As a member of the ICE Energy journal editorial board I have been asked to write the editorial for this issue. As a prestigious publication dealing with this very diverse topic ‘energy’, the scope for papers is wide ranging, from matters of policy through to detailed technical papers; both ends of this spectrum are represented in this issue. Irrespective of the nature of the paper the same rigorous review process operates and all papers have extensive reference lists which would be of great value to anyone wishing to develop further the topics discussed.
The first item in this issue is a policy paper, which presents a briefing on the very important issue of a possible North Sea electricity grid established to accommodate the potential growth in the use of offshore wind turbines (Adeuyi and Wu, 2015). Quoting the potential North Sea wind turbine output by 2020 as 33 GW and 83 GW by 2030, the paper investigates the concept of a North Sea electricity grid designed to link all of the wind farms together and by so doing interconnect with the established electricity grids of adjacent countries, thus facilitating the creation of a European electricity trading market. The briefing then investigates at high level the use of submarine cables with an optimum balance of both AC and DC systems with strategically positioned converter systems. The briefing concludes that for such a North Sea interconnecting grid to happen there would be a number of challenges to tackle – not just technical but economic, financial, environmental and socio-economic – and notes that an agency has been established to investigate this.
The first full paper in this issue comes under the category of policy and relates to the management of spent nuclear fuel (Al Bloushi et al., 2015). The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the first of the Middle Eastern Arab countries to embrace nuclear generation of electricity to offset its use of fossil fuels and thereby reduce its impact on climate change. The state is building a four-reactor site using Korean-designed pressurised water reactors. It is therefore almost unique in being able to ‘start from a blank sheet of paper’ and take a dispassionate and independent view on the optimum ways of handling spent nuclear fuel which, although not strictly nuclear waste, shares some of the same characteristics (in that it is highly radioactive). The paper addresses this matter and considers a suitable assessment methodology and presents a preliminary assessment of four options all of which have pros and cons. It concludes that for the UAE the option of using deep geological boreholes for the disposal of the spent fuel is the appropriate way forward.
The second paper is probably at the opposite end of the policy/technical detail spectrum as it focusses on a detailed analysis of the energy and exergy efficiencies of a diesel engine running on sunflower oil, or more specifically sunflower methyl ester biofuel (Yamık et al., 2015). The thermodynamic performance of the single-cylinder engine is evaluated over a range of five engine loads at ten different speeds and, based on this, optimum operating conditions are defined. The basis of the approach is mathematically and academically rigorous. Results are presented graphically to illustrate trends in fuel, energy and exergy efficiencies and the importance of adequately insulating the engine to minimise efficiency losses is drawn out in the conclusions.
The last paper in the issue is a high-level evaluation of the potential shortfall in freshwater cooling available from river abstraction in support of electricity generation from large power stations (Byers et al., 2015). Although it opens by saying that, due to changing patterns of electricity generation, volumes of water abstracted from rivers has been in decline, it proposes a scenario where to combat climate change there could be an uptake of fossil fired electricity generation with the plants equipped with carbon capture and storage (CCS) to minimise greenhouse gas emissions. The paper estimates that such a scenario could put a significant call on the use of river water for cooling such that in certain parts of the country this could be a limiting feature. It considers various combinations of fuel and energy production scenarios, and undertakes a numerical assessment of the potential water needs of each; its findings are illustrated in interesting chart format. It concludes that conflicts between water requirements and electricity generation needs are likely, although this could be offset by the increased use of nuclear and wind turbine generation.
