Journal Paper Accepted at Applied Energy Journal: Quantitative engineering systems modeling and analysis of the energy-water nexus
The LIINES is happy to announce that Applied Energy Journal has accepted our recent paper entitled: “Quantitative engineering systems modeling and analysis of the energy–water nexus” for publication. The paper is authored by William N. Lubega and Prof. Amro M. Farid.
Electric power is required to extract, condition, convey, dispose of and recycle water for human use. At the same time, the bulk of global electricity generation capacity uses water as a heat sink or prime mover. This energy-water nexus is of growing importance due to increased demand for water and electricity; distortion of the temporal and spatial availability of fresh water due to climate change; as well as various drivers of more energy-intense water supply for example increased wastewater treatment requirements, and more water-intense electricity generation for example emissions control technologies at power plants.
There are several notable published studies on this nexus. At a technology level, there have been attempts to optimize coupling points between the electricity and water systems to reduce the water-intensity of technologies in the former and the energy-intensity of technologies in the latter. Empirical determinations of the electricity-intensity of water technologies and the water-intensity of electricity technologies have been reported and analyzed. Various models that enable the exploration of the water resource implications of defined electricity sector development pathways and thus support the analysis of various water and electricity policies have also been developed. To our knowledge however, a transparent physics-based approach that interfaces a model of the electricity system to models of the municipal water and wastewater systems enabling an input-output analysis of these three systems in unison has not been presented. Such a modeling approach would support integrated control applications as well as integrated planning without a priori specification of development pathways, for example through optimization.
A paper recently published by the LIINES in Applied Energy titled “Quantitative engineering systems modeling and analysis of the energy–water nexus” presents such a systems-of-system model. In this work, bond graphs are used to develop models that characterize the salient transmissions of matter and energy in and between the electricity, water and wastewater systems as identified in the reference architecture. Bond graphs, which are graphical representations of physical dynamic systems, were chosen as the modeling tool as they facilitate the inter-energy-domain modeling necessitated by the heterogeneous nature of the energy-water nexus. Furthermore they clearly identify causality and readily allow for model enhancement as required by applications. The developed models, when combined, make it possible to relate a region’s energy and municipal water consumption to the required water withdrawals in an input-output model. This paper builds on another LIINES publication entitled “A Reference Architecture for the Energy-Water Nexus” found in the IEEE Systems Journal.
This research is of particular significance to countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council, all of which have limited fresh water resources and thus depend on energy-expensive desalination to meet a large portion of their water needs. This dependence enhances the degree of coupling between the electricity and water systems and thus the associated vulnerability concerns. Furthermore, motivated by the cogeneration of electric power and desalinated water, combined electricity and water authorities have been established in the region. The multi-energy domain model developed in this work is therefore of immediate relevance to the planning and control efforts of these existing institutions.
About the Author:
William N. Lubega conducted this research in collaboration with his Master’s thesis advisor Prof. Amro M. Farid in LIINES at the Masdar Institute of Science & Technology Engineering Systems & Management Department. William is now a doctoral research assistant at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Civil & Environmental Engineering department as part of the Energy-Water-Environment Sustainability Track. There, he continues his energy-water nexus research in the Stillwell Research Group.
A full reference list of energy-water nexus research at LIINES can be found on the LIINES publication page: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
LIINES Website: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
World Future Energy Summit 2015
In the week of 17th to 24th January Masdar hosted the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2015. Delegates from all over the world gathered to develop and accelerate sustainable solutions for the increasing world population. The World Future Energy Summit (WFES) played the main role in the ADSW and provided a platform for companies and countries to exchange and show their knowledge in the area of energy. In the summit over 30,000 delegates from more than 170 countries participated.
Masdar Institute took this event as a chance to show the current state of their research and also to involve the students in the non-academic world. One of the initiatives for students during WFES was the start of the Young Future Energy Leaders (YFEL) program. The YFEL program brings together local and international students and young professionals from different universities and companies to encourage their motivation to affect change for a sustainable world. Also, the multicultural nature of the program helps the students understand and respect the cultural differences.
During the WFES, multiple high profile keynote speakers were invited to present and discuss their ideas and thoughts about the future of the world with the participants in the program. The YFEL program continues during 2015 and provides more courses that improve the understanding of future challenges. The program’s approach is to tackle these problems in a holistic way. The courses not only teach in the field of engineering but also integrate essential aspects of policy, management and entrepreneurship.
The holistic approach to future challenges is one of the essential aspects of the Laboratory for Intelligent Integrated Networks of Engineering Systems (LIINES). The integration of disciplines is needed to intelligently address the interfaces between multiple energy systems. In renewable energy integration alone, electrical engineers are needed to develop the newest PV-panels exhibited at WFES, while mechanical engineers are needed to improve the efficiency of conventional power. The variable generation of renewable energy coupled with the need for demand side management brings about all sorts of new policy, economics, and operations management questions. But at the LIINES, we do not stop there. Intelligent energy systems means not just controlling the flows of energy but understanding the essential reasons why we need it in the first place. And thus, we are actively involved in work on the energy-water nexus, transportation electrification, and industrial energy management.
This year’s WFES gave us, the LIINES laboratory, a great opportunity to interact with leading industrial players while presenting our own ideas and research. The WFES helped us realize once more that we are in this world together and that we have to bring together different disciplines to tackle tomorrow’s challenges.
For more information, consult the LIINES research program page.
LIINES Website: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
Hybrid Dynamic Model for Transportation Electrification Published at the 2014 American Control Conference
In depth materials on LIINES research on transportation electrification can be found on the LIINES publication page: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
LIINES Website: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
Journal Paper Accepted at the Energy Journal: The Impact of Storage Facility Capacity and Ramping Capabilities on the Supply Side of the Energy-Water Nexus
The LIINES is happy to announce that the Energy Journal has accepted our recent paper entitled: The Impact of Storage Facility Capacity and Ramping Capabilities on the Supply Side of the Energy-Water Nexus. The paper is authored by Apoorva Santhosh, Prof. Amro M. Farid and Prof. Kamal Youcef-Toumi. It builds upon an earlier publication entitled: Real-Time Economic Dispatch for the Supply Side of the Energy-Water Nexus which was summarized in an earlier blog post.
As previous blog posts have discussed, the topic of the energy-water nexus is timely. In the Gulf Cooperation Council nations, it is of particular relevance because of the hot and arid climate. Water scarcity is further aggravated high energy demands for cooling. The GCC nations, however, have a tremendous opportunity in that they often operate their power and water infrastructure under a single operational entity. Furthermore, the presence of cogeneration facilities such as Multi-Stage Flash desalination facilities fundamentally couple the power and water grids.
This paper expands upon the previously published economic dispatch problem to now include the impact of ramping rates and storage capacities. The latter is shown to alleviate binding production constraints and flatten production levels to achieve lower costs. Three cases studies are presented; a base case, a second case inspired by Singapore’s limited water storage availability, and a third case relevant to countries in the Middle East where water storage facilities can be readily constructed. Storage facilities are shown to reduce total operating costs by up to 38% and lead to less variable daily production suggesting that they have an important role to play in the optimization of the energy-water nexus.
A full reference list of energy-water nexus research at LIINES can be found on the LIINES publication page: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
LIINES Website: http://amfarid.scripts.mit.edu
