Category Archives: Renewable Energy

Designing Safer Solar Arrays: A Practical Guide to DC Isolation

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Solar projects in hot, dusty, and high-irradiance regions place unusual demands on direct-current switching equipment. A rooftop or ground-mounted array may operate for decades while its disconnects face ultraviolet exposure, temperature cycling, airborne dust, humidity, and repeated maintenance activity. Choosing the correct DC isolation device is therefore both an electrical-safety decision and a long-term reliability decision. What a solar DC isolator actually does A DC isolator, also called a DC disconnect in some markets, separates a section of the photovoltaic array from downstream equipment. It gives technicians a controlled way to de-energize conductors for inspection, inverter replacement, emergency response, or … Continue reading →

Renewable Energy Investment in Jordan

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Jordan has tremendous wind, solar and biomass energy potential which can only be realized by large-scale investments. In 2007, the Government of Jordan developed an integrated and comprehensive Energy Master Plan. Renewable energy accounted for only 1% of the energy consumption in Jordan in 2007. However, ambitious targets have been set in the Master Plan to raise the share to 7% in 2015 and 10% in 2020. This transition from conventional fuels to renewable energy resources will require capital investments, technology transfer and human resources development, through a package of investments estimated at US $ 1.4 – 2.2 billion. The … Continue reading →

Agricultural Biomass Resources in the MENA Countries

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Agriculture plays an important role in the economies of most of the countries in the Middle East and North Africa region.  Despite the fact that MENA is the most water-scarce and dry region in the world, many countries in the region, especially those around the Mediterranean Sea, are highly dependent on agriculture. The contribution of the agricultural sector to the overall economy varies significantly among countries in the region, ranging, for example, from about 3.2 percent in Saudi Arabia to 13.4 percent in Egypt.  Large scale irrigation coupled with mechanization has enabled extensive production of high-value cash crops, including fruits, … Continue reading →

What are Biofuels: Things You Should Know

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Biofuel refers to liquid or gaseous fuels that are predominantly produced from biomass. A variety of fuels can be produced from biomass resources including liquid fuels, such as ethanol, methanol, biodiesel, Fischer-Tropsch diesel, and gaseous fuels, such as hydrogen and methane. Resource Base for Biofuels Production The biomass resource base for biofuels production is composed of a wide variety of forestry and agricultural resources, industrial processing residues, municipal solid wastes and urban wood residues. The agricultural resources include grains used for biofuels production, animal manures and residues, and crop residues derived primarily from corn and small grains (e.g., wheat straw). … Continue reading →

Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) – Fuel Pellets from Solid Wastes

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Municipal solid waste is a poor-quality fuel and its pre-processing is necessary to convert it into fuel pellets to improve its consistency, storage properties, handling characteristics, combustion behaviour and calorific value. Technological improvements are taking place in the realms of advanced source separation of MSW, resource recovery and production of RDF pellets in both existing and new plants for this purpose. There has been an increase in global interest in the preparation of MSW fuel pellets or Refuse Derived Fuel (or RDF) so let us take a close look at this interesting alternative fuel. RDF Manufacturing Process Pelletization of municipal … Continue reading →

Waste-to-Energy Outlook for the Middle East

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High-income Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait are counted as world’s largest waste producers in terms of per capita waste generation which is more than 2kg per day in some countries. The urban waste generation from the region has now crossed 150 million tons per year which has forced policy-makers and urban planners to seriously look for sustainable waste management solutions, including recycling and waste-to-energy. Let us take a look at solid waste generation in major countries across the Middle East region: Country MSW Generation (million tons per annum) Saudi Arabia 15 United Arab Emirates … Continue reading →

جامعات خضراء في فلسطين

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بدأت الجامعات الفلسطينية بربط النظربات العلمية التي تدرس في مساقاتها وبرامجها الاكاديمية  بالواقع العملي وحيث بدأت الجانعات الفلسطينية وبتميل من مؤسسات مجلية ودولية باستغلال اللطاقة البديلة من الشمس لتوليد الكهرباء باستخدام تقنية اللوحات الكهروضوئية لانتاج الطاقة الكهربائية والتي تساعد في  توفير استهلاك الكهرباء الذي يشغل جميع أبنية وقاعات ومراكز الجامعات بالطاقة لتوفير وذلك لتوفير الجو التعليمي المناسب لطلبتها  . وتأتي هذه الخطوة الريادية من قبل الجامعات الفلسطينية لتوفير استهلاك الكهرباء بحيث تكون مبان الجامعات أكثر صداقة للبيئة وتقلل ميزانية المدفوعات التي يتم دفعها ثمناً لاستهلاك الكهرباء والوقود واستغلالها بدعم برامج وأبحاث جديدة تساعد في تنمية مهارات طلبتها . كما أن … Continue reading →

Biomass Energy Potential in the Middle East

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The major biomass producing countries in the Middle East are Egypt, Yemen, Iraq, Syria and Jordan. Traditionally, biomass energy has been widely used in rural areas for domestic energy purposes in the Middle East region, especially in Egypt, Yemen and Jordan. Since most of the region is arid or semi-arid, the biomass energy potential is mainly contributed by municipal solid wastes, agricultural residues and industrial wastes. According to conservative estimates, the potential of biomass energy in the MENA region is about 400TWh per year. Municipal solid wastes represent the best source of biomass in Middle East countries. Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, … Continue reading →

Why Solar Energy is the Best Option For Your Home

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Light from the sun can produce energy that powers an entire home. Solar panels use the most powerful but free energy source in nature. Solar energy is a renewable source. It reduces the carbon footprint of your home. Your electricity bills can greatly reduce after installing solar panels. There can be complete riddance from them if solar energy is the sole electricity source. Once that investment is made, you can save a lot on regular expenditures. However, is this the best solution for your home? Let’s find out if it is the best option for your home among rising electricity … Continue reading →

What are the Popular Sources of Biofuels

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As the world seeks more and more ways to create eco-friendly energy sources, biofuels seem to be the only answer. Over the last few years, biofuels have been praised as being the best alternative to our fossil fuel crazy world. This is because they do not pollute the environment as much as the current fuel sources. Further, they are much cheaper. Biofuels are produced from the following major sources. Used cooking oil This is one of the most popular sources of biofuels. Why? Cooking oil is much easier to find. This is because it is used in a large number … Continue reading →

Why a Solar Pond Heater is Essential for Cold-Weather Pond Care

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Winter has a habit of turning a calm, attractive pond into a far more demanding system. A pond that seemed balanced in autumn can become vulnerable once temperatures fall, ice begins to form, and snow reduces light at the surface. For homeowners with ornamental ponds, koi keepers, estate managers, and landowners responsible for fish health, cold-weather pond care is not just about keeping the water looking neat. It’s about protecting water quality and giving the pond a safer chance of making it through the season intact. That’s where a solar pond heater plays an important role in winter pond management. … Continue reading →

Geothermal Energy for Greenhouse Agriculture: Lessons from the Netherlands for MENA

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The Middle East and North Africa region faces a paradox at the heart of its food future. With more than 70% of the region’s food needs met by imports, climate change accelerating water stress, and over half the population living in countries classified as water-scarce, the case for local food production has never been stronger. Yet conventional open-field agriculture in MENA is brutally water-intensive and increasingly unviable as temperatures rise. Controlled-environment agriculture, and high-tech greenhouses in particular, is widely seen as part of the answer. Greenhouses can cut water consumption by up to 90% compared to open-field farming, enable year-round … Continue reading →