Publications (IESVic)

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Investigation of Two-Phase Flow in a Hydrophobic Fuel-Cell Micro-Channel
(Energies, 2019) Ibrahim-Rassoul, N.; Si-Ahmed, E.K.; Serir, A.; Kessi, A.; Legrand, J.; Djilali, N.
This paper presents a quantitative visualization study and a theoretical analysis of two-phase flow relevant to polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) in which liquid water management is critical to performance. Experiments were conducted in an air-flow microchannel with a hydrophobic surface and a side pore through which water was injected to mimic the cathode of a PEMFC. Four distinct flow patterns were identified: liquid bridge (plug), slug/plug, film flow, and water droplet flow under small Weber number conditions. Liquid bridges first evolve with quasi-static properties while remaining pinned; after reaching a critical volume, bridges depart from axisymmetry, block the flow channel, and exhibit lateral oscillations. A model that accounts for capillarity at low Bond number is proposed and shown to successfully predict the morphology, critical liquid volume and evolution of the liquid bridge, including deformation and complete blockage under specific conditions. The generality of the model is also illustrated for flow conditions encountered in the manipulation of polymeric materials and formation of liquid bridges between patterned surfaces. The experiments provide a database for validation of theoretical and computational methods.
Replenishing the Indus Delta through multi-sector transformation
(Frontiers in Environmental Science, 2022) Awais, Muhammad; Vinca, Adriano; Parkinson, Simon; McPherson, Madeleine; Byers, Edwards; Willaarts, Barbara; Muhammad, Abubakr; Riahi, Keywan
The Indus River Basin (IRB) is a severely water-stressed and rapidly developing home to an estimated 250 million people in South Asia. An acute deficit of environmental flows (EFs) in the basin’s delta negatively impacts geomorphology and surrounding ecosystems. Here, a sub-national model of the IRB’s integrated water–energy–land systems is applied to quantify multisector transformations and system costs for enhancing EFs to the Indus Delta. The results show that increasing the average outflows from the basin relative to historical policy levels by 2.5 and 5 times would increase sectoral costs for upstream water users between 17–32 and 68–72% for low and high ecological potential targets. The enhanced EFs result in more energy for pumping and treating water upstream from the delta and a net increase in irrigation and energy investments. The EF policy costs are minimized by 7–14% through cooperation across countries and 6–9% through the coordinated implementation of water efficiency measures in the irrigation, conveyance, power plant cooling, and water treatment sectors. The results underscore the crucial role of a multi-sector, multi-scale collaboration in achieving EF targets in water-stressed river basins for ecosystem adaptation to climate vulnerability, restoration of the delta, and socio-economic benefits.
Cost and capacity requirements of electrification or renewable gas transition options that decarbonize building heating in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia
(Energy Strategy Reviews, 2022) Palmer-Wilson, Kevin; Bryant, Tyler; Wild, Peter; Rowe, Andrew
Northern countries face a unique challenge in decarbonizing heating demands. This study compares two pathways to reduce carbon emissions from building heating by (1) replacing natural gas heaters with electric heat pumps or (2) replacing natural gas with renewable gas. Optimal annual system cost and capacity requirements for Metro Vancouver, Canada are assessed for each pathway, under nine scenarios. Results show that either pathway can be lower cost but the range of costs is more narrow for the renewable gas pathway. System cost is sensitive to heat demand, with colder temperatures favouring the renewable gas pathway and milder temperatures favouring the electrification pathway. These results highlight the need for a better understanding of heating profiles and associated energy system requirements.
Barriers and enablers to the adoption of buildings and energy efficiency initiatives in Greater Victoria
(IESVic Energy Briefs, 2024) Masemann, Charlotte; Krawchenko, Tamara; Rhodes, Ekaterina
Key messages: - Focus group participants identify funding from provincial and federal governments as adequate and as enabling alongside staffing interactions. - Staffing resources, the legislative, regulatory and political environment alongside governance and information and data management were identified as both barriers and enables. - Political will and information exchange enable existing climate action, but municipalities lack of autonomy over the most effective policy instruments.
Residential demand response program modelling to compliment grid composition and changes in energy efficiency
(IESVic Energy Brief, 2024) Seatle, Madeleine; McPherson, Madeleine
Key messages: - Grid composition plays a significant role in residential DR program effectiveness. - Amount of VRE resources on grid impacts how DR potential is utilized. - DR program effectiveness may increase with improved building stock efficiency.
Big government, big trouble? The role of government size in climate policy support
(IESVic Energy Brief, 2024) Andrew, Kevin; Rhodes, Ekaterina
Key messages: - Size of government is studied as a new country-level contextual factor determining citizen support for climate policy. - Larger size-of-government is associated with lower climate policy support. - GDP-per-capita and emissions are positively associated with policy support. - High-tax countries have an aversion to environmental tax increases.
Shifting perceptions on net zero: Growing awareness, polarized views
(IESVic Energy Brief, 2024) Dordi, Truzaar; Rhodes, Ekaterina; Majerbi, Basma; McPherson, Madeleine
Key messages: - News media coverage on net zero and across key stakeholders is increasingly polarized. - Policy design should consider the interests of different stakeholders. - Tailored communications strategies can help build consensus. - Researchers and policymakers should engage with media outlets to promote balanced narratives.
Review of ammonia production and utilization: Enabling clean energy transition and net-zero climate targets
(Energy Conversion and Management, 2024) Ishaq, Haris; Crawford, Curran
In 2015, the Paris agreement was signed by 196 countries in attendance at COP21 that highlighted the need for rapid decarbonization and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and sets ambitions to reach net zero emissions by mid-century. The production of ammonia can contribute to achieving net-zero emissions in several ways including energy storage, clean fuel, industrial applications and carbon capture and utilization (CCU) processes, if produced using renewable energy (RE) sources with very low greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions during production and utilization. This review study highlights the potential of green ammonia production pathways, utilization, ammonia storage and transport, ammonia infrastructure and economy, to serve various roles and provide potential benefits in decarbonizing industry and clean energy transitions to meet net-zero climate targets. Renewable ammonia cannot only help decarbonize existing ammonia markets by displacing fossil fuels, but can also help greening the industrial sector such as fertilizer and chemical industries and accelerate decarbonization in hard-to-abate industries, including retrofit of existing ammonia plants. Ammonia is also expected to be used in the stationary power sector as renewable fuel as the technology matures. It can also play an imperative role as a promising maritime fuel, owing to its zero-emission properties, high energy density and compliance with ever more stringent environmental regulations, transporting RE, in the shipping industry that is one of the largest GHG emitters. Moreover, as a hydrogen carrier, ammonia can deliver industrial feedstocks and enable lower-cost hydrogen imports as compared with renewable hydrogen. Encouraging green ammonia production technologies and near-zero-emission technology progress can guide desirable future pathways for the ammonia industry, including handling important safety considerations of production, storage and end-use.
Assessing the impact of hybrid heating systems in combination with off-peak EV charging on grid capacity requirements
(IESVic Energy Brief, 2025) Knittel, Tamara; Lowry, Colton; Wild, Peter; Rowe, Andrew
Key messages: - Future capacity requirements are driven by electrification of heating and road transportation. - Hybrid heating systems switching from electric to gas heating operations during cold weather events reduce electricity demand for residential space heating. - Electric vehicle charging control can significantly limit capacity requirements of the electricity grid.
Electrification of medium- and heavy-duty road transportation increases grid flexibility requirements
(IESVic Energy Brief, 2024) Knittel, Tamara; Lowry, Colton; Wild, Peter; Rowe, Andrew
Key messages: - Electrification of end-uses changes the shape of electricity demand. - Shape of electricity demand drives electric grid infrastructure needs. - Future ramping rates are driven by electrification of medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. - Electric vehicle charging control can limit capacity and flexibility requirements of the grid.
Assessing the multi-value benefits of transmission expansion
(IESVic Energy Brief, 2024) Seatle, Madeleine; McPherson, Madeleine
Key messages: - Transmission should be seen as much as an adaptation initiative as a mitigation initiative - Interprovincial transmission provides significant reliability improvements to the system - The value of transmission cannot be quantified purely through export revenues

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