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| RECENTLY
COMPLETED EPP DOCTORAL THESIS...(CONTINUED)
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Anand B. Rao, A Technical,
Environmental, and Economic
Assessment of Amine-based Carbon Capture Systems for Greenhouse Gas
Control
Committee: Edward Rubin – chair (EPP/MechE), Howard
Herzog (MIT), David Keith (EPP), Granger Morgan (EPP/ECE/
Heinz)
Capture and sequestration of CO2
from fossil fuel combustion sources is gaining widespread attention
as a
potential strategy to control greenhouse gas emissions. This thesis
developed performance and cost models of postcombustion CO2 capture
using amine-based absorption systems
based on detailed process simulations and reported data as well as expert
judgments of likely future performance. Uncertainties and variability
in various design, performance and cost parameters that influence the
cost of carbon mitigation have been characterized.
We studied the feasibility and cost
of carbon capture and sequestration at new and existing pulverized coal
(PC) plants as well as at new natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) plants.
Amine retrofits on existing coal plants as well as amine-based CO2 capture
from NGCC flue gas might be attractive because of the relatively lower
capital requirement and cost of electricity (as compared to a new PC
plant with CO2 capture); however, the cost of CO2 avoidance in these
applications strongly depends on the price of natural gas and is likely
to be higher than that for a new coal plant. The case studies also revealed
multi-pollutant interactions and potential trade-offs in the capture
of CO2, SO2, NO2 and NH3. At present, the cost of CO2 mitigation using
this technology is substantially high, especially when compared to the
cost estimates for pre-combustion CO2 capture by IGCC repowering of
an existing coal plant or even new IGCC plant with CO2 capture.
This research was supported by the
Center for Integrated Study of the Human Dimensions of Global Change,
through a cooperative agreement between NSF (SBR-9521914) and Carnegie
Mellon University; U.S. Department of Energy; and The Teresa Heinz Scholarship
for Environmental Research.
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Hisham
Zerriffi, Electric Power Systems Under Stress? An Evaluation of Centralized
Versus Distributed System Architectures
Committee: Hadi Dowlatabadi – co-chair (Univ. of Bristish
Columbia), Alex Farrell – co-chair (Univ. of California, Berkeley),
Marija Ilic (ECE/EPP), Granger Morgan (EPP/ECE/Heinz)
This thesis assessed the potential
of distributed generation to improve reliability in power systems facing
chronic stress arising from sources such as underinvestment in infrastructure,
poor maintenance, and military conflict.
While it has long been recognized
that persistent stresses such as conflict and war can have a large impact
on electric power systems, there has been few systematic analyses of the
problem. The first goal of this research was to model and quantify the
reliability and economic differences between
centralized and distributed energy systems for providing electricity and
heat, particularly under stress conditions. This goal was met through
the development of Monte Carlo reliability simulations, applied to different
system network topologies.
The results of those models show significant potential improvements
in energy delivery with distributed systems.
The second goal was to determine the
impact of heterogeneity of local loads on the desired level of decentralization
of the system and the impact of decentralization on the network requirements.
This goal was met through a combination of Monte Carlo simulations applied
to systems with differentiated and non-coincident loads and an optimal
power flow applied to a more realistic network topology. The results of
those models
show the potential for improvements when loads are noncoincident and micro-grids
can share power as well as the fact that the power sharing may be largely
limited to local clusters of
micro-grids. This research also showed the need for incorporation
of stress in power systems modeling and a method for characterizing stress.
This work was supported by the Center
for the Integrated Study of the Human Dimensions of Global Change and
the Carnegie Mellon Electricity Industry Center.
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Bert N. Davis, A Technical
and Policy Analysis of Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Systems
Committee: David Bizzak (Romualdi, Davidson & Associates), Paul Fischbeck
(SDS/EPP), Granger Morgan (EPP/ECE/Heinz),
Edward Rubin – chair (EPP/MechE)
This thesis examined the potential
for building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) power production to reduce
the current U.S. reliance on fossil fuel power generation. Prototype buildings
in various U.S. locations are studied. Simulation tools were refined to
improve energy simulation capability, including the dynamic effect of
PV panels on a building’s mechanical and electrical systems, and
their
effect on peak electrical load reduction. Prototype one, two and three-story
office structures were then modelled with and without PV system integration,
in several different geographical regions in the United States. Associated
differences in regional fuel mixes for conventional power generation were
included in the analysis.
After building energy flows were modeled
and analyzed, their economic impacts were studied. The ability of the
buildingintegrated PV system to compete financially with conventional
energy production methods was evaluated for the years 2000 and 2010. The
economic analysis considered the hour-by-hour production for a simulated
year of operation, including the capability of the BIPV system to reduce
electrical demand. The economic impact of environmental externalities
was analyzed in the context of regional power systems. BIVP was found
not to be cost-effective in most regions unless carbon dioxide emissions
were valued at very high prices. The results of this research are then
used to build a policy framework.
This work was mostly self-supported.
Other support came from a grant from the Department of Energy and Carnegie
Mellon University. |
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