energy behaviors

Brosch Tobias, Sander David, Patel Martin K. (2016). Editorial: Behavioral Insights for a Sustainable Energy Transition. Frontiers in Energy Research, vol 4 (5):       

"Aspects related to information processing, such as available information, processing biases, and heuristics, affective-motivational factors, such as attitudes, values, and emotions, and social influences, such as social norms and status considerations, all are critical determinants of sustainable behavior. Moreover, these factors interact with the choice context, e.g., specific aspects of the behavior/technology in question, available options, potential incentives, and barriers. Thus, any understanding of energy-relevant behavior needs to be based on a consideration of the interaction of personal and situational factors."

Jobs in renewable's sector

IRENA (2016) Annual Review: Renewable Energy and Jobs

"Solar PV was the largest renewable energy employer with 2.8 million jobs worldwide, an 11% increase over 2014. Solar PV employment grew in Japan and the United States, stabilised in China, and continued decreasing in the European Union. Wind power witnessed a record growth year. Strong installation rates in China, the United States and Germany resulted in a 5% increase in global employment, to reach 1.1 million jobs" (IRENA, 2016)

Forest biomass in Portugal

Evolução das áreas totais por espécie (ICNF, 2013, 13)

"A superfície florestal cuja espécie dominante é o eucalipto representa a maior área do país (812 mil ha; 26%), o sobreiro a segunda (737 mil ha; 23%), seguido do pinheiro‐bravo (714 mil ha; 23%). A área ocupada por espécies resinosas corresponde a 31% da floresta portuguesa, sendo a restante (69%) ocupada por espécies folhosas." (ICNF, 2013, 11)

Distribuição geográfica de instalações de energias endógenas + detalhe apenas para as centrais a biomassa (e2p, consultado a 31 de Maio de 2016)

Métodos digitais para inventariar a Biomassa. Image in Viana, Lopes e Aranha (2011)

Referencias:

Helder Viana, Domingos Lopes and José Aranha (2011). Assessment of Forest Aboveground Biomass Stocks and Dynamics with Inventory Data, Remotely Sensed Imagery and Geostatistics, Progress in Biomass and Bioenergy Production, Dr. Shahid Shaukat (Ed.), InTech, DOI: 10.5772/20025. 

ICNF (2013). IFN6 – Áreas dos usos do solo e das espécies florestais de Portugal continental em 1995, 2005 e 2010. Resultados preliminares. [pdf], 34 pp, Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas. Lisboa.

Legislação:

Decreto-Lei n.º 166/2015 - Diário da República n.º 163/2015, Série I de 2015-08-21

Segunda alteração ao Decreto-Lei n.º 5/2011, de 10 de janeiro, que estabelece as medidas destinadas a promover a produção e o aproveitamento de Biomassa Florestal

Decreto-Lei n.º 179/2012. D.R. n.º 150, Série I de 2012-08-03

Primeira alteração ao Decreto-Lei n.º 5/2011, de 10 de janeiro, que estabelece as medidas destinadas a promover a produção e o aproveitamento de biomassa de modo a assegurar o abastecimento das centrais dedicadas de Biomassa Florestal.

Decreto-Lei n.º 5/2011. D.R. n.º 6, Série I de 2011-01-10

Estabelece as medidas destinadas a promover a produção e o aproveitamento de Biomassa Florestal.

Bateria redox

Bateria feita no Porto pode mudar tudo numa década:

"Trata-se de um semicondutor (...) que faz a conversão direta da luz solar em energia eletroquímica, armazenada numa bateria redox de caudal (nas quais os compostos químicos estão dissolvidas em soluções líquidas)."

Consumo de energias PT

in Diário de Notícias:

O consumo de eletricidade em Portugal foi totalmente assegurado durante quatro dias e meio seguidos, por fontes renováveis, atingindo um "recorde nacional" neste século, anunciou a associação ambientalista Zero.

Portugal 2016 Review by IEA

Energy Policies of IEA Countries - Portugal 2016 Review (pdf): 

"This review analyses the energy policy challenges facing Portugal and provides recommendations for further policy improvements. It is intended to help guide the country towards a more secure and sustainable energy future."

used coffee pellets

daily coffee habits turned from waste to pellets by Bio-Bean:

"(...) Bio-Bean has launched a UK-wide collection service and opened a waste coffee recycling factory. This factory turns the material into biomass pellets, used primarily for fueling large industrial boilers at places such as supermarkets, offices, homes, airports and factories at the moment. The company is now able to handle up to 10% of the country's grounds each year, or about 50,000 tonnes, which is said to be the equivalent amount of energy for fueling some 15,000 homes."

"It's a carbon-neutral fuel that not only happens to have a higher calorific value than wood, according to Kay, making it a great fuel option, but that is also cheaper than most of the alternatives. It also happens to be something that the suppliers, the coffee shops, need to get rid of as a course of doing business, so it's a win/win situation."

REthinking Energy

International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), REthinking Energy (2015), 2nd edition: 

"The share of renewables needs to grow not only in power generation but also in transport, heating and cooling. (...) Five clear actions are needed to support the renewable energy transition: Strengthening the policy commitment to renewable energy; Mobilising investment in renewable energy; Building institutional, technical and human capacity; Harnessing the cross-cutting impact of renewables on sustainable development; Enhancing regional engagement and international cooperation."

Gigajoule (GJ) equivalence

In IRENA RoadMap for Renewable futures (2016), p.25. See complete report in www.irena.org/remap

Global data for wind power (2015)

By Delphi234 (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

Forest Biomass Residues to Energy (PT)

Rafael Sandra, Tarelho Luis, Monteiro Alexandra, Monteiro Tânia, Gonçalves Catarina, Freitas Sylvio, and Lopes Myriam (2015). Atmospheric Emissions from Forest Biomass Residues to Energy Supply Chain: A Case Study in Portugal. Environmental Engineering Science, 32(6), 505 -515:

"(...) the use of biomass (FBR) to energy should be integrated within the framework of policies for the forest sector, through the territorial implementation of forest planning tools, namely the Regional Plans of Forestry Planning and Forest Management Plans, allowing the regional implementation of the national guidelines and the monitoring of sustainable forest management, as well as the coordination with other environmental policies that ensures the different services provided by forest ecosystems."

home biogas generation

HomeBiogas: «(...) “Off the Grid” biogas system, produces daily clean cooking gas for 3 meals and 10 liters of clean natural liquid fertilizer.» +info

opinion about energy analysts

"Why do professional energy analysts and agencies have such a tough time getting their arms around wind and solar? Why are they so consistently wrong about renewable energy, in the same direction, over and over again?"

renewable energy investment global

Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment (2016) by Frankfurt School-UNEP Centre/BNEF, p.22:

[biblio] forest biomass to energy

Biomass Conversion Technologies (2008)

Bioenergy conversion technologies, FAO

Viana, H.; Cohen, Warren B.; Lopes, D.; Aranha, J.Assessment of forest biomass for use as energy. GIS-based analysis of geographical availability and locations of wood-fired power plants in Portugal, Applied Energy, 87, 8, 2551-2560, 2010.

Stupak, I., Asikainen, A., Jonsell, M., Karltun, E., Lunnan, A., Mizaraite, D., ... Tamminen, P. (2007). Sustainable utilisation of forest biomass for energy - Possibilities and problems: Policy, legislation, certification, and recommendations and guidelines in the Nordic, Baltic, and other European countries. Biomass & Bioenergy, 31(10), 666-684. 10.1016/j.biombioe.2007.06.012

Schulze, E.-D., Körner, C., Law, B. E., Haberl, H. and Luyssaert, S. (2012), Large-scale bioenergy from additional harvest of forest biomass is neither sustainable nor greenhouse gas neutral. Glob. Change Biol. Bioenergy, 4: 611–616. doi:10.1111/j.1757-1707.2012.01169.x

Guidelines for harvesting forest biomass for energy: A synthesis of environmental considerations (2011)

Waste biomass-to-energy supply chain management: A critical synthesis (2010)

A supply chain analysis framework for assessing state-level forest biomass utilization policies in the United States (2011)

Potential of biomass residues for energy production and utilization in a region of Portugal (2010)

Supply assessment of forest biomass – A bottom-up approach for Sweden (2015)

Climate effects of bioenergy from forest residues in comparison to fossil energy (2015)

Assessment of biomass energy sources and technologies: The case of Central America (2016)

Best scenarios for the forest end energy sector–implications for the biomass market (2015) 

Rafael Sandra, Tarelho Luis, Monteiro Alexandra, Monteiro Tânia, Gonçalves Catarina, Freitas Sylvio, and Lopes Myriam (2015). Atmospheric Emissions from Forest Biomass Residues to Energy Supply Chain: A Case Study in Portugal. Environmental Engineering Science. May 2015, 32(6): 505-515. doi:10.1089/ees.2014.0420.

Current and potential use of forest biomass forenergy in Tasmania (2015)

Supply chain optimization of residual forestry biomass for bioenergy production: The case study of Portugal (2015)

Review of micro- and small-scale technologies to produce electricity and heat from Mediterranean forests׳ wood chips (2015)

Ecodesign Directive

"Six reasons why building automation should be included in the 2015-2017 working plan"

Heating and Cooling 8 Key Recommendations

"(...) 8 key recommendations were formulated to help guide the European Commission in the implementation of the Heating and Cooling strategy and the upcoming revisions of relevant EU legislation:

1. Promote the electrification of industry thermal processes to enable demand side response and integrate renewables
2. Foster residual heat recovery using heat pumps
3. Improve recognition of building automation as an enabler of energy efficiency in its own right
4. Promote investment based on the synergies between energy efficiency and demand response
5. Incentivize package financing to foster investment for building renovation
6. Devise system level solution(s) through cross-cutting energy legislation
7. Promote mandatory building efficiency requirements in the Energy Efficiency directive
8. New Market Design should ensure proper energy pricing" +info 

Turning Sunlight into Hydrogen

"A team of Korean researchers, affiliated with UNIST has recently pioneered in developing a new type of multilayered (Au NPs/TiO2/Au) photoelectrode that boosts the ability of solar water-splitting to produce hydrogen.." +info

more efficient materials for solar fuel cells

"(...) new high-performing materials for cells that harness sunlight to split carbon dioxide and water into usable fuels like methanol and hydrogen gas. These "green fuels" can be used to power cars, home appliances or even to store energy in batteries." +info 

Plus Energy Homes

"Plus-energy homes are popping up around the world, generating more energy than they use, and can even be set up to sell excess energy back to the grid." +info 

B10 Aktivhaus by Werner Sobek