Things You Should Know Before Buying On-Grid Solar System

Solar power systems are divided into three categories: grid-connected, off-grid, and hybrid. The grid-connected solar system is the most popular of all the numerous types of solar systems deployed across the world.

A $500 billion investment in renewable energy is expected in India by 2028, making the nation one of the most attractive markets for solar. A total of 227 gigawatt-hours of renewable energy must be generated by India by 2022, with solar power accounting for around 114 gigawatts (GW), wind power accounting for 67 GW, and other sources such as hydro and bio making up the remainder. As of February 2021, the country’s installed renewable energy capacity was 94.43 GW.

Around 49% of the world’s power will be produced by renewable sources by 2040, according to current projections. In addition, the Indian government plans to build a renewable energy-powered green city in each Indian state.

Grid-connected solar systems, also known as grid-tied, grid inter tied, grid back feeding, utility-interactive, and on-grid solar systems, are gaining popularity as a way to generate alternative energy by connecting solar panels to a utility power grid.

components of grid-connected solar system

What is an On-Grid Solar System?

A grid-connected solar system is also known as a grid-tied electricity system or a grid-connected photovoltaic system. The utility grid is connected to this solar power installation that generates electricity.

Solar panel for home, inverters, a power conditioning unit, and grid connection equipment are all included.

Solar power systems that are grid-connected range in size from modest residential rooftop systems to big utility-scale solar power plants. Unlike stand-alone power systems, they rarely employ integrated battery solutions.

A grid-connected solar power system is a very cost-effective and simple method to add solar energy to your house. Solar panels and an inverter are used to generate power in this arrangement. Solar panels convert sunlight into direct current (DC) power, which is then converted into useable alternating current (AC) electricity using an inverter.

During the day, a solar power system connected to the grid transfers surplus solar electricity from the panels to the grid. Then, at night, when the sun has set and the panels are no longer producing power, it taps into the grid for power.

Components of a Grid-Connected Solar System

Grid-connected or on grid solar system generate solar energy during the day and then draw electricity from the power company when needed at night or in poor weather since they are connected to the grid.

1. Modules for solar power

The PV modules’ main purpose is to convert sunlight into DC electrical power as quickly as possible.

2. An inverter that may be used in both directions

For domestic usage, the inverter converts DC electricity to normal AC power. When the grid distributes energy, the inverter automatically synchronizes with the utility power.

When inverters are utilized, interference causes energy losses. This is true for all of the power system’s components. An inverter that is adequately suited to the solar array often has a 90 percent efficiency.

3. Fuse-protected AC breaker panel

The breaker panel, often known as a fuse box, resembles a standard fuse box. It comprises a domestic power supply and installation, with no additional breakers required for the inverter or filter connections.

4. Controller for charging

The charge controller’s job is to keep the solar battery from overcharging and therefore extend the life of your PV system.

5. Meters for electricity

To work properly, the PV generator requires two electric meters. Between the grid and the inverter, these meters are installed.

what-is-community-solar

One of the meters is wired into the grid to assist with invoicing and quantification of the energy generated. When there is no solar radiation, the other electric meter is utilized to calculate the PV inverter’s tiny usage.

6. Switches and wiring for safety

The PV array may be detached from the inverter for testing or maintenance since it always produces a voltage in solar radiation. Separate isolation and inverter safety switches should be provided, and they should be simple to disengage from the system.

To connect the different components, make sure you use electrical wires that are properly rated and sized. Earthing and fuses may be required by the electrical provider.

7. Electricity Grid

Grid-connected solar systems are not possible without a utility grid. This grid is connected to the solar system, which allows it to store power for later use.

Energy Potential of Empty Fruit Bunches

A palm oil plantation yields huge amount of biomass wastes in the form of empty fruit bunches (EFB), palm oil mill effluent (POME) and palm kernel shell (PKS). In a typical palm oil mill, empty fruit bunches are available in abundance as fibrous material of purely biological origin. Energy potential of empty fruit bunches is attractive as it contains neither chemical nor mineral additives, and depending on proper handling operations at the mill, it is free from foreign elements such as gravel, nails, wood residues, waste etc.

EFB

However, EFB is saturated with water due to the biological growth combined with the steam sterilization at the mill. Since the moisture content in EFB is around 67%, pre-processing is necessary before EFB can be considered as a good fuel.

Unprocessed EFB is available as very wet whole empty fruit bunches each weighing several kilograms while processed EFB is a fibrous material with fiber length of 10-20 cm and reduced moisture content of 30-50%. Additional processing steps can reduce fiber length to around 5 cm and the material can also be processed into bales, pellets or pulverized form after drying.

There is a large potential of transforming EFB into renewable energy resource that could meet the existing energy demand of palm oil mills or other industries as well as to promote sustainability in the palm oil industry. Pre-treatment steps such as shredding/chipping and dewatering (screw pressing or drying) are necessary in order to improve the fuel property of EFB.

Pre-processing of EFB will greatly improve its handling properties and reduce the transportation cost to the end user i.e. power plant. Under such scenario, kernel shells and mesocarp fibres which are currently utilized for providing heat for mills can be relieved for other uses off-site with higher economic returns for palm oil millers.

The fuel could either be prepared by the mills before sell to the power plants, or handled by the end users based on their own requirements.  Besides, centralized EFB collection and pre-processing system could be considered as a component in EFB supply chain. It is evident that the mapping of available EFB resources would be useful for EFB resource supply chain improvement. This is particular important as there are many different competitive usages. With proper mapping, assessment of better logistics and EFB resource planning can lead to better cost effectiveness for both supplier and user of the EFB.

A covered yard is necessary to store and supply a constant amount of this biomass resource to the energy sector. Storage time should however be short, e.g. 5 days, as the product; even with 45% moisture is vulnerable to natural decay through fungi or bacterial processes. This gives handling and health problems due to fungi spores, but it also contributes through a loss of dry matter trough biological degradation. Transportation of EFB is recommended in open trucks with high sides which can be capable of carrying an acceptable tonnage of this low-density biomass waste.

For EFB utilization in power stations, the supply chain is characterized by size reduction, drying and pressing into bales. This may result in significantly higher processing costs but transport costs are reduced. For use in co-firing in power plants this would be the best solution, as equipment for fuel handling in the power plant could operate with very high reliability having eliminated all problems associated with the handling of a moist, fibrous fuel in bulk.

The Cost of Plumbing For A New House

One question that you will have when planning a new construction project is how much does plumbing cost for a new house. You might have some personalized ideas for your kitchen and bathroom that can come with a hefty price tag.

Read this article to get a deep insight into the cost of plumbing for a new house with the expected average expenses.

How Much Does Plumbing Cost For A New House

How Much Does Plumbing Cost For a New House?

On average, the cost of plumbing a new house is $7,500. The lowest estimate can come up to $1,500, but a more detailed work can even exceed $15,000.  As it is a significant investment, you must follow some plumbing tips to help you save money in the long run.

Factors That Determine The Price of Plumbing a New House

Here are some factors that help determine the exact price of plumbing a new house:

1. The Pipe’s Location

If the sewer or septic tank can’t get connected to your bathroom, you might have to end up paying more. The plumber will need to spend more time plumbing your house and even require special tools.

The plumbing price will increase if more pipes are required to be connected to the central server. Making the bathrooms accessible will help to lower the plumbing installation cost. You can place them on the house edges instead of the interior.

If needed, place the bathroom close to the sewer line or septic tank to reduce the required number of pipes.

2. Number Of Bathrooms

The plumbing price can increase if your home has more bathrooms. The number of fixtures in each room will determine the price of plumbing. A pipe will be required to be installed in every fixture.

The cost of plumbing fixtures will be more in a home with three or four bathrooms and a kitchen. You may require a plumber’s help installing plumbing fixtures for your new bath or an outdoor kitchen area.

Your project will get costlier if you have more bathrooms in your home. If you want to limit the plumbing price at your new home, restrict yourself from building more bathrooms. Having a bathroom on every floor is better than having a bathroom on every corner.

3. Materials Used For Plumbing

One of the factors that impact plumbing price includes the type of plumbing material you choose. Copper is the most expensive type of pipe material. The least expensive pipe material is PVC or a new material known as PEX.

If a lot of piping is required in your home, then plumbing costs can increase depending upon the material used. Using more copper pipes will get expensive compared to using more PVC or PEX pipes. Choose either PVC or PEX for your piping if you want the plumbing cost to be less.

4. Hourly Wage Of The Plumber

The last factor which influences the price is the hourly pay rate of the plumber. Some charge by the hour, while others charge a flat rate. If you have a lot of work at your place, selecting a plumber who charges hourly will get expensive. On the contrary, you should choose a plumber that charges on an hourly basis if you have a minor job.

When selecting a plumber, you should consider both options and compare to get the right price.

DIY Plumbing Basics Every Homeowner Should Learn

How Much Does Plumbing Cost For A New House With PEX Piping?

The price for installing a PEX pipe per square foot is 50 cents to $2. For a 2,200 square-foot home, the average cost will be $1,100 for 50 cents for a single bathroom. If you want to install a second bathroom, you can double that amount. Labor is the significant difference between PEX and copper piping.

How Much Does Plumbing Cost For A New House with Copper Piping?

The price for installing copper piping per square foot is around $2 to $5. For a 2,200 square-foot home, that would cost $4400 for a $2 price point. But, copper has a few advantages which PEX doesn’t provide. Those advantages and features might make copper piping worth it.

The installation costs are significantly high, and if there is an unexpected failure, the repairs can get really expensive. You can start by maintaining an emergency fund for unexpected breakdowns to prepare yourself. Apart from that, investing in a home warranty plan will significantly decrease the repair and replacement costs.

Conclusion

Plumbing a new house can become cheap if you limit the number of bathrooms in your home and use PEX piping. If you have a larger budget to spend on plumbing, you can go with the copper pipes as they have trusted performance and a longer lifespan.

How to Self-Edit an Essay: Guide All You Need to Know

Self-editing an essay is a crucial stage of your writing process. An appropriate amount of time spent refining your essay will save you time when you hand it to your professor. This post explains why self-editing is essential and what type of text you should edit.

Where to Start?

Self-editing is the act of proofreading your essay and finding errors before submitting it. A proofread essay by an essay writer should follow this necessary process before handing in the paper. Whether writing a short essay or a full-length book, self-editing is needed.

How to Self-Edit Your Essay

It is essential to self-edit your work. This is because it helps identify problems in your writing. For example, some students tend to use too many commas, thus making the sentence confusing.

Also, some writers struggle with grammar and spelling issues. You can hire an editor to edit your work to avoid such errors. Another alternative is reading more books and articles about self-editing and how to self-edit an essay.

Benefits of Self-Editing Your Essay

Aforementioned, self-editing is an intricate part of your overall writing style. Here is a breakdown of some benefits of self-editing to expect:

1. It helps you become better at writing

Becoming a better writer may seem like an obvious point. However, the more you edit your work, the better you will become at spotting errors in your writing. It gives you an overview of the overall work before putting pen to paper. You will also learn from your mistakes and improve as a writer overall. Writing is similar to any other skill: the more you practice, the better you will get at it.

2. It makes your work more coherent

Coherence is key to good writing, whether writing fiction or nonfiction. This helps readers understand what you are trying to say (even if what you are saying is fictional). When reading through your work after finishing a draft, make sure everything makes sense.

It helps you save time. Getting an editor from a professional essay editing service is a great idea.

3. It helps you find errors

The primary purpose of editing any paper is to help you find mistakes in grammar and spelling. Doing this on your own allows you to do just that. Also, it is a great way to learn how to write better in the future.

4. It helps you save money

Essay editing will cost far less than hiring someone else to do the work for you. This is often a good reason for many students to choose this option over hiring an editor to write essays.

How to Self-Edit Your Essay: Tips and Tricks

Several techniques apply to your essay edit. Below are essential tips from experts on how to self-edit an essay:

1. Read your essay with a purpose

It is hard to find mistakes when reading a page or two of your writing and thinking about it as a whole. This is where a purpose comes in handy. For example, when editing the grammar and punctuation of your essay, read your content with those things in mind. Read and look for transitions between paragraphs and ideas to get coherence.

2. Read the essay aloud

Reading aloud will help you catch errors that may not be obvious when reading silently. It also gives you a chance to hear how your words sound and how they fit together. You are more likely to notice awkward phrasing or too-long sentences when you listen to the spoken rather than see them on the page.

3. Read backwards

Reading backwards helps avoid distractions by the meaning of what you wrote. Instead, you can focus on making sure each word sounds right and is spelt correctly. You may even find that you deleted a word or two without realizing it.

4. Take breaks

Breaks can help you clear your mind. Therefore, you see things with fresh eyes after coming back. This can help you spot any holes in your reasoning or places where you might have gone off track from the essay’s main idea.

5. Check for wordy phrases

You may think that using more extended, complicated words makes you sound intelligent. Unfortunately, it takes away from your writing style. You want to make the process as painless as possible for the reader. Therefore, choose simple words over fancy ones. Read aloud to see how it sounds.

6. Remove distracting or confusing details

Remove any scene or part of the essay that does not fit with the rest of your message. Think about what each story brings to the table. Cut it out when it does not contribute to your overall goal.

Essay Editing Checklist: Important Things to Look For

Many errors are common as we all slip up on occasion. Here are some things to watch for with your edit essay:

Spelling and grammar

Check for any spelling or grammar errors. Do not solely rely on the spellchecker to catch everything. Some words are spelt wrong but are still recognized as valid words. For example, “form” instead of “from.”

Unnecessary words

Look for unnecessary words in your sentences and paragraphs. Try to use as few words as possible to get your message across. Take any sentence out when it does not add anything to your message.

Clarity

When using a word that is unclear to you, it probably won’t be clear to your readers. Look for these types of terms and replace them with simpler ones. Always use simple language, even when it is not the most elegant way of saying something.

Motivation for Writing a Paper

Passive voice

The passive construction is when the subject is being acted upon by someone or something else. The passive voice appeals to a formal and academic audience. It can also be awkward at times, mainly when overused.

Consequently, try to keep your writing active. Active voice means that the subject acts in the sentence (e.g., the student is skipping class). Passive voice means that the subject has something done to it (e.g., the student missed class).

Repetition

Suppose you use a word once, fine. However, when using it twice, see if you can find a different way of saying the same thing. Consider rewriting the whole sentence or paragraph to avoid using the same word three or more times.

Clichés

These words and phrases have been used so much that they have lost their meaning. Examples include “at the end of the day,” “it’s a no-brainer,” and “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” Try finding another way of expressing your thoughts rather than using them. Alternatively, cut them out altogether.

Wordiness

Most writers tend to be wordy at first. This is because they have so much they want to say. Try reading your work aloud. Try to see any places where you can shorten it without losing meaning. This is often the case with long sentences strung together with commas and semi-colons (reread those carefully).

Sentence structure variety

Good writing includes sentence structure variety. However, your sentences don’t need to be extremely lengthy or complex. Your reader might find your work boring or confusing when all sentences are lengthy. Likewise, you could use a lot of very long sentences with multiple clauses and commas. However, using it too often might make your reader lose interest and struggle to follow along.

Self-Editing Tips for Your Essay

You will likely have many ideas when beginning the essay writing process. You may have a strong thesis statement or even a topic already in mind. However, these ideas are not always the most well-crafted and may not be appropriate for the audience of your essay. Here are some standard steps that you can follow to self-edit your essays.

Remember your audience

The first step is determining your audience before writing your college essay. Please consider who will be reading the essay and what they want from it. How much do they know about the topic? Are there any specific words or phrases that need defining? It is important to remember that writing an academic essay for school may not be appropriate for writing an essay for a blog post.

Stephen King’s ten per cent rule

According to Stephen King, who wrote On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, you should reduce every first draft by ten per cent before submitting it. This means cutting out unnecessary words, sentences, or paragraphs and may even mean deleting a whole section if it doesn’t suit the text.

Listen to your essay

Listening to your essay is one of the essential aspects of self-editing. It allows you to catch mistakes that you may not see when reading your material. Reading aloud will help you spot confusing or awkward passages while also giving you a chance to hear how well your writing flows. You can record yourself reading aloud. Alternatively, ask a trusted friend to read it for you.

Check for consistency

Make sure that each sentence makes sense within the context of your paper. Also, the tone remains consistent throughout all sections of the essay. Pay attention, particularly to transitions, which connect ideas and give your reader an easy way to follow along. When a transition does not sound right when you read through it, you should probably change or delete it altogether.

Clarity

Essays are written to persuade or inform readers. Make sure all time taken to write the essay will be transparent with the point you are trying to get across. Also, ensure a clear introduction body paragraphs are organized into a logical order—lastly, a conclusion to drive home your message.

Create a compelling story

Your essay must have a clear theme that is present throughout the piece. A central storyline should develop in each paragraph and carry through from the introduction to the conclusion for narrative essays. Each paragraph should support your thesis statement when writing an expository essay. Your sentences should connect back to this central idea. Therefore, your reader understands how the paragraphs fit together into one cohesive whole.

student-writing-contest

Evaluate your essay’s structure and organization

Strengthen the organization of your paper by making sure that there is a clear introduction, body, and conclusion to each paragraph. The most standard way to accomplish this is by creating a simple outline or a bulleted list of topics covered in the paper.

Final Takeaway

A self-edited essay is an essential tool for any student. Ensure you do not cut yourself off too soon. Also, try to keep in mind that there is no such thing as a perfect essay. There will always be others on a similar topic, or even competing with yours. Read the material carefully, check grammar and spelling mistakes, proofread, and add new material when needed.

Pros and Cons of Buying and Doing a DIY Solar Panel Installation

There’s a number of reasons why people invest in solar energy through solar panel installations on either their homes or other buildings. For some, they want their energy consumption to reduce their carbon footprint and make sure they live environmentally friendly. For others, they may want a power source they can use just in case the power were to shut off for a long period, or may want to earn tax incentives for going green.

But whichever reason you have, you have a choice between buying from a professional solar panel installation company, and going the DIY route. There are a few pros and cons to doing a DIY solar panel installation.

solar-energy-diy

Pro: You Can Determine Where And How You Want Your Solar Energy

If you have the time to design and build your own solar energy system, you can decide how you want it built and where you want it placed. One of the keys is buying solar panels for either on-grid or off-grid use, because that determines a lot in the scope of your installation.

But if you’re willing to take on the rigors of the installation, you’ll have the satisfaction of seeing solar power going to the areas of your property where you want.

Pro: There Is Some Savings You Can Get

Yes, getting DIY solar panels can save you some money, though it may not be as much as you want. The main area of savings is in the design and labor costs since you’re handling these yourself, but there can still be other costs you incur while taking the project on. For example, you may need storage or battery backups in some cases that may be a hidden cost. Still, you can usually save about a minimum of 10%-20% in overall costs by going DIY.

According to the experts at Unbound Solar, “Even if you extend your payback period by taking out a loan to finance your project, you still enjoy reduced electricity costs from the moment you flip the switch on your PV system.”

Con: Not All DIY Solar Panels Can Be Used On The Grid

While there are a few cases where you can install your own solar panels and remain connected to your utility provider, not all solar systems are designed for that. And some local governments have laws about what kind of solar panels and installations can be done that remain grid-tied. You’ll want to do research on whether you can do this before getting started.

Con: DIY Installation Can Be Quite Complex

While getting your own solar panel kit and building it yourself sounds easy enough, the process can be very intense and require a lot more know-how from the consumer than they might realize. Plus, there are tasks that need to be completed and signed off on by a certified electrician if your solar panels are going to be grid-tied, so you need to be aware of that. It’s usually going to require heavy duty tools and take some man power to get the system installed perfectly.

At the end of the day, installing your own solar panels can allow you to save a lot of money on energy, or get power to areas that it would be difficult to with a utility provider. But if you’re new to installing a solar panel system, you need to carefully consider the cost in both time and money to do it.

Major Considerations in Biopower Projects

In recent years, biopower (or biomass power) projects are getting increasing traction worldwide, however there are major issues to be tackled before setting up a biopower project. There are three important steps involved in the conversion of biomass wastes into useful energy. In the first step, the biomass must be prepared for the energy conversion process. While this step is highly dependent on the waste stream and approach, drying, grinding, separating, and similar operations are common.

In addition, the host facility will need material handling systems, storage, metering, and prep-yard systems and biomass handling equipment. In the second step, the biomass waste stream must be converted into a useful fuel or steam. Finally, the fuel or steam is fed into a prime mover to generate useful electricity and heat.

One of the most important factors in the efficient utilization of biomass resource is its availability in close proximity to a biomass power project. An in-depth evaluation of the available quantity of a given agricultural resource should be conducted to determine initial feasibility of a project, as well as subsequent fuel availability issues. The primary reasons for failure of biomass power projects are changes in biomass fuel supply or demand and changes in fuel quality.

Fuel considerations that should be analyzed before embarking on a biomass power project include:

  • Typical moisture content (including the effects of storage options)
  • Typical yield
  • Seasonality of the resource
  • Proximity to the power generation site
  • Alternative uses of the resource that could affect future availability or price
  • Range of fuel quality
  • Weather-related issues
  • Percentage of farmers contracted to sell residues

Accuracy is of great importance in making fuel availability assumptions because miscalculations can greatly impact the successful operation of biomass power projects. If biomass resource is identifies as a bottle-neck in the planning stage, a power generation technology that can handle varying degrees of moisture content and particle size can be selected.

Technologies that can handle several fuels in a broad category, such as agricultural residues, provide security in operation without adversely affecting combustion efficiency, operations and maintenance costs, emissions levels, and reliability.

Consistent and reliable supply of biomass is crucial for any biomass project

Identification of potential sources of biomass fuel can be one of the more challenging aspects of a new biomass energy project. There are two important issues for potential biomass users:

  • Consistent and reliable biomass resource supply to the facility
  • Presence of harvesting, processing and supply infrastructure to provide biomass in a consistent and timely manner

Biomass as an energy source is a system of interdependent components. Economic and technical viability of this system relies on a guaranteed feedstock supply, effective and efficient conversion technologies, guaranteed markets for the energy products, and cost-effective distribution systems.

The biomass energy system is based on the following steps:

  • Biomass harvesting (or biomass collection of non-agricultural waste)
  • Preparation of biomass as feedstock
  • Conversion of biomass feedstock into intermediate products.
  • Transformation of intermediates into final energy and other bio-based products
  • Distribution and utilization of biofuels, biomass power and bio-based products.

Recycling of EPS Foam Packaging

Municipalities and organisations around the world are facing a growing problem in disposal and recycling of EPS foam packaging and products. EPS foam (Encapsulated Poly-Styrene) packaging is a highly popular plastic packaging material which finds wide application in packaging of food items, electronic goods, electrical appliances, furniture etc due to its excellent insulating and protective properties. EPS foam (also known as polystyrene) is also used to make useful products such as disposable cups, trays, cutlery, cartons, cases etc. However, being large and bulky, polystyrene take up significant space in rubbish bins which means that bins becomes full more quickly and therefore needs to be emptied more often.

eps-foam-recycling

Polystyrene is lightweight compared to its volume so it occupies lots of precious landfill space and can be blown around and cause a nuisance in the surrounding areas. Although some companies have a recycling policy, most of the polystyrene still find its way into landfill sites around the world.

Environmental Hazards of EPS Foam

While it is estimated that EPS foam products accounts for less than 1% of the total weight of landfill materials, the fraction of landfill space it takes up is much higher considering that it is very lightweight.  Furthermore, it is essentially non-biodegradable, taking hundreds perhaps thousands of years to decompose.

Even when already disposed of in landfills, polystyrene can easily be carried by the wind and litter the streets or end up polluting water bodies. When EPS foam breaks apart, the small polystyrene components can be eaten by marine organisms which can cause choking or intestinal blockage.

Polystyrene can also be consumed by fishes once it breaks down in the ocean.  Marine animals higher up the food chain could eat the fishes that have consumed EPS, thus concentrating the contaminant.  It could be a potential health hazard for us humans who are on top of the food chain considering that styrene, the plastic monomer used in manufacturing EPS has been classified by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a possible human carcinogen.

Styrene is derived from either petroleum or natural gas, both of which are non-renewable and are rapidly being depleted, creating environmental sustainability problems for EPS.

Trends in EPS Foam Recycling

Although the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers have reported that the recycling rate for post-consumer and post-commercial EPS in the United States have risen to 28% in 2010 from around 20% in 2008, this value is still lower than most solid wastes.  According to USEPA, auto batteries, steel cans and glass containers have recycle rates of 96.2%, 70.6% and 34.2% respectively.

Because it is bulky, EPS foam takes up storage space and costs more to transport and yet yields only a small amount of polystyrene for re-use or remolding (infact, polystyrene accounts for only 2% of the volume of uncompacted EPS foams). This provides little incentive for recyclers to consider EPS recycling.

Products that have been used to hold or store food should be thoroughly cleaned for hygienic reasons, thus compounding the costs.  For the same reasons, these products cannot be recycled to produce the same food containers but rather are used for non-food plastic products.  The manufacture of food containers, therefore, always requires new polystyrene.  At present, it is more economical to produce new EPS foam products than to recycle it, and manufacturers would rather have the higher quality of fresh polystyrene over the recycled one.

The cost of transporting bulky polystyrene waste discourages recyclers from recycling it.  Organizations that receive a large amount of EPS foam (especially in packaging) can invest in a compactor that will reduce the volume of the products. Recyclers will pay more for the compacted product so the investment can be recovered relatively easier.

There are also breakthroughs in studies concerning EPS recycling although most of these are still in the research or pilot stage.  Several studies have found that the bacteria Pseudomonas putida is able to convert polystyrene to a more biodegradable plastic.  The process of polystyrene depolymerization – converting polystyrene back to its styrene monomer – is also gaining ground.

The Specifics of A Shipping Container Environment

The use of recycled shipping containers has found excellent footing in today’s society. There are so many different ways that the current modern system has created a new dichotomy of agriculture. If you are curious to understand the concept of the these containers and the specifics that come with them, keep reading!

Concept of Shipping Container Environment

This is the environment where old shipping boxes get used. They get planted crops and make sure that the food production would reach the market fresh and in the right order. There are many advantages to using such environment.

Advantages of Shipping Container Farming

A shipping container is an environment created to provide a complete farming experience and crop production system that aims to create a system that works all year round.

The yearly production is genuinely a pleasant experience as the countries can produce internally and importation of products as well as smuggling activities could be reduced.

The system uses an intelligent and super-efficient LED lights or grow lights that can substitute the sun’s rays. The entire container is equivalent to a farm that can produce up to two acres of crops.

The inside of the farm allows the produce to grow in an insulated environment that is around 40′ by 8′ by 9.5′. Most of the regions that would benefit from the farm system are the cold weather system countries. In these countries, producing food crops is a big problem. Shipping is also costly since importation is the only source of food.

With the use of farming containers, importation is cut down. The cost of using and maintaining a farming container is still cheaper by at least three times compared to the average consumption of most industrial food crop producers. It takes an average of kilowatts per hour of energy daily to maintain the farm. However, it is still more cost-effective to do it this way, especially for cold countries or those countries that have less agricultural lands available for them.

The price of obtaining a shipping container farm is not low. However, this price is worth the investment as the production is either increase or made possible. It is also more advantageous because it is less expensive to maintain a shipping container for him than one that is land-based or is naturally and agricultural land. On average, you should expect to spend around $50,000 to $85,000 to purchase one shipping container.

Some countries are considering requiring old shipping companies to donate or sell their old shipping containers to the governments in exchange for tax breaks. However, this policy is only a suggestion for most countries and is not yet get implemented.

Another great advantage of a shipping container for him is the fact that it is often compact. Because of its size or at least of its portability, there is a great advantage to it. It is easier to get transported from one place to another. It is also easier to have less footprint than using land-based crop production.

Zoning is also not a problem when it comes to containing her forms. Most of the companies that use this process can place their containers in both rural and urban areas. The reason behind this is the fact that there are no zoning laws against maintaining a repository in most areas.

Container farms also do not use new water. The creators of this modern technology got able to use recycled water to maintain the irrigation system within the container farms.

Vertical Growing: The Best Part of Container Farming

The best part of container farming is the fact that it uses a vertical system to grow the crops. Environmental sensors get used during the cycle of growth of the plants. These sensors allow for the farm system to control all of the essential factors in growing the crops.

The factors such as temperature, airflow, nutrient levels, humidity, as well as the oxygen and carbon dioxide levels get controlled.

The Future of Agriculture

Container farming can get considered as the future of agriculture. It provides for a modern and straightforward approach to crop production that reduces waste and cost for food suppliers. Importation could be a problem of the past for countries that are unable to produce their crops. However, since trade is a fundamental economic aspect of most countries, that will not fully illuminate the land-based agricultural production of crops.

Biogas from Agricultural Wastes

The main problem with anaerobic digestion of agricultural wastes is that most of the agricultural residues are lignocellulosic with low nitrogen content. To obtain biogas from agricultural wastes, pre-treatment methods like size reduction, electron irradiation, heat treatment, enzymatic action etc are necessary. For optimizing the C/N ratio of agricultural residues, co-digestion with sewage sludge, animal manure or poultry litter is recommended.

Agriculture_Waste_Biogas

Types of Agricultural Wastes

Several organic wastes from plants and animals have been exploited for biogas production as reported in the literature. Plant materials include agricultural crops such as sugar cane, cassava, corn etc, agricultural residues like rice straw, cassava rhizome, corn cobs etc, wood and wood residues (saw dust, pulp wastes, and paper mill waste)

Others include molasses and bagasse from sugar refineries, waste streams such as rice husk from rice mills and residues from palm oil extraction and municipal solid wastes, etc. However, plant materials such as crop residues are more difficult to digest than animal wastes (manures) because of difficulty in achieving hydrolysis of cellulosic and lignocellulosic constituents.

Codigestion of Crop Wastes

Crop residues can be digested either alone or in co-digestion with other materials, employing either wet or dry processes. In the agricultural sector one possible solution to processing crop biomass is co-digested together with animal manures, the largest agricultural waste stream.

In addition to the production of renewable energy, controlled anaerobic digestion of animal manures reduces emissions of greenhouse gases, nitrogen and odour from manure management, and intensifies the recycling of nutrients within agriculture.

In co-digestion of plant material and manures, manures provide buffering capacity and a wide range of nutrients, while the addition of plant material with high carbon content balances the carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio of the feedstock, thereby decreasing the risk of ammonia inhibition.

The gas production per digester volume can be increased by operating the digesters at a higher solids concentration. Batch high solids reactors, characterized by lower investment costs than those of continuously fed processes, but with comparable operational costs, are currently applied in the agricultural sector to a limited extent.

Codigestion offers good opportunity to farmers to treat their own waste together with other organic substrates. As a result, farmers can treat their own residues properly and also generate additional revenues by treating and managing organic waste from other sources and by selling and/or using the products viz heat, electrical power and stabilised biofertiliser.

More Reasons To Check Out Alternative Energy Sources

In recent years, the world has seen significant economic progress, which greatly relied on energy fueled by coal and petroleum among others. With the continuously growing demand for energy, it is a fact that these energy sources may be depleted in the near future. Apart from this, there are several other reasons why humankind already needs to find alternative energy sources.

Global Warming

It is a known fact that different manufacturing processes and human activities, such as using vehicles, cause pollution in the atmosphere by releasing carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide traps heat in the earth, and this phenomenon is known as global warming. Global warming has several harmful impacts such as stronger and more frequent storms, as well as drought and heat waves. Renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, and biomass to name a few, all generate minimal global warming emissions.

Wind power, for instance, has the capability to supply energy with a significantly lower emission compared to burning coal for fuel. This is the reason why wind energy is more beneficial compared to carbon-intensive energy sources. Still, the emissions generated by wind power are even lower compared to other renewable energy sources such as solar, geothermal, and hydroelectric power sources. This makes a huge potential for wind power to sustain the world’s energy demands, while preserving the environment.

Public Health

It goes without saying that the pollution caused by burning coal and fuel not only has an environmental impact, but it also has a significant effect on public health. Various diseases and ailments can be attributed to pollution, which usually affects the respiratory tract. Contaminated water also causes various bacterial infections. Wind power, solar energy, and hydroelectric systems have the capability to generate electricity without emitting air pollutants.

Additionally, wind and solar energy sources do not need water to operate, thereby, eliminating the probability of polluting water resources. Clean air and water that is free from pollutants, will have a significant positive impact on public health.

Constant Energy Source

While coal and fossil fuels are on the threshold of depletion, renewable energy sources are inexhaustible. Wind can be a constant energy source and no matter how high the demand for energy will be, the wind will not be depleted. In the same manner, as long as the sun shines bright on earth, there will always be an abundant solar energy source.

Fast-moving water that can be translated into hydroelectric energy, the earth’s heat that can be converted into a geothermal power source, as well as abundant plant matter that can be used as biomass, can all be constantly replenished. These can never be fully exhausted no matter how great the energy demand will be. The utilization of a combination of each of these energy sources will prove to be even more beneficial. Additionally, with its continued use, there will no longer be a need for combustible energy sources.

Lower Energy Costs

The cost of electricity continues to be a burden on the earth’s greater population. The use of renewable energy sources to light up the earth is considerably cheaper and inexpensive compared to the cost of burning fossil fuels for electricity and other energy needs. Apart from a cheaper cost, renewable energy sources can help stabilize to cost of energy in the long run, with an unlimited supply being able to cater to greater demand. Don’t forget to obtain more information on the size of solar energy system you need for your home.

While it cannot be denied that setting up clean energy technologies comes with a cost, it can be noted that the cost of its operation is significantly lower. Conversely, the cost of coal and fossil fuels for energy consumption fluctuates over a wide range and is greatly affected by the economic and political conditions of its country of origin.

Economic Benefits

Fossil fuel technologies, often, revolve around the capitalistic market. Hence, the use of combustible fuels is often linked to unfavorable labor conditions, and even child labor and slavery. On the other hand, the use of renewable energy sources provides decent jobs, contributing to several economic benefits and aids in decarbonizing the future.

For instance, workers are needed to install and maintain solar panels. In the same manner, wind farms employ technicians for maintenance. Thus, jobs are created directly in parallel with the unit of energy produced. This means that more jobs will be produced if more renewable energy sources are utilized.

Reliability

Clean energy sources, specifically wind and solar power, are less susceptible to large-scale failures. The reason behind this is that both wind and solar power both employ distributed and modular systems. This means that electricity will not be totally cut off in instances of extreme weather conditions because the energy sources powering up the electricity is spread out over a wider geographical area. In the same manner, there will still be a continuous supply of energy even if certain equipment in the entire system is damaged because clean fuel technologies are made up of modules such as a number of individual wind turbines or solar panels.

With all the reasons to check out alternative energy sources, it still holds true that there remain several barriers that hinder the full implementation of renewable energy technologies. Some of these challenges are capital costs because of reliability misconceptions, as well as a difficult market entry due to an unequal playing field.

Because renewable energy sources are cheap to operate, the bulk of the expenses in its implementation is building the technology. Thereby, the rate of return for capitalists and investors in the market entails a longer waiting period. Adding to this barrier is the hidden political agenda that most governments need to overcome. Many governments offer grants to help with this growth and rate or return.

Economic progress and advancement in technology are not at all bad. On the contrary, it has brought forth a lot of benefits such as cures for ailments and diseases, resources for deep-sea or space explorations, as well as meaningful collaboration and communication. However, this progress came with a price, and unfortunately, it’s the world’s energy resources that are on the brink of exhaustion. Hence, mitigation has been already necessary and finding alternative energy sources is just one of the probable solutions.