"Wisdom begins in wonder" – Socrates
Tag: Mechanical Engineering
The European Union Has Just Unveiled It’s Zero Carbon Emission Plan
11/29/18
“How will the EU become carbon neutral?”
Breaking news. The European Union, accounting for 10 % of carbon emissions globally, has recently unveiled its long-term plan to cut its carbon emissions to zero by 2050. Although its 2030 goals will not be changed, it does give more focus to the following decades. This will be an extremely exciting event for years to come.
How Battery Storage can help Black Starts
11/27/18
“How can battery storage help with black starts?”
In order to recover from power outages, black starts are a necessary firsts step. This can be helped with battery storage since their geographically distributed nature will make them more resilient. This is How Battery Storage can help Black Starts.
Steam Accumulators
11/25/18
“How can we store energy using steam?”
With the advent of the new energy paradigm, energy storage will play a bigger and bigger factor. Although batteries are promising, they are not an all-encompassing technology and will need support from other systems.
One simple method for storing energy involves steam. What if we were to have a container half filled with cold water and connected to a boiler. Steam can be blown if from the boiler into the container, which condenses and warms the water. When the water is about ¾ of the height, it will be considered stable. A valve can then be opened to release energy by driving the steam through a turbine and boiling the water from the resulting pressure drop. This system is known as a Steam Accumulator and is being constructed in conjunction with many solar thermal plants.
Why Wind Energy has Difficulty with Black Starts
11/24/18
“Why does wind energy have difficulty with getting up after a blackout?”
When energy systems suffer from a blackout, black starts are used to make them come online again. However, wind energy has difficulty with black starts this since a gust may not be blowing at the necessary start times.
Fire Resiliency in the Bay Area
11/17/18
“How can the Bay Area Adapt to Climate Change-Induced Fires?”
The climate is changing drastically around the world. Temperatures are rising, and dry areas are getting drier. And one of the hardest-hit places right now is in Northern California. As a result of the (as of writing) on-going Butte County Fire, smoke has filled the air of the San Francisco Bay, making it deadlier to breathe in than New Delhi! And with the warming climate, things are only going to get worse.
But things can be done about this. To build resiliency against future fire-related disasters, The Bay Area can enact stricter fire codes, install more ventilation systems in buildings, create underground tunnels between critical infrastructure areas so people can avoid air pollution, and have N95 mask distribution stations. This way, Fire Resilience can be built in the Bay Area
Hybrid Electric Buildings
11/10/18
“How can we truly combine battery and grid power for buildings?”
With the advent of the new energy paradigm, building energy systems will become more integrated with solar+storage. Consequently, buildings must integrate that their energy with both the electric grid and storage mechanisms simultaneously. To serve as a model, Hybrid Electric Buildings are being created that can seamlessly integrate both sources in real time.
Distributed Gas Generation
11/07/18
“How can natural gas energy generation be distributed?”
The future of energy is becoming more and more distributed. And the natural gas industry is taking note. As a result, more and more distributed gas generation is coming online that may serve to contemplate renewable intermittency.
Image credit https://dqbasmyouzti2.cloudfront.net
How Industrial IoT can Help Improve Energy Efficiency in Manufacturing
11/06/18
“How can connectivity help with efficiency in manufacturing?”
The digital revolution of the Internet of Things is transforming everything in its wake, and manufacturing is no exception. With increased connectivity, automation can be made much more efficiency, therefore reducing energy consumption used and greenhouse gas emissions generated. This is just a small example of How Industrial IoT can Help Improve Energy Efficiency in Manufacturing.
Image credit negromanosphere.com
The Kilogram is Being Redefined
11/04/18
“How is the Kilogram being redefined?”
A massive shift has just happened in the physics community. For over a century our measurement for the kilogram has been based off an official block sealed in vaults below Paris. However, after many decades of work and false starts, a committee has convened to redefine the kilogram based not on an artifact of nature but instead on Plank’s constant. As a result we now have a truly uniform system of fundamental units!
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