Stefania Proietti

Analysis of energy consumption in the high schools of a province in central Italy

Abstract This paper presents an energy analysis of the school buildings of a province in central Italy. The analysis is aimed at calculating the main thermal and electric energy consumption indexes to determine the status of energy consumption and the possible intervention to save energy in the school sector. Two applications of energy auditing to school buildings are also presented. It is also shown that if the optimal energy consumption indexes could be valid for all the school buildings, thermal energy savings could reach 38% and electric energy consumptions could be reduced by over 46%.

CO2 Capture and Removal System for a Gas-Steam Combined Cycle

This paper presents the study of a natural gas fired power cycle which includes a carbon dioxide capture plant based on an absorption and scrubbing system. The interest in this integration is due to the widespread use of combined cycles in the power generation sector because of their high energy conversion efficiency. Energy consumption of the capture and removal system and its influence on the energetic performance of the power plant have been calculated. Mass and heat balance calculations are carried out by using the software tools GateCycle for the combined cycle and Aspen+ Software for the absorption process. Results of plant performance calculations, including compression of the captured carbon dioxide, are presented. The results, compared to the combined cycle power plant with no carbon dioxide capture, have also been compared to the more commonly known carbon dioxide capture process based on atmospheric absorption with MEA.Copyright

Analysis and Statistic Evaluation of Distributed Generation in Italy

This paper presents a complete analysis of the state of the art and the legislation of distributed generation in Italy, which is similar to other EU countries, and statistic data on combined heat and power plants installed in Italy. Data was collected from a large number of sources, because most of the small size plants are operated by IPP without an electrical exchange contract with the grid and are not documented. The results of this research has allowed to show that 22.000 MW can be generated by over 1600 power plants spread over the Italian territory. A more detailed analysis and validation of the information was done with reference to Umbria, a central Italian region. The whole database was examined with several correlations in order to facilitate the analysis of the national situation. It is thus possible to query the database in order to determine the types of users, the typical size for different users and their geographic distribution. This tool is extremely helpful in the design of new power plants and in the definition of the potential future market.Copyright

Integrated approach to a multifunctional complex

Purpose – The achievement of sustainable architectures, including control of energy relations between climate and built environment, in order to optimize energy consumption and reduce environmental impact, requires an integrated planning dealing with a multi‐scale and integral view of building‐plant system. The purpose of this paper is to describe the design of a multifunctional complex, namely “Solaria”.Design/methodology/approach – The proposed integrated approach focuses on comfort and healthy living, sustainability of building process, containment of energy consumption and use of renewable energy sources. The building object of this research has been designed including: a high‐efficiency tri‐generation plant (525kW of electric power) coupled with a distribution network for district heating/cooling; a photovoltaic generation system with 20kW of peak power and solar thermal panels for sanitary hot water production (able to supply over 50 per cent of needs); and passive solar systems (solar greenhouses a...

Implementation of a System for the Analysis and Evaluation of Advantages of Distributed Generation

This paper presents a research activity at the Industrial Engineering Department of the University of Perugia, Italy, aimed at the development of a software tool (Co.Gis® ) based on the use of interactive vectorial maps which allows to help the design and selection of a distributed generation system. The software is aimed at helping the user in the selection of the main characteristics of distributed generation systems by means of a methodology that calculates the avoided losses on the electrical grid and many other economical and technical indicators. The software can also be used to quantify the environmental benefits, to help in the feasibility studies of distributed generation systems and to manage the data and to control groups of small generation systems (Virtual Power Plant). The geo-referenced database of the present co-generation systems has been constructed on the Italian territory, with 1606 installations and approximately 12.000 MWe installed electric power. A complete database, which also includes all the other non-cogenerative distributed generation systems installed on the territory of Umbria, a small region in center of Italy, was prepared. This database is a powerful tool to characterize immediately the type of users that use cogeneration plants, to know the requirements of the market and to characterize and propose innovative energy conversion systems. Another characteristic is the possibility to perform feasibility studies of cogeneration systems. This instrument allows a significant simplification of the technical-economic evaluation procedures for the installation of an industrial or civil cogeneration system. The feasibility study can be combined with the calculation of electrical losses on the electricity transmission grid. The calculation of the avoided electrical losses, in terms of avoided CO2 , offers a valid instrument to evaluate the environmental impact of different electrical generation systems and shows the advantages offered by distributed generation in the traditional generation park in Italy.Copyright

Life Cycle Assessment of a Reflective Foil Material and Comparison With Other Solutions for Thermal Insulation of Buildings

In the last twenty years, the exploitation of non-renewable resources and the effects of their applications on environment and human health were considered central topics in political and scientific debate on European and worldwide scale. This kind of resources have been used in different sectors, as energy systems, technological research, but also in private/public buildings and production of consumer goods, involving significantly domestic and ordinary life of every human being. Studies about the effect of this exploitation carried out discouraging results, in terms of climate changes and energy sustenance; this determined a progressive approach process to a new concept of development, able to couple the qualitative standard of modern life with the respect of planet and its inhabitants. Starting from this reflection, scientific community moved towards research on alternative resources and developed a new way to conceive planning process and technical innovations, in order to exploit renewable energies and recycled materials, promote energy savings and reduce environmental pollution. In this context the present paper aims at evaluating benefits relating to different solutions of thermal insulation in building envelope. In fact a high grade of insulation ensures better comfort conditions in inner spaces, reducing energy consumptions due to heating and cooling conditioning. The paper presents the results of a detailed Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of the reflective foil ISOLIVING, conceived and produced by an Italian company. The Life Cycle Assessment methodology allows to consider all stages of the life cycle, from the extraction of raw materials to the product’s disposal, in an optics “from cradle to grave.” In particular, the study takes into account the production phase of the reflective foil ISOLIVING, the installation phase, the transport of all components to the production site and also the end of life scenario of the material. The possibility to collect many detailed information about the production phase adds value to the study. The analysis is carried out according to UNI EN ISO 14040 and UNI EN ISO 14044, which regulate the LCA procedure. The LCA modeling was performed using SimaPro software application. The results of the analysis allow to make an important comparison concerning the environmental performances, between the reflective foil ISOLIVING and other types of insulating materials.Copyright

Repowering of a Gas Turbine Based CHP in a Pulp and Paper Industry

Paper mills are industries that require large amounts of electricity and heat. Most paper mills produce the energy required by the process using cogeneration plants based on steam or gas turbines. In the present case study the original power plant was a 2 MWe gas turbine with a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) equipped with 6 MWt afterburners and a steam turbine. With the increase of paper production, the electric power produced by the power plant was not enough for the factory and the steam produced by the gas turbine was not enough for the paper drying process. After the analysis of the plant, a different solution for its repowering was proposed. The guidelines, for the considered project, are the total electrical autonomy of the factory, the continuity of production in case of failure of a gas turbine or a steam generator and the possibility of enabling the increase of the paper production with additional steam. All the proposed solutions will be analyzed in terms of technical feasibility and operating costs.Copyright