2.3: Energy utilisation, storage and distribution

embodied energy

total energy required to produce a product.

energy utilisation

method with which energy is used.

• Total energy consumed in production (cradle to [factory] gate) and throughout the lifecycle of a product (cradle to grave)

• Is the sum of all energy needed to produce a product or service.

• It is highly useful to calculate how successful/effective a product or service produces or saves energy.

National and international grid systems

An electrical supply distribution network that can be national or international. International grids allow electricity generated in one country to be used in another.

energy distribution

method with which energy is transported from a source to where it is used.

• Energy is distributed over a national and international grid systems

• Egypt’s Aswan Dam produces enough electricity that Egypt sells it to The Sudan. On the USA and Mexico border there are three locations where power is sent across the border.

• Power nationally distributed is sent for domestic, commercial and industrial use including electric vehicles.

• This is a highly centralised grid system.

local combined heat and power (CHP)

A system that simultaneously generates heat and electricity from either the combustion of fuel, or a solar heat collector.

• efficient and clean approach to generating electric power and thermal energy from a single fuel source.

• replace or supplement conventional separate heat and power.

• Instead of purchasing electricity from the local utility company and burning fuel (oil, gas etc) in an on-site furnace or boiler to produce thermal energy.

• Reduces the negative impact to the environment

• Saves the consumer money

• Also known as co-generation

systems for individual energy generation

Individual energy generation is the ability of an individual to use devices to create small amounts of energy to run low-energy products.

• is the small-scale generation of heat and electric power by homes (also small businesses and small communities) to meet their own needs.

• It is an alternative or can supplement traditional centralized grid-connected power.

• Lower negative impact on the environment

• Lower costs for the consumer

• High initial capital cost

• Can sell excess electrical power back to the National Grid

• Also known as micro-generation

quantification and mitigation of carbon emissions

Defining numerically the carbon emissions generated by a particular product

quantificaiton

• record carbon emissions

• discover how much is being produced

• discover who/ where it is produced

• track your carbon footprint

mitigation

• Humans intervention in the reduction of carbon emissions

• These contribute to global warming

• Resulting in melting polar caps, rising seas, desertification,

• provide ‘Sinks’ that can reabsorb carbon emissions

• A ‘Sink’ are forests, vegetation or soils.

energy storage- batteries, capacitors and capacities

Energy Storage –The method with which energy is stored for later use.

• Battery is a device consisting of two or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy (Wikipedia)

• Capacitor is an electronic component that temporally stores electrical energy.

• Capacity is the amount of electric charge it can deliver (measured in amp-hours)

• Batteries have a huge impact on the portability of electronic products

  • Through the development of new technologies, batteries have become more efficient and smaller.

Different types of batteries

Most efficient:

• lithium, Li-Po (lithium polymer)

Least efficient:

• lead acid