 Including an internal switch (such as a relay or solid state device) which is opened if
the battery is operated outside its safe operating area
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 Requesting the devices to which the battery is connected to reduce or even terminate
using the battery.
 Actively controlling the environment, such as through heaters, fans, air conditioning
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or liquid cooling

Optimization
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In order to maximize the battery's capacity, and to prevent localized under-charging or

over-charging, the BMS may actively ensure that all the cells that compose the battery are
kept at the same State Of Charge, through balancing. The BMS can balance the cells by:

 Wasting energy from the most charged cells by connecting them to a load (such as
through passive regulators)
 Shuffling energy from the most charged cells to the least charged cells (balancers)
 Reducing the charging current to a sufficiently low level that will not damage fully
charged cells, while less charged cells may continue to charge (does not apply to
Lithium chemistry cells)
 Modular charging

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Topologies

BMS technology varies in complexity and performance:

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 Simple passive regulators achieve balancing across batteries or cells by bypassing

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charging current when the cell's voltage reaches a certain level. The cell voltage is a
poor indicator of the cell's SOC (and for certain Lithium chemistries such as LiFePO4
it is no indicator at all), thus, making cell voltages equal using passive regulators does
not balance SOC, which is the goal of a BMS. Therefore, such devices, while

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certainly beneficial, have severe limitations in their effectiveness.
 Active regulators intelligently turning on and off a load when appropriate, again to
achieve balancing. If only the cell voltage is used as a parameter to enable the active
regulators, the same constraints noted above for passive regulators apply.

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 A complete BMS also reports the state of the battery to a display, and protects the
battery.

BMS topologies fall in 3 categories: no

 Centralized: a single controller is connected to the battery cells through a multitude of
wires
 Distributed: a BMS board is installed at each cell, with just a single communication
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cable between the battery and a controller
 Modular: a few controllers, each handing a certain number of cells, with
communication between the controllers
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Centralized BMSs are most economical, least expandable, and are plagued by a multitude
of wires. Distributed BMSs are the most expensive, simplest to install, and offer the cleanest
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assembly. Modular BMSs offer a compromise of the features and problems of the other two
topologies.
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The requirements for a BMS in mobile applications (such as electric vehicles) and
stationary applications (like stand-by UPSs in a server room) are quite different, especially
from the space and weight constraint requirements, so the hardware and software
implementations must be tailored to the specific use. In the case of electric or hybrid vehicles,
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the BMS is only a subsystem and cannot work as a standalone device. It must communicate
with at least a charger (or charging infrastructure), a load, thermal management and
emergency shutdown subsystems. Therefore, in a good vehicle design the BMS is tightly
integrated with those subsystems. Some small mobile applications (such as medical
equipment carts, motorized wheelchairs, scooters, and fork lifts) often have external charging
hardware, however the on-board BMS must still have tight design integration with the
external charger.

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BMS Building Blocks

There are three main objectives common to all Battery Management Systems

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 Protect the cells or the battery from damage
 Prolong the life of the battery

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 Maintain the battery in a state in which it can fulfil the functional requirements of the
application for which it was specified.

To achieve these objectives the BMS may incorporate one or more of the following

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functions. (Follow the links to see how these functions are implemented.)

 Cell Protection Protecting the battery from out of tolerance operating conditions is
fundamental to all BMS applications. In practice the BMS must provide full cell

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protection to cover almost any eventuality. Operating a battery outside of its specified
design limits will inevitably lead to failure of the battery. Apart from the
inconvenience, the cost of replacing the battery can be prohibitive. This is particularly
true for high voltage and high power automotive batteries which must operate in
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hostile environments and which at the same time are subject to abuse by the user.
 Charge control This is an essential feature of BMS. More batteries are damaged by
inappropriate charging than by any other cause.
 Demand Management While not directly related to the operation of the battery itself,
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demand management refers to the application in which the battery is used. Its
objective is to minimise the current drain on the battery by designing power saving
techniques into the applications circuitry and thus prolong the time between battery
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charges.
 SOC Determination Many applications require a knowledge of the State of Charge
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(SOC) of the battery or of the individual cells in the battery chain. This may simply be
for providing the user with an indication of the capacity left in the battery, or it could
be needed in a control circuit to ensure optimum control of the charging process.
 SOH Determination The State of Health (SOH) is a measure of a battery's capability
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to deliver its specified output. This is vital for assessing the readiness of emergency
power equipment and is an indicator of whether maintenance actions are needed.
 Cell Balancing In multi-cell battery chains small differences between cells due to
production tolerances or operating conditions tend to be magnified with each charge /
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discharge cycle. Weaker cells become overstressed during charging causing them to
become even weaker, until they eventually fail causing premature failure of the
battery. Cell balancing is a way of compensating for weaker cells by equalising the
charge on all the cells in the chain and thus extending battery life.
 History - (Log Book Function) Monitoring and storing the battery's history is
another possible function of the BMS. This is needed in order to estimate the State of
Health of the battery, but also to determine whether it has been subject to abuse.
Parameters such as number of cycles, maximum and minimum voltages and
temperatures and maximum charging and discharging currents can be recorded for
subsequent evaluation. This can be an important tool in assessing warranty claims.

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 Authentication and Identification The BMS also allows the possibility to record
information about the cell such as the manufacturer's type designation and the cell
chemistry which can facilitate automatic testing and the batch or serial number and

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the date of manufacture which enables traceability in case of cell failures.
 Communications Most BMS systems incorporate some form of communications

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between the battery and the charger or test equipment. Some have links to other
systems interfacing with the battery for monitoring its condition or its history.
Communications interfaces are also needed to allow the user access to the battery for
modifying the BMS control parameters or for diagnostics and test.

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The Battery Management System

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The diagram below is a conceptual representation of the primary BMS functions. It
shows the three main BMS building blocks, the Battery Monitoring Unit (BMU), the Battery
Control Unit (BCU) and the CAN bus vehicle communications network and how they
interface with the rest of the vehicle energy management systems. Other configurations are
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possible with distributed BMS embedded in the battery cell to cell interconnections.
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In practice the BMS may also be coupled to other vehicle systems which communicate
with the BMS via the CAN bus (see below) such as the Thermal Management System or to
anti theft devices which disable the battery. There may also be requirements for system
monitoring and programming, and data logging using an RS232 serial bus.

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Battery Monitoring Unit

The Battery Monitoring Unit is a microprocessor based unit incorporating three functions

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or sub-modules. These sub-modules are not necessarily separate physical units but are shown
separately here for clarity.

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Battery Model

The Battery Model characterises in a software algorithm, the behaviour of the battery in

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response to various external and internal conditions. The model can then use these inputs to
estimate the status of the battery at any instant in time. An essential function of the battery
model is to calculate the SOC of the battery for the functions noted above. The SOC is
determined essentially by integrating the current flow over time, modified to take account of

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the many factors which affect the performance of the cells, then subtracting the result from
the known capacity of the fully charged battery. This is described in detail in the section on
SOC. The battery model can be used to log past history for maintenance purposes or to
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predict how many miles the vehicle may run before the battery needs recharging. The
remaining range, based on recent driving or usage patterns, is calculated from the current
SOC and the energy consumed and the miles covered since the previous charge (or
alternatively from a previous long term average). The distance travelled is derived from data
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provided by other sensors on the CAN bus (see below).

The accuracy of the range calculation is more important for EVs whose only source of
power is the battery. HEVs and bicycles have an alternative "Get you home" source of power
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should the battery become completely discharged. The problem of losing all power when a
single cell fails can be mitigated at the cost of adding four more expensive contactors which
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effectively split the battery into two separate units. If a cell should fail, the contactors can
isolate and bypass the half of the battery containing the failed cell allowing the vehicle to
limp home at half power using the other (good) half of the battery. Outputs from the model
are sent to the vehicle displays also using the CAN bus.
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Multiplexing
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To reduce costs, instead of monitoring each cell in parallel, the Battery Monitoring
Unit incorporates a multiplexing architecture which switches the voltage from each cell
(input pairs) in turn to a single analogue or digital output line (see below). Cost savings can

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be realized by reducing the number of analogue control and/or digital sampling circuits and
hence the component count to a minimum. The drawbacks are that only one cell voltage can

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be monitored at a time. A high speed switching mechanism is required to switch the output
line to each cell so that all cells can be monitored sequentially.

The BMU also provides the inputs for estimating the SOH of the battery, however

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since the SOH changes only gradually over the lifetime of the battery, less frequent samples
are needed. Depending on the method used to determine the SOH, sampling intervals may be
as low as once per day. Impedance measurements for example could even be taken only in
periods when the vehicle is not in use. Cycle counting of course can only occur when the

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vehicle is operational.

Demand or Personality Module

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The Demand Module is similar in some respects to the Battery Model in that it
contains a reference model with all the tolerances and limits relevant to the various
parameters monitored by the Battery Model. The Demand Module also takes instructions
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from the communications bus such as commands from the BMS to accept a regenerative
braking charge or from other vehicle sensors such as safety devices or directly from the
vehicle operator. This unit is also used to set and to monitor the vehicle operating mode
parameters. This module is sometimes called the Personality Module since includes
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provision for programming into the system, all the custom requirements which may be
specific to the customer's application. For example, the cell maker will recommend a
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temperature limit at which for safety reasons the battery must be automatically disconnected.
However the car manufacturer may set two lower limits, one at which forced cooling may be
switched on and another which lights up a warning light on the driver's instrument panel.
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For HEV applications, the Personality Module interfaces with the engine Electronic
Control Unit (ECU) via the CAN bus. Provision is made in this module for setting the desired
system SOC operating range and the parameters for controlling the power sharing between
the electric drive and the internal combustion engine . The Demand Module also contains a
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memory block for holding all the reference data and for accumulating the historical data used
for monitoring the battery SOH. Data to display the SOH or switch on warning lights can be
provided to the vehicle instrumentation module via the CAN bus. The outputs from the
Demand Module provide the reference points for setting the operating conditions of the
battery or triggering the action of protection circuits. Test access to the BMS for monitoring
or setting system parameters and for downloading the battery history is provided through a
standard RS 232 or RS485 serial bus. The following examples illustrate three very different
applications of BMS in action.

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Battery Control Unit

The Battery Control Unit contains all the BMS power electronics circuitry. It takes

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control signals from the Battery Monitoring Unit to control the battery charging process and
to switch the power connections to individual cells.

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Some of the possible functions of this unit are:

 Controlling the voltage and current profile of the charger output during the charging
process.

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 Providing top up charge to individual cells to equalise the charge on all cells in the
battery chain.
 Isolating the battery during fault or alarm conditions
 Switching the regenerative braking charge into the battery as required

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 Dumping excessive regenerative braking charges when the battery is fully charged
 Responding to changes in the vehicle operating mode

To provide these functions, each cell in the battery may require expensive high current
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switches capable of switching 200 Amps or more to provide the necessary interconnections.

Practical BMS Implementation

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There are many ways of implementing the battery management system and two
different examples for a 256 Volt battery made up from 80 Lithium Iron Phosphate cells are
shown below.
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Master and Slaves

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The master and slaves, star topology, organises the cells into blocks or modules with one
slave managing each module. In the example shown, 16 X 3.2 volt cells are arranged in
modules each with an output voltage of 51.2 Volts but other module sizes and voltages are
possible.
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 The Slaves - Each cell has a temperature sensor as well as connections to measure the
voltage, all of which are connected to the slave which monitors the condition of the
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cell and implements the cell balancing.

 The Master - Multiple slaves can be connected to the master which monitors the
current and integrates it over time to calculate the net Coulomb flow and this is
modified using voltage and temperature data from the slaves to calculate the battery
SOC. The master controls the main battery isolation contactor(s) initiating battery
protection in response to data from the main current sensor or voltage and temperature
data from the [Link] master also provides the system communications.

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BMS Master and Slaves (Star Topology)

m
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s.
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no
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This configuration has the advantages that it does not need printed circuit boards
connected to individual cells and high voltage batteries can be accommodated by adding
more modules and since the main battery current does not pass through slaves, it can also be
used for high current batteries. Signal processing is shared between the master and the slaves
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simplifying the management of the information processing load.

Disadvantages are that the communications between the sensors and the slaves are in
analogue form, and thus susceptible to noise, and the very large number of sensor wires, four
ww

per cell, which are required. Opto-isolated connections between the slaves and the master are
also required since the voltages on the slaves would otherwise be progressively higher, up to
the full battery voltage, as connections are taken from further up the cell chain.

BMS Daisy Chain

The daisy chain, ring topology, uses a small simple slave printed circuit board
connected to each cell to accommodate the voltage and temperature sensors with an A to D
converter, as well as a current bypass switch to enable cell balancing by charge shunting and
an communications transceiver with built in capacitive isolation for receiving and
transmitting data in digital form. The slave takes its power from the cell it is monitoring and a
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single RS 485 three wire data bus connects the nodes from all the slaves to the master which
polls each node in turn and requests an update of its cell conditions. The slave does not carry
out any signal processing, apart from the A to D conversion, as this is all carried out by the

m
master along with all the monitoring, protection and communications functions as in the
example above.

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BMS Daisy Chain (Ring Topology)

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no
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5s
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The main advantages of this topology are its simpler design and construction and its
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potential for higher reliability in an automotive environment.

The disadvantages are the large number of mini-slave printed circuit boards which are
needed and the difficulty of mounting them on some cell types. In addition the master has a
higher processing load.

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BMS APPLICATIONS

Intelligent Batteries

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The life of rechargeable NiCad and Nickel Metal Hydride batteries such as those used

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in power tools can be extended by the use of an intelligent charging system which facilitates
communications between the battery and the charger. The battery provides information about
its specification, its current condition and its usage history which is used by the charger to
determine the optimum charging profile or, by the application in which it is used, to control

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its usage.

The prime objective of the charger/battery combination is to permit the incorporation

of a wider range of Protection Circuits which prevent overcharging of, or damage to, the

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battery and thus extend its life. Charge control can be in either the battery or the charger. The
objective of the application/battery combination is to prevent overloads and to conserve the
battery. Similar to the charger combination, discharge control can be in either the application
or in the battery. Although some special cells incorporating intelligence have been developed,
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the intelligence is more likely to be implemented in a battery pack.

The system works as follows:

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The Intelligent Battery, or Smart Battery, provides outputs from sensors which give
the actual status of voltages, currents and temperatures within the battery as well as the state
of charge. It can also provide alarm functions indicating out of tolerance conditions.
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The Intelligent Battery also contains a memory chip which is programmed by the
5s

manufacturer with information about the battery specification such as:-

 Manufacturing data (Name, date, serial number etc)

 Cell chemistry

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Cell capacity
 Mechanical outline code
 Upper and lower voltage limits
 Maximum current limits
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 Temperature limits

Once the battery is placed into use, the memory may also record :-

 How many times the battery has been charged and discharged.
 Elapsed time
 The internal impedance of the battery
 The temperature profile to which it has been subjected
 The operation of any forced cooling circuits
 Any instances when limits have been exceeded.

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The system also requires devices which may be in either the battery or the charger or
both which can interrupt or modify the charging according to a set of rules. Similarly, battery
discharge can be controlled by the battery or demand management circuits in the application.

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The Intelligent Battery also needs an Intelligent Charger it can talk to and a language

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they can speak. The charger is programmed to respond to inputs from the battery, to optimise
the charging profile, charging at the maximum rate until a preset temperature is reached, then
slowing down or stopping the charge and or switching on a cooling fan so as not to exceed
the temperature limit and thus avoid permanent damage to the battery. If a deterioration in the

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battery internal impedance indicates that reconditioning is necessary the charger can also be
programmed to reform the battery by subjecting it to several deep charge, discharge cycles.
Because the battery contains information about its specification which can be read by the
charger, it is possible to build Universal Chargers which can automatically adapt the charging

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profile to a range of battery chemistries and capacities, so long as they comply with an agreed
message protocol.

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A separate communications channel is needed to facilitate interactions between the
battery and the charger. One example used for simple applications is the System Management
Bus ( SMBus) which forms part of the Smart Battery System which is used mainly in low
power applications. Batteries which comply with the SBS standard are called Smart Batteries.
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Intelligent batteries are however not limited to the SMS scheme and many manufacturers
have implemented their own proprietary schemes which may be simpler or more complex,
depending on the requirements of the application. A 50% increase in battery life has been
claimed by using such techniques.
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Automatic Control System

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This is an example of an Automatic Control System in which the battery provides

information about its actual condition to the charger which compares the actual condition
with the desired condition and generates an error signal which is used to initiate control
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actions to bring the actual condition into line with the desired condition. The control signals
form part of a Feedback Loop which provides automatic compensation to keep the battery
within its desired operating parameters. It does not require any user intervention. Some form
of automatic control system is an essential part of all BMS
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Battery Monitoring

As well as talking to the charger, the Intelligent Battery can also talk to the user or to
other systems of which the battery may be a part. The signals it provides can be used to turn
on warning lights or to inform the user about the condition of the battery and how much
charge it has left.

Monitoring the battery condition is an essential part of all Battery Management

Systems. In the first of the following two examples, the control actions are manual, - the
power plant maintenance engineer fixes any deficiencies. In the second example the battery is
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part of an Automatic Control System made up from several interlinked feedback loops
controlling the battery itself and its role as part of the overall vehicle energy management
system.

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Power Plant BMS

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The battery management requirements are quite different for standby and emergency
power installations. Batteries may be inactive for long periods topped up by a trickle charge
from time to time, or as in telecommunications installations they may be kept on float charge

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to keep them fully charged at all times. By their nature, such installations must be available
for use at all times. An essential responsibility of managing such installations is to know the
status of the battery and whether it can be relied upon to support its load during an outage.
For this it is vital to know the SOH and the SOC of the battery. In the case of lead acid

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batteries the SOC of individual cells can be determined by using a hydrometer to measure the
specific gravity of the electrolyte in the cells. Traditionally, the only way of determining the
SOH was by discharge testing, that is, by completely discharging the battery and measuring
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its output. Such testing is very inconvenient. For a large installation it could take eight hours
to discharge the battery and another three days to recharge it. During this time the installation
would be without emergency power unless a back up battery was provided.
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The modern way to measure the SOH of a battery is by impedance testing or by
conductance testing . It has been found that a cell's impedance has an inverse correlation with
the SOC and the conductance being the reciprocal of the impedance has a direct correlation
with the SOH of the cell. Both of these tests can be carried out without discharging the
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battery, but better still the monitoring device can remain in place providing a permanent on
line measurement. This allows the plant engineer to have an up to date assessment of the
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battery condition so that any deterioration in cell performance can be detected and
appropriate maintenance actions can be planned.
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Automotive BMS

Automotive battery management is much more demanding than the previous two
examples. It has to interface with a number of other on board systems, it has to work in real
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time in rapidly changing charging and discharging conditions

as the vehicle accelerates and brakes, and it has to work in a harsh and uncontrolled
environment. This example describes a complex system as an illustration of what is possible,
however not all applications will require all the functions shown here.

The functions of a BMS suitable for a hybrid electric vehicle are as follows:

 Monitoring the conditions of individual cells which make up the battery

 Maintaining all the cells within their operating limits
 Protecting the cells from out of tolerance conditions

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 Providing a "Fail Safe" mechanism in case of uncontrolled conditions, loss of

communications or abuse
 Isolating the battery in cases of emergency

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 Compensating for any imbalances in cell parameters within the battery chain
 Setting the battery operating point to allow regenerative braking charges to be

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absorbed without overcharging the battery.
 Providing information on the State of Charge (SOC) of the battery. This function is
often referred to as the "Fuel Gauge" or "Gas Gauge "
 Providing information on the State of Health (SOH) of the battery. This measurement

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gives an indication of the condition of a used battery relative to a new battery.
 Providing information for driver displays and alarms
 Predicting the range possible with the remaining charge in the battery (Only EVs
require this)

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 Accepting and implementing control instructions from related vehicle systems
 Providing the optimum charging algorithm for charging the cells
 Providing pre-charging to allow load impedance testing before switch on and two


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stage charging to limit inrush currents
Providing means of access for charging individual cells
 Responding to changes in the vehicle operating mode
 Recording battery usage and abuse. (The frequency, magnitude and duration of out of
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tolerance conditions) Known as the Log Book function
 Emergency "Limp Home Mode" in case of cell failure.

In practical systems the BMS can thus incorporate more vehicle functions than simply
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managing the battery. It can determine the vehicle's desired operating mode, whether it is
accelerating, braking, idling or stopped, and implement the associated electrical power
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management actions.

Cell Protection
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One of the prime functions of the Battery Management System is to provide the
necessary monitoring and control to protect the cells from out of tolerance ambient or
operating conditions. This is of particular importance in automotive applications because of
the harsh working environment. As well as individual cell protection the automotive system
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must be designed to respond to external fault conditions by isolating the battery as well as
addressing the cause of the fault. For example cooling fans can be turned on if the battery
overheats. If the overheating becomes excessive then the battery can be disconnected.

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FLYWHEEL ENERGY RELATIONS

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Introduction

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Flywheel energy storage (FES) works by accelerating a rotor (flywheel) to a very
high speed and maintaining the energy in the system as rotational energy. When energy is
extracted from the system, the flywheel's rotational speed is reduced as a consequence of the
principle of conservation of energy; adding energy to the system correspondingly results in

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an increase in the speed of the flywheel.

Main components

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A typical system consists of a rotor suspended by bearings inside a vacuum chamber
to reduce friction, connected to a combination electric motor/electric generator. First
generation flywheel energy storage systems use a large steel flywheel rotating on mechanical
bearings. Newer systems use carbon-fiber composite rotors that have a higher tensile strength
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than steel but are an order of magnitude less heavy. Magnetic bearings are sometimes used
instead of mechanical bearings, to reduce friction.

The expense of refrigeration led to the early dismissal of low temperature

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superconductors for use in magnetic bearings. High-temperature superconductor (HTSC)
bearings however may be economical and could possibly extend the time energy could be
stored economically. Hybrid bearing systems are most likely to see use first. High-
temperature superconductor bearings have historically had problems providing the lifting
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forces necessary for the larger designs, but can easily provide a stabilizing force. Therefore,
in hybrid bearings, permanent magnets support the load and high-temperature
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superconductors are used to stabilize it. The reason superconductors can work well stabilizing
the load is because they are perfect diamagnets. If the rotor tries to drift off center, a restoring
force due to flux pinning restores it. This is known as the magnetic stiffness of the bearing.
Rotational axis vibration can occur due to low stiffness and damping, which are inherent
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problems of superconducting magnets, preventing the use of completely superconducting

magnetic bearings for flywheel applications.

Since flux pinning is the important factor for providing the stabilizing and lifting
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force, the HTSC can be made much more easily for FES than for other uses. HTSC powders
can be formed into arbitrary shapes so long as flux pinning is strong. An ongoing challenge
that has to be overcome before superconductors can provide the full lifting force for an FES
system is finding a way to suppress the decrease of levitation force and the gradual fall of
rotor during operation caused by the flux creep of SC material.

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Applications

 Transportation

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 Uninterruptible power supply

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 Laboratories

 Amusement ride

 Pulse power

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 Grid energy storage

 Wind Turbines

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 Toy cars

Advantages
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Flywheels are not as adversely affected by temperature changes, can operate at a
much wider temperature range, and are not subject to many of the common failures of
chemical rechargeable batteries.
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Unlike lithium ion polymer batteries which operate for a finite period of roughly 36
months, a flywheel can potentially have an indefinite working lifespan. Flywheels built as
part of James Watt steam engines have been continuously working for more than two
hundred years
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Another advantage of flywheels is that by a simple measurement of the rotation speed

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it is possible to know the exact amount of energy stored. However, use of flywheel
accumulators is currently hampered by the danger of explosive shattering of the massive
wheel due to overload.
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Disadvantages

One of the primary limits to flywheel design is the tensile strength of the material
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used for the rotor. Generally speaking, the stronger the disc, the faster it may be spun, and the
more energy the system can store.

When the tensile strength of a flywheel is exceeded the flywheel will shatter,
releasing all of its stored energy at once; this is commonly referred to as "flywheel explosion"
since wheel fragments can reach kinetic energy comparable to that of a bullet. Consequently,
traditional flywheel systems require strong containment vessels as a safety precaution, which
increases the total mass of the device. Fortunately, composite materials tend to disintegrate
quickly to red-hot powder once broken, instead of large chunks of high-velocity shrapnel.
Still, many customers of modern flywheel energy-storage systems prefer to have them
embedded in the ground to halt any material that might escape the containment vessel.

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An additional limitation for some flywheel types is energy storage time. Flywheel
energy storage systems using mechanical bearings can lose 20% to 50% of their energy in 2
hours.[28] Much of the friction responsible for this energy loss results from the flywheel

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changing orientation due to the rotation of the earth (a concept similar to a Foucault
pendulum). This change in orientation is resisted by the gyroscopic forces exerted by the

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flywheel's angular momentum, thus exerting a force against the mechanical bearings. This
force increases friction. This can be avoided by aligning the flywheel's axis of rotation
parallel to that of the earth.

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Conversely, flywheels with magnetic bearings and high vacuum can maintain 97%
mechanical efficiency, and 85% round trip efficiency.

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Flywheel Energy Storage

The kinetic energy stored in a solid disk or cylinder shaped flywheel is proportional to
its speed and diameter according to equation (1)
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Ek = ½ Iw2 (1)

where Ek is the kinetic energy, I is the moment of inertia around its center of mass, and w is
the angular velocity, and equation (2)
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I = ½ r2m (2)

where r is the radius of the flywheel and m is the mass.

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Upon examination of the above equations it is obvious that two situations are
possible: Build a colossal flywheel that spins slow enough to not throw itself apart or build a
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small Herculean flywheel that can be spun extremely fast. It is easy and rather amusing to
envision large wheels attached to buildings being spun by wind and water with birds
changing their pirch as the slow megalithic wooden wheels‘ spokes fall in and out of parallel
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or even larger wheels rolling down inclined tracks attached to movable motors only to be
drug back up the incline by sturdy bulls. What is harder to envision are flywheels no bigger
than a U.S. quarter or compact disc contained in near 100% vacuum chambers being spun at
thousands or revolutions per minute on magnetic bearings. While several problems are
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associated with either option, the latter shall be examined.

The easiest method of increasing the kinetic energy in the flywheel is to increase the
angular velocity. Due to the increase of radial and hoop stresses (depending on design)
associated with increasing angular velocity lighter stronger monofilament materials are
desired. Currently several flywheel materials are used, none of which have a tensile strength
greater than 2 GPa2. However, this new glass, that is 50 times stronger posses an even larger
tensile strength and lends itself as a flywheel material.

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Concept of flywheel

The devise proposed is a light charged flywheel energy storage device shown below.

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The devise is composed of a long cylindrical flywheel made of high strength glass (failure
stress ~ 3.5 GPa) attached to an electric motor. The flywheel is designed as an elongated

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solid cylinder rather than the traditional disc style flywheel to maximize inertia in a smaller
space. (A flywheel the size of a standard compact disc and a flywheel the size of a role of
U.S. nickels have equivalent moments of inertia)

s.
The entire apparatus is mounted on frictionless magnetic bearings and is evacuated
nearly 99%. The remaining atmosphere directly surrounding the glass flywheel is composed
of a mixture of helium and air to reduce the effects of wind on the performance of the
flywheel and to allow for the charging of the flywheel to take place. The flywheel is charged

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(spun) using electromagnetic radiation.

The flywheel is charged using the principle of the Crookes Radiometer. The glass
flywheel structure therefore is very important. Two materials properties of the glass are
manipulated to allow charging. The refractive index and color of the glass are used to control
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the absorption at the surface of the glass. Similar to the Crookes radiometer the glass
flywheel has alternating faces that absorb different amounts of radiation. This is
schematically shown in Figure 3 by black and white fringes at the surface of the flywheel.
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Bearing
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Flywheel
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Rotor
Light/Pressure
Guide
Containment
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Vacuum or Generator
Low Pressure Rotor
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Bearing Generator
Stator

Figure Schematic cross section of flywheel energy storage device.

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Flywheel

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Rotor

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Vacuum/Low
Pressure
Back Pressure

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Guide

Electromagnetic

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Radiation

Figure Schematic drawing of flywheel absorption edges and charging mechanism

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The different absorption bands in the edge of the glass are made possible by unique
compositional additives to the glass, which make it photosensitive. The selectively irradiated
sections have altered refractive indices and opaqueness‘. Radiation (light) is directed at the
black surfaces with two successive lasers aimed parallel to the tangent of the flywheel as the
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black surfaces are in view of the laser beam. Similarly positioned guides help build
backpressure for the expanding gas to push the flywheel. The guides are switched back and
forth to allow sufficient cooling of the gas. Furthermore, the design of the flywheel
absorption properties allows a range of radiation (Infrared to ultraviolet) capable of charging
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the flywheel. Different types of radiation are also utilized because the absorption changes
with wavelength allowing tunable speeds. This unique feature of the flywheel provides
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varying radiation sources such as high power lasers or simple lenses to focus sunlight.

The great speeds at which the flywheel turns require a containment method for
personal safety and destruction to surrounding components. The glass used in the flywheel is
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also used as the containment material due to its extreme high strength.

The flywheel energy storage system is a unique device that can meet the current and
future requirements of energy storage for small electronic devices. The flywheel energy
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storage system is superior to current devices as well as the recent influx of foreseeable
devices such as fuel cells. The flywheel energy storage system is environmentally friendly
and poses no health risks to biological organisms upon disposal or during operation. The
flywheel energy storage system is user friendly being tunable to a wide variety of powers and
situations and the simplicity of the device reduces the malfunction and breakage during
operation and production. Apart from operational attributes one of the greatest achievements
of the flywheel energy storage system is its adaptive nature to meet the needs of individuals
across many disciplines and situations. From remote secluded areas on the globe to
populated cities, the flywheel energy storage system provides long lasting energy when
needed.

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FUEL CELL ENERGY

Introduction

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A fuel cell by definition is an electrical cell, which unlike storage cells can be

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continuously fed with a fuel so that the electrical power output is sustained [Link]
convert hydrogen, or hydrogen-containing fuels, directly into electrical energy plus heat
through the electrochemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen into water. The process is that
of electrolysis in reverse. Overall reaction:

s.
2 H2(gas) + O2(gas) →2 H2O + energy

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Because hydrogen and oxygen gases are electrochemically converted into water, fuel
cells have many advantages over heat engines. These include: high efficiency, virtually silent
operation and, if hydrogen is the fuel, there are no pollutant emissions. If the hydrogen is
produced from renewable energy sources, then the electrical power produced can be truly
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sustainable. The two principle reactions in the burning of any hydrocarbon fuel are the
formation of water and carbon dioxide. As the hydrogen content in a fuel increases, the
formation of water becomes more significant, resulting in proportionally lower emissions of
carbondioxide . As fuel use has developed through time, the percentage of hydrogen content
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in the fuels has increased. It seems a natural progression that the fuel of the future will be
100% hydrogen.

What is a fuel cell ?

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The conventional conversion of the chemical energy of a fuel into electricity is

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currently based on the application of heat engines. These machines work according to the
principle of indirect energy conversion: first of all, heat must be produced which is then
converted into mechanical and finally into electric energy . The theoretical energetic
efficiency is determined by an overall process characterized by the Carnot factor:
w.
ww

The inlet temperature T1 of the working medium is higher than the outlet temperature
T2, their difference corresponding to the deviation of the value from the maximum
quantity 1 (100%). This Carnot efficiency is characteristic of all energy converters such as
steam turbine, internal combustion engine, thermoionic converter etc. which work between a
source and a sink temperature. The energy yield in a real system is always lower than
indicated by the corresponding Carnot factor and ranges in most cases between 30 and 40 per
cent, for today's highly developed combined cycle plants between 55 and 60 %. The latter,
however, are only available in a very high power range and cannot be used, for example, for
small or mobile (cars) systems. The cause for the reduction in energetic efficiency is here

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energy losses at the different stages of the conversion process. The fuel cell competes with
conventional thermomechanical energy conversion.

m
co
s.
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Fig. Different Energy Conversion Paths

The fuel cell is an electrochemical device for the direct conversion of the chemical
energy of a fuel into electricity (Figure 1). Similarly to batteries, fuel cells produce low-
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voltage direct current. A battery or an accumulator consumes a chemical substance contained
in the cell stack itself for electricity production. In fuel cells, however, the fuels are
continuously fed to the cell stack similarly to an internal combustion engine. The energetic
conversion rate in a fuel cell (FC) is given by the relation.
t ar

The value H represents the corresponding enthalpy change of the combustion

reaction. In contrast to normal thermal combustion, however, in which the total reaction
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enthalpy H is converted into heat, in a fuel cell only the energetic fraction G (free reaction
enthalpy) is directly converted into electricity, i.e. the maximum theoretical efficiency is
given by the formula
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where GT is the value of the free reaction enthalpy at the cell operating temperature
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TZ and H0 H0 is the standard value of the reaction enthalpy. The relation between G and
H is known to be

G= H-T S

Hence follows the efficiency of the fuel cell as

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m
Depending on the sign of the reaction entropy S, the efficiency may be smaller,
equal to or even higher than 100 %. In the latter case, heat is extracted from the environment.

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The fuel cell directly supplies electric current of the theoretical d.c. voltage (Erev)

s.
The most important fuel cell reaction is the combustion reaction of hydrogen
At a pressure of 1 bar and a temperature of 25°C the corresponding

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d.c. voltage for this reaction is 1,229 volt. This voltage is a function of temperature, i.e. the
same also applies to the efficiency. A comparison of efficiencies between the Carnot process
and the fuel cell process is shown in Fig. 2 for the H2/O2combustion reaction.

Operating principle of the fuel cell no

A fuel cell consists of the fuel electrode (anode) and the oxygen electrode (cathode)
which are interconnected by an ion-conducting electrolyte. The electrodes are electrically
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coupled to an electricity consumer (for example an electric motor) by external metallic lines
outside the cell. In this section of the electric circuit, the electric current is transmitted by the
electrons whereas in the electrolyte the current transfer is effected by means of ions. At low
temperatures, these may be protons in acidic electrolytes whereas hydroxyl ions are
t

predominantly involved in alkaline electrolytes. In a higher temperature range in the so-called

solid oxide fuel cells, which operate between 600°C und 1000°C, , the ionic conduction is
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either realized by the CO2-3 carbonate ions or the negatively charged O2- oxide ions. Figure 3
shows the principle of a hydrogen/oxygen fuel cell with acidic electrolyte. The anode is
supplied with hydrogen as the fuel gas which is electrochemically split into protons and
electrons at the electrode/electrolyte interface. The electrons which perform electrical work in
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the outer electric circuit are passed into the cathode where they reduce the oxygen into water
at the electrode/electrolyte interface.
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Figure Operating principle of the fuel cell

The required protons come from the anode through the electrolyte. As can be seen
from the schematic, the electrodes must also be permeable to gas, i.e. porous. A fuel cell

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reaction normally requires all three phases to be present: the solid phase (electron conductor),
the liquid phase (ion conductor) and the gas phase (electrode pores). One speaks in this
connection of a three-phase boundary. In the fuel cells with liquid electrolyte, which operate

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below the boiling point of water, an electrolyte circulation system with external water
removal (e.g. evaporation) should be present. In fuel cells operating with a solid electrolyte

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the water formed is directly passed from the electrolyte into the cathodic gas compartment
and removed there.

TYPES OF FUEL CELLS

s.
Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell (PEFC)

The electrolyte in this fuel cell is an ion exchange membrane (fluorinated sulfonic

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acid polymer or other similar polymer) that is an excellent proton conductor. The only liquid
in this fuel cell is water; thus, corrosion problems are minimal. Water management in the
membrane is critical for efficient performance; the fuel cell must operate under conditions
where the byproduct water does not evaporate faster than it is produced because the
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membrane must be hydrated. Because of the limitation on the operating temperature imposed
by the polymer, usually less than 120�C, and because of problems with water balance, a H2-
rich gas with minimal or no CO (a poison at low temperature) is used. Higher catalyst loading
(Pt in most cases) than that used in PAFCs is required for both the anode and cathode.
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Alkaline Fuel Cell (AFC)

t

The electrolyte in this fuel cell is concentrated (85 wt%) KOH in fuel cells operated at
high temperature (~250C), or less concentrated (35-50 wt%) KOH for lower temperature
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(<120C) operation. The electrolyte is retained in a matrix (usually asbestos), and a wide range
of electrocatalysts can be used (e.g., Ni, Ag, metal oxides, spinels, and noble metals). The
fuel supply is limited to non-reactive constituents except for hydrogen. CO is a poison, and
CO2 will react with the KOH to form K2CO3, thus altering the electrolyte. Even the small
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amount of CO2 in air must be considered with the alkaline cell.

Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC)

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Phosphoric acid concentrated to 100% is used for the electrolyte in this fuel cell,
which operates at 150 to 220�C. At lower temperatures, phosphoric acid is a poor ionic
conductor, and CO poisoning of the Pt electrocatalyst in the anode becomes severe. The
relative stability of concentrated phosphoric acid is high compared to other common acids;
consequently the PAFC is capable of operating at the high end of the acid temperature range
(100 to 220C). In addition, the use of concentrated acid (100%) minimizes the water vapor
pressure so water management in the cell is not difficult.

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Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC)

The electrolyte in this fuel cell is usually a combination of alkali carbonates, which is

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retained in a ceramic matrix of LiAlO2. The fuel cell operates at 600 to 700C where the alkali
carbonates form a highly conductive molten salt, with carbonate ions providing ionic

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conduction. At the high operating temperatures in MCFCs, Ni (anode) and nickel oxide
(cathode) are adequate to promote reaction. Noble metals are not required.

Intermediate Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (ITSOFC)

s.
The electrolyte and electrode materials in this fuel cell are basically the same as used
in the TSOFC. The ITSOFC operates at a lower temperature, however, typically between 600
to 800�C. For this reason, thin film technology is being developed to promote ionic

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conduction; alternative electrolyte materials are also being developed.

Tubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (TSOFC)

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The electrolyte in this fuel cell is a solid, nonporous metal oxide, usually Y2O3-
stabilized ZrO2. The cell operates at 1000�C where ionic conduction by oxygen ions takes
place. Typically, the anode is Co-ZrO2 or Ni-ZrO2 cermet, and the cathode is Sr-doped
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LaMnO3.

STORAGE SYSTEMS
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Electrochemical Batteries
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Electrochemical batteries consist of two or more electrochemical cells. The cells use
chemical reaction(s) to create a flow of electrons – electric current. Primary elements of a cell
include the container, two electrodes (anode and cathode), and electrolyte material. The
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electrolyte is in contact with the electrodes. Current is created by the oxidation-reduction

process involving chemical reactions between the cell‘s electrolyte and electrodes.

When a battery discharges through a connected load, electrically charged ions in the
ww

electrolyte that are near one of the cell‘s electrodes supply electrons (oxidation) while ions
near the cell‘s other electrode accept electrons (reduction), to complete the process. The
process is reversed to charge the battery, which involves ionizing of the electrolyte. An
increasing number of chemistries are used for this process. More familiar ones include
leadacid, nickel-cadmium (NiCad), lithium-ion (Li-ion), sodium/sulfur (Na/S), zinc/bromine
(Zn/Br), vanadium-redox, nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH), and others.

Flow Batteries

Some electrochemical batteries (e.g., automobile batteries) contain electrolyte in the

same container as the cells (where the electrochemical reactions occur). Other battery types
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called flow batteries – use electrolyte that is stored in a separate container (e.g., a tank)
outside of the battery cell container. Flow battery cells are said to be configured as a ‗stack‘.

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When flow batteries are charging or discharging, the electrolyte is transported (i.e.,
pumped) between the electrolyte container and the cell stack. Vanadium redox and Zn/Br are

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two of the more familiar types of flow batteries. A key advantage to flow batteries is that the
storage system‘s discharge duration can be increased by adding more electrolyte (and, if
needed to hold the added electrolyte, additional electrolyte containers). It is also relatively
easy to replace a flow battery‘s electrolyte when it degrades.

s.
Capacitors

Capacitors store electric energy as an electrostatic charge. An increasing array of

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larger capacity capacitors have characteristics that make them well-suited for use as energy
storage. They store significantly more electric energy than conventional capacitors. They are
especially well-suited to being discharged quite rapidly, to deliver a significant amount of
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energy over a short period of time (i.e., they are attractive for high-power applications that
require short or very short discharge durations).

Compressed Air Energy Storage

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Compressed air energy storage (CAES) involves compressing air using inexpensive
energy so that the compressed air may be used to generate electricity when the energy is
worth more. To convert the stored energy into electric energy, the compressed air is released
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into a combustion turbine generator system. Typically, as the air is released, it is heated and
then sent through the system‘s turbine. As the turbine spins, it turns the generator to generate
5s

electricity. For larger CAES plants, compressed air is stored in underground geologic
formations, such as salt formations, aquifers, and depleted natural gas fields. For smaller
CAES plants, compressed air is stored in tanks or large on-site pipes such as those designed
for high-pressure natural gas transmission (in most cases, tanks or pipes are above ground).
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Flywheel Energy Storage

Flywheel electric energy storage systems (flywheel storage or flywheels) include a

ww

cylinder with a shaft that can spin rapidly within a robust enclosure. A magnet levitates the
cylinder, thus limiting friction-related losses and wear. The shaft is connected to a
motor/generator. Electric energy is converted by the motor/generator to kinetic energy. That
kinetic energy is stored by increasing the flywheel‘s rotational speed. The stored (kinetic)
energy is converted back to electric energy via the motor/generator, slowing the flywheel‘s
rotational speed.

Pumped Hydroelectric

Key elements of a pumped hydroelectric (pumped hydro) system include

turbine/generator equipment, a waterway, an upper reservoir, and a lower reservoir. The
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turbine/generator is similar to equipment used for normal hydroelectric power plants that do
not incorporate storage. Pumped hydro systems store energy by operating the
turbine/generator in reserve to pump water uphill or into an elevated vessel when inexpensive

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energy is available. The water is later released when energy is more valuable. When the water
is released, it goes through the turbine which turns the generator to produce electric power.

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Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage

The storage medium in a superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) system

s.
consists of a coil made of superconducting material. Additional SMES system components
include power conditioning equipment and a cryogenically cooled refrigeration system. The
coil is cooled to a temperature below the temperature needed for superconductivity (the
material‘s ‗critical‘ temperature). Energy is stored in the magnetic field created by the flow of

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direct current in the coil. Once energy is stored, the current will not degrade, so energy can be
stored indefinitely (as long as the refrigeration is operational). Thermal Energy Storage
There are various ways to store thermal energy. One somewhat common way that thermal
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energy storage is used involves making ice when energy prices are low so the cold that is
stored can be used to reduce cooling needs – especially compressor-based cooling – when
energy is expensive.
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Thermal Energy Storage

There are two types of thermal energy storage (―TES‖): TES applicable to solar
thermal power plants and end-use TES. TES for solar thermal power plants consists of a
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synthetic oil or molten salt that stores solar energy in the form of heat collected by solar
thermal power plants to enable smooth power output during daytime cloudy periods and to
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extend power production for 1-10 hours past sunset. End-use TES stores electricity through
the use of hot or cold storage in underground aquifers, water or ice tanks, or other materials
and uses this energy to reduce the electricity consumption of building heating or air
conditioning systems when needed.
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BENEFITS OF ELECTRIC ENERGY STORAGE TECHNOLOGIES

The benefits of EES often cross the traditional boundaries of generation, transmission,
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distribution, and at times, load which make analysis difficult. As noted above, the ability of
EES technologies to provide multiple services, and thus, varying benefits leads to confusion
and uncertainty about how energy storage should be regulated and valued. For the purposes
of this paper, the benefits are categorized as economic and operational. One complicating
factor is that oftentimes the quantification of benefits will depend upon the particular
application of storage. This means that there is no ―one-size-fits-all‖ approach to valuing the
benefits that EES will provide. Another complicating factor is that the value of a single EES
installation is often divided between the owner of the EES system, utility shareholders, and
utility ratepayers, such that it is difficult for one set of stakeholders to capture enough of this
value to outweigh the technology‘s costs, even if all these value streams are properly priced
in the relevant markets.
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ECONOMIC BENEFITS

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Energy bill savings from shifting demand to off-peak times

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EES enables customers to change when they draw power from the grid to meet their
demand. For customers on dynamic rates (i.e., those who pay more for power during times of
higher demand on the grid), EES allows energy arbitrage opportunities whereby the EES
system charges when the cost of energy is low and discharges when the cost of energy is

s.
high. The economic value of this load-shifting varies depending on the customers‘ load shape
and tariff, as well as the timing and frequency of when the load is shifted. Many commercial
and industrial power customers in California have tariffs that consist of an energy charge,
which is based on how many kilowatt-hours of energy have been used in a given time period,

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and a demand charge, which is based on the size of maximum demand within one month. Use
of EES can reduce energy charges if the spread between on-peak and off-peak time of use
rates is large enough. Even larger savings could come from reduced demand charges, if EES
reliably reduces the size of the customer‘s maximum demand peak in a given month.
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Customers with photovoltaic (―PV‖) systems can use an EES system to mitigate the
intermittency of their PV panels‘ power production, thereby acting as a back-up to the PV
system‘s output and ultimately reducing the customer‘s demand charge.
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Profits from selling EES resources into ancillary services and/or energy markets

If market rules enable EES owners to sell into ancillary services markets or wholesale
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energy markets, they can profit from these services. For example, third-party owners of
flywheels are currently seeking to sell into CAISO regulation markets.
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Lower future EES costs as market matures

The EES market is currently an emerging market. Costs will be lowered in the future
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as a result of learning-by-doing, developing economies of scale and conducting additional

research and development. Increased demand will spur EES manufacturers, integrators and
installers to become more efficient which should further reduce future costs. Policymakers
will need to consider these market transformations when determining the value, if any, of
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public investment.

Employment and other economic growth if industry locates in California

As more storage is deployed, new jobs could be created in manufacturing and

installation, boosting the state‘s economy and providing a new source of tax revenue.

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OPERATIONAL BENEFITS

Improved power quality

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Some commercial and industrial customers‘ manufacturing or other processes are

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harmed if their power varies in frequency and voltage. EES can serve to eliminate these
power quality inconsistencies.

Reliable and cleaner back-up power

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EES technologies can provide customers with electricity for a period of hours when
utility power is not available. While economics prevent EES being used as a long-term
backup (i.e., for multiple days at once), EES can provide a source of back-up power for

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shorter outages.

Reduced need for peak generation capacity

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By allowing customers, utilities or power generators to store energy off-peak and
discharge on-peak, storage provides an alternative to the construction and operation of new
generation and reserve capacity. Peak demand growth is a major concern for California
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electricity planners, exacerbated by the fact that populations in the hotter central and southern
parts of the state are growing fastest. The value of the avoided cost of peak generation
capacity will continue to increase as peak demand grows and as carbon emissions become
more expensive.
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More efficient use of renewable and other off-peak generation

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California‘s clean energy and GHG emissions reduction goals require a large increase
in wind and other renewable electricity generation in coming decades. Wind in California
tends to blow most strongly at night, and the CAISO predicts a serious mismatch of load and
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generation in the off-peak hours of 11 pm to 6 am, including as much as 3000 to 5000 MW of

excess off-peak capacity. Rather than forcing renewable generators to curtail off-peak
production, EES can allow excess wind and other off-peak energy to be stored and used
during high demand times.
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Reduced need for transmission and distribution capacity upgrades

EES can be used to maximize existing transmission and distribution (―T&D‖)

resources. EES can shift demand off-peak, delaying the need for new T&D upgrades that
would have been needed to accommodate growth. EES located at the transmission substation
level can be dispatched by the utility to meet peak demand in a transmissionconstrained
region with power charged off-peak. The value of T&D upgrade deferral varies greatly by
location and is driven by the population density of the area, terrain, geology, weather, and the
type and amount of T&D equipment involved.

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Transmission support and congestion relief

EES can be used to improve T&D system performance by alleviating problems like

m
voltage sag and unstable voltage. In addition, EES can help to avoid transmission congestion
by discharging in congested areas at times of peak demand. For this purpose EES can be

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located either at the customer location or at an appropriate location on the transmission or
distribution system. As noted just above in connection with T&D upgrade deferral, the range
of values for T&D congestion relief between locations will be large.

s.
Increased and improved availability of ancillary services

Ancillary services are services necessary to support the transmission of energy from
generation resources to consumers, while maintaining the reliable operation of the

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transmission system. There are two primary types of ancillary services sold in California,
both of which could be provided by EES: frequency regulation, which ensure the grid
operates within an allowable range of interconnection frequencies, and operating reserves,
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which ensure that more energy can be added to the system within a short period of time to
meet unexpected increases in demand or reductions in supply. EES technologies are capable
of providing regulation services as well as operating reserves.
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Lower GHG and other emissions

EES can reduce emissions by shifting on-peak energy use to off-peak periods. In
California, relatively little baseload power comes from coal and much comes from
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hydroelectric and nuclear power, such that off-peak generation generally has a cleaner
emissions profile than largely gasfired peak power. However, as renewables like wind
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increase as a percentage of the off-peak power mix, the emissions benefits of EES will
continue to grow.

ULTRA CAPACITORS
w.

Supercapacitors, also known as ultracapacitors or electrochemical capacitors, utilize

high surface area electrode materials and thin electrolytic dielectrics to achieve capacitances
several orders of magnitude larger than conventional capacitors . In doing so, supercapacitors
ww

are able to attain greater energy densities while still maintaining the characteristic high power
density of conventional capacitors.

Electric double-layer capacitor:

Electric double-layer capacitors, also known as supercapacitors, electrochemical

double layer capacitors (EDLCs), or ultracapacitors, are electrochemical capacitors that have
an unusually high energy density when compared to common capacitors, typically on the
order of thousands of times greater than a high capacity electrolytic capacitor. For instance, a
typical D-cell sized electrolytic capacitor will have a capacitance in the range of tens of
millifarads. The same size electric double-layer capacitor would have a capacitance of several

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farads, an improvement of about two or three orders of magnitude in capacitance, but usually
at a lower working voltage. Larger, commercial electric doubleJayer capacitors have
capacities as high as 5,000 farads. The highest energy density in production is 30 [Link]

m
co
s.
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In a conventional capacitor, energy is stored by the removal of charge carriers,
typically electrons, from one metal plate and depositing them on another. This charge
separation creates a potential between the two plates, which can be harnessed in an external
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circuit. The total energy stored in this fashion is proportional to both the number of charges
stored and the potential between the plates. The number of charges stored is essentially a
function of size and the material properties of the plates, while the potential between the
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plates is limited by the dielectric breakdown. Different materials sandwiched between the
plates to separate them result in different voltages to be stored. Optimizing the material leads
to higher energy densities for any given size of capacitor Electric double-layer capacitors
have a variety of commercial applications, notably in "energy smoothing" and momentary-
t

load devices. Some of the earliest uses were motor startup capacitors for large engines in
tanks and submarines, and as the cost has fallen they have started to appear on diesel trucks
5s

and railroad locomotives. More recently they have become a topic of some interest in the
green energy world, where their ability to store energy quickly makes them particularly
suitable for regenerative braking applications, whereas batteries have difficulty in this
application due to slow charging rates. New technology in development could potentially
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make EDLCs with high enough energy density to be an attractive replacement for batteries in
all-electric cars and plug-in hybrids, as EDLCs are quick charging and exhibit temperature
stability. They can also be used in PC Cards, flash photography devices in digital cameras,
portable media players, and in automated meter reading
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Concept

In a conventional capacitor, energy is stored by the removal of charge carriers,

typically electrons, from one metal plate and depositing them on another. This charge
separation creates a potential between the two plates, which can be harnessed in an external
circuit. The total energy stored in this fashion is proportional to both the number of charges
stored and the potential between the plates. The number of charges stored is essentially a
function of size and the material properties of the plates, while the potential between the
plates is limited by the dielectric breakdown. Different materials sandwiched between the
plates to separate them result in different voltages to be stored. Optimizing the material leads
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to higher energy densities for any given size of capacitor. Electric double-layer capacitors
have a variety of commercial applications, notably in "energy smoothing" and momentary-
load devices. Some of the earliest uses were motor startup capacitors for large engines in

m
tanks and submarines, and as the cost has fallen they have started to appear on diesel trucks
and railroad locomotives. More recently they have become a topic of some interest in the

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green energy world, where their ability to store energy quickly makes them particularly
suitable for regenerative braking applications, whereas batteries have difficulty in this
application due to slow charging rates. New technology in development could potentially
make EDLCs with high enough energy density to be an attractive replacement for batteries in

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all-electric cars and plug-in hybrids, as EDLCs are quick charging and exhibit temperature
stability. They can also be used in PC Cards, flash photography devices in digital cameras,
portable media players, and in automated meter reading.

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In contrast with traditional capacitors, electric doubleJayer capacitors do not have a

conventional dielectric. Rather than two separate plates separated by an intervening
substance, these capacitors use "plates" that are in fact two layers of the same substrate, and
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their electrical properties, the so-called "electrical double layer", result in the effective
separation of charge despite the vanishingly thin (on the order of nanometers) physical
separation of the layers. The lack of need for a bulky layer of dielectric permits the packing
of "plates" with much larger surface area into a given size, resulting in their extraordinarily
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high capacitances in practical sized packages.

In an electrical double layer, each layer by itselfis quite conductive, but the physics at
the interface where the layers are effectively in contact means that no significant current can
flow between the layers. However, the double layer can withstand only a low voltage, which
means that electric double-layer capacitors rated for higher voltages must be made of
matched series-connected individual electric double-layer capacitors, much like series-
connected cells in higher-voltage batteries.

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In general, electric double-layer capacitors improve storage density through the use of
a nanoporous material, typically activated charcoal, in place of the conventional insulating
barrier. Activated charcoal is a powder made up of extremely small and very "rough"

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particles, which in bulk form a low-density volume of particles with holes between them that
resembles a sponge. The overall surface area of even a thin layer of such a material is many

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times greater than a traditional material like aluminum, allowing many more charge carriers
(ions or radicals from the electrolyte) to be stored in any given volume. The downside is that
the charcoal is taking the place of the improved insulators used in conventional devices, so in
general electric double-layer capacitors use low potentials on the order of 2 ro 3 V.

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Additionally, electric double-layer capacitors offer much higher power density than
batteries. Power density combines the energy density with the speed that the energy can be

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drawn out of the device. Batteries, which are based on the movement of charge carriers in a
liquid electrolyte, have relatively slow charge and discharge times. Capacitors, on the other
hand, can be charged or discharged at a rate that is typically limited by current heating of the
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electrodes. So while existing electric double-layer capacitors have energy densities that are
perhaps 1/1Oth that of a conventional battery, their power density is generally ten to one-
hundred times as great.
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Advantages

 Very high rates of charge and discharge.

 Little degradation over hundreds of thousands of cycles.
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 Good reversibility
 Low toxicity of materials used.
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 High cycle efficiency (95Vo or more)

Disadvantages
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 The amount of energy stored per unit weight is considerably lower than that of an
electrochemical battery (3-5W.h/kg for an ultracapacitor compared to 30-40 W.h/kg
for a battery). It is also only about 1/10,000th the volumetric energy density of
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gasoline.
 The voltage varies with the energy stored. To effectively store and recover energy
requires sophisticated electronic control and switching equipment.
 Has the highest dielectric absorption of all types of capacitors.

Applications

Today small size super capacitors as for example gold caps from Tokin are widely
used as maintenance-free power sources for IC memories and microcomputers . Among
newly proposed applications for large size super capacitors are load leveling in electric and
hybrid vehicles as well as in the traction domain, the starting of engines, applications in the

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telecommunication and power quality and reliability requirements for uninterruptable power
supply (UPS) installations. In general supercar pacitors may be adapted to the following two
application domains. The first one corresponds to the high power applications, where the

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batteries have no representative access. The EDLCs, thanks to their high power capability,
will allow new opportunities for power electronics. All applications where short time power

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peaks are required can be provided by these capacitors. Typical examples where a big current
is required during a short time are the fast energy management in hybrid vehicles or the
starting of heavy diesel engines

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The second one corresponds to the low power applications, where the batteries could
be more suitable but are at the origin of maintenance problems or of insufficient lifetime
performance. The super capacitors, even if they are much bigger, bring enough advantages to
substitute the batteries. In this field, the UPS as well as security installations are the most

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representative examples.

Main Application areas of Super capacitors are

 UPS
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 Hybrid Vehicle
 Starter
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 Toy applications
 GSM.
 Elevators, cranes or pallet trucks in the Electric transportation domain
 Handtools or flashlights
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 Radars and torpedoes in the military domain

 Defibrillators and cardiac pacemakers in the Medicinal domain
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 Pulsed laser and welding in the industry

 Memory supplies in phones or computers.
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