Group items tagged

The idea is to create a common set of communication protocols and data formats that utilities and smart-grid start-ups can adhere to.

The benefit of a more intelligent infrastructure is that load can be curtailed as needed and problems spotted more quickly. By flattening out spikes in demand, utilities may not need to build new power plants, which are expensive and opposed in some places for environmental and health reasons.

The Energy Council of Thursday 19th February focused on the second Strategic Energy Review. Inevitably, the Council was cautious agreeing concrete changes to existing rules or arrangements on the basis of the Strategic Energy Review. Instead it has cautiously welcomed many of the proposals tabled or announced in the Review, awaiting the detailed Commission proposals or the outcome of discussions in Council on the specific proposals. Nonetheless, the conclusions do demonstrate a willingness of the member States for some - probably gradual - change in developing a more Community approach to energy security issues.

EfficienCity is a virtual town, but pioneering, real world communities around the UK are using similar systems. As a result, they're enjoying lower greenhouse gas emissions, a more secure energy supply, cheaper electricity and heating bills and a whole new attitude towards energy.

All industrial activities have considerable impact on the environment. Emision, wastes and use of energy result in pollution and depletion of natural resources. Thus, sustainable development  stands for progress.Maintenance is an important part for improving life cycle, energy, safety and envionmental management. Maintenance to-day goes together with Quality Management, Environmental Management, Occupational Health and Safety Management and Social Responsibility. We have to develop Maintenance for energ-saving issues!

On December 21, the Finavera Renewables Ocean Energy, Ltd conditionally secured a FERC license for its hydrokinetic power project located 1.9 nautical miles offshore Washington State.  The 5-year license to the Makah Bay Offshore Wave Pilot Project is designed "to demonstrate the economic and environmental benefits of wave energy conversion power plants near coastal communities."   The project will generate an average of 1,500 MWh annually.

Mobile phones, notebook computers, iPods—the boom in portable computing and communications devices is dependent on rechargeable lithium-ion batteries to deliver power. These batteries offer the highest energy density, allow laptops to function for useful amounts of time, and do not display a memory effect when compared to other types of rechargeable batteries. However, modern rechargeable batteries are still not truly satisfactory.

Smart plugs would be fitted to all appliances in the home and communicate via radio waves back to a central control panel to calculate how much energy each device is using and when equipment is operating needlessly. For example, if your phone is fully charged it will turn off further supply of energy to the phone.

The plug will even have an “integrated motion sensor” to detect minimal activity in a room to shut down devices left on. If something has been shut off that shouldn’t be, a simple flick of a switch to turn it back on again will tell the central controller that you don’t like that particular service being compromised.

I have a story today in the Toronto Star about a pilot project that would see the city equip up to 20 municipal buildings with solar thermal systems that would provide hot water and space heating. But instead of owning and operating the systems itself, the city would sign a 10-year contract with a "solar utility" -- a company that would pay for, install and manage the equipment and then sell the heat that's produced to the city at a fixed price. The solar heat would offset the use of natural gas or electricity that would have otherwise provided the heat for everything from community swimming pools to hot water in schools.

Communities across the US restrict the use of clotheslines for aesthetic reasons, even though it is estimated that clothes dryers account for 6% of America’s electrical consumption.

I’m sure that some of you remember Jini, an initiative launched in 1998 by Bill Joy of Sun Microsystems. This software was supposed to turn all the devices we use into ‘network citizens,’ as Joy said. It never really worked. And even if the electronic devices we own are increasingly network compatible, they still are unable to work together intelligently. This is why the European Union has funded a project to allow your fridge or your TV to communicate with your phone or your PC. This project, named Amigo, will end in February 2008 and was granted €13 millions by the EU. This project enrolled powerful partners such as France Telecom, Microsoft or Philips which pay the rest of the bill, expected to reach €23 millions. The researchers think their approach will be successful because it’s an entirely open source project and everyone can participate. But read more…

After ten years of research and development, Statkraft believes the time is now right to build the first osmotic power plant prototype and is therefore stepping up its initiatives and investments to develop the technology. With this decision Statkraft will have invested more than NOK 100 million to develop a new, renewable energy technology. The research work is supported by The Research Council of Norway.  The global technical potential for osmotic power production is estimated at around 1600 TWh, including around 200 TWh in Europe and 12 TWh in Norway, or 10 percent of Norway’s current power production. The innovation has already attracted attention in the international energy community.