Smart energy systems: Transitioning renewables onto the grid

Modern society is dependent on flexible electrical energy, available on demand and at an affordable cost. Most of our electrical energy is produced by converting the carbon stored in coal or natural gas into heat energy and then via a turbine into mechanical energy. But as we increase the amount of less-dispatchable renewable energy into our electrical systems we have to be much smarter about the way we use energy. In the following two articles, we look at how the grid of the future will need to change to accommodate more renewable energy: ▪ Firstly, Professor Peter Crossley and Agnes Beviz of the Joule Centre for Energy Research explain exactly what the Smart Grid concept could mean for renewable energy; ▪ And on page 58, Jose Manuel Angulo and Santiago Arnaltes of Wind to Power System S.L (w2pS), look at some of the problems posed to renewables by stricter grid requirements in places like Spain and Germany, and some of the solutions available. Smart Grids: Low carbon electricity for the future