Energy Issues and Transition to a Low Carbon Economy: Insights from Mexico (Strategies for Sustainability)

Without energy, there is no well-functioning economy, besides facing social risks. This book provides a systemic approach to energy in Mexico and its relations to the USA arising from the energy reform of the former. It covers the transition from fossil fuels to a low-carbon economy, relying heavily on renewable sources and mitigating climate change risks. Several human knowledge disciplines and topics are covered in the book, including public policy, economics, transboundary issues, electricity and thermal energy, residual biomass use, distributed energy systems and its management, and decision-making tools. An analysis is considered regarding energy issues interaction in the Mexican-USA border, which differ in both countries from pricing and policy, and the work and research that has been developed for transboundary energy trade. Foreword 7 Preface 8 An Insight How to Read the Book 10 Contents 12 1 Historical Context and Present Energy Use in the Global Economy 14 1 Energy Sources 15 2 Historical Context 16 3 Source Depletion, Source Evolution and Link to Economic and Scientific Development: Long Cycle Trends in Energy Primary Resources 21 4 Main Current Uses in Present day Economy 25 5 Source Availability for Different World Regions 32 6 Geopolitical Implications 34 7 Market Trends and Sustainable Energy Sourcing 35 8 Conclusions and Recommendations 40 References 40 2 Energy and Environmental Policy and Economic Development 43 1 Introduction 44 2 Micro and Macro System Perspectives on Economic Development and Environmental Policy 45 3 A Short History of Energy and Environmental Policy 49 4 Trade-Offs in Inducing Growth Through Environmental Policy and Sustainability 51 5 Best Practices: The European Union Policy Framework 56 6 Mexico’s Position 60 7 Mexico’s Future 63 8 Conclusions 65 References 66 3 Fossil Fuels Use and Efficiency During the Transition to a Low-Carbon Economy 70 1 Introduction 71 2 Industry 75 3 Transport 79 4 Buildings 84 4.1 Energy Consumption Analysis 84 4.2 Energy Efficiency 92 4.3 Final Remarks 99 5 Public Policy 101 6 Conclusions and Recommendations 101 References 102 4 Energy Market Evolution in Lieu of Fossil Fuels Use and Renewables Penetration Due to Regulatory Changes 106 1 Introduction and Framework for Analysis 107 2 Regulatory Institutions, Laws, and Instruments: A Comparison with CAISO and ERCOT 109 2.1 FERC Legislation and Main Orders Shaping US Regulation 113 2.2 Mexico’s Legislation, and Policy and Regulatory Makers 116 3 Regulation, International Convergence, and Connections 120 3.1 Types of Incentives 121 3.2 New Technologies and CAPEX and OPEX in Renewable Energy 122 3.3 Connections and Facilitation or Restrictions. 123 4 State of Submarkets Traded in Mexico’s CENACE, CAISO and ERCOT 125 5 Conclusions and Framework for Further Analysis 128 References 130 5 Market Restructuring Due to Renewable Sources Evolution and Penetration 133 1 Introduction and the Relevance of Renewable Energy 134 2 From the Multilateral Vision and Paris Agreement, Regional Efforts at the International Energy Agency, to Dynamics of Electricity Markets 135 2.1 The Multilateral United Nations Efforts and the Paris COP Agreement of 2015 135 2.2 The International Energy Agency and Its Role in Bridging Gaps Between Climate and Energy 138 2.3 Electricity Sector Evolution Dynamics 140 3 Institutions, Policy Making Bodies, Regulatory Agencies, and Their Updated Roles 143 4 Technology Drivers of Renewable Transitions 147 4.1 Solar-Photovoltaic Generation Technology 149 4.2 Wind Generation 150 4.3 Distributed Generation 150 4.4 Transmission Areas of Opportunity for Development 151 4.5 Storage 153 4.6 Electric Vehicles and Smart Buildings 153 5 Conclusions and Recommendations for the Future of Energy Markets, Regulations, and Best Practice 154 References 157 6 Energy Efficiency for the Current Use of Fossil Fuels 159 1 Introduction 160 2 Thermodynamics Fundamentals Associated to Energy Conversion Efficiency 164 2.1 The Carnot Efficiency Limit, and Efficiency Limits of Other Technologies 164 2.2 The Steam Power Plants 167 2.3 Examples of Thermodynamic Limits, and Comparison Between Technologies 168 3 Energy Efficiency in the Transport Sector 171 3.1 Real Fuel Consumption of Light Duty Vehicles 174 3.2 Real Fuel Consumption in the Public Passenger Transport 177 4 Analysis of the Consumption of Fuel Fossils and Renewable Energies to Produce Heat for Industrial Processes in Mexico and the United States 180 4.1 Main Perspectives for Solar Energy Technologies in North America 186 5 Conclusions and Recommendations 186 References 187 7 Micro-grid an Integral Approach to Long-Term Sustainability 190 1 Introduction Micro-grid Concept and Challenges 191 1.1 Economic Impact 193 1.2 Environmental Impact 195 1.3 Social Impact 195 1.4 Sustainability Impact 197 2 Micro-grids 198 2.1 Operation of Micro-grids 198 2.2 Control of Micro-grids 201 2.3 Control Architectures 202 3 Power Converters in the Micro-grid 205 3.1 Grid-Forming Inverter 205 3.2 Grid-Feeding Inverter 206 3.3 Grid-Supporting Inverter 207 4 Protections 208 4.1 Protective Devices for Micro-grids 211 4.2 MG Protection Techniques 213 4.3 Some Notes on Decentralised Protection 215 4.4 MG Protection Trends 216 5 Recommendation for Implementing MGs in Mexico as the Main Factors Guide 217 5.1 Social Factors 217 5.2 Technical Factors 218 5.3 Economic Factors 218 5.4 Environmental Factors 219 References 219 8 Current Trends and Challenges in Sustainable Generation, Transmission and Distribution of Electricity 222 1 Introduction 223 2 Generation 223 2.1 Thermoelectric Power Plant 224 2.2 Hydroelectric Power Plant 225 2.3 Wind Power Plants 225 2.4 Photovoltaic Power Plant 225 2.5 Current Trends 225 2.6 Energy Storage 227 3 Transmission 228 3.1 Impedance 229 3.2 Stability 230 3.3 Asynchronous Interconnection 230 3.4 Asynchronous Generation 231 3.5 Solution Scenarios 231 4 Distribution 231 4.1 Residential Loads 233 4.2 Commercial Loads 233 4.3 Industrial Loads 234 4.4 Location and Reliability 234 4.5 Distributed Generation and Its Impact in the Grid 235 4.6 Low Inertia 236 4.7 New Loads in Distribution Systems 237 4.8 Non-linear Loads 237 4.9 Electric Vehicles 237 5 Power Electronics 238 5.1 Power Electronics in Generation Systems 238 5.2 Photovoltaic Solar Panels 238 5.3 Wind Turbines 239 5.4 Ocean Wave-Based Generators 239 5.5 Stability Challenge Due to Renewable Energy 240 5.6 The Google’s Little Box Challenge 240 5.7 Power Electronics in Transmission Systems 241 5.8 Power Electronics in Distribution Systems 241 5.9 Wide-Bandgap Semiconductors 242 6 Conclusions and Recommendations 243 References 244 9 Residual Biomass Use for Energy Generation 246 1 Introduction 247 2 Residual Biomass Availability 247 3 Gasification as Initial Processing Technology 250 4 Energy and Chemicals Processing Technologies Based on Syngas Obtained Through Gasification 252 5 Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Residual Biomass 253 6 Case Study of Mexico and Residual Biomass Use for Energy and Chemicals 256 7 Processing Facilities Location 264 8 Conclusions and Recommendations 271 References 276 10 Collaborative Decision-Making Centres for Sustainable Energy 280 1 Introduction 281 1.1 Evidence-Based Decision-Making 283 2 Collaborative Decision-Making Centre Technological Platform 285 2.1 Hardware and Software Components 285 2.2 Integration 287 3 Collaborative Decision-Making Centre Lifecycle 288 3.1 Execution 288 3.2 Visualisation 290 3.3 Facilitation 291 4 CDMC Case: Mexican Electrical Model for Sustainable Energy Decision-Making 292 4.1 Mexican Electric Model Overview and Stakeholders 292 4.2 Model Environment of the Mexican Electricity Sector 293 4.3 Model Key Performance Indicators 294 4.4 Scenarios of the Mexican Electricity Sector Model 297 5 Conclusion 303 References 305 Index 307