Energy supply in Brazil relies heavily on renewable energy source. The production of energy from renewable sources, however, greatly depends on climatic conditions, which may be impacted in the future due to global climate change (GCC). This paper analyzes the vulnerabilities of renewable energy...

This study assesses the impacts of promoting, through auctions, centralized solar power generation (concentrated solar power – CSP, and photovoltaic solar panels – PV) on the Brazilian power system. Four types of CSP plants with parabolic troughs were simulated at two sites, Bom Jesus da...

Roof integrated solar chimneys use solar radiation to heat air and induce natural ventilation through a house. They can improve the performance of roof integrated photovoltaic arrays by removing heat absorbed by the panels, and enhance buoyant free cooling at night. This paper studies an...

Although the life cycle environmental impacts of biofuels have been recently reported, studies that focus on specific regions and use real fleet data for the use phase are still lacking. In Pennsylvania, the Penn Security Fuels Initiative required 2% biodiesel (B2), effective on January 1, 2010,...

With energy security, economic stabilization, and environmental sustainability being at the forefront of US policy making, the development of biodiesel production and use within the United States has been growing at an astonishing rate. According to the latest DOE energy report, biodiesel...

This study analyzed the environmental impacts of the materials phase of a net-zero energy building. The Center for Sustainable Landscapes (CSL) is a three-story, 24,350 square foot educational, research, and administrative office in Pittsburgh, PA, USA. This net-zero energy building is designed...

Even though sustainable development has been broadly debated, the clean development mechanism (CDM) still lacks sophisticated multi-criteria decision methods for identifying, selecting and assessing CDM project activities from this perspective. Bearing in mind the huge number of CDM projects...

Photovoltaic (PV) solar energy is a promising source of electricity generation, but still at a relatively high cost. Nevertheless, distributed photovoltaic generation does not compete for land use, as it is incorporated into existing buildings, and should be analyzed from the standpoint of the...

Brazil’s economic development has been underpinned by a diverse and – in a global comparison – unusual set of energy carriers, notably hydroelectricity and ethanol from sugar cane. Its energy mix makes Brazil one of the least energy-related carbon-intensive economies worldwide. Given that...

A large share of Brazil's current investments is concentrated in the development of petroleum resources in new frontiers. Perspectives for large offshore pre-salt fields are particularly good. However, challenges are also huge. On one hand, pre-salt resources development will draw vast amounts...