New Energy Data Portal (SEAI) : interactive charts, stats and more

Need energy data or statistics for a project or dissertation? SEAI's new energy data portal gives you the access to numerous interactive energy charts. These charts allow you to explore how Ireland has used energy historically across different fuels and sectors, as well as how energy use is projected to change out to 2030. It does this by combining Ireland's historical energy statistics with SEAI's energy forecast. The portal allows you to:

• investigate and tailor several interactive charts
• Explore the various energy trends witnessed in Ireland since 1990
• Explore trends projected under a possible future energy scenario out to 2030

Click here to enter the portal.

Project Resources for Engineering

Final year and postgrad project and dissertation resources: databases, journals, subject portals, ebooks and handouts for electrical, energy and electronic engineering are all available via the Library Guides links on the DIT library website. Any problems or queries contact us on kst.library@dit.ie.

Sustainable energy eBooks

New eBook titles on renewable energy are now available including:

• Solar Domestic Water Heating: Chris Laughton (Routledge, 2010)
• Grid Connected Solar Electric Systems: G. Stapleton (Routledge, 2012)

Browse the eBooks on this topic via the Library website using the MyiLibrary and Knovel collections. You will need your Library PIN to access off campus

DIT Green Week 2012

Don't forget that DIT Green Week begins on Monday April 23rd.  In Kevin Street Library we have books on the following "green themes" at:

• renewable energy @ 621.31213-
• biomass/biofuels @ 622.88 and 665.8 (hydrogen)
• green chemistry

Academic Search Complete

The Academic Search Premier database subscription has upgraded to Academic Search Complete.

Subject coverage includes biology, ethics chemistry, engineering,  materials science, mathematics, pharma sciences and physics.

Content includes:

• More than 13,000 abstracted and indexed journals
• Nearly 9,000 full-text journals
• Full text for more than 7,700 peer-reviewed journals
• Searchable cited references provided for more than 1,400 journals
• Daily updates

 An EBSCO iPhone and Android database app is also available. Click here to access the database.

SDAR Journal launch

The SDAR journal is a new journal published by CIBSE Ireland and the School of Electrical Engineering (SEES) in DIT. It is supported by Airtricity and produced by Pressline Ltd.

The journal is a result of continuing collaboration between the professional organisations, industry and academia. It emphasises the need to move from ideologically based sustainable engineering to proven low energy solution solutions. It is a vehicle to increase research in engineering to meet the modern challenges posed. There is a strong spine of proven industry solutions as well as well as significant contributions from students, graduates and researchers in academia. All papers are evidence based with deep analysis and critical reflection and are peer reviewed by an expert reviewing panel. The intention of CIBSE is to increase applied research in the industry whilst taking the fear out of the word research for working engineers and companies. The intention for SEES is to provide opportunities for research students to gain access to data and link with the industry experts in this field to enhance the quality of their programmes and research in engineering.

Watermelon juice the new biofuel?

Twenty percent of watermelons never make it to the picnic table. Rather, one in every five is left to ripen and rot in the field, rejected for even the slightest of cosmetic imperfections. But U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers may have found a way to elevate these outcasts to an even higher calling than the summer BBQ: biofuel production. Intrigued?. Have a look at yesterday's post on the SciAm blog here. The full research article by Fish, Bruton & Russo is due to be published today in Biotechnology for Biofuels 2009, 2:1. Read the abstract here.

New sustainable engineering report

Engineering for sustainable development: guiding principles

This full text report is available in pdf format and covers principles for sustainable development. It is provided by the Royal Academy of Engineering. There are abbreviations of technical terms as well as diagrams, tables and references. Download it here.

Image from zazzle.com

New ebooks available

Renewable energy ebooks now available:

• Biofuels, Solar & Wind as Renewable Energy Systems: Pimentel
• Handbook of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy: Goswami
• Renewable & Alternative Energy Resources:a handbook: Smith & Taylor
• Renewable Energy Conversion, Transmission & Storage: Sorenson
• Renewable Energy: its physics, engineering, use: Sorenson
• Solar Energy Fundamentals and Modeling Techniques: Sen
• Solar Hydrogen Generation:a renewable energy future: Rajeshwar,
• Wind Energy Renewable Energy & the Environment: Nelson

To access go to http://www.dit.ie/library/a-z/ebooks/ and click on MyiLibrary. Or search the Library catalog at http://library.dit.ie/ and click on the digital media version of the title.

The Energy Show 2009 will be held at the RDS Main Hall, Dublin
Wednesday 29th & Thursday 30th April 2009
Organised by SEI, the format will consist of a two-day trade exhibition coupled with a seminar programme covering the topical aspects of energy efficiency and renewable energy. For further information email energyshow@sei.ie or see http://www.sei.ie/News_Events/Energy_Show_2009

Bioenergy & Europe : new report

How much bioenergy can Europe produce without harming the environment?

This report, EEA Report No 7/2006, published by the European Environment Agency, examines the potential increase in the amount of energy generated from biomass before it starts placing additional pressures on the environment (e.g. on water and soil resources, biodiversity, and farmland). The report assesses the environmentally-compatible bioenergy potential from the sectors of agriculture, forestry and waste in European Union for the years 2010, 2020 and 2030. The report is available to download as a PDF file at http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/eea_report_2006_7

Sustainable energy notes from MIT

Sustainable energy at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

This course site includes full text lecture notes in pdf format from previous years' courses covering sustainable energy. http://web.mit.edu/10.391j/www/&handle=20081014-16193598

SEI publications on the web

SEI provides a range of publications covering all aspects of sustainable energy, from factsheets and leaflets to case studies and reports to case studies and reports.

Free to download at http://www.sei.ie/index.asp?locID=3&docID=-1

Role of Nanotechnology in Solar Energy Generation

Prof Shay Curran delivers a free public lecture entitled The Role of Nanotechnology in Solar Energy Generation at DIT today at 4pm.

Existing solar panels are based on inorganic chemistry. They are made of rigid silicon and while effective, giving conversion efficiencies of between 12 and 20 per cent they are very expensive.
Prof Curran is going "organic" in a chemistry sense, producing thin film solar cells combining modified fullerenes suspended in a polymer layer. "We are sticking to the organics because they are much simpler, cheaper and flexible substances," he says. When Curran says flexible he means flexible. He envisages uses such as coatings on tent fabrics where the tent itself provides the electricity, or fabric-like sheets that can be thrown over a roof top to generate electricity for the home. Imagine a beach towel that also powers an MP3 player or a radio powered by the sun.
For the full Irish Times article see: http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/sciencetoday/2007/1213/1197411732332.html