Sharif Digital Repository

The major objective of this study is to provide an analytical tool to identify the role of investment on innovation in the process of new technologies development. To achieve this goal, a model of knowledge flow is developed and the effects of national and international knowledge spillovers are investigated. Results show that when knowledge spillovers are modelled in the Nordic countries, the required investment on domestic energy R&D decreases and the cumulative knowledge increases to 10.7 billion USD by 2030. This is a significant economic potential for technological innovation which can be considered for both energy researchers and energy planners. Finally, some important policy insights... 

With the outbreak of the coronavirus in countries around the world, governments have decided to impose restrictions and social distancing. Closures of businesses, and hence changes in supply and demand patterns during this period, have deepened concerns among policy makers. In this article, we investigate the change in primary energy consumption in the 20 European countries that have the highest GDP. To this end, 10 different shock scenarios and its limitations are considered. By implementing these shocks into input-output modelling, changes in primary energy consumption are calculated. The results show that according to the best scenario (rapid and complete economy restoration), Russia with... 

Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) are identified as one of the motivating technologies in smart grid era. However, if their highly disruptive impacts on the distribution system are left unaddressed, it may obstruct both smart grid development and PEV adoption. This chapter develops a novel in-home PEV charging control (PCC) algorithm that schedules both the time and level of charging PEVs incorporating customerﾒs desired comfort level. This optimization-based problem attempts to achieve a trade-off between minimizing the electricity payment and minimizing the waiting time to fully charge the PEVs in presence of a time of use (TOU) pricing tariff combined with inclining block rates (IBRs). The... 

In recent years, a growing interest in investigation of new energies has been observed. Pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) could be a feasible source of renewable energy. This study aims to present a model based on the present technology of PRO power plant components for design and economic evaluation of a PRO power plant, and to investigate case studies in order to demonstrate how each main component of a PRO power plant affects the economic evaluation. Therefore, all the mechanisms including intake and outfall systems, pre-treatment system, membrane system, and transportation and generation systems are explicated and meant to present the capability of the model to design the PRO power plant.... 

In recent years, a growing interest in investigation of new energies has been observed. Pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) could be a feasible source of renewable energy. This study aims to present a model based on the present technology of PRO power plant components for design and economic evaluation of a PRO power plant, and to investigate case studies in order to demonstrate how each main component of a PRO power plant affects the economic evaluation. Therefore, all the mechanisms including intake and outfall systems, pre-treatment system, membrane system, and transportation and generation systems are explicated and meant to present the capability of the model to design the PRO power plant.... 

With the outbreak of the coronavirus in countries around the world, governments have decided to impose restrictions and social distancing. Closures of businesses, and hence changes in supply and demand patterns during this period, have deepened concerns among policy makers. In this article, we investigate the change in primary energy consumption in the 20 European countries that have the highest GDP. To this end, 10 different shock scenarios and its limitations are considered. By implementing these shocks into input-output modelling, changes in primary energy consumption are calculated. The results show that according to the best scenario (rapid and complete economy restoration), Russia with... 

A technical-economic assessment was carried out in this study to determine the possibilities for wind and solar power generation in Afghanistan’s Helmand province. The results showed that most of the province has a solar irradiance of over 400 W/m2, and also showed that wind and solar power generated in the province can be up to twice as cheap as the official price of renewable power in Afghanistan. The most suitable site for solar and hydrogen production was found to be Laškar Gāh, where solar and hydrogen can be produced at a cost of 0.066 $/kWh and 2.1496 $/kg-H2, respectively. In terms of wind power production and hydrogen production from wind, the most suitable site was Sangīn, where... 

Sustainable economic growth and improvement of the social welfare depend upon the sufficient supply of energy resources, while the utilization of energy resources is one of the main factors of environmental degradation. This research is involved with development of a sustainable energy system model and a new method for sustainability assessment. This model represents the flow of energy from primary resources through processing, conversion, and end-use technologies in an optimization framework where the useful energy demand in various social and economic sectors is met. The impact of energy supply and consumption chain on the environment at each level of energy system is also embedded in the... 

Machine learning (ML) is generating new opportunities for innovative research in energy economics and finance. We critically review the burgeoning literature dedicated to Energy Economics/Finance applications of ML. Our review identifies applications in areas such as predicting energy prices (e.g. crude oil, natural gas, and power), demand forecasting, risk management, trading strategies, data processing, and analyzing macro/energy trends. We critically review the content (methods and findings) of more than 130 articles published between 2005 and 2018. Our analysis suggests that Support Vector Machine (SVM), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and Genetic Algorithms (GAs) are among the most... 

Utilizing the cold energy of liquefied natural gas can reduce the demand of burning fossil fuels for work production and employing refrigeration cycles for seawater desalination. A novel low-temperature cascade power generation cycle combined with a seawater freeze desalination system is proposed to retrieve the cold energy from liquified natural gas. Binary working fluids are utilized to decrease the irreversibilities of the power cycle and enhance the energy recovery efficiency. The effects of the important temperatures of the cycle, pinch temperature of the heat exchangers, number of turbines and their efficiency on the cycle performance are investigated. Optimization of the work... 

While Afghanistan's power sector is almost completely dependent on fossil fuels, it still cannot meet the rising power demand of this country. Deploying a combination of renewable energy systems with hydrogen production as the excess energy storage mechanism could be a sustainable long-term approach for addressing some of the energy problems of Afghanistan. Since Badakhshan is known to have a higher average wind speed than any other Afghan province, in this study, a technical, economic, and carbon footprint assessment was performed to investigate the potential for wind power and hydrogen production in this province. Wind data of four stations in Badakhshan were used for technical assessment... 

In recent years, declining fossil fuel reserves and increasing environmental concerns led to higher utilization of renewable energy source (RES). One of the RES is Solar energy which is abundantly found in different areas of the globe, particularly in Iran. The aim of this research is to select a suitable site for constructing a solar power plant to generate electricity-hydrogen in southern Iran, Kerman province. For this purpose, a new hybrid Multi criteria decision making method is used. The Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA)method is used to weigh the criteria and the Measurement of alternatives and ranking according to Compromise solution (MARCOS)method is used to rank...