Apparently, the most important event in April in terms of upcoming exhibitions and conferences in the field of energy will be the upcoming annual Conference & Exhibition Wind Europe 2022 in Bilbao, Spain. Wind energy is steadily expanding its presence in the global electricity generation market, which today exceeds 6% of global production. Europe, primarily represented by Germany and Great Britain, plays a primary role in this process. This is especially evident in offshore wind energy, where the share of Europe is about 70%. However, this process doesn't go without difficulties. The classic problems of renewable energy are becoming more and more common – the lack of reliable and large-scale energy storage systems, and, as a result, low values of the capacity factor, which often doesn't exceed 30%.
More than 8 thousand participants and 330 exhibitors are expected in Bilbao. During 70 sessions three hundred speakers will look for the best ways to overcome the barriers that hinder the development of the industry.
Among the participants of this event are such major players in the wind energy manufacturing sector as ACCIONA, ENERCON GmbH, Nordex Group, RWE Renewables, Vestas, as well as leading representatives of the information and analytical sector, including the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) and WindEurope.
Among the technological issues scheduled for discussion in Bilbao, the topic Operation and maintenance of offshore wind farms, which will be presented at one of the plenary sessions, should be highlighted. In particular, the use of drones and robots for operation and maintenance of wind farms will be considered here. Earlier in our patent review “WIND ENERGY. Maintenance, repair and replacement. August 2021” we noted the growing interest of inventors and researchers in this topic. This is largely related to the fact that the location of wind farms in offshore areas with more intensive and sustainable wind resources entails a significant complication in the maintenance of wind turbines. Therefore, the use of drones and robots is one of the most promising options for technological adaptation in such conditions.
Continuing the discussion about the lack of reliable and large-scale energy storage systems for intermittent renewable sources, attention should be paid to the interesting 6th International Hybrid Power Systems Workshop in Madeira, Portugal in April. Here, over 14 sessions (on situ and virtual), more than 50 presentations will be made on the problems of maintaining a balance between production and consumption for island networks. One of the main objectives of the seminar is to find the perfect combination of conventional and renewable energy.
The anniversary 10th European Algae Industry Summit will be held at the end of April in Reykjavik, Iceland. It should be noted that the use of algae for the production of biofuels raises many questions so far and is only represented by a small number of demonstration projects.
Reykjavik, Iceland
At this summit, the focus is primarily put on proven technologies for the production of goods from algae in the food industry, cosmetics or medicine. However, issues such as Enhancing the Sustainability of Algae Production, Navigating the Latest Technology for Algae Production, Getting Algae Products to the Next Level, announced at the summit, are mostly of a general nature and may be of interest to biofuel producers. Moreover, the summit is also addressed to Green energy/Biotechnology investors: venture capitalists, private equity firms, etc. looking to invest in new & emerging markets.
Possible scheme for the production of biofuels from microalgae
1. Water 2. Sunlight for algae growth 3. Facility emitting carbon dioxide 4. Nutrients 5. Gas, water and nutrient conditioning unit or incubation tank 6. Bioreactor network(microalgae ponds) 7. Second conditioning unit 7a. Oxygen 8. Algae harvesting reactors 9. Screw process unit 10. Recycled water 11. Algae biomass 12. Algae hexane solvent mixer 13. Transesterification unit 13a. Sodium hydroxide 13b. Methanol 14. Fuel conditioning 15. Biodiesel fuel combined with a glycerol 15a. Glycerol 15b. Algae biodiesel
Energy Exhibitions & Conferences
Events calendar. April 2022
