Index of September 2010
Laser provides a better picture of methane and nitrous oxide emissions
Methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are powerful greenhouse gases that originate from industry, agriculture and nature. Thus far, it was extremely difficult to measure the emission of these gases in agricultural areas, ECN employees Petra Kroon and Arjan Hensen report. Fortunately, the Air Quality and Climate Change department at ECN now has a new method available to measure these emissions per hectare more accurately. Read more...
Dynamic building envelope much more energy-efficient
In winter, we sleep under thick blankets, but in summer we only need a thin sheet. Bart de Boer from Efficiency & Infrastructure is exploring the possibilities of developing a dynamic building envelope: “It is possible to reduce the demand for energy for heating and cooling by a factor of 10 whilst maintaining the same level of comfort.” Read more...
Climate-neutral electricity by 2050 is primarily a political challenge
“Climate-neutral electricity generation in Europe by 2050 is feasible, both in terms of technology and economics. But in order to achieve it, the European Commission and national governments will need to make a policy shift,” says Remko Ybema, head of the ECN’s Policy Studies unit. Read more...
The need for a powerful and smart electricity network
In forty years’ time, Europe will be able to meet half its electricity needs from solar cells and wind turbines. “In order to achieve this, there will have to be a massive increase in the capacity of the European high-voltage grid and smart medium- and low-voltage networks will need to be developed for local use,” says Frans Nieuwenhout of ECN’s Policy Studies. Read more...
‘We are aiming for the main prize’
An ECN hydrogen separation membrane was recently tested for 500 hours in Italy during the FISR demonstration project. Using the ECN membrane module to separate hydrogen from carbon dioxide at a high temperature increases the energy efficiency of the process by more than 10%. “A success that has greatly encouraged us to focus intensively on the Carena project that will start on 1 January 2011,” says an enthusiastic Yvonne van Delft, Project Leader at Efficiency & Infrastructure. Read more...
PV market grew by 50% last year despite crisis
In early September Valencia hosted the 25th edition of the European conference on photovoltaic solar energy (PV, or solar power). The 4,500 conference visitors could choose from 1,400 presentations in the form of lectures and posters. Some 1,000 companies presented themselves at the fair, including 35 Dutch firms. Read more...
Wind energy: market outperforms storage
"You often hear that the wind is too variable to contribute much to the electricity supply," says Arno Brand of ECN Wind Energy. "But when you take a closer look, it becomes obvious that the Dutch grid will easily manage." Read more...
Better printing delivers more solar power
Metallization is well in hand, or so the thinking went, says Jaap Hoornstra. Sufficiently understood, predictable, hard to improve. But large gains can still be made. Read more...
