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In the context of power system decarbonization, the demand-side strategy for increasing the share of renewable energy is studied for two constrained energy systems. This strategy, which is currently widely suggested in policies on the energy transition, would impact consumer behavior. Despite the importance of studying the latter, the focus here is on decisions regarding the type, location, and timeframe of implementing the related measures. As such, solutions must be assessed in terms of cost and feasibility, technological learning, and by considering geographical and environmental constraints. Based on techno-economic optimization, in this paper we analyze the evolution of the power system and elaborate plausible long-term trajectories in the energy systems of two European islands. The case studies, Procida in Italy and Hinnøya in Norway, are both electrically connected to the mainland by submarine cables and present issues in their power systems, which are here understood as relatively isolated power systems. Renewable energy integration is encouraged by legislative measures in Italy. Although not modeled here, they serve as a backbone for the assumptions of increasing these investments. For Procida, rooftop photovoltaics (PV) coupled with energy storage are integrated in the residential, public, and tertiary sectors. A price-based strategy is also applied reflecting the Italian electricity tariff structure. At a certain price difference between peak and off-peak, the electricity supply mix changes, favoring storage technologies and hence decreasing imports by up to 10% during peak times in the year 2050. In Norway, renewable energy resources are abundant. The analysis for Hinnøya showcases possible cross-sectoral flexibilities through electrification, leading to decarbonization. By fine-tuning electric vehicle charging tactics and leveraging Norway's electricity pricing model, excess electricity demand peaks can be averted. The conclusions of this double-prospective study provide a comparative analysis that presents the lessons learnt and makes replicability recommendations for other territories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of hydrogen as both chemical feed and energy carrier using low-carbon technologies is one of the solutions to reach net-zero emissions. This paper, firstly, reviews the publications on the life-cycle assessment of photovoltaic (PV)-based hydrogen production focused on the carbon footprint. Secondly, it updates the global warming potential (GWP) values of this H2 production process considering the state-of-the-art PV panels for installation in Italy. In the literature, H2 produced in Europe and the rest of the world results in a mean GWP equal to 4.83 and 3.82 kg CO2 eq./kg H2, respectively, in which PV systems contribute the highest share. The average efficiency of PV panels assumed in the literature is lower than the current PV modules. Updating the supply chain, efficiency, and manufacturing energy and material flows of PV modules can decrease the GWP value of the H2 produced by nearly 60% (1.75 kg CO2 eq./kg H2, with use of alkaline electrolyzer) in the Italian context, which can be further reduced with advancements in PV panels or electrolysis efficiency. The study proves that advancement in the PV industry and additional savings in the electrolyzer's electrical demand can further decrease the carbon footprint of PV-based H2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work aims to provide an energy and critical analysis of the new "ecological scenario" that sees the world shift the transport sector from the classic fossil-fueled traction towards a purely electric traction. Is it a transition to a cleaner and more environmentally friendly world? This is the central question we need to answer. In this context of forced electrification of passenger vehicles, the authors estimated the electricity surplus needed in Italy to face this transition with a projection up to 2050, considering the electricity demand of purely electric vehicles and for the production of green hydrogen for the fuel supply of fuel cell vehicles. Throughout this investigation, the authors discovered that, in 2050, the surplus of electricity to be produced compared to the current production in Italy (year 2021) is equal to +27.6% (1). This value increases if two limit scenarios are considered: it becomes +40.0% within a limit scenario in which the entire private car fleet is made up of pure electric traction vehicles only (2). It becomes +100.6% in the hypothesis that the entire fleet of passenger cars is made up of fuel cell vehicles powered exclusively by green hydrogen (3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy audit for a building is a procedure designed mainly to obtain adequate knowledge of the energy consumption profile, identify, and quantify opportunities for energy savings by a cost-benefit analysis and report, clearly and comprehensively, about the obtained results. If the audit is referred to a building with a significant historical and artistic value, a compatibility evaluation of the energy saving interventions with the architectural features should also be developed. In this paper, analysing the case study of a historical building used as public offices in Pisa (Italy), the authors describe how it is possible to conduct an energy audit activity (especially dedicated to the lighting system) and they show how, for this type of buildings, it is possible to obtain significant energy savings with a refurbishment of the lighting system. A total number of seven interventions on indoor and outdoor lighting sub-systems were analysed in the paper. They are characterised by absolute compatibility with the historical and artistic value of the building and they show short payback times, variable between 4 and 34 months, allowing a reduction of the electrical energy consumption for the artificial indoor and outdoor lighting variable from 1.1 MWh/year to 39.0 MWh/year. The followed methodology and the evaluation results described in the paper, although based on a case study, can be extended to numerous historical buildings used as public offices, a recurring situation in the centres of Italian historical cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research, a technoeconomic comparison of energy efficiency options for energy districts located in different climatic areas (Naples, Italy and Fayoum, Egypt) is presented. A dynamic simulation model based on TRNSYS is developed to evaluate the different energy efficiency options, which includes different buildings of conceived districts. The TRNSYS model is integrated with the plug-in Google SketchUp TRNSYS3d to estimate the thermal load of the buildings and the temporal variation. The model considers the unsteady state energy balance and includes all the features of the building's envelope. For the considered climatic zones and for the different energy efficiency measures, primary energy savings, pay back periods and reduced CO2 emissions are evaluated. The proposed energy efficiency options include a district heating system for hot water supply, air-to-air conventional heat pumps for both cooling and space heating of the buildings and the integration of photovoltaic and solar thermal systems. The energy actions are compared to baseline scenarios, where the hot water and space heating demand is satisfied by conventional natural gas boilers, the cooling demand is met by conventional air-to-air vapor compression heat pumps and the electric energy demand is satisfied by the power grid. The simulation results provide valuable guidance for selecting the optimal designs and system configurations, as well as suggest guidelines to policymakers to define decarbonization targets in different scenarios. The scenario of Fayoum offers a savings of 67% in primary energy, but the associated payback period extends to 23 years due to the lower cost of energy in comparison to Naples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the modelling of an existing neutral-temperature district heating network, meaning that the distribution temperature is close to the ambient temperature, with decentralised heat pumps. The considered case is located in Ospitaletto, Italy. Heat sources are given by industrial waste heat at about 25 °C and aquifer wells at about 15 °C. Two models are used to analyse the network: a detailed model able to calculate local values of operating parameters and an approximate model focused on energy balances aggregating all users with a lumped demand. Both models include the behaviour of heat pumps, a feature not available in other district heating modelling tools. An entire year of operation is considered, with an hourly time resolution. Load profiles are provided as inputs, while the main outputs consist of energy balances and primary energy consumptions. The corresponding results are compared, showing a reasonable agreement, where the approximate model underestimates the overall electricity consumptions by about 15% with respect to the detailed model. On the other hand, the different information levels and execution times (the detailed model requires about 30 min to solve the considered network for a full year with hourly time steps, while the approximate model is almost immediate) make the two models suitable for different purposes, like the simulation of control solutions for the detailed one and scenario analysis for the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This contribution aims to provide an in-depth outlook of the phase-out of coal-fired energy generation in Italy. In particular, this article analyzes the state-of-the-art with regard to both the current role of coal generation and the performance of the main legal and regulatory tools as implemented in Italy thus far to ensure the closure of all coal power plants by 2025 as announced in the Italian National Climate and Energy Plan. Based on existing data and scenarios on both electricity production and demand trends, this article unfolds the marginal role played by coal-fired generation in the Italian energy mix. In addition, this paper aims to highlight the outstanding technical uncertainties and regulatory hurdles in the way towards de-carbonization of energy generation in Italy. This paper argues that several remarkable improvements are needed in order to avoid over-generation (especially through natural gas), to upscale the penetration of renewable energy sources, and develop the necessary infrastructures to adequately deliver on the full phasing-out of coal within the expected timeframes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exploitation of distributed renewable energy sources leads to a low-carbon energy transition, mainly based on the optimal integration of hydro, PV and wind power plants with the remaining high-performance fossil-fuel power stations. In the last twenty years, European Union (EU) countries have shown a significant increase of the power installed in new PV and wind power plants, together with the refurbishment of small and medium size hydro stations. In particular, in Italy, PV and wind energy production has strongly increased and nowadays there are regions characterized by a very green energy mix. In this new scenario, energy storage becomes a viable solution to mitigate the variability of renewable energy sources thus optimizing the network operation. The present paper is focused on the Liguria region, in the North of Italy and in particular on the Bormida Valley where nowadays more than the half of the annual electricity consumption is covered by the renewable energy local production. The paper describes the current energy situation and proposes an optimization tool to investigate the possibility of installing new PV and wind power plants, as well as energy intensive storage units based on sodium-sulphur batteries; moreover, different scenarios are analyzed through the definition of economic and environmental key performance indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the moment of writing, in Italy, there is an ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Its outbreak is leading to severe global socioeconomic disruptions impacting on all economic sectors from tourism, industry and the tertiary sector, up to the operational and opening of public offices, the closure of schools and the organization of families. Measures adopted by the Italian government to deal with the COVID-19 emergency have had direct effects both on people's daily lives and on the activity of most industrial and commercial production companies. These changes have been unequivocally reflected also on the Italian electricity system, which has shown unprecedented behavior in terms of both energy consumption and volume—and subsequently, in the observed share of renewable and conventional production technologies. The goal of this study is to show the impact on the power industry of all the restrictions and lockdown of the activities in Italy and to discuss the effects of COVID-19 outbreak on the bulk power system and the entire electricity sector. In particular, the consequences on load profiles, electricity consumption and market prices in Italy, including the environmental aspects, are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]