The insulating properties of a material don’t normally vary. Applying an electric charge to a material can vary its electronic and magnetic qualities, but not its thermal conductivity, normally. David Chandler at MIT says now a team of researchers there have found a way to do it. Their “electrical heat valve” can increase the thermal conductivity of thin-film strontium cobalt oxide (SCO) on demand by running a charge through it after adding … [Read more...]
Energy Efficiency should target inefficient use, not all use
Energy efficiency should not just be a matter of reducing energy consumption. As renewables grow pricing and profits should encourage renewable consumption. After all, renewables aren’t a problem. And greater renewables consumption means less fossil fuels. Yet consumer pricing models with a low fixed price + high variable rate are designed to discourage all consumption, warns James Bushnell of the Energy Institute at Haas. He says we must … [Read more...]
Energy Data prototype: the “Living Lab” households
Everyone in the energy sector is talking about big – and intelligent – data. But it’s still early days and the benefits from all that potential are yet to register. The goal is greater energy efficiency; in consumption but also in planning future infrastructure and services that are tailored to local – not just regional - needs. Smart meters are only the first step, says Dr Richard Dobson at Energy Systems Catapult. The end game is the emergence … [Read more...]
Majority of EU countries unable to keep citizens warm this winter
Press releases this week from Friends of the Earth Europe and the European Greens highlight energy poverty levels on our doorstep in Europe. This followed the publication of new research on OpenEXP. It reminds you of the vital benefits of maximising energy efficiency - getting the same for less energy or getting more from the same. Amory Lovins (Rocky Mountain Institute) called upon us to "Imagine being able to save half the electricity for free … [Read more...]
Driving energy efficiency investment beyond 2020
With rising GDP, the European Union is once again at risk of missing the 2020 targets for energy efficiency, and yet more ambitious targets for 2030 lie ahead. Regulation, especially for energy efficiency in buildings, is already driving demand, according to the European Investment Bank, with commercial banks acting as aggregators. Peter Sweatman, rapporteur of the Energy Efficiency Financial Institutions Group is optimistic on the future … [Read more...]
Energy as a service: light, heat, mobility, information
Large scale electricity generators, unconcerned with end-use, want to sell you more electricity, argues Walt Patterson of the Hoffmann Centre for Sustainable Resource Economy, based at Chatham House. But the arrival of small-scale, localised and micro-grid suppliers could see the electricity generation business turned on its head. It opens the door to the selling of the service – light, heat, refrigeration, motive power, information – rather than … [Read more...]
Cañete: CCS will play a vital role in delivering a net-zero emissions economy
Commissioner Cañete confirmed this week that natural gas and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) will be central to achieving a competitive and climate-neutral economy, notably in closing the circle for the energy intensive sectors for which other solutions for decarbonisation do not exist. Moreover, combined with renewable biomass, CCS could create negative emissions compensating for remaining CO2. Eurogas Secretary General, James Watson, … [Read more...]
Online condition monitoring: making sense of sensors in the age of the Smart Grid
Grid operators across Europe are experiencing higher maintenance and reinforcement costs than ever before and, without significant increases in funding, are realising that they must fundamentally change the way that their assets are operated, maintained and replaced. This means running assets closer to their operational limits, performing predictive rather than corrective maintenance and replacing assets as close to the end of their useful life … [Read more...]
Digitalisation is changing the energy landscape
The energy sector is already using data in sophisticated ways to meet a wide range of challenges, from fault prediction in grid networks to the delivery of personalised energy to households. As more data becomes “big data” and smart devices proliferate along the value chain, Matt Brown and Ravi Mahendra of Pöyry Management Consulting make their predictions for more digitalisation in the coming year. … [Read more...]
Too “low-hanging fruit” is not sweet enough (and eventually neither clean nor cheap)!
At a lunch debate organised by the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) on “The costs of a low level of ambition in greening the heating and cooling sector” and hosted by EUFORES President MEP Jeppe Kofod on 30 January, representatives from industry, civil society, the European Commission (EC) and MEPs from several countries and political groups (Jeppe Kofod, Bendt Bendtsen, Theresa Griffin, Jo Leinen, Gesine Meissner and Paul Rübig) … [Read more...]
End of the road for the sale of Greece’s dirty fuel of the past
Greece’s economy was once powered by lignite. Today, continuing to invest in this most polluting fuel threatens to render Greece’s energy market uncompetitive, writes Eleni Diamantopoulou and Simon Holmes. Greece is at an energy crossroads. Decisions taken by the Greek government and the European Commission in the coming weeks and months will decide whether Greece is locked into an anti-competitive lignite world until at least 2030, or whether … [Read more...]
Understanding how consumers engage with energy data is essential for delivering a “Clean Energy Package for all Europeans”
In its new policy framework “the Clean Energy for All Europeans Package”, the European Commission highlights the key and central role of consumers in the global transition to a low-carbon society. It proposes to help consumers save money and energy through better information and give them a wider choice of action when choosing their participation in energy markets. … [Read more...]
Energy Efficiency gains must reduce our consumption, not just our bills
Energy Efficiency’s role in the mix of tools we use to reduce carbon emissions is crucial. But Energy Efficiency gains can have a rebound effect: as your bills reduce, you have more money to spend on more energy. We need incentives and policies to reduce actual consumption, otherwise we’re making it harder to cut emissions, argues Parakram Pyakurel of Southampton Solent University, UK. … [Read more...]
“Consuming less energy may act as disincentive for investment in renewables”
According to Anthony Patt, Professor of Climate Policy at the ETH Zürich in Switzerland, the less we spend on energy, the less attractive renewables can look to businesses and investment markets. Such remarkable insights fly in the face of received wisdom and defy logic. Patt claims his models show that doubling current energy efficiency improvement rates buys us only one extra year to hit the Paris targets. Really? - This is how Anthony … [Read more...]
Energy Efficiency targets: Time to ramp up investment in buildings, industry and vehicles
Energy efficiency investment rates need to double now, and then double again in 2025, to meet energy efficiency’s obligation to hitting the Paris targets. Right now there is a €130bn annual energy efficiency investment gap in Europe. Peter Sweatman, Rapporteur for EEFIG, looks at the assets themselves and says we need to productise the measurement of their energy efficiency, and then legislate. That’s how to make energy efficient homes, offices, … [Read more...]
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