How Are Eco-Friendly Transformers Improving Renewable Energy

Although most of power still comes from fossil fuels, solar and wind are among the two fastest-growing renewable energy sources of electricity in the world. It’s easy to see why — the power of the sun and wind won’t be remotely exhausted in our lifetimes.

The “fuel” used in solar- and wind-based electricity generation may be free, accessible, renewable and sustainable, but the manufacturing processes behind the equipment itself can be gigantic. When it comes to individual components like transformers, renewable energy can’t just replace the source of power — it needs to redesign the entire distribution apparatus.

So, how can eco-friendly versions improve clean energy efforts? What Are Eco-Friendly Transformers and its benefits?

It will be a widely used term soon. Eco-friendly transformers are created from the ground for sustainability through each part of the equipment lifecycle. The design mission for eco-friendly transformers is generally as follows:

•      Greener manufacturing process: Assembled from less problematic materials for a reduced impact on natural resource availability.
•      More sustainable operation: Eco-friendly transformers are designed for lower maintenance costs over time, as well as more energy-efficient operation with lower rates of power loss.
•       Lifecycle and retiring EOL products: Eco-friendly transformers last longer. When they do reach their end-of-life date, they’re generally easier to recycle than traditional transformers.

Given below is not the complete benefit list, but some of the sustainability benefits of eco-friendly transformers are as follows:

Quieter Operation

Noise reduction is another benefit that premium build materials can bring. Transformers fabricated using synthetic ester oils operate more quietly than traditional models. They are suitable for use in schools, densely populated communities and areas where the human or ecological impact from noise pollution is a concern. 

As an example, biologists have grown increasingly concerned about the impact on human-generated noise pollution on the foraging, migratory and reproductive behaviors of a wide range of land and marine animals. In addition, potential digestive and general health issues may follow. These and other new technologies may lessen the impact of our most critical infrastructure.

 

Cleaner Manufacturing and Lifecycle

Eco-friendly transformers are designed from the ground up for a greener product lifecycle. They’re manufactured using ester oil — derived from vegetables — rather than more conventional and environmentally harmful mineral oil. 

Ester oil as a coolant and insulating agent is nontoxic and biodegradable. This makes it a good choice for reducing pollution during manufacturing, installation and after the product has been retired from service.

 

Safer Energy Distribution

Our energy distribution infrastructure must become cleaner and more sustainable if human civilization continues in its current form. As we find ways to realize this vision and meet a tightening climate change deadline, we’ll inevitably find ways to make our power grids safer, as well. Call it a two-for-one. 

One of the ways eco-friendly transformers improve safety in the energy sector is through their flame-retardant qualities. With ester oil derivatives as the base material, sustainable transformers offer a much higher fire point than incumbent materials, at about 680 F. 

This gives eco-friendly transformers a far lower chance of catching and spreading fire. As recent news has shown, infrastructure design and management can both play a key role in exacerbating or containing wildfires. Fire management extends to the choice of transformer, as well. A dry type transformer minimizes the chance of fire since it doesn’t contain flammable liquids. 

Every detail is important if utility companies want to reduce the threat of climate change-related wildfires and other disasters destabilizing our electric grids in the future. 

 

Helps Make Clean Energy More Competitive

An appealing side effect of making solar and wind energy more affordable to maintain over time is that it brings down costs for clean energy technology in general. The energy sector will be in transition for some time as the world comes to grips with climate change. This is a significant moment for eco-friendly transformers and similar technologies to step to the fore.

Bringing down operational costs using eco-friendly transformers and other measures serves to make solar and wind more competitive with incumbent fossil fuels, now and into the future.

Making operational expenses more manageable should also help quicken the adoption of other key energy sector technologies, like the smart grid.

 

Longer Equipment Lifecycle

Helping keep transformers and other equipment functioning out in the field for as long as possible is great for cost management. 

It’s also vital for achieving eco-friendliness throughout the nation’s electric grids. Getting the most out of infrastructure investments delivers the bonus of prolonging the amount of time it takes the materials and chemicals in this equipment to reach landfills.

Using greener materials in power generation and electricity distribution equipment keeps these assets running reliably for longer. For instance, the winding insulation within green transformers may last up to five to eight times longer than that of standard transformers. That means a substantially greater return on investment and far less material waste over time. 

Renewable Could Be the Big Winner in the Post-Pandemic World

Undoubtedly, the global health crisis has affected every corner of the energy industry, including renewables, due to which renewable energy investments and installations slowed down. However, renewable energy and green technologies have the chance to emerge as the winners in the post-COVID-19 world.

According to a recent report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), demand for renewables is set to grow this year—and this will be the only energy source to grow in 2020 compared to 2019, in contrast to all fossil fuels and nuclear 

Some analysts argue that we may have already hit peak oil demand, considering that the pandemic might result in lasting changes in consumer behavior and lifestyles, such as the opportunity to work from home indefinitely. Even the bosses of BP and Shell do not rule out the notion that the world may have already seen peak oil demand. 

As per the IEA, the pandemic “is hurting – but not halting – global growth in renewable power capacity.” 

Supportive government policies will be crucial for renewables growth to recover quickly. Early indications from major economies, especially in Europe, are that the so-called green recovery will be the pillar of the policies for economic recovery.

Two of the biggest European economies—Germany and France—called for an acceleration of the green and digital transitions in May. The European Commission (EC) pledged US$630 billion (560 billion euro) to support investments and reforms, including to back the green and digital transitions and the resilience of national economies.

On the other hand, UK, which decided to leave EU, more than 200 companies and business associations called on the UK Government to deliver a clean, inclusive, and resilient recovery plan. Oil supermajors BP and Shell are among the signatories of the letter to the UK government.

While the push for greener economies has been gaining traction, oil companies and their stocks have been suffering in recent years from volatile oil prices and the investor push for accountability for global warming.

Imperial College Business School in partnership with the IEA recently published a report, which states that returns of renewable energy stocks have been significantly higher than returns on fossil fuel stocks.

The report showed that “publically-traded renewable power portfolios have posted significantly higher returns for investors and lower volatility over fossil fuels during the past ten years and during the COVID-19 crisis,” Imperial College London said in a statement.

Uncertainty in the oil and gas industry looks to be much higher than in renewables However, renewables is set for investment and installation setbacks in the short term. The longer-term prospects and economic rationale for renewable energy remain strong as costs continue to decline, while the specter of peak demand will continue to loom over the oil industry.

Solar Panel Recycling: Turning ticking time bombs into opportunities

Australia has certainly increased its appetite for solar power. As the average lifespan of a solar panel being approximately 20 years, the installations from the early 2000’s are set to reach their end-of-life. Will they end up in landfill or be recycled?

Not only the cost of recycling is higher than landfill, but also the value of recovered materials is smaller than the original. Therefore, the interest in recycling is limited. However, given the presence of heavy metals, such as lead and tin, managing the waste poorly can lead to another recycling crisis. A potential time bomb could present itself as an opportunity, however, if the global EV industry showed an interest in the recovered solar products.

The emission of pollution from the hazardous materials in the end-of-life panels can result in significant health issues, if released into the environment. To close the energy cycle, the next task of the solar panel industry is the safe recycling of end-of-life products. In the waste management hierarchy, however, re-use or value-added recovery/re-purposing is preferable to recycling.

The main contributor to the total weight of a typical crystalline silicon PV module is glass (75%), followed by polymer (10%), aluminum (8%), silicon (5%), copper (1%) and small amounts of silver, tin, lead, and other metals and components. Lead and tin, after leaching into soil and groundwater can cause health and environmental concerns, whereas copper, silver, and silicon present a value opportunity if recovered efficiently. So, the landfill option should be fully replaced with recycling to prevent environmental pollution and retrieve the valuable materials present in the panel.

Currently, considering all the impact of recycling, it isn’t be considered the economically favorable option. Therefore, economic incentives are required to accelerate this displacement.

Among the valuable materials in the panel, the best opportunity lies in silicon, given its considerably larger fraction and its ultra-high purity (99.9999% or six nines/6N). The solar-grade silicon from PV waste can be recovered for second-use applications in solar panels or repurposed for value-added application in the anode of the 3b generation of Lithium-ion batteries.

As the solar energy has gained momentum in the past few years, it is expected that more than 100,000 tonnes of solar panels will enter Australia’s waste stream by 2035. But one should think that whether it is the crisis or an opportunity?

If you look up solar panel recycling in Australia, there are a number of services. However, mostly they can recycle less than 20% by weight – the aluminium frame and the terminal boxes. Recycling the remaining 80%, including the precious silicon, is not currently offered in Australia, but it does not have to remain like that.

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