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The First Carbon Capture and Storage Project in Italy

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The first carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in Italy is known as the Ravenna CCS Project, launched exclusively for environmental purposes. Its goal is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, contributing to the fight against climate change, particularly in industries that are difficult to decarbonize.

The project is named after the region where it is located and will use depleted natural gas fields in the Adriatic Sea. It involves the permanent geological storage of carbon dioxide captured from the smokestacks of third-party industrial plants, transported via underground pipelines or by ship to the pumping station in Casalborsetti.

In this project, oil and gas company Eni and energy infrastructure company Snam have joined forces.

The first phase aims to capture, transport, and store 25,000 tons of CO2 per year from Eni’s natural gas processing plant. After capture, the carbon dioxide is transported and stored at a depth of 3,000 meters in the depleted gas field. The facility already reduces CO2 emissions from the smokestacks of the Casalborsetti plant by over 90 percent, and in some cases, up to 96 percent. This is especially important given the challenging conditions for carbon capture due to the low concentration of CO2 and atmospheric pressure.

After completing this phase, a second phase is planned to begin in 2027, which aims to store up to four million tons of CO2 annually. From 2030, the significant capacity of these reservoirs, estimated at over 500 million tons, could allow for an increase in volume, potentially reaching more than 16 million tons per year, depending on market demand.

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According to a report by the Polytechnic University of Milan, a CCS facility with the potential to capture and store 16 million tons of CO2 annually, with total costs over its lifetime of 38.4 billion euros (including investments and operating costs), could generate direct and indirect economic benefits of 79 billion euros.

In the second phase, Ravenna is envisioned to become a reference CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) center for Southern Europe and the Mediterranean.

The Ravenna project will create new jobs in an advanced sustainability-oriented sector, attract investments, and bring in new sustainable industrial initiatives from global investors.

This project is a key part of Italy’s strategy to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and maintain the competitiveness of its industries while reducing environmental impact.

Jasna Dragojević

The corporate sector continues to lag behind private households for EV uptake

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
Foto-ilustracija: Unsplash (CHUTTERSNAP)

The EU’s corporate car market stagnation is explained by poor progress in fleets electrification in Germany, France, Italy and Spain.

The corporate sector continues to lag behind private households in terms of electrification, new H1 data by Dataforce shows. In the whole EU, 13.8 percent of all new private registrations were battery-electric vehicles (BEVs). For corporates, this was only 12.4 percent. This has a major impact on the progress of the whole automotive ecosystem (carmakers, charging infrastructure providers etc.) towards electrification as 60 percent of all new cars in the EU are registered by companies.

The slow uptake of EVs in the corporate car market is mainly explained by poor performances in Germany, France, Italy and Spain, the EU’s four biggest car markets.

In France, Spain and Italy, BEV uptake in the corporate market went down in H1 2024 compared to H1 2023 while the private segment increased.

In Germany, the corporate market continues to lag behind the private sector. The latter took a bigger hit due to the phase out of purchase subsidies for private buyers.

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In Poland the company car market stagnated compared to H1 2023. Private registrations took a big hit (H1 2023 compared to H1 2024)

Belgium is the only country where the company car market is doing what is supposed to do i.e. be a green leader and lead the shift to electric. Main reason for this is the fiscal changes that Belgium introduced, phasing out tax cuts for fossil fuel company cars.

Company cars are a perk that employers are giving to their employees and both are getting tax breaks for this. Businesses also have the financial means to invest in green tech such as EVs. Therefore companies should be miles ahead of the private market and lead the transition to electric.

What does this mean for the agenda of the new European Commission?

In her Political Guidelines, von der Leyen has confirmed that the EU must and will stay course to meet the goals set out in the European Green Deal. Reducing transport emissions and electrifying road transport is a key element of this.

Looking not only at the size of the company car market but also the tax cuts that corporate cars are receiving, the European Commission should ensure that companies take their responsibility and lead the shift to green transport. The fact that this is not happening shows that there is a clear market failure at the moment. This is not a recent development but already taking place for the last three years. Hence EC intervention is not only needed but also justified.

Source: Transport&Environment

Why Recycling Is Not Enough to Fight Plastic

Photo-illustration: Freepik (freepik)
Photo-illustration: Pixabay

How often do we come across the topic of recycling daily? We read about it in the media, see symbols on packaging, and pass by recycling bins on the streets. For some of us, recycling might seem obviously important, while for others, it has become just another part of the daily environment—something we notice but rarely take concrete steps to act on. And although recycling is certainly important, it is only one of the last steps in the fight against plastic pollution.

The real significance lies in what happens at the beginning of the plastic lifecycle. The story of plastic begins deep underground, where oil and gas are extracted, transformed into plastic polymers, and shaped into the products we use. This story is not just about the plastic bottles and bags we throw away but everything that happens before those products become waste.

There are many approaches to addressing the plastic pollution problem, and recycling is one of them. But to truly tackle the core of the issue, we must make recycling mandatory on an international level. That’s why negotiators will meet in Korea later this year to continue working on a legally binding agreement to combat plastic pollution.

Every year, the world produces around 430 million tons of plastic, and most of that plastic quickly becomes waste. This growing problem not only threatens our ecosystems but also contributes to climate change and exposes people to harmful chemicals.

To effectively address the problem, we must focus on a lifecycle approach to plastic. This approach is not just another common concept—it’s a systemic approach that covers every step in the life of plastic: from production to use, to the point where it becomes waste.

The lifecycle approach allows us to limit the damage plastic can cause at every stage of its existence. This can include banning single-use products or encouraging the development of eco-friendly alternatives. Governments can regulate the design of plastic products to ensure they can be recycled or reused and don’t simply become another piece of waste.

This approach also considers socio-economic aspects. The plastic industry provides jobs for millions of people worldwide, including many who are involved in waste collection. The lifecycle approach strives to balance ecological needs with socio-economic aspects, such as workers’ rights and access to fair working conditions.

Recycling is important, but it’s not enough. For example, nearly 80 percent of plastic in single-use products is not economically viable for recycling, and more than 2.7 billion people worldwide don’t have access to basic waste collection services. To truly understand and address the plastic pollution problem, it’s important to consider the entire lifecycle of plastic. The lifecycle approach helps us identify key points for reducing environmental impacts and improving socio-economic conditions.

Thinking about plastic should encompass some of the following questions. How are raw materials for plastic sourced and processed? What is their environmental impact? How much energy and resources are used, and what waste and emissions are produced during manufacturing? What is the environmental impact of transportation? How is the product used during its life, and what are its environmental impacts? What happens to the product when it becomes waste? Can it be recycled or composted?

All these questions help us understand that the fight against plastic pollution begins long before the product becomes waste.

Katarina Vuinac

Energy Week Western Balkans 2024 – Driving the Region’s Clean Energy Transition

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Jason Mavrommatis)
Photo: EWWB

The Western Balkans is gearing up for one of the most influential energy sector gatherings of the year – Energy Week Western Balkans 2024. Set to take place on October 9-10 at the exclusive Maestral Resort in Montenegro, this event is a pivotal opportunity for regional leaders, energy companies, international investors, and policymakers to come together and discuss strategies for accelerating the transition to renewable energy.

The region’s premier conference will convene key stakeholders from Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, and Croatia alongside major international financial institutions and leading global companies in the energy sector. The discussions will centre on policy, financing, and technology – key pillars essential for driving the region’s energy transition.

The conference agenda is meticulously crafted to address the pressing issues within the region’s energy landscape. A highlight of the event is the session titled “Together Towards Tomorrow: Regional Integration Strategies for Renewable Energy Advancement in the Western Balkans,” where ministers from across the region will discuss the critical importance of regional cooperation in promoting renewable energy.

Another pivotal session, “Balancing Act: Navigating the Transition from Coal to Renewables vs. Embracing a Gas Blend Strategy,” will delve into the complexities of transitioning away from coal, featuring among other insights from Dušan Živković, General Director at Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS).

The event will also focus on the future of the region’s energy infrastructure. The session “Future-Proofing the Grid: Investing in Resilience, Renewable Energy, and Storage Technologies,” sponsored by Sungrow, will emphasize the investments necessary to ensure that the grid can support a renewable energy-dominated future. Aleksandar Mijušković, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Crnogorski Elektroprenosni Sistem (CGES), will share his insights on these critical developments.

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Addressing the operational challenges that energy projects face in the region, the session “Navigating Market Challenges: From Securing Land to Balancing Conditions” will feature contributions from industry leaders, including Milos Kostic, CEO of MT-KOMEX.

Regulatory frameworks, essential for accelerating renewable energy adoption, will be the focus of “Shaping Renewable Policies: Dialogue with Western Balkans Regulators”, featuring key regulators such as Branislav Prelević, Resident of the Board, Energy and Water Regulatory Agency of Montenegro, Dejan Popović, President of the Council, Energy Agency of Serbia and Marko Bislimoski, President, Water and Municipal Waste Management Services of the Regulatory Commission of the Republic of North Macedonia (ERC).

Photo-illustration: Pixabay (atimedia)

The financial aspects of energy projects will be explored in “Unlocking the Potential: Exploring Financing, Bankability, and Revenue Streams in the Western Balkans.” This session will delve into making energy projects bankable and attractive to investors, an essential step for the region’s energy future. Moreover, strategies to build investor confidence will be discussed in “Promoting Investor Confidence: Ensuring Predictability and Fair Treatment,” where legal experts, investors, and government representatives will share their insights on creating a stable and transparent business environment.

Adding to the wealth of knowledge at the event, global and regional leaders at the World Bank, IFC, EBRD, UKEF, and the Green for Growth Fund will provide a global perspective on sustainable development and economic growth in the region. Neda Lazendić (WV International), Rico Koch (NOTUS energy), Mats Lundin (Emergy), Ivan Liakh (DTEK Renewables International) and many other distinguished leaders will share extensive experience from their work on gigawatt-scale solar and wind projects.

With over 18 GW of renewable potential at stake, Energy Week Western Balkans 2024 is more than just a conference – it is a pivotal platform where the future of energy in the region will be shaped. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage in B2B and B2G meetings with top executives, policymakers, and thought leaders from the Western Balkans and beyond.

For more information on the event, including the full agenda and registration details, please visit the official website https://wbenergyweek.com/

 Source: EWWB

EPS Changes Rules for Commercial Customers

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Gonz DDL)

New methodologies for forming electricity prices for customers under commercial supply have been adopted by the Assembly of the Joint Stock Company “Elektroprivreda Srbije” (EPS), with the aim of establishing prices that meet the unique needs of EPS’s commercial customers while maintaining financial integrity and business sustainability.

The new method of pricing for the economy ensures that prices reflect current market conditions while providing stability and predictability for customers.

According to Dubravka Đedović Handanović, Minister of Mining and Energy and a representative of the founder in the EPS Assembly, with the adoption of these methodologies, Serbia has fulfilled the last structural benchmark of the International Monetary Fund for the energy sector.

The minister added that the new methodologies allow for monitoring market trends in both directions, whether in cases of price drops or increases. Additionally, the new methodology will contribute to more efficient contracting of electricity supply for customers in the open market under competitive conditions, taking into account criteria such as the lowest electricity price, payment terms, and supply security.

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As stated on the EPS website, methodologies have been adopted for determining the fixed price and the leveled price for full electricity supply to end customers, which is done based on market principles, as well as the methodology for forming prices for supplying end customers based on contracts with a predetermined quantity. Furthermore, a methodology has been established for determining the final price with dynamic pricing for full electricity supply to end customers, a methodology for determining the sale price of electricity produced from renewable sources for end customer supply, and a methodology for determining the price for delivered electricity from customer-producers under a full supply contract with net metering.

The flexibility in contracting brought by these methodologies will also contribute to a more diverse offering, which, as explained by the minister, will result in improvements in energy efficiency and the competitiveness of the Serbian economy, due to the possibility of optimizing electricity costs in final products.

Energetski portal

Innovative Application of Information Technologies in Agriculture

Photo: BioSense Institute
Photo: BioSense Institute

BioSens Institute, Institute for Research and Development of Information Technologies in Biosystems, is a pioneer in the digital transformation of agriculture in Serbia. Investigating the scientific and technological boundaries of the innovative application of IT in agriculture, the Institute aims to provide the domestic and global agricultural sectors with superior digital solutions to achieve higher yields with less investment.

We spoke with Oskar Marko, PhD, Assistant Director for Innovation and Industrial Collaboration at the BioSens Institute, about the advantages of the AgroSens platform, the functioning of the Digital Village in Mokrin, how the dim.rs portal affects the improvement of the environment, how digitization can increase income, why is Institute important for young researchers and whether they participate in projects funded by the European Union.

Q: Could you tell us how the AgroSens platform, i.e. the digital service for farmers, operates?

A: AgroSens is a platform developed to provide farmers with quick and straightforward access to data, but it also provides the community with the top scientific results accomplished by the BioSens Institute in artificial intelligence, satellite image processing, and sensor network development. The platform includes many modules, including weather forecasts, processed satellite images, a digital field book, and more. Based on this data, it is possible to gain insight into the state of the crop and make decisions based on facts on the ground, which ensures high yields and reduces risks.

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Q: What was the idea behind establishing the Digital Village in Mokrin? How does the project work in practice?

A: The central idea of the Digital Village was to take the entire arsenal of digital technologies available to us and use the example of a village to show their impact on production and the community as a whole. As part of this project, lectures  were given  to farmers; fields  were scanned with drones, sensors and weather stations were installed, and everything was implemented with the support of experienced agronomists. Local farmers have demonstrated a high degree of professionalism, interest and openness and judging by the feedback, digital technologies have helped them to gain insight into the condition of crops and to determine the right moment for the application of agrotechnical operations – the application of pesticides, fertilizers and more – which, in turn, has helped them to optimize the use of inputs and ensure high yields.

Q: How would you rate the progress of digitalization in agriculture? How much can digital transformation increase revenues and help farmers to achieve higher yields with less investment?

A: One example of progress in digitalization is the AgroSens platform, which over 20,000 farmers use.  If we add up the total area managed by these farmers, it comes up to a quarter of the total arable land in Serbia. This is a validation that our farmers have recognized the importance of digital transformation and that we can expect an increasing impact of modern technologies in agriculture in the future. Also, irrigation optimization systems and many other sensors,  such  as  Plant-O-Meter  and soil moisture sensors, are patented and licensed and are available in the market. Solutions for agricultural production are not the only solutions we have. Agricultural producers are automatically evaluated thanks to the project we are implementing with the World Bank. They are granted loans much more easily, which, in turn, facilitates their greater access to finance to start production and ensures higher yields and profits.

Interview by Mirjana Vujadinović Tomevski

Read the whole interview in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine AGROSOLAR ENERGY AND RES.

Extreme Heat in Southern Cities as a Consequence of Lack of Green Spaces

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay
Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

Summer is drawing to a close according to the calendar, but not in terms of the heat, which continues in much of the world. High temperatures have most severely affected large cities in southern regions, and a new scientific study sought to uncover what these cities lack to successfully cope with heat waves.

The study, published in Nature Communications, reveals that cities in the Global South are more exposed to extreme heat due to a lack of cooling green spaces. Compared to cities in the Global North, they only have 70 percent of the “cooling potential” provided by urban greenery.

An international team of experts used satellite data from the 500 largest cities in the world to assess the “cooling capacity”—the extent to which urban green spaces cool the surface temperatures of a city. The ten cities with the highest cooling capacity are located in the USA, as many cities in the United States have low population density, giving them an advantage in terms of green space.

Mogadishu in Somalia has the lowest cooling capacity, followed by Sana’a in Yemen and Rosario in Argentina. Chicago is the only American city on the list with a cooling capacity below 1°C.

The Global South, which includes Africa, Latin America, and much of Asia, contains areas most vulnerable to extreme heat. A previous study showed that current climate policies will leave more than one-fifth of humanity exposed to dangerously high temperatures by the year 2100, with the highest risk population in India and Nigeria.

The new study goes further by estimating the “cooling benefit” an average citizen receives, showing that the cooling advantage for an average resident in the Global South is 2.2°C, compared to 3.4°C for a resident of a city in the Global North. These differences are mainly due to the amount of vegetation and the efficiency of cooling, which is better in the Global North.

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The Importance of Nature-Based Solutions

The analysis suggests that green spaces can lower the surface temperature in an average city by about 3°C during summer, a crucial difference during periods of extreme heat. The cooling effect of urban green spaces, especially urban forests, is caused by shading and transpiration cooling.

“Urban greenery is a very effective way to combat what could be the fatal effects of extreme heat and humidity,” said Professor Tim Lenton, one of the study’s authors.

With rising temperatures and the effects of the “urban heat island,” heat-related illnesses and mortality in cities are becoming more common. Experts emphasize that nature-based solutions can significantly reduce future heat stress for billions of people.

Therefore, re-greening urban environments and preserving existing greenery is crucial to making southern cities livable in the near future.

Milena Maglovski

IEA policy review highlights UK leadership on climate policy and emission reduction efforts

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Jan Huber)

The IEA regularly conducts reviews of the energy and related climate policies of its member countries and provides recommendations – a process that supports energy policy development and encourages the exchange of international best practices and experiences. This latest review of the United Kingdom, based on work conducted during its previous government, finds that it has made significant progress to-date on emissions reductions. This is underpinned by a robust climate framework as one of the first advanced economies to legally adopt a net zero target, according to the IEA’s latest review of the United Kingdom’s energy policies.

The United Kingdom 2024: Energy Policy Review highlights how the country is a leader in clean energy deployment, particularly in offshore wind. This is in part thanks to strong climate policies, notably carbon pricing and the creation of an independent body, the Climate Change Committee, with statutory authority to track the government’s progress toward its climate targets. As part of this, the United Kingdom has met all of its five-year ‘carbon budgets’ so far, a set of interim emissions reduction goals that serve as stepping stones to the 2050 net zero target.

The transformation of the UK’s electricity system, driven by a rapid decline in coal-fired generation and a strong expansion of renewable electricity, has demonstrated the country’s commitment to transforming its energy system, the report finds. However, the report also notes that the United Kingdom is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels, which continue to play a major role in electricity generation as well as in the buildings, transport and industrial sectors. To achieve its climate targets and stay on track with its carbon budgets, greater progress on reducing emissions will be required in these end-use sectors, in particular.

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The United Kingdom has set an ambitious target to decarbonise electricity generation, underpinned by rapid growth in wind, solar and nuclear power. Renewables already account for over a fifth of the country’s electricity generation, a three-fold increase since 2012. The report highlights that the UK’s auction scheme to support renewable energy deployment – known as Contracts for Difference – has been a notable success story. In the coming years, the United Kingdom will need to ensure the continued buildout of low-emissions generation to displace unabated gas, replace closures in the nuclear fleet and keep up with growing power demand driven by electrification. It will likewise need to support a massive buildout of electricity infrastructure, reduce administrative barriers and speed up grid connections to enable new projects to come online.

In other sectors, the UK’s building stock, among the oldest in Europe, contributes over a quarter of the country’s energy-related emissions. In its recommendations, the report emphasises the need for a sustained focus on energy efficiency upgrades of existing buildings and a rapid turnover of fossil fuel heating systems toward electricity-based heat pumps as priority areas.

Transport is the largest emitting sector in the United Kingdom and is heavily reliant on oil. The United Kingdom has ambitious plans for zero emissions vehicles and the report encourages a sustained focus on implementation.

The UK’s industrial sector is also a major energy consumer and a key contributor to emissions, accounting for around a fifth of UK energy consumption and 14 percent of emissions. In addition to supporting energy efficiency, the report urges the United Kingdom to undertake efforts to support electrification in industry, enabled by grid expansion and connections to industrial sites. Commercialisation and adoption of new technologies, including carbon capture, utilisation and storage as well as fuels such as hydrogen, can also play an important role in industrial decarbonisation.

Overall, the report finds that the United Kingdom is making strong progress on its energy transition, with both opportunities to accelerate still further and to seize the benefits of the growing global clean energy economy, thanks to its first-mover advantage and robust legal frameworks. The country must continue its shift from action plans toward rapid implementation that accelerates results and supports meeting climate targets.

Source: IEA

Why virtual Power Plants are the Future of Solar Energy

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Mariana Proença)

Renewable energy sources like solar are volatile, meaning there is not enough energy production to meet demand when the sun doesn’t shine.

However, when the sun does shine, solar panels can feed so much electricity into the grid that the electricity becomes worthless at market.

Virtual power plants – decentralized battery networks of sources such as EVs – can help achieve 100 percent renewable energy systems.

Moving from energy ‘prosumers’ to ‘flexumers’

Today’s renewables still work in a conventional setting. Homeowners – often dubbed ‘prosumers’ as they produce and consume energy – feed in the electricity from their solar panels into the grid when the sun shines or when their battery is fully charged.

These solar energy systems could with some justification be called ‘dumb’, just as an old mobile phone could take calls but was unable to do anything else prior to today’s smartphone era.

Instead, the future of solar must be smart and connected. Prosumers will give the floor to ‘flexumers’ that are integrated into the grid and can react to market signals.

Just as an autonomous vehicle can be updated remotely and have more and more features while the body of the car remains the same, the domestic solar energy system will look the same in terms of hardware, but its software will be much more powerful.

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‘Sector coupling’ key to the future of solar energy

The ‘magic wand’ to make this happen is the so-called ‘sector coupling’ – merging the previously separate areas of electricity, heat and fuels. In the future, electricity will also be used for heat generation via heat pumps, as well as for charging electric vehicles (EVs) at home.

De-facto, an EV is a large battery on wheels. A medium-sized car battery, such as that of the Volkswagen ID3 in mid-range configuration, has a capacity of 62 kWh – equivalent to the amount of electricity a family in a single-family home consumes in 6-7 days (approximately 8-10 kWh per day).

By 2030, Germany alone aims to have 15 million electric cars on the road, and typically private cars remain unused for 23 hours a day.

This presents tremendous potential for using electric cars as mobile storage, intelligently-networked and controlled via smart energy management. Bi-directional charging, enabling power flow between the grid and EVs, is under way and will soon be usable.

Heat pumps are also a form of buffer storage: they heat water to provide heating and hot water.

The impact of a temperature difference of 1-2ºC in the supply temperature is negligible above a minimum threshold. If you adjust the operation of heat pumps to reduce usage during periods of expensive energy and maximize usage when energy is inexpensive, they can help stabilize fluctuations in renewable energy supply.

Creating a domestic decentralized battery network

Hundreds of thousands of home batteries, EVs and heat pumps are poised to connect into a vast, decentralized battery network – offering capacity akin to several nuclear power plants, but with unparalleled flexibility.

German renewables company Enpal is targeting a capacity exceeding one gigawatt by 2026, supported by a growing number of similar projects.

This networked battery, called a ‘virtual power plant’ (VPP), intelligently manages and aggregates electricity generation, storage and consumption from participating households, while also trading profitably on the electricity market.

Photo-illustration: Freepik (freepik)

For instance, it charges the storage or electric vehicle when electricity is very cheap or when the household solar panels generate surplus energy. Electricity is sold back to the grid when market prices are high due to low sunlight or wind.

This artificial intelligence (AI)-based platform enables homeowners to save significant costs and generate additional income. The smart integration into the energy market also paves the way for transitioning away from solar subsidies.

Virtual power plants can optimize energy operations

By optimizing operations in the intraday continuous market, VPPs simultaneously play a crucial role in relieving and better utilizing electricity grids.

They decentralize storage of surplus electricity when the grid is overloaded and inject electricity back into the grid as needed. This reduces peak loads, ensures a more even distribution of electricity generation and demand, and stabilizes electricity grids.

Source: World Economic Forum

The Role of Hydrogen and Iron in an Innovative Solution for Solar Energy Storage

Photo-illustration: Pexels (Kelly)
Photo-illustration: Freepik (freepik)

Although solar energy currently available in many countries could meet a significant portion of electricity needs, certain challenges are associated with this energy source. Solar energy is not consistently available. For example, there is more of it during the summer months than needed, while in winter, there is less of it because sunny days are rarer, and the sun sets earlier.

In the case of Switzerland, solar energy could cover more than 40 percent of electricity needs by 2050, but the challenge of its storage remains. Therefore, even though there is a surplus of solar energy in the summer, it cannot be made available in the winter when it is most needed.

As a solution, it is suggested that the excess solar energy produced in the summer be used to generate hydrogen, which would then be stored and used in the winter. The reason for this solution is that hydrogen can be used to produce electricity and heat. However, hydrogen storage presents a challenge of its own. It is highly flammable, easily spreads, and can make materials brittle. Special high-pressure tanks are needed for its storage, and cooling technology, which is expensive and energy-intensive, is also required. Finally, hydrogen has such properties that it can penetrate materials and cause leaks, which can lead to environmental problems and additional costs to stop the leaks.

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, led by Wendelin Stark, a professor of functional materials at the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosystems, have developed a new technology for seasonal hydrogen storage that is much safer and cheaper than existing solutions. It involves the use of the fourth most abundant element on Earth – iron, as well as the steam-iron process, known since the 19th century.

The steam-iron process uses iron to store and release hydrogen, allowing for efficient energy storage. When there is excess solar energy in the summer, it is used to electrolyze water and produce hydrogen. This hydrogen is introduced into a reactor filled with iron oxide. There, hydrogen reacts with iron oxide, removing oxygen and leaving elemental iron and water. In this way, the energy from hydrogen is stored in the form of iron.

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During winter, when there is a need for energy, the process is reversed. Steam is introduced into the reactor and reacts with iron, converting it back into iron oxide, while releasing hydrogen. This hydrogen can then be used to produce electricity or heat.

The advantage of this process is that it uses a cheap and readily available material, iron, and allows long-term energy storage with minimal losses. Although the process is not perfectly efficient, it represents an innovative way to use solar energy during the winter.

Photo-illustration: Freepik (freepik)

“This chemical process is similar to charging a battery. It means that the energy in hydrogen can be stored as iron and water over long periods with almost no losses,” the researchers explain.

They further explain that the reactor in which the reaction occurs does not need to meet special safety requirements. It consists of walls made of stainless steel only six millimeters thick, and the reaction takes place at normal pressure, while the storage capacity increases with each cycle.

However, the main drawback of using hydrogen remains its low efficiency, as up to 60 percent of energy is lost during production and conversion. This means that hydrogen is attractive as an energy storage medium only when wind or solar energy surpluses are available, and when other options are not feasible.

A pilot plant on the Hönggerberg campus, one of ETH’s two main campuses, already demonstrates the technical feasibility of this technology, with plans to cover one-fifth of the campus’s winter energy needs by 2026 using hydrogen stored from solar energy collected in the summer.

Katarina Vuinac

USA: Families Relocating Due to Pollution, but Healthier Areas Reserved Only for the Wealthy

Photo-illustration: Pixabay (Maruf_Rahman)
Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay (Pixource)

Excessive air pollution in certain areas of the United States influences households’ decisions to relocate, but only wealthier families can afford to settle in areas with satisfactory air quality, researchers from Lancaster University reveal.

Their study, published in the journal Environmental and Resource Economics, examines migration data from county to county between 2010 and 2014 provided by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Instead of relying solely on aggregate migration flows, the researchers utilized more detailed data on migrating households, such as income levels, which revealed a clear link between the economic status of households and their choice of a new living environment.

The results show that there are inequalities in exposure to the most polluted areas – poorer families are the most affected, while wealthier households choose to move to cleaner and healthier areas, which are usually more expensive.

“This shows that it’s not just improvements in air quality standards and toxic release inventory reporting that matter when it comes to environmental justice – income inequality also needs to be considered, as it’s clear that some families may be forced to live in polluted areas, leading to poorer health outcomes,” says the study’s co-author, Dr. Anita Schiller.

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Polluting Companies “Choose” Poorer Areas

The Lancaster University experts’ study builds on previous research by academics that explored the behavior of polluting companies to determine whether these companies strategically choose their locations based on the demographic characteristics of the population.

Focusing on Texas, the researchers found a correlation between lower-income areas and an increased likelihood of companies that potentially pollute the environment being located in those areas.

“This creates a vicious cycle where companies strategically place polluting facilities in poorer areas, while the environmental burden disproportionately impacts vulnerable communities. Meanwhile, wealthier households can effectively ‘vote with their feet’ and avoid these negative impacts,” emphasized Professor Dakshina De Silva, co-author of the study.

Milena Maglovski

Schneider Electric Empowers Building Owners and Operators to Achieve Net Zero Carbon Goals With EcoStruxure™ Energy Hub

Photo: Schneider Electric
Photo: Schneider Electric

Facility managers must be empowered to monitor energy usage and emissions in real-time. Yet, the vast majority of electrical assets in buildings are not digitally connected, limiting the visibility of energy usage.

EcoStruxure™ Energy Hub provides visibility into energy usage, costs and performance, and energy-saving recommendations – all in an intuitively designed package that is simple to install, configure and use. It makes energy management easy and secure, all via a smartphone app.

EcoStruxure™ Energy Hub enables facility managers to automatically collect, store, and visualize energy data while generating reports on energy consumption – whether they manage a single building or a portfolio of buildings.

IN FOCUS:

Implementation of EcoStruxure™ Energy Hub helps building owners comply with building energy codes and creates transparency to help drive energy-efficient and sustainable behavior.

The solution encourages accountability of tenants by providing a simplified allocation of building energy usage, billing configuration and report generation. Analytics helps to develop deep insights into waste reduction and operational improvements, including energy savings tips.

Energy optimization helps organizations drive continuous energy improvement in building operations without investing in expensive, sophisticated, on-premises automation systems. The software enables you to monitor energy infrastructure in real-time emailing or messaging notifications. It provides visibility into energy usage, records, responds and accelerates total energy consumption issue solving.

Schneider Electric

Read the whole story in the new issue the Energy portal Magazine AGROSOLAR ENERGY AND RES.

Uppsala has cleanest city air in Europe

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Niclas Lundin)
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (chris robert)

The EEA’s European city air quality viewer ranks 375 cities from the cleanest to the most polluted based on average levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5).

The data was collected from over 500 monitoring stations at urban locations across EEA member countries over the past two calendar years, 2022 and 2023.

The viewer shows that only 13 European cities had average fine particulate concentrations that were below the World Health Organization’s (WHO) health-based guideline level of 5 micrograms per cubic meter of air (5 μg/m3). These cities include four northern capitals: Reykjavik, Tallinn, Stockholm and Helsinki.

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The European Green Deal’s zero pollution action plan sets a 2030 target of reducing premature deaths caused by fine particulate matter by at least 55 percent, compared with 2005 levels, and a long-term goal of no significant health impacts by 2050. Earlier this year, the EU institutions reached an agreement on a proposal to update the ambient air quality directives with the aim to align the EU air quality standards closer to the WHO’s guideline levels and help deliver on the objectives of the zero pollution action plan.

The European city air quality viewer provides an indication on the typical air quality in European cities over the past two years. The viewer focuses on long-term concentrations of PM2.5, as it is the air pollutant with the highest negative health impacts. Later this year, the EEA will publish an analysis on the impacts of air pollution on ecosystems and human health. This includes estimates on deaths and ill health that can be attributed to poor air quality.

Source: EEA

Eco Gym – Nurturing the Health of People and Nature

Photo: Eco Gym
Photo: Eco Gym

When people neglect to take care of their health, they also distanced themselves from nature. In the same way, neglecting nature inevitably endangers a person’s health. In a world where the awareness of this unbreakable bond is declining, there are individuals who, thanks to their knowledge and passion, do not allow this bond to fall into oblivion. During the pandemic and isolation, when we seemed to be the furthest from nature, Marko Ćirić, professor of sports, devised a way to reconnect us with nature. Marko comprehensively described the idea that brings multiple benefits in one sentence – “This is a circular economy project where, with the help of volunteers, we clean rivers, collect wood waste and give it a new life through a socially useful Eco gym”.

As a professor of sports and owner of a raft on the Sava River for over 40 years, he often organized river cleaning campaigns, but he did not know what he could do with the collected wooden waste. They used the separated waste to create decorations for the coast but without a clear picture of how they could use it. As Mr Ćirić explains, he focused his time during the pandemic on research, which helped him find the connection between his primary occupation and his love for the river. After devising the initial idea, he assembled a five-member team to implement the concept together with him.

“We had no idea how many challenges would be ahead of us. In August 2023, we became a part of the UNDP EU project for the Green Agenda in Serbia, during which a public call to submit innovative solutions related to the circular economy was launched. With their help, especially Ana Mitić and Tatjana Jovančević, we started to develop a project”, says our interlocutor.

Some of the challenges the team faced were the technical drawings and statics of all devices, the acquisition of the necessary documentation, and the design of the gyms. They paid special attention to safety by obtaining safety certificates from the IMS Institute, patenting, securing copyright rights, promoting, and other related activities.

IN FOCUS:

Photo: Eco Gym

The entire process of creating an Eco Gym consists of several stages. Depending on the chosen location, the team finds a river nearby and conducts a cleaning campaign at least once a month. The collected waste is sorted, and most is used for recycling. Branches and trees are transferred to the dryer and workshop. PET packaging, which is also collected, is sorted and taken to recycling centers, and the collected bottled caps are transported to the Čepom do Osmeha organization in Novi Sad. About 10 per cent of the waste wood is used to make the equipment, which is then coated, while the rest is used to make a floor for the gym. In this way, the entire process of circularity is completed, with no leftover waste and where each part has its purpose. After all the segments are made, they are transported to the selected location and assembled into the Eco Gym, which consists of 13 pieces of equipment. Eco Gym has equipment to exercise the whole body, designed so that several muscle groups can be worked on one device, and you can add extra weights. This gym is intended for a wide range of users, from high school students to senior citizens. Some of the equipment available includes eco squat, eco deadlift, eco bench, eco decline, eco stretch and others.

So far, three Eco Gyms have been built and installed. In cooperation with UNDP, the world’s first gym of this type was opened in Vršac in June 2023. Antoine Avignon opened the gym in front of the European Union, the Embassy of the Kingdom of Sweden, the UNDP delegation, and representatives of the Vršac government. The other two gyms are located in Zlatibor and Sokobanja.

Prepared by Katarina Vuinac

Read the whole story in the new issue the Energy portal Magazine AGROSOLAR ENERGY AND RES.

New Technology Enables Charging Wearable Devices During Running

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Researchers at the Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) of the University of Surrey have developed innovative nanogenerators that harness energy from everyday activities, such as running, to power wearable devices.

In their study, published in the journal Science Direct, it is described how flexible nanogenerators can convert mechanical energy, generated by simple movements, into electrical energy with significantly greater efficiency than previous technologies.

“The idea of nanogenerators is to capture and utilize energy from everyday movements, such as morning runs, mechanical vibrations, ocean waves, or door openings. The key innovation with our nanogenerator is that we have finely tuned the technology with 34 small energy collectors that use a laser technique that can be scaled up for production to further increase energy efficiency,” stated the study’s lead author, Delovar Husein.

While the concept of nanogenerators is not new, the solution from ATI experts brings a revolutionary advancement in energy harvesting, showing a 140-fold increase in power density compared to conventional nanogenerators.

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Nanogenerators operate on the principle of the triboelectric effect, where materials become electrically charged when they come into contact and then separate (like when rubbing a balloon on hair). This process allows the device to convert even the simplest movements into useful electrical energy.

“What is truly exciting is that our small, high-energy-density device could one day compete with the power of solar panels and could be used to power anything from self-powered sensors to smart home systems that operate without the need for battery replacement,” added Husein.

Professor Ravi Silva, Director of the Advanced Technology Institute, highlighted the potential of nanogenerators in the future of energy, especially in the context of the rapid development of IoT technologies.

“With increasing technology around us, it is predicted that we will have over 50 billion IoT devices in the coming years that will need power. Local green energy solutions are needed, and this could be a convenient wireless technology that uses energy from any mechanical movement to power small devices. It offers the scientific and engineering community an opportunity to find innovative and sustainable solutions to global challenges,” said Professor Silva.

The development of these nanogenerators could significantly contribute to the transformation of the energy sector, providing sustainable solutions for powering devices in everyday situations. From smart homes to wearable sensors, the application of these devices could enable long-term power supply without the need for frequent battery replacements.

Milena Maglovski

Can EU Mining Waste Regulations Address the Challenges of Increased Mining?

Photo-illustraion: Freepik (ArthurHidden)
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Shane McLendon)

In an effort to reduce its reliance on the import of critical raw materials, which are essential for various industries, including technology, energy, and automotive, Europe plans to increase mining in the coming years. Moreover, new mines will be opened to achieve the goal set by the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), which aims to produce at least 10 percent of these raw materials within Europe.

The question arises: are European mining regulations sufficient to meet such a challenge? The organization Transport & Environment (T&E) commissioned a legal analysis of the 2006 EU Mining Waste Directive (EWD) and outlined what its revision should include. It is noted that although Europe is considered to have the highest environmental standards in the world, it is questionable whether those related to mining waste are adequate or outdated for modern needs.

One of the main conclusions of the legal analysis conducted by the law firm Hörchner Advocaten is the risk that EU member states may apply the Directive in different ways. Furthermore, many important provisions are not clearly defined and are left to each member state to implement at their discretion. For example, it is unclear who is responsible in the event of an accident or damage, as well as how often and to what extent prevention and monitoring plans should be implemented.

Another important conclusion of the analysis is that some of the best available techniques are not mandatory, leaving companies the option to decide on their own. In this case, the example given is filtered tailings dams, a technique for managing mining waste that improves safety and reduces environmental risks associated with tailings storage.

Finally, current regulations regarding environmental protection and the well-being of local communities are not sufficiently robust.

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Based on the conclusions drawn from the legal analysis, T&E calls on the European Commission to update the Mining Waste Directive and reform it into a new European Mining Waste Regulation. This would ensure the harmonized application of rules across member states. In addition, the best available techniques should become mandatory. Companies should be required to implement them, relying on expert knowledge and guidelines. These guidelines and recommendations on the best available techniques for managing various industrial processes, including mining waste management, are outlined in the Best Available Techniques Reference Document (BREF). This would not only improve environmental protection and safety but would also positively impact communities living near mining sites.

The third proposal put forward by T&E is to rely on the Safety First Guidelines, developed by experts in mining, civil society, and academia. These guidelines provide detailed explanations on how tailings dams should be designed, managed, and closed. Additionally, they establish key financial and governance provisions that should be implemented. Furthermore, in the new regulation, environmental protection measures and community safety should be strengthened, recognizing the significant and long-lasting impacts on land, biodiversity, and human health in the event of tailings dam failure and spillage.

Finally, it is emphasized that communities should be involved in all stages of mining projects through consultations and should be informed of any incidents should they occur.

Katarina Vuinac

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