Latest Electrical Stories
Hothouse Earth: Our planet has been here before – here’s what it looked likeOctober 30, 2018
Even if carbon emissions are reduced to the Paris 2°C level, changes already afoot in the environment such as melting permafrost and forest die-back could accelerate warming well into the future, potentially pushing our planet into a 'Hothouse Earth' state
New driverless car technology could make traffic lights and speeding tickets obsoleteOctober 30, 2018
Pair of studies outline innovations that will improve co-ordination of traffic patterns and save fuel
Large-scale US wind power would cause warming that would take roughly a century to offsetOctober 16, 2018
<Extracting energy from wind causes climatic impacts that are small compared to 21st century warming forecasts, but large compared to the effect of cutting US electricity emissions to zero with solar
A new path to solving a longstanding fusion challengeOctober 16, 2018
Novel design could help shed excess heat in next-generation fusion power plants
Charting the Earth’s future for the 21st centuryOctober 16, 2018
MIT report highlights challenges and opportunities for conserving natural resources and stabilising the climate
Transforming the water industry in Ireland – a local authority perspectiveOctober 2, 2018
Possibly the greatest challenge facing the water industry – comprising Irish Water and the 31 local authorities – at present is maintaining the resilience of service to customers, writes Kerry County Council's John Kennelly
Free public transport doesn’t add up – unless you get rid of the driversOctober 2, 2018
Public transit systems, as we know them today, would struggle to deliver a sustainable free service – but there’s a real possibility that the autonomous vehicles of tomorrow could do just that, writes John Disney
How to score an A+ grade for excellent CHP specificationOctober 2, 2018
The effectiveness of a CHP system depends in large part on the preparation time and effort spent on ensuring accurate specification, writes John Hyde
Why an EU-wide supergrid has the wind in its sailsSeptember 18, 2018
The supergrid can be thought of as an EU-wide hub networked transmission grid which extends existing national island systems into a continental system, write Marcos Byrne and Eddie O'Connor
Delivering natural flood management in ScotlandSeptember 18, 2018
There has been increasing interest in more sustainable approaches to flood risk management that can complement existing defences and increase their resilience and adaptability to climate change, writes Heather Forbes
The new Tesla Semi electric truck: A pre-production reviewSeptember 18, 2018
Electric trucks are the latest thing in the electric vehicle (EV) sector, with the loudest noise being made by Tesla with its Tesla Semi, writes Robin Whitlock
A power system in transitionSeptember 4, 2018
An EirGrid/Electric Ireland pilot project will help determine how residential Demand Side Management can be fully utilised in a future energy or services market, contributing to the facilitation of renewable energy
Why electrical engineering is fundamental in green buildingsSeptember 4, 2018
Making all building systems electrical only makes sense if generation relies less on fossil fuels and more on green sources such as hydroelectricity, solar PV arrays and wind turbines combined with energy storage
Global warming may be twice what climate models predictSeptember 4, 2018
Past warming events suggest climate models fail to capture true warming under business-as-usual scenarios
Energy storage to unlock the opportunity of indigenous renewables for IrelandAugust 7, 2018
Ireland has the potential to become a world leader in operating a renewables-based island electricity system, backed up by batteries to provide the essential system stability
Turning the dial on home heating behaviours: Are smart heating controls effective in changing home energy use?August 7, 2018
There may be potential for moderate savings from the installation of smart heating controls in Ireland, but we need to validate this with a strong impact evaluation, preferably in the form of a randomised control trial
The US natural gas industry is leaking way more methane than previously thought. Here’s why that mattersAugust 7, 2018
Producing and transporting natural gas releases methane, a greenhouse gas that also contributes to climate change. How big is the methane problem?, ask Anthony J Marchese and Dan Zimmerle of Colorado State University
In the eye of the storm: ESB Networks ops manager’s Ophelia storyJuly 24, 2018
The key element of the emergency plan is to place people in predefined positions to look after specific aspects of the response, and the lessons learnt from Storm Darwin and implemented in time for Ophelia proved effective, writes Derek Hynes
New York State energy storage roadmap: A brief overviewJuly 24, 2018
New York State revealed its Energy Storage Roadmap in June 2018, which sets the ambitious goal of deploying 1,500 MW of storage capacity throughout the state by 2025, writes Jahnavi Sajip
Three tips for testing cablingJuly 24, 2018
Matt Collins, of Ide Systems, explains what engineers should look for when testing electrical cabling