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Hydrogen Vehicles Are on the Rise: Here’s What You Need to Know

Posted on by dishanth
Hydrogen Vehicles Are on the Rise: Here’s What You Need to Know

Hydrogen Vehicles Are on the Rise: Here’s What You Need to Know

The automotive industry is rapidly transitioning to alternative energy sources for fuel vehicles, considering the greenhouse gasses (GHGs) emitted every mile driven. Battery-electric cars are on the rise, but are better alternatives on the horizon?

Hydrogen emerged as a viable replacement for fossil fuels and could be the next big thing in the automotive industry. The rise of hydrogen fuel cells is coming sooner than you may think, so here’s what you need to know about these vehicles.

 

Rapid Market Growth

The future of hydrogen power is bright, as investors think it has massive potential for the automotive industry. Experts say the global hydrogen fuel cell vehicle market will have a compound annual growth rate of 43% until 2032, culminating in a $57.9 billion value. Automakers understand the severity of today’s climate crisis and use any means necessary to advance their sustainability goals.

 

Harnessing Hydrogen

Hydrogen is unstable, as it reacts with other atoms to form compounds. So, how can you harness this chemical element to be safe for your vehicle? Scientists typically use these methods for hydrogen fuel production:

  • Thermal: The Department of Energy (DoE) says about 95% of today’s hydrogen comes from repurposed natural gas. Scientists combine steam and hydrocarbon fuels to produce hydrogen fuel, requiring high temperatures and attention to detail.
  • Solar: Using renewable energy to produce clean fuel is smart, so experts have used solar power for hydrogen production. For instance, they can harness hydrogen fuel using bacteria and its natural photosynthetic activity.
  • Biology: Bacteria are also helpful for hydrogen fuel production through biological reactions. You can use microbes to break down biomass and wastewater, and these tiny organisms aren’t energy-intensive, as they harness sunlight for power.

 

Refueling Stations

Hydrogen fuel is already available if you live on the West Coast, as most of the existing stations are in California — primarily in Los Angeles and the Bay Area. You can also enjoy this alternative energy source in the Pacific Ocean at the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute. As hydrogen fuel grows in demand, you’ll see more opportunities to fill up with it.

The DoE says the United States has 59 retail hydrogen-fueling stations, but more projects are on the way. Fleet companies may have private areas for fueling their vehicles, especially as long-haul trucks convert to hydrogen fuel.

 

Can Semi-Trucks Use Hydrogen Fuel?

Battery-electric motors are a concern for larger vehicles like light-duty and long-haul trucks. These machines must be powerful enough to propel heavy machines for long distances, but their weight drains energy quickly. Will hydrogen fuel be a solution? The logistics industry has focused on this alternative fuel source for greener highways.

For instance, in 2025, Kenworth will begin full-scale production of Class 8 T680 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks in collaboration with Toyota. The heavy-duty truck manufacturer will deliver its first hydrogen-powered vehicles this year and then expand production.

While the fuel source changes, the typical qualities in hydrogen-powered trucks do not. This Kenworth Class 8 T680 truck has a max payload of 82,000 pounds, demonstrating its ability to carry a significant amount of goods.

The truck uses Toyota’s 310kW Dual Motor Assembly, as the Japanese automaker has prioritized hydrogen fuel research in the last decade. It recently released the second-generation Mirai, which mixes hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity.

States like California have imposed strict requirements for long-haul trucks and other vehicles, so hydrogen-powered trucks could be the answer for sustainability and dependable transportation. Kenworth tested hydrogen fuel cell technology at the Port of Los Angeles in 2022 and used its success to build the Class 8 T680 semi-truck. Continued success will likely mean further North American expansion.

 

Powering Outside the Highways

Hydrogen has become a viable option for passenger cars and even long-haul trucks in its early stages. However, highway vehicles are not the only method of transportation using hydrogen power. Last year, North America debuted its first hydrogen train in Quebec, Canada. This machine uses about 50 kg of hydrogen daily and eliminates dependence upon fossil fuels for these trips.

Hydro-Quebec provides energy for the train, enabling it to travel about 90 km between Quebec City and Baie-Saint-Paul. Emissions are less of a worry for the train, as you only see water vapor emerging from its pipes.

 

What Are the Benefits of Hydrogen-Powered Vehicles?

Hydrogen-powered vehicles are likely the future, as automakers heavily invest in the technologies required for these machines. Driving a hydrogen-powered car delivers these four benefits.

1. Reducing Emissions

Auto manufacturers like Toyota are pushing hydrogen fuel technology because of its eco-friendliness. The only emissions are water vapor and heat, thus making them better for the environment. Turning hydrogen fuel cells mainstream would reduce the amount of GHGs emitted daily, which is crucial to combating climate change.

The transition to hydrogen fuel cells would significantly boost the logistics industry, considering how many long-haul trucks hit the road daily. Research shows medium and heavy-duty vehicles in the U.S. emit over 400 million metric tons of GHGs. Converting trucks worldwide would help the surrounding environment and improve health for each road traveled.

2. Easy Transition

While converting existing trucks to hydrogen fuel cells takes time, the transition might be easier than you think. Logistics companies can keep their current gas transport and storage mechanisms, repurposing them for hydrogen fuel.

Additionally, truck owners wouldn’t have to jump through hoops to let their vehicles take hydrogen power. Retrofitting combustion engines for hydrogen power is more straightforward than with electric motors, especially with heavy trucks.

3. Beating Battery-Powered Vehicles

Battery-electric trucks are best for short drives due to their limited range. However, logistics companies need their vehicles to travel hundreds of miles each trip to keep deliveries on time. Hydrogen-powered trucks allow fleet owners to combine sustainability and efficient travel due to their range.

For instance, the Kenworth T680 hydrogen fuel-powered truck ranges up to 450 miles, depending on the driving conditions. Regardless, it’s more than you’d get from an electric truck. In fact, the Kenworth machine boasts one of the highest ranges for any semi-truck using alternative energy sources.

4. Rapid Refueling

Another significant advantage of hydrogen trucks over battery-electric vehicles is the quick refueling. Fully electric trucks will need to wait for a few hours before they can head back on the road, causing trips to be longer than scheduled. However, hydrogen machines only require a few minutes to fill up, greatly boosting logistics companies. The Kenworth hydrogen fuel cell vehicle lets fleet owners increase uptime and reduce lead times.

Foreshadowing a Bright Future

The automotive industry is pushing for fossil fuel alternatives to help the planet’s transportation sector. While battery-electric technology has existed for over a decade, hydrogen fuel cells are another way for automakers to produce cleaner vehicles.

The future of hydrogen vehicles is bright as researchers continue to improve the technology and bring it into the mainstream.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source  Happy Eco News

Coldplay work towards net zero on sustainable tour

Posted on by dishanth
Coldplay work towards net zero on sustainable tour

Live concerts and performances generate 405,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year, according to the Tyndall Centre for Climate Research.

Founded in the late 90s in London, Coldplay have been touring the world since 2000, and are revolutionizing touring to reduce their negative impact on the environment whilst maintaining positive interactions with fans globally.

Environmentally conscious touring

Their current world tour, Music of the Spheres, utilizes a range of new technology, company and charity partnerships and industry defining developments to combat their environmental influence.

The sustainability initiative is guided by three principles:

  • Reduce — less consumption, more recycling and cut CO2 emissions by 50% (in comparison to the 2016-17 tour)
  • Reinvent —support new green technologies (including kinetic dance floors) and develop new sustainable, super-low carbon touring methods
  • Restore — fund projects and draw down more CO2 than the tour produces

The journey to sustainable touring has been overseen by Green Nation and Hope Solutions.

“Playing live and finding connection with people is ultimately why we exist as a band. At the same time, we’re very conscious that the planet is facing a climate crisis,” say Coldplay.

“So we’ve spent the last two years consulting with environmental experts to make this tour as sustainable as possible, and, just as importantly, to harness the tour’s potential to push things forward. We won’t get everything right, but we’re committed to doing everything we can and sharing what we learn.”

Renewable energy powering the future of live music

A selection of different sustainable energy sources are utilized to power the world tour:

  • Coldplay have partnered with BMW to develop a mobile, rechargeable battery that can power 100% of the show with renewable energy, anywhere in the world. Created using recycled BMW i3 batteries, the battery is the first of its kind.
  • Fan power in the form of kinetic dancefloors and static bicycles is being harnessed. Energy Floors have created tiles especially for the tour that are durable, portable, and use the audience dancing power to charge the batteries running the show.
  • Sustainable biofuels for vehicles, solar photovoltaic panels to charge the batteries and where necessary make up the rest of the renewable, low-emission energy used to power the show and tour.

SAF: Providing sustainable flight options 

“Although the tour has been carefully routed and pre-planned to minimize air travel, some flying is unavoidable,” Coldplay’s sustainability pledge reads.

“For all flights, commercial and charter, we pay a surcharge to use or supply Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).”

The fuel is created from waste including used cooking oil, and can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from air travel by up to 80%.

Audience commitment to net-zero goal

Audience members are given reusable LED wristbands as part of the show. The bands are made from 100% compostable materials, and wristband production has been reduced 80% through collecting, sterilizing and recharging them after use.

Coldplay have collaborated with One Tree Planted to plant one tree for every ticket sold to the Music of the Spheres world tour, reducing the impact of the crowds.

The tour is also working with the non-profit organization Kulture City to make the tour inclusive for audience members with sensory issues through providing sensory bags and access to a mobile sensory room.

Partnering with SAP to reduce audience travel impact 

33% of the 405,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions generated by live concerts each year is from audience travel.

Coldplay are combating this through a free app, developed in partnership with software development company SAP. The app, which has had over 350,000 downloads since its launch in March 2022, encourages fans to use low carbon transport options and offers rewards through discount codes.

“With our technology and solutions, we empower organizations worldwide to drive sustainable change,” says Christian Klein, CEO of SAP.  “Coldplay and SAP share a common and profound commitment to sustainability, and we are thrilled to join forces to make their tour as environmentally friendly as possible.”

Coldplay’s sustainability goals — mid-tour review

The band have recently issued a statement regarding their sustainability goals so far through their tour, as reviewed by MIT’s Environmental Solutions Initiative.

“On a show-by-show comparison, the Music Of The Spheres Tour has so far produced 47% less CO2e emissions than our last stadium tour (2016-17),” the statement reads.

The update lists achievements so far, but is also realistic that it hasn’t hit its 50% target, and that there is still room to grow and improve.

What is the future for Coldplay’s sustainability initiatives? 

There seems to be no end in sight for the lengths that Coldplay will go to in an effort to reduce their environmental impact.

Alongside their direct actions, 10% of their income from all avenues going to the Good Causes Fund, supporting charities including:

  • The Ocean Cleanup
  • ClientEarth
  • One Tree Planted
  • Global Citizen

Whether you’re a fan of their music or not, it’s hard to deny that Coldplay are pioneers for the future of sustainability in live music.

 

 

Net Zero or Carbon Neutral? What’s the difference?

Posted on by dishanth
Net Zero or Carbon Neutral? What’s the difference?

PAS 2060, a Publicly Available Specification that has been used as a guideline for demonstrating carbon neutrality, makes it clear that carbon neutral should be used to mean all scopes not just scope 1 & 2 (fuels burned on site and in vehicles and electricity consumption). However there has been a growing habit over recent years to use “carbon neutral” to mean just operational emissions – ignoring the value chain (scope 3) even though for most companies between 70 and 95% of their emissions are from the value chain.

To be truly carbon neutral, a company needs to reduce emissions from all sources as much as possible and then offset or actively remove the remainder.

Net Zero uses the same concept but at a larger scale, aiming for emissions from all sources to be reduced as much as possible and the remainder mitigated through removals from the atmosphere. These could be through supporting natural systems which sequester carbon (forest, peat, wetlands, seagrass, etc) or through technology like carbon capture and storage and buried solid carbon sinks.

The ISO 14068 standard will be a certifiable standard that ensures that emissions from all scopes are considered. (Click here to request a link to a recording of our ISO 14068 webinar or a copy of a factsheet.)

As time goes on, we need to be more cautious about avoided emissions (like technology sharing to reduce dependence on wood burning for example) as that prevents emissions that would otherwise have happened but doesn’t actively remove anything. So, it’s more like moving a share of emissions from one emitter to another, but on a global scale we need to be keeping total emissions to a minimum not just reducing in one place and emitting in another. It’s really important to support low carbon international development, but I think we’ll see a change in attitude to the value of avoided emissions in offsetting in future. A simple 2 tonnes avoided per 1 tonne allocated offset credit (for avoided emissions projects only) would work for example, as for every tonne emitted in location A, 2 tonnes are prevented in location B ensuring the overall emissions are net zero.

In short, a company that is carbon neutral is also net zero (calculated on a year-by-year basis), as in both cases the tracking of carbon emissions and removals need to match.

 

 

 

 

Source edie

The great detox – Largest ever ban of toxic chemicals announced by EU

Posted on by dishanth
The great detox – Largest ever ban of toxic chemicals announced by EU

Europe will greatly accelerate the way it eliminates harmful chemicals, Brussels announced on Monday. Officials will block the use of large families of chemicals, instead of one by one. The EEB predicts that with this ‘the great detox’ 5,000 to 7,000 of the most notorious chemicals will be gone by 2030, including all flame retardants, bisphenols, PFAS and PVC plastics.
Thousands of the most notorious chemicals will be banned in Europe, officials announced on Monday, part of a zero pollution goal in the EU Green Deal.

The action will be the largest ever regulatory removal of authorised chemicals anywhere and covers substances that environmental, consumer and health groups have fought against for decades.

The news spread quickly, with 250+ headlines appearing across Europe, including at El Pais, Le Monde, The Guardian, TAZ, The Irish Times, Kurier, Le Soir and the front page of Denmark’s Information. Le Monde hailed the move as the “promise of a revolution” while the financial daily Les Echos wrote “Brussels intends to hit hard and aim wide.”

The plan is called the Restrictions Roadmap, a political commitment to use existing laws to ban all flame retardants, substances that are frequently linked to cancer, and all bisphenols, widely used in plastics but that disrupt hormones. It will also ban all forms of PVC, the least recyclable plastic that contains large amounts of toxic additives, and restrict all PFAS ‘forever chemicals’, plus around 2,000 harmful chemicals found in baby diapers, pacifiers, baby bottles and other childcare products. The list of chemicals is ‘rolling’, meaning substances could be removed or added.

European officials are unhappy that some 12,000 chemicals known to cause cancer, infertility, reduce vaccine effectiveness and generate other health impacts, are estimated by industry to be widely found in everyday consumer and professional products, including sensitive categories like baby nappies and pacifiers, but also food contact materials, clothes, furniture, etc. Officials consider the roadmap a rapid first step in an EU chemical strategy, with more fundamental changes coming later, starting in late 2022. The EEB estimates that the roadmap will lead to roughly 5,000 to 7,000 chemicals being banned by 2030.

Some chemicals on the roadmap list were already facing EU restrictions, but most are new. The banning process for all chemicals on the list will begin within two years. All substances will be gone by 2030, the EEB estimates.

Industry raised a “storm of protest” over early drafts of the plans and is expected to try to water them down. Chemicals make up the fourth largest industrial sector in the EU, with firms owned by some of Europe’s richest and most powerful men. Industry association CEFIC acknowledged in December that as many as 12,000 chemicals, present in 74% of consumer or professional products, have properties of serious health or environmental concern.

EU member governments unanimously support the roadmap, although Italy is opposing measures to ban PVC plastics.

 

European Environmental Bureau chemicals policy manager Tatiana Santos said:

“What Ursula Von der Leyen’s Commission has announced today opens a new chapter in facing down the growing threat from harmful chemicals. This ‘great detox’ promises to improve the safety of almost all manufactured products and rapidly lower the chemical intensity of our schools, homes and workplaces. All that said, this is a political commitment and not yet action. We’ll be watching officials closely to ensure they walk the talk.”

 

An estimated 200,000 chemicals are used in Europe. Global chemicals sales more than doubled between 2000 and 2017 and are expected to double again by 2030. By volume, three quarters of chemicals produced in Europe are hazardous. Scientists recently declared that chemical pollution had crossed a planetary boundary, while last month a UN environment report found that chemical pollution is causing more deaths than COVID-19.

Daily exposure to a mix of toxic substances is linked to rising health, fertility, developmental threats, as well as the collapse of insect, bird and mammal populations. Some 700 industrial chemicals are found in humans today that were not present in our grandparents. Doctors describe babies as born “pre-polluted”.

Official polling finds 84% of Europeans worried about the health impact of chemicals in products and 90% about their impact on the environment.

Traditionally, the EU regulates chemicals one by one, an approach that has failed to keep up with industrial development of a new chemical every 1.4 seconds. The EU has banned around 2,000 hazardous chemicals over the last 13 years, more than any other world region. But these restrictions apply to very few products, such as cosmetics and toys. Roughly the same substances will now be banned from childcare items, a larger product group than toys or cosmetics. In addition, most other chemical groups targeted in the roadmap will apply to many product groups, greatly expanding regulatory impact.

The roadmap will step up a group approach to regulating chemicals, where the most harmful member of a chemical family defines legal restrictions for the whole family. That should end a cynical and irresponsible industry practice of tweaking chemical formulations slightly to evade bans.

 

 

Source META

Nurturing greener tenants for more sustainable buildings

Posted on by dishanth
Nurturing greener tenants for more sustainable buildings

Switching lights off when they are not in use, turning up the temperature on air-conditioning, and saving water – these may seem like small actions, but they are vital to the fight against climate change.

Today, buildings are responsible for nearly 40 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions, with their construction and operations contributing 11 per cent and 28 per cent respectively. Efforts to improve their sustainability are not going far enough, and buildings remain “off track” to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 according to a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in November.

Managing climate-friendly and energy-efficient buildings is crucial to achieving the Paris Agreement’s goal of keeping global warming under 2 degrees Celsius, and preferably under 1.5°C, but there are many challenges.

“Since 2010, rising demand for energy services in buildings – particularly electricity to power cooling equipment, appliances and connected devices – has been outpacing energy efficiency and decarbonisation gains,” the IEA said. “Very high temperatures and prolonged heatwaves set records in many countries, driving up demand for air-conditioning.”

The United Nations, in its latest climate assessment published in February, added that if greenhouse gas emissions remain high, all Asian regions studied in the report – Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan and Vietnam – will be affected by dangerously high heat and humidity levels, sea level rise, flooding and other physical climate risks.

As governments aim to meet ambitious climate goals, they will increasingly look to the building sector to reduce its impact on the environment.

 

By accelerating digitalisation and embracing the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and other innovative digital technologies, we can achieve smarter, healthier and more sustainable buildings.

Chang Sau Sheong, chief executive, SP Digital

 

In Singapore, for instance, buildings make up over a third of the country’s electricity consumption. The city-state’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA) notes that the built environment plays a “major role” in helping to achieve the national sustainability agenda to tackle climate change and global warming.

This presents huge opportunities, and challenges, for landlords trying to drive efficiencies in commercial buildings. Technology is key in this effort, according to SP Digital, the digital arm of SP Group, a utilities group in Asia Pacific that focuses on low carbon, smart energy solutions.

“By accelerating digitalisation and embracing the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and other innovative digital technologies, we can achieve smarter, healthier and more sustainable buildings,” said Chang Sau Sheong, chief executive of SP Digital.

 

Mindset shifts key to green buildings 

Setting regulatory benchmarks and fiscal policies has helped to green buildings and boost efficiencies. Technologies and smart systems have also improved sustainability. But changing the behaviour of landlords and tenants could prove to be the biggest hurdle yet.

Dr Clayton Miller, assistant professor at the National University of Singapore (NUS) who leads its Building and Urban Data Science Lab, told Eco-Business that there are many underused green building technologies, including innovative cooling systems that tap on high temperature radiant, desiccant dehumidification and mixed-mode ventilation.

“There are too many decision-makers who want to play it safe and stick with conventional systems, because they are afraid that trying something different will bring problems,” he said.

Some property owners and landlords may be put off by the costs and difficulties of retrofitting older buildings for sustainability. For example, installing green technologies may require space that is scarce in buildings not designed for them.

“With the myriad of green technologies out there, one of the key challenges that building owners may face is simply how and where to start the retrofitting process,” added Associate Professor Kua Harn Wei, of the Department of the Built Environment, NUS School of Design and Environment.

 

A smart way to achieve sustainability

Tenants may be stymied by a lack of data too, noted Chang. “Most landlords and property owners provide monthly utility bills, which makes it challenging for tenants to know how and where to best focus their efficiency efforts, and track how they are faring,” according to Chang.

A typical office in Singapore expends most – 60 per cent – of its energy on cooling, according to BCA. Lighting takes up 15 per cent of consumption.

 

GET TenantCare is a smart and automated tenant submetering solution designed to help landlords and property owners efficiently manage tenant utilities consumption. [Click to enlarge] Image: SP Digital.

To give tenants and landlords more granular data to manage their energy and water use, SP Digital created Green Energy Tech (GET) TenantCare, a smart and automated tenant submetering solution. Tenants and landlords can get visibility of their utilities consumption in granularity of 30-minute intervals, unlocking more ways to save electricity and water. The platform not only increases operational efficiency, but can improve tenant engagement that will drive sustainability efforts, Chang said.

As a tenant, for instance, you can better understand how you use electricity, get alerted to unusual usage earlier, find out which of your equipment is using a lot of energy, whether through faults or inefficiency, and make changes to lower your energy consumption.

“If you’re a landlord, you can use our solution to automatically calculate your tenants’ energy use intensity, based on their units’ energy usage and gross floor area. You can identify which tenants are using more electricity than expected and engage with them to persuade them to adopt more energy-efficient equipment or habits,” Chang said.

Smart technologies have other advantages. With GET TenantCare’s automated meter readings, landlords do not have to deploy manpower to check on and read the meters. This also eliminates human errors in the readings.

Smart building management systems, connected to motion and other occupancy sensors and weather forecasting systems, can automatically adjust air-conditioning temperatures, switch off unneeded lights, and do more to save electricity and water while maintaining comfort for occupants.

 

Promoting greener behaviours

With insights from smart technologies leading to quick wins in energy and water savings, landlords and tenants may be more motivated to continue on their sustainability journey.

“If people have good experiences trying out sustainable behaviours, they are likely to repeat them and form green habits over time,” Dr Sonny Rosenthal, cluster director of smart and sustainable building technologies at the Energy Research Institute at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), told Eco-Business.

Other novel systems and ideas could enable tenants and landlords to work in tandem to slash the carbon footprint of the buildings they occupy.

SP Digital’s GET Engaged solution is a digital dashboard that provides updates on buildings’ electricity and water use, and the resulting carbon emissions. When displayed in lobbies and other public areas, the information could spur tenants to make more sustainable choices.

Equipping people with relevant skills is essential too. Last year, the Singapore government launched the Sustainability in Singapore programme, which trains people from organisations to be green ambassadors.

This includes teaching them how to design effective sustainability campaigns to persuade their colleagues and other occupants in their buildings to be more environmentally friendly.

BCA chief executive Kelvin Wong explained: “As a building user myself, we tend to think that staying in green buildings alone is sufficient. But this is not true. Practising sustainable behaviour within building premises is equally important to make the most of green buildings.”

“Hand in hand, both green buildings and sustainable user behaviour would translate to lower carbon emissions, with the added advantage of monetary savings,” he added.

The BCA has also created “green lease” toolkits to guide landlords and tenants in crafting mutually-agreed-upon, sustainability-related agreements for office and retail buildings. These would set out objectives for how the building is to be improved, managed and occupied to reduce its impact on the environment.

Greener buildings go beyond providing environmental and economic benefits, Chang noted. Greener buildings can also enhance occupants’ health and overall well-being.

 

 

Source Eco Business

How AI could help bring a sustainable reckoning to hydropower

Posted on by dishanth
How AI could help bring a sustainable reckoning to hydropower

Hydropower has been stirring up controversies since the early 2000s. Despite being promoted as a solution to mitigate climate change, the hydropower bubble burst when researchers discovered in 2005 that hydropower dams are responsible for huge amounts of greenhouse gas emissions.

Hydropower dams’ walls restrict the flow of rivers and turn them into pools of stagnant water. As these reservoirs age, organic matter like algal biomass and aquatic plants accumulates and eventually decomposes and sinks. That oxygen-poor environment stimulates methane production.

Reservoir surfaces and turbines then release methane into the atmosphere. Methane makes up approximately 80 percent of the greenhouse gases emitted from hydropower dams, peaking in the first decade of the dams lifecycle.

Methane is infamous for lingering around in the atmosphere for 12 years and is at least 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Researchers estimate that at least 10 percent of the world’s hydropower dams emit as much greenhouse gases per unit of energy as coal-fired power plants. In the Amazon basin, several existing dams are up to ten times more carbon-intensive than coal power plants.

Despite this, there is still an aggressive push for constructing new hydropower dams in the Brazilian Amazon and the Himalayas. “​​In light of this expected boom in construction of new hydropower dams, it is critical to identify whether future dams will produce low-carbon energy,” an international team of researchers wrote in a 2019 Nature Communications study.

 

Using AI to plan a more sustainable dam

To identify environmentally-friendly sites for new hydropower dams, the 2019 team harnessed data from a sophisticated computational model that uses artificial intelligence (AI). They observed that lowland dams in Brazil (a predominantly lowland country) tend to have large reservoir areas which yield significantly higher carbon intensities. The Brazilian Amazon has the highest number of carbon-intensive dams as compared to the mountainous parts of Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru. Higher elevation and steep topography, they found, make for less carbon-intensive hydropower.

New projects have been proposed at least 351 sites spread across the Amazon, which already is home to 158 hydropower dams. To find solutions for minimizing the environmental consequences of these projects, researchers are continuing to harness data with AI.

In a recent study published in the journal Science last week, a team of researchers utilized AI to scale the Amazon basin. They found that uncoordinated hydropower expansion resulted in forgone ecosystem benefits. Additionally, effective dam arrangements in other locations could generate four times more power.

“AI is being used by Wall Street, by social media, for all kinds of purposes – why not use AI to tackle serious problems like sustainability?” study author Carla Gomes, a computer scientist at Cornell University, said in a press release.

Various environmental criteria, like river flow and connectivity, greenhouse gas emissions, fish diversity, and sediment transport, of the entire Amazon basin, must be considered while selecting sites for new projects, the researchers argue.

While implementing policies based on such scientific evidence is vital for building sustainable hydropower dams, researchers are also looking for ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from existing projects via methane extraction.

 

Extracting—and using—reservoir methane

The idea to extract the methane accumulating in lakes and dam reservoirs for energy production is not new. In East Africa, saltwater-filled Lake Kivu holds 60 cubic kilometers of methane and another 300 cubic kilometers of dissolved carbon dioxide. The methane is extracted from the lake’s deep waters with a gas separator for producing electricity at the KivuWatt power plant in Rwanda.

Inspired by this possibility, Maciej Bartosiewicz, a geophysicist from the Polish Academy of Sciences, and his colleagues propose using solid mineral absorbents called zeolites for separating methane from reservoir sediments. In a study published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, they designed a model mechanism to deploy zeolites coupled with activated carbon that could be placed at the bottom of reservoirs.

So far, scientists have been unable to extract methane from freshwater bodies such as lakes and reservoirs because the gas is available at far lower concentrations. This has previously made methane extraction in smaller quantities far too expensive. But Bartosiewicz says zeolites are cheap and widely available, which could offer a viable solution.

“The system contains a gasification component that is a membrane in a box. Then zeolites could capture methane after removing carbon dioxide,” says Bartosiewicz. Installing a pumping system could further boost extraction.

Still, methane extraction from reservoirs’ sediments is not devoid of ecological consequences. The process could result in a significant disruption in the ecosystem’s biological composition by affecting the growth of bacteria that process methane in sediments—eventually impacting the food web productivity. In reservoirs and lakes where bottom methane levels are high, these bacteria are a vital source of food and energy for microscopic marine animals. Still, water bodies have the remarkable ability to self-regulate, argues Bartosiewicz.

“We still need to develop the next generation of solutions for renewable energy production. This could be a possibility,” he says. “Methane extraction will not be possible in all hydropower reservoirs. But if we can produce even five percent of energy from this methane, it will add to the quota of renewable energy.”

 

 

Source Popsci

Energy firms want APAC governments to step up in the energy transition

Posted on by dishanth
Energy firms want APAC governments to step up in the energy transition

Energy firms are pressing on governments in Asia-Pacific to facilitate the development of renewable power and technologies on the back of the COP26 global climate summit where countries pledged to slash greenhouse gas emissions.

In a series of forums organised by media firm Thomson Reuters last week, industry leaders said that political will is key to ensuring a smooth switch to green fuels.

Nitin Apte, chief executive of Singapore-based solar and wind power firm Vena Energy, said governments need to provide transparent and predictable pathways for companies to align with their sustainability targets in the next few decades.

“Projects that we develop take several years,” said Nitin. “They’re around for 20, 30 years in the communities that they are going to be built in.”

Nitin added that he wants to see countries collaborate and help firms on cross-border energy projects, pointing to examples like Singapore’s slated import of up to 100 megawatts of hydroelectric power from Laos. The venture involves Keppel Electric, a Singapore-based power retailer, and the Laotian state electricity company.

Other speakers said demand for hydrogen power from “centres of consumption” like Japan, China and Taiwan, could be fulfilled by Australian exports. Australia is set to become one of the world’s largest producers of green hydrogen.

 

Each country has a different history, a different energy mix. Does that mean each country will just look at its roadmap in isolation? I guess not, maybe that’s precisely where collaboration comes into play.

Valery Tubbax, chief financial officer, InterContinental Energy

 

“Each country has a different history, a different energy mix. Does that mean each country will just look at its roadmap in isolation? I guess not, maybe that’s precisely where collaboration comes into play,” said Valery Tubbax, chief financial officer of Hong Kong-based hydrogen power firm InterContinental Energy.

Chairperson of Taiwan’s Offshore Wind Industry Association Marina Hsu agreed, saying that associations can invest and advocate for development, but it’s the job of country leaders to “liaise and really think strategically” across the region.

Singapore Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling, speaking at the forum, said countries in Asia-Pacific need to play to their strengths, and “given different countries’ circumstances, the energy transition strategy for countries in APAC will really differ from one another”.

Low said Singapore is focusing on developing emerging technologies, and it recently awarded US$40 million to 12 projects on low-carbon hydrogen, as well as carbon capture, utilisation and storage.

“I hope we will only see an acceleration of the pace of deployment of carbon-neutral technologies,” said Thomas Baudlot, CEO of the Southeast Asia arm of French utility firm ENGIE.

But how much cash other governments in Asia-Pacific can pour into decarbonisation remains in question. In Southeast Asia, the Covid-19 pandemic caused delays in renewable energy projects and put a strain on the public purse to fund capital projects. Many member states’ climate pledges are also contingent on foreign funding.

 

Countries in ASEAN may need to place a greater emphasis on balancing social economics with sustainability.

Mohamad Irwan Aman, head of sustainability, Sarawak Energy

 

“Countries in ASEAN may need to place a greater emphasis on balancing social economics with sustainability,” said Mohamad Irwan Aman, head of sustainability at Malaysian utility firm Sarawak Energy.

Others point to the government’s role in managing private players to prevent a chaotic scramble for power generation and distribution markets. Australia’s electricity market hit a crisis point in 2017, when high wind and solar investments caused the closure of fossil fuel plants, while the grid was not prepared for intermittent power supply. After a series of black-outs and close shaves, the government worked on coordinating supply between power plants and invested in batteries – steps that led to a smoother roll-out of renewables in the years since.

“The foundation for net-zero in the energy infrastructure space, where everyone can be a winner, starts with a thought through and orchestrated plan,” said Morris Zhou, co-founder and executive chairman at Australian solar power firm Maoneng. “I believe that this responsibility sits with the policymakers around the world.”

Citing the need to adapt to climate change, Irwan said companies shouldn’t wait for policy changes before building a business case around addressing climate change. “This is not about environmental issues, it’s about the company’s survival in the long term,” he added.

 

Balancing green power and efficiency

Despite the rapid escalation in renewables, discussions also focused on increasing energy efficiency for existing power infrastructure, particularly in India, which will remain reliant on coal-fired power for some time. Currently the world’s third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases after China and the United States, India has pledged to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2070. While there will be an overall reduction of coal’s contribution to electricity in the coming years with the ramping-up of renewables, India’s coal consumption is expected to grow in absolute terms.

India’s electricity consumption per person increased by over 30 per cent since 2012, although it’s just 40 per cent of the world average in absolute terms. But as the middle class in the world’s second largest country expands, its energy demand in the next 20 years is expected to outstrip all other countries.

This means not just adding incremental power capacity with renewables, according to Raman Kalra, chief digital officer of Indian solar and wind energy firm ReNew Power, but making the efficiency of existing power assets “much, much higher”.

Kalra said that involves using digital technologies to make the electricity grid work optimally, and to create better public transport networks to take cars off the road. India’s car ownership is expected to increase five-fold by 2040, which will drive demand for oil.

Wasting power is not just India’s problem. A United Nations report found energy efficiency to be the most useful tool in curbing energy demand in Asia Pacific, followed by developing renewable energy. Mismanaged road traffic is the main culprit for energy inefficiencies, alongside manufacturing and a lack of building regulations for houses which end up wasting energy in heating and cooling.

The International Energy Agency also factors in a “major worldwide push to increase energy efficiency” in its projected net-zero scenario, where the 2030 world economy is 40 per cent larger but uses 7 per cent less energy.

 

No carbon is produced from energy that’s not used. It’s not been sexy to have that discussion, but it’s a missing piece.

Jeff Connolly, Chairman and CEO, Siemens Australia and New Zealand

 

“No carbon is produced from energy that’s not used. It’s not been sexy to have that discussion, but it’s a missing piece,” said Jeff Connolly, chairman and CEO of Siemens Australia and New Zealand. The firm provides energy management and tracking services.

While smart meters for energy optimisation, along with renewables like solar and wind, are ready for mass deployment, speakers conceded that other popular technologies like green hydrogen and carbon capture are nascent and expensive. But they’re bullish about the prospects.

“Technology has always surprised us on the upside,” said Vipul Tuli, South Asia CEO of Singapore energy firm Sembcorp.

 

 

Source Eco Business

Turning fungi into ‘bricks’ for construction

Posted on by dishanth
Turning fungi into ‘bricks’ for construction

A house or building made of mushrooms may sound far-fetched and fragile, but do not underestimate the strength of the mycelium, a hardy component of the fungi.

Researchers in Singapore and Switzerland are now studying the use of mycelium as a sustainable building construction material.

Mycelium is the vast underground root network of fungi.

The mushroom one sees is merely the fruiting body, making up just a small part of the fungus. This means the bulk of a fungus grows underground.

In a 2019 documentary titled Fantastic Fungi, it was reported that there are 480km of mycelium under every footstep one takes in the forest.

When cultured in the lab, a mass of mycelium looks like white fluff.

Although delicate-looking, this “fluff” is being turned into “mushroom bricks” for construction as part of a research project.

The branching threads are made of substances such as chitin and cellulose that are known to be strong, said Assistant Professor Hortense Le Ferrand, a co-investigator in the project under the Future Cities Lab (FCL) Global programme.

The programme was launched late last year at the Singapore-ETH Centre – a collaborative research centre between Singapore institutions and Swiss university ETH Zurich.

The research on using mycelium for building construction is one of eight projects in the programme focusing on enhancing the sustainability of cities and human settlements.

 

Buildings and construction generate about 40 per cent of planet-warming carbon dioxide, according to the 2019 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction. A quarter of the emissions came from manufacturing building materials and products such as glass, cement and steel.

Between 2016 and 2019, construction and demolition generated the largest amount of waste in Singapore – between 1.4 million and 1.6 million tonnes a year – although 99 per cent of the waste is recycled here. This is where mycelium comes in handy.

Mycelium cannot turn into an eco-friendly building block on its own. It needs plant-based waste or food waste such as sawdust, bamboo or coffee grounds as a medium.

When a fungus is grown on a bed of sawdust or corn stalks, the mycelium branches out and snakes through the fragments of waste, binding to them. It takes three to four weeks for the mycelium network to grow and bond with every fragment of waste. The mass is then cast into a mould to be shaped into a mushroom brick. Once the material has lived through its lifespan, it can be composted instead of filling up landfills.

 

Fungi is grown on a bed of sawdust and cornstalks, with the mycelium binding to the waste. After three to four weeks, the mycelium-based mass is cast into a mould to form the mushroom brick. PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE LIVING

 

The mushroom brick has been around for a few years, mainly showcased in installations. Now, the researchers want to optimise the use of mycelium for building construction.

Mycelium’s growth depends on factors including the species of fungi, type of plant-based waste, temperature and humidity, said Prof Le Ferrand at a virtual presentation hosted by FCL Global earlier this month.

Different species of fungi produce mycelium with different qualities.

“Studying the amount of chitin and cellulose that fungi produce is one way to find out which species and growth conditions yield the strongest mycelium,” said Prof Le Ferrand, who is a faculty member at Nanyang Technological University’s School of Materials Science and Engineering.

Over the next five years, Prof Le Ferrand and her team will conduct studies to optimise the growth of mycelium and explore how 3D printing can be used to build a mycelium-based structure.

 

The MycoTree – a branching structure made out of load-bearing mycelium components – that was exhibited at the Seoul Biennale of Architecture from September 2017 to March 2018. PHOTO: CARLINA TETERIS

 

The project’s team in ETH Zurich is improving on the mushroom brick’s function and exploring suitable architectural applications.

Dr Juney Lee, a senior researcher at the Swiss institute and another co-investigator of the project, said at the presentation: “These alternative and sustainable materials tend to be much weaker than concrete or steel, so they require an intelligent geometry and structural shape.”

 

Mushroom Bricks

Scientists from Singapore and Switzerland have recently embarked on a five-year research project to find out how a hardy component in fungi, known as mycelium, can be used in construction. Here are some details on the process.

 

What is mycelium?

 

The fluffy white material growing inside this petri-dish of agar is called mycelium. PHOTO: EUGENE SOH, NTU

 

Mycelium is the underground root network of a mushroom, with threads that are measured in kilometres.

Under an electron microscope, mycelium threads branch out to form an intricate, interconnected web. A mass of mycelium has more networks than the number of neural pathways in a brain.

 

Why is mycelium a promising construction material?

Mycelium is rich in substances such as cellulose and chitin which are known to be mechanically strong.

It is also re-resistant, lightweight, and absorbs sound.

When a fungus or mushroom grows on plant-based waste such as sawdust or corn stalks, the fast-growing mycelium threads will bind the loose waste materials together into a mass – forming the building blocks of a “mushroom brick”.

 

How is mycelium sustainable?

 

Mycelium growing on a bed of sawdust (left) and after a week’s worth of growth. PHOTOS: EUGENE SOH, NTU

 

Mycelium is organic and biodegradable – once a structure or furniture made of mycelium and agricultural waste has ended its lifespan, the material can be composted. This means the renewable building block can return to the earth instead of taking up space in landfills.

In addition, mycelium does not need to grow on soil. It can grow within agricultural waste such as used coffee grounds, leaves and bamboo fragments, including food waste. The threads also do not need to compete for land with food crops.

 

How does mycelium work?

 

A closer look at how the fine, mycelium web (centre) binds to bamboo fibre – to form a tightly connected mass. PHOTO: EUGENE SOH, NTU

 

As a fungus grows on the waste, the mycelium net gets thicker, and acts like a natural glue to fuse the loose materials together. Mycelium secretes proteins that allow the threads to bind with the fragments.

This process takes three to four weeks of growth for the web to hold everything together.

Factors affecting mycelium growth include the size and type of agricultural waste, temperature, humidity, amount of light and water, and species of fungus.

 

How do they become bricks?

 

Finished mushroom bricks. PHOTO: DR NAZANIN SAEIDI, SEC

 

The mycelium-based mass goes into a mould to be shaped into a building block to form the bricks. The bricks will then be heated or baked to stop the mycelium from continuing to grow.

 

How are mycelium bricks used?

Building materials made of mycelium or other sustainable materials are much weaker than conventional concrete or steel. Mushroom bricks are weak in tension. Therefore, structures made of mycelium-based blocks need intelligent, structural shapes to make them stable.

 

“Mushroom bricks” (background) made from mycelium and hemp, and after they have been hot-pressed into slabs (foreground). PHOTO: SELINA BITTING

 

Mushroom bricks can be put through a process of compressing to increase their density and their compressive strength.

Mycelium-based materials can also be used as floor tiles and acoustic panels.

  • Sources: Asst prof Hortense Le Ferrand, Dr Juney Lee, World-Archi Tects

 

 

Source The Straits Times

Think small to fight climate change

Posted on by dishanth
Think small to fight climate change

When applied to droughts, wildfires, hurricanes, floods, or other extreme weather events, the term “unprecedented” is getting old. In August, when the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its latest report about the dire realities we face, a drought exacerbated by global warming already had been raging for years across much of southern Africa.

It seems as though world leaders are finally ready to take meaningful action, but there’s a critical group regularly missing from key climate meetings like the recent United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow: local, climate-focused small businesses that already are making a difference in their communities. Small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) working on climate adaptation and mitigation are a crucial but underestimated partner in the fight to reduce emissions.

Even though climate financing options are increasing, SMEs’ role in sustainable development continues to be overlooked. Their predicament is one shared by more than 200 million SMEs of all types in developing countries that cannot get the funds they need to grow, facing an estimated US$5.2 trillion annual financing gap.

International investors focus on getting dollars out the door through larger deals, while local capital is kept on the sidelines by high collateral requirements and unmanageable interest rates for early-stage businesses.

SMEs represent 90 per cent of businesses and provide more than 50 per cent of jobs worldwide according to the World Bank, so they have a key role to play in creating opportunities in economies struggling to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Examples like SELCO India, a pioneering off-grid solar company, and Husk Power, an innovative pay-as-you-go renewable energy provider operating in Asia and Africa, show that with the right amount and type of financing and technical support, small businesses can improve lives through energy access – a key international goal. Off-grid renewables also help power sustainable mobility in both rural and urban settings.

Small businesses also have an important role to play in greening agriculture. Land use for crop and livestock production accounts for 24 per cent of global greenhouse-gas emissions, and farms are vulnerable to droughts, floods, and rising temperatures. Financing climate-smart agricultural entrepreneurs is essential for making our food systems more resilient.

Here, too, off-grid renewable energy has become indispensable, providing power for irrigation, processing grains, and operating the cold rooms and coolers needed to store dairy products, fresh seafood, and fruits and vegetables. In India, Technoserve is helping small farms withstand and adapt to the climate crisis and raise their productivity without increasing emissions.

As these examples show, when small businesses have the financing and support they need, they can drive economic growth while mitigating emissions and supporting adaptation to climate change. That is because small businesses are more agile and adaptable – and respond to local needs much faster and more effectively – than large organisations. They also offer governments and policymakers an opportunity to try out new ideas, revealing both pitfalls and best practices before initiatives are scaled regionally or nationally.

 

For starters, the world needs far more finance vehicles and instruments that are tailored to small businesses working in the green economy. That means a mix of lower-cost, long-term capital and blended finance, as well as easier access.

 

Achieving the global goal of net-zero emissions requires policymakers, investors, banks, and others to attend to SMEs’ needs much more effectively than they have in the past. For starters, the world needs far more finance vehicles and instruments that are tailored to small businesses working in the green economy. That means a mix of lower-cost, long-term capital and blended finance, as well as easier access.

The world also needs more business accelerators focused on adaptation to climate change. There are only 25 such green accelerators located in non-OECD countries. Funding research and establishing professional networks will drive support to businesses that have strong growth potential.

Better metrics to assess success will be needed. That does not mean lowering environmental, social, and governance standards. Instead, it means devising indicators specifically for green enterprises in the SME sector to help them demonstrate their effectiveness and attract more investment.

Finally, investors must not overlook women, who produce up to 80 per cent of food in the Global South. Women also are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Investing in female climate entrepreneurs benefits the climate, food production, and overall prosperity.

Small businesses are integral to climate-change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience. Providing them the financing and support necessary to help them succeed is in everyone’s interest.

Kristina Skierka is CEO of Power for All. Richenda Van Leeuwen is Executive Director of the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs.

© Project Syndicate, 2021

 

 

Source Eco Business