EEED 2018:The 2018 International Conference on
Energy, Environment, Ecosystems, and Development

PLENARY SPEAKERS:

Prof. Mihai Cruceru, University "Constantin Brancusi", ROMANIA, e-mail: cruceru.mihai@gmail.com
Title: "Could Coal Contribute in Circular Economy?"
Abstract: Given that some raw materials are becoming increasingly scarce, the Commission launched in 2008 the European Raw Materials Initiative which sets out specific measures to ensure and improve access to raw materials for the EU. One of the priority actions of the Initiative was to establish a critical raw materials (CRM) list at EU level, which includes raw materials reaching or exceeding thresholds for both economic importance and supply risk. The Commission identified in 2011 14 CRMs of the 41 non-energy and non-agricultural raw materials evaluated. 20 raw materials were identified as critical in 2014 and 27 in 2017. Natural graphite, coke coal and some heavy metals are mentioned in the lists. Even if the Commission estimates that the end-of-life recycling input rate for coking coal is zero, some initiatives proved that coal could play a role in circular economy. Coal-fired power plants still play a significant role in electricity generation although a lot of renewables were developed. One of the main drawbacks of coal usage is the environmental pollution. Coal combustion produces a relatively small amount of fly ash that can be used in cement factories and a large amount of bottom ash that cannot be used in industry because its high carbon content. From this point of view, the bottom ash carbon residue is an unwanted component, which should be reduced by an optimized combustion process (although the use of modern low-NOx burners rather complicates the effort to reduce it) or by efficient separation techniques. The lecture presents the procedures used in CHARPHITE project to separate the bottom ash in two products: concentrated unburned carbon and inorganic matter with low carbon content. The concentrated unburned carbon can be recirculated to the boiler furnace or can be used to produce lignite-coke briquettes, absorbents, substitute of natural graphite and so on; the inorganic material was used in a lot of trials as substitute for natural aggregates in building materials industry. The promising results obtained in the CHARPHITE project could lead to a revision of the recycle input rate for coal.

Prof. Badea Lepadatescu, Transylvania University of Brasov, ROMANIA, e-mail: lepadatescu@unitbv.ro
Title: "Study Regarding the Development of an Efficient Energy Management Programme for the Processing Industry"
Abstract: The first part of the paper discusses the necessity of developing an energy saving programme, and presents the main energy consumers of industry and the significant weight held by energy related costs in the turnover of production systems in processing industry. Further the paper describes and analyses the steps to be followed in developing an efficient energy management programme.

Prof. Pietro Zunino, Department of Mechanical Energy, Management and Transportation Engineering Universita degli Studi di Genova, ITALY, e-mail: pietro.zunino@unige.it
Title: "Design of Highly Efficient Micro Gas Turbines for Distributed Energy Cogeneration"
Abstract: Micro-gas turbines used in cogeneration power plants are an environmentally sustainable solution for distributed combined production of electricity and heat, due to their low emissions and fuel flexibility. The distributed generation of energy is becoming more and more interesting from the economic and environmental point of view for the possibility of installing, nearby the site of use, small generation units that can provide at the same time electric and thermal energy that can be used directly for civil heating, cooling or for industrial processes. This is called micro cogeneration. In a few words, three fundamental characteristics of the micro cogeneration are: - long, heavy, expensive, environmentally impacting high voltage electric grid are avoided; - efficient use of fuel with more than 30% electric energy plus more than 45% of thermal energy from the 100% fuel chemical energy. - location of the small generation units in proximity of the civil, rural or industrial settlements requires low pollution combustion. Small gas turbine units with gaseous fuel premixed combustion guarantee low emissions. Even though the global energy efficiency of micro-gas turbines is usually high, due to the recovering for cogeneration of the waste heat, the electrical efficiency is lower than other competing technologies such as reciprocating internal combustion engines, which, however, has a much larger impact on environment. As a consequence, an effort should be made to enhance cycle efficiency, taking micro gas turbine efficiency closer to that of these competing technologies. This target can be obtained by increasing the turbine inlet temperature in order to improve Brayton cycle thermodynamic efficiency or by means of an integrated and optimized design of micro-turbine components (centrifugal compressor, radial inflow turbine, recuperator, combustor ). Both these approaches are object of research at the Department of Mechanical, Energy, Management and Transportation Engineering of University of Genova (DIME), even though they have different impact on machine manufacturing process. 2 The first approach requires the use of advanced materials for the hot gas path components, such as ceramic turbine impeller and casing and nickel based super-alloy recuperator, since cooling techniques, such as those used in larger heavy duty gas turbines, are hardly implementable with radial turbomachines. On the contrary, components redesign with advanced optimization techniques enables to keep the current technology for components manufacturing leading nevertheless to important performance enhancement. For power lower than 1 MW and therefore for mass flow rate roughly lower than 10 kg/s, radial turbomachinery are used instead of axial ones, which, on the contrary, are used for larger mass flow rates. Centripetal turbines are more compact and less expensive than axial but cannot be cooled. Therefore, the maximum turbine inlet temperature depends only on the material and not on the cooling technology. Turbine inlet temperature is fixed and if ceramic material is not yet employed a TIT of 950 C is the limit for nickel based super alloys. As a consequence, of the limited turbine inlet temperature, regeneration is necessary for reaching cycle efficiency level of the order of 30%, with pressure ratios compatible with single stage radial turbomachines. On the other hand, use of regeneration is made acceptable due to power, lower than 1 MW. Also for the recuperated Brayton cycle, efficiency depends on pressure ratio, turbine entry temperature, turbomachinery efficiencies and recuperator effectiveness. For the recuperated cycle, best cycle efficiencies are obtained at moderate cycle pressure ratios, of the order of 4 to 5. Pressure ratios as large as 6-7 are a upper limit target for single stage centrifugal compressors and centripetal turbines. This level of pressure ratio should in any case achieved in case of absence of recuperator to keep reasonable cycle efficiency. The research team of the Laboratory of Aerodynamics, Combustion and Turbomachinery of DIME has a long standing experience in the study, development and testing of gas turbine components for energy generation and propulsions. Since some years, the research team is active in the multidisciplinary optimized design (MDO) of the key components of micro gas turbines for energy cogeneration. The present lecture is focused on the outline of an integrated procedure of design of highly efficient micro-gas-turbine system.

Prof. Jae K. Park, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, e-mail: jkpark@wisc.edu
Title: "Misleading Environmental and Energy Issues by Distorting Facts"
Abstract: A Nobel Prize winner in literature, Halldor Laxness said any lie (deliberate abuse of a fact) you are told even deliberately is often a more significant fact than a truth told in all sincerity. Issues associated with environment and energy are intermingled with so many areas that a tiny deliberate misuse of a fact may mislead the public, resulting in a significant impact in decision making. In the viewpoint of prescientific days, "the sun rises in the east" is a fact. But the sun neither rises nor sets. Thus, it can be true or not, depending on how you view it. Due to climate change, we have been experiencing more flood and drought events recently. In order to mitigate this type of natural disasters, the commonly used methods have been dredging or widening of a river, levee and dam construction, flood plain expansion, etc. Because of these measures, the environment will be changed and ecology will be disturbed. These facts are often exaggerated. Thus, the simple statement such as environmental disaster and ecological catastrophe may be true or not depending on how the priority is set. Similarly, a nuclear bomb is lethal but may not be true in case of a nuclear reactor. Nuclear accidents occurred in Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and Fukushima are the facts. However, this does not mean it is true that nuclear reactors are dangerous without acknowledging the fact that the significant progress has been made in the safety of nuclear reactors and the causes of the accidents are corrected in all nuclear reactors in the world. To make matters worse, politics or ideology may often get involved in decision. We have to decide whether we will worry about nuclear accidents (one out of 0.1~1 million years) or climate change (in this century) because nuclear energy may be a major solution for combating climate change. A few case studies will be presented and recommendations will be made.

Prof. P. Briois, Univ. Bourgogne Franche-Comte/UTBM, FRANCE, e-mail: pascal.briois@utbm.fr
Co-authors: M. Arab Pour Yazdi, A. Billard
Title: "Performances in Energy Generation And Potential Applications in Environment of Sputter Deposited Solid Electrolytes and Mixed Conductors"
Abstract: Solid electrolytes and mixed conductors are often complex oxides widely used in numerous applications in the fields of energy and environment such as fuel cells, microbatteries, catalysts, sensors etc. Among the methods able to allow the synthesis of these various materials, reactive co sputtering appears as an interesting and powerful alternative. This is particularly true when in situ optical methods are used to control either the deposition rate or the coating transparency. In this presentation, we will first describe the structural features of the main solid electrolytes and mix conductors which often present fluorite, perovskite or close-perovskite structures. Hence, we will discuss the deposition conditions for high rate deposition of those materials, either as dense coatings such as required for electrolyte coatings or as porous layers such as required for mix conductors in numerous applications. In each case, the relation between deposition conditions and coating morphology and structure will be established. Some examples of coating intrinsic performance owing to their ionic or electrical conductivity or catalytic activity will then be presented in relation with their deposition conditions. Finally, some recent examples of applications will be given in the fields of solid oxide fuel cells, depollution catalysts or gas sensors.

Prof. Raimund Schwendner, Institute for Systems Thinking and Organizational Behaviour (ISTOB Management Academy), GERMANY, e-mail: schwendner@istob-aka.de
Title: "Future Capacity Building - Impact on Value Creation"
Abstract: Future Capacity Building comprises novel organizational and personnel development, thus strengthening sustainable innovation and pioneering leadership. Apt competences are crucial to enhance economic performance and - in parallel - to tackle multi-faceted challenges such as climate change, scarcity of resources, global quality of live and growing public awareness. These challenges require entrepreneurial education that allows to amalgamating economic, ecological, social and technological co-development. As this process frequently triggers conflicting priorities and diverse expectations, entrepreneurial learning needs to incorporate systemic crisis prevention and precautionary conflict resolution. In order to create progressive value, future capacity building emphasizes maturity of innovation, anticipatory problem solving and salutogenetic growth.