FEATURES
Qatar that will contain the largest cluster of Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design-certified buildings in the world: a total of 100 buildings all targeting gold and platinum status.
and A++ have been added for refrigerated appliances. The A+ fridges are at least 25 percent more efficient than Class A models while A++ models can be up to 60 percent more energy efficient.
Energy efficient appliances As the price of power increases, businesses and consumers look for energy efficient appliances The first energy labelling scheme, introduced in the EU over 30 years ago, applied to refrigeration equipment, washing and drying machines, ovens, hot water production and supply, lighting sources and air conditioning devices. This has evolved so that light bulbs, cars and most electrical appliances must carry an Energy Label. The energy efficiency of the product is rated in colourcoded energy levels ranging from A to G where. ‘A’ is the most energy efficient and ‘G’ the least energy efficient. Gradings A+
Electricity storage - the holy grail of renewable energy A disadvantage of wind and power is the intermittent generation. This creates challenges for grid system stability and peak load management. If electricity could somehow be ‘bottled’ this could be used to smooth out some of the uncertainties, improve efficiency and keep costs down. Energy storage technology does exist but in order to make a significant contribution it needs development and investment. Small batteries are in every day use in vehicles, computers, phones, watches, cameras and other appliances but grid-scale use of big batteries is not yet
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mainstream, although development work is underway. A wide range of techniques for storing energy exist. Integrating them into our power infrastructure to work alongside renewable energy needs investment, further development work combined with joined up thinking by renewable energy generators and transmission and distribution operators. Impact of electric vehicles on electricity networks Electric vehicles (EVs) get their power from batteries. They are recharged by plugging them into the power network. They are much cheaper to run than petrol vehicles, but their range and top speeds have been inferior to petrol-powered vehicles and battery charging can take hours. The capital cost of EVs is high but sales are increasing.