Discussing the future of energy production and management in a changing world, this book contains the proceedings of the first international conference on Energy Production and Management in the 21st Century - The Quest for Sustainable Energy.Topics covered include: Energy policies; Energy and economic growth; Energy efficiency; Energy storage.

The future of energy production, operation and management in a changing world is a major global topic. The papers contained in this volume were presented at the 4th International Conference on Energy Production and Management - The Quest for Sustainable Energy and focus on the comparison of conventional energy sources, particularly hydrocarbons, with a number of other ways of producing energy, such as new technological developments based on renewable resources such as solar, hydro, wind and geothermal. A key issue is the conversion of new sustainable sources of energy into useful forms (electricity, heat, fuel), while finding efficient ways of storage and distribution. In many cases the challenges lie as much with production of such renewable energy at an acceptable cost, including damage to the environment, as with integration of those resources into the existing infrastructure. This book features research on the ways in which more efficient use can be made of both conventional and new energy sources. This relates to savings in energy consumption, reduction of energy losses, as well as the implementation of smart devices and the design of intelligent distribution networks. Various topics are covered including: Energy and the city; Energy security; Energy distribution; Energy networks; Processing of oil and gas emissions; Pipelines; Renewable energies; Energy use in building; Tight energy fields; Energy and climate change; Biomass and biofuels; Environmental sustainability; Energy business; LNG.

Containing papers from the 3rd International Conference on Energy Production and Management: The Quest for Sustainable Energy, this book discusses the future creation and use of energy resources. It also examines the issue of converting new sustainable sources of energy into useful forms, while finding efficient methods of storage and distribution. An important objective of the book is discussing ways in which more efficient use can be made of conventional as well as new energy sources. This relates to savings in energy consumption, reduction of energy losses, as well as the implementation of smart devices and the design of intelligent distribution networks. This volume provides a comparison of conventional energy sources, particularly hydrocarbons, with a number of other ways of producing energy, emphasising new technological developments, based on renewable resources such as solar, hydro, wind and geothermal. In many cases the challenges lie as much with production of such renewable energy at an acceptable cost, including damage to the environment, as with integration of those resources into the existing infrastructure. The changes required to progress from an economy based mainly on hydrocarbons to one taking advantage of sustainable energy resources are massive and require considerable scientific research as well as the development of advanced engineering systems. Such progress demands close collaboration between different disciplines in order to arrive at optimum solutions.

The future of energy production, operation and management in a changing world was the focus of the 5th International Conference on Energy Production and Management. Papers presented at the meeting form this volume. A focus is placed on the comparison of conventional energy sources, particularly hydrocarbons, with a number of other ways of producing energy, emphasising new technological developments, based on renewable resources such as solar, hydro, wind and geothermal. Key to sustainability is the need to convert new sustainable sources of energy into useful forms (electricity, heat, fuel), while finding efficient ways of storage and distribution. In many cases, the challenges lie as much with the production of such renewable energy at an acceptable cost, including damage to the environment, as with the integration of those resources into the existing infrastructure. The changes required to progress from an economy based mainly on hydrocarbons to one taking advantage of sustainable energy resources are massive and require considerable scientific research as well as the development of advanced engineering systems. Such progress demands close collaboration between different disciplines in order to arrive at optimum solutions. Also discussed is the energy use of industrial processes, including the embedded energy contents of materials, such as those in the built environment. Energy production, operation, distribution and usage, result in environmental risks that need to be better understood. They are part of energy economics and relate to human environmental health as well as ecosystems behaviour. An emphasis is placed on the ways in which more efficient use can be made of conventional as well as new energy sources. This relates to savings in energy consumption, reduction of energy losses, as well as the implementation of smart devices and the design of intelligent distribution networks.

Discussing the future of energy production and management in a changing world, this book presents the proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Energy Production and Management in the 21st Century: The Quest for Sustainable Energy. The intention of the book is to examine the future of energy production and management in a changing world and follows on from the first and very successful meeting held in Ekaterinburg, Russia in 2014. Developed societies require an ever increasing amount of energy resources, which creates complex technological challenges. The challenge in many cases is the conversion of new sources of energy into useful forms such as electricity, heat and fuel while finding efficient ways of storing and distributing energy. Equal challenges lie with the production of such renewable energy at an acceptable cost, including damage to the environment, as well as with integration of those resources into the existing infrastructure. The book deliberates the energy use of industrial processes, including the imbedded energy contents of materials, such as those in the built environment. Energy production, distribution and usage, result in environmental risks which need to be better understood. They are part of the energy economics and relate to human environmental health as well as ecosystems behaviour. A number of topics are covered including: Energy and the city; Energy security; Energy distribution; Energy networks; Processing of oil and gas emissions; Pipelines; Renewable energies; Energy use in building; Industry and transport; Safety management; Tight energy fields; Energy and climate change and Biomass and biofuels.

Energy may be the most important factor that will influence the shape of society in the 21st century. The cost and availability of energy significantly impacts our quality of life and the health of national economies. This book examines the energy sources that play a vital role in society.

The roles and applications of various modeling approaches, aimed at improving the usefulness of energy policy models in public decision making, are covered by this book. The development, validation, and applications of system dynamics and agent-based models in service of energy policy design and assessment in the 21st century is a key focus. A number of modeling approaches and models for energy policy, with a particular focus on low-carbon economic development of regions and states are covered. Chapters on system dynamics methodology, model-based theory, fuzzy system dynamics frame-work, and optimization modeling approach are presented, along with several chapters on future research opportunities for the energy policy modeling community. The use of model-based analysis and scenarios in energy policy design and assessment has seen phenomenal growth during the past several decades. In recent years, renewed concerns about climate change and energy security have posed unique modeling challenges. By utilizing the validation techniques and procedures which are effectively demonstrated in these contributions, researchers and practitioners in energy systems domain can increase the appeal and acceptance of their policy models.

Natural gas is the world’s cleanest fossil fuel; it generates less air pollution and releases less CO2 per unit of useful energy than liquid fuels or coals. With its vast supplies of conventional resources and nonconventional stores, the extension of long-distance gas pipelines and the recent expansion of liquefied natural gas trade, a truly global market has been created for this clean fuel. Natural Gas: Fuel for the 21st Century discusses the place and prospects of natural gas in modern high-energy societies. Vaclav Smil presents a systematic survey of the qualities, origins, extraction, processing and transportation of natural gas, followed by a detailed appraisal of its many preferred, traditional and potential uses, and the recent emergence of the fuel as a globally traded commodity. The unfolding diversification of sources, particularly hydraulic fracturing, and the role of natural gas in national and global energy transitions are described. The book concludes with a discussion on the advantages, risks, benefits and costs of natural gas as a leading, if not dominant, fuel of the 21st century. This interdisciplinary text will be of interest to a wide readership concerned with global energy affairs including professionals and academics in energy and environmental science, policy makers, consultants and advisors with an interest in the rapidly-changing global energy industry.

There are rapid, and sometimes radical, changes now transforming energy production and consumption in the United States. Utilizing contemporary examples throughout his narrative, Walter A. Rosenbaum captures this transformation in American Energy: The Politics of 21st Century Policy while analyzing how important actors, institutions, and issues impact American energy policymaking. With clear explanations of relevant energy technologies—from controversial fracking to mountain top mining to nuclear waste storage—the book first looks at the policy options available in governing the energy economy and then discusses specific resources (petroleum and natural gas, coal, nuclear power, electricity, renewable energy, conservation) and the global energy challenges associated with climate change. This is a perfect supplement for any environmental politics course.

Energy and Sustainability V is the proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Energy and Sustainability, held by the Wessex Institute of Technology. The modern world is highly dependent on the exploitation of fossil fuels. More recently, resources depletion and severe environmental effects deriving from the continuous use of these fuels has resulted in an increasing amount of interest in renewable energy resources and the search for sustainable energy policies. The changes required to progress from an economy mainly based on hydrocarbons to one taking advantage of sustainable energy resources are massive and require considerable scientific research as well as engineering systems. The effect also involves collaboration between different disciplines in order to arrive at optimum solutions, including buildings, energy networks, convenience systems, new energy storage solutions, waste to energy technologies, and many others. This book covers topics related to sustainability in energy and power production, storage, distribution and management. These include: Smart grids; Smart metering; Green ICT; Green buildings; Energy storage; Renewable energy resources; Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles (PHEV); Biofuels (solid, liquid, gas); Waste to energy; CO2 capturing and management; Energy and transportation; Environmental risk; Energy policies; Greener power plant technologies; Hydrogen recovery techniques; Sustainable energy production.