Fundamental Concepts behind the Development of Gamma-Ray, Directed Energy Sources

We discuss novel advanced concepts suitable for the practical design of gamma-ray sources of directed energy. One concept is based on the self-channeling of a powerful optical laser in a gas within a metal tube. Another concept employs a direct excitation of a quadrupole nuclear level by a powerful optical laser. The third concept is based on the process of a high-order harmonic generation by an x-ray laser. All three concepts can be used for designing gamma-ray lasers that would have significant advantages over x-ray lasers. First, missile defense systems employing gamma-ray lasers would be weather independent. Second, the gamma-ray laser radiation can penetrate through the sand, which could be suspended in the air in a desert either naturally (due to strong winds) or artificially (as a protective “shield”). Besides, the first out of the three concepts can beemployed for creating non-laser gamma-ray sources of directed energy to be used for detecting stored radioactive materials, including the radioactive materials carried by an aircraft or a satellite. Last but not least: these concepts can be also used for remotely destroying biological and chemical weapons as a preemptive strike or during its delivery phase, as well as for distinguishing a nuclear warhead from decoy warheads. Thus, the defense capabilities of the proposed gamma-ray lasers can save numerous lives.

An Approach for Cost-Efficient Grid Integration of Distributed Renewable Energy Sources

We describe a specific approach to capacity man a ge ment for distribution grids. Based on simulations, it has been found that by curtailing a maximum of 5% of the yearly energy production on a per-generator basis, distribution grid connection capacity can be doubled. We also present the setting and fi rst results of a fi eld test for validating the approach in a rural distribution grid in northern Germany.

Effect of Different Energy Sources on Ochrobactrum anthropi Bacteria Chromium Reduction

Ochrobactrum anthropi CTS-325 isolated from a chromium-contaminated site had better resistance to Cr（Ⅵ） in LB medium under aerobic condition.Meanwhile,it was found that the reduction of Cr（Ⅵ） is not complete during the experimental process.Therefore,a series of small molecule energy sources including nitrogen and carbon sources were added into the LB medium in the bacterial stationary phase to promote the chromium reducibility.The result showed that the bacterial growth was positively correlated with the chromium reduction.SDS-PAGE analysis indicated that the protein groups were changed when the bacteria were stimulated by the chromium.Additionally,it was revealed that O.anthropi CTS-325 could utilize the cheaper alternative of sugar（sucrose residue leaching solution） well for further growth and restart the chromium reduction,which offered a new method for practical appli-cations.

Economic Factors in the Use of Renewable Energy Sources in Kazakhstan

The purpose of this research was to study economic incentives to use renewable energy sources in the Republic of Kazakhstan and to give suggestions for production and circulation of the ＂green＂ certificates as a new financial instrument. The author analyzed European Union and Kazakhstani experience of economic incentives to reduce emissions and introduction of renewable energy sources. As a result of conducted research, the proposal to produce and circulate new financial instruments in Kazakhstan is made; as well as economic and environmental factors of renewable energy sources in the Republic of Kazakhstan are defined.

Cost Optimization Modeling of Renewable Energy Sources in Smart-Grid Using SCADA

In recent times, renewable energy production from renewable energy sources is an alternative way to fulfill the increased energy demands. However, the increasing energy demand rate places more pressure, leading to the termination of conventional energy resources. However, the cost of power generation from coal-fired plants is higher than the power generation’s price from renewable energy sources. This experiment is focused on cost optimization during power generation through pumped storage power plant and wind power plant. The entire modeling of cost optimization has been conducted in two parts. The mathematical modeling was done using MATLAB simulation while the hydro and wind power plant’s emulation was performed using SCADA (Supervisory control and data acquisition) designer implementation. The experiment was conducted using ranges of generated power from both power sources. The optimum combination of output power and cost from both generators is determined via MATLAB simulation within the assumed generated output power range. Secondly, the hydro-generator and wind generator’s emulation were executed individually through synchronizing the grid to determine each generator’s specification using SCADA designer, which provided the optimum power generation from both generators with the specific speed, aligning with results generated through MATLAB. Finally, the operational power cost (with no losses consideration) from MATLAB was compared with the local energy provider to determine the cost-efficiency. This experiment has provided the operational cost optimization of the hydro-wind combined power system with stable wind power generation using SCADA, which will ultimately assist in operations of large-scale power systems, remotely minimizing multi-area dynamic issues while maximizing the system efficiency.

Renewable Energy Sources A Promising Opportunity for Remote Mine Sites

Mining industry is a substantial consumer of the energy indispensable to power mining and mineral processing equipment and processes. As more and more mine operations move to remote locations, the access to reliable, secure and environment friendly energy sources becomes a key concern. At present, a great majority of remote mines relies heavily on diesel fuel that has to be transported over long distances. In this context, some of the renewable energy sources such as wind power or solar energy seem to provide potentially interesting and viable alternatives. Mine operations, however, have a very particular character, much different from other industries and from other potential applications of renewable power sources. This paper presents operational conditions of some mining operations, particularly those in remote regions, in the context of their energy needs. The authors analyse current and future capacities to decrease a reliance of remote mines on conventional fuels and energy. The paper also analyses and discusses the conditions to be met by alternative energy sources so that they might become a viable alternative for remote mining operations.

An Optimization Approach for Unit Commitment of a Power System Integrated with Renewable Energy Sources： A Case Study of Afghanistan

This paper focused on generation scheduling problem with consideration of wind, solar and PHES （pumped hydro energy storage） system. Wind, solar and PHES are being considered in the NEPS （northeast power system） of Afghanistan to schedule all units power output so as to minimize the total operation cost of thermal units plus aggregate imported power tariffs during the scheduling horizon, subject to the system and unit operation constraints. Apart from determining the optimal output power of each unit, this research also involves in deciding the on/off status of thermal units. In order to find the optimal values of the variables, GA （genetic algorithm） is proposed. The algorithm performs efficiently in various sized thermal power system with equivalent wind, solar and PHES and can produce a high-quality solution. Simulation results reveal that with wind, solar and PHES the system is the most-cost effective than the other combinations.

A Study on the Commonly Adopted Energy Sources and Production Systems for Domestic Hot Water in the Calabria Region (Italy)

Worldwide,there are many options to ensure domestic hot water(DHW)provision in dwellings.This study aimed to depict the distribution of energy sources and DHW production systems in the Calabria region.The research was focused on understanding which variables,among contextual variables and building characteristics,may influence the adoption of a particular energy source or production system.Descriptive statistics and chi-square test of independence have been developed.Significant relationships were found between the climatic zone and the energy source used as well as between the climatic zone and the production system installed in both households with a separated and a combined DHW production system.Furthermore,the population of the municipality and the dwelling type resulted to be significant variables for the preference of an energy source or the diffusion of a combined production system.

Accelerated Particle Swarm Optimization for Controlling Virtual Power Plant Consisting of Renewable Energy Sources

RES （renewable energy sources）, such as wind and photovoltaic power plants, suffer from their stochastic nature that is why their behavior on market is very delicate. In order to diversify risk, a concept of VPP （virtual power plant） has been developed. The VPP is composed of several RES, from which at least one of them is fully controllable. Because the production of noncontrollable RES can not be forecasted perfectly, therefore an optimal dispatch schedule within VPP is needed. To address this problem, an APSO （accelerated particle swarm optimization） is used to solve the constrained optimal dispatch problem within VPP. The experimental results show that the proposed optimization method provides high quality solutions while meeting constraints.

An active pipe-embedded building envelope for utilizing low-grade energy sources

An active pipe-embedded building envelope, which is an external wall or roof with pipes embedded inside, was presented. This structure may utilize the circulating water in the pipe to transfer heat or coolth inside directly. This kind of structure is named ＂active pipe-embedded building envelope＂ due to dealing with the thermal energy actively inside the structure mass by circulating water. This structure not only deals with thermal energy before the external disturbance becomes cooling/heating load by using the circulating water, but also may use low-grade energy sources such as evaporative cooling, solar energy, and geothermal energy. In the meantime, this structure can also improve the indoor thermal comfort by tempering the internal wall surface temperature variation due to the thermal removal in the mass. This work further presents the thermal performance of this structure under a typical hot summer weather condition by comparing it with that of the conventional external wall/roof with numerical simulation. The results show that this pipe-embedded structure may reduce the external heat transfer significantly and reduce the internal wall surface temperature for improving thermal comfort. This work also presents the effects of the water temperature and the pipe spacing on the heat transfer of this structure. The internal surface heat transfer may reduce by about 2.6 W/mE when the water temperature reduces by 1℃ as far as a brick wall with pipes embedded inside is concerned. When the pipe spacing reduces by 50 mm, the internal wall surface heat flux can also reduce by about 2.3 W/m2.

Exact Box-Constrained Economic Operating Region for Power Grids Considering Renewable Energy Sources

The growing integration of renewable energy sources manifests as an effective strategy for reducing carbon emissions. This paper strives to efficiently approximate the set of optimal scheduling plans(OSPs) to enhance the performance of the steady-state adaptive cruise method(SACM) of power grid, improving the ability of dealing with operational uncertainties. Initially, we provide a mathematical definition of the exact boxconstrained economic operating region(EBC-EOR) for the power grid and its dispatchable components. Following this, we introduce an EBC-EOR formulation algorithm and the corresponding bi-level optimization models designed to explore the economic operating boundaries. In addition, we propose an enhanced big-M method to expedite the computation of the EBCEOR. Finally, the effectiveness of the EBC-EOR formulation, its economic attributes, correlation with the scheduling plan underpinned by model predictive control, and the significant improvement in computational efficiency(over twelvefold) are verified through case studies conducted on two test systems..

Enhancing Renewable Energy Integration:A Gaussian-Bare-Bones Levy Cheetah Optimization Approach to Optimal Power Flow in Electrical Networks

In the contemporary era,the global expansion of electrical grids is propelled by various renewable energy sources(RESs).Efficient integration of stochastic RESs and optimal power flow(OPF)management are critical for network optimization.This study introduces an innovative solution,the Gaussian Bare-Bones Levy Cheetah Optimizer(GBBLCO),addressing OPF challenges in power generation systems with stochastic RESs.The primary objective is to minimize the total operating costs of RESs,considering four functions:overall operating costs,voltage deviation management,emissions reduction,voltage stability index(VSI)and power loss mitigation.Additionally,a carbon tax is included in the objective function to reduce carbon emissions.Thorough scrutiny,using modified IEEE 30-bus and IEEE 118-bus systems,validates GBBLCO’s superior performance in achieving optimal solutions.Simulation results demonstrate GBBLCO’s efficacy in six optimization scenarios:total cost with valve point effects,total cost with emission and carbon tax,total cost with prohibited operating zones,active power loss optimization,voltage deviation optimization and enhancing voltage stability index(VSI).GBBLCO outperforms conventional techniques in each scenario,showcasing rapid convergence and superior solution quality.Notably,GBBLCO navigates complexities introduced by valve point effects,adapts to environmental constraints,optimizes costs while considering prohibited operating zones,minimizes active power losses,and optimizes voltage deviation by enhancing the voltage stability index(VSI)effectively.This research significantly contributes to advancing OPF,emphasizing GBBLCO’s improved global search capabilities and ability to address challenges related to local minima.GBBLCO emerges as a versatile and robust optimization tool for diverse challenges in power systems,offering a promising solution for the evolving needs of renewable energy-integrated power grids.

Energy Storage Systems Technologies, Evolution and Applications

Energy in its varied forms and applications has become the main driver of today’s modern society. However, recent changes in power demand and climatic changes (decarbonization policy) has awakened the need to rethink through the current energy generating and distribution system. This led to the exploration of other energy sources of which renewable energy (like thermal, solar and wind energy) is fast becoming an integral part of most energy system. However, this innovative and promising energy source is highly unreliable in maintaining a constant peak power that matches demand. Energy storage systems have thus been highlighted as a solution in managing such imbalances and maintaining the stability of supply. Energy storage technologies absorb and store energy, and release it on demand. This includes gravitational potential energy (pumped hydroelectric), chemical energy (batteries), kinetic energy (flywheels or compressed air), and energy in the form of electrical (capacitors) and magnetic fields. This paper provides a detailed and comprehensive overview of some of the state-of-the-art energy storage technologies, its evolution, classification, and comparison along with various area of applications. Also highlighted in this paper is a plethora of power electronic Interface technologies that plays a significant role in enabling optimum performance and utilization of energy storage systems in different areas of application.

Frequency-based control of islanded microgrid with renewable energy sources and energy storage

When a microgrid is mainly supplied by renewable energy sources(RESs), the frequency deviations may deteriorate significantly the power quality delivered to the loads. This paper proposes a frequency-based control strategy, ensuring the frequency among the strict limits imposed by the Standard EN 50160. The frequency of the microgrid common AC bus is determined by the energy storage converter, implementing a proposed droop curve among the state of charge(SoC) of the battery and the frequency. Therefore, the information of the SoC becomes known to every distributed energy resource(DER) of the microgrid and determines the active power injection of the converter-interfaced DERs. The active power injection of the rotating generators remains unaffected, while any mismatch among the power generation and consumption is absorbed by the energy storage system. Finally, in case of a solid short-circuit within the microgrid, the energy storage system detects the severe voltage decrease and injects a large current in order to clear the fault by activating the protection device closer to the fault. The proposed control methodology is applied in a microgrid with PVs, wind generators and a battery, while its effectiveness is evaluated by detailed simulation tests.

Multi-objective energy management in microgrids with hybrid energy sources and battery energy storage systems

Microgrid with hybrid renewable energy sources is a promising solution where the distribution network expansion is unfeasible or not economical.Integration of renewable energy sources provides energy security,substantial cost savings and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions,enabling nation to meet emission targets.Microgrid energy management is a challenging task for microgrid operator(MGO)for optimal energy utilization in microgrid with penetration of renewable energy sources,energy storage devices and demand response.In this paper,optimal energy dispatch strategy is established for grid connected and standalone microgrids integrated with photovoltaic(PV),wind turbine(WT),fuel cell(FC),micro turbine(MT),diesel generator(DG)and battery energy storage system(ESS).Techno-economic benefits are demonstrated for the hybrid power system.So far,microgrid energy management problem has been addressed with the aim of minimizing operating cost only.However,the issues of power losses and environment i.e.,emission-related objectives need to be addressed for effective energy management of microgrid system.In this paper,microgrid energy management(MGEM)is formulated as mixedinteger linear programming and a new multi-objective solution is proposed for MGEM along with demand response program.Demand response is included in the optimization problem to demonstrate it’s impact on optimal energy dispatch and techno-commercial benefits.Fuzzy interface has been developed for optimal scheduling of ESS.Simulation results are obtained for the optimal capacity of PV,WT,DG,MT,FC,converter,BES,charging/discharging scheduling,state of charge of battery,power exchange with grid,annual net present cost,cost of energy,initial cost,operational cost,fuel cost and penalty of greenhouse gases emissions.The results show that CO_(2) emissions in standalone hybrid microgrid system is reduced by 51.60%compared to traditional system with grid only.Simulation results obtained with the proposed method is compared with various evolutionary algorithms to verify it’s effectiveness.

Double-uncertainty optimal operation of hybrid AC/DC microgrids with high proportion of intermittent energy sources

This paper applies double-uncertainty optimization theory to the operation of AC/DC hybrid microgrids to deal with uncertainties caused by a high proportion of intermittent energy sources.A fuzzy stochastic expectation economic model for day-ahead scheduling based on uncertain optimization theory is proposed to minimize the operational costs of hybrid AC/DC microgrids.The fuzzy stochastic alternating direction multiplier method is proposed to solve the double-uncertainty optimization problem.A real-time intra-day unbalanced power adjustment model is established to minimize real-time adjustment costs.Through comparative analysis of deterministic optimization,stochastic optimization and fuzzy stochastic optimization of day-ahead scheduling and real-time adjustment,the validity of fuzzy stochastic optimization based on a fuzzy stochastic expectation model is proved.

Use of rural energy resources and eco-environmental degradation in Tibet

Cattle dung, firewood, and crop straw have being used as survival necessities by farmers and herdsmen for thousands of years in Tibet. Until recently such biotic energy source still constitutes more than 92 per cent of total rural energy consumption due to lack of petroleum, coal and new alternative energy sources. As a result, environmental degradation such as land desertification, soil erosion, grassland degradation and soil fertility reduction is increasingly aggravated, the area of desertified land has increased 1467.5 km2 from 1991 to 1997. Degraded area of grassland has reached 2.60×107hm2, increased by 116.1% from 1987 to 1996. To prevent further deterioration of eco-environment in Tibet great efforts should be made to make full use of ample solar energy, wind energy and other biotic energy of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The solar cooking stoves and solar hothouse, expand forest area and replace existing abiotic energy sources with firewood forest should be popularized. This is an urgent task to protect the eco-environment of Tibet today.

KPI-based Real-time Situational Awareness for Power Systems with a High Proportion of Renewable Energy Sources

With the increasing complexity of power systems and the widespread penetration of renewable energy sources(RES),real-time situational awareness for power systems is of great significance for operational scheduling.Considering the impact of RES on power system operations,a situational awareness key performance index(KPI)system for power systems with a high proportion of RES is proposed in this paper,which consists of reserve capacity abundance,ramp resource abundance,center of inertia(COI)frequency deviation,interface power flow margin,synthesized voltage stability,and angle stability margin.Then,the KPIs are synthesized and visualized by the decision tree method and radar chart method,respectively,for monitoring the operation states(i.e,normal,alert,and emergency states)of power systems with a high proportion of RES.Numerical simulations are conducted in a revised New England 16-machine 68-bus power system and an actual CEPRI-RE power system in the northwest region of China with a high proportion of RES.The results show that the proposed KPI-based situational awareness method is able to accurately monitor the real-time state of power systems with a high proportion of RES,and can assist power dispatchers to make effective decisions.

Adaptive coordination control strategy of renewable energy sources,hydrogen production unit,and fuel celi for frequency regulation of a hybrid distributed power system

Owing to the significant number of hybrid generation systems(HGSs)containing various energy sources,coordina-tion between these sources plays a vital role in preserving frequency stability.In this paper,an adaptive coordination control strategy for renewable energy sources(RESs),an aqua electrolyzer(AE)for hydrogen production,and a fuel cell(FC)-based energy storage system(ESS)is proposed to enhance the frequency stability of an HGS.In the proposed system,the excess energy from RESs is used to power electrolysis via an AE for hydrogen energy storage in FCs.The proposed method is based on a proportional-integral(Pl)controller,which is optimally designed using a grey wolf optimization(GWO)algorithm to estimate the surplus energy from RESs(ie,a proportion of total power generation of RESs:Kn).The studied HGS contains various types of generation systems including a diesel generator,wind tur-bines,photovoltaic(PV)systems,AE with FCs,and ESSs(e.g.,battery and flywheel).The proposed method varies Kn with varying frequency deviation values to obtain the best benefits from RESs,while damping the frequency fluc-tuations.The proposed method is validated by considering different loading conditions and comparing with other existing studies that consider Kn as a constant value.The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed method,which changes Kn value and subsequently stores the power extracted from the RESs in hydrogen energy storage according to frequency deviation changes,performs better than those that use constant Kn.The statistical analysis for frequency deviation of HGS with the proposed method has the best values and achieves large improvements for minimum,maximum,difference between maximum and minimum,mean,and standard deviation compared to the existing method.

Alternative Energy Sources Gain Worldwide

风能和太阳能展示新的希望:清洁、廉价并能创造新的就业机会,难怪许多国家竞相发展。