Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 7
Technology Development Towards Localised
Small-scale Electricity Generation and Its Use in
Smart Buildings
Yasumitsu Tanaka and Kazuyuki Tohji
Abstract
Technological development is required for systems which will allow
current centralised energy systems to be replaced by more dispersed and multiple
low-energy sources. Such a system poses challenges both in maximising possible
sources of small energy and also in developing the batteries necessary to deal with
their intermittent supply. This chapter describes development of systems which run
on limited sources of DC energy, and the interaction between the supply sources
and the batteries to provide systems which are resilient to blackouts from natural
disasters. It also describes work at Tohoku University on micro-scale generation
from activities in everyday life and the first stages towards harnessing local marine
energy and biomass sources. This development was tested by the disaster of the
Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami on March 11, 2011 after which a black
out and complete cessation of utilities lasted from a few days to several weeks,
emphasising the critical importance of resilient energy sources.
Keywords
DC/AC hybrid
·
Smart building
·
Energy management system
·
Local
generation
·
Small energy
·
Renewable energy
·
Secondary battery
7.1
Introduction
Most of the chapters in this topic present the results of basic research related to spe-
cific environmental or resource-related problems. However, in order to contribute
to a more sustainable society, we need to apply this knowledge in a way that society
can utilise- in particular to find alternatives to the current dependence on centralised
