October - December | 2015 | Vol :: 08 | No :: 04 ISSN 0974 - 0996
behavioural aspects of energy use and sustainable consumption.
energy paradox cities in a post carbon society quest for achieving electricity self sufficiency keeping cool without electricity or water
contents
Advisory Board Dr. Bhaskar Natarajan | C-Quest Capital, India Binu Parthan | REEEP, Vienna Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty | Advisor, ADEME Dr. P P Mittal | President, SEEM, India Dr. B G Desai | Energy Expert, India C. Jayaraman | SEEM, India Dr. Kinsuk Mitra | Winrock International, India Dr. G M Pillai| WISE, India Dr. N P Singh | Advisor MNRE, India Prof. P R Shukla | IIM Ahmedabad, India
Disclaimer : The views expressed in the magazine are those of the authors and the Editorial team | SEEM | energy press | energyη manager does not take responsibility for the contents and opinions. η energy manager will not be responsible for errors, omissions or comments made by writers, interviewers or advertisers. Any part of this publication may be reproduced with acknowledgement to the author and magazine. October - December 2015 | Volume: 08 | Number: 04 ISSN 0974 - 0996 Supported by::
energy paradox: need for an interdisciplinary study Jayaraman C
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rethinking cities in a post carbon society: an open public debate over lifestyles ADEME
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an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self sufficiency Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty
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keeping cool without electricity or water Surendra H Shah
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low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas Ram Chandra Khanal
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do we need more energy efficient vehicles? right infrastructure? or proper road culture? Jayakumar Nair
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Opinion is energy audit toothless? G Krishnakumar
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Energy Management review of PAT 1 P P Mittal
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केस
टडी: व नमाण संयं
बचत के लए ठोस
के. संुदर
यास
म ऊजा
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a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
Editorial Consultant Prof. (Dr.) K K Sasi |Amrita University, India Guest Editor Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty Editor K Madhusoodanan|SEEM, India Co-ordinating Editor Sonia Jose | Energy Press, India Book Design Badusha Creatives Translation Coordinator R Sudhir Kumar|CPRI, Bangalore Financial Controller K K Babu | Energy Press, India Printed and Published by G Krishnakumar, Energy Press for the Society of Energy Engineers and Managers and printed at St Francis Press, Ernakulam, India
Cover Feature
October - December 2015
Editorial Board Prof. Ahamed Galal Abdo | Advisor Minister of Higher Education, Egypt Darshan Goswami | US Dept. of Energy, USA Prof. (Dr.) Hab Jurgis Staniskis | Director, Institute of Environmental Engg., Lithuania Dr. R Harikumar | Immediate Past General Secretary, SEEM, India Prof. P A Onwualu | DG, RMR&D Council, Nigeria R Paraman |Devki Energy Consultancy,India Ramesh Babu Gupta | India Dr. Rwaichi J A Minja | University of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania Prof. (Dr.) R Sethumadhavan | Anna University, India Prof. Sujay Basu | CEEM, India
guest editorial
Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty is the Regional Adviser for Asia, ADEME (French Environment and Energy Management Agency) and Visiting Faculty, School of Environment, Resources and Development, AIT (Asian Institute of Technology)
behavioural aspects of energy use and sustainable consumption
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n spite of the present global economic downturn, the world as a whole goes into ecological debt sometime in September during a typical calendar year, borrowing over 3 months ecosystem resources from the future. The burden of resource consumption on our planet's limited biocapacity is increasing incessantly due to the lifestyle of the rich, and making it harder day by day to avert climate change. Radical alterations are needed if we wish to live with the eco-system services that our planet has to offer.
Start with the rich to benefit the poor Instead of blaming the global population growth as a major threat to our environment, the focus should be not only on tackling over consumption by the rich, but also addressing under-consumption of a very large population, reflected by the poor human development in many parts of Asia and Africa. Over consumption is no longer the realm of wealthy countries but is also widely prevalent in emerging countries thanks to the rapidly growing new consumer classes with more disposable income, whose lifestyle and consumption patterns are now converging with that of industrialized countries. A recent Credit Suisse report revealed that the richest 1% Indians own 53% of the country's wealth. Unsustainable consumption is manifesting in the form of bigger homes/apartments with new appliances, increasing private car ownership, more frequent air travels, diets based on more resource-intensive meat and dairy products, and an unending range of manufactured goods.
What is sustainable consumption? There is a deep-rooted misconception that sustainable consumption is an issue of the affluent society and not the large population at the base of the pyramid with abysmal living standards. Sustainable consumption simply means living a healthy and fulfilling life while not consuming more resources than what our earth can replenish, and not generating more
waste than that Mother Nature can safely take care of. Hence, every one, poor or rich, has the potential to become a sustainable consumer.
Tax resource wastage and incentivize conservation/ efficiency Well-designed economic instruments can be effective in addressing the negative effects of consumption and production on the environment. Governments in developing countries tend to subsidize fuels, electricity, water and other commodities at prices that do not even cover the financial costs of ensuring such services, thus operating with deficit budgets and compromising the quality of services. As anecdote, the local power utility of the Indian State where I live supplies electricity at Rs 1.10 per kWh for the first 100 units consumed by all residential consumers irrespective of whether they are rich or poor, while purchasing it at a cost which is roughly 4 times higher. ...continued in page 16
There is greater awareness among consumers regarding the need and value of sustainable energy practices, particularly amid growing public concerns over greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Unfortunately, there is also a sizeable discrepancy between peoples' self-reported knowledge, values, attitudes and intentions, and their observable behavior which includes examples like the well-known 'knowledge-action gap' and 'value-action gap'. Hence, household energy conservation proves to be a major challenge and opportunity for researchers, practitioners and policymakers. The design of more cost-effective and mass-scalable behavioural solutions should be put into practice which can promote or encourage renewable and sustainable energy use among consumers. When it comes to the topic of negotiating consumer choice, policy-makers are not innocent bystanders. Direct and indirect intervention takes place continuously through regulation and taxes and more importantly through its extensive influence over the social context within which people act. The ease to behave sustainably in today's time requires a concerted strategy which ensures that incentive structures and institutional rules favour similar behaviour, enabling access to proenvironmental choice, engaging people in initiatives to help themselves, and exemplifying the desired changes within Government's own policies and practices. Consumer behaviour rarely follows traditional economic theories of decision-making due to its complex nature. It is more routine for people to deviate from the 'rational choice' model of human behaviour, in which one objectively weighs up the costs and benefits of all alternatives before choosing the optimal course of action. Environment protection measures unfortunately often have other unintended effects on society, one
major concern being that behavior may offset part of the environmental gain. In energy economics, this so called 'rebound effect' encompasses both the behavioral and systemic responses to cost reductions of energy services as a result of energy efficiency measures. Identification of co-benefits and disbenefits of measures directed to solve one type of problem is a necessity. A price-based rebound effect is not expected, as the environment is a free input. However other indirect effects which are not connected to the price, such as spillover of environmental behavior can occur. Reduction of the costs and impact of products that are already environmentally friendly can cause the "rebound" to go in the desired direction. In our first cover story, the author highlights reasons behind the presence of an energy paradox or energy efficiency gap in our environment and the importance of behavioral concept studies along with the usual technical aspects to approach and solve this issue in a more straightforward manner. The topic of energy transition holds the possibility for a French national debate and it would be timely to observe in the long term, the pattern of energy consumption and GHG emissions. Our second article by ADEME points out the fact that it is not sufficient that we provide only technical solutions and that we must focus more on recognizing different lifestyles, individual preferences and daily behaviors in order to combat environmental issues such as climate change. This issue also showcases two important and fruitful case studies, the first being a detailed analysis by Dr. Mohanty on how recent government-led policies like Smart Grid gave the motivation and opportunity for an urban family to achieve energy self-sufficiency. Mr Surendra Shah describes in detail an experiment that he conducted in an initiative to solve the heat dilemma faced by the less fortunate part of our society who cannot afford luxuries like air conditioners. This breakthrough invention does not require electricity or water for cooling, hence contributing positively to energy conservation. We hope you enjoy reading this issue of energyΡ manager titled "Behavioral aspects of energy use and sustainable consumption". We eagerly await your valuable comments and suggestions. K. Madhusoodanan Editor
(Please contribute your articles and case studies to reach the editor at madhukoovaprath@gmail.com or energymanagerhq@gmail.com)
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he motivation behind changing behavior to a more sustainable nature - is far from straightforward. In spite of our own best intentions, we often find ourselves 'locked in' to unsustainable behaviours. Hence, the rhetoric of 'consumer sovereignty' and 'hands-off' governance is inaccurate and helpless in these circumstances. Consumer behaviour is very closely related to the impact that society has on the environment, which is reflected in their actions and the choices they make regarding product consumption and way of lifestyle. This makes the topic of 'sustainable consumption' a central focus for national and international policy.
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editor's note
for a sustainable future – the need for shaping behaviour
October - December 2015
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need for an interdisciplinary study Jayaraman C
Recently, when I received a "WhatsApp" message indicating that avoiding overcharging of mobile phones can save power to the tune of 2000 to 3000 MW (almost equal to the installed capacity of the state of Kerala!!), my first response was that "I doubt the math". As a person who lead a similar campaign almost one and a half decade ago, calling to "switch off one light to avoid power cut", it was absolutely irrational from my part to question the "maths", ignoring the intent. Later I found that the organizations like Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) have conducted a study on this concept and came out with a more or less similar calculation. What was important is to understand the intent and I started asking why these campaigns fail to reach even the most educated technocrats.
energy paradox: need for an interdisciplinary study
nergy paradox" or the "energy efficiency gap"(difference between what can be theoretically achieved and what is practically achieved) cannot always be explained by measurable and tangible parameters. However, most often, we talk about efficiency gap in percentage and numbers. The reason is quite obvious; we live in a society obsessed with numbers, considering quantity as the centre of attraction. Thus, we fail to address why the markets tend to neglect apparently cost effective and highly critical energy efficiency measures that can mitigate factors hampering the very existence and sustainability of the world that we live in. It is true that many behavioral scientists have expressed concerns about the efficiency of markets for energy efficiency giving a variety of explanations and many energy analysts have identified several types of market failure that affect the market for energy efficiency. But, these findings are yet to become a part of our conventional planning system and policy formulation exercises that talk in terms of quantity. Market failures can be explained with more clarity by incorporating the behavior aspects of economics and human beings along with the measurable technical variables. This article attempts to scan through various concepts of behavior economics so as to set a background for an in-depth future study.
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We live in a society that tends to consider quantity as the most important perspective when it comes to analyzing parameters. Considering the fact that there are many cost effective and highly critical energy efficiency measures that can mitigate factors hampering the very existence of our planet, the apparent negligence on the part of markets to recognize these factors results in an "energy paradox" or an "efficiency gap". If we take an effort to put forward the behavior aspects of economics and human beings along with the measurable technical variables, this problem can be approached with more clarity. But, these findings are yet to become a part of our conventional planning system and policy formulation exercises that talk in terms of quantity. Studies on behavioral economic concepts can definitely set a background for an indepth future study.
energy paradox: need for an interdisciplinary study
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The function of a light source is to provide illumination. As long as the same amount of illumination is obtained, consumer should not bother about technology. Since, an LED bulb of 8 W can deliver more light output than an incandescent lamp(IL) of 60 W (in terms of measured Lumen output) it should be a natural, rational choice to replace IL with LED and to make the best choice for the first buy. As the cost of conserved energy is lower than the tariff, the consumer is always benefitted and it can help the utility to tide over the peak hour demand crisis.
Why don't we discard the incandescent lamps that produce more heat than light? Why don't we buy star labeled products when it is rational in terms of life cycle costing and do not think twice to invest in Insurance, Stock Markets and even in the education of our own children that do not guarantee anything positive in terms of future money and are more risky investments? Why don't we understand that money cannot be eaten and it is more important to live than to have a big bank balance? Answers to these questions can rarely come through mathematical equations, technical studies, researches, regulatory measures or even the most comprehensive energy audits unless we integrate them to the human behaviour; unless we accept that human beings are the most irrational animals (though "predictably irrational" as Dan Ariely, noted Behavioural Economist, says.) We all know that the function of a light source is to provide illumination. As long as the same amount of illumination is obtained, consumer should not bother about technology. Since, an LED bulb of 8 W can deliver more light output than an incandescent lamp(IL) of 60 W (in terms of measured Lumen output) it should be a natural, rational choice to replace IL with LED and to make the best choice for the first buy. As the cost of conserved energy(CCE) is lower than the tariff , the consumer is always benefitted and it can help the utility to tide over the peak hour demand crisis. As the projected life span of LED is almost 25 times that of the IL, there is no reason why a consumer should discard this rational choice.
Availability in abundance of low quality products in the market with cost as low as Rs 50 (a branded one will cost Rs 300) for an 8 W LED makes the consumer confused. In order to escape from selfindignation, resulting out of the probability of being cheated, and due to the general tendency of "loss aversion" the consumer might prefer an incandescent bulb over LED. Another major factor is the very low initial cost and the tendency of giving more importance to "present value of money" over the "future prospects of saving". Replacing IL with CFL or LED also has all these impediments of behaviour economics aspects along with the very pertinent technical factors.
However, there are several factors that act as barriers: Transaction cost is high for LED. Variation in quality is very large among various models of LEDs available in the market, making it difficult for the consumer to find out which is the best option. There is no such issue with an incandescent lamp where the make, model or type do not grossly affect the quality of the device or its output. The cost of an incandescent lamp is more or less the same across the country and the consumers never have feeling of being cheated by one vendor through over pricing or fooled by one manufacturer through false promises and unmet technical specifications. Even though the light measured in technical term such as "Lumens" is better for LED, the quality perceived by the consumer is not the same. Low colour rendering index (CRI) of LED lamps (wherein the capacity to identify colour is low) and the low spread (LED produces a more focused stream of light when compared to incandescent lamps) can give a feeling of discomfort to the consumer. Also, there are some reports published in the media on the ill effects of getting exposed to LED lights. To fight against these odds, LED manufacturer will have to incur more information cost and subsequently increase the product cost. Availability in abundance of low quality products in the market with cost as low as Rs 50 (a branded one will cost Rs 300) for an 8 W LED makes the consumer confused. In order to escape from selfindignation, resulting out of the probability of being
energy paradox: need for an interdisciplinary study
"Loss aversion" is a major impediment in energy conservation as the disutility of giving up an object is greater than the utility associated with acquiring a new one. People focus on losses much more than on gains and hence any amount of confusion or lack of proper information will make the consumer take decisions that will have minimum loss even in the case of its premature failures. "Endowment effect" too plays a major role in case of retrofits, as the consumer feel pain to part with items they've already paid for, and working even if that item is inefficient and it makes financial sense to replace it with something better. I have not tried to replace my working CFLs with new LEDs not only because of the endowment effect predominating over energy efficiency (in terms of Lumen per watt), but also due to the fact that I have so many failed CFLs stored in
the safe corner of my tool- almirah, without knowing how to dispose it off. Replacing IL with CFL or LED also has all these impediments of behaviour economics aspects along with the very pertinent technical factors. The power factor of LEDs and CFLs are less than that of IL and the huge amount of Harmonics injected into the system causes many known and unknown inefficiencies and losses. It is found that Utilities suffer a big loss due to low PF and Harmonics and the major cause of the recent "electrical fire" is due to harmonics and not short circuit as often described by the newspapers. Also, the embedded energy of manufacturing an IL is much lower than that of CFLs and LEDs where the number of components used is very high. The associated cost of safe disposal, which is rarely accounted for, is also very high for CFLs and LEDs.
Replacing incandescent lamps with LED has advantages like low cost to conserve energy, longer life (15-25 times), improved energy efficiency (10 times), low carbon foot print, reduced pollution compared
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cheated, and due to the general tendency of "loss aversion" the consumer might prefer an incandescent bulb over LED. Another major factor is the very low initial cost and the tendency of giving more importance to "present value of money" over the "future prospects of saving". The concept of "bounded rationality" becomes relevant as the consumer has limited resources and ability to process information.
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energy paradox: need for an interdisciplinary study
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with CFL and Fluorescent lamps, availability as direct retrofit, declining initial cost, suitability for both AC and DC and the wide power range availability. The reality is that even when the Energy Efficiency improvements are technologically feasible, economically justifiable, logically accepted, it will require a significant change in the collective thinking process of the society packed with irrational beings, making it work.
Many energy efficiency improvements do not reduce energy consumption by the amount predicted by simple engineering models. In many cases improvements make energy services cheaper leading to increased energy consumption. For example, the household wiring practices followed in the early seventies, when the only option was to go in for incandescent lamp, was to go in for just one light in one room. During the nineties, when the CFLs entered the market, with five times more efficacy, people started putting more number of lamps in a room and when LEDs entered the market this design changed to providing an array of lamps at different corners of the room. This direct rebound effect is more visible among the consumer buildings and high income group where the entire building is illuminated. To sum up, replacing incandescent lamps with LED has advantages like low cost to conserve energy, longer life (15-25 times), improved energy efficiency (10 times), low carbon foot print, reduced pollution compared with CFL and Fluorescent lamps, availability as direct retrofit, declining initial cost, suitability for both AC and DC and the wide power range availability. However, cognitive limitations on understanding the benefits of LED (relying on routines and rules of thumb bounded rationality), lack of proper information on the LED technology, lack of trust on the sources of information, inertia- especially for retrofits, forced to dispose working components when lamp fails (life ethics), lack of environmental awareness (reduced "No Regret" potential), high incremental purchase cost(risk aversion), low PF, low CRI, need for special reflectors, high THD, poor driver circuit design, unproven life expectancy, need for heat sink and more mounting space for higher power devices, disposal of entire lamp assembly when the
lamp fails or vice versa, technology still not mature, heterogeneity, hidden costs such as cost of information processing (Transaction Cost), low access to capital, asymmetric information, principal-agent relationships, consumer not being the decision maker, etcmake it extremely difficult for LED to replace Incandescent lamp. The reality is that even when the Energy Efficiency improvements are technologically feasible, economically justifiable, logically accepted, it will require a significant change in the collective thinking process of the society packed with irrational beings, making it work. Literature reviews stress the need to go beyond the classical economic theories, and the need to develop an inter-disciplinary study.
"Thinking in Systems, A Primer, by Donella H. Meadows". The book discusses in detail the need to pay attention to what is important,not just what is quantifiable. Well consolidated in the article"Uncertainty, loss aversion, and markets for energy efficiency" by David L. Greene, Energy Economics 33 (2011) 608-616 A campaign conducted by Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) and Energy Conservation Society(ECS), wherein the author and Dr K Soman, present General Secretary of ECS have covered the entire length and breadth of the State of Kerala, organizing awareness camps at every district to propagate the message that if all the 60 lakhs domestic consumers of the State of Kerala decide to switch off 60 W of power the net saving at the consumer end would be 360 MW, which can offset a generation capacity of more than 400MW, including transmission and distribution losses. The peakhour power shortage in Kerala at that time was less than 300 MW. Remember the adage "only when the last tree has been cut, only when the last river has been poisoned, only when the last fish has been caught , only then we understand that money cannot be eaten� A concept coined by LBNL wherein the cost of conserved energy(CCE) is calculated taking into consideration the discount factor, peak coincidence factor, equipment life etc, which says that it would be logical for a customer to accept retrofits when the CCE is less than the tariff.
Mr. C Jayaraman is the General Secretary of SEEM and a PhD Scholar at Amrita School of Business, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University, Coimbatore.
ADEME
Currently, energy consumption changes are presented in a very general and narrow manner. The analysis doesn't have much of a connection between the actual living conditions and income levels of citizens, thus preventing citizens from making a connection between their concrete choices and the very abstract notion of "energy". The topic of energy transition holds the possibility for a French national debate and it would be timely to observe in the long term, the pattern of energy consumption and GHG emissions. It is not sufficient that we provide only technical solutions as that will not enable us to achieve wide-spread optimization of our energy choices and behaviors in the face of climate change. We must thus open up the range of possible choices by recognizing different lifestyles, individual preferences and daily behaviors.
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an open public debate over lifestyles
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rethinking cities in a post carbon society:
rethinking cities in a post carbon society: an open public debate over lifestyles
Prospective analysis of lifestyles
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s a national debate begins in France over the energy transition, it is particularly timely to consider how French energy consumption and GHG emissions will evolve over the long-term. This prospective analysis of lifestyles identified the conditions under which GHG emissions in France could be reduced by a factor of four. Energy consumption and changes in consumption are too often presented very narrowly: w They are broken down based on statistical categories that are far removed from daily behavior and life choices, thus preventing citizens from making a connection between their concrete choices and the very abstract notion of "energy"; w They are presented in the form of household consumption averages, when such consumption is very dispersed and based primarily on income level;
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w They focus on potential energy efficiency achievements via technological advances in equipment but ignore changes associated with improvements in the way society is organized and in consumer behavior. We must, however, acknowledge that this is based on a concern for individual freedom and privacy. Nonetheless, we cannot divide GHG emissions by a factor of four by 2050 unless every one of us considers all the collective constraints we face. If we fail to do so, progress towards greater efficiency will be largely eroded by new consumption, made possible by the savings from energy efficiency (rebound effect). This latter limitation remains operative because it is incorporated into forecasting exercises based on a linear projection of past changes and corrected only by introducing energy efficiency measures. However, our society could take multiple paths, which cannot be reduced to technical choices or different economic management models. We must thus open up the range of possible choices by recognizing different lifestyles, individual preferences and daily behaviors.
Increasing the average educational level, access to information and professional and geographic mobility, all contribute to a diversification of lifestyles .The quantitative analysis revealed differences
in GHG emissions that are determined primarily by income level. However, the classification of living standards based on SPC limits the dispersion observed and offsetting effects appear. In general, the results are extremely sensitive to personal choices made. Considerable work remains to be done to analyze household energy consumption and GHG emissions based on differences in social and economic situations. In addition, such analysis requires a broad analytic framework, given the globalization of economic exchanges.
The difficulty in describing lifestyles Increasing the average educational level, access to information and professional and geographic mobility, all contribute to a diversification of lifestyles. Socioprofessional categories (SPC) thus group together life situations and behaviors that are increasingly heterogeneous. In this research, the effort to better understand these lifestyles was based on three distinctions: (1) income level (by grouping of SPC); (2) family structure; and (3) geographic location. The quantitative analysis revealed differences in GHG emissions that are determined primarily by income level. However, the classification of living standards based on SPC limits the dispersion observed and offsetting effects appear. In general, the results are extremely sensitive to personal choices made.
Need for in-depth research Considerable work remains to be done to analyze household energy consumption and GHG emissions based on differences in social and economic situations. In addition, such analysis requires a broad analytic framework, given the globalization of economic exchanges. The tools available are inadequate because the categories developed for other purposes (based primarily on professional categories) do not correspond to lifestyle types (including housing and diet). More in-depth research needs to be done, using surveys designed specifically for this purpose. Multiyear reports are also necessary. Without such a tool, behavioral changes cannot be followed over time.
rethinking cities in a post carbon society: an open public debate over lifestyles
It was then tempting to compare this extreme complexity of the individual attitudes observed in 2008 in highly contrasting long-term scenarios. However, this could be done only by maintaining an equivalent disaggregation with regard to social situations. After lengthy discussions, five scenarios were selected: 1. The Green Consumer Society posits the continuation of the current consumer society, with a corrective "greening" of the means of production and consumption. 2. The Enhanced Human Society offers a different promise than our current consumer society - that of improved human performance and longer life expectancy. However, this promise is not available to all. The scenario described thus has a dual nature, because one part of the population lacks access to it. 3. The Dual Society and Multiple Frugal Lifestyles scenario is based on the notion that part of the population has "dropped out" of the consumer
4. The Environmental-Citizenship Society reflects a sharper renunciation of the current consumer society. Its faint signals can already be observed, with the reaffirmation of broad social values that frame individual behavior, optimize energy consumption and reduce GHG emissions. 5. The Knowledge Age Society holds out the promise of a new development frontier, focused on deeper personal exchanges. Knowledge and cultural expression become the new areas of societal expansion, clearly relying on the possibilities created by the new communication technologies. The forecasting exercises conducted for each vision highlight major differences in GHG emissions, which extend the differences in household situations identified for 2008.
While the research has shown that significant energy-conserving lifestyles were required to achieve Factor 4 under certain scenarios, obviously not applied
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The five long-term scenarios studied
society. While some people have adopted simpler lifestyles in the context of a shrinking economy and develop local production, others maintain current forms of production and consumption. This is thus a dual scenario that will have to develop over time.
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In addition, a descriptive statistical approach must be based on further analysis of the psycho-sociological factors affecting the learning of individual behaviors. Otherwise, the public debate lacks benchmarks and proposals for change will be met with considerable skepticism.
rethinking cities in a post carbon society: an open public debate over lifestyles
uniformly, we must still address the issue of extending such practices throughout the entire society and beyond differences in personal income. Achieving widespread energy-conserving behavior requires not only broad social change guidelines, but changing individual choices as well. Despite frequent criticism of the prevailing individualism, we must still carefully analyze the clear and growing differentiation in individual behaviors.
The political issues that remain The conclusions of this research are not limited to a description of technological choices and organizational methods. They raise other serious questions: Collective strategy, protection of individual freedom, diversity of expression and personal incentives.
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While the research has shown that significant energyconserving lifestyles were required to achieve Factor 4 under certain scenarios, obviously not applied uniformly, we must still address the issue of extending such practices throughout the entire society and beyond differences in personal income. Achieving widespread energy-conserving behavior requires not only broad social change guidelines, but changing individual choices as well. Many initiatives are underway to influence behavior via education, information and incentives that encourage small changes. However, there is no evidence that such efforts will produce behavior change that is significant enough to counterbalance the rebound effect and to achieve "optimal" behavior on a daily basis.
The conclusions of this research are not limited to a description of technological choices and organizational methods. They raise other serious questions: Collective strategy, protection of individual freedom, diversity of expression and personal incentives. In all likelihood, weaker social cohesion and a weaker commitment among the population to its value system (including simple lifestyles, personal development, access to knowledge, and
quality of relationships) are likely to produce more heterogeneous behaviors. This results in higher energy consumption that technical options alone cannot offset.
Despite frequent criticism of the prevailing individualism, we must still carefully analyze the clear and growing differentiation in individual behaviors. This raises the following question: will injunctions to standardize individual behavior in the name of the collective interest restrict individual freedom? More fundamentally, given that universal suffrage is the basis of government legitimacy in democratic societies, the majority must support such choices. Will strong pressure to change behavior thus lead to voter rejection? Economic tools, such as tax policy, that are used to influence individual behavior, may encounter the same problems; that is, lower-income households have much less flexibility than others, while energy represents a much larger share of their budget. How can we influence behavior? This question cuts across all the scenarios. In all likelihood, weaker social cohesion and a weaker commitment among the population to its value system (including simple lifestyles, personal development, access to knowledge, and quality of relationships) are likely to produce more heterogeneous behaviors. This results in higher energy consumption that technical options alone cannot offset. In addition, there is a considerable gap between stated opinions and actual actions. This attitude - the cognitive dissonance that exists between opinion and practice - is heightened when it involves an issue that produces unease and anguish, such as facing limits (access to resources or the need to reduce GHG emissions by a factor of four). Under these conditions, repeated injunctions to improve behavior could produce the opposite outcome - denial, refusal or evasion.
Seven steps: from awareness to action Several conditions must be met to move from awareness to action. First, once an individual understands the seriousness of climate change and energy issues, he or she must be able to confirm that they are being addressed.
The third condition involves identifying one's own contribution to GHG emissions. Cutting the annual contribution of seven tons of CO2 equivalent per person by a factor of four can make your head spin. We must recognize the sources of those emissions and understand their effects on our personal life. Otherwise, we will be able to imagine only the dramatic collapse of our own way of life, which will certainly increase anxiety. Conversely, recognizing that one of the main sources of household emissions is home heating and understanding that it can be addressed by better insulation, a more efficient heating system, use of renewable energies and greater attention to one's daily behavior is unlikely to trigger a personal crisis. This phase - noting, observing and recording what needs to change in one's life - is critical. The fourth condition is access to information about the many possible solutions, from the technology to forms of social organization to the level of individual behavior, in all relevant spheres, including domestic life, food, transport of persons and merchandise and consumer goods.
If we carry out these four steps, adapting to climate change will no longer constitute a challenge to our way or life or, worse, the expression of our personality. Yes, life will change. But given the technical
The fifth condition involves creating greater awareness of exemplary accomplishments by public authorities and businesses in all areas, including construction, transport, agriculture and energy production. Local municipalities clearly play a large part. A woman walking past a new building with her child must be able to explain that the building will save energy and have a minimal environmental impact - and that those are the kinds of buildings that will be built throughout the child's lifetime. That awareness will be reassuring. Sixth, these exemplary achievements must be part of an actual scenario and individual action must be carried out within timelines set by law and applicable to all. It would be useful to develop a "Factor 4 timetable" leading up to 2050. We cannot expect every person to change his or her behavior if those changes are not part of a collective process. Political entities must propose a timetable and lay out a series of steps for each sector, based on its specific characteristics. The future would thus be transformed from a blurry, traumatic unknown to a path marked by small, tangible milestones. Government must implement this transformation and the pace must be tailored to each sector and technology. Designing a scenario for the future will also highlight the economic
rethinking cities in a post carbon society: an open public debate over lifestyles
If we carry out these four steps - see that the issue is being addressed seriously, develop an understanding of the problem, identify our responsibilities and anticipate the possible responses - then we will be able to construct a new sense of ourselves, our future, and our children's future. Climate change will then no longer constitute a challenge to our way or life or, worse, the expression of our personality. Yes, life will change. But given the technical changes that will allow us to adopt fundamentally different behaviors, we can also anticipate a satisfying personal life. However, if we are to achieve a broadbased shift to action, this image of our future life must be part of a common scenario. We must recognize that many of these changes will require a different form of collective organization that involves distributing jobs based on where we live, high-quality housing construction and accessible public transport. Addressing climate change thus involves three additional steps that require politicians to act as stage director.
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The second condition is that the issue must be understood rationally. We cannot act without understanding the processes at work and visualizing their impacts. The scope of the climate change issue must be examined in terms of its causes, extent and rapidity. Only education can establish a link between personal responsibility and future climate change. To fight climate change, we must both educate our children and work hard to educate the population on a continuing, permanent basis. Local municipalities will play a critical role here.
changes that will allow us to adopt fundamentally different behaviors, we can also anticipate a satisfying personal life.
October - December 2015
Many people base their opinions on the consensus achieved within the society. Are the media giving these issues the prominence they deserve? Are political, administrative and economic leaders incorporating this new, fundamental issue into their choices and decisions? This is not the case today, particularly with regard to the audio-visual media and advertising messages. Without that confirmation, the message conveyed is that the problem is not being addressed and, thus, is not urgent.
rethinking cities in a post carbon society: an open public debate over lifestyles
and employment benefits of taking action. The final condition involves ensuring that businesses, public authorities and citizens are equally committed to these changes, based on their responsibilities and social conditions. The challenge cannot be handled unless we take a democratic approach based on solidarity. "I will, if you will, if we all will!"
Equally likely futures We must explore visions of the future in order to rank the solutions and clarify potential leeway. If we do not create visions of the future, we cannot imagine ourselves there. However, presenting technical solutions is clearly not enough. We will not be able to
achieve wide-spread optimization of our energy choices and behaviors in the face of climate change unless it is part of a vision that allows people to achieve success in their individual lives and is part of a democratic process. This research was intended to help us move forward on these new paths to achieving personal fulfillment and democratic progress.
This article is a short extract from the report of the research program "Foresight analysis of lifestyles in France in 2050 and carbon footprints" under the program "Rethinking cities in a post carbon society", launched in 2008 by the Foresight Unit of the French Ministry of Sustainable Development and the national Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME).
...continued from page 04
I fail to understand how with such pricing policy, my fellow citizens can ever be motivated to use electricity judiciously and opt for solar power for their rooftops!
October - December 2015
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Wrong signal is sent to the consumers when market prices do not fully reflect environmental and social impacts. Higher prices signal that resources are limited and stimulate investment in resource conservation and efficiency. Governments concerned with increasingly unsustainable consumption patterns need to take initiative to curb the manufacturing and sale of products and services with high negative impacts on people, environment and local economies, and encourage the provision of more sustainable options.
Think global, act local One aspect of sustainable consumption is to promote local production and consumption systems that strengthen local economies, reduce need for transport. It is equally important to support innovative business models that contribute to sustainable consumption. One model with large potential is to shift from selling physical products to selling services or functions, thus reducing the need for private ownership and overall material consumption. By charging a tax on the extraction of limited natural resources, or on the purchase of products made from such resources, governments can dampen demand. It is also possible to introduce separate policies to compensate poor households that are negatively affected by full-cost pricing.
Create hard and soft infrastructure for sustainability Much of the buildings and infrastructure that will be in
operation in developing countries by 2050 are yet to be developed. Hence countries like India have a large window of opportunity for investing today in sustainable infrastructure that will have a lasting legacy towards the middle of the century. Political will is necessary to deal with unsustainable consumption. Through right policies and governance mechanisms, suitable environment can be fostered for the society to make better choices. For example, governments can stop subsidizing aviation fuel and prioritize investment in infrastructure that promotes public over private transport. After all, the effectiveness of governance can be measured by how government responds to the needs of the people and plans for the future.
From small gestures to transformative changes The recent pledges made and policies adopted by the countries participating in the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) fall short of 2 C, which is the agreed limit on global temperature rise. Governance alone will not suffice to attain the required transition; citizens need to be sensitized and encouraged to take collective actions in order to make necessary changes in their behaviour and shift towards more sustainable consumption patterns and lifestyles. Governments must however realize that while small proenvironmental actions leading to incremental changes are relevant (e.g. switching off lamps when not needed, refusing to take plastic bags in shops, etc.), they have limited impacts in comparison with the magnitude of the environmental problems to be addressed. There is urgent need for a paradigm shift and bold transformative actions.
This is the story of how the recent government-led policies (Smart Grid allowing residential electricity consumers to produce solar electricity on their rooftops and exchange it with the power grid) have motivated and created an opportunity for an urban family to achieve energy selfsufficiency. It goes on to prove that every urban family that can afford a house and a car can certainly make a little effort to become a prosumer (i.e. a consumer who produces partially/fully what he/she consumes), thus contributing positively to the national development and alleviating the pressure on the local and global environment. But before the story unfolds, let us start with an introduction to position ourselves in the global and national context to better appreciate the need for such action at the local level.
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty
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an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
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ccording to forecasts by the International Energy Agency (IEA), world energy demand will grow by almost 60% between 2002 and 2030. Population and economic growth in developing countries will drive most of this increase, with much coal-based generation capacity driving up CO2 emissions. India continues to depend on low-cost fossil fuels like coal to meet the huge energy demand, undermining its efforts to tackle local and global pollution. The IEA further estimates that under the current business-as-usual scenario, energy use in Asia will increase by 112% between 2007 and 2030.
The global and national energy challenges
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Global electricity production and consumption are not sustainable. The main sources of energy are fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas, which make electricity production one of the largest and fastest growing contributors to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. These are finite resources that are being depleted at a rapid pace. According to forecasts by the International Energy Agency (IEA), world energy demand will grow by almost 60% between 2002 and 2030. Population and economic growth in developing countries will drive most of this increase, with much coal-based generation capacity driving up CO2 emissions. The IEA further estimates that under the current business-as-usual scenario, energy use in Asia will increase by 112% between 2007 and 2030. India and the Peoples' Republic of China are expected to triple their current per capita electricity consumption by 2030. As far as India is concerned, more than a quarter of the population, mostly living in rural areas, lacks access to electricity. Policies in the past to make energy affordable to the poor have resulted in untargeted subsidies, compromising the financial capacity of energy sector players. The urban middle class is acquiring more energy-intensive appliances that use significant amounts of electricity, resulting in crippling electricity shortages and consequent rationing that is ubiquitous in India. Increasing dependence on energy import is exposing India to greater geopolitical risks and international fossil energy price volatility. India continues to depend on low-cost fossil fuels like coal to meet the huge energy
demand, undermining its efforts to tackle local and global pollution. Cohesive policies are needed to ensure the supply of adequate and reliable energy amid growing energy demand, bolstered by economic growth and aspiration for better quality of life. It is the right time for us to adopt more energy efficient technologies, processes and practices on the demand side and then switch from fossil to renewable energy alternatives on the supply side. There is need for a paradigm shift in the thinking process through behavioral and lifestyle changes in addition to the innovative policies that are being adopted by the government to create sustainable infrastructure, smart cities and grids.
The easiest carbon saving interventions for individuals seem to be energy cost saving measures and retrofitting of existing buildings with greener technologies. Analysis of a study conducted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) concludes that technology alone is unlikely to guarantee building energy performance. By installing fuel cells, rooftop solar shingles, living machine wastewater treatment, rooftop gardens, etc. existing structures can contribute by minimizing their dependence on fossil fuel resources and thereby reducing their carbon emissions.
Why focus on the buildings? Given the large proportion that buildings and habitats contribute to carbon emissions, building dwellers need to make necessary changes in their lifestyles for reducing energy consumption and mitigating CO2 emissions. There are two ways in which buildings consume energy and hence have the potential for mitigation and adaptation interventions: (i) energy used for the construction, including the embodied energy in building materials used; and (ii) energy consumed for their operation and maintenance. Even though buildings are market driven, many of the lifestyle choices in this sector are largely dependent on policies, market creation and capacity enhancement of builders and architects. The easiest carbon saving interventions for individuals seem to be
Demand and supply are two sides of the same coin Access to reliable and affordable energy for electricity, cooking, transportation and production is necessary for meeting the basic needs and sustained economic development of Asia. Toward this end, governments should promote energy policies that help mitigate carbon emissions. It is equally important not to emphasize scaling up the production side alone, but also to address losses in energy transmission and the high-energy consumption of the end users with suitable policy interventions. A longterm policy for energy development, with a strong focus on reaching a low-carbon society, needs to be formulated. Policy mixes like incentives for renewable energy development along with awareness programs have proven to be quite effective. Rather than investing in new electricity generating plants and increasing supply, governments would achieve a lot more by helping the population buy energy saving devices such as LED lamps, fans with good aerodynamic design, well-insulated refrigerators with efficient compressors, and other energy efficient technologies that have lesser carbon emissions but a higher up-front cost.
Rich hiding behind the poor The rapidly escalating population growth in developing countries has often been named as one of the main causes of increasing demand for consumer goods and services and thereby pollution. However, we must note that the poor cannot afford resources, whereas wealthy people may use them as a sign of affluence. In India, like in many other developing countries, the rich tend to hide behind the poor. For example, while the average electricity consumption in many developing countries may be less than 2 kWh per capita per day, there is a huge disparity between what the rich and the poor consume. Consider the fact that according to official statistics, over 400 million Indians do not have access to grid electricity. On the other hand, onethird of the country's population lives in cities and accounts for 87% of the nation's electricity. How to address this huge disparity and bridge the gap? It may be good to remind ourselves the quotation from Mahatma Gandhi: The rich must live simply so that the poor may simply live. In the context of energy, those in the society who can afford may take the lead and set an example by embracing a lifestyle that reflects energy modesty and promotes energy "prosumption". To prove the above point, an urban family took the initiative to reduce the electricity demand of their
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
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Houses and office buildings can be converted into places of production with relatively minor alterations. By installing fuel cells, rooftop solar shingles, living machine wastewater treatment, rooftop gardens, etc. existing structures can contribute by minimizing their dependence on fossil fuel resources and thereby reducing their carbon emissions. Many opportunities for higher efficiency do not involve one large investment with a substantial return. Instead, they consist of many small actions that add up to offer significant energy savings. The most common household appliances today–including lamp, fan, fridge, television set, washing machine, water heater, air conditioner and computer–are still quite energyinefficient and draw electricity in excess of what is normally required for using the appliance.
In India, like in many other developing countries, the rich tend to hide behind the poor. For example, while the average electricity consumption in many developing countries may be less than 2 kWh per capita per day, there is a huge disparity between what the rich and the poor consume. According to official statistics, over 400 million Indians do not have access to grid electricity. On the other hand, one-third of the country's population lives in cities and accounts for 87% of the nation's electricity. In the context of energy, those in the society who can afford may take the lead and set an example by embracing a lifestyle that reflects energy modesty and promotes energy "prosumption".
October - December 2015
energy cost saving measures and retrofitting of existing buildings with greener technologies. Analysis of a study conducted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) concludes that technology alone is unlikely to guarantee building energy performance. "Wasteful behavior can add onethird to a building's designed energy performance, while conservation behavior can save a third". On the whole, wasteful behavior uses twice as much energy.
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
October - December 2015
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house considerably before opting for grid-interactive solar photovoltaic system, thus achieving near zerocarbon living in the urban context. The remaining parts of the article narrate the steps taken for attaining this status.
An urban family living in a coastal city of South India took the initiative to reduce the electricity demand of their house considerably before opting for gridinteractive solar photovoltaic system, thus achieving near zero-carbon living in the urban context. When the house was being constructed in 2000-01, the family had decided to install off-grid solar power system to meet the essential electricity needs of the house, including lamps, fans, refrigerator, portable computers, plug loads, etc.
Becoming electricity prosumer with off-grid solar system (2001-2011) The family in question lives in a coastal city of South India, which is known for its hot and humid climate throughout a good part of the year. During the designing of the house, care was taken to orient it properly, provide adequate solar protection, and benefit from natural daylight and ventilation. As a result, there is practically no need for artificial lighting during daytime and fans alone can create a fairly comfortable indoor environment. The need for air conditioning is felt in specific areas of the house only during extremely hot and humid periods of the year, lasting about two to three months. When the house was being constructed in 2000-01, the family had decided to install off-grid solar power system to meet the essential electricity needs of the house, including lamps, fans, refrigerator, portable computers, plug loads, etc. It was purely an exercise to test how far an off-grid solar power system was reliable to meet the electrical needs of an urban family, especially considering the fact the Ministry of
Since the battery was the weakest but necessary link between the solar photovoltaic panels and the electrical loads, efforts were made to find the most efficient appliances available in the market in order to lower the electricity consumption to the extent possible. The task was not that easy in the absence of any national energy-labeling scheme of appliances at that time. Right from the beginning, the family decided to install compact fluorescent lamps and energy-efficient tubular fluorescent lamps everywhere in the house. Since the market for such products was not developed in India, the prices were relatively higher but it made much sense to reduce the electricity demand with such investments than to put more money on bigger batteries that were expensive, which had a limited life span and contributed to more charging and discharging losses. A battery typically delivers around 70% of the electricity that it receives, the remaining amount getting lost during the conversions involved in charging and discharging. With a 900-Watt off-grid solar power system and batteries sized to store 4.8 kWh of electricity, the family was able to meet most of essential electricity needs except for washing machine, electric iron, and the occasional use of air conditioners during some months of the year. In the initial periods, the family was cautious not to
The capacities of batteries again started dropping after another five years of efficient operation. In the mean while, the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission was launched on the 11th January, 2010 by the Prime Minister, setting an ambitious target of deploying 20,000 MW of grid connected solar power by 2022. Several State governments had started actively promoting arduous (Solar) Photovoltaic Rooftop Programmes in different parts of the country in order to enhance the utilization of green energy sources for reducing GHG emissions caused by use of conventional sources, and encouraging public participation to set up grid interactive rooftop Solar Photovoltaic systems. Though no initiative had been taken in this regard in the State where the urban family resides, preliminary discussions were held with the key institutional stakeholders of the State in the second quarter of 2011 in order to express the intention of setting up a pilot grid-interactive rooftop solar power plant which would serve the purpose of demonstration.
The compact fluorescent lamps were replaced by more efficient LED lamps which consume half the electricity and last much longer than the traditional lamps. Fans used in the rooms for air circulation
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
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A battery typically delivers around 70% of the electricity that it receives, the remaining amount getting lost during the conversions involved in charging and discharging. With a 900-Watt off-grid solar power system and batteries sized to store 4.8 kWh of electricity, the family was able to meet most of essential electricity needs except for washing machine, electric iron, and the occasional use of air conditioners during some months of the year. After 4-5 years of off-grid solar operation, the battery capacity to store electricity also decreased and the family had to revert to grid electricity.
use solar electricity during daytime with the fear that electricity stored in batteries may not be adequate for operation during the whole night. But after a few months of use, the family was quite confident of using all essential loads 24 hours a day, including the period of less or no sunshine. After 4-5 years of offgrid solar operation, the battery started ageing. And as its capacity to store electricity also decreased, the family started running out of solar electricity from time to time and had to revert to grid electricity. At the end of 5 years of operation, it was decided to replace the old batteries by a new set and things were back to the normal condition of operation. By that time, the family had also realized how difficult it would be for a rural household to finance the replacement of the batteries every few years. Since the poorer section of the society can pay only small amounts on a regular basis, the urban family realized the need to find an alternative economic model which allows the rural families to contribute small amounts as they continue to enjoy the energy service on a daily basis (also known as the "pay as you go" scheme); the periodic burden of replacing the batteries would then lie with the service provider and not the poor villagers.
October - December 2015
New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) was actively promoting the use of solar energy in thousands of remote villages that did not have access to gridquality electricity.
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
and ventilation were replaced by the most efficient alternatives, consuming at least 35% less than the standard products sold in the Indian market. All these demand reduction measures helped to lower the energy consumption of the house by as much as 40-50 percent. Once the demand for electricity was managed, a decision was taken to opt for a grid-interactive 3kW solar photovoltaic system which was commissioned by the end of September 2011.
Moving from off-grid solar to grid-interactive solar system (2011)
October - December 2015
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Once the decision was taken to go ahead with the grid-interactive solar power plant, the family used the experience gained over the past decade to determine the capacity of the solar system that would take care of all the electricity needs of the house. In the mean while, considerable progress had been made by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) to introduce energy performance ratings for household and commercial electrical appliances and assist end-users in making informed choice regarding the use of energy-intensive devices sold in the country. Hence it was decided to switch to more efficient electrical appliances to further reduce the loads and lower the capacity of the solar power plant.
Picture 1. The rooftop solar photovoltaic installation
The compact fluorescent lamps were replaced by more efficient LED lamps which consume half the electricity and last much longer than the traditional lamps. Fans used in the rooms for air circulation and ventilation were replaced by the most efficient alternatives, consuming at least 35% less than the standard products sold in the Indian market. Similarly, other household electrical appliances including refrigerator, washing machine, air conditioner, water pump and TV were chosen such that they consume far less than the standard appliances commercialized in India. All these demand reduction measures helped to lower the energy consumption of the house by as much as 40-50 percent. As the family had acquired electric car and electric scooters for local urban mobility, it was also decided to charge their batteries whenever the solar power output was high during the day. Once the demand for electricity was managed, a decision was taken to opt for a grid-interactive 3-kW solar photovoltaic system which was commissioned by the end of September 2011. An added advantage of rooftop solar installations is their ability to protect the roof from the high solar radiation throughout the day, thus avoiding the need for insulating the roof and reducing the cooling load considerably. Since solar energy is available only during sunshine hours when the demand for energy in the house is quite low, the excess electricity produced by the solar system is fed into the grid. In return, whenever the solar electricity is not available or adequate, the house depends for its electricity on the electricity grid.
Analysis of the energy performance of the house for the whole year of 2015 shows that the solar system has been able to generate 4,821 kWh of electricity (excluding the hours of power outages in the year due to grid brown-outs or blackouts) while the amount of electricity consumed in the house in the whole year has been 3,817 kWh, including the electricity needed to charge the electric car and scooters. As a result, the family
has been able to maintain over 20% of net positive electricity by the end of 2015 while meeting all the home electrical energy needs as well as that needed for local transportation.
Measuring to manage better Along with the solar system, it was also decided to opt for a remote monitoring system that would allow keeping track of the hourly, daily, seasonal and yearly performance of the solar power plant as well as the electricity consumption of the house. Data gathered from the solar power plant were shared with the key stakeholders such as senior government officials of the State Renewable Energy Agency, the power distribution company, and the Electricity Regulatory Commission.
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
One could not have imagined such a scenario a few years back till the new Electricity Act made it possible for feeding renewable electricity into the grid.
October - December 2015
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Figure 1.Hourly and daily electricity generated by the solar power plant (April 2015)
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Solar Produc on, kWh/day (3 kWp power plant)
Figure 2. Performance of the 3 kWp solar power plant during the different months of 2015
Number of days in 2015 Figure 3.Annual Performance of the solar PV system in 2015 (including power grid outages)
Figure 3 shows the annual distribution of the daily solar electricity generation. As one can see, the solar output exceeds 14 kWh/day during more than half the year. It is less than 10 kWh/day for less than 2 months, mostly coinciding with the rainy months of November and December.
Exploring other options to use green electricity intelligently After operating the system for a couple of years, it was decided to replace the refrigerator, washing machine and the air conditioner by more efficient inverter-based models that further reduced the
can be low during certain days due to clouds and occasional showers; at the same time, air conditioning is occasionally needed to overcome the high heat and humidity. Figure 6 shows that during the whole month, the electricity consumption exceeded the solar production only during 6 days in the month, mainly because of the simultaneous need for charging the car and running the air conditioners on those days. The house could achieve net energypositive status during most of the days of the month.
A detailed monitoring of the electricity production, consumption, export and import data on a daily basis helped to better manage the electricity consumption so that the house could maintain energy-positive status for the maximum number of days in the year.
Solar production, home consumption and Net Export (18/04/2015)
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
electricity consumption of the house. At the same time, a decision was taken to use microwave oven and air fryer for cooking efficiently with electricity to the extent possible, further reducing the dependence on LPG (liquefied petroleum gas).
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The charging of the electric car demands more than 2 kW of electricity, hence the car is normally charged during the peak solar energy production of the day, typically from 11h00 to 15h00, as can be noted in Figure 4. Air conditioning was needed during the period of the year which also happened to be the sunniest days; thus it was possible to meet most of the electricity needs of the house from solar electricity during those months as well. This is illustrated in Figure 5 which presents the data for the month of August 2015. As one can observe, the solar output and electricity consumed in the house are more or less balanced in this month when the solar production
Analysis of the energy performance of the house for the whole year of 2015 shows that the solar system has been able to generate 4,821 kWh of electricity (excluding the hours of power outages in the year due to grid brown-outs or black-outs) while the amount of electricity consumed in the house in the whole year has been 3,817 kWh, including the electricity needed to charge the electric car and scooters. As a result, the family has been able to maintain over 20% of net positive electricity by the end of 2015 while meeting all the home electrical energy needs as well as that needed for local transportation, thus avoiding the need to go to the petrol station.
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Epilogue This is a small and modest step taken by this urban family to move towards sustainable energy goals, without any concern for energy insecurity or energy price hikes.
If a good number of families in Indian cities decided to follow suit by first lowering their electricity demand through the adoption of energy-efficient technologies as well as behavior and lifestyle changes, and then investing in roof-top solar power plants, India would
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be able put behind her perennial electricity demandsupply gap forever. Moreover, this gesture by those who are in a position to tread this path can further contribute to making the scarce energy resources available to hundreds of millions of Indians who do not have access or have poor access to them. Such grassroots initiatives backed up with strong institutional support and leadership commitments at the national level can make the goal of energy independence a reality in foreseeable future.
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Figure 7.Energy performance of the house with over 20% net positive electricity in 2015
Dr. Brahmanand Mohanty is the Regional Adviser for Asia, ADEME (French Environment and Energy Management Agency) and Visiting Faculty, School of Environment, Resources and Development, AIT (Asian Institute of Technology)
an urban family's quest for achieving electricity self-sufficiency
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Simple Tips for all residential energy consumers who may wish to become "prosumers": a) Define well your needs (this is perhaps the most difficult and challenging task) b) Do a simple audit of energy consumption in your home to know what appliances are in use, how often they are used and how much energy they consume. c) Replace energy-guzzling appliances with efficient alternatives. Do life-cycle analysis to calculate the cost of saving a kWh versus the cost of purchasing it. d) Consider installing a solar power plant on your rooftop to further bring down the electricity bill while enjoying green energy.
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Take pride in the excess electricity you export to your power distributor Grid!
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e) With a solar plant installed, start re-thinking ways to use electricity efficiently to substitute fossil fuels: driving battery-powered cars/bikes, cooking with microwave ovens and induction cookers, etc.
October - December 2015
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keeping cool
without electricity or water
Surendra H Shah
keeping cool without electricity or water
With rising temperatures in today's times, use of air conditioners has become a common phenomenon. However, the less fortunate are left with no choice and are forced to bear the brunt of the scorching heat. This article presents an experiment that can prove to be a simple yet effective solution to this dilemma. An added advantage is that it does not require electricity or water for cooling, thus contributing positively to energy conservation.
The following article contains photos and results of an experiment based on an extremely simple roof cooling system. It involves covering the roof during the day by a low emissivity cover and withdrawing it at night, exposing the roof for cooling by radiation to the sky..
The experiment was conducted on a 0.5 Sq. m. slab with a manual opening and closing mechanism. Several variations were tried and the results were recorded using a data logger. Results show that in every case, the slab bottom temperature 0 remained below 34 C or lower. Since this is below the human skin temperature, there is no heat transmitted by the roof to the occupants.
October - December 2015
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or every person using air conditioning or air cooling, there are many more who can't afford either and have to suffer extreme discomfort when their house turns into a virtual oven in the summer, resulting in sickness and even death.
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keeping cool without electricity or water
The experiment was conducted on a 0.5 sq. m.slab with a manual opening and closing mechanism. Several variations were tried and the results were recorded using a data logger that gave output in excel format, which allowed presentation by charts. The team members that worked on the project included Rupesh Shinde, Mahesh Prabhulkar, Priyesh Chiplunkar, and Kyle Gracious. The results show that in every case, the slab bottom temperature remained below 34 0 C or lower. Since this is below the human skin temperature, there is no heat transmitted by the roof to the occupants. Cooling the roof also prevents its heat from spreading into the rest of the building. An architect or an engineer can easily transform this demo into a robust system that covers whole roofs.
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
Cooling the roof also prevents its heat from spreading into the rest of the building. An architect or an engineer can easily transform this demo into a robust system that covers whole roofs. The 30 system does not use any electricity or water and will provide a huge relief from heat stress to people who can't afford air conditioners or air coolers. Moreover it will also cause a substantial reduction in the energy consumption of air conditioners.
The system does not use any electricity or water. The results below are proof that it actually works. The only energy required is for opening and closing the cover twice a day if it is made automatic. Finally, while this system will provide a huge relief from heat stress to people who can't afford air conditioners or air coolers, it will also cause a substantial reduction in the energy consumption of air conditioners.
OPERATION
Night time During the night, the cover is retracted and the slab remains open to the sky. This allows radiant heat
transfer from the slab to surface that is 30 0 C to the sky that can be minus 40 to minus 60 0 C depending on haze and clouds. The rate depends on the difference in the fourth powers of their absolute temperatures and the emissivity of the slab (0.85). So the slab bottom cools down to 27 0 C.
Daytime From Sunup to Sundown, this flexible cover, with a very shiny bottom, is drawn over the slab. It shades the slab, while its low emissivity (0.01) due to the shiny surface prevents any radiant heating of the slab. So even though the slab gains some heat from the ambient air, and its bottom still remains below 30 0 C, at least five degrees below the body. So it feels cool enough to be free of heat stress.
Due to its high penetration potential, this simple idea based on our traditional wisdom of cooling the structure for thermal comfort, not the air, can save energy, water and the environment to a large extent. It will also save foreign exchange by reducing fuel and air conditioner imports. It would also greatly reduce CO 2 emissions. Even though both the setup above and the larger frame shown below are crude devices for demonstrating a principle, it would be fairly easy to translate it into a practical system . It should not take much R&D or engineering to morph it into a horizontal configuration. If a similar cover is rolled down when a wall is sunlit and pulled up at night, it would then shield the entire house from the sun and keep it very cool. However, the aesthetics must be solved first. Due to its high penetration potential, this simple idea, based on our traditional wisdom of cooling the structure for thermal comfort, not the air, can save energy, water and the environment to a large extent. It will also save foreign exchange by reducing fuel and air conditioner imports. It would also greatly reduce CO 2 emissions. This would meet the need for thermal comfort. Greed is always insatiable, so air conditioning is here to stay!
keeping cool without electricity or water
DATA LOGGER READINGS
The blue line showing the slab bottom is always above 300C. The average is very near the body temperature. Therefore it does not feel cool. Experiment-2 Cover Always Closed Here the slab bottom is cooler because of shading from the sun. However, there is no cooling by night sky radiation. So the temperature is always above 300C. Experiment 3- Slab Covered By Day & Open By Night In this case, the shade prevents heating during the day and promotes cooling by sky radiation at night. The combined effect maintains the slab bottom temperature to be always below 300C. Mr. Surendra Shah, MSEEM, is a life member of ISHRAE, IIID and SESI. He is a visiting faculty at the Rachana Sansad's Institute of Environmental Architecture.
He specializes in energy efficient low humidity systems for clean rooms and operation theaters. In 1970, he started Pan Asia Corporation, a breeding ground for his many innovative energy saving products, some of which have been patented now. In 2004 he designed wind towers for the CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Building Center in Hyderabad, which went on to receive the country's first Platinum rated LEEDS building. He combines the techniques used in cooling of heritage structures such as the Taj Mahal with modern technology, resulting in an incredibly energy efficient cooling system. He has devised and installed a three part comfort cooling system in many offices, which uses 30% less energy than a central chiller system and improves indoor air quality. The Mumbai University Institute of Chemical Technology (UICT) has recognized him for a heat pump air dryer that has a C.O.P. of 6.7, which he made for their lab. His other inventions include an air conditioner with EER of over 15, a packaged air conditioner with its own integral ice thermal storage that provides cooling during power cuts and a two stage low energy air dryer that delivers a steady supply of air at a dew point several degrees below zero, without stopping for defrosting. He won a BRY-AIR award and an US Patent (No. 8365542) for this invention.
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These readings were taken in early April 2015 when the ambient temperatures were low .
Mr. Surendra Shah, the author of this article, has HVAC projects like Air India Terminal, State Bank of India Building, Oberoi Towers, MSEB Prakashgad Mumbai, Sri Lanka Oberoi, a housing complex at Baghdad Iraq, etc. to his credit.
October - December 2015
Experiment 1 - Cover Always Open
October - December 2015
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do we need more energy efficient vehicles, right infrastructure, or proper road culture? Jayakumar Nair
do we need more energy efficient vehicles,right infrastructure, or, proper road culture? a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
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October - December 2015
Mileage and fuel efficiency are our prime priorities when we think about buying a vehicle. Manufacturers do provide us with the promised technologies, but unfortunately, when it comes to practical use, the desired results are not achieved. As per M/s Nielson's all India study report to PPAC on sale of diesel and petrol, the total diesel sold in the country during 2012-13 was 69,080 TMT and petrol was 15,744 TMT. While diesel constitutes 44% of total consumption of petroleum products in India, petrol accounts for 10%. Transport sector alone has consumed 70% diesel and 99.6% petrol which shows a large scope for improvement. Often in actual road conditions the mileage found is less than 5070% or even lower. This article focuses on a case study conducted by Sustenergy Foundation to understand the factors that contribute to the drop in mileage in actual road conditions.
do we need more energy efficient vehicles,right infrastructure, or, proper road culture?
October - December 2015
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W
hen we choose a new car, the one which provides best mileage is our priority. Car manufacturers are spending lot of money for research year after year for bringing in, the latest technologies for enhancing fuel efficiency. When 1498 CC Honda City Diesel launched their new car two years back with 26.1 kmpl, it was the best mileage available for any premium car in India. Last year Maruti Suzuki launched 'Maruti Ciaz Diesel' with 26.3 kmpl mileage followed by Maruti Swift Dzire with an extended mileage of 26.59 kmpl. In the small car sector Maruti launched Celerio Diesel with a premium mileage of 27.62 kmpl. We could expect many more energy efficient cars in the years to come! But to what extent can we improve our car mileage? Is it the only thing that we need to focus to reduce India's transport sector energy consumption? As per M/s Nielson's all India study report to PPAC on sale of Diesel and petrol, the total diesel sold in the country during 2012-13 was 69,080 TMT and petrol was 15,744 TMT. While diesel constitutes 44% of total consumption of petroleum products in India, petrol accounts for 10%. Transport sector alone has consumed 70% diesel and 99.6% petrol which shows a big potential for improvement. Even though we use premium efficient cars, we could achieve such results only on test conditions. Often in actual road conditions the mileage was found to be less than 50-70% or even lower. To understand the reasons behind the drop in mileage during actual road conditions, Sustenergy Foundation conducted a study during our 600 km long business travel from Kottayam, Kerala to Tumkur, Karnataka.
The test drive Vehicle
Honda City Diesel, 1498 CC - 4 Cylinder IDTEC , Mileage 26.1 kmpl
Drivers
Mr.Rakhesh, Mr.Sreekumar Nair, Mr.Jayakumar Nair
Training
All the drivers could drive the car efficiently to maintain the best feasible mileage.
Test Data Odometer readings (Distance travelled in km, and Mileage in kmpl) were taken at specific intervals for evaluation. Odometer was checked prior to the trip and its accuracy was found to be +/- 5 % Route
Kottayam to Tumkur via Nilambur and Gundalpet(558.1 KM)
Date
13 Dec 2015
Test details
Presence of bumps and small bridges on narrow roads contributed to reduction in speed and mileage. Potholes, improper bitumen layer, fully damaged roads made our travel through reserve forest a big mess, with a very low mileage below 15 kmpl. Youngsters playing on the road on new generation bikes further forced us to reduce speed at times.
The drive started at 7:10 am on Sunday, the 13th December 2015 from Sustenergy Foundation, Kottayam to Tumkur. The best mileage for this car is about 26 kmpl expected at a speed in the range of 60 -70 kmph when driven on 5th gear. The first 34.1 km was really easy driving being Sunday morning and this portion was covered at a mileage of 20.1 kmpl. The road had many bumps that often forced us to decelerate the car upon reaching the 60-70 kmph speed. Also many small bridges in the way affected the speed as well as mileage. The next 35 km from Cherthala, Alleppy till Vyttila, Ernakulam was a really efficient drive along the NH 47 four-line road. We could achieve the best mileage of 26.48 kmplin this lap. Being a four- line road, there was very little disturbance and we could manoeuvre the vehicle with ease and ensure maximum mileage. But things changed further during the next 32 km lap towards Kottapuram, Ernakulam. Narrow road near town area, bullying of local buses on the road and damaged roads all brought the mileage down to 21.81 kmpl. Diesel topping up was done at around 9 km away from Kottapuram. Even when road was free of gutters, improper bridges (needs to slow down at entrance and at exit too),and youngsters playing on the roads on new generation bikes forced at us to reduce speed some times. But things changed during our 82 km travel from Nilambur in Kerala to Melukamanahalli in Karnataka. Potholes, improper bitumen layer, and fully damaged black top made our travel through the reserve forest a big mess, yielding a very low mileage below 15 kmpl. The next 13 km from Melukamanahalli to Gundalpet was easy and efficient and the mileage correspondingly increased to 25.33 kmpl. Similar was our travel from Samakahalli to Kunigal Road National High way too; mileage in this stretch was 24.8 kmpl.
Loss of Diesel = 6.88 Liters
Distance (km)
Mileage (kmpl)
Average Speed (kmph)
0
20.1
-
Cherthala
34.1
23.1
35
Vyttila
69.3
26.5
43
Kottapuram
101.6
21.8
40
Poribazar
110.2
22.5
40
Thrithaloor
130.8
20.1
27
koottanadu
167.2
20.5
30
Nilambur
241.6
19.7
28
Gudallur
288.9
14.4
18
Melukamanahalli
323.6
14.5
16
Gundalpet
336.4
25.3
31
Kadakola
385.6
22.8
43
Samakahalli
456.2
20.7
36
Kunigal Rd
508.9
24.8
57
Major factors that influence vehicle mileage
Tumkur
558.1
20.5
42
1
Driving skills
2
Infrastructure
3
People
Kudamaloor
% Loss =( 6.88 / 27.96 x 100 ) = 24.62 %
All vehicles would need to be operated at a specific speed, at top gear with minimum acceleration for ensuring the best mileage. Improper acceleration and deceleration, frequent breaking, improper gear usage and shifting pattern, vehicle load conditions etc affect mileage drastically. By providing proper training and skill upgradation, limitations related to driving skills could be avoided. All possible measures have been taken to avoid mileage loss due to improper driving during the study.
Fig 1 Profile of mileage (kmpl) for the 558 km travel
All vehicles would need to be operated at a specific speed, at top gear with minimum acceleration for ensuring the best mileage. Improper acceleration and deceleration, frequent breaking, improper gear usage and shifting pattern, vehicle load conditions etc affect mileage drastically. By providing proper training and skill upgradation, limitations related to driving skills could be avoided. All possible measures had been taken to avoid mileage loss due to improper driving during the study. The other factors are discussed in detail here.
The Best mileage achieved
26.48 kmpl (Cherthala - Vyttila Rd)
Factors relayed to Infrastructure:
The Worst mileage achieved
14.37 kmpl (Nilambur Gudallur Rd)
Total distance travelled
558.1 km
Total Diesel consumed
27.96 Liters
Average mileage
19.96 kmpl
Expected Diesel consumption @ the best achieved mileage ( 26.48Kmpl ): 21.08 Liters
Improper road bumps to limit speed On most of the roads bumps have been provided to restrict speed- near schools, hospitals and in reserve forest area. For most of the new generation cars, best efficiency could be achieved only if we operate at 6070 kmph. While slowing down on bumps, mileage drops to 20-40% for most of the vehicles. By eliminating or properly designing road bumps, or by providing road bumps only at essential areas, such
do we need more energy efficient vehicles,right infrastructure, or, proper road culture?
27.96 Liters
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Place
Actual Diesel consumption:
October - December 2015
Table 1 - Travel details
do we need more energy efficient vehicles,right infrastructure, or, proper road culture?
losses can be reduced or eliminated. Road bumps need to be uniformly designed with smooth maneuvering to avoid sudden speed drop, and to improve mileage. Prior to road bumps clear signage should be provided, so that drivers can decelerate vehicles smoothly.
Improper coordination of traffic signals Improper road turnings and bends Most of our roads are not straight due to various reasons, especially the old roads. While passing through bends or while turning vehicles, we used to slow down for getting proper control which affects the vehicle mileage. There is a need to design proper turns or bends which assure smooth travelling without speed reduction; and modify all existing bends as per the new design.
Non-uniform road widths
October - December 2015
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vehicles to operate at best efficient speed. The most efficient speed of most vehicles varies from 45 kmph to 70 kmph, which needs to be identified by the user for ensuring proper mileage.
Non-uniform width of our roads forces us to reduce speed often affecting mileage. By ensuring proper width throughout the roads, mileage can be improved. In many places road width is affected due to nearby buildings, religious monuments or structures, old narrow bridges and many more. We should create awareness among all stake holders including Government officials, local Panchayat functionaries, religious institutions and others for acquiring more land to increase road width.
Road bumps need to be uniformly designed for smooth maneuvering. Design of proper turns or bends assures smooth travelling without speed reduction. The most efficient speed of most vehicles varies from 45 kmph to 70 kmph, which needs to be identified by the user for ensuring proper mileage. Roads need to be re constructed with proper specifications to ensure smooth travelling of all vehicles.
Damaged road Our road management has only two components new road construction or patch up. Due to lack of proper standards even new roads used to fail within a few months. Good roads without any damage, helps
While passing Kodungalloor, Kerala, it was noticed that once we get caught in the traffic signal, we will have to stop at all the forthcoming signals, and it affects mileage. Frequent acceleration and deceleration of vehicles badly affect mileage. While setting automated signals, care should be taken to avoid this trap.
Lack of bus bays and parking spaces In most of the two lane roads bus bays are not available, hence the frequent stoppage of buses on the main roads forces others to slow down or stop. Many long distance buses, heavy vehicles, cars etc used to park near restaurants, that too forces others to slow down. By providing bus bay for all bus stops, and ensuring proper parking, such issues can be avoided and mileage of other vehicles can be protected.
Encroachment by taxi stands In some areas of certain towns there is no specific parking place for auto rickshaw. Often they encroach roads and it affects road width and forces other vehicles to slow down.
Improper direction boards and signage Proper direction is essential for long distance travelers. If proper signage is not available, it can lead to wrong distance, or delays traveling, which affects mileage.
Improper toll management systems In many toll booths, there would be big queue, which leads to vehicles idling, leading to loss in mileage. By automatic toll management, such issues can be avoided.
Improper entry and exit at bridges In expressways and many 4 lane roads exit from and
Wrong entry of vehicles from sub roads Improper road junctions cause unexpected entry of vehicles to main roads, forcing others to stop or slow down.
Factors related to people: Unexpected pedestrian crossing Unexpected pedestrian crossing forces vehicles to stop in between or slow down which affect mileage. When a person crosses the road unexpectedly, the nearby vehicle would be forced to crash stop / slow down which affects other vehicles too. Cumulative mileage loss of all such vehicles could be avoided by enforcing proper road culture.
Rash driving Big vehicles often won't care for smaller ones! Reckless drivers force others to slow down or stop vehicles to save assets or valuable life. Sometimes, reckless driving of RTC buses forced us to slow down. These affect mileage of vehicles.
Improper driving of auto rickshaws Auto rickshaw is being used by most of us for short distance travel. Often the auto rickshaw drivers cause traffic jam by not caring for others and violating the road discipline. By providing proper training and through strict law enforcement such issues and related mileage loss of other vehicles can be avoided.
Unexpected pedestrian crossings, rash driving by heavy vehicles like lorries and buses and encroachment on roads by street sellers, religious processions etc are major factors that hinder smooth travelling on roads. Vehicle manufacturers, Central and State Government machineries and citizens need to work in tandem in order to achieve better energy performance.
do we need more energy efficient vehicles,right infrastructure, or, proper road culture?
During the trip, we observed some teenagers on their sports bikes, without caring for others. This forced many vehicles to stop or reduce speed. By enforcing proper regulations and training such incidents can be curbed.
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Teenagers playing with two wheelers
October - December 2015
entry to bridges would be smooth and no need to reduce vehicle speed. In many National / State highways bridge approach roads may not be aligned properly which forces vehicles to slow down. Such activities affect vehicle performance.
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October - December 2015
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Local buses and loaded trucks operating at low speeds Local buses operate for short distance and loaded trucks would be operating mostly at low speeds. Vehicles behind such buses and trucks are forced to follow the latter's speed till they get an opportunity to overtake. This forced slow speed and acceleration during over taking reduces mileage.
affects the mileage of other vehicles.
Improper lane changes without proper indication Often vehicles change lanes without proper indication or immediately upon putting the indicator which affects the speed of other vehicles. This affects its mileage and also often that of a group of vehicles behind it.
Road encroachment by street sellers In many places it is noticed that street sellers encroached the road, which affects traffic and certainly mileage of vehicles.
Religious possessions blocking roads Our vehicle was stopped for more than 10 minutes for passing a temple procession which affected the mileage of many vehicles. Such activities can be brought to a stop only by raising general awareness on energy efficiency.
Aged or Unskilled drivers Some aged and unskilled drivers drive their vehicles slowly and that disturbs others. We were forced to follow a convoy of more than 10 vehicles for a few kilo meters and finally noticed that an aged man was driving his car (vanguard!) at a low speed. In such occasions at narrow roads, over taking won't be possible and it badly affects mileage of many vehicles.
People chit chatting standing on the road In some towns we noticed people using the road for chit chat and were reluctant to move away from our vehicle.
Road accident and crisis management We also observed a minor road accident during the trip, which forced us to keep the vehicle idling for more than 10 min. Even though a cop had reached the site, he was unable to clear the traffic without settling the dispute.
Vehicles operating through right side tracks It is a common issue that many vehicles knowingly or unknowingly keeps right track throughout their journey at low or moderate speed of their choice, which
Extra-long vehicles moving in convoy Most of the loaded trucks and extra-long vehicles operate at a speed of 40 - 50 kmph and mostly such vehicles travel as a group especially during night. When many trucks go in a convoy, it is very difficult to overtake these and others will have to slow down till they get an opportunity to overtake. This affects mileage of many other vehicles as all these are forced to operate at inefficient speed for long.
Bullying by Police for managing VIP movement Ministers and other VIPs need to travel fast and over speeding of their vehicles is not a crime in India. While passing Cochin, Kerala, Police officials asked us to stop to give way to a minister's convoy. Such interruptions affect mileage of vehicles on high way.
Conclusion Energy efficient vehicles, good driving skills, proper infrastructure to operate at efficient speeds, citizens having good road culture etc are essential for reducing energy consumption and pollution in transport sector. Vehicle manufacturers, Central and State Government machineries and citizens should work in tandem for achieving better energy performance to make our country energy efficient and to assure sustainable living to our people. By ensuring efficient operation of all vehicles, India can reduce 20 to 30% fuel consumption in transport sector, which not only reduces oil imports, but also reduces pollution. Mr. Jayakumar Nair is Managing Director of Sustenergy Foundation, India and National Joint Secretary of SEEM)
low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas Ram Chandra Khanal
October - December 2015
GERES India implemented a project with a low energy consumption (LEC) house component in Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh of India during the period from 2008 to 2012. The project aimed to improve the quality of life of people through promotion of LEC technologies and to enhance the socio-economic conditions of the local communities. The project supported capacity development, enhancement of institutional processes, and sustainable dissemination mechanisms for LEC technologies.
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low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
I
ncreasing demand for energy has now become a major development concern all over the world. Buildings account for 30% to 40% of the total primary energy consumption globally [1]. Likewise, proliferation of energy consumption and CO2 emission in existing housing systems has made energy efficiency and energy saving strategies a priority objective of energy policy in most countries [2]. In the cold trans-Himalayan regions of India, temperatures reach up to -30°C during winter. In these regions traditional house design - especially windows and doors - are not thermally efficient and hence require a huge amount of energy for space heating. In addition, inadequate financial resources, knowledge and skills have forced communities to follow the conventional housing design resulting in severe winter discomfort and degraded quality of life. This has also led to excessive biomass burning and, in turn, increased emission of Greenhouse gases [3,4].
In this backdrop, Groupe Energies Renouvelables, Environnement et SolidaritĂŠs (GERES), India implemented a project with low energy consumption (LEC) house component (a building constructed according to special design criteria aimed at minimizing the building's operating energy) in Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh of India during the period from 2008 to 2012. These regions are extremely cold and are located between 2,500 and 7,000 m above sea level. The main objectives of the project were to improve the quality of life of people through promotion of LEC technologies and to enhance the socio-economic conditions of the local communities. The project supported capacity development, enhancement of institutional processes and transmission of the knowledge and technological innovations to the local communities through NGOs for creating sustainable dissemination mechanisms of LEC technologies.
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Image 1. Ladakh Landscape / Project Area
Bioclimatic architectures with passive solar house techniques have a great potential to address these challenges as these regions get abundant solar radiation round the year. The area receives sunlight for about 300 days in a year. The average annual solar radiation for the town of Leh (headquarters of Ladakh), for instance, is 6.36 kWh/m2/year at 35° facing tilt [5].With appropriate planning of building design and insulation the energy demand would reduce significantly.
Major Interventions The project worked with more than a thousand rural households in very cold and remote areas such as Leh, Kargil, Lahaul and Spiti districts. Such places were mostly characterized by low human development index and suffered from development deficit. The project adopted two strategies: (1) developing social structure and facilitating social processes to ensure sustainable technology
Another important intervention was the promotion of LEC technologies. The project used three simple bioclimatic architectures: Attached Greenhouse (AGH), Solar Wall (SW) and Direct Gain (DG) (see Box 1 and Image 2). These technologies allow capturing, conserving and efficiently using the heat received from the sun. The project introduced these technologies alone or in combination with other social and economic developmental activities such as handicrafts and vegetable farming. The project supported 126 AGHs, 247 solar walls and 648 direct gain technology installations in the area.
b. Solar Wall (also known as Trombe Wall): A black-painted glass wall is built on the outer part of the southern wall, leaving a slight gap between the wall and the glass. The heat from the solar radiation stored in the wall during the day is released into the room during evening and night time. c. Attached Greenhouse (AGH): A metal or wooden frame is attached to the southern wall and covered with UV-resistant plastic. This attached room collects the sun's radiation to warm the air. Both heat and solar radiation are transferred to the inner room of the house through a large window and the south wall.
analysis of the supply and demand of LEC technologies was instrumental to promote these energy-efficient technologies at the project sites. From the long presence and wide experience of GERES in the area, the project identified some important factors associated with the demand and supply of technology for the area. Demand for the technology was created through public awareness programmes, establishment of an information / resource centre and provision of subsidy for demonstration at the village level. These activities helped generate a higher level of demand for the new technology. Geographic remoteness and rudimentary marketing infrastructure were some major challenges perceived in the areas. The project, however, contributed significantly to strengthen the supply side by providing hands-on training to local technicians and NGOs in design, construction and management
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October - December 2015
The technology adoption relies on socio-economic, technological and environmental factors. A critical
a. Direct Gain (DG): South-facing windows are widened and double-glazed to maximize the entry of the sun's radiations.
low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
The project raised awareness on energy use and energy efficiency at the village level by creating and strengthening three levels of networks - grassroots level, NGO level and policy level - for promoting LEC technologies in a sustainable way. The grassroots level network consisted of a group of local people including the village representative of the local panchayat and local resource persons of LEC technologies. The network was instituted as a nodal point to manage LEC technologies at the local level whereas the NGO network consisting of five NGOs from the area served as a bridge between the local and policy levels for scaling up LEC technologies. It also aimed to generate additional financial resources for promoting LEC whereas policy level network was expected to ensure creating an enabling environment at the district level through the formulation of an appropriate policy framework. These social structures and processes were considered as an instrumental intervention to establish a link between various levels of governance and create synergy among the different actors.
Box 1: Types of Bioclimatic Architecture Adopted
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dissemination process; (2) promoting appropriate technologies and associated knowledge at the local level.
Image 2. LEC technologies
Attached Green House
Direct Gain Solar Wall
Photo credit: GERES, India
stage also followed a rigorous process of selecting beneficiary villagers by following the special technical guidelines prepared for the project. The second phase extension phase - was carried out once all the criteria were set and the project managed to get support at both local and district levels.
Project Resources and Implementation
Major Outputs and Outcomes The project contributed towards various aspects of people's quality of life and towards environmental management although it is difficult to quantify all benefits of LEC technologies. Its contributions were mainly towards creating social structures, building local capacity, reducing energy vulnerability and improving overall quality of life of people at the project sites. In particular, the technologies helped to increase the room temperature by 60C to 120C during different times of the day. A temperature monitoring report from Phokar-phu village showed a significant improvement in indoor temperature in LEC-introduced households (see Figure 1). 15 10 5 0 -5 -10 -15 00 5: 00 6: 00 7: 00 8: 00 9: 00 10 :0 0 11 :0 0 12 :0 0 13 :0 0 14 :0 0 15 :0 0 16 :0 0 17 :0 0 18 :0 0 19 :0 0 20 :0 0 21 :0 0 22 :0 0 23 :0 0
00
4:
00
3:
2:
00
-20 :0 0
The project was implemented in two phases. The demonstration phase helped create awareness among communities about the technologies and showcased the technologies at selected sites. This stage also followed a rigorous process of selecting beneficiary villagers by following the special technical guidelines prepared for the project. The second phase - extension phase - was carried out once all the criteria were set and the project managed to get support at both local and district levels.
The project adopted participatory approaches for planning and management. It collaborated with five local NGOs in order to integrate local perspectives and ensure local ownership. The project provided strong technical back-up support to the partner NGOs during the early stage of project implementation and mentoring support later when the NGOs and local technicians were able to handle most of the technical and management issues related to the technologies.
1:
The project was implemented over a period of 5 years. The total project cost was about 1.9 million Euro. (The project was funded by the European Union; ADEME, a French environment and energy management agency; Government of India's Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE); Ensemble Foundation; Abbé Pierre Foundation; Lord Michelham of Hellingly Foundation; Macif Foundation; Gaz et Electricité de Grenoble (GEG); Legallais Foundation;, Synergie Solaire; Crédit Coopératif; 1+1=3 and Carbon Credit.) The project used about 40% ( 0.762 million) of the resources to promote LEC technologies, supporting about 1034 households in more than 125 villages located in remote areas. The total average cost for promoting and constructing an LEC house was about 750, and the promoters covered 50% to 60% of the construction cost depending on the technology. Considering the geographic remoteness, scattered villages and longer winter in the cold desert, the amount of resources available for each household was not high.
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low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
October - December 2015
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of installations. During the project period, about 200 training sessions were conducted for local technicians and NGO professionals to enhance their knowledge, skill and abilities in the above-mentioned technologies. The project also worked to ensure easy availability of construction materials by giving extra emphasis on using locally available materials and through information dissemination regarding the same.
PSH DG
The project was implemented in two phases. The demonstration phase helped create awareness among communities about the technologies and showcased the technologies at selected sites. This
Non PSH
Outside
Figure 1. Temperature Recordings (°C) for a DG Building in Phokar-Phu (Dec 2009 - monthly average)
Reduced indoor air pollution and respiratory disease by 50%
Increased room temperature from 60C to 120C Increased winter income by 50% (among women)
Adoption of LEC Reduced extraction of bio-mass (1.37 MT/ hhs/year)
Reduced Carbondioxide emission (2.15 MT/ hhs/year
Reduction in time spent for collection of biomass and dung by half
Sonam Dolma (53 yrs), Sasoma Village, Leh 'After the introduction of solar wall, I am less exposed to smoke inside my home and have less incidence of respiratory and other diseases. I am happy that I am using the room for spinning wool and making sweaters during winter so that I do not need to buy warm clothes. Thanks to the solar wall, my family is very happy as we can now escape from the biting cold'.
Box 3: Capacitating NGOs and Staff Konchok Dorjai and Tsewant Tharchin, LEHO, Leh 'The training we got from GERES helped us to design LEC technologies, carry out cost estimation and adopt the technologies. We can do the work by ourselves and do not need to depend on external experts.
The project contributed towards increasing the financial asset at the household level in the form of decrease in fuel use and bio-mass consumption, use of saved time for other productive activities, and income from production of handicrafts. Women participating in handicraft work increased their annual income by €14 per person per year. Financial analysis of the direct costs and benefits revealed the high cost effectiveness of LEC technologies.
Figure 2. Major impact of LEC in the project sites
The higher temperature inside the houses helped to increase the comfort level during winter for almost all participating villagers. With the increased temperature, and decreased indoor air pollution, the physical health of the villagers also improved creating
low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
Box 2: Impact of LEC
The project also contributed towards women empowerment by providing them with opportunities for knowledge enhancement and skill transfer by promoting handicrafts. Besides, working in a group and participating in community and market-related
43 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
The technology has also helped to reduce the quantity of biomass burned by 60% at the household level (lowered by 1.4 MT per household per year, saving about €50 per year), and the emission of harmful indoor gases and suspended particles by at least 50%, thus reducing the incidence of diseases. An added benefit is the 50% saving in the time spent for collection of biomass and animal dung. Due to less burning of biomass, the technologies have also contributed towards reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emission by 2.2 MT per household per year and towards climate change mitigation initiatives [6]. Figure 2 depicts a brief of the positive contributions of LEC on people's livelihood and the environment.
the opportunity to manage other livelihood assets effectively and enjoy better quality of life (Box 2). With the enhanced capacity of NGOs and local groups, human capital was significantly increased resulting in better management of the project activities and increased organizational performance to promote LEC technologies (Box 3).
October - December 2015
The higher temperature inside the houses helped to increase the comfort level during winter for almost all participating villagers. With the increased temperature, and decreased indoor air pollution, the physical health of the villagers also improved creating the opportunity to manage other livelihood assets effectively and enjoy better quality of life.
low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
activities have helped them contribute towards decision-making at the household and community levels. It was apparently considered as a great shift in thinking on the potential role of women in the development process in the existing traditional sociocultural and religious setting. The project contributed towards increasing the financial asset at the household level in the form of decrease in fuel use and biomass consumption, use of saved time for other productive activities, and income from handicrafts. Women participating in handicrafts increased their annual income by 14 per person per year. Financial analysis of the direct costs and benefits revealed the high cost effectiveness of LEC technologies (benefit-to-cost ratio of 2; see Table 1).
which generally lack enterprising perspectives of the demand and supply challenges as well as opportunities. In this case, the private sector was not found much interested mainly owing to the geographic remoteness and scattered settlements of the project site and the provision of subsidy either by the government agencies or projects.
Analyzing the Challenges and Learning Some challenges were faced during project implementation. For proper scaling up and adoption
Table 1. LEC Technologies: Benefit-Cost Analysis
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
44
Benefits (tangible)
Amount (Rs)
Costs (tangible)
Amount (Rs)
*Biomass saving ( 50 × 67)
3,350
Project cost
25,000
Biomass collection time saving (opportunity cost of saved time) (14 days saving × 350)
4,900
Promoter's contribution (average: Rs. 13,000 in cash and Rs. 20,000 in kind)
33,000
**Increased income from handicrafts (for 450 women)
404
Maintenance cost (for 20 years)
15,000
Annual direct saving
8,654
Technology life (20 years) and saving
173,080
Total cost for 20 years
73,000
Risk (7%)
(-12,115)
Risk (7%)
5,110
Total benefits
160,965
Total cost
78,110
Benefit/cost ratio
2.06
* 1 = Rs. 67 (as on 7 October 2012) **Income was generated from handicrafts for 450 women (baseline income of Rs. 800 per household increased to Rs. 1700 after the project intervention).
In brief, the intervention was very much relevant in the project site as it helped to reduce the energy vulnerability, improve winter comfort, reduce drudgery of women, improve family income and enhance health status in the project area. The technology has contributed significantly towards enhancing the livelihood of communities, thereby creating a better life in the cold deserts.
There was a gap in effectively linking the demand and supply of technologies owing to lack of a competent agent or organization. The existing actors were mainly NGOs and government institutions
of technologies in the remote areas the Himalayas, a good understanding of the institutional mechanisms and relevant driving factors specific to the local context are vital. Like in other development projects, sustainability of technology adoption after the completion of project was an important issue. The project generated impressive outputs and created a demand for such technologies at the local level through public awareness generation programmes, demonstration of technologies, and provision of subsidy, and supply-side services through providing knowledge and skills. There was, however, a gap in effectively linking the demand and supply of technologies owing to lack of a competent agent or
low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
The designs and technologies developed by the project were approved and used by government programmes such as Ladakh Renewable Energy Development Agency (LREDA), Kargil Renewable Energy Development Agencies (KREDA) and the Department of Road and Civil Construction in Kargil District. There was, however, lack of systematic policy intervention and subsequent integration of the passive solar technologies in programmes that affect the possibility and higher rate of scaling up of the initiative in the area.
Some important lessons from the project were helpful in developing similar kind of projects in cold remote areas like Ladakh. The project intervention rightly captured an integrated approach to address energy vulnerability, winter discomfort, public health, socio-
October - December 2015
Technology adoption is not a linear process. It depends on many determining factors including psycho-social factors, characteristics of the technology, socio-economic conditions of adopters, institutional setup and individual motivation factors. The project has covered some important determinants such as developing human capital, providing economic incentives and creating dissemination networks, among others, but other equally important issues have to be considered in parallel while
promoting the technologies.
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
45 organization. The existing actors were mainly NGOs and government institutions which generally lack enterprising perspectives of the demand and supply challenges as well as opportunities. In this case, the private sector was not found much interested mainly owing to the geographic remoteness and scattered settlements of the project site and the provision of subsidy either by the government agencies or projects. In addition, engaging public institutions for scaling up of the technologies was found to be a time-consuming process and immediate results were difficult to attain. The involvement of NGOs was encouraging but they were not mature enough to continue the initiative in the absence of additional funds. Despite these challenges, some initiatives have been taken by the government authorities to scale up the LEC technologies in their regular programmes.
low energy consumption house technologies: a lesson from the Himalayas
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
46
economic development and environmental management. Besides, the project adopted a participatory approach by involving local communities, NGOs and government institutions in order to enhance local ownership. The project adopted a two-phase approach (demonstration and extension phases) for project management. Besides, the project was very innovative for testing the various tools and techniques related to LEC technologies and real-time adaptation which was very effective in terms of scaling-up of technologies during the project period. These approaches of project management helped the project enormously in better planning, creating a strong rapport with communities, ensuring people's participation and ownership at the local level. After completion of the project, its sustainability remained dependent on ownership and interest of government offices and local actors at the district level. The designs and technologies developed by the project were approved and used by government programmes such as Ladakh Renewable Energy Development Agency (LREDA), Kargil Renewable Energy Development Agencies (KREDA) and the Department of Road and Civil Construction in Kargil District. There was, however, lack of systematic policy intervention and subsequent integration of the passive solar technologies in programmes that affect the possibility and higher rate of scaling up of the initiative in the area. The final evaluation of the project revealed that the project intervention was highly relevant and efficient, and showed a lot of impressive impacts at the household and community levels to improve peoples' quality of life. But unless these impacts are taken into consideration and institutionalized in government programmes, it is unlikely that the project's outputs, despite being very effective, would be sustained after the completion of the project. Hence, there is a great need to push government agencies both at the central and at the district level to integrate these technologies into the government's regular development programmes, otherwise the achievements of the projects within local communities could disappear in a few years.
In the changing context of development against various odds like increasing energy demand, increasing impacts of climate change and mounting pressures on environmental resource bases, LEC
technologies can be instrumental in improving both quality of life and protection of environment. They contribute to thermal comfort, healthy living, and reduced energy vulnerability in highaltitude regions around the world.
Finally, the project was highly successful in delivering some important knowledge and skills related to LEC. In the changing context of development against various odds like increasing energy demand, increasing impacts of climate change, and mounting pressures on environmental resource bases, just to name a few, it is imperative to make a rapid shift in design and construction of houses to make the houses energy efficient so as to improve the quality of life and also protect the environment. In addressing these mega development challenges, LEC technologies can be instrumental as they contribute to thermal comfort, healthy living, and reduced energy vulnerability both in the short and in the longer terms in high-altitude regions around the world.
References 1. United Nations Environment Programme (2007) Buildings and Climate Change Status: Challenges and Opportunities. Paris: UNEP. 2. PĂŠrez-Lombard, Ortiz J., and Pout C. (2008) A review on buildings energy consumption information, Energy and Buildings 40(3): 394398. 3. GERES (2010) Impact on Human Health, Gender and Education: A study in Ladakh Region of India. Leh, India: GERES. 4. GERES (2011) Improvement of Winter Living Conditions and Livelihoods in the Cold Desert of Western Indian Himalayas by Developing Passive Solar Housing. Leh, India: GERES. 5. Jacobson A. (2010) Solar Energy Measurement in Ladakh, India. Proceedings of the 24th National Renewable Energy Convention 2000 of the Solar Energy Society of India, 30 November to 2 December at Mumbai, India. Retrieved on 25 November 2012 from http://users.humboldt.edu/arne/Ladakh_solar_data_NREC2000.pdf. 6. GERES (2012) GERES Progress Report 2012. Leh, India: GERES.
Mr. Ram Chandra Khanal is a Development Researcher and Evaluator for Groupe Energies Renouvelables, Environnement et SolidaritĂŠs (GERES).
This article originally appeared in the Apr-Jun 2013 issue of energyΡ manager
Despite the fact that energy conservation measures began in our country a long time back, we still have a long way to go for India's energy intensity to be optimized. General mistrust among industry professionals, lack of correct measurement and verification of equipment and energy audits are some of the noted hindrances. Studying the reasons behind these drawbacks can help us search for specific solutions. The formation of energy clusters, an initiative by SEEM, is an ideal platform for entrepreneurs from different areas to come together and discuss energy issues, pros and cons of energy saving recommendations and relate those ideas to their business objectives.
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
G Krishnakumar
47
October - December 2015
is energy audit toothless?
is energy audit toothless?
I
n India, we boast that energy conservation activities started in this country at least four decades back. Given that backdrop, our energy intensity should have been optimized by now. Sadly that is not the case. It will be quite interesting to study the reasons for this unhealthy situation and seek out solutions so that our growth as the third significant economic giant is green.
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
Engineers in general are found to be comfortable with techniques and machines and are often found to have a narcissist enjoyment in projecting narrow technical achievements, that too in very narrow domains. This leads to mistrust among general function professionals with the engineering community. Finding a solution to this is to impart energy education to other function professionals so that they can appreciate energy conservation ideas thrown up by engineers and thus be in a 48 position to analyze the pros and cons of suggestions and take collective decisions.
Siloitis Energy is conventionally handled and managed by engineers by virtue of their specific technical knowledge. Engineers in general are found to be comfortable with techniques and machines and are often found to have a narcissist enjoyment in projecting narrow technical achievements, that too in very narrow domains. Such achievements are either questioned or downplayed by colleagues in a different domain. In such a scenario a generalist or an entrepreneur heading an industry gets confused by contradicting views which impairs correct judgment. This leads to mistrust among general function professionals with the engineering community. Finding a solution to this is to impart energy education to other function professionals so that they can appreciate energy conservation ideas thrown up by engineers and thus be in a position to analyze the pros and cons of suggestions and take collective decisions. Simultaneously engineers are also to be given exposure to inter domain experience that enable them to appreciate interplay between technical systems and evolve holistic solutions rather than isolated individual sparkles.
In this age of fast technological advances, processes and equipment can be replaced with very attractive payback projections. The operating personnel or the entrepreneur will not be ready to take a call on this unless the damn thing is broken. This attitude continues to plague the industry and condemn them to continue in a high energy cost situation.
Casualitis Many of the energy audits identify over specifications or under utilization of equipment . Are the engineers or consultants not confident of their calculations or their theoretical working so much so that they tend to pad up with cushions? As a result, many types of equipment are reportedly underutilized guzzling up energy like no body's business. Can our engineering education be refocused to having different streams for projects, operation & maintenance and design? Now an engineer with a general education finds himself in one of these slots irrespective of his skill talent or inclination. This will enable purposeful specialization fostering professionals best suited for each function and thus the designs will get optimized in the hands of quality designers via a copy -paste culture. In such a situation as practiced in some areas the designers will have to stipulate and project the energy performance before commissioning and be accountable for same. This should also give rise to a vocation of energy analysis during conceptualizing an industry. Along with this comes the requirement of process-wise monitoring of the energy performance. At this point, another near-absent feature of metering of various energy inputs at process levels come up. Being a grossly neglected aspect, even the name sake process measurements are either nonfunctional, faulty or not considered for any measurements. This lack of measurement and verification leaves the industry personnel clueless on process and equipment efficiency even when there is revelation that gross energy performance is below the benchmark. If focus is put on designers for committing to a specific energy performance, there is ample possibility that the measurements of process and equipment energy also will get due importance in industry. This will in turn assist in operation and maintenance sticking to the design parameters unless evaluated deviations are warranted.
Ostrichitis among energy auditors Energy auditors tend not to go the whole hog and jump into fast conclusions. During many occasions, they are found to see the whole factory as some undesirable attachment to an electrical distribution system or a mechanical engineer will find the same factory as a furnace unnecessarily entangled with loops of electronic instrumentation. This narrow
Energy auditors are found to see the whole factory as some undesirable attachment to an electrical distribution system or a mechanical engineer will find the same factory as a furnace unnecessarily entangled with loops of electronic instrumentation. This narrow outlook hampers the auditors' capability to conceive the context of the business. Without this understanding the audit report will be a collection of data with no life or intelligence.
Elvoneitis Some well meaning industries are saddled with a different problem of not being able to select the right energy auditor. This again stems from the age old dictum of tenders and selection of L1, and the cheapest may not be the one which will add value to your industry and costliest one may not drain your money out. Industry has to be lot more discerning while selecting an energy auditor. The auditor coming to the plant and analyzing the data is more important than the auditing company name. You can ask for credentials of where their recommendations have been implemented, thus successfully yielding results. Here again some industries are carried away by concept of domain expertise. In fact, the more important quality for an auditor may be an eye for wastages and a skill for transposing best practices from one situation to another. Here more valuable
is energy audit toothless?
49 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
Do not tamper till it is broken-this is the age old dictum for a operation and maintenance man. In this age when technological advances take place at a fast pace, processes and equipment can be replaced with very attractive payback projections. However this may entail a bit of shop engineering, sometimes to a considerable level. The operating personnel or the entrepreneur will not be ready to take a call on this unless the damn thing is broken. This attitude continues to plague the industry and condemn them to continue in a high energy cost situation. Here engineers and auditors should rely and extensively deploy simulation models to inspire confidence and lend authenticity to the energy saving recommendations. These models can also serve as tools to design best shop engineering solutions with least disturbance to existing process/production lines.
outlook hampers the auditors' capability to conceive the context of the business, interplay between various processes and systems. Without this understanding the audit report will be a collection of data with no life or intelligence. The entrepreneurs or general managers find such reports Greek and Latin and as a result often remain not acted upon. The energy auditors have to own up a responsibility to see the whole picture, provide hitherto un-noticed insights into the facility's energy performance, improvement possibilities, new applications housekeeping or maintenance issues draining energy. The report should catch the attention of a generalist as well as a specialist with separate sections of the report highlighting commercial benefits; the facility's standing vis avis national /international benchmarks as well as the technical inputs.
October - December 2015
Statusquoitis
is energy audit toothless?
suggestions can come from an auditor with varied exposure than a domain expertise . This is not to belittle the contribution a domain expert can give in an insightful understanding of the process. A combination of varied exposure and specific expertise will be a deadly combination and ideally, auditing firms will benefit through a healthy networking exchanging the expertise. This is where an organization like SEEM should play a constructive role by providing a platform to collaborate while competing to raise the level of the auditing profession. In such a milieu, cost cutting may not be the virtue that the industry will be looking for and value addition will rule the roost. Manageable numbers of units coming together with common agenda of improving energy performance under facilitation of energy experts can boost energy consciousness and wide spread adoption of several no-cost , low-cost and even costly measures to save energy.
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
SEEM Energy clusters will facilitate fair collective bargain for technology, equipment and services in energy. This 50 can help adoption of new equipment and technology as clusters can have cost effective training for technicians, in particular technology or equipment.
SEEM Energy Clusters for SMEs Manageable numbers of units coming together with common agenda of improving energy performance under facilitation of energy experts can boost energy consciousness and wide spread adoption of several no-cost, low-cost and even costly measures to save energy. The number of units in such clusters has to be sufficiently large to offer enough experience but at the same time be small enough so that effective interactions do take place. This will facilitate fair collective bargain for technology, equipment and services in energy. This can help adoption of new equipment and technology as clusters can have cost effective training for technicians, in particular technology or equipment . Companies can boldly try out new technologies or equipment without having to worry about its operation and maintenance. Since companies are going to be represented by multidisciplinary members in these clusters, the silo thinking will get addressed to a great extent. The
clusters will be debating the energy saving measures from different angles and more constructive solutions can emerge. Entrepreneurs will get to discuss energy issues in friendlier neighborhood meetings without getting intimidated by technology stalwarts. They will feel more confident to discuss pros and cons of energy saving recommendations and relate those ideas to their business objectives and thus usher in a holistic approach. Even prospective entrepreneurs can attend such cluster meetings to get educated on an energy outlook right in the conception stage of their businesses to incorporate energy monitoring as an integral part of construction itself. Such an awakening among the clients and prospective clients will force the energy auditors into a learning, searching and researching culture and they can no more remain complacent. All these can lead to an uplift of the auditing profession which will foster a trust with auditors. And auditors will outlive their name of the vocation to become consultants or friends to the industry. This cultural change then will lend the required teeth to the energy audits and will deliver the result of a green growth in the country. Mr. G Krishnakumar is the Executive Council Member of Society of Energy Engineers and Managers (SEEM), and Director at Empower Global Management Solutions.
October - December 2015
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52
review of
PAT-1
P P Mittal
review of PAT-1
T
he National Action Plan on Climate change (NAPCC) released by the Prime Minister of India on 30th June 2008, recognized the need to maintain a high growth rate for increasing living standard of the vast majority of people and reducing their vulnerability to the impacts of climate change. In his opening remarks, the then Prime Minister said: "Our success in reducing the energy intensity of our growth will also reduce the carbon intensity of our growth. This will have a beneficial impact on our emissions trajectory. The implementation of this mission will also be a powerful signal to the international community that we are willing to contribute in a significant manner, to meeting the global challenge of climate change". The Prime Minister also emphasized "It must also have inbuilt provision for monitoring and evaluation so as to ensure transparency, accountability and responsiveness�.
The Ministry of Power set up three Working Groups to prepare the detailed implementation plan for the mission. Working Group I, chaired by Sh. Anil Kumar, Additional Secretary, MoP, prepared the implementation framework for this initiative, which was named the "Perform, Achieve and Trade'' (PAT) mechanism. In pursuance of the guidelines provided in the
53 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
The Ministry of Power set up three Working Groups to prepare the detailed implementation plan for the mission. Working Group I, chaired by Sh.Anil Kumar, Additional Secretary, MoP, prepared the implementation framework for this initiative, which was named the "Perform, Achieve and Trade'' (PAT) mechanism. In pursuance of the guidelines provided in the National Action Plan on Climate Change a Steering Committee was constituted in the Ministry of Power to prepare a framework document for National Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE), with the objective of enhancing energy efficiency by putting in place new initiatives.
October - December 2015
In recognition of the need to increase living standard of the vast majority of people and reducing their vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, the Prime Minister of India released on 30th June 2008, The National Action Plan on Climate change (NAPCC) scheme. The detailed implementation of this mission was named the "Perform, Achieve and Trade'' (PAT) mechanism. The key goal of this scheme was to mandate specific energy efficiency improvements for the most energy intensive industries. Sector-wise breakup of 478 Designated Consumers, was notified under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, and converted under PAT. Successful implementation of this mission will prove to the international community that India is willing to contribute to the global challenge of climate change in a significant manner.
review of PAT-1
National Action Plan on Climate Change a Steering Committee was constituted in the Ministry of Power to prepare a framework document for National Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE), with the objective of enhancing energy efficiency by putting in place four new initiatives. The flagship initiative of the NMEEE is: "A market based mechanism to enhance cost effectiveness of improvements in energy efficiency in energy-intensive large industries and facilities, through certification of energy savings that could be traded." The draft outline of the NMEEE was approved by the Steering Committee of the Ministry of Power in December, 2008. The implementation Framework for the NMEEE, including the PAT, was approved by the Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change in August, 2009.
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
The Government in March 2007 notified 9 industrial sectors, namely Aluminum, Cement, Chlor-Alkali, Pulp & Paper, Fertilizers, Power Generation Plant, Steel 54 and Railways as designated consumers. The Perform Achieve and Trade mechanism was designed to incentivize higher plant efficiencies. Designated consumers, as notified under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, account for 25% of the national gross domestic product (GDP) and about 45% of commercial energy use in India. Since year 2000, industrial GDP has been growing at the rate of 8.6% annually, whereas energy use in industry is growing at a comparatively lower growth rate of 5.8%.
had to appoint an energy manager, file energy consumption returns every year and conduct mandatory energy audit. They also had to adhere to the energy consumption norms specified by the Government. The Perform Achieve and Trade mechanism was designed to incentivize higher plant efficiencies. Designated consumers, as notified under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001, account for 25% of the national gross domestic product (GDP) and about 45% of commercial energy use in India. Since year 2000, industrial GDP has been growing at the rate of 8.6% annually, whereas energy use in industry is growing at a comparatively lower growth rate of 5.8%. The lower rate of growth of industrial energy use can be attributed to many reasons. It has been observed that in recent years, industry has been choosing state-of-the-art technologies, which are more energy-efficient. Also, there have been many inhouse efforts made by the industry to become more energy-efficient. In order to further accelerate as well as incentivize energy efficiency, the PAT mechanism was designed. The key goal of PAT scheme was to mandate specific energy efficiency improvements for the most energy intensive industries. Sector-wise breakup of 478 Designated Consumers (DC), notified under the Energy Conservation Act, 200 and converted under PAT Scheme, is as given below: Srl. Sector
Minimum annual energy consumption for the DC (tons of oil equivalent)
Number of DCs
1
Aluminum
7500
10
2
Cement
30000
85
3
Chlor-alkali
12000
22
4
Fertilizer
30000
29
5
Iron and steel
30000
67
Pulp and paper
30000
31
7
Textile
3000
90
8
Thermal power plant
30000
144
6 As broadly brought out in the framework document on NMEEE, the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 identified 15 large energy intensive industries for energy efficiency improvements. Section 14 (e) and 14 (g) empower the Central Government of India, on the recommendations of BEE, to prescribe energy consumption norms and standards. The Government in March 2007 notified 9 industrial sectors, namely Aluminum, Cement, Chlor-Alkali, Pulp & Paper, Fertilizers, Power Generation Plant, Steel and Railways as designated consumers. These industries
478 The most innovative and challenging new initiative that was introduced under the Mission is the PAT mechanism which would assign energy efficiency
Government of India notified the PAT scheme on 30th March 2012. As per the notification the designated consumers covered under the scheme were required to achieve the specific energy reduction target by the FY 2014-15, by which date the DC was required to submit the verified report that they had complied with PAT requirements. In order to meet the PAT compliance the industry (DC) was supposed to submit the action plan of implementing energy conservation measures followed by its implementation and ultimately submission of verification report of achievements. Overall process required preparation of various documents like Forms A, B, C and D. The first cycle of PAT-1 was applicable for financial year 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15.The DCs were asked to submit the compliance and achievement report at the end of the first PAT cycle with initial dead line of 30th June 2015. Later the dead line was extended up to 14 August, 2015. The submission of compliance report was to be carried out as per measurement and verification (M&V) guidelines issued by Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) in March 2015. Accordingly DCs were supposed to get M&V carried out by BEE Empanelled Accredited Energy Audit (EmAEA)
review of PAT-1
55 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
The PAT mechanism would assign energy efficiency improvement targeted to the county's most energy intensive industrial units, with the provision of allowing them to retain any energy-efficiency improvement in excess of their target in the form of Energy Saving Certificates, called ESCerts. Government of India notified the PAT scheme on 30th March
2012. Designated consumers covered under the scheme were required to achieve the specific energy reduction target by the FY 2014-15, by which date the DC was required to submit the verified report that they had complied with PAT requirements.
October - December 2015
improvement targeted to the county's most energy intensive industrial units, with the provision of allowing them to retain any energy-efficiency improvement in excess of their target in the form of Energy Saving Certificates, called ESCerts. Units were also allowed to use purchased ESCerts to meet their targets.
review of PAT-1
firms and submit the M&V report along with supporting documents like Form-A and Form-B.
A review of objectives, processes and time lines of PAT-1 is necessary at this stage to help learning and avoid similar slippage in future in PAT-2. It is hoped that the PAT-1 issues are getting addressed at each level of DC, EmAEA, BEE and SDA; appropriate consultation and coordination of each other will avoid or at least reduce the hindrances in the path of PAT-2. In spite of all the issues and teething problems during PAT-1, it was a success story in Indian Energy sector.
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
56
A review of objectives, processes and time lines of PAT-1 is necessary at this stage to help learning and avoid similar slippage in future in PAT-2. Based on the experience of Accredited Energy Auditors in M&V of PAT-1 and feedback received from various DCs the following issues are noted in PAT-1. 1. Issues related to DC (i)
Non-availability of proper documentation
(ii)
No appointment of Manpower
(iii) No follow ups for updates on PAT-1 (iv) No access and communication regarding contents and requirement of M&V report (v)
No clarity on performance assessment year
(vi) Non-availability of sector-specific normalization documents issued by BEE (vii) Lack of understanding of revised form-I and sector-specific proforma (viii) Non-committal management (ix) Loss of time in searching lowest charging EmAEA 2. Issues related to EmAEA (I)
Delayed empaneling
(II)
Mushrooming of middle level EmAEAs
(III) Lack of professionalism (IV) Cut-throat competition in quoting rates and getting orders (V) Lack of clarity in content of M&V report
(VI) Lack of clarity in normalization process (VII) Lack of commitment in meeting the timeline of 30th June 2015 3. Issues related to BEE (i)
Ambiguity in various documents.
(ii)
Lack of experienced manpower to address the problems of DCs, EmAEAs and SDAs
(iii) Delayed and uncertain actions (iv) Many slippages in every time line (v)
Non-cooperation and policing attitude of BEE officers
(vi) Questionable actions of sector experts 4. Issues related to SDA (i)
Non-committal SDAs
(ii)
Lack of professionalism
(iii) Lack of experts (iv) Lack of awareness of their responsibility under PAT-1 (v)
Lack of coordination with DCs and BEE
(vi) Non-cooperation and policing attitude of SDA officers In spite of all the above issues and teething problems during PAT-1 , it has been a success story in Indian Energy sector. The PAT-1 has been successful in its mission of sparking the industry in terms of its concern of energy consumption. It is hoped that these issues are getting addressed at each level of DC, EmAEA, BEE and SDA; appropriate consultation and coordination of each other will avoid or at least reduce the hindrances in the path of PAT-2.
Dr. P P Mittal is the Director of A-Z Engineers Pvt Ltd and the President of SEEM.
के. संुदर
एक ऊजा के
त
बंधक, एक संगठन के सभी हतधारक यान,
साथ ऊजा
तब धता और भागीदार के
मता और संर ण के
यास को आगे
ले जाने म अहम भू मका नभाता है । लेखक
डीसीड
यू ततीको रन इकाई म उनके कये गये ू
यास के लए SEEM बंधक क
के
मा णत ऊजा
ेणी म ऊजा द ता सव े ठ
दशन
परु कार 2014 के वजेता ह। वे संगठन के वभ न
तर पर ऊजा संर ण के तर क और
पहल के समु चत उपाय और नवेश के
ढं ग से
योग के
वषय म बताते ह।
भावी
October - December 2015
केस टडी: व नमाण संयं म ऊजा बचत के लए ठोस यास
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
57
म ऊजा बचत के िलए ठोस यास के स टडी: िविनमाण संयं
ऊ
जा दिुनया भर म सभी गितिविधय का आधार है जो
िवशेष
क यादातर के िलए अनुपातहीन मा ा म उपल ध ह,ै प से िबजली क गहन औ ोिगक इकाइय के िलए।
है । एक दलच प केस के लए
टडी है ख नज नमना ू लेने
वत नमना ू लेने के नमाण और
थापना
िबजली का उ पादन एक ओर बढ़ रहा ह,ै जब क मांग और
का घरे लू अ ययन। अ य सराहनीय उपलि ध ह
आपू त के बीच एक
महं गे demineralised पानी क र साइि लंग,
ावहा रक संतुलन कायम करने के िलए
भावी संर ण का भी दस ू री ओर लगातार योग कया जा रहा ह।ै
ख नज
ऊजा क बचत ही ऊजा का उ पादन ह,ै इस त य क स यता के
गु
िलए कसी भी उ ोग म िवचारक और कता संर ण के सभी उपल ध संभावना
सं करण म उ पाद वसल ू और
वाकषण के
वाह का उपयोग शा मल है ।
को ऊजा
का पता लगाना चािहए।
ऊजा के उ पादन अिधक िनवेश, समय और यास क ज रत
कम नवेश के साथ पहल :
है जब क इसके संर ण के िलए उ पादक, स य और सकारा मक सोच क आव यकता ह।ै एक सरल कारण के िलए
गुणव ा स कल कामगार / शॉप लोर पयवे क का एक छोटे
ऊजा के संर ण क गितिविध नीचे से ऊपर होनी चािहए
समूह ह। ये टीम सुर ा, ऊजा, गृह
य क सम त कमचारी दनभर मशीन व उपकरण को चलाते
मु
व था, और रखरखाव के
पर काय थल पर सुधार क ओर यान दत े े ह।
ह । इसिलए, वे ऊजा संर ण के तरीके और भावी साधन
यहां तक क एक मामूली यास अभी या बाद म पया लाभ
ब त अ छी तरह से जानते ह। हर समय इस मह वपूण
का प रणाम दे सकता ह।ै प रसर म गुणव ा स कल ने िपछले
गितिविध को संभव बनाने के िलए म यम बंधन ऊपर और
पांच वष के दौरान लगभग 100 लघु प रयोजना
नीचे के बीच एक पुल के
ह।ै
प म सुिवधा दान कर एक
को कया
मह वपूण भूिमका िनभा सकता ह।ै
October - December 2015
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
58
यह टीम म से एक के ारा कए गए एक दलच प मामले का उ पद पर बैठे लोग को उ पादक सुझाव के िलए सभी को
अ ययन का हवाला दत े े के िलए साथक ह।ै
ो सािहत करना हाेगा और ऊजा संर ण के िलए अिधक से अिधक िवचार के साथ लोग को े रत करने के तालमेल
घरे लु िन मत वत खिनज नमूना मशीन खिनज नमूना लेने के
बैठाना होगा। ऐसा हमारे संगठन म कया गया ह।ै
िलए थािपत कया गया था। हमारे खिनज सं करण संयं म कई िविभ भाग ह। अलग-अलग वग म इन खिनज नमून के
अब ऊजा संर ण के संबंध म चल रहे यास पर आते ह, या उ ोग म ऊजा संर ण ा करने के िलए तीन मुख
िव ेषण क
या मापदड ं पर यानपूवक िनयं ण करने के
िलए और ऊजा संर ण के िलए ब त मह वपूण ह।ै
रा ते ह कई वष के अ यास के बाद कया गया है क नमूना णाली के w
कम िनवेश - कामगार ारा काय थल संबंधी पहल
w मॉडरे ट िनवेश - कमचा रय
ारा
गितिविधय / सुधार
सुधार के िलए, टीम ने िविभ संभावना
का पता लगाया है
और घर म ऑटो नमूना णाली के िनमाण के िलए एक सुझाव के साथ बाहर आया था।
w उ िनवेश - शीष बंधन ारा मुख प रयोजना
को इस णाली को गित िभ करने के
संभालना ।
म म चर आवृि
ाइव
और तनाव नापने का यं के साथ तैयार कया गया था ताक िछपकर या खुलकर
य या परो
प से कसी भी तर पर
े के आसपास िबखराव ना हो।
ि गत तौर पर यहां तक क एक छोटा सा यास का प रणाम एक ठोस बचत के
प म िमल सकता ह।ै
इस णाली के ारा, ितिनिध नमूने चौबीस घंटे सुिनि त कर रहे ह और इस
हमारे प रसर म अपनाये गये िविभ ऊजा संर ण के यास
या के अनुकूलन के ारा ऊजा के उपयोग
म नाटक य कमी आई ह।ै
कु छ के स अ ययन के साथ-साथ नीचे दए गए ह गुणव ा हलक
ारा िन पा दत कु छ अ य उ लेखनीय संर ण
गितिविधय ह -
ा स कल ने पछले पांच वष के प रसर म गणव ु दौरान लगभग 100 लघु प रयोजनाओं को कया
w महग ं ा demineralised पानी क रीसाइ लंग तथा वापस या म ।
w गु वाकषण वाह का उपयोग िस टम के पंप से बचने के िलए। Kaizen योजना सुर ा / उ पादकता म सुधार के िलए सुझाव दन े े के िलए शॉप फलोर कमचा रय और कामगार को ो सािहत करती ह।ै हर महीने, योगदान दन े े वाले कमचा रय को पुर कृ त व मा यता दी गयी। यह णाली इसके अलावा उ पादकता म सुधार और कम ेकडाउन िजसके प रणाम व प कमचा रय के मनोबल को
म ऊजा बचत के िलए ठोस यास
से उ पाद वसूली।
के स टडी: िविनमाण संयं
w खिनज सं करण संयं के चैनल / ग
बढ़ाती ह।ै य क मानव संपि क मती संपि है ऊजा संर ण पखवाड़ा उ सव अभी तक यहां तक क गैर तकनीक क मय को भी उनके योगदान के िलए ो सािहत कया जाता ह।ै शॉप फलोर पर काया वयन से पहले सुझाव को गंभीर
प से अ ययन और िव ेषण के िलए मू यांकन कया
जाता ह।ै समापन समारोह के दौरान, िव े ता
को अपनी ऊजा क
बचत उ पाद को द शत करने और समझाने के िलए अवसर दया जाता है ता क उनके योग का अ ययन कया जा सके ।
मॉडरे ट नवेश प रयोजनाओं म लागत सधार ु काय म के साथ व भ न अनु योग के लए अ य ऊजा
ोत , और समय-समय पर ऊजा
आ डट और ि थ त क
नगरानी का उपयोग
शा मल है ।
मॉडरे ट नवेश ग त व धयां : लागत सुधार काय म ितभािगय के
प म पयवे क और
इं जीिनयर के साथ एक वष म दो बार आयोिजत कये जा रहे ह। िविभ टीम (िसिवल, मैकेिनकल, इलेि सुर ा आ द) से
कल,
या,
ताव संशोधन , सुधार आ द के िलए वतमान
ि थित, सुझाव पर काश तुतकता टीम और ोता
तुत कर रहे ह के बीच एक व थ संबंध और
बाद म बातचीत के गहराई म इस िवषय क बेहतर समझ के िलए माग श त करता ह।ै
59 a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
को समझ सक।
October - December 2015
इसके अलावा, साइट पर अिधक िव तार से चचा क जाती है ता क िव े ता आव यकता
म ऊजा बचत के िलए ठोस यास के स टडी: िविनमाण संयं
सभी िवभाग के कमचा रय के बैठक म भाग लेने से संबंिधत प के साथ, फायदे और नुकसान को आसानी के साथ िवचारिवमश कया जा सकता ह।ै िविभ अनु योग के िलए अ य ऊजा ोत के उपयोग को लेकर इस काय म म बहस हो रही ह।ै एक खंड म थािपत कया है और अ ययन कया - ऐसा ही एक प रणाम कायालय काश व था के िलए सूय के काश क "Solatube" इ तेमाल होता ह।ै को भी बादल के मौसम म भी ल स के तर पूरा रहता है और कु छ और इमारत म काया वयन िवचाराधीन ह।ै लागत सुधार काय म म कए गए काय के प रणाम व प काफ ऊजा क कमी म ई है –
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
संयं
पम ै ाने पर पर
ऊजा बचत क
ण क प रक पना के
थापना के बाद नय मत
लागू करने के लए माग
प म प से
श त कर सकते ह, जो
डट े ा उ प न करने के लए जहां भी संभव कए जाते ह। छा
और ग ृ ह णय के लए कायशालाओं
रए टर म बढ़ी बैच आकार
और
w
लैश भाप वसूली णाली
पद ै ा करने के लए ऊजा संर ण काय म के एजडे
े ता – िव े ता िमलन हर साल आयोिजत कया जाता है िजसम उ पाद क गुणव ा से संबंिधत मु जो क अंततः या को भािवत करता है और ऊजा का उपयोग बढ़ जाता है यह िव े ता के साथ चचा कया जाता है । े
था
को पार प रक लाभ के िलए िवमश कया जाता ह।
आविधक ऊजा आिडट िवशेष
श ण काय म के मा यम से जाग कता
पर भी काम कर रहे ह
पुनः इं जीिनय रं ग
वा पीकरण क दर को बढ़ाने के िलए बाद म नमक कटाई को बढ़ाने के िलए सौर ऊजा का उपयोग िनहाई पर भी ह।ै
October - December 2015
मह वपूण उपकरण क ि थित क िनगरानी ऊजा का उपयोग को कम करने के अलावा ेकडाउन भी कम करती ह।ै
w
w पंप के
60
आयोिजत क जाती ह जो क ाथिमकता के आधार पर सम य को संबोिधत करते ह।
और उजा के अ दत ू
ारा
उ च नवेश उ
यास :
ऊजा संर ण क पहल म जहाँ बड़े पैमाने पर िनवेश के
अनुभव कर रहे ह, इस तरह के काय म िव तृत अ ययन के िलए उपयु
सलाहकार िनयु
कया जाता ह।ै
संयं पैमाने पर परी ण क प रक पना के क
थापना के बाद िनयिमत
प म ऊजा बचत
प से लागू करने के िलए माग
श त कर सकते ह, जो डट े ा उ प करने के िलए जहां भी संभव कए जाते ह। ऐसा ही एक कायाि वत णाली (तािलका फ डर) अप
ीम
बैच संचालन और डाउन
ीम लगातार आपरे शन के बीच
बेमेल से बचने के िलए
या वाह म उपयु
उपकरण क
शु आत ह।ै तािलका फ डर क
थापना, नीचे क ओर रोटरी भ ा
म अभूतपूव धन तेल क कटौती क जाती है के अलावा, यह भी भारी पूंजी लागत पर अित र calciner क आव यकता से परहज े कया ह।ै नवीनतम ऊजा कु शल उपकरण , साथ संयं
या के वचालन के
के आधुिनक करण आ द क
या
के िलए वांिछत ऊजा बचत, पैमाइश उपकरण के िलए िनवेश, वैकि पक धन पूंजी लागत को कम से कम ले कन ा करने के िलए उठाए गए कदम retrofitting,
म ऊजा बचत के िलए ठोस यास के स टडी: िविनमाण संयं
मानवीय ु टय को ख म करने के िलए काफ िनवेश और सफलतापूवक लागू कया गया।
काय थल से परे ... w ऊजा के मूल पर कू ली ब
के िलए िश ण काय म।
w घर के उपकरण के भावी उपयोग पर गृिहिणय के िलए
कॉलेज म अितिथ ऊजा क बचत के
ा यान दए।
यास बारहमासी ह। हर तर पर ितब ता
और भागीदारी के साथ हमेशा ऊजा संर ण के िलए नए िवचार को लाना होगा। ऊजा, जो क एक आव यक ाकृ ितक ोत ह,ै को अ यंत सावधानी से संरि त कया जाना चािहए।
लेखक ी के . सु दर, SEEM सद य,
व र महा बंधक (िवकास एवं प रयोजना), डीसीड यू िलिमटेड, तूतीको रन, तिमलनाडु
िह दी अनुवाद – ी दीप गु ा चेयरमैन SEEM DELHI CHAPTER उप महा ब धक गित पॉवर कारपोरे शन िलिमटेड, द ली
October - December 2015
w ऊजा के उपयोग पर यान क त करने के साथ पास के
a quarterly magazine of the society of energy engineers and managers / India
61
काय म।
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