ESRIG-EES colloquium: Helen Wolter and Maurin Hörler, MSc EES students
| When: | Tu 04-02-2020 16:00 - 17:00 |
| Where: | 5159.0110, Nijenborgh 6 (Energy Academy) |
Speaker | Helen Wolter, MSc EES student.
Title | Dynamics of toxic algal species in relation with environmental drivers in Ambon Bay, Indonesia.
Summary | Harmful algal blooms are an expanding areaof concern for coastal communities around the world. While algae are essentialto all ocean life, and not all blooms are directly toxic, there are a multitudeof instances in which they present a disruption to important ecosystems,especially in coastal communities dependent on aquaculture and fisheries. Toxinsproduced by algae can bioaccumulate in filter feeders and be transferred up thefood chain to result in diarrhetic or paralytic shellfish poisoning in humans. Bloomfrequency, size, and duration have seen increases due to nutrient loading,agriculture and aquaculture changes, overfishing and even ballast waterdischarge. Climate change is also a major factor in algal growth, as risingtemperatures may increase productivity due to increased water column stabilityand thermal stratification. Research conducted over a 10 month period in AmbonBay, Indonesia shows the effect of environmental variables on algal populationsand toxicity within the bay. The region established a monitoring program in2008 following a 1994 outbreak of paralytic shellfish poisoning that resultedin the death of three children due to the species Pyrodinium bahamense. This study focused on Gymnodinium, Gonyaulax, Dinophysis, and Pyrodinium spp. as well as Pseudo-nitzschia sp., a well-known causeof amnesic shellfish poisoning. Environmental factors were studied along withtoxin content to assess how a changing climate could impact the abundance andtoxicity of these species.
Speaker | Maurin Hörler, MSc EES student.
Title | Effects of retrofit measures coupled withheating technologies in the Dutch residential heating sector.
Summary | The Dutchgovernment composed an Energy Agenda emphasizing the measures and policiesrequired to reach an almost carbon-neutral nation by 2050, including emissioncuts of 80-95%. Thereby, sectors with high total energy shares have to decreasetheir emissions drastically. The residential sector represents around 17 % ofthe total energy consumption, responsible for about 38 Mt CO2-eq. emissionsper year. This is due to the fact that 94 % of Dutch households still are connectedto the gas grid for heating purposes. Alternative heating technologies have tobe implemented and/or retrofit measures need to be applied on existinghouseholds. Some heating technologies, such as heat pumps, are only a solutionin well insulated households. This research examines the effects of differentretrofit scenarios coupled with pre-selected heating technologies on thesystems energy performance, emission level and reliability, on an hourly basis.A generic model (Excel) was built which allows to select envelop retrofitmeasures as well as technological retrofit measures. Furthermore, the modelentails climate conditions and allows adjustment of the diurnal heatingpatterns (thermostat set temperature). In a first step, the retrofit scenarioswere analyzed on a reference household. In a second step, different retrofitscenarios coupled with heating technologies were analyzed in a case studywithin the neighborhood of Paddepoel-Noord. The results can help in determinewhich heating technology combined with retrofit measures are most suitable increating a more sustainable residential sector.