Dr Maurizio COLLU

June 29th, 2010

Research FellowRenewable Energy GroupOffshore Process & Energy DepartmentCranfield University

Challenges and Opportunities in the Renewable Energy Sector

Challenge(1980-2006 data, source www.eia.doe.gov )

REGION World Europe UK

ENERGY RELATED PARAMETER Unit of

measure

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

Annual Primary energy production [1] TWh

(Mtoe)

138000

(11850)

1.9% 14000 0.68% 2307 -0.1%

Annual Primary energy consumption TWh

(Mtoe)

138000

(11850)

2.0% 25000 0.72% 2873 0.4%

Electricity power installed capacity GW 4000 \ 810 \ 78 \

…of which Conventional

thermal [2]

\ 69% \ 56% \ 79% \

Hydroelectric [3] \ 19% \ 20% \ 2% \

Nuclear \ 9% \ 17% \ 15% \

Renewable [4] \ 3% \ 6% \ 4% \

Electricity energy generation TWh 18000 3.2% 3550 2% 372 1.3%

…of which Conventional

thermal [2]

% 66.3% 2.98% 53% 1% 75% 0.8%

Hydroelectric [3] % 16.6% 2.17% 15% 0.7% 1.2% 2.2%

Nuclear % 14.4% (5.22%) 25% 5.5% 13% 2%

Renewable [4] % 2.3% 11.07% 5.5% 11% 4% 22%

Electricity energy consumption TWh 16400 3.2% 3300 2% 350 1.4%

[1] The form of energy before any transformation occurs to secondary or tertiary forms (e.g. coal can be converted to synthetic gas, which can be converted to electricity; in this

example, coal is primary energy, synthetic gas is secondary energy, and electricity is tertiary energy)[2] Coal, Petroleum, Gas fired power plant[3] Hydroelectricity is actually a renewable energy source.[4] Geothermal, Solar, Wind, Wood, and Waste

1st macro-challenge: ever increasing demand

REGION World Europe UK

ENERGY RELATED PARAMETER Unit of

measure

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

Primary energy production [1] TWh

(Mtoe)

138000

(11850)

1.9% 14000 0.68% 2307 -0.1%

Primary energy consumption TWh

(Mtoe)

138000

(11850)

2.0% 25000 0.72% 2873 0.4%

• Primary energy consumption increasing each year 2% at

world level, 0.7% EU, 0.4% UK: huge demand (world

average 58 kWh/person/day, UK 130 kWh/person/day)

• Consumption increasing more than production (for UK

production stable/slightly dropping)

• EU and UK strong “primary energy” importer (EU 44%, UK

20%)

• How can we produce more energy, in a clean, safe,

affordable way?

2nd macro-challenge

The book “sustainable energy – without the

hot air” is dedicated:

“to those who will not have the benefit of

two billion years’ accumulated energy

reserves”Prof D. JC MacKay, FRS,

University of Cambridge

2nd macro challenge: mono-source past, multi-source future

REGION World Europe UK

ENERGY RELATED PARAMETER Unit of

measure

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

Electricity energy generation TWh 18000 3.2% 3550 2% 372 1.3%

…of which Conventional

thermal [2]

% 66.3% 2.98% 53% 1% 75% 0.8%

Hydroelectric [3] % 16.6% 2.17% 15% 0.7% 1.2% 2.2%

Nuclear % 14.4% (5.22%) 25% (5.5%) 13% (2%)

Renewable [4] % 2.3% 11% 5.5% 11% 4% 22%

Electricity energy consumption TWh 16400 3.2% 3300 2% 350 1.4%

• World, EU, UK used to be an energy mono-source economy: fossil fuels

• BUT the future economy has to be multi-source based because:

• fossil fuels are a finite resource,

• it is economically and politically advantageous to diversify the

energy portfolio,

• anthropogenic greenhouse gases are changing the climate

• How can we re-structure the system into a low-carbon, multi-source

economy?[2] Coal, Petroleum, Gas fired power plant[3] Hydroelectricity is actually a renewable energy source.

[4] Geothermal, Solar, Wind, Wood, and Waste

3rd macro-challenge: building essential skills for the sector

REGION World Europe UK

ENERGY RELATED PARAMETER Unit of

measure

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

value annual rise

(average)

Electricity energy generation TWh 18000 3.2% 3550 2% 372 1.3%

…of which Conventional

thermal [2]

% 66.3% 2.98% 53% 1% 75% 0.8%

Hydroelectric [3] % 16.6% 2.17% 15% 0.7% 1.2% 2.2%

Nuclear % 14.4% (5.22%) 25% (5.5%) 13% (2%)

Renewable [4] % 2.3% 11.07% 5.5% 11% 4% 22%

Electricity energy consumption TWh 16400 3.2% 3300 2% 350 1.4%

• Renewable Energy (excluding hydroelectric) has still a low share

of the energy produced

• BUT his annual rise is 1 order of magnitude higher than all the

other sources

• How can we bridge the gap between the currently available

workforce skills and the near future essential skills needed by the

Renewable Energy Sector?

How can we transform these

challenges into opportunities?

Opportunity: macro-level

Opportunity to strengthen EU-wide (short-medium term) and World-wide (long term) collaborations

Develop cleaner, low-

carbon economy

Promote energy security

Create economic and employment opportunities

Opportunities for Cranfield University

through…can…as a…

Cranfield University

Academic Institution

Re-skill present

workforce

High level technical & business adm. short courses

Forge new qualified and specialized

workforceMaster and doctorate courses

Renewable Energy

industry player

Offer specialized consultancy

services

Emerging technology feasibility studies

Preliminary Design studies

Experimental validation and development campaigns

Help developing technology standards

and policies

Collaborations with government and

standardization organizations

Opportunities for Cranfield University

Cranfield University has the

potential to become the location

of choice for inward Renewable

Energy investment and a world

class centre of energy expertise

How I plan to contribute as a lecturer (1/2)TIMESCALE

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q.

FUNDING Amount

EPSRC First Grant Scheme (2 years) Capped at 125 k£

Challenging Engineering Calls Exploration funding

Doctoral Training Grants 3 PhD studentships

FP7 FP7-Energy (NCP contacted) Project based

MoD Funds for microalgae-derived biofuel Around 20-30 k£ x 1 PhD studentship

Aviation Industry (engines) Funds for microalgae-derived biofuel Around 20-30 k£

BAEStudentships 1 PhD studentship

Grants for Project Around 10-15 k£

TEACHING

MSc students fees 4-6 k£ EU, 8 k£ UK, 16 k£ Overseas

Short Courses NET per course around 10-13 k£

ADWEA 7.5 k£ each course (3 days)

RESEARCH

Dynamics of offshore Renewable Energy Devices Offshore Wind Turbine Dynamics

MSc Group/Final Project

Internships

PhD 1 PhD 1

PhD 5 PhD 5

Research Staff 1 Research Staff 1

Wave energy devices dynamics

MSc Group/Final Project

Internships

PhD 3 PhD 3

Research Staff 1 Research Staff 1

Microalgae-derived biofuel Mathematical Modeling, Energy Balance

MSc Group/Final Project

Internships

PhD 4 PhD 4

Research Staff 2 Research Staff 2

Algae Production Pod Dynamics

MSc Group/Final Project

Internships

Research Staff 2 Research Staff 2

Aerodynamic Alleviated Marine Vehicles

Dynamics Model Numerical Implementation

Experimental Validation of the model

MSc Group/Final Project

Internships

PhD 2 PhD 2

Research Staff 3 Research Staff 3

How I plan to contribute as a lecturer (2/2)

TIMESCALE2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q. 1st q. 2nd q. 3rd q.

TEACHING

MScAdvanced Mechanical Engineering MSc: Course Director

NEW course about Renewable Energy Systems, dynamics module

Short CoursesDesign Tools for Marine Renewable Energy Systems

NEW short course: Dynamics of Marine Renewable Energy Systems

ADWEATechnological Challenge of Renewable Sources of Energy Production

NETWORKINGBWEAOffshore Wind Strategy Group,

Skills and Education sub-groupSUTMarine Renewable Energies

CommitteeISSCInternational Ship and Offshore

Structures

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

CEng with RINAMember of RINABuilding portfolio with a tutor from RINA

Apply for assessment

PGCTLAHECourse LecturesPortfolio write-up and submission

Fellow of the HIgher Education AcademyApply

To conclude : a civilization view

“The generation now alive is perhaps the most important generation of humans

ever to walk the Earth.

Unlike previous generations, we hold in our hands the future destiny of our

species, whether we soar into fulfilling our promise as a type I* civilization or

fall into the abyss of chaos, pollution, and war.

<…>

The choice is ours. This is the legacy of the generation now alive. This is our

destiny.”

Michio Kaku, “Parallel Worlds”

*type I civilization: classification introduced by Nicolai Kardashev to rank civilizations in outer space by

their energy generation. A type I civilization can harness the power of an entire planet. Current Earth

civilization corresponds to a type 0.765 (10 based logarithmic scale, total Earth primary power

1.74*1017 W, in 2006 around 15.8*1012)