Results: Searching for 'Technology'

• Provide background on progress in the application of integrated assessment, and other analogous techniques, to transboundary air pollution processes.
• Provide a basis for identifying and assessing, in the next stage of the project, the key issues which would arise from moving from the regional level to hemispherical or global levels.
• Identify current uncertainties and constraints which might be relevant to wider applications as well as any new ones which might be expected to arise.

1. A short overview of where integrated assessment has now reached.
2. A fuller review of the state of play in the various inputs to assessment models.
3. A review of current uncertainties, although at this stage in no order of scale or importance.

1. Africa
2. Asia and the Pacific
3. Europe and Central Asia
4. Latin America and the Caribbean
5. North America
6. West Asia
7. The Polar Regions
8. The Arctic

This document provides a road map for Photovoltaics (PV) research in the UK. It covers PV materials, cell and module design and manufacture and applications including BOS components. It is specific to the UK and reflects the strengths and weaknesses of the research base in the UK, although it is compatible with the roadmaps of other countries, particularly the one recently developed for the European Community. Its primary aim is to identify priority areas for UK PV research and assist the research funding agencies, particularly EPSRC, DTI and the Carbon Trust, in developing their research programmes, but it also considers the need to develop UK capacity, both in terms of expertise and research facilities.

Research cannot take place in a commercial vacuum, and although not its primary function, the road map will outline the context for PV research in the UK. The potential for market growth in the UK and more widely is outlined and the need for market stimulation in the UK discussed.

The road map reflects the outcomes of a two day PV road mapping exercise, organised by the UKERC Meeting Place, that took place in Edinburgh in July 2006, together with inputs from a number of the attendees over the following weeks and subsequently contributions from the wider researcher community in response to an initial draft. The road map has also been subject to international peer review, and we indebted to these reviewers for their input.

The role of the UK Energy Research Centre Marine Energy Research Network in developing a route map for marine renewable energy research is described and put into the context of previous and current marine energy research at a national and EU level. A summary of the route mapping process is given based upon the Batelle approach. Justification is provided for route mapping in terms of encouraging cooperation and collaboration within the community to develop a coherent reseach, development and demonstration strategy, which will be used to inform policy makers and funding bodies. Some preliminary outputs from the network are presented in the paper to encourage discussion.

This document is a final project report for the project titled 'A review of the potential of giant grasses for UK agriculture'.

Grasses such as reed canary grass, spartina and switchgrass have been studied to only a modest extent in the UK in comparison with miscanthus and short rotation coppice. In addition, other less widely known species of energy crops have been examined in various countries across the world, but their comparative potential has not been systematically evaluated. The aim of this desk study is to assess the competitive position of all these giant grasses, particularly the lesser known species, for cultivation in the UK. An objective of this work is to draw together the disparate studies conducted. It is aimed to present an evaluation of the agronomic and economic performances of giant grasses with a view to identifying any species with promise for UK conditions that merit more detailed study.

This report details:

1. An introduction of the study
2. Summary of agronomic review of crops for consideration
3. Combustion characteristics
4. Economic assessment of the biomass grasses
5. Potential
6. Key future research and development
7. Conclusions of the work

This document is a project report for the project titled 'A wave/current flume for research on offshore renewable energy devices: with the first application on multiple heavy point wave absorbers.'

This project is concerned with marine energy in the form of waves and tidal streams which may in principle supply more energy than the UK needs. The main consideration when developing devices which utilise wave and tidal power in order to generate electricity is economic viability. In order to assess whether potential devices will be economically viable to produce and run, as well as to maximise their performance, it is crucial to rigorously test physical prototypes.

The aim of this project is provide a wave/current facility (flume) in which marine power devices can be properly tested because the influence of currents on wave devices and waves is often overlooked. For this project a wave maker was added to an existing 5m wide and 20m long environmental flume. The wave maker can generate regular, random and directional seas which is vital because the power generated is much reduced by random directional waves which occur in reality.

This document is a final project report for the project titled 'AC0401: Direct energy use in agriculture: opportunities for reducing fossil fuel inputs'

This report details the bottom-up approach that has been taken to estimate direct energy use in agriculture, with 2005 as the baseline year. Data comes from CCL returns, professional surveys and best available professional knowledge. The total, direct, primary energy use sums to 20,387 GWh (73,393 TJ), but with an associated CHP electricity generation credit of 748 GWh (2,693 TJ). This is around 12% more than the total given by DTI for 2005 in its Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES), which is based on returns made by energy suppliers. This report details the qualification of direct energy use, potential improvements to energy efficiency, and potential for integration of renewable energy across the agriculture industry.

1. Quantification of direct energy use in agriculture, with a breakdown by agricultural sector and fuel type
2. Energy use technologies and the potential for improvement in energy efficiency
3. Energy supply options and the potential for the integration of renewable energy
4. Action points and recommendations to Defra

This document is a final project report for the project titled 'Potential for Solar Energy in Food Manufacturing, Distribution and Retrail.'

1. Establish the current state of the art in relevant available solar technology - A detailed literature search of photovoltaic electricity generation has been carried out and its application to food retail, storage and distribution has been reviewed.
2. Identify the barriers for the adoption of solar technology - The real and perceived barriers to the uptake of solar energy technology options were investigated. This was done by obtaining the views of stakeholders by structured interviews and questionnaires.
3. Assess the potential for solar energy capture - In this work package the potential of solar energy capture for use in supermarkets and distribution centres was evaluated. This was achieved through modelling using available software packages and spreadsheet models developed specifically for the task.
4. Appraise the potential of alternative relevant technologies for providing renewable energy - Ways of using indirect solar energy such as wind power were investigated and compared with photovoltaic generation
5. Assess the benefits from energy saving technologies - This work package assessed the potential for reducing energy demand by using more efficient plant and improved controls in refrigeration and lighting.
6. Compare the alternative strategies for the next 5-10 years - In this work package the results of the previous work packages are reviewed and the economic viability of alternative renewable technologies is evaluated and compared with energy conservation measures.
7. Consider the merits of specific research programmes on solar energy and energy conservation in the food sector - In this work package a review of food transport refrigeration was carried out and the possibilities of using solar energy to reduce refrigeration energy consumption and emissions were considered

• Energy System Analysis –the importance of CCS
• UK Power System –the value of CCS
• CCS in the UK –some recent history and development of the ETI’s current programme
• Addressing the credibility of the cost base: the ETI’s Thermal Power with CCS - Generic Business Case Project
• Conclusions and next steps

This report, commissioned by the Aldersgate Group and co-authored with Vivid Economics, identifies out how the government can achieve a net zero target cost-effectively, in a way that enables the UK to capture competitive advantages.

The unique contribution of this report is to identify the lessons from successful and more rapid historical innovations and apply them to the challenge of meeting net zero emissions in the UK.

Achieving net zero emissions is likely to require accelerated innovation across research, demonstration and early deployment of low carbon technologies. Researchers analysed five international case studies of relatively rapid innovations to draw key lessons for government on the conditions needed to move from a typical multi-decadal cycle, to one that will deliver net zero emissions by mid-Century.

The case studies include:

• The deployment of the ATM network and cash cards across the UK;
• Roll out of a gas network and central heating in the UK;
• The development of wind turbines in Denmark and then the UK;
• Moving from late-stage adoption of steel technology in South Korea to being the world leading exporter; and
• The slower than expected development of commercial-scale CCUS to date across the world. 

The report also sets out which low carbon technologies are likely to have wider productivty and growth benefits in other industries for the UK. These include carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS); heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC); wind energy; biofuels and batteries. These areas should be prioritised by the government’s innovation strategy going forwards.

National Grid has a large number of Cameron self-relieving ball valves of varying sizes in operation in the gas transportation system. A number of these are large diameter valves and a 42' Cameron self-relieving ball valve has recently been taken out of service as it was leaking. National Grid would like some leakage tests to be carded out on this valve.

National Grid uses a number of methods to detect and quantify leaks. One of these uses a portable acoustic emission (AE) device where a sensor is directly coupled to the surface of the valve. This device can be used on above-ground assets such as valves, etc. but a significant number of National Grid's assets are below the ground where access to the surface of the valve is not possible. National Grid has defined the overall objectives of this project, to be carded out by the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) as follows:

1. Validate the use of leak detection equipment (based on a portable acoustic emission monitor system) for above-ground and below-ground process valves.

2. Investigate the valve's self-relieving system and quantify the leakage through the self-relieving system.

This document is a profile for the project titled 'Advanced Materials Modelling And Lifing Technologies For Gas Turbine Components Operating In Coal Gasification Plant'.

This document is a profile for the project titled 'Advanced Modelling And Testing Of Thick Section Welded Hcm2s'.

This document is a report for the project titled 'Advanced Modelling and Testing – Thick Sectioned Welded Alloy HCM2S (P23)'.

• To optimise the fabrication of thick section HCM2S utilising practical and efficient welding processes (MMA, FCAW).
• To thoroughly investigate the welding of HCM2S without PWHT.
• To model the weld and cross weld mechanical properties of HCM2S both with and without PWHT in order to define cross weld properties.
• To demonstrate acceptable weldment mechanical properties.
• Consequently to produce fabrication guidelines for thick section HCM2S both with and without PWHT.

1. Background
2. Welding & Weld procedure qualification
3. Neural network analysis
4. Service Aged Material
5. Stress Rupture Testing
6. Residual Stress Modelling
7. General Discussion & Conclusions

This document is a profile for the project titled 'Advanced Near Burner Flame Diagnostics For Ignition And Stability Studies On Full Scale Pulverised Coal Flames'.

The overall aim of the project is to improve the simulation of the near burner region of flames by CFD models, and to devise techniques whereby ignition processes in the vicinity of the flame holder and the flame structure immediately downstream can be assessed for individual flames in large pulverised coal fired furnaces. Specific project objectives are:

This document if the final report for the project titled 'Advanced PEM Stack Development'.

This report describes work carried out at Intelligent Energy (IE) to design and build a 50kW PEM fuel cell stack based upon etched plate technology, whilst simultaneously designing and developing a pressed plate technology capable of meeting the long term cost targets deemed necessary for full-scale commercialisation of PEM fuel cell technology. Also reported are the results of a joint collaboration with Johnson Matthey under which the design of a membrane electrode assembly specifically matched to IE's unique stack architecture was addressed.

The work carried out under this programme was specifically aimed at tackling the two issues of scale-up and cost reduction, by developing the etched plate technology and demonstrating a 50kW single stack unit whilst in parallel developing a pressed plate manifestation of the architecture, manufactured using high volume techniques (pressing, injection moulding etc.) thereby, clearly demonstrating that the resultant technology is capable of meeting the power output requirements and cost objectives.

1. Introduction
2. Etched Plate Design and Scale-Up
3. Pressed Plate Development
4. JMFC MEA Development
5. Cost Analysis and Discussion
6. Conclusions and Further Work
7. Appendix 1 - Programme Milestones

This document is a summary of the project titled 'With/without CO2 Capture Options'.

A policy for single Digital Bus Bar Protection has been employed on the National Grid UK Transmission network since 2002 either as a replacement system (for duplicated high impedance schemes) or for all new build double bus bar substations. These systems have a distributed architecture with remote bay units (interfacing to the plant) for each protected circuit with ruggedized cross site fibre connections to a central processing unit. Where a substation has a centralised relay room (e.g. GIS) layout, the bay units are co-located in a suite of cubicles and connected with a network of fibre patch cords.

This R&D Project aims to deliver an evaluation and desk top design solution of an alternative digital bus bar solution architecture. This will help formulate a future technical and procurement strategy for bus bar protection, potentially leading to a pilot installation, evaluation and deployment as a replacement (or new) bus bar protection system.

• NET Power technology has the potential to be a gamechanger.
• Modelling analysis confirms that NET Power’s supercritical CO₂ power cycle has the potential to deliver carbon capture at efficiencies higher than conventional amine solutions.
• Some unpublished innovations which NET Power are protecting as trade secrets are needed to make the technology as cost efficient as an unabated CCGT, which is still improving rapidly.
• The technology is immature and has multiple development hurdles to overcome and therefore it is likely to take several years before it is commercially available at scale. It is therefore likely to be best suited for deployment once other elements of CCS have been de-risked (i.e. transport and storage) rather than in a First of a Kind full scale development.

• UK-grown biomass can deliver genuine, system-level, greenhouse gas savings.
• Planting around 1.4 Mha of second generation (non-food) bioenergy crops, such as Miscanthus, Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) willow and Short Rotation Forestry (SRF), by the 2050s would make a signifi cant contribution to delivering a cost-effective, low carbon energy system. This is equivalent to ~7.5% of the total agricultural area of the UK.
• Steadily increasing the area of bioenergy crops in the UK (averaging around 30-35 kha/yr of new planting out to the 2050s) would allow the sector to ‘learn by doing’ and develop best practices, as well as monitor and manage impacts on other markets and the wider environment.
• Delivering a substantial energy crops sector whilst balancing the demand for land from other sectors will require an increase in land productivity and a reduction in food waste throughout the supply chain.
• The market for second generation energy crops is nascent.
• As the UK prepares to leave the European Union, there is an opportunity to restructure farming support in a way which provides long-term clarity and support to farmers and encourages the sustainable growth of the UK biomass sector

This report examines the current levels of methane emission from livestock manures and slurries in the UK and then explores possible options and routes for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions within a methane generation and recovery strategy for England.

Methane emissions from manures and slurry management make up 14% of the total methane emissions from livestock husbandry in the UK. Although slurry based management systems make up less than 40% of the manure management infrastructure, they account for 74% of methane emissions from manures and slurries.

In this study, we have looked in detail at the economics for options for on-farm AD and centralised AD in England. All the options proved uneconomic without some extra Government support. However, a small number of larger CAD may be economic, especially if higher levels of industrial waste (up to 20%) were treated in the CAD. A cost benefit analysis based on the options and assuming Government support in the form of capital grants suggests that greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to up to 0.03MtC could be saved annually at a cost of £60/tC, if 20 CAD plants were built. However, this would result in lifetime costs to Government of £ 143M. On-farm AD would need significant support to be economic.

1. Introduction
2. Current Situation
3. Technology options
4. Options for Methane Mitigation
5. Wider benefits and challenges for AD
6. Conclusions and Recommendations
7. Glossary, References & Appendices

• Appendix 1 - Methane to Markets Questionnaire
• Appendix 2 - Manure and Methane Production Data
• Appendix 3 - Basis of Options for England
• Appendix 4 - Economics and Greenhouse Gas Balance of AD

This document is the final report for the project titled 'Assessment of the Significance of Changes to the Inshore Wave Regime as a consequence of an Offshore Wind Array'.

Offshore windfarm (OWF) development within the UK is presently in the Second Round of licensing by Defra through FEPA (1985). Many of the Round One licences have already been granted, and of these, the development on Scroby Sands was one of the first. More significantly, Scroby Sands is amongst the few OWFs situated in a dynamic sedimentary environment. It is also close to a coastline which is vulnerable to erosion and which has seen numerous different coastal protection schemes in recent years. Development of the OWF at this site was started in autumn 2003, and electricity production commenced in December 2004.

This report details work undertaken only under contract AE1227. It was anticipated that this work would provide evidence-based research from which to refine any requirements for monitoring of waves that have been included within licence conditions of Round One developments, and that could be included within those conditions for Round Two developments.

The sensitivity analysis enabled by the modelling showed that for a simplistic flat seabed, wave interference patterns were most pronounced for waves approaching the monopile array obliquely, at an angle of 35 degrees. For more realistic bathymetry, this angle was decreased, but more significant was the maximum reduction in wave height from 5% (flat seabed) to 2% (realistic bathymetry). Thus, effects of wave refraction in shallow water are greater than those of monopile-related wave diffraction and interference. Wave refraction in shallow water acts to reduce any effect of the monopiles upon waves.

The quantitative value of predicted change to wave height as a result of monopile arrays, of 2%, is in agreement with those estimates presented as part of the Environmental Statements for other more recent windfarms. It has not been possible to detect this small change using the presently available measurement and analysis techniques afforded by X-band radar. It is therefore concluded that wave diffraction and interference effects arising from monopile arrays are negligible. By inference, any effect on coastal erosion is therefore also likely to be negligible.

1. Scientific Objectives
2. Summary of Success (Against Scientific Objectives)
3. Methods
4. Results
5. Discussion
6. Conclusion
7. Implications & Significance
8. Future Research
9. Resulting Actions
10. References

This document is a summary for the project titled 'Band Structural Engineering of TiO2 for Efficient Solar Cells'.

This project is aimed at increasing the energy conversion efficiency of Titanium Dioxide which can be applied to cheaper materials, such as glass, plastics etc, using deposition to create solar cells. Currently the material can only convert 5% of the suns energy into electrical energy, the amount of the solar spectrum photovoltaic cells can absorb is called its band gap and TiO2 can only absorb ultraviolet irradiance. This project explored the possibility of using the process of doping to narrow TiO2's band gap thereby increasing the amount of the suns energy it can absorb to up to 50%. Doping is the process of is the process of introducing impurities into an extremely pure semiconductor (in this case TiO2) to change its electrical properties. The effectiveness of using such a technique for narrowing Titanium Dioxide's band gap was explored both through theoretical modeling and computer simulations. This doped TiO2 material was then fabricated in a laboratory as part of the project

This project has led to two applications for patents and a spin off company. Prof. Shao has also received a further £933,050 funding from the Technology Strategy Board to continue his research into low cost, highly efficient photovoltaic solar cells. As a result of the possible applications of the research two companies involved in the project, Kleentec International Plc and Crowberry Energy, are working on a related project with funding (£10,000) from Metric.

To assess and improve the production from European biogas plants a specific targeted research or innovation project (Project no. 513949) entitled 'European Biogas Initiative to improve the yield of agricultural biogas plants' involved collating data from 13 biogas plants across Europe. Data was collected by four means; the use of periodic data from the biogas plant, weak-point analysis from each of the biogas plant operators; a questionnaire and a schematic of each plant. The information revealed that although the biogas plants were performing relatively well, with an average specific biogas yield 0.44 m3.methane.kg-1 VS and an average methane productivity of 1.25 m3.m3, there was considerable capacity to improve the performance of each of the biogas plants by a range of different means.

Economic comparison of these biogas plants across Europe was difficult. However, about 90% of the revenue was realised from electricity sold. The average specific capital expenditure for the 13 biogas plants was about 4,400 € per installed electric capacity (kW) or at 5% discount rate and 15 years economic life, 5.3 €-Cent per kWh of electricity. The average costs of feedstock was 5.6 €-Cent per kWh electricity produced. Also the average cost was 67 €-Cent per Nm³ of methane produced. The average total costs were 19.5 €-Cent per kWh electricity produced which was slightly above the price paid in most of the countries involved.

Development of improved means of both introducing and treating the feedstock was important for improved biogas yields. The hydrolysis of crops and crop residues could significantly reduce the HRT of some digesters to below 100 days. The type and mixture of feedstock also influenced the biogas yield and optimisation of the inputs would be of benefit. However each feedstock may ferment at different rate and/or require different conditions so process control could produce more biogas. High levels of manure required up to 4 times as much volume as other feedstocks to produce the same amount of biogas. There was up to 3 times the methane output per kg VS from different biogas plants. Some biogas plants had a variability (on standard deviation) of the specific methane yield as low as 7% others could be considered unstable with values over 100% of their mean values. Feedstocks were considered responsible for this variability, however such a range suggests that process monitoring and control would provide more stable biogas production and improved biogas yields. Monitoring fermentation parameters was limited to pH and volume of the various vessels for all biogas plants. Sensors did include means of measuring VFAs (36% of the total) and conductivity (18%) and redox potential (9%) for the 13 biogas plants. The outcome of this study will be used to identify demonstration projects at different biogas plants and research facilities.

• All three case studies demonstrate that planting energy crops can increase the profitability of the land over a 23-year lifetime. Initial investment costs are expected to be paid back within the first six to seven years.
• When optimising the use of land across the farm, impacts on food production can be minimised or avoided. in two case studies, food impacts were minimised by using land which delivered poor arable yields, and by minimising the reduction in sheep numbers through higher stocking densities (the number of sheep per hectare). in the third case study, the crop was planted on unused land so no food production was displaced.
• Land which is less suitable for food production or grazing can be suited to energy crops as they can be successfully planted on poorer quality soils, and land which is more prone to waterlogging or weed problems. They are also suited to less accessible fields as they require less intensive management than arable crops.
• The farmers in these case studies chose to grow energy crops for a variety of reasons - making better use of difficult or underutilised land, diversifying income and reducing workload. In addition, all farmers cited the importance of obtaining secure fixed-term contracts with buyers in their decision making. This reinforces findings from previous ETI work on enabling UK biomass.
• Discussions with land agents suggest that land used to grow biomass crops should not be valued differently to other agricultural land, as land should be valued on its productive capacity. however, the specific price offered by a buyer will be affected by their objectives in buying the land and their understanding of bioenergy crops. The presence of a profitable contract for the crop and a willingness from the buyer to continue with bioenergy cropping may have a beneficial impact on the land value. If the buyer wishes to change the land use, is uncertain how to manage a bioenergy crop, or if there are limited market outlets for the crop, the land value may be lower than if it weren’t planted with a bioenergy crop.
• Qualitative evidence from the Miscanthus farmers indicate an increase in wildlife, particularly birds, since growing the crop. In the Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) Willow case study, the farm carried out an environmental impact assessment (EIA) before planting.

• Despite new entrants, the supply chain is very fragamented.
• There are a number of planned network logistics investments which have the potential to benefit the sector.
• There are lessons that can be learned from established supply chains in other comparable industries
• Confidence in the sector is much needed to attract further investment in supporting infrastructure and supply chain synergies.
• Rail is vital to the UK’s economic prosperity. Rail links with ports and airports are essential to support the transportation of goods
• The extent to which rail transport and freight specifically will be a constraint to the biomass logistics supply chain is dependent upon a range of factors; primarily the Government’s energy policy on biomass, willingness of the Government to protect capacity and promote rail freight growth on the network, the extent to which biomass will replace coal and the cost efficiency of using imported fuel sources and rail haulage, as opposed to local fuel supplies and other transport modes

• ensure a wider, more detailed representation of possible bioenergy pathways
• raise the overall data quality and level of confidence in the model
• improve the user interface
• increase the options for use cases and scenarios

Networks want to facilitate and encourage new sources of gas to enter our networks that meet quality standards, and where necessary adapt quality standards to facilitate the new sources of supply and minimise investment on major infrastructure. At present, produces have no experience or best practice guide to help them through the installation and management of biogas connections. Networks have a variety of policies and procedures to undertake entry connections but these are limited to the transmission system. As a result of this project with NWL documented guides will be produced as each side goes through installation process. A specialist gas consultant will be employed over the duration of the project to capture all the learning and experiences from a producers and network perspective and document these stages including:

The objectives of this project where:

1. To accelerate progression of the Howden project supporting with gas specific expertise
2. To liaise between NWL and NGN to ensure hurdles are overcome quickly and NGN's interests are maintained
3. To develop a user guide to bio-methane injection

To provide the Networks and suppliers/operators of waste treatment biomethane plants with the first user guide and best practice recommendations for connection to the gas distribution network with the requirements of that plant in relation to minimum/maximum connection, gas odourisation, dewpoint, gas quality measurement etc. To allow consistency across the gas industry for the benefit of suppliers/operators of biomethane installations and gas distribution network operators.

This evidence is a joint submission by the UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources (ISR) and UKERC. These two institutions have worked together closely in the past, including on a report commissioned by the Global CCS Institute, on The role of CCS in meeting climate policy targets.

We are submitting evidence because we believe CCUS is likely to have a critical role as part of an overall decarbonisation strategy for the UK – and, perhaps more importantly, for the world. We are keen to take part in the debate as to how this can be achieved;

Executive summary

• Current modelling evidence suggests that meeting carbon reduction targets will be at best significantly more expensive, and at worst impossible, without CCUS.
   
• This is primarily due to its offer of emissions reductions in industrial sectors, and of negative emissions with biomass, rather than as a power sector technology per se.
   
• Attempting to pre-define a cost-reduction trajectory for CCUS in advance is difficult and uncertain.
   
• Rather, the government should establish a maximum subsidy level at which it would be prepared to contribute to funding CCUS, and commit to fund projects should they reach this level or go below it.
   
• It should then introduce competitive mechanisms to assist discovery of the lowest cost, similar to the Contract for Difference (CfD) auctions.
   
• It also needs to support the whole innovation chain, coordinating diverse actors across industry and power sectors, CO2 transmission and storage; supporting research, development and demonstration efforts of shared benefit; taking over whole chain risk; identifying synergies between industrial sectors.
   
• Although CCUS currently appears to be critical to industry decarbonisation, there are other potential options which may compete with or indeed complement CCUS in the longer term. A bottom-up, granular approach to decarbonisation challenges and opportunities within specific UK industry clusters will yield greater long-term benefits than a single-technology focus on CCUS alone.

• An assessment of materially significant changes from the previous CCGT benchmark, together with documentation of the assumptions used in development of the new benchmark;
• An assessment of appropriate EGR rates fulfilling the above criteria appropriate exhaust gas recycle (EGR) rates which could potentially be used in CCGTs with CCS;
• Presentation of the technical and economic performance and deliverables for each of the benchmark cases

• The base case consists of a CCGT plus ICP configured for 90% capture using an amine system but where the CCGT is unaffected by the capture plant. In this case the capture plant operates independently of the CCGT and is self-sufficient in steam and power;
• The first sensitivity case investigates the use of power import from the CCGT. The steam demand for the ICP is met with a package steam boiler;
• The second sensitivity case investigates the effect of importing both power and steam from the CCGT. This is considered to represent a retrofit scenario, where the ICP is built next to an existing CCGT.

This document is a report for the project titled 'Capacity Ten-Seven'.

Project Capacity Ten-Seven sought to bring together leading UK industrial expertise in the required disciplines to "define the parameters for the design of a new solar cell process plant with a capacity about 10MWp per annum and establish the optimum substrate size, cell configuration and junction structure and include the necessary research to confirm that these key characteristics are suited to high volume low cost production."

The project objectives were addressed through six interrelated technical work. Activities each with its own sub-objective and work plans. These were:

1. Fundamental Studies
2. Front Contact Deposition
3. Semiconductor Deposition
4. Rear Contact Deposition
5. Cell Isolation
6. Initial Design Study

The project achieved its overall goal of positioning ICP Solar UK to proceed with detailed design of a Capacity Ten-Seven production facility that will meet with future expansion plans.

It is generally accepted that improvements in coal particle size distribution are beneficial to carbon burnout, and considerable emphasis is placed on the optimisation and maintenance of coal pulverising equipment at utility power plant. The modelling of carbon burnout has been the subject of a number of recent and ongoing projects, some of which have received the financial support of the DTI, and significant technical advances have been made. However, there is an absence of available plant data to demonstrate the effect of coal particle size distribution on carbon in ash, which would allow the validation of this aspect of CFD and engineering models of burnout. This project seeks to address the shortfall.

The overall aim of the project is to establish good quality plant data to demonstrate the effect of changing coal fineness in a controlled way. Specific objectives are:

The aim of the research is to assess the technical, economic, financial and social uncertainties facing carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies, and to analyse the potential role they could play in the UK power sector between now and 2030. CCS technologies are often highlighted as a crucial component of future low carbon energy systems in the UK and internationally. However, it is unclear when these technologies will be technically proven at full scale, and whether their costs will be competitive with other low carbon options.

• Carbon capture and storage (CCS) could be a key technology to tackle climate change
• However, there are many economic, political, financial and technological uncertainties that hamper its development and deployment
• Comprehensive government policy support is needed to reduce these uncertainties sufficiently to enable further progress
• It is not necessary to resolve all uncertainties in order to make CCS financeable in the UK
• The UK CCS commercialisation programme needs to make rapid progress, with firm commitments to build several demonstration projects as soon as possible

This working paper is an output from a project funded by UKERC (the UK Energy Research Centre) that aims to identify and explore some of the key uncertainties that might have a 5 UK Energy Research Centre material impact on if and when large-scale CCS is deployed in the UK. In particular, this paper proposes a number of plausible pathways for CCS progress (or lack of progress) until 2030 and identifies key branching points where a particular trajectory for CCS development may be determined as different pathways diverge from each other. The effectiveness of different criteria to determine which pathway CCS development is following can then be assessed (see the Methodology section for a more detailed explanation of the approach).

Overall, the project aims to make useful contributions to efforts to determine how both the viability and maturity of CCS technology can be assessed more generally. In this context, viability refers to several factors that are outlined in more detail in later sections of this paper, such as whether independent assessments suggest that CCS technology is performing well enough to compete with other options for mitigating the risk of dangerous climate change. Although maturity is related to similar concepts it is more concerned with how far progressed CCS technology appears to be along a continuum of development, rather than the more yes/no assessment that might be expected if only viability is considered. It is, for instance, possible to envisage that a technology be mature in terms of its development but nevertheless not viable unless a set of economic, policy and regulatory conditions are met.

This paper is an output from the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) Research Fund project Carbon Capture and Storage: Realising the potential? (UKERC 2011). The project, led by the University of Sussex is undertaking an inter-disciplinary assessment of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) viability from now to 2030 involving a partnership from the Universities of Sussex, Edinburgh and Imperial College London (Markusson et al. 2011). The overall aims and objectives include helping policy makers understand the conditions for successful commercialisation of CCS and to contributing methodologies to inform policy decisions on whether CCS is proven.This paper is an output from the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) Research Fund project Carbon Capture and Storage: Realising the potential? (UKERC 2011). The project, led by the University of Sussex is undertaking an inter-disciplinary assessment of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) viability from now to 2030 involving a partnership from the Universities of Sussex, Edinburgh and Imperial College London (Markusson et al. 2011). The overall aims and objectives include helping policy makers understand the conditions for successful commercialisation of CCS and to contributing methodologies to inform policy decisions on whether CCS is proven.

• This report has been prepared in response to a specific request from the ETI; the additional full reviews of the 34 studies identified as adopting ALCA methodologiesis solely due to this request and not to any change in the original goal and scope that applies to all other aspects of the project.
• The 34 ALCA studies identified by the initial selection and screening process formed a sub-set of ALCA bioenergy studies likely to cover the scope of the project in terms of:biomass sources, being conventional forests (broadleaf, conifer and pine), plantation pine forests, short rotation forests (conifer and broadleaf),short rotation coppice (willow and poplar), miscanthus and wheat straw; geographical biomass provenance, being Canada, the USA and Europe; and specified conversion technologies.
• Due to the nature of the screening process, coverage of the value chains relevant to this project is less assured for the selected ALCA studies than for the CLCA studies in the main review; no supplementary screening was carried out to identify ALCA studies that would have been excluded from detailed review for a reason other than adoption of ALCA methodology (such as provenance of biomass).
• This report provides the results of each review as well as an assessment of the robustness of the evidence base provided by the studies (mainly in terms of coverage of value chains transparency of calculationsand methodologies adopted) and an examination of the differences and similarities between the studies.
• The mai nfindings from the review process were that, from the 34 reviewed ALCA studies, very few (11) of the potential (190) relevant whole bioenergy value chains were covered by 8 ALCA studies, and only 1 of these studies (a calculation tool with the potential to cover 3 of the specified value chains) had high transparency.
• Taking into account the analysis of the reviewed ALCA studies,which demonstrates the extensive variations in the methodologies adopted and the physical parameters used for results reporting, it is apparent that there are limits to findings on confidence and critical data that can be derived from them for the evidence base for the specified bioenergy value chains in this project.

• a critique of the robustness of the evidence base based on both data and methodologies used;
• a measure of certainty behind the data reviewed; and
• details of the confidence the reviewer may have in interpreting the data.

This report endeavours to understand the technical aspects of a 5kW fuel cell based UPS. Suitable testing is done to determine whether the performance of the system is equivalent to a battery based UPS. The Economic analysis deals with the feasibility of a fuel cell UPS is today's economy.

Testing was then carried out to verify the operation of the fuel cell and establish weather performance was equivalent with battery-operated UPS. The influence of temperature and stack power over start-up time was studied. To establish the dynamic operation of the fuel cell, load-switching tests, both of active and reactive nature, were carried out. Consecutive runs of soak tests were done to verify long hours of operation.

The fuel cell has proven capable to equal the performance of a battery bank, to the inverter and then AC load, the fuel cell is just a battery which never drains. Testing in lower operating temperatures has shown start up is not affected by long hours on non-operation. Though the optimum fuel cell stack an ambient temperature of less than 20°C. Start up is not affected when operated with active and reactive loads.

• how sampling consistency will be assured;
• the design for the planned database;
• the roles and responsibilities between all parties involved in sampling, data collection and lab analysis.
• the rationale for the experimental approach

• the findings from the 2016/17 investigations into the impact of harvest time on the properties of UK produced Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) willow and Miscanthus;
• the impact of variety on UK produced SRC willow properties, and;
• the impact of four different types of commonly used storage types over time on UK produced Miscanthus properties.

• a schedule of work detailing the list of feedstocks to be sampled;
• the type, number and source of samples to be collected;
• a plan for gathering the samples? provenance data;
• a planned schedule of laboratory preparation and testing to be carried out;
• a clear plan for delivering the ETI project objectives.
• rationale for choices made�
• list of laboratory tests to be performed
• list of provenance data collected
• sample site locations

• inclusion of leaves in biomass should be avoided. An exclusion might be conifer tops where the levels of most elements were sufficiently low to not exceed quality thresholds;
• harvesting time had a marked effect;
• while there were species differences between SRC willow varieties, no variety combined the best ranking in all parameters across all sites;
• there were major changesto Miscanthus quality during storage (decreasing fuel quality);
• for growers of Miscanthus, poplar SRF and spruce SRF, the key influences on many properties, i.e. season and storage, can be manipulated;
• SRC willow growers have a reasonable degree of control over some of the important feedstock characteristics by their choice of variety;
• for poplar SRF and spruce SRF, many properties can be adjusted by choice of plant part to market, and harvest time
• feedstock properties were relatively insensitive to the way spruce SRF as grown.

Good quality waste characterisation data are fundamental to Defra's policies and strategies to manage environmental challenges, yet the UK dataset for the new generation of treated wastes was poor. This project aimed to fill some of the gaps in understanding the characteristics of residues from the treatment of municipal solid waste and industrial process wastes.

The overall objectives were to:

1. Provide "state of the art" data and information on the characteristics of pre/post-treatment wastes
2. Provide a UK-wide data resource focusing on composition and leachability (through UK support to leachXS)
3. Review the UK landfill waste acceptance criteria for monolithic wastes.

A consistent approach to the sampling and testing of the residues has been used as advocated in the Environment Agency's sampling and testing guidance (2005). This includes the use of scenario-specific sampling plans to enable future replication of testing and the full characterisation toolbox (e.g. composition, leachability, biodegradability testing). The datasets have been imported into leachXS and the benefits of this data management and expert tool to technical specialists and policy developers can be seen, for example the rapid comparison of the characteristics of the new generation of treatment residues with more traditional waste streams.

The nitrogen fertilizer value of most organic wastes is much lower than that of sewage sludge. More organic waste would therefore be needed to be applied to soils to provide the same fertiliser value as sewage sludge. The partially stabilized organic wastes have a high requirement for oxygen. There is a risk that the soil system would be unable to sustain the oxygen needed for respiration by the in situ microbial population and so adverse anoxic conditions are likely to exist in the soil.

The range of coals encountered by new and existing power stations in the UK and abroad is steadily increasing. The inorganic component - the mineral matter - of coal impacts directly on plant availability through coal ash slagging, emission limits especially for fine particulate material and ash use and disposal. These factors constrain the acceptable range of coals for power station use. This project addresses the lack of fundamental understanding of the processes and rates of coal ash formation. It also considers the inability to predict boiler ash properties and behaviour because of a lack of detailed numerical descriptions for fly ash. The objectives of this project are:

The UK now imports more than 50% of the coal that is used for coal-fired power generation. UK generators are offered an increasingly wider range of world-traded coals for burning in boilers that were designed to burn a relatively narrow range of indigenous coals. This project was undertaken to provide UK boiler designers and operators with an improved knowledge of the combustion characteristics of coals for which they had little combustion experience. The study placed particular emphasis on the effects that a wider range of coal minerals and mineral matter distributions might have on the many aspects of boiler operation. These ranged from coal grinding for pulverised coal combustion, to combustion behaviour, levels of unburned carbon in ash, precipitator performance, gaseous and particulate emissions, and the slagging and fouling characteristics of the ash.

The coals were selected to reflect the wide range of world-traded coals that are now on offer and came from North and South America, Australia, South Africa, Indonesia, China, Russia and India. The coals were chosen on the basis of the ash content and ash chemistry that UK utilities might encounter. As a consequence of the varied geographical origins of the coals and the range of ash chemistry, the nature and distribution of the mineral matter in the coals was found to be significantly different from that of indigenous coals.

Coal and mineral matter characterisation was carried by Nottingham University and Imperial College London. Combustion studies were undertaken by E.ON, using the Combustion Test Facility (CTF) at the Ratcliffe Power Technology Centre and by Imperial College, using a high temperature Entrained Flow Reactor (EFR). In addition the EFR was used to study the mineral transformations of the minerals found in the suite of coals. The combustion facilities generated a range of samples for analysis and characterisation, including combustion ash and unburned char, cyclone ashes and deposits collected on ceramic probes and a slag panel. Characterisation of the samples enabled the combustion performance and slagging propensity of the coals to be assessed and ranked against that of a typical UK bituminous coal (Harworth).

Some of the coals would be unsuitable for UK boilers. Two coals from the US Powder River Basin had a high slagging and fouling potential, a high ash coal from India could give potential ash handling problems unless blended with a low ash coal, and a South African coal gave high NOx and high levels of unburned carbon. The remaining coals would be expected to give few operational problems.

The implications of burning a wider range of imported coals have been considered. Sales of boiler ashes to the construction market are an important consideration in the overall economics of coal-fired power generation. Several of the ashes with a high calcium content would be unlikely to meet current and anticipated specifications for use with cements and concrete.

Existing methods of coal and ash characterisation were found to be generally satisfactory in predicting the combustion performance of the coals burned at rig scale. The more advanced coal and ash characterisation techniques were found valuable in understanding the mineral transformations, the ash formation and ash deposition mechanisms.

1. Introduction
2. Project Overview - Aims and Objectives - Activities
3. Coals and Minerals Chosen for the Project
4. Coal Combustion Characterisation
5. Generation and Characterisation of Ashes from Coal and Mineral Combinations
6. Mineral Transformations and Ash Formation Processes
7. Ash Particle Interactions and Transformations
8. Implications of Findings for Power Station Performance
9. Ash Sales and Ash Disposal
10. Conclusions
11. Further Work
12. References

This document is the final report for the project titled 'Coal-Fired Advanced Supercritical Retrofit with CO₂ Capture '.

Retrofit of carbon abated clean coal technologies (CATs) is a practical solution with no technical or physical show stoppers being identified in the course of the study. Advanced supercritical boiler/turbine (ASC BTR) technology is available now with the appropriate guarantees for retrofitting to coal-fried power plant to improve efficiency, reduce costs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

When CO2 capture and storage becomes economic or mandatory the retrofit routes studies are likely to be amongst the best and most economic options for existing pulverised fuel power generation plant. The project consortium members (Doosan Babcock, Alstom, E.ON UK, Air Products, Imperial College London and Fluor Ltd) are well positioned to exploit the opportunities worldwide.

1. Introduction
2. Technical Description of Results
3. Recommendations
4. Results and Conclusions
5. Acknowledgements
6. References

The objectives of this project are:

The main aim of the project was to demonstrate the proposed low volatile burner at full scale in a single burner test facility and to establish its performance with regard to NOX and combustion efficiency. Furthermore, pilot scale testing was undertaken to quantify the effect of the staged addition of combustion air. Air staging is generally regarded as an effective, mature technology for NOX reduction from bituminous coals, but its impact on low volatile coals is less well understood.

Specific objectives for this project are:

Traditionally low volatile coals and anthracites have been utilised in arch fired furnaces (often referred to as 'downshot' firing) so as to overcome the inherent difficulties of achieving stable and efficient combustion which arise from the lack of volatile material in the coal to aid in the ignition, and the low reactivity of the remaining char. The downshot firing system is, however, of higher initial cost than a comparable wall fired system, and if it were possible to utilise low volatile coal in wall fired furnaces there are clear economic benefits both in retrofit applications and for new plant.

In Phase 1 of the project the key mechanisms for ignition and stabilisation of low volatile coal flames were identified. A conceptual burner design for firing coals down to 10% VM daf was outlined. In Phase 2 of the project the aim is to develop further a burner design specifically for firing of coals of lower volatile matter content down to ca. 10% daf. It will be necessary to determine more closely the limit of volatile matter on ignition and stability with existing Low NO_x Burner technology and investigate the actual/relative sensitivity of ignition/stability to variations in the key mechanism parameters identified in Phase 1. The burner design developed in the project will be tested at full-scale

Objectives of project:

1. Technical Background
2. Project Objectives and Achievements
3. Techniques and Results
4. Conclusions and Future Work

The objectives of this project are:

The objectives of this project are:

As a result of this project, a prototype instrumentation system for the concurrent measurement of flame temperature and soot concentration has been developed. The system operates on the principle of multi-wavelength pyrometry combined with digital imaging and image processing techniques. A monochromatic imaging system is used to visualise the flame field in the furnace. The flame light incipient on the optical sensor installed on the furnace wall is split into separate beams passing through narrow band-pass filters of different wavelengths before reaching the imaging device. The resulting digital images are processed to determine temperature distribution of the flame field. The soot concentration of the flame is represented using a parameter called KL factor, which is derived from the temperature measured. The operability and effectiveness of the system have been evaluated on an industrial-scale combustion test facility operated by Innogy plc.

Results obtained have demonstrated that the system is capable of measuring two-dimensional distributions and fluctuations of flame temperature and soot concentration. The accuracy of the system was verified using a tungsten lamp as a standard reference source. The relative error between the measured temperature and the reference temperature was found to be no greater than 1% throughout the measurement range from 1280°C to 1690°C. The resolution of the system was dependent upon the resolution of the camera and its installation on the furnace. The prototype system was applied to investigate the distributions of flame temperature and soot concentration of typical pulverised coals. Quantitative relationships between flame temperature, soot concentration and corresponding plant conditions were identified. Preliminary comparisons between the pulverised coal flames and other fossil fuel flames were also undertaken.

• The application of holistic relational models has been applied for the first time in wind turbines across a wide dataset.This capability shows promise to codify expert knowledge but would require further development and validation.
• The use of prognostic damage models provides additional information to support inspection and maintenance optimisation. However, there is a need to build more experience with these models.
• The introduction of SCADA fault algorithms into the system reflects current thinking in wind turbine fleets, and the models produced represent advanced examples of what can be achieved. These real time algorithms can be implemented in the control system or a data historian.

In order to examine the corrosive effects of co-firing biomass with coal in existing subcritical and possible future (ultra) supercritical boilers, typical and potential boiler tube alloys have been exposed to simulated furnace wall and superheater/reheater environments in the 1MWTH pulverised coal fired Combustion Test Facility (CTF) at Power Technology. A total of four CTF runs have been completed, each of which were nominally of 50 hours duration. Up to 15 furnace wall and 16 superheater/reheater steel alloy specimens were exposed to a range of metal temperatures, with differing heat fluxes and gaseous environments, representative of pulverised coal combustion under low NO_x conditions with biomass additions. The biomass fuels were co-fired with Daw Mill coal, furnace wall corrosion specimens having previously been tested without biomass additions in this environment, providing base line corrosion data for comparison. Numerous previous tests with coals provided baseline data for superheater/reheater corrosion rates. Biomass was fired at both 20% and 10% on a thermal basis, representing proportions significantly above and close to the maximum proportions expected to be utilised in actual plant, enabling examination of concentration effects. The specimens were exposed to the combustion environment on air-cooled, precision metrology, corrosion probes.

When co-firing with wood at both 20% and 10% on a thermal basis, there was no discernable worsening of either furnace wall or superheater/reheater corrosion when compared with firing coal alone. Whilst there was no comparable data for TP316 austenitic stainless steel superheater/reheater specimens, the measured corrosion rates were substantially reduced when compared to the ferritic T22 specimens exposed at the same location.

1. Introduction
2. Experimental Program
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
6. Recommendations
7. References

A significant influence on the feasibility of global integrated assessment will be the routine collection and availability of data of adequate quality through monitoring systems and surveys, collected and analysed on a consistent basis. This note describes progress in the development of the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) Project which at this stage appears to offer the best prospect of meeting this need.

A few broad-brush conclusions appear to emerge from work on global databases so far:

1. In practice, even with GEO, it has simply not proven feasible to identify (let alone make available) each and every data set used for integrated environment assessment and underlying research around the world; the amount of data would be simply overwhelming.
2. Although global, harmonised core data sets are improving, expanding and more easily accessible, there are still numerous inconsistencies and shortcomings. Most of these uncertainties have been highlighted in the main report.
3. In particular, to date, little information is available for assessment of environmental impacts on human health and natural ecosystems and of societal responses to and effectiveness of environmental policy actions.

The data sets need to be collated, tailored and made available to the partners for integrated environment assessment (IEA), most notably in the realm of UNEP's GEO. The four critical questions on data for IEA/GEO assessment and reporting can thus be identified as follows:

1. What information do we need?
2. What data do we have and what is missing?
3. How can we derive the necessary information from existing 'raw' data sets?
4. How do we organise, operate and improve data and information management in the real world?

The first years of the GEO assessment project have shown great strides in identifying the core data sets for IEA/GEO, as well as some of the most obvious gaps and shortcomings. The identification process largely focused on questions 1 and 2 and produced an extensive list of existing core data sets for global environment assessment, based on needs listed by various organisations.

There is also considerable overlap among different environment-related reporting programmes. This would imply the need to compile a generic, flexible core database, which can also serve other assessments than GEO. The sheer magnitude actually makes it very difficult for any single organisation to compile such an empirical base. Thus, in fact, this could and should be an UN-wide effort, which would benefit the assessment activities of UNEP, UNDP, FAO, CSD, IPCC, Convention Secretariats, UN Economic Commissions and possibly others.

• HiPerDNO
• OpenNode
• NIST IR 7628 Smart Grid Cyber Security
• Prototype Island Smart Grid
• Autonomous Decentralised Transport Operation Control System
• Traffic Management System for Kyushu Shinkansen train
• Danish Cell Controller Pilot Project
• M/490 Smart Grid Information Security working group
• EU-Commission Smart Grid Task Force (SGTF)

1. Electricity costs need to be competitive with current (2010) onshore wind costs by 2020 and with conventional generation by 2050. This is illustrated in the Offshore Wind roadmap in Appendix D,
2. Increased yields: annual offshore farm availability to be increased to 97%-98% or better (currently 80% to 90%),
3. Reduce technical uncertainties to allow farms to be financed in a manner, and at costs, equivalent to onshore wind today.

1. This project has provided the ETI with valuable data on TLP floating foundation design and cost to inform the ETI Offshore Wind programme’s future work (2010 to 2015):
2. The Turbine and TLP are not afully integrated system. In the next phase (if taken forward), further work would need to be done on modelling the interactions between waves, TLP, the tower and the nacelle. Existing commercial software will need to be enhanced to meet this need.Currentcommercial software models support structures fixed to the seabed / ground.

1. Electricity costs need to be competitive with current (2010) onshore wind costs by 2020 and with conventional generation by 2050,
2. Increased yields: annual offshore farm availability to be increased to 97%-98% or better,
3. Reduce technical uncertainties to allow farms to be financed in a manner, and at costs, equivalent to onshore wind today.

• This project has provided the ETI with valuable data on TLP floating foundation design and cost. This information has helped shape the next stage of the ETI Offshore Wind programme.
li>Our analysis has concluded that the cost of energy from the deep water high wind sites is competitive with that of the typical Round 3 sites.
• Further optimisation of the TLP floating foundation design could further improve energy costs.

This document is a summary for the project titled 'Deposition Techniques for Thin Film Ternary Semiconductor Solar Cells'.

In the UK, the government has set up ambitious targets for the production of electricity from renewable sources, 10% of electricity by 2010 and 15% by 2020, and solar power is expected to make a significant contribution to this. Therefore the development of low-cost, efficient and environmentally friendly photovoltaic technologies will be of enormous benefit to society as a whole. It will also provide significant business opportunities internationally as countries strive to move towards more sustainable ways of generating electricity. The development and manufacture of solar cell modules for the production of electrical power is a growth industry with considerable wealth-creating potential for North West UK manufacturers during the next century.

This project extended previous work carried out at the University of Salford on pulsed DC magnetron sputtering (PDMS), a technique used to deposit thin films of a material onto a surface, for use on CIS solar cells. The purpose of which is to establish whether PDMS offers a realistic approach for the industrial production of CIS solar cells. The project also involves experiments to replace some of the materials used in CIS cells with more efficient or less toxic alternatives.

This report describes the results of the DTI-supported project Design & Manufacture of Radar Absorbent Wind Turbine Blades; a collaborative project between QinetiQ Ltd. and NOI (Scotland) Ltd. The aims of the project were threefold:

In summary, the study has shown that it is possible to modify all materials regions of the NOI 34m blade to create RAM, and this can be done with little or no degradation in structural properties. The predicted benefits in terms of reduced detection by non-Doppler radar and ATC radars are seen to be extremely encouraging.

However, predictive models can never fully represent reality, and there are factors that are difficult to accurately model, such as blade twist and bend. In light of this, it is recommended that a full practical demonstration of a stealthy turbine should be performed. All stakeholders (developers, manufacturers and planning objectors) will then be able to quantify the benefits of RCS reduction through the use of RAM.

The ability to disperse spilled oils at sea depends on several factors, including oil properties, prevailing sea-state and the treatment rate of oil spill dispersant applied to the oil.

Oil spill dispersants function by allowing a high proportion of the spilled oil volume to be converted by cresting wave action into very small oil droplets that are permanently dispersed. Oil spill dispersants do this because the surfactants that they contain are capable of causing a very large decrease in the oil / water interfacial tension (IFT). IFT (or surface free energy) is caused by the dissimilarity between the polar nature of the molecules of water and the non-polar nature of the hydrocarbon molecules of oil.

The work described in this report was a 'return to the basics' of using dispersants; an attempt to use a matrix of oil viscosity, dispersant brand, dispersant treatment rate and prevailing sea conditions to provide information on the limiting oil viscosity of dispersion by using a very simple method of visual observation to determine whether dispersion was or was not occurring.

The report concludes that some oil spill dispersants will be an effective response to oils with viscosity of 2,000 cP, but will not be effective on oils with a viscosity of 7,000 cP or more, in waves associated with wind speeds of 7 to 14 knots. The precise limiting viscosity between 2,000 and 7,000 cP is not known. The limiting viscosity will increase with wind speed; it is possible that oil with a viscosity of 7,000 cP will disperse at 20 or more knots wind speed. However, it was not possible to test this at sea.

1. Reasons for the Work
2. Dispersion of Spilled Oil at Sea
3. The 2003 UK Sea-Trials
4. Comparison of the Sea Trial Results with Results from Laboratory Tests
5. Conclusions

• Appendix 1 - Results obtained in Sea Trials

This workshop brought together a wide range of individuals and organisation with an interest in bioenergy for heat, power and liquid transport. This included researchers from universities and research institutes, Government Research Councils, Government Departments, stakeholders from industry and others. The meeting was convened to begin the process of developing a UK Bioenergy Research Roadmap, which will be completed before the end of 2007.

The aims of the workshop were:

• To prioritise research activity and overcome the gaps in knowledge in bioenergy
• To influence research funding strategies in energy research.
• To encourage closer collaboration between academic research groups and technology developers
• To seek funding for collaborative research from Research Councils, DTI, DEFRA, Carbon Trust EU, etc.
• To establish partner

The aims of this the workshop were:

• To prioritise research activity and overcome the gaps in knowledge in bioenergy
• To influence research funding strategies in energy research.
• To encourage closer collaboration between academic research groups and technology developers
• To seek funding for collaborative research from Research Councils, DTI, DEFRA, Carbon Trust EU, etc.
• To establish partnerships with the outside the existing bioenergy research community
• Create the Research Roadmap for bioenergy to 2020 and 2050.

The specific objectives of the project are:

In-furnace NO_X reduction technologies, and low NO_X burners in particular, are considered mature for application to a wide range of coals. However their performance deteriorates with the more 'difficult' coals; i.e. low volatile coals (<10% daf) and those with high levels of moisture and/or high levels of inert materials. Such coals are being utilised increasingly in large export markets such as Eastern Europe, India, Asia and the United States. The problem with difficult coals is in achieving a stable performance with low emissions and efficient combustion. For example, the presence of high levels of moisture causes a delayed ignition resulting in the flame front not being stabilised within the burner throat as is normal with bituminous coals. Consequently, the burner is significantly less effective in controlling both NO_X emissions and combustion efficiency. The presence of high ash compounds this problem.

The proposed project aims to develop and demonstrate a new burner type capable of firing a range of difficult coals, at full-scale in a single burner test facility. The development phase will employ advanced modelling techniques for investigation of the effects of ignition, devolatilisation and burnout behaviour for difficult coals. This will be combined with detailed coal characterisation data. Burner design and performance implications as a result of integrated CO₂ capture options will be considered.

The aim of this project was to develop and demonstrate cells and stacks based on the innovative metal supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology developed by Ceres Power, and to perform detailed design studies on options for micro-CHP systems at the 5 kW_e scale. The project had the following targets:

All original project objectives met or exceeded.

• Design, manufacture and test blades that are the optimum size for the next generation of large offshore wind turbines (>8MW and ideally 10MW);
• Verify the blade performance predicted by the models developed at the design stage;
• Be in a position to supply realistic numbers of blades into First-of-A-Kind small arrays of the target turbines by end 2014 and demonstrate a plan thereafter to scale up the business operation to serve the market.

The objectives for this project are:

This project aims to demonstrate the ability to monitor wind turbine health using inherently low cost and robust instrumentation, through the development and installation of a trial system on land-based wind turbines, and reviewing and analysing the data over a period of up to a year.

This document is a report for the project titled 'Development of Stable Isotopic Ratio Measurement - Apportioning of Fuel and Thermal NO_x'.

The main aims of the project have been to develop a nitrogen-stable isotope measurement technique for NO_x and to ascertain whether it can be used to determine the relative contributions of fuel and thermal NO_x during coal combustion at high temperatures. Suitable substrates for adsorbing sufficiently high concentrations of NO_x from flue gas streams to facilitate the reliable measurement of the nitrogen stable isotope ratios were developed, the substrates encompassing both manganese oxide supported on zirconia (MnOy-ZrO2) and iron supported on active carbon (Fe/AC, first milestone completed October 2001).

1. Introduction
2. Technical Progress/Overall Planning and Objectives Summary
3. Expenditure
4. Exploitation/Publication of Results

• Appendix 1 - Background nitrogen levels in EA-IRMS for the Europa 20:20 instrument
• Appendix 2 - Tables
• Appendix 3 - Details on nitrogen stable isotope measurements obtained using the N-free Fe/Mn-AC

This document is a profile for the project titled 'Development of a 5^th Scale Tidal Turbine - SRTT'.

The objectives for this project are:

This project aims to design and construct a 5^th scale engineering model of a tidal turbine system. The system will be tested under controlled and actual conditions and in doing so a numerical model will be developed. Ultimately enough information will be acquired to allow the future development of a full scale demonstrator system.

The objectives of this project are:

The objective of this project was to develop a viable compressive gasket sealing solution for 3rd Generation Metal Supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (3G-SOFCs) that operate at temperatures of 500-600°C. More specifically the aims were to:

All project milestones and targets were met or exceeded.

The principal aim of the project was to produce a verifiable methodology for generating accurate and reliable estimates of methane emissions from abandoned mines in the UK, to be considered for inclusion in the UK greenhouse gas inventory.

The prime drivers for methane emission from abandoned mines are displacement by rising mine waters and the rate of emission of methane from the coal seams in the strata disturbed by mining. Rising mine water also serves to isolate methane reserves by cutting them off by flooding. The UK coalfields have been modelled to obtain estimates of water inflow and methane reserves within the coalfields. Measurements have also been made on methane emissions from mines, either from vents or from more general diffuse emissions from the surface. The general methodology has been to seek a relationship between the measured methane flows and parameters relating to the water and gas in the underlying abandoned workings

No suitable relationship was found between vent methane flow data and the water flow in the underlying abandoned workings. However, vent methane flow data did show an increase with the size of the underlying methane reserve in the abandoned workings. Flux data from the diffuse monitoring was converted into flows by multiplying by the area of underlying workings. These flows also showed an increase with underlying gas reserve. The data was scattered in both sets, but the gradients of regression lines through the flux data was within 11% of the vent flow data. Consequently the two data sets were combined and a regression provided a gradient equivalent to an emission of 0.74% of the underlying gas reserve per year.

1. Introdution
2. General Methodology
3. Sources of Data
4. Mine Water Recovery
5. Mine Water Recovery Modelling
6. Methane in Mines
7. Monitoring of Methane at Surface Vents
8. Monitoring of Diffuse Methane Emissions
9. Methane Reserve Modelling
10. Methodology for Estimating UK Emissions
11. Results
12. Conclusions
13. Recommendations
14. Acknowledgements

• Appendix A - Report uses as source data for study
• Appendix B - Map of coalified areas and zones
• Appendix C - List of coal authority monitoring sites and pumping sites
• Appendix D - Sites of recorded surface gravity discharges of mine water
• Appendix E - Average permeabilities used for modelling coalfields
• Appendix F - Direct measurement of methane flux on one day campaign
• Appendix G - Background to the reserve modelling method
• Appendix H - Reserve estimates by coalfield area and year

This document is the executive summary for the project titled 'Producing a Time Series of Input-Output Tables and Embedded Carbon Dioxide Emissions for the UK by Using a MRIO Data Optimisation System'.

This report describes work and results from the project 'Development of an Embedded Carbon Emissions Indicator', undertaken by the Stockholm Environment Institute and the University of Sydney on behalf of Defra (Project Ref.: EV02033). The work is a follow-up of a previous project where the most appropriate approach to constructing a robust account of impacts of trade and thus overall consumption in a headline indicator for Sustainable Development was identified. The present work describes the implementation of such a model.

The project aim was to develop and implement an initial data and model framework (called "UK-MRIO 1") for the flexible adaptation of national input-output and environmental databases for use in a multi-region environmental input-output model in the future, thus setting the basis for detailed multi-country analyses of environmental impacts associated with UK trade flows. This aim was not only achieved but actually exceeded in that a fully functional MRIO model with four regions (UK + three world regions) was assembled and a time series of balanced input-output data and embedded CO2 emissions was produced on the full 123 sector level.

The current model is a major step towards a fully fledged multi-region input-output model featuring multidirectional trade of a substantial number of UK trading partners. UK-MRIO 1 is already the most detailed and comprehensive modelling approach for the estimation of CO2 emissions embedded in UK trade with high relevance for national and international environmental policy-making. The model can be used to produce a range of outputs, for example more detailed results for industry sectors, foreign economies, or other pollutants.

This document is the final report for the project titled 'Producing a Time Series of Input-Output Tables and Embedded Carbon Dioxide Emissions for the UK by Using a MRIO Data Optimisation System'.

For this stage of the project (UK-MRIO 1), the aim was to develop and implement an initial, relatively small, data and model framework that is easily expandable without major adaptations. A data optimisation procedure is to allow the flexible adaptation of national input-output and environmental databases for use in a multi-region environmental input-output model in the future. Thus the work was to set the basis for multi-country analyses of environmental impacts associated with UK trade flows, including detailed accounts of embedded in trade flows to and from the UK over a period of time.

In order to achieve this aim, initial data estimates have been made, data constraints have been defined and specific optimisation algorithms have been developed and implemented. As a tangible outcome of the current project we have constructed a time series of annual input-output tables for the UK from 1992 to 2004 by using a modified RAS7 procedure for balancing (referred to as 'Conflicting RAS' or 'CRAS'). These tables are similar to the "Analytical IO Tables 1995" published by ONS, including symmetric input-output tables (SIOT) for domestic transactions and imports for each year from 1992 to 2004 (see Appendix C: Data Sources and Data Preparation on page 41). In addition to the original project aim, we have also calculated a time series of direct and indirect carbon dioxide emissions associated with UK economic activities, in particular emissions that are embedded in imports to and exports from the UK.

1. Project Context
2. Methodological Approach
3. Results
4. Discussion of Assumptions and Limitations of the Current UK-MRIO Model
5. Recommendations for Further Research
6. Conclusions
7. Acknowledgements
8. Appendix A: Research Contacts
9. Appendix B: Review of Literature on EET models
10. Appendix C: Data Sources and Data Preparation
11. Appendix D: Matrix Balancing with CRAS
12. Appendix E: Production of Symmetric Input-Output Tables
13. Appendix F: Detailed Results for CO₂ Emissions Embedded in UK Trade
14. Appendix G: References

Having demonstrated the fundamental proof of concept for the EB Frond Wave Energy Collector through the Phase one project, the next step (the Phase two project) was proposed to further assess the technical and commercial viability of the EB Frond concept through the development of the existing mathematical and physical modelling methods.

The EB Frond project is the wave energy programme developed by The Engineering Business Ltd (EB), following on from an original idea conceived at Lancaster University.

To meet the identified objectives, and take the EB Frond programme forward along the preferred development route, a number of specific tasks were identified for Phase two. These encompassed:

1. Introduction
2. Small-Scale Testing
3. Test Results
4. Mathematical Modelling
5. Analysis and Interpretation
6. Survivability
7. Economic Model
8. Development Route to Full-Scale Production
9. Conclusions

• With technology and supply chain development there is a clear and credible trajectory to delivering commercial offshore wind farms
• Floating Wind hasthe potential to be a cost-effective, secure and safe low-carbon energy source which could deliver a levelised cost of energy of less than £85/MWh from the mid-2020s
• To deliver improved costs, offshore wind needs access to good quality wind resource close enough to shore and the onshore grid system so that transmission costs are minimised and operations/maintenance costs reduced
• Floating technology can provide access to high quality wind resources relatively close to the UK shoreline and in the proximity of population centres
• In water depths less than 30m fixed foundations will be the prime solution, in water depths over 50m floating foundations provide the lowest cost solution – a mix of these technologies is likely to offer the lowest cost pathway to deliver large scale deployment in the UK
• UK wind resources are abundant and exploitable – and already supplied 9.4% of the UK’s electricity needs in 2014
• The UK has the world’s highest offshore wind capacity with over 4GW installed, from over 1100 turbines, average power rating 3.4MW. A further 1.4GW is in construction, 4.8GW has planning permission and the world’s largest in-service offshore wind farm is in the outer Thames Estuary

The Electra-Clad project sought to utilise existing steel based building cladding materials as a substrate for direct fabrication of a fully integrated solar PV panel of equivalent design to the ICP standard glass based panel. This would represent a major step forward in BiPV panel manufacture if achieved and open up the substantial BiPV cladding market for later exploitation of the technology. It was planned that this would be achieved by the further development and productionisation of the Electra Clad technology, working in partnership with cladding manufacturers to develop a facility capable of producing at least 20MWp p.a. The time scales to achieve this were expected to be less than 5 years and no more than 10 years.

The nominal 3 year programme was progressed from January 2002 to August 2005, though with a 1 year suspensions due to the liquidation in December 2002 of the Lead Contractor, Intersolar / British Photovoltaics Limited (BPL). The work has progressed under 5 interrelated Activities as follows:

The project was successful in achieving most of the Activity objectives.

1. Introduction
2. Technical Background
3. Experimental Work
4. Results
5. Discussion
6. Lessons Learned
7. Conclusions
8. Recommendations
9. Acknowledgements
10. Figures
11. Appendix
12. Annex

Summary of the results of the project:

In order to offer a cost effective production Solution for a Photovoltaic (PV) Roof system cosmetically similar to standard Slate roofs, the following Objectives were highlighted as key areas:

The design specification of the Electra-Slate has been finalised and prototype parts produced to prove the concept in both installation and manufacturing. The desired manufacturing costs of the product can be achieved with conversion to a large scale manufacturing set up.

• Community scale biomass / biogas CHP
• LV Voltage control technologies
• Energy Management Services and advanced network controls systems.

• hybrid ASHP,
• High Density Thermal Storage (HDTS) and
• HEMS / HAN as high priority technologies.

• Hybridised ASHP with gas boilers for individual dwellings, optimised for the British conditions;
• High-density thermal storage for individual dwellings;
• Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) and sensors for residential applications;
• Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) and sensorsfor non-domestic applications.

• The current state of development of the technology
• The key areas of technical development required
• Non-technical market constraints for each technology assessed at a high-leve
• The timescales and key milestones in these development pathways
• The level of investment required to achieve the technical developments identified
• The opportunities for the ETI to accelerate technology development and commercialisation
• Impact of technology development on performance and costs
• Role of the technologies under different electrification scenarios

At the Pre-Budget Report 2004 Defra and HM Treasury jointly launched an Energy Efficiency Innovation Review (EEIR). The purpose of the review was to examine how a step-change in energy efficiency in the domestic, business and public sectors in the UK could be delivered cost effectively and how energy efficiency improvement could be embedded into decision making across the economy. The review was carried out under the leadership of a Steering Group drawn from the two sponsor Departments, the Carbon Trust and the Energy Saving Trust (EST) and was designed to be an important input to the wider review of the UK Climate Change programme (CCP).

For the purposes of this review, the word "innovation" is used in a broad sense to mean not only technological but policy innovation. Given the potential wide remit of energy efficiency, this review has focussed on how to deliver demand side efficiencies, how to increase the uptake of existing energy-efficient goods and services and how to accelerate the development of new, energy-efficient technologies. It does not cover transport or energy services, nor does it explore the scope for local and regional delivery - work which is being pursued through other studies as part of the CCP. The assessments of potential energy and carbon savings from the proposed policies are projected to 2010 (medium term) and 2020 (longer term). The role of new technologies up to 2050 is also considered.

This document summarises the principal conclusions of the review. These are presented in greater depth in the main reports, which have been published as independent reports to Government by the Carbon Trust and the Energy Saving Trust. The review was informed by a number of supporting studies, detailed at Annex 1, which will be published shortly. A number of recommendations from the review have already fed into the wider review of the UK Climate Change Programme. The Government will respond to the EEIR both in the CCP and through later policy processes such as the Energy Review and the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007.

1. Introduction
2. Household sector
3. Business and public sector
4. New demand-side energy-efficient technology
5. Annex A - Key inputs to the EEIR

Welcome to the Energy Materials Availability Handbook (EMAH), a brief guide to some of the materials that are critical components in low carbon energy technologies. In recent years concern has grown regarding the availability of a host of materials critical to the development and manufacturing of low carbon technologies.

In this handbook we examine 10 materials or material groups, presenting the pertinent facts regarding their production, resources, and other issues surrounding their availability. Three pages of summary are devoted to each material or material group. A how to use guide is provided on the following pages.

This report aims to support informed debate about the amount of biomass that might be available globally for energy, taking account of sustainability concerns. It uses a systematic review methodology to identify and discuss estimates of the global potential for biomass that have been published over the last 20 years. The assumptions both technical and ethical that lie behind these are exposed and their influence on calculations of biomass potential described.

The report does not seek to determine what an acceptable level of biomass production might be. What it does is reveal how different levels of deployment necessitate assumptions that could have far reaching consequences for global agriculture, forestry and land use; ranging from a negligible impact to a radical reconfiguration of current practice. The report also examines the insights the literature provides into the interactions between biomass production, conventional agriculture, land use, and forestry.

• Bidders Pack deliverable D4, EnergyPath Networks Modelling Local Energy System Designs Report, incorporating:
• Bidders Pack deliverable D2 EPN Use-Cases Limitations and Uncertainty

• To provide a consolidated technical description ofthe EnergyPath Networks (EPN) Tool covering both its design and data architecture
• To provide a user guide for the EPN Tool.

1. How often studies requiring these functionality enhancements /data improvements have been requested bystakeholders.
2. How much the credibility of the model is affected by not having these improvements.

• The types of data that are needed, the sources from which it is available and any restrictions on use.
• The data processing required and associated costs.
• The assumptions, exclusions, limitations and value of data in supporting decision making.
• Other data that might be available and valuable for validation of modelling outputs and supporting local area energy planning in the future.
• Methods for gathering additional data and how these could be phased into local area planning

The objectives for this project were:

The conclusions from this project were:

This document is the final report for the project titled 'Experimental Evaluation of PV Inverter Performance during Islanding and Frequency Disturbance Conditions'.

Testing of five low voltage photovoltaic inverters has been performed at the PNDC to determine:

Inverters were tested individually and in pairs. All tests were successful in the sense that all inverters tripped during an island while remaining stable during grid disturbances of 1Hz/s rate-of-change-of-frequency (RoCoF) and 5.5° voltage vector shift.

Changes in active and reactive power output of some of the inverters were observed during these events. Active power output reduction was observed for the ABB inverter under test for events of at least 0.7Hz/s over a 1.5Hz frequency band. The reduction lasted for around 1s. Momentary reactive power changes were symptomatic of all transformer-less inverters (i.e. SMA and ABB inverters) during RoCoF events.

1. Introduction
2. Test Setup
3. Testing Results
4. Conclusions
5. References

• Appendix A - Graphs of Category 1 Test Measurements
• Appendix B - Graphs of Category 2 Test Measurements
• Appendix C - Graphs of Category 3 Test Measurements

The aims of this project were:

An investigation has been made into the possibility of welding together 10%Cr and 3.5%NiCrMoV rotor steels, a combination which would allow manufacture of large turbine rotors with inlet steam temperatures in excess of 570°C.

Following a comprehensive modelling programme by the University of Cambridge and complementary testing and examination by Siemens Power Generation (SPG), a welding procedure was developed and successful narrow gap TIG welds were made between 380mm diameter, 50mm thick material. This was accomplished using the established Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) filler wire.

This document is a report for the project titled 'Fabricated Turbine Rotors - Advanced Steam Turbines'.

An investigation has been made into the possibility of welding together 10%Cr and 3.5%NiCrMoV rotor material in order to produce the next generation steam turbines operating above 570°C.

Following a comprehensive modelling programme and complementary testing and examination by Siemens Power Generation (SPG) and the University of Cambridge, a welding procedure was developed and successful plate and small diameter welds were made between sections of 3.5%NiCrMoV and 10Cr material. Mechanical and metallurgical assessment of these welds showed that the weldment properties matched the requirements of the original parent material.

Following the success of the initial welds, a large-scale weld has been manufactured using the established materials and procedures to fully validate the developed welding procedure. This weld has been subjected to non-destructive examination (NDE) followed by extensive mechanical and metallurgical testing. The results confirm that the large scale weldment properties matched the requirements of the original parent materials and thereby satisfy the objectives of the project.

1. Summary
2. Introduction
3. Objectives of the Project
4. Technical Challenges
5. Development Procedures
6. University of Cambridge Modelling
7. Development Welding Trials
8. Full-Scale Welding Trial
9. Conclusions
10. Figures 1 to 9

Steels for advanced steam turbines operating within super-critical steam conditions have been developed within the COST 501 collaborative programmes and are continuing to be developed within the COST 522 programme. The data generated has already been used to develop and design high temperature turbines which are now in operation or at an advanced stage of construction.

New cleaner coal power generation technologies such as air blown gasification combined cycle (ABGC), integral gasification combined cycle (IGCC) and fluidised bed combustion will be looking to utilise these new steels in steam turbines but costs will need to be reduced to improve their competitiveness. The objectives of the project are:

These combined cycle plants will generate in the region of 350 MW to 400 MW and will utilise steam turbines with an output in the range of 120 MW to 250 MW. The cost of the steam turbine can be reduced considerably if the number of turbine cylinders is reduced. A single cylinder reheat turbine would be adopted for smaller outputs and a two cylinder turbine with an HP turbine and a combined IP/LP turbine for the larger outputs. The requirement for a single rotor forging steel that has good creep properties at temperatures of 570°C and greater combined with high strength and toughness to carry long turbine blades at the low pressure end cannot be met by the COST steels alone.

The objectives of this project were:

Typical and potential boiler tube alloys have been exposed to simulated furnace wall and superheater/reheater environments in the 1MW_Th Combustion Test Facility (CTF) at Power Technology.

A total of four nominally 50 hour duration exposures have been completed. Specimens were exposed to a range of metal temperatures, heat fluxes and gaseous environments, representative of pulverised coal combustion under low NO_x conditions with biomass additions. Biomass was co-fired with Daw Mill coal on 20% and 10% thermal or heat input basis (approx 35% and 17% by mass). Specimens were exposed to the combustion environment on air-cooled, precision metrology, corrosion probes.

• Offshore Wind has a significant role to play in the UK 2050 energy mix
  • Provides proven capability if other technology deployment is constrained
• Potential to deliver costs competitive with lowest cost form of low carbon generation
• Deployment of 8 to 16 GW of floating wind (if 2050 total is 40GW) could make economic sense for the UK
• The larger the UK deployment of offshore wind, the more important floating wind will become

This document is a summary for the project titled 'Flume modernisation and refurbishment'.

In order for the UK to meet its ambitious targets for energy production from renewable sources (10% of electricity by 2010, 15% by 2020) it needs to expand its capacity to generate all forms of renewable energy and marine energy is a big part of this. The development and production of new solutions for generating renewable energy, as well as contributing to meeting the UK's energy targets, provides business opportunities internationally.

This project is concerned with marine energy in the form of tidal streams and it is reasonably straightforward to generate power from moving water, the difficult bit is doing it efficiently and at lowest cost. In order to assess whether potential devices will be economically viable to produce and run, as well as to maximise their performance, it is crucial to rigorously test physical prototypes. Model testing in the field can be difficult, expensive and time consuming with variables such as weather affecting results considerably on a daily basis. For this reason it is much easier to recreate controlled conditions within a laboratory where repeatable experiments can be set up. Similar to a wind tunnel for air flow and study of aeroplanes, a water flume can be used to study tidal flows and how devices will interact to generate electricity. To do this the conditions created in the various near shore locations the devices would operate have to be replicated in a laboratory environment. The aim of this project is provide a wave/current facility in which tidal power devices can be properly tested.

The flume was opened on the 10th August 2009 and can produce currents simultaneously with any type of wave condition. The first project to make use of the facility was the nationally renowned Manchester Bobber which is a floatation device which generates electricity through a grid of floats which 'bob' up and down with the motion of the sea. There are also several other projects using the facility such as one being carried out by a group of MEng students which is sponsored by Yorkshire water.

The objectives of this project are:

Type IV cracking in the weld Heat-Affected Zone (HAZ) is likely to be the critical problem which will limit design conditions for satisfactory operation of advanced PF plant. The FOURCRACK project carried out high temperature creep testing of welds in advanced high alloy steels with a range of specifications, supplemented by specialised testing, optical and electron metallography, weld simulation and data assessment. Further work outside FOURCRACK will extend testing to longer durations.

E.ON UK led the project and undertook metallurgical investigation and assessment. Mitsui Babcock carried out weld manufacture and creep rupture testing. RWE npower investigated and characterised a special weak material. In parallel work, Loughborough University carried out electron metallography and weld simulation. Five external organisations also provided test materials and/or weldments.

The recently completed project 'Practical Improvements in Power Plant Engineering (PIPPE)' - part of the DTI Cleaner Coal Programme - has highlighted weld heat-affected zone "Type IV" cracking as a principal concern in advanced high temperature plant. Current creep test data, inevitably obtained on a much shorter timescale than the projected life of plant, suggest that weld performance could substantially deteriorate in the longer term. Better data and extrapolation techniques are needed to assess the extent of this threat to plant reliability and thus develop effective countermeasures that will gain the confidence of prospective plant purchasers and operators.

This project will help manufacturers gain a fundamental understanding of why the weld heat-affected zone is susceptible to "Type IV" cracking in high temperature service, how its susceptibility is related to steel composition and heat treatment, and, consequently, how advanced steels can best be selected and developed to minimise these risks. The main objectives are:

The FOURCRACK project will produce and assess cross-weld creep rupture test data on welds in advanced high temperature steels. The leading competitor materials will be critically compared. New welds will also be compared with simulated service aged and repair welds. Weld thermal simulation and microstructural assessment will be employed to gain a better understanding of the causes of "Type IV" cracking

Realising a sustainable hydrogen economy requires a breakthrough in the production of hydrogen. Photoelectrochemical conversion of solar energy to energy in hydrogen at viable efficiency isa long term goal needed to usher in the Hydrogen economy worldwide. The twin cell technology based Tandem Cell^TM tackles a number of challenges faced by single photoelectrochemical cell based water splitting and offers a novel way of utilising complimentary parts of the solar spectrum in two cells. The overall process results in a complete system driven by solar energy that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen.

This program included 12 technical tasks:

1. Studies on spray nozzle parameters
2. Studies on spray solution parameters
3. Investigation of the mechanised doctor blading technique
4. Investigation of spray pyrolysis techniques
5. Performance of scale-0up electrodes in Tandem Cell^TM
6. Alternative photocatalytic materials
7. Alternative electrolytes
8. A desk study on substrate materials
9. A lab study on substrate materials
10. Alternative design configuration
11. Quality control procedures
12. Fabrication of Tandem Cells

The main conclusions resulting from this DTI-assisted project were:

1. Introduction
2. Experimental Work
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
6. Recommendations
7. Acknowledgements
8. Figures
9. Appendix

This baseline methodology report covers the strategies used to establish the baseline for home buying and selling activity in England and Wales. The research investigates the processes involved in buying and selling a home with the express purpose of providing a benchmark against which the impact of the national rollout of Home Information Packs (HIPs) across England and Wales can be measured.

A two-stage sampling methodology was used. The first stage was a random selection of 600 Post Towns (later increased to 646) from across England and Wales. Within each Post Town, up to five estate agents were selected as a second selection level. The highest ranking estate agency (earliest randomly selected) who responded positively to participating in the study was included in the sample to represent their Post Town.

This provided a wide distribution of 361 estate agents from the whole of England and Wales. Of these 361 estate agents 61.2% made some form of response (transaction data, withdrawal data or both) within the data collection phase of the study.

With the benefit of hindsight, the methodology could be improved in certain areas. The Conclusions section of this report discusses measures which could be considered if the methodology is to be repeated.

1. Introduction
2. 1998 methodology
3. Methodology
4. Conclusions and recommendations

• Appendix A - NAEA Statement of Support
• Appendix B - Recruitment Pack
• Appendix C - Transaction form
• Appendix D - Withdrawal form
• Appendix E - Email to national chains and affinity groups
• Appendix F - Email contact with respondents
• Appendix G - Information pack
• Appendix H - Advance letters
• Appendix I - Telephone survey for buyers
• Appendix J - Telephone survey for sellers
• Appendix K - Telephone survey for Solicitors/Conveyancers
• Appendix L - Summary forms

This document contains additional items from 'Appendix G - Information pack', 'Appendix H - Advance letters', and 'Appendix I - Telephone survey for buyers' from the document titled 'HIP Baseline Methodology part 1'.

This document is a continuation of the items from 'Appendix I - Telephone survey for buyers' from part 2, and includes items from: 'Appendix J - Telephone survey for sellers', 'Appendix K - Telephone survey for Solicitors/Conveyancers', and 'Appendix L - Summary forms' from the document titled 'HIP Baseline Methodology part 1'.

In March 2006, ODPM (now Department for Communities and Local Government) commissioned a research project to establish the baseline for home buying and selling activity in England and Wales.

The research was explicitly designed to address the Department's Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) set for the introduction of the Home Information Packs. A critical requirement was that the new research is capable of replication post implementation of the HIP.

The method used has obtained a more accurate baseline, faster, more efficiently and at lower cost than would have been possible by repeating the '1998 method'.

Data relating to a good cross-section of the different types of dwellings across England and Wales was collected from estate agents, buyers, sellers and solicitors. Estate agents routinely gather information on transaction dates and other aspects of individual house sales, and therefore this group was central to the study methodology. A sample of 361 estate agents was recruited, resulting in data on a total of 1,059 housing completions from 221 agents over a one-month period. A total of 490 telephone interviews were conducted with buyers and sellers, and 487 with solicitors.

21% of buyers and sellers were dissatisfied with the overall buying/selling process. More than 35% of buyers and sellers were dissatisfied with the length of time it took. However, 82% of solicitors were satisfied with the efficiency of the current system.

In conclusion, a robust, representative and easily repeatable baseline has been established for the year 2006. It has been set in the context of the current housing market, and specific reference has been made to its role in monitoring DCLG's KPIs for the Home Information Pack.

1. Introduction
2. Methodology and achieved sample
3. State of the market
4. Sample breakdown
5. HIP Baseline research findings
6. Conclusions

• Appendix A - Profile of the 2006 Transactions database
• Appendix B - Transaction Key stages
• Appendix C - Buyers findings
• Appendix D - Sellers' findings
• Appendix E - Solicitor'as perspective

This document is a report for the project titled 'Harvester Development for New High Yielding SRC Crops and Markets'.

The objectives of this work are:

The project has consisted of a number of engineering and field trials. Key amongst these has been development of robust harvester drive mechanisms that are able to withstand the larger crops that the UK now produces and the modification of the chipping system to allow different fuels specifications to be produced. Throughout a method of research into the specific area has been followed by engineering adaptations that have then been field tested and reviewed. Clearly with cost objectives, trials involving the assessment of cost of production through workrate and expense have been necessary and these have been incorporated. Finally consolidation of the knowledge and results gained has been made and incorporated in guidance notes and recommendations for further work.

The conclusions of this project are:

1. Manufacture and Installation of New Components for Large Crop Harvesting
2. Activity Summary and Results of Initial Field Testing on SRC Crops
3. Activity Summary and Results of Field Testing and Yields of Different Ages of Crops
4. Remanufacture of Chipping Drum and Production of Market Chip Samples
5. Economic Analysis and Harvesting Guidance
6. Conclusions and Recommendations for Further Work

• Appendix A - Full economic analysis of harvesting systems

The objectives of this project are:

The conclusions of this project are:

This document is a report for the project titled 'Heat exchanger design hots up'.

This project was a 12-month Development LINK project that built on the findings from a previous project (AFM126) on innovations in heat recovery systems for tubular heat exchangers. In the previous project, laminar flow and heat transfer in the shell were of interest, whereas in this project, shell and tube flow with heat transfer under both laminar and turbulent conditions were considered. Commercial considerations dictated that any modifications to heat exchanger equipment required to promote heat transfer in heat recovery mode should also, ideally, result in enhanced performance in the conventional mode of operation.

This project, and its predecessor, concentrated on one particular type of shell and tube heat exchanger, namely a multi-tube heat exchanger with 7 tubes of external diameter 16mm and a shell of internal diameter 70mm (a Tetra Spiraflo MT 70/7x16C-6, as shown in Fig. 1). A number of design changes, aimed at improving the performance of the heat exchanger, were considered. Attention was first focussed on changes that improved the uniformity of flow distribution within the tubes of a tube bundle and in the shell around the tube bundle. Of primary interest were wall corrugation pattern, tube wall thickness, centre tube diameter and shell-side baffles.

By using CFD to experiment numerically with novel exchanger designs, it was possible to highlight the most promising features and thus reduce the quantity of real experimental testing. Computational work, carried out at the University of Plymouth, used the CFX code. The well-known k-ε turbulence model was used, as well as a 'shear-stress-transport' (SST) model incorporating more realistic flow physics near the tube and shell walls.

Commercial exploitation will initially be achieved with the ongoing improvement programme for Tetra Spiraflo tubes. Availability of CFD models for flow behaviour prediction will enable new exchanger designs to be evaluated prior to building prototypes. For example, changes in heat transfer performance were demonstrated computationally as a result of altering the depth of tube corrugations. However, it was questionable whether current manufacturing tolerances could allow these to be consistently reproduced in practice, which is an area that will be addressed in the future.

1. Electricity costs need to be competitive with current (2010) onshore wind costs by 2020 and with conventional generation by 2050,
2. Increased yields: annual offshore farm availability to be increased to 97%-98% or better,
3. Reduce technical uncertainties to allow farms to be financed in a manner, and at costs, equivalent to onshore wind today.

• The consortium indentified that sufficient improvements could be made through technology innovation to deliver energy costs that are comparable with current (2010) onshore wind costs: one of ETI’s objectives for this programme.
• This involves innovation in rotor aerodynamics, rotor diameter, drive train technologies and electrical systems.
• The consortium also indentified that theoptimum turbine size for offshore is significantly larger than the current ‘state of the art’.